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* RGL Season 16 playoffs preview
posted in News
Wild_Rumpus
December 4, 2024

RGL Season 16 is reaching its end, but the most important matches of the season have yet to be played: playoffs. Stay tuned for this season’s double-elimination bracket on December 7-8, featuring the top four teams of Season 16 all seeded into the upper bracket. As per usual, the grand final will be a best-of-five match with a one-map advantage for the upper bracket winner, and all other matches will be played as best-of-three.

* 4 December 14.15 EST Update: The upper bracket semifinal between froyotech and black swan has been moved up to Wednesday, 4 December, at 23.00 EST. The rest of the schedule remains unchanged.

froyotech

  • Pocket Scout: branslam
  • Flank Scout: logan
  • Roamer: laz
  • Pocket: paddie
  • Demoman: b4nny
  • Medic: hubida

First we have not only the first seed, but also the clear favorites to win it all: froyotech. FROYO closed out the regular season without a single loss, and only one match that could reasonably be considered close. The keen-eyed may notice yight is absent from the roster, having stepped down during the season. Following his exit, logan joined the team as his replacement. Without any signs of slowing down, froyotech is primed for a championship; for the team to place any lower would be an underdog story on par with Season 6’s Witness Gaming.

The Chuds

  • Pocket Scout: loafe
  • Flank Scout: bigbankcampaign
  • Roamer: damn
  • Pocket: Math
  • Demoman: slugmundo
  • Medic: luddy

The Chuds is an exciting new team to Invite in Season 16, one which has exceeded expectations and secured the second seed into playoffs. However, dark clouds are gathering for this team as their usual Pocket Scout of raven is unfortunately unavailable for playoffs, being replaced by loafe. This last-minute change of losing such an important member of the team is sure to take its toll, and while The Chuds of preseason strength was a contender to be a grand finalist, the scrambled iteration we’ll see on playoffs weekend will certainly have their work cut out for them in a way their seeding might not suggest.

The Wall

  • Pocket Scout: sandblast
  • Flank Scout: soar
  • Roamer: sighguy
  • Pocket: dingo
  • Demoman: SIN K4RMA
  • Medic: HubertTheFish

The third seed this season is The Wall, who have certainly met their expectations as Invite regulars. With a record matching The Chuds, The Wall is actually only seeded third due to minor penalties. If recent performance is any indication, The Wall may very well be the de facto second strongest team entering the playoffs. If one thing’s for sure though, it’s that The Wall won’t tone down their aggression and are sure to bring some exciting matches.

black swan

  • Pocket Scout: exile
  • Flank Scout: darty
  • Roamer: tripbwai
  • Pocket: quacks
  • Demoman: ether
  • Medic: foxxy

Joining in as the fourth place contender is black swan. While they cruised into playoff contention rather comfortably, black swan is still a bit behind the pack as far as win rate is concerned. That being said, recent scrim performances indicate that they aren’t a team to count out, and can very realistically muscle past The Wall or The Chuds. Getting through both and securing a spot in the final? Certainly a tall order, but not impossible.

Schedule

Times are in EST.

Saturday, 7 December:

  • 19.30: Upper Bracket Semifinals (BO3)
  • 22.00: Upper Bracket Final & Lower Bracket Semifinal (BO3)

Sunday, 8 December:

  • 18.30: Lower Bracket Final (BO3)
  • 21.00: Grand Final (BO5 with one-map advantage)

Playoffs begin 7 December at 19.30 EST. Be sure to tune into RGL to see who will take the Season 16 title!

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