- Gent comes in to fill the space left by Lewda
- This move cements Tripod’s place in high-level competitive Apex Legends
- The team has to decide who the in-game leader will be
NICKMERCS adds Rigo “Gent” Padilla, one of the best free agents currently, to his Apex Legends team Tripods.
Gent Joins Tripod
NICKMERCS is one of the most recognizable faces on the broader competitive FPS scene. The FaZe Clan star has been working on his Apex Legends Global Series team, Tripods. The team recently mutually parted ways with former IGL Lewda, but the organization has already found its new third member.
On September 6, NICKMERCS announced on social media that he is adding G2’s Rigo “Gent” Padilla to the Tripods roster. The 23-year-old, who is currently on G2 Esports’ inactive roster, had previously played for NICKMERCS’s team on a few occasions, filling in the spot left behind Lewda. However, Gent is now already a fully-fledged member of the team.
Tripod Cements Its Place on the Competitive Scene
NICKMERCS and his team caused a bit of controversy in the Apex fandom after being granted direct entry into the Apex Legends Global Series qualifiers by EA earlier this year. Many fans criticized Tripods’ ability to compete at the level of North America’s Pro League, especially after the team parted ways with Lewda, who was arguably their best member.
However, many pros EA’s decision, as it’s a strategy of the company that hoped to bring more attention to Apex. When NICKMERCS stopped playing Warzone and moved to Apex, many other Call of Duty streamers and players did the same. This helped boost the game’s growth contributing to Apex surpassing its player counts every single season for the past year.
By signing G2’s Gent, Tripod is cementing its place on the competitive Apex Legends scene, as the fragger is one of the best the region can currently offer. Tripod hopes that his masterful play and quick delivery of superior firepower will silence critics, who doubt the team’s ability to play at the high level.
What Problems Will Tripod Face?
With Gent’s inclusion in Tripod, comes the question of who is going to lead the team. Although NICKMERCS is the creator of the organization, both he and Deeds are relatively new to Apex. Both have grinded the game during the past year, but are still considered inexperienced compared to many of the opponents they will face in the upcoming season.
Meanwhile, Gent is one of the best free agents in the scene and has considerably more experience in Apex. What he lacks, however, is in-game leader experience.
Appointing an IGL is one of the many problems Tripod must tackle, but regardless of whom the team chooses, it’s exciting to see what the organization has in store now that it acquired such an experienced player.
