This is rivaling the apac ascension nightmare for the worst tech delays I've ever seen

Having to fill time for 2 and a half hours you need to give these gentlemen a medal

Would like to add one for CN

Team 1 would go crazy if you put Kr1stal there instead of redgar

That middle of the pack is wide open for the Americas region right now. LEV feels like the clear favorite right now, but I could see a lot of teams (save MIBR) really making a case for the 2-4 spots

ASE and Rare Atom are the obvious favorites, but I also don't want to ever count out Kr1stal since he's usually the best player in the server against almost every opponent (could argue stew here for sure).

TRACE MADE IT I'M ELATED

Going +14 on first bloods and losing the map is so rough

I think DFM can thank CN Valorant for adding possibly a worse franchise team to their region, I don't really understand the Wolves choice outside of purely for money. That current roster is inexperienced and has not showcased any upside as of yet.

EDG lotus has been cheeks lately

Sarahcat on OREsports

This has been an issue dating back to last year's pacific league, the rationale then was to have the team "make better adjustments without having to use a timeout" but I see it more as an indictment on him as a coach. thats part of your job to help with in match adjustments lmao

Thats Ender not Doug you silly goose

Counter point- should have started on Monday

billibilli moment incoming now

So much reliance on observers (as with other FPS), but along with that keeping track of utility usage/stock of the players on the map and having to remember all the specific ability names since apparently that is forced by Riot. Not to mention the fact that I have yet to see another esport with as many tech pauses as there are with this game, which leads to being forced to small talk with your co-caster for a undefined amount of time depending on the situation.

Cool history teacher is what sent me

https://www.vlr.gg/pickem/13bc8b13

I think without yay they can at least defeat Bleed now

I mean fuck it just secure the bag, can't blame him

I think SR prepped really well for them, so they are trying to audible into strats they haven't practiced and its not working

They had a lot of tech issues yesterday (delayed start to game 1, many tech pauses during the second set) that have probably bled over into today

Leaving out weibo and reddit 🐢

Cloud and F1tinho on Giants

https://www.vlr.gg/pickem/a84c0c6c

I agree with your stance on 7-9

That stinks if thats the case, hate it that money does indeed impact a lot of this

Stuck in t2 sadly, I think they need better coaching because the roster is honestly good enough for low and even as high as mid Tier 1, but their performance lately has been lacking severely

In all honesty I'd prefer them over NIP, but I think NIP are already locked in

1. EDG (Obvious)
2. BiliBili (Better than NRG, not in good form right now however)
3. FunPlus Phoenix (Solid roster than is already ready for franchise with only 1 import)
4. Rare Atom (Need to solve IGL issue if yoman is cut)
5. Trace Esports (Not sure of the logistics of CN franchising, but this roster is full of contenders. FengF > Zekken)
6. Attacking Soul Esports (Inconsistent but a very fun team)
7. Weibo gaming (Most likely will buy their way in)
8. Ninja in Pyjamas (Same as 7)
9. JDG (Brand Recognition + Vici)
10. Top Esports (Sylvan and Eko will be tough to choose between)

Ascension Winner/ Dark Horses - Dragon Ranger, Royal Never Give Up

https://www.vlr.gg/pickem/8bfaed95

Solitaire

Don't comment about betting/crypto on a CN match challenge (VLR Level Expert 49,897)

I made the pick of DRG winning mainly because I wanted to make up points in the pickems, but alas I shall accept my defeat now :*(

FPX throughout a lot of their attacking rounds waited way too long to execute (on lotus and sunset in particular) but the last round they were thwarted by the threat and usage of the viper and fade ult, then they had no answer for the gekko ult or rather didn't expect gekko to be on A

We don't talk about round 23 on Lotus. Otherwise great stuff

Starting with gambit kru now

Very fun set! Both seemed to have their moments in map 1 and 2 but was truly a masterclass on that last map

this is just highlights, not the full match

Going to start with this one, will edit later with what I think of the full match

is what I would say if I could find a full vod on youtube somewhere, I'm only finding split

I need something to watch on my lunch break and its off season so I was wondering what everyone's favorite set they ever watched. Could be this year, 22, 21 whenever and I don't care if its spoiled either, just curious to see different sets with different teams prior to how they are assembled today.

skye 0.74 96 7 / 15 / 10 -8 63% 66

When it mattered the most your goat failed you.

What happened to 3-2 scoreline then

wtf happened round 18 on split

I feel like these are very safe pickems, and overall I can't find much fault in them. The toughest match to call for me would be that match-up of RNG and TOP in the lower bracket, I expect that to be a very fun set and i dont think thats a bad pick even if I myself have TOP winning. My one main disagreement with you is having LGD over dragon ranger. I understand the pedigree of LGD, but there was a lot of be concerned about during the play in stage with them so I have my expectations tapered with them for this act overall.

https://www.vlr.gg/pickem/e4bd27e4

Here's my pickems as well for this event. I admit I am a bit of a Trace homer in some regards but I do believe there is good reason to be confident in them as a team, and I'm hoping they don't fall off after their EDG win. My overperformers for this event I predict are going to be TOP and Dragon ranger.

With TOP, Sylvan and Eko have had an extra month now to get into that system so it seems like they are now truly hitting on all cylinders. Also, I think they have one of the best coaching staffs in the region which is something that isn't always discussed when talking about team strength.

As for Dragon Ranger, I have no real reason for why I think they'll beat rare atom. I just figure there's always one big upset each act and I thought that might be the most likely one 😅

You could just go off of VLR stats for this debate, min rounds 2500 with min opponent rating default. Although I'm not sure if Wardell being that high is accurate

Someone has to check Banger's PC

I mean honestly, of any "favored" teams losing this is the least surprising. I haven't gotten a chance to catch much of ODG's matches, but from what I saw they have had very sloppy performances as well as no real precedent to trust them other than one good map against ASE. On paper their roster is definitely better but having the best players doesn't make you the best team.

2024 is the year of Tuyz 📝🐢

With the departure of aspas a large load is on him to step up for his team, we will see if saadhaak can get the most out of this roster

Balla my goat

My question (if thats the case) would then be why would Kr1stal want to go to another tier 2 team after showcasing throughout the tier 2 circuit this year that he is indeed a tier one talent? Unless he is getting tier 1 money from NWG it doesn't seem like the right move.