Inside The Upside’s 2k

About this episode

The episode recaps The Upside's first-ever $2K Lorcana tournament, highlighting key moments and insights from the event.

In this special tournament recap episode of Happy Questing , Danny Tripodi is joined by Upside co-founders Andrew Buchmann and Brandon Barba to relive every twist, turn, and top deck from The Upside’s first-ever $2K Lorcana tournament in Solvay, NY. From deck diversity and spicy top 8 tech, to unexpected mind games and tournament format insights, the crew breaks down what made this 30-player event unforgettable—including highlights from Ivan Annamaria’s championship run and why "for the players, by the players" wasn’t just a motto—it was the mission. You’ll hear about the meta breakdown, standout decklists, strategic plays, the power of best-of-two Swiss rounds, and how this grassroots effort united communities from across Upstate New York. Whether you're a seasoned Illumineer or just love a good underdog story, this is an episode you won't want to miss.

People in this episode

Host: Danny Tripodi

Guests: Andrew Buchmann, Brandon Barba

Topics covered

• tournament recap
• Lorcana
• deck diversity
• community building
• strategic plays
• meta breakdown

Keywords

• Lorcana
• tournament
• decklists
• meta
• community
• strategies
• best-of-two Swiss rounds

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: The Upside

Places: Solvay, NY

More episodes of The Upside | Happy Questing

• Vegas CCQ Recap: Ben Ramos in Top 8! Plus Set 12 Hype!! · April 28, 2026 · 57 min
• Luke Campbell’s Big Win in Pittsburgh · March 21, 2026 · 47 min
• Back in the Saddle: DLC Richmond Lessons + Winterspell Pre-Release Predictions · February 13, 2026 · 1h 12m
• The Upside of Set Champs · August 8, 2025 · 1h 5m
• Master of All Inks · July 12, 2025 · 58 min
• The Josh Adams Experience · May 14, 2025 · 48 min