If the flurry of activity in the forums and stream chat are any indication, the first thing one likely thinks of from today's ESEA Season 14 LAN games is Quick-Fix. People questioned for weeks how all the latest changes to the entirety of Team Fortress 2 would affect plays from the highest ranking teams in the continent. We've already seen what the new Escape Plan and Winger do, but the frantic swapping of Medic loadouts, buffed Heavy DM and head-scratching backcaps led to a whole new type of competitive TF2 that perhaps no one ever saw coming. Is the competitive scene ready to settle down with this new mistress, or do we need more than just one date to know each other better?
As the games progressed, it seemed even the top four Invite teams were dancing around uncomfortably in this new competitive skin, eventually leading to more matches with slightly more shared use between the three Medic guns allowed. With last season's first and second place winners once again facing off in tomorrow's Grand Finals, we may have just what we need to come up with a definite answer.
HIGH ROLLERS GAMING 5 > 1 APOCALYPSE GAMING on cp_badlands
HIGH ROLLERS GAMING 5 > 2 APOCALYPSE GAMING on cp_granary
Despite the usual pauses and crashes we've come to know and love during ESEA LAN, games kicked off close to their scheduled time, starting with the almighty king of 5CP maps. With barely a sliver of LAN experience on their ESEA resumes, newcomers Apocalypse Gaming had much to accomplish against the undefeated HRG. Kapoww's wicked sniping and Boink's frequent roaming behind HRG did score them a 2-2 tie on Granary, but the cyzer+Shrugger destruction duo and well-aimed crockets from Lansky were a force to be reckoned with. Still, with some unexpected SMG Sniper picks from Kapoww and indust's needles stopping a last capture, AG deserves a big thumbs up for creativity.
CLASSIC MIXUP 5 > 1 TRI HARDS on cp_badlands
CLASSIC MIXUP 5 > 2 TRI HARDS on cp_gullywash
LAN returned to Badlands for perhaps some very unconventional plays from Harbleu, who seemed determined to play every class available at least once during LAN. Right in the first round he put on the Spy mask and backstabbed both kbk and boomer, followed by some old school coordination from enigma and moose to further harass Tri Hards' combo. Clockwork nearly shut out Mixup by picking up the sniper rifle and doming anyone unfortunate enough to cross his sight, but Mixup's positioning and smart Quick-Fix pushes gave them a quick Badlands victory. Tri Hards then picked Gullywash, a map they've previously defeated Mixup on, giving hero a chance to show off his dodging and Blaze room to smash the skill stick into everyone's face. Taking a leaf out of last season, enigma switched to Heavy and snatched a sneaky solo river cap, leading the way to another Mixup victory and pushing Tri Hards to the lower brackets.
TRI HARDS 5 > 2 APOCALYPSE GAMING on cp_gullywash
TRI HARDS 5 > 1 APOCALYPSE GAMING on cp_metalworks
AG brought a similar performance against Tri Hards, getting another 2-2 tie early on thanks to some impressive sweater-stickies locking in on kbk. Their newfound aggression seemed to be working until kbk went back to the old days of using regular Uber to throw AG's Kritz off. With one last chance to stay in the fight, AG picked Metalworks, perhaps hoping that few other teams had much practice on it, but hero's constant presence in flanks and ineffective Kritz pushes sealed AG's spot in 4th place for Season 14 LAN.
HIGH ROLLERS GAMING 3 > 2 CLASSIC MIXUP on cp_gullywash
HIGH ROLLERS GAMING 5 > 1 CLASSIC MIXUP on cp_snakewater
3-2 as a final score? Yes, you read that correctly, and if you were there, you may remember it forever as one of the strangest games ever of competitive TF2. While a 0-0 finish for a first half has been done before, no one predicted the cluster of Medic guns and offclassing like this from TF2's strongest veterans. Mixup using Uber to push last but being smacked back from Shade's Quick-Fix, b4nny bringing the Pain Train into Seagull's face, Tagg's brief Spy affair, enigma's casual cap onto last as Engineer, and back-and-forth wipes to a stalemated 2-2 score in the second half, only ending in overtime thanks to a classic b4nny 5K Kritz sticky play onto last that immediately wrecked Smaka. After over an hour of Gullywash, an exhausted Mixup picked Snakewater and struggled against more b4nny Kritz and constant backcaps from cyzer. HRG, looking stronger than ever, won their seat in the Grand Finals, taking 18 rounds total while only losing 6.
CLASSIC MIXUP 5 > 2 TRI HARDS on cp_process
CLASSIC MIXUP 4 < 5 TRI HARDS on cp_badlands
CLASSIC MIXUP 5 > 1 TRI HARDS on cp_gullywash
Tri Hards stepped into Process with guns blazing and determined to stay in the standings. Clockwork continued to wreck havoc on Sniper and boomer began to shine with some incredible pipes and traps, showing that he was more than capable in filling dummy's shoes. With Blaze's kill streaks and quick domination on mids, Platinum and Harbleu countered with coordinated bombs that made it a nonstop struggle for kbk to build any kind of uber. Tri Hards kept moving ahead in the second map faster than ever, with boomer getting double airpipes and a surprise Clockwork+hero Kritz on mid. Down 4-1, Mixup changed their focus and Kritz'd their way into last with dangerous damage from Platinum and Seagull to blast kbk away. Tied at 4-4, Tri Hards switched to regular Uber and quickly stopped the game at a close 5-4, bringing the first Third Map round for this season's LAN. The teams met up for yet another Gully rematch, filled with Seagull taking away boomer's crown and moose shoving his way through the crowd for all the right picks and final captures. Second-seed Tri Hards ended their LAN standings with a 3rd place finish.
Tomorrow gives us a rematch of last season's LAN championship with High Rollers Gaming vs Classic Mixup for the Grand Finals at 11:00 am EST. Don't miss out!
ESEA RECAP ARTICLES AND INFO
HRG Starts off LAN With Win Over AG
Classic Mixup Knock Tri Hards Into Lower Bracket
Tri Hards Eliminate AG from LAN
HRG Earns Their Spot In LAN Finals
Mixup Wins The Lower Bracket
Rosters, stream guide, prize pool breakdown, and team information
Brackets
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