Pro Playoff Look Out

Pro Playoff Outlook
Unbiased preview of how the top 8 teams in Pro will fare in the Playoffs

B.I.A - 1st seed Losses to Watchmen and Presence in regular season. Show a slight lack of that killer instinct. Further analysis shows that they beat FuN! (9-8 in OT) and Assassins 12-6 and even that was close for the 30 minutes to 6-4. Looking at their roster and who has played the most games shows a worrying lack of an on field leader. Noone has played more than 9 games, and of there back up players only 3 have a + K/D and these have only played 6 games between them. If B.I.A's top 4 show (sika, hook, Zonbie and tak) They could take it home this season, If any of these fail to show BIA may struggle.

BlackDragon 8th Seed - BD have failed to win against any of the top 4 seeds this season. This points to an Easy BIA win.. Also BD are afflicted with the same problems as BIA in that there 1st choice 4 have had all the game time. Only Fusion and Slimster have had game time outside of this 4 and neither have managed stats to be proud of. Of slight concern is that only Slo Motion made it out of regular season with a +K/D record

BIA vs BlackDragon - Blackdragon to keep it close early on, maybe even taking a shock early lead but BIA to increase the pressure and take home a comfortable win 12-7

Presence - 2nd Seed - Sneaked into 2nd spot with wins Over BIA and Secret in the makeup round. Against the other 3 squads in the top 4 they have lost to FuN! (9-8 OT) and Assassins (8-5) whilst beating the aforementioned BIA in a controversial matchup. The best 4 for Pres have all posted impressive regular season stats being led by the #1 pilot in Pro Underlord (21-1). Again the top 4 are impressive but outside of this top 4 a lack of game time for anyone else could be disruptful to Presence's chances.

Tyranny - 7th Seed - Scheduling problems and a lack of activity have hurt Tyranny's chances this season, losses to The Dark and Blackdragon show a lack of interest. A look at the stats for the players highlights this further. Only sixth (22-13) has performed this season getting Rage active again could improve there chances considerably

Presence vs Tyranny - Presence defeated Tyranny 12-2 in regular season, expect a simillar result allthough slightly closer Presence to win 12-4

Assassins - 3rd Seed - Assassins have lost to BIA and FuN! of the other top Pro teams, with a further loss to Orategama (10-5). Game time has been shared out equaly between 6-7 player which bodes well should anyone have lag/playing problems. A strong performance is required of Mop who is looking for his 7th straight Pro championship

Orategama - 6th Seed - Orat have lost to all of the other playoff contenders except for BlackDragon and Assassins. And there season has tailed off in quite dramatic fashion losing 5 out of 7 beating only 2 non playoff teams. This may be a game to far in what has been a fairly mixed season for Orat. Losing Cloud over disciplinary issues seems to have hurt them more than it should have.

Assassins vs Orategama - Assassins will take this comfortably avenging there regular season loss 12-5

FuN! - 4th Seed - FuN! have had a fairly impressive season surprising even themselves. led by Klown in the stats and with losses only to BIA and 2 of the teams not in the playoffs. A strong run looks possible. In depth analysis shows that many have played but not consistently outside of there top 4 nobody has stepped up and this could be a problem. Perhaps the most astute decision of the season is Dioxide benching himself

Watchmen - 5th Seed - WM have with 1 win this season given themselves real hope for the playoffs. Beating BIA (8-7) after leading and then being pegged back must have given them real confidence. There season depends on Masterlord. If he plays well and can hold back the choke factor Watchmen can mop up the left overs.

FuN! vs Watchmen - Watchmen with the " surprise " win 12-6

AML Wild Card Round

Well like a druggie who just came off a bad trip and is now chain smoking to try to feel better... I thought I'd try to get my mind off the Red Sox so here I am writing this piece.

Epik(8-5) v. 7rominence(4-9) -
This should be a blowout and nothing more. Fishi being the tough captain that he is will find at least four players to show for this game but they're in for a beating. My hat goes off to 7rom for surviving like they have and playing tough all season through adversity.

Epik has seen a stunning revival this season. They are now a team that has the depth, talent, and experience to make a good run in the playoffs. If evader doesn't show for the Foodons in the 2 v. 7 game it could be very close.

I expect HV to show and jeer from spec. I do not expect Purple to show.

Line: Epik by 11

Heaven(7-6) v. Warlords(5-8) -
Heaven was left for dead early this season but have clung to life with a tenacity that is nothing short of miraculous. Players who comprised Heaven's bench last season have banded together captainless and somehow put Heaven here on the cusp of the playoffs. Heaven is a good bit more talented than Warlords but barely pulled off the win in their previous meeting.

Warlords have come a long way this season as well. They looked sloppy and bound for another disappointing season early but have somehow righted the ship. Over the last month and some Warlords have shown steady improvement every week especially in teamwork. They beat a strong Epik squad in week 11 in what was one of the most entertaining games in recent memory.

These two teams met in week 10 and Warlords gave it away.

Here's saying they won't make the same mistake again.

Line: Warlords by 2

Thalion(7-6) v. Alcoholism(4-9) -
The 7 seed is exactly where Thalion should be. They are the very picture of consistency as they lose to teams above them and beat teams below them. Thalion comes out strong in the start and then seems to fade as the game goes on. This could be a sign that they don't have much of a bench.

What a season Alcoholism has gone through. They began the season with high hopes and a new roster of hungry talented players... then disaster struck and they've been trying to pick up the pieces since. Meditation has "retired" but is still there in spirit(when he's not actually there anyway). The truth is Grinder is an aggressive captain who will do whatever he can to win this game. Alcoholism still has talent; the only player they lost from earlier in the season from when they defeated Thalion 12-7 is DK.

So is it possible? Sure it's possible. Alcos have the talent and the will to do it.

Alcos need to play the best game of their lives to prevent Meditation from retiring.

Here's saying they do.

Line:Alcoholism by 1

-BlitZed-(6-7) v. Secret(5-8) -
I'm not going to predict this game, but instead just write some thoughts. The first meeting was closer than the score indicates. The game could have gone either way. Secret is an old squad with veteran players and I expect them to make adjustments this weekend. I don't expect them to be fazed by anything -BlitZed- may do. They've faced tough competition before and have gained the reputation for being a hard out for any squad on any level.

-BlitZed- has been through a lot this season. I honestly don't know who or how many will show for this game given the inactivity that we've had all season. I expect we'll give it our best whoever shows though.

GL Secret, this should be a good one.

Preview: Happy Mob v. Liquid Inc.

I'm so drunk after coming back from the wedding reception of Eric and Shelly(captains of Hit-N-Run) but here I am attempting to write this shit for all you readers.. better enjoy it.

8-1 Liquid Inc. plays against a 7-4 Happy Mob squad this week. This game is fairly simple to break down as Liquid Inc. plays solid every week and wins when they're supposed to win while Happy Mob is as up and down as squads get.

Liquid Inc. is the quintessential teamwork squad. Coming from Warzone they are the most successful conversion in league history. None of LI's players are that talented, but they seem to find a way to win anyway. Their games are also boring as fuck to watch, but somehow week after week they end up on top. People will argue that Malmox or maybe more majorum are both as talented as any players on any squad, but can you really match them up against Bhang? You can't. Li simply shouldn't have the talent to stay in this game. But we know they will.

Happy Mob on the other hand is as talented as any AML squad in recent memory. Is there any question that this HM squad could defeat unforseen or even give the Diseent squad of last season a run for their money. With players like Bhang, phixion, bushes, garra, and symbsters with still more players unmentioned, this may simply be the most talented squad in AML history. And yet, they are only 7-4. Why is this? People will try to lay the blame at the feet of their captain, Surrey.. but is it really his fault? We know he trash talks, but could he single handedly sink his own squad? This reporter argues no. Surrey loves HM. Surrey IS HM. He personally willed them to a playoff spot last season and then gave Mutiny a good game in the first round. So why is this squad struggling like they are? I don't think anyone knows. We all have theories.. but in the end, the one aspect that can't be ignored about Happy Mob is that fact that they have ridiculous talent.

So, you're wondering what'll happen this weekend.

You'll just have to show up and find out. We have Liquid Inc's toughness and Warzone tested teamwork versus Happy Mob's rollercoaster ride and upper league level talent.

I'm drunk, take care, and show up for the game AML.

a heavenly upset

with, a difficult challenge, ahead, the ballistics, will, attempt, to do the impossible. make a playoff run.

the dantos factor.

the key...

The playoff run, is heating up, and I suspect, we are going to witness, many upsets. My, squad to watch, this week, is going to be a tie between Secret and Blasstics.

Ballistics, are 4 - 6, and are starting to look hungry. Heaven, I predict, is going to underestimate the presence, of Dantos. Dantos, is confident in his squad mates, and, will, dominate this sunday's game. They are hungry, and looking for the upset. Heaven, if you are reading, start practicing.

Turisops,
cose,
finn,
+1

If Secret were to use this line up for Sunday's match, they would invest in a very important win. Secret, on a path, to what still may be a strong season, is in dire need, to change their style. Everyone, is becoming very familiar with the lob and wait strategy. It is time to change the line up, and put in players who are willing to attack. My picks, will provide a victory for Secret.

Round 12 Game Previews

Still looking for more staff (especially people willing to talk about games/squads for PRO and IML) and getting organized. So for this week it'll be short and sweet, but hopefully by playoffs we'll have something more indepth/exciting. Keep reading for major game previews in PRO, IML, and AML.

PRO League
Prescence (4) vs Assassins (2) - PRO Match of the Week
This is by far the biggest matcup of the weekend. This matchup pits the fourth place Prescence (7-2) versus the second place Assassins (9-2). Both teams only have 2 losses and when they faced off in the preseason Aasassins took it home 10-7. However, I have yet to see either team play bad and in fact most games I've watched them play it was them decimating their opponent. A win here for Prescence would create some turmoil in the whole PRO top 4 as Assassins would have 3 losses, but even so Prescence still hasn't faced first place BIA.

I'd comment further on how PRO will end up, but the top 4 squads are all very good and both of these squads have yet to face all 3 other top 4 squads. But if you were a betting man I'd give a 20% chance that these two teams will be in the finals and an 80% chance at least one of them will be.

Tyranny (7) vs BIA (1)
This isn't really that great of a match odss wise BIA (9-1) should easily handle the struggling Tyranny (6-5). BIA is strong and has only one loss with only one more tough squad to face, but if sixth and Benji are both playing on and no one chokes out you could see Tyranny upset BIA and for the most part disrupt the PRO top spot all season BIA.

IML League
Mutiny (4) vs Dissent (5)
IML has some good match-up's, this bout of the top 2 of AML last season and 2 of the higher eichlon squads of IML this season should be interesting. Mutiny (7-3) has been performing very strong until last weeks upset by Secret (now in 6th place). Only Money has manhandled Mutiny, but if you can push Testify and cdb! around and make them choke Dissent could take it.

Dissent (6-2) on the other hand is just as powerful and all around has more solid players. Janus Zeal (aka Miner), Fatal, Sancio, hecase8, and Big BANGER all have strong performances and rarely if ever choke. The only problem is it seems that Dissent has yet to play Nightwatch or Money. This will be testing the waters for Dissent to see if they can recoup the upsets by Happy Mob and Birds of Prey.

Nightwatch (3) vs RedShift (2) - IML Match of the Week
Take Money out of the running or give them one good choke in playoffs and this is your finals. Nightwatch (7-3) started strong but is on a losing streak of recent with a heartbreak loss to Mutiny and a 10-Star upset by Friendly Fire. Nightwatch needs the win here or else the door for Mutiny or Dissent to roll into the #3 spot is wide open.

RedShift (9-1) has performed strongly all season. Their anagramed names and general old school fun time attitude make them the squad to win here. Besides a major loss to Money RedShift has time and time again sent their opponents packing. I'd put major money on RedShift to be in the IML finals if not the IML Champion.

AML League
Happy Mob (6) vs Liquid Inc. (4) - AML Match of the Week
AML started with people whining how bad Rome as. Well Carthage squads have all dwindled with many of the most powerful players and squads disappearing. Rome on the other hand has stepped up with what can only be called teamwork.

Happy Mob (7-4) has been the target squad to play your best againt and to upset and their players show very little interest. However Surrey has recently started an internal campaign in his squad to not let Liquid Inc beat them. Surrey has big names on his squads and lots of individual talent. Can Happy Mob take its IML undefeatedness and upsets back into AML?

OR, will Liquid In (8-1) who has played well all season take it home and make another run for #1 Rome Division squad? Where Happy Mob has talent, Liquid Inc has undeniable teamwork and play. Without the star player from last season - "Tak" Liquid Inc has been playing even better.

Afterglow (7) vs Timless (3)
Timeless (9-2) yet again gets a chance to prove itself to be good after a lackluster season start with losses to easy squads by stepping on top of Afterglow (6-3) like many other good squads have this season. Timeless just needs to show their squad's key players and actually care to give themselves back their Old Glory. An Afterglow win however will vault them up in the Rome rankings to close to #1 after they finally play the lesser squads they have not yet played and get the easy wins they need.

Preview: BlackNike v. 7rominence

Perhaps the game with the most at stake this week. BlackNike at 5-4 has been nothing but a disappointment this season. They'll come out of the gates looking to prove that they're for real and that they're not just a bunch of bad boy trash talking fuck ups. 4-5 7rominence has had a rollercoaster season thus far with some early wins and some losses the last couple of weeks. They'll be looking to prove they belong in the playoffs.

BlackNike began the season as a preseason favorite to win it all. They have a proud history of multiple seasons of AML behind them as well as a set of rings from two seasons ago. The roster this season is revamped with talented new faces such as Super.fly, destroy, stool, and Masamune to name a few. Whatever people have to say about the captains of BlackNike, most will concede that frowzy and AWOL are both experienced and smart. So what has gone wrong?

At times this season BlackNike has had difficulty showing four pilots to games. With a roster of 22 players this is a telling sign that something has not been right. Inactivity has forced players such as Drug Against War to step in to roles with more playing time than they're used to. So what's the problem?

The answer to that question can't be found anywhere. Interviews yielded this reporter no results. There are 22 players who would like to leave all of AML guessing. I suppose we'll all find out together whether they're for real at the end of the season when BN either does or does not win the championship.

And yes 7rom, this means they're exceptionally dangerous.

7rominence is one of several new squads this season to join AML. Following a trend of recent years, they're from Warzone. Following another trend from recent years, they've been successful bringing their Warzone teamwork here to Premier league.

The pilots of 7rom individually are nothing to be feared skillwise. Other than Fishibaron, High Voltage, and Purple, 7rom is on par with Hit-N-Run or ElementalForces in terms of raw talent. So how do they have four wins? Teamwork.

7rominence plays as a cohesive unit of interchangeable parts. If one player is subbed out for another, the sub knows exactly where he fits into the scheme of the game. This way there is never a significant drop in gameplay after subs. This teamplay has helped them stay in games they shouldn't have been in such as Week 2 v. Corrupt or Week 6 v. OldShift.

Recent events have come to the surface that reflect inner squad difficulties though. This could only be detrimental to 7rom's performance. The following is some of what Fishibaron, Captain of 7rominence, had to say about the state of affairs.

Fishibaron> well as you know hv is not my assisstant captain anymore
Fishibaron> i did this because he was pulling rank with me
Fishibaron> he submitted a request for appeal of our last match
Fishibaron> even though i said that there would be no appeal
Fishibaron> .. but there was a time when i did everything he said .. and i cant forget that
morphine> I understand
morphine> the man really does know ss
morphine> he's been around a long time
Fishibaron> he has been around
Fishibaron> anyway .. as far as squad unity .. i think we are a little shaky right now. my members shouldn't worry though

Fishibaron> as long as im around there will always be a 7rominence

Fishibaron admitted later that his team needs this win. 7rominence is currently in the 9th spot in Carthage with three games to go. Even with the advent of Wildcards, this is a precarious position for any squad. As you can tell from from the brief except of the interview, Fishibaron is trying to quell internal fires. At the same time though, anyone can see that Fishibaron is also very determined. 7rominence is playing for their playoff lives. Where do they go from here? I guess we'll just have to be there Sunday at 8PM EST to find out.

To all this Frowzy, Captain of BlackNike, had only one thing to say.

"Stop wasting our time."

Preview: Tweaked v. Corrupt

Tweaked meets Corrupt this Sunday in a matchup of Carthage leaders. 9-1 Tweaked still smarting over that loss to Wretcheds in week 4 is looking to prove that that one loss was a fluke by going undefeated the rest of the season. 7-3 Corrupt, on the other hand, is simply looking to prove that they can hang with the top squads of Carthage.

Tweaked has come a long way from the tWeAk*mOdE of 2 seasons ago. That squad was more disorganized than it was talented(and it was very talented). Last season Tweaked had some internal difficulties and lack of focus problems that resulted in a semi-finals playoff exit to Runner Up StarFire Elite. Tweaked this season doesn't suffer from those same problems. Savage has firmly taken control of this squad and turned them into a boulder rolling downhill.

Talentwise, Tweaked is the stronger of the two squads. While losing pilots like Super.fly and ZdeathX would hurt any squad, Tweaked took it all in stride and rebounded nicely by picking up Br'er, DukeHazard, and Salami Swammi. Coastal has also been a key addition to the new Tweaked. And that's without talking about Savage. The current leading pilot in almost all statistical categories in AML has been a load for opposing defenses to contend with. Perhaps Matt said it best in his interview with Crumbs when he remarked that Savage "looks PRO now." Indeed the point could be argued that there has never been a more dominating finisher in AML history.

But maybe that's Tweaked's only weakness as well. They are a squad of finishers without a playmaker. Savage with his deadly aim, Br'er with his lanc bombs, and DukeHazard with his Jav flybys all fit into relatively the same role. Super.fly fit the playmaker role perfectly for them last season. How far will they be able to go this season without one? And will Corrupt find a way to exploit that for the win?

Corrupt comes into this season having lost talent from when they were Abnocto Pestis. While fluff! didn't show to any games, Twista was instrumental to their success last season. Capitalist Defender also played much more last season. The new Corrupt relies on its heavy three weasel combination of KyleC, Cashew, and Colt-. The varied styles of the three have lead to seven wins so far this season. Cashew has the best aim of the three and tends to snipe, while KyleC has no fear of getting into the mix of things and initiating offense. Colt- can fit into whatever Corrupt is trying to do any particular match with a solid all around set of skills.

Many of the readers of the Times would probably like to write off Corrupt in this game. They simply don't seem to have the talent to compete with Tweaked. This assessment would be more than a little faulty.

While Corrupt does not have the raw talent to get into the middle of the map and brawl it out, they easily have enough talent to make this game a slow drawn out struggle and pull out a 5-4 win in OT. The pilots of Corrupt play smart with a dedicated teamwork ethic brought over from flying together in Warzone for many seasons. Even more importantly they have a winning swagger about them. Losing doesn't seem a possibility.

Will teamwork, toughness, and confidence be enough? Or will Tweaked's wrecking crew of finishers roll right through town..

Find out 6PM EST Sunday.

EDITORTIAL NOTE: Savage loves the cock

Preview: Timeless v. StarFire Elite

The two leaders of Rome division meet up here in what could only be a monumental clash. This is the game to spectate this week as 9-1 Timeless looks to prove that they can perform at a high level two weeks in a row. 9-1 SFE on the other hand has nothing to prove.

Really, the question to be addressed this week is whether this is finally the week that Timeless' weak team play catches up with them. The squad is certainly talented; of that there is no doubt. Its full complement of aliased quality IML players is nothing if not daunting. But what is the real Timeless? Is it the squad that routed Assent last week or the one that needed-BlitZed- lagouts in order win in week 7? And before you forget, the lone loss on Timeless' record comes from Thalion in week one in embarrassing fashion. Since Timeless does not practice together and usually only gets the minimum to show for games, expect there to be a lack of teamwork in their attack this week as well.

There are players on Timeless who were integral to their squads' success last season in IML. Will it be enough this week?

StarFire Elite is one of the oldest squads in Premier. Years and years ago before there was an IML or an AML, SFE was one of the bottom dwellers in PRO. Their players then were very much like their players now. Most were tough hard working weekend warriors who played a style that wasn't pretty, but kept them in games. Solar Hydro and preussie along with Lord Lincke(Signum) were the captains then. With Lord Lincke leaving for Old Glory two seasons ago and preussie being inactive, Solar Hydro took over full captainship responsibilities. SFE hasn't lost a beat. Season by season they've climbed up the standings and gotten a little farther in the playoffs. Last season they lost to a very very strong Dissent team in the finals. SFE has to be looking to go all the way this season. Their teamplay is unorthodox to say the least, but every player on the map knows that every other player will be there to back them up.

Will StarFire Elite's experience and toughness be enough to overcome a more talented Timeless squad?

This is why you love AML.