Recent as of: Sunday, January 3rd, 2010

SKILLED PLAYER DICTIONARY

Best Current Player on ICO:

JohnJames: Master at vasari, in my humble opinion he his the best at vasari.  He good at fighting for neutrals, and rarely wastes a unit.  He likes to rush, and is at the opposite end of the spectrum from a player like Howthe? who is an expansionist.  He has started to play advent, and with his micro prowess i doubt he will have any problems with it.  JJ continues to make new strategies for ICO players to use, his most recent stratagem includes the double halcyon with massed disciples. 

Tier 1 (this is more of an exclusive tier then Howthe?'s list)

• Tyr: He can be a real dick because he loves to smurf and stack the teams, but he is a great advent player and sticks to his guns that advent is currently way OP, and therefore refuses to play anything but advent until the next patch is released toning down the power of guardians.  On top of being great at advent, he also has a solid vasari which makes him a dual threat player.
• Cykur: When he is playing this game he is a symbol of a player who never stops massing ships and building structures. As Vasari, it is not uncommon to see him have Returning Armada in later games and can micro as well as anyone.  One of the original and best members on ICO.  He doesn't play as much as he used to, but i will keep him on Tier 1 anyways.
• Raging Amish: WTF? 100 seeker vessels? Yes many people will be wondering, but here is the man that pioneered the scout rush and is the most fearsome Amish person that i know (yes i realize that that list may be small).  His strategies may be far from conventional but he will rarely let his team down and does a good job in holding his front against anybody.
• fortune: Seemingly came out of nowhere, his game is superb.  Quiet about the ways hes about to bestow his pwn onto you, is a great team player as well as an innovator.  Uses uncommon strategies to prevail in situations while playing vasari, and when playing advent, enters the role of the traditional illuminator spammer.  He is one of the best players on ICO today and a great pick for your team.
• Greyfox: I've often played grey and wondered who the hell is feeding him so much, only to realize in the end nobody fed him!  He seems to just pull ships out of his ass, and is a very good advent player.  He has stuck true to his strategies he has used since the beginning and he still kicks as
• Krath: Well, where do i begin..  We've had a rocky relationship, but now, i see him as a great player, one of the best TEC players left.  Proficient Advent player, although i've never seen him play Vasari.  He plays a good game, and is very hard to beat, because his knowledge of unit combinations and counters is top notch.  His micro is good, and there is no question in my mind, or in many others that he can play with the top dogs.s.

Tier 2 (Sound understanding of all apsects of the game, very good player)

• Howthe?: Professional at digging in, really can make you scratch your head and cry when you see his defenses.  When he does not have to dig in, watch out as he will take alot of planets fast and before you know it your planets will become victim to his Planet Suction.  This is one of the best team players on Sins and has a great personality.  Classy player
• Quar: Solid understanding with both Vasari and Advent.  A true nightmare for enemies, as he has mastered the use of vasari starbases, on his own and enemy worlds.  A great microer, but can get lazy on the neutrals.  He is a great pick for your team in any match
• US Navy/ArchNemesis: A solid advent player who is a good teamate and has very good micro.  He can make all of his ships count and is a solid pick in any PUG match.
• WHIPperSNAPper: Even when whip is losing, you will be kicking yourself when you see how much planet health everyone of his planets has as vasari.  It is not uncommon to see 6-7 6000 hp planets to really slow down your progress and preserve tax income.  Never rolls over for the enemy, ever.
• N1M/Tu Tu: Great player, good guy, and good at Advent, TEC, and Vasari.  Sometimes i am not sure he makes the best decisions in terms of use of his fleet, but still, N1M is a great player that understands what he is meant to do, not greedy when it comes to feeding or asking for feed (KL..)
• Flipkik: anyone seen his xfire hours? holy shit this guy plays alot of games.  With some more dedication to sins he could be a real top-notch player.  Still a solid choice to have on your team
• KL3MZ: Advent player extraordinaire.  Great at holding on a 2v1, good at splitting his fleet just right in that regard.  Good team player, great personality.  Expresses a desire to learn vasari, but doesn't get a chance to play .  Solid choice for any team
• Pawelo: A good vasari player, which is good because its all he ever plays, and he goes about his game quietly while hes taking your neutrals, setting up an econ, and creating a good fleet.  Micro is suspect at times, and holds him back from what his potential could be considering his solid macro.  One of the few to use mines as extensively as JJ, and surprisingly, uses them effectively

Tier 3 (players that are very good)

• GiniBadFnBitch: He is a very good player, but he is an old dog that is slow to learn the new tricks.  He could be so much better if he learned counters for new dominant aspects of sins such as the missle barrage.  There is no doubt that he could beat almost anyone in the game if he learned the new tricks of entrenchment, but it is merely a question of when this happens.
  
• Siddy: As much as he may be annoying, he is still a good player and i can't not include him on this list.  He is annoying as hell and his smurfs are more offensive than mine, his internet sucks, but whatever he knows what he is doing, thats for sure but i would really almost never want him on my team.  ON A RECENT NOTE, siddy seems to be smoking crack, greatly effecting his playing ability
• Uber: Pretty good at vasari, haven't seen too much of him, if i do i will write a better review than this.
• Howler:  Haven't been impressed with his laziness that often plagues him mid game, his indicisiveness (is that a word?) in the critical periods of a game really hurt his team.  Another unattractive quality is once he starts losing he quits, instead of trying to slow down his opponent for as long as he can.
• STALKER: Pretty much only plays advent, but is able to do most things atleast averagely, i don't really know enough about him yet to write a full review.

MIA TIER (players that are seemingly no longer)

• King Dante: Very solid player who can play TEC and Advent with ease.  He insists he does not like scouts, but i've seen him have 350 seeker vessels (which lags the game like HELL).  He is a great teamate very communicative and has a good command over his game.  While his scout strategy may mimic Raging Amish, they are different players and King Dante has carved a niche in the community as a sturdy veteran player. 
• Berzerker: Awesome at advent, can be kind of annoying how he joins a game then seems to go afk for hours, but is worth the wait.  He is without question one of the best at sins, at all aspects.  He can set up an amazing economy, and can make handling large fleets look easy
• Chaostheory: Saying that he likes the vulkoras desolator is an understatement, i've seen him have 6-7 of them. I don't personally understand why he does this, but whatever.  He likes the vasari starbase and like Hikkelo, do not be surprised if they end up in your homeworld.  Can fight for neutrals, but it is important to point out he will rarely play a game that isn't stacked in his favor.
• Hikkelo: A quiet guy who lets his game speak for him.  His race of choice is vasari and can use them almost as well as anybody.  Fights for the neutrals very well and is not greedy, he will feed you alot when you need it.  He is enfatuated with the Vasari Starbase and you should not be surprised if when you're playing him, one appears in your own homeworld!
• ReborN: we may have our differences but is a good player and can hold his own.  Remarkable advent player, makes lots of disciples early, something i wouldn't normally do but it certainly works for him.  I would want him on my team in almost all games and is a generally great guy.
• Astax: Close to a tier 1 player and can really make you spend alot of time blowing up his defenses.  I haven't had a chance to play with him, but a couple of replays has shown me he really knows what he is doing.  He would be a top choice in any PUG match
• God Baltazzor: Really a pretty good player i've seen him roll over some people that i thought were good without any feed.  I think his new tag is the _|~GOD and he is a force to be reckoned with on advent.  Quits wayy too easy.
• RubeeIsTheBomb: Really very similar to chaos in the fact that he plays in primarily games that are in his favor from the beginning.  He is a decent sim city player, but i am not sure he has the best micro which lands him in tier 3.  Over-obssesed with static defense as TEC.

more to come soon