Heroes of the Storm is one of the newest MOBAs to enter the competitive realm in South Africa, and this weekend we got our first taste of what a success it can be. The tournament was run by Game Arena, new players in the tournament hosting field, in partnership with NavTV and Antfarm. Unfortunately, with Heroes of The Storm being still new in South Africa, there really were only two good teams at the tournament. We all knew it was going to the El Classico of Bravado Gaming vs. Energy eSports.
Energy were one of the first MGOs to announce their HoTS lineup, but soon after Bravado Gaming grabbed a killer lineup of ex-Dota 2 and Starcraft players. Upon announcement Energy were the stronger lineup and it seemed like an easy road for them, but they weren’t expecting the Bravado team to put in at least six to eight hours a day of practice ahead of rAge. This proved itself on the day as Bravado came out on top as the Grand Champions, but the road to being crowned champions was not easy.
Map 1: The Cursed Hollow
Originally thought Bravado’s strongest map, Energy eSports got an early lead with a few great team fights. Despite Energy capturing the first two Curses Bravado managed to keep up with levels. Bravado decided to go with E.T.C, with the idea behind catching Energy in numbers as they fought for the Curse. Unfortunately a few missed plays lead to their defeat and Energy eSports took map one sending a very upset Bravado Gaming out of the booths.
Map 2: Tomb of the Spider Queen
By the end of the Winner Bracket, Tomb of The Spider Queen had become synonymous with a Bravado Gaming victory. They seemed to have the map down, and Energy eSports struggled to take a team fight, or hand in the objectives. Bravado Gaming’s rotations were perfect and their hero composition complimented their play-style. Energy eSports struggled to hand in and Bravado Gaming ended it off in style with MVP going to Stuart “DisappoinT” Pearson.
Map 3: Battlefield of Eternity
Battlefields of Eternity was touch and go from the start. Bravado Gaming took an early lead but were shut down when Energy took an early team fight and caught out one or two players when attacking the Immortal. The game was neck and neck with Energy eSports holding on to a tiny lead. They managed to secure a few more big fights, but Bravado always pushed back and managed to keep up in levels. It all came down to one big team fight, and Bravado Gaming managed to take the game making the score 2-1.
Map 4: The Haunted Mines
The Final map of the tournament was where Bravado Gaming ran away with the show. The early game started off well for Energy eSports, but once the Mines opened, out of position players were punished and Bravado Gaming began to pull ahead. Special mention must be made of Adam “Adastam” Moore who played an outstanding Tyrande, catching Energy eSports out with Hunter’s Mark in almost every team fight. Bravado managed to dominate the mines unleashing a more powerful Golem and upon the third Golem they pushed to finish the game.
The Heroes of the Storm competition was also plagued with network issues, but it went on and the Grand Final was an extremely exciting showcase. I really hope we see a lot more HoTS competitions in the future, and congratulations to all the teams who took part, as well as to NavTV and Game Arena for an awesome tournament.
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Last Updated: October 13, 2015
Lardus-For the Emperor!
October 13, 2015 at 16:01
So, anywhere I can watch this?
CongoKyle
October 13, 2015 at 16:03
I see the vods were uploaded. http://www.twitch.tv/navgamingtv
Lardus-For the Emperor!
October 13, 2015 at 16:07
Spanks, will check them out when I get home!
Sahil Lala
October 13, 2015 at 16:14
Game Arena is really ftw. Here’s their fb page btw. https://www.facebook.com/gamearenaZA?fref=ts
SargonTheRebornBatpanda
October 14, 2015 at 01:03
“Unfortunately, with Heroes of The Storm being still new in South Africa, there really were only two good teams at the tournament.”
I am not so sure about this statement. 😛 Some of the other teams (particularly WRG 200ms) showed that they could really perform as well.
CongoKyle
October 14, 2015 at 15:32
WRG managed to take a game off Bravado, which was pretty good. But the rest of the games were all quite one sided to Bravado or Energy.