Week 4 Maps

ns_lost - see last weeks predictions.

ns_veil - anyone interested enough in NS competitive play should know veil like the back of their hand. Introduced at 2.0, veil has changed quite a bit since its concept. Noticeable updates include the removal of corridors around double res, a complete re-work of Emergency Resource C12 Tower, and removal of the MS pods to prevent an exploit. Liked for its balance, veil is considered by many to be part of the classic trio of maps, along with tanith and eclipse.

Any talk of tactics would be irrelevant- most "normal" tactics have a chance of working: it just comes down to a team's preferance. Myself- I prefer an aggressive tactic on marines that sees quick PGs and plenty 'o shotguns; and as aliens I try to convince everyone that building both double res towers and defending it with a lerk and 3 skulks works, though I usually get slapped down. Regardless, an alien win is usually drawn out- veil's only fault.

Week 4 Predictions

saunamen - Insane (Match of the week)

As the league starts to shake itself out at the half-way point, these two teams have revealed theirselves as the heavy hitters. Most of us expected it to be storm and Team Newrope- so it's refreshing to see that things aren't set in stone.

Leading by 2 points and having lost only 1 round, Insane would go into this match as slight favourites; but an impressive win over storm has proved that saunamen are genuine contenders.

Prediction 3-1 to Insane. Team France to cross the half-way point in the lead.


[EoD] - rage.ns

The Spaniards will have been boosted after their promising match against Insane- narrowly losing 3-1. This will undoubtably be a lift for them, and they will be firing on all cylinders if they can get a squad together.

rage.ns have been practising for this match for 2 weeks after a weeks hiatus. They have always excelled in their PCWs but have yet to turn that form into their competitive matches.

Prediction 2-2: my best guess, but if I were a betting man I'd stay away from this one- it could just as easily be 4-0 to either team.


Levitacus ~ bte

Both teams have 3 points; both teams have won 3 rounds; both teams have lost 5 rounds. Another tough one to call. I'm still unsure of Levi's position: they seem to be suffering from inconsistancy, having been out-played by Insane but comfortably beating EoD. bte have showed promise- their debut match against storm was a great one to watch, and a 2-2 draw against saunamen kept them undefeated until they forfeited their match against Insane. Assuming bte turn up to this match, it should be a fun one to watch.

Prediction 2-2. Predictor's tip: if you have no idea who's going to win: predict a draw.


Other News

- Several clans have dropped out since last week. I'm not going to mention them all; heck- a dead clan doesn't deserve a mention.

- saunamen have been deducted a point from their "rounds won" score by using an exploit to score an imporant frag on origin. Their points score remains the same (i.e. they still get 3 points for winning 3-1), but their "round difference" has suffered as a result- this is only important if they finish the league on equal points with another team. Naughty Finns.

- It turns out NS is still alive! Flayra dropped onto GameSurge's #naturalselection channel a few days ago and chatted about the future of NS. The discussion focused on NS:S where some new concepts (only a concept! Nothing more!) were introduced: including individual marine res.