The RA25. THE FABULOUS FIVE.

 It's time for the top 5. Some may disagree on the exact order I have placed these players in - it's subjective and open to debate. Remember this is a rankings based on my own perspective in 2v2 from playing or partnering these guys, factoring in how difficult I found each opponent based on their skillset. This is a 2v2 rankings not 1v1. Whatever you think, I'm sure many would agree that the 5 players I am about to name are very worthy and deserving to be in the top 5 2v2. So here we go... Let me know if you agree 👍

5. Bea5ty (Kosovo) 48/50

Perhaps Bea5ty is featured lower than some people might expect. After all he is an extremely strong player. I gave him full marks for unlimited ore, gem maps, tactics but unlike the top 4 I had to take away some points for ore maps (he's still great just not AS great on ore maps) and also teamwork. When I think about top 5 I think of cyborg type players who are extremely difficult to beat and wins are rare. Sometimes Bea5ty does have the tendency to make some weird plays or even semi-trolling, whatever it is - he doesn't have the same killer instinct and ruthless precision as the 4 higher ranked players and that does matter at the most elite of levels. If i had a must-win game I would rather see Bea5ty on the other 2v2 team instead of these 4 other guys and that's what it boils down to - he is slightly more beatable in my experience if that makes sense.  

4. Dynamic (Germany) 48.5/50

Dynamic is a ruthless machine who plays the game correctly mathematically. Full marks on ore maps, gem maps. I gave him only 9/10 on unlimited ore because at least when I was actively playing his p4 game wasn't quite top tier. That might have changed in the last 18 months but at least in my experience in 2v2 he wasn't quite the complete finished article like he was in 1v1 where he wins 95% of his games and is a true monster. Still obviously a phenomenal player and there's no shame in being 4th 2v2 when you consider who the remaining 3 are. Again this is based on my own personal perspective and I do think this is about right. 

3. Faust (Germany) 48.5/50

It was very tough to separate Dynamic and Faust. Dynamic is maybe just that tiny bit better mechanically, but Faust has better teamwork - in fact I gave Faust 10/10 for teamwork and Dynamic only 9/10. Part of this is down to Faust's phenomenal performances in tournaments during 2020-2021 where he showed beyond any doubt that he was the king of 2v2 at that time. Again, he has the ruthless precision and win at all costs mentality that just separates him from Bea5ty in 2v2. The recent series i witnessed between San/Faust Vs Bea5t/Dynamic was also informative and showed just how strong Faust is in a teamgame situation where he is one of the toughest opponents you could face. He always tries his best and plays to his partner's strengths better than anyone. 

2. Ford aka Gganbu? (Canada) 49/50

It's not official but I am 99% certain these are the same player based on pattern recognition and playstyle. In reality you could throw a blanket over 3-5 as they are all interchangeable. Ford aka Gganbu separates himself from 3-5 and is slightly better because he basically has no weaknesses. He also has a genius and profound exact scientific understanding of the game. If Gganbu is trying his best he is a phenomenal player. I saw a close BO11 series between Gganbu/Jacob against Beast and Dynamic and Gganbu took Jacob to game 11 (5-6). No disrespect to Jacob who is an amazing player but i don't think he is making it to 9 games (3-6) with either of the other 2 players as his partner. I took away minor points on P4 for not quite A+ soviet stamina, that's the only small criticism.  Ford/Gganbu is almost the complete and perfect player but he's just not quite the  dominant legend of number 1...

1. Ehy (Finland) 49.5/50

Well this was always going to be obvious wasn't it ? I get the argument that the game may have modernised and play level may have improved in the 10 years since Ehy retired. However, you can only "beat what's in front of you". I am very confident Ehy would have adapted to the modern era. At the time of Ehy's peak he was universally considered the strongest player by far and it wasn't even a debate. Nowadays there's 2-3 names in contention for example. If Ehy tried seriously he won, pretty simple. The level of his domination over his peers was unprecedented so much so that he retired out of boredom after even games against the formidable NastyNate (clear 2nd at the time) became not challenging enough for him. The only 0.5 I took away from Ehy was teamwork as it did annoy me sometimes when he would make unserious plays when he was on my team. That's the only small blip on his otherwise perfect score. It's all relative and when you consider games between the other top 5 could all be pretty even, I am supremely confident that were a prime Ehy still around today, he would still be the clear best 2v2 player.

Hope you enjoyed the series

Thanks for reading. 

Wise Master CrushyBoo.

The RA 25. Positions 10-6.

 Welcome to the top 10 of my strongest 2v2 opponents ever in online Red Alert. This is where it starts to get serious. I've been asked why certain players haven't/won't be included in the list so I'll give some more brief mentions before I start the final 10....

At0m1 hasn't been included because I only really played with him on P4 and a handful of games on ribbon/V3, he rarely played and mostly spectated therefore it's impossible to me to accurately assess his playing level, whenever he did play it tended to just be for a short period and you could tell he was extremely strong albeit very rusty - impossible for me to rate him fairly so like kr0nic I haven't included him. Criteria is 25+ games on a diverse range of maps... Oldpr0 is better than people think and narrowly missed out as I had him 26th just ahead of the likes of Ad and Diaz. Kipp hasn't been included because I only played with him a handful of games ever and his partners were always monsters such as Faust or Tanja so I couldn't possibly assess his true level based on our 7-8 games ever.

Anyway... Without further ado, let the real business begin...

10. Jacob 46/10 (USA)

Obviously a very strong player and most people would agree he's in the top 10 2v2. The only reason really he isn't higher ranked is because the rest of the players are absolute monsters as you will see. I have him more of a 9/10 than a 10/10 in some of the categories and I think this position is fair. 

9. McLovin 46.5/10 (Norway)

Extremely strong player. The king of liquid. One of the absolute best on ore maps or general tanking. McLovin only really lost points on unlimited ore and maybe lacked some of the long game skills of some others. I do believe if McLovin had stuck around and played for longer he had the potential and talent to go near the top of this list. A fantastic player.

8. H3zb. 47/10 (Australia)

Obviously very close to the top. One of the absolute best on P4 2v2. Again, can't really criticise any aspect of his play - maybe sometimes doesn't defend as well as the absolute elite top 5 players and so I have him only just outside the top 5.

7. NastyNate 47/10 (Chile)

Very little between H3zb and Nate. H3zb is a better builder but Nate is one of the strongest pure production tankers. Nate is obviously still a very strong player and any minor shortcomings he may have in long games are negated by his brilliant tanking. I think many people would have Nate in the top 5 and the only reason he doesn't quite make it is you will see there are still some phenomenal players left.

6. Rushy 47.5/10 (Canada)

Obviously a phenomenal player. I gave Rushy almost full marks for teamwork and tactical awareness. Also he's right near the top in unlimited ore and gem map long games. He only really loses points on ore maps. Most would agree he is a wonderful partner and vicious opponent in 2v2. An excellent player and it was difficult for me to leave him just outside the top 5 - again ore maps is just what slightly brought him down behind the remaining guys. 

Thanks for reading. The Fabulous Five to come next... Congratulations to all who have made the list. 

PayPal Crushy! 😝

The RA25. Positions 15-11

As explained prior, this rankings is based on my personal 2v2 encounters. Styles make fights. Some players may have improved since I stopped playing over a year ago so I can only base it on my personal experience. Trying to be as accurate and fair as possible. So without further ado...

15. Sol3man 44.5/50  (Finland)

I had Sol3man on the same mathematical mark as Tanja. Obviously i have scored him very highly for unlimited ore, teamwork, tactics etc but he lost a ton of points for ore map play otherwise he could have been even higher. Very similar player to Tanja but on balance I found Sol3man to be just that bit more reliable than Tanja and more consistent so I've fairly ranked him higher.

14. RC1985 45/50 (Singapore) 

In 1v1 rankings RC would be around about top 5. On 2v2 he was very strong with Germany, one of the best, but with soviets there are definitely stronger opponents I've faced. RC was a very high level in general and I feel this ranking is around accurate for 2v2.

13. Kickn 45/50 (Australia)

Very similar strength to Sol3man but Kickn scored slightly higher because his versatility is better eg tanking and decent on ore maps. Kickn may not be quite as tactically astute as Sol3 but he has more range in his play. On the whole Kickn became very strong and formidable just his reactions maybe not quite as challenging as the top 10 guys.  I placed Kickn 1 position higher than RC despite them being on the same mathematical score because I feel like Kickn has slightly more versatility. 

12. 2pac. 45.5/50 (Finland)

Put simply, I consider 2pac to be the best P4 2v2 soviet long game player and this has been proven to me many times. I ranked him full marks for unlimited ore and that's why he appears so highly on the list. I remember defeating Ehy when he had various partners such as Yuz, Smash, Muad Dib, Lauta etc when 2pac was my partner. I've also observed his V2 production to be the absolute best. I've played a fair bit with 2pac on Tdawg etc where he is also very strong. A bit like Sol3 he lost points because of ore play which is a shame because he has/had the potential to be one of the true best players in the game. An excellent player and virtually unbeatable on P4 2v2 long games. Also, unlike players like Lauta and Col0 i have played a tonne with 2pac on maps other than P4 which is why i can't include guys like that on the list. 

11. San 45.50/50 (USA)

A difficult one for me to place and I'm mostly basing it on my experience of playing him. San was already very strong in all categories apart from maybe tactical awareness. Often saw him lose to semi dumb tactics or got him with an apc for example. What I will say is that I've seen video footage of games in the last year since I've been inactive and it's clear to me that San has morphed into something even stronger. He'd probably rank higher in my estimations now if I were still playing but I can only go on my personal experience and on my personal experience I found the remaining 10 players to be more challenging than San in 2v2. You will see there's still some incredibly strong players left so 11th is not an insult by any means.

Thank for reading. The immortal top 10 to follow. PayPal me you tight C*NTS if you enjoy my free content. I might not keep it free and make it subscriber-only on onlyfans for the top 5 at this rate.

Shakespeare Crushy 

The RA25. Positions 20-16.

Part 2 of my personal rankings of 2v2 skill level in opponents I've faced in online active Red Alert play from 2012-2024. Only the Top 25 have been chosen. This is positions 20-16. Enjoy...

20. Smash 42.5/50 (Belgium)

Coming in at 20 is a player some may not remember but whom definitely deserves a mention on this list. Cousinsmash was a late 90s player who returned around 2013. By 2015 he was a very strong tanker, particularly good on ribbon or ore maps. I distinctly remember a p4 2v2 series on Ehy's YouTube in which Ehy and Smash were able to defeat a formidable team in At0m1 and NastyNate which is testament to how strong Smash was. They also won a 2v2 tournament against At0m1 and Turret, NastyNate and Yuz back in the day. By the time he retired for a final time, Smash had become one of the best 2v2 tankers. I can't have him any higher because I'm not convinced older play translates as well to the modern era.

19. Blitz 43/50 (Scotland)

Blitz is one of the best GQ tankers, his tanking is very strong. He is also reasonably strong on long games on gem maps. I think his only downfall is he's not the most creative or tactically astute in team games and is the only reason I put him slightly lower than the next player on the list. If it was a 1v1 rankings Blitz would be higher up the list but teamwork and tactics is where Blitz lost some points here.

18. Leigh 43.5/50 (Scotland)

A very strong all round tactical player. Very good on ore and gem maps. Leigh would be higher on the list if not for the obvious fact that he's not known for P4 or unlimited ore cying play. This is where he loses points and so can't place him higher than 18. A very good teamwork player with good team play game awareness.

17. Mafia 43.5/50 (Germany)

Mafia became really good on ore maps 2v2 and was reasonably strong on p4 games and ribbon etc. a very solid all round player just not quite as strong as some of the higher ranked names.

16. Tanja 44/50 (Switzerland)

It was difficult to rank Tanja. Sometimes he could be frustratingly amazing but sometimes he could seem not-so-great on other occasions. I had to mark him down on teamwork because he would be first to admit he does have a tendency to just "fade out" and do random plays which accidentally sabotages his team sometimes. I ranked him extremely highly for unlimited ore and his general play and production in particular were very strong. I feel his ranking is about accurate as there are a few others who were more consistent despite Tanja's raw strength. 

Thanks for reading. Parts 15-11 to follow.

La Crushella

The RA25. Positions 25-21

 Congratulations to everyone who has made the RA25. The Ranking of my strongest 2v2 opponents in over 10 years of playing online Red Alert. I am now happy to release the first wave of players...

25. Robskate (USA)   39/50

Robskate is a very strong tanker. Congratulations on making the RA25! What brings Robskate down is his lack of ability in medium-long games. He excels in ore maps and is very strong on maps like crush's basement or spacecraft but on p4 2v2 or tdawg you can forget it. The players higher up the rankings exhibit a wider range of skills. 

24. Lordy (England)   39.5/50

Lordy is solid and the same level on all map types. His main skill is good at tactics and sneak attacks and he is capable of often pulling off upset wins. His level is consistent and his gameplay is versatile which is why he ranked higher than Robskate as he has more range of skills. However Lordy lacks the innate strength of some of the players higher up the rankings. 

23. Kobra (England) 41.5/50

Kobra is a strong player with his best categories being 'teamwork' and ore maps. Perhaps his only shortcoming is that he's fairly predictable and one dimensional so he lost points in tactics and unlimited ore maps for me. In my experience I did always find it easier playing against Kobra than some others higher up the list because he was fairly predictable and I felt like my win ratio against him was quite high as a result. Overall he is a strong tanker who deserves his place and is slightly better than the likes of robskate and lordy but he's just not as strong as some of the higher ranked players and I think this is a fair assessment.

22. Muad Dib (Romania) 41.5/50

I scored Muad very highly on unlimited ore and quite high on gem maps. However I simply had to put him lower for ore maps and tactics. He's obviously a very formidable opponent in long games and is also a competent tanker but his adaptability isn't the strongest. He often loses to rushes or off-beat tactics eg Tanya sneaks. He's a strong player but he's not the full package and so not as skilled as those in the top 20. Kobra and Maudib worked out on the same score in my mathematical rankings but in my personal experience I found Maudib to be overall a more formidable opponent and so I have ranked him above Kobra.

21. Yuzgen (Turkey)  42/50

I scored Yuzgen one of the highest in the whole rankings on the Tactics category. Yuzgen is a very smart player and he is obviously very capable on gem maps and cying games, and on tanking and ore maps he is better than he is given credit for. Overall he is definitely a stronger player than 25-22 in 2v2 format and deserves his place in the RA25. He narrowly missed out on the top 20 because you will see there's a lot of strength in depth in these rankings and Yuzgen is a respected foe for anyone in 2v2.

The next post will feature ranks 20-16 so stay tuned...

Judge Crush.

The RA25. MAJOR ANNOUNCEMENT

 The RA25. A major project announcement. 

Well this is the start of a series of posts you have all wanted to see for a very long time. 2v2 is by far the most popular game type in Red Alert 1. I guess it's a combination of 1v1 being pretty one dimensional (better tanker wins 90% of the time) but also 2v2 being more fun and maybe requiring a greater range of skills. Being the wise owl that I am I will try my best to take away any bias, personal grudges and give an accurate fair assessment of the top 25 2v2 opponents I ever encountered in my 10+ years of experience on Red Alert. I feel having played 1000s of games against the vast majority of great 2v2 players in the CnCNet era, winning many games and losing many games, that I'm in a decent position to offer a consensus on this. 

The criteria

1) I will only include players whom I have a decent sample size of games with (25+ seems fair).

2. I have rated the players I think could be on the list and have narrowed it down to 25 (started with 32)

3. Obviously not including myself or rating myself.

4. 1v1 level is completely irrelevant and not factored into these rankings - it's a different game type. 1v1 rankings would be completely different.

5. Players who ONLY play P4/Rasta cannot qualify for the list as I can't assess their gem/ore play.

6. Grading out of 10 on 5 categories to find a total net score in order to categorise the players. The 5 categories I settled on are as follows:

1. Unlimited ore maps

2. Gem maps

3. Ore maps

4. Teamwork

5. Tactics/Awareness

It goes without saying that this is my personal point of view from what I've personally experienced so please do not feel offended if I rated someone higher than you or you did not make the list - perhaps said player performs better against me than you do and you may well be stronger than them overall. After all - styles make fights. Given it's over many years and my playing level has fluctuated significantly over the years (depending on how actively I was playing, how much I was drinking etc) it is also obviously impossible for me to give a completely accurate assessment. I will try my best.

I will first give some honourable mentions. My next post will feature rankings 25-21 (I need some more time to analyse and make the rankings as fair as possible). Then I will release these in batches of 5. To keep you all excited and give a fair game biography of each player who made the list!

On a side note, if you enjoy my journalism and want to support/motivate me then please consider donating via PayPal in the top right hand corner of blog. I have decided to disable ads on the blog to make it more user friendly at some personal cost (the ad revenue did bring some reasonable side income). I would appreciate any donations or suggestions - feel free to comment on email in the PayPal link if there's any topics you wish me to cover in future.

Naturally there have been 100s of players I've played with over the years so I think to make the list is an achievement regardless whether you are 2nd or 25th.

Before I complete the first batch of rankings I would like to give some honourable mentions to players I have excluded and the reasons why.

•  Kr0nic. Was obviously a phenomenal player and tanker especially, however he played during an era I was not very active. I only ever played a handful of games with him (less than 10) therefore i cannot include him based on the criteria. Impossible for me to rank him fairly. 
• Pinky323 and Yaunger and other Chinese superpros. Some of these players were very strong but unfortunately there was often bad lag in the games and I did not get to play with them as much as I'd want to.
• Katsh and Blank - both very strong 1v1 players. Have not played enough with them 2v2.

So I  hope you are all excited. I will release the list in batches of 5 and you can all speculate and predict who will make the official RA25. Given this blog now receives over 100,000 page views per month this can be considered the OFFICIAL list.

Thanks for reading. To be continued...

Oracle Crushy 

The return of Faust: The RA Pandemic Era Legend

 That little minx, Mr Anonymous, appeared in my Inbox yesterday evening linking me to YouTube footage of an eventful 2v2 match in the scene. Faust - the man who outperformed everyone during the pandemic era team tournaments - has returned. Mr Anonymous encouraged me to report this pro match to my audience and to offer my thoughts. It features Dynamic (BigD) and Beast (pizzaboy 🍕) Vs Faust (Fuhrer) and San (HappyPrideMonth 🌈) in a best of 11 series.

For those wishing to watch, the returning German bull, Faust, recorded the games and posted them here:

*thoughts and spoilers below*

The biggest takeaways from this series for me are as follows:

1) San is clearly now one of, if not the best 2v2 players in RA in 2025. He held or even outplayed beast in most games. A very impressive 6-4 win for Faust and San, well played all.

2) Faust was an excellent 2v2 and team player during the pandemic years of 2020-2021: his performance in tournaments in those years was the best of anyone and he had enormous success in team format.

3) 2v2 and 1v1 are clearly very different games. Dynamic is one of, if not the best active 1v1 players but this series showed him to probably be the weakest of the 4 players in the series in the 2v2 format. (no shame in that). They are 2 different games. Dynamic is pretty much just a better version of robskate  - good at low tank battle micro and Q but lacking in elite team play and game awareness. Faust completely outplayed Dynamic in most games and was the main reason his team won: Beast and San went 50-50, maybe 55-45 for San.

4) I would like to see Beast partner with a stronger 2v2 player and ask for a rematch with San and Faust. It would be interesting to see how Beast and H3zb or Beast and Rushy would fare against them: better team synergy I think they would have a chance to win. Get it set up !!!

5) Could Oldpro take Dynamic to one side and offer him some free 2v2 coaching and help him get to the same elite level that he is in 1v1? Maybe Lauta could help coach him in P4.

Thanks to Faust, hope to see some more videos on your channel in future. Give him a subscribe.

Crush Belichick.