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Clans   Table of Contents   Soujiro's Top Ten

A Second Opinion on Clans
By: Kamikaze

Let's get right to the action. What everyone is talking about with clans, the Super Bowl of clan tournaments, Clan Wars V. Other than Triad Piratez, who made quite a good impression in their first Clan Wars appearance, the list of clans that made it to round two was not surprising, those of which were Triforce, Devas, Zodiac Braves, Avalanche, the Polish Clan, BoS, and KotC. In round two, we saw clans such as the Devas, Zodiac Braves, the Polish clan, and Avalanche proceed to the semifinals with ease. Then, the fun began. This semifinals round was probably the closest out of any Clan Wars tournament with Zodiac Braves beating the Polish clan 3-2, and Avalanche advancing over Devas through a coin flip after both teams winning two games, and one undecided match. It has been a tough road to the finals. Both clans have worked hard to get there and both are well-deserving of reaching the finals. For Triple Triad's legendary clan, Avalanche, this is their first trip to the finals on TTA. Great accomplishments have come to them in the past, including a Clan of the year award. Now, they hope to add a Clan Wars title to that. For the two-time defending Clan Wars champions, the Zodiac Braves have also worked hard to get here. Even though they trail early on 0-1, they will not give up without a fight. April 9th marks the last day for these two clans carve their names into TTA's history as Clan Wars Champions.

Clan League season three started off good for many clans, and not so good for others. Clan X, without a doubt, has certainly made the biggest impression thus far. Leading after the first three matchdays, then falling to a respectable third place after the fourth matchday is certainly a very respectable showing. Avalanche dominated the first two matchdays going 6-0 in their six games. This trend followed to the Zodiac Braves for matchdays three and four, where they went 6-0 in their 6 matches. Maybe another clan will go 6-0 for matchdays five and six, but only time will tell. After a long break, season three has certainly proved to be a successful season so far. Next season, combined with the rejuvenated activity within clans and the recently announced new setup for the clan league next season, I envision nothing but success. Shuriken and the TTA Fun team have certainly outdone themselves with the setup of the league. I look forward to next season.

After what seemed like a slow year for clans in 2006, the first quarter of 2007 has certainly started good. While there may not be a ton of clans out there right now, I feel as though there are more core clans than there has been in awhile. The main reason behind this is growth. There have been so many new or newer clans that have grown together. Shugenja, Devas, Clan X, Card Angels, Triad Piratez, Rebirth Flame, Liberi Fatali, and Knights of the Crusade which brings an interesting blend of experienced clan members from Kotr and new members from the Crusaders. Combine that growth with experienced clans such as Triforce, T3, Avalanche, Zodiac Braves, Polish clan, and BoS, and you have a clan scene worthy of multiple clan articles in a newsletter.

It is hard for anyone not to be excited about the clan scene right now. It has the three best things needed, good competition, activity, and clan pride. Those are, what I believe to be, the driving forces to make a clan scene successful as a whole. The future of the clan scene has a lot of potential to excel, but, at the same time, it is completely unpredictable. The members are what make a clan successful. The members are what constitutes whether a clan has pride or not. The members are what decides whether a clan will rise or fall. As long as clans individually stay active, then the clan scene as a whole will stay active, which will only bring success.

That is all for this month! Be sure to check out my article next month and my next edition of 3 Up, 3 Down!