Dota 2
Most matches in the different 2021/2022 DPC Tour 2 regions are slowly coming to an end. Following five days of games, we already know the names of a couple of teams that will attend the upcoming Major. With that being said, there is one region where nothing is certain until Week 6, and that is North America.
Like most regions in Dota 2, a few teams there dominate their opponents. One of them has yet to lose a single game, but since the rest only have one loss, we don’t know which team will occupy Division I's first two spots.
We had the chance to watch five games during the week, and most of them were fun. However, a few of them were definitely more interesting than the rest, which is why this article will share important information about them.
Quincy crew vs. Simply TOOBASED
Even though this was a battle between David and Goliath, the series was more interesting to watch than expected. QC is yet to lose a single game, but this doesn’t mean they will qualify for ESL One Stockholm 2022 because EG and TSM are also performing well. Consequently, QC had to win this series.
The two teams picked interesting drafts in game one and had similar tactics that allowed them to have a solid mid and late game. We expected the game to reach its later stages, but QC dominated in the laning stage, which gave the team a significant advantage. With almost 3k net worth lead just 5 minutes after the start of the game, it was obvious where this game was heading.
Simply TOOBASED tried to focus on their Storm Spirit and did everything they could to provide him with a good start. Sadly, Puck and DK made sure to prevent the hero from snowballing. After killing him a couple of times, these heroes almost doubled Storm’s net worth. This allowed them to get the lead in this series.
Game two
After losing game one, ST changed their draft and tried to utilize their favorite Silencer. However, instead of putting him in the mid-lane against Invoker, they’ve decided to make the hero their carry. As expected, this was not a good idea because the hero died a couple of times during the laning stage.
Thanks to their Mirana and Void Spirit combo, ST got a couple of kills, but QC did not allow them to gain a lead. Several big kills and better lanes gave Yawar "YawaR" Hassan and the rest a comfortable 4k net worth lead after 12 minutes of play.
Since QC’s carry was Silencer, a hero known for his slow movement speed, ST had no way of recovering after the bad laning stage. Quincy Crew grew stronger and stronger, and after 20 minutes of play, they had almost 13k net worth of lead. Things looked even worse a couple of minutes later, which is why Ankit "empyreaN" Aggarwal and co. decided to use the GG call.
Sadly, this loss means that simply TOOBASED will have to play in Division II for Tour 3.
TSM vs. EG
This was the series that we’ve all been waiting for. After winning numerous matches, it was time for two of the best teams in North America to go head to head in a direct clash for one of the major sports. This series had everything we wished for, and we had the chance to see three epic games. Without further ado, here is what happened in each one.
Game one
Both teams picked interesting drafts in the first game of this epic series, but EG’s pick included Techies. This hero was not that common in professional Dota 2 matches, but some teams started using him more often after the big changes to his abilities.
Unfortunately, this hero was not powerful enough to help EG win game one. TI 5 champions had a good start and even accumulated a slight lead during the first 15 minutes. However, this was not enough to prevent TSM’s Terrorblade from farming. Even though he had less gold than EG’s CK, this was enough to keep TSM in the game.
There were a couple of fights in the next couple of minutes, but neither team gained a lead after them. However, there was a messy fight near the Rosh pit around the 30th-minute mark, which gave TSM a massive lead. The team killed three of EG’s heroes and secured an Aegis.
TSM ripped through EG’s lineup in the next couple of fights and secured themselves the lead in this series.
Game two
Since this series was essential for both teams, EG didn’t want to go down without a fight. Hence, they’ve picked a more traditional and defensive lineup around Medusa and Shadow Demon. On the other hand, TSM decided to use Terroblade once more.
Like the first game of the match, EG gained a good lead early on. The team decided not to make the same mistakes and prevented TB from farming. What was even worse for TSM was Medusa’s farm. The hero had more than 10k net worth after 18 minutes of play.
After 30 minutes of farming, TSM only had two kills, and their cores were nowhere near as “fat” as EG’s. As expected, Artour "Arteezy" Babaev and the rest gained an even more impressive lead, so it wasn’t surprising the team equalized the series.
Game three
After exchanging victories, it was time for the third and decisive game. Both teams picked different heroes, but EG decided to bet on their Techies again for some reason.
While it is true that the hero and NS gave EG a solid early game, their damage was not enough to kill the Razor and IO combo. TSM eventually got the items they needed on their Ember and Razor, and the team started forcing fights around the map.
Even though EG secured several kills and even gained a 5k net worth just 17 minutes after the start of the game, this was not enough for their cores to shine. In the end, Enzo "Timado" Gianoli O'Connor and the rest became too powerful for EG’s lineup to kill.
The team that won TI 5 kept its net worth lead until the very end, but in reality, they had no way of killing TSM’s cores. As a result, Arteezy and his teammates lost the series and didn’t ruin their perfect streak.
Closing thoughts
Now that week 5 is over, we have a few more matches until Tour 2 comes to an end, at least in North America. EG, QC, and TSM all have real chances of qualifying for the Major. However, only two teams will do that, so it will be fun to see the results next week.