In a late scheduling change Invictus Gaming have agreed to play Alliance tonight despite a visa issue disaster which forced the Chinese team to spend last night in Frankfurt Airport. The upper bracket semi-final match between Cloud 9 and ViCi Gaming has been moved back to tomorrow.
Schedule for April 24th:
Cloud 9 vs. Team Tinker: 2-0
ViCi Gaming vs. London Conspiracy: 2-0
Team MY vs. Team Secret: 2-1
Team Tinker vs. London Conspiracy: 2-0
Invictus Gaming vs. Alliance: 2-0
Schedule has changed to incorporate iG vs. [A]
View our Survival Guide for Day One
StarLadder XII is already shaping up to be a classic after an impressive Team MY were able to secure an unlikely victory over European titans Team Secret. Now narrowly placed as top team in the world according to GosuRankings, Team Secret will have a rough time advancing from the bottom of the lower bracket. They await the loser between Invictus Gaming and Alliance, another match that could raise the bar for exciting gameplay. With a mouth watering clash between Cloud 9 and ViCi Gaming scheduled for tomorrow and more eliminations to come - the next few days are going to bring some intense competitive Dota 2.
Main Stage: Invictus Gaming vs. Alliance 2-0
GosuBet: Invictus Gaming 62% Alliance 38%
Invictus Gaming and Alliance are two teams that have had major roster issues since The International 4. Invictus lost YYF to retirement and Faith to LGD Gaming, and fell into a string of poor performances with their new lineup. It's been a similar case with Alliance after the departures of AdmiralBulldog, EGM, s4 and Chessie the roster has failed to hold down a consistent roster. But with the recent roster shuffles, the two teams have sparked back to life. Veteran carry BurNIng has joined Invictus Gaming while Faith has returned to secure the lineup. For Alliance their performances have impressed with the arrival of 7ckngMad to the roster. But it's now time to see which team have what it takes to secure victory. ChuaN getting detained by airport police and forced to remain in Frankfurt Airport for 12 hours last night will have brought the added barrier of sleep deprivation for the Chinese, but it should still be a highly competitive matchup with Invictus Gaming still ranked as the favourites according to GosuBet.
Game One Invictus Gaming wins
The battle between Invictus and Alliance brought some unconventional drafts. Alliance's Loda took the reigns of Chaos Knight while a BurNIng Naga Siren was drafted to slowly farm away in the background. Alliance were able to secure two towers, but only 9 kills took place in the opening 20 minutes of the game. As the game progressed into the mid game some great play from Luo's Clockwerk allowed Invictus to claim an important kill advantage despite BurNIng not contributing to the team fights. Invictus were in control of the tempo of the match, farming and picking off Alliance's heroes when they choose. Alliance attempted to fight back, but with the arrival of a farmed Naga Siren (he achieved 522 last hits by the conclusion) Invictus were able to charge into their base and terrorize the Swedish team. With only a 9 kill lead after 42 minutes, the damage was in the experience and gold graphs. A big team wipe for Invictus allowed them to destroy two out of three of Alliance's barracks. With the Swedes unable to defend their final barracks and the team were forced to admit defeat and prepare for the second game.
Game Two Invictus Gaming wins
Treant Protector is a popular hero with Alliance and 7cknmad, so it may have been a surprise that it was Invictus that picked up the hero early on in the drafting process. Alliance took an early lead but Invictus found their way back into the game through solo kills from Luo's incredibly bash-lucky Spirit Breaker and successful counter-initiations. The initiations from Luo charging around the map set up Invictus with triple and quadruple kills at a time to give his team a commanding lead. Alliance were left completely helpless as Luo charged deep into the enemy base at multiple times with little consequence. With a big team wipe at 28 minutes the game was over. Dominance by Invictus Gaming, despite concerns that the team would be fatigued following their night in Frankfurt. They move into the upper bracket semi-final to take on Team MY while Alliance will have major concerns that they could be exiting the tournament joint-last as they face Team Secret in the first round of the lower bracket.
Headline image by Kelly Kline (flickr)
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