The idea of an undefeated team has long surpassed the glory days of Season 8 and CheckSix's legacy that is now the stuff of ancient legends in TF2 history. Today's ESEA Grand Finals teams, both with undefeated seasons and undefeated LAN wins, and both stepping into new territory with new weapon abilities, gave a unique display of the smartest competitive minds using everything in their arsenal for a fast-paced championship match that snipped away just enough at HRG's entirely perfect record. Nerds worldwide stared in awe at a Mixup that reflected its past power from seasons ago, though it was only a mere glimpse until HRG woke up and literally swung the pendulum their way for a convincing finish. Mixup can walk away this season knowing they're the only team to put a crack into ESEA's continuing champions, while HRG will jump across the pond next week to flex their North American muscles to the rest of the world.
HIGH ROLLERS GAMING 0 < 5 CLASSIC MIXUP on cp_snakewater
HIGH ROLLERS GAMING 5 > 3 CLASSIC MIXUP on cp_process
HIGH ROLLERS GAMING 4 > 0 CLASSIC MIXUP on koth_viaduct
If the Gullywash scores from yesterday's games didn't make you rub your eyes in confusion, this one probably will: a quick, clean, and flawless 5-0 victory from Classic Mixup on Snakewater that stripped HRG's chances for another perfect season-perfect LAN record. With a combination of Seagull moving uncontested on mid, moose's rampant flanking onto Shade, and smaka committing to regular Uber more often, a sleepy HRG under constant Quick-Fix could not put a dent into a Mixup that had returned to its old style aggressive roots. After numerous cap retakes and losses across the map, a final Seagull sticky-trap drop onto Shade snatched the first map for Classic Mixup.
Fully aware and woken up, HRG went into Process and put a quick stop into Mixup's streak. Regular Uber became too difficult to use for Mixup, but enigma's focused headshots onto b4nny helped his team buy just enough time for building Kritz. b4nny quickly got revenge, dropping Seagull to an unchecked sticky trap before Mixup could use a round-changing Kritz, and deadly two-shots from Shrugger on an overaggressive Mixup saved HRG's LAN standings and brought us to a nail-biting final map on Viaduct.
With two games completed and no previous games on Viaduct for this LAN, no one could predict how these Grand Finals would end. HRG and Mixup smashed heads across mid and constantly tied their cap times, from 1:00-1:00 minute on each side to 20:20 seconds to the dreaded 0:0 overtime as bodies desperately flew over the map to touch the point with at least a big toe. Mixup stuck to hard-hitting aggression, sacrificing just enough players to delay the clock for an extra minute and making each round insanely close despite their lack of final captures. Tagg and Harbleu zeroed in perfectly on each Medic, Shrugger+cyzer and enigma+moose showed why Scouts rule on KOTH, and those who crossed paths with Platinum and Lansky were gloriously airshot into bits. By the last two rounds, the deciding factor was naturally b4nny, whose unchecked sticky traps and Kritz stickies caught Seagull and smaka with a perfect, single click on several occasions. HRG were back in full form and claimed their second LAN victory together, along with $6,000+ in Championship winnings. Congratulations to all the teams who played at LAN and also to everyone who played in ESEA this season!
But we're not done yet! Multiplay i49 is this weekend, bringing together High Rollers Gaming from North America, Epsilon eSports from Europe, and Team Immunity from Australia for the continental fight of a lifetime. And for those of you still shaking from yesterday, you can relax now: the Quick-Fix will be staying home for this event.
FINAL STANDINGS
High Rollers Gaming
Classic Mixup
Tri Hards
Apocalypse Gaming
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