posted by Vekus,

The game was on tonight between Empire and Asus.Polar for the title of the champion of this years SLTV StarSeries. Both teams fought incredibly hard and provided amazing Dota, but only one could claim the crown.

Game 1

Empire went for a draft that would unfold its true power in the early to midgame, as they got their hands on the dangerous combination of Axe and Tusk, together with an Exort Invoker, providing Sunstrikes wherever needed.
Asus.Polar responded with a teamfight heavy lineup featuring Warlock, Zeus and Brewmaster and the combined damage these could provide with their ultimates.

The Axe and Tusk combination caught a good start, as the game saw Empire pulling ahead 4:3 at only the 4 minute mark. As they wanted to turn up the heat, Asus caught them off guard just two minutes later, resulting in a major swing for the Dire side.

However, this shouldn't last for long as Empire shrugged off the last fight and went to town, netting kills left right and center, pulling as far ahead as 20k experience at the 21 minute mark. Once again overly eager, Empire wanted to close the deal, but Asus.Polar weathered the storm and stayed in the game. This shouldn't last for long though, as the Radiant swooped back in and wiped out the Dire, forcing a 'GG' at just 25 minutes.

Game 2

Asus.Polar had their backs against the wall in this game, as Empire was in the lead 2-0 and could close the finals if they won this game. Their answer to this was a strong midgame lineup around Illidan's Slark, as well as an offlane Nightstalker for Mag.
Empire decided to stroll down the same road, as they picked themselves the potent combination of Juggernaut and Tidehunter, together with a Beastmaster.

The early game saw neither team pulling ahead, with both sides trying to shut down the enemy carry. However, Illidan proved to be a slippery fish, avoiding ganks left and right, even going as far as getting a kill and escaping with a naked Shadow Amulett.

A Slark with a Hand of Midas is a dangerous enemy to deal with, and this experience was Empire's to make. After getting a 12 minute Shadowblade, Asus took the lead and never let it go on the back of Illidan's Slark, threatening the Dire supports at any time.
With an overwhelming performance and an ending score of 18-2-9, it was to no doubt that Empire had to call the GG at 39 minutes.

Game 3

Differently to the previous games, both teams opted for more mid to lategame oriented team compositions. It was a dual middle lane coming out from both Radiant and Dire, matching up the strong combination of Tiny+Wisp against Dazzle+Brew.

The game was off to a slow start, until the ofllaning Magnus managed to net himself a solokill against the Spectre and the Vengeful Spirit. As soon as the Vanguard was up on Empire's Centaur, they turned up the heat, constantly ganking Illidan's Spectre, eventually forcing him to delay the Sacred Relic to pick up a Vanguard first.

Until the 25 minute mark, the game was clearly in the hands of the Dire, as they cleared one tower after another with an early Aghanims on Resolution's Tiny. However, as they tried to force the highground at the bottom lane, it was Asus' turn to shine, wiping the floor with Empire, netting five kills without giving up a single one of their own.

As the next teamfight saw things going down in a similar fashion, it was the Dire team that had their backs against the wall, as they saw their former 8k experience lead turned against them to an 8k experience disadvantage, as well as the middle barracks brought down.

With new confidence, Asus.Polar forced the issue, however it was Empire's turn to make the plays, and with a double Reverse Polarity in their hands they managed to bring down all of Asus, with a Rampage going to Resolution's Tiny. With no buybacks remaining, it was a mere formality for Empire to swoop down the bottom lane and clear the enemies Ancient.

Congratulations to Empire!

With their impressive win of 3-1 against Asus.Polar, Empire secured themselves the title of the champion of the SLTV StarSeries S11 alongside a nice financial aid of $40,000.
Asus.Polar bring home the second place worthy $17,500, with

Ninjas in Pyjamas securing the third place and $12,000

This article was written by

Markus Fischer, joinDOTA's Elder Writer. Vekus started to follow Dota rather late, as he joined the community in 2012. From then on he tried to get a job in Esports and found it later at joinDOTA. Reallife is mostly spend at university trying to understand physics and running. Avid wearer of Bandanas.Location: Chemnitz, GermanyFollow him on @VekusDota.