CommunityFortress

Every team in ESEA worked their +attack and push-to-talk fingers to the bone this season to secure their spots in the playoffs but as we all know, it comes down to the top four teams in Invite, the top eight teams in Intermediate, and the top sixteen teams in Open.  While most of us sit back and study them for their tactics, weaknesses, and pure entertainment value, these twenty-eight teams continue their struggle for dominance over the ESEA domain.

Read on to see what we can expect this week!

Invite

The end of season 10 leaves us, as always, waiting for LAN.  Quantic Legacy goes in with a 15-1 win-loss record for the season, followed closely by Classic Mixup at 14-2.  The Experiment and High Rollers Gaming TF2 both managed to snake their way into 3^rd and 4^th, respectively, with an even 8-8 win-loss ratio to knock out the 7-9 et al Mighty Ducks and Area 51 Gaming TF2.

Map: cp_granary

Intermediate

It looks like LASER BEAMS and the dinosaurs will sail through to round 2, but we could see some action in the form of a grudge match between Washed Up Gaming and Beybladers.  Though the season’s fifth week brought #3 Washed Up Gaming a defeat on cp_snakewater against the #6 Beybladers, Washed is coming into the playoffs high off a 7-win streak and the morale accompanying week 8’s 5-0 win against this week's opponent on cp_granary.  The closest match-up of the week should be #5 Leviathan Gaming vs. #4 Xensity, streaming at 10:00 PM EST.

ESEA Round 1 schedule (all times Eastern):

Monday, January 23
9:00: Leviathan Gaming (10-6) vs. Xensity (11-5)

Tuesday, January 24
10:30: Mayhem (8-8) vs. (12-4) the dinosaurs
10:30: LASER BEAMS (14-2) vs. 90lg (8-8)
10:30: Washed Up Gaming (12-4) vs. Beybladers (9-7)

Open

We can safely expect Round 1 brackets to reflect end-of-season leaderboard standings, with Immortal 6, SYOPS TF2, Slay Mode, Carl Sagan Foundation, and WITNESS 40lb all securing solid victories on cp_granary.  Though #11 CHOKES ON 22d endured a season-finishing 5-loss streak accounting for their 11-5 season record, the season found them head to head with higher-tier teams including the first and second-placed Immortal 6 and SYOPS TF2, teams ESEA did not match #6 The Koreabros with; we could see CHOKES moving into the Upper Round 2 brackets.  Season ten’s #10 slanted eyebrows won against this week’s match-up #7 Submit a Ticket  on cp_snakewater in week 5, and they too spent the season grinding against the best of the best in Open.  Watch eXtv’s live stream on Monday, January 23rd at 10:00 EST to see if the underdog stays in the running this week.  Garbage Plus, who finished the season at #9, and Lobby Footage coming in at #8--both with 11 wins and 5 losses--should also bring us a close match.

ESEA Round 1 schedule (all times Eastern):

Monday, January 23
10:00: WITNESS 40lb (12-4) vs. Super Friends (10-6)
10:00: Submit a Ticket (11-5) vs. slanted eyebrows (10-6)

Tuesday, January 24
10:00: Poisonous Timberwolves (9-7) vs. SYOPS TF2 (13-3)
10:30: Garbage Plus (11-5) vs. Lobby Footage (11-5)
10:30: Slay Mode (13-3) vs. SWAGGIN BALL Z (9-7)
10:30: Jamestown Jesus Jambori (10-6) vs. Carl Sagan Foundation (12-4)
TBA: CHOKES ON 22D (10-6) vs. The Koreabros (11-5)

Wednesday, January 25
10:00: Immortal 6 (14-2) vs. black people (9-7)