TWDTB Draft Review

[WillBy]

Hello and welcome to the continuation of a series of writeups where I mispredict teams lineups and success rates. Coming off a terrific Basing Cup season on TJ Hazuki's last-place Assassins, my basing expertise has never been less in question. Before starting, I'd like to thank our league operator RaCka, our aspiring streamer Dwopple and our spreadsheet guru Ogron, who have created yet another hype league. Without further ado, here is my draft review for this season:

Malevolent (69)
Terrier - Spartan (9.5)
Sharks - turban (10) & Azuline (8)
Spiders - Spezza (10), WBM (9), TJ Hazuki (8.5), retroaction (7), Dak (7)
Alternates: Bombed (10), Moggy (7), Dad (6.5)

A trend I noticed while putting this together is that with the raised star cap, teams are no longer forced to play a 6*. This is good, because there are less than 10 players I'd consider playable that are rated under 7. However, this means teams risk overdrafting high stars, without low stars to properly balance. Turban's team is a great example, as he has 5 players who would start on any TWL line, but can't possibly afford them. Recent history has shown that the championship teams are the ones who take on the least liability at low star. This means you need to either find underrated players like Lifeban did with Sprackle, or field a more conservative line of 8-9s like Piwirfil Fingirmin. Malevolent has definitely found their underrated players, as Azuline, Retroaction and Dak are all active AND experienced players. However, they are not enough to support fielding a fiery trio of 10s in Turban, Spezza and Bombed. Due to scarcity of sharks, the spare star cap space must come from the spiders. Turban is a threat in any ship, but will likely be forced to shark as he's one of two on the team. This leaves WBM or Spartan in terrier. Spezza or Bombed will ride the pine, unless turban makes some surprise trades or lineup switches.


Snake Charmer (69)
Terrier - RageRitual (8.5)
Sharks - a2m (9.5) & Sulla (7.5)
Spiders - Skatarius (10), Banks (9), Steadman (9), Jack (8.5), Rojo (7)
Alternates: Paradise (8), rozay (7.5), Delos (7), Warrior (7)

Opposite Turban's Malevolent stands Skatarius's Snake Charmer. Skat only drafted a single extra-high star baser (besides himself) in a2m. This means the only concessions Snake Charmer will have to make are Sulla in over Paradise and Rojo in over Rozay or Sulla. Banks, Steadman and RageRitual bring the needed experience to hold their own against some of the more star-studded lines. A team built like this usually performs very well through the regular season and into playoffs, but they are dependent on their low star's panning out. Luckily, SC has plenty of 7s to fall back on if needed.


Power (69)
Terrier - Ogron (10)
Sharks - Zidane (10) & Riverside (8.5)
Spiders - Sarger (10), Brethal (9), Siaxis (7.5), Groan (7), Dunkin (7)
Alternates: Vehicle (7.5), hockeydude (8), bellflowers (8), draft (8), Dare (7.5)

Like with turban's team, I feel like zidane couldn't resist drafting high stars. Power, too, will face difficulty fitting 39 stars into only half their lineup. Zidane drafted a trio of solid value 8s, but won't be able to play any of them in the same lineup as Ogron, Sarger, Brethal and himself (and don't get me wrong, you HAVE to start those 4 if you can get them). This line looks a lot like 2020 Winter TWDTB Power, which lookin back was absolutely stacked. They didn't play a consistent line, but generally it was Ogron(10), zidane(10)/RageRitual(8), hellkite(9)/Mouse(8)/Sarger(9)/TPZ(8)/Spacedust(7)/Kira(7). (What a busted line..) Zidane is far better at line creation than I am, so I'll let him figure out how to get the same value out of Riverside, Siaxis, Groan and Dunkin as he did an 8 star Mouse and 9 star Sarger. That being said, I do think that Groan could be an incredible value at 7 (he's averaging 90-41 in TWBD) and siaxis has a wealth of experience in warbird that could translate to spider.


Treyway (69)
Terrier - Zizu (9.5)
Sharks - Morph (9) & Oder (8.5)
Spiders - Mouse (10), vys (8.5), mvp (8), Rasaq (8), Unlimited (7.5)
Alternates: auto (9), kado (8.5), warportal (8), Props (7)

Morph's team looks well balanced, but lacks value in low star players, making it hard to fit some of this best players. Unlimited is their only player below 8 that represents a true value and enables the team to fit Zizu in. Oder, vys, mvp and Rasaq fill the core of this team without breaking the bank, but the team will rely on Mouse to do a lot of play-making. There are some interesting possibilities if Treyway can fit in Props or trade for another 7 star. Flex mvp to shark, sub Unlimited for Props and put Auto in for Oder. These lineup options are super valuable with questionable activity from some of their players.


Shit Kickers (68.5)
Terrier - Pressure (10)
Sharks - Violence (8.5) & jr5 (8.5)
Spiders - temujin (8.5), Ra (8.5), Lupin (8.5), Rucci (8.5), uprise (7.5)
Alternates: uprise (7.5), Klick (7.5), bugyswartz (7), Bike (7), Tiny (7), Jessup (7)

Oh, so that's where all of the 8.5s went. Mastir Draftir Violence has created another signature team full of average cost but above average value players. However, it lacks some of the staples (like Sarger and Bacon) from his previous championship teams. With only Pressure costing above 8.5, Viop can't hit the new 69 star cap this season. He's drafted extremely well below that 8.5 mark, and if he can afford to lose them in the other divisions, there are some great trade opportunities to get some high star players. All this assumes that his team won't perform just as well while half-a-star short, which based on history isn't really safe to assume for a Viop team.


Crusaders (69)
Terrier - Frozen Throne (9)
Sharks - Sprackle (9.5) & Jackie> (7.5)
Spiders - Jamal (10), Jurassic (9.5), Zizzo (9), Creature (8.5), Beast (6)
Alternates: Ro (10), Terminator 17.5 (7.5), Got Skill??? (7), Mercede$ (7), Kov (7), s@@r (7)

Jurassic seemed to listen to Steadman, and picked the best player available, regardless of star caps. This makes for an awkward line, but one with a lot of promise. I'm not sure Beast will work out in the 6 slot, but the allure of starting Jamal, Jurassic, Zizzo AND creature is just too enticing. This would easily be the most stacked spider line- beast could just camp under and they'd win games. Throw in defending champion terrier Frozen Throne, defending champion shark Sprackle and finalist shark Jackie> and this team looks like contenders. The most concerning element is activity- Jamal has been hit or miss, and Zizzo, Creature, Jackie> and Beast can be expected to show Sundays, but it's not exactly a sure thing.


Phoenix (69)
Terrier - Ekko (8)
Sharks - Dwopple (9.5) & WillBy (9)
Spiders - Saiyan (10), Lockdown (9.5), PureOwnage (8), hypocrit (8), Lai (7)
Alternates: Apt (8.5), Public Assassin (7.5), Lee (7), Booker007 (6)

This is my team so I won't get go too into depth, but this is by far the best team and we wont give up a minute worth of flag time, much less any games. I like the options Saiyan has for lineups- Ekko or Apt in terr, lots of good, mid-low star spiders. A strong core in Dwopple, WillBy, Saiyan and Lockdown bring experience and playmaking abilities. The biggest risk is at terrier, but with practice Ekko or Apt could thrive on this team.


Prayer (69)
Terrier - Mikkiz (10)
Sharks - Hulk (10) & Zapata (7.5)
Spiders - Renzi (10), bram (8.5), Best (8.5), Spectacular (7.5), Flew (7)
Alternates: Megaman89 (9.5), liz (8.5), Kira (7.5), Lag Killer (7)

Like a few other lines I've reviewed, Flew's line looks kind of top heavy. Mikkiz, hulk and renzi are all fantastic players, but 3/7ths of your star cap on 3/8ths of your players means you have to do things like start Zapata over Liz and Spectacular over Megaman89, but I digress...
Filling in the middle of the line are bram and best, who each prove a great value not just in spider, but as multi-shippers. This quickly enables flexible lines, but this looks like the best one,


Terrorist (69)
Terrier - Maketso (9)
Sharks - Joeses (9) & Omega Red (8.5)
Spiders - Dreamwin (10), hellkite (9), TPZ (8.5), Tripin (8), Gumgy(7)
Alternates: Henry Saari (8), Major Crisis (8), Geio (7.5), coupe (6.5)

Dreamwin has constructed a similar line to Terrorist last season, which took eventual champions PF to round 3 in the semifinals. Maketso was the highest rated terrier in the last regular season, Joe and Omega are strong and consistent sharks, and with the increased star cap, dreamwin can increase strength at spider. Like Violence's and Jurassic's teams, Terrorist has several options in middle range so good flexibility. They lack some depth in shark, as moving hellkite or TPZ to shark is costly for spider depth, and Major Crisis is out of practice.


Win or Die (69)
Terrier - Heaven (9)
Sharks - Markmrw (9) & Cig Smoke (8)
Spiders - cripple (10), Rough (9.5), zeebu (8), Dutch Baser (8), RaCka (7.5)
Alternates: beam (8), Hellzno! (7.5), blt_12 (7.5), Wirah (6.5)

Win or Die looks well balanced, with a strong terrier in Heaven, experienced sharks in Markmrw, Cig (or beam) and elite spiders who all seem a bit underrated. Full showrates are critical, however. They have no replacements for Heaven or Mark. Besides that, and assuming Rough doesn't have flag football every Sunday night until he gets traded to Saiyan's team, they don't have any glaring weaknesses.




Am I right? Am I wrong? Did reading this garbage cost you way more than 20 seconds? Let's hear it below!

[viop11]

ty very much 4 this gr8 1n1l1s1s1

[RaCka]

ty very much 4 this gr8 1n1l1s1s1

loooool @ vio

nice write up willby

[zidane]

[ogron]

thanks for the write-up willby, nice work.

while the power line listed is certainly possible (and i don't know who zidane will be starting or what the rotations will be), i know that vehicle was a big target of ours as we all viewed him as the best 7.5* shark in the draft and unlocked a lot of lines for us since we have three 10*s and a 9*. he was pretty much considered a must-draft given his ability to shark well, low-star cost, and resiliency on Druids when chat got heated.

siaxis was also targeted early and we were surprised he fell to round 4, as he was a starter on Pandora TWLB 2014 and played a bunch of games and seems as good as most of the 8.5* spiders while also costing 7.5*.

it was also mentioned in chat that power has violence's entire TWDT-B champion overspider line from last season in Sarger, Brethal, and Bellflowers, so that definitely feels like a good potential combination in spider.

[viop11]

xcept u cud b 4gettink that r1cc1 fing1red in the f1n1ls

[Vehicle]

Crusaders, win or die, power top 3.

DT tends to be a pretty terr-reliant league and I think Heaven, FT and Ogron are going to be playmakers this season more than most with the wide cram.

If Pressure has a killer season I see shitkickers putting in work. It really depends on if rucci is in form and if rucci is enough.

Mikkiz's team would always be contenders but if he can't show for a few weeks they're going to need to pick up a shark in FA to make a season.

As for powers line, who knows what zid plans, but I was drafted four rounds ahead of river and would free up a star for our heavy bench, so I think you might have gotten that one wrong.

Disclosure: everyone's teams look wonderful and no one drafted poorly, please don't get hurt if I didn't include you in my top 3.5.

[apt]

yo why u capitalize my a

[SNOOPiE]

Nice writeup willburt

[Rab]

69 better than 68 confirmed.

[Dreamwin]

Thanks for the write-up Will! Looking forward for the write-ups to come as well as analysis from other leagues.

I think we got one of the strongest basing lines this year, at least if Omega Red shows. Looks like another competitive season. good luck everyone!

[Turban]

Our season largely depends on how Spartan performs as a terrier as our spider options are among the strongest this time around, but there's a few interesting lineup variants which I am currently considering should it not work out for us. I believe spiders will play a bigger role with the new base in terms of cram breaking.

Overall I don't see a clear favorite which is a good thing.

[viop11]

r u shirk or spidirmin

[Dwopple]

Woooo great write-up, WillBy! I agree w/ Rab the base division has benefited from the *cap increase to 69. Lots of great lineups out there which will be fun to watch this season.

Looking (quickly) at names only... Shit Kickers, Terrorist, Win or Die and of course Phoenix are my picks to be contenders this season.

[WillBy]

thanks for the write-up willby, nice work.

while the power line listed is certainly possible (and i don't know who zidane will be starting or what the rotations will be), i know that vehicle was a big target of ours as we all viewed him as the best 7.5* shark in the draft and unlocked a lot of lines for us since we have three 10*s and a 9*. he was pretty much considered a must-draft given his ability to shark well, low-star cost, and resiliency on Druids when chat got heated.

siaxis was also targeted early and we were surprised he fell to round 4, as he was a starter on Pandora TWLB 2014 and played a bunch of games and seems as good as most of the 8.5* spiders while also costing 7.5*.

it was also mentioned in chat that power has violence's entire TWDT-B champion overspider line from last season in Sarger, Brethal, and Bellflowers, so that definitely feels like a good potential combination in spider.

Like I said, Zidane creates lines way better than I could. As you mentioned, zid seems to draft more different rotations than any other captain. That winter 2020 champion squad i mentioned played 3 different lines in the finals alone. Looking back at it, Vehicle in for River and bellflowers in for Dunkin is probably an upgrade, and Vehicle is a nice option to have for any ship.

Siaxis is a tremendous value at 7.5, didn't realize he'd been an LB starter in the past. He still seems like one of those warbirds who's just now trying out basing. A lot like RaCka, the skills can translate on the right team and 7.5 will look ridiculously low in a couple years.