Tobi will temporarily take over GH’s position during his time away from the active roster.
As the 2025/2026 Dota 2 season begins, 
Nigma Galaxy’s iconic support player 
Maroun “GH” Merhej has opted to take a break from professional play, moving to the team’s inactive roster. Stepping into his role will be Austrian player 
Tobias “Tobi” Buchner, who will fill GH’s shoes for the foreseeable future.
This roster change comes shortly after Nigma Galaxy’s impressive run at The International (TI) 2025, where the underdog squad defied expectations with a Top 6 finish. After years of struggling to qualify for Tier 1 events–let alone TI–Nigma closed the season on a high note, reaffirming their status in the competitive scene.
Heading into the new season, Nigma Galaxy are among the most anticipated teams, already receiving direct invitations to multiple tournaments. However, with GH stepping away, the team’s dynamics will inevitably shift, as they adjust to the absence of their foundational position 5 player.
Tobi joins Nigma Galaxy as stand-in
Tobi is an Austrian offlaner-turned-support who is best known for his time with 
Entity from 2022 to 2023. He also played for 
MOUZ in late 2024, though without notable success. More recently, Tobi has served as a stand-in for various teams, including 
Tundra Esports, where he temporarily replaced Whitemon due to visa issues. With Tobi in the lineup, Tundra secured a modest Top 8 finish.
Now, Tobi joins Nigma Galaxy to fill in for GH–a huge task given the veteran’s legacy and impact on the squad.
GH takes a break ahead of 2025/2026 season
GH has spent nearly his entire career alongside 
Kuro “KuroKy” Salehi Takhasomi, with whom he famously won TI 2017 and achieved runner-up at TI 2019 under Team Liquid. The squad later formed Nigma Galaxy in late 2019, and GH has remained a core part of the lineup ever since.
This isn’t the first time GH has stepped away. He took a five-month break in early 2024 before returning to competition. Now, as he takes another pause heading into the final quarter of 2025, we can expect to see him back in similar fashion.
At TI 2025, GH was a standout performer, delivering noteworthy plays and clutch saves that helped propel Nigma Galaxy far into the tournament. Tobi will certainly have big shoes to fill during his absence.
As the new season begins, Nigma Galaxy already have events occupying their end-of-the-year calendar. The team will compete in FISSURE Universe: Episode 7's Playoffs today (9 October) and have received direct invitations to compete in FISSURE PLAYGROUND 2 this end of October, PGL Wallachia Season 6 this November, and DreamLeague Season 27 in December. The team is also currently participating in the qualifiers of BLAST Slam V, a LAN tournament in China set to run in late November this year.
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