While the inaugural week of this season of Highlander may not have had any nail-biters, there were some surprising matches that make this edition of Power Rankings and Predictions particularly compelling. The 4-0 routing of the former Platinum Champions by Gentlemen’s Club, the win by the artists formerly known as AG over the perennial power Menace to Society, and gold moveup Dunning-Kruger’s surprise win over Mustardoverlord’s experienced squad all make for an interesting set of rankings and an equally enticing set of matchups on Gravel Pit this week. The advent of prize money has, as expected, brought more talent than ever before to the Platinum landscape, and as teams practice tirelessly to put themselves in a position to win the cash, we will try to keep the news and info flowing about every team in the hunt.

Power Rankings for Week 1

Keep in mind that the rosters below are the players that were present in the last week’s matches, and not always the complete starting roster.

1 - Gentlemen’s Club (1-0)

Week 1 Logs: 20b vs GC

Highlander’s newest superteam made about as big of an entrance as they could have hoped for this week with a resounding victory over last season’s 11-1 champions, Street Hoops e-sports. While 20b was clearly not at their full strength, it was nonetheless a large statement win for this new power group who are looking for nothing short of a number 1 finish. As is to be expected when facing off against a team with Max! and Acooma, the pick classes did a lot of work for GC, netting a total of 11 Medic picks between them. While Xalox and Paragon were able to have strong games for Street Hoops despite the Gentlemen’s lopsided victory, the rest of 20b was unable to keep up with GC’s aggression and were outmatched essentially across the board.

2 - Murderforce 9000 (1-0)

Week 1 Logs: MF9K vs uBs

While Murderforce didn’t start off their season with as big a win as the Gentlemen’s Club, a smooth 4-0 of the Unbelievably Brave Sweethearts and a solid week of scrims has lifted them to the number 2 spot in this set of power rankings. Despite the absence of B4nny on demo, Murderforce saw particularly strong play from its pick and flank classes and was able to glide to a relatively painless 4-0 victory. The fact that it was not a total blowout, however, gives a subtle nod to the difference in this team’s performance between now and when their superstar Demo was there. The word on the street is that, due to his work schedule, B4nny will no longer be starting for Murderforce. Their upcoming match against top team Gentlemen’s Club on Gravelpit will be the first major test for Stabby’s squad, so it will be interesting to see how they are able to play now that Ma3la has taken over on Demolitions. How they are able to compete against the other teams at the top of plat is yet to be determined.

3 - The Electric Temptations (1-0)

Week 1 Logs: ET vs mTs

While they clearly entered Monday’s match more prepared than Menace to Society, The Electric Temptations (formerly Apocalypse Gaming) introduced their new roster in a strong fashion. While most of their older stars like 38special and phAZE had strong opening games, it was the new faces like EvIIL on Engineer, Decimate on Scout, and Kill ‘em All on heavy who made the most noise in this season opener. ET seems to be coming together neatly, though it remains to be seen if they have the strategy and coordination to win on maps like Gravelpit. While the calling combination of phorofor and Kill ‘em All hasn’t taken long to go from contradicting to complimenting each other, we’ll have to wait and see how their decision making holds up on a delicate map like Gravelpit. Dead Ringer Storage may not have the top to bottom DM of The Electric Temptations, but Mustardoverlord’s mind for Highlander and strong calling make this Gpit matchup a more compelling one than it would normally be.

4 - Menace to Society (0-1)

Week 1 Logs: ET vs mTs

While ET entered Monday’s match having scrimmed with their starting 9 quite a few times, Menace to Society was at the complete opposite end of the spectrum. Until the Sunday preceding the match, who would be filling the roles of Pyro, Demo, Heavy, and Engineer were a mystery to most. However, Harbleu was able to still find solid Platinum players to fill each role at the eleventh hour and it stands to reason that this lineup could, with practice, take mTs back to the levels we’re used to seeing them at. While Chimpfeet and Katsy may seem to be subtle downgrades from Pretzel and Fathom at face value, the more they play together the stronger the combo of mTs will be. Not to mention Platinum, despite minimal Highlander Demo experience, is obviously among the best at the class and will only get more and more comfortable in the 9v9 setting. Outside of the combo, Squid is still one of the premiere scouts in Highlander and Panic, Marisa, and particularly Noko are all among the best on their respective classes, so I see nothing to suggest that mTs should already be counted out of the placement race, despite offseason losses. They have a relatively painless matchup against Blunderful this week to continue to find their footing, and this likely win will set them up to have a more even matchup against a fellow 1-1 team on Upward in two weeks.

5 - Dunning-Kruger Effect (1-0)

Week 1 Logs: dK vs DRS

Dunning-Kruger surprised many this week with a fairly decisive 4-2 victory over their more experienced opponent, Dead Ringer Storage. Taking a closer look at their recent play, however, dK’s victory is not as big of an upset as it may have initially seemed. Highlighted by particularly strong play from Frostfire, Karl, Snorlax, and Aegis, these Gold move-ups have been one of the best groups in Mid-Plat through much of the preseason. With decisive wins over Syops, DRS, Stag Party, Blunderful, and UBS, Dunning-Kruger has emerged as the early-season leader of the pack for the teams towards the middle of division. Their matchup this week is against another Gold team from last season, Stag Party. It will be interesting to see how these teams with similar levels of Highlander experience and nearly even DM match up on a map that is so reliant on strong coordination and patient play. Whether or not dK will be able to continue their success in the middle of Platinum remains to be seen.

6 - SYOPS TF2 (0-0 )

Despite a week 1 bye and a relatively consistent losing record in scrims over the past few weeks, I’m putting SYOPS (formerly Baby Punching Marathon) in the number 6 slot this week. Until very recently this team was expecting to play this season with lan-seasoned and TF2 mastermind Pyyyour main calling on Demo. However, Cygnus and the rest of his team decided that their combo dynamic wasn’t working, so they added Milo on scout and moved the versatile Kapoww back to Demo, who formerly took them to the HL Championship in Season 9. Between Highlander veterans Kapoww and the very-underrated Sharpshot Mcgee on Heavy, their Medic Lydiaxa shouldn’t have too much trouble adjusting in her first season of Platinum. Elsewhere in the lineup, Corsa has emerged as one of the premiere Snipers in the league and his presence on their roster adds a major threat that, with their former Sniper, Mouse, BPM never really had. Tictack has also emerged as an early candidate to be one of the best Soldiers in Highlander this season. While SYOPS has undoubtedly been underperforming lately considering the wealth of talent on their roster, this recent change to the combo could be the adjustment that they needed to begin playing on form. While we have yet to see how they play in a match due to back-to-back byes, how SYOPS is able to play and improve this season will be one of the most compelling stories in Platinum.

7 - Dead Ringer Storage (0-1)

Week 1 Logs: dK vs DRS

It has been a trying offseason for one of last season’s most-improved teams. The loss of players like Sigafoo, Davyc, and Tickzf would be tough for any team to replace, though initially it seemed as if Dead Ringer Storage was able to make a handful of strong acquisitions that would put them back in the mix of teams towards the top of the division. However, they have struggled lately to both keep up with the top teams and fend off the teams in mid-Plat, exemplified by their loss on Monday to Dunning-Kruger Effect. Despite their recent struggles, however, Dead Ringer Storage is undeniably a stronger team than they have seemed the last week or two. I fully expect them to work out whatever kinks they have and begin to edge up these rankings as the season progresses. Even with recent losses, Mustardoverlord, Jake, Nja, and Rainy have all been playing as well or better than we have seen from them in the past, so it’s clear that their issues are not based on their DM but rather their inability to get on the same page. Their matchup against The Electric Temptations this week, a team with whom they have been comparable through most of the past two seasons, presents an excellent opportunity for DRS to show that they are still a team that should not be taken lightly.

8 - Stag Party (1-0)

Week 1 Logs: bfl` vs sp

Stag Party is another team that has distinguished itself from the rest of low-mid Platinum early this season. Their smooth Week 1 win over Blunderful helped to show the solid potential of some of their stronger players, as well as give them a nice confidence boost in their first real week of Platinum. There are a lot of players who seem to be gearing up for a strong season. TMP and Doxed are obviously two players with Platinum experience who have already displayed their ability to compete at the highest levels of Highlander (Doxed played out of his mind on Monday), while newcomers like Scratchy and Tiny have both been showing some very solid play in the early parts of the season. It remains to be seen how they will be able to hold up against teams like Syops and dK, the latter being the team that they will face off against this week, but Stag Party has shown a lot of promise in the early goings.

9 - Unbelievably Brave Sweethearts (0-1)

Week 1 Logs: MF9K vs uBs

Despite a roster that certainly has its shortcomings, UBS’ 0-4 loss to Murderforce wasn’t quite the lopsided affair that many were expecting. While strong play from Polk is to be expected, the solid performances we saw from Linkuser, Bobby, and even legendary piece o’ junk Messiah, we’re a bit more surprising considering the strong competition that they were facing. Now that this team has seemingly sorted out the personal problems that caused some roster strife during the preseason, it stands to reason that they will be able to continue take advantage of these talented Gold move-ups and keep giving the teams towards the top of the division a good run for their money. Watch for Linkuser and Bobby to continue to compete with the invite Scouts and Soldiers that they will see this season, and also keep an eye on how some of the lesser-known talent like Geek and Bowswer5 are able to hold up against the rest of Platinum. UBS has the incredible good-fortune to have a bye on the TF2 cesspool that is Gravelpit. Hopefully they will use this bye week to iron out any remaining kinks in their roster and will come back ready to roll on Upward.

10 - Blunderful (0-1)

Week 1 Logs: bfl` vs sp

Rounding out the Platinum Rankings this week is the Highlander relic and crowd favorite, Blunderful. Despite having, at this point, more experience together than any other team in the division, Blunderful has continued its decline from their old perch in the middle of Plat all the way to the bottom. They are not, however, the same sort of week-to-week bottom feeder that we are accustomed to expecting from teams like DMS. Bfl` still has a great deal of talent on their roster, and with more time together can certainly win some matches against other teams towards the lower end of Platinum. New additions in the form of Jordan and Mafio bring a lot of DM and versatility to this roster, and the very strong pick play from Napalm and Interests represents one of the most underrated Sniper/Spy combos in all of Platinum. While Menace to Society on Gravelpit is an, essentially, insurmountable obstacle, the matches on the horizon for Blunderful against teams like UBS are certainly winnable games. I fully expect this group to gel together further as the season goes on.

A Farewell to Arms

Street Hoops e-Sports (33-12)

Due to the loss of Skyrolla, their main caller and leader, Street Hoops has gone the way of the Dodo this week. It is always sad to see a team crumble, but especially a group that has been such a paragon (getit?) of consistency and hard work throughout its career in Highlander. Major props to 20b/Chain Reaction for putting together one of the most year-in, year-out successful teams in UGC history.

Predictions for Week 2

cp_gravelpit

(1) Gentlemen’s Club v. (2) Murderforce 9000

It is impossible to talk about this match without mentioning again how ridiculous the method of scheduling that UGC uses to match up their teams. The fact that teams like these have to start off the season facing each other without any time to sharpen or smooth out their roster, is only surpassed in it’s stupidity by the fact that, because of this one and done method, the latter half of the regular season will be spent filled to the brim with lopsided matchups. All that aside however, it is undeniable that a matchup of teams of this caliber is made even more compelling because is it on a map that demands a mixing of both strategy and DM. While GC has a roster that, overall, seems to be a bit stronger, the understanding of Gpit that players like Indust, Sigafoo, and Remedy, bring to the Murderforce lineup will do a lot to sufficiently prepare them for Monday. It is hard not to mention, however, that as good as Ma3la is on Demo, the apparent loss of B4nny is a huge blow for this team. His absence will likely call more attention to some of the otherwise minor shortcomings that the MF9K roster has. The other thing that MF will have to worry about, as will any team that squares off against GC, is containing Max! and Acooma so that they can allow their combo to play without inhibition. While I think that Murderforce is a solid squad, this one seems to favor Gentlemen’s club in most areas. Aside from the aforementioned players, watch for Grape to make some plays, and keep an eye out to see how Fox is able to hang with Max!. Should be a solid game despite the fact that I expect it to finish 2-0 in favor of Gentlemen’s Club.

(3) The Electric Temptations v. (7) Dead Ringer Storage

Even with Dead Ringer Storage’s recent struggles, this isn’t exactly the matchup that The Electric Temptations wanted on this map. While this contest would skew in the favor of ET on a more DM-centric map, Gravelpit may actually favor the strengths of Dead Ringer Storage. Whatever can be said about Mustardoverlord, he is undeniably a smart player who has a very advanced understanding of the Highlander metagame. If he is able to form a solid gameplan and, more importantly, get his team to follow it, this could be a very interesting game. That said, I do have confidence in ET to improve their coordination enough over the weekend to play Gpit confidently. Deer and phAZE should be able to get the picks that ET’s combo needs to follow up, and Decimate and R1CKY on the flank will likely match up favorably against Nja and whomever ends up on Soldier for DRS, despite the fact that Nja has historically played Gpit as well as any other HL scout. I feel like this is a significant match for both teams. DRS doesn’t want to fall down to 0-2 this early in the season, and ET wants to prove that they are a team that can contend at the top of Platinum. Should be an interesting game. 2-1 in favor of The Electric Temptations.

(4) Menace to Society v. (10) Blunderful

It’s hard to see many bright spots in this matchup for Blunderful. Even their best players are outmatched in this contest, not to mention mTs has a history of being particularly strong on Gravelpit. Though I’d expect Jordan and Interests to make some plays for bfl`, the presence of names like Squid, Panic, Platinum, Harbleu, and Noko will likely make this a one sided affair. This should offer a good opportunity for mTs to get more comfortable with its newest additions on Heavy and Pyro, as well as give them time to find a new engi (maybe Spamfest???). This will be 2-0 in favor of mTs.

(8) Stag Party v. (5) Dunning-Kruger Effect

This is another interesting matchup for gravelpit. These two Gold move-ups seem to be mostly evenly matched, so it will be interesting to see who distinguishes themselves on Monday. Based on the way dK has been playing against some of the higher Plat teams, I’d lean towards them if I was to pick a favorite in this game. Watching how Stones is able to play against a more seasoned Sniper like Doxed should be a telling matchup of how this will go. I’m predicting that this contest will end up being one of the more compelling matchups in Platinum. 2-1 in favor of Dunning-Kruger.

(6) SYOPS TF2 v. Street Hoops e-Sports

This will essentially be another bye week for Syops. Farewell sweet Street Hoops. You guys were an excellent team. Forfeit win for Syops TF2.

Useful Highlander Tools

Roster list and numerical rankings
A list of the teams in Platinum and where they stand based on wins and losses.

Roster Transaction list for Platinum
A list of the comings and goings for players at the highest level of Highlander.

Roman Anderson’s Tools
Roman’s amazing compendium of apps for things like checking stats and making predictions.

Nine and Out
This week’s version of the hour long Highlander podcast, featuring guest Mustardoverlord.

Thanks to phAZE, Kill ‘em All, Jordan, Karl, Deadbolt, Paragon, Paradox, Remedy, Snowblindfrog, and enigma.