Epic Things To Watch for in WCS Montreal:
1. The WCS Grand Slam (Player: Serral. 10920 WCS Points).
Serral has now tied the record for most WCS events won a season, and he has done it back-to-back-to-back looking absolutely invincible. Since placing 2nd in the Leipzig qualifiers he has won every WCS qualifer and main event, and placed fourth in IEM Katowice. If he can just win one more, he will be the first ever 4 time grand slam winner.
2. The Bridesmaids (Players: Special, 2880 WCS points; Showtime, 2670 WCS Points; Neeb, 2410 WCS Points).
All freaking year these three players have battled it out, time and again, competing for the scraps left in Serral's wake. Their tickets to Blizzcon are all virtually stamped, but they're all hungry to try once more at a shot at the championship. Secondly, they'll be battling hard for seeding. (Note: Arguably Nerchio and Heromarine are in this category as well).
3. Battle Royale for Blizzcon (Players: Nerchio 2160 points, Heromarine 2100 points, Has, 1990 points, Snute 1755 points, Elazer 1710 points, Mana 1650 points, TRUE 1470 points, uthermal 1440 points, Lambo 1305 points, Kelazhur 1225 points).
With Serral and the Bridesmaids vacuuming up the vast majority of all the WCS points, anything could happen to the last four spots. If Has, Snute, Heromarine, or Nerchio are out early, they might not make it to Blizzcon, and with 900 points for reaching the semifinals, inconsistant players like Lambo, Mana, or Scarlett could just barely squeeze in at the last second.
4. He "Has" to survive! (Has: 1990 points)
Has's epic run through WCS Valencia has placed him in a precarious position. He should be able to grab a few more points from the Taiwan qualifier, but then he needs to do well enough to not be ousted by the angry horde of players duking it out in the Battle Royale. This means Has needs to either make a fairly deep run at WCS Montreal, or hope Serral and the Bridemaids are able to take out most of his competition. He's got a great shot at Blizzcon, but he can't afford an early exit at Montreal. Not only that, but you just KNOW that now players are gunning for him: ShowTime, Kelazhur, Nerchio, Special, all fell to the cannons of Has at Valencia, and now they want payback.
5. The Homecoming Queen (Scarlett: 1125 points).
Scarlett fans were heartbroken to see her matched up against Serral in the RO16 at Valencia. Even for one as inconstant as Scarlett, 2018 has been an especially varying rollercoaster. Starting with an amazing IEM Pyongchang championship, beating players such as Classic, Rogue, and Serral, and a GSL RO8, Scarlett was relegated to an early exit in Leipzig, just missed out on the group stages of IEM Katowice, and lost in the RO16 in Austin. Her 2-3 loss to Serral in Valencia was all the more heartbreaking when Serral breezed through the remainder of his opponents with ease. Scarlett needs either a RO4 and a lot of luck, or a finals appearance on home soil in Montreal to make it to Blizzcon. She's got what it takes, but Canadian tournaments have been difficult for Canadians before (excuse me while I repress my flashback's of HuK's 0-3 loss to Alicia at NASL Finals 2013), and Scarlett is one of the most inconsistant players in WCS. She's got a shot though, and I'll be rooting for her regardless.
6. Rookie of the Year (Reynor: 600 points).
Reynor's WCS track record shines bright with potential. He was too young to compete in Leipzig, in Austin, and in the Valencia qualifier. He was able to compete in Nation Wars however, all killing the teams from France, China, and Norway, only losing to the eventual champions, Korea, whom he was able to take some form of revenge against, advancing from his GSL Code S RO32 group by defeating Classic and Ryung. And so, mere weeks after his 16th birthday, Reynor arrived at Valencia to try his luck in the open bracket. There he beat Nerchio (2160 WCS points) to advance first from his group. At group stage 2 he easily dispatched Masa and Denver to advance first from his group again. In group stage 3, he faced ShowTime 2670 WCS points, and demolished him in a quick 2-0 to advance from his group 4-0. In the RO16 he matched up against Special (2880 WCS points) and 3 games later advanced to the quarterfinals, sweeping the best foriegn terran 3-0. Reynor was only stopped by Serral, as has every other foriegner that has faced Serral in the playoffs of a WCS event in 2018. At this point, even the most skeptical must admit that Reynor shows great potential. However, if he wants to book a flight to Blizzcon, the 1400 points from placing second are unlikely to cut it: He'll most likely need to win the championship himself.
I can't friggen wait for this tournament.