One organization can be one step closer to clinching the first seed, two organizations fight for their life in the relegation zone, and a legendary organization has returned to Halo.
Like always, this was a set-up for a memorable night of Halo. Here’s how week six ended:
Match One: OpTic Gaming vs. Allegiance
Game One: Strongholds – Plaza
Because Michael “Falcated” Garcia went to another house and downloaded a bogus update there, Abel “Rammyy” Garcia had to come in relief for Allegiance.
Unfortunately, the 3sUp man couldn’t spark ALG enough to hold their own in game one, as OG rolled over Allegiance in a lopsided strongholds match filled with triple caps and quality rotations.
Game Final: OG 100 – 10 ALG
Match Score: OG 1 – 0 ALG
Game Two: Slayer – Plaza
It comes as a surprise that Allegiance would hold a great lead after getting crushed in game one, but Slayer and Strongholds play completely differently on Plaza. When not forced to get into certain zones for points, ALG thrived by taking advantage of high ground and put some pressure on OpTic.
In a game type with double digit wins, somehow the #GreenWall crumbled in a surprising loss to ALG.
Game Final: ALG 50 – 35 OG
Match Score: ALG 1 – 1 OG
Game Three: CTF – Truth
With fuel rod control, OG picked up the first flag of the game a few minutes in, but ALG was able to get a response with Cody “ContrA” Szczodrowski clearing the way with a triple kill.
Mathew “Royal2” Fiorante later had a triple kill of his own that cleared a flag pull, and one last overload gave OpTic the game three win.
Game Final: OG 3 – 1 ALG
Match Score: OG 2 – 1 ALG
Game Four: Strongholds – Empire
Both teams locked up at 12 points until ALG went on a 31 point run, followed up by OpTic crawling back into the game and hitting the halfway mark.
From their, OG pulled away with authority to further dig Allegiance down into the relegation zone.
Game Final: OG 100 – 53 ALG
Match Final: OG 3 – 1 ALG
Match Three…?: Luminosity Gaming vs. Team Liquid
Yep, we have a swap here. No, I did not get lazy and make life for my editor difficult on purpose. The second match of the night between nV and E6 was rescheduled until after this one. We almost saw a delay with the OG vs. ALG match, but now it is nV and E6 who had to suffer.
Game One: Strongholds – The Rig
Power weapon and lead changes earmarked the start of this tightly contested and fast paced game, with Team Liquid pulling away in the mid-game 73-31.
Luminosity then snuck up and tied things up at 77, getting a slight lead and edging out TL with a triple capture to end game one.
Game Final: LG 100 – 82 TL
Match Score: LG 1 – 0 TL
Game Two: Slayer – Regret
Liquid kicked off this game with a solid 12-5 run, but once again, Luminosity came back, getting within six kills of the lead when TL hit 40…
And although Cameron “Victory X” Thorlakson picked up overshield and the rest of the team playing smart, LG fell just short of a second straight comeback.
Game Final: TL 50 – 46 LG
Match Score: TL 1 – 1 LG
Game Three: CTF – Fathom
It took until the 7:30 mark for Luminosity to get the first flag capture of the game, and Liquid responded three and a half minutes later in a pretty long CTF contest.
TL then turned it around late by getting two consecutive caps, and went into game four one game away from locking down third from a hungry LG.
Game Final: TL 3 – 1 LG
Match Score: TL 2 – 1 LG
Game Four: Strongholds – Plaza
Luminosity came up big with a 20-2 start before Liquid did some damage control and took the lead at the Luminosity 43 point mark.
TL then had solid control for the rest of the match, securing their lead and shutting down Luminosity’s attempt to force a game five.
Game Final: TL 100 – 60 LG
Match Final: TL 3 – 1 LG
Match (Three) Two: Team EnVyUs vs. Enigma6
Game One: Strongholds – The Rig
nV pretty much gut-punched Enigma6, outshooting and outplaying the E6 side to get a commanding victory.
Game Final: nV 100 – 17 E6
Match Score: nV 1 – 0 E6
Game Two: Slayer – Truth
Enigma6 bounced back with a 12-5 start, and held strong thanks to Jesse “bubu dubu” Moeller locking down control of the fuel rod.
It was almost a steak dinner for E6, who shockingly made the boys in blue look bad in the pro league.
Game Final: E6 50 – 33 nV
Match Score: E6 1 – 1 nV
Game Three: CTF – Coliseum
Last time out, nV blanked E6 in dominating fashion. Needless to say, this game was a bit tougher for EnVyUs.
They took the first cap by sweeping down their opposition, but had to hold strong against a relentless attack from E6 throughout. The floodgates finally opened around the four minute mark, with Carlos “Cratos” Ayala getting a clutch return.
The underrated Ayden “Suspector” Hill cleared the entire nV roster to help Enigma6 get its second cap, and would end the match with a game high 28 kills.
Right after the two minute warning, E6 got the game-winner, avenging their loss from their first series with nV.
Game Final: E6 3 – 1 nV
Match Score: E6 2 – 1 nV
Game Four: Strongholds – Empire
Eric “Snip3down“ Wrona’s dirty triple kill is a great metaphor for this game: Complete domination by nV. And I mean absolute domination. See also: annihilation, decimation, lopsided barn-burner, thrashing, absolute control…
nV is now 5-2 on this exact game mode and map, with this one being a complete exclamation point to their record. Meanwhile, Enigma6 is a not so nice; 6-9 overall at Strongholds in general.
Game Final: nV 100 – 0 E6
Match Score: nV 2 – 2 E6
Game Five: Slayer – Coliseum
Enigma6 got power weapon control, which helped them get a 11-5 early gain on nV.
The two sides were all tied up at 25, and EnVyUs was able to get back on track with a 10-4 run. From that point, the wizard Justin “iGotUrPistola” Deese helped nV slam the door on E6, getting a ridiculous 16 kill streak and therefore the first ever Pro League Running Riot that can only be described as magical.
nV avoided a major scare against a team that is dangerously close to the relegation line, and continued to hold their number one spot in the league.
Game Final: nV 50 – 37 E6
Match Final: nV 3 – 2 E6
Match Four: Evil Geniuses vs. (OH MY GOD THIS CAN’T BE HAPPENING) STR8 RIPPIN
Game One: Strongholds – Plaza
First off… OH MY GOD STR8 RIPPIN IS BACK. THE BOYS ARE BACK.
Anyways, in a match where a win for either side changes the landscape of the HCS table, Evil Geniuses started off hot, but Str8 came back to roll past the 57 mark that EG settled for with a triple cap.
This sealed the deal for the freshly named Str8 Rippin, who took home game one.
Game Final: STR8 100 – 58 – EG
Match Score: STR8 1 – 0 EG
Game Two: Slayer – Regret
EG was slow to start against Str8 Rippin, getting doubled up 18-9 in the early game.
EG eventually got ahead after the 30 kill mark, but Str8 got it back to get their second straight game win.
Game Final: STR8 50 – 42 EG
Match Score: STR8 2 – 0 EG
Game Three: CTF – Fathom
Evil Geniuses got to a hot start with a flag cap in the first two minutes, and followed it up right after the 10 minute mark with another one.
The game slowed considerably, opening the door for Str8 to come back in the last three minutes. Richie “Heinz” Heinz went coast-to-coast for the first flag, and a three man sweep allowed Str8 to get the game-tying cap.
This sent the game into OT, where Evil Geniuses got the final cap and forced a game four.
Game Final: EG 3 – 2 STR8
Match Score: STR8 2 – 1 EG
Game Four: Strongholds – The Rig
EG got the first total control, allowing them to get a 34-6 advantage to start.
Str8 Rippin had a few moments of control, but the Geniuses were just too hot to handle after an overtime CTF win.
We’re heading to a game five.
Game Final: EG 100 – 35 STR8
Match Score: EG 2 – 2 STR8
Game Five: Slayer – Plaza
Going back to the map from game one, Str8 Rippin and Evil Geniuses fought neck and neck in a slower paced match.
In the end, it was Str8 who got out to a 10 kill lead and somehow held off a desperate EG in the waning minutes, thrusting themselves into the playoff picture and dooming the Geniuses.
Game Final: STR8 50 – 45 EG
Match Final: STR8 3 – 2 EG
What do you think the final standings will be after next week?
Let us know in the comments or on Twitter, and for all your Halo and esports updates, make sure you are following us on Twitter, @GAMURScom.
James Mattone is a journalist for GAMURS and can be contacted by email at jamestmattone@gmail.com or on Twitter –@TheJamesMattone.
