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Nihilum Plasma wins WoW Arena Tournament
Selective Queuers got the match-up they wished for. Sort of. When asked in a post-match interview who they wanted to fight next after beating Korea's Council of Mages, the trio said they were looking forward to a rematch with Nihilum Plasma and hopefully set up an all-American Grand Finals. The rematch was granted, but not in the way the team expected as Nihilum upset the favored Fnatic Orz, leaving the two American teams to fight for a slot in the Grand Finals.The celebrated team of Hafu, Glick, and Rhaegyn were outclassed, outmatched, and eventually upset in well-played mirror matches between two of the best WLD (Warrior, Warlock, Druid) teams in the world. Many observers noted that the intense pressure on the Druids exposed Hafu's weakness as she needed more peeling from her teammates than Wojo from Selective Queuers. This allowed Wojo's teammates to be more on the offensive and make easier target swaps throughout the match. Although Glick and Rhaegyn are arguably the best peelers in the game, being on the defensive for most of the matches resulted in the North American champions getting ousted from the tournament 3 matches to 2.Their win over Fnatic Orz sent Selective Queuers Itsmecasper (aka Gumbot), Yogz, and Wojo up against Inflame, Carekoala, and Paperkat of Nihilum Plasma in the Grand Finals for a Europe vs. America showdown. Both teams played their expected comps of WLD but Selective Queuers had their work cut out for them as they needed to beat Nihilum in two series. Unfortunately, despite going up 2-0 with aggressive play, Nihilum found their groove and played flawlessly to win three matches in a row and take home $75,000, the biggest pot in the history of professional Arena competition.In an exhibition match, the newly crowned Champions showed their dominance as they beat China's top team World Elite, who ran an RMP (Rogue, Mage, Priest) comp through three matches. In a bit of showmanship and flair, Nihilum toyed with World Elite using three different comps, including double warrior cleave. The Chinese team never posed a threat to the champions, owing perhaps to lack of professional gaming experience on the world stage. A later exhibition match will pit Nihilum against Blizzard employees.
[UPDATED] WoW Arena Tournament down to top three teams
After three straight heartbreaking losses against American team Selective Queuers, Worldwide Invitational champions Council of Mages bowed out from the tournament today leaving only three teams to battle it out for the prestigious -- and kingly -- prize of $75,000. The Korean team of Hyoga, Snowstorm, and Student, considered by many to be the best RMP in the world, was the last Asian team in the tournament. They were also the last non-WLD (Warrior, Warlock, Druid) team to be eliminated, as the top three -- Europe's Nihilum Plasma, and the United States' Selective Queuers and Fnatic Orz all predominantly ran WLD throughout the competition.Selective Queuers ran a soft counter comp to Council of Mages' RMP by swapping in Rogue for Warrior, but otherwise performed as expected as RMP do not handle WLDs (or RLDs in this case) very well. Although the matches that managed to get streamed were fine examples of professional Arena play, the dominance of WLD teams showed just how strong the comp is in the 3v3 format. Despite brilliant play from Council of Mages, they simply couldn't get over the hump of a well-played WLD team. Props must be given to Glick of Fnatic Orz, back-to-back winners of the MLG series, who played a Retribution Paladin in a double melee comp during one match against Made in Taiwan... and won. Hunters will also be pleased to know that Made in Taiwan skillfully fielded a Hunter against Fnatic Orz, splitting those matches 2-2. The remaining matches of the tournament will be played tomorrow, with the winner of the upper bracket match between Fnatic Orz and Nihilum Plasma heading straight to the Grand Finals. The loser of that matchup will face Selective Queuers in the semi-finals. With any luck, the matches will be streamed without hiccups on Blizzard's BlizzCon tournament coverage and maybe we'll see if Fnatic Orz truly is the best team in the world. [UPDATE: Nihilum Plasma beat Fnatic Orz in the upper bracket finals, sending Nihilum to await the winner of the match between Fnatic Orz and Selective Queuers in the semis. This guarantees a Finals match versus Europe and the United States. Should be exciting to watch.]
