All Clear Early: The Ace

       

Ah, the fast all-clear. I call it the Ace: All Clear Early.

By completely clearing the board on the 10th piece, we do 10 or 11 lines of damage to our opponent. Like an ace in tennis, the massive damage sometimes catches him off guard and wins outright.

The move where we clear the board itself always does 10 lines of damage, regardless of whether it's a Tetris, a single, a combo, or anything else. Many setups do a two line clear on the 9th move, however, for an additional line of damage. Let's look at how the basic setup works.

1. The Basic Ace



This is the right-hand variant, which I so deem because the formation on the right looks like the fingers of a hand. On the left, we have a 4x4 square using our L, J, O, and I. Note that this can be placed in many different ways:

            

This allows one to set up the the left side with almost any piece order. For example, given O first, we can use the second variant. Given I then O, we can use the third. For the other side, one can set up the left hand if S comes first, right hand if Z comes first. If you placed the 4x4 on the left but still want to do the left-handed ace, it's not hard:



From here, we can fill in the center in various ways. Some piece sets require specific piece orders, and some can be done in multiple--or any--order. You may need to master T, S, Z, L, and J spins for certain orderings.

  I,O,J. Constraint: O < J

  I,S,J. Constraint: S < J

  I,T,J. No constraints. Not the only possible ITJ:   

  I,T,L. No constraints. Not the only possible ITL: 

  I,T,O. Constraint: T < O

  I,T,S. Constraint: I|T < S. Requires S-spin.

  I,Z,L. Constraint: Z < L.

  S,Z,J. Constraint: Z < J|S. May require S-spin. Edit Apr 2018: Not the only SZJ:
 Constraint: J < Z < S. Requires double Z-spin and S-spin. Learned it from Mahoroa (マホロア).

  T,J,L. Constraint: T < J|L.

  T,S,Z. constraint: T < S|Z. Can all-clear again in 5 pieces given third-deck O:   (occurs 2/7th of the time, i.e. O in the first 2 out of 7 pieces of the third deck.)

  T,J,S. constraint: T < J|S. May require S-spin. Not the only TJS:  Alternate constraint: J < S < T.

It works with a good number of piece sets, but not all of them. Just like an Ace in tennis, it doesn't always work. But we get the all-clear a good majority of the time. What if we want something more consistent?

2. The Flexible Ace: Planning Ahead

In 1v1 Versus mode, we get to see the next 5 pieces. We also get the benefit of a piece in hand from the hold mechanic. So, by the time we've placed the fifth piece and are holding one in hand, we should know the first 4 pieces of the next deck, and know with certainty whether we can all-clear or not. How can we use that information?



This is the flexible Ace setup. We place JOL or LOJ as a 3x4 stack, and place the I on the other side of the screen. We can generally do this setup when T, S, or Z are among the last pieces of the deck.

At this point we've placed 5 pieces, and could, if we were smart enough and fast enough, look at the four pieces of the next deck and determine with certainty whether we could Ace. If, like me, you aren't that fast, or, like me, you want to have an idea a couple pieces earlier, here's a couple rules of thumb you can use:

1. If I,T then almost certainly. There are setups for I,T with every remaining piece except for Z.
2. If T,J then very likely. There are setups for T,J with every remaining piece except for Z and O.
3. If S,J then likely. There are setups for S,J with every remaining piece except L and O, but many are order-constrained.

Note that if we're in the left-hand setup, the rule 2 becomes T,L and rule 3 becomes Z,L.

If you've concluded you can Ace them, just fill in the T and S and you're good to go:



Suppose you can't Ace? Well, here's the flexibility. You can do this instead:



This is the setup for a Long Combo, where we build up both sides, then do a 10+ combo for massive damage. I'll discuss the Long Combo in the next post.

3. Followups

Many times, my opening multi-spin setup has gotten Aced, but I survive, my opponent gets flustered, fails to follow up with an attack, and dies.

Once you've done the Ace, you'll have a completely clear board. DO NOT blindly do your favorite opening setup from here. Tetris is a deck-based random game, but you have used up 3 out of 7 pieces of your deck already. If you try to do a setup which requires all 7 pieces, such as the OJ, you are unlikely to get all the pieces you need.

If you did your Ace without the I piece, you may be able to set up an Izzy-like T-spin:

After Acing with TJL. Right side of Izzy setup, hoping for L,T on next deck.

If you used the I, but have to play out some rougher pieces, you might be able to set up at least one side of a T-spin and hope the next deck gives you an easy improvisation:

After acing with ITJ. Partial T-spin setup, hoping for L + ? to complete T spin hole.

Otherwise, if no obvious T-spin occurs to you, it may be worthwhile to just build a Tetris, then go into your normal midgame play.

The quick T-spin double

            

You can do a T-spin double attack on the 6th or 7th piece with most decks. This does four lines of damage, as much as a Tetris.

Why bother?

• This hard counters the fast all-clear opening, which clears the board on the 10th piece for huge damage. By damaging our opponent before he can all-clear, we entirely prevent this opening from working. I will discuss the fast all-clear in a later post.
• With a second T-spin followup, this soft counters the long combo opener. By putting 9 to 11 lines of damage on their screen quickly, we prevent our opponent from building high enough to create a killer combo. I will discuss the long combo in a later post.
• It's four lines of quick damage, as much as a Tetris, and starts off our back-to-back bonus to boot.

In Tetris vs Tetris, a good proportion of your opening plays should be fast T-spins. Besides the inherent strength of this opening, doing this a good amount will discourage the early all-clear and other openings that a multi-spin-combo opening may not.

How?

1. The Izzy

As a rule of thumb, this can be done with hard drops whenever you get an I in your first couple pieces. More specifically, it can be done whenever the I comes before S and Z. Hence the name, the Izzy.

The core of this is to form the covered hole for the T block using the Z stacked on the I, with the L covering the open side.

We then fill in the empty space on the right. Above is the most common variant, where we use the S and O to fill it in. But what if we need to place the J block before these?

Easy enough. Another very different variant to point out comes if we don't get the Z block till the very end. We can still T-spin on the 6th piece, using the S instead:

Once you do this, you will most likely want to follow up with another T-spin. Typically, one sets up either using the center notch or a notch on the right. Let's look at that first variant again.

   

We've cleared two lines for four damage, and we have a J piece next--remember, we cleared at 6, and used all pieces except the J. We have various options for a T spin, either using the center hole or putting it on the right. Here's a fast one:

With just the S, Z, and O, this gets us our second T-spin on the 11th piece. Now that is FAST. We're not giving the opponent room to breathe here, nor set up a long combo.

Here's a T-spin triple. It's unlikely to come up in an actual game. Note the placement of the J piece inverted and one space to the right--if we had to drop a J before our first T-spin, this is a very fast place to drop it, leading to many possible T-spins.

The reason this is unlikely to come up is the second O piece. Yes, this gives you a T-spin triple on the 15th piece, but only if you got an O at the right time. However, the broad concept of setting up the T-spin hole and filling in the left side can lead to lots of interesting followups.

        

Izzy followups with the inverted J. A T-spin double in 12, and a setup for a two T-spin double combo with possible all-clear.

Unfortunately, this opening seems to be limited to two T-spin doubles if we want to hit within the first 14 pieces here, when we know, since 14 pieces = 56 squares = 5 rows, that we theoretically should be able to get a T-spin double and a T-spin triple (2+3 = 5). The next quick opening setup allows us to get this.

2. The ol' OJ

    

The good ol' OJ. As a rule of thumb, this can be done given OL or OJ in your first few pieces, hence the name, the OJ (or OL). More specifically, observe that in the OL, the L has the J and Z above it, and the O has the Z. So it can be done with hard drops anytime L < J|Z, O < Z. (Notation explanation: the L piece can be dropped before the J or Z piece, etc.)

Notice that unlike the Izzy, I've included both the left and right mirror images here. This is because the Izzy can generally be done in either direction given I < S|Z, but the OL or OJ can typically be done in either the only in the left (OL) or only in the right (OJ) orientation, depending on your deck. The left-hand Izzy is presented above because this variation is slightly faster to place.

How do you follow up the OJ? Let's take a look.

    

The obvious idea for a T-spin double is to use an L to form one around the notch in the center, for example:



Not too bad. This gives us our second T-spin at piece 12, and has some good and obvious followups. But I promised you T-spin triple at piece 14, didn't I? Here we go:


The constraint here is that you need to be able to place the O and Z before the I and S. If you can do that, you get a quick T-spin triple with the end of your second deck, for 4+7 = 11 lines of damage total. That ought to put a long combo builder out of business. Of course, if you can't meet the constraint, you can still get the T-spin triple a bit later, depending on the pieces in your third deck:



Here, I was constrained to place the S and Z first, and so had to leave two squares needed for the triple unfilled. With my J at the beginning of the third deck, I've filled them for the T-spin triple on piece 15. I could've also used an O, Z, or L here. The possibilities abound.

3. The Jay-Z

    

The Jay-Z and its mirror image, the Less. You can do this if you can place the J before the Z, hence, the Jay-Z. Its mirror image can be done if L < S, hence, the LeSs.

This one is a bit weaker in its followups than the above two and is done much more seldom. Many decks which allow the Jay-Z also allow for strong multispin combo openers. It is still a necessary part of your toolkit. Theoretically, in top level play, one would still need to do the Jay-Z sometimes regardless of other possibilities, as one's opponent could theoretically look at your deck, and if he knew you never did the Jay-Z, do a quick all clear.

You might look at the constraint and the picture and go wait! There's another constraint! The L is on top of the I. Nice catch. If one has to place the I late, one can do this variant:



This is only a non-mini T-spin single. It's only two lines of damage in Tetris vs Tetris, but hey, it's still damage, preventing an all-clear, and it is also an excellent setup for followup T-spins. I should also note that in Tetris vs. Puyo, non-mini T-spin singles are actually quite wonderful, as they do barely less damage than T-spin doubles, and preserve more material on your board for doing Tetrises in addition to T-spins.

One of the reasons the Jay-Z is lesser used than the Izzy and the OJ is the weaker followups. Let's go back to the first variant and take a look.

    

We've used all pieces except the S and done a T-spin double on the 6th piece. We now need to place the S as best we can, and get the next T-spin. The inverted triangle on the left is a problem, as there aren't too many ways to fill it--and we don't want to use our T to do it. Let's not use the Z either.



Instead of filling in the left with a Z, we've created a T-spin notch using the I and J. With our S and Z, we complete the right side of the notch. This gives us a second T-spin double on piece 14. Good enough.

There are a couple more related variants. Here's the Hypno, which I so call because a player named Hypnocyl used it against me. I consider it entirely weaker than the Jay-Z, and would not choose to use it:



Here we have the constraint of J < Z, but even more constraints, i.e. J < Z < L, I < S|O. And we hit on the 7th piece instead of the 6th. Blech.

Here's a build related to the Jay-Z, the Justice/Elvis:

    

Instead of the Z on the J, we have the S. The constraint here is J<S, I<Z. From trying to get a word out of JSIZ, I get "Justice". On the right, L<Z, I<S. From ElZIS, well, "Elvis" is way more pronounceable.

I would most likely only use this build if I were constrained to place my J and S first, e.g. with a deck starting T, J, S. But it's nice to have around, just in case.

Conclusion

Between the Izzy, the ol' OJ, and other, less-used variants, one can almost always open with a quick T-spin, usually very fast, with nothing but hard drops other than the T. Using this will start you off with excellent damage, provide for good followups, and counter openings such as the quick all-clear.

In my next post, I'll take a look at the opening we're most strongly countering--the fast all-clear, to be known hereafter as the Ace.