Board 8 > Mercenaries Draft State of the League: I've got the power (rankings)!

(+) Yeah! (+)

Now that the draft is finally over, one question remains: Who won? The game hasn't started yet, but we can't help but look at picks and wonder if anyone looks poised to take the game by storm already. In this topic, I (and possibly my fellow admin trdl23) will go over the teams in each pool, dissecting their strategies, upcoming matchups, leadership styles and personalities and predict their likely placements at the end of the regular season. Anyone else who wishes to do rankings is welcome here too! Want to tell another player how much they suck? This is the place to do it without eating an Aldor Peacekeeper or three.

Group 1:

Mewtwo
God
DC
Tiro
Luis
Skyridge
Eddv
Lopen

Group 2:

Boko
Gravy
Johnbobb
Scare
Rocket
Eaed
Corrik
Tom

First update...SOON. Stay tuned!
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Why am I 6th.
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7th, and that's the pick order lol

That's not my power rankings!
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Oh you are lucky
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i dont know what anyone in my group owns, besides boko because he took a few mercs i wanted

so theres that
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Tag

No MtG cards for leaders until we're at least halfway through.
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Tag
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Tag
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Boo it was soon 20 hours ago
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ScareChan posted...

Boo it was soon 20 hours ago

tbf Serious Admin Stuff (TM) came up right after I got the rankings topic up

But I'll see if I can't get some preliminary analysis going later tonight.
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Tag
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Bump
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since our admins arent Power Ranking a user who will go unsaid said

"if you analyze your picks then i'd read it, maybe"

so alright sure i will. heres my picks sequentially round to round

Gravy: Dante, Sorey, Terra, Kefka, Flynn, Dr. Light (PS), Shulk, Yuri, Ellie, Agnes, Mewtwo, Y'shtola

so in the next post i will go over my first three picks -- because this is what i game planned the entire draft around.
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since our admins arent Power Ranking a user who will go unsaid said

Who said we aren't

I'll get initial analysis for a few matchups up now that work has ceased crushing me
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Alright! Let's get this party started.

Group 1 Power Rankings:

8) IfGodCouldDie

God - Fuck With Us! (0-0, 20GP)
Low: Bowser,
Mid: Albert Wesker, Psycho Mantis, M. Bison, Dr. Wily, Sigma, Nightmare
High: Sarah Kerrigan, Exdeath, Diablo, Dark Samus
Supports: GLaDOS (Link: ????)
Recharges:
Notes:

In every draft, somebody has to be the weak link. God is the one for this draft, even if it is relative - these groups are absolutely full of killers, and even the weakest team can win a few matches if the leader's smart about it. The primary reason God is ranked so low isn't his teamcomp (which is pretty decent) but the questions we all have about his leadership abilities. Mercs has a difficulty curve that's almost vertical, so newbies tend to do somewhat poorly during their first few weeks. Will God overcome his inexperience in time to clinch a playoffs spot, or will he be like a small fish swimming in a pool of sharks? Time will tell. Time will tell...

Group 2 Power Rankings:

8) ScareChan

Scare - Team America (0-0, 20GP)
Low: Chrom, Vivi, Vanille, Big the Cat
Mid: Senator Steven Armstrong, Dr. Wily, Ryu H, Bass.EXE, Raiden
High: Diablo, Raziel
Supports: Deathwing (Link: Armstrong)
Recharges:
Notes:

Interestingly enough, Group 2's newbie isn't at the bottom spot. We'll get to eaed later - this is Scare's writeup, not his after all - but partly due to natural talent and partly due to coaching refining that talent, I think he's poised to do well enough to reach the playoffs. Now, on to the writeup itself.

Essentially, Scare's problem is that I'm not sure his low tier is not going to let him down. Mid tier is rock solid, but high and low are both a bit exposed. It's impossible to cover every tier in this format, by design, but Diablo and Raziel are kinda lonely in high. This team will have to win through abilityhax, not battle worth. And looking at it...it's possible, but dicey. Big is cash, Vivi has a ghetto removal, Raiden has a KO, Armstrong can turn teams against each other and Ryu H has the True Dragon Gleam to execute squishies. Can Scare ration his abilities properly to survive each matchup though? That is the burning question. At least he has Wily to help out - those sixteen free abilities are godsends.
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More to come later. I have to run for class like, right now.
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already one spot higher than expected!
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Bored.

List your team and I will make a hit television show starring them. May make stealth comments to team comp in regards to battle worth and terrain as well.
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Kamekguy posted...

Bored.

List your team and I will make a hit television show starring them. May make stealth comments to team comp in regards to battle worth and terrain as well.

Eaed - Suplex Through Time, b**** (0-0, 20GP)
Low: Crono, Sabin, Beast Incarnate Brock Lesnar, Leon Kennedy
Mid: Cloud Strife, Big Boss, Aigis
High: KOS-MOS, Samus, Final Fantasy 4 Complete Collection, Master Chief
Supports: Rosalina (Link: Beast Incarnate Brock Lesnar)
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Suplex Through Time

Brock Lesnar plays "The Beast Incarnate". Having done 20 years of hard time for a suplex he did not commit, The Beast trained under the watchful eye of a guard named Figaro. The show splits between The Beast's time in prison, wherein he's chosen as Figaro's representative in an inter-prison fighting ring, and the present, where twenty years of suplexes has destroyed his personality as Brock. Critics are split on the casting of Rosalina as Brock's estranged wife, as having a stoic actress act off of an already broken Brock seems rather simple compared to the dynamics of a more upbeat woman, but this has been won over in their excellent romance scene wherein the viewer is wondering if Brock truly is "big" enough for her, and what that means. Standout performances include fan favorite John "Big Boss" Snake in a walk-on one-episode role that honestly has more meaning to its location than to his performance, hot newcomer Aigis from a women's precinct who utilizes surprise tactics with her sister in a great dynamic to give The Beast one of his greatest fights, and Final Fantasy 4 Street Prison's arc, which allowed for a greater amount of representation and legitimately came out of nowhere to help The Beast in his most desperate hour, but holding enough clues for all to see it was possible. Though tensions between Master Chief and Samus Aran were reported backstage, both work together as a modern villain couple for Brock to overcome, and the reveal of the temporal entity Crono physically fusing Brock's shattered psyche together remains one of the year's top scenes. The series comes out strong with a very great offensive presence, but seems to struggle when The Beast is forced into uncomfortable, up-close situations that he cannot repel. However, the show remains fun, inspiring, and more thoughtful than it would seem to let on.
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DeathChicken - General Bub's Spiritual Hit Squad (0-0, 20GP)
Low: Crono, Juliet Starling, Geese Howard
Mid: Alice Liddell, Sora, Aigis, Dracula
High: Dante, Lich King, Kuja, Kain
Supports: Ruby Heart (Link: Dante)
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I love Kamek projects.

Also lol I ain't doing jack for rankings before the fights begin.
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Round 1: Dante (Devil May Cry 4 (and 3))

Why?: His basic ability is very potent. He has no drawbacks in high tier, unlike a couple other top notch mercs there (Archer/Vergil). Jackpot is a very cool ability, even though it's rather limited in use. Cheap to boot. Quite frankly I think Dante is worth the #1 pick for the respect he consistently demands. You either deal with him with abilities, or you risk him soloing.

Basically when I evaluated mercenary potential, I went first and foremost for prior respect. Dante, of course, is number 1. But with a base ability that actually can be really, really good if used correctly and a cheap KO on a select amount of mercs he's providing as much actual ability coverage as the downright absolute #2 merc in the game: Archer (with at least 5 guaranteed abilities). And for being Dante, well that's fucking damn good. Archer could, in my books, be considered the #1 -- and I greatly considered him at #2.

Round 2: Sorey (Tales of Zestiria)

Sorey again hit on my team's core principles. Strong battle worth is something that is undeniable. In a game with limited resources, overwhelming teams with greatly respected mercs is just something you can't always combat against the enemy team. However Sorey brings two separate and incredibly strong facets to him. First off, he can purify an Otherworldly mercenary every 5 weeks. Hello Archer, Bayonetta, or...oh, Dante. In terms of timing this is at least usable on two mercs. With this context, Sorey's value is incredible. He is KO protection on no cooldown. Now figure in the upgrade to block enemy possessions and other shit from hitting him, the seraphim, and any sub-lord contracts? Way, way too good.

How he went undrafted by everyone for so long in the other group doesn't make much sense to me. He doesn't have any active abilities, beyond an upgrade, but his peacetime effectively makes his ability 'upkeep' well, always active. In a game without resources, dealing with the Armatization trigger in general is just going to be incredibly difficult to overcome.

Round 3: Terra Branford (Final Fantasy VI)

Quite possibly the strongest re-release during playoffs. I really kind of think it speaks for itself that she, on her team's win, can replace herself with a fully upgraded mercenary. Ever wanted a merc, but you couldn't justify how much they sucked at first? Well there's your situational answer! Beyond that, the rework adjusted her upkeep back to 4 (aka M3 levels) and removed her materia upgrade in lieu for 30 seconds longer Trance. This isn't even really touching on her trigger being able to intercept removals. Once upgraded, she can tank anything, even stuff that wouldn't work on her. I mean that is money in and of itself and it's incredibly cheap.

Her combat worth is pretty top notch in low and quite competitive in mid, and I think 4's are really good in this set up for paydowns in general. She just makes Sorey even more valuable frankly.
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Eddv - Mobile Suit Knux

High: Wonderful 100, Fox McCloud, Elma, Raziel
Mid: Mega Man, Sorey, Zeratul, Shanoa
Low: Knuckles, Earthworm Jim
PS: Dr.Light (attached to Jim)
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General Bub's Spiritual Hit Squad

Alice was just an ordinary girl, living with her parents and her favorite stuffed animal, Bub. However, one day her house burned down due to a freak accident involving a flock of geese flying through her window, causing psychosis. This psychosis is played dramatically at first, but Alice soon becomes more well-adjusted as she moves to a new town and makes friends with a girl named Juliet Starling. Through a hi-LARIOUS montage of GIRL TIME and constantly picking on a nerd named Sora, Juliet helps Alice lighten up and see the world as a Wonderland. However, things get dicey when a mysterious drifter named Dante shows up and is better than EVERYONE ELSE in school at EVERYTHING, and with him comes a variety of supernatural beings from beyond! These four unlikely friends will have to work together, get over their own personal differences and Alice's slight insanity and psychosis, and find out who is behind the mysterious uprising of the undead. A laugh riot happens as Alice and Sora seem to dodge over the top attacks almost effortlessly, though they do have some difficulty with massive targets that don't have time for their japes. Battles are fought with quick thinking and even faster reflexes, with a shout-out to the dance battle set to "Mass Destruction". A well-rounded series with enough hidden tricks, together the Bub Club comes together for dark, but ultimately hilarious, family fun.
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Mobile Suit Knux

Knuckles is in no state to chuckle. He is the worst player of the famed "Lylat Wars" online role-playing game, forced to watch as other players surpass him. His only saving grace is his memetic value, believing in himself enough and trying hard enough that other players have taken a shine to him. Through mysterious circumstances, he is brought into the game world, learning that the game's most prolific players have been chosen to survive an apocalypse set out by Dr. Thomas Light, a once brilliant scientist turned into an AI who only wishes for entertainment. Now, Knuckles must team up with Fox McCloud, Elma, and 100 of his new friends in order to combat the threat ahead. The obvious appeal is Knuckles' trademark Five Knuckle Chuckle, wherein through sheer grit, he manages to match his far superior peers in an unorthodox manner. Filled with complexity to hide a lack of depth, the series utilizes the bonds made between its cast as they are both helped and hindered by the enigmatic Light, whose only goal seems to be seeing violence be expedited and a rush of bodies sweeping up any opposition. Light's son, Mega Man, gets a chapter wherein he learns from Knuckles, and their bond and continued growth remains one of the series' high points. Light's curious fixation on famous performer E.W.J. has yet to bear fruit as of this writing, but fan theories have speculated a fascinating turn. As the show enters its second season after a surprise hit with its first, especially with the introduction of bullwark of strength Zeratul, fans eagerly await the conclusion to the plot threads provided, and if Knuckles will be able to taste from the ghost's pumpkin soup.
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Home early. Let's see if I can crank out a couple rankings more.

7a) Skyridge

Skyridge - Maverick Hunters (0-0, 20GP)
Low: Tidus, Frog, Link, Tails, Kaos
Mid: Yuna, Thrall, Pit
High: Mega Man X, Zero, Sephiroth
Supports: Jeigan (Link: X)
Recharges:
Notes: X has copied Tidus' Hastega

Skyridge's team is a Skyridge team. This might sound like a tautology, but he's an old, old vet of the game (played in M2 and M3 as GenesisTwilight), and he has a clear style of his own. He loves him some mega man X, he's big on soloing arguments, and he always has some furries (just a mild joke, much love for him). One of his advantages is being a veteran who won't tilt that easily. One of his disadvantages is that his arguing style is kind of ineffective. He doesn't really take control of a conversation like other leaders do (Lopen would come to mind here, for instance), and can sometimes get sidelined in his own match. He usually has valuable points to make, but isn't always heard.

This team has a clear gameplan, with clear weaknesses. Get X or Zero to hit the field (ideally both), buff them up to the eyebrows, watch them SOLO. Nothing expresses this better than Kaos' ability to turn fights into 1v1s. The downside is that this is a strategy that naturally relies very strongly on a select few mercs, and if they're gone it crumbles badly. Frog's ability defense helps with this some, but it's a double-edged sword, and what happens if one of the superbuffed boys eats dirt is none too clear. I feel like this team is good when its gameplan goes off, but the problem is that it only has one gameplan at the moment. Keep an eye out for it circa W3, because a redraft could massively fix that and make it scary as hell.

7b) Rocket

Redrocket - Might Controls Everything (0-0, 20GP)
Low: Claire Redfield
Mid: Selvaria Bles, Dragonslayer Ornstein & Executioner Smough, Lu Bu, The Boss, Zeratul
High: Archer, The Nephalem, The Agents, Wrex, Ridley
Supports: Taiga & Ilya (Link: Claire)
Recharges:
Notes: O&S guard The Boss, Lu Bu is Selvaria's liege, Wrex is Archer's master, Neph is a girl

Look at that high tier! Now look at that low tier and mid and get really sad! This is a team that is like, one step away from being really good, and just isn't at the moment because of what feel like clear misplays. Why get Smough and Ornstein and not form a Darkmoon Covenant with Girl Neph? Why not make Smough or Ornstein into Selvaria's liege so she can substitute one in the sidetopic, rack up kills, and potentially use the Neutral version of Valkyrur Final Flame to absolutely wreck everybody's shit on mid and low? Why not pick Zeratul as Archer's master, arguably the one choice that makes Archer not a terrible pick (because of how each removal of the master is actually worth two by axing Archer)? And so on and so forth. This team is just scarily fragile at the moment - disable Wrex and disable the Nephalem and there almost isn't a high tier advantage any longer, lowbie is a dumpster fire, The Boss, Lu Bu and O&S are untested-to-bad entities in combat in mid. This team is real glassy, and I feel like it's gonna get exploited a bunch. But the sheer potential when things go right for it is something I can't dismiss, hence not putting it in the bottom spot.
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I will say that I feel like Lu Bu is probably gonna get decent respect just because his substantially weaker daughter actually got really nice respect the one time I used her. Boss has always been weirdly not respected though and O&S are legendary for the wrong reasons
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KanzarisKelshen posted...

Redrocket - Might Controls Everything (0-0, 20GP)
Low: Mercs that aren't Vergil
Mid: Mercs that aren't Vergil
High: Mercs that aren't Vergil

Ehhhhh?
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This Party's Getting Crazy - Dante, DMC3 or something
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Lu Bu is getting no respect. lol
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lu bu's soloed like 10 armies, which is worth like, 1/10th a dante
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hey man "1/10th a dante" seems pretty decent for a 4

I respect Lu Bu! but I p much never vote
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Kamekguy posted...

Mobile Suit Knux

Knuckles is in no state to chuckle. He is the worst player of the famed "Lylat Wars" online role-playing game, forced to watch as other players surpass him. His only saving grace is his memetic value, believing in himself enough and trying hard enough that other players have taken a shine to him. Through mysterious circumstances, he is brought into the game world, learning that the game's most prolific players have been chosen to survive an apocalypse set out by Dr. Thomas Light, a once brilliant scientist turned into an AI who only wishes for entertainment. Now, Knuckles must team up with Fox McCloud, Elma, and 100 of his new friends in order to combat the threat ahead. The obvious appeal is Knuckles' trademark Five Knuckle Chuckle, wherein through sheer grit, he manages to match his far superior peers in an unorthodox manner. Filled with complexity to hide a lack of depth, the series utilizes the bonds made between its cast as they are both helped and hindered by the enigmatic Light, whose only goal seems to be seeing violence be expedited and a rush of bodies sweeping up any opposition. Light's son, Mega Man, gets a chapter wherein he learns from Knuckles, and their bond and continued growth remains one of the series' high points. Light's curious fixation on famous performer E.W.J. has yet to bear fruit as of this writing, but fan theories have speculated a fascinating turn. As the show enters its second season after a surprise hit with its first, especially with the introduction of bullwark of strength Zeratul, fans eagerly await the conclusion to the plot threads provided, and if Knuckles will be able to taste from the ghost's pumpkin soup.

Oh hes gonna taste that green emerald power
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A 2 or 3 who wields a gun would kill Lu Bu easily.

I mean, that's all you really need to know regarding it.
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Incidentally, I would personally drop Claire like a hot potato and get Corrin if I were Rocket. Branch of Fates to reset those On Purchases and fix things is absolutely cash money and takes this team from spot 7 to like top 3 IMO.

Corrik posted...

A 2 or 3 who wields a gun would kill Lu Bu easily.

I mean, that's all you really need to know regarding it.

Now this is way too much disrespect

There's at least one gun user in DW and Lu bu just doesn't care. Dude's pretty strong - but he DID lose that match for JC, so who knows.
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Hes properly rated - hes basically just ike with worse abilities.
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Lu Bu is a rich man's, uh that guy from suikoden
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6a) Tiro

Tirofog - Ride The Lightning (0-0, 20GP)
Low: Claire Redfield, Booker DeWitt, Chrom, Yuffie Kisaragi, Ryu3, Nilin
Mid: Cloud Strife, Terra Branford,
High: Archer, Lightning, Lilith
Supports: Professor Oak (Link: Nilin)
Recharges:
Notes: Cloud is Archer's master, Lilith is a Controller, Ryu3 has Pac-Man and Metal Man genes

Jeeze, ranking teams in Group 1 for spots 6 and up is hard. You guys did good work building your teams.

Tiro's team is pretty good. A solid 7 in Archer with the appropriate levels of ability defense for him (Cloud AND Chrom AND Terra? Good stuff). Nilin to multiply abilities. Lightning for cheese. The problem is...there's not enough cheap stuff. There's three strategies here ('hero defense', 'nilin team' and 'lightning team') and none of them have been developed fully. Nilin doesn't have so many abilities that are worth multiplying (Booker mostly doesn't care, Claire doesn't care, Cloud doesn't care, Chrom and Ryu3 don't care...), there aren't enough dumb ways to buff Archer, and of course there are no lightning saves (yet at least). This team could probably afford to drop Booker and Ryu3 because they don't add enough, and get like, IDK, Big the Cat and Golbez? Something Nilin can use to buy wins with at any rate. They don't reinforce any of the strats and that's bad - a bit more specialization would go a long way. Right now, this team's a jack of all trades, master of none.

6b) Johnbobb

Johnbobb - Pink Floyd's "The Kirb" (0-0, 20GP)
Low: Kirby, Booker, Ganondorf, Sonic
Mid: Akuma, Sora, The Prince, Potemkin
High: Vergil, Kratos, Arthas
Supports: CATS (Link: Akuma)
Recharges:
Notes:

The bad news first: I'm not convinced Ganondorf adds anything at all to this team in a world with paydowns (and Songbird, who SHOULD solo or near-solo lowbie matches, making big ganon kinda worthless since it gives the bird a target), Akuma would really really like a way to buff his upkeep and there ain't any in sight (why was Wario not acquired to go along with him, again?), and there isn't enough random bullshit on this team to make The Prince truly solid as a recaller, making him a kinda abilityless merc. The rest, however, is very good - two 7s in Vergil and Arthas, Kratos bringing value with his summon once he has the preselection upgrade for Soul Rip, Sora's summons p roviding a way to break lowbie if Akuma doesn't do it, and a very strong mid tier and low squad in general. Very curious to see if Super Sonic gets any respect - one would hope yes, but even if not, Sonic's base ability is so good he justifies himself amply. Week 1 is rough because Kirby gets no decent morphs out of it, but Tom is coming up in Week 2 and that's a good chance to get the Kirbwing train rolling again. We'll see how things work out for this team - if Johnbobb can handle his abilities is smartly, there's plenty of room to do well.
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Eddv posted...

Hes properly rated - hes basically just ike with worse abilities.

Worse abilities and considerably better battle worth IMO - Lu Bu is an actual 4 and would shithouse Ike, the problem is Squall would body him in turn for example.
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5a) Lopen

Lopen - Machina Maw (0-0, 20GP)
Low: Rikku, Kirby, Kazuma Kiryu, Tira
Mid: Alucard, Yu Narukami, Doomguy, Liquid Snake, Bass.EXE
High: KOS-MOS, Samus Aran
Supports: CATS (Link: Rikku)
Recharges:
Notes:

It would be a grave mistake not to mention this team's primary advantage, and that's its leader. The man, the myth, the legend himself, the Macho Man Lopen Savage! Throughout M4, I heard a lot of people say they had a grasp on the pulse of the game. Lopen is one of the few I'd say actually did have it. His arguments are powerful and his style is impetuous. Leaders would be wise not to make matches debatable against him, because he might very well eke out an unexpected win.

Setting him aside, this team is interesting - very very strong mid tier, pretty solid low tier, kind of weak high tier. There's a clear weak spot opponents will want to fight him in, but between Liquid, CATS and Alucard, he has enough tricks to pull a rabbit out of his hat and shock the world. The main problem with this team is that it needs EXP - Bass wants it, Rikku wants it, Alucard wants it too and so does Liquid. Kazuma Kiryu is here to help with that, but an early win will be crucial. If he can start his season advantageously, this is a team that can take over. We'll have see if it happens.

5b) Corrik

Corrik - Corrik's Sardaukar (0-0, 20GP)
Low: Scorpion
Mid: Zack Fair, Lady, Albert Wesker, Yuna, Nova
High: Bayonetta, Id, Revan, Sephiroth, Kuja
Supports: Abathur (Link: Kuja)
Recharges:
Notes: Nova has Snipe, Revan is a Villainous Scoundrel/Sentinel

On paper, this team looks awesome - very scary high tier, highly complete mid, and a lowbie guy who can pull off amazing picks and still add battle worth. So why is it in the bottom half? Two reasons: One, Corrik's debate style put off players in the past that might otherwise have voted for him, and I fear it may do so again. Two, it's very top heavy - this team is vicious in high tier, but could easily be overwhelmed in mid because it's mostly 'fair'. The mercs are all great and smartly picked, but there's no doom combo here, nothing that 'solves' matches by itself. It'll have to earn its wins, fair and square, by outmuscling enemy teams. Can he manage it? I'm not sure - I would hope so, but god only knows if he will. It's been a while since M4. Let's see if Corrik has grown wiser in his absence.
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That's all for now, because I gotta get peace ready.
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Lu Bu would so wreck Squall. Plus, he's one of the best archers in mercs too.
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KJH posted...

Lu Bu would so wreck Squall. Plus, he's one of the best archers in mercs too.

I'm a squall mark admittedly, so my respect for him is huge. Your mileage may vary!
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lu bu vs squall is pretty debatable and i owned, and BEATED lu bu in his only match
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Squall would torch Lu Bu just because of speed, range, and magic.

Basically Oberyn vs the Mountain withour having to even get in combat range.
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Squall jobs to a telegraphed icicle and a basic fire spell. Lu Bu would murder him with arrows.

That's an ice storm, not a telegraphed icicle. You should watch that cutscene more closely. >_>
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AtnnWfpWJGo

My mistake. It was like 3 icicles. Two of which miss.

Lu Bu's not even slow in the first place! I just don't see where he loses in any parameter but magic, and even that could be debatable with the ease Lu Bu is blasting kamehameha lasers from the palm of his hands (for real, it's one of his musou attacks) and black lightning that accompanies his chokeslams and spear thrusts.
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