antiaircraft Posted June 20, 2012 Share Posted June 20, 2012 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). Hello again everyone! We're now well and truly in the final stretch for this year's Altador Cup, as the fourth and final round of the season began in earnest yesterday. Teams all over the Colosseum charged into the round's opening matches with a bang, scrambling to get settled in at a decent rank as early as possible. <img src="https://images.neopets.com/items/mbd_helmet.gif" alt="Finned Maractite Helm" style="float:right;margin:5px;" /> One of the loudest clashes to reverberate across the stadium was that of steel on maractite, as the Krawk Island Pirates took on their old nemeses, both in sport and in war, Team Maraqua. Clashes between overzealous fans are often a concern when these two teams face each other, but fortunately good sportsmanship prevailed on both sides throughout the match, and rioting levels were well within normal limits. Despite their rivalry, and several accidental physical encounters on the field (a few of which bordered on contact fouls), Team Captains Garven Hale and Elon Hughlis traded nothing worse than a few amused smirks, remaining on generally good terms throughout the game. This came as a surprise to many, as rumour had it there was quite a bit of animosity between the two captains, with plenty of colourful language exchanged after the teams' previous match. Asked to comment on the matter, Feldon "Dinksy" Collibridge of Krawk Island dismissed those claims, saying, "Colourful language? Hah! Well yeah, if you're talkin' pink and purple coloured, sure. Those two act tough, but they're some of the biggest softies I know. They get along just fine. Heck, I could swear they spent half the off season sippin' drinks and talkin' politics. Insufferable, I tell ya. And have ya heard about the one time they hugged? No? Well, I guess I'm not talkin' about it either then. Maybe another time." <img src="https://images.neopets.com/altador/altadorcup/head_shots/krawkisland_3.gif" alt="Ealyn Hawkshanks" style="float:left;margin:5px;" /> And good sportsmanship wasn't all this match had to offer: the Yooyuball action out on the field was fast, furious, and hard-hitting, with Krawk Island's relentless midfield pressure slamming into Maraqua's towering defensive line-up time and time again. Goals were few and far between, but the ones that did get through were ones for the history books, as the match was dominated by long range shots, corner strikes, and even a few of Yooyuball's infamously tricky rebound shots. Krawk Island forward Ealyn Hawkshanks may have to get used to being called "Bouncer" in the future - with his talent for pulling off impossible rebounds, and his past experience working tavern security, it's unlikely the Quiggle will be able to shake off his new nickname any time soon. When the dust finally settled, the Pirates and the Mermaids were neck-and-neck in both Yooyu sports, with no time left on the clock to play a tie-breaking quarter. Slushie Slinger results for the day were decidedly in the Pirates' favour, while Maraquan fans dominated the stands in Make Some Noise. With two draws and a side game apiece, it looks like this old rivalry will have to be sorted out another time, as the overall result of this match was a technical draw. <img src="https://images.neopets.com/altador/altadorcup/2011/teams/darigancitadel_4.gif" alt="Tandrak Shaye" style="float:right;margin:5px;" /> In stark contrast, Teams Darigan Citadel and Kreludor both concluded their round openers with across-the-board sweeps. The Citadel Minions' tireless aggression proved too much for Team Altador to handle on the Yooyuball field, while revamps to the Citadel's slushie stand decor aided them in keeping an iron grip on the side games. Not quite as aggressive as Layton Vickles and the Darigan squad, Kreludor's airtight play nevertheless kept them well ahead, even when faced with the full might of Team Tyrannia. "Ice cold, no mistakes," has become a common slushie toast among Kreludorks, in reference to Team Captain Derlyn Fonnet's unflappable leadership and calm approach to every situation. <img src="https://images.neopets.com/altador/altadorcup/freebies/msnicons/kikolake.gif" alt="Holbie Pinnock" style="float:left;margin:5px;" /> Entering their round four bracket in style, Team Lost Desert soared past Kiko Lake in their match, raising a few eyebrows (and quite a few cheers) from observers and supporters on both sides. Analysts had expected any win by the Lost Desert to be marginal at best, given the unpredictability and tenacity of Team Kiko Lake, but the desert squad and their supporters answered that challenge with a solid day's worth of unwavering play, claiming Yooyuball, Shootout Showdown, and Make Some Noise. The Kikos weren't giving up Slushie Slinger however, adding another notch to their impressive tally of wins even as Leera Heggle and "Poke" Cellers were exchanging the customary post-match handshake. "Well, we couldn't let those analysts get too comfortable could we?" remarked Kiko Lake defender Ditan Colb with a chuckle. "Besides, LD played real shiny out there today, I daresay almost as well as us on our best day. They've definitely earned a win for today, and then some." <img src="https://images.neopets.com/altador/altadorcup/freebies/msnicons/brightvale.gif" alt="Kayn Hireck" style="float:right;margin:5px;" /> While Team Mystery Island dominated their match against the Shenkuu Ninjas, they were stopped just short of a sweep when a sneak attack by the Ninjas' pulled Shootout Showdown out from under them, proving once again that the Ninjas still have plenty of tricks up their sleeves. Elsewhere in the bracket, Brightvale managed to edge out just ahead of the Rooligans, taking Yooyuball to secure themselves the overall victory, even in the face of stiff side game opposition from their opponents. So stiff, in fact, that the Roos managed to counter with a side-sweep, scooting off with Slushie Slinger, Make Some Noise and Shootout Showdown before the Brightvale Wizards could organise a response. Going head-to-head for the third time this tournament (and the second day in a row), enthusiasm was somewhat lacking in Alabriss Bracket teams Terror Mountain and Meridell. This ended up playing to Meridell's favour, as the Terror Mountain Chillers weren't quite energetic enough to keep up their usual high-octane gameplay, eventually conceding Yooyuball and Shootout Showdown to the Knights. Those victories gave Meridell's supporters just the boost they needed to surge ahead and take both Slushie Slinger and Make Some Noise, earning the Knights a solid sweep. <img src="https://images.neopets.com/items/mcf_borovan_blazingstonemug.gif" alt="Blazing Stone Mug of Borovan" style="float:left;margin:5px;" /> Moltaran Team Captain Aldric Beign and his team certainly earned themselves a few blazing rounds of celebratory Borovan with their performance yesterday. Although it was immediately clear that the Haunted Woods would take all three side games by a solid margin, the Moltaran squad adamantly hung on in the face of steadily increasing pressure from the Zombies, holding off legendary striker Zo Junior for long enough to squeeze in a few shots of their own just before the closing whistle, levelling the final Yooyuball score. <img src="https://images.neopets.com/altador/altadorcup/2011/teams/virtupets_1.gif" alt="Keetra Deile" style="float:right;margin:5px;" /> Alabriss Bracket's most remarkable outcome, however, came from the match between the Virtupets Robots and Team Faerieland. Rebounding from a recent sweep at the hands of Mystery Island (and a string of many defeats before that), the Faeries not only managed to fend off a sweep with a draw in Slushie Slinger, but also blew right past the Robots in Shootout Showdown, adding one more victory to their overall tally. The Faeries still weren't able to claim the match against Virtupets' dedicated play in Yooyuball and Make Some Noise, but the results boosted morale all around, and raised some hopes that this season might still have an upset or two left in it. The clock is steadily ticking down however, and as we proceed into the tournament's fifth-last day it remains to be seen whether the approaching season terminus will inspire a new sense of urgency in tournament contenders. In Alabriss Bracket, Faerieland will certainly be under pressure to perform against the Haunted Woods Zombies, and the Moltarans even more so against top trio contenders Team Meridell. Meanwhile, Terror Mountain and Virtupets are eyeing each other up in anticipation of abruptly switching places in the standings - perhaps more than once, as the adjacently ranked teams vie for placement in today's match. It looks like there'll be plenty of close-fought matches to be had in Minitheus Bracket: the Shenkuu Ninjas have been pitted against the Brightvale Wizards, while the energetic Kiko Lakers cross guards with the similarly enthusiastic Roo Islanders, and heavy-hitters Mystery Island and Lost Desert duke it out, both hoping to claim spots at the top of the bracket. Vaeolus Bracket has its own share of big name matches, with heavyweights Kreludor and Darigan Citadel facing fellow heavyweights Krawk Island and Tyrannia respectively. Last (but certainly not least) on the match list, the Maraquan squad have been paired against the indomitable Altador Suns - an interesting mix considering Maraqua's well known weakness at the slushie stands. Only five days left in the season folks - play well, and good luck! This is AA, reporting from Altador, signing off. Mouseykins, Spritzie and Xepha 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shiny Vulpix Posted June 20, 2012 Share Posted June 20, 2012 Oh my,time sure goes fast!We have 5 days left...oh man...well I will try my best! Edit:Wait...this rhymes! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
~Ğǿǿmy~ Posted June 20, 2012 Share Posted June 20, 2012 Shenkuu had an amazing win against Mystery Island by winning SOSD! Congratz Shenkuu! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
glorious918 Posted June 20, 2012 Share Posted June 20, 2012 Dear Krawk Island Your team are TOUGH, but our defenses are tougher. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
voteforpedro333 Posted June 20, 2012 Share Posted June 20, 2012 Playing MI will be interesting today. There's not much to lose at this point but hopefully both sides are still fighting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lucariovondimencio Posted June 20, 2012 Share Posted June 20, 2012 Kreludorks? please more respect, those guys are almost sending the cup flying. Haters gonna hate... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
-Ryan Posted June 20, 2012 Share Posted June 20, 2012 The KDers call themselves Kreludorks... Go check their boards. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
antiaircraft Posted June 21, 2012 Author Share Posted June 21, 2012 Kreludorks? please more respect, those guys are almost sending the cup flying. Haters gonna hate... As Ryan has pointed out, the term 'Kreludorks' was selected as a name long ago by the supporters of Team Kreludor themselves, embodying their relaxed, fun-loving, tightly knit and generally endearing team spirit. The name has stuck to this day, used extensively by Kreludor fans and other Cup players, both on the Neoboards and in numerous other places where the Altador Cup is discussed. I made use of their name with nothing but the highest respect for Kreludor's excellent performance, team spirit, and fantastic standards of sportsmanship, all of which their name has come to represent. If you believe the name to be inappropriate, you are more than welcome to take up the issue with Kreludor's supporters on the Neoboards. Alternatively, if you disagree with the way our reports are put together, you are also welcome to join us in volunteering five or more hours of our own time for every single day of the Altador Cup, to carefully prepare, research, write, edit and re-write a circa 1,500 word report covering every match, regardless of timezone differences or personal health. I've personally been writing Altador Cup reports for almost four years now, and have strived never to show the slightest disrespect to any team in the tournament, but rather to be informative, engaging, and motivational to supporters from all corners of Neopia (occasionally, even humorous). Haters gonna hate? Please, more respect. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
demon_aj Posted June 21, 2012 Share Posted June 21, 2012 WOOT MARAQUA!!! Theo, your writing is unmatched. (Don't tell Mary!) Mouseykins 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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