The Tournament Magazine

[Ratiko Malodic]

Introduction

So. The ‘dream tournament’ is no longer but a dream. We hope you enjoyed it and we hope this magazine rewards your efforts. The cliché goes: ‘It’s not about the winning, it’s the taking part that counts’. Well we hope we can do the latter half of that cliché justice because if you took part then you’re in this mag. Thank you all for your support and your time. Enjoy!

For those of you that missed the Tournament Brackets they can be found here:
RSTL 32 Man Tournament Brackets!!!

Round One Match Break Downs
EAST

Pent Up (6) VS Formal Logic (3)
Pent Up wins by no show
EAST 8. Entrant-6 VS 9. Entrant-3

Pent uP begins his short campaign for the top slot with a quick first round win with Formal Logic failing to show. Pent uP dropped a nice short but sweet verse.

Vern (13) VS Unavailable (1)
Vern wins by KO
EAST 1. Entrant-13 vs 16. Entrant-1

Unavailable drew the short straw with the poisonous spider on the end in the first round and the match went as you’d expect. Unavailable come to the table with a rather lacklustre effort in every department. The flow was sluggish and at times non existent which made for a difficult read. You could see what he was going for but with the narrative dated and an evident lack of effort (even before you realise it’s Unavailable) really left the piece slow and a chore to read. This reflected in the feedback from other members, with nearly all of them finding it hard to get into his piece which is not something too common with Unavailable. Vern’s was a lot faster and smoother to read from the get go. As always he picked a rather broad and bold topic and took it no where drastically different but kept it intriguing through out with a use of metaphors rolling off the readers tongue thanks to the smooth writing style and left a degree of satisfaction for every voter. Some hinted hey may be an RSTL veteran and everyone describing one in their feedback. In the end Unavailable was just outclassed and left himself horribly short handed with his lacking effort. With Vern writing alone being so polished and fluid it was already going to be too much for Unavailable.



Jersey Emcee (24) VS Khoi NguJin (10)
Jersey Emcee wins 3-2 and Khoi NguJin replaces Atreyu (no show)
EAST 6. Entrant-24 VS 11. Entrant-10

Jersey dropped first with a rather ‘hit or miss’ verse about love and it’s painful side effects upon us all. I say all rather loosely because evidently the verse didn’t sit too well with everyone. Personally I felt it was brilliantly written and through out found myself really into the verse through out. The simple and short bursts of description left the reader either emotionally connected and relating or just distant and bored. It really was a case of having the scars to be able to really hear what he was saying. The writing side was rather ‘eh’ to be honest. It wasn’t Jerseys usual polished approach, a lot did come off as a rather uninspired poet but for the most part the message in the verse and the ideas with in the bars were enough to satisfy most people. That being said the ‘hit and miss’ boils down to the rather poetic approach. The flow wasn’t up to much and as previously said the writing wasn’t either. Khoi NguJin was equally hit and miss though evidentially for different reasons. It wasn’t in his approach that left some readers wanting and others satisfied but his effort and consistency. He had a better style of writing to Jersey but his content was much to be desired. Compared to previous verses it’s quite painfully boring of Khoi NguJin but anyway… Khoi’s other flaw was how he executed his idea. The progression through the verse showed either lapses in concentration or a real struggle to get something on the page. As far as the voters go it was rather all over the place. Some outright taking Khoi over Jersey and vice versa, others disliking both pieces. It proved a close and gritty match with Jersey pulling in a single vote more pushing him through to the next round.

[Ratiko Malodic]

Awedswin (2) VS Tali (9)
Awedswin wins by KO and Tali replaces Timmy Gibbs (no show)
http://board.rapmusic.com/showthread.php?t=916553

The match of the mods. Actually not the match you’d expect, well that I expected at least. Tali came in late with a rather… well off the dome style effort. His flow was nice with only a few long winded lines and his writing was very smooth. Not too evolved in this instance but it was always incorrigible. The content in my opinion was pretty much ass. The easiest thing to write about, with no real effort to convince the reader otherwise. I hate to say this in light of the opponent but this piece just seemed rushed and simple. Mac (Awedswin) was much the same. Carefree like Tali’s but just had so much more to it. It was a enticing read through out, nicely written which left it (for the most part) and effortless and enjoyable read. The twist very satisfying and the narration, description and language kept you reading and was rewarding through out. The voters at the end of the day recognised this though their votes were varying at points. Everyone evidentially favouring Mac and most by a fair margin. A nice read from Mac, a let down from Tali, would have been good to see Tali put up more of a fight.




Underdog (20) VS Madpoet (4)
Madpoet wins 4-2 and Madpoet replaces Joey Hoffa (No Show)
EAST 7. Entrant-20 VS 10.Entrant-4

This was humour vs. normality almost in this battle. Underdog came with to me is the verse of the East. A verse so full of toilet humour the letter to porn itself may well have been written on sticky tissue before it made the internet. Very hit and miss indeed. The writing was rather lacking and the flow wasn’t doing much better but the blunt ‘Afroman’ approach just completely took my mind off that. There’s not much to say other than that, if the verse isn’t you, then it isn’t you but it was shot down rather harshly by the two who felt it least. Madpoet brought a sturdy effort to the table. Having read Underdog’s verse first the excitement was hard to find in Madpoet’s. Whilst Poet’s writing seemed amateur at times it did take Underdog relatively easy. The content seemed to be written in two different frames of mind and was hard to get into. It was lacking meaning to it’s being. It’s a ‘short and sweet’ effort but it was too detached and ‘normal’. Voters were evidently not going to take stupidity over sense. At the end of the day it was about appeal and Underdog missed his market leaving Poet to walk relatively easy with the victory.

Summary

The east was ripped apart by no shows but still provided us with 3 nice matches. No match was stand out but each was nice to read. Match of the round would have to go to Jersey VS Khoi NguJin for the way it was more evenly matched. The only surprise in this round was Underdog’s verse bombing so bad, personally this was verse of the round on the East side closely followed up by Vern’s effort. That wont read back well lol.

WEST

Ninja Kid (28) VS VoiD (22)
Ninja Kid wins by KO and VoiD replaces TeKneeK (no show)
http://board.rapmusic.com/showthread.php?t=916558

By far the worst battle of the round and possibly the tourney. I actually don’t feel bad saying that either. Ninja Kid quite easily took this with an if-average verse. Not too engrossing but certainly a lot easier to read and more polished and written like he knew what he was doing, even if there was a ‘eh’ effort… This was reflected by the one and only vote.

Dead King (14) VS Lucifer Leaven (19)
Dead King wins by KO and Lucifer Leaven replaces Vizz (no show)
WEST 8. Entrant-19 VS 9. Entrant-14

LL returned. Then left. 1 vote left LL buried at the hands of another vacationer – Dead King. Dead King dropped a polished verse off the bat. It was more distinguished and interesting than LL’s who’s was a little basic. Though there was only one vote I feel more votes would have said the same thing. Dead King made a good start as slept on as it is…

Black Beard (23) VS Deasenuts (17)
Black Beard wins by KO
http://board.rapmusic.com/showthread.php?t=916561

Another nice battle plagued with the 1 vote win. Dic wasn’t up to too much but there’s still a lot of dried rice in a hakkie sack. Dic put out a polished verse, nice description really pushing home the sorrow and despair tone of the piece. Nothing content wise that stood out but his dark, writing style was as enticing as always. Deasenuts delivered something at the other end of the spectrum, writing wise. A nice sharp rhyme scheme compared to Dic’s sluggish attempt, the writing was rather more every day and didn’t really stand with the same conviction as Dics. Dease is nothing to put down and I’ve seen better from both to boot but Dic took it. As the only voter echos.

Malosovich (11) VS Entrant 21 (21).
Match was a draw. Malosovich for fit and Entrant 21 won. Entrant 21 who is still nameless replaces Lost Prophet (No show)
WEST 7. Entrant-11 VS 10. Entrant-21

Close battle. No point in calling anything on it. It’s me vs a replacement who wont give us his name lol.

Summary

The west escaped no shows, well more than the East. The highlight match would probably be Jook vs Def Con. Dead King made a great start and LL made a nice surprise appearance although kind of drew the short straw. Nice round and a good start.

[Ratiko Malodic]

Deffy's Break Down of rounds 2+3 will come later

The Break Down of the final by Def_Con5


Entrant 13(East) Aka Vern Acular

VERTIGO

"The only tyrant I accept in this world is the still voice within."
-Mahatma Gandhi



I can feel my expression, tainted, portrayed with a tyrants grin
I stay focused , from beethovens new haven of violins
The melodic collage of sound astounds the watery shrine within
I find a friend…my inner voice, that's when the irony begins
I take my final glimpse,…the heavier my eye lids get
My mind is dense, I take a deep breath then close my eyes and sit
Im right beside the wick…and I can feel the fire lit
It's like im being watched by shadows that the wall inside submits
The smell of ³³³³³ cider sends my senses through a spiral quick
That's when imagination acts as satin then supplies intense
Re-occurring thoughts that over lap by 99 percent
My will to live and learn instead im turned to homocide by sins


At this point im meditating, body still, no sudden movements
I see the path ahead, it's blurry, my eyes are adjusting to it
It's my next step, my inept approach to it must be foolish
With my life on the line, im oblivious seeing it's just a blue print
No map or walkthrough, it's all new, and im a flustered student
To making decisions in life, "what's right?", see,! I want improvement
Im stubborn to it's difficult, but im saying there's nothing to it
So I let my conscience lead me in blind cause I must construe this
Now what produces, well I think about and ponder it's mystique
They say to live your dreams, but what If you've been conquered when you sleep
Motivation is the key, and I've been locked within esteem
I feel im physically weak at times, but I can consciously succeed
Im honestly supreme, I try to picture the good
And leave my train of thought topped by the little engine that could
I express myself on paper sometimes it's written in blood
So when I wanna give up, I see life's worth living and should
I just witnessed the flood, on the coast and im saddened by the rapture
The states are now aquatic pastures from this natural disaster
A visual water world, I sense the panic pulling faster
And mother nature is to blame for every casket we should ask her
Why she had to capture, the hearts and souls of humans
I open my eyes, begin to sigh and then I start to roll the Cuban
I walk to my window it's so seducing, the moon gives it's own illusion
But the water over my roof is the ode to my own confusion
Im alone in my home it's soothing, but the mood it lets you know
That if you wrestle hope you'll soon submit, there is no rescue boat
You propose to fate and only wait til you and death elope
But in retrospect I'll resurrect it's seen through telescopes
I take a hit, my last blunt, it's funny cause I've never smoked
I see the streets of water and then I start calling it Heavens Moat
I let it go, I cant take it, I panic, I yell and show
My conscience it isn't helping, I scream til my head explodes
My chest corrodes, from breath control, I start lacking sporadic
The water continues to rise and now im trapped in the attic
No more food or water, im calling this dirty mattress a casket
Covered in plastic and maggots I take a stab with a hatchet
At the metal bars on the window I attack it and wack it
There's no luck though, it's steel I cant manage to crack it
I get exhausted, so I stop and go back to the mattress,
And lay flat on my back it's helpless, I laugh and react with
A natural action…
I feel the the tip toe of a tear
I hear the drips, waters coming in the window it appears
At this point I accept death I sit low with now fear
Moments later im in a puddle I grip hold of my years
I spent holding a beer, wasting my life in a bar
Thinking of everything I could do telling my wife that it's hard
Procrastinating, conscience telling me it's time I should start
A minds a terrible thing to waist, I kept mine in a jar
I guess it's time I should start praying, the water's to my shirt you know
Im gonna drown, I start laughing again, "at least I wont the first to go"
The water's thirsty flow finds the candle gulping it's burning glow
And moments later, before I drown, my mind captures it's vertigo


I can feel my expression, tainted, portrayed with a tyrants grin
I stay focused , from beethovens new haven of violins
The melodic collage of sound astounds the watery shrine within
I find a friend…my inner voice, that's when the irony begins



-My Comments-

Vern had a very well put together verse, veyr well thought out, everything about it seemed to fall into place with every line he wrote, the flow..the content..the imagry of this piece were some of the best in the tourny. Me persoanlly i would have taken this topic a completely different way but it just goes to show that even people with different styles of writing can respect anothers work. He stuck to the topic throughout the entire piece and after re-reading this a few times i've gained a greta deal of respect for Vern's work. This was well worth being a finals verse and mad props go out to Vern for walking away with the W

[Ratiko Malodic]

Entrant 14(West) aka DeadKing:



A fanatic is one who can't change his mind and won't
change the subject.
-Sir Winston Churchill



dear jeff of rapmusic, hi.. i'm a member of your site
i was gonna wait to say this, but i think the timings right
cause remember back in march in the year of 99'
well, thats when it started, and i've been here by your side
as long as you have tried, i held you among the best
that same year you said my name wasn't making sense
so i guess i had to change it
its all that i could do
anything to be accepted by a janitor like you
and i knew, that one day, you would have to read my verse
when you did, you did something that had never just occured
as a first, on the homepage of your site you dropped a link
and it wasnt hip hop news of an outside party thing
it was me, with my verse as the best among the month
but you dont do that anymore and i miss the way it was
we wuz buds, you my boy, but what happened to us now
when we use to talk on aim but now were never both around
we was down, and to me, you was like no other
i was there for you when you were changing different servers
with only one thread... everything else got erased
we started over 3 seperate times as the past went to waste
now this place, barely knows me, they can just recall the name
i was the first consecutive champion in the rbl...
back in the day
and you would say, that i should stay, so i always stuck around
i battled the best, took em down, and made you feel so proud
cause i did it all for you, i'm just doing all i can
still rockin the green t-shirt and the soundboard computer pad
and i still got the mic, that you said i outta buy
that came in a black case with the padded foam all inside
you were right, it was worth it, best money ever spent
jeff, your dawg, and you better not forget
your the shit, we should meet, so just give me your address
so i can post as you on your site while i'm sitting at your desk
your the best, and number 1, i'm at your site like everyday
and i'd say that i love you but you'd take it different ways
i aint gay.... so dont complain that i still read my bible
but you come before god b/c he knows that your my idol
and inside you, is the skill, cause i know you wanna write
but why under an alias on your own fucking site
your the type, yes i know, who wants to earn on what they get
and thats why you'll pretend that what i say is full of shit
so just forget that what i said was even in my verse
or edit it yourself, cause you control my words
its obsurd, all the times that i remember in the past
like when me-n-freefall was in that tourney with the favor that we asked
and you laughed, but you did it, you let him take my spot
as i watched him win the tourney and you let us split the pot
not alot, but enough with an amazon certificate
i wanted a movie
but needed 2 more dolla's before i was gettin it
and isnt it funny that all i had to do was ask
then you turned that 20 into a 22 all in a flash
you see man.....
i still got that movie, and i always like to watch it
cause i know it came from you, its a link we share in common
and its all inside my head, all the times that we was boys
and i wish i was a mod who could say "i stole ya points"
with my voice, i been silent, i kept this to myself
all the things i been feel'n, i never knew just how you felt
but now they're off my chest, and you know just what i mean
as my identity is masked, i'm just a number in a league
your biggest fan.... signed..... as number fourteen





- My comments-


This was alsoone of the best verses in the tourny, very heart felted and deep, DK came with a personal feel on this one and although those types of verses are frowned upon by most of the Topical community this one was an exception. Just liek Vern's almost everything about this verse was great, the content,the imagry,but what it lacked was constant flow. One of the main things i loved about this piece was the way it stayed on topic in a subtle way that many people might not be able to see right off the back. This was actually one of the first pieces i've ever seen by DK and i must say he impressed me. Aside from the flow falling in certain parts this verse was pretty much flawless and as with Vern, very well deserving of being in the finals.








-Def's Commentary on the tourny-


I would like to tip my hat to all those who participated in this tourny..there were alot of great verses this year and it made me feel good just knowing that i was apart of this. Aside from the no-shows i'd say this tourny was a complete success. This tourny has brought some of the best verses this site has ever seen and i honestly feel like alot of them should be archived. I'd like to personally thank Malo, Mac, and Tali for running this tourny and not stopping it when the drama unfolded. I wish you all the best and i hope to see you all in the RSTL when it returns soon.


Signed: Defcon_5

[Ratiko Malodic]

Interview with Def Con 5


Yassa Arabfat: Ladies, Gentlemen and lowlifes I will now badly spell words wrong, your names wrong and probably my own name wrong. Ow and Def Con's going to talk too! Just kidding, welcome Def Con 5!
T2k1no3: lol
T2k1no3: *grabs mic..hi umm humans :-)
Yassa Arabfat:So man how did you find the tourney? It's your first one aint it?
T2k1no3: yeah it's my first one and i found it very interesting and fun
Yassa Arabfat:Did it live up to your expectations?
T2k1no3: very much...it actually made me feel good being apart of it
Yassa Arabfat:: Nice to hear that
Yassa Arabfat:Do you feel the RSTL has more of a community spirt within than the RBL and other leagues
T2k1no3: i actually do..no disrespect to the RBL,PTL, or RWE mods but i feel like the RSTL mods put more work into what they are doing thus creating the best league on the internet right now
Yassa Arabfat:I've always liked that too, i think its why alot more people come back than with other leagues
T2k1no3: yeah...alot fo old heads popped up out of no where lately and have been asking about the RSTL's return
Yassa Arabfat:Yea, i think tourneys always get that out of people

[Ratiko Malodic]

Interveiw Continued

Yassa Arabfat:: What did you think of the whole secrective concept?
T2k1no3: i liekd it..it kept the dickriding and repetative votes away and it was something new..aside from those who bitched and claimed it was rigged i think it worked out just fine
Yassa Arabfat:yeah that was a bit of a spit in the face but you cant please them all
Yassa Arabfat:have you had a chance to match the numbers to the faces yet?
T2k1no3: yeah i actually matched a few before the brackets came out
T2k1no3: well only a couple and that was Vern and Riko
Yassa Arabfat:and Jook
T2k1no3: lol
T2k1no3: yeah
Yassa Arabfat:I remember seeing you two posting and I was swearing blind to myself you two know you were facing each other lol
T2k1no3: lol nah we only figured it out after both verses were sposted
Yassa Arabfat:so who do you think supprised you and who flopped?
T2k1no3: well DK surprised me cause i've never seen his work before...i think all those who no-showed without a good reason flopped
Yassa Arabfat:Yeah, DK did well
Yassa Arabfat:he does every time he comes through
Yassa Arabfat:though everyone seems to forgot
Yassa Arabfat:me included
Yassa Arabfat:I gotta bring this up, there's a bit of a dmeitrius fueled debate about it
Yassa Arabfat:what did you think of Dear Porno?
T2k1no3: i thought it was a poor excuse for a tourny verse, a blatant rip off of jay-z's "Dear Summer"...and someone's poor weak attempt at being funny
Yassa Arabfat:hahaha
Yassa Arabfat:You voted in that match didn't you?
T2k1no3: yep
Yassa Arabfat:yeah, I recognise the comment
T2k1no3: lol
Yassa Arabfat:If you knew of the names before hand, who would you have tipped to win?
T2k1no3: nope
T2k1no3: i vote on the verses not the name
Yassa Arabfat:Na, I ment if you knew who was battling, going on previous work, who would you have predicted to win, lol
T2k1no3: more than likely
T2k1no3: then again u never know
T2k1no3: tournies bring out the best in people which leads to upsets
Yassa Arabfat:true
Yassa Arabfat:it also leads to a few good heads dropping out early
T2k1no3: yep
T2k1no3: lol
Yassa Arabfat:Rikoshay being this years supprise early exit
T2k1no3: surprised me alot
Yassa Arabfat:With the new league coming up and seeing you've had a sneekie peekie you looking forward to returning to the ranks?
T2k1no3: lol it's the only thing i'm looking forword to right now..the RSTL is my new home lol and with the changes it will be better than ever..i doubt anybody will want to no-show
Yassa Arabfat:Yeah, there's a few new reasons to be there
T2k1no3::-D
Yassa Arabfat:So name dropping time!
T2k1no3: chea
Yassa Arabfat:I drop the name you rate their game
T2k1no3: k
Yassa Arabfat:J O O K
T2k1no3: what's the scale?
Yassa Arabfat:A-U(rrghh)
T2k1no3: lol
T2k1no3: i give Jook a B+, he's been doing good but he could be great if he really applied himself to his verses liek he did in the opening round of the tourny against me
Yassa Arabfat:Rikoshay
T2k1no3: A...he's one of my idols in Topicals...the way he puts his words togetehr to a topic are damn near flawless
Yassa Arabfat:Dmetrius
T2k1no3: haven't seen anything new form hi mreally but from what i know about him he's still B..maybe B+ on his good days
Yassa Arabfat:Jersey Emcee
T2k1no3: aside from him constantly bitching and moaning he's a very good writer..he gets a B from me
Yassa Arabfat:First impressions of Dead King
T2k1no3: i was very impressed by him honestly. he came up with some very nice and creative verses and get a A from me
Yassa Arabfat:Pent Up
T2k1no3: Pent has always been a good writier to me..he just has some much untapped potential that he doesn't use..he get's a B from me just because he can do sooo much better but for some reason he holds it back
Yassa Arabfat:Who else do you think deserves some props from you?
T2k1no3: Vern for one lol
T2k1no3: he did great
Yassa Arabfat:forgot him
Yassa Arabfat:somehow
T2k1no3: lol
T2k1no3: ummm let me see who else
Yassa Arabfat:: what about your fellow league jumper, castro?#
T2k1no3: he was in this tourny?
Yassa Arabfat:he no showed
T2k1no3: oh
T2k1no3: lol
T2k1no3: no-shows get no love from Def
T2k1no3: that black beard kid surprised me
T2k1no3: i'd give him a C+..maybe a B-
Yassa Arabfat:ah, dic
T2k1no3: ohhh that was him
T2k1no3: ll
T2k1no3: lol*
Yassa Arabfat:he kinda under performed
T2k1no3: Ninja kid did ok..i beat him second round though :-D
Yassa Arabfat:lol
T2k1no3: i think everybody that showed for their matches deserves some props
Yassa Arabfat:: true
T2k1no3: yep
T2k1no3: lol even JE
Yassa Arabfat:iono about that.
Yassa Arabfat:Anyway, I gotta round it up now. England vs Ireland is coming on and I gotta tidy up before erryone comes round and wrecks my house
T2k1no3:: nah even throughout all the bitching,whining and complaining he did..he still managed to show for his matches
T2k1no3: lol aight
Yassa Arabfat:any last words?
T2k1no3: yeah..I WANT ALL YOU PEOPLE FROM THE TOURNY TO REGISTER FOR THE RSTL'S RETURN SO MY RISE TO THE TOP WILL BE REMEMBERED :-)
Yassa Arabfat:haha
Yassa Arabfat:it's been good, pce
T2k1no3: aight mayne
T2k1no3: pz

[Ratiko Malodic]

TaLi's Favorite Five

There were a good number of nice writtens dropped throughout the tournament. Nevertheless, it is my job to extract the top 5 submissions that I think warrant special attention. These are MY TOP 5 favorites with traditional 'TaLi' biases included free of charge. This is not the definite list of the best. Everything that follows is my opinion. If you share it, wonderful. If you don't, go cry about it. It will make for good drama lol. As you will soon see, I actually included 2 honorable mentions that I broke down as well. In the end, these were the 7 best to me and it was hard to draw the line between 4 and 7. So here we go.



Honorable Mention


8. Defcon 5(Semi-Finals)

Semi-Finals


This was just a really solid showing as far as I am concerned. The topic was the song title “Adrenaline Rush.” The concept itself was worked nicely; nothing amazing, but nice nonetheless. I could be totally off base but I took the entire thing to be a metaphor of sorts for Satan falling from God’s grace if you will. The hints were all over the place. If that isn’t what Def meant to do, then screw me, but I think I’m on point with that. Anyways, it’s the way the piece was thought out and developed that grabbed my attention the most; sort of a present, past, future set up that made me want to find out why he got there and where he was going. The rhyme aspect of the piece wasn’t its strong point but I still thought it was pretty good for the most part. All in all, this was just one of the best all-around showings in the tourney even if it didn’t shine magnificently in any one aspect.


7. Vizz Blade (Round 1)

Round 1


The topic was “Death by Love.” In a sense, Vizz didn’t stray to far from a literal interpretation of the song title. However, it wasn’t the grand twist or super metaphor that made this piece so nice to me. What I felt most was the way it was written. The entire first stanza is entirely not what I’m used to seeing in the league. At first glace, it looks like the lines are far too short to carry any sort of flow. However, by paying careful attention to the number of syllables he used (intentionally or not lol) as well as the way he formatted it, Vizz managed to pull off one of the sickest simple flows I’ve seen in a while. The great thing about this piece is the way that so much is said but with only the words needed. Nothing really seemed forced to me at all. Add in the fact that the rhymes were on point and rawness of the emotion displayed was tremendous in my opinion. This was a good lesson in how to be different yet still appealing.

6. Black Beard (Semi-Finals)

Like I said in my vote, upon first glance, I figured this was going to be one of those really good stories with horrible structuring that I always bitch about. But as I read it, I was pleasantly surprised that there was still some semblance of flow, in fact quite a bit. The content was very emotional and more importantly, that emotion was conveyed in a way that didn’t come across as corny, which a lot of people seem to have trouble with. There wasn’t any sugar coating, it was just straight up what happened, how it happened and the consequences of the happening lol. The rhymes were really nice to. The multis were very precise and used with good taste for the most part. This verse had pretty much everything you’d hope to find in a good RSTL verse even though I wasn’t 100% satisfied with the ending; more like 90%.

[Ratiko Malodic]

Top 5


5. Black Beard (Round 2)

Round 2


I’m sure a battle within a story is a theme that has been done before. However, this piece was far more than just that. Generally speaking, I am not crazy about using a ridiculously large number of topics in one rhyme. It rarely ever works out as well as it might have seemed in the planning stages. But in this case, it worked out pretty well due to the fact that every topic used worked within the framework of the main quote. The other thing that caught my eye about this story was the attention to detail and all of the little metaphors tossed in here and there to get a rather simple point across. That is one thing I admire because, quite frankly, I’m not very good at it myself. I’m a renowned rhyme junkie. It could be argued that a few of the rhymes might have been a little unneeded. Still, as a whole, I was pretty impressed with how you managed to integrate the content of the story with fairly elaborate rhyme schemes. I don’t know what anyone else thought of this, but I certainly enjoyed it. For the record, “Freestallion” won easily…


4. Defcon_5 (Round 2)

Round 2


I had no idea that was you again until I looked at the brackets. But damn, this was a crazy little trip. The topic was “I Used to Love H.E.R.” which had all the makings of being a played ass topic. Instead of going with the obvious, which would have been some sort of metaphor about something, Def' went off on some twisted shock shit, exactly the kind of stuff that tends to play well in the RSTL. Of course, it would have to be well written and delivered in order for it to mean much. In this case, it obviously was. In my opinion, Def's strong point is the way his stories progress from beginning to end and this is no exception. Rhymes were consistent as usual. I’m not going to ruin the plot for anybody who might end up reading it in the future. But it’s pretty cool, and ought to be checked out.


3. Dead King (Semi-Finals)

Semi-Finals


This was one of the coolest rhymes I read the entire tournament. The way Dead King took the two song titles (Personal Journals & Pit and the Pendulum) and integrated them so as to re-tell the old Edgar Allen Poe joint in rhyme form was just an interesting way to go. The story itself is told in such a way that I could see in my mind exactly what was taking place. The imagery was probably the most impressive that I saw out of all the verses I read. The flow of the piece was just totally on point. There weren’t a whole lot of big fancy rhymes but they were absolutely not needed in this case, as the caliber of the writing itself rendered that unnoticeable. If you had dropped like this in the finals you certainly would have stood a better chance.


2. & 1. Vern Acular (Round 1 & The Finals Respectively)

Round 1
Finals


The round 1 piece is quite easily one of the best rhymes I’ve ever read. Vern’s style is incredibly suited to my personal preferences. First off, the rhyme read like it was actually meant to be a Hip Hop track that would eventually be recorded rather than a novel that rhymes. So many people have a hard time saying all they want to say without sacrificing the pace at which the rhyme reads. Anybody who has ever read my votes knows how important flow is to me. Some people say flow doesn’t exist in text. That is absolute nonsense. If you know how to use the syllable count your rhymes to set the tempo of the verse then you can more or less determine how the reader reads the verse. So anyway, Vern obviously knows how to do that. The other thing I loved about his round 1 entry is that what he said is so true. Or wait; does that make it a lie? I don’t know, but I couldn’t have possibly related to what he was saying more than I did. Lastly, just reading a submission that was actually a topic rather than a story was refreshing. The finals verse pretty much speaks for itself. It had everything that the first round verse did. In addition, the concept, imagery, attention to detail, and use of words and metaphors that appropriately portrayed everything about the situation that the main character found himself in was at a level that nobody left in the tourney after the first round matched (hint, I should have tried lol). Vern, from me to you, I hope you decide to get back in the league at some point because the maturity and preciseness of your rhymes are things that sorely lack in general. You totally deserved to win this tournament.[/size]

[Ratiko Malodic]

Getting to know the final five

Jersey Emcee

Until recently Jersey (other wise known as Liquidlife) was best known for his some what silent stay at the top. He was always a man of few words but always a man of many actions. Jersey is one of the few absent RSTL members who has come back from a break and been able to handle the new pace of the league. He has a great adaptability like that, always been able to cultivate and conquer. With that said he has only had the title sitting on his hips once through out his entire career. Jersey was never one to overall exert himself and consequently has yet to achieve what he is capable of. One week you’ll see him come back and simply dispose of the current hype of the week and for the next month you’ll rarely see him show up for a battle, no matter the importance of that battle. These days it is a lot harder to focus on his talent with it being hidden behind a wrath of ignorance and self pity but it’s there and if Jersey is true to his word then we could finally be seeing him return to the hall and once and for all escaping the ‘flash in the pan’ curse and knocking up a few more title wins which he is truly capable of.

Black Beard

Black Beard (other wise known as either Manchyld, Dic Gets Gully or Dicenyaeye) is no stranger to the top. The hall is littered with his names. He’s a top flight writer who’s really come into his own over the past year or two. He’s tangoed with the best of them and quite often comes out of the flight as the only man standing. With that said, you’ll often hear him coming before you see him (not as figurative as you think) because he really has something to shout about. He’s conquered the league in it’s depression and unlike the other champs of that era (Madpoet, Insense and Cereal Killer) he can still capture the title when the league is flourishing. The champion RSTL writer and PTL poet isn’t as active as he used to be, but when he is, his verse some how always manages to be louder than his mouth. So if you see a ‘Dic’ or see a lot of sexual innuendo in the league beware.

Def Con 5

Def Con 5 (or Deffy as he is affectionately referred to by his chums) is one of the newer additions to the RSTL and the latest migrant from the RBL looking to achieve similar recognition in the RSTL. In the very few battles he’s had he’s already bringing attention to himself. At this time there isn’t much to be said of Deffy’s RSTL time other than he’s surprised a few people who didn’t think he had it in him… Defiantly some one to keep your eye on in the coming weeks.
Dead King

It’s rather ironic how DeadKing’s talent is sometimes hard to recall. More so when I myself can be found singing his praises and even beating him. Although it’s understandable that I’d forget beating him seeing Dic was ’me’ around that time. It’s kind of depressing looking back on King’s battles. He’s one of the few to rather effortlessly ‘push over’ Tha Talent and I’d like to explicitly express the word ‘few’ there. He’s gone pound for pound with Anaphora and other top fleet writers like the aforementioned Dic, all exciting battles to read but they are sadly, few and far between. It would be great to see Dead King stick around for the league as he brings out the best in his opponents and never fails to deliver an exciting battle though sadly I don’t we’ll see much of him until the winter months when the next tourney comes around.

Vern

Energetic writing, follwing a vibrant flow and a mutli syllable delivery on simple topics with a rejuvenating perspective on them. Can you get any more polished. Vern really is an enigma. Facing a man with nine title wins who is back on form. You’d think angst would be inciting writers block in his opponents, wouldn’t you? You’d be thinking wrong. You think that with all the fear shown for Vern on the boards that when these people come to face him, they’d simply just call it a day. Again you’d be wrong. You see some of the most self conscious writers standing up to Vern. Some even going over board like Tek and publicising an ‘I must Win’ campaign. It’s true Tha Talent, Dead King, Trap, RC etc bring out the best of their opponents but Vern takes it to another level.
I haven’t even got to people like Dic, Talent and more recently King. Who have/had Vern on their hit lists. He’s proved his name and reputation offer little credit to his success, now lets hope we see him in the league creating an even bigger gap between himself and the previous greats; Jowelz, Tha Talent and Peril Eyez.

[Ratiko Malodic]

We done our part, so come on make some noise...

Well the tourney is over and now so is the mag. We hope you enjoied it and we hope you are looking forward to whats yet to come. Sign Up and goodluck.

Credits
Shouts to Mac Flow, Tali and Defcon_5 for helping put this together.

Also, appologies if some names got mixed up, its supprisingly confusing all this numbers shit.

[RIKOSHAY]

Dang. I know my verse was old but I don't even get a mention in the first round recap?
PEA