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Heroes8 years agoGosu "GosuGamers" Gamers

Recapping the Group Stages of NA Regional #1 and looking towards the Playoffs


There was much hype behind Denial eSports, Gul'DansGame and Vox Nihili.  Would they meet expectations? How about the old guard in Gale Force eSports and Team Naventic?  Who made it to the playoffs?

Denial eSports

There was huge hype behind these guys coming into the tournament.  Almost everyone thought they would be major contenders, and some even backed them to win the event.  Unfortunately, they came up far short of that, failing to make it out of the group stages.

Opening Match vs. Murloc Geniuses

Some untimely deaths by k1pro's Sylvanas in the opening match, and total inability to follow up on KingCaffeine's mosh pits in game 2 led to a decisive 2-0 in favor of Murloc Geniuses.

Losers' Match vs. Astral Authority

Denial eSports took Game 1, but Astral Authority forced Game 3 behind this beautiful 4 man maw.

They even trailed for much of Game 3, but one good fight in the late game is sometimes all it takes, and Denial eSports barely survived Astral Authority for the right to face Murloc Geniuses again in the Decider Match.

Decider Match vs. Murloc Geniuses

Denial was looking much better than Murloc Geniuses in Game 1 on Tomb of the Spider Queen, but a great turn and sundering from Thrall turned around the game for Murloc Geniuses and eventually won them Game 1.

Game 2 was decisively won by Murloc Geniuses, ending a disappointing tournament for Denial eSports.

Team Naventic

There were many questions about Team Naventic going into this tournament, but they have shown up in a big way so far in Burbank, dominating Astral Authority 2-0 and turning away Murloc Geniuses 2-0 to claim the first seed in Group A.  

Murloc Geniuses had a pretty nice boss steal in Game 1, though it wasn't enough to win them the game.

Naventic faces Gale Force eSports tomorrow in the Semifinals, and will be favored considering Gale Force's weak performance today.

Vox Nihili

Vox Nihili had strong performances in Heroes United and the qualifiers, so more experienced Heroes watchers were excited about this team coming into the first NA Fall regional.  It is safe to say though, that they blew everyone away with their performance, showing crazy resolve in their 2-1 match win over GulDansGame before shocking everyone with a decisive 2-0 beating of Gale Force eSports.

Opening Match vs. Gul'DansGame

What an opening match! They quickly fell into a 30-7 core hitpoints deficit on Towers of Doom in Game 1, but they would come all the way back to actually lead 3-2 in core hit points before finally succumbing.  It showed Vox Nihili's fighting spirit on full display, and ultimately the team would fight its way out of a big deficit and past Gul'DansGame in a hard fought Game 3 after winning Game 2 to move on.

Game 1:

Game 3:

Winners' Match vs. Gale Force eSports

If the last match showed Vox Nihili's fighting spirit, this one showed their dominance.  

What a game winning sanctification+holy ground to split Gale Force eSports to win Game 1:

Vox Nihili holds on after building a big lead in Game 2 to finish first in their group.  Congratulations!

They play Murloc Geniuses tomorrow in the Semi-finals of the playoffs.  Some will consider these guys the favorites, while others believe that Group A is the stronger group.

Gul'DansGame

Featuring three of the players from the now defunct North American team Brain Power, along with Mcintyre (ex-Naventic), many had high hopes for this team.  Much like Denial eSports, however, all that star power did not necessarily translate into results. They lost a close match to Vox Nihili, but then had a shocking upset loss to TNC and wound up placing last in their group.

Losers' Match vs. TNC

Game 1:

Why draft Morales into a dive comp? I'll never understand - and TNC led the entire game.  However, no team is immune to an epic throw, and TNC managed to lose a 5 v 4 with level 20 advantage.  Ouch.

Game 2: 

Core Throw.  Reverse Core Throw.  Full Clown Fiesta! Words just fail me here.

Game 3:

Morales again from Gul'DansGame.  Still doesn't work.

Gale Force eSports

They were the favorites for the tournament coming in, and they met expectations against TNC.  They had a very poor showing vs. Vox Nihili however, and now have a lot of questions to answer going in to the playoffs.

Opening Match vs. TNC

What an interesting draft by Gale Force eSports in Game 2 of their opening match.  Brutally effective as well.

Decider Match vs. TNC

Game 1 was a routine victory, but TNC led for most of the game in Game 2.  A calculated gamble to go for the boss with everyone up while far behind in structures pays off with a beautiful divine shield + devouring maw, resulting in a game winning team wipe.

They face Naventic in the semifinals tomorrow, and they need to clean up their play if they want to make it to the Finals.

Playoff Information

Watch on stream at ESL Heroes, starting at 10 am PDT.  First semifinal matchup is Team Naventic vs. Gale Force eSports, followed by Vox Nihili vs. Murloc Geniuses.

Follow us on Twitter @GosuGamersHotS and on Facebook for more competitive Heroes of the Storm news and coverage from around the world.

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