In a recent twist of event, Eladrin found himself qualifying for the EURO Contenders Cup by the skin of his teeth despite a series of mishaps and unfortunate events! He has definitely pushed through the odds and earned his spot in the EU Shadowverse Open. 

You are no stranger to the competitive card game scene. Tell us about your background, and how you got into competitive esports?

Eladrin:  I’ve been playing card games since I was 7, started with Magic: The Gathering like most competitive players in Poland and qualified for a few Pro Tours back in the day. I also played some Hearthstone and won the National Hearthstone Championship in 2016 before quitting the game and now I’m here, flipping coins in yet another card game.

That’s a pretty impressive background, what is your general strategy performing in these tournaments?

Eladrin: In general, I like to look for unorthodox strategies that people may not be aware of or do not have much experience playing against. I felt like that wouldn’t have worked this past year in Shadowverse. Most top decks were just kind of “autofill” the best synergy cards from the most powerful classes.

A very interesting take on tournament strategies. Once again, congratulations on qualifying for the Contender’s Cup. The road was a pretty tough one, with you making it through with the skin of your teeth. Care to walk us through how did you manage to persevere through?

Eladrin: It was pure luck and coincidence, all thanks to Himari for winning yet another SVO! Although I’d have also qualified if Den, Hishiro or Cookie won. Even though I went 3 Wins 4 Losses in the last 2 tournaments, I should’ve had a minimum +2 points from the March SVO’s semi-finals where my client crashed (it was the week when a lot of people had problem with the game due to the engine change) in a game that was 100% guaranteed win. I didn’t have much time to prepare in the last 3 months so I just got some advice and copied decks that my teammates recommended. I got pretty busy with real-life stuff in recent months. Being an adult sucks sometimes. xD

Sometimes, reality can be harsh. On a brighter note, is there anything you looking forward to in the next Shadowverse expansion?

Eladrin: More interactive cards, lesser snowball mechanics, less almost auto-win enabling cards, real aggro decks, good board clears. But I guess most of that is not happening just yet in Verdant Conflict : ).

What advice do you have for others hoping to follow in your footsteps and break into E-sports? 

Eladrin: If you don’t have a true passion for the game, don’t. You’ll end up playing the game just because you like the feeling of winning, like me. This question is kinda weird because I never felt like card games were true esports material. You don’t need any mechanical skill to compete and luck can be a huge factor. On the other hand, it’s not that hard to get decently good pretty quick in this genre if you pick things up pretty fast.