In a tragic turn of events, Fatal Faction disbanded this week. With a no-show against Miraculum, their streamed match was canceled. Miraculum was given the default win. Moving to Mineski, they faced-off against Bazaar, a powerhouse of the SEA region and the previous champions of the Open Division. With correspondence from Mineski captain Marvin Anthony “whome” Roque, this was the breakdown for their series:
Mineski vs Bazaar
Game 1: Ilios The series started on Ilios, a Control map. Mineski ran a diving-oriented composition of Zarya, Winston, Tracer, McCree, Mercy, and Lucio. On the other hand, Bazaar ran a 3 DPS composition of Winston, Tracer, Soldier:76, Widowmaker, Mercy, and Ana. The map went to two variants, first at the Ruins, and second at the Lighthouse. The general tone of the match was that it was in Bazaar’s favor. Bazaar held the superior position in most clashes, even with Mineski getting good picks against them. While Mineski had times where they captured the point, Bazaar would group up and come at Mineski while they awaited their fallen. Bazaar took the map 2–0 and won the first point of the series. Game 2: Dorado The series moved on to Dorado, an Escort map. Mineski decided to go for the Pharmercy combo for their attack. This pairing did not fare well against Bazaar’s McCree and Ana, who forced them to hide in cover and shot them out of the sky. Bazaar forced Mineski into a chokepoint at the archway of the first point and as Mineski retreated Bazaar picked them off, staggering them which wasted their time. With well-timed and well-coordinated ultimates, Bazaar’s defense kept Mineski from grabbing a single point.
The archway that Mineski got stuck at, stopping the offense just a short distance away from the attacker’s spawn. With Bazaar now on the attack, Mineski went with the two hitscan heroes of Soldier:76 and McCree. This would allow them to shoot down a potential Pharah pick and also destroy an enemy Reinhardt shield in a quick fashion. This did not work out for Mineski, as Bazaar rushed in with a diving composition, notably a Reaper-Lucio pairing which wiped Mineski’s defense. With one clash, Bazaar reached Mineski’s distance and took the map, 1–0. Bazaar now led the series 2–0.
Game 3: Horizon Lunar Colony Mineski chose Horizon, for the third map. Whome justifies this map pick over Temple of Anubis due to Bazaar’s well-known Sombra play. Mineski defended first, using a lineup anchored by a Reinhardt and a Zarya. Bazaar brought out the Doomfist, to some effect. With good focus fire on targets and ultimate management, Mineski held the point for a time. Bazaar did break Mineski’s first point defense after two minutes due to a good pick, allowing them to move on to the second point. Bazaar’s first push for the second point was an initial success, giving them over a tick (40%). Mineski then held the defense well, forcing the Doomfist to switch to the Soldier:76. Whome had great plays with his flanking and his Pulse Bombs, getting key sticks on enemies which denied Bazaar a full squad. Angelo “Meister” Martinez also had key picks with his McCree, forcing the enemy Mercy to use Resurrection at the start of clashes. The defense ended with a great Graviton Surge-Pulse Bomb combination by Harry “HAVENTLUVYOU” Lee and Whome, securing the hold. On Mineski’s attack, they brought out the Reaper. When Bazaar’s Tracer was picked off by a clumped-up Mineski, Mineski went at the initiating Bazaar. Reaper destroyed Bazaar’s tanks of Winston and D.Va. Within a minute, Mineski captured the first point. Mineski then pushed to the second point and clashed with Bazaar on it. While Mineski had the ultimate advantage, well-timed spawns and staggers by Bazaar allowed the defense to push back Mineski. Mineski then went for another push, this time baiting some of Bazaar’s ultimates while holding their ultimates in check. Mineski then used their ultimates against Bazaar, and one by one they took down and pushed off Bazaar from the point. Mineski captured the second point, winning the map 2–1. The series was now 2–1, still in favor of Bazaar.
Game 4: King’s Row The fourth map of the series was King’s Row, a Hybrid map. Running the Pharmercy again, Mineski struggled on the attack. Ultimates were traded left and right, but they managed to capture the first point with about a minute left. Mineski were forced to keep their Pharah pick for their payload escort, as the Pharah had Barrage ready and they did not have the time to charge a new hero’s ultimate. In response, Bazaar switched off the Tracer to a McCree, who denied the Pharah’s vertical advantage. Mineski were forced to end their attack halfway through to the second point.
The streets that the payload follows. Mineski’s struggles were concentrated here, as their Pharah was constantly shot down on their offense, and were the victim of a Nanoblade on their Defense. For Mineski’s defense, they went with a death-ball lineup, running a Reaper once again. Bazaar read this and used the 3 DPS with a Widowmaker lineup. The Widowmaker forced Mineski to take cover in the Hotel, where Bazaar dove in with a Genji and a Tracer, wiping Mineski. Bazaar then took the first point with ease. As they escorted the payload, Bazaar unleashed a Nanoblade to kill the returning Mineski and advanced forward. With Mineski forced in a position of a desperate defense, Bazaar’s superior positioning allowed them to beat down Mineski for the third time and secured the map, 2–1. The series was now 3–1 in favor of Bazaar, and Mineski knew they had to win the next map.
Game 5: Lijiang Tower Mineski chose Lijiang Tower as the next Control map, due to their preference and to avoid Oasis, another Sombra map (specifically the University variant). The first variant chosen was the Night Market, where Mineski ran the standard dive comp of Winston, Zarya, Tracer, and Lucio with a Pharmercy. Bazaar responded with a dive comp of their own, but with a McCree, D.Va, and Zenyatta instead. This destroyed Mineski’s Pharmercy, and Bazaar easily won the map 100%-0%. The score was now 1–0, in favor of Bazaar. The second map was the Control Center variant, and Mineski gambled on having 3 DPS heroes, switching the Zarya for a Soldier:76. The extra offense worked wonders for Mineski, and they won the first clash and captured the point. Bazaar struggled against Mineski until Overtime, where they committed their ultimates to capture the point. Mineski then hastily went on the attack, knowing they had the ultimate advantage. Bazaar noticed this and adjusted their position well, forcing Mineski to burn their ultimates. Mineski’s ultimates did not have the same potency as Bazaar’s, and Bazaar came back to take the map 100%-99%. The map ended with a score of 2–0 for Bazaar, and they took the series 4–1. Bazaar wins, 4–1!
With Mineski’s loss and Miraculum’s default win, both teams are now at 1–2 records. With the Swiss format pairing teams with similar records off, they are set to face each other next week. The battle for who is the superior Filipino team awaits in the next round of the Overwatch Open Division Season 2.