BLAST Premier Fall Groups: Vitality & Astralis take Group B Openers

The action in Group B at the BLAST Premier Fall Group carries on with two intriguing encounters. Following Heroic’s unexpected defeat without their leading AWPer, uncertainty abounds in the Fall Groups. Ztr and his squad, GamerLegion, are eager to dethrone Vitality. Meanwhile, the Danish derby between Astralis and Falcons, featuring ex-teammates, promises to be a fascinating showdown.

Vitality survives GL scare in BLAST Premier Fall Groups Opener

2024 saw Group B’s opening contest as a potential David vs. Goliath scenario. Vitality, known for their strong performance in CS2, has not managed to secure any trophies this year. However, going up against an inexperienced team like GamerLegion, who have recently changed their In-Game Leader, they would undoubtedly enjoy a significant advantage.

Map Veto – GamerLegion vs Vitality at BLAST Premier Fall Groups:

Anubis – Vitality struggles in gun rounds

The veto ignited an engaging confrontation between IGL ztr and Vitality on Anubis, granting the former a T-side advantage to make his impact. In the initial rounds, Vitality managed pistol conversions for both halves, but GamerLegion ruled supreme in gun rounds. Consequently, they ended the first half with a 6-6 score, even though CT was considered the weaker side. After the intermission, events mirrored those of the first half, yet GamerLegion’s dominance intensified. Individual heroics from Vitality players, like mezii’s quad-kill, barely kept them afloat in the second half. However, these efforts were insufficient to thwart ztr’s forces. In the final stretch of the map, GamerLegion claimed three consecutive rounds, securing a 13-10 victory with their leader leading the charge.

Mirage – Vitality barely take the win in a double-OT

At Mirage, GL seized control of the pistol round on their CT side due to an impressive performance from aNdu, who didn’t miss a single shot with his USP-s. However, one save by GL provided Vitality with a glimmer of hope. Unfortunately, apEX’s squad kept getting overpowered in the middle, allowing GL to advance to a 5-1 lead. Even when ZywOo single-handedly breached into the B site for Vitality, they squandered the round by neglecting a potential short flank threat. In the closing stages of the first half, Vitality managed to put together some rounds, but GL held a commanding 7-5 lead.

As a devoted fan, I’m thrilled to share that Vitality clinched their third pistol round victory! At long last, our defending Fall Finals champions showed some much-needed signs of resurgence, racking up double digits. This time around, it was Vitality who took control on CT, securing the map point through a brilliant ramp hold by flameZ. GL refused to let go, putting up a valiant fight even with their backs against the wall. Vitality came close to wrapping things up solely with pistols, but SL’s impressive quad-kill kept the game alive. Eventually, Volt sealed the deal in overtime.

The match started with a victory for Vitality, but FL4MUS surprised from underpass and claimed three kills, tying the score. In rounds between ztr and sl3nd, GamerLegion performed remarkable plays on B, securing a 14-13 advantage. The following round saw a T-side double AWP setup, which ended with an individual duel victory for ztr. With match point in hand, GamerLegion appeared poised to win, but Vitality executed a straightforward attack on the A site, sending the game into double overtime.

The two teams stayed closely matched, exchanging rounds until it was tied at 17-17. However, Spinx and flameZ from the same team had an impressive total of 66 frags between them. As a result, a victory for Vitality seemed imminent. They carried this momentum into the next map, Dust2, securing their win with a score of 19-17.

Dust2 – ZywOo leads Vitality to an opening win at Fall Groups

Following our nail-bitingly close defeat on Mirage, it seemed clear that GamerLegion was facing its inexperience. The team appeared mentally drained and handed over control of the game to Vitality entirely. Our star players were nowhere to be seen, and none of ztr’s T side tactics seemed effective. To add insult to injury, ZywOo finally managed to grab an AWP and took charge of the game, leading his team’s dominant 10-2 first half performance.

1. Despite Vitality claiming their 11th round, the atmosphere at GamerLegion’s camp remained optimistic as they entered the second half with a pistol round victory. However, GamerLegion showed significant improvement and secured a fifth round win. Yet, ZywOo’s exceptional performance with the AWP allowed Vitality to swiftly finish the game 13-5, moving forward in the Fall Groups.

Astralis shut down Falcons at BLAST Premier Fall Groups Opener

1. In a highly anticipated clash within Group B, Astralis squared off against the Falcons. The intriguing narrative revolved around dupreeh and magisk going head-to-head with Device; however, the Danish team was heavily tipped to win. This prediction proved accurate as they easily secured a 2-0 victory.

Map Veto – Astralis vs Falcons BLAST Premier Fall Groups

At the outset of the match on Dust2, things went awry for the Falcons. Astralis dominated the pistol round on the CT side, stringing together five consecutive wins to begin a lopsided half. The Falcons managed to gain entry in round 7, but only due to errors committed by Astralis. However, this brief reprieve was short-lived as Astralis rectified their mistakes, leaving the Falcons trailing with a 9-3 scoreline. The sole bright spot for the Falcons was SunPayus’ impressive solo kill, keeping the score from reaching double digits.

In the second part, adding to their lead with the pistol round modification, the Falcons boosted their score. However, Astralis’ advantage was excessive, and they ultimately ended the map with a victory of 13-7, with device taking charge.

As a gamer, I can tell you that the old-school match was a nail-biter. Every successful shot from the Falcons propelled them forward on their CT side. However, slips during 1v2 situations against both jabbi and device really hurt our team financially. The half ended in a tie at 6-6. But when jabbi managed to get back onto the CT side, his mid-grips were nothing short of amazing. The Falcons’ strategy to seize control was outplayed, and jabbi’s team capitalized on it with a 7-1 streak on defense. In the end, Astralis closed us out 2-0, moving forward in the Upper Bracket.

In the Upper Bracket Finals, Astralis and Vitality will go head-to-head, while GamerLegion and Falcons clash in the lower bracket. If GamerLegion plays as powerfully as they did against Vitality, they seem to have an edge. However, with experienced players on Falcons’ roster, things could change rapidly.