antiaircraft Posted June 21, 2011 Share Posted June 21, 2011 Obligatory disclaimer: This news report was written to inform you all of the latest Altador Cup results in as entertaining a manner as possible. The rest of its content is largely fictional, composed from various fan comments and the whims of our imagination in an attempt to inspire a sense of realism through our reporting. While we do our best to keep things reasonably neutral, this report is in no way intended to be a completely bias-free listing of the day's results, nor does it claim to provide critical analysis of past and potential outcomes from qualified Altador Cup experts. Please note that the opinions formulated in this report are from a full team of different reporters, and in no way represent the views of only a single faction. If you're looking for 100% unbiased performance data, take a look at our standings page. If professional analysis tickles your fancy, you want our predictions pages (global/daily). Well the results gong for day twenty of this year's tournament has just sounded, and there's plenty of jubilation and disappointment all around - as is to be expected at this point in the season, it's getting a little tough for the teams to maintain their performance, and that's made for plenty of interesting ups and downs throughout the day's matches. <img src="https://images.neopets.com/altador/altadorcup/2011/popups/virtupets/logo.png" alt="Virtupets Logo" style="float:left;margin:5px;" /> <img src="https://images.neopets.com/altador/altadorcup/2011/popups/kreludor/logo.png" alt="Kreludor Logo" style="float:right;margin:5px;" /> Two teams that were definitely not having endurance issues were Kreludor and Virtupets - the teams from Neopia's highest flying worlds are also the highest flying teams on the leaderboard, and in fact, they went into yesterday's match tied for first place. Two teams, both in top form, both trained for mobility in low gravity environments, both practiced at thinking in three dimensions, and both employing similar strategies with an identical two plus two field configuration: it was the closest the Cup would ever get to a mirror match-up, and the teams did not disappoint. Seeing a game played between such evenly matched opponents is a rare treat, and the fans were certainly eating it up, with sound levels in the Colosseum reaching record levels. Thanks to new regulations making earplugs compulsory in certain areas of the stands, there were no serious ear injuries this time around, and supporters from both teams were able to push their cheering above and beyond all sensible limits. By the end of the match, many of Kreludor's supporters ended up a little hoarse, allowing Virtupets to roar ahead in the final Make Some Noise results. However, the extra demand for emergency throat-soothing slushies allowed Kreludor to take the Slushie Slinger win. Over on the Yooyuball front, well, there are far too many highlights to mention here, but among the top picks are a stunning triple-rebound goal scored by Kreludor forward Zenor Kevix, and an incredible on-field repair job by Virtupets defender Sela Pretore, restoring one of Goltron Mk I's damaged optical sensors just in time to ward off five goal attempts from Kreludor's offence. Sela Pretore's workshop skills may actually have managed to save her team the match, as from that point onwards pressure on Virtupets' defence dropped significantly, allowing the Robots to push forward and end the day two goals ahead of their opponents. While Kreludor worked a little towards equalising the result with a win in Shootout Showdown, Team Virtupets emerged the definite champion of this match, and for now, of the leaderboard too. Two more contenders for the top tier, only slightly further down in the standings from Neopia's space-bound teams, met in a clash of claws and fangs yesterday. The Haunted Woods and Darigan Citadel (rivals since the former team took the Cup back in AC I, leaving the Citadel as the runner-up) played a long, drawn-out Yooyuball match, with two overtime extensions that were unable to break the inevitable tie. With the main sport drawn, it fell to the side games to decide the outcome of the match. Darigan Citadel's supporters took an early lead in Slushie Slinger, which was countered by a Make Some Noise win from the Haunted Woods' stands. When it came to the penalty shootouts, it was the Minions who managed to pull ahead and take the overall win, settling into fifth place on the leaderboard. <img src="https://images.neopets.com/altador/altadorcup/2011/teams/hauntedwoods_1.gif" alt="Krell Vitor" style="float:right;margin:5px;" /> "A draw won't set us back far, now that we've gained some momentum," remarked right defender Wan Dirx of Team Haunted Woods confidently, "and I'm not in the least upset about this match. Sure, it was a draw, we didn't get points, blah blah blah, but we all played our best (that goes for Vickles and his guys too) with no tricks or fancy-pants new strategies. It was just straight-up, old fashioned pure skill, and you know what? We did great. So let's keep it up." Looking just a tad higher in the standings, the Krawk Island Pirates and Meridell's Knights both battled their way through the day to end up tied for third place. Meridell's solid Slushie Slinger play was able to overcome even the high-speed runs of Altador's top-class slushie service, sealing the match as a sweep in Meridell's favour. The Terror Mountain Chillers, although they couldn't outperform the Pirates on the Yooyuball field, were undaunted and in good spirits throughout the entire match. While Prytariel and her squad gave it their all in the Yooyuball game, managing to draw even in the penalty shootouts, the Chillers' supporters dominated in the stands, taking Slushie Slinger and Make Some Noise to finish with a strong overall showing, despite conceding the match to the Pirates. The Brightvale Wizards were another team dishing it out strongly in the slushie stands today, taking a victory in Slushie Slinger, and using the slushie support to draw even with Roo Island in Make Some Noise. Nevertheless, the Roos' Yooyu-handling skills couldn't be denied, and Roo Island walked off the field victorious, with Yooyuball and Shootout Showdown under their belts. While they may be lower-tier teams, that doesn't mean Faerieland and the Lost Desert don't have their own tough rivals to fight for positioning, and fight they did. The Faeries crossed guards with Team Moltara in a colourful Yooyuball match that saw each team well ahead of the other at various points. Faerieland managed to pull out ahead in the end, as well as adding Slushie Slinger and Shootout Showdown to their tally, but Moltara's supporters were still in no mood to concede, hitting back with a win in Make Some Noise. The scoreboard was a little less dynamic in the match between the Lost Desert Mummies and Kiko Lake, but it was still a close game, with Vonde Cayle breaking the tie in favour of the Mummies just in time for the final whistle. Lost Desert fans also managed to push their team ahead in Slushie Slinger, but in Make Some Noise and Shootout Showdown, the Kikos reigned supreme, taking enough match points to hold on to their third tier position. <img src="https://images.neopets.com/altador/altadorcup/2011/teams/mysteryisland_4.gif" alt="Vela Binal" style="float:left;margin:5px;" /> <img src="https://images.neopets.com/altador/altadorcup/2011/teams/shenkuu_0.gif" alt="Xana DiLanche" style="float:right;margin:5px;" /> Both Shenkuu and Mystery Island fans have a fantastic reason to rejoice today: there's green on the scorecard where nobody would have expected it. Their respective opponents, Teams Tyrannia and Maraqua, performed well in the side games, with the Tyrannian Fossils winning all three, and Maraqua short of that mark by a draw, but that wasn't enough to give them the overall win. The Ninjas and the Natives, two dormant Yooyuball legends in their own right, kicked into full gear yesterday, dealing their favoured, highly-ranked opponents absolutely crushing defeats in the sport. The match points from the Yooyuball win gave each of the underdogs a significant boost in their quest to secure positions in the third tier, but most analysts were rather more vocal about the results' impact on Maraqua and Tyrannia. Neither of the two top-tier contenders have been doing especially well in Yooyuball recently, and there's intense debate over whether this is simply a brief blip on the radar, or a sign that the teams are beginning to fall to the effects of fatigue. Either way, this point in the tournament would be the absolute worst time for either team's performance to start waning, as the top two tiers are finally starting to separate after spending the entire first round only a couple of points apart. Just one or two more days of missing sweep potential could put these teams permanently out of reach of the first tier, at least for this season, and extinguish any hopes of a championship run. "Call me cautiously optimistic, with extra emphasis on 'cautiously'," cautioned one Maraquan fan, "we've been in this situation before, and we've bounced back spectacularly. We can do it again, and I know we can do it even more strongly than we did before. But right now, we're a couple of points behind the current tier one teams, and that means that we'll only be able to make our way back into tier one if one of those teams slips up. And well, when you have to rely on another team slipping up to get ahead, that's never a good sign." And just to make things even more interesting for these two struggling contenders, it seems they'll now be facing off against each other, in a match which could very well make or break their tier one targets for the year. The Haunted Woods are another team facing a now-or-never moment, as they'll have to make sure Team Kreludor isn't able to break their momentum as they charge for the first tier. We also have one more Slushie Slinger clash to look forward to, as Meridell is once again up against a team holding the third best Slushie Slinger record in the tournament - this time, it's the Terror Mountain Chillers. Over in the lower tiers, Moltara and Altador will be battling it out as they both struggle for some victories to pull them out of the fifth tier. <img src="https://images.neopets.com/items/fur_pillows_cloud.gif" alt="Pillows" style="float:right;margin:5px;" /> Mind you, the competing teams and their supporters aren't the only ones who'll have to be dealing with fatigue as the tournament progresses - the long days of observing matches, interviewing fans, and keeping a close eye on results tallies are beginning to take their toll on members of the press as well. And that's why, just this once, TDN's Altador studio will be one man short for a few hours. This is AA, reporting from Altador, off to find a sleeping bag. Good luck all! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blurrz Posted June 21, 2011 Share Posted June 21, 2011 Solid results for the team. Surprising results for some of the other top tier teams. Hope TY makes it back into the 2nd tier.. but they've really lost their steam. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jonathanjoseph99 Posted June 21, 2011 Share Posted June 21, 2011 Yeah. :) Shenkuu is slowly improving. :) We have to improve a lot faster in order to reach Tier 2 or even beat Kiko Lake. >:) We have to get side game wins though. :/ It's nice to see that MI is also back. :) I miss playing in this team. (MI was my AC I team and also Roo Island. :D) Although, I hated it when we had our first match. Haha. GOOD NIGHT AA! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nikh Posted June 21, 2011 Share Posted June 21, 2011 HW draws with us in YYB. But atleast we picked up the overall wins! I guess "Brains" Mortigon needs to return his part of brains to the Brain tree! ;) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FutureTXTurkey Posted June 21, 2011 Share Posted June 21, 2011 Just the title of this post brings joy to my heart! We're going to distance, so challengers be on your toes! WE ARE VIRTUALLY UNSTOPPABLE AND CONTROLLING THE CUP! If I don't make it to at least level one today I'm going to hate myself a little bit... My weakest AC to date, and it has to be the year that V-pets is finally taking control. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sakabato Posted June 21, 2011 Share Posted June 21, 2011 It's about Kreludor time has lost in Yooyuball, not that I have anything against them or whatsoever. Well, us Shenkuu ninjas looked slightly better against Tyrannia than the last time, we won at Yooyuball! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MELioristic Posted June 21, 2011 Share Posted June 21, 2011 Congradulations from Kreludor, Virtupets! You've earned your keep! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
voteforpedro333 Posted June 21, 2011 Share Posted June 21, 2011 Good work everyone! I love seeing all of these crazy outcomes day in and day out. It helps to always make sure we don't underestimate anyone. Third tier is looking ripe for the picking LD! Let's move in today! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aeolia Posted June 22, 2011 Share Posted June 22, 2011 i hope kreludor players will now be consistent and not be complacent especially in yooyuball. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest COMANCHEFLAME Posted June 22, 2011 Share Posted June 22, 2011 Just a note to let you know how much I enjoy reading the "SPORTS PAGE" each morning I get my shower, make my toast, and coffee and down at the kitchen table I go to read the latest Altador Cup news. It is a real treat. :D Thank you! "GO KRAWK ISLAND!!!" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
antiaircraft Posted June 22, 2011 Author Share Posted June 22, 2011 Just a note to let you know how much I enjoy reading the "SPORTS PAGE" each morning I get my shower, make my toast, and coffee and down at the kitchen table I go to read the latest Altador Cup news. It is a real treat. :D You're very welcome! It's fun writing coverage for the Altador Cup too, especially when things get a little crazy. xD Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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