Review Domination Series III: Grand Final

[Jaaames 1,622]

 

The long-awaited Domination Series has returned for another year and the third instalment of the tournament may have been the most exciting one yet! Arguably, the strongest teams made it through to the end, as we saw the likes of International, Woodpeckers, Vavi, Penguins, Team Pointers, Dream Squad, Legion of Kings and Peppers all make it to the last eight of the tournament scooping up hefty prizes. Eventually we were left with two teams: Vavi and Team Pointers, to battle it out for the magnificent Star paint, Spectrum B Module, 500 000 Crystals, 10 Containers and 500 Batteries. In case you missed anything, below is a summary of how the ending to such a dramatic tournament panned out!

 

 

Run-up to the Grand Final

 

Before getting started on the Grand Final itself, we must take a moment and recognise the epic Losers Bracket Final which was held between Penguins and Team Pointers. Team Pointers were victorious and so went on to meet Vavi in the Grand Final. What was so special about the game vs Penguins was that never-ending tie-breaker round after the score of 2-2 in rounds which resulted in a 3 hour stream - the longest penalty round ever broadcasted! 

 

 

Life for Vavi upon reaching the Grand Final however, was a little easier as they'd put in stellar performances for the duration of the tournament and remained in the upper bracket for the whole time, reaching the Grand Final as the team to beat.

 

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Domination Series III - Grand Final: Vavi vs Team Pointers 

 

To briefly go over the structure of the Grand Final, it consists of three different maps, playing a different format on each with each map having two rounds. This game was an intense one, and we ended up seeing deserving winners of the Domination Series III.

 

If you want to watch the drama as it unfolded, here's the original stream, which I've referred to in the summary.

 

 

 

Map 1 - 1st and 2nd rounds: These rounds are invalid, as team Vavi broke the format rules and therefore, two free rounds were given to Team Pointers. It was Medium format, which only permits a maximum of three medium hulls, but Vavi used four thus creating an unfair advantage. 

 

After the format violation from Vavi, they really needed to pull something out of the hat in order to gain any kind of result from this match, definitely not the start they'd hoped for coming into this match!

 

 

Map 2 - 1st Round:

 

The second map to be played was Barda in the critical format. An interesting format because it only permits smoky and wasp without protection, and so creates some very quick gameplay.

 

It was a perfect start for Vavi in this round, capturing the first and only flag within the first two minutes. It started as a lone attack from @GGWP whilst the Team Pointers base was empty. The flag eventually passed to @Force who was taken out right before capturing allowing @GGWP to spawn in and pick up the pieces to make that round 1-0 to Vavi.

 

 

Map 2 - 2nd Round:

 

An impressive turn of events saw Vavi yet again take an early lead in this round. For the first capture, @Nomad, @Force and @GGWP teamed up in the Team Pointers base to clear the path for @GGWP (who it seemed was the primary attacker) to run away with the red flag. After an attempt to return the flag from @LBJ-6, he was taken out by nice control of the Double Power by @Nomad with @GGWP yet again spawning just in time to finish the move.

 

An attempt to come back was made by Team Pointers and was successful, with the main player to this bit of play. He took the flag whilst the rest of the players were distracted among the chaos of a flag return and pulled off a solo capture with some nice strategical positioning from his teammates, making the score 1-1 at this stage.

 

After a lengthy standoff, very typical of Barda matches, the score ended at 1-1, meaning at this part of the game it was 2-1 in rounds to Team Pointers.

 

 

Map 3 - 1st Round:

 

The last map in this match to be played was Osa, in the Classic format. A format that has been proven to be very exciting, since recreating the old Light format vibe from the old StarLadder StarSeries days, featuring both light and medium hulls and the combined 105% resistance against Railgun. At 2-1 down, Vavi really needed to try and get on top, since they were running out of rounds to do so.

 

The first capture of this round came from Team Pointers and started off with @I_Live_WiThouT_LaWs speed into Vavi's base with a Double Armour and Nitro. He brought the flag back to the base, and after some scattered attempts by Vavi to prevent the capture, the defence and focus of Team Pointers proved too strong and allowed for @I_Live_WiThouT_LaWs to capture.

 

In the dying seconds of the game, Vavi managed to get a capture back, drawing the score in this round level to 1-1. It was a standoff that saw a great push into the flag by @Spy, @Nomad and @Force, with @Spy making a nice shot on the flag being held by @Gothic and returned by the Smoky, @Nomad. Was the comeback on by Vavi?

 

 

Map 3 - 2nd Round:

 

With the score at 2-1 in rounds in the favour of Team Pointers, Vavi needed to come out of this round with a win to have any kind of chance to win the top prize. If they won this round it would go to a tiebreaker to decide who would be victorious. Less pressure was on Team Pointers however, as they needed only to tie or win the round to be crowned champions of Domination Series III.

 

One interesting point to make was the fact Team Pointers decided to not use a smoky but instead have six Railguns. That tactic was paying off for them so far.

 

An intense round where both teams matched each other in terms of skill and drop control, but the defence, yet again of Team Pointers was too much for Vavi to break down. As the seconds ran away for Vavi, Team Pointers saw the round out, a tie at 0-0 meaning the overall score in rounds was 2-1, from an exciting six round thriller of a match.

 

 

Vavi put in a decent performance, but silly mistakes still caught them out, and the outcome may have been very different had it not been for the violation that gave Team Pointers two free rounds. For second place, Vavi were awarded Gladiator paint, 350 000 Crystals, 5 Containers and 500 Batteries.

 

That being said, a massive well done to Team Pointers on winning Domination Series III! The take home Star paint, Spectrum B Module, 500 000 Crystals, 10 Containers and 350 Batteries. 

 

Jaaames' Top Players of the Grand Final:

 

So, who were the top performers of this game? In matches like these you often need stand-out players to guide the team to victory, and in a prestige game like this, I have to admit, they were plentiful!

 

Vavi

 

• , the Vavi team captain, an experienced leader, put in a stellar performance especially in the Medium format. As the XP combination he was doing what he does best, and was camping and picking up some fantastic shots to the aid of his team.
• @GGWP, who was Vavi's main attacker and did well to take and capture flags in the critical format. Nice control of the drops, paired with awareness of when to move into his opponents base earned him a spot on this list.

Team Pointers

 

• I could in fact mention every Team Pointers player in this list, as they all performed amazingly as a team to help one another, which is a vital factor in matches of multiple formats. As a result, this list is hard to compile and anyone could be on it. The few I've picked here have put in an eye catching performance, which many players can learn from.
• @Makxxe and @avetismergelyan2 both make this list together as they both had very similar jobs during the Critical format. The way they controlled the Double Armour and Nitro drops to attack together each time and cause chaos for the Vavi defence was outstanding and ultimately helped Team Pointers to win the game. 
• @LBJ-6 impressed me a lot with how he defended in this match. As the main defender for Team Pointers in the Classic format, he commanded the base with pride and power holding back many Vavi attacks.

 

Hope you guys have enjoyed the Domination Series III, I know I have! Stay tuned for more articles like this to come.

 

@Jaaames

 

 

[Jaaames 1,622]

Back at it again with my review of the recent Domination Series III Grand Final between Team Pointers and Vavi. Enjoy!

[Total_SkiIl 1,983]

nice read

[BRO0088 1,724]

Nice one 

 

 

When do you sleep?

[Jaaames 1,622]

Nice one 

 

 

When do you sleep?

I'm not human, I don't

[Rains_of_Castamere 384]

James the ambidexter

[gokuMI6 1,290]

Nice 

 

I watched the stream live 

 

Maybe try the LB article  :ph34r:

[GrandExecutioner 1,403]

Brilliant!

[BRO0088 1,724]

I'm not human, I don't

When did tanki started to hire monkeys?

[LunaStar 348]

I Enjoyed reading this.

Title for this topic.

" This is what happens when you mess with Senergy player @Makxxe