There will be 12 teams total for Masters Shanghai.

Thank you for your work. This is great!

I average around 85-90 if I really need to type fast for whatever reason.

There's definitely a chance, but we haven't seen some of these other CN rosters so I don't know if we can say for sure.

I'm pretty sure they have plans to move yoman to a coaching position.

Honestly, I just found this thread, and your comments have made my day! Thank you so much Zastio 😊

If they want to do that they better start signing. There are lots of good org-less CN players right now and I'm sure that if Wolves decide to go into the market for them, then they'll have a decent team that could challenge the more established teams.

EMEA only get two slots for Madrid.

Americas: NRG, LEV
EMEA: FNC, TL
APAC: PRX, T1
China: EDG, FPX/TE (too early to tell imo)

As for Shanghai:

Americas: NRG, SEN, LEV
EMEA: FNC, TL, FUT
APAC: PRX, T1, DRX
China: EDG, RA, TE

But to be honest it's too early to tell.

There are going to be two teams from every region for Madrid. Here's my take for that:

Americas: NRG, LEV
EMEA: FNC, TL
APAC: PRX, T1
China: EDG, FPX/TE

Also, you might want to be a bit more respectful towards the CN region because they have some great players. (just a suggestion)

The things lazy creatures do...

It'd make sense tbh.

This is definitely a series that could see a repeat in the grand finals. Both are strong contenders for the Ascension slot, and this series will definitely be very entertaining. While I would value both teams on a similar level on a regular day, if hfmi0dzjc9z7 doesn't return (which he might very well not), I think the edge goes to RA. A large part is due to how good Viva and stew looked in their most recent match against DRG, and I think YiHao's utility usage looked decent as well (his KD doesn't tell the whole story). Despite that, I think ASE stands a good chance at taking a map, especially if monk pops off again and gets those important, clinical kills that made him stand out on Breeze. Overall, this is looking to be a great series to watch.

Somewhat similar to what Yasuho predicted in the comments above, I think this will end up being a 2-1 win for RA.

I think this is looking to be an entertaining match to watch! I think both teams had players who played well in their respective matches, and it will definitely be interesting to see who can keep up the good form and who cannot. Of course, I acknowledge the fact that both NIP and DRG have just came out of 0-2 losses against ASE and RA, but I still think these teams have more to show us. Although I do believe this will be a close match, perhaps a 2-1 win for one of the teams, if I had to pick one of the two I think I'd go with NIP. The fact that Spring and JayH can perform consistently imo will definitely give them an upperhand in this series, and we've seen how DRG can crack and crumble easily against a team with high momentum abusing abilities, and although I don't think NIP is on RA's level in terms of that specific aspect, I think we've definitely seen some amount of snowballing ability from them on maps like Ascent and Bind. As for DRG, I hope vo0kashu continues to impress, and if TvirusLuke gets into it then he too can perform at very high levels, which is very cool!

Overall, I think this will be a tough match for both teams but I think NIP will win 2-1 against DRG this time around.

Oops! You're right, I was referring to Counter Strike without the GO. I'm sorry for the mistake!

But still, by 2015 Counter Strike would've been 15 years old.

Edit: CSGO -> Counter Strike

Couldn't have said it better!

That game against 4AM really was a strange one.

We're getting Masters Shanghai.

Man I can go on about those (sorry for the language) braindead people for probably at least 10 minutes. I mean, why are you watching the match in the first place if you can't enjoy it?

Well, it should be a city in Asia because the only regions we haven't had a Champs in are APAC and China, and it'd be strange to give it to China instead of an APAC city. Therefore, we can assume that Champs 2024 has a high chance to be in APAC.

I think part of it has to do with the fact that CS has been around for a long, long time.

No problem!

This is pretty good! Although in my opinion the biggest choke is probably Bilibili letting DRX win 17 rounds in a row. That was just painful to watch...

This is one of the better takes I've seen on the upcoming 2024 season. I'd consider myself a person with adequate amount of Chinese Valorant knowledge, so here are my thoughts on the teams coming into the season.

EDG (Edward Gaming) - Top Chinese team by quite a bit, has been facing issues regarding fatigue and tiredness recently due to playing too much. I hope they get a good rest.

FPX (Funplus Phoenix) - Looking to be a very solid team especially with the addition of Autumn. BerLin is also still a great IGL for the team.

BLG (Bilibili Gaming) - Not the top CN team we saw in Champs anymore (at least from the evolution series), they've been struggling against rising Chinese teams and further international qualifications are looking difficult for this team.

TE (Trace Esports) - Definitely a top 5 CN team. Has been able to challenge consistently for top 3 in the Evolution series, and FengF is looking to be one of if not the best CN initiator/flex.

AG (All Gamers) - They played with miKa and BeYN during the evolution series. They're going to have to figure something out with the import rule but this team is looking like a solid but slightly weaker team compared to the other teams. I'm not sure if the vlr roster is going to be the final roster.

JDG (JD Gaming) - Once again, another team that has yet to finalize their roster. I hear they signed MrCANI recently... If they keep Vici they could become a decent team although their ability to challenge for anything is debatable.

TYL (TYLOO) - Assuming their roster is final, which it probably isn't, TYLOO is looking to be a strong team that can definitely make an attempt at top 4. They seem to have chemistry issues though, and with the departure of Abo to TEC I'm left wondering how well the new IGL (idk who) will fare in the long run.

TEC (Titan Esports Club) - Another team with a large roster as of the conclusion of the Evolution series. Their players are alright I guess, probably going to finish somewhere among the lower half of the table unless they sign better players imo. Abo is good as an IGL but the rest of the team needs strengthening.

WOL (Wolves Esports) - Haven't played much at all, I haven't seen any VODs of them so I can't say much. But considering that they lost to 17G and DRG, I'm going to assume that they can make some roster changes to strengthen the team.

NOVA (Nova Esports) - Not a very strong team. I guess o0o0o is okay, from what I remember. Tbh Nova could definitely make some roster changes and sign some better players. I watched some of their matches against stronger teams and there is definitely a lot of room for improvement.

Ascension Slot (RA, ASE, NIP, or DRG) - While RA are favorites to getting this slot, I think ASE and NIP stand a good chance at making a convincing challenge. If this slot is RA, we'll be getting a very strong team in the league, with players like stew and MarT1n being especially exceptional. While RA could probably sign someone to start over Spitfires and replace yoman, I think Spitfires isn't a bad choice as he is an okay player that definitely has some skill. If this slot is ASE, we'll be getting a decently strong team in the league, with players like Life and hfmi0dzjc9z7 being some of the better players China has to offer. If this slot is NIP, we'll be getting what in my opinion is a decent team. While I do think they can work on some aspects of their gameplay, overall they are a solid team with prospecting talents such as Spring and Eren. If this slot is DRG, which I doubt it will be with their roster changes, we'll be getting an okay team in the league. While it isn't an understatement to say that vo0kashu carries the team, I think Dingwei and TvirusLuke have been fun players to watch.

Overall I think the CN league will be interesting to watch, and although we probably can't expect a Chinese team to win a LAN any time soon, it will definitely be an entertaining journey to follow the teams as they improve.

tldr: Many Chinese teams can improve roster, too early to tell anything, EDG still best CN team but they need rest.

This is pretty good.

Yeah, BLG has just been underperforming recently, idk if getting a new coach has anything to do with it, but they're most definitely not among the top 3 CN teams anymore.

I mean, they've most certainly earned it!

China:
IGL: Haodong
Duelist: Zmjjkk
Initiator: FengF or nobody
Secondary Initiator/Flex: Smoggy, Viva, or Knight (any of the three would be good)
Sentinel: Chichoo

Would be a good team

Not a bad signing. MrCANI wasn't terrible for TES.

Hello tomato!

That sounds wonderful. Enjoy your monitor!

Americas - mibr (sorry)
APAC - Talon
EMEA - Team Heretics or BBL (too early to tell)
China - Titan Esports Club or Nova (too early to tell)

Well, Wolves Esports but their org name is technically Wolverhampton Wanderers (they're a football team).

Both are great at what they do. vo0kashu is a fragging sentinel, which is not easy to come by. Kr1stal is a mechanically gifted IGL, which is also not easy to come by. They both have solid midrounding and decent macro understanding, which make both of them great players. Which one is better? It's pretty close but probably vo0kashu if I must pick one of the two.

I'm sorry I didn't fully comprehend your post, you said that they will get a win. I thought you meant that they will win something important like a trophy. That is just poor reading on my behalf, and I apologize for that. I agree with you that they will get a win this season, considering that some of their opponents in the league look rather weak as of the moment.

Hello conut! I'm doing alright, how about you?

I think that will be difficult.

No you.

Not usually, but even a cornered rat is dangerous.

Surely you jest?

Some things I can let by, while others I cannot. In this case, I decided to protect what meager quantities of dignity I have and reject the calling of "baby girl". I don't know about you but if someone called me that in person I'd be throwing more than just hands.

Honestly, yeah the combat system can be somewhat wacky at times and it's level of enjoyability is diverse depending on the person. For example, I literally avoided signs unless necessary when I played. To be honest, I haven't touched it since I finished it around half a year ago, but overall it was highly enjoyable for me (I love games with stories). Hope you enjoy it as much as I did and have a wonderful day!

For me, my top games definitely include Witcher 3, Stardew Valley, The Elder Scrolls V, Minecraft, and of course, Valorant. Deciding between those choices is difficult though, and I don't think it's even possible as of the moment.

Actually, add Worldbox and Football Manager to that list as well but I doubt they are real contender.

As he should.

While I do appreciate your act of kindness, I do not take kindly to being referred to as "baby girl", as I am very much a male human person. Regardless, Merry Christmas to you and have a wonderful, festive day!

I can't watch code geass and hunter x hunter I don't know why they just don't appeal to me.

Interesting!

Most likely 2-0 for the playoffs? That has to be RA-DRG. Although ASE are favorites to win this series against NIP, the chances of it being a 2-0 is much lower than the odds of the RA-DRG series being anything but.