This is a simple post on a better way to order your teams to give you more options and have counter pick orders. We all know that if you hold :a1: or :a2: during load screen it will swap your point character with that assist. So far most people always construct teams in the traditional point/second/anchor order and generally create an issue where maybe picking your anchor to start, now places your point in back…which may not be ideal if you’re playing someone like Hulk or Cap. So this post is really to point out simple tactics in ordering teams in a unique way to give you more flexibility. Here’s a few examples of different ways to order them to give you better options:
Placing your point…SECOND?
Default team: Cap (ss)/Vergil (rs)/ Task(h arrow)
The better order? Vergil/Cap/Task, why?
The big issue here is we have Cap who is ideally point, an ok second, and a god awful anchor. Normally we want him point so our only alternate option is to swap vergil point…which isn’t always ideal as he’s stronger second and anchor. With this order however, we open up our options and get 3 ideal teams for different counter picks.
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[*]Nothing - Vergil/Cap/Task - Not our ideal team, but Vergil on point is a good counter pick to front loaded teams that may require you to want to abuse swords + XF early to seal the pace of the game. Morrigan is a decent reason to pick him as you can create an issue before she can get started and use swords to counter astral. Cap is actually an amazing assist with Vergil creating a gapped mix up with shield slash and Task is a decent anchor that functions well with Cap/Task if Vergil dies.
[*]:a1: - Cap/Vergil/Task - Our default team where Cap is front loaded with some of his best assists into some great DHC tactics with Vergil, making his pressure and ability to TOD very threatening. Vergil can easily come in and take advantage of Cap assist and tag back as needed. Task once again is a solid assist for both and a decent anchor that can also swap with vergil easily.
[*]:a2: - Task/Cap/Vergil - Cap still has bad match ups against run away zoners and characters with scarier normals, Task is a great counter pick to almost all his bad match ups. Cap is now second with the ability to double jump to avoid most incoming set ups, and vergil is anchor…which is good.
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I now have 3 teams for 3 specific scenarios. The big thing to point out here is we took advantage of Task/Vergil as more flexible characters to get around Cap’s issue of being limited to point/second. By placing Cap second, his only options are those two positions, allowing you to move your second to shift the orders.
Front load anchor assist or ideal second?
Well this won’t effect all teams, but it it gives you room to think. A lot of shells in game make players argue which order they want. Characters like Doom, Sent, Strange, IM, and Dante present an issue where they are all phenomenal assists, but as anchors they have issues. They’re all ideal seconds, but the assists often validate them as anchor roles to support the other characters. Typically teams that appoint them as anchor are considered front loaded with the intention of not having to use them to defeat 3 healthy characters if things go wrong. Now you can consider other options.
Maybe I like doom, but not sure if I want him second or anchor. I would simply do the same trick and do Doom/point/anchor(secondary point). Ex: Doom/Morrigan/Magneto. Here we have two top tier teams variants on morridoom: Morrigan/Doom/Mag (front load morrigan w/ solid anchor) or Mag/Morrigan/Doom (front load magneto and morrigan with missiles and let Magneto battery > TAC/DHC into morrigan to start us). We have a balanced team and a front load team. Magneto/Morrigan/Doom is also valid, but only addresses if you want mag or morrigan first, doom is always anchor and you may want mag anchor as he is a much better one if things go wrong. This new order give’s you a little more flexibilty if you don’t always want to commit to front loading.
What else can I do?
Your team matters in how relevant this all is, but you can do all sorts of orders. The only things you can’t do is swap second and anchor. So think carefully about your 3 characters. Who works in all positions? What synergies do I get in different orders? What characters are not flexible in all positions? Think about these and consider if placing your second or anchor on point is the smarter option. You may have a team within a team!
Is it tournament legal to swap order if it’s first round or I won last game?
YES. You are ALWAYS allowed to swap team order! I have confirmed this with a discussion with Mr.Wizard and had him augment the wording for EVO 2013 rules to better clarify. So if you’re a player who likes to wait on the select screen for your opponent to pick first or you have a team that has some match ups you don’t like, this may be a solution for you. You can now consider more optimal orders and make last minute adjustments.