DRAFT REVIEW

[ogron]

DRAFT REVIEW

Some of the lines will be wrong because people think differently and either I or they have misjudged the talent level of a particular player, but should be pretty close overall.

Just my two cents, I've been terribly wrong in Draft Reviews before, but a few people asked me to do one.





TWDT-D


Pirates

Starting Line: Mythril (10), Geio (9), Pineapple Express (8), J-B-Inc (7), Beast (6)
Starters: Cape (8), 2pacz (8)
Subs: Skyforger (7), Violence (7), Bluff (6), Major Crisis (7)

Mythril is a beast and top three player in warbird, and sports a decent supporting cast.

Geio is fair value at 9, and Pineapple is solid at 8.

Pirates is pretty deep at the 7, and I can't tell which of them is their preferred starter.

This lineup's biggest strength is a superstar player and depth. Weaknesses include having to use a 6-Star, which is very problematic as they get hunted and knocked out early and are mostly unplayable, and their 9/8/7/6 players all being rated fairly -- no "wow that guy is an 8?" value.

Mythril will have to go super saiyan for this line to win, but he's got just enough talent around him for Pirates to be dangerous.

A-

Paddington

Starting Line: Lasenza (10), Zidane (8), Eric Clapton (8), Kentaro (8), Destruct (6)
Starters: (none)
Subs: Undercut (7), Exalt (7), Scurvy (6)

Paddington also has a top three player in Lasenza, who is a monster and singlehandedly wins TWDT-D games and... not much else.

Zidane and Eric Clapton are OK at 8, but Kentaro is very rusty and I'm not sure he'll even show.

They also have to play a 6-Star, which is ass. 6-Stars last year were a disaster and I don't see it changing in warbird and jav.

This line is basically 1 juggernaut in Lasenza and scraps.

Eric Clapton sometimes flashes the old Sweet magic, but it's rare, and Zid works best as the 5th player in a line, not as a carry.

Nevertheless, Lasenza and a bunch of people going 1:1 might get it done.

Complete lack of depth is also a major issue, especially with some of their guys typical showrates.

C

Mist

Starting Line: Flew (9), Beam (9), Ra (8), BIET (7), Maito_Chi (7)
Starters: Turban (9)
Subs: Mikkiz (7), Amnesti (7), Tok (7)

Flew did a good job of not overdrafting high-stars in his own league, which is a common mistake for new captains. You end not not being able to play half of them. Low stars matter a ton.

Captains constantly overestimate the value of having a superstar in a 40* league, but lines like this tend to perform extremely well. The value of not playing a 6-Star is massive, and usually outweighs the value of having a slightly better star player.

Flew and Beam are TWLD playoff quality starters, Ra is excellent value at 8, and was a target of almost every captain, and this is the first really fantastic star value I've seen in reviewing the league thus far. BIET is also a strong 7, as is maito_chi.

I like this line quite a lot, and Turban is very strong if Beam goes emo and refuses to play.

The downside to not being top-heavy like Pirates and Paddington is everyone needs to show, play well and have synergy. Whereas in the case of those teams, if Mythril shows up and goes nuts and drops 17, his supporting cast playing mediocre or people missing doesn't really matter as much. Mist needs to gel, show, and really play well together on a consistent basis and have momentum throughout the season to become more than the sum of their parts.

If they can do that, I think this line can do extremely well.

Using Pirates as an example, yes they have Mythril who is better than Flew, but Beam was a clear starter over Geio for Rage in TWLD (as was Turban), and BIET and Maito_Chi are infinitely better than J-B-inc and Beast at the backend of their line, while Pineapple and Ra are similar value.

That adds up over the course of a game, and Mist doesn't have a weak 6-Star scrub for opposing teams to target. I like the composition of this team.

A-


Lag & Luck

Starting Line: Trasher (8), JAMAL (8), Ardour (8), Olde (8), Paky Dude (8)
Starters: Doughnut (8), Caos (9), Let (7)
Subs: Wiibimbo (7), blt_12 (6)

Trasher drew inspiration from Mythril's vaunted All 8 lineup last season that reached the finals, although if Caos and Let show perhaps they'll play a more conventional 9/8/8/8/7.

I think their All 8 line is pretty atrocious, filled with players who main other leagues who aren't good 8s. Caos doesn't have a history of showing, and Let hasn't played leagues in a decade.

The biggest thing going for them is they don't have any bad low-stars in, and Trasher/JAMAL/Ardour are huge TWDT tryhards who always give 100% and are solid in multiple leagues, and should give better teams a tough time and steal some wins vs. anyone missing a few people.

Trasher doesn't care about TWDT-D, and it definitely shows here. This team's only goal is stealing a few wins to make playoffs and then win base and maybe jav, and for those purposes I think this line is pretty decent, they'll fluke some people in a flukey league where anyone can win 1 round.

D

WIN OR DIE

Starting Line: Racka (10), Tripin (9), Kado (8), Afri (7), Unlimited (6)
Starters: Dreamwin (8), bitsaver (7)
Subs: Jessup (7), Wirah (7), Jurassic (7), sea bass (6)

Racka, along with Mythril and Lasenza, are the three best players in the league right now, and WIN OR DIE's captain drafted fairly lightly in a league he's confident in carrying.

Racka is a behemoth and the defending TWDT-D and TWLD champion, and should win a few games by himself.

Tripin has consistently proven he is excellent value in warbird and spider in TWDT, and is a very nice complimentary piece. Kado has been a solid 8 in draft, but his 50% showrate will hamper their efforts, likely forcing them into a 10/9/7/7/7 with some combination of Afri/Bitsaver/Jurassic/Wirah/Jessup, which is still very good.

When their full line shows they'll be fantastic, and when their 8s are missing, I don't think they'll lose much since they're ditching their abysmal 6s.

That 6 is their only weakness, and I could see them just playing 7/7/7 permanently at some point.

This line is similar to Pirates, but I think their 7s like Afri, bitsaver and Jurassic are stronger than Skyforger and J-B-Inc.

A

Gryffindor

Starting Line: Dak (9), Ogron (8), Spezza (8), Rasaq (8), Commodo (7)
Starters: Casket (9), Kira (7)
Subs: RTAllen (7), Banks (6), Terminator 17.5 (6)

We've seen 2 building paths so far: A Rage superstar with a supporting cast and typically a 6-Star in the line, and a more balanced deeper line like Flew's team. Both are viable and can lead to a championship.

Gryffindor has opted for the latter, with Dak leading a trio of 8s in Ogron, Spezza, and Rasaq, and a pair of very strong 7s in Commodo and Kira.

If Casket shows, they could also play a 9/9/8/8/6 or 9/9/8/7/7, giving them a lot of versatility. They actually have two of the only three or four viable 6s in the league in Banks and Terminator, with Felix_da_kat being one of the others off the top of my head.

Casket and Ogron are coming off a TWLD Finals appearance on Thunder, while Dak is a legend who won back-to-back TWLD titles on Sweet and Fierce. Spezza won TWLD 17 starting for Pandora, giving them 4 TWLD Finals starters fitting under the 40* cap, while Rasaq has tons of TWLD experience as a veteran warbird, and Commodo/Kira tore up TWDT-D last season.

They'll be counting on a deep and balanced line to make up for the fact they don't have a superstar player headlining their team.

B+


Haze

Starting Line: Iron Survivor (10), Lockdown (9), Zapata (8), Rough (7), Felix_da_Kat (6)
Starters: (none)
Subs: Murder (7), Kovalchuk (7), Ixador (7), WBM (7)

Despite a rough TWLD playoffs, Iron Survivor is still a top-tier talent in warbird, and will look to bounce back in TWDT, leading a very strong contingent from Haze.

Lockdown will be Robin to Iron's Batman, and is a super active and very strong warbird whose style fits perfectly against eclectic competition of varying skill levels, and has the ability to play well against scrubs and more elite competition, which should prove useful in DT.

Zapata is very active as well, boding well for Haze's chances, and has horrendous lag, which is also a bonus. Rough is good value for 7-Stars, while they have one of the best 6s in the league in Felix.

A lack of depth and playing 6s is a concern, but given the high showrates of this entire line and the smooth fit, this is a very lethal line.

A


Fish

Starting Line: Vys (10), Morph (8), Myollnir (8), Zizzo (7), Bram (7)
Starters: Attacks (10)
Subs: Inmate (7), IXT (6), Jebass (6)

This is one of the worst warbird lines out there by far. Almost all their players are overrated. Vys is a 9, Myollnir is a 7, Zizzo is a 6, and Attacks is a 9 right now.

Moreover, they only have two real warbirds, Vys and Attacks, and they can't even be played in the same line.

Picking two 10-star warbirds back-to-back was one of the most baffling draft choices I've seen since Zidane took Beam with his 1st pick last season and missed the playoffs.

Yikes!

F

[ogron]

TWDT-J





Jav my worst ship and usually weakest predictions, I've added some of Turban's insights in red.


Pirates

Starting Line: Singer (9), Mythril (9), Geio (8), Skyforger (7), Henry Saari (7)
Starters: Cape (9), Major Crisis (8)
Subs: Violence (7), Mosi (7)

My initial instinct glancing at this line is that I'm not feeling it. Let's unpack it and see how the parts fit.

Singer is very good value at the 9, he's an elite javelin who is fresh off some monster TWLJ playoff performances. Mythril had the series of his life in the TWLJ Finals for Rage, but he's not a jav main, and like Best, seems to play better against elite players by simply refusing to play jav and treating the ship like a warbird and fighting guys in open space and neutralizing their bounce shots and practiced angles. He's not as effective in in TWDT-J and can't punish bad players as well with cheesy shots like 24 does (a player who dominates TWDT-J but gets outclassed in TWLJ -- the exact opposite).

Geio and Major Crisis are very nice third pieces at the 8.

Singer and Myth being 9s is crucial here, because they don't have to play 6s, who are completely unserviceable in jav, even moreso than WB.

This lets them play two 7s, but unfortunately they don't have any of the great 7s, so the opportunity is completely wasted. Eric Clapton, Spawnisen, Destruct, Spezza, Flew, Ra, Rab, etc. in this spot would have been stellar.

Cape's showrate in TWDT is haphazard, and you can't play three 9s. Singer and Myth are too valuable to sit.

I don't buy Henry in jav as a 5th.

This line could be tweaked with a trade or in FA to be very strong, but it's just a little off right now, despite a lot of the right pieces at the top. I'm feeling their 9/8/8, Skyforger is probably good enough to stay in that starting line, but Pirates needs an upgrade at the other 7 to be a true contender.

B

1:turban> i would give them a B-. pirates lacks good low-star options and will suffer from it. they also have pretty weak 8-star options.
1:turban> so overall i see they'll have an uphill battle this league
1:turban> singer and mythril can carry games, but don't think its going to be enough

Paddington

Starting Line: Zidane (10), Tiny (9), Lasenza (8), Destruct (7), Yojimbo (6)
Starters: Spawnisen (7), Eric Clapton (6)
Subs: Undercut (7), Scurvy (6)

Zidane is the best jav in the draft, Lasenza is very strong at the 8 with his tryhard mentality, and Tiny has mostly been a disastrous liability in his own ship averaging 5-10 for the last 18 months, although he apparently played OK in the TWLJ Finals, so maybe he's turning things around finally.

Word on the street is Destruct is about to have a breakout season and is one of the steals of the draft, not to mention Paddington has Spawnisen and Eric Clapton at the 7, meaning they are stacked at the 7-Star spot.

The downside is this line forces them to play a 6-Star, and they're all quite bad.

If Tiny can play even halfway decent, this is the best TWDT-J team in the league.

A

1:turban> all depends on tiny. if he plays like he did in TWL then it's a B- team, and if he plays at his best then it's B+ to A line. lasenza is pretty consistent performer at 8-star value, but this means they have to rely on a 6-star to perform well
1:turban> which is a tall task to ask because their 6-stars are pretty bad
1:turban> their 7-stars are solid (destruct, spectacular, undercut)
1:turban> which means they could also do some other lineup variations to avoid using 6-star

Mist

Starting line: Turban (10), Amnesti (9), Ra (7), Mikkiz (7), Flew (7)
Starters: Kim (8), Rampage (8)
Subs: Draft (8), Beam (7)

I'm nice so I'll give you some free advice, I'd probably start the line listed instead of Kim at 8, benching two of your 7s, and playing a dookie 6.

Thank me later.

Mist has some of the strongest 7s in jav, with Ra/Mikkiz/Flew presenting excellent value and avoiding the dreaded 6-Star in jav, and Kim is not special in any way in jav. Play Kim or Amnesti, but not both except when Turban is missing, which will be a decent amount if his stated showrate is to be believed.

The starting line as stated strikes me as quite good and with few weaknesses beyond a potential personality clash between Amnesti and Turban, or Amnesti and everyone. Enjoy your squadchat this season lol.

Turban is a beast, Amnesti is extremely talented when he's not spamming nonsense, and Ra, Mikkiz and Flew are phenomenal value at 7.

I see a lot of chemistry issues and drama with Kim potentially benched, trying to appease people with sub-optimal lineups and Turban missing, so I think this line falls apart before it ever wins TWDT-J Finals, but there's a lot of really nice on-paper potential.

B+

1:turban> a lot of players with high skill ceiling, but also very inconsistent performers and explosive personalities. a lot of lineup options (10/8/8/7/7 or 9/8/8/8/7), and some of the best 7-star and 8-star options in the league.
1:turban> also our jav line is prob gna be me/rampage/kim/biet/mikki or ra
1:turban> amnesti in when i can't make it
1:turban> would rate mist B+ with potential to be A, but that's assuming all players play at their expected level
1:turban> biet is insane value for 7-star, given his performances in elimination and other jav arenas, and ra has proven to be very capable 7-star too.
1:turban> rampage and amnesti are the big questionmarks in this line.

Lag & Luck

Starting line: Trasher (9), Ardour (8), Mean Gene (8), JAMAL (8), spacedust (7)
Starters: Caos (8)
Subs: let (7)

I'm surprised to see how little Trasher invested in warbird and javelin. I can see his strategy from a mile away:

Stack the shit out of base in an 8-team league, and count on 2 teams imploding through incompetence and slip into the playoffs as the 6th seed and win TWDT-B.

And, given the draft choices some captains made, that is a pretty good bet.

Nevertheless, this jav line is definitely better than their warbird line. Trasher is a good jav, as are Ardour and Mean Gene, plus JAMAL is solid.

The biggest issues here are a complete lack of even one elite javelin main, and I can't identify their 7-Star javelin -- I just guessed spacedust. There were so many prime 7-Star javs, it was really a plentiful resource, and Trasher did a poor job in not grabbing one.

Lag & Luck can definitely win some games, but they're not favorites.

B-

1:turban> trashers team (trasher/mean gene/ardour/jamal/afghan) is B+
1:turban> balanced line, no weak link. trasher always performs at a high level, while ardour and mean gene are some of the best 8-star value picks. jamal won't win or lose you the game, so with these four as a core i would expect lag & luck to be very
1:turban> B+ to A rating. it depends a lot on their 7-star players.
1:turban> afghan is probably the best option for last slot. spacedust also acceptable.

WIN OR DIE

Starting line: Racka (10), Kado (9), Skatarius (8), uprise (7), Wirah (6)
Starters: Dreamwin (10)
Subs: Jurassic (7), Afri (7), Jessup (7)

With Dreamwin expected to miss most of the season according to forums, Racka and Kado will be forced to do the heavy lifting, although even then Kado usually only shows around 50%, so WIN OR DIE's captain will need to replicate his excellent TWLJ season to win games.

Racka has really transformed himself into a legit jav, as has Kado, and Dreamwin is an established star, so if they can put it all together come playoff time, they should be very strong, although Dreamwin and Racka can't play together as double 10s.

Skatarius is an okay 8.

Their 7s are not inspiring, and being forced to play a 6 is quite bad. The lack of low-star selections is very worrisome. Combine that with Dreamwin and Kado's stated showrates, and it's possible many games are just Racka and a bunch of scrubs.

Eep.

The double 10s with Racka/Dreamin is also not a good move.

That line is an A if their stars all show and they pick up some low-star javs in FA or via trade, a B if they make zero moves but everyone shows, but as currently constructed with their expected showrate, Racka and Kado half the time with no low-star talent is a...

C

1:turban> potential lineup issues with two 10-star players, and kado had a weak final performance but i would expect him to rise again and prove his worth. skatarius is the best 8-star value javelin.
1:turban> however their 7-star and 6-star options are pretty weak, which significantly lowers their chances to win games vs better teams i feel.
1:turban> sakke is their best 7-star javelin, while jessup might be also an option but his style is very damaging to their team. wirah should do fine in the 6-star slot.
1:turban> B- to B
1:turban> leaning more towards B- for now, all depends on kado.
1:turban> if he plays well, B rating is more correct

Gryffindor

Starting line: Commodo (10), Yeh (9), Kira (8), Spezza (7), Shaw (6)
Starters: Rab (7), Wvlf (7)
Subs: Ogron (7), Dak (7)

Former TWLJ champion Commodo leads Gryffindor's jav line as one of the six 10-Stars in the league, while Yeh comes off an insane season for Paladen in TWLJ putting up great scores on a horrible team, and Kira is perhaps the steal of the draft with his 7/8/6 rating and is a TWLJ caliber jav giving his team great value for just 8-Stars.

Rab won TWDT-J as the Finals MVP and costs 7-Stars, while Spezza is considered one of the best 7-Stars in DT-J. Wvlf has also established himself and could see play.

There's also potential for a 10/8/8/7/7 line given how many strong 7-Star javs Gryffindor has if they can acquire one in FA or via trade, especially if Yeh doesn't show.

It's a solid line, but unless Commodo goes super saiyan this season, won't blow anyone away given how many strong teams there are in jav. They arguably have the best value at the low-star spots and good high-stars, so should be a tough out, and are perhaps 1 move away from being a contender.

B

1:turban> spezza is top 3 value for 7-star slot.
1:turban> and rab is pretty high up there too.
1:turban> i would rate gryffindor B to B+ depending on which lineup variation they go with, but commodo+spezza+rab is already a lot of value packed into the lineup. kira yamato has good value for 8-star slot.
1:turban> kira sometimes has issues with his performances (fluctuating a lot), but overall the lineup is solid
1:turban> pick up someone strong from trades or FA draft and it's looking good.

Haze

Starting line: Rough (10), Thrill (9), Iron Survivor (8), Lockdown (7), Felix_da_kat (6)
Starters: Cuckold (8)
Subs: Hellkite (8), Hulk (8), Murder (7), WBM (7)

Rough had a very good season in TWLJ, and looks to continue it here as the main carry for his team in javelin.

Thrill and Iron are solid supporting high-stars, although far from the best 9 and 8 stars out there.

The big issue is their low-stars are bad, inactive, and few in number.

Moreover, Hellkite and Murder last seen 10 days ago, are those guys even playing?

Very little depth and weak 7 and 6 stars really make this a deceptively uninspiring line. Perhaps that can be remedied in FA or via trade.

C+

SPICY TAKE ALERT!!!
1:turban> haze is strongest team on paper, and a lot of lineup options assuming rough is willing to bench himself to improve the value of his lineup.
1:turban> thrill and iron survivor are some of the best value picks, and you can expect both to play well. cuckold and hellkite tend to do good as well.
1:turban> their 7-stars aren't the greatest but won't break the team, so overall would rate Haze a solid A.
1:turban> this is assuming their top line
1:turban> if forcing 10/9/8/7/6 lineup or 10/9/8/8/6 line, it's maybe a bit weaker to B+

Fish

Starting line: Morph (9), Vys (8), Zizzo (8), Raples (8), Bram (7)
Starters: Aprix (9), maketso (9)
Subs: Heaven (7), Attacks (7), Melanoma (6), Jebass (6)

Morph is a superb jav, and Vys/Zizzo/Raples are solid 8s, although their low stars are very weak, and I question Raples showrate.

It feels like this line was assembled without carefully considering the star cap, with Aprix and Maketso not fitting in very well with this lineup. This looks a lot like Trasher's line but with a stronger 9 and weaker 8s.

It's a decent line that should get some wins, but probably treads water all season, although the infrastructure is there to make a trade and upgrade.

If this line were radiation levels, it would be 3.6 Roentgen. Not great, not terrible.

C

1:turban> fish is probably the weakest line, not necessarily because of the players but because of the star limit for lineups. morph, maketso, and aprix are all strong players and it is likely that fish will field at least two out of these three
1:turban> however this means they have to opt into going either 9/9/8/8/6 and rely on a 6-star to do well (melanoma/inmate/myollnir?), or bench either zizzo or vys for a 7-star player.
1:turban> C+ rating, with some potential to be bumped to B- rating if everything falls in place.
1:turban> i feel the lack of good 7-star and 6-star options is their downfall.

[ogron]

TWDT-B





Pirates

Terr: Cape (10)
Sharks: Mythril (10), Violence (7)
Spiders: Henry Saari (9), Falconpunch (8), Skyforger (8), Lupin (8), Geio (7)

Subs: Major Crisis (8), Rozay (8)

I expect Major Crisis to end up terring a lot as Cape's showrate is lackluster in TWDT, but their line is uninspiring either way.

This is half the Legio XI line that lost in the finals last year, except Henry and Mythril cost more, sports a worse shark partner, less dedicated terr, and going from Kado to Geio under is a big downgrade.

That said, it is a serviceable line, Cape will be good when he shows, Mythril is a beast, and their spiders are decent, with Henry putting up big numbers over and Lupin turning into a nice underspider the last two seasons.

They should be competitive in the league, although it is the most variable of the three. I expect them to stomp bad teams and struggle versus the best three, losing 15-10 repeatedly to them.

B

Paddington

Terr: Thix (10)
Sharks: Zidane (10), Oder (9)
Spiders: Shayde (9), Undercut (9), TJ Hazuki (7), Lasenza (7), Destruct (6)

Subs: Tiny (7)

Paddington sports a top 3 terr in Thix (along with Ogron and Mikkiz), top 2 shark combo in Zidane/Oder (along with Commodo/Markmrw), and a strong overspider line thanks to Shayde and Undercut being available late due to inactivity, and sheet luck in them responding on other chat programs they can show after the fact.

This is one of the Big Three contenders in TWDT-B, and they will be a force in base. Their low stars are bad and I don't even know who their 6-Star will be, and they have no depth, but those are minor concerns.

A

Mist

Terr: Mikkiz (10)
Sharks: beam (7), jackiechan> (7)
Spiders: Turban (10), Ra (9), maito_chi (8), draft (8), Public Assassin (7)

Subs: Dutch Baser (7), Bosshawk (7), Jizzron Phillips (7), Rampage (6)

I wish I could say I was baffled a non-baser spent a 2nd round pick on Mikkiz, grabbed Turban and Ra in spider, then didn't take any sharks the entire draft, but the truth is we've seen this movie before.

Non-basers struggle incredibly hard capping TWDT. We see it time and time again. They spend half their picks on basers making a haphazard line thinking it's good, and it's a smorgasbord of suck. The interdependence of 3 different ship types makes it too hard to accurately judge talent unless you play the league.

The last non-baser to win ANY league in TWDT (Tiny doesn't count, he has Zidane shadow picking for him) was Jaa in 2010. Basers consistently dominate TWDT-D, TWDT-J, and TWDT-B because they know how to make base lines, and choosing warbirds and javs is significantly easier.

I would really like to see a non-baser next draft just completely ignore base and go WB/Jav. This team is going to be the worst or 2nd worst in base in all likelihood... imagine having spent their #2 pick on Lasenza instead of Mikkiz?

But I digress.

Mikkiz is sublime in terr, their sharks are butt, and Turban/Ra/Maito_Chi are very nice in spider, but with no underspiders and no sharks, this team is hopeless.

D

Lag & Luck

Terr: Trasher (10)
Sharks: JAMAL (10), Olde (7)
Spiders: Cripple (10), Mr. Homo (8), Mean Gene (8), Ardour (7), Afghan (7)

Subs: Spacedust (7), Caos (7)

One of the Big Three in base, this team is stacked to the hilt.

Trasher is a top tier terr, JAMAL is a beast in shark, Olde is solid value at 7, Cripple is a legend, Mean Gene, Ardour, Mr. Homo and Afghan are very strong 7 and 8 star spiders, making this a serious threat to win a title.

Not much else to say. This is how you draft a championship team.

A

WIN OR DIE

Terr: bitsaver (8)
Sharks: joeses (8), Nipple Nibbler (8)
Spiders: Dreamwin (10), Kado (9), Skatarius (9), Jurassic (8), Sakke (7)

Subs: Afri (7)

That spider line is pretty monstrous, and bitsaver is low-key really good value in terr at 8-Stars, but the dearth of sharks on this team is a death sentence. Nipple probably quit, Dreamwin is showing like 30%, Kado 50%, and joe is ancient.

If they get a full show they'll win some games, but as currently constructed this line cannot win a title.

C+

Gryffindor

Terr: Ogron (10)
Sharks: Commodo (10), Markmrw (9)
Spiders: Spezza (10), Rab (8), Rasaq (7), Holy Ship (7), Kira (6)

Subs: Davy (9), Banks (7), Anonym (6), Legacy (6)

Gryffindor is the final squad in the Big Three in TWDT-B, featuring a top three terr and top two shark combo in Commodo and Markmrw, with the former making 3 straight TWLB finals and the latter being the defending TWDT-B champion (his second).

Spezza is the best spider in the game, Rab was on the TWDT-B Finals team Legio XI on top of MVP'ing the 2014 TWDT-B Finals and winning, and Rasaq was one of the best spiders in the 2015 TWDT-B Finals going toe-to-toe with Stayon/Trasher over.

Holy Ship will over and under, and won TWDT-B 2017 on Baratheon. Ditto Banks, who will main under for Gryffindor as a starter, with either Kira, Anonym or Legacy at the 6-Star position.

Davy is a beast and gives the team depth.

Very similar composition to Paddington and Lag & Luck, and I expect two of these three teams to face off in the TWDT-B Finals come playoff time.

A

Haze

Terr: SpookedOne (8)
Sharks: Hulk (10), Willby (7)
Spiders: WBM (9), Hellkite (9), Rough (8), RUCCI (8), Lockdown (7)

Subs: Iron Survivor (7), Felix_da_kat (7), Poni (7), Murder (7)

This line seems like it has a lot of potential, but it's unfortunately all smoke and mirrors.

Hellkite hasn't been seen since the TWL Finals, WBM's showrate is bad, RUCCI hasn't been seen in weeks, they have the weakest starting terr out of the eight teams, and only have 1 elite shark.

This team looks good on paper but I expect them to perform very poorly. This should be a D, but Hulk is a god and Rough is playing well under. Maybe HK will show and WBM's showrate will be better than expected?

C

Fish

Terr: Heaven (9)
Sharks: Morph (9), Bram (8)
Spiders: Zizzo (9), Vys (8), Aprix (8), Raples (8), Maketso (8)

Subs: Melanoma (7)

This team is just too weak across the board. The 6th best terr, 6th best lead shark, and worst spider line in the league to boot.

They have the #1 FA pick, which would give them Mcvicar in shark, which would be a gigantic boon if he played for them. Mcvicar/Morph is a top 3 shark line, Bram back in spider boosts their spider depth, and all of a sudden you're a C+ or B- team able to compete with everyone outside the Big Three.

But as it stands...

D

[ogron]

Final Grades

Pirates A- B B
Paddington C A- A
Mist A- B+ D
Lag & Luck D B A
WIN OR DIE A B- C+
Gryffindor B+ B A
Haze A B C
Fish F C+ B-

Pirates draft ended up being a lot stronger than I initially thought, the pieces ended up fitting well together and have one of the better all-around teams. I think that may be more of a function of Mythril instantly making any team's lines good across three leagues than the actual picks, a few of which I still believe were suspect. I expect them to be a playoff team.

Next up is Paddington, the only team that manages to get more than one A this draft (the first time in memory there's no AAA team). This is in large part thanks to taking Zidane #2 overall, giving Tiny's team excellent chances in jav and base. This team should be a playoff lock as well.

Meanwhile, Mist spent a lot of draft capital on an ill-advised sojourn into base, but still fared well with A and Bs in TWDT-D and TWDT-J, and will have chances at a pair of titles.

Lag & Luck stacked the shit out of base, but managed to snag a lot of dual purpose basers who are strong javs and should be a threat in both. Their warbird is a dumpster fire, but they should still do well enough to make the playoffs.

Racka's presence singlehandedly guarantees WIN OR DIE will be a championship caliber team, but their playoff chances will likely rest with how much Dreamwin and Kado show, as they were plagued by similar basing issues to Flew.

Gryffindor arguably had the strongest draft, especially from that late of a spot in the draft order. They should be competitive in warbird and javelin, and one of the favorites in base.

Haze also picked well for the most part. I rated them an A in TWDT-D and Turban rated them an A in jav, and Rough is doing everything possible to try cheese his way into getting Zizzo to pass on Mcvicar in the FA Draft to instantly turn his base line into a contender. Nice try you bozo, Zizzo isn't passing on a Top 5 shark when he only has one of them.

At the tail end of the draft, Fish struggled with the worst pick in the draft, and probably didn't extensively study the star cap restrictions, taking 10-Star warbirds back-to-back, and then over-drafting 9-Star javelins. Scooping up Mcvicar would make them a B in base (an assumption I made in giving them their grade in this post), and perhaps they can offload Attacks or Vys to plug some holes in their lineups and catch up to the field. Zizzo has won TWDT as a captain before, so he definitely is capable of making the necessary moves to right the ship.

With 8 teams again instead of 6, and Ease's 10/10/10 not on anyone's team, league parity looks pretty good right now. There doesn't appear to be a runaway #1 team. Should be interesting to see how things develop and how many trades Tiny can manage.

Good luck to everyone this season!

[ixt]

melanoma is fish not haze

[ronaldinho]

Thanks for the reviews chief!

[ronaldinho]

I finished to read, that was great thanks for doing this Ogron, and Turban also. However I don't think Fish is as bad, but it's my team so I'm biased. We need to find the good spirit. Also if Ease change his mind and want to play he is welcome ) . I think also that McVicar would be our best choice so far, we need such a shark and I even think he could be usefull in jav if Bram don't show or perform badly, his potential is higher than 7. But it will be up to Zizzo to choose.

[Rab]

Thanks for the review. The sorting hat made a pretty fair distribution, the houses are going to have to work hard for it.

[Tiny]

First off, thanks for doing this. I takes a lot of time and effort and gets the hype going. Secondly, I have to agree to disagree respectfully with the wb aspect of our team, as I know all these have a tiny bit of personal biased and are subjective. That being said, expect big things from kentaro, who has been cited recently and Eric Clapton, who has been playing aliased for weeks now, and zidane who held his own in twld finals and is active again. Obv lasenza our backbone...but C???? Come on...

TY again for good right up to create huge hype and controversy!

[Singer]

Thanks alot on the reviews, a few minor disagreements on some lines and skill evaluation, but we'll see how it all plays out, appreciate the effort

[Wirah]

Awesome detail. Thanks for this write up. Top stuff as usual. Can't wait for the HONs too. This season is looking like it's going to be so much fun

[Banks]

Great write up. I?m excited for the season!
#GRYFFINDOR2019

[ogron]

Thanks alot on the reviews, a few minor disagreements on some lines and skill evaluation, but we'll see how it all plays out, appreciate the effort

Thanks!

For sure, there's always going to be some subjectivity or valuing things differently. Also, captains tend to draft players they know really well, and so you often don't recognize other team's sleepers.

For instance, multiple persons have told me Destruct was crazy value at 7 and is going to have a big season in jav. I had absolutely no concept of this, and the thought would never have occurred to me, so there's going to be some blind spots in 1 man evaluating the entire league.

My main league is base, so to me Rasaq being insane value at 7 in spider is obvious. I've played multiple TWDT-B seasons with him, including the Finals, and watched him put up big numbers, push hard, and go toe-to-go with legends. I can't convince anyone that he's an 8.5 who costs 7, they just see him as a warbird who dabbles.

This review also doesn't factor in FA and trades, so a lot will change by the playoffs and some of these grades will be outdated or wrong.

[Majorcrisis2]

When it comes to pirates and win or die in wb, i think both will play with 3x 7 stars instead of the 8-7-6. It has been proven last season that a 6 hurt a lineup waaaay to bad. All other teams have a benefit on that case imo. In my eyes the starting spot for 6 should have be back, other 34 stars could go random like this.

and i can agree with turban on me and geio being 'bad' options on the 8 jav atm. Especially because both of us are very inactive. (this is why i should have been 7, just like in base imo. Especially if i still see veteran basers like tj still being 7)

[Rab]

Ratings as a chart: