[eSports Review] Masters of the Sword | Knockout Stage | Dynasty vs Serenity

[St.Guardian 514]

 

Introduction To The Match

 

After rough and tough previous matches, our two EN clans, Dynasty and Serenity, met in the Loser's Bracket semi-final of the First League. Dynasty had lasted longer in the main bracket but had unfortunately lost to International 3:2, so they inevitably met their companion clan Serenity who previously beat Hедотроллефлудеры 2:0 in the Loser's Bracket.

 

It was certainly predicted that this match would be very tense for both clans, as the MoS Tournament was their debut. To intensify this even further, most of the players from these two clans used to fight under the same clan name known as 'Fearless'; so a grudge was to be settled, and the battle was to be fueled by fiery ambition from within the players.

 

 

First Round

For all 600 seconds of the first round, both Serenity and Dynasty performed quite superb drop control and coordinated attacks. Attacking duos such as balsicmne and I.z.I as well as John and I.Slay often stormed their respective opponents' bases. This either lead to a quick put down by defender pairs such as Sly and Atlantis or St.Railgun and Jingle, or a broken defense that was followed by a forceful capture. These factors pushed the score from 1:0 to 2:0, then 2:0 to 2:1, and 2:1 to 2:2. Eventually, the round was set to end on a positive factor for Serenity when something abrupt happened.

 

 

 

 

Dynasty's defense had been quite compact in the Blue base, but closer to the end of the battle, it was broken by swift, knife-end attacks. First, balsicmne tore through their base with a Speed Boost which ultimately lead to a capture, pushing the score to 3:2 to Serenity. Subsequently, a fully-dropped Lankbouv thundered into Dynasty's base, took the Blue flag and brought it to loyal defender Jingle who finished the capture, ending the round 4:2 to Serenity.

 

 

Second Round

The second round, some might say, was slightly more... unbalanced. When the first wave of drops rained at around 9:30, Serenity was apparently more prepared than their opponents, as their players took more drops which lead to more health and damage output for them. This swaying element allowed experienced attacker Criminal_Lyf to barge into the Red base, pick up its flag and speed off into his well guarded base. This made the score 1:0 to Serenity.

 

 

 

 

Additionally, Dynasty was in for some trouble as their defense was completely destabilized by constant attacks and more than often it was occupied by a player from Serenity. As a result, many successive captures followed one another closely and attackers such as I.z.I, Lankbouv and even St.Railgun brought many Red flags into the Blue base for quite a lot of captures. Dynasty did try a few well organised attacks but their opponents would have none of it: the round ended 8:0 to Serenity.

 

 

Third Round

It became apparent though that Dynasty would not just give up without a fight. After Serenity got a quick lead from an early capture by St.Railgun, they counter attacked and made this point quite evident. It began when the second wave of drops fell, of which Dynasty got the majority. Mrs_DoomSDaY had a Speed Boost and Double Armour and, supported by her partner-in-attacking John who had full drops, she captured to level the score back to 1:1.

 

 

 

 

After this, Serenity's defense was compromised and now it was Dynasty's turn to roam their opponents' Red base. A swift attack by them allowed them to push the score to 2:1 and a following solo attack by BP barganoctavian tipped the odds even further to 3:1. Their opponents did try to push back, but their attacks were in vain because they were single-player attacks that were not powerful enough. Teamwork lead Dynasty to capture a subsequent flag in a well composed chain-link attack and win the round 4:1, and also provide a spark of hope for the fourth and possibly final round. 

 

 

Fourth Round

This last round was definitely the most intense of all, mostly because it was the determinant for who would progress. The first tense few minutes produced no captures. Shortly after this period though, Serenity made a quick move on Dynasty's flag. This meant that Lankbouv would bring the flag for a relatively smooth handoff capture with Jingle, making the score 1:0. However, a rapid counterattack by Dynasty's John leveled the playing field back to 1:1 in a glorious run.

 

 

 

 

Thereafter, both teams developed almost impenetrable defenses as no side wanted their opponent to capture another flag. Even fluent attackers such as I.z.I and John were quickly debunked in their efforts. St.Railgun, though, was persistent. In a graceful show of drop control, he managed to get full drops and bashed through the enemies defense and captured the flag. A later group offensive by Serenity provided the ultimate push into victory with a final score of 3:1.

 

 

 

Conclusion On The Match

 

This match was tightly wound until the fourth round. After all, it was played on Barda and there were, surprisingly, no standoffs. Dynasty performed admirably and did the EN community proud. Unfortunately, they have been knocked out of the tournament; perhaps they can make it further next time. Their victors, Serenity, managed to outperform them skilfully and will progress through the bracket. They now move on to play against Wood's. Best of luck to them!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited May 16, 2017 by St.Guardian

[Balsaa 838]

Great job! :D

[Points 693]

Nice job!  :wub: 

[Drey 879]

Let's go SRT!  :wub:

[Lankbouv 6,347]

Good article, thanks!)