Q: Who comes up with the best in-game strategies?

Q: Who do you get along with the best?

Q: Who is the best at Karting?

Q: Who is the funniest?

Q: Who has the weirdest taste in food?

When our Dota 2 team’s manager, Mohamed Morad, made the announcement that we were keeping the same roster after finishing fourth at the Internationals 2018, a lot of people were surprised. Rosters seem to change often in this game. But not us. No. We have our eyes on one goal: Win The International with the same roster twice.“Nobody has ever done that,” said Lasse Aukusti “MATUMBAMAN” Urpalainen. “Not even in League. They have never had the same roster win twice. This would be something amazing.”It’s a goal no other team has ever even attempted to accomplish.But this is the second year that our Dota 2 team is attempting to go for this one-of-a-kind record. And they are more confident than ever going into this season and are proud to stand by the same dudes who won them the first International title back in 2017.With Miracle making a shit ton of noise in the background, I spoke with Matu about our trusty Dota 2 roster and what makes these dudes so damn good together.“I’m going to beat this guy up soon,” said Matu, just a few questions in. “I hope that made it into the interview.”When asked what the Dota 2 team’s greatest strengths are, Matu immediately said it was the “team’s great captain.”The players “are amazing,” of course, but KuroKy has been the glue holding them together for a long time. The guys often go to KuroKy for advice, and not only in the game.Matu said he’s often giving him nice life advice and always up for some philosophical debating on religion and the like. People often say to not talk religion or politics, but for Liquid’s Dota 2 team, having all of these deep conversations clears their minds when it comes to the game itself.“We always try to make sure we’re all on the same page,” explained Matu. “We aim to communicate in ways that help the team, avoiding irrelevant information. We discuss not stressing so much, not talking shit. We just want to talk about the game. No chit-chat. We just need to find ways to win the game.”So for any Dota 2 competitors reading this: They key to success is not discussing if Nepal should re-declare Hinduism as their state religion during scrims. Try it out sometime.For Matu, he gets along with everyone on the team very well. But he interacts with GH the most, since he’s the one sitting next to him during most practices. This says a lot about the team’s compatibility though, when you remember that they have sat together almost 24/7 for the past two years.That’s about 17,520 hours of sitting next to GH.“All of our personalities mesh up pretty well together,” said Matu. “We all have the same goal. Every team wants to win together. That’s the one goal you’re all striving for. You all have the same purpose. And you’re always working on it together.”Of course the guys get sick of each other. Sometimes. Matu said they’ll take a whopping 30 minutes to “take care of themselves” and relax. But after that, “they’re good to go.” It’s never too long until the team is all back together again.Said Matu: “Social interactions with people for 10 hours can get exhausting sometimes.”But it’s hard to stay away for too long.He was hesitant to say himself, but Matu had to finally admit he was the best at Karting.“I come from an unfair background,” he explained. “I have a driver’s license and love driving. It’s not fair to the others.”Not that it stops him from winning.Karting is serious business in Europe. It’s nothing like go karting in the states, said Matu. These karts are going 80 km, or 50 mph. The guys were also debating skydiving before The International 8, but it ended up not fitting into their busy schedule.So what does hurling yourself out of an airplane at 13,000 feet have to do with Dota?“It’s a team building experience,” said Matu. “It’s about having fun together. Doing things together. It can get very stressful doing the same thing every day together. It’s nice to do something relaxing together, too.”You know, relaxing things like skydiving.“For me, it helps refresh my mind about the game itself,” Matu noted. “It helps me focus. It makes me feel like there’s more than just playing Dota.”For Matu, Miracle is the “light bulb of the team.”A lot of the guys are a little bit more on the serious side, so when Miracle is “not on,” it can get a little hard for the guys. Winning International’s is serious business. Taking fourth at another is no joke. They won six LANs in a row. And they’re always trying to improve their results, said Matu. But all of this pressure and determination can be difficult without some joking around here and there.The guys often turn to Miracle for some humor. But everyone on the roster has their role to play, in and out of the game.“We know everything about each other,” said Matu. “We get along. We know our playstyles. We’re just in a really good spot and we’re highly motivated to play again.”Going into this season with the same roster has made the Dota 2 team feel extra confident. There’s no new guy to adapt to. No new playstyles to work with. They know each other. They trust each other. And they’re all hungry for that second International win.“He just has a love-hate thing with food,” laughed Matu. “One day he’ll like something, like onions. The next day he’ll hate it, depending on his mood.”Even though MC’s craving for onions changes daily, the team’s overall craving for another International trophy never waiver. Through the karting, the religious debates, the joking, that’s what always remains constant for Dota 2, and keeps the roster stronger than ever: Their shared determination to win The International together. For the second time.