DHW 13: ASUS ROG Dreamleague Playoff Preview November 28th, 2013 01:09 GMT Text by TheEmulator Graphics by riptide Table of Contents

Alliance



Fnatic



Na`Vi



Liquid



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ASUS ROG DreamLeague Playoffs

Dreamhack Winter is one of Dota’s most storied events. For years, it was Dota 1’s biggest European tournament, and with the advent of Dota 2 it became one of the game’s most coveted titles as well.



Thus, it is with much anticipation that we look once again to Sweden this weekend. Some of you will be making the trip there, an annual pilgrimage to Europe and indeed one of the world’s gaming meccas. Many others however will be watching from afar as these four teams begin the battle for European Dota’s most coveted title.



There are LANs, and then there is Dreamhack.



This is not just another tournament with an offline finals. This is a birthplace of dreams, the place that begat Alliance last year, and a place they return to now, to defend their crown. Fnatic, Liquid and Na`Vi want nothing more than to take the sceptre away from them here, in the frozen north, for after all, what better place to defeat a champion than on his home ground? One thing is for sure: this is no ordinary LAN, and there won’t be a prisoner taken as this weekend wears out. When the games draw to a close, only one team will be left standing as Kings of the North, for it’s November once again, and in Jönköping, Sweden, winter is here.



The games begin in -







Bracket



It's a long way to the top, this weekend in Sweden!

(Via It's a long way to the top, this weekend in Sweden!(Via Liquipedia



Team Previews



Alliance



Loda AdmiralBulldog s4 EGM Akke





Will the North rally this weekend? (Photo via DreamHack)



Alliance are continuously proving to be one of the strongest Western teams in Dota 2 right now. From their start as No Tidehunter, and all the way through their team reshuffle to now, they have won or at least placed near the top in every major event that they have participated in. As one of the main proponents of “Rat Dota” they were able to take the scene by storm during TI3, showing that Western Dota 2 was now more than equal to the Eastern scene, and that their win at the G-1 League was not just a stroke of luck.



This past weekend at MLG Columbus, Alliance didn’t perform to their usual standard, going 4-4 in the Round Robin and not advancing to the playoffs. Some people are starting to doubt Alliance, and have even been saying things like they have been figured out. Of course, this couldn’t be further from the truth, especially since they are one of the most resilient teams out there.



Though it’s safe to say that their drafting may now be well understood by most teams, they still have some of the highest individually skilled players on the scene and should have no trouble getting back to form if they think carefully about their strategies for this weekend. Apart from having an excellent #1 - #3 position, they have two supports that manage to find farm and levels like no other, while still doing their support role, and guaranteeing their cores farm. They have been adapting well to 6.79, and despite their poor performance at MLG they are still one of the favourites here at the DreamLeague Lan Finals.



As the champions of last year’s DreamHack Winter, Alliance will be returning this time to the Asus ROG DreamLeague Finals. Coming into the playoffs with a 7-3 record, and sitting in first place after the group stages, their chances of winning are high. Over a year has past since their DHW 2012 victory that put them on the map, and a lot has changed. Will they prevail, or will they fall? We just know that winter is coming, and no one is more at home in the frozen north than the Swedes themselves.





Fnatic



Fly N0tail Era Trixi H4nni





Era can definitely pack a punch! (Photo via v1lat)



Fnatic come into DHW 2013 straight off a fairly disappointing MLG run. Going 4 - 4 and thereby barely missing the playoffs, the European team are no doubt looking for a win this weekend in Sweden. They managed round robin wins against Liquid and Alliance in Columbus, and they are thus more than capable of taking a series off either team this weekend.



Having sorted out their, #1 - #3 role farm allocation in recent games, Fnatic are looking as strong as ever, and we would say are in fact a top contender here. The team has a lot to prove, both to themselves and to their fans and critics alike. At one point in early 2012, they were the up and coming Western team, but then they fell of the radar and faded back into obscurity.



Today, at the end of a MLG run that ended just short of the playoffs, they have all the motivation they need to go all the way at DHW. Further, with 6.79 being a canvas for such a plethora of different playstyles, maybe Fnatic will do what Speed did last weekend at MLG and really use their own style of play against everyone else. They’re certainly well positioned to play their unique brand of split-pushing, anywhere-and-everywhere at the same time Dota, and if DK showed us anything in the MLG round robins, it was that teams were really underestimating Io play in the new patch.



They’ve been together for a long time now, and have played a total of 450+ games with each other. It’s also been a year since they





Na`Vi



XBOCT Dendi Puppey Kuroky Funn1K





"u dont know how to play dota? ur team sucks? buy two rapiers" (Photo via v1lat)



Na`Vi is still the most popular team in all of Dota 2, and still amaze their fans to this day with some of the most inspirational play out there. They’re just one of those teams that seem to make plays happen, and that along with their out-there personalities make them fan favourites. It’s not just all hype though!



Unlike Alliance, they had a great run at MLG and seem to be at the top of their game. Last weekend they 1 - 0d all the other teams competing here at DreamLeague and as such are definitely capable of taking series off of all of them. Puppey’s drafting was as strong as ever at MLG last weekend, and we’re certain that they’ll have some picks setup to dominate the three teams they might face in Jönköping this weekend.



Finally, since their narrow loss to Alliance at TI3, they have bested them in two major events, taking them out 3-2 in both the Weplay and StarLadder Finals. With that, they are still in the minds of most the kings of the West, for now. Even if their total dominance of the entire West is questionable, however, one thing is for sure: they are the kings of the continent. They come into DHW having won nearly every European LAN of the 2012 - 2013 season and the 2013 - 2014 season so far, and will no doubt be after a Dreamhack title as the final jewel in their continental crown.





Liquid



FLUFFNSTUFF TC qojqva Waytosexy Bulba





Will this be their weekend? (Photo via TLPro)



Liquid all but defy analysis as they head into DHW 2013. They went 3 - 5 at MLG last weekend, but one of their three wins is a victory against Alliance. While their new lineup seems to be working for them on the whole, they just didn’t seem to be able to bring it together in Columbus.



Could their Swedish run be different? It could. As we stated in our MLG preview, Liquid are one of the most versatile teams on the Western scene. Firstly, they have a fairly flexible #1 - #3 position with highly skilled players in all three of those slots. They play a variety of heroes and are thus also capable of executing a number of different styles of Dota. They also have intelligent supports and a captain who has a real feel for the game.



The key to a Liquid win this weekend then, is being able to not just draft evenly with teams like Na`vi, but also out play them when the game is on the line. They played out of their minds vs LGD at TI3, and with everything on the line, they pulled out a spectacular win. Thus, it’s no question that Liquid are capable of big plays in big games. The question is more along the lines of: will they? They struggled with consistency at MLG, but to be fair, that was their first real LAN with their new roster. However, they thus come to Jönköping this weekend with every reason to go all the way, and if they get out of their own heads and just play the fluid, confident Dota we have seen them display on so many occasions, they just might take the title!





Your Verdict











CREDITS

Writers: TheEmulator, riptide

Gfx: riptide

Editors: riptide, TheEmulator

Banner Photo Courtesy of Writers: TheEmulator, riptideGfx: riptideEditors: riptide, TheEmulatorBanner Photo Courtesy of DreamHack

Dreamhack Winter is one of Dota’s most storied events. For years, it was Dota 1’s biggest European tournament, and with the advent of Dota 2 it became one of the game’s most coveted titles as well. In 2011, it became a veritable proving ground for SyndereN’s Wild Honey Badgers , a newly formed team that lived the dream and went all the way. DHW 2012, of course, saw the rise of No Tidehunter , a then new team that eventually became our TI3 Champions.Thus, it is with much anticipation that we look once again to Sweden this weekend. Some of you will be making the trip there, an annual pilgrimage to Europe and indeed one of the world’s gaming meccas. Many others however will be watching from afar as these four teams begin the battle for European Dota’s most coveted title.There are LANs, and then there is Dreamhack.This is not just another tournament with an offline finals. This is a birthplace of dreams, the place that begat Alliance last year, and a place they return to now, to defend their crown. Fnatic, Liquid and Na`Vi want nothing more than to take the sceptre away from them here, in the frozen north, for after all, what better place to defeat a champion than on his home ground? One thing is for sure: this is no ordinary LAN, and there won’t be a prisoner taken as this weekend wears out. When the games draw to a close, only one team will be left standing as Kings of the North, for it’s November once again, and in Jönköping, Sweden, winter is here.The games begin in -Alliance are continuously proving to be one of the strongest Western teams in Dota 2 right now. From their start as No Tidehunter, and all the way through their team reshuffle to now, they have won or at least placed near the top in every major event that they have participated in. As one of the main proponents of “Rat Dota” they were able to take the scene by storm during TI3, showing that Western Dota 2 was now more than equal to the Eastern scene, and that their win at the G-1 League was not just a stroke of luck.This past weekend at MLG Columbus, Alliance didn’t perform to their usual standard, going 4-4 in the Round Robin and not advancing to the playoffs. Some people are starting to doubt Alliance, and have even been saying things like they have been figured out. Of course, this couldn’t be further from the truth, especially since they are one of the most resilient teams out there.Though it’s safe to say that their drafting may now be well understood by most teams, they still have some of the highest individually skilled players on the scene and should have no trouble getting back to form if they think carefully about their strategies for this weekend. Apart from having an excellent #1 - #3 position, they have two supports that manage to find farm and levels like no other, while still doing their support role, and guaranteeing their cores farm. They have been adapting well to 6.79, and despite their poor performance at MLG they are still one of the favourites here at the DreamLeague Lan Finals.As the champions of last year’s DreamHack Winter, Alliance will be returning this time to the Asus ROG DreamLeague Finals. Coming into the playoffs with a 7-3 record, and sitting in first place after the group stages, their chances of winning are high. Over a year has past since their DHW 2012 victory that put them on the map, and a lot has changed. Will they prevail, or will they fall? We just know that winter is coming, and no one is more at home in the frozen north than the Swedes themselves.Fnatic come into DHW 2013 straight off a fairly disappointing MLG run. Going 4 - 4 and thereby barely missing the playoffs, the European team are no doubt looking for a win this weekend in Sweden. They managed round robin wins against Liquid and Alliance in Columbus, and they are thus more than capable of taking a series off either team this weekend.Having sorted out their, #1 - #3 role farm allocation in recent games, Fnatic are looking as strong as ever, and we would say are in fact a top contender here. The team has a lot to prove, both to themselves and to their fans and critics alike. At one point in early 2012, they wereup and coming Western team, but then they fell of the radar and faded back into obscurity.Today, at the end of a MLG run that ended just short of the playoffs, they have all the motivation they need to go all the way at DHW. Further, with 6.79 being a canvas for such a plethora of different playstyles, maybe Fnatic will do what Speed did last weekend at MLG and really use their own style of play against everyone else. They’re certainly well positioned to play their unique brand of split-pushing, anywhere-and-everywhere at the same time Dota, and if DK showed us anything in the MLG round robins, it was that teams were really underestimating Io play in the new patch.They’ve been together for a long time now, and have played a total of 450+ games with each other. It’s also been a year since they won their first major title at the Thor Open 2012 , and there’s no doubt that they want this victory very, very badly. Can they get it here in Sweden, though? We think they can, and indeed, some of us think they most definitely will.Na`Vi is still the most popular team in all of Dota 2, and still amaze their fans to this day with some of the most inspirational play out there. They’re just one of those teams that seem to make plays happen, and that along with their out-there personalities make them fan favourites. It’s not just all hype though! Na`Vi’s record in the 2012/2013 season is certainly nothing to scoff at. No other team has the same amount of First Place finishes as Na`Vi does, and they’re a definite favourite to walk away with the title here at Dreamhack Winter 2013.Unlike Alliance, they had a great run at MLG and seem to be at the top of their game. Last weekend they 1 - 0d all the other teams competing here at DreamLeague and as such are definitely capable of taking series off of all of them. Puppey’s drafting was as strong as ever at MLG last weekend, and we’re certain that they’ll have some picks setup to dominate the three teams they might face in Jönköping this weekend.Finally, since their narrow loss to Alliance at TI3, they have bested them in two major events, taking them out 3-2 in both the Weplay and StarLadder Finals. With that, they are still in the minds of most the kings of the West, for now. Even if their total dominance of the entire West is questionable, however, one thing is for sure: they are the kings of the continent. They come into DHW having won nearly every European LAN of the 2012 - 2013 season and the 2013 - 2014 season so far, and will no doubt be after a Dreamhack title as the final jewel in their continental crown.Liquid all but defy analysis as they head into DHW 2013. They went 3 - 5 at MLG last weekend, but one of their three wins is a victory against Alliance. While their new lineup seems to be working for them on the whole, they just didn’t seem to be able to bring it together in Columbus.Could their Swedish run be different? It could. As we stated in our MLG preview, Liquid are one of the most versatile teams on the Western scene. Firstly, they have a fairly flexible #1 - #3 position with highly skilled players in all three of those slots. They play a variety of heroes and are thus also capable of executing a number of different styles of Dota. They also have intelligent supports and a captain who has a real feel for the game.The key to a Liquid win this weekend then, is being able to not just draft evenly with teams like Na`vi, but also out play them when the game is on the line. They played out of their minds vs LGD at TI3, and with everything on the line, they pulled out a spectacular win. Thus, it’s no question that Liquid are capable of big plays in big games. The question is more along the lines of: will they? They struggled with consistency at MLG, but to be fair, that was their first real LAN with their new roster. However, they thus come to Jönköping this weekend with every reason to go all the way, and if they get out of their own heads and just play the fluid, confident Dota we have seen them display on so many occasions, they just might take the title! Administrator