It has been a crazy day in Heroes of Newerth with the huge 3.0 patch going live and several high-profile Diamond Division teams altering their rosters. The most shocking news comes out of the corner of [DoP]Domain of Pain, who have had a lot success in the fourth Cycle of HoN Tour finishing with a single-digit Diamond rank for the first time in team history.

Yet that recent success wasn't enough for them to stick together, and the highly popular team formed around the Destination DreamHoN tournament is history. It was a slow and aggravating demise for the team, who went through ups and downs in their short stint. During the Destination DreamHoN tournament they had a chance to reach the playoffs with only a couple days of preparation; after that they easily made it into the Diamond Division. They seemed like a promising bunch with massive potential and stars like AngryTestie (RexxcarVroom), Emperor and Fittske on one team.

But the huge success never came, and Domain of Pain was even demoted into the Gold Division after being unable to show up on time. That was actually a situation that followed the team like a disease, as they had to forfeit several matches because of members not showing up on time or at all.

The team stuck together and managed a promotion back into the Diamond Division, but soon after suffered the next blow with Fittske departing to [tdM]Trademark eSports to replace iNsania. After that Parakletos had to step up as the supporter and they actually managed to make the best out of a bad situation with victories over [C1K]Call It Karma and [MlST]Team Mistral in the fourth Cycle.

Now that DoP is done, Emperor is reportedly looking for a new team while the competitive futures of AngryTestie and Parakletos are not yet determined. CHEESEHELMET and Jeppins have found a new competitive home immediately as they step into [TteS]Tt eSPORTS—another top team that has gone through struggles of their own lately. First they had to weather the storm of Riser_ leaving, and now the former captain wyt` will step down and only stay as a sixth man in the roster due to real life commitments in time slots necessary for HoN Tour Diamond.

The two voids in the roster will be filled by CHEESEHELMET and Jeppins, who both have a history with the former Oceanic powerhouse. CHEESEHELMET was tagged up as a Tt eSports member for a long time, even in his time playing for DoP, and has served as a ringer on several occasions. Jeppins traveled to Sweden with Tt eSports to replace the absent Riser_ on the big stage of DreamHoN Winter 2024, in which they finished third. The last vacancy in the team will be filled by LeonBlack`, who will take over the reins as captain.

“I'm really sad to see some of my best friends wyt` and Riser_ step away from the team,” LeonBlack` said, “but we all wish them the best of luck in all future endeavors. It's a nice fresh start with new teammates Heimer and Jeppins. Jeppins, who played with us at DHW2012, fits in perfectly with the team; attitude and skill wise. Heimer is a very close friend whom the team often plays with so the transition period will be minimal. I will personally have to learn to draft and captain on the go, but my teammates’ game knowledge is very high so I'm sure their influence on me will be a positive one. Shoutout to the Soul Reaper Crew!”

Former Tt eSports member Riser_ will become the new permanent fifth for [coL]compLexityGaming. “I'm sad to leave my long-time teammates and friends on Tt e-sports,” said Riser_, “but I believe they are very happy about their new pick-ups in Jeppins and Heimers who are great players and friends. As far as myself in coL, I'm excited to try to climb back to the top position they once held and hope I can fill the big shoes of Chessie.”

The tumbling giant was looking for a major player acquisition after Chessie announced his departure from the team to play for the rival [sG]Stay Green. In the fourth Cycle LezzQQ stepped in for the squad to help them out, but he will most likely be involved in the new project iNsania is building up, so his services are no longer available. Now the talented and well-known Riser_ will take over that spot, looking to turn compLexity back on the road of success.

All the changes will be in affect this Saturday, when the fifth Cycle of the HoN Tour spectacular kicks off. On top of that Stay Green will be performing with Chessie in their jungle for the first time in an official tournament match, with all five members playing from the team facilities in Miami, Florida.

- Sören "Fantasy"