After watching some very mechanical, extremely tight and co-ordinated Korean play gradually grind their opponents into submission via superior CS and constant pressure in the worlds, I had a desire to observe some more… Eccentric play.
And by Hera’s Golden Girdle did I find it.
Ladies and Gentlemen, Boys and Girls, I present to you the unsung heroes of the Worlds, the true source of entertainment for decades to come….
The International Wild Card Tournament.
It came about as I was wondering what had happened to the winners of the Oceania Regionals at Pax back when they launched the Server in June. That had been some entertaining watching, with only a handful of actual “Professional teams”, but with several dozen teams all up. While It had seen some really strong demonstrations of Skill- Hotsoggydecimate, the runners up in particular had stand out performances from Iwilldecimate and Elvte, the teamwork was frequently lacking.
So Team Immunity, took out the Oceania Championship.
And then I briefly wondered where they went. It had put them in the running for the worlds hadn’t it? if so, where were they. And then I found them.
It doesn’t get that much better than this. Brazilians, Turks, Lithuanians and Australians, in a brutal fight to the death to earn that one wildcard slot in the world tournament. All of them are winners of their own local regional tournaments. In a Worlds where play was dominated by extremely tight play, the International Wildcard was a tad more… innovative.
For example, there’s this match between Team Immunity and the eventual winners, Gamer Gear EU in the semi-finals.
Which features… an AD Lulu Mid, and a Tryn top. I am not kidding. Immunity was facing elimination, and this was what they decided to draw out of the bag.
I have to admit this is one of the best matches I’ve seen in a while. Sadly, the might aussie team fell to GG, but from what looked like a complete wipeout at 15 minutes, Immunity fought it out, out farmed but not outplayed to more than 50 minutes. Which seems to Be immunity’s forte.
I’m watching some of the other games now. Do you want to see Tryn, Quinn, and Lissandra played in an International tournament? If so, strap yourself up, the International Wildcard awaits.