DotaPit LAN preview: Teams, betting odds, schedule

The first ever DotaPit LAN is upon us. Eight teams – four qualified and four invited ones – will be competing for a portion of the $100,000 base prize-pool. The DotaPit Season 4 LAN event will be held in the beautiful location of Split, Croatia, at the Spaladium Arena, between March 19-20. DotaBlast will be providing on-location coverage.

DotaPit LAN is about to commence on location in beautiful seaside Split, Croatia tomorrow. For the first time since the organization’s inception, the event is being held as a LAN with a $100,000 prize pool. Rewind to the first iteration of DotaPit Season 1 May 2014 which crowned Team Cede Nullis with the championship title and $1,500 prize.

DotaPit LAN will feature eight world renowned teams competing in a Single Elimination format over the course of two days.

DotaPit LAN team matchups Day 1

Saturday, March 19th at 10:45 CET

What to know about Virtus.Pro:

Virtus.Pro will be playing the event with the help of Alexander “XBOCT” Dashkevich as a stand in for Airat “Silent” Gaziev who has been unable to attend and fallen ill since Shanghai Major.

On December 2nd, Virtus.Pro replaced Ilya “Illidan” Pivcaev with Silent as an attempt to push past a 5-8th place stagnation. The new chemistry and roster worked for a period of time, with the squad taking the second place finish at The Summit 4 and the championship title at the D2CL Christmas Charity Magic tournament. However, lately, they have slipped back, claiming 7th-12th place at StarLadder iLeague, 7th-8th place in Captains Draft and 9-12th place at the Shanghai Major.

What to know about compLexity Gaming:

compLexity’s run at the Shanghai Major was a phenomenal one. The team showed remarkable coordination, synergy, team leadership, adaptability and individual skill. They fell to Evil Geniuses in the Round 4 of the lower brackets, taking 5th place.

After TI5 the team underwent further roster changes, as they welcomed Swedish brothers Rasmus “Chessie” Blomdin and Linus “Limmp” Blomdin for the new season, reviving most of the HoN StayGreen roster from 2013-2014. Simon “Handsken” Haag also joined the mix.

Their premier tournament participation has yielded finishes around the 7th-12th place marks, however they continue to dominate, taking first place in the Dota 2 Canada Cup and clinching the only Americas spot for the ESL One Manila event.

Betting odds:

Saturday, March 19th at 13:45 CET

What to know about OG:

The independent European team defied the odds when they rose through the Lower Brackets, bested The International 5 champions, Evil Geniuses, and upset favorites Team Secret to rocket to the top and claim the championship title and the staggering 1.1 million dollars prize at the first Dota Major, in Frankfurt.

The squad provided a jolt to the Dota scene as they then continued to prove their merit grabbing a second consecutive LAN championship one week later at the DreamLeague Season 4 grand finals. They then continued to take a commendable 3rd-4th place at the MLG World Finals, 2nd at the Defense #5, 4th at the Summit 4 and an impressive 3rd place at MDL Winter 2015. They rounded out the winter major season with a 5-6th place finish at Shanghai Major.

What to know about MVP.Phoenix

Following the post-TI shuffle, the two MVP teams merged rosters and created an all-Korean lineup. Although the mix of rosters was expected to make them even a stronger force, they were unable to attain the same results. The full Korean lineup failed to qualify for the Frankfurt Major. Another roster change took place in time for the winter season and the December roster lock period. They have since taken 5th-6th at the MLG World Finals 2015, 4th at the Game Show Global eSports Cup Season 1 and a disappointing 9th-12th at WCA 2015. They were able to emerge from the Shanghai Major SEA Open Qualifiers with a second place finish in the Regional Qualifiers, and thus a spot in the Shanghai Major.

In the second time in one year, the Korean based organization grabbed the hearts of fans around the world. The first time, when they stunned viewers with their dominating performance from both squads in the TI5 qualifiers, taking both qualifier spots for the main event. The organization did it once again just recently at the Shanghai Majors when they emerged from virtually the shadows and astonished enthusiasts everywhere with their aggressive playstyle and standout performances. MVP.Phoenix’s outstanding journey landed them into the top four, but they were unable to surmount the North American Giants, ending their compelling storyline.

Betting odds:

Saturday, March 19th at 16:45 CET

What to know about Team Secret:

Team Secret had an incredible strong start post-TI5, with their revamped roster. Taking second in their debut tournament at ESL One New York, the Europeans then took possession of two consecutive LAN championship titles and the runner-up token for The Frankfurt Major.

Many criticized the team as of late due to some inconsistent results and performances. Team Secret took a surprising 9th place at the WCA 2015 LAN and 5th/6th place in the StarLadder i-League playoffs. They made a surprising early exit at MDL Winter 2015 after being eliminated by Newbee in the first round of the Lower Brackets.

However, under the guidance and leadership of Captain Clement “Puppey” Ivanov the team has thrived once again. They were able to outplay, outdraft and outmaneuver some of the best teams in the world to claim their championship title for the Shanghai Major.

What to know about Na’Vi:

Na’Vi has had a tumultuous year with significant and frequent roster changes, producing subpar results. A team that was once the archetype of success has fallen into disarray during the last year. Going into 2016, the team has high hopes to rekindle that “Born to Win” rally cry and once again achieve greatness.

After announcing in October the dissolution of their Dota 2 team, four days later it was revealed that Danil “Dendi” Ishutin and Akbar “SoNNeikO” Butaev would remain with the organization. More roster changes and continued subpar results at StarLadder iLeague, the team has looked to make drastic improvements in their performance in the upcoming Manila Major and TI6 season.

After trying out and then finalizing their roster last month with Viktor “GeneRaL” Nigrini, the team was able to clinch their spot at DotaPit LAN, retaining a top position in their group.

Betting odds:

Saturday, March 19th at 19:45 CET

What to know about Evil Geniuses:

In August, Evil Geniuses managed to turn the odds to their favor and claim the coveted TI5 Aegis of Champions and $6.6 million in prize money, thus becoming the first American team to win The International.

Their record is undeniably one of the strongest in the scene. Despite the fact that they started off the fall season on the wrong foot, being eliminated in the very first round of the ESL One New York, they went on to take second place at the MLG World Finals, third at the Frankfurt Major and first at Summit 4 . The Summit 4 was EG’s fourth championship title last year, bringing their 2015 tournament winnings close to 8.7 million dollars.

They since have taken 2nd place in StarLadder iLeague and MDL Winter 2015, as well as taking their first championship title of 2016 when they out-drafted and outplayed Vega, 3:1, in Captains Draft 3.0. The team rounded out the top three on the podium for the Shanghai Major.

Under the guidance of Peter “ppd” Dager, EG are able to adapt quickly and prepare for their opponents effectively.

What to know about Team Empire:

Team Empire will be playing with a very modified roster this event. On March 9th Team Empire revealed their lineup for the upcoming Dota Pit season 4 LAN finals. Rostislav “fn” Lozovoi, Maxim “yoky-” Kim and Andrey “Ghostik” Kadyk had been added to squad for the event.

With Roman “Resolut1on” Fominok parting ways to play with Digital Chaos, Alexander “XBOCT” Dashkevich’s exit from the squad and Gleb “Funn1k” Lipatnikov leaving for Team Spirit, Team Empire was left with only two members.

November saw a few second place finishes for the CIS squad. The team had managed to seize the championship title at Game Show Global eSports Cup Season 1, their first in seven months with the addition of Funn1k and XBOCT. However, the turbulent changes and continued sub-par results continued to plague the once Russian giants.

Betting odds:

DotaPit LAN schedule

• Quarterfinals and semifinals will be best-of-three series.
• Single Elimination bracket
• Grand Finals will be best-of-five.

March 19

• 10:45 CET: Virtus.Pro vs. complexity
• 13:45 CET: OG vs. MVP.Phoenix
• 16:45 CET: Team Secret vs. Na’Vi
• 19:45 CET: Evil Geniuses vs. Team Empire

March 20

• 10:45 CET: Semifinals
• 13:45 CET: Semifinals
• 16:45 CET : Grand Finals

DotaPit LAN Finals teams

A total of eight teams will be participating in the LAN event:

• 4 Direct Invites (Virtus.Pro, Team Secret, OG, EG)
• 2 European qualified teams (Na’Vi,Team Empire)
• 1 Americas qualified team (compLexity Gaming)
• 1 South East Asian qualified team (MVP.Phoenix)

DotaPit LAN Finals

The LAN finals will be held at the Spaladium Arena in Split, Croatia. The venue boasts a 10,000 seating capacity and was built in 2008.

DotaPit LAN tickets

Tickets are available for purchase.

Standard Pass

• Two day ticket that provides access to the G2A.COM Dota Pit League Season 4 LAN Finals.
• Ticket holders will access the arena’s general seating area.
• * Floor and VIP Seating Areas are excluded.

Pit Pass

• Two day ticket that provides access to the G2A.COM Dota Pit League Season 4 LAN Finals.
• Ticket holders will receive a free secret gift and access to the arena’s floor seating area.

VIP Pass

• Very limited availability
• Two day ticket that provides access to the G2A.COM Dota Pit League Season 4 LAN Finals.
• Ticket holders will receive access to the VIP Skyboxes and seating area.
• Each ticket holder will receive free food and drink, access to VIP after party plus a special Dota Pit goodie bag.