As teams jockey for positions in the North American Halo Championship Series: Pro League standings, some opted to change their lineups during the roster transfer period. Historically, roster changes have had mixed results. While Lethul moving to the current OpTic Gaming roster created the undisputed best team in the world for Halo 5: Guardians, there have been times where a roster change has hurt more than it has helped, such as Final Boss dropping Walshy to make room for Neighbor.
In poetic fashion, Final Boss faced off against Walshy’s new team, Instinct, in the losers bracket finals where Instinct went on to beat FB 3-1. When asked about how it felt beating his old team, Walshy responded, “Like taking candy from a baby, only the baby would have put up a better fight.”
Team changes this time around were no different, and while the teams at the top of the standings decided against making swaps, there were plenty of shake-ups during this transfer period.
Team EnVyUs
- Austin “Mikwen” McCleary
- Justin “Pistola” Deese
- Eric “Snipedown” Wrona
- Cuyler “Huke” Garland
OpTic Gaming
- Paul “Snakebite” Duarte
- Mathew “Royal 2” Fiorante
- Bradley “Frosty” Bergstrom
- Tony “Lethul” Campbell
Team Liquid
- Tyler “Spartan” Ganza
- Hamza “Commonly” Abbaali
- Zane “Penguin” Hearon
- Timothy “Rayne” Tinkler
Luminosity Gaming
- Brett “Naded” Leonard
- Dan “Danoxide” Terlizzi
- Visal “eL Town” Mohanan
-
OUT:
Kevin “Eco” Smith - IN: Cameron “Victory X” Thorlakson
Enigma 6 Group
- Carlos “Cratos” Ayala
- Jesse “Bubu Dubu” Moeller
- Ayden “Suspector” Hill
-
OUT:
Braedon “Stellur” Boettcher - IN: Ryan “Shooter” Sondhi
Evil Geniuses
- Jason “Lunchbox” Brown
- Justin “Roy” Brown
- Tyler “Ninja” Blevins
-
OUT:
Cameron “Victory X” Thorlakson - IN: Braedon “Stellur” Boettcher
LOL
- Aaron “Ace” Elam
- Bradley “APG” Laws
- Richie “Heinz” Heinz
-
OUT:
Jonathan “Renegade” Willette - IN: Kevin “Eco” Smith
Team Allegiance
- Devon “PreDevonator” Layton
- Cody “Contra” Szczodrowski
- Michael “Falcated” Garcia
-
OUT:
Ryan “Shooter” Sondhi - IN: Cory “Str8 Sick” Sloss
There are only four weeks left in the regular season and teams will be looking to make a push to the top of the standings. With five of the eight teams making changes to their lineups, it is more difficult to predict how the matches will turn out, which makes for an exciting second half of the season. Could these roster changes lead to the next rivalry? The NA HCS Pro League returns this week and you can watch the new rosters battle live on Twitch. Keep a close eye on Twitter and Facebook for all of your #HCS Pro League news and updates!