Yesterday we kicked off The International with a bang. Four teams were knocked out of the tournament: Mouz, Rattlesnake, LGD.int and Team Dignitas. On the flip side the teams that won kindle the flame of hope that they can go all the way. Games in the winners bracket will be best of three’s, while games in the losers brackets are a lone best of one. I know which bracket I’d rather be in. Hang out with us here at PCGamesN, where our Dota 2 expert Nick Wilson will be covering the tournament all night long.
Team Zenith vs Invictus Gaming – Game One
07:40AM BST / 11:40PM PDT – Invictus Gaming win the match
And much shotgunning was had! Morphling was the real star of the match, blowing up heroes left and right. One of his many repeated targets was Slark, who just could not compete with the little farm he had. It’s a shame, but Slark is completely countered when someone on your team buys detection.
Zenith had one hope towards the end: Dark Seer. His wall was the only thing that could turn IG’s powerful heroes on themselves. However the wall at the end was whiffed, even worse stolen by Rubick and used against them.
That means that Zenith are out of the tournament and last years champions continue on for another shot at the title. That’s all from me today, but if you’ve got it in you there’s the final of the Solo Championship between iceiceice and Mushi. I’ll be back again tomorrow todayat 8pm BST for another night of Dota. It’s going to be ace. -Nick
07:20AM BST / 11:20PM PDT – Close call
This match right now has no clear leader. Both IG and Zenith have been throwing punches at each other and both being equally successful. I’m glad for one thing: Naga Siren is being played as a carry. I think she’s really good with the role, becoming almost unkillable with a Heart of Tarrasque and/or Butterfly. She’s currently got a Diffusal Blade which synergises really well with her illusions.
Meanwhile Morphling has just got his hands on his Ethereal Blade. Let the shotgunning commence! -Nick
06:58AM BST / 10:58PM PDT – First blood
A nice bait by Zenith scores them first blood bottom against Lifestealer. Jakiro came out of the woods and feigned a Dual Breath, canceling it before the casting animation finished. This caused Lifestealer to use his Enrage ability to grant him magic immunity, which would’ve ignored the ambush. However it was just a bait, which was followed up by the real thing coupled with a Swarm. The armour sapping locust attached to him was enough to make Weaver’s right clicks a lethal blow. -Nick
06:50AM BST / 10:50PM PDT – The Draft
Team Zenith:
- Weaver
- Naga Siren
- Dark Seer
- Jakiro
- Slark
This lineup is going to be interesting. I believe this is our first pick for Slark in The International event, if we discount the qualifiers. He’s a fun hero to watch, dashing all over the map under the cover of darkness and pouncing on anything that moves. If he gets a few successive kills, he will snowball out of control quickly. Weaver will be the hard carry, farming up and becoming a deadly threat late game. Jakiro, Dark Seer and Naga Siren will supplement the team with utility items and initiation with their abilities.
Invictus Gaming:
- Chen
- Rubick
- Lifestealer
- Puck
- Morphling
IG went with more of a traditional lineup, apart from the Morphling. He was a hero heavily used in last years International, not so much this year. Still he can be quite powerful if he manages to farm up a Linken’s Sphere and a Etheral Blade, otherwise known as the “shotgun build”. Lifestealer is just a safe pick for a carry, capable of chewing through heroes quickly once he get’s his Armlet. Puck will be in charge of initiation and controlling enemy heroes with her silence. Rubick and Chen will deal with utility items and with pushing/nukes. -Nick
Team Liquid vs LGD.cn – Game One
06:35AM BST / 10:35PM PDT – Team Liquid wins the match
Wow. Dat Freezing Field. That was the turning point I think for that game.
Some context: Liquid were going after Roshan again but LGD.cn had other plans. They jumped in and had a perfect initiation. Reverse Polarity into and Ice Path into a Macropyre, the team of Liquid was burning down fast.
But on the ledge was someone of Liquid who had simply refused to back down. Crystal Maiden. She stood their valiantly overlooking the pit, and casted her Freezing Field. Her ultimate is powerful, but it’s easily prevented with a simple stun, so it usually isn’t a problem. But LGD.cn were preoccupied, and they melted. Liquid came out of the stun to find four really low heroes Razor just needed to clean up shop.
Then they went on the offensive to LGD.cn’s base to end it fast. Another beautiful hook from Clockwerk, one of many, picked off the Nature’s Prophet. LGD.cn tried to counter intiatie with the Song of the Siren, but they faltered. Halfway into it they decided to abandon the engagement, and Liquid just chased them right into the base. The fight was short lived, and then it was an all out attack on the tier four towers and the ancient.
LGD.cn were out of the tournament, and Team Liquid were in. Seeing Bulba from Liquid jump out of his chair was a nice touch to end the game on, and the crowd was going wild. USA USA USA!
Our final game of the night is between Team Zenith and the previous champions, Invictus Gaming. -Nick
05:55AM BST / 09:55PM PDT – Premature BKB
Liquid are doing pretty well right now, but that last engagement to take out the Nature’s Prophet has me worried. Three of their heroes each used a BKB charge, something that should be valued very preciously. Maybe it’s nerves, but they need to control them if they want to avoid throwing this match over little things like that. -Nick
05:40AM BST / 09:40PM PDT – First blood
LGD.cn manage to take first blood agaisnt that weak Crystal Maiden in the bottom lane. A fully charged Alchemist Unstable Concoction and a Ice Path from Jakiro rendered her helpless, eventually falling to Jakiro’s Duel Breath. –Nick
05:30AM BST / 09:30PM PDT – The Draft
Team Liquid:
- Razor
- Gyrocopter
- Crystal Maiden
- Clockwerk
- Bane
A balanced lineup from Liquid, I think their strength will appear between mid and late game. Razor should be able to deal with Alchemist and his rapid damage growth. Crystal Maiden is a bit worrisome. Without early farm and levels she can be a bit useless and easy prey for LGD.cn and their ganking ability. Clockwerk and Bane should be able to control the team fights as well as initiate. Finally Gyrocopter will do what a Gyrocopter does: farm farm farm.
LGD.cn:
- Nature’s Prophet
- Alchemist
- Magnus
- Jakiro
- Naga Siren
I actually favour LGD.cn’s lineup over Liquids. The heavy push potential from Nature’s Prophet is always a welcomed addition to any team. Alchemist can get farm faster than any other carry to become effective sooner. Magnus and Jakiro have far superior team fight abilities to not only stun up the enemy team but to also deal damage while they’re stunned. Finally Naga Siren will probably play a support role, so just expect an Ensnare and a Song of the Siren here and there. -Nick
Team Zenith vs Virtus Pro – Game One
05:10AM BST / 09:10PM PDT – Team Zenith win the match
Virtus Pro just couldn’t compete. Anti-Mage, while he farmed up enough to matter, was just dealt with so easily. We had Naga’s Ensnare, two Scythes of Vyse and a myriad of Invoker spells to ruin his day. Clockwerk also never got any farm, ending the game with just stacked bracers. Queen of Pain did some acceptable ganking, but ultimately couldn’t carry her team herself.
Hopefully we will see more of iceiceice and his Invoker, if he doesn’t get banned out in future matches.
Next up it’s Team Liquid and LGD.cn. -Nick
04:55AM BST / 08:55PM PDT – Play by play
This match is full of good plays. Invoker of course is doing wonders with his Sunstrike, Clockwerk nearly escaped a gank with a really great Hook and Rubick stole Mirror Image to dodge certain death. A truly entertaining match. -Nick
04:35AM BST / 08:35PM PDT – First blood
And right out of the gates a play by iceiceice on that Invoker helps to secure Zenith with first blood. A well timed Sunstrike onto a harassed Chen was enough for Dark Seer’s Ion Shell to finish him off. Expect more of this. -Nick
04:30AM BST / 08:30PM PDT – The Draft
Team Zenith:
- Visage
- Naga Siren
- Gyrocopter
- Dark Seer
- Invoker
INVOKER! INVOKER! INVOKER! We’re going to see iceiceice play his beloved Invoker, and boy can he play him well. I’ve seen a couple of his streams and you can expect to see some amazing plays on that hero. I’m unsure if Naga Siren is playing support or not, but we will have to see during the game. Dark Seer and Visage can help with support/utility items, while controlling team fights with Vacuum and Levitate. Finally Gyrocopter is their hard carry, farming as fast as he can to become a team destroying machine.
Virtus Pro:
- Chen
- Queen of Pain
- Rubick
- Clockwerk
- Anti-Mage
Here’s what I don’t get. Why do you pick an Anti-Mage against a Naga Siren? She has one of the best roots in the game that disables blink abilities too. Virtus Pro are going to have to be very careful going against her. Meanwhile Chen will rule the jungle and help the pushes, while Rubick will support the team. Queen of Pain can go on a ganking spree as long as she wins the mid lane against Invoker. Finally Clockwerk will be in charge of initiations, locking heroes down for the Anti-Mage to right click away. -Nick
Team Liquid vs MUFC – Game One
04:00AM BST / 08:00PM PDT – Team Liquid wins the match
It was kind of inevitable, and I make myself sad to say that. Once that Ursa had a few kills under his belt and a level six Io, nothing could stop him. MUFC should’ve banned Io and/or Ursa, especially since Liquid have used this combo in the past. The Omniknight wasn’t a good enough counter to permanently put Ursa in his place.
So MUFC go out of the tournament without a single win, a complete mirror to our current undefeated team, Alliance. Team Liquid go forth and are the only US team left in the competition. The crowd will certainly get them pumped.
Next up is Team Zenith vs Virtus Pro. -Nick
03:42AM BST / 07:42PM PDT – First Blood
Liquid score first blood on MUFC’s Rubick at top rune. He almost got Beastmaster trapped on the high ground, but his attempt allowed for more right clicks and ultimately his death. -Nick
03:30AM BST / 07:30PM PDT – The Draft
Team Liquid:
- Io
- Outworld Devourer
- Beastmaster
- Ursa
- Crystal Maiden
Very few combos are as scary as Io + Ursa. He’s a single target destroyer, and he happens to have a ball of light that can teleport him anywhere on a whim. Crystal Maiden also aids him with slows and roots to hold his enemies in place. Outworld Devourer should win mid against Dragon Knight, because Astral Imprisonment. Beastmaster will help dictate the team fights with his Primal Roar.
MUFC:
- Nature’s Prophet
- Rubick
- Leshrac
- Dragon Knight
- Omniknight
For MUFC they have a clear push strategy. Nature’s Prophet and Leshrac can destroy towers in a flash. Omniknight which is a rarely picked hero can help sustain these pushes with heals. He’s also a good counter to Ursa because he can give his team physical immunity for a good duration with his ultimate. Dragon Knight is just their tanky semi carry and Rubick a support to help with warding and other utility items. -Nick
DK vs Invictus Gaming – Game Three
02:45AM BST / 06:45PM PDT – DK wins game three
So Spectre and Magnus is a thing. The damage coming off her was insane, and then you need to factor in the Weaver too. I think IG couldn’t do anything this game, the damage was just far to high, taking out every threat they could pose to DK. When you get a ton of kills, soon the balance just tips to far and you have yourself a game ripe for the taking.
Next up is Team Liquid vs MUFC. The latter is still to win a game this tournament.-Nick
02:20AM BST / 06:20PM PDT – First Blood
IG’s Enchantress scores first blood on Weaver. But it’s quickly rectified by DK killing IG’s Rubick. Karma. -Nick
02:15AM BST / 06:15PM PDT – The Draft
DK:
- Weaver
- Visage
- Nyx Assassin
- Spectre
- Magnus
Kill. That’s what DK want to do this game. Weaver, Visage, Nyx Assassin do huge single target DPS. Then they’ve got Magnus to dictate the team fights and catch people out of position. Taking up the late game is Spectre, who can take part in every team fight thanks to her Haunt.
Invictus Gaming:
- Dragon Knight
- Dark Seer
- Rubick
- Enchantress
- Lone Druid
A more traditional lineup, IG are looking little risk and more stability. All of their heroes have quite a normal growth rate in power. Lone Druid will be their late game carry, again looking to slot out as many items as possible. Dark Seer will initiate and turn the enemy heroes on themselves thanks to his wall. Dragon Knight is semi carry with good lockdown and damage in the early game. Enchantress will aid in any pushing while Rubick will support the team and look out for those vital spells to steal. -Nick
DK vs Invictus Gaming – Game Two
01:58AM BST / 05:58PM PDT – IT’S OVER. IT’S FINALLY OVER!
IG won. They killed all most of DK. Lone Druid had no bear. They pushed. They won. We’re going to a game three people. -Nick
01:54AM BST / 05:54PM PDT – Well now this is just cocky!
OK. This is now the longest game in ALL of competitive Dota history. Phaw. -Nick
01:52AM BST / 05:52PM PDT – Well at least they broke another record
Now Burning playing the Lone Druid is the most farmed hero ever in Dota history. Awesome. -Nick
01:48AM BST / 05:48PM PDT – Well at least they broke a record
It’s official. This match is now the longest match in International history. Oh and the fights are just going back and forth. No one is winning. Fucking. Hell.-Nick
01:30AM BST / 05:30PM PDT – Is this thing broke?
Ok it’s now a 70+ minute game, with a Divine Rapier on Weaver. What is going to happen? I’m not sure. What I am sure of. MORE FARMING. -Nick
01:10AM BST / 05:10PM PDT – Tick tock tock
This game is still going. It’s approaching sixty minutes now and I’m really unsure who is ahead. DK have been spending Black Holes left right and center to take out IG’s Weaver. There’s not been many fights with any real lasting consequences though. Each hero is now really farmed up, but DK will always have the advantage. Lone Druid is a twelve slot hero, counting him and his bear. The top four heroes in terms of net worth are split between both of each teams carries. It’s going to be close, that’s for sure. -Nick
12:40AM BST / 04:40PM PDT – Tick tock
DK swiftly push all of IG’s lanes, destroying every tier one tower in quick succession. This is important because it allows DK to safely take Roshan with little impunity. Lone Druid now has a Radiance which will deal a ton of damage as team fights go on, as well as being used to push lanes. DK are also keeping a cap on IG’s Weaver, exploiting every chance they get to take him out and delay his farm. The clock is on for IG to either take the drivers seat or slowly lose the game. -Nick
12:20AM BST / 04:20PM PDT – First Blood
For a time it was looking like another quiet game between these two teams. But that all changed when Naga Siren saw an opportunity on Lone Druid bottom. It was close, but Lone Druid actually managed to kill Naga Siren first thanks to him and his bear, but he was quickly dispatched seconds after. DK still hold the advantage, giving one of their carries that extra bloodied gold.-Nick
12:10AM BST / 04:10PM PDT – The Draft
DK:
- Visage
- Razor
- Rubick
- Enigma
- Lone Druid
DK are going for the throat here. Picking up Enigma for the second time after last games success, they will be aiming to take each team fight with a positive score. Razor is the anti carry, sapping damage with Static Link and channeling it into his own. Rubick and Visage are great supports, who can offer a lot to any fights. Rubick especially can steal a multitude of spells from IG, notably Naga’s song, Weaver’s Shekuci and Vengeful Spirit’s swap. Lone Druid will be the time bomb for DK, farming in the early game and becoming devastating in the late.
Invictus Gaming:
- Outworld Devourer
- Weaver
- Naga Siren
- Vengeful Spirit
- Windrunner
I’m unsure when the timing will be for IG’s team. It looks like the early to mid game will be their time to dominate thanks to Outworld’s pure damage output and Weavers Germinate. If Windrunner can get some nice shackles they can take care of some of DK’s threatening heroes. Naga Siren and Vengeful will also aid in locking down heroes with Magic Missile and Ensnare, with the song in reserve for emergencies. I think it’s important that these heroes show discipline when using their skills to make sure Rubick doesn’t steal then, and turn a fight around. -Nick
DK vs Invictus Gaming – Game One
11:55PM BST / 03:55PM PDT – DK wins game one
And shortly after that post, IG have lost game one. Clockwerk initiated, Enigma popped his Black King Bar for magic immunity, and then put down his Black Hole for three kills. IG could do nothing, and what efforts committed to repel DK were met with more heroe deaths. DK are ecstatic as they go into game two. -Nick.
11:50PM BST / 03:50PM PDT – Missed First Blood. Doesn’t matter.
I had chosen poorly to run for a toilet break. I was gone less than 30 seconds and it was already 3-1 towards DK. It seems IG actually took the first blood, but I couldn’t say with which hero. What’s important is that DK retaliated and made up for it in prompt fashion.
However the good stuff is happening now. Clockwerk is making some godly hooks, trapping various heroes from IG in cogs of death. A fight around the Roshan pit lasted a good two minutes, as both teams were exchanging punches. Weaver has picked up his Desolator now and is putting out some insane damage. DK are going to be bearing down on IG’s barracks very soon. -Nick
11:10PM BST / 03:10PM PDT – The Draft
DK:
- Alchemist
- Weaver
- Treant Protector
- Enigma
- Clockwerk
The early game is going to be a tough time for DK. There’s not a lot of damage, but plenty of lock down thanks to Treant, Enigma and Clockwerk. The problem is that the true potential of those heroes isn’t until mid game, well after they have their ultimates and then some. We’ve already seen the powerhouse that Alchemist can become, and Weaver can even match that with more time to farm. If this goes late, DK have the advantage.
Invictus Gaming:
- Lifestealer
- Visage
- Timbersaw
- Dragon Knight
- Vengeful Spirit
IG’s line up has some great burst damage potential. I like the Vengeful Spirit pick, who can hard stun as well as swap out any allie that gets caught up from DK’s various lockdown. It can also be used to cancel that pesky Black Hole from Enigma, a key part to winning a team fight against DK. Lifestealer and Dragon Knight will become good threats in the mid game, while Timbersaw is a threat from the beginning of the game thanks to his low mana, pure damage combo spells. Visage of course is always a nice support, who can kick some ass of his own during the damage soaked team fights. -Nick
Alliance vs LGD.cn – Game Two
10:45PM BST / 02:45PM PDT – No fun allowed – Alliance win game two
Alliance just didn’t care that they lost the first fight, they had other plans. Since then the action just didn’t stop.
Top tower, mid tower, bottom tower. Every fight they came out on top with some amazing play from Puck to silence the Magnus before he could counter initiate. Before long the gold/xp graph had dropped from being high in the favour of LGD.cn, to double the amount in Alliances court. Crystal Maiden also locked down the threats from LGD.cn to the full damage coming out of Gyrocopter and his Rocket Barrage.
LGD.cn couldn’t do anything to stop it. It was a true snow ball that turned into an avalanche. Before long Alliance were at LGD.cn’s base and they had all the gold they could ever want. The “gg” was quickly thrown out after yet another team fight.
For Alliance, this is a huge win. LGD.cn were probably one of the few teams that could match them in terms of skill, as we saw in the first game. To pick them as their first opponent, it gives Alliance a chance to knock out their biggest threat, leaving LGD.cn to the savage losers bracket where a single mistake will knock them out.
Next up is DK vs IG. We’re going to see how the Chinese play Dota 2. Expect long games. -Nick
10:25PM BST / 02:25PM PDT – First Blood
LGD.cn are on fire. First blood was almost placed into their hands as Alliance’s Crystal Maiden and Gyrocopter were caught out of position. Loda on Gyrocopter nearly got retribution on the enemy Bane, but was body blocked by Alchemist. A huge head start for LGD.cn. -Nick
10:10PM BST / 02:10PM PDT – The Draft
Alliance:
- Puck
- Crystal Maiden
- Gyrocopter
- Naga Siren
- Nature’s Prophet
Again Alliance get their Nature’s Prophet, who did a good job of winning them the game in game one. Crystal Maiden has good single target lock down and provides plenty of mana regen to all her teammates, allowing them to spend their money on other stats. Gyrocopter is a huge carry. When it gets to the late game he can take out an entire team single handedly thanks to Flak Cannon. Puck is a fearsome mid, who should be able to dominate mid with the skills of S4. Finally Naga Siren is played as a support, used for her powerful Ensnare ability and Song of the Siren to initiate and get out of bad situations.
LGD.cn:
- Nyx Assassin
- Bane
- Alchemist
- Visage
- Magnus
LGD.cn have again gone up for superior single target focus, along with the team fight capabilities of Magnus. Nyx and Bane can roam pretty well during the mid game, taking out heroes with Fiends Grip and Vendetta. Visage is a good support hero who can stun lock heroes with his familiars and dish out damage with Soul Assumption. We saw the combo of Alchemist and Magnus last game. Alchemist has an insane attack speed in the late game, which is aided with Magnus and his Empower, which gives him a free Battlefury. One good ultimate from Magnus can ruin any team Alliance field against them. -Nick
Alliance vs LGD.cn – Game One
9:55PM BST / 01:55PM PDT – Holy. Fuck. Alliance win game one. Just.
What a way to end the first game: our first ever base race of The International 2013.
Some context. Alliance were pressuring the base once again of LGD.cn. They had taken the top barracks thanks to various pushes and creeps, and just nearly taken bottom barracks. LGD.cn needed to react or they will be facing mega creeps.
The inevitable fight happened. Magnus had a Refreshers orb by now, and boy did it do some work. He had pretty much 7+ seconds of stun that he could dish out to anyone he wanted, taking key heroes out of the fight for Alliance. Alchemist was nearly maxed out, dealing 300+ damage per hit with an insane attack speed. They burned through Alliance, taking out Loda on Phantom Lancer for the maximum 100 seconds.
They had to move. If they waited too long, Alliance would be back at their base and they would have gained nothing. They headed down the middle and proceed to demolish the buildings of Alliance. Alchemist even picked up a Divine Rapier, an item which gives you a huge 300 extra damage, but is dropped upon death. It’s a risky item to pick, because the enemy team can gain control of it if you’re too careless.
Suddenly they were at the the tier three tower and knocking it down at lighting speed. Nature’s Prophet from Alliance had teleported to LGD.cn’s base to try and pressure them into coming home, but they were having none of it. Suddenly Phantom Lancer bought back, and teleported to Nature’s Prophet to aid his push.
It was a race.
Alliance had the upper hand, needing only to destroy two towers and the ancient, while LGD.cn needed to destroy three towers, two barracks and the ancient. You could see LGD.cn starting to falter, as one by one heroes started to teleport back home. But it was too late, Alliance destroyed the ancient of LGD.cn just as Alchemist had brought Alliance’s ancient down to about 33%. They would of only needed a couple more seconds to win, but it wasn’t to be. -Nick
9:45PM BST / 01:45PM PDT – The long haul
It’s gotten to the late game, and we’re almost at a stalemate. Alliance had LGD.cn pinned in their base but were unwilling to try and breach due to the threat of Magnus. Instead they opt to slow push in with Nature’s Prophet and Phantom Lancer illusions. Eventually there is an engagement bot, when Nyx Assassin seizes an opportunity to stun multiple heroes. It swings in the favour of LGD.cn, allowing them to venture out of the base and get back some map control.
Another engagment bot as LGD.cn takes the tier one tower at 55 minutes into the game results Alliance pushing them back. They also managed to take Roshan again, giving them the safety of an Aegis on Clockwerk. Once again Alliance are at the doors of LGD.cn’s base, and we should be seeing another slow push to try and end the game. -Nick
9:30PM BST / 01:30PM PDT – One team fight
Loda from Alliance once said “One team fight can win you a game”.
It was looking grim for Alliance, they pushed top only to be met with teleports from LGD.cn and an initation from Magnus catching Phantom Lancer and Visage. Alliance could do nothing, and quickly lost four heroes, allowing LGD.cn a chance to get ahead.
They chose to go to Roshan, who just respawned. Alliance scouted it out with Visage’s familiars and proceeded to run to the pit.
What happened next was beautiful. With the vision from the familiars, Keeper of the Light chose to use Blinding Light, which has a slight knockback on LGD.cn’s Alchemist. It was enough to trap him on the high ground, with no means of escape thanks to the surrounding trees. With their major carry out of the fight, Alliance could clean house.
Just when Alliance looked like they were faltering, they managed to take Roshan and a team fight, right after loosing one seconds before. -Nick
9:15PM BST / 01:15PM PDT – The push begins
After a successful fight at Roshan, in which Phantom Lancer attained the Aegis of the Immortal, Alliance start to turn their attention to the towers of LGD.cn. A fight ensued bottom, with LGD.cn loosing a couple of heroes and the tower, and Alliance only loosing one hero of their own, but not Phantom Lancer. This prompts them to continue the push to the tier two, a risky move so early in the game, but possible with Alliances line up.
It was a complete mess.
The tower was assaulted but Magnus from LGD.cn managed to Reverse Polarity the real Phantom Lancer, robbing him of his Aegis. Alliance still want to fight, take revenge on the Magnus, but then giving LGD.cn a triple kill on their Alchemist. A greedy Alliance is sent home to lick their wounds. -Nick
9:00PM BST / 01:00PM PDT – First Blood
The stream didn’t catch it, but I can take an educated guess with what happened. Natures Prophet will have timed his ultimate to coincide with the gank mid on Magnus. Throw the ultimate, nuke down Magnus mid with the help of Clockwerk and Visage, and then the Nature’s Wrath ultimate bounces to put Magnus in the ground with huge damage. –Nick
8:50PM BST / 12:50PM PDT – The Draft
Alliance:
- Visage
- Nature’s Prophet
- Keeper of the Light
- Phantom Lancer
- Clockwerk
A crazy push line up with Phantom Lancer and Nature’s Prophet split pushing multiple lanes. Keeper of the Light is the perfect support for these mana hungry heroes, while also being able to counter the pushes of the enemy team. Clockwerk and Visage have great control for those important team fights, separating and stunning the enemy while Phantom Lancer goes to town.
LGD.cn:
- Alchemist
- Bane
- Magnus
- Nyx Assassin
- Beastmaster
LGD.cn’s line up is more prominent for team fights. Alchemist can farm his items super fast thanks to Greevil’s Greed, which will make him effective much sooner than Alliance’s Phantom Lancer. Nyx Assassin can hunt the Nature’s Prophet while we teleports to push a lane, his stun stopping him from teleporting away. Meanwhile Magnus and Beastmaster will try to dictate the team fights with the huge AoE stuns thanks to their ultimates.-Nick
8:40PM BST / 12:40PM PDT – Undefeated
Our first match is between Alliance and LGD.cn. Now if you don’t know already, Alliance has not lost a single game in this tournament, and I’m sure they aim to keep it that way. Strange then that they picked LGD.cn, considered one of the powerhouses of the Chinese Dota scene. Then again, they beat them before in the G-1 League which saw the first foreign team win the eastern tournament.
Should we expect the Alliance we all know and love to show off their secret strategies tonight? Maybe. I don’t know what else they could do around the Roshan pit to fool their opponents, unless they haven’t done their homework on Alliance. I’m sure they have something planned, but will want to keep it until it’s absolutely needed to win. I think game one will be a quiet, and if Alliance need to pull something out of the hat, we can expect an entertaining game indeed. -Nick
Here is the result from yesterday::
Winners Bracket:
- Na’Vi 2-1 Orange
- TongFu 2-0 Fnatic
Losers Bracket:
- Dignitas 1-0 Rattlesnake
- LGD.int 1-0 Mouz
- Orange 1-0 Dignitas
- Fnatic 1-0 LGD.int
Both brackets will compete all the way until the grand final, all the way until Sunday. The opening ceremony is kicking off right now, tune in here to watch it. The first match will be between Alliance and LCG.cn, Alliance currently undefeated in the entire tournament. So go get yourself ladened with snacks and drinks and settle in for another night of Dota 2.-Nick