Hope

**Hope** was a contestant of SurviVARs: Evolution.

## **Profile**

**Discord:** hoepe

**Gender:** she/they

**Timezone:** EST

Hope is the most decorated SurviVARS player in history when it comes to awards won in a single season, so it shouldn’t be a surprise that she ended up as #1 in the rankings. She’s what you want from every ORG player: entertaining, strategic, and non-problematic. In a season that definitely had its toxic turns, Hope was always kind, respectful, and lighthearted. She took the game seriously, but still had a lot of fun while kicking ass and taking names. Strategically speaking, her game was clean and pretty free from major errors. She wasn’t always in charge, but she made the right steps at every chance to make sure she was okay. She was aligned with the right power players at the right times so that she wasn’t taken out when big moves were made, even if she wasn’t in on the moves themselves. She came this close to winning it all, and was really only stopped by the raw challenge dominance of Arceus. Honestly though, one of the biggest reasons she ranks this high is because she is one of the best confessionalists around. She was easily the most active player in her confessionals, and told the season’s story better than anyone. She played with her head and her heart in a beautiful balance, and kept this season grounded when it threatened to take off in a bad direction. When it comes to the most lovable non-finalists, Hope joins the circle with Red, Dan, Aria, and the other SurviVARS legends.

### **Nominations**

**Hero**

It’s impossible not to root for Hope. She plays these games with so much heart, and she’s a strong ally once you have her loyalty. She’s willing to cut people when she needs to, but there isn’t an ounce of malice in her blindsides. Once she and Shelby locked in together, they weren’t going to flip. Hope planned on going far with the people she trusted. She plays to win, but that doesn’t make her cruel or unfair. She never once showed the slightest sign of bitterness or judgment, which was honestly a breath of relief in this season. She was one of the main characters of the season, and nearly won it all. We were all rooting for her, just like a true hero. (edited)

**Best Move (Drew's Blindside)**

Anytime someone goes home with an idol in their pocket, it’s impressive for the players who pulled off the blindside. It’s even more impressive when the player with the idol is on top of the tribe and is situated to take the game by storm. Drew had been subtly influencing every vote he participated in, while using players like JC to buff his threat level. It wasn’t long before someone caught on to this, and his immunity idol made him even more of a target. After the chaos of the Sorbet vote, and then the unanimous Jack vote, an organized blindside against Drew was the last thing anyone expected (especially Drew). He went from a dark horse contender with a real shot to win to an early juror with an idol in his pocket.

**Best Move (Serbet's Blindside)**

It’s really a shame that this was the Tribal Council with the parchment fiasco, because it overshadowed what is easily one of the most interesting Tribal Councils in SurviVARS history. We’ve never seen a 5-3-2-1 vote before, and that alone earns it some recognition. This round was insane to follow, but that’s part of why it was so fun. No player knew everything this round, and even the UTR power players like Hope and Kyle were left in the dark. Arceus wasted an idol, Hope received her first votes all season, Drew was almost eliminated with a single vote if more idols had shown up (because Serbet would’ve idled and Drew was planning to idol Hope if that happened), and then ultimately Serbet went home despite being a top contender and major force within the season. Serbet had an idol that he didn’t use, and a cross-tribe alliance took him out in the middle of the arc where tribal lines were deeper than ever. This round was so chaotic that Jack wound up being robbed just as much as Serbet, because people wanted an easy vote after so much chaos. This vote was chaotic, iconic, and ultimately a VERY good move for the five players who took out Serbet.

**Player of the Game**

Hope and Shelby ran the majority of the merge, but Hope was the one who ultimately got closest to the title. She was this season’s fallen angel, and I think she would’ve been deadly in FTC once people saw how solidly she played. She was always a top contender to win, thanks to her UTR gameplay and solid positioning in the middle. Touchy Subjects threatened to expose just how well situated she was, but she somehow continued to survive through social maneuvering and even a clutch immunity win when she needed it most. It was sad not to see her join the roster of badass female winners, but that just meant we needed to honor her with a nomination for POTG.

### **Awards**

**Funniest Player**

Hope was at the core of this season’s narrative from beginning to end, and we’re all better off for it. She filled this season with entertainment, and even when her game was crumbling down or she was falling victim to major blindsides, she never stopped making us laugh. She was never bitter for a second, and met adversity with humor and a light heart. She is naturally one of the funniest people on Discord, and I’m so blessed to have her in the SurviVARS community now. She didn’t win the game, but she won the love and adoration of every spectator here.

**Best Duo (With Shelby)**

Hope and Shelby played this game very very well. They swapped together, and Hope was able to get in close with Shelby despite being on the bottom of OG tribe numbers. Even when Hope played against Shelby by eliminating Nicko, they reached the merge together and became a powerful force. Between the two of them, it looked like they controlled every vote. They were integral parts of the Serbet and Drew blindsides, which were two of the biggest moves of the game, and they were set to be the rulers of the merge. Touchy Subjects was not good for either of them, though, and their power position was exposed. Kyle was able to use his EV to knock out Shelby, ending this duo’s reign. This season had a LOT of duos, but Hope and Shelby were arguably the most powerful and influential of them all.

**Voice of the Season**

Hope was always reliable when it came to consistent, accurate, and entertaining confessionals. In the episode recaps I give out little “narrator of the episode” titles, and Hope was like half of them. When writing recaps and trying to gather everyone’s perspective, Hope was a godsend. She would break down exactly where votes were going, who was being motivated by what, and why she was moving in the directions she was. You never had to guess or prod to see where Hope’s thoughts were at, and that can’t be said for some of this cast. On top of all of this, she was just hilarious and always provided levity and lighthearted fun when this season needed it (and I’ll be the first to tell you that this season definitely needed it).

**Fan Favorite**

Hope had a fan club from the very beginning, and it’s no secret why. They are funny as hell, but sharp as a whip. They played this game like a master, and really stood as the heart of the season. She may not have won, but she got damn close and for good reason. Aside from her baller gameplay, which I’ve already covered, they’re just such a captivating character. They give amazing confessionals (hence voice of the season), and fill everything they do with personality and love. Hope was one of the best characters to come through this ORG, and it’s no wonder spec lounge loved her for it.