Mục Lục
Nouns can cheese their way victory against Azure Ray – Ti12 Match Analysis
In a move no one saw coming, Nouns defeated Tundra Esports. They took down the International defending champions in a clean 2-0 sweep during the phase two of the group stage. Now, Tundra stand on the brink of elimination.
Next up, nouns will meet China’s star studded super team, Azure Ray, in the Upper Bracket. Can Nouns upset the bracket once again and secure a historic top 6 finish?
TI12 Upper Bracket Playoffs Match Preview: nouns vs Azure Ray
Nouns vs. Azure Ray
With Tundra out of the picture for now, nouns’ next opponent is none other than Azure Ray, the Chinese all-star squad. Frankly, nouns is still the underdog in this match. The general perception on the typical NA team is pretty underwhelming. Right after nouns’ victory, the official page came out to “introduce” themselves.
Wondering how a team you’ve never heard of is in the #TI12 upper bracket?
This is our story ⌐◨-◨pic.twitter.com/Ju8hUqFIAw
— Nouns Esports ⌐◨-◨ (@nounsesports) October 16, 2023
The most reasonable reaction to that would be that we always knew who the guys in nouns were, but we didn’t expect them to be this good.
As for Azure Ray, the former remnants of TI8 PSG.LGD is arguably the most fitting title to refer the players. Lu “Somnus” Yao, Yang “Chalice” Shenyi and Xu “fy” Linsen were household names during their prime TI8-TI9 tenure, so it’s reasonable that many fans still hold Azure in high regard.
Read also: The International 2023 Playoffs Predictions: Matchup Analysis
Nouns TI12 Hero Picks and Cheesing the Meta
If there’s anything for nouns to call home about, it’s their drafts and good use of the current meta. Their Chaos Knight pick, played by Héctor “K1” Rodríguez, was key in the decisive game 2 versus Tundra. While CK isn’t the most contested carry at TI12, he was lethal in K1’s hands and synergized perfectly with Ogre Magi.
Ogre has only been contested in 10% of TI12 matches but the combo revolves around him using Bloodlust on CK and his illusions. This combination made him a formidable threat against heroes and buildings alike.
Nouns’ favored offlaner, Brewmaster is a heavily-contested hero at TI 12. Nouns capitalized on Ogre’s same Bloodlust buff for Brewmaster’s Spirit Pandas in the decisive game 2. These summons deal decent damage, especially during Ogre’s attack speed buff. Considering this is quite a broken draft, Azure Ray would be foolish to let nouns recreate it in their series.
K1 The Farmer
Héctor “K1” Rodríguez
Even if Azure plan to target ban Brewmaster, nouns can still rely on K1 to win the game. K1 is a hard carry player who can truly make the most out of AFK farming. Given enough space, any hard carry pick in K1’s hands will surely be monstrous.
This is also possible thanks to the rest of nouns, who understand their assignment. Playing 4v5 for the duration of the midgame lets K1 reach his peak without compromising his time by sticking with the team.
This is far cry from what beastcoast used K1’s skillset during his tenure with the SA squad. While a lot of SA teams revolve around early initiatives through team fights and impact, nouns play around letting K1 farm instead.
Other Cheese Picks in TI12
In terms of cheese picks, there aren’t many. Many that would be considered “cheesing” are often first banned. After all, there aren’t any typical respect bans that nouns and Azure Ray have to sacrifice on any player. Nevertheless, heroes that contribute to AOE-based team fight damage seem to be the cheese picks of TI12. Heroes, such as Earth Spirit, Primal Beast, Spirit Breaker, Brewmaster and JCnkka’s Torrent Storm skill fit the description.
Azure Ray’s early movements
Although not as chaotic as SA playstyles, China shares a similar objective. Early rotations with midgame-effective heroes are what put Azure Ray in the forefront to overwhelm opponents before the game gets out of hand.
We’ve seen Somnus play around skill-based mid-heroes that can contribute effectively in fights. Heroes that have more than one initiation method to jump the unsuspecting opponents, such as Clockwerk, have also proved popular. As such, it could be a rat race for Azure Ray to come out on top of fights while keeping tabs on K1’s farming.
Who will win between nouns and Azure Ray?
It’s not often we see a NA team performing this well into the TI Playoffs, so we have to go with nouns for the win. Their unorthodox drafts make them a more exciting team to root for, while we get tenacity from Azure Ray’s playstyle.
Frankly, tenacity in a relatively new Dota 2 update will surely hit a roadblock if they can’t surprise their opponents anymore. If nouns actually win this upper bracket quarterfinal round, they will secure a guaranteed top-six finish at TI12, an achievement that no NA team has reached since Evil Geniuses won TI5.
Bet Now
Bet Now
