I've been contributing to a pension since I was 26 and am 38 now. I maintain an interest in investing, however I only poke and prod around at a novice level at best. In addition to my pension, I've been contributing to an IRA and brokerage account since I started working full time at the age of 26. I started out with a measly $50 dollars a month and am now up to about $600/month.
I have invested nearly EVERYTHING into ETFs. I fully understand a little bit of knowledge is dangerous and that all my eggs are in one basket. Combine this with the fact that I've started to amass a nice little sum, and I'm really leaning toward having some type of proper fund management company to handle my investments from here on out. I should not here that the ETFs have performed incredibly in the 12 years I've been in them.
So, I signed up for a 457(B) plan at work and figured I'd just do my own little test and see which one is performing better. After about a year of monitoring I'm seeing my ETF rate of returns (.04% expense ratio) are completely crushing the rate of return on my properly managed account (expense ratio 1-2%.... can't remember).
My question: Does it make sense to leave what has worked for me for the past 12 years to go to a properly managed account even if the rate of return is lower, just because it seems safer and seems like what I'm supposed to do?
I have no plans to retire soon, I'm still 15-20 years away from that.

What experience have you had with supplements during pregnancy? Please give me a sanity check for going against my doctor's advice?
I am currently 6w pregnant. I found a host of supplements that have helped me with my sharp pains, fasciculations, cold pains, arthritis, circulation, migraines, anxiety, and other symptoms. However, with my pregnancy, my OB told me to stop taking all supplements.
My pre-pregnancy regimen:
AM: Zyrtec 10mg, Mega Magnesium, L-carnitine 1,000mg, Probiotics, Creatine 2.5g, L-theanine 200mg
PM: Vitafol Ultra prenatal, Turmeric 500mg, Lutein 25 mg, L-Lysine 1,000mg (corner of mouth cracks), CoQ10 Ubiquinol 100mg.
​
Doctor's advice: Zyrtec 10mg, Magnesium, Vitafol Ultra prenatal. She also advised me to take Vit D 10,000 IU and K2 (I'm taking mk-7 form 100mcg) M-F for 12 weeks due to my Vit D levels at 25 units (32+ is the reference range)
Advised to cut out: L-carnitine, Probiotics, Creatine, L-theanine, Lutein, Turmeric, L-Lysine (corner of mouth cracks), CoQ10 Ubiquinol.
​
I looked up the drug.com pages and other resources, such as cochrane.org, for each of these supplements that I was advised to stop. Below are the concerns and fetal-specific benefits I was able to identify:
L-carnitine: pregnancy category B; high levels are linked to preeclampsia (elevated blood pressure and protein in urine; easily assessed at home with bp cuff and urinalysis strips); may help with fetal growth
Probiotics: unk pregnancy risk category; exposure to good bacteria in the birth canal
Creatine: unk pregnancy risk category, no explicit concerns other than lack of studies; animal studies found brain protective properties
L-theanine: unk pregnancy risk category, no explicit concerns other than lack of studies; no fetal benefits
Lutein: unk pregnancy risk category, no explicit concerns other than lack of studies; might prevent the oxidative stress of womb, and is included in some prenatals
Turmeric: unk pregnancy risk category, large amounts of curcumin found in supplements raises the risk of pregnancy complications, but Turmeric is safe in dietary doses (I plan to stop this supplement)
L-Lysine: pregnancy risk category C, crosses the placenta, risk of high maternal hemoglobin, therefore risk of small for gestational age but not preterm birth (I plan to stop this supplement)
CoQ10 Ubiquinol: unk pregnancy risk category, no explicit concerns other than lack of studies; may prevent the risk of oxidative stress in Intrahepatic cholestasis of pregnancy, may reduce the risk of developing preeclampsia, some fertility doctors recommend staying on it until you're done with children
​
Use discernment with the "benefits" listed. Since supplements aren't well studied, the claims are often a result from only 1 study, therefore not super reliable.
This post is not intended as medical advise. I am not a professional, and how things affect my body will be different from how they affect your body. Please consult a trusted doctor.

The Boundless Hack u/Stanford, powered by Nautilus Chain, is an exciting opportunity to showcase skills and explore the limitless possibilities of blockchain for developers like us. As a participant myself, I'm truly impressed by Nautilus Chain's commitment to pushing the boundaries of web3 development. With the hackathon running until June 1, there's still time to join and make your mark. Nautilus Chain's focus on creating a fast and affordable blockchain, combined with their cutting-edge technology and abundant resources, has made this hackathon a must-attend event for developers. Let's actively support projects like Nautilus Chain and together, we can shine in the web3 space.

Over the past few days, I’ve taken messers practice exams:
I scored myself to completion, meaning if a question has multiple parts and I got even one part wrong, I marked the entire question as wrong. Since I am unsure how CompTIA does partials
Test A (1 prior attempt): 78/90
Test B: 76/90
Test C: 82/90
I’ve also completed all 6 Dion tests with scores in the range of 80 to 88.
I want to think I’m ready as those scores seem very promising, but there’s that slight bit of doubt in my mind that with my luck I’ll end up with a 749 lol.
This is my first CompTIA exam and while I kinda know what to expect, I don’t want to walk in all high headed and get humbled by a failing score 😅
Panicking.

I need to replace an old water softener setup outside and prefer to do it myself if it's that much cheaper. I would like both the water softener and filtration system. We have 6 people with 4 bathrooms and the hardness is around 10 gpg. I live in Houston, TX. I know to go with fleck 5600 or Clack Ws1 when DIY, but I mostly see system with softener only.
I have a company that can installed the whole system for $2900 with this spec:
Fleck 5600 ,1" bypass, 48k grain capacity, weather cover for valve, 10"x54" mineral tank, effective flow rate of 12gpm. Carbon media maintenance every 12-18 months. 5 years warranty
I also saw this system online that cost close to $2800 for 4-6 bathrooms. I do have to buy some extra parts to connect and install it myself, so just say it's around $2900. It seems to be a better system, since they claim media change only need replace every 10 years/1 million gallon. I do need to change the micron filter every 6 to 9 months. Supposedly lifetime warranty.
https://www.springwellwater.com/product/dual-systems/water-filter-salt-softene

Thank you for the viewing and upvotes.
Verifications: https://imgur.com/xBoYJPR
Fountain pens:

1. Montblanc Meisterstuck 146 from first half of 90s with dualtone 18K F nib (made in Germany) Of course, there are micro-scratches of usual gentle use, but there are no visible scratches or cracks. Fully serviced, the piston moves smoothly. The feed is modern plastic, stripe window, brass collar, №146 on wide caps ring, Germany on clips ring, 6-digit s/n, no Pix. Condition is [B]. The F nib writes smoothly by both side with traditionally wet flow. 0.4mm by right side, 0.7mm with pressure and 0.2mm by reverse side. $320US
2. Montblanc Meisterstuck 146 from 1985-1990s with monotone 18K F nib (made in W.Germany) Of course, there are micro-scratches of usual gentle use, but there are no visible scratches or cracks. Fully serviced, the piston moves smoothly. The feed is vtg. dual-split ebonite, solid gray ink window, brass piston collar, № 146 on wide caps ring without space around №, W.Germany on clips ring, no s/n, no Pix. Condition is [B] The F nib writes smoothly by both side. Juicy and wet as dream by right side and thin with normal flow by reverse side. 0.4mm by right side, 1.0mm with pressure and 0.3mm by reverse side $340US
3. first edition of rOtring Newton Black (600 series). 2 nibs in set: ordinary stainless steel M and stainless steel BB nib ground to Crisp Italic. The pen was purchased as NOS, I wrote out only one refill for the pen test. There was one scratch(not crack!!) on the brass body, which I filled(hided) by black varnish so that it would not shine. The M nib is new, I haven't tried it and just changed on Italic. No original case and papers. Condition [C] for scratch, other in [A2] condition. Have a sticker M (nib size) on body top. $240US

​
Ballpoint pen:

1. Aurora Optima Silver ballpoint in branded Aurora case, but is not Optima case. Include original refill M size. Work fine, condition is excellent. There is a patina on the sterling silver cap(925° marked), patina can be removed by jewelry napkin. It is more attractive than modern Riflessi model because it has gold ring and clip. Condition [B] $200US

Additional photo: https://imgur.com/a/sNVEkFi
If you need any additional information, please ask.
Worldwide shipping costs $10-25US extra depending on country and total weight. Shipping by priority Air Mail(~2-3 weeks to US and EU). EMS delivery is possible on additional request ~$35-40US (Fedex, DHL are much expensive). PayPal, please comment here before messaging. Thanks! Shipping from Ukraine, post service is work.
ps: As an additional bonus/gift: one "famous" postage stamp with "russian warship gone" with one of my postcards from fp's arts. https://imgur.com/a/miMvNb6
pss: If necessary, I can additionally provide the nibmeister services. My work: http://lenskiy.org/2023/01/my-nibs-grinding/

Well folks. Despite all of our negativity and Orioles based trauma they actually did it. 16-12, four games over .500 for May. The worst is over and the O's came out on top. Or is it? The bullpen is certifiably cooked and Mullins is on the IL. Something that we all know marks a good, playoff, team is they can get through a month missing key players. June is just another tell all month. They did it in May, let's see it again in June.
Also, I LOVE when the O's play the Giants. Dongs after Dark baby. My favorite O's moment comes from an O's/Giants game in 17 when they came back down hard and Schoop hit a clutch Earl Weaver Special ^tm to left centerfield to put the birds up in the 9th. Manny fuckin clocking Schoop always gets me.
What are we doing here? O yeah, this is the lucky guess post. No winners from Thursday.
Because I love O's/Giants series so much and hate u/mrtallgreg I'm going to add in a bonus feature for this series. You get one chance at this and we'll record your first one. Number of splashdowns in McCovey Cove by the O's or Giants. Add it to your guess but make sure it's coded after your tiebreaker guess. For instance 8-3 BAL, 5 IP 3 SD If you get the splash downs correct for the series you'll get 3 points. 0 splash downs will not count.
Lucky Guess Standings

Rank	User	Exact	'+/- 1	Lost Tiebreaker	Points
1	95ludeman	2	2	0	14
2	tehow5	1	3	0	9
2	jaxjag91	1	3	0	9
3	kingfiasco	1	2	0	8
3	Chizzleslip	1	2	0	8
4	StevenGlanzberg	1	1	0	7
4	RiesenTiger	1	1	0	7
4	Letsgoos19	1	1	0	7
4	bromanow025	1	1	0	7
5	TOS1998	1	0	0	6
5	therealjimothyjimson	1	0	0	6
5	OrangeBuffalo8	0	2	2	6
5	harriswk17	1	0	0	6
5	greenjacket23	1	0	0	6
5	Billdozer2000	1	0	0	6
5	AlexOhanianSr	1	0	0	6
6	hcshock	1	0	0	6
7	zombiereign	0	3	1	5
7	bpopo329	0	5	0	5
7	WillieKeeler96	0	5	0	5
8	Ndysmth	0	4	0	4
8	DudeFoSho	0	2	1	4
8	BeinGetz	0	2	1	4
9	TommyPickles2222222	0	1	1	3
9	samir_katta	0	1	1	3
9	malkusm	0	1	1	3
9	imean	0	1	1	3
9	gnarkilleptic	0	3	0	3
9	ccmckee	0	1	1	3
9	Bmoreorioles1	0	3	0	3
9	zeromoustafa0	0	2	0	2
9	wodandos	0	0	1	2
9	waker94	0	2	0	2
9	Puddenfoot	0	2	0	2
9	OMGisitOVERyet	0	0	1	2
9	Music_Ordinary	0	2	0	2
9	King_Clitoris	0	2	0	2
9	joystick13	0	2	0	2
9	Jormmy-NcKegHook	0	0	1	2
9	jeffreythecat1	0	2	0	2
9	GoOrioles7	0	2	0	2
9	Evanevan22	0	0	1	2
9	DrThorntonMelon	0	2	0	2
9	DrDinglberry	0	2	0	2
9	BlueHenCountry	0	2	0	2
9	Azzazzyn	0	0	1	2
9	averyorioles	0	2	0	2
9	andrew-ge	0	2	0	2
9	DaddyHausen	0	2	0	2
9	Tardisheart	0	1	0	1
10	Shiderme	0	1	0	1
10	SellTheTeamDan	0	1	0	1
10	Ok-Establishment-240	0	1	0	1
10	MrTallGreg	0	1	0	1
10	LoraxEleven	0	1	0	1
10	jjk2	0	1	0	1
10	gzawaodni	0	1	0	1
10	Gumboy52	0	1	0	1
10	Entertainmentguru	0	1	0	1
10	ClimAx_D2	0	1	0	1
10	CBennett1497	0	1	0	1
10	bablume	0	1	0	1
10	Affectionate_Tune481	0	1	0	1

Comments must include:

• Final Score (winner must be specified)
  
• Tiebreaker question
  
• Format: [Score] [Winner] [Tiebreaker]
  

All guesses must be submitted by the posted start time to qualify.
Score will be as follows:

• Exact guess = 6 points
  
• Off by one run = 1 point
  
• In the event of a tie, the loser of the tiebreaker scores 2 points
  

If two users pick the same score with the same tiebreaker, the person who submitted their guess first will be awarded the 6 points. The same rule will apply when two tiebreakers guesses are equally close to the actual result.
Score will be tallied each night and updated in wiki. They will also appear in the "Standings" section of future Lucky Guess posts.

Now let's play ball!

Tiebreaker for today total innings pitched by both starters.

As always, please do not upvote or downvote any guessing comment until after the game is over and the winner is determined, then upvote the winner.

Matchup Statistics

You can find the lineups here before game time.
Orioles

Starting Pitcher	Throws	W-L	IP	K%	BB%	GB%	BABIP	FIP
Dean Kremer	R	5-2	59	19.0%	6.7%	39.1%	.333	4.61

Giants

Starting Pitcher	Throws	W-L	IP	K%	BB%	GB%	BABIP	FIP
Logan Webb	R	4-5	72	26.8%	4.9%	60.3%	.301	3.29

Good luck!

APPEARANCE:The cave troll would be a large dark green creature. Its a large troll wearing a loincloth with a skull on it.
SPAWNING/SUMMONING:The cave-troll can be summoned by placing a "Troll totem" crafted with 4 planks 4 bones and 1 emerald. Once placed down it'll begin shaking and green smoke will emerge out of it....then nothing happens...but then within the next 15 seconds a cave troll will spawn and break open the totem and steal the emerald. They are very greedy creatures and will pick up any dropped ores and food items. This can work against them as they are deathly allergic to beetroots as placing down any beetroots will cause em to get poisoned once they eat them and take some minor damage.
Can only be summoned in caves.
Once they break open the totem they'll begin attacking the player.
STATS:85 Hp. Sluggish speed. VERY Hostile.
ATTACK ONE:The troll swings both arms in the air sending the player back. This has two versions where it swings with one of its arms left or right.
ATTACK TWO:The troll spits out a foul green gunk as a projectile attack. If you hold a bottle during this and time it perfectly with a left click you can bottle this.
ATTACK THREE:The troll roars sending out a spray of 9 spit projectiles out in a 90 Degree angle infront of it.
BEHAVIOR TYPES:
It'd switch between them each 5-10 Seconds.
MELEE:The troll begins running towards you trying to melee you. This is its most common state and is always activated once it breaks the totem.
RETREAT:Once it takes enough damage about 30 It'll begin retreating into the cave for 7 seconds while spitting at you.
ADVANTAGE MODE:If your at low hp it'll begin doing a far more aggressive version of its melee attack gaining more speed and momentum. But if you manage to shield it while in this state you'll stun him for 3 seconds and cause the state to end. No shield means it'll last until you heal back up or wait 10-12 Seconds.
If the troll manages to leave the cave it'll retreat into the deepness of the cave. Once you enter back 20 blocks back into the cave it'll ambush you.
DROPS:
TROLL SKIN(5-12)ORK SPIT 4-8(The stuff you bottle) TROLL TEETH(12-24)
TROLL SKIN:Can be used to create a troll-skin-raft. This can be used as a shoddy boat but when in the inventory if you die in any kind of liquid it'll drop and spread out into its raft form. If any items fall on it while in this form they'll be perserved making this a good fail-safe if you fall into lava. It'll break when your riding it in lava or water for more then 12 seconds but just kinda returns to your inventory.
TROLL SPIT/BOTTLED TROLL SPIT:Normal troll spit dosen't really do much but it can be traded with villager's. But BOTTLED Troll spit can be used as a drinking item. When drunk you'll be poisoned and nausea's but also a new affect:"Repulsive." This causes a faded green effect on the player. This makes it so hostile mobs besides trolls within 6 Blocks of you will flee and run. This lasts for 2 Minutes.(the repulsive not the nausea and poison)
TROLL TEETH:4 troll teeth and 2 iron can be used to create troll traps! These work like bear-traps and any mob caught in the trap will begin taking damage until their health is depleted to 0. They are reusable too but after 7 snaps they'll need to be repaired by left clicking on them.
ACHIEVEMENT FOR KILLING THE TROLL:"We no longer do a little trolling."
ACHIEVEMENT FOR DRINKING TROLL SPIT:"Don't do that in real life."
ACHIEVEMENT FOR MAKING A TROLL-TRAP:"Snagged!!"

Home shinies here: https://imgur.com/a/Yhse6gK
Mainly looking for jumbo and personality marked shinies for my marked mons but can trade my other shinies for any marked shinies.
The Home mons under “shinies from trade” and some of the aprishinies in Home are ones that were traded to me. The other Home shinies are self caught through max raid dens.
Interested in event cherish ball mons and alpha shinies.
Interested in marked shinies except for the “uncommon” marks.
Interested in hisuan shinies, specifically: Hisuan Liligent, kleavor, basculegion male and female.
I can trade 1 of my shinies for 3 apriballs. 1 aprishiny for 6 apriballs. 10 apriballs per paradox shiny and 20 per paradox aprishiny. Apriballs must be in s/v.
Not interested in mons with 6 “best” IV’s.
Here's info on some of the marked shinies. I’ve missed some so if you don’t see details on a marked mon you want, let me know. I can also send details for the uncommon marked shinies should someone have interest.
Ultra ball - Vaporeon - Lunchtime
Ultra ball - Vaporeon - Dawn
Heal ball - Vaporeon - Lunchtime
Qucik ball - Spewpa - Lunchtime
Net ball - Noibat - Lunchtime
Ultra ball - Fluttermane - Lunchtime
Quick ball - Gible - Lunchtime
Repeat Ball - Sudowoodo - Sleepy
Dusk Ball - Charcadet - Lunchtime
Nest Ball - Bronzong - Lunchtime
Premier Ball - Sylveon - Lunchtime
Ultra ball - Litleo (female) - Sleepy
Premier ball - Iron Thorns - Sleepy
Net ball - Pawniard - Sleepy
Quick Ball - Pawmi - Sleepy
Lux ball - Tarountula - Sleepy
Premier ball - Mareanie - Sleepy
Quick ball - Chewtle - Lunchtime
Lux ball - Venomoth - Lunchtime
pokeball - Wooper - Lunchtime
Ultra ball - Brute Bonnett - Dawm
Great ball- Brute Bonnett - sleepy
Heal ball - Marrill - Lunchtime
Quick ball - Skiddo - Dawn
lux ball - Salandit - Sleepy
Quick ball - sneasel - Lunchtime
Lux ball - snover - sleepy
quick ball - Floatzel (German) - Sleepy
Premier ball - impidimp - sleepy
ultra ball - toxicroak - dawn
premier ball - pawmo - dawn
net ball - kricketot - gourmet
net ball - slither wing - partner mark
ultra ball - bisharp - dawn
nest ball - sableye - lunchtime
quick ball - makuhita - gourmet
premier ball - iron valiant - destiny
ultra ball - goodra - gourmet
timer ball - hawlucha (Nacho) - gourmet
repeat ball - sneasel - sleepy
lux ball - fletchinder - cloudy
dive ball - lycanroc (midnight) - sleepy
premier ball - bisharp - dawn
Lux ball - kilowattrel - jumbo
heavy ball - jumbo - eevee
beast ball - jumbo eevee
beast ball - jumbo - wiglett
lux ball - bounsweet - teensy
beast ball - varoom - jumbo
pokeball - smoliv - teensy
premier ball - grafaiai - jumbo
premier ball - toxapex - jumbo
quick ball - houndstone - teary
quick ball - shuppet - pumped up
lux ball - bombirdier - jittery
quick ball - venomoth - calmness
lux ball - cetitan - prideful
quick ball - mudbray - teary
quick ball - croagunk - humble
quick ball - charcadet - rowdy
masterball - hawlucha - pumped up
net ball - noibat - ferocious
nest ball - bagon - charismatic
moon ball - swablu - sleepy
moon ball - zorua - stormy & jumbo
heavy ball - zangoose - sleepy
level ball - pawmi - sleepy
dream ball - pawmo - sleepy
lure ball - flamigo - sleepy
Dusk ball - bronzong - pumped up
Masterball - iron valiant - zero energy
Friend ball - Drednaw - jumbo & stormy
quick ball - armarouge - rare mark
lux ball - jolteon - rare mark

Dr. Sam Vaknin posted a very interesting video with this title https://youtu.be/Gt6IfAc1a5A
It was a very interesting lecture.
I related heavily to this and I have thought about this topic with my past relationship with a borderline. She seemingly sabotaged her life after our break up. She had moved across the country to live with me, then split me about 2 months into living together. She quickly found a new apartment, new friends, and a shitty job that she hated.
She refused my help outright and even gave me silent treatment for trying to give her advice. I could’ve easily found her a relatively high paying job in tech (which is what she wanted and the city I live in is mainly tech). I offered to pay for her therapy if she would agree to go, to which she replied “why don’t YOU go to therapy!”.
Instead of accepting my help and advice, she monkey branched into a new relationship, which lasted 1 month and she ended up going into therapy on her own free will and on her own dime.
All of our fun, loving special moments together over the past year… all destroyed bc she couldn’t avoid self sabotage.
It is painful to watch someone you loved so much do this to themselves.
Now, she’s moved back home and will likely work a bartending job (her own admission). If only she could’ve put an ounce of effort in to making things work, she could’ve had a beautiful life with me, the same way it began.

New stream of Eversax talking about KC after the Spring Cup. I don’t know how many interviews we will have so I wanted, at least, to translate the recap of Eversax as usual.
This translation will be long and separated into 3 parts:
- Part 1: Spring Cup (Preparation, Vitality, BDS, Grand Final, ExoTiiK, Itachi, Playing many BO7s, fatigue, bracket reset)
- Part 2: Negative side of social media for “unpopular opinions” from “fans” and Pros/Coaches/Casters (Toxicity, pressure to perform, Negative comments, people farming impressions, mean people on the internet)
- Part 3: Other information (EU/NA level, player’s performance, Vitality's winning streak, best coach)
Link to the replay: https://www.twitch.tv/videos/1831882651 (starts near: 8.23)
I would advise you to read the parts talking about Vitality + Part 2.
→ Part 1: Spring Cup
● Spring Cup
- Preparation (12.58): He was happy since they improved compared to the Spring Open. A top 4 is a great result, but they were not good. They worked a lot between the two regionals since they had to improve after the long post-Major break [In the last translation Eversax explained that they didn’t prepare correctly before the first regional due to schedule conflicts]. His players wanted to come back so bad but it was more negative than positive. Indeed, they started to play too much and It’s not the best thing on RL. You don’t use your time efficiently and you often finish by playing without thinking so you don’t improve. That’s why he told his players to take a break of 3-4 days between the two regionals. It was risky, but It worked because they played much better during the Spring Cup. It was the first time that KC started to play well throughout the whole minor.
- Devil Fruit and PSG Tundra(14.45): On Friday it was quite easy because they were stronger than Devil Fruit and PSG Tundra.
- Guild (15.03): To reach the top 3 they had to beat Guild, a team that won against Oxygen. He thinks that KC played really well leading to this no-match (4-0). Everything was controlled but he can’t say if KC was too strong or if Guild was too scared. He said that because Guild was totally different when they had to play against BDS. But in any case, they reached the semi-final winner bracket by beating Oxygen so Guild deserved to be there since their bracket was not free.
- Winner bracket final against Vitality: Vitality played well as usual while KC was just bad. It was a no-match and they were better so they deserved to win (11:20). Their weakness was more about mentality and maybe the last regional impacted their series. KC had difficulties playing well while Vitality took advantage of this weakness from the beginning. But as usual, there was no problem with the team and they used their break after to speak together (15.45). This sweep allowed them to realize that, in their head, Vitality was different from other teams and it was one of the reasons for their bad performance. Fortunately, they solved that for the next matches and it should not be a problem anymore. That’s not something new because they had the same apprehension with BDS and rival French teams last year. They took these matches too seriously even though they should not make any difference between opponents (1.00.40).
- BDS (16.12): When they came back after their loss against Vitality, KC was not the same team. Fortunately, this defeat didn’t negatively impact his players and they won 4-0. Even though it was closer than the result, they played well and you could see that KC was the better team on the field.
- Grand Final against Vitality: As a bracket reset is difficult he wanted his players to try their best. And he thinks that’s what they did (16.57). During the first series, they took advantage from the beginning and the games were great. In fact, he said that it was the most beautiful match he had ever seen as a coach because everyone was playing so well. It’s difficult to explain it but he had this special feeling where you had only 3-4 opportunities to score in each game because players were making few mistakes. The winner was only decided on who would have taken advantage of more opportunities. However, after the bracket reset, they had to play an OT of 5 minutes in game 1. For Eversax, It was not difficult mentally but It added one more game and players started to accumulate fatigue. It’s short but also exhausting since you don’t have any breaks + every game is intense. He still thinks that KC was able to fight until the end but Vitality deserved their win because they bounced back after the bracket reset. Indeed, they still had energy after the 2-2 to punish small details while KC was making mistakes that they were not used to doing (19.40).
- Preparation for the next regional (20.03): You could see that fatigue affected all players and the last 2-3 games were difficult with all these mistakes. Now he knows how to prepare his players better. Usually, they prefer to eat less before matches. But when you have to play 4 BO7s from 5 pm to 10 pm without anything in the stomach, it’s not the best thing. So they’ll try to adjust that for the next minor.
- Importance of each regional (21.25): Each minor is important to prepare the MajoWorlds. That’s why KC cares so much about minors and they’ll work even harder to win these tournaments even if Majors and Worlds are more prestigious. Why? Because all their efforts will allow them to prepare for the last step: Worlds.
- ExoTiiK: ExoTiiK was particularly good against BDS because he led coms. Eversax didn’t understand why some people thought that he was the weak link of the team because performances depend on the three players and not only one of them. They win and lose together (51.18). People continue to underestimate him but Eversax understood what ExoTiiK can do when he’s peaking. In general, he goes on every ball and he controls his moves so well despite his 0.30 dead zone (1.02.15).
- Itachi (1.05.14): Eversax was so proud of Itachi because he started the Winter Split thinking that he was the best player in the World, but after the 3rd regional + Major, he was a little bit disappointed. Eversax felt like Itachi was missing a small thing, but during this minor, he saw this small thing again. And overall he’s so proud of his 3 players.
- Conclusion of the Spring Cup (44.35): He’s proud of their run. Indeed, his players were individually strong in the first series of the grand final and they improved since the last regional. Yes, a top 2 is not enough, but that’s also good to have some competition within a region for motivation and improvement. This rivalry between KC and Vitality will push each team further and they are creating hype for the next minor.
● Double-bracket elimination format
- Playing many BO7s (08.38): Eversax thinks that players can play 4 BO7s in a row but it’s difficult to prepare these runs. It's the particularity of this format and different from the two other splits where you normally play 3 BO7s on Sunday with breaks. He thinks that BDS would have struggled much more since they started their loser bracket way before KC. A longer break could have helped, but he can’t blame the format because you can rest if you stay in the winner bracket. That’s why the only solution as usual is to win.
- Fatigue during the bracket reset (11.50): We saw that It was difficult to stay at a high level between games. They made so many mistakes due to fatigue and it didn’t affect only KC. For example, Radosin’s own goal was unlucky and he saw that he was tired too.
- Mentality throughout the bracket (12.25): It’s difficult to not mentally drop after a 4-0 but KC bounced back and swept BDS too. They even won against Vitality once to reset the bracket. Maybe playing in boot camp would have helped to deal with fatigue but it's difficult to play at that level for so many games with so much coms.
- Is resetting the bracket too difficult?: He knew that this format gives a huge advantage to the winner bracket so it’s almost “impossible”/too difficult to reset the bracket and win the final. He just wanted the team to play well from the beginning and try their best (16.45). Still, for Eversax, this format is not the best. Indeed, it’s rare to have a bracket reset and you can see it because, for this season, KC was the first team to reset the bracket. It’s so rare to reset the bracket, but even more to win the second series. And he would say the same thing if KC was still in the upper bracket. You should have a clear advantage for the winners, but not a 80% chance of winning. Still, Vitality played well and they needed an advantage. The format is the same for everyone and if they want to rest more, KC has to win, so there’s no excuse for their loss in the Grand Final (19.05).
- BO9 with 1 game in advance (11:40): For him a grand final in BO9 with one game in advance for the winner bracket could be interesting. However, he thinks that Psyonix will never accept BO9s so It’s complicated.