Invincible VII in Madison will be event’s first two-day installment
by Matt “Dr. Hunk” Koester
This June, Melee Captain Falcon legend Wizzrobe made a raucous return to the big stage at CEO 2023 with two massive wins on Hungrybox and Jmook. Hot on the heels, the tech-chasing racecar-man-wrangler will return to Melee competition this weekend. This return will not be at a major event, but at a Madison, Wisconsin Smash regional.
Falcon main Kaden Crockett ran a fundraiser to get Wizzy into the event, allowing the event itself to save its budget for its own programming.
Invincible VII will run from July 15th-16th at 1308 W Dayton St, Madison, WI. The event will feature brackets for Melee, Rivals of Aether, Smash Ultimate and Project +. Beyond the crowdfunded inclusion of Wizzrobe, the event will also be the first two-day iteration of the regional series.
Registration for the event is now closed, although spectator passes are still available for $10.
“Because [Wizzrobe’s entry] was crowded funded it really didn’t effect the operations,” organizer Nobody Knows told Chicagoland Melee via Discord. “I don’t believe too much in spending tournament funds on flying out specific players… In my opinion it inhibits growth down the line because that is then the expectation.”
Being a two day event alone makes Invincible stand out from many Midwest events. It also enables the event to run a longer-running “Quad Elimination” style Waterfall bracket, where players will be able to advance from pool to pool, or skip to the highest level pool altogether, depending on their performance.
The format, which originated in Smash 64 brackets, is now also well known for its use in Michigan Tournament Organizer’s Coin’s events. The format starts players in double elimination pools. The winner of these pools from the winner’s side will go into Division 1. The winner of the pool’s Losers Finals match will go into Division 2. The loser of the pool’s Losers Finals and Losers Semi-Final matches will go to Division 3.
The remaining four players in each eight-person pool will go to Division 4. From there, players will all have the opportunity to advance to a higher division, although those in the lower numbered divisions will have a smoother path.
Competition from singles pools and Divisions four, three and two will also be carried out on Saturday, as well as doubles. Melee’s top cut and top 8 phases will go on Sunday morning into the evening.
Melee singles will just be a part of Invincible’s assortment of events. Cactuar Stamina Pancake, an odd and old school competitive format where all stages but Icicle Mountain and Hyrule Temple are legal and selected at random. Characters are also selected at random in this mode, with a twist.
“Both players random a character and then take turns,” Nobody Knows explained. “On your turn you can choose to re-random yourself or your opponent.”
All sets will be played best of seven with the winner of the event receiving the event’s entire pot, save for a single dollar that will go to the runner-up.
The Players
While Wizzrobe is Invincible’s most surprising attendee and top seed, plenty of players will attempt to prevent a Wizzy sweep.
Fresh off a massive losers run at the Last Chance Qualifier for Ludwig Ahgren Smash Series 5, Zamu will seek to follow up on a year where he has made a case for himself as the best player in the Midwest. Sheik main Spark, also fresh off of qualifying into LACS last weekend, will also be going for gold, as will Peach main Bbatts and Midwest Sheik legend Ben.
Midwestern strivers like Skerzo, Slowking, Lowercase hero, Preeminent, DannyPhantom and Blue will add to the chaos. Wisconsin players like Lord English and Fiveman1 could also make breakout performances.
CLM player Lovestory4A has high hopes for his performance at the event following what he saw as a disappointing one earlier this year at BODIED 3 in Michigan.
“I have a desire to get top 8 at a regional,” he told CLM. “Even if I don’t place top 8, I just want to always be playing better than my previous performances.”
