https://x.com/twtVALO/status/1765104807264788857?s=20

https://x.com/C9VAL/status/1765483646419419579?s=20

thinking emoji

Flor unironically smurfing.

56-9. +47 KD.

Spring imo.

He's way more flexible, having played both duelist and smokes.

He can have off days but his peaks are top 10 china level.

No, if LOUD lose in the first match, they’ll play against the one of the losing teams in the other three matches.

First round is normal matches

Second round is the two winners (top) and the two losers (bottom). The winner of the top matches moves on to playoffs and the loser of the top goes to round 3. Conversely, the loser of the bottom matches is out and the winner moves to round 3.

The four remaining teams will play in round 3 to lock up the last two playoffs spots.

Holy shit I foresaw the future.

Holy shit I foresaw the future.

Duelist: Zekken
Flex: Dep
Sentinel: Laz
Controller: iZu
Initiator: Biank
Coaches: Engh and Potter

This team might go hard.

I’d rather see LOCK//IN rematches

KC vs FPX: the chance for FPX to prove themselves and for KC to certify their continued dominance.

LOUD vs Gen.G: two teams with a lot of pedigree but can Gen.G win against the veteran team of LOUD?

Not LOCK//IN rematches but great matches nonetheless.

EDG vs PRX: two of Asia’s best teams but can PRX come back from their slump or will EDG take first blood?

SEN vs TH: two teams with incredible fanbase support. This is SEN’s time to shine, and for TH to prove they deserve to be here.

EDG
FPX
DRG
TEC
WOL
JDG
TE
BLG
NOVA
AG
TYLOO

Wolves fry, Spring fries, aluba shows that he's the next controller player up.

WOL 2-0

1200 x 0.5

yes, 600 eDPI.

Anything below 400 feels really slow to me.

Moner, Winteryrook, and sickrey count as eligible players since they participated in at least one split of MENA last year.

Yet another SyouTa masterclass.

This effectively locks in FL’s spot for not only playoffs but also the next split.

My goat Spring is finally on a functional team where he doesn’t have to 1v9.

WOL 2-1

Finish Vinlandsaga S2

Start Apothecary Diaries

Also start 91 Days and Dead Mount Death Play

Surely SZ don't lose again.

Clueless

SZ 2-1

Clueless

Yes, very.

He was a top pick for both DFM and ZETA, but DFM showed more interest.

He rejected both teams because he wanted to win Ascension with FENNEL.

that being said, best game of the split

DIA 2-0

CHIPI 💥💯🔊 CHIPI👍🥰🤪😋 CHAPA 💗💖🤪😋🔊 CHAPA 💯🥰👌💙 DUBI 🦄✨🧨💗😍 DUBI 😍😍😍🔊💯✨💖💖 DABA 👍💋🔊🤯🎉 DABA 🧨💗💖💖💙 MAGICÒ MÍ 🙋‍♂️💖💖💗🧨 DUBI 💙💙🎉🎉🦄 DUBI BOOM 🧨💥🧨 BOOM 🧨💥🧨 BOOM 🧨💥🧨 BOOM🧨💥🧨

this was very sloppy from SZ. Credit to SG, they played very well, especially with their teamplay.

But SCARZ... surely they can be better.

As much as I want the twins to fry, SCARZ SHOULD win this. If they don't, there is something terribly wrong going on with the team.

SZ 2-1

Dplus 3-0ing T1 at worlds with Thanatos

Yoshii is a Japanese resident homie

Good bounce back game for MRSH

2-0 MRSH

Clean 2-0 FL

Insane game.

After REJECT’s performance last week, this’ll be a good test whether they are the real deal or if IGZ are bad.

2-1 SZ

IGZIST 0-2 FENNEL

Map 1: Sunset (13-5 FL)

• Hear me out; FL looked uncharacteristically sloppy on their attack half. Yes, on their 10-2 attack half on Sunset.
  • Rounds 5, 7, 10 and 11 were questionable
  • So many ego peeks
  • Really strange aim fights
  • Giving up early advantages
• IGZIST didn't look better on attack, though
• FL still closed out defense relatively comfortably

Map 2: Ascent (13-4 FL)

• FL are very good on Ascent
• Ban Ascent against FL
• Insane snowballs on both defense and attack
• SyouTa is very good at Valorant

VARREL 2-0 Murash Gaming

Map 1: Breeze (13-10 VL)

• Breeze? In my VCL Japan?? It's rarer than the Blue-Eyes White Dragon since many teams are inclined to ban it
• Zepher once again played a pseudo-duelist role and looked pretty good, honestly
• The tech pauses seemed to hurt both teams' momentum
• Million and Tonbo tried to bring the game back (Round 20....)

Map 2: Lotus (13-6 VL)

• Keep in mind, this is the map where MRSH embarrassed NTH 13-1 last week
• MRSH's defense nowhere looked as good as last week, minimal synergy and trades
• Tonbo tried his best again
• Million couldn't find a solution for MRSH
• xnfri is back. Freed from DFM.

Sengoku Gaming 2-0 NORTHEPTION

Map 1: Sunset (13-5 SG)

• NTH looked lethargic on attack, except for Thiefy.
• Jinboong is also very good at Valorant
• Gatorada was an unsung hero
  • Good smoke coverage
  • Good util usage, especially with retakes
• I may have severely underestimated Sengoku

Map 2: Ascent (13-8 SG)

• Extremely good defense half
  • The twins alone had 34 kills. That is equal to all of NTH combined.
• Thiefy was playing 1v9 on attack
• There was some hope in NTH's defense, but it was short-lived.
• There isn't much to say, but NTH should be better

Tomorrow's preds:
SCARZ 2-1 REJECT (GOTD)
VARREL 1-2 FENNEL
Murash Gaming 2-0 IGZIST

This NTH team shouldn’t look this bad. They have two of the best aimers in Japan and a promising talent from Korea.

I know that NOBITA and Boong twin #1 Jin are great players, but damn.

Idk if I’m severely underrating Sengoku or overrating NTH.

Easy clean 2-0 for FENNEL

Help sewer

To whoever did (or even does) job interviews and passed (or got unfortunately rejected in one instance), is it unprofessional to do the following:

• To ask the position of your interviewer
• To ask them to clarify the job despite researching about said job and reading the job description
• To talk about your relative or associate whom the company currently employs you’re applying for
  • “Someone I know who works here interested me in applying for the job, and they told me a lot about it.”
• To have a conversation with your interviewer normally (obviously without informal speech or mannerisms)
  • “The weather is X, huh? They say it’s going to get better/worse soon.”
  • “I hope your weekend went well”

1920 x 1080
1200 dpi 0.555

Nah, I enjoy Icebox more than Bind.

Bind defense is one of the most depressing things in Valorant. Icebox honestly feels more creative and fluid than Bind.

LockM should play instead of shameless imo

Regardless, JDG 2-0

I feel inclined to put Sengoku over IGZIST but i need to see whether IGZ is bad or if REJECT is the real deal.

VARREL 2-0 Sengoku Gaming

Map 1: Icebox (16-14 VL)

• This map was like watching a game of tug-of-war
• Boong twin #1 Gwang was pretty good
• misaya is a bodyshot bandit
• Bangnan was a beast, freed from initiator jail
• xnfri certainly looked better than he did on DFM. Sorry.

Map 2: Bind (13-11 VL)

• Boong twin #2 Jin was like Atlas, carrying his team on shoulders
• Rainbow 6 fans might’ve been pleased with Gatorada’s performance
• L0B found his footing with VL
• Sengoku honestly had a good attack plan

NORTHEPTION 1-2 Murash Gaming

Map 1: Ascent (13-10 NTH)

• Wolverine was sick on Jett; the 29 kills speak for themselves
• Thiefy on duelist was great to see
• Tonbo started warming up
• MRSH’s attack was alright, but NTH shut their executes down pretty quickly

Map 2: Lotus (13-1 MRSH

• Ban Lotus against MRSH
• Here’s a summary of how MRSH played the map: aim better, and are apes together strong
• Northeption, run a duelist next time. Thiefy is known for his Raze, and Pepper can play her too.

Map 3: Sunset (13-10 MRSH)

• Despite losing, i really liked how Pepper’s util and timings were always on point
• Biju and Tonbo were a deadly duo
• Apparently Wolverine had a good Raze too
• Yowamu had really questionable decisions
• NTH built a steady momentum but cooled off a lot by the second half

Next week (D3W2) Preds:

IGZIST vs FENNEL (FL 2-0)
VARREL vs Murash Gaming (2-1 MRSH)
Sengoku Gaming vs NORTHEPTION (2-0 NTH)

VL 2-0

Boong twins and NOBITA need to carry to win, which might be a hard ask.

A player named Mads on a team called MAD.

The world is healing.

Definitely inspired by WINTO0. Shoutout for his VCL Spain resumes, really enjoyed reading them.

FENNEL 2-1 SCARZ

Map 1: Sunset (14-12 SZ)

• Definitely the best map of the day
• Intense back-and-forths between both teams
• Lumo was a rock
• SyouTa dropped 31
• the only map where Yoshii had presence

Map 2: Icebox (13-9 FL)

• GON MACHINE….
• Derialy’s lurks were great
• SyouTa’s ace on round 18 is already one of the best aces of the year
• Mr TenzouEZ did his namesake proud
• Despite having less kills than he did on Sunset, Only1 felt more impactful

Map 3: Ascent (13-3 FL)

• The Lumo/Allen swap was confusing
• The entire FL team played great, everyone stood out greatly
• SZ needs more practice

REJECT 2-0 IGZIST

Map 1: Bind (13-6 RC)

• GangPin went crazy
• BRIAN showed why he was a shining star on that nonexistent iteration last year
• IGZIST looked to be confident in their attack but RC snowballed the hell out of defense
• kobra tried his best to carry
• HaReee didn’t look that bad
• xui?

Map 2: Icebox (13-3 RC)

• GangPin went crazy part 2
• Akame put the fear of God in kobra
• Muto showed flashes of brilliance
• IGZIST was just team diffed

Tomorrow (D2W1) Preds:
VARREL vs Sengoku Gaming (2-0 VL)
NORTHEPTION vs Murash Gaming (2-0 NTH)

GangPinが本当に戻った。igzistのjailから解放された

GangPin’s finally back in form. Freed from IGZIST.

revenant…. that 2v4 on round 28….

……

Banger game to start the Split off with.

2-1 FL

Pacific: https://www.vlr.gg/pickem/f06d85e5
EMEA: https://www.vlr.gg/pickem/89bc8dbc
Americas: https://www.vlr.gg/pickem/a1295c9a

Could be very wrong, nonetheless.

MLT Bangladeshi pride

MLT 2-0

What’s with players named “shy” being cracked at their esports?

Shy from OW is one of the best hitscans China produced. Shyy from KRÜ Valorant already made a reputation from his time at Leviatán.

Now this shy seems to be very good.

1. FENNEL
   FENNEL very good. CLZ, SyouTa, Xdll, Gon, and Derialy all very good.

2. SCARZ
   Honestly the second-best team. Allen and Yoshii have the veteran leadership to lead the “rookies.” Lumo is flexible and reliable, MrTenzou is alright, and Only1 is an excellent duelist pick-up up too. They’ll go far.

3. NORTHEPTION
   Very underrated and will give FL and SZ a run for their money. Esperanza is a very solid IGL; Wolverine, Thiefy, and Pepper provide a lot of firepower and flexibility. Yowamu is the only question mark, but don’t sleep on this team.

4. REJECT
   Quite high on this team. We all know how good Akame was at JDT. GangPin is back in form after nearly a year. BRIAN was the only player who performed from the non-existent RC squad in 2023, and Hals looks like a solid loanee. Muto didn’t perform too well on NTH, but he’ll do fine in a young and hungry squad like RC.

5. IGZIST
   Hard to rank 5-7. I am excited to see allow and kobra play and HaReee’s comeback to competitive play after nearly 11 months, but this team BARELY made it past Crest Gaming. They’ll do some upsets, though.

6. Murash Gaming
   Honestly? They have untapped potential. Absol is regarded as an up-and-coming duelist. Reita will guide this team with his 10+ years of experience; the rest can do damage. Tonbo and million have been in the scene for a long time, and Japanese fans rate them highly. Backed by one of the most famous streamers in Japan, they can be a solid middle-of-the-pack team.

7. VARREL
   This team… is okay. It can be said they are a team of “washed-up” players, but they are okay nonetheless. But I don’t see them going as far as fifth in the standings. Keep your eye out for Bangnan, though. He and LOB will be the saving graces for this team.

8. Sengoku Gaming
   As much as I want the Boong twins and NOBITA to succeed, this team will struggle.

DSYRE
Outplayed
VX300
NOVO
QLASH
Axolotl
RTZN
Happy Game

personal power rankings just based on rosters

This article was published at the time when neveR wasn’t added to the team’s database despite being signed in December.

Group A:
T1
ZETA

Group B:
DRX
TS

Group C:
PRX
RRQ

Play-in: ZETA

Playoffs:
T1
PRX/DRX

PRX/DRX
ZETA

Finalists:
Idk but at least PRX gets through either way.