EsportsJohn Profile Blog Joined June 2012 United States 4833 Posts #1

The Trials of Dignitas Written by: Emperor





The second Western Clash of the year, where the best teams from Europe, North America, and Oceania will compete for $100,000 in prize money and bragging rights, will take place in Kiev on Friday, the 4th of August—but this time around, one of the mainstays of international competition will not be present: Team Dignitas.



Throughout the last two years, Dignitas hasn’t missed a single international event, despite having numerous trades, slumps, and other setbacks. They have been resilient and strong in regional competition, and even won the last Western Clash! So what happened to them?



Going into the second phase, Team Dignitas looked strong coming off their victory over both L5 and MVP Black at the Mid-Season Brawl, but they encountered a bump in the road during the first round against Team Liquid. That series loss put a hard stop on their momentum and would later play a crucial role in their failure to qualify for the Western Clash.







In the following weeks Dignitas racked up losses against Team expert and Fnatic, putting them decisively behind the top contenders in terms of points. Despite good performances against the rest of Europe, their early losses cost them dearly in the final weeks. The end result was a tiebreaker featuring Team expert, Team Liquid, Team Dignitas and Tricked eSport in which Dignitas barely fell short. Their overall map score of 14-11 wasn’t bad but it failed to eclipse Team Liquid’s 15-11 record, and for the first time in almost two years, Dignitas witnessed their first true defeat.



So what happened for Team Dignitas to lose games they normally would have won? Looking at their play, the most obvious change from Phase 1 is drafting. Team Dignitas seldom picked double support at the Mid-Season Brawl—only once out of 21 games in total—but in the second phase, Team Dignitas has done a 180. They are focused more heavily on double support at the cost of putting Mene, one of the best mage players in the world, on heroes like Tassadar, Auriel, Abathur and Medivh.





Seriously, what is up with this draft??



One has to wonder if it’s really the best decision to put a player with such hard carry potential on supports. Mene clearly has a



According to a



Fnatic, Team Expert, and Team Liquid will represent Europe in the upcoming Clash with no Dignitas in sight. Despite an unexpected loss to the Playing Ducks in the final week leading up to the event, Fnatic still stands as the strongest team in Europe and the potential champion for the Western Clash. But with Liquid and expert nipping at their heels and no Dignitas to thwart them, the competition might be closer than previous international events.







Ultimately, the combination of a new style of drafting and compounded by the pressure of adjusting to a new shotcaller took its toll on Team Dignitas. Their recent domination against Tricked eSport makes it appear as if they are back to normal, but it’s too little too late. Sadly for them, the ship to Kiev has sailed, and they’ll be sitting this one out.









Markus "Emperor" Løtveit is a Smash and StarCraft enthusiast who spends his day as a esports teacher.

You can follow him on Twitter.









HGC EU Bracket and schedules on Liquipedia The second Western Clash of the year, where the best teams from Europe, North America, and Oceania will compete for $100,000 in prize money and bragging rights, will take place in Kiev on Friday, the 4th of August—but this time around, one of the mainstays of international competition will not be present: Team Dignitas.Throughout the last two years, Dignitas hasn’t missed a single international event, despite having numerous trades, slumps, and other setbacks. They have been resilient and strong in regional competition, and even won the last Western Clash! So what happened to them?Going into the second phase, Team Dignitas looked strong coming off their victory over both L5 and MVP Black at the Mid-Season Brawl, but they encountered a bump in the road during the first round against Team Liquid. That series loss put a hard stop on their momentum and would later play a crucial role in their failure to qualify for the Western Clash.In the following weeks Dignitas racked up losses against Team expert and Fnatic, putting them decisively behind the top contenders in terms of points. Despite good performances against the rest of Europe, their early losses cost them dearly in the final weeks. The end result was a tiebreaker featuring Team expert, Team Liquid, Team Dignitas and Tricked eSport in which Dignitas barely fell short. Their overall map score of 14-11 wasn’t bad but it failed to eclipse Team Liquid’s 15-11 record, and for the first time in almost two years, Dignitas witnessed their first true defeat.So what happened for Team Dignitas to lose games they normally would have won? Looking at their play, the most obvious change from Phase 1 is drafting. Team Dignitas seldom picked double support at the Mid-Season Brawl—only once out of 21 games in total—but in the second phase, Team Dignitas has done a 180. They are focused more heavily on double support at the cost of putting Mene, one of the best mage players in the world, on heroes like Tassadar, Auriel, Abathur and Medivh.One has to wonder if it’s really the best decision to put a player with such hard carry potential on supports. Mene clearly has a deep and diverse hero pool . He’s played 13 different heroes between the Mid-Season Brawl and Phase 2 so far, giving him one of the top 5 widest hero pools in the league. But out of those heroes, Greymane, Kael’thas, and Sylvanas sported insane win rates at 100%, 83%, and 75% respectively. His win rates on more supportive heroes have been less impressive.According to a post-game interview , Bakery has also taken over the responsibility of shotcalling from the main tank JayPL. It’s clear that their philosophies differ, and the experimental double support drafts have made it difficult for Dignitas to find a foothold in the newest evolution of the metagame.Fnatic, Team Expert, and Team Liquid will represent Europe in the upcoming Clash with no Dignitas in sight. Despite an unexpected loss to the Playing Ducks in the final week leading up to the event, Fnatic still stands as the strongest team in Europe and the potential champion for the Western Clash. But with Liquid and expert nipping at their heels and no Dignitas to thwart them, the competition might be closer than previous international events.Ultimately, the combination of a new style of drafting and compounded by the pressure of adjusting to a new shotcaller took its toll on Team Dignitas. Their recent domination against Tricked eSport makes it appear as if they are back to normal, but it’s too little too late. Sadly for them, the ship to Kiev has sailed, and they’ll be sitting this one out. Strategy