We have had some magnificent matches so far this season and it’s not over yet, here we look at some of the exciting upcoming ties from Round 8
Hippopotamus vs Quick Slick Trick
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New team Hippopotamus have 4 wins to their name this season, 2 of those may have been free wins due to receiving BYE!s but they all count and this puts them in a decent position in the division for the time being. Despite the Hippopotamus’ stocky shape and short legs, it is capable of running 30 km/h (19 mph) over short distances. Quick Slick Trick have had a respectable performance in what is their third season in lounge, picking up 4 wins, they will be hoping to at least match their performance from last season when they won 6 games and went on to reach the knockout stage of the Mythic Championship.
E.T.C. is the most popular hero so far for Hippopotamus, but has only managed to win 1 of the 5 games in which he has been drafted. Hanzo and Rehgar are two heroes who have a better winrate for the Hippos, each with a 66.67% win rate over 3 games. Quick Slick Trick have also drafted E.T.C. 5 times but have found success on 4 of those occasions. Garrosh, Uther and Kerrigan are all sitting at 100% win rate after 3 games, showing they are certainly picks to be feared.
1 Punch(er) Army vs Gravity is just a social Convention
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A new team comprised of Lounge veterans, 1 Punch(er) Army are in a fantastic position to qualify for the Legendary Cup with 5 wins from 7 games. They are so far the only team to defeat 1st place Team Sn0r who they managed to topple 2-1 in a closely contested round 7 match. Gravity is just a social Convention match their opponents record of 5 wins, which is how many they achieved last season. With 3 games remaining, they will hope to better their previous record and look to qualify for the Cup.
1 Punch(er) Army have been punching, or clawing to be more precise, their enemies to death with Greymane who has an 85% win rate over 7 games. Jaina and Rehgar have proven to be reliable comforts as they both show a 100% winrate over 4 games. 34 different heroes have been drafted by Gravity is just a social Convention so far this season. Of those heroes Sylvanas and Anub’arak are the most seen of those heroes appearing 6 times with an 83% winrate. Closely behind in terms of number of picks is Tyrande who has won 5 out of 5 games.
Running into a Knife vs EnCore
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After 5 seasons of hibernation and intense practice, Running into a Knife have returned to Heroes Lounge. Myrmidon and team had a strong start to the season with 3 wins before losing the following 3 matches, a place in the Legendary Cup is still within reach if they are able to win most of their remaining 4 fixtures. EnCore are heading into their fourth season in Lounge, they currently have 3 wins and will have similar aspirations to their opponents.
Running Into a Knife have played 38 different heroes, showing that they have a lot of viable options during the drafting phase. Chen and Maiev are 2 strong heroes who have been picked twice with a 100% winrate and may be pivotal if they can make it in to future drafts. Not to be outdone EnCore have drafted a whopping 41 different heroes, Arthas leading the way with 7 picks and a 57.14% winrate. Jaina appears to be a reliable selection for them, winning all 4 of her games.
Sloth Sanctuary vs InVain
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What happens when a group of beloved sloths all gather in one place? Sloth Sanctuary that’s what. Led by one of my favourite Lounge casters Dentro, this epic team also features Vice Lounge Master TinyOwl, Chief League Pittor, EU League Manager TyphoonHawk and even a sneaky Narsha. With 3 wins so far after 7 matches, it is likely they will have to win all of their remaining matches if they want to make a late surge into the Epic Cup. InVain are in their second season in Lounge, they achieved 3 wins last season and have achieved that already this season with 3 matches still to go, as with their opponents they would need perfect form in their remaining games if they hope to qualify for the Cup.
These two teams contested a match in round 7 last season, with Sloth Sanctuary coming out victorious on that occasion.
E.T.C. and Dehaka are the most picked heroes for Sloth Sanctuary with 5 games, coming in with a 60% and 40% win rate respectively. The Sloths have drafted The Lost Vikings once this season which ended up in a victory, which will instil fear in their enemies on maps such as Cursed Hollow and Alterac Pass. Interestingly InVain’s most played hero is Tychus, certainly a strong hero but not one we would expect to see prioritised as highly as this. Over 7 games he has achieved a 42.86% winrate. Valla has their highest winrate with 100% albeit only over 1 game, but this may be a sign that she could be a useful hero for them going forward.
Killer Koalas vs Noche en el Nexo
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The Killer Koalas have been slothing around in lounge since season 5 with their fantastic sloth portraits. After missing out on a round 5 game they are currently sitting at 2 wins so far this season with 4 matches to play the Epic Cup may be slightly out of reach, but will certainly put up a fight in their remaining games. Noche en el Nexo are in their debut season in Lounge and have ties to the Spanish speaking hots community HOTSEA. With 2 wins from 7 matches the Cup isn’t a realistic target now for this team, but hopefully they will build up and push on to glory next season.
Falstad flies into Killer Koala's draft more than any other hero, on 5 occasions with a 40% win rate. The Koalas have won the single game that they have drafted Illidan, a secret weapon in waiting perhaps? Noche en el Nexo’s main hero is Leoric who they have picked up 6 times winning 3 of those games. Tyrande has a 100% win rate for Noche after 3 games but in return has been banned out against them 5 times, she will certainly be a threat for them if she makes it through the ban phase.
Good Grief! vs Face Check
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A new team whose members have a vast amount of lounge experience, Good Grief! are the current team of Lounge Overlord Petman. With only 2 wins so far qualifying for the Rare Cup isn’t feasible, but they have done well to win 7 maps showing they have been competitive in their losses. Face Check are into their second season in Lounge, last season they managed a single win and that matches their current record so far this season. With 3 games left to play they will be hoping to show they have progressed as a team with another season of Lounge experience under their belts.
The Skeleton King Leoric is the most popular team for a second team in this blog post, appearing 6 times for Good Grief! And bringing success on 2 of these occasions. The most intriguing thing from looking at their hero stat page is that they have banned out Azmodan 7 times, something we don’t often see. They have drafted him once themselves, finding success on that occasion. Face Check have prioritised Arthas so far, 9 times they have looked to him and have used him in both the main tank role and the solo lane. They have picked up Azmodan twice with a 50% winrate, and it will be interesting to see if they get to add to that or if he will get banned out by their opponents.
HotS Musical vs Hots shot
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HotS Musical are in their debut season in Lounge and have made a respectable start with 3 wins from 7 games. Their opponents Hots shot are also a fresh team in lounge, and have done well to win 4 of their 7 matches.
The Rare Cup is still within reach for these two teams, but they will have to be dominant and win their remaining matches.
Muradin is the popular choice for HotS Musical, appearing 6 times with a 33.33% winrate. Musical heroes haven't served them well so far as DJ Lucio has a 0% win rate after 3 games, and resident rockstar of the nexus E.T.C. appeared twice and has also failed to achieve a win. Hots shot have drafted glorified ranged minion Jimmy Raynor on 6 occasions but have only won one of these games. Sticking with heroes with powerful auto attacks, they have found better success with Zul’jin so far who has won both maps he has been selected for
I hope you’ve had a rigtastic time reading this post, make sure to keep an eye on the calendar and in the #stream channel in our Discord for the latest casts!
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