WSVG World Championship 2015- Unofficial Write UP |
Here is the unofficial write-up for Group C, which featured in my opinion one the most entertaining series of the tournament, Lojza - JuaNNN, which therefore receives wuite some attention. I plan on getting the last group done later today, to reach my goal of finishing these write-ups before the Maldives event start (barely 11), after which I will be doing write-ups for the Maldives finals as the tournament progresses (meaning one for the quarter-finals when they have been played, then fro the semi-finals, etc.) As always, feedback is welcome.
RiuT - 8th Wonder
In the third group, the two remaining NaBs players 8th Wonder and Lojza faced favorite RiuT from TyRanT Warlords, and JuaNNN from Wolfpack. Lojza and RiuT were probably the favorites, and RiuT was the first player to get a shot at proving his favorite status, when facing Wonder in the first round. RiuT was at this point the only player in the entire tournament to not concede a single defeat, and he opened up against Wonder with the usual powerful micro, putting Wonder under pressure during the Castle Age, to pull home a victory in the Dry Arabia game. Perhaps in a bet on using the randomness of the map to his advantage, Wonder picked Nomad as his home map. This played to Wonders advantage, as a game lasting a full hour allowed to push into RiuT's base with three castles, and with the equalizer, Wonder became the first player to take a game from RiuT. However, in his home map of Regicide Fortress, RiuT made no mistake to win a Mayans war. On Wonders second home map of Migration, RiuT proved strongest again, and put the score at 3-1. With a victory in the final map of Rooster after 20 minutes, RiuT won 4-1, and was ready for the next round.
Lojza - 8th Wonder
Before JuaNNN got off to playing his first game, Wonder was ready for his next round, in a bet for obtaining revenge against clan mate Lojza, who had previously defeated him in the regional final. However, this time Lojza turned up the heat even further, and provided some of his strongest play in the tournament. After wining the Dry Arabia game with superior aggression throughout, Wonder this time picked Islands as his home map. Here, Lojza proved the stronger grush player, and put the score at 2-0. With Lojza picking his strongest point, Arena, as a home map, Wonder came off to a bad start: While deleting his back walls, he accidentally deleted his eagle warrior as well, and that put him at a disadvantage for the rest of the game, leading to a 3-0 trail. In the final game, his second home map of Nomad, where he hoped for luck to be on his side, Lojza proved too strong once again, successfully forwarding Wonder in a prolonged Feudal War. The game went 4-0 in the favor of Lojza, and with two clear defeats, Wonder was eliminated from his chances of reaching the Maldives.
Lojza - JuaNNN
Lojza could secure his spot with a victory against JuaNNN, as the Argentinian played his first set, in a series that was possibly one of the most well played of the tournament. Lojza survived early aggression from JuaNNN to win the Dry Arabia game, after which JuaNNN challenged him in a game of Rooster. Here, the grushing fell in the favor of Lojza, and a long game saw the GG from JuaNNN as Lojza reached the Imperial Age. In Lojzas home map, a very short game of Duopoly saw Lojza winning after 20 minutes, and with a 3-0 lead, Lojza was stumblingly close to the Maldives. However, now things took an unexpected turn, with JuaNNN picking Arena of all maps against Lojza, one of the strongest Arena experts in the world. Lojza himself was surprised, asking JuaNNN if he was aware they were playing a tournament as the game started. However, JuaNNN soon proved he had a clear plan wit his actions. A Castle Age aggression permitted him access to Lojzas base with eagle warriors, and as rams started taking down Lojzas town centers, and his counterattack proved too little too late, Lojza had to concede his first defeat in the Showdown stage, on Arena no less.
In the next game, Lojza picked Oasis as his home map, but JuaNNN proved to have another trick up his sleeve, surprising everyone and everything by picking Byzantines, against the Mayans of Lojza. JuaNNN ambushed Lojzas flank with a highly unorthodox army of monks, scorpions and mangonels against the eagles and plumes of Lojza, but it proved highly effective, with him later massing skirmishers against a clearly surprised Lojza. With a forward castle and trebuchets coming in, followed by cataphracts, Lojza was forced to call the gg, putting the score at 3-2. A potentially epic comeback seemed in the making from JuaNNN, but in the final Japanese war, despite aggressive play from JuaNNN, Lojza once again proved too strong. Winning the game and series, Lojza was as good as ready for the Maldives with a 4-2 victory over JuaNNN, but there was little doubt that the Argentinian had fallen with honor.
In the next game, Lojza picked Oasis as his home map, but JuaNNN proved to have another trick up his sleeve, surprising everyone and everything by picking Byzantines, against the Mayans of Lojza. JuaNNN ambushed Lojzas flank with a highly unorthodox army of monks, scorpions and mangonels against the eagles and plumes of Lojza, but it proved highly effective, with him later massing skirmishers against a clearly surprised Lojza. With a forward castle and trebuchets coming in, followed by cataphracts, Lojza was forced to call the gg, putting the score at 3-2. A potentially epic comeback seemed in the making from JuaNNN, but in the final Japanese war, despite aggressive play from JuaNNN, Lojza once again proved too strong. Winning the game and series, Lojza was as good as ready for the Maldives with a 4-2 victory over JuaNNN, but there was little doubt that the Argentinian had fallen with honor.
RiuT - JuaNNN
He still faced a theoretical opportunity of qualification, but it required doing what was considered virtually impossible, defeating RiuT. Having been defeated 4-0 in the regional final already, this chance for revenge proved far fetched for JuaNNN. After winning the Dry Arabia game, RiuT proved why he was considered one of the strongest in the business. JuaNNN's Arena plan had worked against Lojza, but against RiuT it was less effective, and led to a defeat. JuaNNN tried shaking things up again by picking Celts in Duopoly, but to no avail, as RiuT won this as well. In the final game of Rooster, a standard grush game went to RiuT as well, and with a second 4-0 victory against JuaNNN, the group was settled.
RiuT - Lojza
RiuT was the second TyRanT to join TheViper in the Maldives, while Lojza became the only NaBs player. Despite Wonder and JuaNNN impressing throughout the tournament, both were eliminated. The showoff game for first place between Lojza and RiuT proved somewhat interesting, as Lojza surprisingly took the Dry Arabia game. After this however, RiuT turned up the heat, winning Regicide Fortress and Arena, despite Lojza picking Britons to shake things up, and eventually also Duopoly and Rooster. With only to defeats conceded in the entire tournament, RiuT progressed to the Maldives, while Lojza accepted the defeat knowing his tickets was booked as well. The final game between Wonder and JuaNNN was never played.