The unnatural howling of the wind comes to an abrupt halt, as the eerie creaking of the stairs slowly fade away - a reminder that Halloween has come to an end. With that, powers go out in the East Coast due to the remnants of Hurricane Sandy, and the presidential debate gets caught up in its own storm. But ladies and gentlemen, no one could possibly be prepared for the next dramatic event of November. And that is... The Ladder Update. I bring to you our fourth episode on this season's Fall 2012 Ladder. So without further ado, pull out your popcorn and coffee favorite beverage, as we witness how this saga will continue. 

I want to remind everyone that if you have any replays of your best ladder matches and you’d like to share it and have it featured on here for the ladder updates, feel free to send them to me or Trish via PMs.    

Side-note: These top rankings have been taken on 6:30 pm CST on Monday [11/05/12].     

Current Rankings

Singles:     

[01] nostalgia ULTRA. | Score: 2283 | Win/Loss Ratio: 55 - 2 | → Meta Knight / Marth / Toon Link  
[02] Dark Buttercup | Score: 2182 | Win/Loss Ratio: 33 - 7 | → Diddy / Meta Knight   
[03] Nairo | Score: 2167 | Win/Loss Ratio: 22 - 1 | → Meta Knight / Donkey Kong / Wario
[04] CT ZeRo | Score: 2096 | Win/Loss Ratio: 34 - 3 | → Meta Knight  
[05] Sync. | Score: 2045 | Win/Loss Ratio: 24 - 2 | → Meta Knight 
[06] Megafox. | Score: 2036 | Win/Loss Ratio: 21 - 3 | → Fox / Marth / Snake 
[07] Negga | Score: 2021 | Win/Loss Ratio: 25 - 1 | → Diddy / Mr. Game and Watch / Kirby 
[08] Denti | Score: 2012 | Win/Loss Ratio: 27 - 3 | → Olimar 
[09] M to the Ekos | Score: 1982 | Win/Loss Ratio: 26 - 10 | → Lucas 
[10] Fierce Deity Deku | Score: 1951 | Win/Loss Ratio : 53 - 18 | → Meta Knight 
[11] Jtails | Score: 1950 | Win/Loss Ratio: 43 - 16 | → Meta Knight 
[12] Mr.Eric | Score: 1927 | Win/Loss Ratio: 120 - 120 | → Marth 
[13] Syco | Score: 1893 | Win/Loss Ratio: 47 - 20 | → Olimar 
[14] R-XYZ | Score: 1873 | Win/Loss Ratio: 38 - 17 | → Rob 
[15] Red Roy | Score: 1864 | Win/Loss Ratio: 131 - 120 | → Donkey Kong / King Dedede 
[16] SlayerZ | Score: 1850 | Win/Loss Ratio: 7 - 0 | → Peach 
[17] RaiKameUme | Score: 1847 | Win/Loss Ratio: 30 - 35 | → Meta Knight / Kirby/ King Dedede 
[18] Iota | Score: 1825 | Win/Loss Ratio: 52 - 19 | → Wario / Meta Knight 
[19] K-DOTox | Score: 1803 | Win/Loss Ratio: 69 - 34 | → Pit   
[20] JpIsCrAzY | Score: 1763 | Win/Loss Ratio: 71 - 15 | → Diddy / Meta Knight 
[21] Yujiro of The Sun-Woo Clan | Score: 1753 | Win/Loss Ratio: 18 - 2 | → Meta Knight 
[22] Melanoid | Score: 1751 | Win/Loss Ratio: 42 - 19 | → Peach / Meta Knight  
[23] Toon Sage Naomi | Score: 1742 | Win/Loss Ratio: 43 - 22 | → Meta Knight / Zero Suit / Ice Climbers / Peach 
[24] Jbandrew | Score: 1740 | Win/Loss Ratio: 18 - 7 | → Meta Knight 
[25] Triple R | Score: 1734 | Win/Loss Ratio: 38 - 14 | → Kirby 
[26] KHL | Score: 1727 | Win/Loss Ratio: 32 - 27 | → Meta Knight / Falco 
[27] K9s | Score: 1727 | Win/Loss Ratio: 57 - 37 | → Meta Knight  
[28] Z | Score: 1717 | Win/Loss Ratio: 69 - 29 | → Falco / Donkey Kong / Random 
[29] Patrick Bateman | Score: 1704 | Win/Loss Ratio: 9 - 2 | → King Dedede 
[30] ×MÁR× | Score: 1699 | Win/Loss Ratio: 16 -16 |  → Diddy / Meta Knight 
[31] Saruhebi | Score: 1695 | Win/Loss Ratio: 85 - 37 | → Snake / Diddy / Toon Link 
[32] Ame | Score: 1694 | Win/Loss Ratio: 33 - 26 | → Sheik / Falco  

Doubles:     

[01] Basura [nostalgia ULTRA. / Dark Buttercup] | Score: 1926 | Win/Loss Ratio: 31 - 0 | → Meta Knight / Toon Link  
[02] Double Ultimate Avatar State [M to the Ekos / Nairo] | Score: 1756 | Win/Loss Ratio: 13 - 2 | → Lucas / Meta Knight 
[03] NO DUB MK? WHO CARES!? TOP 4 WE IN THERE! [Dilemma. / Negga] | Score: 1744 | Win/Loss Ratio: 31 - 7 | → Meta Knight / Diddy / Kirby / Mr. Game and Watch 
[04] Lets do this!!!!! [RaiKameUme / Maize] | Score: 1709 | Win/Loss Ratio: 7 - 1 | → Meta Knight / R.O.B. 
[05] doesnt matter [Uno. / WaDiRob] | Score: 1572 | Win/Loss Ratio: 12 - 2 | → Mr. Game and Watch / Wario 
[06] Dial M for the Monkey [×MÁR× / Masho] | Score: 1528 | Win/Loss Ratio: 5 - 3 | → Diddy / ? 
[07] club bashin [Fierce Deity Deku / Melanoid] | Score: 1513 | Win/Loss Ratio: 18 - 7 | → Meta Knight / Marth / Peach  
[08] What the **** is "Time"? [Wafty / Yujiro of The Sun-Woo Clan] | Score: 1296 | Win/Loss Ratio: 15 - 10 | → Wario / Meta Knight 
[09] ~Royal Kawaii Princesses~ [The Truth / Eclipse.] | Score: 1230 | Win/Loss Ratio: 8 - 1  → Pikachu / Kirby / Marth   
[10] There will be cake [Fubuki Shirou / Foodies] | Score: 1155 | Win/Loss Ratio: 10 - 2  → Kirby / Marth  
[11] Silent Assassins [-DaVe- / kizzykash] | Score: 1128 | Win/Loss Ratio: 4 - 1 | → Ike / Toon Link 
[12] Loeser's team [Loeser / KHL] | Score: 1126 | Win/Loss Ratio: 2 -0 | → Wario / Meta Knight 
[13] Somo [xzx / ccst] | Score: 1103 | Win/Loss Ratio: 5 - 3 | → Wario / Rob 
[14] mk2 [Katon / DracoBlaze] | Score: 952 | Win/Loss Ratio: 1 - 0 | → Marth / Meta Knight 
[15] NOW! [Edge of Tomorrow / iiSuperEnjoi.] | Score: 933 | Win/Loss Ratio: 5 - 3 | → Marth / Meta Knight 
[16] The Great Warriors [Prey God of all Saiyans / LNIAD] | Score: 929 | Win/Loss Ratio: 5 - 1 | → Rob / Meta Knight / Ike 
            

Notes

Singles:     

- SlayerZ returns with Peach and is currently on a 7 win streak and no losses so far.               
- Red Roy has played 251 matches so far, the most matches played in this ranking. 
- M to the Ekos is back to put in some work with Lucas for singles and doubles both. 
- Denti's score is 2012. He's had his new year's resolution all planned out.                               



Doubles:     

- nostalgia ULTRA. and Dark Buttercup lead doubles ladder with 31 wins and no losses so far.  
- Ike/Toon Link isn't a team you see everyday, but -DaVe- and kizzykash prove otherwise.  
- Despite both ladders picking up more activity, Doubles Ladder in particular could still use a boost. Perfect Week helped bolster the activity, but it's still not enough. 
- If you're still having problems joining Doubles Ladder, please check out Mar's blog on how to get around the glitch until further notice.   


Remember, this season’s ladder ends on November 30th. There’s plenty of time to join up if you haven't done already. We could definitely use more activity this season, so please join up and congratulations to everyone who has participated so far.

 

 

Continue reading TioPro is Coming!

Hello everybody! Aside from my Halloween humor, I am back with another event. Halloween is approaching shortly, so we have been trying to make this year filled with activities. Aside from stocking up on hoards of candy, have you done anything fun? 

- Halloween Costume Contest: First, there’s the Halloween Costume Contest, where you can dress up and show us your spooky and crazy costumes. More information about the Halloween Contest can be found here. 

- Get-Together: Next, what would Halloween be without a little get-together? You can’t miss this year's Halloween party! At this event, we can all hang out and talk about spooky Halloween stories, play some Brawl, trade cards, and do whatever you feel like it as long as it remains within the site rules. So make sure you keep this weekend open, because it's going to take place on Sunday, November 4th. 

- Smash Trivia: Along with socializing and brawling, Yoshinendo will also be there hosting his special trivia. These trivia question aren't as easy as you'd think, so you'd better be studying up on anything Smash related( and keep Google ready). Those who answer the questions correctly will get points, and at the end, will be awarded with badges and/or cards. 

- Signature of the Week: It's been awhile since we had one of these, but Kawaii Desu Otter has returned to launch another Signature of the Week contest... this time, Halloween themed! Please participate here. 

SCHEDULE 

Date: Sunday, November 4th 2012 

Time:8:00-12:00 EST 
         7:00-11:00 CST 
         6:00-10:00 MST 
         5:00-9:00  PST 

Location: Social chatroom 

So everybody, bring a good attitude, some fun conversation starters, and a fresh brain (we don't want zombies taking those) to prepare for the party of your life!

Hey guys! You may have already been preparing your house with spooky decorations and pumpkins, buying loads of candy for the innocent trick-or-treaters, but make sure you don't forget your costume because Halloween is right around the corner, which makes this the perfect time for our annual Halloween Costume Contest!


Rules:
The rules are simple. Put on a costume of your choice, take a picture, and submit it to one of the judges on our panel. It's that easy!

For simply participating, you will receive the Participant badge. If you costume is good enough to make it to the finals, however, you will receive the Finalist badge. Lastly, if you're the chosen winner out of our group of finalists, you will receive the Costume Contest Winner badge.


Categories:
We will be grading each of the costumes on the following categories. Make sure you meet all of the following criteria so you can make it to the finals!

Originality: Is it a costume you made yourself? If you're cosplaying, how well do you look like the person you're cosplaying? In other words, try to be creative, don't just be another vampire/zombie/mummy (though a mummy would be pretty cool).

Flexibility: Is this a costume that anyone can wear, or is it something restrained to skinny people, fat people, tall people, etc? Dressing in pieces instead of layers will help you accomplish this.

Appeal: Is it pretty or ugly? Or rather, is it interesting to look at, or will people turn away because it's hideous? When you're thinking about this, try to remember something along the lines of "kids and adults" so you don't do anything drastic.


Panel of Judges:
lightlanayru
Cpt.OrangeFox
SVK Skyviper
NiteNinja90


All entries must be submitted by 10/31 at 11:59 PST. Any entries after that will not be added. To submit an entry, PM one of the above judges with the subject line as "costume contest" or something along the lines of that.

Hey everyone! I’m here to bring you another Bi-Weekly Ladder Update for this season. Before we get into the rankings I would like to remind you that the ladder will close at 11:59 PM on November 30th, which gives you just over 5 weeks to play the ladder and get the placing you’ve always wanted! As of now, the ladder hasn’t been too active, so if you still want to get your games in, now is the time to start preparing for that. Be advised that there is a minimum number of matches required to both get the badges and to qualify for playoffs, unlike past seasons. 

I’d also like to remind everyone that the Perfect Week for Doubles Ladder began yesterday. The details of this event are discussed here, but the reward will be a badge worth 750 points. There’s also a Doubles Weekend event scheduled for this coming weekend - this will also reward participants with a badge if they fulfill the requirements, so now is the time to get started with those. Don’t delay! 

If you have any questions, please send a message to Mocha or Lightlanayru. If I haven’t listed your character(s) correctly, please post here to make sure that we get them correct next time. That being said, let’s get to the rankings (Note: these were taken at 6:10 PM CST on Oct. 22). 

*Additional Note* Due to Content delay, these rankings were taken as of yesterday.

Brawl Singles: 


[01] nostalgia ULTRA. | Score: 2329 | Win/Loss Ratio: 46 - 1 | → Meta Knight / Marth 
[02] Dark Buttercup | Score: 2127 | Win/Loss Ratio: 29 - 7 | → Diddy / Meta Knight 
[03] Sync. | Score: 2026 | Win/Loss Ratio: 23 - 2 | → Meta Knight 
[04] Megafox. | Score: 2015 | Win/Loss Ratio: 16 - 1 | → Fox / Marth / Snake 
[05] CT ZeRo | Score: 1998 | Win/Loss Ratio: 27 - 3 | → Meta Knight 
[06] Mr.Eric | Score: 1959 | Win/Loss Ratio: 96 - 90 | → Marth 
[07] Syco | Score: 1950 | Win/Loss Ratio: 45 - 18 | → Olimar 
[08] Udivine | Score: 1945 | Win/Loss Ratio: 25 - 0 | → Mr. Game & Watch / Meta Knight / Random? 
[09] Denti | Score: 1922 | Win/Loss Ratio: 24 - 3 | → Olimar 
[10] Iron Fist Raffi-X | Score: 1904 | Win/Loss Ratio: 36 - 15 | → R.O.B. 
[11] Red Roy | Score: 1888 | Win/Loss Ratio: 118 - 98 | → Donkey Kong / King Dedede 
[12] Iota | Score: 1867 | Win/Loss Ratio: 51 - 17 | → Wario / Meta Knight 
[13] Toon Sage Naomi | Score: 1785 | Win/Loss Ratio: 43 - 22 | → Meta Knight / Zero Suit Samus / Ice Climbers / Peach 
[14] M to the Ekos | Score: 1779 | Win/Loss Ratio: 16 - 5 | → Lucas 
[15] _Quest_ | Score: 1769 | Win/Loss Ratio: 11 - 3 | → Marth / Toon Link 
[16] K9s | Score: 1767 | Win/Loss Ratio: 54 -35 | → Meta Knight 
[17] Jbandrew | Score: 1766 | Win/Loss Ratio: 14 - 5 | → Meta Knight 
[18] JpIsCrAzY | Score: 1758 | Win/Loss Ratio: 65 - 13 | → Diddy / Meta Knight 
[19] Seagull Joe | Score: 1725 | Win/Loss Ratio: 23 - 10 | → Meta Knight / Wolf / Donkey Kong 
[20] ven | Score: 1722 | Win/Loss Ratio: 29 - 10 | → Zelda 
[21] RaiKameUme | Score: 1719 | Win/Loss Ratio: 14 - 10 | → Meta Knight / Kirby 
[22] Strato Quake Angel Admiral Pit | Score: 1718 | Win/Loss Ratio: 31 - 7 | → Pit 
[23] Saruhebi | Score: 1713 | Win/Loss Ratio: 77 - 35 | → Snake / Diddy / Toon Link 
[24] KHL | Score: 1697 | Win/Loss Ratio: 26 -18 | → Meta Knight / Falco 
[25] Uno. | Score: 1692 | Win/Loss Ratio: 25 - 9 | → Mr. Game & Watch / Meta Knight / R.O.B. 
[26] Z | Score: 1689 | Win/Loss Ratio: 56 - 26 | → Falco / Donkey Kong / Random? 
[27] Ame | Score: 1676 | Win/Loss Ratio: 20 - 12 | → Shiek / Falco 
[28] ×MÁR× | Score: 1670 | Win/Loss Ratio: 13 -11 | → Meta Knight / Diddy 
[29] Massimo Corteleoni | Score: 1635 | Win/Loss Ratio: 207 - 55 | → Olimar / Zero Suit Samus / Meta Knight 
[30] Yujiro of The Sun-Woo Clan | Score: 1634 | Win/Loss Ratio: 13 -1 | → Meta Knight 
[31] LOE1 The Legend | Score: 1634 | Win/Loss Ratio: 65 - 50 | → Wario 
[32] Scizor | Score: 1630 | Win/Loss Ratio: 32 -13 | → Meta Knight / Falco 


Brawl Doubles: 


[01] Basura [nostalgia ULTRA. / Dark Buttercup] | Score: 1878 | Win/Loss Ratio: 20 - 0 | → Meta Knight / Toon Link 
[02] NO DUB MK? WHO CARES!? TOP 4 WE IN THERE! [Dilemma. / Negga] | Score: 1677 | Win/Loss Ratio: 20 - 6 | → Meta Knight / Diddy / Kirby / Mr. Game and Watch 
[03] Whackamole [PentaSalia / Udivine] | Score: 1580 | Win/Loss Ratio: 6 - 2 | → Mr. Game & Watch / Meta Knight 
[04] doesnt matter [Uno. / WaDiRob] | Score: 1550 | Win/Loss Ratio: 10 - 2 | → Mr. Game and Watch / Wario 
[05] We Runnin' back to the Top! [Fierce Deity Deku / FF Ori_bro] | Score: 1227 | Win/Loss Ratio: 6 - 5 | → Meta Knight / Olimar 
[06] Somo [xzx / ccst] | Score: 1131 | Win/Loss Ratio: 5 - 3 | → Wario / Rob 
[07] There will be cake [Fubuki Shirou / Foodies] | Score: 1043 | Win/Loss Ratio: 7 - 2 → Kirby / Marth 
[08] ~♥~Double Deadly Divas!~♥~ [SlayerZ / Silly Kyle] | Score: 876 | Win/Loss Ratio: 3 - 0 | → Peach / Peach 
[09] The Great Warriors [Prey God of all Saiyans / LNIAD] | Score: 875 | Win/Loss Ratio: 4 - 1 | → R.O.B. / Meta Knight / Ike 
[10] KiraFlax’s Team [KiraFlax / K9s] | Score: 828 | Win/Loss Ratio: 4 -5 | → Pit / R.O. B. / Meta Knight 
[11] HooDaBessBladez [GameofThronesFan2 / YingYangMasta] | Score: 683 | Win/Loss Ratio: 2 - 3 → Diddy / ? 
[12] Iota’s Team [Iota / Serynder] | Score: 655 | Win/Loss Ratio: 2 -1 | → Wario / Meta Knight 
[13] -YosMFD-‘s Team [-YosMFD- / ToxinTANK] | Score: 591 | Win/Loss Ratio: 1 -2 | → Falco (?) / Pit [14] PK Misfire! [Koolzone / Hukster] | Score: 540 | Win/Loss Ratio: 2 - 3 | → Luigi / Ness 
[15] kid craft 24 sonic master’s team [kid craft 24 sonic master / Atari1x8] | Score: 509 | Win/Loss Ratio: 1 - 3 | → Sonic / Ness 
[16] Yes! No. Yes! [Ant / Sync.] | Score: 450 | Win/Loss Ratio: 2 -1 | → Sonic / Meta Knight 



Comments: 

-Singles Ladder primarily features Meta Knight players, with at least 18 of the top 32 players using Meta Knight. At least there’s some variety otherwise, with Zelda, Lucas, Toon Link, Wolf and other characters making showings. 
-nostalgia ULTRA. is far ahead of the crowd, over 200 points above the next in line, Dark Buttercup (though Kirsi [DracoBlaze] will probably resurface from his 'withdrawn' status soon). 
-We have a new addition to the rankings since the last update: Udivine, with no losses and 25 wins. 
-nostalgia ULTRA., Dark Buttercup, M to the Ekos, Saruhebi and Dilemma are usually known as FOW, MJG, Mekos, Stridez and Zodi, for those of you who were wondering what their true identities are. 
-M to the Ekos is the highest ranked player in singles right now who is using a low tier - Lucas. 
-nostalgia ULTRA. and Dark Buttercup take 1st in Doubles Ladder with 20 wins and no losses. 
-Not much else to note about Doubles Ladder other than a reminder to pick up the activity. 

Well, that’s it folks! Keep up the laddering.

Hello everyone! I know there hasn't been a ToTW in quite some time now, and I really did enjoy those. So I decided to host one and try to bring the ToTWs' back to life. So, without further ado, I give you, The Texture of the Week! In this contest, your goal is to try and make the best texture you can make, based of the theme, which is Robotic. The rules of the contest are quite simple.

1. Don't submit someone else's work as your own.(Automatic disqualification.)
2. You can't submit something already made and uploaded to a brawl hacking site. (Like KC-MM for example.)
3. Don't troll/flame someone else's texture.
4. Textures Submitted after the deadline will not be accepted.

Below are the 2 panel judges. PM your entry/submission to one of them:

SlayerMarth101
1PokeMastr

Now I'll cover the layout or setup for the contest.
Subissions can be turned in to one of us from Monday 8am - Sunday 12am.
From 12am - 1pm, me and Poke will go through and see which ones meet the requirements for voting.
Then from 1pm - 10pm, me and Poke will tally all the votes, and announce the winner. (Runner ups and so forth.)
Winners will be announced at 10pm.

And that's about it! I hope to see some Creative and Unique textures. Good luck and have fun!

Hello, AIB! It's been a while since I last made an announcement, but I can assure you I've been working on a LOT of new things along with the rest of the wonderful staff. As far as things that have been announced in the past, I promise they're coming. We've had Series 5 take off not too long ago and now we're going to have a collaboration event featuring several contests thrown together from AIB Ladder and TCG. I'm talking of course, about The Perfect Week! For those of you that missed out on the announcement, The Perfect Week is an event that takes place 7 days straight. The goal of the event is to beat 1 NEW/DIFFERENT opponent every day in the ladder, which is slightly modified from Barney's Perfect Week (if anybody here watches HIMYM). The same rules apply to Doubles Perfect Week. On top of all of this, it will be the same week as Singles Weekend and Doubles Weekend!


OFFICIAL SCHEDULE

Oct 15- Oct 21: Singles Perfect Week 
Oct 19-Oct 21: Singles Weekend 
Oct 22-Oct 28: Doubles Perfect Week 
Oct 26: Doubles Night 
Oct 26-Oct 28: Doubles Weekend 


RULES:


Singles:

The Perfect Week: Beat 1 DIFFERENT person, every day, for 7 days straight and you will be rewarded for The Perfect Week.

Singles Weekend Warrior: Play 2 matches, every day, during Oct 19-21. You do not have to win these matches.


Doubles:

The Perfect Week: Same rules above apply; beat 1 DIFFERENT team, every day, for 7 days straight and the badge is yours.

Doubles Weekend Warrior: Play 2 matches, every day, during Oct 26-28. You do not have to win these matches.

Doubles Night: Play 3 matches on Oct 26. You do not have to win these matches.

***Staff teams will be showing up from 7-9 EST.

We are very limited on staff members, so we have another special announcement! If you manage to beat a team of staff members (regardless if they are teamed in doubles ladder) you will receive the Double Danger badge. This is mainly because most staff members are on teams with a regular member and aren't able to hand out this badge specifically for this reason. LADDER RULES APPLY; this means you may only challenge once per day, 2/3, etc. We are keeping a list of the people that we will play, so we'll know if you try to switch teams to steal the badge away (when you could just practice overnight and try again ;P lol).

SVK Skyviper and Foodies will count as staff members for this event!



SPECIAL RULE REGARDING TIMEZONES:

You may play YOUR respective timezone and still qualify for the badge. This is mainly addressing England, Germany, Norway/Sweden, and other EU territories, but people in USA can still do it. AIB is hosted from the west coast, so we have to go by west coast time on pretty much everything (ladder updates, daily cards, etc). I want this to be a fair event, and I would like it if everybody is able to be a winner. There's a 5-12 hour difference depending on where you live, and what part of Europe you're referring to; pretty much, I don't want them up at 7am the next day trying to get the badge just because AIB is biased.



Next up, Foodies has an announcement on behalf of all you card folks out there!


Cards:

There will also be card rewards for this event! Completing each event will give the following rewards:

Singles Perfect Week - series 5 cards: 3C, 2UC, 1R
Singles Weekend - 6 cards from all series (chance of what you get depends on rarities).
Doubles Perfect Week - series 5 cards: 9C, 6UC, 3R
Doubles Weekend - 18 cards from all series (chance of what you get depends on rarities).
Doubles Night - 3 cards from series 5 (Rarities by % chance)



BADGE REWARD LIST


Singles Perfect Week
Doubles Perfect Week
Double Danger
Double Dater
Singles Weekend Warrior
Staff Slayer
Doubles Weekend Warrior
Wifi Warrior


***All badges will be given out at the end of each week. If you qualify for a badge and have not received it, please PM Mocha, Sakram3nt, SVK Skyviper, lightlanayru, or Foodies. Please provide your ladder history as well. 


That's all on our end, and we hope to see all of you at the event!

With the deadline to the beginning of this years Frag For Cancer tournament approaching, the hype is building in excitement for the 7th installment of the charity tournament which has become an Apex 2013 Qualifier.

History of FFC:

Frag For Cancer started out as a small gaming event founded in 2006 by gamer Yazeed Sobaih who lost his father to the tragic disease. The event started out small but in the past years has grown to have attendances in the hundreds and it has since become the largest gaming tournament in Atlantic Canada. Over the past 6 years the event has raised over $60, 000 for charity.

This year FFC will be held at Dalhousie Unitversity's Student Union Building located on 6136, University Ave., Halifax, NS, Canada (pictured below). And it will begin on Saturday, October 13th and conclude on Sunday, October 14th.


The event schedule can be found at the event page on facebook.

Pre-Register here.

SSBB specific info can be found on the  AiB Tournament Page.

Complete list of games featured this year at FFC:

-Super Smash Bros. Brawl
-Super Street Fighter IV Arcade Edition
-League of Legends
-Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3
-Star Craft II
-Halo: Reach
-Counter Strike: Global Offensive

A stream will be available for anyone who would like to spectate, but cannot attend. It will be on Ralston Arcade's twitch tv channel.

We hope to see as many people attending as possible, both in person and via the stream, until then get hyped!

Hello AiB, how are you all today? I hope life and school has been treating all of you well. We have Halloween coming up at the end of the month, and we can expect AiB to create some fun activities for everyone. Despite ladder being dead, SVK Skyviper  & Foodies will be providing us with a special surprise following up after this update which will hopefully help bolster ladder activity and site activity in general. 

I want to remind everyone that if you have any replays of your best ladder matches and you’d like to share it and have it featured on here for the ladder updates, feel free to send them to me or Trish via PMs.   

Side-note: These top rankings have been taken on 3:00 pm CST on Monday [10/08/12].    

Current Rankings

Singles:    

[01] Kirsi | Score: 2115 | Win/Loss Ratio: 37 - 11 | → Meta Knight 
[02] nostalgia ULTRA. | Score: 2109 | Win/Loss Ratio: 22 - 1 | → Meta Knight / Marth 
[03] Sync. | Score: 2066 | Win/Loss Ratio: 23 - 2 | → Meta Knight  
[04] Dark Buttercup | Score: 2060 | Win/Loss Ratio: 23 - 6 | → Diddy / Meta Knight 
[05] CT ZeRo | Score: 2038 | Win/Loss Ratio: 27 - 3 | → Meta Knight
[06] Syco | Score: 1935 | Win/Loss Ratio: 35 - 12 | → Olimar / Meta Knight 
[07] Mr.Eric | Score: 1907 | Win/Loss Ratio: 67 - 69 | → Marth
[08] ToxinTANK | Score: 1906 | Win/Loss Ratio: 59 - 27 | → Pit
[09] Denti | Score: 1886 | Win/Loss Ratio: 19 - 2 | → Olimar / Meta Knight / Diddy
[10] Red Roy | Score: 1872 | Win/Loss Ratio : 96 - 81 | → Donkey Kong / King Dedede / Marth
[11] _Quest_ | Score: 1852 | Win/Loss Ratio: 10 - 0 | → Marth
[12] Toon Sage Naomi | Score: 1834 | Win/Loss Ratio: 43 - 22 | → Zero Suit Samus / Olimar / Meta Knight / Peach / Ice Climbers 
[13] K9s | Score: 1799 | Win/Loss Ratio: 42 - 21 | → Meta Knight
[14] Seagull Joe | Score: 1787 | Win/Loss Ratio: 22 - 8 | → Wolf / Meta Knight / Donkey Kong
[15] jpIsCrAzY | Score: 1742 | Win/Loss Ratio: 55 - 11 | → Diddy / Meta Knight
[16] Jbandrew | Score: 1706 | Win/Loss Ratio: 11 - 3 | → Meta Knight
[17] Z | Score: 1695 | Win/Loss Ratio: 41 - 17 | → Falco / Fox / Donkey Kong / King Dedede
[18] ×MÁR× | Score: 1690 | Win/Loss Ratio: 12 - 8 | → Meta Knight / Diddy 
[19] Cold_ArmS | Score: 1683 | Win/Loss Ratio: 20 - 11 | → Meta Knight / Wario / Snake 
[20] Strato Quake Angel Admiral Pit | Score: 1682 | Win/Loss Ratio: 22 - 4 | → Pit
[21] LOE1 The Legend | Score: 1680 | Win/Loss Ratio: 50 - 35 | → Wario / Meta Knight / Pikachu
[22] Sam_The_Freshest | Score: 1587 | Win/Loss Ratio: 11 - 4 | → Meta Knight
[23] Pargol | Score: 1672 | Win/Loss Ratio: 33 - 8 | → Wario / Meta Knight
[24] Saruhebi | Score: 1672 | Win/Loss Ratio: 59 - 29 | → Diddy / Snake
[25] Massimo Corteleoni | Score: 1660 | Win/Loss Ratio: 142 - 36 | → Zero Suit Samus / Olimar 
[26] Scizor | Score: 1662 | Win/Loss Ratio: 26 - 9 | → Meta Knight / Link / Falco
[27] The Legend of Henry | Score: 1640 | Win/Loss Ratio: 14 - 2 | → Snake
[28] Triple R | Score: 1635 | Win/Loss Ratio: 22 - 8 | → Kirby
[29] KHL | Score: 1633 | Win/Loss Ratio: 21 - 16 | → Meta Knight / Falco
[30] i Kon | Score: 1628 | Win/Loss Ratio: 9 -2 |  → Diddy / Meta Knight 
[31] Uno. | Score: 1623 | Win/Loss Ratio: 20 - 8 | → Meta Knight / Mr. Game and Watch / Rob
[32] thetantalus | Score: 1621 | Win/Loss Ratio: 49 - 42 | → Meta Knight / Donkey Kong

Doubles:    

[01] NO DUB MK? WHO CARES!? TOP 8 WE IN THERE! [Dilemma. / Negga] | Score: 1439 | Win/Loss Ratio: 12 - 2 | → Meta Knight / Diddy / Kirby / Mr. Game and Watch
[02] doesnt matter [Uno. / WaDiRob] | Score: 1430 | Win/Loss Ratio: 5 - 0 | → Mr. Game and Watch / Wario     
[03] Somo [xzx / ccst] | Score: 1196 | Win/Loss Ratio: 5 - 1 | → Wario / Rob 
[04] Basura [nostalgia ULTRA. / Dark Buttercup] | Score: 1192 | Win/Loss Ratio: 8 - 0 | → Meta Knight / Meta Knight
[05] Mcdonalds [PentaSalia / Keeby] | Score: 1008 | Win/Loss Ratio: 3 - 3 | → Mr. Game and Watch / Meta Knight / Kirby
[06] We Runnin' back to the Top! [Fierce Deity Deku / FF Ori_bro] | Score: 917 | Win/Loss Ratio: 3 - 2 | → Olimar / Meta Knight
[07] The Great Warriors [Prey God of all Saiyans / LNIAD] | Score: 896 | Win/Loss Ratio: 4 - 1 | → R.O.B. / Meta Knight / Ike
[08] ~♥~Double Deadly Divas!~♥~ [SlayerZ / Silly Kyle] | Score: 894 | Win/Loss Ratio: 3 - 0 | → Peach / Peach
[09] There will be cake [Fubuki Shirou / Foodies] | Score: 764 | Win/Loss Ratio: 4 - 2  → Kirby / Marth
[10] HooDaBessBladez [GameofThronesFan2 / YingYangMasta] | Score: 705 | Win/Loss Ratio: 2 - 3  → Diddy / ?
[11] PK Misfire! [Koolzone / Hukster] | Score: 642 | Win/Loss Ratio: 2 - 1 | → Luigi / Ness 
[12] Yes! No. Yes! [Ant / Sync.] | Score: 470 | Win/Loss Ratio: 2 -1 | → Sonic / Meta Knight
[13] -doubleD- [Aeli / Silent_Shadow_] | Score: 468 | Win/Loss Ratio: 2 - 3 | → Ness / Rob / Snake / Marth
[14] Mucho Lag [The ViRu5 / Legit] | Score: 425 | Win/Loss Ratio: 1 - 3 | → Mr. Game and Watch / Diddy / Meta Knight
[15] 1 of us is black and 1 of us is dark [Goten / Darkkflame] | Score: 356 | Win/Loss Ratio: 1 - 0 | → Meta Knight? / Falco?  [16] Smike! [Small Ike / Ch33bDragonite] | Score: 352 | Win/Loss Ratio: 1 - 3 | → Ike / ? 
           

Notes

Singles:    

- _Quest_ with a 10-win streak and no losses so far. How long will he be able to keep his streak?    
- Massimo Corteleoni in the lead with the most amount of games played so far, 178, followed closely by Red Roy, who's at 177.          
- The two swordsmen go all Marth in their battles, congrats _Quest_ and Mr.Eric
- Strato Quake Angel Admiral Pit and ToxinTANK fire up their arrows and put our Uprising angel to war.
- Triple R goes all Kirby - likewise The Legend of Henry lurks in the shadows and goes all Snake.
- At least 22 Meta Knights are currently at the top of singles ladder.     



Doubles:    

- Dilemma. and Negga lead doubles ladder with only 2 losses so far. 
- Uno. and WaDiRob are at a 5 win streak and no losses so far.   
- Again, our ladder activity, especially for doubles, is so low that there's really not much to say other than pick up the activity guys.
- We've had issues with people breaking the Double Meta Knight ban. Remember guys, ONE Meta Knight per team.


Remember, this season’s ladder ends on November 30th. There’s plenty of time to join up if you haven't done already. We could definitely use more activity this season, so please join up and congratulations to everyone who has participated so far.

Looking for the next biggest Smash Bros. tournament? Tournament organizer Juggleguy has something lined up.

The Big House 2 is a national Super Smash Brothers gaming convention taking place October 6-7in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Two of the top players in the world, Mango and Hungrybox, are among the giant field of competitors competing for Apex 2013 qualifier points and the title of national Super Smash Bros. Melee champion. Other notable attendees include: Scar, Westballz, SFAT, Lovage, Fly Amanita, Chillin, DoH, KirbyKaze, Unknown522, Kels, Duck, and CunningKitsune.

The schedule will be as followed (subject to change):

Saturday
12:00pm - 5:00pm Melee Singles Pools Round 1
5:00pm - 8:00pm Project M Singles Bracket
8:00pm - 11:00pm Melee Doubles Bracket

Sunday
10:00am - 1:00pm Melee Singles Pools Round 2
1:00pm - 2:00pm Exhibition Matches
2:00pm - 7:00pm Melee Singles Bracket
6:00pm - 8:00pm Friendlies

Tune in to VGBC's Twitch channel or UM Smash's secondary dual stream link here to watch the event live.

The results are in from round 1 of the competition and it's time to get round 2 under way, but first of course it is time to reveal the 4 contestants who will be moving on to round 2.

The top 3 voted by the community who will advance are:

• Super_Wario
• Reiena Grayson
• heytallman
• Karaoke_Man

**There was a tie between heytallman and Karaoke_Man for 3rd place, and so we the judges have opted to make one of the two count as the 3rd community pick, and the other count as our pick.**

Congratulations to those who made it through to the next round, and to those who didn't, we thank-you for your participation and great job!

For those who made it through, please submit your round 2 entries here by Sunday, October 14th at 11:59 PM EST.

Thank-you to all who voted in round 1, and now let's get ready for round 2!

It's time to begin the voting for round 1 of All is Brawl Idol!

Here's how the voting process will work:

• A poll will be available at the All is Brawl Idol group for anyone in the community to vote for your favourite.
• The top 3 voted by the community will advance to round 2.
• A 4th contestant will be chosen by the judges to advance to round 2 as well.
• The round 1 entries can be found here.

Voting ends Friday, October 5th at 11:59 PM EST.

Here are the comments from the panel of judges on the entries submitted by the round 1 competitors:

Kakashi of the Sharingan:

Reiena Grayson: your vocals have potential since they are decent, however you should try being a bit louder as you seemed to struggle with certain higher notes which is because high notes are difficult to hit while singing quietly, other than that good job!

heytallman: solid vocals, you hit every note perfectly and the best performance of the week, great job, keep up the awesome work!

ivan209: your vocals have nice tone, but they are flat, I'd suggest trying to put more emphasis and variety in the notes you hit.

Dilemma.: you hit some good notes, but your high notes could use a bit of work. Great job overall!

Super_Wario: great vocals, all your notes were hit with great precision and your cover of Mad World was awesome and filled with emotion! Great job!

Karaoke_Man: your vocals were shakey sounding, however you did a good job hitting some of the high notes in Together Forever.


Prosecutor Yoshinendo:

Reiena Grayson: I like your voice but you sing a bit too quietly which hinders you a bit from hitting a few notes. Regardless good work.

heytallman: Fantastic. The best performance in this round with those amazing execution on those high notes, keep this up and you’ll be hard to beat.

ivan209: Not bad, but you need to add a bit more emotions into your notes, especially with the song you were singing.

Dilemma.: Pretty good Dilemma, you just need to work on a few notes.

Super_Wario: Wow, this was incredible! This was an extremely close second to me. Your execution in each notes were amazing. You made me feel like I was actually listening to Gary Jules. Keep it up.

Karaoke_Man: Pretty good cover, you hit each notes pretty nicely, but I’m feeling like there’s something missing in this.


lightlanayru:

Reiena Grayson: Despite having no instrumentals to accompany, I can see the potential that exists in your entry. I can also hear some parts were slightly off key, but that's not too bad. I would like for you to improve more on expressing emotion as you sing. That way, it can also help your voice smoothen out instead of sounding a little strained and quiet. Don't be afraid to express yourself! If you're able to do that, I know you'll be doing a whole lot better!

heytallman: Honestly, I am blown away to the point where I am speechless and just want to listen to the rest of the song... The display of emotion is well executed, and the pitch is just spot on. Overall, you did a fantastic job with your entry. Keep at it!

ivan209: Like Reiena Grayson's entry, despite having no instrumentals to accompany, you also display potential. You know how to maintain that catchy feeling in the song, but it could also use a little more emphasis. Singing through the whole thing would be a nice plus, too. Good job, though!

Dilemma.: I like the beat you came for in your entry. However, although the emotion you went for is actually pretty good, I noticed that your pitch went off-key in a few places. I do like your attempt, though. Don't let this get you down, but I know you have space for improvement. More practice is key and it'll be well worth it in the end!

Super_Wario: As mentioned earlier, I'm a sucker for piano accompaniment. I like the vocal effects added in your entry, and it's a nice cover, too. Your pitch is also spot on, as well. I'd like for you to keep it that way, but there's also always some room for improvement, too. Otherwise, nice job!

Karaoke_Man: As a personal fan of the Pokemon series, I can recognize songs from miles away without having to search. I definitely give you props for singing to this song! The one thing I would like for you to work on is your singing pace. I understand it may have been rushed, but at the same time, it wouldn't hurt to slow down just a tiny bit and relax.

Good luck to all competitors!!!

Hello fellow Smashers, how are all of you doing? I know that the TCG has taken such a huge plunge in activity in the past months and that it's continuing to slowly die out, it seems. But myself, just like the few users who still do care about the TCG system, wants to keep it going and alive as much as possible. I know several months back The Enigma had announced and spoken of series 5 but I guess he's been really busy lately, hence the long and continued delaying of the next series of the TCG, which some of us believe caused the sharp decline in TCG activity. The TCG is a great and very fun part of our community site and has been for two years now. I'd really would like to see increased activity back into the TCG and perhaps even a revival. That's why from time to time, I like to host TCG Get Together Events to prevent the TCG from dying out completely. For our new and recent members that don't know about our TCG system and are interested, you can find out more about it in the Official TCG Trading & Support Group or you can contact my good buddy, Foodies. She's very knowledgeable and knows pretty much every exact detail about the TCG system. Or you can even check out her recent "Collecting Them All" guide, which gives an in-depth overview and explanation of how the TCG works. Much kudos to Foodies for her continued hard work, effort and dedication to our TCG system. Without further ado, here are the details for the upcoming event below.

(01) Date: Saturday, October 6th, 2012
(02) Time: 6:00 pm (Eastern USA Time)
(03) Location: Trading Floor

Hope to meet you all there!

*Note: Please always remember to keep the community site rules in mind as they will be enforced. If you are not familiar with our site rules, you can read them here. Thank you and have a nice day! (=

Hello everyone! It's that time yet again. The entries are in and now it's time for you, the people to vote and voice your opinions on the banners. Yes, you, the community will get to decide the official banner of the upcoming huge international Smash tournament, Apex 2013! There's a total of 14 entries. The rules are very simple and they are as follows:

(01) Voting will be done numerically in descending order (For example: "1" being for the top/first entry and "14" being for the bottom/last entry)

(02) You may only vote for one entry

(03) Participants may not vote for their own entries (If I find out, you will be automatically disqualified)

(04) No biased voting, please

(05) You will have an entire week to vote (Voting will end on Sunday, September 30th at midnight, eastern USA time)

Please place your vote in this thread here.

Good luck to all participants and have fun everyone!

Diska: Hello everybody! I'm here to present you guys a good-length interview with a well-known friend of mine. After all these months, it’s time for one of Brawl’s most hyped players to have a turn in the spotlight. Everyone, I present to you everyone’s favorite player to watch on stream this year. The guy who took 1st place last year on this site’s very own Ladder. The man whose offline appearance was the subject of talk everywhere when he finally showed up. The man that placed highest with ZSS at Apex 2012 and is single-handedly making ZSS one of the most fun characters in Brawl to watch on Youtube. Ladies and gentleman, I present to you… Salem!



Diska: Salem, thanks for joining me for this interview! I'm excited to be the first person to officially interview you.


Salem: Oh hey! I've kinda been waiting to be interviewed for a while, though I have been also sort of trying to avoid it till I won a tournament or something. But whatever, it's either now or never, lol. I’ve already done enough amazing things as-is anyway, even without winning a tournament, so this is fine enough.


Diska: You sure have, Salem. I'm sure many people have been just waiting to hear from you, and it's finally the time. I'm pretty psyched myself! Considering everything, I think it's safe to say you're one of the most hyped players right now for Brawl. Though you haven't won a tournament yet, I'm sure you will in the near future, and as you say, most people are quite aware of your skill level in Brawl due to the number of high level players you've been beating lately.
Actually on that note, I have a question for you. Back in '10, you were a wifi player who was relatively unknown, but more recently, your popularity has just skyrocketed! What do you think is the major reason for your improvement and success?


Salem: Hmm... well, I'm not sure of that myself really, since at that time (2010) I was more or less multitasking, doing many things. One of them actually was playing other games (ex. M.U.G.E.N. Killer Instinct Gold, Fraxy and etc.)- though I played Brawl more than anything else, I still had put time into those games and that adds up, so I'm guessing those little small things combined were a lot more than average and combining that with my Brawl knowledge helped me become better.


Diska: You feel like playing multiple games helped you to get better at Brawl? Wow... that's not something I hear very often, since many high level players make a point to stress focusing mainly on Brawl. Are there any specific concepts you can remember from those games that you think had significant influence on your Brawl playstyle?


Salem: Oh, well let’s see. Killer Instinct was more or less a rock-paper-scissors game; that helped me learn when to mixup and switch my playstyle mid-match. M.U.G.E.N. too- what I usually fought against were AI who people coded to be extremely hard to beat. This game helped tons when I was seriously getting into Brawl by helping me practice reacting faster than them and knowing when they were going to throw out an attack. Fraxy- that game taught me that I don't have to get hit if I don't want to. I could just move away (which is probably where I got the idea to start planking with ZSS). There's just soooo much stuff from those games, I could probably still learn from them now. Lol.


Diska: That's some pretty crazy stuff, Salem, no lie. I honestly feel like every game has something to be learned from it - and the more you can learn from anything you do, the more you can apply it to the next thing and it does indeed build up exponentially. A lot of Brawl players probably miss that simple fact: it's not just character vs character, it's their mind against the mind of the next guy. And all those little tricks learned from every experience in every single thing they do make the difference between winning and losing, in Smash just like in any other game.
Along the lines of little tricks, I was wondering about your opinion on Brawl's WiFi. One of your first accomplishments was winning an AiB ladder, and many consider you to be one of the very best players when it comes to winning online in the infamous laggy WiFi connection speed, which forces players to change their playstyle a bit. Many find that reads, mindgames and basically thinking ahead can help them adapt to lag. What do you think about WiFi and its effect on gameplay, and how do you adapt to its shenanigans so well?


Salem: I kinda think of WiFi the same as offline really, just slightly slower and forcing people to play differently like you said. It's amazing practice to learn MUs and learn many different things. Whether you're able to go to tourneys or not, it helps. Now how I've adapted to WiFi is kinda simple really: I literally just went into training mode, practicing all the basic things, getting the feel of everything and completely memorizing it. When I go online, there isn't much I have to change except for my speed and buffering, since if you're not careful you can SD so fast on WiFi it's not even funny.


Diska: Those are good words of advice, Salem. I know a lot of people really struggle with making that crucial adjustment to the lag - it's one of the reasons that WiFi has been getting less and less activity compared to the past. Hopefully this will help people who just need some new ideas on handling lag!
Your first offline tournament was Concentrate II. I’m sure everyone remembers how hype it was - I remember watching the stream, and you seemed entirely in your element. What did it feel like to finally break the ice and play offline for a change?


Salem: Now that was a brand new experience. Like, as soon as I went through the door, I felt so hyper, as if I could do anything. It was almost like going to your first party and just getting wasted and dancing to the music, just partying. It was fun, and of course other people were there to help that boost in hyperness of mine too. If I remember correctly, those people were Alex and Waldo, who I didn't exactly expect to be there. Lol.
That was seriously one of the best times of my life and I was surprised I did well that tourney too, since I didn't practice for some time before that tourney.


Diska: Despite you not practicing, you definitely more than lived up to the popular expectation of how well you'd do that day. Teaming with Anti, you made it all the way to an amazing 2nd place in doubles, and on your own you made it up to 5th place in singles! I can definitely agree with you that having friends there who support you can make all the difference - I remember times like that from tournaments I've been to. And the crowd supported you too, along with the livestream. Good times. Another thing I remember about that tournament was that it was MK banned, so your addition to its character diversity really made that tournament shine. Which leads me to ask, why ZSS? What made you choose her instead of a popular character like Meta Knight or Olimar?


Salem: Oh yes, this is one of my favorite questions. Now the reason I picked ZSS is because she reminds me of a girl that I was secretly in love with when I use to go to school. I believe she was my only friend there at that school too, and she had a pony tail exactly like ZSS's last I remember. But anyway, eventually I guess I just wasn't motivated enough to continue school so I stopped going. I sort of regret it... but eh, it's alright, I still have her with me in memory as ZSS and I still have 2 future careers so I can legitimately skip school and not be a bum. LOL.


Diska: A reminder of someone you care about... what a great reason to pick a main, and it's even cooler that you've gotten so far with that character. Someday, maybe, you can tell your friend about this? It'd be pretty cool to just walk up and be like "Hey, I used to sort of have a crush on you, so I picked a character in my favorite game that looked a bit like you and I became one of the best with that character." I bet that'd be such an awkward but cool experience, especially seeing her reaction, haha.
Well, we're off topic a little bit, but since you brought it up, would you like to tell us a little bit about your future career plans? It sounds interesting that you have two options. That's more than I have right now, lol. Also I'd be interested to know about what your future plans for Brawl are, if you have any.


Salem: Hmm, well, the first one is me being co-manager of my dad’s company. What they do is host little festivals and stuff and rebuild things that were once here in this city, like clubs, music stores and etc. Currently they're just basically a water bottle selling company, though I believe we had a festival this year already. The other career is me running a restaurant, since my dad apparently is too busy to do that himself. The only thing is he has yet to name the restaurant and pick a building for it to be at.
Now my future plans for Brawl... hmm, well, I kinda want to quit, but it's so fun when I keep doing amazing things. I really don't know what plans I have for this game, not yet anyway. I'll figure it out eventually though, at least before Smash 4.


Diska: Sounds exciting, Salem- you've got a lot of possibilities lined up for you right now! Make sure to keep your friends informed; with the success you've pulled off in Brawl, I'm sure you've got what it takes to succeed elsewhere. We'll be around to support you there too, just like at tournaments!
 While we're still not too far from the topic of ZSS: which ZSS matchups do you find the most crippling, and which ones do you find more easy or enjoyable to play?


Salem: Good question. I don't really know since I haven't exactly encountered a real problem with ZSS yet. A lot of the matchups are pretty close to even, at least when I play them. The matchups that I usually enjoy playing are vs MK or Snake, those are really fun and funny matchups to me.

 
Diska: Don't even get me started on how annoying the ZSS:Snake matchup is, I hate that matchup so much! Feels like no matter what I do I get juggled like I do against Peach, but I die as early as I would in a Snake ditto, lol.
So many of us struggle with dittos, but I noticed you seem pretty good at them- you beat Nick Riddle in the bracket of Apex 2012. For the past few years many people have considered him to be the best ZSS, but your recent wins are at the worst on his level. Do you think you've surpassed him?


Salem: I felt I surpassed him as soon as I called him out on stream at Concentrate II. Lmao.


Diska: If you have indeed surpassed him, then you are the best ZSS right now. In any case, if you keep up what you're doing, all doubt will be gone before long. Though some top players aren't 100% certain about your skill level because of how your gameplay looks- I even asked Nick Riddle about his opinion on you while I was at WHOBO 4, and he said that your playstyle seems like a gimmick- it's still one of the biggest reasons a lot of people enjoy watching you play. Your playstyle is flashy, but it brings the wins in. What do you think is the biggest reason for your playstyle being the way it is?


Salem: Hmm... kinda hard to say since there's many things that could be why my playstyle is this way. Most likely, if it's anything, it must be due to my brother. His playstyle was based around defensive things while mine is being offensive, so I had to learn to break his defenses down in EVERY game I played him in. I had to always bring his defense down, otherwise I'd basically be chipped out, considering he does more pokes than anything else. I had to have the most powerful offense to beat his defense, so I guess that could be why it's this way now.


Diska: All-out offense ftw! I've noticed lately that offensive-styled Brawl play has been getting more common- players like Illmatic, Nairo and yourself have been growing in number. Keep it up, Salem. It makes Brawl a lot more fun to watch than the old timeout style does.
You mentioned that you have a brother - he must have served as a pretty good rival until you started getting really good at Brawl. By now I'm sure he can't even win a match here and there against you, so I guess you get your practice from high level players online. What players do you consider your rivals in Smash right now? Also, which players do you consider to be your best offline wins?


Salem: Yeah, he kinda stopped playing Smash after I started getting really good at the game. But anyway, not at all. I don't really play high level players online a lot, I kinda just play anyone. The only player I consider my rival currently is Meek, since our placings are kinda funny. Now my best offline wins... hmm, I guess Atomsk, Will, Bizkit and Kingtoon. Not much really. Lol.


Diska: Sounds like you need some new rivals, lol. Your wins are more than many people could claim, but yeah, ever higher right? I'm looking forward to hearing that you beat Ally or ESAM one of these days, you could certainly do it. Actually, speaking of Ally, I have another question: do you ever think you'll switch mains like he did?  I know that he switched to MK after making his name famous with Snake. While I've seen you play Marth against ESAM in tournament (and you did pretty well too), I'm wondering if you're planning to get serious with any character other than ZSS.


Salem: Hmm... well, the only characters I might most likely seriously use alongside ZSS are either Snake, Marth, TL or Sonic. Most likely Snake or Sonic. Otherwise, I'm just sticking to ZSS, lol.


Diska: If you ask me, Marth is the only one of those who would appear to fit your offensive style. I know from experience that the other ones need a lot more camping and waiting. If I remember correctly, you did pretty well using Snake in doubles, teaming with Bizkit's MK. Hoping to see more of your secondaries in the future, I'm sure they'll perform just as well.
I have just two more questions before I let you head off, Salem. First, are you ever planning to go out of country for Brawl? And second, what's the next tournament we can expect to see you at?


Salem: That's another something I'm not sure of. Just expect me to be wherever Chibo is streaming. And most likely I'll go to Canada so I can try to play Ally. That's as far as I'll probably go too- I don't think I'd ever go far out to Japan or something, unless of course the Japanese win Apex again. Then hell yeah, best believe I'll be going over there.

Diska: Haha, sounds good Salem. I'm looking forward to seeing you perform on the livestreams, and good luck against Ally whenever that match comes up! If there's anyone you'd like to leave a shoutout to, this is the time for it.


Salem: Oh, shoutouts time. Shoutout to Chibo, just cause he's awesome and drives me to tourneys. Shoutout to Waldo, forever funny as hell. Shoutout to Alex, even though he needs to learn to stop making me mad, not even that hard. Shoutout to Xzax: “FALCO IS BAD MAYNE”. Shoutout to SlayerZ who some say is the WC Salem. And of course for my last shoutout, a shoutout to you, Meek; should be obvious why.


Diska: Thanks for taking the time to get this done, Salem! I appreciate it and I know everyone else will enjoy hearing from you. From all of us in the Smash Community, good luck on your upcoming tournaments, and we look forward to seeing you on the livestream.

Hello All is Brawl Ori_bro here to bring you a HUGE announcement straight from the words of the man who presented us with the largest Super Smash Bros. Tourney in history, Alex Strife.

Last year’s APEX did tremendous with entrance numbers. Brawl singles had a record breaking 400 singles entrants and 128 teams for doubles. Melee brought 318 players for singles, and 98 teams for doubles. Smash 64 capped at 64 entrants filled with the best talent from all around. On the FGC side of APEX 2012, Super Street Fighter IV had 96 entrants, Ultimate Marvel vs Capcom 3 had 128 entrants. APEX 2013 looks to take those numbers and add many more to the list. With the lineup of featured games for this year those numbers will surely be broken. The following games will be featured at the tournament.

• Super Smash Bros. Brawl
• Super Smash Bros. Melee
• Super Smash Bros.
• Ultimate Marvel vs Capcom 3
• Super Street Fighter 4 Arcade Edition 2012
• Persona 4 Arena
• Soul Calibur V
• Tekken Tag Tournament 2
• King of Fighters XIII
• Pokémon Black 2/White 2

Along with the tournaments for each game featured at APEX 2013, they will be featuring booths for some independent games. The following will be at Apex 2013.

• Super Smash Flash 2
• barabariball
• Super Smash Crusade
• Project M

- Project M will be featuring a special INVITE-ONLY tournament at Apex 2013. More info on this soon.

On top of the tournaments and game booths, APEX is bringing back the Artists Alley. We have received many applications from artists and are looking for more. If you wish to join the Artist Alley visit http://www.apex-series.com/artists-alley/ for more details.

APEX is going all out this year when it comes to partners and sponsors. What Jaxel and 8WayRun did last year for streaming APEX was an amazing thing and words can’t describe how thankful we are for it. This year will be much different. Jaxel will be back to stream but along with him we will have Bifuteki and CLASHTournaments streaming as well. That is right APEX 2013 is partnering up with 8WayRun, Bifuteki, and CLASHTournaments to bring the viewers at home 3 top notch livestreams covering every part of APEX 2013.

The sponsors for APEX 2013 this year are great as well. We have a good number number this year and they are doing a great deal for us and will only make things better. This year’s list of sponsors include...

ScrewAttack will be embedding the APEX stream on their website’s home page which recieves thousands of views daily. They will be doing on location interviews and much more. OverClocked Remix will be creating the official APEX 2013 album. The album will be available for download after APEX 2013 is over be sure to follow OC Remix to keep up to date! Dominion Method Gaming is helping by promoting APEX on the FGC side as well as helping APEX get more sponsors. Video X Games is one of APEX’s biggest sponsors. VXG is offering the VXG stipend to the winners of Super Smash Bros. Brawl, Super Street Fighter IV: Arcade Edition, and Ultimate Marvel vs Capcom 3. The winners of each game will receive a FREE , ALL EXPENSES PAID TRIP, to St. Maarten for the Video X Games. This means you will be getting a free trip to a caribbean island for winning Apex! Saber Gaming is providing pot bonuses for all the games featured. Here is how the Pot Bonuses will be handled.

• Brawl Singles $1500 + VXG Stipend
• Melee Singles $1500
• Ultimate Marvel vs Capcom 3 $1000 + VXG Stipend
• Super Street Fighter IV: Aracde Edition $1000 + VXG Stipend
• King of Fighters $250
• Tekken Tag 2 $500
• Soul Calibur V $250
• Persona 4 Arena $250

Thats all for sponsors right now. If more happen to come along APEX will keep you all updated.

APEX this year is looking to break the record books again. Everyone should try their absolute hardest to make it out this year. This tournament is looking to create history again so make sure you are there to be a part of it. It is also official that registration is now live for APEX 2013. So please visit http://www.apex-series.com/registration/ to register and we will see you at Rutgers University in New Brunswick, New Jersey January 11-13th!

All of you can find APEX on the two major Social Media websites.

• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/apex.series
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/apex_series

APEX will be updating both frequently, so keep an eye out as time goes by for more major updates.


Here is everything you need to know until the next big APEX 2013 update!

- FF Ori_bro

After a long wait, the decision as to who will move on the the next round of All is Brawl Idol 2012 has been made.

And so without further adieu, the decisions of the judges are as follows:

Kakashi of the Sharingan

Krystedez - No.
Karaoke_Man - Yes.
lobsterfest - No.
Reiena Grayson - Yes.
ivan209 - Yes.
Realityz - No.
Super_Wario - Yes.
heytallman - Yes.
Biebs - No.
.. R m 8 8 - No.
Dilemma. - Yes.
-Wedding Dress Mannie- - No.
Tarextherex - No.
StarLight - No.

lightlanayru

Krystedez - Yes.
Karaoke_Man - Yes.
lobsterfest - No.
Reiena Grayson - Yes.
ivan209 - Yes.
Realityz - No.
Super_Wario - Yes.
heytallman - Yes.
Biebs - No.
.. R m 8 8 - Yes.
Dilemma. - Yes.
-Wedding Dress Mannie- - Yes.
Tarextherex - No.
Starlight - Yes.
 
Invinciboy

Krystedez - No.
Karaoke_Man - Yes.
lobsterfest - No.
Reiena Grayson - Yes.
ivan209 - Yes.
Realityz - No.
Super_Wario - Yes.
heytallman - Yes.
Biebs - No.
.. R m 8 8 - Yes.
Dilemma. - Yes.
-Wedding Dress Mannie- - No.
Tarextherex - No.
StarLight - No.
 
The vocalists who received yeses from at least 2 of the 3 judges and who will be moving on the next round are:
 
Karaoke_Man
Reiena Grayson
ivan209
Super_Wario
heytallman
.. R m 88
Dilemma
 
Congratulations to all those who made it through to the next round and thank-you to everyone who auditioned!

Unfortunately, Invinciboy has had to take his leave from the panel of judges, and therefore our host Yoshinendo will be taking his place.
 
To those who have made it past the auditions and into Round 1 of the competition, please submit your next vocal recording by no later than Monday, September 3rd at 11:59 PM PST.
 
Invitations to the All is Brawl Idol group have been sent to those who made it through to Round 1. If you did not receive an invitation, please message any of the judges (or leave one of us a shoutout) and we will then send you one.
 
Voting will begin after all vocalists have posted their next recordings, more info on where and how to vote will be made available then.

Until then good luck to all competitors!

Another playoffs has come and gone, and I have all the results for your viewing pleasure. Let's give a round of applause to the following users!

Singles:

1st place: SlayerZ ($200)
2nd place: Ally ($100)
3rd place: Nairo ($50)
4th place: PentaSalia ($20-25)

Doubles:

1st place: Nairo and HiiiPoWeR Kyleisreal ($50 each)
2nd place: Rayquaza07 and Uno. ($25 each)

Congratulations to you all, and I'll make sure to send the results to JV so he can distribute the prizes as soon as he returns from Japan. (He can do it either via Paypal or mail, so when he sends you a notice, be sure to tell him your preference.)


On a personal note, I wanted to give a few shoutouts for the people that helped make this a good event. Keep those hands clapping!

1. Enrish and The740 (I don't care if he doesn't actually see this.)
Contrary to your words and despite this being my first time running playoffs (or any tournament for that matter,) this wasn't a living hell at all. Of course, that's probably because I followed your advice with respect to how things should be done, so thanks a lot for the pointers. Where would I be without your guidance, O Mighty Senseis?

2. Meek.
That stream of yours was a very nice touch, and brought quite a bit of hype for singles. It was a shame to see it die down as the matches became less and less, but I guess it's to be expected when a majority play ahead and leave the rest to play whenever. Regardless, I'm glad you suggested it, and I hope you'll consider doing it again in the future.

3. All of the participants.
As Enrish said time and time again, you guys are what make or break playoffs. In my opinion, things went pretty well without too many hiccups. Sure there were some disqualifications, but I'm not too concerned about that. This isn't a perfect world, so it's to be expected that the brackets may have stragglers. Anyway, thank you all for your awesome cooperation.


Now, let's talk about the next ladder season. Come August 31st, there will be two big changes  for the ladder system.

1. Double Meta Knight is banned from doubles ladder. The public has spoken, and we've decided to give it a try. So, from here on out, only one Meta Knight will be allowed per team.

2. Badges will be tied into the match requirements. Out of the three proposals previously made public, Enrish and I decided to go with only one: match requirements for badges. This is to prevent users from playing one or two matches and making it into the top 64 or 32 for a badge. That being said, we realize activity has declined over the seasons, so we won't make the limits too crazy. They are as follows: 25 matches for singles, and 10 for doubles. If users can meet those requirements, there's no reason they can't play a few extra matches to make the playoffs requirements, especially if everyone else will be fighting to meet them as well.

Another thing to note is that this season may very well be an Apex qualifier, just like last year. This requires neal, though, but since he's the only one who can change seasons, I don't see how he wouldn't be able to make it happen. Stay tuned for an official update when the fall ladder starts.


That's about all I have to say. Congratulations again to the victors, and to those who wish to compete this season, I wish you the best of luck!

P.S. To those players who still never received their prizes, JV still hasn't returned from vacation. However, he told me before he left that he sent messages about adresses or accounts to send the payments to, and never got replies. Please send him the necessary information again via AiB PM or email so that he can tend to it upon returning.

P.P.S. Here are the links to the brackets: http://oi45.tinypic.com/6pswes.jpg (singles) and http://oi45.tinypic.com/2pyqlh4.jpg (doubles)