By Blaze
Saturday
[BMG]BadMonkeyGaming versus [Rea]Reason Gaming
After the events of the last two Cycles, to see these two teams here was quite unexpected. BMG wasn't doing very well so far and did not even qualify for the Playoffs last Cycle while the newly minted Reason Gaming was struggling with Relegation rather with the Playoffs in the first two Cycles. But they made it into the Playoffs this Cycle and of course both were eager to advance here further. And so both teams did what they could to win the match, but from early on, BMG seemed to be a step ahead of their opponents, just as they used to be last Season. Reason Gaming fought on but was unable to keep up with the monkeys and lost both games, making them drop out of the Playoffs pretty early, moving BMG to the Losers Bracket Finals the next day.
[ECx]Evil Corporation versus [coL]compLexity Gaming
Many people expected this matchup to happen, especially after [Mint]Fresh performed badly in the Group Phase earlier, and this is exactly what we got. Both teams played stellar this Cycle and they would now go against each other for, what many people thought, would be the first time, followed by a second time in the Grand Finals. And the matchup was everything that it promised to be. Great plays, a lot of action and a long match. In the end it was compLexity who managed to get out of this ahead by winning the third and last game, so they could take a break after this long match and recover some strength while Evil Corporation would now have to face BMG on Saturday in the Losers Bracket Finals.
Sunday
[BMG]BadMonkeyGaming versus [ECx]Evil Corporation
This matchup sure has a lot of history and another chapter would be added to it after this evening. BMG went into this match as the underdog and they knew they had to give everything and hope for ECx to struggle if they wanted to move on here. And exactly that happened. All three games were pretty even overall, so it was the smaller things that decided the game, things like unusual heroes and better teamwork. ECx did not have the best of evenings, while BMG did splendid, even brought back ye olde Plague Rider. And it paid off eventually, for BMG actually won the third and last game of the match, finally moving them up the ladder again where they used to be. For Evil Corporation, it was a disappointment, they certainly were the best team after the Group Phase, but in the Playoffs, things did not go their way, as it often is. The HoN gods are capricious indeed.
[coL]compLexity Gaming versus [BMG]BadMonkeyGaming
This truly wasn't the matchup that most people expected for the Grand Finals, but it was a good matchup, especially after the matches before. BMG went into this a bit exhausted, after all they had a mammoth match just minutes before against ECx, so compLexity Gaming seemed to have an advantage - they were well rested and it was still pretty early in the US. But advantage or no, both teams went into this match to win and we got a nice, although a little one-sided match. compLexity was simply too good on that Sunday evening to be defeated and BMG was unable to really do anything. Maybe they would have done better after some rest, maybe not, in the end all that matters is that compLexity won and BMG did not, yet both teams can be quite happy about the overall results as they both won some serious money, points and showed their fans that they still got what it takes - for coL to win a Cycle and for BMG to get to the Grand Finals and perhaps even more in the future.
Cycle 3 of HoN Tour Season 4 is now finished, so congrats to compLexity Gaming for becoming the Champions of Cycle 3, winning the second Cycle in this season overall and showing us just how good HoN can be played. For all other teams, good luck going against them next Cycle! Speaking of which, Cycle 4 is right around the corner and it's going to be amazing once again, this time with a new team in the mix and seven teams eager to dethrone the current Champions. More about that soon!
BlahC is a senior Hontour.com writer focusing on the NA/EU Diamond and Gold Divisions. After making a name for himself in the Dawn of War 1 scene, he began his career in journalism at DawnOfWar.de. As one of the first HoN Tour writers, BlahC has focused on the less known teams, bringing their name to the forefront. When he isn’t writing about HoN, BlahC enjoys playing RPGs, writing fiction, and listening to Metal, Avantgarde, and Neofolk music.
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