Faeries Battle Brightvale to Three Draws

[antiaircraft]

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).

 

Yet another day has passed at the Colosseum, and as expected the signs of fatigue are finally starting to show on the players, supporters, and pretty much everyone else involved. That didn't stop the teams from playing their absolute hardest however, and their uncompromising resolve was enough to bolster the spirits of even the most beleaguered fans.

 

<img src="https://images.neopets.com/altador/altadorcup/2011/popups/faerieland/logo.png" alt="Faerieland Logo" style="float:right;margin:5px;" /> Team Faerieland, for one, played at what may be the finest level the team has ever achieved, forging their usual mix and match of innovative tactics into an effective, well executed, long-haul strategy. While their gameplan may still need a few tweaks here and there, the results speak for themselves, as the Faeries were able to play to a draw against Team Brightvale, well known for pulling off a spectacular victory over Team Virtupets only a day before. With morale running high, Faerieland's supporters were able to follow up that result with a draw at the slushie stands, and the Faeries also pulled even with the Wizards in Shootout Showdown. Brightvale's fans were just a smidgen louder when it came to Make Some Noise however, putting the Wizards barely ahead with an overall victory.

 

<img src="https://images.neopets.com/altador/altadorcup/2011/teams/brightvale_1.gif" alt="Tressif" style="float:left;margin:5px;" /> "It was extraordinarily well played," acknowledged Brightvale Team Captain "Squeaky" Tressif afterwards, "Faerieland's field work was strategically sound, rigorously conformed to where appropriate, and also allowed for flexibility when the situation demanded it. I must compliment Kakoni Worrill and his teammates on their work, and should we meet again in the finals, I look forward to facing them once again."

 

Elsewhere on the pitch, Team Meridell managed to hang on to a fourth place position in the standings with a hard-fought but decisive Yooyuball victory over the Haunted Woods. "Wizard" Windelle and his Knights had a tough time breaking through the Zombies' defensive line-up, but after a long day of rolling out every siege mode tactic in the book, Meridell prevailed on numerous occasions, gaining enough goals to tip the match convincingly in their favour. The Knights were also able to stay ahead in Shootout Showdown, and they upheld their status as the tournament's top Slushie Slingers with a win at the slushie stands as well. Despite all this adversity, supporters of the Haunted Woods remained steadfast, roaring their way to victory in Make Some Noise, and vowing that this match would not be the end of their efforts to reach tier one. Considering how far the Haunted Woods has climbed already, should Meridell manage to hold onto its first tier position, the Knights could very well be in for an interesting match.

 

Team Virtupets were able to roll quickly back into their usual form yesterday, dishing out a Yooyuball pounding that Team Terror Mountain just couldn't match. The Robots' supporters remained as enthusiastic as ever in the stands, cheering and slinging slushies like there was no tomorrow. However, while they were able to take the victory in Make Some Noise, Terror Mountain's Slushie Slinger performance kept right on going, outmatching the Robots with a veritable avalanche of the life-saving drinks. The Chillers also fought hard for, and achieved, a victory in Shootout Showdown. It wasn't enough to give them the overall win, but it certainly sent a clear message that Terror Mountain wasn't going to let itself be pushed out of the running for first tier any time soon.

 

<img src="https://images.neopets.com/altador/altadorcup/2011/teams/altador_3.gif" alt="Winberto Seliz" style="float:right;margin:5px;" /> Staying on the subject of first tier contenders, the signs are looking good for Krawk Island, Darigan Citadel, and Maraqua, all of whom managed an across-the-board sweep yesterday. Optimism was somewhat lacking across the pitch however, as the victors' respective opponents, Teams Mystery Island, Shenkuu, and Altador, were all hoping to at least get a couple of victories out of the day's match. Mystery Island and Shenkuu especially, both former top Yooyuball teams, have been working to regain some of their old lustre, and while having difficulty against this year's powerhouses isn't entirely unexpected, it is at least a little demoralising. Meanwhile, Team Altador was hoping for a chance to flex some of its much touted Slushie Slinger muscle (which still remains among the best in the tourney, despite today's loss). None of these three teams are likely to stay down for long however - as Winberto Seliz of Team Altador put it, "Well hey, it's all right to have a few dampened spirits here and there. Not everyone can stay enthusiastic all year long, and every team gets losses at some point or other. The point is that we still got out there and played our best, and our opponents also got out there and played their best. If it turns out that, for now, their best is a little better than ours, well hey, there's no shame in that. We play to have fun, to enjoy a great sport, and to get better. And as for Slushie Slinger... look, you can't blame me this time around. I stayed on slushie duty for a whole ten minutes. Ten minutes!"

 

Spirits were a little higher over in the Moltaran camp, and in no small part was that due to the unquenchable enthusiasm of their team captain, Aldric Beign. In fact, Aldric Beign himself, along with a few other members of the team, headed over to grab a few slushies personally during the midday break, boosting the morale of the Moltaran slushie service and carrying them to a convincing victory over Team Kreludor. While Kreludor prevailed in the match's remaining sports, Team Moltara is now just a tiny bit higher in the standings - in fact, should they perform well in upcoming matches, they still have a chance at climbing their way out of tier five.

 

<img src="https://images.neopets.com/altador/altadorcup/2011/teams/kikolake_2.gif" alt="Meela Kitah" style="float:right;margin:5px;" /> The award for yesterday's most energetic underdog team probably goes to Kiko Lake however, as the Kikos once again dug in and hit hard across the board, taking all three side game wins from Roo Island. Despite a number of impressive goals from Kiko Lake's Meela Kitah, the Roos were able to remain convincingly ahead in Yooyuball, but with one match point going to each team in total, the Kikos have now seated themselves in eleventh place, hot on Roo Island's tail in the standings.

 

Team Tyrannia, pushing hard for critical points to keep them in the running for first tier, dealt heavy blows to the Lost Desert Mummies on all counts yesterday. While the Tyrannian Fossils didn't quite manage a sweep, they were only a draw short of the mark - a significant draw by many accounts, with the Mummies managing to stay on par in Tyrannia's best sport, Slushie Slinger, but a draw nevertheless. With the Lost Desert holding the title of defending champions, yet presently struggling to push their way out of the fourth tier, most observers are still somewhat surprised at the unusually hard fall the team has taken.

 

Moving ahead to the next day's matches, Team Lost Desert will be fielding its strategy against the Shenkuu Ninjas. With a 9-3-10 Yooyuball record, and some high profile victories under their belts, it looks like Team Shenkuu will be quite a challenge for the Lost Desert Mummies, but if the Lost Desert is to make any progress into tier three, the points from this match will be critical.

 

Looking up a couple of tiers, both Team Tyrannia and Team Terror Mountain are also in for the fight of their season, as both teams are severely in need of additional points to catch up with tier one's current occupants. The two teams will be facing each other, and as they have almost identical records in Yooyuball and most side games, it looks like this will be a clash to remember.

 

Another match to keep an eye on will be the battle between Kreludor and Darigan Citadel - the last time these top tier contenders met, they finished the day with a draw, so both teams will no doubt be itching for a chance to settle that result.

 

That's all for today! This is AA, reporting from Altador, signing off.

[-Ryan]

We desperatley needed that sweep.

 

And now were up against Kreludor. I hope that one day of rest wasnt enough to put 'em at full strength.

[jonathanjoseph99]

A sweep. NOOOOOOOO! :(

 

Oh well. We could at least beat LD in YYB if we try our best. :)

[-Ryan]

Sorry Shenkuu, I love you guys but i'm rooting for LD in that match.

 

Btw, TM vs TY is gonna be interesting. Might be an early glimpse at which team will be in 2nd tier when the dust settles and the DRR is over.

[antiaircraft]

And now were up against Kreludor. I hope that one day of rest wasnt enough to put 'em at full strength.

A little fluctuation aside, Kreludor is essentially at full strength as it is. You guys are lagging a little behind in that respect, but based on your record you definitely have what it takes - you just need to be playing at full strength as well. Good luck to ya! ;)

 

Btw, TM vs TY is gonna be interesting. Might be an early glimpse at which team will be in 2nd tier when the dust settles and the DRR is over.

It's also interesting because at this point both teams have almost identical records in every game. *analyst nightmare* xD

[nikh]

Good report LOF! ;)

How much more [points do we need to get to the top 3 places?

[antiaircraft]

Good report LOF! ;)

How much more [points do we need to get to the top 3 places?

That really depends on how well the teams you're chasing do. ;) But for now, you're about 1.89 points behind the team occupying third place (well, technically speaking it's tied for second place, but from your point of view that's effectively the same thing). Our standings page has more information if you're interested.

[Raj321]

Yay Faerieland! I knew they had some tricks up their sleeve for this match! :*

 

 

Good thing we're facing KD now and getting it outta the way instead of RR1 when DC had all those easy teams first and powerhouses last ^^;

Also, LOF, great report! (and who're you rooting for for DC v KD? :P heh i like tough questions)

[Person335]

Whew. Not a complete wipeout against Kreludor, so I'm glad for that.

 

If we keep this up, can we possibly climb out of the fifth tier?

 

I sure hope so. All that Moltara needs is a few boosting wins, and for Altador to fall.

[AgJu]

We're still coming on strong in side games but TM desperately needs some YYB wins to solidify a spot in the second tier! I'll be focusing mostly on YYB today with a few sidegame plays to help us come out on top in that regard. Another across-the-board draw won't help much, especially with Haunted Woods breathing down our necks.

 

Let's go get 'em Terror Mountain!

[antiaircraft]

Also, LOF, great report! (and who're you rooting for for DC v KD? :P heh i like tough questions)

Well when I wrote today's predictions I gave Kreludor the edge, as at the moment Darigan Citadel is the one playing catchup in Yooyuball performance, but I don't doubt the Citadel's ability to buckle down and play at the level they need to win. That said, I don't root for any team in particular. :P

 

If we keep this up, can we possibly climb out of the fifth tier?

 

I sure hope so. All that Moltara needs is a few boosting wins, and for Altador to fall.

And with a little consistency here and there, you won't even need the last bit. ;)

[flurps]

We're still coming on strong in side games but TM desperately needs some YYB wins to solidify a spot in the second tier!

 

I agree. We really need to keep working on that. We slipped away from tier 1 early in the first round, and now we're slowly slipping away from tier 2. We need some YYB wins.

[AgJu]

I agree. We really need to keep working on that. We slipped away from tier 1 early in the first round, and now we're slowly slipping away from tier 2. We need some YYB wins.

It's the only area in which we're weak...last night, I added up everyone's total win/draw/loss record and Terror Mountain has the best overall record so far (54 wins/15 draws/19 losses) of all the teams thanks to our sidegame prowess. If we can get YYB into gear, there'd be no stopping us!

[voteforpedro333]

If we keep this up, can we possibly climb out of the fifth tier?

 

I sure hope so. All that Moltara needs is a few boosting wins, and for Altador to fall.

 

I really don't know why SS is holding Altador so well over you guys. Moltara certainly shouldn't be trailing when the team directly above them hasn't even drawn in YYB...

 

 

Shenkuu has to go down TONIGHT