Virtus.pro was actually one of the favorites for ESL One Cologne, but unfortunately they lost against fnatic in the semifinals. They got revenge soon, winning the ESEA Dubai Invitational, eliminating fnatic, TSM and Team EnVyUs on their way. They are – and have always been – dominating the CS:GO scene and for a long time they have consistently remained a top-five team.
Their performance has actually generated a neologism, a new word that is used to describe their often successful and aggressive gameplay, the “virtus plow”. Since the beginning of 2014 their lineup has remained the same and this often shows in their perfect team play. They seem to perfectly harmonise, which of course comes into effect when lines have to be held and one needs to know where the others are watching. Knowing that someone is holding one’s back is a huge relief and can positively affect one’s game play.
Though they have not won any major tournament for a long time, they are a regular visitors at semifinals and always manage to get very far, unlike other teams that struggle to retain level.
The lineup
Filip “Neo” Kubski is a Counter-Strike 1.6 legend that primarily used the AWP back in the days. He has been competing in Counter-Strike since 2004. Recently he has not been using the sniper-rifle too often, but when he did, he always delivered amazing results.
Janusz “Snax” Pogorzelski is very skilled and shows beautiful aim, much like Pawe? “byali” Bieli?ski, the youngest individual in the team, who is usually entry-fragging. The team really depends on these players performing well.
Wiktor “TaZ” Wojtas is the oldest man in the team and, similar to Neo, has come a long way from CS 1.6. He holds the position of the team captain and as such has contributed greatly to them team with his profound knowledge.
Jaros?aw “pasha” Jarz?bkowski is one of the most dedicated players that Counter-Strike has ever seen. He has put so much at stake to become a professional player and luckily has reached that high point of success. He can often be seen with the AWP, delivering unbelievable flick shots that make him irreplaceable for VP.
Virtus.pro offers a unique team chemistry. The oldest players often function as a kind of mentor letting for example byali develop his own play style and let his young reflexes come to effect. When things get out of hand, however, they are still capable of stepping in and winning over games using all the knowledge and strategies they have accumulated over the years.
The play style
Virtus.pro is, perhaps, the most aggressive team in the competitive CS:GO scene and in doing so are definitely the most successful at it. It does not happen very often that a team manages to stop their fast pushes. Many teams offer a rather balanced game play that is neither aggressive nor totally defensive, but Virtus.pro usually prefer to just rush through and let the outcome of the round totally depend on aim duels, where players such as byali and pasha can come to effect with entry-fragging and inhumanely fast reactions. This is what the above mentioned term “virtus plow” refers to - when VP develop momentum through pushing and their aggressive style, they just tend to crush their enemies. This is what most teams fear when placed against the Polish team. The group stages of the ESEA Dubai Invitational are a perfect example. Virtus.pro was put up against Team EnVyUs, who had previously achieved second place at ESL One Cologne. VP started on the terrorist-side of Cache and did not drop one single round in that half. They cut through nV like butter by not giving them any space to breathe whatsoever. It may come as a surprise since Cache is considered to be CT-sided, but VP winning on the less favored side is actually a common sight. They have the uncanny ability to dominate as terrorists on every map no matter its bias.
The team’s history
Virtus.pro is a Russian organisation that was founded in late 2003 and reached popularity for its Counter-Strike 1.6 players. They saw huge success on Russian soil and featured players such as Edward and Zeus, who would go on to play for the top-team Natus Vincere. After some roster changes the team eventually dissolved. In early 2014 Virtus.pro decided to pick up the former AGAiN squad, which has remained within the organisation since then. Their first success was just a few months later as Neo, TaZ, byali, Snax and pasha were rewarded with the trophy of ESL One Katowice 2014. No major title has been acquired ever since, but they have always managed to finish as 3rd/4th or at the very least in a high position.
The team can be proud of a really huge fan base that strongly supports the team at every event. If VP is on the stage, shouting and chanting is guaranteed. In terms of loudness, VP’s fan base manages to trump any other fan group. With a promising win at ESL Dubai Invitational, they may have set course to win many more events that are yet to come. The will always be favourites for the viewers, not only for their personalities, but their individual skill and synergy aswell.
Following series of ''CS:GO: Who is who'' will return in just a week with the Danish powerhouse TeamSoloMid, who have recently made it to the semifinals of ESL One Cologne and have - similarly to VP – the extraordinary ability to consistently reach the finals but never, or rather seldom, actually win them.
Photos taken from: ESL Flickr
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