ESFI World

The NASL Team League showed no signs of slowing down in its fourth week as foreign juggernauts brought the heat once again.

Now dead in the middle of the the round robin stage, the curds are beginning to separate from the whey as teams' fates begin to take shape. To review the format once more, round-robin matches begin with four one-versus-one matches in which each player can play only once. If after the four games a team has taken three wins, they take the match. If the teams tie at two, however, a best-of-three ace match takes place to determine the winner.

Week 4 Results

NASL Team League: Week 4 Results

Quantic Gaming	1-3	FXOpen e-Sports	Match Page
RoX.KIS	3-2	Team Liquid	Match Page
Evil Geniuses	0-3	Mousesports	Match Page
ReIGN	2-3	Team Empire	Match Page

Match of the Week

The match of the week was also the shortest series as Evil Geniuses faced Mousesports in what was a bloody battle between some of EG's best and a Mousesports team that has been playing very well as of late.

Playing on Ohana RE, PuMa opened against MorroW with the uncommon reaper expand, foregoing the typical hellion opening. Keeping his reaper alive and transitioning to reactored hellions, PuMa was able to contain MorroW in his base while he began a third command center. Meanwhile, MorroW maintained control of his zerglings to keep the hellions at bay while he prepared for a two-base roach-ling-baneling all-in. Given its sheer power, MorroW's strategy may be one that we see more of in the future against Terrans who don't invest into early defense. 

Disillusioned by MorroW's aggressiveness, PuMa built a bunker and began producing marauders after having finished combat shield for his marines. To further ensure his safety, PuMa used his orbital command as a part of his wall-off to prevent the banelings from exacting any real damage onto his tech structures and economy.

Ultimately, the wall just wasn't enough as PuMa lost all of his defenses and was forced back to his ramp. His natural expansion, susceptible to attacks, lost thirteen SCVs but managed to hold both orbital commands (his upcoming third and his natural expansion) while also diminishing MorroW's forces as he retreated.

Down fourty-five drones to twenty-seven SCVs, PuMa looked to be falling slowly to his demise as the Zerg began to take a large economic lead. With stim finishing and +1 attack/defense on the way for PuMa, he decided to move out with a marauder/hellion push instead of Sheth's recommended drop play to put the Zerg on the defensive. The Terran's push was suddenly delayed, however, as MorroW managed to slip some zerglings in PuMa's natural, forcing his units to perform janitorial duty and clean up the small harass.

Successfully delaying the push, MorroW's spire finally finished and mutalisks were able to do damage to PuMa's SCV count once more. While PuMa was stuck at home fearing mutas, MorroW snagged a third and set up another attack with +2/+2 banelings and lings, eventually denying PuMa's third base.

Now twenty-one minutes into the game with a one hundred supply lead, MorroW continued to pile on the damage. PuMa, with his back against the wall, rallied his heavily upgraded forces and pushed forward while successfully dropping the Zerg's fifth base. In retaliation MorroW once more baneling busted PuMa's third, and after a final unsuccessful push from PuMa, even after taking out the Zerg's third and fifth twice while establishing his fourth, he finally called gg.

The second match seemed a bit like déjà vu as IdrA and ThorZaIN faced off on Antiga Shipyard. ThorZaIN chose to go straight for a reactor hellion opening with a quick second command center following shortly thereafter. Trimming the fat from PuMa's build, ThorZaIN then contained IdrA with four to five hellions as he produced a steady stream of marines and tanks to reinforce.

IdrA, perhaps already irked, tried to perform a similar move to MorroW's, but moved in with roaches before he had a sufficient resources to produce a strong number of banelings or an even larger number of zerglings. ThorZaIN, taking advantage of his hellions' speed, saw the all-in coming from IdrA and laughed as siege mode completed in the nick of time, funneling all of IdrA's units towards the bunker blocking the escape route. Pulling IdrA in by letting the bunker go down and moving his units back, ThorZaIN then sprung out with his marauders and SCVs to clean up the remaining units, bringing the series to a quick 2-0 in favor of Mousesports.

The third and final game between iNcontroL and HasuObs was a fitting PvP to wrap up the series. As both players opened normally, HasuObs took his second gas as iNcontroL seemed to be preparing a four-gate. In the process, HasuObs managed to gain a four probe lead over iNcontroL, giving him an early economic advantage.

First blood was spilled as iNcontroL tried to slip in a pylon but lost a zealot and thus the small engagement. Unfortunately for EG this caused his four-gate to be delayed, thus missing his optimal timing. iNcontroL tried to compensate with another pylon, but HasuObs managed to trap two stalkers at the ramp while side-stepping the warped-in zealots. Now with the upper hand, HasuObs researched blink technology and added a robotics facility.

At twenty-seven probes to the twenty of iNcontroL, HasuObs increased his lead as he warped two zealots onto the high ground with the help of his observer, forcing iNcontrol to defend both his ramp and his main base. Cued to blink in, HasuObs took out iNcontroL's observer and eventually the rest of his forces, cementing the 3-0 win for Mousesports. This loss was an unfortunate one for an Evil Geniuses team that now holds a 0-4 record while Mousesports may be seeing the light at the end of the tunnel by improving to 2-2.