I feel like regardless of any kind of changes you make, Granary will still suffer from a lot of the same problems it has. The biggest one for me is that it's the most unforgiving map to lose mid on. I don't think you can possibly do anything about that without it being considered a totally different map at that point. You have to be so committed to mid (basically not stuck in the back-left corner or garage/ramp), as you will typically lose to a team who becomes committed if you're not.

If your team isn't totally committed (this typically includes the medic), it's easier to exit the mid and hold yard, but it's much harder to win the mid when you're passively stuck in a corner where all of you take the same damage.

If your team is totally committed, it's much more difficult to exit if things aren't going great (especially the medic, who has to make quite a long run out of mid and out of yard). Basically, it's common to have all six of your teammates die if you lose mid. You might have one or two get out if they are quick about it. Perhaps you might have a 3-5 get out if a very early call is made and everyone is in a decent exit position. Still, it sucks.

Which yeah, if your team is totally committed on any map, it'll be hard for people to get out, but Granary is a map where you cannot sit all the way back and do nothing. You'll get spammed to death and eventually lose to the other team collapsing on you. It doesn't play out that way 100% of the time, but it happens much more on Granary than any other map. The rest of Granary is alright but not that great.

I don't think Granary is a horrible map, but I would say it's the worst in the rotation.

Every team gets money, even if they didn't make it out of their group.

I really do think it's just because NiP were the underdogs. People wanted to see a close set and to take down the team that has been the strongest for the past year. NiP also got cheered against a long time ago when they were dominant.

fnatic should take this easy.

I think KeyD might make things a little interesting vs VP, but VP will be the better team plus home field advantage. The Brazilians can aim well, though. I was very impressed.

TSM vs NiP is one of my favorite matches to bet on for at least a year now. I think this set can easily go to 3 maps, and if anything, I think the current odds (80/20 for NiP) are too good not to place a small bet on TSM. NiP will probably take it, but TSM have always been a top 4 threat at majors. Personally, I'm gonna bet small on TSM or skip.

Holy shit, CLG are missing all of their shots. This would be so much closer otherwise.

ptr also 0-10.

I just bet $20 ($40 reward) on KeyD.

KeyD look strong, and while I obviously want CLG to win/advance, I think KeyD will take it. It's honestly win-win for me, regardless of the victor.

rofl, both american teams won the exact same way on nuke.

True, but at the same time, Nuke isn't THAT CT-sided. Getting a minimum of 4 rounds is acceptable but not great, and anything less is pretty much a loss. Yeah, CLG had a pretty awful T side, but HR? That was atrocious on their part.

Seeing games like this where both teams perform extremely awful on T side aren't horribly uncommon (or perhaps both teams play ridiculously solid on CT), but still. HR have to feel like shit after that one.

I can't help but feel like most of the top teams playing against the bottom teams are honestly saving strats and cheeky plays for playoffs. Both teams looked good, though.

I hope at least one American team will make it into playoffs, but I'm pretty sure both will finish 3rd in their groups. CLG vs HR is a coin toss to me, so CLG *might* make it out.

Hiko, come back. :(

I'm quite alright with this.

there was this one kid that buttchugged peroxide and got hospitalized. he missed school for two weeks and had to wear a diaper in the process.

we won the first map and then went up 2-0 the second map. at that point, we realized we had it in the bag, but intentionally lost because we didn't want showstopper to become a LAN champion.

steven chen went nuts though.

Listening to anything alfa says is a mistake.

no.

I gotta agree with Tim here. If you're looking for a rational response from someone who really isn't afraid to be abrasive, then you should definitely not make a thread called "lpkane blatantly lying."

That was certainly one of the worst ways to handle it.