i just played some of the closest, most tense q3 duels evarr on q3de_dust1 aka ospdm8. my final iqool group fixture... vs spaceman. i knew it would be a tricky fixture, since he surprised me earlier on in the league and upset my predictions by beating dyna.

we played my map first, an easy win for me on t4. so i was relaxed, and confident as we moved to ospdm8. knowing his games vs vincent were fairly low scoring 11-4ish wins for "the cunt from kildare", i was well prepared for a 10min game of cs. i wasn't too surprised when i lost 6-3, since i didn't play very well tactically, and i missed the tele-jump every time.

the decider: ospdm8. i knew i could do it this time around, i was familiar with his style, i knew where i could improve, i was going to time mega, get ra's, but not be too kamikaze at ra because i don't want to lose any advantage i have. (always aware of the wise words of overlord "if you have the advantage, don't lose it"). but this time around i was surprised, i was brought right back to the days of =lf= and [f2b] on cs_italy, and spent most of the map frustratedly trying to regain the 2 frags i lost early on. 4-2 to him with a minute and a half remaining, and one flukey bit of skill broke his stride, and i was back in the game. i managed to compose myself and draw level just in time for sudden death. now i was in control, but he spawned at mega side, so he was soon fattened up also. but i was confident: i had my rl, armour, and plenty of health, and when i heard him go up the bouncepad, i was ready to move in for the kill. but when i turned the corner, i discovered his secret weapon.. the ability to fly!!! that, or his computer crashed.. either way the game was over and we had to play it again.

third time lucky... or so i hoped. i was completely sick of this map where every game ends up insanely tense. i knew what i was in for this time around, and i knew how to combat it. camp, run away, stay elevated, fatten up, and snatch a frag when i got the chance. unfortunately, spaceman had the same idea. and he snatched the first frag. and so for awhile, everywhere i went, he had already been there. ra, mega, rl, and even ya held traces of his passing. shards missing, no armour, discarded kevlar or defusal kit. but i got my chance, and i took the resulting spawn also, and so with 6 minutes gone i was winning 2-1. having learned from my mistakes, i was not going to lose this lead. i was going to play like an utter cunt, and let the game finish 2-1 to me. and for minutes i ran around the map with 150h and 150 armour, mocking my opponent from a distance railing him as he took ra, spamming entrances to mega, but never engaging. and it worked, until i got cocky. i saw an opportunity to finish him off, and i took it, losing a lot of health in the process. i was up 3-1, but my routine was damaged, and that is where i slipped up.

in the 9th minute, he drew level. 9:30, 3-3. but in my tired, tortured, battered, mega-timing mind i didn't realise this. i thought he was in the lead. so i attacked like a q3 player. i went after him with rail. i ran after him with 9h and no armour, him fat as a walrus. and somehow i survived until i realised that i wasn't losing. and i held on until sudden death. and i got a ra. and then i went for mega. mega was there, my salvation. but he dropped from above. i can't say for sure what happened in the few seconds after that, but i know that i was the one who got the mega, and he was the one who ended up dead. 4-3, the final score. and his wife was timing mega for him!!!