DCC Open 2022 Return to the Starless Sea Tournament Results
At Gen Con 2022, Goodman Games returned in person to run our largest DCC RPG team tournament to date, Return to the Starless Sea. This year’s tournament saw a record 198 players across 47 teams compete in the team funnel tournament format – where five player teams consisted of multiple 0-level PCs controlled by each player. Over the course of three days and two hard-fought rounds, over a thousand gongfarmers fell to the deadly traps, chaotic combat, and multiple paths that made up this year’s adventure, and a number of teams were wiped out in TPKs before team I Haven’t Had Enough Coffee for This! emerged as the champions.
We now present the official tournament stats, including all the judges, rooms and authors that contributed to this year’s amazing event.
Round 1 Results
Unlike previous years, this year’s adventure was designed such that teams in each flight during Round 1 had a slightly different path through the adventure to reach the center of the restored chaos keep. There are up to five alternative paths that can be taken, making it less likely that teams in Round 1 would experience the same content. Each path includes a different unique encounter in area 1-3, and teams could even choose to ignore the ghostly apparitions guiding them towards the most direct path to the center of the keep to wander off and encounter alternative areas – many to their own peril!
Each path into the keep is roughly mathematically equivalent and therefore fair in a tournament environment. Even so, at Gen Con, teams were competing only with other teams in the same flight for the top spot to guarantee advancement, ensuring that results were not being compared across flight. Below are the final Round 1 results broken out by team by flight.
Round 1, Flight 1 Results (Route 1-3A)
| Place | Team | Flight Score | Players | Judge |
| 1 (Advancing Team) | Take Off Every Ziggurat | 116 | Michael Markey Gavin Markey Jason Cefaratti Dwayne Schueller |
Tim Deschene |
| 2 (Alternate) | The Ross Grinvalds Experience | 114 | Matt Free Paul Romer Jason Kehoe Tyler Hodge Matt Lindgren |
Jeff Regner |
| 3 | Holy Rollers | 107 | Matt Getz Mike Lott Nolan Fulks |
Yamil Camacho |
| 4 | Litches Get Stitches | 96 | Darryl Louth David Cambell Joe Wagle Mike Bannister Chris Gallivan |
Alan Keim |
| 5 | Wasted Effort | 94 | Joe Batka Matt Batka Jim Batlee Tristan Pozenel James Pozenel |
Jody Whittle |
| 6 | Holy Water Kegstand | 83 | Alex Saccacino Brendan Stassel Nolan Oliver Chris Hazel |
Sean Smith |
| 7 | Critical Fail | 74 | Jonathan Mariel Ross Jordan Jason |
Haley Skach |
| 8 | Peasants Power the Fiend Fodder | 74 | Jesse Bergstrom Abram Bergstrom Matthias Bergstrom George Roehr Russell Rogge |
Jason Stierle |
| 9 | Fire for Effect | 39* | Shaun Pierson Tim Zaletel Eric Stainbrook Edward Mikkelsen Nora Figg |
Michael Grant |
| 10 | Hammertoes | 35* | Martin Buiniki Thad Donovan Hayden Hodge Lance Hodge Ryan Potter Shaun Pierson |
Jim Skach |
* Games that had at least one TPK
Round 1, Flight 2 Results (Route 1-3B*)
| Place | Team | Flight Score | Players | Judge |
| 1 (Advancing Team) | The Live Stock | 105 | Robert Kenyon Keith Haddad Frankie Ferrell Alex Schiebner Jenny Schiebner |
Brian Escobar |
| 2 (Alternate) | Barflies | 102 | Jon Diemunsch Jonathan Von Duke Josh Deheart Max Day |
Casey Gores |
| 3 | Three Squires and a Wheel | 101 | Jane Ritt Kevin Johnson Evan Ritt Jacob Britz Sanjay Kumar |
John Roberts |
| 4 | Los Hermanos Jabronis | 88 | Morgan Gonzalez Dan Bastin Colin Murphree Ian Murphree Lucian Murphree |
Haley Skach |
| 5 | Joan’s Juggernauts | 79 | Ian Servaas Spencer Zimmerman Daniel Axe William Mahaffey Logan Sackey |
Joan Troyer |
| 6 | Mighty Gyros | 56 | Ken Winland Patrick Kelleher James Kelleher Ian |
Mark Wolf |
| 7 | Reasonably Fettered | 25 | Corey Arnold Phillip Robinette Jordon Starks Lily Snyder John Murphree |
Harley Stroh |
| 8 | Traveling Hillbillies | 24** | Shawn Bryant Danny Zirkle |
Alaric Legler |
| 9 | Team TPK | 20 | Allen Martin Rich Saum Andy Sadler Luke Clinton Caleb Donoho |
Brian Jeffries |
| 10 | The Lords of Sarcasm: ESWM | -4** | Jason Riddell Fred Daily Patrick Biddix Nathaniel Garth Yorkus Rex |
Jim Skach |
* First time this encounter was used in a formal tournament event
** Games that had at least one TPK
Round 1, Flight 3 Results (Route 1-3C)
| Place | Team | Round Score | Players | Judge |
| 1 (Advancing Team) | I Haven’t Had Enough Coffee For This! | 99 | Jan Pierskalla Mike Kenyon Roger Penny Chris Dissette Tom Colley |
Harley Stroh |
| 2 (Alternate) | Dr. Thunder’s One-Shot Wonders | 90 | Jonathan Himes Mariko English Ricky White Scott Turns Brandon Mace |
Jason Stierle |
| 3 | Team Pancake | 88 | Anthony Wagner Ben Wagner James Simmons Scott Joest Noah Joest |
James Pozenel |
| 4 | Four Halflings in a Trenchcoat | 84 | Brad Black Garrick Andrus Alan Fishman Brad Keusch |
Tim Deschene |
| 5 | The Lone Wolves | 79 | Christian Sorrell Xuan Stanek Michael Grant |
James Walls |
| 6 | The Hamburgered Helpers | 69 | Lech Kazmirski Reba Day Lucas Vaughn Derek Apfel Chris Schatzman |
Jon Carnes |
Round 1, Flight 4 Results (Route 1-3D)
| Place | Team | Flight Score | Players | Judge |
| 1 (Advancing Team) | Presumptuous Peasants | 110 | John Sureck Luke Veltum Glen Veltum |
Casey Gores |
| 2 (Alternate) | The Broken Melons | 105 | Rick Blaha Jerry Burns Tom Armellino |
Tim Deschene |
| 3 | Out of Towners | 94 | Kalin Kadiev Marc Talbot Nacho Sevilla |
Alaric Legler |
| 4 | Ache 4 Adventure | 92 | Mark Anderson Zack Wills Jeremy Earl |
Haley Skach |
| 5 | We are the Cannon Fodder | 91 | Ron Hornbeck Graham Hornbeck Corrine Hornbeck CJ Gaver |
Alan Keim |
| 6 | Indefatigable Rabble | 88 | Tory Digaetano Jonathan Garrison Benjamin Feehan |
Davin Kluttz |
| 7 | Vice Squad | 82 | John Neireiter Andrew Danhauer Rob Collins Zack Starkey Joshua Swanson |
Brian Jeffries |
| 8 | Chuck it in the Bin | 76 | Will Nevis Ashley Chaney Ozzy Chaney |
Michael Grant |
| 9 | The Yetis | 53 | John Cantrell Jeff Finke John Mcree |
Eric Daum |
| 10 | Killing Spree 3 | 11 | Dani Vasquez Jordan Felder Mike Northcraft |
Mark Wolf |
| 11 | Team Delicious Viciousness | -13* | Andrew Russell Billy Mickelson Cassandra Currier |
Jim Skach |
* Games that had at least one TPK
Round 1, Flight 5 Results (Route 1-3E*)
| Place | Team | Flight Score | Players | Judge |
| 1 (Advancing Team) | Team Don’t Die | 111 | Kaney Cowart Beau Brooks Josh Dukon Justin Peart Geoff Peart |
Tim Deschene |
| 2 (Alternate) | G3 Boardroom | 97 | Matthew Kant David Slusser Jason Brink Jason Dale |
James Pozenel |
| 3 | Whiskey Rebellion | 95 | Curtis Carey Katie Butram Jacob Lingwall Daniel Tuchtenhagen Ray Albrecht |
Brian Escobar |
| 4 | The Wooden Pigs | 86 | Josh Torres Marcus Nucci Nicolas Nucci Gavin Torres |
Alaric Legler |
| 5 | Beat_les | 80 | Jeff Van Horn Jeremy Patten Meghann Patten Jonah Patten |
Joan Troyer |
| 6 | The Dungbeetles | 71 | Mathew Ward Matt Morrison Max Estrada Justin Belhumeur |
Adam Bokhari |
| 7 | Crimson Crushers | 66 | Adam Carbonneau William Galor Mike Callock Wyatt Wilfong Derek Carbonneau |
John Roberts |
| 8 | Lucky Strikes | 65 | JR Byrum Vinnie Vasquez Mark Ballentine Aidan Ballentine |
Jim Skach |
| 9 | Peter Better than Daniel | 49 | Daniel Parks Peter Pham Kyle Cubrera Bob Sloma Tony Wolff |
Davin Kluttz |
| 10 | Arrow Sponges | 30** | Tim Stephens Alex Donald Max Fairlamb Stephen Copeland |
Haley Skach |
* First time this encounter was used in a formal tournament event
** Games that had at least one TPK
Round 2 Results*
| Place | Team | Round Score | Players | Judge |
| 1 | I Haven’t Had Enough Coffee for This! | 110 | Jan Pierskalla Mike Kenyon Roger Penny Chris Dissette Tom Colley |
Tim Deschene |
| 2 | The Live Stock | 96 | Robert Kenyon Keith Haddad Frankie Ferrell Alex Schiebner Jenny Schiebner |
Eric Daum |
| 3 | Take Off Every Ziggurat | 12** | Michael Markey Gavin Markey Jason Cefaratti Rick Blaha*** |
Harley Stroh |
| 4 | Team Don’t Die | -16** | Kaney Cowart Beau Brooks Josh Dukon |
Haley Skach |
| 5 | Presumptuous Peasants | -41** | John Sureck Luke Veltum Glen Veltum Scott Turns*** |
Jim Skach |
* While the top three teams made it to the final encounter, only one team managed to finish Round 2, the winning team, I Haven’t Had Enough Coffee for This!
** Games that ended in a TPK.
*** Designates players from one of the first round alternate teams that joined an advancing team in the finals.
Deadliest Round
| Round | Ratio of Fatalities to Total Number of PCs | Total PC Fatalities* | Total PCs |
| 2 | 1.6:1 | 33 | 21 |
| 1 | 1.4:1 | 2460 | 1759 |
* “Total PC Fatalities” includes both the total number of times a PC reached 0 hp and the number of PCs that bled out. For 0-level PCs, a death is counted as both reaching 0 hp and bleeding out to allow for direct comparison to previous tournaments.
TPKs by Round and Judge
| Round | TPKs | Teams | TPK % | Top TPK Judges |
| 1 | 7 | 47 | 15% | Haley Skach (3) |
| 2 | 3 | 5 | 60% | Tie – Harley Stroh, Jim Skach, and Haley Skach (1) |
Deadliest Rooms by Round
| Round | Room | Author | % of Total PC Fatalities in Round |
| 1 | Area 1-1 – Through the Breach! | Terry Olson | 24% |
| 2 | Area 2-11 – Finale at the Ziggurat | Terry Olson | 48% |
Deadliest Judges
| Judge | Ratio of Fatalities to Total Number of Players | Total PC Fatalities | Total PCs |
| Jim Skach | 1.75 | 265 | 151 |
| Brian Escobar* | 1.71 | 130 | 76 |
| Jody Whittle* | 1.60 | 64 | 40 |
| Alaric Legler* | 1.56 | 134 | 86 |
| Haley Skach | 1.55 | 272 | 175 |
| Michael Grant* | 1.54 | 134 | 87 |
| James Walls | 1.52 | 70 | 46 |
| Mark Wolf* | 1.49 | 110 | 74 |
| Davin Kluttz* | 1.45 | 94 | 65 |
| Adam Bokhari* | 1.44 | 52 | 36 |
| Casey Gores* | 1.44 | 82 | 57 |
| Harley Stroh | 1.42 | 132 | 93 |
| Tim Deschene | 1.41 | 178 | 126 |
| James Pozenel | 1.40 | 118 | 84 |
| Jon Carnes* | 1.38 | 66 | 48 |
| Jason Stierle* | 1.23 | 100 | 81 |
| Joan Troyer* | 1.23 | 106 | 86 |
| Jeff Regner* | 1.21 | 34 | 28 |
| John Roberts* | 1.17 | 90 | 77 |
| Sean Smith* | 1.13 | 60 | 53 |
| Brian Jeffries* | 1.12 | 84 | 75 |
| Alan Keim* | 1.05 | 68 | 65 |
| Yamil Camacho* | 0.96 | 24 | 25 |
| Eric Daum | 0.57 | 26 | 46 |
| Aaron Koelman** | – | – | – |
* New tournament judges this year.
** Judge Aaron did all the work of a tournament judge to get ready for Gen Con 2022, but did not run games.
Deadliest Tournament Modules
Updated for DCC Open 2022 – the Count Dante Tournament Rating System! Because tournament modules are played at conventions over a large sample of tables and judges, we are able to quantify their danger level. Based on this quantification we have a rating system to use as a guide when selecting your next adventure to run.
Here are the ratings for this year’s tournament Return to the Starless Sea, along with our previous tournament adventures, and The Black Heart of Thakulon the Undying (2017), Riders of the Phlogiston (2018), and The Greatest Thieves in Lankhmar (2019, 2020), Return to the Starless Sea (2020, 2022), and Save XCrawl! (2021). Future tournament modules will also use this rating system once they are put through their paces at large gaming events!
| Adventure | Count Dante Dungeon Rating* | Ratio of Killed PCs | Total PCs Killed | Total PCs, Including Rounds 2 and 3 |
| Return to the Starless Sea – Bride of Cyclops Con 2020 and Gen Con 2022 | IV | 0.68:1 | 1737 | 2555 |
| Riders of the Phlogiston – Gen Con 2018 | IV | 0.62:1 | 83 | 134 |
| The Greatest Thieves in Lankhmar – Gen Con 2019 and DCC Days Online 2020 | III | 0.54:1 | 100 | 184 |
| The Black Heart of Thakulon the Undying – Gen Con 2017 | II | 0.35:1 | 23 | 65 |
| Save XCrawl! – Empire of the Cyclops Con 2021 | II | 0.27:1 | 16 | 59 |
*Based on the ratio of killed PCs (eliminated) for every PC that entered the dungeon across all rounds:
Type I – 0.0 to 0.2:1
Type II – 0.2 to 0.4:1
Type III – 0.4 to 0.6:1
Type IV – 0.6 to 0.8:1
Type V – 0.8 to 0.99:1
Type VI – 1:1, or 100% lethal!
Funnel Stats (2022)
Deadliest Flight
| Flight | Path | Total 0-levels Killed | Teams | Average PCs Slain Per Team |
| 5 | 1-3E | 288 | 10 | 28.8 |
| 3 | 1-3C | 166 | 6 | 27.6 |
| 2 | 1-3B | 254 | 10 | 25.4 |
| 1 | 1-3A | 252 | 10 | 25.2 |
| 4 | 1-3D | 270 | 11 | 24.5 |
Deadliest Flight-Specific Encounter
| Flight | Encounter | Total 0-levels Killed | Teams | Average PCs Slain Per Team |
| 1 | 1-3E – The Mess Hall Mess | 110 | 10 | 11 |
| 2 | 1-3A – Penned In | 100 | 10 | 10 |
| 3 | 1-3C – Gallery of Death | 58 | 6 | 9.7 |
| 4 | 1-3D – The Armory | 106 | 11 | 9.6 |
| 5 | 1-3B – The Infernal Garden | 54 | 10 | 5.4 |
Most Luck Burned by Flight
| Flight | Path | Total Luck Burned | Teams | Average Luck Burned Per Team |
| 4 | 1-3D | 971 | 11 | 88.3 |
| 5 | 1-3E | 727 | 10 | 72.7 |
| 3 | 1-3C | 410 | 6 | 68.3 |
| 1 | 1-3A | 546 | 10 | 54.6 |
| 2 | 1-3B | 426 | 10 | 42.6 |
Teams that Replenished the Most 0-Levels Between Encounters:
- The Lone Wolves (34)
- Tie – Reasonably Fettered (30)
- Tie – Peter Better than Daniel (30)
Teams that Rescued the Most PCs:
- Tie – Holy Water Kegstand (11)
- Tie – We Are the Cannon Fodder (11)
- The Dungbeetles (8)
Teams that Burned the Most Luck:
- The Dungbeetles (127)
- Four Halflings in a Trenchcoat (119)
- Vice Squad (116)
Complete Stats by Room
Round 1
| Room | Author | PC Fatalities | % of Total PC Fatalities in Round |
| 1-1 – Through the Breach! | Terry Olson | 588 | 24% |
| 1-2 – Foreshadowing the Chaos Lord | Marc Bruner | 398 | 16% |
| 1-W – Wandering in the Corridors | Terry Olson | 68 | 3% |
| 1-3A – Penned In | Marc Bruner | 100 | 4% |
| 1-3B – The Infernal Garden | Marzio Muscedere | 54 | 2% |
| 1-3C – Gallery of Death | Marzio Muscedere | 58 | 2% |
| 1-3D – The Armory | Tim Deschene | 106 | 4% |
| 1-3E – The Mess Hall Mess | Michael Bolam | 110 | 4% |
| 1-4 – The Vine Wall | Terry Olson | 400 | 16% |
| 1-5 – The Chaos Crater | Thorin Thompson | 276 | 11% |
| 1-6 – The Ziggurat | Terry Olson | 302 | 12% |
Round 2
| Room | Author | PC Fatalities | % of Total PC Fatalities in Round |
| 2-1 – Van vs. Dragon Dogfight | Terry Olson | 0 | 0% |
| 2-2 – Race to the Tunnel! | Terry Olson | 0 | 0% |
| 2-3 – An Open Door | Terry Olson | 0 | 0% |
| 2-4a – To the left | Terry Olson | 0 | 0% |
| 2-4b – To the right | Terry Olson | 0 | 0% |
| 2-5 – Elzemon’s Menagerie | Tim Deschene | 0 | 0% |
| 2-6 – Intersection | Terry Olson | 0 | 0% |
| 2-7 – Of Beast and Man | Marzio Muscedere | 9 | 27% |
| 2-8 – Intersection and a Possible Ambush | Terry Olson | 8 | 24% |
| 2-9 – Grotto of the Star Champion | Marc Bruner | 0 | 0%* |
| 2-10 – Pathways of the Leviathan | Marc Bruner | 0 | 0% |
| 2-11 – Finale at the Ziggurat | Terry Olson | 16 | 48% |
* Room that only two teams reached during the tournament at Gen Con 2022
All-Time Stats for Judges
| Judge | Tournament Games Judged | Ratio of Fatalities to Total Number of Players | Total PC Fatalities | Total PCs | Years Active |
| Tim Deschene | 21 | 1.0 | 313 | 309 | 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2022 |
| Mike Bolam | 16 | 1.3 | 207 | 165 | 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021 |
| Marc Bruner | 14 | 1.2 | 159 | 128 | 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020 |
| Haley Skach | 14 | 1.0 | 305 | 313 | 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022 |
| Jim Skach | 13 | 1.1 | 308 | 275 | 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022 |
| Harley Stroh | 12 | 1.1 | 166 | 157 | 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022 |
| Eric Daum | 9 | 0.8 | 85 | 112 | 2018, 2019, 2020, 2022 |
| Terry Olson | 8 | 1.8 | 108 | 59 | 2018, 2019, 2020 |
| Jeff Goad | 6 | 2.1 | 67 | 32 | 2018, 2019 |
| Aaron Koelman | 5 | 1.5 | 36 | 24 | 2018, 2019, 2022 |
| James Pozenel | 5 | 0.9 | 145 | 168 | 2020, 2021, 2022 |
| Rick Hull | 4 | 0.9 | 18 | 20 | 2017, 2018 |
| James Walls | 3 | 1.9 | 17 | 9 | 2019 |
| David Baity | 3 | 1.7 | 24 | 14 | 2017 |
| Stefan Flickinger | 3 | 1.1 | 54 | 48 | 2020, 2021 |
| Alaric Legler | 3 | 0.8 | 67 | 86 | 2022 |
| Brian Escobar | 2 | 0.9 | 65 | 76 | 2022 |
| Michael Grant | 2 | 0.8 | 67 | 87 | 2022 |
| Mark Wolf | 2 | 0.7 | 55 | 74 | 2022 |
| Davin Kluttz | 2 | 0.7 | 47 | 65 | 2022 |
| Casey Gores | 2 | 0.7 | 41 | 57 | 2022 |
| Jason Stierle | 2 | 0.6 | 50 | 81 | 2022 |
| Joan Troyer | 2 | 0.6 | 53 | 86 | 2022 |
| John Roberts | 2 | 0.6 | 45 | 77 | 2022 |
| Brian Jeffries | 2 | 0.6 | 42 | 75 | 2022 |
| Alan Keim | 2 | 0.5 | 34 | 65 | 2022 |
| Brendan LaSalle | 2 | 0.2 | 2 | 10 | 2021 |
| Clay Liford | 1 | 1.0 | 32 | 32 | 2020, 2021 |
| Jody Whittle | 1 | 0.8 | 32 | 40 | 2022 |
| Adam Bokhari | 1 | 0.7 | 26 | 36 | 2022 |
| Jon Carnes | 1 | 0.7 | 33 | 48 | 2022 |
| Jeff Regner | 1 | 0.6 | 17 | 28 | 2022 |
| Sean Smith | 1 | 0.6 | 30 | 53 | 2022 |
| Yamil Camacho | 1 | 0.5 | 12 | 25 | 2022 |
| Jonathon Perkel | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2018 |
At Gen Con 2022, 39 out of the 47 teams managed to finish the entire round in the full four hours, a great finish! Even more amazing, 15 teams managed to finish in under 3 hours, with one team, Take Off Every Ziggurat, finishing in a record-setting 2 hours and 5 minutes!
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