BB Dacha Belgrade: Watson’s first tournament with GG is over

As a long-time Dota 2 enthusiast who’s witnessed countless tournaments and upsets, I must admit that the BetBoom Dacha Belgrade 2024 has been nothing short of thrilling. The unexpected elimination of Gaimin Gladiators, last year’s TI runner-up team, by Aurora, a squad hailing from Southeast Asia, was a twist I didn’t see coming.

The unexpected ending of The International 13’s runner-up team, and the story of a complicated debut for the 15K MMR hard carry.

At the city of Belgrade, one of the year’s least anticipated upsets unfolded before a crowd of approximately four thousand Dota 2 enthusiasts. The Gaimin Gladiators, who finished as runners-up at this year’s TI, were eliminated prematurely in the BetBoom Dacha tournament, despite having Watson, their fresh hard carry, on their team.

Instead of making things easier for them, it was Sea Representative Aurora who posed challenges, as they were the ones responsible for their defeats this season. Despite being a highly anticipated team, Aurora didn’t secure any top positions this year and missed out on qualifying for several international tournaments, including The International 13.

For Southeast Asia (SEA) gaming enthusiasts, this development is exciting, but it’s surprising to see the previously dominant team GG ending up with a 7th-8th position. Luckily for Watson and the supporters of the Gaimin Gladiators, they will have another chance to watch their team in action as the DreamLeague Season 24 kicks off on October 27 – the day after BB Dacha concludes.

Game 1: Aurora’s AOE damage was too much for GG

Initially, GG opted to stick with familiar heroes – Watson’s Shadow Fiend and Ace’s Slardar – focusing on grabbing easy pick-offs and pushing early. However, Aurora had a counter strategy in mind. They planned to use Bristleback to manage Quinn’s spiders and Muerta as a swift and powerful attacker who could keep up with GG’s pace.

Despite initially appearing as a strategic move to bolster the Alchemist’s pick, it turned out differently. In fact, the Alchemist’s swift itemization provided room for Aurora. Unfortunately for Gaimin Gladiators, their critical team fight with Watson’s farmed SF didn’t secure them a victory in their first BetBoom Dacha match. Regrettably for them, attempting to take down the Alchemist played right into Aurora’s hands, allowing Muerta and Bristle to eliminate the backlane heroes.

Game 2: Closer than it looked like

In the second match of Gaimin Gladiator at BetBoom Dacha, it appeared that Watson’s Luna was amassing resources quickly. However, despite Aurora seemingly lagging behind, they possessed two potent assets to leverage: Abed and TA2000.

In this encounter, Aurora inflicted significant damage using their Gyrocopter, while Void Spirit capitalized on his Aghanim’s Scepter upgrade to control the backlane effectively. Despite GG having a substantial net worth advantage, most battles were relatively balanced as the Southeast Asian team demonstrated proactive strategies.

Regardless of his greatest attempts, Quinn found himself at a stage where his Storm Spirit was actually boosting Luna during the charge towards the high ground. The moment when the difference in items became noticeable was just a matter of time.

Game 3: Void Spirit’s redemption, and Gaimin Gladiators elimination from BB Dacha

At the BB Dacha Belgrade 2024 tournament, Aurora has played the most matches with Void Spirit among all teams. Yet, out of the five times they’ve used this hero, they’ve only emerged victorious twice. This was their sixth time selecting Void Spirit, and despite their previous loss, they chose to play without apprehension.

As a gamer, I can tell you that during our conversation with SunBhie, the coach, he admitted candidly: “Man, I’m not sure if I even enjoy playing this hero, let alone laugh about it.” And he wasn’t far off. Void Spirit is one of the top burst damage midlaners, yet at the tournament, it only managed a 41% win rate (dropping closer to 34% before this series). In this third game against BB Dacha, Gaimin Gladiators chose Watson as Morphling, and we all know that Morphling often faces difficulties against burst heroes.

However, it should be noted that GG’s approach also held its merits. As the casters mentioned, Morph eventually transforms into a more formidable Timbersaw. Given the right moment and sufficient room to accumulate necessary items, he can truly shine.

In the course of the game, Watson’s Morphling didn’t get its chance, and in a brief match that lasted twenty-nine minutes, Gaimin Gladitors were knocked out of the BB Dacha Belgrade tournament. Aurora’s upcoming opponent will be Team Spirit, a local team; a team they lost 2-0 to just a few days ago during the Group Stage, which is their worst fear.

BB Dacha Belgrade: Watson’s first tournament with GG is over

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