Lower Bracket Semi Finals




[#16]    vs [#2] 



X-Spider: This match is a chance for sYncLine to redeem themselves against revamped. They met during the regular season, and managed to put up a good fight later in that match, but just wasn't enough to catch up and take the win. Both teams come with familiar faces, both liked and disliked. Revamped comes to this semifinal with veterans who would cause fear in other teams when they were in their prime. On the contrary, they are still a strong team, and I see these guys going to the consolation finals against Iron Hymen (prediction preview!?). sYncLine comes to the field with players both old and new. sYncLine has had some success in past seasons under their fearless leader demeter. This team comes with a whopping 10-4 record, where their last win came from the highly-favored Llama Patrol. We can expect to see sYn's demeter and hitman47 work their way to the bridge against revamped's prncss and rebirth. Snipers phnx` and riot will be going back and forth at the bridge and the plaza, all depending at what flags are already held. I'd say phnx will be the stronger contender in the sniper battle, particularly at the bridge. Stalin and e`man will not play the waiting game, as they will go ahead and cap plaza, easily holding off sYn's heavies, InFiL and Milo. hXc's support at the bridge and plaza may not be enough to stop reid's awesomeness as revamped's third rifle. This match will be very close, from my perspective, but I think phnx`s contribution as the sharpshooter will result in sYncLine's dismissal from the playoffs. Expect e`man and stalinfrag to be the top fraggers of this intense match. Good luck to both teams! Prediction - reVamped over sYncLine 203-152

ThatsRight: Syncline is hot right now and is riding a 5 game winning steak since losing to OSK. Revamped on the other hand is coming off a loss to Iron Hymen but still has an impressive 10-2 record. They have already defeated Syncline once this season on Harrington and will be looking to do it again this Thursday on Anzio. It will be close to 10 days since Revamped has played a match and this layoff could be an area of concern for them as I doubt they scrim. I would expect Revamped to most likely be more skilled on a player to player basis but syncline will have the better teamwork, and on Anzio that could mean trouble. I see Syncline being able to take advantage of this for an early lead and a few caps. I’m not entirely sure of Revamped's roster as even they are apparently not. I am going to assume Stalin and Eman will be heaving against Milo and Hxc. Eman should do a lot of damage with kill sprees if allowed to break to the allies first or axis first. On the scopes Phnx should get the better of Advent in the end but it will be interesting to see the strats of the 3rd rifle/sniper of these teams. They may be on opposite sides of the map both half. On the rifles Sycline will have Hitman, Demeter, and Ted matched up vs. most likely Reid and Scdy. I believe Revamped will win in the end but it will be an intense fast pace game. Communication, Teamwork, and kill sprees will be key to this one. Prediction - reVamped over sYncLine 425-378

cLouTieR: This is going to be the better match to watch this week in my opinion. Both teams are very hot these playoffs and are looking for the chance to bounce out of the lower bracket and face PaNdAdoGz in the finals. On a typical day, many people would give reVamped the clear cut win, but after waiting over a week for their next opponent, reVamped might be a bit rusty and make a few risky and potentially crucial mistakes as a result. Syncline on the other hand has been very active during these playoffs and have been forced to play on a very regua basis - as a result I would expect them to have the edge in this match in terms of teamwork and communications. Revamped features a very strong heavy duo in e`man and stalin who will be going up against rising stars, Milo and hXc - look for a very intense matchup in mid and plaza between these pairings. However I will give the advantage to reVamped, specifically e`man who will likely run wild in this match and rack up a hefty frag count. On the other side of the map tho, I would expect sYncLine's rifles, led by Hitman47 and Demeter to take control of the bridge - but must stay on top of their game or reVamped's sniper (Phnx) will clear the way for a quick change in momentum. The match will go back and forth with a few quick cap outs - but the winner will be the one that can keep a strong hold of bridge and/or plaza. Prediction reVamped over sYncLine by a cap

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[#4]    vs [#17]



X-Spider: This is the Match of the Lower Semifinals from my point of view. Substandard has proven to be a worthy opponent to all the teams they have played. Standing at a 12-2 record, I am convinced that -standard is a powerhouse in this lower bracket. Unfortunately, most of the losses from substandard have come from Anzio. On the other hand, oldsKool has been known by most of the community as an online team. Unlike substandard, osK has taken the time to attend CPL/WSVG (whatever you want to call it) and attempt to accomplish what they do online, except came short of everyone's expectations. oldsKool has managed to beat some of the top tier teams in Theta, which include NihilisM. Substandard will definitely start off on Anzio by trying to set up their rifles on the bridge area with fidelity and Ender. I can see Ender dominating at the bridge when he uses the Garand. It is very rare for him to miss on bridge. Fidelity is known to be a very consistent rifle, and I don't see why this couple would struggle to maintain the bridge held in their favor throughout the match. osK's Commando will be at the sniper rifle, and I'd expect him to hold down the plaza for his heavies, as -standard's pujay will not be much of a match for Commando's pick-off positions. The battle between oldsKool and substandard's heavies will be pretty even at the plaza. We can expect the lights/3rd rifles to battle out the street and provide support for the bridge and plaza when possible. I believe Ender will be the top-fragger for the entire match, for the bridge is the promised land for him. I'd like to give substandard the benefit of the doubt and say that their rifle's will help them win this match, but it will be a very close one. Could go either way in my opinion. Prediction - substandard over oldsKool 124-112

ThatsRight: GLHF, Avalanche Preseason.

cLouTieR: As I have said all season and playoffs thus far, substandard is an overlooked force to be dealt with. Their face paced playing style usually tends to overwhelm their opponents and forces teams to switch a lot of their traditional push-and-hold strats to a more defensive and cautionary strat. On the other side, osK isn't a push over either and has the experience to beat many teams in the community - but it all depends which team shows up on game night - the prepared one or the causual gamer one. osK has been a very streaky team this season, which makes their opponents unknown of what to expect really. Because of that I would expect substandard to handle this match with relative easy. Prediction - substandard over oldsKool by 2-3 caps.

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Artwork by David "cassO" Marquez