Update: Now with lineups! (Medic | Soldiers| Demo| Scouts)
Update: For more in depth on the top 4, head to Jimmy Breeze’s writeup on cadred.
i39 is approaching fast. It’s about time we take a look at what exactly will be going on at Newbury this coming weekend.
The Event
i39 will be taking place in Newbury, England this weekend, from the 2nd to the 5th of April. It it playing host to 1500 gamers, it features competitions in games such as CS:S, CoD4 and, of course, TF2. For many gamers, including myself, a LAN is the height of the gaming season. You get to meet the people you’ve been playing with for so long, you play some games, you hang out a bit. Above all, you’re having a great time. And with the i-series being the biggest one around, you can say it is the proverbial “it” of the gaming world.
Take a look at the details:
Date: 2 to 5 April
Location: Newbury, England
1500 gamers (120 to TF2)
~20 TF2 teams
Prize fund: 1st: £800, 2nd: £400, 3rd: £200, 4th: £100
Now ain’t that grand? Let’s take a closer look.
The Teams
Let’s look a little closer to the teams attending. Who’s who, and how will they fare the coming event?
The top
Of course there are plenty of teams playing in the tournament, but these will have the biggest chance to win it. They have the most experience, both on- and off-line. It will be a big surprise if either of these teams does not make it to the top 3 of the tournament.
Widely regarded as the best TF2 team in Europe. They’ve won everything there is to win, including every LAN they attended. They are once again the team to beat. At the last TF2 LAN, Winter Assembly, they dominated across the board, and managed to entertain the audience with their vlogs. After that their results were mixed. For the first time in ages they started losing matches again, allegedly due to inactivity. However they recently won another tournament, so it seems they’re getting back in shape. With their soldier appe back from the hospital they should be as strong as ever.
Agron | Appe, Darn | Ryb | Bybben, Rebeli
The Finns of Power Gaming have had a rapid rise to the top last ETF2L season, where they ended second, which nobody would have predicted beforehand. They also managed to secure a second place at Winter Assembly, showing they’re not just a fluke. After that, they’ve been performing pretty stable, always reaching the finals or semi-finals of cups, and doing generally okay in leagues. A month ago, i would rank them on par with TCM, but they’ve fallen a bit behind recently. Nevertheless, they are destined to end high here.
Paavi | Olli, Hocz | Hymzi | Fluffy, Vallone
The Outsiders
This next couple of teams is a tad below the top, but they are still pretty good teams. Don’t rule them out just yet.
- FakkelBrigade
These friendly guys are loved by everyone for all the services they provide. You’d almost forget they play some pretty high-level TF2. People were sceptical when they were promoted to the highest division, but they’ve proven their worth over the seasons. While operating a step below the powerhouses of TCM and Dignitas, they’re able to win a map from those teams now and then. They have the potential to surprise. And if not, they have the potential to have a good time anyway.
Admirable | Exfane, DrLeon | Looper| Fisshu, Arie
An assorted mix team, made of the very top of TF2. Each of this team’s players plays or has played at the very top, which makes them a force to reckon with. For the most part, these are players of the team named What Women Want, Teddybears, or whatever suits them for the day. Either way, WWW have recently stormed the top end of the scene, playing close matches against teams as TCM and Dignitas. They’re not here with their normal lineup, but it comes close enough for them to do really well.
Dunc | Evil, Jones | Weqo | Predz, Perry
- ** Empathy
A known face to the i-series, having competed before. Empathy are sure not to win it, but they stand out enough above the rest to get a mention.
Akill | Memento Mori, Walker | Kaidus | Blind, Gibbz
- Some Team I’ve no idea what name this team will be using for this event. As you would have guessed it is a mix team. Heading it up is the flamboyant nvc. The rest of his team is a list of div 2-ish players, which earns them a place in this list.
Easy| Anderson, Marlow | Sfnx ( Ben) | Nvc, Dave
The Rest
These are the teams that just play because they like TF2. They are no real contenders for the prize money
Box? 1 and 2 : The gigantic box community will once again field 2 teams
CantFitMyN : Known for their questionable performance of losing absolutely everything in 4 seasons of ETF2L. The fact that they’re still here shows winning doesn’t mean everything. Loved by the community though.
Clan Crazy : Around the same idea as CantFitMyN.
MM: See above. And they have squeak.
Nervous energy : More of the above, another community team.
Gentlemen : Numlocked and friends. Known to have a hair-fetish.
Fragmasters : Mix team. Some names will ring a bell, but that’s about it.
NGC : I’ve no idea who they are, but apparently they play TF2, so they must be cool guys!
And more
I’m sure there will be more teams attending the tournament. Some might not have entered their teams into the competition yet, and we might see some CSS teams that have been knocked out in the group stages of their tournament. I think we’re looking at a good 20 teams, which is a good number and a definite improvement over the last i-series.
Predictions
/ Team Dignitas
Power Gaming
What Women Want
FakkelBrigade
Empathy
Some Team
Gentlemen
Fragmasters
thru 20. the rest
Coverage
Those attending the event get to see their idols in the flesh and stand behind them when they’re playing their games. The less fortunate have no need to worry though. You can see a piece of the action as well. Here’s a convenient list:
Cadred will have staff on-site. They have brought in none other than the well known TF2-writer JimmyBreeze. He will keep us up to date with results, interviews and more. Keep an eye on their website for status updates, in particular on the i39 TF2 channel and the match ticker in the right sidebar
Level Up TV will have a webcam live at the event, so you can spy on what the players are doing.
VanillaTF2 will hopefully bring you some news on the event as well. No promises though :D
Streams/Casts: I’ve no idea whether there will be any streams or casts for TF2. If so, you’ll be the first to know.
SourceTV: Undoubtedly, Multiplay will provide SourceTV for this event to entertain you. The best way to get to know the details would probably be to keep an eye on the Cadred match ticker.
That’s all folks, i hope you’ll have fun upcoming weekend, whether you’re coming to Newbury or not. If you are, do come say hello.
Originally published on VanillaTV (vanillatf2.org) on 2010-03-30 by deneusbeer.
Recovered from the Internet Archive (archived copy) as part of tf2esports.com's preservation of VanillaTV's TF2 coverage. The original site is no longer online. All rights remain with the original author; reposted for historical reference.