Kerrigann’s Corner

Happy Monday to my BOL Masters players! After getting monstro-diffed in playoffs, I am retired and here to do light looks at rosters (BULLY RELEASE DOC FASTER) and predict this week’s matches. There won’t be numbered rankings this week, moreso grouped based on how likely they are to win it all(starting from least to most likely). If I forget strength-of-group bias, whatever. I don’t like to say a team is only good because they are in a weak group. Keep in mind there are some people I just do not know and if that is the case, then don't feel too bad.

Against All Odds

MESPA Master A -

This is a mixture of unknown factor and just current ranks. I’ve only heard of

ADC a little, but other than that the op.ggs do not look appealing. Good news is you guys might

all might be elositters of doom and it will not take much to move up.

Players to Watch : ADC

Glacial Esports Black -

I don’t have much to say about this team, at least their op.gg looks

slightly better than MESPA. Their highest ranks are their mid jungle which can make for

explosive early games, but their top looks like they are not as bad as their op makes them look.

Players to Watch:Mid/Jungle

Gravity Nebula -

Based on recent scrim you had vs one of my teams and AML results(you guys

beat LZB though!), there are not many expectations for you guys going into this one. You guys

were in the Ionia Group to be fair, but there is not much cope factor compared to MESPA since

we kinda have seen this team in action. This team seems to play around their top side with

Krasia holding it down with safe ADCs, Eddie on whatever will help him 1v9, and the rest of the

team enabling this cause. At least there is a clear formula in how they play, and with how weak

top in 600 cap is, I wouldn’t be surprised if they make some waves by taking off games against

disrespectful top teams.

Players to Watch:Jg/Top

Fringe Playoff Contenders

Ember Phoenix -

Ember Esports are back with two rosters, and to hopefully change the

narrative after a disappointing split in AML. Yet another almost full diamond roster, I at least

know half of these players. Carpal, an unusually vocal ADC, seems to spearhead this team on

paper and IMO in my practice. His support will be Desire, a former jungler so it will be interesting to see how this bot lane pans out. If the support role swap law is in place, we can expect at least a high masters support. Support is just a jungler that doesn’t have to farm! LostinEkkos is a long time Ember player, who frankly I don’t trust to hold up to the other mids as much but with midlane in passenger meta, it's not hard to reinvent yourself and successfully be a team player. Not much is known about Jungle and Top, but jungles champ pool at least is based on patch notes so you can expect him to be on useful picks. They always have their subs to bail them out in case the season is going horrible…

Players to Watch:ADC/Support

Galaxy Gaming Vortex -

For starters, you guys pass the op.gg test compared to most teams in

your tier or below. Alex hasn’t been in a lot of big leagues outside of Risen, but he is not a

newbie by any means(he almost took my spot on Gamma when I was trying out!) YattoBoku is

one of the players on the disappointing Ember Wolves roster in Winter 2025 AML, while also

being one of the weaker points. Compared to other teams, I can’t see a clear formula on

winning games(mid is NOT a carry role), so I can’t place you guys with too much faith.

Players to Watch:Evil Kerrigann(Mid)

MESPA White -

Another MES roster, though not the one that won Titan this previous split, is

coming to see if success can be replicated with the protect-the-president playstyle. Their jg

plays the most disgusting champions that you will want to ban not because you think he is

amazing at the game, but because he mains Zac Ivern and Skarner(I had to wash my hands

again after typing that out). French Caps hasn’t been the strongest player(or even like an above

average player as of late), but if he can learn his role in his team and play for bot, things can

happen. Their top laner, while I don’t know them, gives me weakside warrior vibes with

Renekton Ornn Cho’Gath games on record. All eyes are on Night to carry this team.

Players to Watch:ADC

USAE Black -

Go Army! Now while the US Army don’t have the greatest showings in amateur

comp, I can see a clear formula for how they win games. Their highest elos are their bot laner,

who have really impressive stats, their mid and jungle play picks such as Ahri/Aurora/Malz and

Lee/Ivern/Jarvan/Xin respectively, and their top hopefully doesn’t lose too hard for bot to carry.

I’m hoping the USAE can change the narrative, but expectations will have to be tempered.

Players to Watch:ADC/Support

Playoffs Contenders

Hextech Hackers - 

This team had a pretty strong showing in AML but unfortunately did not

make it into playoffs in a weaker Ascension Conference. Their bot lane look to be the highlight

of their team, with an even stronger Jungler than the other play for bot teams we have been

seeing. Their mid looks to be their weakest point, but Qastech wasn’t too heavy to be carried, so I can’t knock them too hard here.

Players to Watch:JG/ADC/Support

Gang 7 Mirage -

While I am surprised to see SteelCityWarrior not playing Mid or Jungle, I can

trust him to be a force while teaming up with Alune in the ADC role. This team has two clear

strong carries, which allows for flexibility in how they can target weak points in the draft. Their

jungle does not seem to be a selfish player, so it is on their mid to get with the times and

become a second jungler for the dual carries.

Players to Watch:Top/ADC

Lane Zero Hurricane -

Longtime Lane Zero players Bondy Arthur and Griffin team up with the

Jungle and Support of the frankly disappointing Blizzard roster to make Hurricane. While Archer

and Eclipse were verifiably the weaker points of Blizzard(ON PAPER), I can’t realistically call

Hazem, Neversaw and Verticality the paragon of consistency. The Maelstrom players are

veterans in this scene, with Griffin and Bondy being names that people have glazed in the past,

and Arthur always having threatening picks such as Gangplank and Urgot that can run over

games if given the chance. While I don’t see any glaring X-factors, I see a team of seasoned

players. Time will tell if they can break the ceiling of their past showings.

Players to Watch:JG/Support

Playoff Shoe-Ins

Ember Wolves -

While this team disappointed in AML, a lot has changed so we cannot really

compare this team to the last. Paradox seems to be the only one who stayed(with Nostalgia

being a sub, albeit on both Ember rosters), and AML winner Lil fizzy is back to show he still has

it. Paradox was one of the better players on the Winter 2025 AML roster, and while much is not

known about them, I can expect them to steamroll a weaker Mount Targon group.

Team Dizzy - Dizzy’s Phantom 5 shedded the name to just be Team Dizzy? Not sure what

happened there, but this team is pulling a good player goes offrole with Holy Carrot in the jungle and Alaskan Kodiak in the midlane. They did have the best jungle in AML who was an offroled midlaner, so maybe they just have an eye for talent. Kodiak isn’t the most mechanical player so it will take some time to see if he will get used to the new champions he has to play(unless he pulls a Loanrie and just plays tanks mid). Carrot is a household name in the 600 scene and seeing as mids are the best players, I have faith he will adjust somewhat smooth.

Role-swappers aside, I do not know much about RyanPaix, but he did father Kodiak so he has a

resume at least! The arguably best AML botlane of Setter and Freaktor are back, and if it

weren’t for Verticality/Scooter making their return, I would say this would be an easy decision to call them that. Setter, known for his wide pool and ability to bring out somewhat obsolete picks such as Samira or Nilah has always been a treat to watch. He is paired with Freaktor, who faced questions as if he could live up to the reputation of Scooter, and this past AML split he has clearly shown he can. Role-swappers aside, I do not know much about RyanPaix, but he did

father Kodiak so he has a resume at least!

Players to Watch:Top/Mid

Lane Zero Dorado Rejects -

This team will be one of the most fun teams to watch and I

encourage that they be streamed as much as possible(hopefully by their own players too for

comms). The AML all-star duo of Verticality and Scooter are back, and with a lot of other teams

having a strongside bot, you can trust they have a clear formula to be a force in the league.

Hazem from Lane Zero Blizzard is in the Top Lane, a long-time Dorado Member who can be a

force when he is on his A-game. One of the captains of the Gamma roster, he led his team to a

Risen chip, a Blue Otter finals appearance, and semifinals appearances in Titan and AML. A

previous 2nd team all AML and Titan, he unfortunately struggled to find his footing without the

guidance of Kerrigann and Pr- oh he is also on the team. Prao returns to 600 after one impressive split in the Summer of 2024, taking down giants such as Loanrie and Evil Lobster in

AML and Titan respectively. A hyper aggressive jungler, he has a case for being the best jungler

in this league. Now we approach the biggest question mark on the team; Mid Lane Noah. After

the Akuma Incident, he was benched from the DDG main roster(we will get into that later), and

now he is picking up midlane. After a scrim with them, he is definitely rough around the edges

but his gameplay philosophy and ability to be vocal may benefit him more in the mid lane. Being on a team with some of these players, I know that they have the propensity to be VERY

emotional, for better or for worse. Internally, eyes will be on Scooter to make sure his kids do not get out of hand. However you guys want to discredit this roster, it is just disingenuous to think they would struggle to reach playoffs, even in the Shurima group.

Players to Watch:Mid/Jg/Top

Drop Dead Gaming -

Lesser has already sent me a preemptive death threat if I didn’t put DDG

first, but that's why there are no numbers! After benching Noah, DDG fumbled around with

Aellectris Mid(which didn’t pan out), and have settled on bringing back formerly discharged DDG

player Neversaw, with the best player in the world Troy moving to the topside to abuse that

mickey mouse role. It will be interesting to see how this pans out, with Troy favoring the lane

dominant picks and Neversaw not being the most proactive of midlaners in terms of map

movement. More pressure will be on Evil Lobster and BrannyFan, who continue to be staples in

this org, since there are two top tier mechanical threats that the former will focus on and the

latter will be weaksided for. With JordanBot having greater aspirations, they have settled on

MrKiwiism in the support role. While not as explosive as JordanBot, he has a wider pool which

can open up new avenues for play for a team that has a successful, while predictable style.

Players to Watch:JG/Mid

Akuma Moowy’s Frosted Donuts - CHEEKS! CHEEKS EVERYWHERE! Loanrie teams are

known for being that ragtag group of players that always seem to work, with even more

experimentation in Blue Otter. This team might have broken the scale with SlappyJoe/Andy role

swapping to ADC to join AML Champion and All-Star Failz. After a disappointing finals in Risen

Mythical, Ritty is back in Blue Otter, this time not as a bench chip collector! A carry jungler in his

own right, he will have no trouble slotting into the formula that made Akuma’s AML team so

successful with Loanrie being a second jungler and taking unusual amounts of pressure in the

draft phase. The team is rounded out with Tonzo, a long time Akuma name, who has some

shoes to fill, but the team has faith in him. Much like LZDR, we can expect content from this

team while also trusting in the name value that will make them playoff contenders.

Players to Watch:ADC/Support

Mint Superior -

Vertigo is back with the Mint Superior roster that fell to champions MES 3-1.

Vertigo is easily one of the best junglers in 600, having his praises sung by many

people(including me), and while he has never been on a super team so to speak, he has an

uncanny ability to rally weaker/unknown players to heights that most would say they have no

business touching. Akira Hou was one of the top laners I thought was pretty good from what I

have seen of him, and Fortnite has had a really good rookie showing, locking up MVP of the

Winter 2025 Immortal Split. Albeit a weaker performance from mid in general this split, with

names such as myself, Troy(my father), Neversaw, ZMT, Magz(I can keep going), he showed

that he can be a force to be reckoned with. In the bot lane is Bubbster, who isn’t a top tier ADC,

but he has shown he is not someone to be slept with. Losing ChillWillKills, a verifiable elositter

in the support role, is unfortunate, but Anti Oedipus hopefully will fill or break out of the void that he left.

Players to Watch:JG/Mid

Yes, there is no Championship Contender tier. This was on purpose. Even the strongest teams

have big question marks, whether its role swap, or just the players that used to be on the roster. Regardless, it will be fun to watch this split of BOL(I NEED A BENCH CHIP BTW), so be sure to tune in at 8 EST on Mondays, yes even today, to watch it all unfold! African Mid out o7

Predictions

LZDR 2-1 Akuma

Mint 2-0 Ember Phoenix

DDG 2-0 GGV

HXH 2-1 MESPAW

Team Dizzy 2-1 Ember Wolves

USAE 2-0 GVN

G7M 2-1 LZH

GEB 2-1 MESPAM