On May 22nd, Method announced Method Mayhem, a brand new monthly Heroes of the Storm tournament. It’s organized by HeroesLounge and Method, an org you may remember from the HGC days (or from their impressive amount of world-firsts in WoW).
Each Mayhem edition will consist of three cups followed by a playoff for the best eight teams. Cups are played weekly with all their matches on the same day (Tuesdays) and grant points to qualify for playoffs. Teams can change up to two of their players to keep their score, but the roster is locked for playoffs once the last cup ends. Point of view streams are allowed so we can keep track of all the simultaneous games and don’t miss anything.
But players don’t need to wait for playoffs or rush the last cup. There’s a lot to fight for each week because every cup has its own small prize pool too. The first cup for the June Mayhem took place on June 2nd, and it brought a lot of excitement and expectation and lured most of the greatest European players out of the woodwork. Brace yourselves because here comes the list of the top 8 teams of this first cup:
1. Washed Up
Mascarade • Daykwaza • Nic • HasuObs • BananaH
Washed Up doesn’t need an introduction. The worst result this team has ever had was a fourth position at Meta Madness 2. The current roster has stuck together for many months and demonstrates great synergy along with sick individual talent. However, they have fallen before, and here they’ll have to deal with many players they haven’t seen in a while.
2. The Last Dance
Breez • Wubby • Cris • POILK • Zaelia
A mix of former Dignitas and Fnatic players, Digtic, joined the fourth Masters Clash 2020 qualifier and won it, taking down some currently active teams. Unluckily, the tournament they qualified for was cancelled due to COVID-19, but they want to have a last dance with Heroes, and Method Mayhem can be the setting they’re looking for. The only change they have from the Digtic iteration is Cris—who recently joined Method as a streamer—instead of QuackNiix.
3-4. Jävla spindel
Skogh • MaxPassion • Ménè • QuackNiix • YasuOTP
Jävla spindel is a mix of incredibly talented players from both the HGC and Division S eras. Some of them have played together before, but never with this roster. In the first cup they were lucky enough to avoid any big threats in the first rounds. We don’t know yet what the actual level of this team is, but they may become a menace for the top teams.
3-4. Lauber's Fanclub
Lauber • QopenHagen • Tai • Rutzou • Henn1nig
The club has its healer back. Henn1ng retired after last Division S, but now he has returned to the fanclub. The roster has another new face, Rutzou, who will be replacing Svampgrotta. The Nordic team has consistently been on the top during the whole Division S era, and now they’ll have the chance to show how powerful they would have been against the HGC teams.
5-8. pepeMLADY
theWilQ • Rydzu • GoreRider • Sesabos • Diler
The Polish team has only changed one of its pieces from last Division S, with Sesabos replacing defcioo. They can win or lose against anyone and are a good example of the chaos that Bo1 rounds can generate. If you want to witness an upset of a strong team, keep track of pepeMLADY.
5-8. Team Evolution
AlterEgo • DizzyDwarf • Meneldor • Roxxxy • Vacilisco
This roster is one of the surprises of the first weekly cup. Most of the names ring a bell. We had already seen almost all of them before, but never this high. The core of this roster (Vacilisco, DizzyDwarf and AlterEgo) played as Tranquility in 2018 Phase 2 Open Division and made it to the playoffs but have been out of the picture since. Will they be able to continue earning points?
5-8. Reformed Players
Arctec • GranPkt • Mopsio • OpaDopa • Sigurdh
GranPkt and Mopsio are back, bringing us memories of the 2017 Zealots roster. We don’t know much about their teammates, but we’re talking about two of the most brilliant strategists in the Western Heroes scenes, so they may have some tricks up their sleeves.
5-8. What does the photographer say
Berghult • Fury • Makke • Svampgrotta • Jia
WDTPS has added a non-Swedish player to its roster, the Italian Fury, who formerly played for Go Next and Lauber’s. We don’t know if this will affect their communication, but so far they’ve already taken their first 25 points, so it looks like the new piece is fitting well in the Swedish puzzle.
Other Teams to Watch
Single elimination brackets have a flaw, and that’s pairing strong teams too early. This is just a consequence of a bad or inexistent seeding, something completely normal for the first edition of a tournament with so many old-new teams. Besides, everything can happen in a single map, and that’s the case of the first rounds, until there are only eight teams left. Acknowledging this situation, the top 8 from the first cup will probably differ from the playoff team list. These are some more teams we should keep track of:
Feel the Heat
Wit • blaDe • Dynouh • Kirwa • XraYY
After a third position in Division S and winning the Don’t Panic Cup, Feel the Heat is definitely a solid playoff candidate. They keep the same roster except for Ultralisk, who has been replaced by Kirwa. In the first cup they lost against Team Evolution, but it was still a bo1 round, so we shouldn’t count them out at all.
Methheads
BadBenny • Talouf • Nasty • Elahzul • Cursen
BadBenny and Cursen are back, and they are surrounded by experienced players with a huge game knowledge. In the first cup they lost early against Galnegunnar’s team, so we’ll need to watch them a little more to learn what this team is capable of.
Leftovers
SportBilly • PotiBoss • Deeaybe • Bl3kitny • Linked
SportBilly has joined the classic Leftovers lineup. The Polish team has been in and out of the scene for a while, but everytime they come back, they show us they aren’t rusty yet. New teams have claimed the Polish throne, so Leftovers will need to show the new kids who’s the boss.
Yankee Ingenuity
Leonblack • Nintorii • Noah • TalkingTrees • Zergling
North America has gathered its bravest players to defy the Atlantic ping and bring us back the flavour of Western Clashes. The latency is a huge handicap they have to deal with, but reuniting the European and North American scenes feels quite refreshing. The ashes of the old rivalry are still there, and will probably be there forever. In the first cup they fell against the Spanish 3k eSports (former Hoplita eSports). We hope they keep joining the Mayhem cups for the sake of the show.
If you want to check all these teams, be sure to tune in Method’s Twitch channel every Tuesday.
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