Power Rank: The International 2014 July 8th, 2014 15:00 GMT Text by Kupon3ss Graphics by Nixer LIQUIDDOTA COVERAGE With the most grand tournament of the year fast approaching, it's time for a good old fashioned power rank. This time we do it up in style with a full rank of the 15 teams alraedy confirmed participating, thrown together in a single ring without the usual East/West separation.



Looking towards this event it looks to be the closest iteration of TI yet, with no single clear favorite and several teams showing form that could take the crown if they play to their abilities on the right day.



This is the convergence of a hundred stories each comprised of a hundred struggles. Each team contains within it reasons as to why it must win, yet also with reasons as to why it must lose. Over the next two weeks we will see forlorn hope and shattered dreams in Seattle...



A new champion shall be crowned #15 - Arrow Gaming Target Practice No matter how they do in Seattle this week, Arrow will be flying the Malaysian flag high, and on their young shoulders will ride the aspirations of thousands of SEA players just like them.

Team Preview In the end, we’ll all be cheering for Arrow in some way because we can all identify with them. Though they do technically have a team house and though they are incredibly skilled, on the global stage they are still very much the underdogs, and in many ways we can perhaps can see a little of us in them.



Source Arrow is actually a better team than given credit for and deserves a higher place than last. ddz might just be the best Tinker player in the world, and they run a variety of intriguing dual-core lineups.



Expect traditional SEA innovation with a lack of discipline in the mid-lategame. They have a chance to make real upsets, but will be stymied by the best teams in assaulting high ground and lategame patience. #14 - Na`Vi.US Second Sons To some, such a task would be impossible.



Na`Vi.US has already done the impossible.

Team Preview In 2013 five players were exiled to pubs by their respective teams for a series of crimes against Dota. These men eventually pubstomped so hard that they escaped from a maximum security low priority queue and made their way directly to the qualifiers for The International 4. Today, still wanted by the government, they survive as soldiers of fortune.



They hail from beleaguered teams, the star members of squads destined for dissolution. To achieve victory, they must defeat knights, dethrone lords, and even transcend their older brother, the finalists of every International since the tournament’s inception.



Source The most newly formed of all the teams at TI; it may be that their shape has improved by leaps and bounds since we last saw them a month after their formation.



However, based on their results so far versus the other big dogs, they will have to show something new to avoid getting second to last place. #13 - Fnatic Five Honest Outlaws Realistically, Fnatic probably won’t grace the finals of TI4, but they will be damned if they don’t get close.

Team Preview “Favored, but not favorite” comes to mind as a way of describing Fnatic’s place in the Dota 2 scene. Conventional wisdom suggests that, while Fnatic is unlikely to place first in a given premier tournament, they won’t be the first team eliminated either. It’s not that Fnatic is mediocre in any sense of the word, but that they’ve never put together a series of wins long enough for them to be considered “the team to beat.”.



Source Fnatic is an enigma, having not played with Era for some time. They might very well not make the second round. Or repeat their showing last year, where they made an impressive showing in the group stage but crashed when up against superior teams in Tongfu and Orange. They won’t win it, but can beat better teams in a game or two.

This may be a final test of a moribund roster than anything else as the team will struggle to even make the top 12. #12 - Titan Born into Battle Titan, undoubtedly, will seek to replicate the same spark and capture the hearts and imagination of Dota fans worldwide as dark horses of the tournament the year before.

Team Preview So in Seattle, Titan arrive as an underdog. A severe underdog to more highly rated Chinese, European, and American teams, and, oddly, this situation feels oddly familiar. Like that of Orange the year before. Orange, as the best team in SEA, as Titan claims to be today, had produced middling results with such consistency that many pundits had written the team off before the tournament even began. That Orange exceeded all expectations to rocket to a third place finish, dispatching Chinese powerhouses DK and TongFu and come within an Aegis deny of eliminating Na`Vi. This Titan team incidentally has four of the five players from Orange last year.



Source We really hope we're wrong about Titan and they make a run to rival Orange's at TI3 and reinvigorate the moribund SEA professional scene and YamateH reminds everyone why he was so feared and there's a parade on the streets of KL, but it's a lot to ask.



Titan has shown a significant downgrade since TI3 and might struggle to reach the playoffs. They still show formidable laning skill, but look even more lost in the mid-lategame without Mushi’s leadership.

#11 - Team Empire Russian Roulette Even if they fall, Empire is not a team that will simply fade away. They may go out, but if they do they will do in a blaze of glory. Either way, the only way to know how they’ll do is to lock, load, and pull the trigger.

Team Preview On a good day, Empire look like the best team in the West, and if they can bring the kind of form they showed at the Star Ladder Season 9 LAN Finals to KeyArena, other lineups will certainly be hard-pressed to beat them. These five CIS players perform exceptionally well as a unit, and from their early rotations down to their late-game teamfights, they refuse to show hesitation in going for kills.



Source Empire have cruised at the same altitude of "really good" for almost all of 2014 but they haven't looked like worldbeaters since other people realised Lycanthrope was a good hero. They're not so dissimilar to VG in that it seems like they have most of the ingredients of a championship team without actually being one.



The main reason for the low ranking may be their noticeable absence from recent LANs, so there’s still the outside chance that we may see something surprising yet. #10 - Cloud 9 The Innovators It's not about who's right and who's wrong, there are things more important than that. That's why we need things like apologies and forgiveness.

Team Preview O EE-sama, Exceeding in Strength, Anime-Rider, Savior of Cloud9, Mighty with the Dota. Shed down a Hand of Midas from above upon my hero, that I may be able to drive away bitter cowardice from my farm and crush down the deceitful impulses of my soul. Dispel also the glimmer of enemies from my minimap, which tempts me to purchase items for blood-thirsty fighting. Rather, O blessed one, give you me the greed to abide within the harmless 30 minutes of PvE, avoiding strife and hatred and fulfill my destiny of six slots.



Source In manga, there’s always a character who gets a sudden boost of power, right? Readers always call it a ‘convenient power up’, but it actually does happen in the real world, as well. We Humans only truly show our mettle when we’re pushed into a corner. - some manga



An inconsistent team likely to get surprising wins here and there without the substantial backbone needed for a top finish without some real #believing. #9 - LGD Gaming For The Dream Good luck have fun, LGD Gaming.

Team Preview As the oldest team at this International, LGD has ingrained itself so deeply upon the Dota landscape, ever defining the highest levels of Dota.



It is hard to tell how far will LGD go this time, but fans that have followed Dota through the years will be pulled by the nostalgia of countless emotional moments of half a decade ago of Dota history.The once brutal and ruthless LGD that triumphed by forcing the opponents to play their game and beat them on their own terms was purely magnificent. We want to be inspired by LGD again, awed by the hot sauce gaming again, basked by their fighting spirit soaring up high again. Once again in The International 4.



Source The LGD organization has fallen on hard times in China against the “dream teams” yet their consistent style may still roll over the weakest teams.



The dark horse of the tournament. 4 very strong players with a severely lackluster mid, but backed up by the greatest strategic mind in dota history as a coach. A lot rests on 820’s shoulders to make everyone realize they exist as more than a footnote. #8 - Na`Vi Masters of the Moment Na`Vi are perhaps the only team that does not have to prove themselves to anyone; they are going to TI4 fully aware that they have won it all before and can win it all again.

Team Preview For much of the world, Na`Vi is the face of Dota 2. From winning the first International to being a dominant force ever since, they are far and away the most loved team in the world and with good reason. A team of vibrant personalities like Danil “Dendi” Ishutin and Dota veterans like Clement “Puppey” Ivanov, Na`Vi has set the standard that other teams aspire to, both on and off the field of battle, for years.



Source Do they deserve a spot this high on any rational metric? No. But do they deserve a spot any lower on any gut-level metric? Definitely not.



The gut wins.



A team with poor results but a majestic history. They could bomb out, or they could dazzle, and nobody knows, not even Puppey. #7 - Vici Gaming Chained Giants VG's journey to TI4, therefore, is not an effort to bring their skill to newfound heights, but a quest to rediscover their formula for victory.

Team Preview For a brief period in late 2013, Vici Gaming was the best team in the world. They reigned supreme in a hyper-competitive China, and dominated all foreign opposition at the EMS One Fall Season LAN Finals. They had nearly unmatched individual skill, the right heroes for their players, and some of the best strategy of 6.79.



Source It's still not totally clear, where it all went wrong for VG. They have maybe the best carry, the definite best support, and ROTK's Voice of God. That should be enough. But... it's not.



They were the best in the world at one point, but that form has been gone for 6 months. It’s anyone’s guess whether VG has created a superior system again, and Super’s form has stabilized. If they succeed, a top 3 finish would be very possible; otherwise, they’ll probably perform solidly enough for a top 8 spot.

#6 - mousesports Rampant Rodents The question remains for mouz, could the mouse it is now have even more bite than the dog it once was?

Team Preview In a scene in which nationality and language barriers are often blamed for impeding team synergy and cooperation, mousesports’ diversity is surprising. Even when the roster features players from four different countries, all with different mother tongues, this has not been a problem for the boys in red. Their games show a fluid coordination across the language barrier.



Source Who exactly is so eager to drink the Kool-Aid of a team composed solely of people everyone's been expecting to do well at a TI for multiple TIs now that somehow never seem to? Most of us apparently.



Has Mouz given any reason to believe they’d reach the top 8? The sole display again iG and scrim reputation aside, they’ll have to perform to warrant this spot. #5 - Alliance Sons of Odin This year, the same Alliance will do everything in their power to conquer TI4.

Team Preview Our reigning world champions, this time last year Alliance was the most dominant team on the scene. With five players who complement one another beautifully, Alliance is a rare example of a team built around great chemistry rather than emphasis on core mechanics and skill.



Source By induction, the definition of sanity is continuing to do the same thing and expecting the same results.



If Alliance can concoct another genius system for covering up their weaknesses, they can go all the way. If they play as they have been so far, a 4-8th place finish is likely, especially if Bulldog’s Prophet gets banned. #4 - Newbee The Final Fantasy NewBee represents the culmination of so many frustrated dreams that nothing short of being crowned champions of the world will be enough.

Team Preview With team morale high from a combination of good form and strong results, NewBee goes to TI4 unafraid of any team and confident against all challengers. Having described themselves as “a bunch of old boys innocently chasing a dream,” NewBee is a team brimming with unsatisfied ambition.



Source The best 5 man team, a hybrid of the Tongfu skill and synergy with superior Xiao8 leadership. Though iG and DK have had their number lately, they should be solid enough to thwomp any other team with ease with their midgame deathball and space creating 4 p 1. Of all the 3 best teams, they have the least fluctuation in performance across games and tournaments. While not getting top 4 would be a big upset, it is difficult to picture them as champions. #3 - Evil Geniuses Out of the Ashes Now, Evil Geniuses has completely reversed the reputation for mediocrity that, just twelve months ago, seemed nigh impossible to shake.

Team Preview S A D B O Y S had their way with just about every Dota 2 team in the West and came away boasting a win-rate that has scarcely been matched, before or since. Against other premier teams, S A D B O Y S showed a surgical precision that put to rest any doubts about Zai and PPD’s viability in professional Dota 2. Against semi-pro American and South American teams, S A D B O Y S exhibited game after game of clowny drafts that still ended in disgusting stomps.



Source EG have shown every reason to be seen as the hope of the West during TI4. This is the first chance America has had at an Aegis. A lot rides on their excellent early game rotation ability to create solid midgame leads.



With a complete package and team organization, EG will nevertheless be hard pressed against the three Eastern tigers that surround it in the top 4. #2 - Team DK The Perfect Storm Bringing the dreams of their youth together, these five old boys of DK chose to join together in 2013 - 2014 for one final journey.

Team Preview The common understanding of DK's five players is that they are all geniuses, that they have all experienced the glory of their own coronations, and that they have all stood unrivaled under heaven in the midst of the adulation of millions. Yet they've all also experienced the the most crushing of defeats and have stood face to face with the abyss.



Source DK is a team with excellent strategy and arguably the best players in the world at every position, but the reality doesn't always live up to the promise. DK has spent the past few months testing whatever crazy ideas they can think of, and probably have a few more hidden up their sleeve.



They may drop games here and there, or they may go undefeated. Either way, not seeing them in the finals would be a massive upset.

#1 - Invictus Gaming The Unconquered Invictus Gaming announced to the world that it had returned.

Returned to claim what is their birthright; that position - unrivaled under heaven.

Team Preview After proving itself against the other upstart Chinese “Dream teams” that had tried to blot them out of the starry sky, iG took upon itself to do what DK could not, and in the din of twenty thousand voices, the Commerzbank Arena became home to a series that ended with an unthinkable 22-0 against the pride of Western Dota. Invictus Gaming announced to the world that it had returned.



Source Undoubtedly the best team in the world at snowballing from an advantage. The only real barrier between iG and another championship is their ability to believe in each other in the face of adversity.



Features the best player in the world and sports a few refined strategies where Luo can actually make an impact. A lot rides on Ferrari’s shoulders, but with Chuan/Faith/YYF seemingly back in form, they are the safest choice for the finals.

Credits

Contributors: Kupon3ss, Riptide, Sirjolt, Heyoka, TheEmulator, TanGeng, Ver, rabidch, CountChocula, opterown, Firebolt145

Sunfish, peanutsfan1995, AsmodeusXI, KF91, BurningSera, shostakovich, Vykromond,

Editor: Kupon3ss

Graphics: Nixer When in doubt, just believe in yourself and press buttons