Furious Clashes Mark Round Midpoint

[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).

 

Welcome once more to our coverage of the seventh Altador Cup! The first half of round three of the tourney has just come to a close, providing us with our usual share of edge-of-your-seat matches and hair raising results. Hanna has more from the Colosseum.

 

"Thanks, AA! Yesterday continued the non-stop shocks and surprises for analysts and fans alike with not one, not two, but three sweeps, including some very unexpected upsets!

 

Darigan Citadel was one of the lucky teams, coming out with a clean sweep against the Ninjas. Shenkuu has struggled to maintain consistent form throughout the tournament, and wasn't able to bring it together against Darigan Citadel. However, secret stadium informers have notified us of Mirsha Grelinek organising secret after-hours practice sessions, so fans have fingers crossed for a turnaround in tomorrow's matchup against Maraqua.

 

<img src="https://images.neopets.com/altador/altadorcup/freebies/msnicons/kreludor.gif " alt="Derlyn Fonnet" style="float:left;margin:5px;"> Second in our set of sweeps from yesterday was Kreludor with a surprise win against Haunted Woods in Slushie Slinger and Make Some Noise. Haunted Woods were expected to regain some ground in those, as many fans have been screaming themselves hoarse (necessitating long lines at the Slushie stand for something to cool off those vocal cords), but Kreludor seems to be only gaining momentum as the tournament progresses.

 

Last but certainly not least on our list of sweeps is Mystery Island! Mystery Island has been up against Faerieland twice, sweeping them both times. However, Faerie fans are some of the most dedicated and forgiving out there, and their unwavering support can only inspire confidence.

 

Captain Kakoni Worrill shoulders a tough burden with the combined disadvantages of being a late starter to the sport and also the incredible pressure of captaining Faerieland (Jhudora is an avid fan of Yooyuball, and it's probably not a good idea to um... disappoint her). Most other players in the tournament have been training for sports from childhood, and while Worrill demonstrates an amazing natural talent for the sport, his inexperience at this level has caused difficulties with maintaining a cohesive team strategy on the field. Injury prone left forward Elbin Kroe's frequent injury timeouts certainly didn't help with maintaining game flow and the frequent interruptions made it difficult for easily distracted Ciona Broan to maintain focus, with several adoring fans scoring bucketloads of autographs and photos. In spite of all the difficulties, Worrill was still able to pull his team together into an impressive force as the match proceeded, and while they weren't quite as impressive as Mystery Island's renowned offensive strikers, they still managed to put up a good fight.

 

There was unexpected rainfall during yesterday's Altador versus Moltara Yooyuball match, but thanks to the Colosseum's excellent shielding Moltara was spared the potential health risk to their players. The Magmas weren't quite able to keep up with Altador's stunningly executed Yooyuball play, but they did set Altador's togas aflame with straight wins in Slushie Slinger, Make Some Noise, and Shootout Showdown. At the end of the day this was an overall win for Altador, and also their first ever Yooyuball victory this season!

 

<img src="https://images.neopets.com/items/bat_zafarasprings.gif" alt="Zafara Springs because we all want shoes like that" style="float:right;margin:5px;"> Roo Island bounced back big time after their loss against Darigan Citadel, managing to pull a complete side sweep against the Mermaids today. Maraqua was still riding the wave of confidence from their sweep of the Zombies, but may have been a touch overconfident heading into this match. A shower started up during their match, but that didn't dampen anyone's spirits. With their usual cheer, Roo Island had those Slushies bouncing down the conveyer belt with an impromptu singalong lifting the team's mood. Their exuberance carried over to Shootout Showdown (everything is so much more fun when you bounce it!) and also shouting the roof down. The fickle weather favoured the Mermaids out on the Yooyuball field though, with the Rooligans unable to use some of their most effective techniques on the slippery field. Afterwards it was hard to say whether there was more mud on the field or in the showers (I have a feeling that Yurble janitor isn't going to be pleased) but Roo Island were more than happy to laugh about the temporary chocolate paint job.

 

Meridell suffered their first loss in Round Three in a tooth and nail fight against Krawk Island. The Golden Dubloon was obviously a good choice for captain Garven Hale as an excellent pre-cup training ground with the Pirates continuing their impressive number of wins in Slushie Slinger. The Pirates came a bit undone in the rest of their matchups against the Knights, with the Knights managing to maintain firm discipline in Yooyuball and organising a roster for leading the crowd in a variety of cheers. Krawk Island were determined not to let anything get by them in the Shootout Showdown however, and it ended in a straight draw.

 

<img src="https://images.neopets.com/items/boo_mg_kiko.gif" alt="Kiko Lake Altador Cup Media Book" style="float:left;margin:5px;"> Kiko Lake came pretty close to a sweep yesterday, losing Shootout Showdown by just a smidgen. Shootout Showdown has been a particularly strong sport for Terror Mountain this season, though even with their strength, it was a triumph to pull a win against a team as indomitable and unpredictable as the Kikos.

 

Speaking informally in the brief post-match break, Terror Mountain's Team Captain Prytariel had plenty of praise for the opposing squad. "You probably hear this from every captain after just about every match, but it was a good game and I really mean it. Cellers and company have been fantastic opponents every time we've played them: determined, skillful, sporting, even calm and fair-minded - at least before and after matches. You can feel the energy they put into their gameplay just by watching them. It's always an honour, and I hope we'll meet again soon."

 

We now come to the match many fans anticipated most yesterday: Lost Desert versus Tyrannia. Tyrannia's new placement in the Minitheus bracket has them displaying newfound strength after a shaky start in the Alabriss bracket. Today proved to be a trying day for Tyrannia, with Lost Desert's historically strong and determined fanbase slugging it away, Making lots of Noise and turning that Slushie store into a setup that the Chocolate Factory would be jealous of. However, someone threw a spanner in those works with a sticky pileup of Slushie containers causing a total disruption of Lost Desert's top notch service record. Still, the Mummies did manage to wrap up wins over Tyrannia in the decibel level category, as well as a surprise win in Shootout Showdown. Tyrannia rallied in the last few minutes to sling several faerie Yooyus around keeper Leera Heggle to clinch a draw.

 

<img src="https://images.neopets.com/items/meepit_robot.gif" alt="Robot Meepit" style="float:right;margin:5px;"> In our final match of the day, Virtupets went after the Brightvale Wizards with robotic tenacity, managing to snag a win in the all-important Yooyuball. With the much loved Happiness Faerie overseeing Slushie production, the Robots managed to improve their slushie service-to-waste efficiency ratio enough to achieve a draw against the Wizard's Super-Slooshy-Slushie spell setup. Brightvale made the most out of all those scholars back home, with data analysts giving them just that extra edge in Shootout Showdown. Virtupets suffered a programming meepit cascade breakdown in their brand new Crowd Appreciation Applauder 1000 (Clapping Deluxe) model and technical support just weren't able to remove all the meepits in time, leaving the win to the Wizards.

 

Well, that's all I have to report for now, back to you, AA!"

 

Thanks Hanna, and don't forget those earplugs now!

 

As they proceed into the second half of the round, Moltara and Virtupets will be taking on Teams Brightvale and Tyrannia respectively - tough matches for the Magmas and Robots, even if the teams are reasonably evenly matched. The same can't really be said of the last Minitheus Bracket match-up - the Altador Suns have been paired off against the Lost Desert Mummies, who currently lead the bracket by a significant margin. Despite the disparity between the teams however, most observers have this pegged as the bracket's match-to-watch, as everyone is eager to see if Team Altador are finally ready to get into some serious Yooyuball contention.

 

Opening the Vaeolus Bracket matches is a game between top powerhouses Kreludor and the Darigan Citadel. After two previous losses to Kreludor, the Citadel Minions are out looking for a comeback, bringing (if slushie stand rumours are to be believed) an entire arsenal of tactics to the field, tailored specifically to take down their opponents. Elsewhere, the Rooligans are preparing to take on Team Haunted Woods once again, while Maraqua and Shenkuu cross paths for the first time.

 

Alabriss Bracket has no shortage of intense matches lined up for the day, with the Mystery Island Natives and Meridell Knights battling to hold off challenges from Krawk Island and Kiko Lake respectively. Teams Faerieland and Terror Mountain will also be getting a sizeable chunk of the spotlight today - these two teams have been placed in an incredibly tough bracket, so being pitted against each other will be the first chance they've had to really shine all round. As one of our in studio editors put it, "What are you doing Hunnysuckle, no, stop that!"

 

<img src="https://images.neopets.com/neopedia/249_caged.gif" alt="Caged and contained Hunny" style="float:right;margin:5px;"> Before we sign off for the day, we'd like to leave you with the full transcript of an interview with Feldon "Dinksy" Collibridge of Krawk Island, recorded just before the Pirates' match against Team Meridell yesterday. Unfortunately technical issues (in the form of our studio kad, Hunnysuckle) prevented us from broadcasting this completely in yesterday's report, but we hope it's still of interest to some ACers.

 

Good morning Miss Collibridge, and thanks for giving us this interview. I'm sure you'd much rather be out preparing for the next match with your teammates, especially given who you're up against.

Feldon Collibridge: Aw, s'no trouble. Prep doesn't take *that* long, the boys just like to drag it out a bit. Think it makes 'em seem more manly or somethin'. Besides, Hale knows that talking about important stuff is, well, y'know, important. So I'll give Windelle and his crew a bit of a sportin' head start, hmm?

 

Better not give them too much of a head start. I'm sure you're aware that Meridell leads you considerably in the standings right now.

Collibridge: Hah! That's the whole problem with this system, standings don't mean nothin'! Whoops, double negative - *hate* it when I do that. Not to snub those Knights or anythin', Windelle's got a mean crew and I can't wait to get on the field with 'em again. But the crazy standings stuff is a real problem. Look at Shenkuu and the Roos - they did awesome out there these past two matches. Last time I checked, that was s'posed to be a good thing. But instead of climbin', they're still stuck at the bottom of Vaeolus. Again, not sayin' the guys and gals above 'em aren't great ('cos they are), but if Shenkuu managed to bring the hurt down on the Haunties, why the Dickens are they still under 'em? Even Zo thinks it's crazy, and the man's half-patriot!

 

Just to focus a little extra on your last statement: I'm sure you've considered the common belief that, despite their overall loss, Team Haunted Woods ranked higher due to their calculated score tally being higher? What's your take on this?

Collibridge: Well that's the thing ain't it? The Committee's not tellin'. They ain't tellin' us the scores, they ain't tellin' us where the scores come from, and they sure ain't tellin' us how they calculate 'em.

 

That's a very good point you've raised, and one that's largely been sidestepped in the tournament so far. The Altador Cup Rules Committee have some very strict secrecy standards, meaning their decision making processes, as well as the algorithms they use for determining scores, victories, and rankings, have all remained under wraps. Historically, players in the tournament haven't taken issue with this. How do you feel about the secrecy?

Collibridge: That's how it was when I first got into Yooyuball, and they tell me that's how it's always been. Doesn't mean it's right, doesn't mean it's wrong - the important thing is that it *worked*. Whatever shenanigans ya get up to behind those fancy closed doors of yours, the important bit is what ya bring outta those doors. And it ain't just about ranks. If ya can tell me with a straight face that it's fair for those Faeries to be stuck in Alabriss Bracket, bustin' their tails against teams like us and the Knights every day, then I've got a couple of high-payin' jobs you might be interested in. Anyway, point is, whatever this fancy new system is meant to do to improve the Cup, it just ain't workin'. 'course, ya won't catch many of the boys sayin' that out loud. Whatever the official line is on free speech and all that codswallop, rubbin' the Committee the wrong way ain't good for your career.

 

We aren't getting you in trouble are we?

Collibridge: Hah! Trouble's my middle name - 'least it used to be back in the day. Ya probably noticed this already, but I'm not your average player. I ain't in this for a lifetime career. Yooyuball might be my main profession right now, but it sure ain't my only profession. Besides, if the Committee don't do some serious fixin' by the time the Cup sails round next year, I ain't gonna be playin', not without some real nice incentives on my contract. So I couldn't care less about telling 'em what's what.

 

One last personal question before you get going: what happened to your accent? When we met last year I'm fairly certain your voice sounded a lot more... pirate.

Collibridge: (laugh) I couldn't be bothered to keep that one up. Thought it would help me to fit in at first, but I got sick of it real quick. The boys tease me 'bout it now and then, but they can get me just fine, and funnily enough, so can everyone else. Savvy?

 

Miss Collibridge, thank you for your time, and good luck!

Collibridge: Not a problem. Buy me a round next time you're at the Dubloon and we'll call it quits.

 

Well, that's it for day fifteen - good luck folks! This is AA, reporting for The Daily Neopets, signing off.

 

[voteforpedro333]

It's been really tough on a lot of teams this round. For all of the talk that this new system wouldn't burn people out as fast, I think it's just accelerated it.