Roster Changes ~ #1 Titus: +bLink, —locklear // #5 Damage Networks: —Ossified

 

*MOTW: #1 (▬ / #4)         Titus (2-1-1, 11-5) vs. #2 ( ▬ / #1)         Legendary Snails (2-1-2, 8-4) 

Both of these teams are coming into this crucial Week 5 match with seemingly opposite kinds of momentum. Before Week 4, Titus were in an unbelievable position at 2-0 on top of the Division, going into a double-header matchup against #6 Quaxy and #4 Team X as, more or less, the favorites. Titus, however, drew Quaxy

(= 2-2) and lost to Team X (< 1-3), falling to 2-1-1. As a quick aside, Team X surprised me here... but Quaxy: did anyone see that coming? Clearly, I did not! Regardless, these outcomes could not have come at a worse time as divisional co-favorites #2 Legendary Snails and #3 Saunamen are hot on Titus' heels.

 

​This Week 5 match is a massive crossroads for the bastion of North America for a number of reasons. Let's get the obvious out of the way first: they're facing The Snails who are, for all intents and purposes, tied with them in the standings. The Frenchmen would likely be last on the list of "Teams You'd Like to Face with the #1 Seed On the Line." But alas, Titus find themselves in that exact situation. The parity across the top teams in the Premiere Division is quite evident, as the top 3 seeds all have two wins a piece, which leads me to my second reason: Titus' 2nd win is a forfeit win over Saunamen which may possibly be replayed during make-up week (please correct me if this is not a possibility!). If this were to be marked down as a draw at this very moment, Titus would actually be the current #4 seed—this is ground that Titus simply cannot afford to lose. Not to mention the departure of long-time member locklear (although the addition of former member blink helps tremendously in that respect).

 

While Titus ​have apparently fallen into a mid-season slump, The Snails seem to be in perfect mid-season form, having dispatched both Exertus (> 4-0) and Breakfast Klub (> 3-1) after their somewhat shocking Week 1 loss to Saunamen (< 1-3). For the first time this season, Titus are coming into a match as the underdog, which may not be a bad thing for them at the moment. Doubtless, they're beating themselves up over mistakes they made versus both Quaxy and Team X and will look to put on their strongest performance against The Snails—they won't need any extra motivation other than simple pride.

 

I was considering a Snails 3-1 win, but I'm not yet ready to give up on Titus—I think they can pull of some miracle Marine rounds, as it's nigh impossible to beat The Snails as aliens. Titus will come into this match fresh and draw The Snails.

 

 

Prediction: #1 Titus = #2 Legendary Snails, 2-2 (1-1 Descent, 1-1 Summit)

Top Performers: Syknik! & joshhhy (Titus), herakles & ray (Snails)

Result: #2 Legendary Snails > #1 Titus, 3-1 (Titus! You should have drawn this! :((((( )

 

 

#3 (▲ #4 / #2)       Saunamen (2-1-1, 7-5) vs. #8 ( ▬ / #8)            Exertus (0-3-0, 0-12)

For the record, Exertus are technically still 0-2. Their third loss is tallied because Damage Networks reported a 4-0 forfeit, but it should be pushed (i.e., 0-0 double forfeit) and eventually replayed during the make-up week. Regardless, this doesn't change the unfortunate fact that Exertus have been drastically underperforming. I highly doubt that it's a lack of team chemistry, and severely doubt that it's a lack of individual skill. And while I'd like to believe that they're still interested in NS2, it's clear that something's amiss. 

 

Whatever the reason is, if they want to regain that mojo and make one final push for the post-season, it'll be nothing short of a miracle. In the final two weeks of Season 3, Exertus will have to face Team X and Quaxy, but they'll be facing fellow Finnish team Saunamen to kick-off their heavily back-loaded schedule. Exertus' last match resulted in a 4-0 loss to Legendary Snails—and now they're facing the team that defeated The Snails 3-1 earlier in the season. In the preseason, this looked to be one of the marquee matches of the season: The Battle for Finland, I believe I called it.

 

But it would appear that the tables have turned. During Exertus' heyday (Mid-Late 2012), Saunamen were the Finnish team struggling to find any kind of consistency in terms of their roster, and just simply winning. But now in Season 3, Saunamen have started living up to their storied history—transforming themselves from an afterthought to a favorite—meanwhile, Exertus are finding themselves floundering in Saunamen's shadow.

 

Even getting a draw against Saunamen would be a huge accomplishment at this point for Exertus, but to win outright would be a much-needed shot in the arm for the team. And while I wouldn't put either of these possibilities beyond Exertus' potential, I just don't see either of them happening. Saunamen will take this and look forward to finishing strong with a North American double-header against #5 Damage Networks in Week 6, and #7 Breakfast Klub in Week 7.

 

Prediction: #3 Saunamen > #8 Exertus, 4-0

Top Performers: Valde & Laama (Saunamen), Timar & Saderi (Exertus)

Result: #3 Saunamen > #8 Exertus, 4-0 (BOOYA! But for the wrong reasons, because Exertus disbanded :( )

 

#4 (▲ #6 / #6)            Team X (1-0-1, 5-3) vs. #5 (▲ #7 / #3 )         Damage Networks (1-1-2, 5-3)

Team X have been on the up-and-up. Their first match this season came against the semi-rebooted Breakfast Klub which ended in a scintillating 2-2 draw. Respectable, of course, but Team X undoubtedly have/had higher expectations for themselves. After all, there's no lack of chemistry as they're all pretty familiar with each other. Always looking to improve, they've been constantly playing PCWs against The Snails since their return, and it's paying dividends already. In their second match against Titus (a team that most would consider superior to Breakfast Klub), Team X made the North Americans look mortal by battling to a 3-1 victory.

 

Team X couldn't be coming into their own at a better time, as they're facing Damage Networks: a team that is abundantly rife with talent—but a team that finds itself scrambling for a commander after the recent departure of Ossified. To lose a skilled field player is one thing, but a commander? Such a position is not so easily filled or replaced, especially at this level of play. This couldn't have come at a worse moment for Networks, as they're rounding out their season with #3 Saunamen and #1 Titus. 

 

Damage Networks have the talent to beat any team, but this Comm shuffle will likely give Team X the decided advantage here.

 

Prediction: #4 Team X > #5 Damage Networks, 3-1 (2-0 Descent, 1-1 Summit)

Top Performers: valk & Eissfeldt (Team X), Boom & jewbear (Damage Networks)

Result: #4 Team X > #5 Damage Networks, 3-1 (BOOYA! Gogo DN gorge rush!)

 

#6 (▼ #3 / #7)         Quaxy (1-1-2, 5-7) vs. #7 (▼#5 / #3)          Breakfast Klub (0-1-4, 3-5) 

I'm done doubting Quaxy. I've been constantly picking against them, yet then keep on winning or simply surpassing my expectations. Sure, they may have just lost against #3 Saunamen (< 0-4), but that doesn't erase their past accomplishments: a 3-1 victory over #5 Damage Networks in Week 1, and a 2-2 draw with #1 Titus. And this recent history bodes well for Quaxy's immediate future, as they seem to perform exceptionally well against North American teams, which is bad news for their opponent this week.

 

It would appear that The Klub's fixed its roster woes—but their problem now would appear to be chemistry and communication (e.g., not calling specific lifeforms, number of enemies, and other miscellanous information that might be situationally important). A lot of these little mistakes, however, have been covered up by the incredible individual skill their new roster has been showing. In fact, in my own humble estimation, the current lineup (featuring the returning bill, and the new inzo, pyro, Gosu, PaLaGi, and schu) is not only beefier, but also—dare I blaspheme—better than the Season 2 Championship team that had Shino and Syknik!.

 

[Insert obligatory Shino comment here.]

 

​In any case, the loss of Syknik! to NA rival Titus was undoubtedly a huge blow to Breakfast Klub (which was actually defunct at the time). But it seems that The Klub have found their replacement in the form of inzo, who has come a long, long way since his days in Helix. Similarly, Gosu and pyro have shown flashes of brilliance, particularly in their marine game. But what this upstart roster lacks greatly (as I hinted at before), the former team possessed in abundance: chemistry. If this current team were to face Titus in a Best-of-7 series, I don't think they would win this time around. But it's only a matter of time before Breakfast Klub ascends back to their former place among the world's truly elite.

 

Perhaps Quaxy would like me to keep picking against them, otherwise I might jinx their pretty successful Premiere Division run so far. But The Klub's alien play is not nearly as polished as it should be, and that will be their downfall in this matchup.

 

Prediction: #6 Quaxy > #7 Breakfast Klub, 3-1 (2-0 Descent, 1-1 Summit)

Top Performers: Myyrs & Fulgo (Quaxy),  Gosu & inzo (Breakfast Klub)

Result: #6 Quaxy > #7 Breakfast Klub, 4-0 (FORFEIT. R.I.P. Breakfast Klub :[ )