Post-Phase 3 Playoffs
Where Each SPL Team Ranks Heading Into the SMITE World Championship
#1
Atlantis Leviathans
2nd seed
Previous ranking: 1
The Atlantis Leviathans will not be the first seed at the SMITE World Championship this January in Arlington, Texas. Nevertheless, the Leviathans are my #1 team heading into Worlds. Consider the following: it was the Kings who bested the Leviathans in five games in phase 3 playoffs to secure the top seed at Worlds this season. It was the Kings who took out the Leviathans, also in five games, at last year’s phase 3 playoffs (where they ultimately took second seed after losing to the Tartarus Titans). At Worlds, the Leviathans ran the table, dropping only one game (to the Kings) en-route to the first world title of the franchise era. This team has veteran leadership, it has talent, and it has pedigree. Most importantly, the Leviathans have more than a month for things to cool down before Worlds, where their poise and consistency will benefit them coming off of a long break. They will not face a potential re-match with the Kings until grand finals.
#2
Camelot Kings
1st seed
Previous ranking: 3
The Kings are the first seed at Worlds, but they have history working against them. Outside of QvoFred, Europe has not had a SMITE champion since season 3, when NRG eSports secured their second of back-to-back championships. Since then, all but one of the players to lift the hammer has come from the western hemisphere. For the Kings’ part, four of their five players are European.
While NRG’s long shadow certainly hangs over the EU region, I am not one to believe in curses. Still, there are some practical side effects of this reality. The Kings, despite being a top team since their inception, have won only a single tournament—this one—and there are question marks about how they will show up on the biggest stage. While they seem to maintain a stable identity around picks and map play, sometimes the Kings come out looking flat. And while this tournament win comes on the back of their honeymoon period with Jarcorrr, Worlds is five weeks away without a single match between now and then. The magic may have run out by then.
None of this suggests that the Kings can’t win Worlds. After what they showed the world this past weekend, it is clear that they are legitimate contenders who will be difficult to defeat on the biggest stage, past struggles be damned. I mention the honeymoon period with their new ADC, but much of this resurgence is owed to CaptainTwig, who just three short weeks ago looked like one of if not the worst jungler in all of the SPL. He came alive this tournament, and it should be clear to anyone how much he wants this. Twig has been open about how much it would mean to win Worlds in front of fans; I wouldn’t want to get in his way.
#3
Jade Dragons
3rd seed
Previous ranking: 2
If not for the performance of another team whom we will discuss further down, the Jade Dragons would have been the most disappointing team at the playoff tournament. The Dragons were supposed to be winning this tournament. Instead, they were beat handily by the Kings, and won hard-fought sets against the Warriors and Bolts to secure the third seed. Granted, three players on their team were sick and out of studio, which no doubt affected their energy this weekend. That being said, the Dragons no longer feel firmly on the level of the Kings and Leviathans after this weekend. Pegon, impressive as his season has been, has shown some of his inexperience during this tournament (especially against Venenu and LASBRA early in their set against the Bolts), and Screammmmm was not able to consistently find strong initiations all tournament long—at least not to the degree that we saw in the regular season.
The Dragons have to win Worlds. It’s unfair, because no other team necessarily has that weight on them in the same way. But there is no way around it. The three-man core of this team has been together since season 6. They have been to two Worlds Finals and lost them both. They retooled some after a disappointing finish in season 8, and found themselves in first place again after besting the Kings at Summer Masters. There is no other finish that feels appropriate for this team. They have to hoist the hammer. They have to win. Nothing else will satisfy.
#4
Olympus Bolts
4th seed
Previous ranking: 6
There are two ways to look at this Bolts team’s performance. On one hand, it was stellar. They defeated the Titans—a team who they struggled to beat during phase 3—to make their way to Worlds. The Bolts overplayed their expectations at a tournament for the first time since their inception, but this team still feels behind where they were at the conclusion of phase three. In that lens, the Bolts’ improvements feel too little too late. This team has been together for a long while, and at some point it makes little sense to stay together. Maybe with a top-4 finish this season, the team comes back mostly intact next year. But if they have to change solo laners—which they may, as Baskin’s plans remain uncertain—this feels too much like starting at square one again. I can’t see the Bolts taking it all the way to the top this season. Not with only five weeks left to catch the Kings and company. I hope they can prove me wrong. Wouldn’t that be something?
#5
Tartarus Titans
Unqualified
Previous ranking: 4
The fullness of the regular season is in the books for the Titans. All that remains now is a qualifier—one which they are sure to get through—and Worlds. It was as strange a season as they come. From first place in Spring to fourth place in Summer and now fifth place in Fall, this team has had to endure unfortunate circumstances for all of phase 3. First, their jungler leaves to play from home. Then their ADC is replaced to help the team environment. After adding a coach and improving down the stretch, the Titans’ jungler was suspended just days prior to playoffs for refusing to travel. That left the Titans to scramble to replace him, opting for Cyno, a former Worlds MVP who had teamed in the past with most of the Titans’ roster. It is a sad way for season 9 to go for last season’s winning-est team. All told, they performed admirably. They got passed the Warriors, but were unable to triumph over the Bolts for a spot at Worlds. Will they have enough time to get back into Worlds shape? Maybe. Their roster is full of names that have performed on that stage—albeit in a limited capacity for Stuart and SoloOrTr
#6
Oni Warriors
Unqualified
Previous ranking: 5
Blow it up. This team is not winning Worlds. The three-man core has been together since season 7—Nika and Dardez since season 6. With disappointing tournament after disappointing tournament, enough should be enough when they ultimately fail to win it all. They have top-3 players in three roles (Dardez, Nika, and Vote, the latter of whom is arguably the best ADC on the planet right now), and the other two are no slouches. This team should not be losing, but it’s all they can seem to manage. This was their most disappointing playoffs performance by far. After showing flashes of brilliance in phase 3, they should have at least been able to make it past a Titans team playing with a brand new player. They still have one more shot at redemption, but I’m not holding my breath. On the bright side, their players should dramatically shake up the season 10 rosterpocalypse.
#7
Solar Scarabs
Unqualified
Previous ranking: 7
The Scarabs were likely watching playoffs with a taste for blood as they saw the Warriors fail to defeat the Titans and Dragons—two teams who themselves struggled this weekend. The Warriors are vulnerable now, and will be in the Scarabs’ group in the SWC qualifiers. Things could get interesting as the Scarabs look not only to make it to Worlds, but also towards securing what could be a 5th or 6th seed as well. Can the Scarabs win a rematch of their week 7 match with the Warriors? Time will tell, but it is one of the more intriguing matches to come in the play-in tournament.
#8
Valhalla Valkyries
Unqualified
Previous ranking: 8
Who knows what to make of this team? The only thing left to do is wait for January and see how they turn up. We know they are talented. We know they are hungry. Will it be enough? The Eldritch Hounds are likely to be in their group and could pose potential problems for this Valkyries squad.
