It’s been a wild first weekend in the SPL, filled with speed buffs, surprises, and Serqet supports. Here’s everything you might have missed from EU’s first four Fall Split sets, and a quick breakdown of what they might mean for the future.

The Papis (0-0) vs. Obey Alliance (0-0)

Game 1 VOD

Game 2 VOD

Obey defeats The Papis 2-0

The first game of the Fall Split was a clear mismatch on paper, and despite some early stumbles, Obey’s veteran roster looked calm and collected throughout their two victories. Both games highlighted PrettyPrime’s Raijin, as Obey’s midlaner continued his tradition of excellence with off-meta mid mages.

The Papis started off aggressive in the first game with a speed buff invade that led to a 1-for-1 tradeout, but Obey slowly began to get the better of small engagements. Obey held a respectable 4-2 and 1.5k gold lead at the 11 minute mark. After several patient attempts to start the Gold Fury, Obey managed to take it uncontested, following by snowballing their small advantages into a fight at the middle T1 tower that left 2 Papis dead. Fire Giant and Portal Demon followed, and Obey closed out the game in short order with a 15-5, 25 minute win.

The second game was the shortest of the day, although it initially looked more even. The Papis drafted a balanced lineup, with an early-pick Odin jungle to counter EmilZy’s Hel support. The Papis squad also managed to pull off a double solo-side buff invade without dying, and the game was relatively even at five minutes, with 0-0 on the scoreboard and a mere 500g lead for Obey. It didn’t take long for the tide to turn, however; MrNazer’s Kukulkan was caught out in the jungle and solo’d by Prime, then dived under the mid tower for a second kill. Obey moved into the Gold Fury pit and the 4 remaining Papis took the bait, only to be split in two around the damage buff and collapsed on by Obey, as Prime’s Raijin and CaptainTwig’s Serqet rampaged through the Papis backline. The Papis surrendered just a few minutes later, giving Obey an 8-0, 18 minute victory, their second win of the day.

TAKEAWAYS:

The Runner-Up World Champions from last year are still looking strong; it would have been easy for them to play overly aggressive and try for a statement win over the former Challenger Cup Papis squad, but Obey looked as focused as ever: bouncing from objective to objective quickly, disengaging cleanly from bad fights, and quickly burning backline divers.

The Papis seemed coordinated enough early in both games, but seemed to fall apart as the game went later, making questionable trades, getting picked off in the jungle, and wandering into fights one-by-one. This is a fairly common lower-tier SPL problem, but I wouldn’t be surprised to see it improve as the season goes on and the team gets more experience playing together at an SPL level.

Game 2’s surrender left a bit of a bad taste in my mouth. As much of a stomp as it seemed to be, and while Obey clearly outclassed the opposition, I think the Papis had a legitimate chance to turn around if they had played a little more defensively. Obey’s only true frontliner in Game 2’s draft was Osiris, while the Papis had a much better initiation and defense team in Odin and Sobek. Maybe they just didn’t want to mentally exhaust themselves with a long game just for a slight chance of victory, but I feel like SPL experience, even in a loss, is something you can’t put a price on.

Valance Squad (0-0) vs. NRG Esports (0-0)

Game 1 VOD

Game 2 VOD

Valance Squad and NRG Esports split 1-1

NRG played a bizarrely effective Game 1, buoyed by Raffer’s Serqet support, but Valance fought back with a strange pick of their own in Game 2 and managed a split with the world champs.

Game 1 started off just as strange as it sounds, with two-time world champion iRaffer bringing the Scorpion Goddess into the duo lane. VAC seemed poised to dominate with a more traditional triple-frontline double-adc composition. The pace of the early game was dictated by aggressive, almost reckless plays from NRG, with Adapting’s Susano cleaning up first blood in the midlane onto Lawbster’s Sol and Serqet ulting anyone in range. VAC kept their cool, however, and blasted apart NRG’s squishy lineup in a 3-for-1 trade near the Gold Fury that evened the gold lead at 6 minutes.

NRG took back control in a solo-side engagement that’s probably worth an entire article all by itself. Serqet managed to dodge almost an entire team’s worth of abilities with her absurd mobility and Maniakk’s well-farmed Artio arrived from solo to take over frontlining duties. From that point onward, VAC managed at least a couple of kills per fight, but slowly lost ground and gold as they dumped far too many abilities into a tanky Serqet and Skadi and couldn’t stop Artio from wreaking havoc on their carries. VAC’s lack of backline divers and low damage output from their frontliners left them unable to deal with NRG’s Skadi and Morrigan, who were virtually untouched as Valance dealt with assassins and Artio. A few more sloppy fights and Fire Giants later, and NRG charged into a weakened Titan pit and ended the game, with the kill counter at 21-10 and the timer at 40 minutes.

Raffer avoided guardians again in Game 2, opting for a Hel support, as VAC drafted a late-game lineup headlined by an Ah Muzen Cab and a Chronos, defended by a Sobek and Sun Wukong. NRG ensured that the God of Bees was focused out and killed early, but the kill was quickly returned onto NRG’s Morrigan and Hel. Neither team seemed to particularly want to fight until midgame, leaving VAC a 2-1, 1k gold lead at 10 minutes. VAC played cautiously but stayed on the offensive, stealing buffs and bullying out NRG members until the Valance Squad managed to sneak a Gold Fury uncontested; a second Gold Fury followed as soon as it respawned. Despite NRG’s superior sustain with a Hel support, they couldn’t seem to stick around objectives long enough to prevent VAC from building their lead.

When the big fight finally came at NRG’s T2 solo tower, VAC went 4-for-1, their carefully built lead giving them the edge. After a Fire Giant, third Gold Fury, and another tower, VAC found themselves up 8-3 and 12k gold. NRG couldn’t seem to push into fights, with their only good engagements coming from Yammyn’s Morrigan sneaking around the background, transformed into Faeles’ Camazotz. After a couple of false-start sieges on NRG’s phoenixes, VAC picked off Hel, secured their 2nd Fire Giant, and shredded through the Phoenixes to the Titan, winning 13-7 in 35 minutes.

TAKEAWAYS:

Maniakk’s Artio absolutely destroyed Duck3y’s Terra in Game 1; some of this can be chalked up to Artio’s current power level, but Artio’s cripple field is incredibly powerful against gods with dash-based clear like Terra. When Artio endures her inevitable next round of nerfs, she might still emerge as a counterpick to solo laners like Tyr and Terra who rely on dashes to assist their clear.

iRaffer’s Serqet support was a pretty goofy pick in the support role, but it also showed us how powerful ingrained SMITE reflexes can be. Valance, although I’m sure they knew Raffer couldn’t put out full assassin damage, couldn’t help but turn and focus the Serqet every single time she jumped in. I don’t think I see gimmicks like that working long-term, but there’s certainly something to be said for using characters in unusual spots and forcing your enemy to fight their own instincts.

Despite some of the crazy support picks we’ve seen this weekend, I think Game 2 showed us why guardians will be sticking around for a while. NRG’s lineup had a god with a giant target on her back in Hel, with only warrior frontliners to help out. And while Ravana and Bellona can both absorb a lot of damage and initiate effectively, they don’t have the hard CC and displacement of a Sobek, Khepri, or Terra. Warriors can be effective tanks, but they’re designed to be in the middle of a fight, harassing the enemy team. I think a comp designed around a healer needs to have a little more peel potential, or maybe even some targetable survivability like a Geb shield.

Burrito Esports (0-0) vs. Elevate (0-0)

Game 1 VOD

Game 2 VOD

Burrito and Elevate split 1-1

The underdog Burrito squad lost a rough Game 1 to an oppressive lockdown comp from Elevate, but adjusted well in the second game and earned a split set.

Elevate drafted a unique composition in Game 1, with a Nox support and Athena jungle, backed by a Guan Yu and a pair of ADCs (Medusa and Chronos) with strong CC. Burrito managed to pull off some invades with their more traditional team comp, but their success didn’t last long. ELV picked up first blood in the solo lane at four minutes, and led 6-0 at 10 minutes. Burrito’s early aggression proved to be their downfall, as Elevate’s pick composition began to assert itself; between the Nox bubble combo, Athena taunt, and Petrify, Burrito spent nearly half the game locked down by an avalanche of CC. Dzoni’s Ravana managed to pick up Burrito’s first kill at 18 minutes in, allowing his team to secure the Gold Fury, but Elevate just abandoned the Gold Fury defense and took Fire Giant and Portal Demon instead. Elevate continued to play aggressively – perhaps more aggressively than they needed to – and despite a couple of deaths to FaraKrik’s Thoth, managed to clean up the rest of the towers and two phoenixes. Burrito just couldn’t seem to come up with an answer to ELV’s CC/pick composition, and Elevate downed the Titan in short order, pulling off a commanding 24-minute, 20-2 victory.

In Game 2, Elevate drafted the same core gods: Nox Support, Athena jungle, Chronos ADC, looking to run back the same strategy. Burrito, meanwhile, adjusted their lineup, swapping out a largely ineffective jungle Ravana on Dzoni for an Ao Kuang. The Dragon King got off to a hot start, executing Elevate’s solo under tower at three minutes, but Elevate seemed to be pulling off the same lockdown chain as the first game, and led 5-2 at 10m. As items began to come online, however, Dzoni’s Kuang, FaraKrik’s Sol, and Kespainify’s Jing Wei began to tear through Elevate’s lineup. A few jungle picks evened the kill count at 6-6 by 15m, and by 22m BRT was up 11-7 and 10k gold off a couple of Portal Demons and a Fire Giant. They danced around towers with Elevate for a few minutes, but managed to catch MrSt3fan’s Hou Yi trying to push up the duo lane, and used their 5v4 power play to kill two more phoenixes and the titan. Burrito picked up the turnaround win in 25 minutes, with a score of 16-9 and a 10-1 Ao Kuang.

TAKEAWAYS:

Both Burrito and the Papis focused heavily on buff invades in the early game. This seems to be common in underdog SPL teams: trying to grab an early advantage and snowball a lead before the other team’s experience and mechanics can make a difference. I’m not entirely sure what the numbers are on this, but these early-invade strategies just don’t seem to pay off most of the time, especially since experienced teams can easily counter-invade shortly after.

The unusual support picks this weekend gave us a chance to see some different sides of the role. In a meta where everyone on the battlefield is picking up defensive items and Magic Shell is everywhere, teams seem to be looking for less damage absorption out of their support and more utility and setup. Nox, although not the first god that comes to mind when mage supports are mentioned, can do a lot of support-style disruption and isolation. Dardez especially showed Nox’s efficiency in jungle teamfights, where Nox’s silence bubble could pop up across a jungle path and single-handedly decide a teamfight.

While Elevate didn’t do themselves any favors in their loss, Burrito deserves credit for adapting and responding to Elevate’s success in Game 1. The Burrito team composition in Game 2 was a fascinating example of the way burst indirectly counters a CC comp. Grabbing a target with an Athena taunt or Nox tether requires getting in close and sustaining the CC combo while your team unloads damage. That can’t happen if the CC-bearer gets blown up and executed before they can do their job, which is exactly what Burrito accomplished (mostly thanks to Dzoni’s Ao Kuang). In a meta with so much survivability, I wouldn’t be surprised to see Ao become even more popular over the next few weeks, with his percentage-based finisher as an effective tool against tanky targets. Perhaps even Thanatos could reenter the meta? (probably not)

Team Rival (0-0) vs. Team Dignitas (0-0)

Game 1 VOD

Game 2 VOD

Dignitas defeats Rival 2-0



This Dreamhack matchup started off a little underwhelming, as Dignitas took a clean, textbook win in Game 1. If you’re going to watch any game from this weekend, however, watch Game 2; a simple first game transitioned into a 45-minute slugfest with some fantastic Smite on display from both sides.

Dignitas simply looked the more coordinated team in Game 1, with timely rotations and excellent followup off initiation. Arkkyl’s Jing Wei picked up first blood at only a minute and a half in, catching Vote’s Hou Yi just a little too far forward and hitting a fantastic succession of autos. Dignitas traded kills in duo and solo but got the better of most engagements, leading 4-2 and 500g at 5m. A midlane fight at 12m resulted in Dig knocking down 3 Rival players and securing the Gold Fury off fantastic Trixtank Sobek plucks and zero-death performances from Camazotz and Morrigan. By 15m, Dig had taken the Portal Demon and picked up another four Rival kills to lead 11-4 and 4k gold. Rival couldn’t get their feet under them, and KaLaS’s Terra couldn’t manage to heal up the team when faced with the heavy displacement from Sobek and Variety’s signature Tyr. Another clean fight gave Dignitas the Fire Giant, leading to a wipe of Rival at their last remaining phoenix and a 22-4, 27m win for the Yellow and Black.

The second game was a different story entirely; both teams started off very slow, unwilling to give up the kind of snowballing lead that let Dignitas close out Game 1 so quickly. First blood finally arrived at 7.5 minutes in, as KaLaS’s unbanned Artio dived Zyrhoes’s easily gankable Ah Muzen Cab in midlane. Zyrhoes went on to die three more times in quick succession, giving Rival a midgame 5-0 lead and 1k gold lead. Dignitas successfully used their high-damage comp to sneak a Portal Demon kill, but Rival’s incredible mobility allowed them to sneak across the map and take an uncontested Gold Fury in the meantime. Rival stayed on the offensive but began to run out of steam; they won some trades, but Dignitas’s return kills were piling onto Arkkyl’s Chronos, and Dig’s Fafnir-Erlang Shen combo was consistently stealing or preventing Rival’s objective tries. Finally the focus shifted to the Fire Giant, which Dignitas secured after killing Rival’s overextended Susano and sneaking around the speed buff to flank Wlfy’s Janus.

At 27m, Rival led in kills 7-5, but Dignitas wore the Fire Giant Buff and were up 3k gold. Rival opted to ignore the Dignitas siege and try to split push instead, demolishing three towers while Dignitas pressed in. Rival wasn’t content to just avoid DIG, however, and when they spotted a scattered Dig trying to regroup near the Fire Giant, they saw their chance for a comeback. Wlfy launched the team Through Time and Space and unloaded five members onto Arkyyl’s Chronos, killing the ADC and QvoFred’s Camazotz before Dignitas could collect themselves. Rival dropped the mid T2 tower, but with Fire Giant unavailable, had to back and prepare for the next fight instead of pressing on. As the game drew later and later, however, the objective-shredding power of Dignitas’s two ADCs began to win through. Dig somehow managed to focus out and kill a very tanky Artio, and burn down the respawned Fire Giant while Rival regrouped.

Dignitas’s second FG of the game led to two downed Rival phoenixes, but a respawned and angry Rival traded a kill and forced the remainder of Dig back to base to restock for another Fire Giant contest. Rival managed to push out the fire waves headed into their base and return to the FG pit, and used their mobility to rush down and kill Ah Muzen Cab yet again as their phoenixes reignited. Dignitas didn’t back down from a 4v5, however, and focused down KaLaS’s Artio yet again, and used their strong Fafnir-Erlang frontline to defend their next Fire Giant attempt. Rival couldn’t make it back and break into the FG pit in time, and a buffed Dignitas quickly obliterated Rival’s damaged phoenixes. A final, climactic fight seemed to be shaping up at the last healthy phoenix in solo lane, but fire minions pouring in from mid and duo forced Rival back to defend their titan. Dignitas seized the opportunity and chipped down the titan while Rival was on the defensive, winning 17-13 in a 45m game.

TAKEAWAYS:

An interesting element of team composition that doesn’t get talked about very much is confirmable damage. A mage like Nox, for example, has theoretically high damage, but it all relies on tethering someone inside the bubble and hitting them with both abilities. It’s not easy to do, even for pros. Compare that with, say, The Morrigan, who has a wide straight-line damage ability and a close-range but wide stun. The Morrigan is just more likely to get her damage off cleanly in a fight. That’s not to say that The Morrigan is easy to play, but her damage is easier to confirm. Rival suffered from a severe lack of confirmable damage in Game 1; Dignitas was consistently getting the better of midgame fights simply because Camazotz, Tyr, and Morrigan can get their damage off faster, safer, and more consistently than Serqet, Erlang Shen, and Nox. It’s not that Rival’s lineup didn’t have damage, it just didn’t have the right kind.

Book of the Dead popped up on Dignitas’s ADC Chronos, as it did on several other carry mages throughout the day. In a meta where survivability is the top priority, Book of the Dead is a high-power item that also grants sustain and a larger effective health pool; I’m not surprised it’s seen a surge in popularity over more directly damage-focused items. This might put it on the nerf block for an upcoming patch, since Hirez dislikes items that give too many hybrid stats. Hide of the Urchin may also be at risk; it’s been a consistent inclusion in support builds since the Jigz build became popular last year, and in the current meta it’s a popular pick on midlaners and even ADCs.

Despite being picked up multiple times on the first day of fall SPL play, I’m not sold on this Ah Muzen Cab renaissance. Rival’s greatest strength in Game 2 was their mobility, with three very fast characters in Artio, Jing Wei, and Susano, and the extra dropship capability from Janus. Other teams have also made mobility a priority, like NRG with their double-assassin setup, and Elevate’s Nox-Athena. Getting in and out of fights quickly is a big part of surviving in Smite, and in a survivability meta, I have a hard time imagining the least mobile god in the game finding any long-term success.

That’s about all I’ve got for this week in EU Smite. The NA breakdown and recap should be up by Friday; I’m looking forward to breaking down some matches from a little closer to home! I’m eager to hear your feedback; please send comments, questions, suggestions or requests to polynomiconblog@gmail.com. Thanks!