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Item Name:	Grand Seiko SBGM221 GMT
Price:	$3500
# of Spots:	100
Approval Link	https://mod.reddit.com/mail/inprogress/k88ld
Price Justification:	$3699 January 10, 2021
Price Justification:	$4000 November 4, 2020
Price Justification:	$3400 January 2020
Price Justification:	$3695 December 12, 2020
Price Justification:	$3750 November 24, 2020
Call spots?	Y
Spot limit per person?	0
Location/Country:	Florida, USA
Will ship international?	USA
Timestamp/pics:	https://imgur.com/a/tdJRPPz / https://imgur.com/a/47aEsm1
Escrow:	phillygoat for u/joe_cas
Description:	MINT condition Grand Seiko SBGM221. One of the best looking GMT out there and like all GS, it plays with light beautifully. Comes with full kit (Box and papers)! It keeps great time, great movement, and beautiful ivory dial.

PayPal Info: https://paypal.me/phillygoat
​
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Famitsu Magazine's January 2021 issue had released the results of its Genshin Impact Fan Survey that they run on their 3 platforms: Famitsu website, Famitsu mobile app, and Dengeki Online. The survey ran between Nov. 6 to Nov. 15, 2020. There were (less or more than) 1850 people who responded to the survey.
Survey Demographics: 82% Male, 18% Female. Most responses are in their 20's, followed by 30's and 10's.
Take note that this survey is mostly influenced before the Patch 1.1 update.
Original article here: 『原神』ユーザー1850人が回答したファンアンケートの結果を公開！ 好きなキャラクターやいちばん苦戦した魔物は？ - ファミ通.com (famitsu.com)
Note: Take note that I use machine translations here, so these translations are kinda bumpy. Feel free to comment if you spot any mistakes or correct some translations.

Who's your favorite character?

​ There are some who liked them because of their cuteness or coolness, but more than that, they like them because of their strength and utility. There are also people who like them because of their mobile Elemental Skills, which can be useful for exploration.
10.) Jean (85 responses)
9.) Barbara (89 responses)
8.) Noelle (101 responses)
7.) Fischl (107 responses)
6.) Mona (121 responses)
5.) Lumine/Hotaru/Traveler (Female) (131 responses)

• Her idle animations are so cute! (30's / Male)
• She can conveniently change elements and at the top of that, she's cute! (40's / Female)
• Excellent elemental skills for both combat and exploration. It's very convenient and can be incorporated into any kind of team formation! (10's / Female)

4.) Qiqi/Nana (139 responses)

• I like the feeling of 'breaking the seal' on her compelling voice when I raise her friendship level. (20's / male) (Thanks Tsumaranchan)
• I like her cute appearance, her cute personality, Yukari Tamura's pretty voice, and her ability to use both as an attacker and as a healer. All in all, I love it. (30's / female)

3.) Diluc (156 responses)

• He's so cool and has a lot of firepower. (30's / female)
• I'm attracted to a "dark knight" who protects Mondstadt behind the scenes while running a winery. (10's / male)
• His elemental skills are easy to use, and can deal a lot of damage within its reach. (10's / female)

2.) FBI bait Jean bait Klee (207 responses)

• She's so powerful you'd want to pursue (her damage) to its limit! (40's / male)
• Lolis are the best! (10's / male)
• Cute is justice! (20's / male)
• Because she's both cute and strong! (20's / male)
• I like the piquant character and because she is cute. I thought the "Fleeing Sunlight" would appropriately describe her. (30's / male)

1.) Keqing/Kokusei (238 responses)

• Consistent DPS and good for exploration due to her mobility. No other character can replace her. (30's / male)
• She's strong; doesn't have any problems dealing in melee or ranged combat. ()20's / male)
• She's easy to cause Elemental Reactions and works well with other characters. Also, she's cute! (20's / male)
• Because she's my first 5-star I pulled (10's / male)
• The fact that I can move in any direction with her Elemental Skill, I can do plunging attacks to the ground. (20's / male)
• She's cute and strong! (10's / male)
• While her Elemental Skills are useful for exploration, her powerful Charged Attack is really appealing. (10's / male)

Which female character would you like to have as your girlfriend?

​ Jean, the Acting Grand Master of the Knights of Favonius/the West Wind (Zephyrus), takes the first place. Rather than citing her attractiveness, many people praised her perseverance.
1.) Jean (238 responses)

• I like the fact that she is rational and calm. (20's / female)
• She seems to care for the family and she would cook for me. (10's / male)
• She's sincere and honest. I would like to support on her side. (30's / male)
• She usually gives the impression of being serious, but when she "switch off," she seems to be surprisingly soft. (20's / male)

2.) Keqing/Kokusei (224 responses)

• I like the fact that she's very serious and works harder than anyone else. (20's / male)
• She seems to be able to point out on what's wrong. (30's / male)
• I want to see her embarrassed face! (10's / male)
• I like her dignified appearance (20's / male)

3.) Barbara (192 responses)

• Her looks and personality are just right (20's / male)
• She's kind and cute; and can cook too. (20's / male)
• She can heal me mentally as well. (20's / male)
• White pantyhose/tights are the best! (50's / male)
• I want to listen to her singing all the time (30's / male)

4.) Lumine/Hotaru/Traveler (Female) (176 responses)
5.) Noelle (157 responses)

Which male character would you like to have as your boyfriend?

​ Cool, strong, and wealthy, Diluc is an overwhelming favorite! Regardless of gender, many players like him.
1.) Diluc (612 responses)

• Tall, rich, strong, and handsome! (30's / male)
• After reading the official manga, I found out of his kindness, and I liked him even more! (20's / female)
• An ideal hero. I can trust him. (40's / male)
• I'd like to shoulder some justice that he bears. (20's / female)

2.) Kaeya/Gaia (173 responses)

• I'd like to be his drinking buddy and have a quiet conversation with him. (30's / female)
• I'll be having a good time with him. (30's / female)
• I would like to talk to him, because he seems to know a lot of things. (10's / male)

3.) Venti (150 responses)

• Whenever I feed sad, he'll cheer me up with his songs and ballads. It doesn't matter what troubles I have whenever I see his flippant attitude. (10's / female)
  
• He's cute, it's so unfair. (20's / female)
  

4.) Xingqiu/Yukuaki (139 responses)
5.) AetheSora/Traveler (Male) (88 responses)

Which characters do you use more often?

​ While the top three remained the same as in the favorite character ranking (but not in the same slots, sans the other one,) the fourth and fifth places are different.
​ Ones who made it in are Venti, with his powerful Elemental Burst, and Fischl, with Oz as her excellent support.
1.) Klee (225 responses)
2.) Keqing/Kokusei (217 responses)
3.) Diluc (202 responses)
4.) Venti (147 responses)
5.) Fischl (134 responses)
6.) Lumine/Hotaru/Traveler (Female) (110 responses)
7.) Noelle (107 responses)
8.) Qiqi/Nana (99 responses)
9.) Jean (87 responses)
10.) Razor (86 responses)

What's your favorite weapon type?

1.) Swords (One-handed sword) (692 responses)
2.) Claymores (Two-handed sword) (622 responses)
3.) Catalyst (TL note: Original Japanese word for catalysts are hurting my brain) (277 responses)
4.) Bow (173 responses)
5.) Polearms (86 responses)

Which weapon type do you often use?

1.) Swords (One-handed sword) (699 responses)
2.) Claymores (Two-handed sword) (546 responses)
3.) Catalyst (363 responses)
4.) Bow (222 responses)
5.) Polearms (20 responses)

Tell us which relic set you like the most in terms of design!

​ Gladiator's Finale, a relic with a gladiator motif, received more responses than second place's responses.
​ This relic is relatively easy to obtain with its excellent +18% Attack stat two-set effect. It's possible that many players voted not only by its aesthetics, but also the power it gives.
1.) Gladiator's Finale (407 responses)
2.) Berserker (176 responses)
3.) Crimson Witch of Flames (Witch of the Blazing Flames) (175 responses)
4.) Wanderer's Troupe (Wandering Troupe of the Earth) (173 responses)
5.) Maiden Beloved (155 responses)
6.) Bloodstained Chivalry (96 responses)
7.) The Exile (84 responses)
8.) Martial Artist (77 responses)
9.) Retracting Bolide (65 responses)
10.) Noblesse Oblige (56 responses)

Which enemies do you have the hardest time to deal with?

​ Oceanid (Pure Water Spirit) took the top, beating out Stormterror Dvalin and the Lupus Boreas!
​ It seems that many players had a hard time to deal with Oceanid with disappearing platforms and monsters of various forms.
1.) Oceanid (Pure Water Spirit) (497 responses)

• The disappearing platforms were hard to deal with (40's / male)
• Enemies are gradually becoming stronger and more troublesome. (10's / male)
• Simple yet fierce. The type of attack, range, and moveset are all far better than most elite monsters. (20's / male)
• It's hard to deal with those flying monsters. (40's / male)

2.) Lupus Boreas (King of the North Wind, Dominator of Wolves) (250 responses)

• Even if you're getting used to it, if you're not careful, you'll easily lose this fight because of its unpredictable attacks. (40's / male)
• Its attacks on its second phase are difficult to avoid (30's / male)

3.) Stormterror Dvalin (231 responses)

• Because its ranged attacks are so strong. (10's / male)
• I couldn't figure out the gimmick on moving between platforms. (20's / male)
• With a limited movement range, the battle's hard. (10's / male)

4.) Ruin Hunter (110 responses)
5.) Cryo Abyss Mage (Magician of the Abyss, Ice) (103 responses)
6.) Stonehide Lawachurl (Rock-Helmeted King Hilichurl) (88 responses)
7.) Geo Hypostasis (Formless Rock) (85 responses)
8.) Fatui Skirmishers (64 responses)
9.) Ruin Guards (59 responses)
10,) Electro Hypostasis (Formless Lightning/Thunder) (52 responses)

How far have you cleared the Spiral Abyss?

When they asked about Spiral Abyss clears, the most common answer was that they had already cleared up to the 3rd Floor.
As it is the end-game content, preparation is required to conquer the Abyss. For this reason, it seems not that many players have taken the challenge seriously yet.

• Abyssal Corridor Floors:
  • Uncleared 1st Floor : 174 responses
  • 1st Floor: 80 responses
  • 2nd Floor: 151 responses
  • 3rd Floor: 448 responses
  • 4th Floor: 274 responses
  • 5th Floor: 192 responses
  • 6th Floor: 206 responses
  • 7th Floor: 91 responses
  • 8th Floor: 106 responses
• Abyssal Moon Spire Floors:
  • 9th Floor: 43 responses
  • 10th Floor: 32 responses
  • 11th Floor: 25 responses
  • 12th Floor: 28 responses

What are some of the dishes in Genshin Impact that you would actually like to try?

​ There are so many delicious-looking dishes in this game that you can almost drool over them. One of the most popular dish is the Sticky Honey Roast (Honey Sautéed Carrots and Meat,) which can be created with beast meat, carrots, and sugar.
The thick meat of the beast and the generous amount of sweet sauce stimulated the appetite and won the hearts of many players.
1.) Sticky Honey Roast (Honey Sautéed Carrots and Meat): 204 responses
2.) Sweet Madame (Baked Chicken with Sweet Flower): 196 responses
3.) Jade Parcels (Jade Lucky Bag): 159 responses
4.) Mondstadt Hash Brown (Mondo-style hashed potatoes): 155 responses
5.) Adeptus' Temptation (Calypso Orchid/Fairy Slipper): 144 responses

How many characters did you train as your main?

​ Most of the players answered that they train 4 characters as their main characters.
In this game, there are a lot of materials required for training, and in some cases, you need to use Resin to obtain them, so it takes a lot of time to train them. This result reflects the reality of the scenario.

• 1: 3%
• 2: 12%
• 3: 14%
• 4: 28%
• 5: 18%
• 6: 14%
• 7: 4%
• 8: 4%
• More than 8: 3%

Do you do Co-op/Multiplayer on a daily basis?

Yes: 31%, No: 69%
What do you think of their survey? Do you agree or not? What do you think of their choices as well?
I left out some questions and results as I'm getting lazy.
Happy Holidays everyone!
EDIT: Formatting and minor edits.
EDIT 2: Edited one of Qiqi's comments with translation provided by Tsumaranchan.

​

Item Name:	Breitling Blackbird V17310
Price:	$2800
# of Spots:	100
Price Justification:	August 3rd - $3414 - UK Sale
Price Justification:	$2993 on Nov 21st, 2020
Price Justification:	$3180 on Sep 8th 2020
Call spots?	Yessir
Spot limit per person?	nope
Location/Country:	USA
Will ship international?	USA
Timestamp/pics:	FULL ALBUM HERE
Escrow:	Yessir, u/phillygoat for u/paintslinger77
Description:	This watch gives a lesson in Badassness . It is a beast. Functions perfectly. Case is a 10/10, Strap is 9/10. I deducted a little because in certain lights there appears to be a discoloration on the strap as if it got dirty. I tried my best to find it when shooting photos. I would keep this watch if I didn’t get myself in trouble, chasing grails.

PayPal Info: [REDACTED]
​
Tip BoyAndHisBlob
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***Updated to reflect the results of the final NA Closed Qualifier match in which A-Team defeated Team DogChamp 2-1. A-Team qualifies for NA's Upper Division and Team DogChamp will start the season in the Lower Division.**\*
Welcome to DPC NA/SA Rankings
After the long wait of 2020, the DPC is back and the regional league system is here for its inaugural season. We here at Dota 2 Ranks NASA care deeply about the North American and South American regions: the players, the teams, and the rivalries. With so much coverage of EU/CIS expected this season, we’ve taken on the challenge of shining a light on two undercovered regions. Besides, EU/CIS may have better teams overall, but NA/SA is total chaos right now with drama and numerous competitive teams looking to use this chaos as a ladder to the first Major Tournament of the season.
So, we don’t want to hear about how bad NA is compared to EU. We’re here for the intrigue, and we hope you are, too. Also, if you’re completely new to the Dota Pro Circuit or want a refresher, be sure to read up on the league’s structure here.
A quick note on Power Rankings. Obviously, you can go check the DPC Point Rankings and such, but those rankings do not tell you how a team is performing at this very moment or the potential a team has compared to other teams in the hemisphere. Enter power rankings, an assessment of where each of the 16 teams in the UppeLower Divisions of NA and the 16 teams in the UppeLower Divisions of SA stand heading into the DPC season.
We hope to release new ranking systems eventually (see the bottom of this post for more details). Also, a simple plug. Rating teams between region leagues, such as rating an NA team vs. an SA team becomes easier the more those teams play each other and the same competition (wink wink hint hint, schedule more interregional tournaments Valve).
And now, without further ramblings here are where things stand before the first week of DPC Leagues kickoff in NA and SA.
Power Rankings
1. Evil Geniuses (NA Upper Division)

1. Arteezy 2. Abed 3. Iceiceice 4. Cr1t 5. Fly

What’s there to say about Evil Geniuses? EG finished a respectable 6th (despite being on hiatus for much of 2020) in the OMEGA League: Europe Immortal Division, arguably the biggest tournament of 2020. EG have reloaded a depleted and scattered roster by adding SEA standout Position 3 iceiceice and returning Abed as Mid Laner. EG still has Arteezy at carry. EG is the heavy favorite to dominate NA’s Upper Division and has the talent to be the best team in the hemisphere. Sure, there are questions to be answered. Arteezy wasn’t enough to power EG to wins in June 2020 when they finished a disappointing 3rd in both the BTS Pro Series Season 2: Americas and ESL One Birmingham 2020 - Online: North & South America. Also, we won’t know how the chemistry of this newly reloaded EG team will work until they start playing games. Regardless, it won’t be a surprise if this team ends up at the top of NA again.
2. Quincy Crew (NA Upper Division)

1. YawaR 2. Quinn 3. Lelis 4. MSS. 5. SVG

The kings of the online tournament scene in NA/SA during 2020, Quincy Crew played in the Grand Finals of every tournament they competed in. Quincy Crew benefited greatly from Evil Geniuses taking a hiatus from regional competition, but even more from the addition of Lelis (formerly of Ninjas in Pyjamas) at the Position 3. Headlined by arguably the best solo mid player in the hemisphere, Quinn, Quincy Crew also laid claim to having the best position 4 and 5 in NA during much of 2020. The only major question will be if YawaR’s play can carry this team into the first Major Tournament of the year and a top two finish in NA’s Upper Division.
3. Thunder Predator (SA Upper Division)

1. Mnz 2. Leostyle- 3. Frank 4. MoOz 5. Mjz

The top team in South America during 2020, Thunder Predator wasn’t satisfied playing for second in tournaments with Quincy Crew almost always coming out on top. So Thunder Predator looked to upgrade where they could. Adding more players with Major Tournament experience in Frank and MoOz, Thunder Predator has rebuilt itself into the dominant favorite to win SA’s Upper Division. Only Infamous proved to be a consistent challenge for Thunder Predator in SA towards the end of 2020. But, Thunder Predator finished 2020 strong by winning the BTS Pro Series Season 4: Americas, the final tournament of the year.
4. 4Zoomers (NA Upper Division)

1. Sammyboy 2. Gunnar 3. Brax 4. Oceania 5. Husky

The young guns of NA Dota return after an up and down first season in 2020. 4Zoomers broke onto the NA scene in a big way knocking out a substitute filled EG squad and pushing Quincy Crew to a full five games in the Grand Finals of the BTS Pro Series: Americas Season 2. 4Zoomers would turn in several more respectable 2nd and 3rd place finishes, but they hit a rough patch of poor tournament performances in the fall. As a result, a change on the squad had to be made.
The final decision raised more than a few eyebrows when it was announced veteran “boomer” and Position 3 Monkeys-Forever had parted ways with the team, and not 4Zoomers’ immature and hot headed hard carry SammyBoy. After a tryout with Zero (now with Black N Yellow) did not end well, 4Zoomers lucked into convincing Brax, one of the best Position 3 players in the hemisphere to sign up for the DPC season. With Brax onboard, 4Zoomers found themselves in the Grand Finals of the last tournament of the year, but fell to Thunder Predator in a close series. If Brax can bring some maturity and top tournament experience to the more junior members of 4Zoomers they might be able to take the next step towards becoming a consistent challenge to NA’s top dogs, EG and Quincy Crew.
5. Infamous (SA Upper Division)

1. Pakazs 2. Mr. Jeans 3. Papaya 4. Michael 5. Accel

The biggest surprise of 2020 in South American Dota, was Infamous. Infamous comes into the DPC as one of the hottest teams, but Infamous did not start 2020 nearly as well as it finished. Inconsistent results in both SA and NA/SA tournaments plagued the squad for much of the year. The team determined kxy (Faker) to be the cause of the inconsistencies and parted ways with the young and often tiltable Mid Laner. In kxy’s place, Infamous added Mr. Jeans from EgoBoys. With the change at Mid Laner, Infamous showed immediate improvement making it all the way to the Grand Finals of Realms Collide: The Burning Darkness, knocking off 4Zoomers and Thunder Predator along the way. In three months this team went from an afterthought in South America to a top threat to the traditional NA/SA powerhouse teams.
6. Undying (NA Upper Division)

1. Timado 2. Bryle 3. SabeRLight 4. MoonMeander 5. Dubu

It was not surprising to anyone that a team with TI experience (Timado, Moonmeander), the former coach of SEA powerhouse Fnatic (Dubu), and [as of writing] the number 1 ranked player in EU (SabeRLight) would be competitive. What was surprising was how absolutely dominant Undying looked in NA’s Closed Qualifiers. This team has only played together for two weeks and already looks ready for primetime. With so much talent, so much potential, it will fall to less heralded Mid Laner Bryle to determine how far this team can go. Often outmatched by top NA/SA Mid Laners like Quinn, Leostyle, and Chris Luck, it will fall to Bryle to hold his own in the Mid Lane to create space for his stellar Position 1/Position 5 combo of Timado and Dubu. Already showing results beyond the sum of its parts, Undying with SabeRLight could find themselves in the fight for Major Tournament qualifying against the likes of EG and Quincy Crew.
7. SadBoys (NA Upper Division)

1. Fear 2. dnm 3. Moo 4. Sneyking 5. ppd

Call it a comeback. ppd is back from a short lived retirement and he’s brought fellow TI winner Fear along for the ride. The former Evil Genius TI winners have assembled an NA pubstar team of sorts bringing on Moo and Sneyking from recently disbanded Team Zero (the only team to defeat Quincy Crew in a tournament Grand Finals in the second half of 2020). Newcomer Mid Laner dnm rounds out the SadBoys lineup as they head into their first NA Upper Division Season with a direct invite. SadBoys have been a work in progress during their formation. The team made significant strides in terms of chemistry and results during the last tournament of the year. If SadBoys continue to improve, they could make the race for a top 2 finish in NA’s Upper Division very interesting.
8. Beastcoast (SA Upper Division)

1. K1 2. Chris Luck 3. Whisper 4. Scofield 5. Stinger

It’s remarkable in a year with so much player turnover beastcoast was able to retain and reassemble the 5 players that powered it to an 8th place finish at TI9 in 2019 (back then this roster played under the Infamous banner). Beastcoast dominated South America early on in the year, but for one reason or another, beastcoast lost their momentum and never finished higher than 4th place in any NA/SA tournaments. Still, beastcoast brings talent, experience, and familiarity few teams in NA/SA can match. It would not be surprising to see them recapture their competitive stride this year to challenge Thunder Predator and Infamous for the top spot in SA. It would also not be surprising for beastcoast to drift along in mediocrity.
9. Black N Yellow (NA Upper Division)

1. YamSun 2. Ryoya 3. zero 4. FLee 5. Jubei

An NA “pubstars” team if there ever was one. Black N Yellow have formed around talented Mid Laner Ryoya. Ryoya spent much of 2020 as a Mid Laner for hire finding success as a stand in for Evil Geniuses and then dominating Quinn (Quincy Crew Position 2) during the DOTA Summit 13 Online: Americas as a member of Team Zero. Team Zero would be the only team to beat Quincy Crew in a Grand Finals after Lelis joined them as a permanent member. Team Zero’s success against Quincy Crew would be short-lived as the team disbanded a few weeks later due to “personality conflicts” between its players. This left Ryoya looking to fill out a team for the DPC. That team, Black N Yellow, has talent, but looks like it needs some time to figure out chemistry and playstyle. YamSun is the biggest question mark for Black N Yellow, bringing the least experience and accolades to the team. NA’s Upper Division will be a trial by fire for Black N Yellow’s hard carry. It’ll be a tough spot, compounded by the side-by-side comparisons he’ll attract to other established carry players in the Upper Division including Arteezy, Fear, YawaR, and even SammyBoy.
10. SG e-sports (SA Upper Division)

1. Costabile 2. 4dr 3. kingrd 4. thiolicor 5. KJ

The former Team Brasil roster, now signed with SG e-sports, earned an Upper Division direct invite from league organizer Dota Pit on the back of a first place finish in November’s Movistar Liga Pro Gaming Season 6. While SG e-sports found success in SA action at the end of the year, they were not competitive in NA/SA competition during the rest of 2020. This SG e-sports team doesn’t lack TI or Major Tournament experience, but they were not able to translate it into much success. Can the clean slate created by the start of DPC season be the opportunity they need to build momentum?
11. Omega Gaming (SA Upper Division)

1. Mingatte 2. Darkmango 3. Oscar 4. Matthew 5. Panda

The top finisher in SA’s Closed Qualifier, Omega Gaming may have found its missing piece in Matthew (the former Position 4 for Thunder Predator). After receiving a direct invite to the Closed Qualifier, this new look Omega Gaming went undefeated in round robin play to clinch an SA Upper Division spot. After limited success in 2020, their best finish was 6th in Realms Collide: The Burning Darkness, Omega Gaming looks to break into the DPC in a major way.
12. Team Unknown (SA Upper Division)

1. Berna 2. Robo-Z 3. Drakeel 4. Wij 5. Yadomi

Team Unknown had a quiet 2020 to say the least. Focusing on building a team around its core players with Major Tournament experience (Berna and Wij), Team Unknown competed almost entirely in local tournaments and SA regionals. Team Unknown tested the NA/SA tournament waters during Realms Collide: The Burning Darkness, but were eliminated immediately by finishing in the bottom four of the round robin phase. Hype for this team is slowly growing after they finished 2nd in SA’s Closed Qualifiers, beating every team except for first place finisher Omega Gaming. We’ll see if this under the radar team is up to the task in SA’s Upper Division.
13. EgoBoys (SA Upper Division)

1. NaoG 2. Alone 3. Sacred 4. Ins 5. Prada

EgoBoys assembled a completely new roster of players to head into DPC 2021. Picked from other SA teams and organizations, this EgoBoys squad is built around Position 5 player Prada (the only player on the roster with Major Tournament experience). This current incarnation of EgoBoys did show flashes of talent, and clearly play together at a talent level beyond their individual rankings. After a lackluster round robin phase of the Closed Qualifiers, EgoBoys started to click taking down Infinity Esports and Latam Defenders on their way to qualifying for SA’s Upper Division.
14. 5ManMidas (NA Upper Division)

1. Lies 2. RRL 3. Monster 4. Aikster 5. Shoe

A surprise addition by league organizer Beyond the Summit to the slate of direct invites to NA’s Closed Qualifier. But, the 5ManMidas core of RRL, Monster, and Shoe and newly added NoPango alums Lies and Aikster took care of business defeating Electronic Boys and It's Okay on their way to qualifying for NA’s Upper Division. This new look 5ManMidas will be hard pressed against their fellow Upper Division opponents not to find themselves in a fight to avoid relegation as one of the bottom 2 teams in the Upper Division.
15. simply TOOBASED (NA Lower Division)

1. boris 2. iAnnihilate 3. monkeys-forever 4. zfreek 5. empyreaN

It took a few tries, but NA veteran and journeyman monkeys-forever has found a competitive team to compete with in the 2021 DPC. After two days of failed attempts to qualify through NA’s Open Qualifiers, many teams reshuffled lineups. The best players of floundering teams organized themselves into “pubstar” teams to have a better chance of qualifying into the Lower Division. Of these Open Qualifier pubstar teams simply TOOBASED is probably the best, and proved as much by smashing their way through the third day of Open Qualifiers while also beating fellow Lower Division qualifier the Cut along the way. It will be interesting to see how a team that scrambled to assemble itself will develop chemistry over an entire year of competition. If simply TOOBASED can figure it out, they could be a team to watch for a top 2 finish in the Lower Division.
16. Latam Defenders (SA Upper Division)

1. Cucahook 2. Sueño 3. Valqui 4. Moonlight 5. Aretes

It seemed Latam Defenders, after receiving a direct invite to SA’s Closed Qualifiers, was destined for Lower Division mediocrity. Made up of mostly inexperienced players with limited regional tournament experience and success, many did not think much of Latam Defenders’ chances. But, Latam Defenders had other ideas. After squeaking through the round robin phase of the Closed Qualifier, Latam Defenders caught fire, knocking off Incubus Club twice and taking a game from EgoBoys in the knockout playoffs on their way to secure the last slot in the Upper Division. We’ll see if Latam Defenders can rise to the challenge of competition in SA’s Upper Division.
17. 0-900 (SA Lower Division)

1. Madara 2. kxy 3. Greedy 4. Sl4d1n- 5. Jericho

SA standouts kxy (Faker) and Sl4d1n- formed this stack after parting ways with their respective teams in 2020. Their former teams would go on to receive direct invites into the Upper Division and Closed Qualifiers. Faced with a difficult bracket in the one and only open qualifier for the SA regional league, 0-900 dominated. The cherry on top was taking down One Million in the finals of the Open Qualifier. The Brazilian squad of One Million, stacked with talented players and Major tournament experience, was no match for this hungry 0-900 squad. 0-900 has the pieces to put together a top 2 finish and promotion into the Upper Division. Playing with chips on their shoulders of being dropped from teams and denied direct invites to the DPC from league organizer Dota Pit, we’ll see if Faker, Sl4d1n-, and the rest of 0-900 can challenge for a top 2 finish in the SA Lower Division.
18. A-Team (NA Upper Division)

1. Rises 2. Princee 3. TheBloodSky 4. Szabo 5. TBD

The biggest unknown when it comes to teams in NA, A-Team stands at a crossroads. After blasting through the second day of Open Qualifiers, A-Team secured a Closed Qualifier spot. A-Team was outmatched by Undying in the first round of the Closed Qualifer, but were able to rebound and knock off Electronic Boys to make it to a finals showdown with Team DogChamp where the winner would clinch the last NA Upper Division slot. However, the day before the match, league organizer Beyond the Summit (BTS) and Valve announced A-Team’s most well known player (position 5 DeMoN) was banned from the DPC for previous, substantiated misconduct at past Dota 2 tournaments. It was a shock for the ban to come so late into the qualifiers and another example of BTS poor decision making when it comes to NA Dota 2 players with personal connections. It appears Valve had to step in and enforce a ban which BTS was either unwilling or unable to implement themselves. This lack of conviction and consistent leadership has left BTS in full on damage control.
We’ll see in the rescheduled match with Team DogChamp on January 13, 2020 [Update: A-Team Defeated Team DogChamp 2-1] if the remaining members of A-Team can pick up the pieces, find a suitable replacement, and regain competitive form in either the Upper or Lower Division.
19. Incubus Club (SA Lower Division)

1. Benny 2. mini 3. Jupiter 4. MahhxD 5. Nuages

The former players of Jaguares Esports have reformed for this incarnation of Incubus Club ahead of their first DPC season. In 2020, these player’s best results came around December in the BTS Pro Series Season 4: Americas tournament. Knocking off Infinity Esports in the SA Open Qualifier for the last tournament of 2020, Incubus Club found limited success in the tournament itself finishing last in the round robin stage, but were able to win a series 2-0 against Arkosh Gaming. This result was enough for Dota Pit to send a direct invite to the CQ for the DPC regional league Incubus Club’s way. Incubus Club found some success in the round robin portion placing 3rd out of the 8 CQ teams, but lost two separate series to Latam Defenders in the knockout playoffs to wind up starting the season in SA’s Lower Division.
20. Infinity Esports (SA Lower Division)

1. Arms 2. PiPi 3. LittleBoy 4. Pamplona 5. SexyeYogye

Hard Carry Arms headlines Infinity Esports as they look to move up from the Lower Division in SA. During the Closed Qualifiers, Infinity Esports found moderate success and managed to win a game against Upper Division bound Ego Boys in the round robin stage. That success was short lived as a rematch with EgoBoys in the knockout bracket of the Closed Qualifier forced Infinity Esports into SA’s Lower Division. Still, this team has shown they can compete and will not be an easy win for teams looking to make a run in SA’s Lower Division.
21. Team DogChamp (NA Lower Division)

1. MightyMarcus 2. raylalisa 3. lukiluki 4. yarintheslayer 5. Bloody Nine

The breakout team of the first day of NA Open Qualifiers, Team DogChamp blew through the competition (including a 2-0 victory over Arkosh Gaming) to earn a spot in the Closed Qualifier. After losing in the first round of the Closed Qualifier to eventual Upper Division qualifier Black N Yellow, Team DogChamp knocked out the Closed Qualifier direct invite Byzantine Raiders before setting up a finals match with A-Team. Winner of this one (to be played Jan 13) goes to the Upper Division, the loser is knocked down to the Lower Division [Update: A-Team Defeated Team Dog Champ 2-1].
Time and time again our rankings team tuned into SammyBoy’s (4Zoomers Position 5) streamer coverage of the NA Open Qualifiers to hear him criticize Team DogChamp’s Position 3 lukiluki’s play, only to have Team DogChamp win, and win again, and again. With lukiluki a known entity in the Dota 2 streaming sphere it will be hard for this team to shake the mantle of “lukiluki’s new team.” But, let’s be clear. Raylalisa, BNine, Marcus, and yarin can compete, and with a constant chip on their shoulders from the dismissive attitude shown by more established NA teams, this might be an underDogChamp story to follow.
22. Electronic Boys (NA Lower Division)

1. Speeed 2. Mio 3. Giant 4. DoublA 5. abinozebra1

Electronic Boys comes into the NA Lower Division with a big question mark hanging over their heads. How competitive will this team be? After falling to A-Team in the finals of the Open Qualifiers on the second day of competition, Electronic Boys managed to make it into the Closed Qualifier by winning a third place match and filling the vacancy left by a disqualified VirtusProPolar squad. It was 5ManMidas and then A-Team again dealing losses to Electronic Boys in the Closed Qualifier, forcing them into the Lower Division of NA. This NA squad has players ranked in the top 250 in the region, but it’s unclear if this squad will capture any magic in the Lower Division.
23. It's Okay (NA Lower Division)

1. Ifrit 2. esk 3. Sword 4. Niqua 5. KKT

It's Okay had two strong days in NA’s Open Qualifiers. On the first day It's Okay made it all the way to the finals before falling to VirtusProPolar. VirtusProPolar would lose their qualification spot for using an unapproved substitute the next day. On day two of the Open Qualifiers It's Okay would find success knocking off Hawksmash in the finals to secure a spot in the closed Qualifier. Closed Qualifiers proved too much for It's Okay losing all four games they played in route to being bounced into the Lower Division. Semi-Pro players Ifrit and esk have found success in local tournaments in Mexico, but have never really broken through open qualifier brackets when it came to bigger tournaments. Now add in Niqua who has major (but limited) experience with European powerhouse Alliance, and we may have found a Lower Division team capable of pushing for a top two finish in the Lower Division.
24. Hokori (SA Lower Division)

1. Lumière 2. near 3. Vitaly 4. elmisho 5. Gard1ck

Hokori did not fare well in the SA Closed Qualifier after receiving a direct invite from league organizer Dota Pit. Hokori finished 7th out of 8 teams in the closed qualifier, but having received a direct invite the team is still qualified for the Lower Division. However, Hokori was able to dominate the worst team in the closed qualifier (Crewmates) and took a game off of Infinity Esports. Make no mistake, it will be on the 37th ranked player in NA (pos 3 Vitaly) to pull this team through SA’s Lower Division.
25. Crewmates (SA Lower Division)

1. Fcr 2. 4nalog 3. H1j4ck 4. Kaffurtado 5. Flash

One of the few unsponsored teams to earn a direct invite (and guaranteed Lower Division placement) for the SA Closed Qualifier from league organizer Dota Pit, Crewmates did little to prove worthy of a direct invite. Crewmates finished dead last in the Closed Qualifier only managing to steal one game from Latam Defenders. Latam Defenders, would move on to the knockout round and find their stride by qualifying for the Upper Division, while Crewmates have yet to find their stride. Will they find it in the first season of the DPC, or will this direct invite continue to haunt Dota Pit as teams with more experienced players failed to make it through Open Qualifiers.
26. The Cut (NA Lower Division)

1. Scrooge McDuck 2. Lil Nick 3. Cyg3n 4. versatile 5. pingu

​
The Cut is an appropriate name for this group of young and inexperienced NA players. Many of the Cut’s players found themselves scrambling for new teams during Open Qualifiers as they were dropped from their original teams or were left teamless after a team disbandment. Somehow this scrappy team put it all together on the final day of NA Open Qualifiers in order to clinch a Lower Division spot. Only pos 4 pingu has recent tournament experience from his stint with NoPango in the DOTA Summit 13 Online: Americas. After qualifying, the Cut find themselves in the position of proving they belong in the DPC, as they look to avoid a bottom two finish and elimination from the DPC.
27. Arkosh Gaming (NA Lower Division)

1. Pale Horse 2. Canus Vulpus 3. Gremlo 4. Crow 5. G.O.A.T.

We won’t relitigate the NoPango vs. Arkosh Gaming controversy, but if you need a primer read on here. Arkosh burst onto the scene as the brainchild of Dota 2 streamer and content creator SirActionSlacks. As the team’s manager, Slacks built up what hype he could for his new team by calling them the “saviors” of NA Dota 2, promising to dominate the competition with insulting videos and social media. The team itself is allegedly composed of players who are streamers, casters, and professional coaches. Players who out of fear of smearing their own brands with poor results have fought to remain anonymous behind the pysudonym player names above.
After embarrassment after embarrassment in show matches and the BTS Pro Series Season 4: Americas (Arkosh received a direct invite to the tournament on the back of personal connections between Arkosh and tournament organizer Beyond the Summit) the narrative from Arkosh turned from the “saviors” to the “villians” with Slacks claiming his plan for the team the whole time was for NA to unite around its hatred of Arkosh and therefore save it...or something. Issues with the creation and running of this team aside, Arkosh Gaming has not been a good team in competition, only managing to squeak through the third day of Open Qualifiers with direct qualification into the Lower Division. Avoid the spin from its manager, and expect Arkosh to be in a fight to avoid elimination from the Lower Division this season.
28. Byzantine Raiders (NA Lower Division)

1. Murderer 2. AlienManaBanana 3. Quebe 4. Froogoss 5. Lightshader

Another example of NA DPC organizer Beyond the Summit’s questionable judgement when it comes to organizing events in NA. Beyond the Summit (BTS) is known for running tournaments with a frat house mentality of giving direct invites to friends of the organization and “established” figures in the NA scene while forgoing the spirit of open competition. So eyebrows were raised when BTS extended a direct invite to caster and semi-pro player Froogoss’ inexperienced squad. A direct invite that would guarantee the Raiders a spot in at least the NA Lower Division. While the other three closed qualifier direct invite teams were dominating open qualifier teams on their way to qualifying for the Upper Division, the Raiders could barely put up a fight, only winning one game while losing both of their series against teams thought to be lesser competition. But, thanks to BTS, and its direct invite, the Raiders lost their way into the NA Lower Division while stronger looking teams failed to qualify through the open qualifying bracket. The Byzantine Raiders will have a lot of work to do to prove they belong in the DPC. If they find themselves at the bottom of the pack at the end of the season, it will only result in further embarrassment for BTS.
29. Gorillaz-Pride (SA Lower Division)

1. Timo 2. TaO 3. Benjaz 4. D1smar 5. Cara

It’s not totally unsurprising to see sponsored Gorillaz-Pride so far down the ladder in SA heading into the season. Gorillaz-Pride never lived up to any of its potential in 2020, crashing and burning in their only NA/SA tournament action when they went an abysmal 0-7 in matches during the group stage of ESL One Thailand 2020: Americas. Player turnover is one factor to point to in the less than stellar 2020 results. Gorillaz-Pride has reloaded itself ahead of the season, however, adding TI experience in the form pos 3 player Benjaz. Perhaps a consistent lineup will enable G-Pride to reach their potential. For now, they will have to fight to prove they can be competitive in SA’s Lower Division.
30. Inverse (SA Lower Division)

1. Sweettam 2. NoaHGod- 3. Meley 4. dededo43 5. Slaw

Inverse relied on Sweettam to carry them through to SA’s Lower Division in their best of 3 Open Qualifying final by going 14-2-13 and 12-2-8 against Anoobs Gaming. Will this team be able rise to the occasion in a hyper competitive South American Region or will they be relegated after their first DPC season? Questions abound for this new Peruvian team.
31. blood for blood (SA Lower Division)

1. Drakeshit 2. Ñengoflow KELOKE 3. RePicantekp0 4. EzAqeghj 5. Negga

The only South American Open Qualifying team to lose a game during their run to the Lower Division, blood for blood finds themselves on the bottom of a stout Lower Division in SA.
32. Jiang hu (NA Lower Division)

1. YouZhi 2. P1 3. OldWhite 4. stormcici 5. haoyuduan1995

Jiang hu managed to qualify on the fourth and final day of NA open qualifying by taking down VirtusProPolar, a team that dominated the first day of Open Qualifiers before losing its spot for using an unauthorized substitute during the qualifiers. Jiang hu has some work to do in order to not be on the chopping block of relegation at the end of the season.
The Big Finish
So there are your DPC Pre-Season Power Rankings for the North America and South America UppeLower Divisions. We hope this served as a good primer to get you up to speed on the teams and storylines for the upcoming DPC season kicking off on January 16, 2021. For more information on everything Pro-Dota 2 head over to Liquidpedia or follow along with Valve’s companion app.
You’re still here? What’s next for the Dota 2 Ranks NASA Team? Well, if even one person finds our rankings interesting and throws us a follow on twitter (@DPC_NASARanks) we are planning on updating our Power Rankings weekly, as well as releasing an RPI Rankings and Fan Vote Rankings after the second or third week of competition.
Be sure to let us know what you think we got right and more importantly what we got wrong in the comments. Hope to see you next week for our Week 1 NA/SA DPC Power Rankings.

Your 12-minute Wednesday report in 3008 words.

anti-corruption: NSS busts former governor of Aragatsotn / North-South highway

NSS report says: ex-governor of Aragatsotn, his HHK MP brother, and an ex-mayor of Kaqavadzor embezzled public funds.
In 2009, the governor learned about the upcoming construction of a road that was part of the North-South highway project, and that the road was supposed to travel through Aragatsotn's Kaqavadzor settlement.
The federal authorities instructed the governor and mayors in these areas to halt any other construction and land transactions, to pave the way for the North-South project.
The federal government was supposed to purchase these adjacent lands before the construction. The defendants conspired to falsify a piece of land's legal definition to make it worth significantly more, so they could sell it to the federal government for a higher price.
Governor pressured local authorities to allow his MP brother to build illegal structures, to further inflate the price.
In 2013, the new illegal owner signed a contract with the North-South project to sell the property for ֏139 million, while he had earlier purchased it through a rigged auction for ֏35K.
The Kaqavadzor mayor has confessed and testified. The other two officials are charged with felonies.
(The ex-governor denies wrongdoing. The court decided that he doesn't have to be arrested before his trial.)
https://youtu.be/ZlzttNu6kqc?t=17
https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1041530.html , https://www.armtimes.com/hy/article/205308

anti-corruption: police busts IRS agents with bribery

The report says: police and IRS cooperated to uncover a corruption scheme by two IRS agents. They were caught after receiving the latest $80 installment of a bribe from a business. Several businesses had offered bribes to conceal their regulatory shortcomings. A felony case is launched.
https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1041629.html

anti-corruption: forest guard is charged with bribery and allowing illegal logging

Investigators have pressed charged against a forest protection guard for allegedly receiving a ֏5.7 million in bribe and allowing 102 trees to be illegally cut between 2015-2018.
https://www.panarmenian.net/arm/news/289762/

search operations

Armenian and Azeri search crews continue the search operations for their missing soldiers. The Azeri side transferred 31 Armenian bodies; their original location wasn't specified. The soldiers were reservists. Their identities are being verified. The Armenian crews continue the searches in Martuni, Fizuli, and Hadrut regions.
https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1041524.html

POWs

Parliament Speaker Mirzoyan met the Russian ambassador to discuss the POW and humanitarian topic.
Foreign Ministers of Armenia and Russia discussed the POW issue.
https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1041586.html , https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1041628.html

French Secretary of State visits Armenia

Jean-Baptiste Lemoyne: we raise the issue of Armenian POWs during discussions with Azeri authorities, whenever we have the opportunity. The general mandate is in the hands of the Red Cross; we cooperate with them... The two sides reaffirmed the importance of resuming dialogue under the OSCE Minsk Group format. Its work has to continue.
https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1041616.html , https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1041617.html

meeting between Foreign Ministers of Armenia and Iran / The "red line" and "terrorists"

Zarif visited Yerevan as part of the Ru-Am-Az trip.
Foreign Minister of Armenia: Our region is now facing new challenges created by Azerbaijan's dangerous attempt to resolve the Karabakh conflict by force. The results of this aggression cannot serve as a basis for lengthy peace and regional cooperation.
Iran is a powerful country in the region, we respect Iran's approach to building its relations with its immediate neighbors. However, we would like to emphasize once again that a lasting peace that addresses the interests of all, where there are no "winners and losers", can provide real guarantees for the development of security and stability in the region.
Foreign Minister of Iran: Our red line is the territorial integrity of Armenia. Iran considers Armenia an important neighbor. All people's right to exercise their religion and other rights must be protected. We plan to develop ties with Armenia in the political, cultural, economic, and security spheres. We have common concerns, including the presence of terrorists in the region. //
Pashinyan met the Iranian colleague to discuss the post-war situation in the region.
https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1041531.html , https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1041542.html , https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1041595.html , https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1041600.html

Armenpress accuses Sputnik-Azerbaijan of misquoting Heiko Maas:

The Azeri outlet spread misinformation, claiming that German MFA Maas said there is no evidence of hired mercenaries in Artsakh. In reality, Maas said the opposite.
Full: https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1041565.html , https://factor.am/332367.html
https://pace.coe.int/en/verbatim/2021-01-26/pm/en

Azerbaijan upset over Russian MP's rhetoric

Vitali Milonov, an MP from Russia's ruling United Russia Party, has supported Artsakh throughout the war and visited the country during the events. He's been making statements highly critical of Azerbaijan.
The Azeri authorities decided to summon the Russian legal representative in Baku to explain the ruling party MP's statements. Milonov is on the Azeri travel blacklist for having visited Artsakh.
https://factor.am/332172.html

Pashinyan's diplomatic passport / rioters / Manukyan's phone calls to generals

the passport
Pashinyan's diplomatic passport was stolen by rioters on November 9th, after they broke into Pashinyan's residents and Parliament; it was revoked alongside 13 other stolen passports immediately, said MFA spokeswoman.
Somehow, the stolen document ended up in the hands of Azeris, who gave it to an investigative researcher from Orbeli Center (update: former researcher), said QP MP Alen Simonyan today. The Orbeli center (update: its former researcher) claims he purchased a legitimate-looking document before these riots.
The center believes Armenia's information system has cracks that allowed the adversary to manipulate data. For example, there were reports during the war that the Azeri-Turkish army used Armenian phone numbers and Armenian-speaking members to call and sabotage the Armenian military actions.
the rebellion, and Manukyan's phone call to generals
QP MP Alen Simonyan was asked to comment Vazgen Manyukyan's statement about organizing a rebellion unless Pashinyan resigns before elections. "Let him try, let him try," said the MP.
"The war was lead by generals, not some government political figures who went there to order things. Vazgen Manukyan admitted that during the war, he called the generals in Artsakh and urged them to take the political power into their hands. He was encouraging the army to advance on Yerevan, and not Horadiz. Other members of the 17-camp likely pressured the Colonels and Captains.
During the war, these people were busy with one thing: breaking the spirit of our army. They were convinced that according to the diplomatic documents left by them, the army should leave Jabrayil and Horadiz, and attack the government building instead. And for there to be <> reasons for an attack on a government building, there must be failures on the battlefield. For this, they had to plant a seed of doubt among officers and generals and break their will to fight and win. We already knew that some people went to the front lines and told soldiers not to fight."
NSS is investigating Manukyan's claims about his phone calls to generals during the war.
https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1041578.html , https://www.armtimes.com/hy/article/205255 , https://www.armtimes.com/hy/article/205278 , https://www.armtimes.com/hy/article/205286 , https://www.armtimes.com/hy/article/205290 , https://www.lragir.am/2021/01/27/617007/

refugees from Artsakh's Qasatagh receive phone calls to participate in protests

Many families from "Kelbajar" region had to move to Armenia after the region was given to Azerbaijan. Families say they received phone calls - likely from the 17 opposition parties, as they assume - to participate in anti-Pashinyan rallies. They were invited to visit Republic Square to "resolve the issue of their housing."
"Every one of us thought this was an isolated case. We learned that it was widespread after 60 of us gathered at a humanitarian facility to receive French aid. We don't know where they got our phone numbers from. The government is handling all of our issues; we don't want to participate in any rally," said a refugee.
"They [callers] know that we came from Artsakh and that we lost our homes, so they know our weak spots. But most of us realized this was a political game. Many were saying that they got rid of the 30-year-long slavery and that not having a home is only temporary. Our lands were sold by Serj and Kocharyan for 30 years. Everybody knows that. Pashinyan opened our eyes. It's hard to deceive us," said the refugee.
https://www.armtimes.com/hy/article/205347

re: QP leader Lilith Makunts's possible appointment as US ambassador

The government could appoint QP MP and party leader Makunts, also known as "America's agent in America" according to some opposition figures, as the Armenian ambassador to US. Some critics said it's a political decision and Makunts lacks experience as a foreign diplomat. "She is just a girl who speaks English."
QP MP Simonyan response: Appointments can be political or diplomatic in nature. In this case, it's a political one. At this stage, the government found it right to consider Makunts's candidacy. She has connections with American partners and can "speak their diplomatic and political language."
I'm sure that no matter who we nominated, something would be said, some reason would be given for criticism. The majority of people who are criticizing Makunts's candidacy cannot even name the current ambassador to the US. (don't you dare to Google now Վաղո!)
https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1041580.html

other appointments

Armella Shaqaryan is the ambassador to Mexico. Tigran Harutyunyan is a deputy NSS chief. Armen Ghularyan is the Urban Development Committee chief.
https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1041626.html , https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1041625.html , https://factor.am/332242.html

it has become a meme

You may reset the clock because we have new rumors about Yerevan mayor Hayk Marukyan's "resignation". The mayor's office denied the "misinformation". There have been many such rumors since his election victory, usually with a few months of cooldown in between.
As a reminder, Hayk Marutyan was elected as Yerevan's first openly drag-queen mayor in 2018.
https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1041610.html

anniversary ceremony to mark the end of Leningrad siege

Yerevan Mayor Marutyan and Russian ambassador Kopyrkin laid flowers on a memorial in Arabkir to mark the end of the WW2 siege.
100,000 Armenians fought to break the blockade. 20,000 of them died. 500 Leningrad children found refuge in Armenia after being evacuated out of the city.
https://www.armtimes.com/hy/article/205339 , https://www.armtimes.com/hy/article/205339

Russian peacekeepers in Artsakh

... have so far cleared 748 hectares of land and 234km of roads from 24k explosives.
https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1041631.html

51,408 people have returned to Artsakh via the Lachin road alone

192 did so today.
https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1041630.html

new aid package: ֏500,000 payments to wounded soldiers

The government approved another aid package. This one is for soldiers who were wounded but didn't receive 1-2 stage disabilities. They will receive ~$1,000 compensation to alleviate the financial difficulties caused by the temporary inability to work.
~6,000 people will qualify. Applicants do not have to provide any documents other than ID because the Healthcare Ministry already knows if they were wounded.
https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1041559.html

armed man kidnaps his child and sets up a barricade

The police tried to apprehend an armed suspect. The latter kidnapped his 3-year-old son and threatened to cause harm unless the police leave. The police chief went to negotiate. The suspect surrendered after 2 hours of negotiations.
https://youtu.be/TGVa_xC6olI

Vardenis man steals a TV to gift it to mother-in-law

https://youtu.be/tLbihtZFKGs

update: TV and Radio Commission's broadcast license auction

The TV regulator had earlier distributed broadcast licensing to qualified TV outlets. Not many "wow" moments, with the usual suspects keeping their slots. Anti-Kocharyan A1+ and pro-Kocharyan H2 failed to win slots; they criticized the Commission.
The head of Commission Hakobyan responded, saying the two outlets presented weaker programming and fared lower than competitors.
"The auction was done under new rules to better define criteria and reduce the subjective judgment by Commission members," said chief Hakobyan. "We held a highly transparent and fair competition, as a result of which the most powerful, competitive TV companies that performed their actions correctly in the previous 10 years and presented good programming, were licensed. The selection criteria are open for public assessment."
"We have not seen any coercion or lobbying, which is a very strong progress compared to previous competitions."
With TV being done, the Commission will begin issuing FM radio licenses this month.
https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1041576.html , https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1041579.html

cement imports will be temporarily banned from non-EAEU states

The government considers Armenian cement a strategically important industry, and to protect it, the imports will be restricted again to allow the industry to develop and compete against cheaper imports that could flood the market.
https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1041547.html

structural reforms: all 4 social agencies will be served by a single office

Labor Minister: we adopted a policy of introducing an integrated social services system in the field of social protection, which should be based on a unified system of social needs assessment. There won't be a new agency, but these four existing agencies will operate under one office: social security service, family benefits system, disabilities, and employment.
Pashinyan: citizens won't have to travel too many places for paperwork.
https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1041556.html

government will encourage law-abiding taxpayers with incentives

Government: we are reviewing the existing incentive system. It will stimulate the development of taxpayers' self-assessment system, which will lead to increased tax discipline, transparency of tax bodies, expansion of taxpayer list. (no details yet)
During the war, we noticed a certain change in the behavior of taxpayers, which was reflected in a higher degree of discipline by taxpayers. This should be encouraged.
April 19th will be celebrated as Taxpayer's Day. Armenia's first tax code was approved on that day in 1992.
https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1041559.html , https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1041567.html

IRS received high tech equipment to catch contraband

The US DEA provided tools to the Armenian IRS. Hand scanners that detect 324 types of narcotics without unwrapping parcels, devices that detect hidden cargo attached inside vehicle skeletons, etc.
https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1041585.html

COVID stats

2144 tested. 195 infected. 649 healed. 4 deaths. 6557 active.
https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1041535.html

Armenia and Russia will reopen borders beginning February 1st

Pashinyan: a pilot program called "I travel without covid 19" program will launch for the entire February. The two-way travel will resume. You need a negative test within 3 days before travel. If it works well, the program will continue after March 1st.
Due to the coronavirus, there have been many travel restrictions since last year. Many of our compatriots raised the issue of resuming air communication with Russia. This is also a social issue because many of our compatriots go to Russia for work.
Healthcare Minister Avanesyan: you can install the "Путешествую без COVID" app that has the list of labs for the $30 test. Your status will turn green when the test result is negative.
Pashinyan: I hope we'll see a significant increase in the number of flights by the end of February. This will contribute to the restoration of tourism. I'd like to thank EAEU partners and Russia for cooperation. This was an initiative launched by the government of Armenia, funded by the Eurasian Bank.
https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1041537.html , https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1041543.html , https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1041544.html , https://www.armtimes.com/hy/article/205310

product prices in EAEU trade bloc: November YoY

Kyrgyz +8.2%
Kazakh +7.3%
Belarus +6.6%
EAEU +4.9%
Russia +4.4%
Armenia +1.6%
https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1041527.html

in Soviet Armenia, Abaran makes fun at YOU

Rumors say that the enlarged city, which includes the adjacent 21 villages, has been developing in recent times. More self-sufficient budget, better streets, parks, irrigation systems for adjacent villages, etc. Video:
https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=1396810057334970

High Tech education program has 6,000 participants

High Tech Minister Arshakyan met the administration of the Union of Information and Communication Technologies to discuss the ongoing joint programs and expansion.
They plan to launch a "Start Up" movement. "We will try to solve some problems in the private sector with the help of university students. With the new program, we plan to teach entrepreneurship skills and provide shared working space for students."
Minister emphasized the need to involve provincial students, noting that half of the 6,000 participants are from there. "It is necessary to help with continuous programs so the graduates can form teams in their places of residence, create companies, develop the provinces. All of these initiatives encourage partnerships with private companies."
Minister will visit Artsakh to discuss the expansion of the program.
https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1041520.html

high tech program "Armenian Virtual World" to expand

High Tech Minister Arshakyan: On August 3, 2020, one of our largest programs "Armenian Virtual Bridge" was launched. The program aims to become a platform connecting the Armenian tech community to the world and the Diaspora.
The program includes two components: incubation and acceleration. They aim to create opportunities for Armenian participants to develop international cooperation skills and attract investment. As part of the incubation component, 13 Armenian entrepreneurs underwent professional training courses at Draper University. Under the acceleration program, 15 companies underwent 8 weeks of training with the best world-renowned professionals.
On January 28th, the winning companies will present their products to Silicon Valley venture companies, investors, and Diaspora Armenian specialists. The best projects will receive investments.
In 2021, the program will be expanded, the scope and participation figures will be doubled. The project is implemented jointly with the AGBU's Silicon Valley representatives.
https://youtu.be/FHqFCjBvyeo
https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1041523.html

digitize everything

Deputy PM Avinyan: within the next 2-3 years, some services provided by the state will be digitized. People will no longer be required to visit offices for simple tasks that involve applications, response, and payments.
An auction was held to pick a winner to help modernize some 100 services. We'll create a list of services that will still require visits.
https://factor.am/332223.html

digital parliament

The Parliament has launched a process to create a digital parliament (E-parliament), the aim of which is to bring the entire electronic information infrastructure in line with modern standards, as well as the complete automation of many manual processes.
"Through digital technologies, the parliament-society connection will become more accessible."
https://www.armtimes.com/hy/article/205246

Armenian movie "Yel" wins Best Dance Film Award

Hollywood International Golden Age Festival 2021 was held in New York. Armenian producers made a movie "Yel" (ԵԼ), with the help of the Erebuni historical-archaeological museum. It won the Best Dance Film Award and an Honorable Mention.
https://youtu.be/mxOqT7vhQ7E
https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1041553.html

today in history

January 27: International Holocaust Remembrance Day
1918: Finnish civil war begins
1939: Composer Tigran Mansuryan is born
1973: Nixon administration signs agreement to withdraw troops from Vietnam
https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1041504.html

humanitarian aid from Venice

Armenian Consulate in Venice organized the collection of boxes filled with aid for Artsakh residents.
https://www.armtimes.com/hy/article/205346

donations to Artsakh & recovering soldiers

www.1000plus.am (recovering soldiers & their families)
www.HimnaDram.org (for Artsakh & Armenia)
www.ArmeniaFund.org (U.S. tax-deductible)

archive of older news

http://www.armeniapedia.org/wiki/Daily_Anti-Corruption_Reports

disclaimer

All the accused are considered innocent unless proven guilty in the court of law, even if they "sound" or "appear" guilty.

Full disclosure - I began a small position (~3% of portfolio) in MGM in July 2020. This is not financial advice and nothing I say here should be interpreted as such.
I've been very interested in gambling for as long as I can remember and would like to think I have a good handle on the space. Like many others, I'm bullish on the gambling industry and think it's going to be an even bigger space.
What I can't figure out is why the majority of the money is flowing into DKNG (Cathie Wood & ARK are buying) & PENN instead of MGM. What are Cathie and others seeing in DKNG and to a lesser extent (Barstool stake complicates things in terms of a true comparison IMO) PENN that I'm not?
Looking at the balance sheets, MGM has (significantly) less LT debt, more cash on hand per share and already does double the revenue of PENN. DKNG isn't profitable (growth, I know but still) and doesn't do anywhere near the revenue MGM does. Not to mention they don't have any physical locations (which can be argued as a plus right now) but MGM's properties are some of the best known casinos/hotels in the world, there's major value in the equity itself even if COVID is reducing in-person revenue.
In terms of the sports betting app/experience, I've used DKNG but don't have an account with PENN or MGM. I've dabbled on both websites though and have friends that have used both, all say that there really aren't any discernible differences between the three. If anything, mid-20s types like myself gravitate to PENN because of the Barstool promotions (but I don't think it's attracting big money players, just the smaller players who want the merch/sweat.)
The main thing I can't get over though is that the margins on sports betting aren't anywhere near as lucrative as casino games and slots are. I don't see how this changes meaningfully in the future; the only thing I can think of would be DKNG or PENN taking out all other competitors and juicing the hold at their books. MGM doesn't need to rely on its sports betting business, but it's the second or third most used product in almost every state they currently operate in.
Both DKNG & PENN have seen runups of over 200% in the last year. MGM is up just 13.5% over the last year. We're closer now than ever to a return to normalcy (which is bullish for MGM and it's physical locations.) DKNG's market cap is $7 billion more than MGM's. What gives here?
Looking forward to some discussion on this!

First | Previously | Next Time
​
Dan woke slowly. At first, he could only think that his mouth was incredibly dry. After that, he thought that he really needed to pee. Finally, he thought his head was stiflingly hot.
​
When he opened his eyes, everything was dark. He sat up slowly, and realized that there was something on his face. The object slid slowly down Dan's face, and plopped onto his lap. Dan looked down, light suddenly flooding into his eyes. Quacksworth was in a disheveled pile, blinking awake after having been unceremoniously dumped from his perch into Dan's lap.
​
"Hey, bud. Sorry. Didn't know you were there." Dan picked in the duck and set him on his webbed feet. Quacksworth looked up at Dan, and started honking excitedly. He flapped up and wrapped his wings around Dan's head, still honking incoherently.
​
Mike, Marv, and Melody all came running into the room. Dan looked at them as they came in, and said "What's up?"
​
Melody looked like she was on the verge of tears as she threw her arms around Dan, nearly crushing him, she was squeezing so hard.
​
Mike breathed a heavy sigh of relief and leaned up against the foot of the bed. Marv mumbled a quiet prayer, thanking whatever gods had protected his friend.
​
Dan tapped both Melody and Quacksworth on their respective backs, and whispered "I'm fine guys, but if someone doesn't point me to a bathroom, I'm gonna start leaking!"
​
Mel stood back, laugh-crying, and pointed to the door, "Second door down on the left."
​
Dan got up and scuttled off. Quacksworth protested mildly when he was left behind, but stayed with the others. Several minutes later, Dan came back in and said "What happened? Why is everyone so freaked out? Also, is there breakfast? I'm starved!"
​
---***----
​
Dan sat at a table, finishing a breakfast of dark bread and reheated beef stew, along with about a gallon of water.
​
The others had told him about how he had collapsed from overusing his magic energy, how they had brought him back to Melody's house. How he had slept for nearly three days.
​
Quacksworth sat in his lap the whole time, interjecting soft honks of agreement here and there. Dan fed him nibbles of bread as he ate.
​
When he was finally caught up, Dan sat back in his chair and said "I'm sorry guys, didn't mean to cause you guys trouble, I just got caught up in the fight."
​
"We'll be working on your stamina when we start training again." Marv said.
​
"We still need to go check out the mine and see how the cave orcs got in. If there are more, we need to clear them out." Mel said.
​
"And Melody and I need to finish our sword." Mike said.
​
"Dude! What about work? If it's been that long, we've missed two or three days of work already." Dan said, a worried look going over his face.
​
Mike looked at Dan and said "Weeeeee don't have jobs anymore. I told them you were sick and I was taking care of you, and they told me not to bother coming back. We're gonna have to get our stuff out of the apartment."
​
"Oh, man. I'm so sorry, Mike. You should have gone back. Quacksworth would have taken care of me."
​
Honk! Honk honk-honk.
​
"Nah, I hated that gig anyway. Besides, I found a new position already."
​
"Really?"
​
"Mel is going to take me on as an apprentice. She's going to teach me crafting and smithing." Mike said with a big smile on his face.
​
"Nice. If he gives you any lip, be sure to beat him like a red headed step child." Dan said to Melody with a grin.
​
"I already started on a paddle." Melody responded.
​
"What?" Mike looked shocked.
​
"Better stay on your toes." Melody said with a serious look on her face. "I'm not teaching you this for fun any more."
​
"Yes, ma'am." Mike said with a nervous swallow.
​
"I promise not to beat him too bad." Mel said. Mike's worry was evident on his face. Finally, after a few seconds Melody started to laugh. "It'll be fine, you're not allowed to beat apprentices any more. Besides, you're gonna do great." She gave Mike's hand a squeeze, and he breathed a sigh of relief.
​
Dan and Marv laughed at Mike's obvious discomfort.
​
"We'll, I guess we need to get back soon, so I can find a new place to live." Dan said. "Sucks tho, I really liked having you as a roomie." Dan looked down and pet Quacksworth's head.
​
"About that." Said Marv. " Have you considered a career in the mystic arts? I know a royal court magician, who would be willing to take on an apprentice...if the applicant were right, that is."
​
"Oh, you know what, my new apprentice has a best friend who's a manipulator . I just found out!" Said Melody, in a fake gossipy tone.
​
"You don't say! Sounds like a perfect candidate!" Marv said as he stroked his beard.
​
"I just so happen to have his contact information, if you'd like." Said Mike.
​
"Ohho, really? How convenient." Marv replied.
​
"You guys are such freakin' dorks." Dan said with a laugh.
​
"Seriously, tho. Dan, you need to train for at least a couple years to make sure you don't repeat this whole three day coma thing. Please, take him up on it." Melody said.
​
"How could I say no?" Dan said.
​
---***---
Dan had his stuff piled in several large boxes in the middle of his front room. Right next to it was Mike's pile of belongings, also boxed up.
​
The five friends stood in the front room looking at the pile of belongings.
​
"That's all of it?" Marv asked.
​
"Yup."
​
"Yeah."
​
He mumbled a spell, and the piles of boxes got smaller and smaller until they disappeared.
​
"You didn't store those with the dead cave orcs, right?" Mike asked.
​
Dan looked a little confused. Marv shook his head in the negative.
​
"I disposed of those ages ago. Your stuff is saved in a separate space anyway." Marv said.
​
"Everyone got everything?" Dan asked.
​
Everyone checked their belongings, and Dan and Mike made a last pass through each room. Everything was packed up. They headed out of the door, Quacksworth riding on Mike's shoulder. In the apartment building hallway, they all stood and watched as Dan locked the door to the apartment.
He put the keys into an envelope, and as they left the building, he dropped them in the mail slot of the office.
​
They walked to an alley, and Marv again mumbled a spell, and a door, similar but different to the one for the Central Bar, appeared in the wall. They opened it and walked through.
​
On the other side, Melody's house was waiting. When Marv closed the door on the other side, it slowly faded out of existence from the tree it was set in.
​
The group walked to Mel's, and Marv deposited Mike's boxes in a small guest house he would be staying in.
​
After saying their farewells, Dan and Marv left, walking down the path from Mel's house. About a hundred yards down the path, Dan asked Marv "So how far is it to your place from here?"
​
Marv turned and looked over his shoulder, looking at the almost completely obscured roof of Mel's house. He walked for another ten or twenty feet and said "Right about…. there." He pointed to a spot on the side of the path.
​
Dan looked confused, then Marv grinned and waved his hand. In the spot he pointed, a tiny cottage suddenly appeared. It slowly grew until it was occupying the same space as a car. It continued to grow as the trees and plants seemed to push back out of the way.
​
"Come on, let's go unpack!" Marv said with a smile, striding towards the door to the cottage.
​
---***---
New year, new lives! Hope ou guys enjoy it! And I hope 2021 is a thousand times better than 2020 for you all! Much love!

Hey everyone. I've incorporated the feedback from Pixonic (August 2020, October 2020, December 2020, and January 2021). My goal is to try to get Pixonic to respond directly to this thread periodically (3-4 times a year). This will be linked to the weekly suggestions thread by the auto-moderator. Be sure to use the "Pixonic Suggestion" flair so I can easily sort through all the suggestions!
Ideas & Feature Requests
This thread is a place where you can discuss your ideas for the game or request features you would like to see in coming versions of the game.
This sub appreciates any contributions you can make to existing ideas, but we suggest you do not post your idea before reviewing previous Pixonic ideas / suggestions threads. It is highly likely another Commander already submitted the same idea!
Please be aware that posting a ruled out idea may result in your thread being removed altogether and posting an idea already suggested might result in your thread being closed with a reference back to this thread.
A few tips to submitting an idea or suggestion:
Title: Choose a good title - be very specific. Instead of naming your thread "suggestion", "idea", try something like "Hawks are Over Powered." This will help other users find and contribute to your thread, and drive more discussion around the topic.
Point: Use clear, concise points or explanations, concept art or screenshots where applicable. General, unspecific, high-level ideas are great, but the Pixonic team can't do much without the proper information!
"I think Hawks are way too powerful in the game because of their high firepower. Players running multiple Hawks make the game frustrating and boring for me."
Suggestion: Give constructive and helpful suggestions that are realistic. Why will the idea work?
"Decrease the Hawks firepower so it only impacts Titans and does not cut through bots' defenses. This will allow other bots to effectively counter Hawks and bring better balane to the game."
For all, keep in mind Pixonic is a business. I realize many of us have little experience in owning a gaming company, but try to consider how Pixonic would make a profit or be successful in the business model when giving a suggestion. Pixonic wants players spending money AND playing a lot--so how does your suggestion support that?
Threads will be removed if it includes profanity and / or insults. Comments like "make everything for free" or "XXX (i.e. Matchmaking, the game, targeting, etc.) sucks--solution: make the game better, or un-nerf everything" will just be deleted. This also isn't the place to report bugs or to rant.
Given the nature of the game the developers and producers cannot always say what is coming in the next version or what is being worked on. Also, please don't expect a response to every thread or idea. The best ideas will be discussed frequently by the Community and will surface to the top in that manner (or through up/down votes). Do not spam your thread or ideas just because no one is responding!

• Response (December 2020)
• Response (January 2021)

Frequently Requested Ideas
Below are ideas submitted by users for Pixonic to consider. It does not imply they are being worked on. Please do a search before starting new feature requests, especially if they are listed below.
These ideas and suggestions are either acknowledged and are being worked on, or have been ruled out by the dev team for the time being. Posting these ideas may result in your thread being removed without notice.
Frequently Requested:

• Battle Modes
  • Titan skirmish (Status: in Dec 2020 Max, WR Producer stated: " We agree that it would be a lot of fun. We'll try to introduce Titan Skirmishes next year, but it won't be a priority – there's so much to do.")
  • Additions to custom matches (Status: in Dec 2020 Max, WR Producer stated: "The general idea of Custom Matches is not to provide an additional game mode, but to give you a playground where you can test your builds to understand if they are suitable for real combat. In Max's opinion, current functionality of Custom Matches fits just well in this concept." Detailed comments in original post)
  • Beacon hold time should be considered for HP (Status: in Dec 2020 Max, WR Producer stated: " We already have some ideas on how to expand the honor reward list (e.g. rewarding players for applying Suppression or Lock-down effects). The idea with beacon hold time sounds like a nice addition to our plans. ")
  • Faction vs. Faction skirmish
• Boosters
  • Pause booster timer while waiting for match (Status: in August 2020 the Pixonic producer stated they agreed with this concept and were looking into it; in Dec 2020 Max, the WR Producer stated: "We had plans for a complete rework of Boosters. Unfortunately, we had to cut those plans off to release Drones and prepare for Remastered. We believe we'll have time to work on Boosters in 2021.")
  • Faster reload times (Status: in Dec 2020 Max, WR Producer stated: "Thing is, there is a technical tie between reload animation and reload time. It's one of those legacy mechanics that've been haunting the game for years already. Until we refactor the entire block, it's impossible for us to change the reload speed on most of the weapons. But in general idea is good, though we see it as a Passive Module rather than a Booster.")
• Bots
  • Raijin increased resistance instead of damage
  • Add 3 Passive modules to each bot
  • Allow energy shields to recharge at all times
  • Nuclear Fission Snipers
  • Egyptian Themed Bots
  • Medusa
  • Arbiter Shield Concept
  • Overhead view (like Nightingale) for Invader and Mercury)
  • Altitude control of flying bots
• Community Features
  • Allow friends in-game or via other platforms (i.e. Discord) (Status: in Dec 2020, Max WR Producer stated: " We call it "Platform Merge iteration 2" and it's on the list for 2021."; in January 2021 Max WR Producer stated: "For technical reasons, we don't want to add integrations with other platforms as far as the friends system is concerned. In fact, we'd also like to get rid if the existing integration and make all friends features completely native to the game. There will be a rework of the friends system this year. Stay tuned!"; In Jan 2021 Pix stated ability to invite friends direclty is coming soon)
  • Pixonic sponsored WR Tournament (Status: Oct 2020 Pix CM said it was coming; in Dec 2020 Max WR Producer stated: "We have a couple of competitive features prepared for the next year. We'll tell you more in our New Year videos."; In Jan 2021 Pix stated tournaments will be introduced into each season)
  • Clan Wars
  • Cross-Platform (Status: In Dec 2020, Max WR Producer stated: "This is basically a cross-platform account, like PixAccount. The idea has been around for a couple of years already. It should be implemented on the scale of the whole company, not only War Robots project, of course. But yes, it's something we definitely want to have in the future.")
  • Incorporate lore into rewards or abilities, etc. (Status: In Jan 2021, Max WR Producer stated: "It's a great idea and it might work! *Promises to talk to the game design department about it*")
  • Story / campaign mode
• Drones (Status: October 2020 Pixonic CM announced Drones were being overhauled)
  • Remove random chip / slot generator
  • Preset hangar to save time in battle
• Hangars
  • Allow useage of bots across hangars in battles (or same bot for multiple hangars)
  • Hangar presets
  • Upgrade / build multiple bots or weapons at a time (possibly benefit of having multiple hangars)
  • Limit number of sambe bots you cna use in active hangar
  • Allow us to see other players' drone hangars (Status: In Jan 2021, Max WR Producer stated: " Yes, one day. We have some improvement plans for Drones, including UI. Hopefully, our UI team will find a way to show more info on drones in hangar.")
  • Allow 7 bots per hangar but only use 5 (like Drones)
• In-Game Communication / Clan Management
  • Improved chat and in-game features
  • Active/Live “Online Status” examples: colored icons, on/off indicator, etc.
  • Current League Icon next to all clan members
  • Indicate last online date
  • Clan voice chat
  • Global Chat
  • Report button for players violating the game's ToS or hacking, etc. (Status: according to the Pixonic producer in Aug 2020, a report button is supposed be included in a future release--no further details were given; confirmed by Pix CM in Oct 2020)
• Maps
  • List maps in Alphabetical order in pull down menu (Status: In Jan 2021, Max WR Producer stated: "With only 13 maps in the game, it isn't difficult to find what you are looking for. However, if it can be done fast, we will try to squeeze it into the production plan.")
  • New map concepts
• Matchmaking / Leagues (Status: This is how the MM works; they constantly do minor tweaks; this is my response on death squads)
  • Modified league points
  • Add additional league (Status: In Jan 2021, Max WR producer stated: "We are considering this idea right now, but rather a new league between Masters and Champions."; In Jan 2021 Pix stated a rework to Legendary leagues is coming soon)
• Performance / Technical Features
  • Targeting system rework / improvement (Status: Targeting seems to be part of the base code and allows other features in the game to operate, such as stealth, meaning there are multiple dependencies. Pixonic did minor tweaks to targeting to address shooting Ao Mings in the air from the ground and vice versa, but according to Pixonic CM in Oct 2020 a major rework will not be considered until after Pixonic migrates to new servers in 2021; In Jan 2021 Pix stated improvement to targeting system will be worked with expected release in Aug 2021).
  • Lag (Status: According to Pixonic the 6.4 update should address lag along with server overhaul)
  • Limit character length and types of characters in user names (Status: In Jan 2021, Max WR producer stated: "Yes, we'll need to do that sooner or later.")
  • Font size for iPhone users
  • Drones menu rework
  • Purchase confirmation button
  • Add commas to numerical figures
  • Allow weapons and modules to be viewed together at the same time for each bot
  • Allow custom search-organization for hangars and inventory
• Pilots
  • Reduce the gold cost
  • Reduce the randomness of skills
  • Titan pilots
  • Universal pilot skills
  • Legendary Pilots for Fujin and Raijin
  • Legendary Pilots for all Bots
• Rewards / Events / Operations / Chests
  • Remove 2,500 components from Tier 1 prizes in Events
  • More gold-based deal offers
  • Overdrive weekend that reduces or eliminates costs for component conversion in WS
  • Daily Log In Rewards
  • Choose type of crate progression (Status: In jan 2021, Max WR Producer stated: "The league chests need a rework, that's for sure. We have some plans for an overhaul or even an alternative feature in 2021.")
  • Honor based gold system
  • Pt-Gold-Silver Forge system
  • Announce odds of winning prizes from chests, events, etc.
• Titans
  • New Titan Oasis
  • New Titan Odin
  • Nodens should be able to see stealthed allied bots for healing
  • Add Nodens heal targeting button
  • Make Titans available in custom games
  • Motherboards (like microchips for bots)
  • Additional abilities
• Weapons / Equipment
  • Corrosion Rockets
  • Aegis shield purchase (like Ancile)
  • Antimatter Rail Gun
  • Weapons Inventory Page
  • DoT Shotguns
  • Reload Accelerator Module

​
Ruled Out (for now):

• Reload button (Status: Been requested numerous times over the years. Pixonic had a reload button in a test server in ~2016 but removed it without explanation and has not indicated it will be implemented at all in the future).
• Donating (or trading) any resources to (with) other players or accounts (Status: a type of resource donation system used to be in the game but it was abused by players who created multiple accounts and clan-hopped to exploit it. It does not look like any trading system will be implemented in the future).
• Stats (Status: In Dec 2020 Max, WR Producer stated: "We agree that there are players who love in-depth statistics. However, War Robots is a "midcore" game and we predict that the feature will not be popular enough among our players.")
  • Legends League stats (bots / weapons)
  • Stats of each bot at the end of the battle
  • Specific bot in your hangar stats for last 50 games
  • Advanced stats tab
• E-Sports, community leagues, official API ecosystem (Status: in Dec 2020, Max WR Producer stated: " Nope. That would require too much work and resources.")
• Battle Pass for Operations (points / currency rewards) (Status: in January 2021, Max WR Producer stated: "We are fine with how Operations work in War Robots right now.")
• Allow training hangars to test out bots before buying them (Status: In Jan 2021, Max WR Producer stated: "It's a nice idea in general and we had it on the roadmap for 2021. However, after the final evaluation, the feature's business value/effort proportion proved to be too unfavorable to include it into the plan. You can still test out some of the new content using Hangar X.")
• Allow factions to add boosts / skills / features to bots and hangars (Status: in Jan 2021, Max WR Producer stated: "It's a very interesting concept, yet as War Robots meta is not built around the lore, it will lead to power players choosing factions that suit the current meta, while the lore factor will be neglected. So the faction power bonus is unlikely to appear in the game. However, we will work on including more lore-based features in War Robots and our other games.")
• New MM formula (Status: In Jan 2021, Max WR Producer stated: "First of all, big thanks to the author of the original post. You did a great job with the calculations and data! *applause*. The concept of the Hangar Power matchmaking is great. It provides those sought after equal matches in most of the cases... on one condition — all players play fair. Right at the point when someone decides to abuse the system, it all falls apart. We struggled with it really bad before we introduced Leagues. (Yes, tankers are also a problem, but we can at least spot them and suspend or ban their accounts.). Your idea with the high-tier robots contributing more to the HPS is a good one. And still, it doesn't provide a guaranteed solution to the problem. Between Tier 1 (Destrier) and Tier 4 (Ao Jun) there is also Tier 2 and Tier 3. That's where it gets painfully difficult to balance the system so that high-level players aren't able to disintegrate mid-levels with just one bot. We had some attempts at a similar algorithm with the Design and Analytics teams in 2019. During several months of tests we couldn't come up with a solid version, that we ourselves wouldn't be able to abuse as players.")
• Synchronize platform releases (Status: In Jan 2021, Max WR Producer stated: "It's not possible due to our internal releasing procedures.")
• Give Pt or Gold for selling Titans / Bots / Weapons that used Pt or gold to purchase them (Status: In Jan 2021, Max WR Producer stated: "No. With the current economy of the game, the availability of resources directly affects the availability of the content. At this point, we don't want to make the powerful content more available.")

Season 12 Update: What’s New

· Updated mods section to reflect new mod structure
· A few updated thoughts on Stasis classes
· Significant update to Warmind Cell section, including information on Seventh Seraph weapons
· New recommendations for defensive and offensive mod loadouts
· Recommendations updated for Season 12 mods
· Weapons recommendations
Part 2 of this guide is here: https://www.reddit.com/DestinyTheGame/comments/k5fzne/moving_into_highlevel_pve_guide_for_beginners/

Before We Get Started

Why you should trust me

I’ve got a few hundred raid completions, including flawless completions of the post-year 1 raids, and I’ve soloed each of the dungeons flawlessly as well. But also: I’m not an amazing player; I’d say I’m above average but I am nowhere near as talented as some of the people whose videos you can watch online, or indeed who are in my clan. I am someone who has to work hard to get good and who makes up for a lack of talent with stubbornness and a willingness to learn from my mistakes.
So this advice is not for the amazing D2 player. It’s for someone who’s just starting to move into raiding or is thinking about working on raid triumphs, or soloing a dungeon for the first time, or maybe dreaming of earning the Conqueror title. My main goal is to help you become a better teammate—to know what weapons, mods, and armor you need in different situations, and to learn how to use them. Hopefully I’ll answer your basic questions and give you a starting point from which you can learn more.

What do I mean by high-level PvE content?

1. Raids: multi-encounter structures that require team coordination and adaptation to/knowledge of various raid-specific mechanics (ball throwing, buff swapping, tethering, cranium charging, etc.)
2. Sublight challenges: master and grandmaster nightfalls, master nightmare hunts, solo 1280 lost sectors, 1280 empire hunts, or any new content where players are likely to be 0-25 light levels below the enemies they face. This content includes raids and dungeons in their initial season of being offered.
3. Solo challenges: attempts to accomplish 1 and 2 by yourself or with a suboptimal team (like doing a raid with three people instead of six).

General Advice

As you begin to push into more challenging content, one lesson is key: dying is not good. That’s kind of a strange lesson to have to learn, but the reality is that Destiny does not punish you much for dying in ordinary content. That makes it easy to develop habits that will serve you poorly in raids and other situations, where dying can lead to a cascading series of mishaps that will cause a wipe or an extinguish mechanic. So one of your main goals as you start playing in these situations is to try to get better at not dying.
The other thing to begin to learn—and which the game does not really force you to learn—is how to make weapons, armor, and ability builds that synergize both internally, in relation to your own character, and externally, in relation to your teammates and the environment. Understanding, for instance, not only your role in a given raid encounter but the roles of your teammates, and knowing what classes or weapons they’re running so that you can communicate with them about what to do next, are both critical to becoming a stronger team player. And understanding how your armor and weapons, your mods and class abilities, all interact is critical to your being able to maximize your impact as a solo player.
All this advice is focused on building up the basic sets of gear that will help you through difficult PvE content. I have probably forgotten many things, and of course you can always do things with an off-meta or weird loadout, either because you’re a masochist or because you want to challenge yourself. What’s below focuses on the basics.

Part 1: Armor and Armor Mods

In general a good PvE build will be a fully masterworked set of armor with high recovery and discipline or intellect. (Resilience sounds good but has only a very small impact on PvE combat.) For raids you might end up using melee abilities, but for sublight content you will mostly be fighting at range, and meleeing only in a panic. Grenades have a wide variety of important uses (hence discipline), and supers (and super energy) are also always useful (hence intellect), so spec into one of those if you can. In general armor stats matter much less in PvE than PvP; your armor mods will almost certainly not be focused on other things, which we’ll discuss in a second.
For now it’s worth noting that high-end PvE content tends to feature a pretty limited set of class and subclass options, along with a certain number of key exotic armor pieces.
Hunters: (1) Top or bottom tree void, with Orpheus Rigs (especially top tree) or Sixth Coyote or Wormhusk Crown (the last two for solo especially). (2) Bottom tree solar with Celestial Nighthawk for one-shot boss damage, mainly in raids. (3) Middle tree solar with Assassin’s Cowl for heal on knife melee, for solo content. (4) Stasis, especially for solo content where the grenades and debuffs help with champions.
Titans: (1) Top tree void, for the bubble, along with the Helm of Saint-14 (in some circumstances), or (2) middle tree void, for the barrier, with Ursa Furiosas for orb generation. In some situations, particularly when using Xenophage, Titans will run with Actium War Rigs for the reload benefit.
Warlocks: (1) Top tree void with Contraverse Hold gauntlets for frequent charged grenade use, or (2) Bottom tree void with Nezarec’s Sin, for a devour-focused build especially useful for soloing content (in which case you would want to be running a void energy weapon). (3) Much more often, middle tree solar with either Phoenix Protocol for super regen or Lunafaction Boots for reload benefit, for almost any content involving groups. (4) Middle tree arc with Geomag Stabilizers for some high-end content like grandmaster nightfalls.
Season 12 has added stasis subclasses to all three groups. One of the huge advantages of all stasis supers is that they allow for significant crowd control—for slowing and stunning enemies to take them temporarily or permanently out of the fight. This is true for supers, melees, and grenades. Of the three stasis classes I find the Warlock and Titans supers a bit weak for high-end content, but the grenades and melees to be very strong (especially when paired with the correct seasonal mods).
Note that the most common subclasses for group content are the ones that boost the entire team (Titan bubble, Warlock well), protect the entire team (Titan barrier), make allies invisible (Hunter smoke grenade on bottom tree), or control/manage and debuff enemies (Hunter tether, the stasis classes). Solo players tend to focus intensely on survival abilities—the Warlock devour, the Hunter invis, or the healing melees of top tree void Titan, bottom tree arc Titan, or top tree Arc hunter.
The other thing to say is that roaming supers—arc Hunter, solar or arc Titan, top and bottom arc Warlock, middle void Warlock—are generally not good in high-end PvE, especially if you’re sublight. They simply don’t deal enough damage quickly enough to be viable. This kind of content emphasizes one-shot supers like Celestial/Golden Gun or Nova Bomb for damage, and supers like the well or Titan barriebubbles, for protection.
Must-have exotic armor: Hunter: Orpheus Rigs and Celestial Nighthawk (for group play), Sixth Coyote (solo). Titan: Helm of Saint-14, Ursa Furiosa, Actium War Rig (group), Synthoceps (solo). Warlock: Phoenix Protocol, Lunfaction Boots, and Contraverse Hold (group or solo), Nezarec’s Sin (solo). Of the new Season 12 armor exotics, three have some utility here: Icefall Mantle, which can allow a Titan to tank a single champion (at 10-15 light levels below, at 25 this becomes quite hard); Necrotic Grips, good for Warlocks doing low-level add clear in raids, and Precious Scars, the Titan helmet that gives an overshield when rezzing—very useful in grandmaster nightfalls where a rez can often be a deathtrap.
In season 12, changes to the seasonal artifact mean that only solar and stasis subclasses have the ability to stun Overload champions with their grenades; this means that those classes have suddenly become more viable (and void less dominant) for high-end PvE work. More on that later.

Armor Mods

The key difference between high-level PvE content and ordinary content or PvP content is the importance of armor mods. Where PvP builds tend to focus on statistics like Recovery or Mobility, PvE armor tends to focus on damage resistance.
The Destiny mod system is unfortunately pretty bewildering. There are many many choices and it’s not clear how much any of them matters. So let me cover a few things—all of these now updated for Season 12.

The first mod slot

This mod slot allows you to boost your character’s basic stats. For group PvE content, you’ll want to focus on Recovery (which affects how quickly your health begins to regen when you’re not being hit), Intellect (which increases super regen speed), and Discipline (for grenades). For solo content that relies heavily on a single ability to survive—like the Hunter’s dodge, which regens faster with high Mobility, or the Titan’s healing void melee, which regens faster with high Strength—you will want to focus on those things specifically.
In the previous seasons this mod slot could be used for resistance mods, which are central to many PvE builds. But that has all gone away with Season 12, which means that this slot is less interesting, and less important, than it used to be.

Legacy, Combat, and Raid mod slots

These should be focused on one or more of the following goals, in order of importance:

1. Resistance mods (on chest armor) that reduce incoming damage
2. Mods that stun or disrupt or otherwise affect champions (arms or class item)
3. Raid-specific mods (final mod slot only, and only on raid armor)
4. Charged with Light and Warmind Cell mods (fourth slot)
5. Ammo Finder (helmet) and Ammo Scavenger (boots) mods.
6. For grandmaster nightfalls in particular, finisher mods (mainly Special Finisher) that go on your class item and allow you to trade super energy for special ammo drops.

Resistance Mods

Resistance mods come in four types: energy, melee, sniper, and concussive dampener. They all go on your chest armor. Melee reduces any damage done within 5m (does not have to be melee damage) by 25%. Sniper does the same for damage done from 29m or farther. Concussive reduces splash damage from grenades/boomers. These mods stack, with the second mod getting you to 40% damage resistance. The same goes for the energy resist mods.
Since you only have two slots, you will probably want to change them depending on the activity. For Gambit or really any content where you’re at or above the appropriate power level, melee/concussive or melee/melee is quite strong, since you’ll probably be mixing it up with mobs on the regular. For grandmaster nightfalls and other sublight content, snipeconcussive is a good place to start.

Anti-Champion Mods

These mods come in two types: weapon-specific mods, which go on your arms, and grenade or melee mods, which go on your class item. These mods come from the seasonal artifact and therefore change each season (which is why I have to update this guide).
Most high-end content will have two kinds of champions, so you’ll want to go into encounters making sure that you or your fireteam can stun, disrupt, or stagger the appropriate champions with the appropriate weapons.
For season 12 these mods are: Unstoppable Schwarzschild Condenser (2-Cost, Class Item), which allows Void melees to stagger Unstoppables, and Thermal Overload (2-Cost, Class Item), which allows solar and stasis grenades to disrupt Overload champions.
Another very useful champion mod in season 12 is Surge Eater, which restores your grenade whenever you stagger or disrupt a champion. You can combine this with Thermal Overload to stun Overload champions and immediately get your grenade back, allowing you to stun them again as soon as that’s possible.
In general I would say that the most obvious/basic combo this season is Surge EateThermal Overload… the melee mods are going to be hard to use because it’s going to be hard to get close enough to champions (in sublight content) to actually land a melee hit. The same is true for the Unstoppable Shotgun mod, which is also very highly priced at 7 energy.

Raid and Other Activity-Specific Mods (5th slot)

These include mods that affect Last Wish, Garden of Salvation, and the Deep Stone Crypt, as well as Nightmare Hunts on the moon. For Last Wish Taken Barrier and Taken Armaments are both incredibly useful; for GoS you really only need Enhanced Relay Defender.
For Nightmare Hunts I find that only the Nightmare Breaker mods really come in handy; the others not so much. You can read more about them here: https://www.reddit.com/DestinyTheGame/comments/dkpssk/breakdown_of_the_nightmare_mods_banisher_breake.
In Year 2 and Year 3 armor, these mods go in the fourth slot. Year 4 (Beyond Light) armor has a fifth dedicated slot for these mods, which frees up the fourth slot for other things.
Early analysis of the DSC mods suggests that for most six-person content they are not really worthwhile. See here: https://www.reddit.com/DestinyTheGame/comments/k2mi9s/quick_look_at_the_dsc_raid_mods_minus_suppresso?utm_source=share&utm_medium=ios_app&utm_name=iossmf

Charged with Light Mods

The CwL system works as follows: certain mods (colored in green) give you stacks of CwL, up to a maximum of two stacks. Other mods (yellow) spend those stacks. And a third set of mods (white) changes the number of stacks you get or can have (increases your stack maximum, up to five, or gives you two stacks instead of one each time you get a stack).
The basic system is this: (1) Get CwL (2) Spend CwL. The easiest way to get CwL is to use the Taking Charge mod, which gives you charges for picking up a light orb. Combined with a masterworked weapon that drops orbs on fast kills, you can pretty much guarantee that you’ll spend most of the time CwL. You can also get charges from mods that give charges on weapon damage (kills with a certain weapon give you charges) or action triggers (breaking a shield, doing a finisher). For Season 12, Abyssal Charge, in the sixth row of the artifact, will give you CwL for void melee final blows.
So now you have charges. How should you spend them? One option is to look for damage resistance or damage buffs. The best damage resist mod is Protective Light, an absolutely crucial choice that gives you 50% damage resistance when an enemy breaks your shield. I use it almost all the time. Useful damage boost mods include High-Energy Fire (generic 20% damage buff till you kill an enemy), Lucent Blade (for swords), and Surprise Attack (for sidearms).
Other CwL mods will give you chances to drop special ammo, return grenade or melee energy, heal you on grenade kills, and more.
For lower-level PvE content I tend to use damage mods like Lucent Blade or Surprise Attack. For scarier content I’m almost always on Protective Light.
If you have room for mods that increase your stacks, Stacks on Stacks (gives two stacks for each one you earn), Charged Up (increases total stacks by one), and Superpowered (increases total stacks by two) are all useful here.
TL:DR: if you do nothing else use Taking Charge (green) and Protective Light (yellow), and get more fancy once you understand more.

Warmind Cell mods

Like Charged with Light, this system involves creating an opportunity to affect the gameworld (by making a Warmind Cell), and then using that opportunity (the Cell) in a certain way. You create a cell by getting a kill using a Seraph weapon (which now are world drops; Ikelos 1.2 weapons also count as Seraph Weapons). Once the cell exists you can either pick it up or shoot it. Shooting it causes it to explode, and a number of WC mods increase the range of that explosion or add effects to it. Picking up the cell will allow you to throw or, or will (with a Warmind’s Light mod) Charge you with Light, or have some other effect.
Here are the Seraph weapons currently available. Names include “Seventh Seraph” except where noted:
Kinetic: auto rifle, hand cannon
Energy: smg (Seraph and Ikelos), sniper (Ikelos), sidearm, shotgun (Seraph and Ikelos)
Heavy: machine gun
When I’m playing I’ll tend to run an auto/shotgun/Xenophage loadout for max solar explosion damage, unless I’m running a void Warlock, in which case I use the sidearm (void) with Nezarec’s sin. For some explosion-oriented content I’ll run the hand cannon, Jotunn, and the machine gun.
The most basic way to use these cells is to create them and then shoot them. A mod like Global Reach will then give your cell explosions far greater range and effect. But you can also combine numbers of mods to create some pretty cool synergistic builds, as you see here:
https://www.forbes.com/sites/paultassi/2020/03/27/a-destiny-2-solar-inferno-warlock-warmind-cell-build-for-more-room-clearing-fun/#5ec7d0c01c30
You can find a guide to all the Warmind Cell mods here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Kqaf2MdmUm1Ll6jCh-Rt0k6j2-nYCwf5lbbRLtXyr7M/edit#
But here are the basics: Solar mods generally affect cell explosion damage; Void mods create buff and debuff effects that do not rely on exploding the cells; and Arc mods create effects upon mod pickup.
The key to Warmind Cell is to understand that cells, once created, belong to everyone. Effects from shooting or picking up the cells are pegged to the person who picks them up or shoots them. So if Person A has Rage of the Warmind on and shoots a cell created by Person B, who does not have it on, then the explosion will be affected by Rage of the Warmind. And if Person B has Warmind’s Protection on, they will get 50% damage protection from mobs standing near a cell created by Person A—even if Person A does not have that mod on.
What this means that an entire fireteam of 6 people can coordinate Warmind Cell mods to create synergistic effects. I describe some of those below.

Recommended Builds

Add-clear Explosion Fun Build
Global Reach (1 neutral), Wrath of Rasputin (1 solar), Rage of the Warmind (5 solar), Incinerating Light (3 Solar), Reactive Pulse (CwL, 3 Arc). Ideally paired with a weapon that causes solar splash damage (Ace of Spaces, Sunshot, Jotunn, Xenophage, Martyr’s Retribution; the Warlock exotic chest Chromatic Fire also causes explosions on kinetic precision kills) and/or a solar subclass.
This build involves creating cells and then using the explosions from the cells to create more cells, killing everything within 30m (that’s the range of the explosion, Rage of the Warmind doubles that). Wrath of Rasputin creates more cells from solar splash so you’ll be making cells from your non-Seraph weapons and your class abilities (if you’re running a solar class).
Incinerating Light charges you with light when you kill three or more things with a cell explosion, and the Reactive Pulse mod creates a 30m Arc explosion when you take damage while surrounded—essentially destroying red-bar enemies all around you.
This is a build for content where you’re higher or even in power level with your enemies; it’s super fun. In a perfect world it turns your character into the walking center of a series of explosions, and feels awesome.
Defensive Build
Global Reach (1 neutral), Wrath of Rasputin (1 solar), Taking Charge (CwL, 3 neutral), Protective Light (CwL, 2 void), Warmind’s Protection (2 void).
This build has a number of variations depending on whether you’re running a solar class and/or coordinating with a team. A maximum defensive build swaps out Wrath of Rasputin for Cellular Suppression (2 void); you generate fewer cells but the cells you make help more, since shooting cells when you have CS on will send out a stunning pulse that will stun red-bar enemies for 10 seconds. Warmind’s Protection gives you a 50% damage buff against enemies near a cell.
If you have a full fireteam with multiple people using Warmind builds you can coordinate some of these buffs (making sure a couple people have Cellular Suppression on, for instance, or having someone else run Grasp of the Warmind (3 void), which allows you to pick cells up and move them to better places.
Here's a list of some fun builds for you:
Neutral, good for anything

1. Taking Charge, Protective Light, Global Reach, Wrath of Rasputin, Fireteam Medic
   
2. Taking Charge, Protective Light, Stacks on Stacks, Global Reach, Wrath of Rasputin
   
3. Taking Charge, Protective Light, Reactive Pulse, Supercharged, Stacks on Stacks
   
4. Global Reach, Wrath of Rasputin, Fireteam Medic, Warmind’s Protection, Cellular Suppression (this is the build I use most often in non-challenging content)
   

Aggressive

1. Global Reach, Wrath of Rasputin, Rage of the Warmind, Fireteam Medic, Power of Rasputin
   
2. Taking Charge, High-Energy Fire, Reactive Pulse, Supercharged, Lucent Blade (sword) or Argent Ordnance (Rockets) or Surprise Attack (sidearms)
   
3. Fusion Rifle or Shotgun-focused build: Supercharged, Quick Charge, Heavy Handed, High-Energy Fire, Charged Up
   
4. Grenade-focused build: Taking Charge, Firepower, Heal Thyself, Supercharged, Stacks on Stacks
   

Defensive

1. Taking Charge, Protective Light, Global Reach, Wrath of Rasputin, Warmind’s Protection
   
2. Taking Charge, Protective Light, Reactive Pulse, Global Reach, Warmind’s Protection
   

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Part 2 of this guide, on weapons and the current metas, is here: https://www.reddit.com/DestinyTheGame/comments/k5fzne/moving_into_highlevel_pve_guide_for_beginners/