Panel: DT | MaxKiNG, Shop, PRD | Jai2go and PRD | Wingy
Graphic: PRD | Jai2go
It’s that time again, after an amazing season that saw new players, tournament highs and a wide variety of tournament winners as well as dominant forces in the scene. We are here to announce the Season 9 Smash Ultimate Power Rankings! Congratulations to all those who placed this season.
1. Ja-Nox
Once again Ja-Nox reigns supreme in the Launceston Smash Scene this season, taking out first place at every tournament he attended and only dropping 2 sets over the course of those 9 tournaments. The stats alone give Ja-Nox the Intimidate ability along with his main, Incineroar. We look forward to another season of Ja-Nox challenging the top level of our scene to be the best it can be!
2. PRD | Gerald
While he has not been attending to play a majority of the season, Gerald remains a major player within Launceston Smash. Bringing out a variety of his Sephiroth, Chrom and even Little Mac this season has secured Gerald 3 tournament wins (half of his total tournaments) and the best looking Head to Head matchups outside of Ja-Nox. Gerald has even taken one of the sets from the #1 player mentioned above. Rumour has it that Gerald may be looking to return to competition a bit more seriously in the coming season which we are all excited to see!
3. Shop
Despite a rather mediocre standing last season, considering his historical placements on the Launceston Power Rankings, Shop has bounced back in a huge way this season. Also securing 3 tournament wins (the same as Gerald), his matchup spread is the only reason he falls short of the 2nd place spot. However, falling short into 3rd on the PR is no small feat and Shop has proved he is a dominant force who is not to be ignored or forgotten!
4. DT | Trucks
This has been a rather quiet season for our previous #2 as Trucks has had focuses outside of competing this season. A small break from University has seen him return with some classic Trucks character diversity as it seems it’s his aim to play as many different tournament characters as possible! So despite his minimal attendance, Trucks still maintains a top 4 position and will be looking to change that up in the next season! (Also Trucks is currently 2-0 in Smashketball tournaments which has no effect on the PR but is notable!)
5. PRD | Wingy
Wingy has moved up into the 5th place spot this season, breaking through to the top 5 in what is a major achievement for her! Wingy has a great matchup spread, taking a set-off of every player except Ja-Nox and being positive in sets against the #2 ranked Gerald. Wingy has proved she has what it takes to consistently place highly and the patience and adaptability in her gameplay are a joy to watch. We look forward to seeing how she improves coming into the next season!
6. PRD | Jai2go
The owner of the rebranded Team Pride, Jai2go may have changed his colours but his main has stayed true this season. Jai2go’s Fox has taken leaps and bounds in terms of improvement over the last few months and has become a bracket terror. Backed up by a strong Lucina for the bad matchups it feels like Jai2go can only go up from here. His placement on the PR outside of the top 5 isn’t indicative of his player strength as he can take it to any of the players ranked above him! We look forward to Jai2go settling into a groove in the coming season and making his presence felt!
7. PRD | Mr. President
Mr President has had a bit of an up and down season with placements as high as 2nd and 3rd while also falling to some upsets. That being said, he is still very much not to be underestimated as sometimes the dice just roll his way and RNGesus blesses him with free stocks we know he doesn’t need to succeed. Mr President remains the gatekeeper for the upper echelon of the Launceston Smash Scene for another season.
8. Player
Debuting last season and making it to the Honorable Mentions, Player makes a breakout to the 8th place this season! His galaxy brain implementation of King Dedede’s down special Jet Hammer has cemented his spot as a Player to watch this season. Some good consistent placings and upset set victories have been nothing but a boon for Player this season and we look forward to seeing his growth to come!
9. Sadlife
Moving up slightly this season, Sadlife makes a return to the PR. Bringing out surprise Shulk and Captain Falcon picks this season to go along with his tried and true Ike, Sadlife has shown great skill while experimenting and continuing to learn more about the game. He also has a notably tied matchup against Wingy which tells you that he has what it takes to compete with some of the best Launceston has to offer.
10. PRD | LargeMarge
This season has been a bit of changing and mixing up some different styles of play from LargeMarge. They have used Zero Suit Samus for a majority of the season and have proved to be quite deadly with her. They have also made the swap back to Cloud for intense matchups and shown that they have what it takes to hang with the best, being one of the only players to take Ja-Nox to game 5 in a set, which even though they didn’t pull out the victory is still an incredible achievement. LargeMarge retains a place on the PR this season however and we look forward to how they will play in the coming one!
What an amazing lineup of local talent, below are some players who have just missed a spot in the top 10, here are this season’s honourable mentions…
DT | MaxKiNG
Our resident TO returns to the honourable mentions this season. Taking some sets off of a few PR players and being positive on one has shown that his Snake play is not to be slept on.
Streetsy
This season has been a wild ride for Streetsy! Taking some notable sets off of PR players this season and with style as well! Showcasing what he can really do with Lucas in his hands. Streetsy continues to provide entertaining sets for viewers on the live streams, so please tune in in case you get to see it!
Gandlaf
Finally, to round out our honourable mentions, Gandlaf makes a return! A few nice set wins over PR players and some decent placings continue to prove that Gandlaf is not to be slept on and Will take your stocks!