CPC Group Preview › ET Groups

Will hegemony be dethroned? Will Dignitas finally lose a game of ET? It hasn’t happened before, the Dignitas brand has never lost a competitive game of ET with their first team and now their recent addition of the former Idle team. People believe its going to happen, but do people also believe the rumours that Dignitas currently practicing more than ever before? Well, whilst Dignitas have to be the favourites for the tournament their air of invincibility is damaged, at least for a little while (If you hadnt heard, 2 time Quakecon champion Night will not be playing for Dignitas at CPC). So where will a challenger come from?

In Group A FF.org will believe that they've quite the chance of challenging TLR and iiii who will be favourites for the group. TLR come into CPC after leaving aMenti and famously turning down H2k but the question is whether they can go all the way. Since Northern Darkness the side have been plagued by their potential not quite being turned into 1st place, CPC will depend alot on whether mAus turns his online skills into LAN victory. If he does, and the panzers are flying from Winghaven then not only will TLR get out of the group but they'll go a long long way.
iiii (formerly 141) have the same questions over hanging some of their stars, can they turn online brilliance into LAN glory? If the answer is yes, then why cant they go a long way. Razz offers sublime aim, whilst the Finns offer Nations Cup winning experience and backbone. The mood is good about iiii, they could upset their CPC housemates TLR if the maps are good for them. Poles travel well, FF will be no exception, online tournaments are obsolete when you remove latency and FF.org will look to cause an upset or two with that in mind, but they couldnt have asked for a harder group to do that in. Morrigu have picked up maps and results that means they're not quite the whipping boys of the group, however you do have to feel the could get a spanking!

Group B pairs Dignitas and Impact Gaming in a mouthwatering tie that will be prime time viewing on Friday. Dignitas without Night and Impact with mystic (and his bodyguards) what more could you ask for? Impact havent hit the ground running with their allstar lineup, a mere jog. You know they're capable, at times they show glimmers of beauty, but they need time and cohesion. If they want to beat Dignitas, 3 weeks may not be enough time, only they will know that. Whilst that match has "EPIC" written all over it, Pingwins and ALIS have 3rd and 4th place written all over them! They couldnt have asked for two harder top seeds and whilst they will enjoy themselves never the less, this group may just be a forgone conclusion.

Group C has will be one of two things, either highly predictable or the source for an upset. OneSoldier have on paper a really nice lineup, they've the same tenacity and natural ability that was the source of reload's claim to fame back in the day and still is the source of many a fragmovie. If they fire on all cylinders, If ganon and mAx hit their shots, then they can beat a zeroPoint side who in all honesty you you never know what you're going to get.
zP do have what it takes to win the event, or at least take a respectable second. However with PGA as a testament, aswell as near defeat to BM at shgOpen they are prone to a slip up. Their defeat to NETRunners in OGC and a maps dropped in the Eurocup mean that confidence dosent go hand in hand with them, that means cZar will have to fancy their chances when they come up against them. cZar came through the qualifiers with a smile on their faces and return to CPC with 'bunaglow mates' onesoldier. cZar will be looking to improve on last CPC having bowed out to T&F on bruandorf and I see no reason why they cant get out of the group should the maps and form of their opposition favour them. Vigorz complete the group, and have since fallen on hard times, they face three teams that have relative stability it will be hard for them to get out of this one.

Group D will see PGA rivals Polar and NETR go head to head once again. The Poles like Pentagram in CS travel well and will look to rid themselves of the meory of their CPC1 dropout with Delta. NETR have to be feared at CPC, without latency and with some consistency going into the tournament they are more than a match for anyone. They're crude and efficient plus have itchy trigger fingers, they should glide through the group with only Polar offering resistance. Polar should see this an oppourtunity to grow as a team, their players have some lan experience but the group stages could aid them growing as a LAN team.
Auxilia have had alot of changes getting to the state they are currently in, a lineup that will undoubtly do well, but perhaps not one to worry the two seeds above them. It will for the most part be their first outing on LAN, the new enviroment, combined with a relatively inexperienced group (as both a unit and reputations) will work against them. Progression is not out of their reach but would certainly be a surprise. Last but not least KiH complete the group with rbnt and gyzr added to the fray, whilst individually the swedes were brilliant, they're not hungry for it and with that comes defeat. shgOpen put the writing on the wall, and in Enschede it will still be on the wall.