Scythe.SG wins their first championship, defeating RRQ in the finals of the AsianCyberGames best-of-the-best SEA Invitational with the score of 2-1.
Formed just a little over two months ago, Scythe has already undergone a number of roster changes. Together with their unstable roster came a rather mediocre performance. However, the Singaporean team seems to have finally found the line-up that will work for them as they find themselves the champion of the AsianCyberGames best-of-the-best SEA invitational. Prior to this, their best tournament finish was a fourth-place rank on the AOC Pro Cup.
To get this title, they have endured through a tough finals match where they defeated the game Indonesian team in Rex Regum Qeon on the score of 2-1. Scythe's three playoffs wins all took three games before they were able to seal the series.
Earlier on the day, Malaysian team Titan managed to win third place after defeating Filipino team Execration on a similar 2-1 score. Titan won $500 for their third place finish. Scythe and RRQ earned $2,000 and $1,000 for their first and second place finish respectively.
Game 1
With Chen in the hands of RRQ, Scythe decided to contest the lanes on the early stages. They placed a dual lane of Lifestealer and Ancient Apparition to try shut down the enemy Shadow Fiend, and they sent a Nyx and a Dazzle on the bottom lane to try slow down the farm of the Shadow Shaman-guarded Luna. RRQ's advantage it the top lane match-up, on which they have a Batrider going one-on-one against a Brewmaster. It was RRQ who drew the early advantage as Batrider got a solo kill on his lane and Shadow Shaman getting a solo kill on Dazzle with the help of an illusion rune.
Despite being killed twice early, RRQ's Shadow Fiend is doing a decent job farming and getting levels. Their Batrider is also off to a great start, farming up a dagger and accumulating three hero kills by the sevent minute. Behind already 5,000 gold and 3,000 experience just 13 minutes into the game, Scythe pulled off a successful smoke gank which saw them getting three eney heroes. They stayed together and found a bit of success, managing to bring down the gold and experience deficit to 2,500 and 0 respectively, only to have it bounce back to a disadvantage even bigger to what they earlier have after just one botched teamfight.
After seeing that they are superior on team fights when their skills are on cooldown, Scythe literally stayed as five and moved together, even clearing an ancient camp altogether. While they are not very efficient on the farm, they were able to zone out RRQ and take an uncontested Roshan. Their efforts paidon the 25th minute as they were able to get a teamwipe. By that time, both teams have lost four towers apiece. After a bit of settling down, Scythe had another teamwipe and a Roshan by the 31st minute.
After more than ten minutes of back and forth efforts of the teams to take control, the deadlock was broken after RRQ arrived late when they were trying to contest the third Roshan of the game. They lost three heroes and the middle melee barracks behind Scythe's strong AoE skills in the likes of Primal Split, Weave and Scepter-upgraded Ice Blast. RRQ called GG a few minutes after that as they lost three heroes and their second set of barracks.
Game 2
It was RRQ's turn to use dual lanes. They placed a Spectre and an Ancient Apparition at top against Clockwerk, and the duo of Puck and Shadow Shaman to go up against Templar Assassin on the middle lane. Nyx has a lot of work to do though, as he is placed on the hard lane against the trilane fo Sandking, Rubick and an exort Invoker. It was RRQ who took the first blood again, sending the Ancient Apparition to kill the lone Templar Assassin. Scythe equalized the score just a minute later as their two supports wrapped around the Dire ancient camp to kill the unsuspecting Nyx.
The teams are traded kills and towers, with the slight edge going into the hands of the Indonesian team. The real break, however, was how Spectre was getting farmed and leveled as he was able to participate in team fights without him dying. By the 19th minute, a period where his team has a total of 14 kills, he already has a 4-0-9 KDA record. RRQ won another teamfight behind a good coil and Iceblast combo on the 24th minute. Despite looking comfortably ahead because of their kill lead and the 0-6 score of the Templar Assassin, the Indonesian team finds themselves on just an almost ingorable 2,000 gold lead on the graph.
Knowing that a Radiance is too good to pass up, the Spectre went back to make it and completed it on the 32nd minute of the game. While it is rather common to see a Spectre make a Radiance after finishing Phase Boots, Drums and a Vitality booster, this was different because he completed a Manta Style first after tanking up. A big fight ensued four minutes later, with all heroes but Templar Assassin dying. Despite being down a lot on the experience graph, Scythe surprisingly is ahead on overall farm as the gold graph tipped on their favor after that clash.
Despite having two farmed, heavy-damaging cores, Scythe was demolished by RRQ on an engagement near the Rosh pit. Invoker prematurely popped his BKB, and Spectre's haunt completely botched Sandking's epicenter, and Scythe was wiped without killing a single hero in return. Puck's Dagon 5 was giving so much trouble to Scythe, and the pick-offs that he was able to make room for the team to take the bottom barracks. The Singaporean team tapped out as they were again wiped at the 52nd minute as RRQ was going for the middle tier-3 tower.
Game 3
With the dual lanes working on the first two games, RRQ went with duos again on the third game. They placed an Invoker and a Visage on the middle lane to play against Puck, and the Rubick-Lifestealer combo at the bottom to try ward off the Batrider. Scythe had a big killing potential on the top lane though, as they sported a trilane of Sven, Wisp and Shadow Shaman against the lone Axe. They showed the trilane's strength early on, claiming the first blood just 46 seconds into the game. RRQ had a very quick revenge though, getting a trade-off kill just on the Batrider just two seconds after.
Seeing that Axe will find difficulty in laning, RRQ decided to send Visage to help. At level 1 though, there was nothing much it can do, and Axe died just as easily as he had died the first time. Again, quick to respond RRQ's bottom lane who scored a kill yet again. The top trilane was getting problematic though, as they are netting kills at will. After Wisp's first relocate, which happened on the 11th minute, Scythe was already ahead by eight kills and 4,000 gold.
After scoring their second kill at minute two, RRQ was unable to bank a kill until twenty minutes later. They stopped the Singaporean team from going uphill, winning a 3-1 exchange as Scythe was trying to push the middle tier-3 tower. That went on to become RRQ's last winning team fight of the series though, as Scythe took down Roshan and easily broke through the middle lane on their second attempt at the lane. With a massive advantage on farm and levels, Scythe handily took down the bottom lane and then the top to force the Indonesian team to call GG.
While RRQ's line-up seemed a bit odd, they exclaimed on their facebook post that they have no regrets losing with these heroes because these are their signature heroes.
