The semi-finals of the S10 World Competition would be held on Thursday and Friday nights during prime time. The match between Tianheng and FNO was scheduled for Thursday night at 7 pm. There were still two days to prepare before the official match. Tianheng's coaching team found the videos of FNO's past matches and reviewed them in detail.
As a veteran powerhouse in the North American region, FNO was established in the S1 season. The team had a long history. After so many years, the players had also undergone many changes.
Mitchell was FNO's third captain. He debuted in the S8 season and participated in a world competition with the team. S9 was FNO's worst season and they did not get a place in the world competition.
After the S10 bottom lane duo team was replaced with newcomers, FNO performed well in the regular season and entered the playoffs with consecutive victories. They won the first place in the North American region and obtained a ticket to the world competition.
This team's top laner Kriman, jungler Faust, and midlaner Mitchell were all top players in the North American region. They were strong individually and had rich experience in competitions.
Their weakness was the two newcomers, Angus and Allan, in the bottom lane. It was the first time these two young teenagers participated in a world competition. They might not be mentally mature enough.
Therefore, after the coaching team's research, they focused on the bottom lane of FNO.
Coach Lin said, "In the first round, we'll still use the usual combination of midlaner and jungler. Focus more on the bottom lane. If we can collapse Angus and let our Little Star develop, it will be easier to win in the later stages."
As for the lineup, Coach Lin analyzed, "FNO's coaching team has carefully watched every match we've played in China. Therefore, the strategies we've used in China might not be effective against FNO. This is a competition. It concerns whether we can enter the finals and win the prize. We've decided to use a new system to play FNO. We'll try our best to win the first round and take the initiative in BP … "
As FNO knew Tianheng very well, the lineup used in the past was indeed not easy to play. It might be easier to win with a new system. The coaching team's decision was unanimously approved by the players.
The pre-match analysis meeting lasted for more than an hour. Everyone listened carefully.
After the meeting, Fang Zhengqing took the initiative to contact Chi Shuo and played a few mock matches with Tianheng to test out Tianheng's new tactics and find out some problems in their cooperation.
Two days passed quickly, and the highly anticipated semifinals of the S10 World Competition began on Thursday night. The official commentators from various countries were ready on the second floor of the broadcast area.
Yao Mu took a deep breath and smiled at the camera. "Good evening, ladies and gentlemen. This is the semifinals of the Seoul eSports Center's S10 World Competition! The next match is between FNO and Tianhuan Squad! "
Brother Dong said, "I'm sure you're all familiar with FNO. They're the champions of the North American region, an old team that's been around for ten years. They've also played against Tianheng in S6. Their current captain, Mitchell, is a world-class mid laner. Their top laner and jungler are all excellent veterans. The bottom lane archer duo is made up of rookies who just debuted in S10. Their archer, Angus, won the North American region's Best Rookie of the Season award! "
Yao Mu said, "From the looks of it, FNO and Tianhuan Squad have a lot in common. Tianheng also changed their S10 bottom lane duo. Their archer, Tianheng Fanxing, won the China region's Best Rookie of the Season award! Today's bottom lane will be a showdown between two world-class' Best Rookies'. Both players are about the same age. "
Brother Dong said, "The middle lane will also be a showdown between world-class mid laners. Therefore, today's match will be very exciting and intense. Let's see how prepared both players are!"
In the soundproof room, the players had already put on their headphones and connected their keyboards and mice.
The referee was inspecting every computer, peripheral, and network. The two Korean commentators were introducing each player's data in Korean, including their hero win rate, kills per game, KDA score, and so on. It could be seen that Ye Shaoyang and Mitchell's data were about the same. Cheng Xing and Angus were also about the same.
Chi Shuo's record in the World Series was slightly better than FNO's jungler, Faust. However, FNO's top laner, Kriman's record was slightly better than Tianheng's Old Qin.
Therefore, from a comprehensive point of view, the two teams were about the same on paper.
At seven o 'clock sharp, the referee signaled the start of the match. The audience applauded enthusiastically.
Yao Mu said, "The system randomly generates the red and blue sides in the semifinals. Tianheng was randomly assigned to the blue side in the first round! Coach Lin's first ban spot … went directly to [Sorcerer of the Day]. Did he ban Mitchell's hero as a sign of respect? "
Mitchell, the most aggressive mid laner in the world, played as a mage like a warrior.
His favorite hero was the close combat mage [Sorcerer of the Day]. This was also the hero that made him famous.
In the soundproof room, Mitchell raised his eyebrows and said, "Is this against me?"
Coach Tom said, "Yes, then let's also target Lieyang."
FNO turned around and decisively used a ban spot on [Lord of the Abyss].
Brother Dong sighed and said, "The BP in the first round is very aggressive! You ban the hero of our team's mid laner, and I'll also ban the hero of your team's mid laner. They're both targeting the mid laner. "Yao Mu smiled and said," These two heroes have a story. I heard that when Lieyang first joined the Tianhuan Squad, Tianheng and FNO had a training match. At that time, Yangyang used [Lord of the Abyss], and Mitchell used [Sorcerer of the Day]. Today, in the World Series, the coaches of both teams banned these two heroes. It seems like they're reminding each other of this past? "
This was also considered a psychological tactic. The two heroes were indeed easy to remind people of the past.
Especially in that training match, Ye Shaoyang had used [Lord of the Abyss] to kill Mitchell's Sorcerer of the Day.
However, Mitchell was no longer the little lunatic who flew into a rage after losing a game in the international server. Although his playing style was still crazy, his psychological quality had become mature and steady.
It didn't matter if he couldn't get his hero. His hero pool was also very deep.
The second ban spot was still given to the mid laner by Coach Lin. It was [Saint Necromancer].
Coach Tom touched his chin and said, "Tianheng has been targeting the mid laner in the P1 stage. It seems like they want to snatch the mid laner. Ban them [Goddess of Destiny] and see what Lieyang chooses. We'll take the counter hero later. "
FNO continued to ban the mid laner, and [Goddess of Destiny] was locked in a small black room.
This hero could cooperate with too many junglers, such as [King of Fighters], [Sword Immortal], and so on. They could all cooperate with [Goddess of Destiny] to play the mid laner. Moreover, [Goddess of Destiny] didn't eat economy, and her speed of support was extremely fast.
The BP of both sides seemed to be only targeting the mid laner, but in fact, there were many factors to consider.
Yao Mu said, "Four mages are in the Ban position. In the P1 stage, both sides will probably snatch the mid laner. Let's see which hero Tianheng will take first!"
Tianheng's blue team will choose first and take [Sharpshooter] directly from the first floor.
Brother Dong said excitedly, "Could it be that Lieyang's [Sharpshooter] will take the mid laner again? Tianheng used this tactic in the Chinese playoffs when the archer took the mid laner, and the effect was very good! Lieyang's [Sharpshooter] can snipe almost every shot. "
Yao Mu said, "It's possible. The Sun Mage and Saint Necromancer that Tianheng banned in the P1 stage are heroes with very high defense. If the archer took the mid laner, he wouldn't be able to snipe these two high defense mages. That's why Coach Lin banned them in advance."
From the BP line of thought, it was indeed very similar to Ye Shaoyang taking [Sharpshooter] to take the mid laner.
Coach Tom thought carefully and said, "Take the mage with the furthest output range and wear him down."
Among all the mages, the one with the furthest output range was [Moonlight Mage]. He could sweep the moonblade from a very long distance and cause AOE damage. FNO decisively took down [Moonlight Mage] mid laner and [Shooting Arrow] archer on the first and second floors. They took down the T0 archer [Shooting Arrow] first, and Cheng Xing couldn't choose it.
It was Tianheng's turn to take the hero.
The second floor took down [Stealth Thief] jungler. Chi Shuo's jungler appeared!
There was a row of flowers and applause in the Chinese live-stream, but there were also viewers who expressed concern. "This is only the first round. Captain Chi is taking the Thief directly. If he loses, won't he be very passive later?" "If the Thief is taken out so early, it's easy to be targeted by the BP! If the opponent takes a bunch of meat as the front row, the Thief won't be able to enter! "
As everyone was discussing, a hero, [Flame Shield Axe], was suddenly chosen on the third floor of Tianheng. This was a very unpopular top laner. How unpopular was it? Almost no one used it in the regular season.
The audience was stunned when they saw this.
Yao Mu couldn't help but say, "Flame Shield Axe? This hero's defense is very high. He can set up a fire shield in front of him to stop the enemy's pursuit. However, the output is almost negligible. In addition, his movement speed is very slow and he doesn't have any displacement skills. He will be very clumsy. "
Brother Dong agreed. "Yes, this kind of clumsy hero is not flexible enough in a team fight. It's easy for the opponent to kite him. Of course, FNO chose [Moonlight Mage], a consumption-type hero. Tianheng chose a top laner with a shield. It's also possible to block the damage in front. "
When FNO saw this, he backhandedly chose [Sword and Blade Will], a very flexible top laner warrior. A flexible warrior vs a clumsy tank. Although the warrior might not necessarily kill the tank, the support speed of the team fight would be faster and the threat to the backline would be greater.
The first phase of the selection was over.
In the second phase, Tianheng consecutively banned [Radiant Shield] and [Blessed Light], two big meat supports. FNO banned [Time Traveler] and [Frost Goddess] that Qujiang had used.
FNO took the swing position [White Bear] on the fourth floor. It could be used as a support or a jungler. After Tianheng's lineup was confirmed, they would finally target it.
Tianheng chose [Flame Goddess] and [Cannoneer] on the fourth and fifth floors at the same time.
The audience in the live-stream was completely stunned. Question marks filled the screen — [???]
[What's going on? Sharpshooter solo, Cannoneer Archer? What about [Flame Goddess]?]
[Choose two Archers and one Mage. Tianheng, are you kidding me with this fragile lineup?]
[No, it's fine if you choose randomly in the domestic competition. Can you not get carried away in the international competition?]
In the soundproof room, Tianheng's five players looked calm, especially Ye Shaoyang. He still had a smile on his face. That annoying expression seemed to say, "Guess what hero I'm playing today."
Mitchell was speechless. "Is he playing [Flame Goddess] or [Sharpshooter]?"
Coach Tom rubbed his chin and thought for a moment. Suddenly, he said, "Could it be [Flame Goddess] support? Is this a mutant fire team? "
FNO's top laner, Kriman, frowned and said, "It's possible. Tianheng's Jiang Shui started as a mid laner. [Flame Goddess] is a defensive equipment. He plays a functional support. He can cast a fire shield to protect his teammates and cast a fire circle to knock out the opponent's blue? "
Coach Tom hesitated for a moment. He took out [Paladin] as a support in the last TER position and used the substitute skill to protect his own core output position.
The BP phase ended. The lineup of both sides was confirmed.
The players began to exchange heroes quickly.
[Flame Goddess] was indeed given to the fifth floor. Qujiang took her to the support position.
[Flame Shield Axe] was given to Old Qin. [Sharpshooter] was used by Little Star. Ye Shaoyang didn't take [Sharpshooter], but took out [Cannoneer] in the middle lane!
This was a hero that could throw Molotov cocktails from a long distance.
Ye Shaoyang changed his public skill to [Sprint].
[Sprint]'s cooldown was only 90 seconds, half a minute shorter than [Flash]'s 120 seconds. If he made a pair of [Sprint Shoes], Ye Shaoyang could support the whole team as quickly as possible and throw Molotov cocktails from a distance to exhaust the opponent.
When Yao Mu saw this, her eyes lit up. "It's the first time that Yangyang took [Cannoneer] as a mid laner. He should be using a fast support and throwing bombs everywhere! If [Flame Goddess] supports, Tianheng's spell output won't be enough. But [Cannoneer] can actually be used as a spell output equipment and rely on big moves to deal damage! "
Brother Dong said, "That's right. Tianheng's team is a mutant fire team. Old Qin's [Flame Shield Axe] can stack Molotov buffs on the opponent. [Flame Goddess] lays a fire field to knock out the opponent's blue. Yangyang throws cannons from a distance. After crippling the opponent, Chi Dui and Little Star can harvest. "
The traditional fire team played positional warfare. [Flame Goddess]'s mid laner [Trap Hunter] would fight in the jungle and advance step by step.
Tianheng's mutant fire team placed [Cannoneer] in the middle lane, giving out spell output equipment, quickly supporting the consumption of the opponent, and cooperating with the wild core [Stealth Thief] to kill people without leaving a trace. Or cooperating with Little Star's sniper to kill people from a distance.
In theory, this system could be played.
But the actual operation was a great test of the five people's cooperation and tacit understanding. Once Little Star was killed in a team fight, or Old Qin couldn't withstand the damage and died too early, Tianheng's lineup was too fragile and could easily collapse.
Ye Shaoyang's support after [Sprint] also became the key to driving the rhythm of the game.
Mitchell's [Moonlight Mage] would clear troops faster than Ye Shaoyang's [Cannoneer]. Would Ye Shaoyang be able to withstand the pressure of this world-class mid laner and take the initiative to drive the rhythm of the game?
No one had seen Yangyang play this hero before, and the domestic fans were very worried.
In the soundproof room, Ye Shaoyang's expression was still calm and full of confidence.
The game was about to start. Before the map was loaded, Ye Shaoyang took a deep breath and placed his left hand gently on the keyboard.
The [Cannoneer] hero was very difficult to operate. Whether the cannoneer's cannonball could be thrown accurately was very important. Once the big move missed, the team fight might have zero output, leading to the collapse of the teammates. Biqu Pavilion
Tianheng brought out a fire team system that FNO had never seen before in the first game. The coaching staff was also betting on Ye Shaoyang's performance.
Ye Shaoyang was very grateful for the coach's trust in him, allowing him to bring out a shooter that had never been used in the international competition to take the middle lane. Using [Cannoneer] against Mitchell would indeed be stressful, but he would definitely go all out.
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