A:
1. Lynx
2. Masters
3. French
4. Turtles
5. Blitz
6. ONE!
7. Outlaws
I know that you guys like Masters a lot here, with Timminator joining them, however, I am seeing deja vu right now. The terms "young roster" and "new blood" are once again being applied to lynx. Lynx has cards up their sleeve, and I would not be surprised to see them repeat.
French is a stalwart in A, and I don't see that changing anytime soon. They play the same players, league after league. Expect them to continue to remain steady/ slowly rise.
Turtles is an interesting choice for fourth, really. Buns, Nackickwind, and USA biches will certainly pull their weight. But beyond that, I question their relative depth.
Blitz has a sneaky strong roster- but only just sneaky enough to avoid relegation.
I question ONE!'s depth, tbh. I don't see them doing strongly.
You guys are all across the board with how Outlaws will do this season. You treat them as an enigma. I am not hot on their "dark-horsedness" as so many others are. From my experience, the fact that they vary so widely in outlook purports to be a bad sign to me.
B:
1. GG
2. WG
3. VS
4. M'Hunters
5. Sninja
6. BIA
7. VIW
GG is probably feeling the burn from being in B about now. Don't expect them to take this battle lightly.
WG has new blood in it in almosttriky and smileyleg. I expect them to promote with GG
VS is a close third.
M'Hunters rounds out the top four. I don't see them having the depth of the other three.
Sninja seems sucked dry of its players.
BIA and VIW speak for themselves.
Q1
1. Hydra
2. FCC
3. ACME
4. Olympus
5. FBG
6. Poon Squad
Hydra definitely has the edge over my own clan here. Their roster is simply better than ours in round one. Don't expect this to be an easy battle, as FCC and ACME will both give them a run for it.
ACME has the best individual player in ACL Tears, who plays twice here. Could monopolize the Strat ME and 2v2 Gui, securing a hefty 35 in those games. However, their depth is questionable, and I see FCC beating them out... barely.
Olympus is the best of the rest. They may be a ghost of themselves, but even so, they should finish in the middle.
FBG and Poon Squad really do not have much of a chance here.
Q2
1. 7th Heaven
2. Pruben Grade
3. CORP
4. LuFredd
5. German Warlords
6. Dutch
7th is the easy favorites. They will roll the group
The second promotion spot will be between Pruben Grade and CORP. I feel Pruben Grade is very underrated, as they keep to themselves and are building in the background. They reached their 44 player cap about a week ago, so they definitely have been building. CORP has the players, but Pruben has the depth to do damage.
LuFreddd, returning after its absence in CL7, seem dry to me. Their seriousness will lead them to fourth, however.
German warlords is an enigma, but the other rosters seem stronger.
Dutch doesen't seem to have the players nor the depth to me.
Q3
1. Apprentice
2. 101st
3. Statisticians
4. TJC
5. DWF
6. Hawks
The training clans 101st and Apprentice will have to prove themselves in a feisty division that could go any plethora of directions. I think they will.
Statisticians carry good players, but their depth really kills them in the end.
TJC is pretty much a ghost. Although Xeno and Rikku are playing via alts... which could be interesting.
DWF has huge depth problems, but the could dominate locally wherever fireice plays.
Hawks doesen't seem like it will do much in a loaded division.
C:
1. 7th Heaven
2. FCC
3. Hydra
4. Apprentice
5. 101st
6. Pruben Grade
7th, with the old !#Elite group in tow, will definitely show everyone what they are made of.
An interesting note by Ben about when he basically says that we have pretty much focused our depth on round 1. A little hint for you all, but I feel that our round two roster is actually better than our round one roster. To the point where I feel it could be stronger than even Hydra's roster (whatever it may be). I really can't wait for this round personally, because of this:
2v2 Final Earth: [FCC] Aura Guardian and Super Smoove
A blast to the past for me. I can't wait, because it hearkens back to some of my favorite times as an aspiring strategy player.
Apprentice and 101st are going to give the top three everything they can handle, but I just see 7th, Hydra, and FCC as simply better.
Pruben Grade, my darkhorse pick, may be able to get out of a weak division, but won't stand up against the heat of a strong one.
Edited 1/30/2017 05:33:34