Let's break down the teams. I'm going to give each team a "WASHD" score, which evaluates the relative level of how out of practice / rusty their respective returning players are. Then at the end I will place my overall predictions. Of course, these evaluations could change as we are still in the period where trades are possible!
Somali-Kabuli Gaming
The strangest EPL team name, SKG has had mediocre to decent showings in past seasons, taking second in EPL1, sixth in EPL 2, and sitting out EPL 3 and 4. Very excited to see them back and looking to prove themselves this season. Frontline was drafted for the second highest amount after Julian and is sure to be a strong contender, having won the ESOC 2024 grand finals vs. Keturboy but under-performing a bit in the 2025 tourney against Phoenix. Good thing Phoenix isn't playing! Frontline will certainly be their top seed and will have to face down Keturboy, JulianK, and either Aizamk or Soldier. I don't predict the first two of these MUs being particularly easy for FL, but I don't see him being swept either and he may pull off an impressive performance. Tabben and Ezad have some recent tourney experience as well but it is unclear how much they are currently playing on the ladder. Kevin and Dennis are quite active on the ladder, and are great pickups on the mid-lower end, IMO. Hawk_Girl is an unknown but could come in clutch in certain MUs. Overall, SKG has a very strong lineup with no clear weak points. I give SKG one of the lowest potential WASHD scores of 1 out of 5.
Curassier Management Co.
Managed previously by Guigs and TheNameDaniel, CMC has under-performed relative to their often star-studded rosters in EPL seasons, taking second in EPL 1 and 2, coming third in EPL 3, and coming second in EPL 4. Now with Kaiserklein at the helm, CMC is looking for their first win. They look quite stacked indeed, at least on paper. JulianK, the highest bid on player in the draft, is generally extremely dominant in tournament settings, and doesn't seem to suffer from rust the way other players do, despite taking a fairly long break from tournament and ladder player. Psionic will surely be a fun watch, being very active on ladder after recently adopting the game from SC2. Undoubtedly already a top tier player in terms of mechanics, he will have to prove that he can handle the pressure / mindset challenge of his first aoe3 tourney and overcome a small civ pool. Lionheart was a great pickup-- despite his meme / content creator status, he always seems to overperform in tournament settings, with a great sense for how to punish players and a strong capacity to avoid tilting. The real questions for CMC are the returning giants Mitoe, Turk, and Conqueror. Whether or not they shake off the rust will be a determining factor for CMC's success. Since these three players all have been pretty inactive from the competitive scene, I give CMC a fairly high WASHD score, 3 out of 5.
Hudson Bay BIGs
It's great to see the Bigs back in action, and I always enjoy Kaister's managerial style so I am happy to see him carry on the tradition started by previous managers Noel (EPL 2, 3) and Lionheart (EPL 4). The Bigs have a decent EPL record despite a rocky start, having sat out EPL 1, come in fourth in EPL 2, rocketed to the top to win EPL 3, and then come in third in EPL 4. Keturboy, Optimus, and Minimoult make up the top seeded players. Keturboy for 2950 coins was probably a steal given his recent dominant performance in the 2025 ESOC tourney, but we will have to see how well he adapts to the EPL format where every game counts. Optimus at his prime could take a series against any of the best players on the board here, but he, along with Minimoult, Rohbrot, and Lukas are all potentially a bit rusty, unless I've been missing these players on the ladder. ShakeVentiVenti remains active but has variable tourney performances that seem to depend a lot on matchups. The BIGs, like CMC, have variable outcomes based on how much they can unrust the middle of the bracket. I give them the highest potential WASHD score, 4 out of 5.
Mandarin Duck Squad
I'm personally biased to support the best-named team in the league, MDS, under exciting new management by up-and-coming content star Barron after a long tenure by Duck. MDS has a mixed record, having come fourth in EPL 1, winning EPL 2, coming fourth in EPL 3, and coming fourth in EPL 4. This season, MDS has the deepest roster, but is perhaps disadvantaged by their lack of a true tier 1 seed, someone who could go toe-to-toe with the likes of Frontline, Julian, or Keturboy. Aizamk will have to shoulder this burden, and hopefully he can return to his old 2015-2019 form, where he was taking games off _H2O and diarouga. His unrusting and willingness to learn and play the new DE meta will be a major factor here. Alternatively, MDS might also have a path to victory if they can force unusual pairings. Sometimes you can cede a good pair in the top seed and make up games through favorable matchups in the lower tiers, with strong low-seeded players like Warsword, Grogu, Batu, and Ivongoat. The relative unknowns are Soldier and TheNameDaniel. Soldier was a steal, in my opinion, at 2700, since he has been quite active and is performing near the top of his game, mastering new DE civs and putting in the work to refine his mechanics. He might have to carry the burden of facing off against top seeds if Aiz is too rusty, though he might be put to better use as a dominant second-tier bully against washed former greats like Mitoe, Tabben, or Minimoult. Daniel will also have to unrust significantly. He could similarly potentially play top-seed games, but much depends on how much he is able to adapt and train for the new meta. Overall, I give MDS a fairly low WASHD score, 2 out of 5.
Predictions
My rankings for overall team strength right now are:
1. SKG
2. CMC
3. BIGs
4. MDS
Overall, I have to give the edge to SKG on paper. Frontline, Ezad, Tabben, Kevin, and Dennis are going to be very formidable to match against. If CMC can unrust Turk, Mitoe, and Conqueror, it might tip the edge in their favor, but currently I would put them in 2nd despite how dominant JulianK will be. The BIGs have similar problems with rust but a slightly less stacked lineup behind their top seed, Keturboy, which inclines me to rank them 3rd. I'm sad to say that I have to rank MDS in last place as of now, since Aiz/Soldier/Daniel (whoever they pick) will suffer against other top seed players Julian, Frontline and Keturboy. However, their deep, quality roster in the lower tiers means they could provide some big upsets that none of us see coming yet. If Soldier can overperform and Daniel and Aiz can unrust, I could see a stronger MDS showing than anyone is currently expecting. As a caveat, I still think the field is extremely close. These rankings are based on very slim margins and assumptions about rust and inactivity that might prove meaningless or different than expected. It could go any way!
For me, the players to keep an eye on as potentially undervalued and capable of big upsets include Dennis (SKG), Psionic (CMC), ShakeVentiVenti (BIGs), and Warsword (MDS). The player I'm most excited to watch is Psionic-- his phenomenal rise on the ladder through his SC2 mechanics has been the highlight of non-tourney play in 2025, bringing some new life and new blood to the AoE3 scene. It will be a privilege to watch his first foray into the tournament setting.
We are still also in the period where trades are possible. MDS and BIGs probably have the most to benefit from trading, but nothing comes to mind as an obvious play for any of the teams as of yet. I'll update these predictions if any major shakeups occur.
Missing of course from this season are the venerable Nilla Ninjas, the Garjonians, the New World Challengers, the Blockhouse Boomers, and the Semi-FF Gang, relegated down to ECL! When will we see their triumphant return to the big stage?
