The year is coming to a close, and a host of new champions have arisen for each of our Organized Play games. Over the next few weeks, we’ll be highlighting the accomplishments of these champions and induct new victors into the FFG Hall of Heroes. To that end, Fantasy Flight is proud to induct Oliver Franke into the Hall of Heroes as the 2013 Warhammer: Invasion The Card Game World Champion!

Oliver has played Warhammer: Invasion since it was first released, organizing a local play group around his home in Hamburg, Germany, and attending tournaments throughout Europe. Oliver quickly established himself as one of the game’s foremost players, placing in the German National Championships every year since 2010 and taking second place in last year’s World Championships. This year, however, Oliver attained the highest honor for Warhammer: Invasion, as his Orc hordes ran rampant across the Old World.

The Field of Battle

The battle for the Old World was hotly contested at this year’s World Championships, featuring a diverse field in which no single race was a clear favorite. The semi-finals featured Oliver Franke’s Orcs, an Empire army, and two Dark Elf mill decks. Both Dark Elf decks were defeated in the semifinals, however, and Oliver moved on to the final match, pitting his Orcs against Polish Champion Jakub Serafin and his Empire combo deck. Ultimately, Oliver’s Orc armies stormed the field, burnt the Empire, and claimed victory for the greenskins.

Oliver played exceptionally at the World Championships, and you can read about how he prepares for tournaments below.

A Champion’s Perspective

Every race has its own special strengths. All of them are a lot of fun and testing every faction gives a player a wide spectrum of possibilities for playing this game. At tournaments I play the deck type and race that performed best in the testings.

My preparation for big tournaments usually starts by thinking about the current strongest one or two decks that each race can create. I build these decks and play five to ten matches with each deck, one against each other. In the end, there is usually a deck that won altogether more than the rest. I add a few cards to this deck to answer the expected meta, and the deck is done.

Clashing Armies

With his excellent performance at this year’s World Championship Weekend, Oliver earned a place among the other champions of Warhammer: Invasion The Card Game. For Oliver’s perspective on the 2013 World Championship and his high-caliber deck list, visit his place of honor in the Hall of Heroes.