Articles

Published on February 4th, 2015 | by Wyrms Eye

19

VGC 2015 European Winter Regional Preview

With a new year brings a brand new ruleset, brand new surprises, and brand new experiences for the duration of the season. Which player will have the accolade of winning the first Regional Championship of the VGC 2015 format? What Pokémon will be popular among the players? Will the first event of the season, held in Europe, have any discernible impact on the American Winter Regionals? And can anyone really replace Scott’s preview articles by shamelessly using his format? The answers are likely to be both fascinating and intriguing heading into this weekend!

Prizes

Since this is currently the only Regional event scheduled for Europe, a lot of Championship Points are on the line, which will be helpful to qualify for the World Championships held this year in Boston. Prizes include trading cards and copies of Omega Ruby or Alpha Sapphire thrown in for good measure (subject to confirmation)!

1st place

• ECC 2015 Champion Trophy
• 36 boosters of XY Primal Clash
• A copy of Pokémon Omega Ruby or Alpha Sapphire
• 120 Championship Points

2nd place

• ECC 2015 Finalist Trophy
• 36 boosters of XY Primal Clash
• A copy of Pokémon Omega Ruby or Alpha Sapphire
• 100 Championship Points

3rd & 4th place

• ECC 2015 Semi-finalist Trophy
• 18 boosters of XY Primal Clash
• 80 Championship Points

5th-8th place

• 9 boosters of XY Primal Clash
• 60 Championship Points

9th-16th place

• 40 Championship Points

17th-32nd place

• 30 Championship Points [Kicker 64]

33th-64th place

• 20 Championship Points [Kicker 128]

65th-128th place

• 10 Championship Points [Kicker 256]

2015 Winter Regionals Predictions

There is only one European Regional this week, but because this is the first one with the new VGC 2015 format, it will be interesting to watch the madness unfold.

As ever, a disclaimer on these articles: Regionals are, without question, the most accessible events to players of all abilities. Often enough, Regionals are typically the first level where players become established presences. There will almost certainly be individuals who make the Top Cut who have never before achieved such success. This is not a bad thing; it merely showcases the growing player base. If people do not expect the unexpected, life would be a very boring ordeal, indeed!

Netherlands Regional

Difficulty Rating

/ 5

(Four Pokémon that make a strong core)/5

Location: Sporthal Valkenhuizen, Beukenlaan 15, 6823 MA Arnhem, the Netherlands.

Registration time: 8:00-10:00

The Scoop

As has been stated a couple of times throughout this article, this is the first Regional of the season, and more importantly, the first for Europe, making it much more of an open book in terms of who will attend. It is a welcome step to see Europe get a Winter Regional, and hopefully we will see the European events expand further in the future, perhaps in tandem to the American circuit. Of course, Europe does have multiple National events unlike across the Atlantic, which skews the points distribution somewhat. However, the Championship Points earned here could be the difference between a Day 1 or Day 2 qualification for Boston for a few key individuals, and most definitely may prove vital for some in securing their right to attend the World Championships.

At the time of writing, we are expecting around 100 players to attend for Masters, which is a healthy amount nonetheless. This field is littered with big names and new names, so it’s expected that the competition will be very stiff. The smaller field means that pretty much every player will be looking to avoid big names early during the swiss stage. It is very likely that there will be some interesting matches as early as round 3 of swiss that may prove crucial to the overall composition of the Top Cut on Sunday. In a small and very concentrated field, a little bit of good fortune can go a long way.

Previous World Championship Attendees

It should be no surprise to see me start off by commenting on those players who have reached the pinnacle of the game: the World Championships. I think what will make this Regional a far more compelling contest is the sheer number of confirmed players on the list who have competed in the most prestigious Pokémon event. There no fewer than 13 confirmed names on the list, as well as at least two players who have been invited to play at Worlds but did not attend.

Without question some of the biggest names will come from Germany. Florian Wurdack (DaFlo) is the first of seven German competitors who have participated at the invite-only event, and notably is 2^nd in Europe for CP after a strong string of Premier Challenge results. He will almost certainly overtake the current leader, 2013 World Champion Arash Ommati (who is not attending) if he gains any Championship Points this weekend. It’s also likely Florian will lead the standings and go some way to securing his invite for this year with a Top 8 finish. Baris Ackos (Billa) also sits comfortably inside the qualifying threshold at 10^th in CP for Europe. Baris is a definite community favourite and a consistent tournament player with multiple Top 32 placings across a number of National and World appearances in 2013 and 2014. Other Germans who sit within the Top 60 for European Championship Points include Timo Koppetsch (37TimoK1) and Marcel Kapelle (Massi). It is fair to say neither should be discounted with their experience. Timo qualified for Worlds last summer, and Massi has consistently attempted to grind into Worlds through the LCQ, although the last time he actually played in Worlds 2009. Christoph Kugler (drug duck) is another big name that has to be mentioned among this extensive list of players: a two-time Worlds competitor from 2009 and 2013, he is certainly capable of pulling out big results. Our final two players to note are Matthias Suchodolski (Lega) and Eloy Hahn (Dragoran5). Both are expected to be in attendance, and come off the back of a strong VGC 2014 season. Matthias also made consecutive Worlds appearances in 2013 and 2014, and certainly looks to be well on his way to continuing that streak, sitting 9^th in Europe so far. It would be quite a shock if none of these seven make it to the Top Cut.

The United Kingdom and Ireland also field a healthy number of previous Worlds representatives in Barry Anderson (Baz Anderson), Ben Kyriakou (Kyriakou), Christopher Arthur (Koryo), Kelly Mercier-White (KellsterCartier), Lee Provost (Osirus) and Steve Edgson (SirSmoke). Barry’s run to 9^th at the 2013 World Championships in Vancouver is a real testament to his skill, although he suffered a generally lackluster 2014  season with only one Top 32 cut in Manchester. However, his Nugget Bridge Invitational win could possibly be the confidence boost he needs coming into this year. Ben’s exceptional tournament record speaks for itself: three World Championship appearances and a double UK National Champion to boot. We can expect a similarly strong performance in Arnhem, and he will be a firm favourite to reach the final stages this weekend. Christopher also has made multiple Worlds appearances, and indeed has an impressive record in events over the last two years: three Top Cuts including the final in Milan 2014. Kelly’s strong UK National showing in 2014 was the springboard to his ticket to Worlds. Despite the underwhelming result in Washington, he is still one of the top players in Europe and will be keen to prove his battling credentials. His current rank of 51^st for CP in Europe means he currently runs close to the qualifying threshold, but any points earned here will pretty much provide him with a greater cushion to work with. Lee is another hot favourite based on his 7^th Place in Washington last year. His impressive run at Worlds was backed up with solid performances in Nationals last year, including a Top Cut in Manchester along the way. Lee, currently in 73rd, will also be keen to boost his CP count to vault him up the rankings. Fianlly, Steve boasts Top Cuts in Bochum and Manchester from last year, which were enough to earn his ticket to Washington last summer. It would be fair to say Steve is probably the player I know the least about of the group, but I have no doubt I will rectify this blatant oversight of my inadequate mind by the end of the weekend, although I’m told on good authority he is better looking than Kyriakou.

Other Notable Attendees

Outside of previous Worlds competitors, the field boasts an impressive array of strong candidates who will all be looking to do well. As should be expected, there is a large Dutch contingent taking part with a few key names among them. Andres Escobosa (000aj) is a name to watch out for with an impressive string of Premier Challenge wins under his belt. As such he currently sits 3rd in Europe for CP, and in the same fashion as Florian, could very well take the outright lead with a strong result. Huib Bruijssen (Lolnub) will certainly be looking to return to the Top Cut after his last notable result as a Top 16 finalist at UK Nationals in 2013. His successes at various Premier Challenges has earned him 13^th in Europe with 150 CP. Another Dutch player that has widely slipped under the radar in my view is Ciskejan Giannakos (sagaciousslowpoke). His Top Cut performance at Bochum in 2014 also puts him in good company with many of the names in this article, since he was the only Dutch player invited to play at Worlds last year, although he did not attend. Bjorn Vissers (Eiganjo) finally rounds out the major Dutch names. It would be good to see Bjorn have a solid run; the amount of videos he records for Nugget Bridge should at least expose him to a extensive variety of team ideas!

The UK contingent will also be fleshed out with a few more faces who have made it to the Top Cut. Jake Birch (WhiteAfroKing92) made the Top Cut at Bochum last year. His brother Joe (Professor Birch) will also be making the trip, as is Tyler Bakhtiari (Pokeguru01), who reached the Top 16 in Manchester last year. Other Manchester Top Cut competitors include William Tansley (StarKO) and Sam Bentham (SuperIntegration), who are both becoming solid names in the European circuit, and should be expected to ruffle some feathers among the established core. Both though are in need of the CP to really place themselves more prominently on the rankings; William currently lies just inside the top 60, while Sam sits down in 126th.

One country who we have yet to seriously touch upon is Italy. While the major players of the Italian VGC scene (including Arash, Matteo, and Alberto Gini) are not going to be in attendance, there are still going to be a healthy group of Italian players who will be making the trip. Luigi Orsi (ZPhoenix) is the likely front-runner to bring Italian glory. He made the Milan Top Cut in 2014, but his string of Premier Challenge results are far more impressive; he is currently 7^th in CP for Europe, having long held 2^nd place earlier this season. Lorenzo Galassi (Greyfox) is worth mentioning after doing well at German Nationals, including a Top Cut in 2013 although bubbling out in 2014. Lorenzo was also been invited to attend the World Championships in 2013, but decided not to attend. If Lorenzo imagines he’s in Germany (Arnhem is only a short distance from the German border), we might see a solid result come out once more. The last Italian I want to highlight is Andrea Sala (Yaya). Andrea has been a fixture in VGC since 2011, but broke through to claim his first Top Cut result in Milan last year. Currently 19^th in Europe for CP, he will also be looking to increase his points tally to set him up for the National leg of the season.

From the German perspective, Peer Broxtermann (Bjart) is expected to attend and will be likely to feature in some form amongst the established players. I could cover many more names here that I know are attending from Germany, but I would be here discussing them until after the event concludes. It would be like playing a ‘Where’s Wally?’ puzzle except everyone in the image is Wally.

Outside of Masters

While information is much more difficult to come across with respect to the Senior and Junior divisions, we do often have a few players that are worth highlighting.

Last years Worlds Finalist Mark McQuillan (woopahking) will certainly be the player to beat for all competing in the Senior division. His recent undefeated swiss run at a Premier Challenge mixed in with players from the Masters Division shows that he will be a strong competitor.

The Crystal Ball predicts…: I’m going to play it relatively safe and go with Florian (DaFlo). It would be hard to argue against a German player winning this event, and his impressive start to the season suggests he is in the best shape to capitalize on some notable absentees in the field. I am sure though many of his compatriots also have their eyes on the CP, so expect fireworks to come Sunday afternoon.

Fancy a flutter? This section is where I’m going to put my neck out on the line and select an outside pick who I expect to really do well. In this case, I’m going to go for William Tansley. Despite not having the most glittering of starts to the season in terms of earning points from the Premier Challenges, Will’s understanding and attention to the game is very solid. Battle Spot may not be the perfect indicator, but his consistency from season 7 through the start of the current season suggests he has improved significantly since his performance at UK Nationals last year. An event like this could be the breakthrough he needs to establish himself in the game.

We are hopeful, assuming it gets the all clear to happen, that we will also be able to stream some matches from the event. Streaming adds a great dynamic for us to promote the format, so watch this space for further updates!

As for me…

I will also be in attendance at the event, and look forward to meeting many of you guys for the first time! The article is very heavy on names, but with so many Europeans attending, it would be incredibly difficult to leave out any countries. I hope this preview has been worth the read. It certainly was an eye-opener in terms of the amount of information required and I certainly have a great deal more respect for Scott having written these in the past. I would also like to thank the guys who helped me track down attendees and provided some much-appreciated background info. Without you, this article would not have come to fruition! If you want to get involved with the discussion or give your own predictions on who you feel will be victorious, feel free to leave a reply; I ook forward to reading your thoughts.

About the Author

Wyrms Eye aka Nigel Gower started playing the VGC format in late 2013 following the release of Pokemon X and Y. Since then, his unusual style has seen him become a solid player within the community, culminating in an impressive NPA Season 3 run with the Mistralton Jets.

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