With MSI Beat IT around the corner, many Dota 2 fans need help comparing these regional teams which often do not get an opportunity to play against each other. Refresh on the teams, learn a few new ones, and prepare for what is in store when the MSI Beat IT playoffs hit Twitch and Dota-TV this weekend. Jumpstart the MSI Beat IT experience and betting by reading on each team to make informed decisions through the event!


Europe: Virtus.Pro

- A Second Resurrection



Virtus.Pro found themselves the kings of second chances during the qualifiers, where they were knocked to the lower bracket by Team Empire, one of Europe's fastest-rising teams. Out of the lower bracket, VP managed to knock out Team Tinker. But then, when their second chance to knock Team Empire out of the qualifiers arrived, they were once again eliminated.

Of course, you're not reading a preview about Team Empire. Due to visa issues, they were eliminated, and by a stroke of fortune Virtus.Pro is once again being offered another chance.

Playstyle
Since the transition to 6.82, Virtus.Pro has transitioned into a heavy reliance on Ogre Magi and Legion Commander, but have maintained an emphasis on Mirana. They have a fairly diverse hero pool: in the 25 games played on this patch, they've played 42 heroes and unlike many other teams, Virtus.Pro rarely bans Skywrath Mage, the hero they face up against the most. In addition, this is one of the only teams in the world that has run Lycan on 6.82.

America: Na'Vi.NA

- New Face for New Worlders



It is no secret that Na'Vi.NA has hit a rough patch since TI4, but with the recent (unofficial) additions of the young up-and-coming carry us Chris "Ush" Usher (formerly of Sneaky Nyx Assassins) and ca Peter "Waytosexy" Nguyen, they hope to have found an internal balance which will return them to a competitive force in the North American scene. For those interested in learning more about Na'Vi.NA's recent tribulations, this interview with Brax is a good place to get it.

Correction: a savvy reader has pointed out that I neglected to realize that Ush will be playing in Bucharest with Sneaky Nyx Assassins this weekend, which will be his final event with his former team. Na'VI.NA is reported to be playing with DeMoN instead for this event. Thanks for the correction, and my apologies for the oversight.

This tournament will be the first major outing with this new combination of players, putting even more pressure on this squad to perform. If they succeed, it could kickstart a new chapter, but if they fail, they will lose confidence from fans and viewers worldwide.

Playstyle
It's difficult to tell what the Na'Vi.NA playstyle will revolve around, especially with the recent addition of Ush. While he was with the Sneaky Nyx Assassins, Ush was one of the most diverse players in the world, having played more heroes on 6.82 than any other player at ESL One New York.

Unlike most teams at this tournament, Na'VI.NA is still banning out pushers in an attempt to avoid rat or team-push strategies (a much less popular strategy since the 6.82 update). They are the only team to put ban priority on Nature's Prophet and have maintained a heavy Death Prophet, Razor, Viper, and Brewmaster banrate. Their most played hero is Centaur Warrunner. Their draft diversity has gone up significantly in 6.82, making them less predictable and more flexible.

China: CDEC

- Eastern Standards



Formerly LGD.CDEC, this team has long been a regional name pushing their way to interregional recognition… and to mixed results. However, in their last 25 games, CDEC has come out with an impressive 76% winrate against Chinese teams such as Speed Gaming.NT, TongFu, Hyperglory Team, and Team DK. It's possible that MSI Beat IT could be the opportunity for LGD.CDEC to start their lasting impression on the world stage, which would be a big step for these players who have never placed in the top 3 for a major tournament.

Playstyle
CDEC is the most unchanged team since 6.81 (most likely in the world, but definitely in this tournament). The only change to their most played heroes this patch has been the addition of Earthshaker at the expense of Razor. Their ban priority against Batrider (who is heavily prioritized by most Chinese teams) remains strong, but they have dropped their ban priority for Lycan in exchange for heavy emphasis on denying Io.

Australia: Team Immunity

- Down Under Rising Up?



Immunity is a gaming organization which has created their Dota 2 squad within the last year. However, Most of their players left a few months later for other squds (Can't Say Wips and Team Zephyr accounting for three of the four leaving original members). Having stepped their roster down from multiple members with The International 2 experience, Immunity needs this event to go smoothly in order to bring the spotlight to their region. There are not many opportunities for an Australian team to demonstrate their skill on the world stage, and immunity needs this more than anybody if they want to become a recognizable name in Dota 2 like it is in many other eSports.

Playstyle
Because of their extremely regional play and limited opportunities to showcase their skill, as well as their recent roster changes, it is extremely difficult to pin a playstyle (or even reliable statistics) on Immunity. In the last patch, they had an average hero diversity after TI with heavy emphasis on Ancient Apparition, Lycan, Viper, Lich, Nature's Prophet, and Shadow Shaman, but most teams have stopped drafting such heavy push due to mechanics and gold changes in 6.82. It would be surprising if their playstyle remained the same, but this is just a squad you'll have to watch for more details.




APAC: Rave

- Rise from the East



These Filipino firestarters began their team career under the name "EoT Hammer" and include ca Jio "Jeyo" Madayag (formerly Evil Geniuses). They sit at a 60% winrate in their last 25 matches, including a 100% all-time winrate against SEA qualifiers Insidious Idol. Over the five months since their transition to the Rave brand, they pulled in a notable pile of cash as the 3rd place holders at i-League.

Playstyle
The Magnus bump which occurred several weeks ago, largely off of stellar performances from Ar1se and Dendi, never died with Rave, who still draft Magnus in their top 5 heroes for 6.82. While their preferences for Centaur Warrunner and Vengeful Spirit have survived the patch transition, they've also picked up a late-found fascination for Brewmaster (whom they rarely played during the tail-end of 6.81). In terms of diversity, they are about average, running about 2 unique heroes per game out of their 19 total games.

Southeast Asia: Insidious Idol

- Time to Learn by Doing



This is a squad of struggling players who have stumbled into an opportunity to play in deeper waters. They squarely lost to Arrow Gaming, a team which was found guilty of match fixing in the Synergy Cup in the last couple of weeks. Due to those transgressions, they've also been removed from the MSI Beat IT finals, allowing Insidious Idol to move on despite their less than stellar performance record.

Playstyle

Insidious Idol has a huge disadvantage in this tournament: either they've never played against their upcoming opponents or (worse yet) they have a 100% all-time loss rate against them. They have a huge preference on Terrorblade (with a 100% pick/ban rate) and Skywrath Mage in the current patch. They rather wisely have a heavy emphasis on Centaur Warrunner bans and they are among the minority of teams with data in this tournament that does not count Centaur among their top five most played heroes in 6.82.

Middle East: Wired Gaming

- Earning a Place at the Table



The Middle East is a fledgling region for Dota 2, and as such all teams from within it are relatively unknown. Wired Gaming only lost one game during their qualifiers, winning four in a row in their region and stepping up to be one of the first Middle East teams in Dota 2 history to compete on a global stage. This Lebanese squad is composed of players well-known regionally, but before this event they were largely inactive for a notable duration.

We have insufficient data from this region to make any predictions about Wired Gaming's playstyle or chances, but the implications of a strong performance out of this team for their region are obvious.

Africa: Bravado Emotion

- Separate from the Pack



This South African e-Sports organization competes in multiple eSports to varying degrees of success - while they struggle at international events, they attribute these results to server disadvantages. Emotion is a relatively new squad formed to try and bring Bravado into one of the world's foremost eSports, and this will be their first notable outing. They did perform well against UK's finest recently, demonstrating a definite potential to push the limits of European teams. Not to be confused with Bravado Blue, their other squad which was eliminted by Energy in the brackets, this squad is in much the same position as Wired Gaming: their region needs them to perform. Only time will tell if they can take games off of the teams from more competitive regions and make a name for African Dota 2.

They tend to draft greedy, and their mid player (seeM) has a number of signature heroes which opponents may not know to ban, including Windrunner, Puck, and Queen of Pain, while their hardcarry and offlane players are flexible and willing to exchange roles on a game-by-game basis, especially in the cast of an aggressive trilane. Expect group-heavy drafts which aggress early and create plenty of space... when successful, anyway.

This article was written by us Gorgon the Wonder Cow, joinDOTA's Elder writer.Gorgon is a freelance shoutcaster and analyst for joinDOTA, CEVO, and anywhere a fast tongue with top insight is required. He does statistics research for many articles on joinDOTA and likes pinball.Location: Ann Arbor, MIFollow him on @GoTCoWDotA.

Special thanks to Nox for additional information on the South African Dota scene which is difficult to research due to its limited exposure.

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