NA Fusion Finals: Roster Move Recap and Results
After an intriguing qualifiers series saw many big teams fall, the finals were poised for some great matchups with a mixture of up and coming RLRS talents and some experimental RLCS Rosters. The eight sides would go head to head in 3v3, 2v2, and 1v1, with points going to the top four sides in each sub-division and the victors being the team with the most points. Here’s how the day unfolded with some key talking points focusing on the roster movements followed by the results in full:
Retals’ fine form continues for Team Envy
Having already beaten Fall, Affinity, and Cloud9 in qualifiers, Envy picked up where they left off, with Retals fitting in with class. Their form continued in 3v3’s as they dropped just three matches to make the finals, beating Vision 4-2, and Rogue 4-1. The exciting roster of Atomic, Mist and Retals pushed Spacestation Gaming to the final game, showing that they can be a force to be reckoned with. Slipping up on a 3-2 match lead, to lose the finals 4-3, Team Envy are the team on everyone’s lips in the NA region, as they look set to be the team to challenge SSG and G2 as the top NA side. Returning to RLCS after four seasons out of action, Envy’s roster is as exciting as any, and shows little signs of slowing down.
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Stromboli struggling despite strong qualifiers.
Despite looking strong throughout qualifying for the finals, Stromboli went without a win in any game mode, only notching up four match wins in total, with three being in the 1v1 division. Suffering a blowout 4-0 defeat to the hands of Rogue, the void left from AlRaz’s departure began to show. It was only their first major event with pair hec and AlphaKep, but there seemed a significant skill-gap between themselves and Rogue. With AlRaz trying out for Pittsburgh Knights, they will be hoping to keep hold of their playmaker who was a key force in pushing Stromboli into the promotion Play-Offs. With a lot of time left until RLRS S10, Stromboli will need to settle into their roster quickly and embed as a team if they want to gain promotion this year.
Click to enlargeTurinturo settling into the starting roster at Rogue
After saving themselves from relegation to the RLRS through the promotion playoffs, Rogue acquired Turinturo at the expense of Wonder. Initially drafted in as a stand-in for the Spring Series, Rogue has pushed Turinturo to a starting role, which seems to have paid dividends. Alongside Firstkiller and Kronovi, he has looked a good fit for Rogue. Albeit with some mixed results in 3v3, Rogue looked to have solidified their roster which has huge potential. Firstkiller boasted incredible skill in 1v1’s showing his flair, and Kronovi remains as a great veteran of the game since his World Championship in Season 1, and the pair have been looking for a solid third to compete with, and Turnituro appears to be a good fit. They fell to on-form Team Envy in the 3v3 Quarterfinals, but there was plenty of improvement from their blunt-ended RLCS S9 campaign.
Spacestation’s Dominance
SSG are a dominant force in NA RLCS, as they topped the table in Season 9, losing only one game throughout the regular season, and falling to G2 Esports in the finals. They went into the Fusion Finals as the strongest side and dominated thoroughly in 3v3 and 2v2, which resulted in them being crowned worth champions. Being pushed all the way to a game 7 decider in the 3v3 division, SSG kicked it up a gear and shown why they are in the discussion as the best side at current times, as they decided the final in a 7-0 thrashing.
Click to enlargeFusion NA Results:
3v3
Quarter-Finals:
Spacestation Gaming 4 – 2 Divine
Affinity 4 – 3 72PC
Team Envy 4 - 2 Vision
Rogue 4 – 0 Stromboli
Semi-Finals:
Spacestation Gaming 4 – 1 Affinity
Team Envy 4 – 1 Rogue
Final:
Spacestation Gaming 4 – 3 Team Envy
Spacestation Gaming wins the 3v3 Series.
2v2
Quarter-Finals
Spacestation Gaming 4 – 1 Divine
Team Envy 2 – 4 Rogue
72 PC 2- 4 Vision
Stromboli 1 – 4 Affinity
Semi-Finals:
Spacestation Gaming 4 – 1 Rogue
Vision 2 – 4 Affinity
Final:
Spacestation Gaming 4 – 0 Affinity
Spacestation Gaming wins the 2v2 Series.
1v1
Quarter-Finals
Rogue (Firstkiller) 4 – 0 Spacestation Gaming (Arsenal 1-3, Sypical 4)
Affinity (MajicBear) 4 – 1 Team Envy (Retals)
72PC (LionBlaze) 4 – 3 Stromboli (AlphaKep)
Divine (JRuss) 4 – 2 Vision (kinseh)
Semi-Finals
Rogue (Firstkiller) 4 – 0 Affinity (MajicBear 1&4, Jordan 2&3)
72PC (LionBlaze) 4 – 2 Divine (JRuss)
Final
Rogue (Firstkiller) 4 – 2 72PC (LionBlaze)
Firstkiller wins the 1v1 series for Rogue
Overall Standings:
With 17 points for a first-place finish, 11 for runners up, and semi-finalists gaining 7, here’s how the points added up for your overall Fusion NA winners:
8th – 0pts – Stromboli
7th – 7pts – Vision
6th – 7pts – Divine
T4th – 11pts – Team Envy
T4th – 11pts – 72 Pin Connector
3rd – 25pts – Affinity
2nd – 31pts – Rogue
1st – 34pts – Spacestation Gaming
Spacestation Gaming crowned Johnnyboi_i’s Fusion NA champions.
To see how the European Fusion unfolds, stay tuned here at GGRecon, and follow us on Twitter for live updates @RLRecon.
Image via ZeeboDesigns
