At the end of every International, the mass of transfers and team formations don’t just change the status quo; it upends it. Teams that had great success in the past are often left hollow shells of their former selves, while new compositions storm onto the scene to stake a place amongst the ruins.

EHOME is one such team. Finishing with a respectable 5th-6th place finish at TI5, higher than what was expected from them, EHOME lost three players in short order. Offlaner Bai "rOtK" Fan left and joined LGD Gaming towards the end of August, followed shortly by support Liang "DDC" Faming. When EHOME’s roster was finalized just before the trade deadline, fans learned that the team’s carry, Yang "Zyf" Pu, had transferred to Vici Gaming as a substitute.

This left mid player Chen "Cty" Tianyu and support Zhang "LaNm" Zhicheng as the only remaining members. And while both Cty and LaNm are perfectly capable players in their own right, it was the team’s cohesiveness that enabled them to go as far as they did against much stronger opponents.

EHOME Final Roster: old chicken, cty, 节奏魔王, kaka, Lanm (in that order). Come barrack for us in the coming season! — EHOME (@EHOMECN) September 6, 2015

To fill in the empty slots, EHOME recruited Wang "old chicken" Zhiyong for mid, Ren "eLeVeN" Yangwei on the offlane and Hu "KaKa" Liangzhi as the second support. None of these three have much experience playing DOTA on a world stage, having spent most of their time fighting it out in the extremely competitive Chinese leagues. It’s always risky for any team to transition from players who regularly played against international teams to a group of relative unknowns, and for EHOME it could have spelt the end for a team that had only just reformed in January. Fortunately for EHOME, this was not the case.

In their first major qualifier since the trade deadline, the Chinese Qualifiers for ESL One, EHOME went undefeated through the quarterfinals and semifinals to fend off Invictus Gaming in a 3-1 series, securing the second Chinese place at New York. Despite losing the first game, EHOME fought back to win three games in a row, two of which were under 30 minutes.

Just to prove that this wasn't a fluke, EHOME proceeded to demolish IG again at the Nanyang Championship Chinese Qualifiers in a gripping set of five games. While this was much closer fought, with IG having learned from the early game compositions EHOME favored in their previous matchup, EHOME held on and was rewarded well for their struggle.

Before TI5, one would be hard-pressed to call EHOME one of the best teams in China, remaining on the cusp of true success. After the roster changes, few thought that it would be possible for EHOME to remain as one of the premier Chinese teams. Yet EHOME has qualified for ESL One New York, and if they succeed, they will finally earn the right to be called the best team in China.

The Players

Chen "Cty" Tianyu is EHOME`s safelane carry. Joining the team at the start of May, Cty was one of the biggest contributors to their success at TI5, where he made a mark with his Storm Spirit. Cty’s most successful hero, though, has been Queen of Pain, with whom he has a 71.43% winrate in 6.84. Whether he can continue to win on these heroes in 6.85 remains to be seen, as Storm Spirit especially has been gutted with increased mana costs and changes to core items like Bloodstone.

Wang "old chicken" Zhiyong is EHOME`s freshly recruited mid. Formerly of Energy Pacemaker, old chicken has not had the opportunity to play against teams outside of China, so New York remains a bit of a question mark. What is certain, however, is his killing ability; for players who had participated in four or more matches in the Chinese Qualifiers, old chicken had an average of 8.57 kills per match, leading all others.

Ren "eLeVeN" Yangwei plays offlane for EHOME. Prior to joining EHOME, eLeVeN had not played for any major team, though his recent performance suggests that he will be a worthy replacement to rOtK. Like most offlaners, he favours Tusk and Clockwerk, who were major heroes in the role during 6.84. Tusk’s changes in 6.85 were relatively minor, with mana costs increased for Ice Shards — ESL New York will likely answer the question of whether he is still viable.

Hu "KaKa" Liangzhi is the newest support for EHOME. He previously played for HyperGloryTeam, and has an MMR of over 7000. A solid support player, he proved himself by obtaining the highest average assists per game for supports at the Chinese Qualifers.

Zhang "LaNm" Zhicheng plays support for EHOME, and has been with the team the longest out of all current players. With a wide pool of heroes he is comfortable with, LaNm is one of the most versatile supports in China, and is comfortable taking a playmaking role. What that wide pool translates to is that out of all of EHOME, LaNm is likely the best positioned to transition into 6.85, as previous favorites can be shifted out for new strong picks.

What to Expect

EHOME’s first match in New York will be against Virtus.pro. Unlike most teams, VP did not change their roster following TI5, where like EHOME they placed 5th-6th. This leaves them, along with CDEC and Vega Squadron, as one of the few teams whose compositions have played in multiple tournaments.

Furthermore, when the two teams played against each other in the TI5 Group Stage, EHOME emerged the victor with an easy 2-0 shutout. Despite lacking three of the TI5 squad members, Cty and LaNm’s experience with the European team should provide a slight edge to their match.

The one change that could drastically impact the standings however is patch 6.85. When ESL One New York starts, the patch would have been in place for just over a week; there is not much time to learn the nuances that could make or break a game, with some of the changes taking away key assets from the team. For example, Cty’s Storm Spirit was a terror on the field each time he was played at TI5, but 6.85 weakens him to the point where he is no longer viable.

EHOME already showed that they can go toe to toe with the best teams in China and come out strong. A victory in New York arguably means that the team will inherit the position of best team in China. With the release of 6.85 however, that is easier said than done for a team that few thought could make it this far. But the opportunity is there; it’s just up to EHOME to take it.

Preston Dozsa writes about Dota 2 for theScore eSports. You can follow him on Twitter.