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22 коментара
pheonix_

    that new secret works like magic, also new na'vi is doing good so far

    Unknown R

      Balela!

      Ira

        Agreed

        Brünk Hüll

          You know, it seems like every patch or meta analysis talks about how hard it is for certain heroes to shine because teams are grouping up more often than they did before. At what point do we recognize that the game has almost entirely phased out the laning stage, killed farming wave strategies, and thus ruined a large portion of heroes and players?

          I'm more than fine with early game strategies, teamfight oriented drafts, and split push gameplans. But I keep saying this over and over: when will we get a true late game viabile scenario? When will we get bored of 80 kill games and remember that 'the play' was memorable for its gravity within the game, not just because of the surprise ravage steal (which happens more often than you would think)? The million dollar dream coil was less amazing, but still really cool. The six million dollar slam? It was almost boring. Kills aren't exciting anymore. Smart, patient, impenetrable lineups are all but forgotten unless they are aggressive like Liquid kotl strat.

          People say it's boring. Who cares. A team that understands how to control the flow of a game in any way they can is deserving of admiration.

          Brünk Hüll

            More to the point:

            Secret cannot keep up this style of drafting. Surprise picks throw off the opponent, but more often than not it's a style that only works for one tournament. Wings died quickly, VP abandoned the 'only pick it once' strat. I expect to see a more conservative draft from Secret in the coming tournaments.

            Na'Vi finally got some points, and for the amount of work they put in to get those points, I'm sure it's a bit frustrating. Nevertheless, Sonneiko is proving himself to be a very valuable player, both as a support and as a captain. Crystallize probably is still the weak link, and I'd love to see Resolution move over to Na'Vi, as OG just isn't working out for him.

            VP losing Solo due to stress is kind of proof that VP can't keep up their power for much longer. They broke under pressure and I would be surprised to see them do well in the coming tournaments. They are playing with Artstyle, who has failed Na'Vi more than once in the past couple years despite winning the first TI.

            Liquid are showing chinks, but they really do seem like the first team that won't crumble after TI since Na'Vi. That being said, there's a lot of time before the next TI.

            Newbee needs to make a trade, but I'm not educated enough on their team to know who.

            EG is showing signs of life, but I'd still say they may not have the right lineup to get much further. Fear is in the wrong position.

            Brünk Hüll

              Side note: Not every tournament needs a big trophy. It feels a little overdone.

              Sleight of My Fist In You...

                Newbee needs to make a trade but doesnt know who...you invalidated your entire essay with that

                if youre a scrub dont act smart, stay simple

                Tomoxx

                  Nothing to say about Lone Druid?

                  Brünk Hüll

                    @Sleight of My Fist In You...

                    They are clearly still doing well enough, third points total. However they have only placed above liquid once and VP once, and Secret has surged past them. Their minor win did not feature VP or Liquid. They seem to be in the right place at the right time, and have shown signs of weakness, losing to teams like Na'Vi and VG. In fact, their win over VP was a BO1.

                    This makes me question their future, as most teams experience peaks and valleys. Almost every team that placed top 8 at TI7 has crumbled, and with VP likely to fall, the only two strong teams remaining are Newbee and Liquid. It's stressful to maintain that high level play for that amount of time, and their slightly erratic performance is a little more worrying than Liquid, who have reaped points from every tournament they have attended.

                    With all of that in mind, it would make sense to try to stem the tide by introducing new blood. I haven't devoted time to watching their matches so I don't have a guess as to who should be replaced, therefore I decided to not place blame on any one person.

                    Perhaps I am wrong about that point, and I welcome a differing point of view on their current strength if you have one. These discussions can be very beneficial to those who are wiling to add to the conversation and listen to others. So step up or step aside.

                    Tribo

                      Crystallize is doing a good job. Have you seen the last Na'Vi games?

                      THOTPaTroL

                        @Brock Hall you must be a dondo fan then.. He barely those thing these days,it's all about crystallize and Rodger whose putting the team back on track

                        Gurin Jeimuzu

                          I actually think Dendi is still a good player. Not the player he was 6 years ago but still very solid. Problem is whilst I rarely think he is the reason Navi lose a game, he's also increasingly less why they win it.

                          Still a very solid player though

                          Nervous Bakedown

                            It frustrates me how much Valve/Icefrog/Whoever runs the home page of Dota are not promoting any of the majors as much as they were when it was just Valve events. Like when the Manila Major was going on there was nothing on my Dota page besides THE MANILA MAJOR IS HAPPENING TUNE IN NOW JACKASS! Now all they do is highlight the game that is going on currently in the Watch window and they don't even say what the tournament is unless you click on it. Valve said they were going to work with smaller organizations and all they're doing is sponsoring them basically.

                            Brünk Hüll

                              @🎈🎈IT's PennyWise🎈🎈

                              Dendi can still turn up, but I think he is beginning to be a much calmer player. I certainly am a fan of his, but he has had a difficult time walking away from his powerhouse mid style and I don't think anybody in their right mind would say he is the mvp of the team.

                              Ever since Sonneiko came on board I've seen him as the mvp of the team, as it's rare that he plays a sloppy game. He made a name for himself with WW and continues to impress with complicated heroes like Oracle and Earth Spirit. I so far have not been very impressed with Crystallize, but Rodjer is seeming to fit well in the lineup. I do feel like General is ignored a lot, but he is also one of those players that always puts up solid numbers, even if he isn't hitting Universe levels of amazing.

                              I'm also a huge fan of Resolution, ever since his days in ICCup, when he dragged his team past VP at, like Starladder 5? It was a while ago, but even back then Tobi was yelling RESOLUTION like he do. So maybe I have a bias towards him.

                              Bwahahahah

                                Although I am myself a Dendi fan but i think Dendi is the weak link in Navi, Crystallize is doing well. General and Rodjer are the play makers for them, Sonnieko has always been good but drafting is a problem for Navi , I feel their hero pool is not good. Currently all the successful teams are the ones with good hero pool and their players flexibility in playing different heroes like liquid and secret .

                                Brünk Hüll

                                  @Bwahahahah

                                  Keep in mind that Sonneiko is very new to being the captain. Compared to their results before TI7, there is a marked improvement. I personally have seen Crystallize make a number of questionable positioning choices, but I am in no way saying he needs to be traded away. Resolution was my choice for replacement should they decide to make a trade, but considering the slow but steady rise Na'Vi has made this season, finally cracking top 4 and taking down both VP (a couple times now I think) and Newbee shows that new blood isn't required. You're right that they need to expand thier pool, but I expect that as each player continues to fall into a groove with this new lineup and new position for Sonneiko, that will happen naturally.

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                                  Decarabia

                                    Yea, I think problem with navi is they have too thin hero pool, especially for carry and mid. Dendi often picks QoP or Storm, and recently Zeus, which imo not really good with current fast-paced meta as tempo mid. crystallize either sven or PL. By all mean they are not bad, but variation is welcomed for broader strategy. Once I think rodjer is the weak link, but he showed a great performance these days

                                    Decarabia

                                      Another problem is, there are too many games that happen in short time. This holds true especially for them who must do qualifier. Seriously, maintaining high level play with such hectic schedule is not easy, and we see VP becomes the victim even though they often become direct invite from CIS. This hectic schedule also makes every competition feel less hype, which is sad

                                      Killerspintt

                                        I think VP's poor performance was because of a meta/patch not suited to them. Early aggression doesn't provide has much early game advantage like before (exp gain nerfed for early kills), many heroes they like don't exist in this meta (like Ursa), good heroes in this meta don't suit their early aggression playstyle (like Medusa, Lone Druid....)....their early elemeination doesn't look much surprising when you watch the current meta.

                                        Brünk Hüll

                                          @Killerspintt

                                          VP themselves however, along with an additional post from Solo, have talked about their poor handling of losses and the high stress environment that their team was in. I'm not saying you're wrong, but it does sound like they might have cracked even in a meta that favored them more.

                                          STE 8-1-8

                                            @Brock Hall I disagree, Crystalize has been playing well for someone who just entered the scene, but think their draft style has been a bit too predictable at times, also they seem to have some decision making problems imo, I think sonneiko is showing the same inexperience as when Cr!t was captain of EG but it's all party of the learning curve. However they have been playing really well, conservative when the need to be at times, sometimes they overstay their welcome or underestimate/overestimate how strong they are at certain times and throw the game but so far I've been impressed by them and it's good progress moving forward!

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                                            Brünk Hüll

                                              @8-1-8

                                              I've noticed a lot of people pushing back at my comments on Crystallize, and that's fine, but I think you nail it on the head: he's good for being new. I fear he will hit a ceiling, but it's hard to argue that they are worse off with him and Rodjer and a new captain. They hit a new high score for their team in this last tournament, and so long as they at least hold that position on the ranks I would be surprised to see them rock the boat. For now, he is still my pick for trading if things begin to go south, with, sadly, Dendi being a close second.

                                              Sonneiko probably does have some growing pains, but I think he deserves a lot of the credit for their performances.

                                              On the Crit comment, I think he was doing very well, and I think a lot of people forget how well they did coming up to TI. Their early exit was part of the yearly surprise team, similar to DC and CDEC (though not as far). Crit lost his nerve after that loss and has gone on record saying he is glad to step aside.

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