This weekend the pristine and beautiful city of Jönköping will be descended upon by all manner of wild beasts, each of them looking to get a dose of the largest LAN event in the world.

That's right, gamers from all over the planet will be swarming upon the Swedish city to get a fix of the latest games and technology, thousands of them playing and even more spectating. Dreamhack have been hosting events for a long time now and each time it seems to grow both in stature and in size, their latest Winter spectacle is no different, with four major tournaments offering thousands upon thousands of Euros in prize money and an exhibition hall that would make i-series look like a garage sale.

One of the major attractions this weekend will be the massive Heroes of Newerth tournament, sponsored by MSI and boasting a prize purse of over €30,000 and eight of the worlds best teams. It's also an event where, for the first time in the history of the game, we'll be seeing America's best take on their European counterparts in a LAN environment. Returning champions fnatic.MSI, despite a recent slump in form, will be certain favourites to make it their third Dreamhack title in a row, standing in their way are the likes of EZ, HoNPortal, Infused, Trademark eSports, Online Kingdom and many, many more. Here is my obligatory preview of the event and the way I see it panning out.

fnatic.MSI

If their recent run of form - discounting a win over EZ recently and a good spell in the EMS - is anything to go by then these guys should have no chance of retaining their title that they've held for over a year. It's not the first time the team have hit a rough patch though and most followers of the game will remember the dip in form they suffered in the run-up to their second Dreamhack title, at times I think they do it on purpose to throw their opposition off guard when the big money tournaments come around. This time though there has been good reason for the lul, and it can be put down to the fact that their drafter and captain, Fly, has been serving his military service.

fnatic, veterans of Dreamhack..

His service has caused an erratic run of results which they will hopefully have fixed by the time the action heats up in Sweden. They have arguably the most talented squad of players on the planet and in n0tail they have, in my opinion, the best solo mid player on earth. A bootcamp over the past week will leave them feeling fresh and they're renowned for developing sound and water-tight strategies which can be employed against all manner of opposition. I can see their LAN experience proving vital this time and they will need to call upon it if they wish to make it three in a row.

Prediction: First

SmackTrickz

The European team that everyone is expecting to dominate proceedings this weekend certainly have a shot of doing just that. They have a hugely experienced roster and three of the players were part of the KD-Gaming team who toppled fnatic - after securing a spot in the final with just four players - in the grand final at the inaugural Dreamhack HoN tournament. The stand out player for the event for me was Overpow and he remains one of the best players in Europe despite a lengthy break from the game and top level competitive play. That seems to be this sides major problem, inactivity, with various players dropping off the radar completely before returning out of the blue.

This has caused a severe sway in results for the various incarnations of the team, but recently they have been consistently brilliant, defeating (almost) everyone who stand before them. The only thing stopping me from predicting them first is their poor performances in the NASL league recently a well as the news that they have just lost their organisation Online Kingdom, however I'm sure they will be more than prepared for Dreamhack.

Prediction: 2nd

Team EZ

bkid, YoDa, chu, FujiApples, SemiJew

Team EZ, alongside Trademark eSports are the two big North American teams who have made the trip to Sweden. Both have the potential to win on their day but for me the experience, talent and teamwork of Team EZ should help them overcome their countrymen when the time comes. The big news coming from the Team EZ camp recently was that Testie wouldn't be making the trip to Dreamhack, which has forced the team to make major changes not only to the roster but to the way that they play the game. Testie is well known as one of the best ricers in the game and for a period of time most of the EZ strategies were developed around his ability to farm as a hard carry.

Since his departure they have switched up their strategies and now go with much more gank heavy lineups. If anything this move has made the team more dangerous given the aggressive playstyle some of their players love, specifically chu. Although they have the talent and they have the brains to defeat anyone at the event I feel the lack of major LAN experience will prevent the team beating fnatic or Online Kingdom, a strong third place finish awaits.

Prediction: 3rd

Trademark eSports

The second of the two American teams and despite featuring some big name players I just don't see them being around on the final day of proceedings. It's a shame that Complexity folded in the build up to the tournament as they are a team who really had the potential to win the MSI Beat It tournament, Trademark though are just lacking ever so slightly. They are a quality team and they have some extremely well known players within their ranks, some recent performances and displays even hint towards the fact that they may be coming good, but there's just something about them that makes me uneasy.

The marmite like character that is swindlemelonzz

I'd love for them to place well as I believe that they have some hugely talented players and they are one of the more committed teams - despite the various roster shakeups - in the North American scene. I just think that their lack of any real stability and LAN experience will leave them wide open when they face up to the other big names. They will book a playoff spot, but I can't see them reaching the final.

Prediction: 4th

Lions

The young upstarts with plenty to prove will be coming into the event devoid of pressure but full of ambition. It's for that reason that I consider them to be the dark horses for the tournament, that and of course their recent performances which have saw them steadily climb the HoNCast community rankings. They first burst onto the scene with a win over fnatic.MSI in the UNGL Zowie Cup and have since gone on to finish second in the MSI Beat It qualifier and first in the TwitchTV HoN Challenge - where they overcame some serious opposition to walk away with $2,500.

Despite featuring some relatively unknown players they have a style and sense of teamwork which sets them apart from most others and are well known for adopting fun and unpredictable strategies. The ace up their sleeves is the brilliant Swede Era who remains arguably the best carry player in Europe. As with many of the other teams in attendance their lack of offline experience could hinder them come crunch time, but keep an eye out.

Prediction: 5th

HoNPortal

These guys have a fairly large roster but if I'm not mistaken those are the names that will be carrying the teams hope on their shoulders this weekend in their home country. They have enjoyed an unprecedented rise to prominence over the past couple of months and most of that is down simply to how much they have been playing. Involved in almost every major tournament available to them they have numerous podium placings to their name despite only really breaking through in the middle part of 2011. Without any big name players they are the definition of the complete team and will depend entirely on each other to perform if they wish to surpass expectations.

A decent run in online competitions - including a run to the finals in our own esportsheaven cup - means the team will be riding high on confidence but I can't see them outdoing some of the favourites this weekend, at least not at a LAN event. Still, this is a team to look out for and could well be future Dreamhack champions, just not yet!

Prediction: 6th