by Will Gordon
With the Roc World Cup 2018 less than a week away, it must be time for a new Top 10 list! As I’ve done in the past, these rankings are exclusively for the Cup, and I will only include players that are scheduled to attend. For the record, George Massu, who recently showed his return to form by taking the ROC U.S. Cup and Kenji Kaneshiro, recent winner of the Wizkids Canadian National championship, would be included here, but, sadly, neither plan to attend.
With that being said, there are several players coming in hot, the tournament scene is fairly diverse right now, Howard Brock, always a fine host, is debuting a new venue for the event- should be a fantastic weekend of clix in Huntsville, Alabama. So without further ado, let’s get to ranking the contenders and find out who I think is most likely to take home that big check.
- P.J. Bolin
PJ claims the top spot on one of my lists for the first time- and deservedly so. He has put together a tremendous resume over the last couple of years. As the game’s only true national, coast-to-coast player, he gives himself more opportunities than anyone else. He won an event in the Majestix series, 2nd at Canadian Nationals, and has had numerous top finishes throughout the Midwest. I know of only one event that he failed to T4 and he almost always finishes 1st or 2nd. He also plays a variety of builds, sometimes playing stuff no one else is playing. Whether you go by quantity of wins/Top 4’s, quality of fields played against or consistency, PJ has been the world’s top player in 2018 and is the man to beat at the ROC World Cup this year.
- Daniel Powell
Clixed Off’s Daniel Powell will be looking to become the first back-to-back ROC Cup Champion, after a T4 in the 2016 event. While he doesn’t travel at the rate of PJ, he has attended a high number of events and racked up his share of wins over the past year. It has come to the point that not seeing him in the T4 of an event he participates in is a real shock. Word is that Daniel is practicing and prepping like never before for this year’s Cup, and it certainly won’t come as a surprise if he takes home the big prize once again.
- Easton Brock
After back-to-back 2nd place finishes in this event, Easton has dropped a couple of spots, but he remains one of the best tacticians I have ever seen play this game. It is to the credit of PJ and Daniel that they have posted enough results to move past him, but I don’t think Easton’s play has slipped at all. He hasn’t played with the frequency of past years, but I know he will be fully prepared for the Cup. I still feel it is an inevitability that he wins a World or ROC Cup title one of these days; maybe it’s been me picking him to win that’s been the jinx!
- Isaac Arnold-Berkovitz
Isaac comes in as the reigning U.S. National champion after taking the title at Origins this past summer. His results over the past year, on the WKO and ROC circuits, have removed any doubt that anyone might have had about this kid’s staying power and legitimacy. He is a tournament savvy veteran at this point, despite his young age, and is clearly among the elite of this game. After hoisting the Cup in 2015, Isaac has posted T8’s the last two years. I would be greatly surprised if he finishes outside the Top 8 this year, and is definitely on the short list of potential champions.
- Matt Greichunos
The notorious Matty G. keeps piling up the wins. Outside of his Phoenix Nest teammate PJ, he probably has the highest number of first place finishes of any player in the game over the last 2 years. As the tournament scene changes with retirements and new pieces, Matt continues to show up with a team well suited for the environment, and has shown a knack for winning that few can match. I expect him to notch his highest place ROC Cup finish ever this year, and he’s a likely candidate to be sitting at the final table at the end.
- Scott Crampton
As many of you know, Scott was one of the top players in the original Wizkids World era of competitive clix. The fact that he continues to be ranked at the top, with one of his best stretches ever over the last two years coming in, is a credit to his ability to adapt and change with the times. While he plays much less frequently than any of the players higher than him on this list, the events he does play are all deep fields, he almost always finishes T8 or better and is invariably a threat to win. While Scott hasn’t cashed in a big singles event since U.S. Nationals 2016, he may well be due for another one.
- Ed Arnold-Berkovitz
Ed is one of the most cerebral players in the game and the third member of 4 Points Gaming to make my Top 7. When you consider the accolades these 3 players have collectively accumulated over the last 3 years- 2 ROC Cup titles, 2 Wizkids U.S. National Championships, ROC World Cup Team Championship; it is truly amazing. Ed was the 2016 ROC World Cup Champion; T16 last year. The road to the Cup definitely goes through an Arnold-Berkovitz or two, and anyone facing Ed is in for a tough match. A father vs son final is real possibility.
- Dustin Seeders
Another player that continues to win, recently crowned ROC Houston Shootout Series Champion and 2018 U.S. Nationals Team Champion. He has also won on the ROC and Wizkids circuits in recent months. The 2017 U.S. National Champion has proven that he belongs among the game’s top players and the consistency of his results cannot be ignored. I have him ranked 8th here; I would be surprised if doesn’t post a result equal or better than that at the cup.
- Adam Friedman
Adam posted a T4 at this event last year. The 2014 U.S. National champion has played sporadically over the past few years, often going months between events. However, I know he is always assessing the tournament viability of Modern Age legal pieces and you better believe what he puts on the map is going to be tough to deal with. It will be interesting to see what he comes up with for the Cup. Adam’s unique view on heroclix, with a focus on mathematical probability that few can match, as any of you that have read his strategy articles can attest to, continues to keep in the mix for a big win and makes him one of the most interesting players in the game.
- Lane Miller
Probably too little, too late from Lane’s perspective, but after being just on the outside of my previous two lists, he finally makes his debut in the Top 10 here. He has been one of the top ROC competitors over the last two years, with a phenomenal win rate. Finished T4 at last year’s Cup, he has been virtually unbeatable in the new online ROC format. Lane’s long list of results leave little doubt that he is a threat to win this title, and a high finish is a virtual certainty.
So, that’s my list of the top contenders for ROC World Cup 2018. There will be other highly skilled players with good resumes in attendance, but I would take this list against the field and I would be highly surprised if at least 6 of these 10 players don’t finish in the Top 8. As always, I appreciate any feedback, positive or negative. I always find it interesting how others view the top players and how they should be ranked. Good luck to everyone in attendance this year, hope everyone has a great time, win or lose. I’ll be back with a quick turnaround next time with a new list for the Wizkids Heroclix World Championship at PAX unplugged, Nov.30-Dec.2. See you then!
