RLCS X: Power Rankings NA - Edition #7
The Grid is great fun, and serious money and points for the players, but it doesn’t compare to the Regionals. That’s when the pressure is on, and every series counts. After the dust from Stage 1 and 2 settled, the best teams battled it out, and they’re ranked accordingly.
#10 - Rogue (+0) - Kronovi, Firstkiller, Turinturo
Last week, it became clear that Rogue had a lot to fix to make it through Stage 2. Rogue just about made it to the quarterfinals in The Grid, but they fell short when it really mattered in the Regional Event. Dangling at the bottom of the top ten is not where Rogue want to be. Their plays are still just as shaky, and Turinturo just didn’t perform that well. While it’s impressive to see a veteran like Season 1 world champion Kronovi still play at the highest level, the whole team needs to step it up to rise up to expectations again.
#9 - Pittsburgh Knights (-1) - radoko., kinseh, ZPS.
Radoko’s team has the potential to make top eight in NA, but when the matches are getting harder, they falter. The pressure got to them in Stage 2, when XSET swept them in Round 5 and PK miss out on another chance in the playoffs. In The Grid, they keep getting points, but the rookies can really break through when they start performing under pressure.
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#8 - XSET Gaming (New) - tcorrell, JPow, AlphaKep
XSET return to the Power Rankings after a tenth place in Edition #1. Although this time, it’s a different team. Tcorrell takes the spot held by AlRaz, and steals the spotlight too, with some clutch plays to get to the final day of the Regionals. In the playoffs, they met NRG in the quarterfinals, who went on to win the whole event. It’s fair to say that XSET got the most out of this Regional Event. Now it’s up to this new roster to survive the honeymoon period and get that sweet consistency.
#7 - Alpine Esports (+0) - percy., Jordan, majicbear
Alpine repeat their performance from the first Regional Event, and get a spot in the highly contested top eight. Even against a fierce KCP roster, they won two games convincingly. The young rookies seem to struggle with the pressure of playing the big names in NA, but they have the skills to still put on a show, whatever the circumstances.
#6 - The Peeps (+0) - Gyro., AYYJAYY, Allushin
With The Peeps in sixth place, we’re slowly getting into the territory where every team can win series against the others. Sure, there are stronger teams, but you have to be very careful not to give The Peeps enough space to play their own game. The Peeps secure top four in the Regionals and only fall to NRG’s ‘raw talent’, as Gyro called it.
#5 - Kansas City Pioneers (+0) - rapid, Memory, BeastMode
Retals from SSG is sure: KCP are definitely a top-five team in NA right now. Retals predicts that BeastMode is going to be one of the best players in the world - if he isn’t already. The Pioneers surprised everyone last week, in Stage 1. They confirmed that Stage 1 wasn’t a fluke in the later stages, so now nobody can deny their presence at the top of NA.
#4 - Spacestation Gaming (-3) - Sypical, Arsenal, Retals
What’s this then? Spacestation Gaming is not the number one in NA? What happened? Well, nothing spectacular. SSG show signs of being human, and lost a few series to KCP, Envy and The Peeps. They’re still very much part of the big four in NA, and they just have to battle it out between them. Following last week’s performance, a fourth-place makes sense. But on the day, any of these four - or five, or six - teams can take the win over the others.
#3 - G2 Esports (+0) - Jknaps, Rizzo, Chicago
G2 Esports is one strong unit, with three very capable players. Retals is right to call Chicago ‘a beast’, with the powerful plays he pulls off. Sweeping NRG in the finals of The Grid reveals some of that G2 power. In the Regional Event, they got barely beaten out by the eventual finalist Team Envy, staying true to their top-three form.
#2 - Team Envy (+2) - Atomic, Mist, Turbopolsa
Team Envy has looked more convincing before, but last week was still massive for them. During this week of the Regional Event, they only lost to NRG. Turbopolsa said on Twitter that he felt like he didn’t play well, and he had to rely on his teammates to do everything. It speaks volumes that even when having an off day, Turbo’s team can still reach the grand finals.
#1 - NRG Esports (+1) - GarrettG, Jstn, SquishyMuffinz
NRG Esports didn’t lose a single series throughout the entirety of the second Regional Event. That’s just incredible. NRG’s raw talent came through all the way. According to GarrettG, NRG takes The Grid seriously, but you can’t completely have the same pressure as for the Regionals. The team seems to do even better with that added pressure. NRG struggled a bit after their honeymoon period, but it’s going great now. They fully deserve to take the number one spot in the Power Rankings from SSG.
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