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Jax's Top 5 North American Power Rankings
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Jax
JaxWith Valorant in the infancy of its lifecycle not even one month post-launch, I know what a lot of you are thinking; it’s far too early for power rankings. Well, yes and no. While it’s true that rosters are still forming and teams are still coming into their own strengths and identities, it’s not impossible to take a scrutinous eye to the current competitive climate and assess the playing field. That being said, here are my Top 5 Competitive Valorant Power Rankings for North America.
5. Together We Are Terrific
Truth be told, positions 5-10 in North America are all up for grabs at the moment, in a frenzied scramble of high-caliber unsigned teams, as well as a few professional teams trying to find their footing. However, in the past few weeks since the game’s release, one of these newly formed rosters has shot out ahead of the pack; an experienced stack of CS players “Together We Are Terrific”, or “TWAT”.
TWAT is hot. On fire, hot. I’m talking top-2 placings in four out of the five tournaments they’ve played in since launch, hot. In fact, to qualify for the upcoming Ignition Series T1 x NSG Showdown, they blitzed through the day without dropping a single map to the competition. This is a feat they’ve managed to replicate twice now, including another Open T1 x NSG tournament in mid-June. Sure, this has all been against other amateur competition, but that’s what cements their position over the teams they’ve surpassed such as Code 7, Echo 8, and China Nguyen.
When it comes to upwards competition, TWAT needs some time to gel together, get signed to an organization, pick up a coach, and establish a unique identity. Though they’ve struggled with the likes of Immortals and Gen.G deep into tournament runs, they did earn bragging rights by completely dismantling TSM on Ascent with a score of 13-5. The other piece of the puzzle they’ll need to find is their primary carry. FNS plays an aggressive and impressive Cypher, but he often seems like the best look on his team, when the key right now is opening up the map with a duelist that can pop-off. They shouldn’t need any roster tweaks to accomplish this, as I believe in Kaboose and co’s ability to step up the firepower.
4. Cloud 9
Fortunately for Cloud 9, their ‘roster’ isn’t all that it seems. In fact, the roster we’ve been calling Cloud 9 since beta is still composed of 4 stand-ins, helmed by the only officially signed player and VALORANT rockstar, TenZ. Unfortunately for Cloud 9, TenZ and Friends looks like it’s going to need a cleanse, because this roster is not getting it done. Why would you rank them in the top 5 if they’re not getting it done, you ask? Well it’s like I said, TenZ is a rockstar, and a force to be reckoned with in the competitive VALORANT landscape.
While the current Cloud 9 play style seems like it could very well be the prototype for what a successful VALORANT team looks like, there are glaring weaknesses and limitations that their competition hasn’t hesitated to exploit. Cloud 9 plays fast and explosive, but underneath the flashy surface of TenZ’s triple kills and 400+ ACS(average combat score) games, you’ll find a lack of coordination and uninspiring execution. When other teams have a player of similar caliber such as Wardell from TSM or HUYNH of Gen.G, the 4 players surrounding them make all the difference.
It might not even be that the rest of Cloud 9 is lacking in skill, but perhaps lagging in speed. TenZ is an explosive player but the compositions that Cloud 9 runs are centered around double controllers with mitch on the Brimstone and Relyks running Omen. The other two slots are rounded out by Shinobi’s Sage and vice’s Cypher, which makes for a relatively slow team, and no initiation outside of TenZ performing miracles on Raze or Jett. Relyks has proven to be a dependable vice-captain for this team, and if he can be flexible with his agent selection and faster paced with his play style, it could give TenZ the support he desperately needs. That said, I wouldn’t count on this iteration of Cloud 9 being the last if they want to make more grand finals appearances.
3. Gen.G
If TWAT hit the ground running as an unsigned team, then Gen.G hit the ground running as a professional team. Transferring a full French-Canadian lineup straight from CSGO and appointing coach Blank from H1Z1 Pro League, we saw their cohesion and coordination in effect from day one. While this team is definitely a case of “the whole is greater than the sum of its parts” the individual players do a fantastic job of defining their agents and roles, setting the standard for what we need from a top 3 team.
In the time since beta competition began, Gen.G has won two B-Tier tournaments, each over the powerhouses of T1 and TSM, while also shutting down some of the best unsigned talent in Together We Are Terrific and China Nguyen. So far, their only real misstep has been in the Immortals First light tournament, where they lost to Cloud 9 who brought an X-Factor with TenZ, and Immortals, against which they had a stand-in playing for MkaeL. I would expect to see Gen.G making deep tournament runs in months to come, but with the rising level of competition we’re less likely to see them in as many grand finals.
Gen.G operates similarly to TSM, but at a lower general baseline. HUYNH has become one of the more prolific Operators in North America right up there with Wardell, and PLAYER1’s Brimstone functions similarly to Subroza, a cerebral type of player whose positioning and utility placement can lead to hot opening picks or ice cold clutches. Their biggest strength however seems to be in how they handle agent and composition rotations. HUYNH will often swap between the Sage and Sova, opting for Sova in more aggressive situations, while Effys efficiently plays the Breach, and swaps to Sage when necessary. Due to the level of comfort each player displays on these agents, it creates a dependable agent pool that’s accessible to Gen.G, but keeps opponents on their toes. These subtle shifts in composition between 1-2 pocket picks are potentially preferable to the free-for-all agent select that some teams do, as well as the static compositions of others.
2. TSM
I already know what’s coming and feel free to leave your comment below. TSM is the favorite in North America right now and it’s incredibly hard to dispute when you consider that they’ve won almost every tournament they’ve entered since launch. I’m going to attempt to dispute that anyway, and it’s not because I think TSM has many weaknesses, just that there’s a sleeping giant lingering around the corner.
IGL’d by Tier One CSGO veterans Hazed and Cutler, TSM adds a triple-threat of firepower in Wardell, Subroza, and Drone to form the ultimate combination of boomers and zoomers. Hazed and Cutler are not new to this, and they play their anchor roles perfectly, locking down Sage and Cypher respectively, playing reserved as to stay sharp on the comms, and acting as the last line of defense. With Wardell and Subroza usually leading the charge and scoreboard, they function as a hammering frontline, while Drone silently weaves between both worlds to offer his services where required.
TSM has fleshed out this identity better than any other team has done their own. You can tell as soon as a match starts and you see Drone on his trusty Phoenix instead of running what people consider to be the better alternative in Breach. TSM has not changed up their agents or style with the only flex usually coming out of Wardell, who bounces primarily between Jett and Sova. He often leverages his team’s skill and his own mechanics to take aggressive plays and positioning that other Operator players simply can’t afford. TSM has earned every bit of praise they’ve received thus far, as they’re the only team with a cohesive identity not limited by lack of firepower. Everyone’s strategies will continue to level up, but opponents will still be hard pressed to reach or surpass the high mechanical bar that the players on TSM have set.
So with all this praise there has to be a reason that TSM isn’t #1, and to explain that I’ll have to spoil my #1 team in North America and compare them to T1. If we look at the most recent results, we can see that TSM lost to T1 in the Twitch Rivals tournament, though many will be quick to write that off due to the showmatchy nature and TSM using Myth as a stand-in. That’s 100% valid, though T1 also showed us plenty of development on where they were since their last tournament appearance, and it was essentially an exhibition of the real match we’ll get to see against TSM soon. T1’s play looked effortless on both sides of the map, and Wardell was shut down so hard he averaged a combat score of 172, which was his lowest in any series of that tournament, or in fact any tournament since the game’s release. To put it simply, T1 had their number, and they controlled their own game. I don’t see that changing the next time they meet.
1. T1
Okay, I’ll leave the TSM section alone and dive into further detail on our #1 team. If it wasn’t for their methodical absence from June tournaments, I believe people would still be calling for T1 to be crowned the best team in North America instead of rallying behind TSM. They have Brax. They have Ska. They have an embarrassment of riches in skill and pedigree matched only by TSM at the moment. In the coach’s corner, you’ve got froD, a 20-year CS veteran that comes from a background of playing with the very players he now coaches on T1.
Without a doubt, T1 is offering up the highest mechanical skill ceiling in the game, and throughout the beta that was good enough. During their silence throughout June, they seem to be building onto that foundation with more defined roles, more thoughtful set plays in game, and a dissection of the play styles of their toughest opponents. They’ve already developed pocket-swaps akin to Gen.G based on map. They implement Reyna on Haven and Ascent by moving Brax off of the Raze onto Omen, and Food off of the Brim onto Reyna, keeping a healthy balance between duelists and controllers. Meanwhile, AZK has stepped up his aggression to offer consistent pressure on Breach, while Crashies remains autonomous on Cypher, and the defensive-leaning Skadoodle gets an agent perfect for his playstyle in Sage. T1 doesn’t look like a team that’s been absent from competition so they can grow their streaming brands or take a break from the onslaught of VALORANT tournaments. They look like a team that’s been working on solidifying roles, theorycrafting strategy, and honing execution.
So what’s next for T1? Well when you’re at the top, there’s only one direction to go, and I’m sure it will be time for their decline eventually. Given the early state of the game, it’s almost a 50/50 on whether we see that soon, or we see T1 establish yet another Dynasty in a new esport. If they were to falter, it would likely be due to a lack of player identity due to so many options, or the game speeding up to match the tempo of the Wardells and TenZs over that of slower players like Brax and Ska. Regardless of how long they’ll be at the top, headed into their very own tournament on June 26th and the first North American Ignition Series event, all eyes are on T1.
Though I wanted to end on T1’s note, I would be remiss not to add a runner-up for the current power rankings, but I’d be hard-pressed to do so. There are so many promising teams, both signed and amateur, that are still out there finding their footing. Mixup has been a very fun team to watch, with a lot of people learning the name’s aproto and hoppin, and China Nguyen still not being signed as a 5-stack or some of their players receiving contracts feels criminal. You’ve got other polished organizations like Immortals beefing up their coaching staff, and top of the line talent from other games on teams like Sentinels and Highground who haven’t reached their full tac-shooter potential. If you’ve got a team you’re on the lookout for that you would put on the top 5, or on your 5th-10th runner up list, let me know, as there will be more of these to come. Thanks for reading!
5. Together We Are Terrific
Truth be told, positions 5-10 in North America are all up for grabs at the moment, in a frenzied scramble of high-caliber unsigned teams, as well as a few professional teams trying to find their footing. However, in the past few weeks since the game’s release, one of these newly formed rosters has shot out ahead of the pack; an experienced stack of CS players “Together We Are Terrific”, or “TWAT”.
TWAT is hot. On fire, hot. I’m talking top-2 placings in four out of the five tournaments they’ve played in since launch, hot. In fact, to qualify for the upcoming Ignition Series T1 x NSG Showdown, they blitzed through the day without dropping a single map to the competition. This is a feat they’ve managed to replicate twice now, including another Open T1 x NSG tournament in mid-June. Sure, this has all been against other amateur competition, but that’s what cements their position over the teams they’ve surpassed such as Code 7, Echo 8, and China Nguyen.
When it comes to upwards competition, TWAT needs some time to gel together, get signed to an organization, pick up a coach, and establish a unique identity. Though they’ve struggled with the likes of Immortals and Gen.G deep into tournament runs, they did earn bragging rights by completely dismantling TSM on Ascent with a score of 13-5. The other piece of the puzzle they’ll need to find is their primary carry. FNS plays an aggressive and impressive Cypher, but he often seems like the best look on his team, when the key right now is opening up the map with a duelist that can pop-off. They shouldn’t need any roster tweaks to accomplish this, as I believe in Kaboose and co’s ability to step up the firepower.
4. Cloud 9
Fortunately for Cloud 9, their ‘roster’ isn’t all that it seems. In fact, the roster we’ve been calling Cloud 9 since beta is still composed of 4 stand-ins, helmed by the only officially signed player and VALORANT rockstar, TenZ. Unfortunately for Cloud 9, TenZ and Friends looks like it’s going to need a cleanse, because this roster is not getting it done. Why would you rank them in the top 5 if they’re not getting it done, you ask? Well it’s like I said, TenZ is a rockstar, and a force to be reckoned with in the competitive VALORANT landscape.
While the current Cloud 9 play style seems like it could very well be the prototype for what a successful VALORANT team looks like, there are glaring weaknesses and limitations that their competition hasn’t hesitated to exploit. Cloud 9 plays fast and explosive, but underneath the flashy surface of TenZ’s triple kills and 400+ ACS(average combat score) games, you’ll find a lack of coordination and uninspiring execution. When other teams have a player of similar caliber such as Wardell from TSM or HUYNH of Gen.G, the 4 players surrounding them make all the difference.
It might not even be that the rest of Cloud 9 is lacking in skill, but perhaps lagging in speed. TenZ is an explosive player but the compositions that Cloud 9 runs are centered around double controllers with mitch on the Brimstone and Relyks running Omen. The other two slots are rounded out by Shinobi’s Sage and vice’s Cypher, which makes for a relatively slow team, and no initiation outside of TenZ performing miracles on Raze or Jett. Relyks has proven to be a dependable vice-captain for this team, and if he can be flexible with his agent selection and faster paced with his play style, it could give TenZ the support he desperately needs. That said, I wouldn’t count on this iteration of Cloud 9 being the last if they want to make more grand finals appearances.
3. Gen.G
If TWAT hit the ground running as an unsigned team, then Gen.G hit the ground running as a professional team. Transferring a full French-Canadian lineup straight from CSGO and appointing coach Blank from H1Z1 Pro League, we saw their cohesion and coordination in effect from day one. While this team is definitely a case of “the whole is greater than the sum of its parts” the individual players do a fantastic job of defining their agents and roles, setting the standard for what we need from a top 3 team.
In the time since beta competition began, Gen.G has won two B-Tier tournaments, each over the powerhouses of T1 and TSM, while also shutting down some of the best unsigned talent in Together We Are Terrific and China Nguyen. So far, their only real misstep has been in the Immortals First light tournament, where they lost to Cloud 9 who brought an X-Factor with TenZ, and Immortals, against which they had a stand-in playing for MkaeL. I would expect to see Gen.G making deep tournament runs in months to come, but with the rising level of competition we’re less likely to see them in as many grand finals.
Gen.G operates similarly to TSM, but at a lower general baseline. HUYNH has become one of the more prolific Operators in North America right up there with Wardell, and PLAYER1’s Brimstone functions similarly to Subroza, a cerebral type of player whose positioning and utility placement can lead to hot opening picks or ice cold clutches. Their biggest strength however seems to be in how they handle agent and composition rotations. HUYNH will often swap between the Sage and Sova, opting for Sova in more aggressive situations, while Effys efficiently plays the Breach, and swaps to Sage when necessary. Due to the level of comfort each player displays on these agents, it creates a dependable agent pool that’s accessible to Gen.G, but keeps opponents on their toes. These subtle shifts in composition between 1-2 pocket picks are potentially preferable to the free-for-all agent select that some teams do, as well as the static compositions of others.
2. TSM
I already know what’s coming and feel free to leave your comment below. TSM is the favorite in North America right now and it’s incredibly hard to dispute when you consider that they’ve won almost every tournament they’ve entered since launch. I’m going to attempt to dispute that anyway, and it’s not because I think TSM has many weaknesses, just that there’s a sleeping giant lingering around the corner.
IGL’d by Tier One CSGO veterans Hazed and Cutler, TSM adds a triple-threat of firepower in Wardell, Subroza, and Drone to form the ultimate combination of boomers and zoomers. Hazed and Cutler are not new to this, and they play their anchor roles perfectly, locking down Sage and Cypher respectively, playing reserved as to stay sharp on the comms, and acting as the last line of defense. With Wardell and Subroza usually leading the charge and scoreboard, they function as a hammering frontline, while Drone silently weaves between both worlds to offer his services where required.
TSM has fleshed out this identity better than any other team has done their own. You can tell as soon as a match starts and you see Drone on his trusty Phoenix instead of running what people consider to be the better alternative in Breach. TSM has not changed up their agents or style with the only flex usually coming out of Wardell, who bounces primarily between Jett and Sova. He often leverages his team’s skill and his own mechanics to take aggressive plays and positioning that other Operator players simply can’t afford. TSM has earned every bit of praise they’ve received thus far, as they’re the only team with a cohesive identity not limited by lack of firepower. Everyone’s strategies will continue to level up, but opponents will still be hard pressed to reach or surpass the high mechanical bar that the players on TSM have set.
So with all this praise there has to be a reason that TSM isn’t #1, and to explain that I’ll have to spoil my #1 team in North America and compare them to T1. If we look at the most recent results, we can see that TSM lost to T1 in the Twitch Rivals tournament, though many will be quick to write that off due to the showmatchy nature and TSM using Myth as a stand-in. That’s 100% valid, though T1 also showed us plenty of development on where they were since their last tournament appearance, and it was essentially an exhibition of the real match we’ll get to see against TSM soon. T1’s play looked effortless on both sides of the map, and Wardell was shut down so hard he averaged a combat score of 172, which was his lowest in any series of that tournament, or in fact any tournament since the game’s release. To put it simply, T1 had their number, and they controlled their own game. I don’t see that changing the next time they meet.
1. T1
Okay, I’ll leave the TSM section alone and dive into further detail on our #1 team. If it wasn’t for their methodical absence from June tournaments, I believe people would still be calling for T1 to be crowned the best team in North America instead of rallying behind TSM. They have Brax. They have Ska. They have an embarrassment of riches in skill and pedigree matched only by TSM at the moment. In the coach’s corner, you’ve got froD, a 20-year CS veteran that comes from a background of playing with the very players he now coaches on T1.
Without a doubt, T1 is offering up the highest mechanical skill ceiling in the game, and throughout the beta that was good enough. During their silence throughout June, they seem to be building onto that foundation with more defined roles, more thoughtful set plays in game, and a dissection of the play styles of their toughest opponents. They’ve already developed pocket-swaps akin to Gen.G based on map. They implement Reyna on Haven and Ascent by moving Brax off of the Raze onto Omen, and Food off of the Brim onto Reyna, keeping a healthy balance between duelists and controllers. Meanwhile, AZK has stepped up his aggression to offer consistent pressure on Breach, while Crashies remains autonomous on Cypher, and the defensive-leaning Skadoodle gets an agent perfect for his playstyle in Sage. T1 doesn’t look like a team that’s been absent from competition so they can grow their streaming brands or take a break from the onslaught of VALORANT tournaments. They look like a team that’s been working on solidifying roles, theorycrafting strategy, and honing execution.
So what’s next for T1? Well when you’re at the top, there’s only one direction to go, and I’m sure it will be time for their decline eventually. Given the early state of the game, it’s almost a 50/50 on whether we see that soon, or we see T1 establish yet another Dynasty in a new esport. If they were to falter, it would likely be due to a lack of player identity due to so many options, or the game speeding up to match the tempo of the Wardells and TenZs over that of slower players like Brax and Ska. Regardless of how long they’ll be at the top, headed into their very own tournament on June 26th and the first North American Ignition Series event, all eyes are on T1.
Though I wanted to end on T1’s note, I would be remiss not to add a runner-up for the current power rankings, but I’d be hard-pressed to do so. There are so many promising teams, both signed and amateur, that are still out there finding their footing. Mixup has been a very fun team to watch, with a lot of people learning the name’s aproto and hoppin, and China Nguyen still not being signed as a 5-stack or some of their players receiving contracts feels criminal. You’ve got other polished organizations like Immortals beefing up their coaching staff, and top of the line talent from other games on teams like Sentinels and Highground who haven’t reached their full tac-shooter potential. If you’ve got a team you’re on the lookout for that you would put on the top 5, or on your 5th-10th runner up list, let me know, as there will be more of these to come. Thanks for reading!
almost 4 years ago
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