Love in Universus? 😍

Ashley Fullerton and Keenan Meadows are UniVersus’s new power couple! After Keenan’s killer Top 8 run in the 2022 HLC (and successful on-camera proposal!), we reached out for an interview.

Ashley and Keenan are both former UniVersus World Champions (2019 and 2011 respectively), and they have both been cornerstones to the community for years.

1. How did you two first meet?

Keenan: We met through a mutual friend who invited us out to boardgame night at a local gaming restaurant/bar called Battle and Brew. We were having way too much fun playing a board game, and we met up later for a date!

2. What was the first tournament you traveled together to?

Keenan: We traveled to Las Vegas for Ashley’s first Worlds in 2018 hosted at Level Up Expo. I think that was Ashley’s first trip to Las Vegas, and we had a blast!

3. You’ve both played Universus for a pretty long time – what are your favorite decks in the history of the game?

Keenan: Mine was Mad Pierrot with Coffee Samba. I’ve never liked 1 checks until Coffee Samba came along. The insane swings that card can give both positive and negative, make for really exciting games!

Ashley: Mine was Lord Raptor; apart from the fact that I did well with the deck, all of the components worked together ridiculously synergistically so I always felt like I could think myself out of any situation.

4. What is your favorite part about traveling to events together?

Keenan: I love having someone to explore new places with. Traveling for tournaments is like a mini-vacation, and we always try to go out of our way to see something cool while we’re there. 

Ashley: I really love that I get to travel with someone who is so down to go explore new things but also so social, so every event we travel to is like one half couples vacation and one half meet up with friends and play games.

5. Have you ever had to play against each other in a tournament? 

Keenan: We play during locals a lot, but I can’t remember a time we played at a major.

Ashley: You’re absolutely right, we get paired literally every locals and most regionals but never at a major!

6. When you two play, who wins more often? 👀👀

Keenan: Lately I’ve been winning but if you asked me that question when Ashley was playing her 2019 worlds deck, it would be the exact opposite.

Ashley: Absolutely agree with Keenan, the fact that I stopped playing during COVID means I got nice and rusty, and he can read me like a dang book when we’re playing so I have to win honestly – mind games will not work!

We would like to thank Keenan and Ashley for their time on this interview, as well as their support of UniVersus over the years. We wish them the best, and a happy life together! 🥳