The teams to watch out for in Liga Adarna’s Season 4 CODM Tournament

Liga Adarna is up and running once again as its Season 4: Race to the Top CODM Tournament will be going down the line this Thursday, December 16, when the playoffs round kicks in.

A lot has happened since season 3 including player, team, and org movements. Teams will be hard-pressed to try and seize the crown this season and claim the title of the best female CODM team in the Philippines. See who are still here, familiar places in different places, and the newcomers coming into the fray.

Who’s back:

Tyrant LXIX

Tyrant LXIX from left to right: Venice Daphnie “Venice” Mea, Kersey Andrea “Cyka” Batua (top), Dannah Angeline “Aphaea” Castañeda (bottom), Banna Marie “SENPAX” Berio, Daena “Consta” Constantino, Raenan Isabel “Yakee” Villa (captain), Chantela Jessette “Aphro” Lapatha, Yanina “Mia” Suarez

Being the only team left from season 3 with the same exact roster, LXIX is the symbol of continuity and consistency. Aside from moving organizations (XDG to Tyrant), the team has virtually the same players from that championship run just five months ago. As they try to defend their title this season and bring the second major title to Tyrant, coach Emmanuel “Zara” Zaragoza mentioned that the pressure of defending it is definitely there but they aren’t fazed of what’s to come in the tournament.

“Of course, there will be always the in-game pressure because we are the defending champs as well as the Valkyrie series champs, so teams must be preparing for us. But right now, there’s not much pressure in terms of proving ourselves in the scene,” he said.

Moreover, he mentioned that there’s added pressure on bringing the title to their new org. “There’s definitely the pressure when it comes to our organization since we know how much they trust us and the amount of support they are giving us, it’s just we can’t afford to let them down.”

“We want to give back to [our Tyrant bosses] because they take care and love us so much and we would want to repay their efforts. That’s also a pressure for us to win because we don’t want to disappoint them,” Valkyrie Series MVP Cyka said.

NV Uprising

NV Uprising: Sophia “CARTI” Cloa, Elysha “YACHI” Tolosa, Erina “ERINA” Villanueva, Reigne “REIGNE” Medina (captain), Zayin “151” Cueto, Jewel “JEWEL” Monteverde, Angelika “GELI” Tacorda, Gima “SAI” Gimeno

Aside from LXIX, NV Uprising will be the team that retains most of their original roster from season 3, only losing Nathalie “Bug” Gabotero while simultaneously adding YACHI and JEWEL. The team also moved from their previous org KE to NV Esports, which housed them for almost 6 months already. They seamlessly moved and found a home under the care of their supportive boss, Niño Ortega.

“Boss provided us everything that we needed, from expenses down to moral support. That’s why we do not regret switching organizations since we are well taken care of here. He sees our efforts and he has the same goals as us. He wanted us to improve as a team and did what he can for us to achieve it,” ERINA and YACHI said.

The team itself is about 7 months old, dating back to their KE days. When asked about the secret to their tight-knitted relationship with each other, the girls revealed treating each other like siblings more than their relationship in-game as well as focusing on their improvement as a team.

“A huge reason why we chose to stay together is because of the relationships that we were able to form with one another over time. We’re not just a team but we’re also a group of 8 sisters,” CARTI said.

“We’re not focusing on our wins but instead we are focusing on how we can improve so that we would know what things were needed,” 151 added.

Finally, they mentioned their familiarity and consistency with each other as their biggest strength coming into the playoffs. “For the longest time that we’ve had the same lineup, we’re confident to say that we’re familiar with the game styles of each other and that helps us to maintain the consistency in our team plays. With that, we are confident as a team with the trust we have for each other,” GELI ended.

NRX.AiM

NRX.AiM: Kristel Ann “Skyler” Encabo (captain), Marche Xyzl “Aj” Salacsacan, Aina Rose “EyD” Delantar, Zeanela Mieji “Muji” Opeleña, Agatha Elysa “Kho” Kho, Rochelle Ann “Rochi” Acosta, Yan Marie “Yannie” Santos

This team is also a returning one this season 4 but with a surprising collaboration between NRX RQ and AiM Artemis. The collab was pursued with one goal in mind: to win the Liga Adarna season 4 title. Along with some newly added reinforcements over the past month, NRX.AiM looks forward to their upcoming battles.

“As we are from different teams and have Liga Adarna experience, we can use each team’s different strategy from before to make a better and more effective one. We also help each other by sharing knowledge about the game,” Rochi said.

Additionally, Rochi shared the team’s transition and experience jelling in with their new teammates, as well as coping up with the difference of experience compared to other teams.

“It took us months to get this lineup done. as a matter of fact, each of us came from different clans and teams.  It was hard at first since we don’t know each other’s gameplays and we were shy but we got used to each other than make the best out of it. Skyler being our team captain helped us a lot since she makes sure that we are comfortable with each other,” she said.

“We cope up with other teams by putting extra effort for mappings, training, scrims, and building chemistry by having team games. For us, we believe that it’s not about the longevity but it’s about the trust you have in your team and trust in your own individual skill that can conquer all the matches that the team will go through,” she added.

Ultimate Divinus

ULT Divinus: Aleeshea “Sazi” Quiocho, Pamela “Roshi” Lapiña, Angel “Aurora” Aquino, Kristine “TINE” Napigkit, Alyana “Yana” Fernandez, Jacqueline “Jax” Florendo

ULT Divinus is also one of the teams that will parade a different organization this season. The team was notably representing PDR last season, with Aurora, Tine, Sazi, and Roshi convening in. Since then, the quad moved to ULT, with Aurora mentioning the better benefits received and being friends with the admin as the main reasons for their switch of organization.

“I also see the team’s potential when we joined here because of Jax and Yana (two remaining players for ULT), but since we’re a new lineup we had a lot of catching up to do including scrims and mappings,” Aurora iterated.

Fresh off from a top 4 finish in the Valkyrie series, they will be coming in this Liga Adarna with a renewed sense of experience which they would be having compared to a lot of teams. It will be probably the biggest factor they will lean on as the tournament progresses.

Finally, Aurora said them being able to adjust to particular situations in the game makes it their biggest advantage over other teams thus far.

“Almost all of us are Flexi-roles (can use any gun), so despite the big changes in meta, we are still able to adjust without effort,” she said.

The new challengers:

AiM Invicta

AiM Invicta: Lourdes Rose Anne “Rosie” Bosch (captain), Aetsen “Nesteaaa” Nicole, Kathleen “Keysí” Bermudez, Rina Mariana “Helsii” Vargas, Janine “Xperiment” Bautista, Justine “Zayn” Reantaso

A team that needs no introduction, AiM Invicta is a team that dates back from November last year. They were most notably known for finishing top 4 in Valkyrie Series season 1 along with LXIX. Although the team right now is a shell of their old selves with the only remnants from their top 4 finish being team captain Rosie and buddy Helsii, the duo said they cherished the time spent together as well as stressed out the importance of the vibe with the right people in order to succeed.

“It was fun that we got to bond with them even though it was not for long. That’s because I am the type of teammate to try and talk to the newly inserted teammates as much as possible to avoid any awkward stuff,” Helsii said.

“For me, it’s hard-to-find people that you can vibe with especially if they’re not as willing to commit to the team as you. We had a lot of members who came in, and most of them went out eventually. We would want teammates that share the same mindset as us to just enjoy the game even if we lose sometimes,” Rosie added.

On top of that, one of Rosie’s and Helsii’s teammates now shared her experience with the team and how they could use it in their journey in Liga Adarna.

“Most of my teammates are tourney experienced and have been in the competitive scene for a long time so I have definitely learned many things from them such as game sense and play style.  all of my teammates are great in their respective roles and we can easily adjust with one another,” Zayn said.

Nifty Ultra Esports

NU Esports: Katrina Coleen “COLS” Pile, Ingrid Camille “TOKYO” Reyes, Erika “RYO” Lopriego, Erika “CLEO” Espeleta, Jan Rochelle “REKTA” Domingo (captain), Keith Margaret “DEVI” Perez, Bhea Bianca “ANCA” Melicor, Yannie Faithe “YANNIE” Macasieb

Perhaps the greatest threat to LXIX’s dominance this Liga Adarna season 4, NU Esports is just coming into their own since their last meeting in the Valkyrie series season 2 finals.

Now solely in NU’s management, the girls continue to rise up and became even more formidable with the addition of Devi. “Having Devi in our team is not just an additional player, It’s an additional character as I can see her perseverance and the love that she has for the game which makes us more determined than ever,” team captain Rekta said.

On the cusp of the team’s 2 months of being together, they are looking to secure the Liga Adarna trophy to add to their list of championships and are staying motivated along the process.

“Given that we already made a name for ourselves in the girls’ division, what keeps me going is that I want my team to achieve higher-level competitions. We want to prove that we have strong skills and talent that can dominate the tournaments we are joining in,” Cols and Cleo jointly said.

Finally, although the team was not able to join Liga’s season 3, they are still equipped with a lot of experience and knowledge than most of the teams. Yannie shares how this could be the team’s edge in winning the whole thing.

“We have a lot of experience in both minor and major tournaments as we do our best in those games that can inspire the team to do well. The teams we will meet here in Liga are the same teams we meet in those tournaments so we can study our mistakes from before to learn and improve more.”

DKC Meow

DKC Meow: Ahlea “Lea” Ancajas, Iris “Ayame” Tsunashima, Hanna “Klerd” Cruz, Mai “Mai” Lavapiez, Alliah “Codyyy” Anagao, Megumi “Heru” Dosho

NCR #1 Qualifier DKC Meow might be the most surprising out of all the teams here in Season 4 of Liga Adarna as the team finished number 5 in the overall cumulative rankings after the eliminations, ahead of teams like NRX, ULT, AiM, and C8. They’re also the team who dealt a stunning and rare loss to defending champions LXIX as they defeated them in the eliminations. This speaks to the team’s caliber and that they should not be overlooked by the teams in the tournament. This comes as a surprise as the team are just over 3 months in existence as well as being able to cherish every single moment they have together.

“I always cherish every experience, achievement, and moments that we have. Even in the moments that we’re losing, I always keep my head up and try to think positively because I believe that losing can give us more experience than winning,” Ayame said.

“We enjoy the game and we preach here that its fine to make mistakes as long as we learn from it and no pointing of errors will happen,” Heru added.

When asked about the team’s advantage over other teams, Ayame gave a concrete and straightforward answer.

“I think that we don’t have any advantages against the other teams. Knowing the players and teams who we are fighting against with may make us nervous. But I believe that as long as we trust and believe each other’s strength and ability, we have the chance to beat the teams we look up to.”

M420 Revenite

M420 Revenite: Ella “POWIE” Torres (captain), Kath “KAYÍ” Mendoza (Co-Captain), Miles “MILYA” Antonio, Ackie “AKI” Lares, Renee “KUSH” Santiago, Natasha “CHICA” Barredo

An underdog team who worked their way up to reach the playoffs’ upper bracket, M420 Revenite owes their success to their bond as a team which they refer to as “home” and “family”. The 10-month-old team narrates their journey playing together as being uplifting, improving, and a learning process.

“I’d say that Revenite is not just a team anymore, this is my home now. For me, as an individual player, it was really hard to improve alone that’s why the best decision for me was to try out for this team because since day one we lift up each other’s backs during our bad games and we hype up one another to boost our confidence in our own gameplay. When we lose a game, we discuss where we went wrong and use it as a learning experience to become stronger. I know our journey along the way will be hard because a lot of teams are improving but, I am hoping that we will succeed. As our coach said, “Practice and practice and practice cause, practice makes improvements.” We will increase our efforts and show our eagerness to improve,” KAYI and Chica said.

Aside from that, the team’s biggest advantage against other teams in Liga according to team captain Powie is their effort and determination.

“Our team has a strong bond and chemistry that no one would even dare to break, and it doesn’t matter to us if we lose because we will take it as a lesson and motivation to bounce back harder. We also know how to control our emotions while playing and set aside the negative vibes so that it won’t affect our performance. We win by our determination, and hungriness to be known as one of the best girls team in the CODM community. Liga Adarna is our first ever major tournament, that’s why we will give our full effort when we’re practicing & playing so that we can say that we are ready to face those top teams,” she said.

NRX Zephaniah

NRX Zephaniah: Pia “Peya” Sangcap (captain), Khateryne “Izumi” Victa, Hannah “Rav” Comia, Nea “Yanxti” Caraan, Marela “Mawee” Santias, Chantal “Maesarap” Haft

Mindanao #2 Qualifier NRX Zephaniah have been together for 2 months and earned some achievements along the way while playing together. According to Mawee, a lot of roster changes have happened before finally settling with the lineup they have now.

“We even thought of disbanding because of the constant changes of players in our team & the lack of players during scrims. But here we are now, preparing for the Liga Adarna playoffs. Having the opportunity to play is already an achievement for us and we are looking forward to this experience,” she revealed.

The time element of being together also contributed to the chemistry of the team’s growth, says Yanxti. “As times goes by, every day, we learn a lot of things. Arguing on something and there’s resentment on one another. We play as a team; we don’t win by just minding our own business, we play like we’re connected to each other. Chemistry is hard to find these days, but for me, this team didn’t have a hard time finding it.”

Finally, team captain Peya attributes playing all for the man above. “With this team, there are no boring days, every scrim, every mapping, and every team rank game were fun. Admins of NRX, our coach, our handlers, and those people who supported us are overwhelming. They all trusted, guided, and came with me to build this team. The glory is all His,” she said on an ending note.

NRX Corinthians

NRX Corinthians: Mikaela “Clairo” Vedia, Ariane “Empress” Cuyos, Raechel “Raven” Gauma (captain), Althea “Aeia” Franzyn, Gwyneth “Scorpio” Mendoza, Nicole “Nics” Regay, Kirsten “Kiru” Esperanza

Along with AiM Invicta, NRX Corinthians was also founded way back in November of 2020, making them one of the oldest tenured teams among the participating ones. However, the team probably played scrims and tournaments the least due to the fact that they’re balancing both their studies and fulfilling team duties. Despite it, they continue to push through their tight schedules and do their best in Liga Adarna.

“The team shares a common goal, and that is to prove ourselves in this tournament and come back stronger. Even though we rarely have scrims and tournaments, we are driven by our desire to win,” Clairo stated.

“I am very proud of our team because almost 1 month in since our last tournament together, but we can still go toe-to-toe against the top teams here. We just maintain our discipline and despite our personal responsibilities, we still manage to commit and give time for the team to win Liga,” Scorpio and Aeia added.

Moreover, Nics mentioned their hunger for victory and that qualifying into the playoffs was the team’s dream all along. “We’re all committed and all of us really wants to win, since we’ve been wanting to qualify for the playoffs in Liga for the longest time now. That was the team’s dream and now that we’ve qualified already, even though all of us grind our academics as well, we’re still trying our best to practice for the playoffs.”

On top of that, team captain Raven marvels at her team’s chemistry despite their tricky situation. “Even though its super rare to have our scrims the team’s chemistry with each other still exists. We still enjoy the tournaments we’re joining as playing [CODM] is our hobby together. Win or lose, my team is still the best team for me. As long as we give our best and enjoy, we’re fine by it.”

Acnologia AU

Acnologia AU: Ma. Micaella Mae “akemi” Santiago (captain), Raizel Shaine “niki” Yrac, Joia Rova “oya” Briones, Dianne Kim “kayie” Lamoste, Shienna Marie “sari” Ponce, Angelica “tenshi“

Central Luzon #2 Acnologia AU’s persistence is the team’s main trait for their way to success. Despite problems, they stuck together and continued chasing their dreams. “We went through a lot but we did not give up, we just talked about it then the next day we’re okay already,” Kayie said.

“We’re here for one another and we let each other know that we did our best and we can improve next time. Whatever happens to our team, we’re here for each other,” Oya added.

Team captain Akemi also talked about AU’s biggest advantage against other teams which was their trust within each other.

“Our trust to each of our own teammates prevails over anything so if there are some problems we might encounter along the way we can still manage to survive and win the game,” she stated.

Warlord Vixens

WE Vixens: Akima “Aki” Fernandez, Vivien Nicole “Enchantress” Lanado (captain), Cassandra Ysobelle “Pakbet” Torio, Khierstie Cassandra “Keysiii” Arcilla, Ashanti Eleithyia “Azea” Hernandez, Kristylle Kyra “Keva” Bustillo, Stefanie Irah “Aesia” Co, Vassili “Debbie” Fortes

For a team that finished with the top seed in their region, Warlord Vixens weren’t the typical powerhouse team you can find. Despite having the skills fit for players that seemingly played ever since the start of the game, they were actually playing Rules of Survival before they switched to CODM for good last February.

“The team’s already been around for two years, me (Enchantress), Aki, Pakbet, Keysiii from ROS then Aesia, Keva, Debbie, Azea were added when we were already here in CODM,” team captain Enchantress said.

“What I admire the most here [Vixens] is each one’s perseverance to do better & improve after every match win or lose,” Aesia added.

Furthermore, Enchantress mentioned that the team’s biggest advantage against their competitors here in Liga Adarna. “I think the biggest advantage that we have against other teams on Liga is our passion, eagerness to learn and explore esports, we recognize our opponent’s strengths and we know how each of us works inside the game, we know each other’s strengths and weaknesses which makes the team very disciplined, coordinated, and map oriented.”

As the Vixens’ journey continue in the playoffs, the outspoken captain shared her thoughts moving forward.

“Liga Adarna is every girl team’s dream to compete on and we are very happy that we’ve made it to the final stage this season. We really love to play here because it showcase female skills, teamwork and strategies. We love it because it will fuel our perseverance and motivate us to do better,” she said in an ending statement.

Sacred Dracarys

Sacred Dracarys: Gabrielle Anne “Aerith” Gabayoyo (captain), Julianne Rose “Juuu” Altubar, Suzette Leila “Ugh” Beltran, Ella Marie “Rie” Chio, Leisha Danielle “Cloud” Surla, Pilar Marie “Astraia” Santos

Top Visayas qualifier Sacred Dracarys values their chemistry with each other as one of the best amongst the teams remaining. The team is all-duty, focused on their main goal always, which is to provide their best gameplay possible during games.

“We’re the type of team that has our own worlds after scrims and tournament games, but we still manage to create the greatest chemistry come game time. We respect each others’ personal time that’s why I don’t pressure them that much,” team captain Aerith said.

“We have a strong relationship and chemistry that would allow us to work well together. We don’t put too much pressure on ourselves as well as our teammates, and we pay attention to each other’s ideas. We also have a positive mindset that we believe we can accomplish our objectives, which makes our gameplay more interesting. Lastly, we put a lot of enjoyment into our gameplay, which ensures that we have a good time no regardless of what happens,” Rie added in agreement.

Additionally, Leisha declared the team’s expectations for this tournament. “We expect our team to try our best to put up a strong fight against the opposition, and for our teammates, that we will treat each other with respect and be courteous and sensitive to everyone’s wants and concerns. Our expectations for this competition are that it will be entertaining and fascinating because we will undoubtedly be up against some formidable opponents.”

XC Aetrix

XC Aetrix: Nicole “Ruwi” Rementilla, Raissa Red “danny” Macairan, Jamie Kriczalaine “Nico” Jornal, Cathlea Beatriz “Bei” Castillo, Aila Mae “Sponge” Manjares

Despite being the last ranked team in the cumulative standings, XC Aetrix is not a team to be underestimated. The team finished as the number 1 seed out of North Luzon, and with the caliber of players they have, Aetrix have a chance to make a huge noise in the tournament. Regardless of being only less than 1 month together, they have already developed their own chemistry and understand each other.

“We’re not afraid to say our errors to each other in our team and we’re very open minded on things like that,” danny said. “We just enjoy every game, no pressure at all. We also prepare a lot and dedicate time for this,” Ruwi and Nico added.

For the team’s expectations, danny further elaborated the team’s growth as the biggest takeaway for this season of Liga Adarna.

“I expect that we’re going to grow as a team, and someday if we’re still together we can use this experience to challenge the top teams in the future. We just want to show our dedication and hard work for now in our gameplay and hope that we will reap the benefits in the future.”

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Watch all the matches live at Liga Adarna’s official Facebook page “Liga Adarna” starting Dec25th, Friday.

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