Head-2-Head-X / Head-2-Head-X: Draft & Team Roster

Last chance to write down my thoughts before we start seeing what everyone is worth...

edit: I hate how NE changes 8 and ) to but it looks funny so I'll leave it

 

Dambusters

Really happy with how the draft went. Got the top players I wanted, and when I started thinking my team was too top heavy I switched to drafting rookies - also getting the players that I would've liked to have. I think the team that I have doesn't have a clear profile. We can do anything.

 

Lonely Hearts Club

Cool team name, very J K! I think your draft was very logical and good, not too far off my own preferences. I would've loved to have Sam, same with RobDedede or deano. Excited for H2H Jens, and nin can be amazing if he shows up - as he did in Micro Madness for example. Hoping to see a continuation of that nin. Being up against FK is always scary. He's had tough luck in H2H but it's not on him. I also expect you to make heavy use of the 1 point player to get a lot of builders on each map. RR prediction:

 

J K + deanosrs + Hex (7)

nin + FK + Amusementparker (9)

Jens + Iretont + SSSammy + CHE (9)

J K + mamarillas + AmusementParker (

Hex + Camcorder + nin + CHE (6)

 

Possible JFK in the play-offs, and nin+Jens reunion for the other play-off park.

 

Hurricanes

So glad you're back, Kumba/Canes (and Levis! Third time Cane?). Looking at the team it reminds me of the Elementalists, with the focus on one of a kind (fantasy) players. Splitvision is an excellent pick. In the accolade meta game Splitvision isn't one of the top guys, compared to people like alex, Andrew or FK, but in H2H... He's the guy who can win you matches. With Jappy and bsg I think we can expect some wacky semi-realism, and there's enough players to create some more grounded stuff as well. The question is: are you going to put Xtreme, otter and CC9 (the realism guys) together, or are you spreading them out? CC9 and Terry might make a great realistic landscaping focused park. I can imagine you'll put the ncso experts on one park, but probably coupled with some cso experts to bridge the gap. Split could be a total wildcard for ncso. RR prediction:

 

Kumba + Splitvision + Levis (

Terry Infero + CC9 + kenos (7)

Xtreme + ottersalad (

Jappy + bigshootergill (3)

Congoy + Bluetiful Monday + ballpitwarrior + Splitvision (

 

Sad you changed the logo but it's growing on me.

 

Logan's Run

I'm confused why you didn't pick a team of your own, Leon, but the line-up is strong nonetheless. I'm super excited to see AVC's stuff and Tolsimir is always a menace. I don't think we'll consistently see conceptually wild parks from this team per se, but the focus will be more on the execution, with players such as Steve, AJ and Brightside being rooted in classy realism. Possibly a Leon ncso contribution? RR prediction:

 

Leon + Steve + spacek531 (9)

AvanineCommuter + AJ + Jene (10)

Tolsimir + Suormot + Bubbsy41 (

Steve + AJ + MrBrightside711 + saxman1089 (

Leon + monsterbux + Suormot + 94SupremePosse (9)

 

Soda Jerks

I want to punch your logo in the face. Good team though. Some very versatile players in there, such as Josh, walto and Ziscor. Interesting that you got Fred again. I think you guys did so so well on El Dorado last season (*see below, I'm an idiot)... It'd be sick if you could replicate that again. But I can also see you go with other combinations. I can imagine Mulpje and inthemanual would bond over some high fantasy stuff, and I hope something like that would light a fire under itm's ass and get him to build something again! Based on the team roster I'm not sure there will be an ncso park... Hobeon seems like the only real ncso expert, but I know In:Cities would do it too. Ethan would be interesting in an ncso-setting. RR prediction:

 

Scoop + Ziscor + Fred (6)

In:Cities + Maverix + GammaZero (7)

Mulpje + inthemanual + dr dirt (6)

In:Cities + Hobeon + Ethan (10)

Ethan + wheres+walto + Gustav Goblin (9)

 

Evergreen Gardeners

So many coloured names, holy shit. Will this be a case of too many gardeners in the yard, or will there be great shared leadership and synergy? Fisch is a premium cheerleader at worst (which is great to have), and I can imagine he will end up building a lot, lot more than he promised. I endorse this gamble. Getting him early was a smart move, because he's occupying a 3 point spot. Does this indicate you want to use 10 points for each park? I expect hydro and Babar to be excellent park leaders, but I'm not sure who else would instantly stand up to lead H2H group parks. That's an interesting thought and I'm eager to see how it plays out. There's definitely a lot of players that I think are excellent supporting team players, such as RWE himself, but also MK, Louis and Lurker. RR prediction:

 

hydroportal + G Force + Zarathustra (

barnNID + Louis! + RWE (7)

Babar Tapie + MK98 + Fisch (9)

BelgianGuy + Six Frags + Coasterbill (4)

RWE + Six Frags + MK98 + Lurker (6)

fred didn't build on el dorado liam

Hahah, you're right. I just remember that I thought that he did because of the bulky architecture.

Great writeup Liam! BG/SF/Coasterbill is the craziest four-pointer I've ever seen.

 

Gonna spit out some builder combos I'm excited for the mere possibility of since today's the last day before matches start. Excited for tomorrow!

 

Dambusters:

- Liam/Alex

- Liam/Hoob

- Alex/Morgan (CSO or NCSO)

- Andrew/Trav

- Hoob/Cocoa

- Hoob/Ultro

- Liam/Alex/Cocoa LL

 

Lonely Hearts Club:

- J K/mamarillas

- FK/Camcorder

- FK/Jens

- Jens/nin

- nin/Hex

- Rob/Hex (CSO or NCSO)

 

Hurricanes:

- Kumba/BSG

- Xtreme/Jappy

- Xtreme/Otter

- Terry/Otter

- Terry/Jappy

- ballpit/Bluetiful/Congoy DKSO

 

Jazzcats:

- Leon/AVC

- Leon/Tols

- Leon/Jene

- Leon/Bubbsy

- AVC/Jene

- AVC/Suormot

- Tolsimir/Steve

- Leon/AJ NCSO

 

Evergreen Gardeners:

- RWE/barnNID

- Hydro/barnNID

- Babar/Belgian

- Babar/Lew

- Babar/Fisch

- Babar/like anyone who can do layouts

- Belgian/Fisch

- LLew/LLurker

 

Soda Jerks

- Gustav Goblin/His Super Hot Anime Girlfriend Or Boyfriend I'm Not Picky

The Dambusters

Liam, with all his experience as a captain and as admin in the community, has chosen a very strong group of players. Not only, that all of his top 4 picks are real visionaries in their own right, the rest of his team actually also really compliments the style of those 4 potential lead builders as well as Liam's own style. On paper it's one of the strongest Liam led teams in my H2H memory. Andrew is the creator of the best RCT park of all time. Alex is a top 3 player of all time. Cocoa is one of the players whose work I've been admiring for the longest. Hoobaroo's fantasy is the level of quality I aspire to reach when I do fantasy work. I'm really looking forward to seeing this team create some absolutely special stuff. Haven't been this excited about a Liam draft in a long time (no offense to the previous teams).

 

Lonely Hearts Club

JK and FK is a proven combination that guarantees top quality. Jens and nin also have previously worked together. I expect a lot of great textural skill as well as some amazing architecture and shapes from the lead builders. The roster also includes a lot of other players with great specific individual skills that can shine here as well as great RCT portfolios. Deano in r8 is a steal. I would've loved to build with JK and am sure that you're eager to bring out some amazing RCT. FK hasn't missed in ages in any of his contest contributions. It shows, that he doesn't only know design work through RCT. Everything he does is top notch. Shoutout to SSSammy btw, amazing atmospheric work!

 

Hurricanes

I started my H2H journey as a Cane and I have a soft spot for Kumba as a captain. A guy that really loves RCT and really embraces this contest. Open, talkative, positive, and hopeful, but at the same time demanding and comitted. I loved to be on your team back in the day. I hope that throughout your team you guys can profit from each other a lot. I see Xtreme and Split as incredibly useful for bringing forward ideas and concepts. Kenos is someone that can further support the immersion in your works through his ctr creations. Terry and otter offer great technical skill. BSG has the portfolio as well as a lot of other presentation skills he brings to a team. Jappy in r9 is an amazing pick. I'm happy to see the Canes back in action!

 

Jazzcats

Tile Inspectors, umm sorry, Jazzcats have an insanely skilled captain. That's the first thing that may prove to be a real advantage. On top of that they have the spine of one of the greatest H2H teams of all times, which also happened to have great chemistry, the Tile Inspectors. But is it the entire spine? Can something like last season even be replicated? Should Leon have drafted every last Tile Inspector that signed up as everyone was vital last season? With Steve and Jene they definitely got amazing players on top of the first 3 names (counting Leon) on their roster. The rest of the team looks really talented. I am eager to find out, how well the styles of the lead builders and the later draft picks match. But making everything click should be no problem through the incredible late acquisition of spacek. I have been on a team with spacek twice now, and if he's motivated, he is unbeatable. And when spacek is motivated, it's great for the game in general, so what's not to love. I wish you luck in the battles to come my former team mates. Oh and of course I am dying to find out what special meal AVC will serve this time. Let that man cook, no disturbances please.

 

Soda Jerks

How is it that we're all not on your discord, yet everyone in the tournament seems to be aware that you guys spam gifs in there. Shows that you're having fun. Question is, how much actual building is taking place together with the gifs and the fun. If you're building a lot, then you're going to be reaaally difficult to beat. I have the feeling, and I had that feeling since Josh built that Namibia park, that Josh by himself can lift a team to glory. Not only does he provide artwork, he provides inspiration, he provides soundtracks, he provides palettes, he provides a great amount of experience in terms of project and design work, he can lead, he can build, he can tell you what fits and what doesn't. He's a guy to mould a team around, a real r1 pick for sure! Ethan happens to be one of the most active technically skilled players around. Walto has some of the best crunch ability in the whole game as well as a real eye for shapes and forms. He's flying under everyone's radar still. I think the remaining roster also fits the style of Scoop and the top 3-4 picks really well and there can be some great technical cohesion within your parks. I'm most excited for how you utilize Josh's abilities as well as in a way how well Josh's abilities are able to utilize your team's other builders. He could create and lead 5 RR parks without building, depending on how ready the other players are to follow the leadership (not saying anyone has time for something like haha).

 

 

Good luck to everyone

Broadly speaking I don’t think there are too many surprises.  The roster depth is significant for all teams,  as expected prior to the draft.  Captains who are more established built a smaller core of Parkmaker+ talent and then rounded out their rosters while the non-Parkmaker captains loaded up on colored name talent.  Every team has at least one player valued at 1 point with sufficient experience to take initiative on a park of their own.

 

The Dambusters - Liam wants to be competitive and wasted no time drafting Legendary talent to his roster.  Andrew is a proven collaborator and alex can blend in and add a refreshing note to any style.  I like the hoobaroo pick up as Liam’s steady hand at the helm should provide a good environment for hoob to harness all of his talent and out of the box thinking into something special.  Cocoa’s latest work shows he’s likely to produce something exciting and off the wall as well.  Trav has a wealth of experience and is a solid vice captain pick who can work on his own park or collaborate with a variety of players.  Recurious and roygbiv are steals as 1 point values and the rest of the roster is made up of fast rising newer talent or returning vets.  I expect a good amount of semi-realism but high concept fantasy is not off the table with some specialized object creation,  sculpture and ride designers who can make contributions to a variety of approaches.  Bustin’ makes me feel good.

 

Lonely Hearts Club - JK built a really solid core with FK,  Jens and nin.  Mamarillas and Iretont are newer faces that are quickly developing strong execution with CSO and technical sides of the game.  The rest of the roster has a lot of proven talent as well as some rookies to watch,  like deanosrs and AmusementParker.  A lot of depth into the 1-2 point valued players with proven talent like Hex,  Cam and CHE who can collaborate and lead,  alongside the rookies.  Some time and productivity concerns are alleviated by a large amount of creative project management experience on this team,  and JK has balanced a professional and serious approach with some more laid back members.  JK’s enthusiasm and positivity should be shared by the rest of the team to help get the most out of iterative building and high quality execution.  I expect a good amount of grounded realism plus bombastic landscaping and ideas from this team.

 

Hurricanes - With his triumphant return to a captain’s role,  Kumba has invested quite heavily in younger and developing talent.  It could be a risky move considering he’s been partially inactive for quite a while but it’s a challenge he can absolutely tackle.  Xtreme,  Splitvision,  Terry and otter as a core represents this team quite well;  strong players with unique approaches and a high likelihood of heavy innovation and storytelling elements.  Some people questioned the kenos pick but if you’re looking at investing in the type of skillset he brings,  I don’t think trying to have a player slide through multiple 2 point value rounds would be prudent.  This team has the clearest path to a DKSO styled park with ballpitwarrior,  Bluetiful_Monday and Congoy only coming it at 4 points total and they share good amount of contest and collaborative experience.  Congoy also brings a keen eye for strong ride design,  flat ride and sculpture designs that could translate to many different styles.  BSG and Levis have some throwback styles and all the charm that provides,  and of course Levis adds yet another dimension of technical ability to this team.  CC9 will bring a lot of enthusiasm for critical ride design and landscaping skills and is a pleasure to build with.  Jappy at 1 point with a recent Spotlight win is a steal and he has a very flexible approach that can fit in with the grounded players and the wilder ideas this team will tackle.

 

Jazzcats - Big time players make big time plays and Leon basically merged two successful teams from last season into a roster of his own design.  AVC,  Tolsimir,  Steve and Jene as top picks represent a core of players from both the Tile Inspectors and Logan’s Run from last season,  with Jene’s recent Spotlight cementing this pick as a potential steal in the draft.  AJ- will bring a unique naturalistic style into the mix,  as well as some good productivity like we saw last season.  Suormot has not been heavily active but showed some fantastic CSO sculpture skills as well as DKSO chops and could collaborate with monsterbux and 94SupremePosse,  who are newcomers to the format,  or assist others with a CSO map.  Mr.Brightside’s recent screens show strong development of his unique mix of realism and naturalistic elements that will fit in nicely with a lot of his former teammates from last season.  Bubbsy and saxman will be able to add their brands of more grounded realism and semi realism to a variety of maps as 1 point valued players.  Theflowdiskord is the odd man out style wise but that doesn’t matter as he is out and highly skilled technical player spacek531 is in as the season’s first replacement and a valuable component to this team’s ability to innovate.

 

Soda Jerks - Scoop picked a great VC and first pick in In:Cities,  who brings a lot of experience and creative versatility to the table both in RCT and for supplemental materials.  Ethan will bring a highly skilled and highly chaotic energy with potential technical development as well.  Walto and Mulpje have a lot of flexibility,  with the ability to tackle everything from esoteric fantasy to more grounded approaches.  Gustav Goblin is highly motivated to make the most out of his rookie season and is a flexible player who is not afraid to push himself for better execution on all fronts.  Dr_dirt,  inthemanual,  Maverix and FredD all are proven talent with a variety of styles and have been less active recently but should be able to provide strong contributions to the types of maps this team will create.  GammaZero sat out last season but has returned with newfound enthusiasm and ambitious ideas.  At first glance Hobeon looks like a bit of an odd player out but has expressed a desire to develop some CSO chops after a good amount of DKMP contest experience and should be an exciting player to see develop in the H2H atmosphere.  A strong team that can produce anything from high concept fantasy to grounded realism so they’ll need to zero in on the ideas everyone is most passionate about.

 

Evergreen Gardeners - RWE absolutely plundered the draft list for one of the deepest team rosters possible.  He snagged last season’s MVP in hydroportal and followed it up with productivity powerhouse Babar,  for good measure.  Hydro’s activity will be reduced but his upside justifies the first round pick and Babar will likely produce at least one spare map for backup and inspiration,  in addition to whatever he produces that actually gets released.  Fisch in round three was seen as risky due to time caveats but his history and skills should be valuable even on just one map.  BarnNID has shown high quality work recently as well as object creation skills.  G Force has been on hiatus but his ability to turn his realistic style into an asset in H2H has been established.  BelgianGuy is a recent Spotlight winner with a history of success in H2H as well.  Louis brings a wealth of experience and knowledge as a VC and MK98 always brings interesting and bold ideas to the table.  The 1 point valued players are ridiculous on this team:  Zarathustra brings strong hacking skills and technical knowledge,  Six Frags has one of the longest RCT careers in the community and has consistently adapted to modern styles,  Coasterbill is a strong player who does well as a flexible roleplayer who contributes a small amount on a handful of maps,  and Lurker may stand out a bit stylistically but will pump out throwback styled work and is very active.  With his 2 point valuation and experience speed building at a high quality,  RWE may find himself in the unique position of being able to assign himself mop-up roles on maps that just need a final push to get finished.

You're giving me too much credit Fisch lol. The best thing about our team is the depth of talent and leadership - everyone is so capable of leading and pushing some amazing content!