Ladies and Gentlemen, we have a winner!

by Scott Dickie

The matches have been played and the points have been tallied. The TRC recently completed the first Netrunner World Championship, World Domination '98. Those who were lucky enough to qualify during Gridlock Weekend II this last February all faced off in cyberspace, with the championship of the world hanging in the balance.

The players all met on the virtual field of battle, Internet Relay Chat (IRC). The 48 top qualifiers armed themselves with their best Gridlock decks and faced off in groups of four for an elimination round. Each group sent their best representative to the finals round, a four-round, Swiss-style tournament between the final 12 players.

After the cyberdust had settled, one man was left standing. Tobin Lopes of Fort Collins, Colorado, claimed his position as the first Netrunner World Champion. Tobin was followed up by Dave Bartholow (also from Fort Collins) in second place, Scott Zarcensky in third, and Martin Mueller in fourth place. For his troubles, Tobin walked away with a complete set of Netrunner cards and the coveted Reflections II trophy (not to mention the curse of being the newest "player to beat").

Plans are just starting for World Domination '99. A meatspace tournament has not yet been ruled out. Let's all keep our fingers crossed!