NSW Smash 4 Power Rankings Q4 2016

1. Luco (Lucas) (+1) – With Killy's absence this quarter, the Sydney scene has been left with an open 1st position, allowing Luco to dominate the region by the convincing use of his namesake over the past quarter. Winning 1 YSB and 2 GCO events, placing 5th at the EB Expo major and only dropping sets to Scott and Killy, Luco has solidified himself as Sydney's top player this period, as well as a national threat and is also a member of the worldwide organisation 4BR. His Ness has been mysteriously absent over most of the period however, and it will remain to be seen whether this is a short vacation or a move towards a single main in the future.

2. MM (Palutena, Mario) (+1) – One of Sydney's finest returns in style with a mix of old and new characters. MM saw two very close sets with Luco and Jeese which garnered him 3 rd at GXO. He also took 9 th at EB Expo over Extra and 2 nd at Final Fight 5 taking out Kristoph. MM has been keeping the Sydney scene strong this quarter and retains his title as top 5 Palutena worldwide.

2. Kristoph (Sonic, Bowser) (+5) – Hailing from Wollongong, Kristoph has been an up and rising force in the Sydney scene for a long time. Recently, his performances with Bowser, Falcon and Sonic have seen him climb new heights. To his name he has 5th at EB Expo (tied with Luco), 2nd at GCO 3, and 3rd at Final Fight 5. With wins over SaucyDancer, MM, Extra, and even the New England PR'd Bayonetta HazMatt, Kristoph is definitely a force to be reckoned with and is applauded for taking his characters, his scene, and himself to the next level.

4. Jeese (Charizard) (+1) – Another Sydney staple, Jeese has been the most consistently active player this quarter and his Charizard remains a tightly shut gate to all but Sydney's best players. Under his belt, Jeese has wins over MM and the New England PR'd player HazMatt. With 9th at EB Expo and 2nd at GXO; Jeese is one of the scene's strongest players on a fundamental level, quickly adapting and punishing with a heavy-hitting, under-utilised character and this panel commends him for taking Charizard as far as he has.

5. Joe (Zero Suit Samus) (+7) – One of the scene's youngest players and representative of the 'teen meems' crew, Joe has had an outstanding year and a general rise this quarter. With wins on MM and Jeese, and 2nd place at YSB #46 only losing to Waveguider, Joe has certainly come far since even just the past few months. Joe has recently found a niche in his Bayonetta to complement his already strong ZSS, so going into the new year he may be seen laddering his opponents with either character.

6. Fruit (Random) (RETURN) – With an incredible choice of main, Fruit returns to rankings since his debut on Sydney's first ever Smash 4 PR. He has wins on Killy, Enn, Buster and Invisi this period, and despite what you may expect from his character choice, Fruit is a very consistent player. He is a regular sight in top 8 at local events, placing 4th at the last two GCO tournaments of Q4. Fruit actively practices every character on the roster, and combined with his good fundamentals he will take full advantage of unsuspecting opponents with whichever character he is given.

7. Enny (Cloud) (+3) – The meme machine returns and has successfully broken his 10th-place curse. Enn has moved away from Ness this quarter and focused on Cloud; with this he has seen an array of mostly positive results finding wins on the likes of MM, Jeese and Scarpian. Enn's ride has been slightly bumpier than usual, with his most recent placings being well below his usual performance. However his very strong wins towards the beginning of this quarter helped boost his overall performance such that it is still worthy of a spot on this PR.

8. Atyeo (Fox) (NEW) – The grandmaster returns and has made an ample splash to include himself on Sydney's power rankings this quarter. Fox has been Atyeo's character since release and seen him through some of Australia's largest events. This quarter Atyeo has seen wins on Jeese, Fruit and Enn - And even with the limited records to his name available this season, it has become clear Atyeo, similar to Jeese sets a bar for the players below him to conquer and is rarely upset.

9. Invisi (Jigglypuff, Rosalina & Luma) (NEW) – Invisi is a long time Brawl veteran of the Sydney scene, and throughout Smash 4 his Jigglypuff has been a constant threat with numerous upsets on top players. This year he has added Rosalina to his character roster and his continued improvement with her has helped increase the consistency of his results enough to be included on this PR. To his credit, he has wins this quarter over the likes of Kristoph and Joe, and even managed to upset his pool at SXC by defeating Con.

10. Buster (Link) (NEW) – Rounding off this PR comes Buster, current #2 in Wollongong and long-time aspirant to the Sydney rankings. Buster's Link has shown a host of impressive placings including 9th at EB Expo and has wins on Scarpian and Invisi this period, whilst suffering mostly very acceptable losses. As such, this panel hopes Buster will continue commuting to Sydney in 2017 and strive for even greater heights.



HM. Killy (Sonic, Bayonetta) – Killy's absence this quarter is a stark contrast to his iron grip on the scene over the rest of the past year. Due to various circumstances Killy has been almost entirely missing from the scene however this panel recognises the achievements he has made over the course of the year, including going a quarter without losing to a single NSW player and thus feels it would be in-sincere to not include him on this list somewhere.

HM. SaucyDancer (Mewtwo) – SaucyDancer has been contesting Sydney's top PR placings since early this year and has seen incredibly strong placings interstate including 5 th at OHN and 3 rd at Stacked 3 losing only to Jezmo. Coming in at 12 th on the Australia-wide PR, SaucyDancer took a break towards the end of the q3 period and is looking to return come 2017. The scene eagerly awaits his return; but in the mean-time he is placed here in an honourable nod to one of our scene's missing giants.

HM. Scott (Cloud) – A long time top player since Brawl, Scott has relegated himself mostly to online and watched the Sydney scene grow. However recently, feeling eager to prove himself he once again participated at various Sydney tournaments around the q3/early q4 period and instantly *dominated* them, only dropping to Killy and having a positive record vs everyone else including a 2-0 record on Luco, whilst achieving the highest NSW placing at EB Expo. Since then Scott has taken a break from the competitive scene, but in honour of his ability this panel has elected to place him here.

HM. Shaya (Zero Suit Samus) – Another long time top player and a leader of the worldwide organisation 4BR, Shaya has been nurturing the Sydney scene as early as most care to remember. Shaya is definitely able to contest this scene's top players and although his current placings have been slightly more erratic, due to inactivity and a recognition of his overall accomplishments he shares the HMs position with the others listed here.

HM. Scarpian (Ryu) - Scarpian has been a consistent gatekeeper and one of this scene's high-level players since the release of Smash 4. Recently, sensing high amounts of pressure to place well and arguably more critical reviews, Scarpian has taken a back seat this quarter and elected to focus on a more enjoyable tournament experience playing some of his less-seen characters such as Link, Falcon, Mac and even Ganon. This panel is excited to see Scarpian's drive once again re-ignited, but in the meantime he is seated as an honourable mention to reflect his raw skill.



Hidden Bosses: Trojans (Sheik) and Rainbow (Peach) – Trojans accomplishes a mention on this PR quarter after a very notable 1 st placing at GCO 4. Trojans' Sheik is refined and efficient and although inconsistent is very capable of beating good players and making good spots. Rainbow is placed here for a near equally as admirable 2 nd at the same tournament, and is likely the best Peach in Australia for Melee, Brawl and Smash 4. Given his top Melee performances, this panel understands Rainbow's commitment to smash 4 is limited but places him here as a noteworthy challenger.



Overall, this quarter has hinted at more to come for the Sydney Smash scene going into the New Year. The end of the previous year leaves us with promising developments and it's anybody's guess what comes next. Sydney has shown the country at various majors that at its peak it makes a great case as one of the strongest regions in Australia, and although lack of attendance from some of its strongest players this latest period has left the scene hungering for more, this panel hopes moving into 2017 that the Sydney scene (and the adjoining Newcastle and Wollongong scenes) will be back in full force and thriving, ready to take on everything competitive smash is ready to throw. From this panel to the scene both locally and at large,

Thank you.