Tournament Doubles Derby II - Commencement Thread

[zoe]

Commencement thread for Derby II, Idyll go wild

derb​

 

[qsns]

derb

 

[Grandmas Cookin]

 

[Lhions]

derb.

pd: draft Idyll to play natdex, i know he loves zamaenta and want to play vs the doggo

 

[PigWarrior19]

If any managers need info for doubles lc DM me I’d be happy to help

Derb.

 

[zee]

 

[Idyll]

The People's Champ's Derb Power Rankings: Managers (REAL?)​

Hello! In this segment, I ranked the chosen manager duos for Derb 2. I focused on things I can quantify, particularly manager / captain experience as well as individual tournament performance in Derb formats. While the managers themselves won't necessarily be playing, I still find being actually decent if not good at the game to be valuable, particularly for supporting players, generally for being able to tell yourselves how good certain prospects are, and notably for how well they can take advantage of the standard playing manager slot. While intangibles such as vibes, personality, and "ability to build a culture / good team environment" have their value, there's also only so much consideration I can give these without it being perhaps unfounded, too subjective for my tastes, or just plain weird. Thus, I wanted to focus more on things that I'm able to support with empirical evidence, noting any pre-existing chemistry between pairs when I can.

For the teamtours, I focused on the following DOU Community team tours from the past year: DPL X, DWC 4, Derb 1, and DPL 9 (don't ask me why one DPL is in roman and the other arabic). I also limited other individual performances to ones in 2024 and 2023. If you (manager reading this) have any qualms about your ranking, gg you know why.

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1. Arcticblast & zee - Icirrus Ice Riders ​

Notable Achievements:
Arcticblast: Arcticblast
Zee: 3.4 different Discord avatars per week

Both high-profile and longstanding members of the DOU community with a breadth of high-level playing and managerial experience between them, the Icirrus Ice Riders duo perhaps have the most potential to do damage this Derb. They already have experience as a duo that other's don't necessarily have, this pair from US East also having worked together in leading the DPL 9 Cratemakers (5th) as well as managing in the VGC Classics PL I (Semifinals). Both have also been prolific individual players: Arcticblast has never been necessarily been known of his play, but he's also been on string of good performances as of late, while zee has been one of the best players for a while now, particularly in Derb formats. They're also generally attuned with the DOU community, both holding respective leadership positions, so they should have the acumen to sort the wheat from the chaff in the playerpool. In terms of playing skill, managerial experience and synergy, and just knowing who's who in the broader doubles communities, this duo perhaps may be the most complete between the two of them, which earns them this #1 spot. Perhaps their one sour spot is their relative difference in life philosophy: while Arcticblast has had the same discord avatar for 14 years now, zee has had two different ones in the writing period of this piece alone.

Duo: DWC 4 US East teammates. DPL 9 Cratermakers (5th). VGC Classics PL I (Semifinalist).
Arcticblast: Top 32 OSDT IV. 2-1 DWC. 5-1 SV DUbers last Derb. 4-2 SV DOU in DPL 9. Manager during DPL III Storms win. DOU Forum Moderator.
zee: 3-1 NDWC. 6-3 OSDT IV Swiss. 2-1 DWC 4. 4-0 NDPL. 5-1 ADVPL III. Managed DPL X Cratermakers (Finalist), US East Captain for DWC 4. Monarchs Manager in NPA I (10th xD). Council member, and talking head for DPP and ADV.

2. Akaru Kokuyo & Seraphz - Celestial Chargers ​

Notable Achievements:
Akaru Kokuyo: Dead Beat +++
Seraphz: formerly Oblivion Wing

This lofty #2 ranking is primarily carried by Akaru being perhaps one of, if not the, most prolific managerial candidates, a complete package with stellar individual playing performances and a winning record of leadership to their name. The Dead Beat is coming off a relatively successful Semifinals finish managing the Ducks with SMB just this DPL X, following a championship-winning run in DWC 4 as Latin America's Captain-slash-star player. Seraphz, meanwhile, is a bit of a relative newcomer to the Doubles scene; this would be their first non-regional DOU community team tour counting up to DPL 9, though they did have a recent Top 32 OSDT IV finish to show their necessary competence in the format. While they do have a good amount of managerial experience of their own, what exactly they can contribute on top of Akaru's already winning pedigree in a doubles context is very much a question that needs to be answered. I can at least assume that these two already have pre-existing chemistry with one another, and if nothing else, Seraphz is already on the right track after reverting their aura-less namechange (clueless).

Akaru Kokuyo: Managed Ducks in DPL X (Semifinalist). Latin America Team Captain in DWC 4 (Champion), 5-0. Currently Top 8 in OSDT IV (ongoing). 5-3 NDPL. Council member.
Seraphz: Top 32 OSDT IV. 2-1 in DWC. Listed leadership experience in other team tournaments: PTPL, RUGL, NDWC, and ZUWC.

3. eragon & Hugo - Konikoni Kingdras ​

Notable Achievements:
eragon: eragon
Hugo: Alolan HTH

Win or lose, this returning Konikoni Kasters duo may perhaps always come out on top as they will get their content either way. Their already existing synergy, though, perhaps propels them on the more hopeful side as they run it back for yet another Derb run. eragon, now numberless, has had an up-and-somewhat down year with stellar individual performances and disappointing managerial runs, the recent DPL X Storms finish being quite the brutal one. Hugo, meanwhile, has actually been done well in an array of Derb format tournaments, though they've been so low-key about it that I wouldn't be remiss to think they were a Teals sleeper agent. Despite being a strong pair of managers, they fall short of #2 because Akaru is just that complete of a package right now. Still, what they make lack in individual star power, they may make up for in spades with vibes—which they asserted as much in their mind-boggingly lengthy answer to the "why should we pick you" question in the manager sign-up form. This duo definitely projects to have a relatively high ceiling, as they've already proven, but I think there's ground to be made up still.

Duo: Returning duo from previous Derb (Finalist).
eragon: US West Team Captain in DWC 4 (Semifinalist), 6-0. 6-2 NDPL. Storms Manager in DPL X (7th). Council member.
Hugo: 4-3 OSDT IV Swiss. Top 2, ADV DOU Open I. Top 8 DPP DOU Friendly Tour 1. SV DUU Seasonal Top 12. Listed experience: UMPL (Finalist).

4. bagel & big pichu - Twinleaf Turboblaze ​

Notable Achievements:
bagel: Holy Fucking Bingle
big pichu: 357th of 358 listed players for 2024

I'm gonna be honest, I have no real idea what to make of this returning duo, which opted for the salty runback after a 4th place into Semifinals finish. There's nothing really about them that's truly transgressive, but they're also a few steps away from being truly exciting I suppose...? Sure, bage1 has been on a tear ever since the previous Derb, winning a fine ribbon and grabbing a DOUTL position for themself in the meantime. big pichu, meanwhile, hasn't really done much of note—I did see only zeroes in their row for 2023 in the All-time sheet, and their recent DPL X SV DUU run is the entire opposite of having aura. pichu largo's playing ability doesn't matter as much in the grand scheme of managing considering they're with bagel... but I also I can't really speak so objectively about intangibles like personality and vibes, so as an outsider, these records are the few things I can go off of. Perhaps the pertinent narrative beat this duo has to overcome is their relative overlap tiers-wise, with bage1 having originally been a DUU pick for DPL 9 and also just generally one of the best players right now; how does big pichu come into the grand scheme of this pairing? In all honesty, I could see this duo peaking quite high should this question be responded to adequately, pre-existing chemistry and all. big pichu definitely seems to be attuned with the DOU community already and bagel, well, that guy definitely has aura.

Duo: Returning duo from previous Derb (Semfinalist). DPL X Thieves teammates.
bagel: DOUTL. 3-1 NDWC. Winner, Friendly Series #2 - ND DOU. 2023 Circuit Winner. Winner, 2023 DUU Invitationals. Top 32 OSDT IV. Top 6, Fall Seasonal. Top 2, RoA DPP DOU Spotlight. Finalist, SV DUU Seasonal. DPP Council member.
big pichu: Managed DPL 9 Church (8th). 1-7 DUU in DPL X.

5. kaori & xqiht - Neigh Bark Town ​

Notable Achievements:
kaori: Spacial Week denier
xqiht: Doesn't like dinosaurs

While I do rank these two at the bottom half, this is also a combination that I think has massive potential to go the distance should they overcome their hurdles in the narrative and play to each other's strengths. Kaori is a veteran even among veterans in the DOU community, with multiple team tour managerial runs to their name. Quite relevant were their five DPL managerial runs, but only the first of which (DPL 3, Finals finish) got past the playoffs. Even if most of these runs did go really badly though, a lot of them were a million years ago so I really don't hold them against kaori... still, when even the most recent one in DPL 9 (8th) was bad, it's really just some bad juju. xqiht, meanwhile, is one of the best players to recently join the community, already with several accolades to their name. This would be their first time managing, and there is an important, realistic question to consider: would the language barrier affect xq's ability to manage effectively? Of course, xq has always been able to communicate with everyone just fine, but a leadership role is perhaps is more demanding in certain respects. How far these two can go perhaps really depends on how well they can compliment each other, particularly with regards to drafting, building their team environment, and communicating ideas; the fact that they have one of the strongest possible playing managers certainly helps a lot.

kaori: Listed experience in own words: "DOU WCOP with a 2/2 playoff rate, DPL like 5 times, BSPL 3x, etc. etc." 4-4 DUU in DPL X.
xqiht: 3-2 NDWC. 6-0 SV DOU in DPL X. 4-1 DWC 4. 3-3 ND and DLC in Derb 1. NatDex Swiss #2 Winner. 2-5 NDPL.

6. Amaranth & Smudge - Jubilife J*ckeys ​

Notable Achievements:
Amaranth: 358th of 358 listed players for 2024
Smudge: Living proof you can redeem yourself from a DOUcord ban.

After leading their respective teams to floundering Semifinal finishes in the last Derb, Amaranth and Smudge decided to combine their powers in order to get themselves over hump. While they do have the leadership acumen to get there (Amaranth is OTT-caliber, even), their ability to play the game as of late has been... well... erm... yeah. Amaranth has had great peaks throughout the years, but their 2024 has also just went poorly relative to expectations. Smudge, meanwhile, has not had any true standout runs yet, with performances (any format) peaking at above average (4-3 in DPL X) and with lows at peepeepoopoo (1-6 NDPL). This isn't meant to be a roasting session, of course; there's a necessary level of skill needed to get drafted for these team tours at all, and it's very clear to anyone with eyes that they have it. It's just that, when ranking, I can't exactly pretend they didn't happen... though while they've been losing a good amount, right now I see them at a point where they're possibly up next. Thankfully, all this really doesn't matter that much because all they really have to do is manage, and both of them have the vibe and experience to make for good team leaders. Their leadership experience aside, perhaps the one saving grace is only one of them has to play, and that itself is very much optional.

Amaranth: Listed experience: RoAPL win and Classest reaching Playoffs listed as recent managerial experience. Managed Derb 1 Unicorns (Semifinals). Top 8, ADV DOU Swiss. 3-1 DWC 4.
Smudge: Managed Derb 1 J*ckeys (Semifinals). US West Co-Captain (Semifinals), 1-3. 1-3 various formats in Derb 1. 1-6 NDPL. DOU C&C Leader. NDDOUTL.

7. Glimmer & sir jelloton - Gallop of the Gods ​

Notable Achievements:
Glimmer: NDDLT Runner-Up
sir jelloton: NDDLT Champion

This pairing being selected may perhaps be the biggest win for the representation of ND DOU players everywhere. Glimmer being picked as manager is perhaps one of the best things to ever happen to the ND DOU metagame, because this means they likely won't be playing thank Arceus because they literally ran me down in NDWC like wtf??? I will never forget the one time I asked why a Flutter Mane set we had didn't have a particular amount of Speed EVs to outrun Marshadow, and as an ND DOU main they... clearly just forgot about it xD!!1! I also can't get over when I got given a team whose only Marshadow match-up was Will-O-Wisp Incineroar like WTFFFFFFFFF—

Okay enough of that. On the real, this pairing may perhaps one of the more natural synergies throughout the manager pool as both are ND players with pre-existing history, with Jello in particular being quite the standout prospect. Their low ranking here is mostly because of how they seem to lack meaningful managerial experience and how their horizons seem to need a little more broadening. Glimmer seems to be mostly limited to ND DOU. sir jelloton is much more accomplished and has dabbled in a bunch of formats here and there, but is still rather inexperienced in the grand scheme of things, especially compared to the competition. As managerial prospects, these two are quite raw and unproven—their story will about going above expectations relative to experience, and that they indeed can construct and lead a roster capable of getting to the endgame.

Glimmer: 1-2 NDWC. Runner-up, NDDLT. 3-6 ND Farm League. Top 16, NatDex Swiss #2. NDDOU Council.
sir jelloton: 3-3 NDWC (ongoing). Champion, NDDLT. 6-2 ND Farm League. Winner, SV DLC Kickoff. 5-3 OSDT IV Swiss. Top 6, Fall Seasonal. Finals, Doubles LC Last Chance #1. Top 8, DPP Friendly Tour 1. Top 6, NatDex Kickoff. Top 16, National Dex Doubles Swiss Tournament #2. NDDOU Council.

8. Loudwinner & sundays - Buckhorn Rhyhorns ​

Notable Achievements:
Loudwinner: Last scheduling incident-haver
sundays: Last RBTT

Last but not the least, the duo from Team India! That team finished surprisingly strong in DWC 4, and so having their so-called shadow managers pull up for a run seems quite interesting. Do I put much stock in this shadow-managing? Eh... unless AIRedzone tells me these two lent him a Ferrari or let him stay in their NYC Penthouse or something, no not really. Region-based team tours like DWC are already not so demanding with regards to leadership and roster construction, because teams basically build themselves with pre-existing connections. Roster construction for Derby in particular is much less forgiving—unlike DPL and its oldgens with many overlapping players, Derby features more specialized formats and fragmented competitive communities (DLC being the most isolated). There is much more of a challenge when it comes to actually knowing who's who and extracting max value per credit among the best of the best, and given these two have only really done SV DOU and not much else... well, tyo did vouch for them for vibes, at least, so I'm willing to believe. To me, this is the duo with the steepest mountain to climb, particularly with specialized knowledge about playerbases, and I'm excited to see what they have to offer here.

Duo: DWC 4 India teammates.
Loudwinner: 5-3 OSDT IV Swiss. 4-2 DWC 4. Top 12, Fall Seasonal. Listed managerial experience: PSPL, TPP, and HPL.
sundays: 6-3 OSDT IV Swiss. 2-1 DWC 4. Top 16, ADV DOU Swiss.

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And that's it! Special thanks to the DOU All-time Sheet, from which a lot of these records were referenced. Hope you enjoyed reading and remember: it's not that serious! If you do actually have any problems, though, feel free to reach out to me through my discord account: hisuianzoerua. Thank you, and have a nice Derb!

 

[AIRedzone]

Eh... unless AIRedzone tells me these two lent him a Ferrari or let him stay in their NYC Penthouse or something, no not really.

These two lent me several Ferraris and let me stay in their Mumbai and Chennai penthouses

 

[kaori]

Very Real and Very Unbiased Manager Rankings
This Post Was Fact Checked by Real Doubles Patriots
​

I analyzed nearly 3,141,592,653.59 data points and confirmed my preexisting conclusions by using results from the 27th page of Google to compile this objective analysis of the managers in the Doubles Derby 2. Here are my rankings and some of the interesting true facts I found along the way.


1) Neigh Bark Town

kaori

Pro: Singlehandedly dismantled the Dutch East India Company
Con: Once purposefully said "you too" when wished safe travels by an airline gate agent

xqiht

Pro: Invented the Butter Churner
Con: Actively supports and encourages the bleaching of the Great Barrier Reef

2) Icirrus Ice Riders

Arcticblast

Pro: Has 27 birthdays annually
Con: The Nantucket Incident

zee

Pro: Has a life size cutout of N from Pokemon Black and White proudly displayed next to their desk at work
Con: Punted a Morpeko into orbit one time

3) Twinleaf Turboblaze

bagel

Pro: Is a filling, low effort breakfast choice consisting of only 346 calories with a plethora of viable customization options. A real staple of the Morning metagame.
Con: Puts ketchup in his Mac and Cheese

big pichu

Pro: Can play Wonderwall on the electric shamisen
Con: Can play Wonderwall on the electric shamisen

4) Jubilife Jockeys

Amaranth

Pro: Able to make an impeccable Beef Wellington
Con: Used a cheese grater on the Mona Lisa

smudge

Pro: Successfully defended an Indian Paradise Flycatcher in court due to his extensive knowledge of Bird Law
Con: Has a wrapped 2007 Toyota Corolla featuring Zero Two from Darling in the Franxx

5) Konikoni Kingdras

eragon

Pro: Finally found a viable usage case for Magic Room
Con: Was the one behind putting the U2 album on everyone's iTunes

Hugo

Pro: Calls his mom every day and tells her he loves her
Con: Attempted a hostile coup of Uzbekistan in 2017

6) Celestial Chargers

Akaru Kokuyo

Pro: Believes in space-conscious vertical farming techniques
Con: Will insist that Applebee's is underrated to the point of physical coercion

Seraphz

Pro: Wrote the original "electrical infetterance" copypasta
Con: Does not use the Oxford Comma

7) Gallop of the Gods

sir jelloton

Pro: Bravely calls In-N-Out mid, as god intended
Con: I saw sir jelloton at a grocery store in Los Angeles yesterday. I told him how cool it was to meet him in person, but I didn’t want to be a douche and bother him and ask him for photos or anything.
He said, “Oh, like you’re doing now?”
I was taken aback, and all I could say was “Huh?” but he kept cutting me off and going “huh? huh? huh?” and closing his hand shut in front of my face. I walked away and continued with my shopping, and I heard him chuckle as I walked off. When I came to pay for my stuff up front I saw him trying to walk out the doors with like fifteen Milky Ways in his hands without paying.
The girl at the counter was very nice about it and professional, and was like “Sir, you need to pay for those first.” At first he kept pretending to be tired and not hear her, but eventually turned back around and brought them to the counter.
When she took one of the bars and started scanning it multiple times, he stopped her and told her to scan them each individually “to prevent any electrical infetterence,” and then turned around and winked at me. I don’t even think that’s a word. After she scanned each bar and put them in a bag and started to say the price, he kept interrupting her by yawning really loudly.

Glimmer

Pro: Can do that anime sword thing where the other dude gets cut after you sheathe the sword
Con: Her browser homepage is the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

8) Buckhorn Rhyhorns

Loudwinner

Pro: Sculpted a lifelike bust of Mahatma Gandhi out of rich mahogany entirely with a chainsaw
Con: Believes in the "ethical landlord"

sundays:

Pro: Built a functional homeless shelter entirely out of nearly 7,000,000 calendars. Every Sunday was circled on each one of them
Con: Constantly made "Pickle Rick" jokes for almost 3 years

 

[a fairy]

auction video for those who would like it