The deciding day 3 started with a quick win from Na'Vi over Wings Gaming. A 15 minute stomp kept the hopes alive for the Ukrainians to advance to the upper bracket. Both them and TnC however had to face OG who cemented their group victory with a clean and seemingly easy 4-0 record today. It could've been EG's group victory, but their Swedish brothers claimed their upper bracket ticket, as Alliance beat EG 2-0.

As for group B, Secret was unable to turn things around and finished things 0-4 on day 3. At the same time, Digital Chaos secure a 2nd place finish with a strong and convincing performance, beating Liquid 2-0. They even had the chance of placing first, but a tie against EHOME sealed the deal. Team Liquid had a shaky day 3. Their performance against DC may still have been fine, but it was certainly not on the level the team displayed during their Manila Major run. It was the matchup against Secret that put the final nail in the coffin. Secret, after a horrendous 0-9 game losing streak, the fan favorites were able to turn things around and steal away two wins from Liquid, who did not look in shape at all. With this loss, Liquid in fact drops down to 7th in group B, due to tiebreaker regulations

Hero Trends

101 out of 110 available heroes have been picked--a stunning record for any Valve or LAN event ever. Everything seems to be viable in this meta, to a certain degrees anyway. That said, the top 10 most contested heroes have stayed basically the same throughout the entire groupstage. As always, a certain meta does establish itself and heroes keep getting picked/banned over and over, until somebody shakes up the system.

Regardless, we could still see small trends throughout the first few days, Huskar on day 1 and Kunkka on day 2. As for day 3, Elder Titan stands out as a top performer. Despite being popular before already, his 66% winrate remains amongst the highest.

Top 5 Games

Na’Vi vs. Wings Game 1

Rarely does one come across a game of Dota where every move, every step and every decision seems to be perfect. Na’Vi played close to perfect as possible in a one-sided encounter, displaying meticulous movement and clinical execution.

Alliance vs. Escape Gaming Game 1

Escape Gaming needed to win this game to have any realistic chances left of an upper bracket position. Facing Alliance’s Lone Druid put the team behind, but they kept themselves in the game with good teamfighting. Is teamfighting enough though, to keep Alliance from taking mega creeps and the game?

Alliance vs. EG Game 1

The thriller against Escape was apparently not enough, as Alliance entered yet another hour long game. Evil Geniuses put themselves on a timer with their Drow line-up, especially as Alliance pulled out a draft that nobody could’ve seen coming. An early Lone Druid pick turned out to be a bait as it was followed by a lastpick Broodmother. The North-Americans were able to hold their own, but was it enough? 400 HP left on one throne, 0 on the other. A worthy watch.

Team Liquid vs. Digital Chaos Game 1

A true back and forth between two even teams. An Alchemist on Liquid’s side,a Morphling for DC. Both teams displayed a fierce will to win, but only one could. 58 minutes, 60 kills. A true nail biter and roller-coaster.

EHOME vs. Digital Chaos Game 2

W33po returns! Digital Chaos unleash their Meepo in the last game of the groupstage to secure 1st place, but EHOME is able to pick Iceiceice's Naga Siren to defend their spot. A lot of fighting, strategic maneuvers and a god-like scan and bait make for an entertaining game.

Headline Image by Wykrhm on Twitter