Along with the World Champion title, Epsilon left the stage with a $500,000 prize, while EnvyUS earned $75,000. Here are the highlights from the Grand Finals:
Epsilon vs. Enemy
3-0, favor of Epsilon
Game 1 Picks:
Epsilon: Ymir, Neith, Thor, Sol, Sobek Enemy: Osiris, Hun Batz, Zhong Kui, Chiron, Serqet
Epsilon started strong in this game, taking first blood and an early lead. A 2-2 scuffle helped Enemy even out the lead, but it didn’t last long. Epsilon landed a 5-0 wipe that gave them the Gold Fury, then another 4-0 that gave them an even bigger advantage. They came dangerously close to Enemy’s base with another 4-0 fight in their favor, then made a move on the Fire Giant. Enemy forced them out, but couldn’t commit to taking it themselves.
After another advance, Epsilon took the Fire Giant, which left them with a 15K EXP and 17K gold lead. At just 28 minutes in, Epsilon went for the Titan kill with a 22-7 kill count on the board.
Game 2 Picks:
Epsilon: Thor, Neith, Geb, Isis, Tyr Enemy: Bellona, Serqet, Zhong Kui, Chiron, Bacchus
Enemy looked a little bit better in Game 2. Epsilon nabbed first blood, but Enemy retaliated with a 3-1 fight that went in their favor. They took the Gold Fury shortly after. But an extended engagement following the Gold Fury respawn helped Epsilon close the lead. They managed to steal the Gold Fury, but it cost them 3 members. Enemy got a little too bold in their engagements, and an over-extension during a tower siege resulted in a 4-1 scuffle, favor of Epsilon.
This marked a turning point in the game. The map was clear for Epsilon to take the Fire Giant, and they managed to make a 5,200 gold swing in 10 minutes. A long dance around the second Fire Giant eventually fell in Epsilon’s favor, and they nailed another 4-0 wipe on Enemy. Enemy took the Gold Fury, but it wasn’t enough. Epsilon farmed the map a little longer, grabbing another 4-0 fight, the Fire Giant, and a few more objectives. A devastating 5-0 sweep in their favor left Enemy’s Titan totally vulnerable, and Epsilon took the game.
Game 3 Picks:
Epsilon: Sol, Thor, Geb, Sobek, Medusa Enemy: Athena, Neith, Hun Batz, Osiris, Zhong Kui
Enemy shocked everyone by stubbornly sticking with their Zhong Kui pick, which hadn’t worked out at all for them in the first two games. We expected to see an Agni pick, which mid-laner Khaos had been making some stellar plays with in other games.
But at the outset of Game 3, it looked like Enemy might force the match to Game 4. First blood went to Epsilon, who also took the Gold Fury with just 3 minutes on the clock. But Enemy grabbed an early advantage by landing a 2-1 and 3-1 trade on Epsilon. After that, Epsilon started winning most encounters, but the gold and experience lead still sided with Enemy, who farmed the map for some key objectives.
This lead must have gone to Enemy’s head, because they started making messy engagement decisions. Epsilon was able to wreck them in several team fights, landing a 4-0 wipe that cleared the way for them to take the Fire Giant. After landing another 5-0 slaughter, they skipped the Phoenixes to go straight into Enemy’s base. They took down the Titan and sealed their place as the reigning World Champions.
Xbox One Invitational: Cognitive vs. EnvyUS
3-0, favor of Envy
Game 1 Picks:
EnvyUS: Xing Tian, Athena, Xbalanque, Serqet, Kukuklan Cognitive: Bellona, Chiron, Zhong Kui, Hun Batz, Sobek
Game 1 was almost dead even for the first 10 minutes. Envy started to take a slight lead after that, with a few more kills on the board. Two 2-1 encounters gave Envy a considerable lead, and by the 35 minute mark they’d increased the kill count to 13-6 in their favor. With a 10K gold and EXP lead, they took a Tier 2 objective. After a 4-2 encounter fell in Cognitive’s favor, they were able to take the Fire Giant away from Envy.
Cognitive tried to make a comeback, but they got completely wiped out. Their base was left wide open for Envy to move in and take the first win of the match.
Game 2 Picks:
EnvyUS: Bellona, Chiron, Kukuklan, Mercury, Geb Enemy: Xing Tian, Athena, Bastet, Neith, Hel
In a slow (and rather strange) start, Envy grabbed the Gold Fury and Cognitive took down a Tier 1 tower before first blood was finally drawn at 16 minutes in. Enemy’s strategic map farming in the early game had gotten them a serious advantage, and Cognitive had trouble standing up to them in team fights. They managed to nail a 3-3 trade to earn a slight lead, but Enemy wiped them out a few minutes later. This let Enemy grab several objectives, snowballing their lead until they were up 18K EXP and 15K gold.
Cognitive knew they couldn’t hang on much longer, and they started a surrender vote. It didn’t come through, but Envy quickly grabbed the Fire Giant and made their final push on the Titan to take the Game 2 win.
Game 3 Picks:
EnvyUS: Chiron, Athena, Thor, Hades, Osiris Cognitive: Bellona, Odin, Zeus, Kumbhakarna, Freya
Cognitive started strong in this game, landing a 3-1 trade when they moved in for first blood. They maintained a steady lead until the 16 minute mark. They overextended in the mid lane, and it was the proverbial arrow in their knee. Envy gained a slight advantage that snowballed as they took objective after objective. They turned a 6-6 kill count into an 18-9 lead in just over 10 minutes.
Once Envy got the Fire Giant buff in hand, they breached Cognitive’s base to take down all three Phoenixes. They could have ended the game there, but instead they returned to farm the map and grab another Gold Fury before making the final push toward Cognitive’s Titan. Their victory in Game 3 gave them the match, and they walked away as the very first World Champion team for Xbox One.
Stay tuned to GameSkinny for dev interviews and more SMITE updates as we begin to look forward to Season 3!
