EPTalso bring on the hate
16 - MVP.Phoenix
Sadly enough, their TI dream will end fast. Their best chance at an upset is against coL. There is something that I love about Korean DotA though – their extreme volatility. It embodies both KR and SEA DotA and I can see these boys upsetting every single team in their group with the craziest of strats… But not enough to warrant moving from 16th place. Sorry March, and sorry MVP.
15 – MVP.HOT6ix
Yeah, sorry. Even though HOT6ix has a well-rounded lineup, more so than the Phoenix team, they still lack international results to back up all my biased hopes of KR DotA going wild and crazy. Little brother Phoenix seemingly struggled against CDEC and Vega. Even though I regretfully place both MVP squads at the bottom, KR has more teams in TI than SEA. Well played.
14 – Newbee
Never before has a champion fallen from grace as hard as Newbee did (although Alliance did a decent job at it) after TI4. Their players, including xiaotuji (destined to become the next great Chinese carry) and SanSheng (whose Earthshaker is surpassed only by LanM himself) are all good. Two years ago this team would have been young, hungry and look posed for a title. Last year, the Director demonstrated how to break down your opposition one by one mid-tournament for one of the more unexpected runs I’ve seen throughout the years of DotA 2. Now, a lot of question marks.
13 – Complexity Gaming
In this TI, I see six contenders and six potential dark horses. This means that per definition, the most promising team that cannot cope with this level of competition will end up below these two groups. Complexity and their Shadow Priest has provided great success throughout the qualifiers.
They have their wild card game first but should still not get much more than those three points in the group stages – their Leshrac will be banned throughout the tournament and I haven’t seen enough to be willing to place faith in the team. They are underdogs to say the least, and anything more than $50000 for these boys will be a victory in my eyes.
12 – EHOME
Here’s where I start questioning if I have a hate for rOtk or if I just can’t see Cty/LaNm carrying these boys further than this. Their names are relatively proven (outside of rOtk/LaNm less so) and should be able to put up a fight against most teams – but they lack the results backing them up and I think that they will be surpassed by CDEC and the likes. EHOME might have returned to TI, but this time there will be no chants. $210k is almost as good as the TI1 second place, too.
11 – Natus Vincere
They might have Akbar the Winter Wyvern on their team but watching them play always pains me. They games they play well, they play like they still held their grasp of dominance across the western DotA scene. Alas, they rarely do that nowadays.
“Don’t discount NaVi on LAN” – yeah, about that… Their accolades on LAN in 2015 include a second place at Dreamhack, and nothing else. I simply cannot see the NaVi factor anymore. For all the SC2 fans, NaVi rise to prominence and fading away is a fairytale only comparable to IM_MVP. Entering the scene and stealing the crown, refusing to let it go. Today, both NaVi and MVP are remembered as the conquerors they were and not what they are today. No apologies.
10 – Virtus.Pro
I always figured that Virtus.Pro looked strong. Then I saw the TI lineup. I might be underestimating them a little bit (or hyping CDEC too much) but they will be actively contend for a top 4 position and if G shows up every single game they can look like they’re heading for top two. Their summer looked better than most teams and I’m ready to be proven wrong.
The decision for the VP invite is debatable but in my opinion justified simply because I think that they are amongst the four best teams EU – but with Empire can’t aspire to reach top 2 in their group they will most definitely have to brawl with the tenacity only CIS teams can to get top 8.
9 – CDEC Gaming
CDEC and VP will probably be one of the closest matchups to follow this TI. They are both coming from lower seeds and will be somewhat under the radar. However, I looked through what they have done this summer before the Wild Card matches and their opponents have looked much fiercer than what VP has gone through. With names on board being relatively unknown, my gut feeling tells me that the Chinese pub stars are here to contend for the e-sports dollars.
8 – Cloud 9
I tried to argue that C9 was heading for top 6 the other day. However, they have in their group; a fiery hot LGD posing to be the real Chinese contender of TI5, the unpredictable Fnatic whom look to be on the rise from a slump, TI2 iG with BurNIng (and Luo) and Team Secret.
I don’t know how to be gentle when I say that I think Cloud 9 will crash and burn. Again, this is based on gut feeling and scrims alone, but they haven’t looked like the team I hoped to see as the alternative to Secret when cheering for EU. I still want to see them do well – and if they could lock themselves at 100% of their potential for this tournament I’d gladly place them top 4 and move Empire here.
Actually, either C9 or Empire will fail miserably. I just can’t decide on which one. C9 feels like the safer bet.
7 – Team Empire
CIS big boys are here to play for the big bucks on the big stage and I don’t know if I should place these boys at #6, #7 or #8. Cloud9 will eat them on the best of days and get crushed by them on the worst of days. Actually, they can probably quell the likes of LGD and iG too. But how will they do against CDEC, EHOME and VP…
Behind this reasoning lies the fact that Silent has been looking stellar for years. I remember Corey (wow legit source korean dota league is srs bsns) saying that whenever he doesn’t know what to do he just thinks of Silent and then he knows what to do (or something along those lines). That was the first time I ever stopped to appreciate his weird picks that always seemed to go ham.
They have a flashy mid player that shows up more often than not. Their offlane has a reliable pool of heroes and he has the mindset that can turn him into a third core on any given hero (but I want to see more of his Axe). The Ukrainian, Caps Locked support duo of ALWAYSWANNAFLY and ALOHADANCE are my main point of concern – but if they play like they have done in the months prior to TI they can even go top 4. Wait, no. I don't think top 5 is attainable by any others than the teams that I placed there. Perhaps C9 or Fnatic. But I believe. If they don’t show however, I wouldn’t bet on them taking top 8.
6 – Fnatic
I think this has a lot to do with my perception of Ohaiyo and Kecik Imba changing heavily the past few weeks. Mushi and kYxY have had flashes of their TI3 run but Ohaiyo looks better than ever. He is a possible MVP for the team that can take them from a 9th-12th spot to top 4 on a good day. Together with the energy of Kecik Imba and a strong Mushi/kYxY, they can look to go far. As long as JoHnNy plays well, I have faith.
The most insane hero pool of all teams, they tend to give very little thought to metagame more than what they think works given the entire hero pool. I think they’ll settle for a compromise between the veteran, “don’t care about patch” thinking and the fact that some heroes are popular for pretty good reasons. Hopefully their drafting holds up.
5 – Vici Gaming
Okay, I have no idea what VG will be like. They have been off the radar ever since they slumped after StarLadder. Well, besides their horrible showing at ESL.
When I look at their roster though, I see TongFu.Hao, whose berserker playstyle can make or break any team. Also, he played in Newbee and managed to win TI4.
I almost forgot that Super has been in VG for so long – since after TI3. He’s always been a player living in the shadows of a teammate of greater accolades, and it is still the case. Never forget his ability to make plays and the fact that this is his fourth TI and he’s never placed lower than 5-6th place.
IceIceIce, the Singaporean Dendi. Part of the TI4 dream team to slay them all, they fell short and he’s back with new boys of almost equal grandeur to conquer Seattle again. 6.84 doesn’t feel like the patch of IceIceIce, but his Dirge and Clockwerk is something to be feared. He’s also the one person outside of the CIS teams and EG that I can see picking a Tidehunter this event. Ballsy.
I almost forgot the supports. Fenrir, forever in the shadows of his support colleague, is so good he’s invisible. Secretly being a playmaker, he leaves all the spotlight to fy so that he can remain a hidden force only to be brought out when needed.
After all this, I feel like I still have the best part left of VG. Fy is the player that, of the 60 players of the teams that I’ve listed, is most likely to win his team games. He is a reliable playmaker (?!?) that is integral to the VG saga since 2013. I want to spend an entire hour writing about him and Fenrir, how they synergise and what they do that cannot be replicated but alas this is no analysis. This is my PR, and no matter how good the support are, the fact that Hao comes into VG at such a fragile time and fails to show up on the verge of the largest tournament in esports history yet… I guess I believe, he turned up last year at least.
4 – Invictus Gaming
Chuan and his band of brothers (maids?) is back to cause havoc again. They have three players from their TI2 lineup and they look surprisingly relevant. Up until thinking about it, they were tied with VG. Then I realized who they were.
BurNIng, B-God, the man himself. His mechanical prowess and decision-making is praised throughout the world ever since the days of EHOME.AAA. Being forever identified as Anti-Mage, he showed during his time in DK that he can play any core role and the heroes thereof. He is the silent Mushi in the larger scene (SEA/China) yet unable to hide his glory amongst players that others would fade in the company of.
Ferrari_430, the mid lane tyrant who defeated NaVi in their prime to claim an Aegis that today is as relevant as a level 1000 Compendium. The player who slumped and was remembered, like NaVi, for his former self. That player is now back and is looking as dangerous as ever. After placing 5-6th and 7-8th in the last two Tis, he is back to contend. He’s the Dendi of the mid lane in the sense that he makes winning look natural. He’s the Mushi of the mid lane if you give him the matchup for it, because he has the skill to dominate just about anyone. He’s the man who is content with not losing is he has to. But when he gets going, he never stops.
Luo, famed for his carry Broodmother and repeatedly good showings on Bristle and Doom (back when Doom was relevant) is the outlier of the team. He’s never really noticed (he’s living in the shadows of four teammates with a resume longer than this PR in some cases) but has the potential to put his team on his back and guide them to victory. I’m looking forward to see him rise to prominence as a worthy successor of YYF by challenging the best of the best once more and succeeding.
ChuaN. The guy who has the entire game under control. Faith might be the leader of iG, but ChuaN is the guy pulling the strings in the dark. Often put onto heroes that allow him to have a good overview of the map, his awareness is unparalleled in the world of DotA. Back to TI without any burdens this time, he hopes to lift his second Aegis.
Faith, the Akke of China. His way of being shows determination, but his way of playing also shows how he’s able to do so much with so little. He often has the same trait of Fenrir – not the most evident playmaker but instead potential waiting to be unleashed.
Five players able to make plays. Five players ready to tell the world that iG can take a second Aegis.
3 – Evil Geniuses
Evil Geniuses, the victors of DAC. The western beacon of hope. At least for a while. For some time, they have lived in the shadow of Secret. However, so does everyone else, and we must not forget the PPD factor. What all three teams I have yet to list have in common is the fact that they all have strong leaders with a unique view on DotA and an approach that is unlike any other. Watching the draft battle between Secret and EG is more exciting than watching games between teams further down this list. It’s the western matchup everyone has been waiting for, the year when China is irrelevant because the finals is EU versus NA. A lot of things point towards just that.
They have a crazy lineup of players. So much that they are probably the most flexible team in this edition of TI. Fear and his carry Tidehunter, maybe a ratdoto Bone Fletcher or why not a Venomancer? I know a few of these examples are outdated (two out of three) but this speaks towards their ability to do what perhaps only Fnatic dares to do – pull out the most random picks in the most trying of times. His PL, Bone, AM, Bloodseeker, Razor… The list goes on, my point is that this guy knows how to play any hero at a level that is so terrifyingly competitive that you simply cannot predict his pick.
Suma1L, the young RTZ, the Storm Spirit. Limited by comfort zone, he showed up big at his second LAN winning DAC with daring play. Showing neither respect nor mercy can get you loved, but it can get you hated. He has been outplayed by a lot of players in lane and often rely on Universe and Fear to create space for him should he fall behind. Sometimes he goes 1-5 and proceeds to carry the game – but sometimes he misses RPs that you could hit blindfolded. He is the mid lane carry that is so favoured in this metagame.
Where Suma1L is inconsistent, Fear is his counterpart. Unless Universe didn’t exist. Universe is the epitome of consistent play and is arguably the best offlaner in the world. Ranging from the TI4 Faceless Void to his 6 minute Blink Batrider to his immortal Clockwerk, this man is a man with no equal. His approach to his role is truly unique and he pulls of plays that other players at this level cannot do nearly as often.
If Universe is the king, Aui_2000 is his queen. The map presence felt from the invisible Aui flourishes when he has a sub-20 minute Aghanim’s Scepter on his Witch Doctor. Why not a 13 minute Lina Eul’s or a 15 minute KotL Aghs? Somehow, he manages to squeeze more out of the jungle that just about any other support in DotA2.
If Aui eats up space, PPD makes sure he gets it. Not only does he draft accordingly, but he also plays accordingy. PPD’s low influx of gold early is spent fully on making sure that Aui gets space without compromising the integrity of his lanes. This means that for his own item progression, he relies heavily on teamfights going the right way.
The team seemingly plays with an aura of calmness. They and Secret alike are very calm and look like they always break down the game in an analysis before making the next step – at least when they are playing up to their own standard. Methodical play with players able to execute the draft and plan of the HoN player sent to DotA to rescue NA from being forever forgotten.
Why third? Because I don’t think EG is a better team than LGD with xiao8.
Heart or head? Head.
What about heart? I want to see Secret versus EG in the finals.
2 – LGD Gaming
So this is nothing more than gut feeling, but LGD looks to be on fire. The Director himself is here with a new team, eh, his old team, to give them a title as well.
Without xiao8 this team would look good at best. Players like Sylar, Dai and Yao have all been relevant at some point in one way or another, and Maybe has become a player worthy of the spotlight after finishing school.
LGD looked pretty OK between TI4 and DAC. However, an underwhelming run at DAC made them call in the one leader who in a single run at TI4 showed why you cannot underestimate his skills of breaking down the strategic core of his opposition. Xiao8 is a name without comparison, leading his team close to flawlessly. Additionally, his gameplay is something only few can match. As a two supports, few can accomplish what xiao8 and Dai can.
Dai (MMY!), the EHOME 2010 mid laner, is now a support who manages to get by on very little – he’s as close to a sixth position you’ll find without mentioning PPD, Akke or perhaps Faith. Formerly of DK, his supporting together with LaNm looked to be on par with Fenrir/fy. Led by (and supporting alongside) xiao8, can he take it to yet another level and reclaim the throne of being the best Chinese support player?
Rarely do we see a player stay in a team like Yao has stayed in LGD. When they took 3rd at TI2, he was there. When they missed TI3, he was there. Now he’s here with a crew that can help him achieve what didn’t look possible at DAC – a real shot at the title. His Clockwerk and Spirit Breaker looks good, so look for him to take on the popular offlane initiators of 6.84, namely Tusk and Earthshaker.
Around the initiating offlaner, we see a mid laner who likes to follow Yao straight into fights. Whether it’s the SF or the DK, the Storm or the Bristleback, the Tiny or the Leshrac – he’s always getting his hands bloodied. Coming straight out of school after playing at a decent level for a long time, he climbed the ranks from CDEC to LGD. Now he’s a fundamental part in the playstyle that xiao8 seemed to favour already at DAC, the farming mid and the active safelane.
If we go back to 2012-2013, the previous statement would never apply to Sylar. A carry often talked about in the sense of farming rather than fighting, the recent patches has put him towards heroes such as Akasha, Yurnero, Gyro and SF. Going from his close to revered AM and Morphling play, he has transitioned into 2015 with grace and is ready to fight his way to a TI5 title.
I see Sylar and Fear being equals in the way they are consistent.
Universe is more of a playmaker than Yao.
Aui takes more space but makes more individual plays than xiao8.
MMY has a way of being everywhere that PPD lacks.
But mostly, I believe that Suma1L can’t be what EG needs him to be to go further than third. And PPD is no xiao8.
1 – Secret Team
Surprise.
No, without trying to apply too much bias, I think the recent results point towards Secret being heavy favourites. The NA prodigy, the million dollar playmaker, the Swedish wonderchild and the most confident supports in DotA. Or; RTZ, s4, Zai, Kuroky and Puppey.
I don’t need to write why they are the favourites. Everyone knows that people think RTZ is too good at playing DotA. They know that s4 is the next level of mid laner. Zai plays the craziest DotA. Kuroky and Puppey together are creating space, punching face, farming for days, making the plays.
I wish them the best of luck. They would crown themselves champions, not only as the team that lived up to the expectations and the team with the confidence to do something as radical as they did when they left organisations behind to play on their own terms, but as the team that dominated DotA for half a year. Despite not winning DAC, we all knew that this was the title they were aiming for.
Is Puppey and s4 entering history, or does Goliath have a David in Seattle?
