Octi 6x7 Match 2004: Casbah vs. Testme2
Best of 5 Tournament. First two games played at 2 hours apiece.
Last three games played at 30 minutes apiece.

Game 1:

http://www.octi-online.com/index.py?action=archive&view=2253&start=20

A quick strike by casbah and sluggish defense by testme2 allows
casbah to
run up the right flank, pinning down testme2's pieces long enough to
allow
casbah's reserves to finish the job.

Casbah goes up 1-0

Game 2:

http://www.octi-online.com/index.py?action=archive&view=2256&start=10

A strange game in which Casbah again launched a solo attack with a
single
piece, this time as player 2. To make things even more odd, it
charged
into the teeth of testme2's defense and effectively conceded defeat
on
turn 16.

Game 3:

http://www.octi-online.com/index.py?action=archive&view=2261&start=10

Casbah again charges from the corner as player 2, but this time the
bold move to the center seems to confuse testme2, which seems
content to slowly develop three pieces. Casbah is able to settle
down into a stable T formation and draws testme2 into a trap on move
17. Testme2's advance proves costly. Short on both tempo and
pieces, testme2 is gradually overwhelmed by Casbah's 4 piece
formation. Casbah leads 2-1.


Game 4:

http://www.octi-online.com/index.py?action=archive&view=2262&start=10

Games 1 and 3 showed that Casbah was capable of winning as either
player 1 or player 2. What could have been the clinching game put
Casbah in the position of playing first, which seemed to work to its
quick-attack proclivities. This time, however, Casbah made a mess of
it, hanging his maing piece on 54 while Testme2 patiently turned up
the heat by building up a three-pod formation. Eventually, Casbah
settled for an exchange, which allowed testme2 to set of an elegance
offense/defense that immediately captured Casbah's only armed piece.
The flanking attack in Game 5 was a pale imitation of the deft attack
in Game 1. Series tied at 2-2.

Game 5:

http://www.octi-online.com/index.py?action=archive&view=2264&start=10

So it all came down to Game 5. Casbah, playing first, as usual
opened from the corner and quickly advanced to 43. But this time,
Casbah paused to develop the pod at 22, which seemed out of touch
with the rest of the formation. Testme2 sealed off Casbah's advance
with a move to 45. Instead of solidifying its position with 43-33
(using its E prong to defend its right flank), Casbah advanced the
pod at 22-33. This pod would become an increasing liability as
testme2's back lines patiently built offensive capability.
Eventually, Casbah was forced to try a gambit of 33-42. Under other
circumstances, this move would have been a springboard for the pod at
43, but here it resulted in capture and no gain in tempo. Testme2
uses its materiel and positional advantage to close in on what
remains of Casbah's position.

Testme2 wins the tournament 3-2.