Hello, and welcome back to another article about Division 7. All the Round 7 matches have been played, and that puts the standings in Division 7 in a very interesting place. Red Dragon Gambling remains undefeated, having been able to claim the victory against both 500ms and the Bacon Landlords over the past couple weeks. Next week, we will be able to see if Kubota Yellow Sox can take down the Division 7 titans. Both of the FAT teams (FAT Doctor Who and Frieeend, formerly known as FAT Friends) are slowly consolidating their position in the upper half of Division 7 - a feat we rarely see in Heroes Lounge, since Free Agent Teams usually have a hard time meshing as a team. I am, in fact, very impressed by both of these teams and their ability to perform so well.
Notable Players of Division 7
Now, as we all know, KDA, damage numbers and other statistics are the most reliable metric of determining how useful a player is. So, I have decided to take the time to note the outstanding players in Division 7, based purely on statistical analysis. Since subs can have an unusually high impact, I have limited the candidates to players who have played more than 5 games in Division 7.
Most Deadly Player
The most deadly player, in the past 7 rounds of Division 7, was Zagi, a player in Kubota Yellow Sox, who averaged nearly 6 kills per game. With 5.93 kills per game, Zagi has been murdering the other players left and right, carrying his team to the 6-1 record they hold now.
The runner up was Kagemusha, the assassin player for Red Dragon Gambling, our undefeated titan. He is barely behind Zagi, with 5.87 kills on average in each game. His killer instinct may have something to do with the undefeated streak of Red Dragon Gambling.
The third place goes to Erniemist from 500ms, whose mage-play resulted in 5.56 kills per game. This is a very notable improvement from last season, when 500ms rarely got 5 kills in the entire game.
Least Killable Player
This award goes to mylittlepony from LFxD, MaKiMe from Frieeend and Zergeto from Red Dragon Gambling, who all spent 2% of their game-time dead. This is an amazing achievement, considering there are many players in Division 7 who spend more than 10% of their game time dead. However, it should be taken into consideration that all three of these players come from teams that have had a relatively successful season so far, and avoiding death is much easier when you're winning more games than you're losing.
Most Kill Participation
Division 7 is known for our blood-thirsty brawl-heavy playstyle. PlebBabs from Dazzling's Mile and SuccubusLic from Shank Squad perfectly reflect this mentality, with their 106% and 103% kill participation. Now, I don't pretend to understand how exactly my analysis software calculated these numbers, but computers are never wrong. Right???
All we can tell is that these two players have done everything in their power to make sure they were present every time someone on the enemy team died. Now, that's dedication.
Most Mercenary Captures
There is a saying in Division 7: 'You cannot win a game unless every mercenary on the map is captured.' Well, here are the players who have followed this philosophy with all their heart.
In first place is Clairw, the healer for The Bacon Landlords, with 7 mercenary captures per game. I personally found it very interesting that the healer got this award, but this isn't the end of this irregularity.
Amphethis, one of the healers in 500ms, is the runner up for this award, just barely missing out on first place with 6.8 mercenary captures per game.
In third place is Tresca, the healer for 4.EveR, with 6.17 mercenary captures per game. Maybe I am missing something, and it is an obvious choice to send the healer to take camps, but I must say this did surprise me a little bit.
Largest Hero Pool
We have some dedicated contenders for this award, with many of the Division 7 players playing a wide range of heroes, but Fengshen, from HotS Musical, tops them all with 13 different heroes played across 16 games. This is an astounding number, meaning there are only 3 duplicate picks (E.T.C., Arthas and Johanna).
The runner up is Criss from LFxD with 12 different heroes across 15 games. This particular race is very close, and I will be keeping an eye out on which heroes these two players play.
An honourable mention goes to Falg, the captain of Xul - Push Alors?!, who managed to play the same two heroes for 11 games.
Most Taunts, Sprays, Dances and B-steps
I'm always disappointed with my team for not being able to keep up in the spraying and taunting game. And checking the stats, I must say that disappointment only grows.
HolyShock, from 4 Guys 1 Nurse, has taunted 10 times, which is double the number of taunts by the runner-up, mikasor from The Bacon Landlords. I congratulate both of these players for their masterful control over every aspect of the game.
The award for the most sprays goes to Cri0n, from the Rantners, who sprayed a total of 21 times. HolyShock, once again, shows his expertise as a player with the runner-up prize, having sprayed his opponents 17 times.
However, when it comes to dancing, we have one player whose presence is so dominant, that I am unsure if anything else matters. Aramorg from the Bacon Landlords danced 32 times, compared to Xinor's 13 and Arreku's 8 times. Division 7 needs a challenger to try and keep this Landlord in check.
Lastly, we have mylittlepony winning the b-step award with 11 b-steps, 4 of which were directly after a takedown. This level of psychological warfare impresses me, and I hope that one day, my team can learn the ways of taunts, sprays, dances and b-steps.
Special thanks to Stats of the Storm - and its creator, Falindrith - which allowed me to access these stats.
Notable Matches
We are back again with the notable matches of the week. I would like to remind readers here that I don't watch every Division 7 game, and it is quite likely that I miss one or two amazing series. So, if your team played in a series you think deserves some attention, please drop me a message.
The Bacon Landlords vs Red Dragon Gambling
The Bacon Landlords have had a difficult few weeks, going up against undefeated team after undefeated team, starting with 500ms in Round 5, Kubota Yellow Sox in Round 6, and now Red Dragon Gambling in Round 7. Though they were defeated in all three series, they put up a valiant fight in every one of them, especially against Red Dragon Gambling, even taking a map off them. This is an impressive feat, considering the fact that Red Dragon Gambling had not lost a single map before this series. The Landlords even played some unusual heroes, like Azmodan, to try and gain an advantage over their opponents. However, ultimately, Red Dragon Gambling were able to carry on their undefeated reign, keeping to their usual hero picks like Thrall and Falstad. They displayed their prowess in Game 3, especially, winning on Infernal Shrines without losing a single hero.
The Bacon Landlords drafted Azmodan in Game 1, on Battlefield of Eternity, using the lack of a third lane to get a lot of Annihilation stacks for the Gluttony Azmodan. With Arthas in the offlane, and Johanna in the 4-man, the Landlords featured a formidable frontline that could try and protect the backline. However, Red Dragon Gambling drafted a very dangerous composition, featuring Diablo, Thrall, Orphea and Hanzo, and were able to overwhelm the Bacon Landlords in Game 1, having 13 kills to 4.
Game 2 was a completely different story, as the Bacon Landlords stepped up considerably, taking the Orphea pick themselves, as well as Red Dragon Gambling's signature healer, Brightwing. With an Imperius (coincidentally played by a player called 'Brightwing') in the offlane, the Landlord's composition was very well equipped for quick kills. Red Dragon Gambling drafted a similar composition to the previous game, featuring lots of damage from Falstad, Jaina and Thrall, but this time, the Landlords were able to come out on top, taking Game 2 convincingly.
The angered Red Dragon Gambling came back swinging in Game 3 with a double global composition with Falstad and Dehaka on Infernal Shrines. Though the Bacon Landlords drafted Kel'thuzad, Imperius and Diablo to maximise their kill pressure, they were never able to take a very good engage against the Red Dragon Gambling frontline, led by Muradin and supported by Whitemane. Ultimately, they fell as well to the titans of Division 7, and Red Dragon Gambling took Game 3 as well as the series, giving them a 7-0 record this season.
Keep an eye out for Red Dragon Gambling's next match against Kubota Yellow Sox in Round 8. The result of this match may decide the seeding order for the top teams in Division 7.
The Bacon Landlords will be going up against LFxD in Round 8. This will be a chance for the Landlords to either consolidate their top 8 position a bit more, or for LFxD to climb even further up the ranks of Division 7.
4.EveR vs HaukiGaming
4.EveR and HaukiGaming have both had some difficulties winning matches, sitting on the lower end of Division 7. However, 4.EveR, with 3 match wins, is still capable of qualifying for the playoffs if they can win their remaining matches. As such, their match against HaukiGaming was one of great importance. As for HaukiGaming, though they may have lost their chance to qualify for the playoffs; they showed that they had a lot of potential, taking their second map-win this season and not just that: they even ran Abathur compositions throughout this match, a draft that requires a lot of coordination and team practice to pull off. This is the first season for both of these teams, and I can say from experience that the first season is always rough and more of a learning experience than anything else. I am excited to see what these teams can make happen next season.
Game 1 took place on the classic Abathur map, Cursed Hollow, where HaukiGaming drafted a Tracer to take advantage of Abathur's Symbiote alongside Dehaka for extra macro pressure. Unfortunately, they were unable to play around the overwhelming amount of damage 4.EveR were able to field in the form of Jaina, Falstad and Sylvanas. Falstad, with his global movement, was also able to negate a lot of the pressure HaukiGaming were intending to apply, and 4.EveR were able to take the first map.
For Game 2, HaukiGaming chose to draft Abathur once again, on Alterac Pass. This time, however, they drafted both a Tracer and a Twin-blades Varian, giving them the extra pressure they needed to start getting kills against the composition of 4.EveR. The Jaina and Falstad on 4.EveR's side were unable to have the same impact in the game as they did in Game 1, and HaukiGaming were able to even out the series to a 1:1.
Game 3 saw 4.EveR banning out the Tracer on Infernal Shrines, but they still let the Abathur through. HaukiGaming seized the slug once more, drafting him alongside Ragnaros and Orphea, two heroes with strong wave-clear for the Shrines. 4.EveR were able to match them with an equal focus on wave-clear, picking both Gul'dan and Sylvanas, with Johanna as the tank. Though both teams got their fair share of kills, 4.EveR came out on top, taking the series 2:1 and maintaining their chances on a playoff qualification.
Battleground Statistics
Last week, we looked at a few of the popular maps in Division 7 this season. This week, we will be taking a look at a few of the less popular maps. Notably, every single map in the pool has seen some level of play in Division 7, though some battlegrounds were chosen very few times. Please keep in mind that these are statistics from the first 5 rounds of Division 7, and I am aware more maps have been played since.
Towers of Doom
Claiming the spot of least popular map is Towers of Doom, or as I've heard it being called, Towers of BoreDOOM. It was played once in the first 5 rounds of Division 7, between Frieeend and Unemployed Irresistible, with the battleground chosen by the latter team. The unpopular nature of the map might be caused by Towers of Doom's unconventional nature, featuring invulnerable cores that can only be destroyed by taking the map objectives. This map has also been known as the 'comeback' map in competitive Heroes of the Storm. In the one game that it was played, however, Frieeend took the early lead and never let it go.
It is difficult to determine a 'meta' for this map, based on the very limited information we have. One thing I can suggest is drafting several self-sufficient heroes, who can contest an altar on their own, as triple and double altar phases are very common on this map. The objective rewards teams that are able to apply pressure on multiple fronts. Frieeend, for example, drafted Thrall, as well as Yrel. Both heroes with great self-sustain and a respectable amount of damage.
Alterac Pass
Alterac Pass was played a couple more times than Towers of Doom, totalling 3 map picks. Though the newest map in the pool, I believe Alterac Pass isn't suited for Division 7 because of its lack of mercenary camps. The siege camps on either side can be taken quite easily every time they spawn, and the bosses are located in neutral positions, meaning a boss call is dangerous without a significant advantage. As we all know, Division 7 teams really like taking their mercenary camps, and this map doesn't quite offer the same options as Cursed Hollow or Dragon Shire, for example.
Some popular heroes on this map appear to be Jaina and Raynor, both of whom were picked in all 3 of the games that took place here. In fact, Jaina has a 100% win rate and pick rate on this map, showing that Warcraft heroes should definitely be nerfed on Warcraft maps. Greymane and Leoric are also quite common picks. In general, Alterac Pass features an objective that pushes all three lanes, which means wave-clear for the objective is very valuable on this map.
Sky Temple
Sky Temple appears to be an unpopular map in any Division, and in this Division specifically, the map has been picked 4 times. This map has a 50% win rate for the team that captures the first objective (on this map, this is defined as acquiring more shots than the other team from the initial double temple phase), which is lower than any other map. Personally, I dislike this map for how much impact the late game has, compared to the early game. It is the only map where a team that has been behind the entire game (getting less temple shots, etc) can quite reasonably take down a keep without ever fully winning a fight, giving them a late-game win-condition if they win a fight.
Due to the power of the objective on this map, a lot of globals seem to be drafted on this map, with Dehaka being the most picked hero, followed by Falstad. Rehgar is the most popular healer on this map, perhaps because of this ability to take a temple by himself. This map also appears to be the home of unconventional compositions, having seen Murky, Sgt. Hammer and Abathur picks.
Garden of Terror
Garden of Terror has been criticised for being rather boring since its rework, and perhaps that assessment is shared by Division 7. This battleground is the 4th least popular map in the pool, having been picked 6 times out of a 105 games. Once again, I cannot give you an exact answer for why this map might be unpopular, but I believe the general feeling is that the objective is far too frequent on this map. The seeds spawn one after another, giving teams barely enough time to rotate to their camps before the 30-second warning pops up. On top of this, this map punishes teams very hard if they fail to send at least one person to each lane to defend against an objective, as the garden terrors can disable forts if left unchecked.
A wide range of heroes is played on this map, with Lucio seeing the most play with 4 picks. This may be because Lucio provides a movement speed buff to his allies, allowing for swifter rotations to take place to compensate for the rapid deployment of seeds. Another notable pick on this map is Ragnaros, who was picked twice. The wave-clear he provides, as well as the utility from his trait, can both be quite useful against the objective on this map.
Dragon Shire
Dragon Shire is one of my favourite maps, so it saddens me that this map was only picked 9 times. This map features a very unique objective that requires a team to control 3 different points on the map; both of the shrines on top and bottom lanes, and the middle lane for the eventual Dragon Knight capture. Therefore, in close games, it is quite common for the game to go for a long time before the first objective is captured. The nature of this map also means that the solo-lane is very important, since the team that wins that lane has the inherent advantage of controlling one of the 3 points of interest. Perhaps the lack of a central objective and 5v5 team-fights is unappealing to teams in Division 7.
Arthas was picked 6 times on this map, which is more than Jaina, Raynor or Johanna. This was probably to leverage the fact that Auto Attack build Arthas can out-trade many other heroes in the solo lane. His 83% win rate tells us that this is, perhaps, a good strategy. However, the real deadly weapon on this map appears to be Raynor, who was picked 4 times with a 100% win rate.
Volskaya Foundry
Volskaya Foundry was played 10 times this season, and in 9 of those games, the team with the first objective won the game. This shows that Volskaya is a map that can quite easily lead to a snowball, especially since the usual rotation with the first protector is to destroy the top well, and thus crippling your opponents during the second objective phase. Once again, I believe Volskaya would be much more popular if the camps were strong. Unlike Alterac Pass, this map does have many camps, but most of them provide items, which, while strong, don't seem to appeal in the same way to Division 7 players. The two push camps on top-lane are laughably weak on this map as well, resulting in a map where mercenary pressure is difficult to apply.
Jaina, once again, tops my list of valuable heroes on this map, with a 100% win rate across 4 picks. Raynor, on the other hand, was picked 7 times but struggles with a 42% win rate. Similarly, Kael'thas was picked 4 times, but only won 1 of those games. However, the greatest tragedy perhaps, is Anduin, who is sitting at a 0% win rate across 4 games on this map, the polar opposite of Jaina.
Thank you for reading. Once again, if you have any feedback, don't hesitate to send me a message.
.png){kind=small}
