The S10 Playoffs would officially open on September 10th.
With one month remaining until the playoffs, the new hero for the 10-2 season was officially released. The new hero launched this time was a Marksman named [Meteor Arrow]. His character design was a very cute little boy carrying a blue bow and arrow.
His Q-skill could shoot small darts to attack enemies from a long distance. Upon hitting, the darts would stack a "Bleed" debuff; the higher the stacks, the faster the health loss. This was also the hero's main damage skill.
When the W-skill was activated, mana consumption increased, and the dart attacks gained splash damage. The E-skill recalled the darts and allowed him to leap backward a certain distance. The R-skill ultimate, "Meteor Arrow Rain," fired a dense barrage of darts in a fan shape like a rainstorm, dealing massive area-of-effect physical damage.
Cheng Xing liked this little boy character very much. The moment [Meteor Arrow] went online, he bought the hero and took the little boy into solo queue for practice.
Ye Shaoyang also carefully studied this new Marksman and discussed it while duo-queueing with Xie Weiyu.
Xie Weiyu evaluated, "[Meteor Arrow] is a T0 Marksman in this version. His early game attack speed is slow and his output is low, but he has the E-skill for displacement and survival. In the late game, his damage is explosive, especially in team fights. Opening the ultimate to fire a fan of darts rapidly stacks Bleed, dealing tons of damage."
Ye Shaoyang asked, "How do you think [Meteor Arrow] compares to [Wind Elf]?"
Xie Weiyu thought seriously for a moment and said, "[Wind Elf] has more displacement and is more flexible in positioning, but his skills are single-target attacks. [Meteor Arrow] isn't as flexible as him, but his team fight output is stronger. Both are T0 Marksmen; they each have their own merits and fit different lineups."
In the first round of the playoffs, Moon Shadow would play Beimu, and Tianhuan would play Jingzhe. The two teams wouldn't meet for the time being, so Ye Shaoyang and Xie Weiyu didn't need to avoid each other. When they ranked privately, they would also chat about the operations of the new hero.
The new Jungler [Soul Reaper] from season 10-1 and the new Marksman [Meteor Arrow] from season 10-2 would both be logged onto the tournament server for the 10-3 playoffs. Major teams were seizing the time to research lineups and BP (Ban/Pick) strategies for these new heroes.
Jingzhe's Xie Yuan, Beimu's Zhao Xinping, and Moon Shadow's Xie Weiyu—these three were exactly the top three Marksmen in the professional league. Among the Marksmen in the playoff Winner's Bracket, Cheng Xing was the weakest on paper.
Cheng Xing was well aware of this himself, so he trained very seriously during this period. He didn't go to sleep until 4 AM every day, developing obvious dark circles under his eyes.
To avoid running into domestic players, Cheng Xing used a smurf account to practice on the international server.
The international server was full of experts, yet Cheng Xing's record was getting better and better.
Although Cheng Xing didn't win an award at this year's World Invitational, he had fought his way from the Wild Card region all the way to the Top 32. He had gone abroad to compete and played against world-class experts like Mitchell and Vanessa. Mentally, he was no longer the newbie he was at the start.
Now, no matter how strong the opponent was, Cheng Xing could remain calm and look for opportunities to counterattack. This was his greatest growth after this individual tournament.
Ye Shaoyang noticed that Little Xing was improving rapidly. Even when solo-queueing on the international server, he could farm safely in the bot lane and keep himself alive. In late-game team fights, his damage output was earth-shattering!
His average damage output as a Marksman frequently exceeded 40%. Sometimes, when the game went smoothly, Cheng Xing took quite a few MVPs, with his damage share reaching over 45%. He even had dazzling scores like 8-0 or 9-0.
He was no longer Tianhuan's shortcoming.
Cheng Xing said excitedly, "I find this new hero especially smooth to play. Rapid-firing darts and opening the ultimate to kill people feels so good. I often get Triple Kills!"
The darts were different from the long arrows of other Marksmen; they were small hidden weapons, so their flight speed was very fast. The downside was that they couldn't lock onto targets for output; they required prediction and aiming, placing very high demands on the player's mechanics.
The Q-skill fired a wave of 5 small darts, and it was common to miss.
But after practicing for a few days, Cheng Xing's skill accuracy was already very high. Whether clearing minions or hitting people, the number of missed darts decreased. He could even move in a serpentine pattern and land a full Q-skill volley.
After watching Cheng Xing's training replays, Chi Shu was also very gratified by his apprentice's progress. He said to Coach Lin, "Little Xing plays the new Marksman well. Should we consider in advance what lineup to pair with this new Marksman?"
Coach Lin smiled. "The coaching staff has indeed been researching lineup combinations for the new hero recently. There is a plan, but I don't know if you guys can coordinate it."
Coach Lin connected his laptop to the projection equipment in the training room and displayed a PPT analysis chart prepared by the coaching staff. The first page showed a very unique lineup system—
Top Laner: [Black Dragon Knight], a hero Old Qin was relatively good at.
Support: The tankiest [Shield of Glory] or [Holy Paladin], or the crowd-control [Hammer of Destruction].
Mid Laner: [Solar Mage].
Jungler: [Moon Shadow].
Marksman: [Meteor Arrow].
The Mid, Jungle, and Shooter formed a Sun, Moon, and Star combination.
Coach Lin said, "Your three names are Lie Yang (Blazing Sun), Chi Shu (New Moon), and Fan Xing (Many Stars). In Clash of Gods, there just happen to be heroes with Sun and Moon in their names that can be paired with the newly released Marksman, forming a Sun-Moon-Star combination."
This lineup wasn't just thrown together for the sake of the names. The Mid-laner [Solar Mage] could serve as a mage-tank for melee damage, played like a warrior. The new Marksman [Meteor Arrow] could rapid-fire ranged darts to deal high AoE physical damage. [Moon Shadow] was a very flexible Jungler who could rely on moonlight marks to weave in and out of the battlefield.
In other words, it was a triple-core lineup. The Mid and Marksman were responsible for suppressing the enemy's health bars together, the Jungler would enter to harvest kills, while the Top and Support were responsible for protection and crowd control.
Chi Shu's hero pool naturally included the niche hero [Moon Shadow]. The reason he hadn't brought it out before was that this hero relied on skill combos for damage and was too dependent on the Blue Buff. Once he couldn't get the Blue at the start, his jungle clear speed would be very slow, severely affecting his development rhythm.
Farming Junglers were easily targeted. Before Season 9, if Chi Shu picked this kind of hero, they had practically lost half the game; there was no hope of him farming up. Now, although Ye Shaoyang helped relieve his pressure, bringing out a Wild Core that was too dependent on the Blue Buff still carried great risk.
Without Blue, it was easy to crash and burn. Protecting and contesting the Blue Buff required strong cooperation from teammates.
Chi Shu and Ye Shaoyang looked at each other, and the latter smiled and said, "Let's try it."
Qu Jiang also said, "This lineup is not bad. Sun, Moon, Star—it's like a lineup destined for our Tianhuan. Doesn't Jingzhe have the 'Square-Circle-默 (Mo)' Iron Triangle? Our Tianhuan's Sun-Moon-Star is also an Iron Triangle!"
(Translator's Note: Jingzhe's trio is Fang (Square) Zhengqing, Xie Yuan (Circle/Round), and Li Yunmo.)
Old Qin nodded in agreement. "Makes sense! Little Xing is in good form recently, so I think a triple-core output is reliable. If they target the Mid, Little Xing can farm safely and fight in the late game. If they target the Marksman, Yangyang can build damage items. If they target the Jungler, we'll coordinate defense together."
Hearing his two teammates, Ye Shaoyang felt a warmth in his heart.
Actually, it didn't matter who was the core or who was the tool. The five members of Tianhuan were always one unit. As long as they could win the match, what did it matter if he was the protagonist or a supporting role?
Qu Jiang and Old Qin had always had this awareness, which made things much easier for the coaching staff.
Coach Lin said decisively, "Starting today, we'll practice this Sun-Moon-Star system first. Once familiar, we'll work on Chi Shu and Yangyang's tracking strategy. There's still a month until the playoffs. We'll play steady and practice slowly!"
Every new lineup required repeated practical exercises to master the rhythm and coordination. Even if they knew every hero well, when five people were paired together, team fights could still become disjointed.
Therefore, everyone took the subsequent training very seriously, not letting go of a single detail.
The kids from Tianhuan's 2nd Team conscientiously served as sparring partners for the main team. To let the main team practice under pressure, Coach Lin would have the 2nd Team start with a gold lead of several thousand in every scrimmage. Sometimes, he would even have the 2nd Team deliberately steal Chi Shu's Blue Buff to see how Chi Shu played a disadvantageous game without Blue.
This intense training lasted for a week, and Tianhuan's main team finally mastered the new lineup.
The coaching staff immediately brought out the second lineup system for everyone to practice. This time, it was the coordination between the new Jungler [Soul Reaper] from season 10-1 and the Mid-laner [Spirit Butterfly]. The key lay in Mid-Jungle synergy.
The mechanics of the Mid-laner [Spirit Butterfly] weren't difficult, but the requirements for game sense were extremely high; one's macro view had to be outstanding to be effective. His ultimate, [Spirit Butterfly Tracking], could reveal vision of the entire map and teleport him to a designated opponent. Pairing him with [Soul Reaper] was equivalent to making Ye Shaoyang serve as Chi Shu's eyes.
Ye Shaoyang would spot the opponents, choose the most suitable target to kill, and cripple them.
Chi Shu would immediately follow up to harvest the kill.
—I am your eyes; you are my blade.
Such Mid-Jungle synergy was a huge test of their tacit understanding.
To keep up with their fast pace, the heroes for the Top, Support, and Marksman positions were also adjusted accordingly. They chose heroes with strong early-game pressure resistance to avoid being counter-killed by the opponent.
Without worries in the other lanes, Tianhuan's Mid and Jungle could truly pop off.
The kids in the 2nd Team were blown up by this pair of Great Demon Kings in less than 10 minutes.
Mid-laner Xie Xiaotian couldn't help but lament privately, "Brother Yang's game sense is too strong! Taking Captain Chi flying all over the field—this global tracking strategy is impossible to defend against!"
The 2nd Team captain, Yan Bin, smiled and said, "I'm looking forward to players from other teams getting caught and exploded by Captain Chi and Brother Yang, so they can experience the bitterness of us 2nd Team rookies being beaten into autism by the Great Demon Kings every day."
Yes, the little guys in the 2nd Team were almost beaten into autism.
The synergy of double world champions was simply terrifying!
Aside from these new heroes, the coaching staff also made corresponding adjustments to lineups with older heroes.
For instance, Ye Shaoyang's suggestion of letting Chi Shu play a Mage in the Jungle while he took a Marksman Mid, or the Double Jungle system, etc. Old wine in new bottles—these also had good results.
Time passed quickly.
Tianhuan practiced one lineup system after another, making the fullest preparations for the playoffs. With one week left until the playoffs, Coach Lin arranged several scrims with foreign teams to consolidate their results.
Because Ye Shaoyang had won the S10 Individual Championship, many coaches from foreign regions began to pay attention to Tianhuan. During this time, Coach Lin's inbox was overflowing with invitations for scrims.
Previously, when Lin Feng looked for foreign teams for scrims, he was often rejected and had to beg and plead just to get someone to play with them. Now… he could barely schedule all the teams asking for scrims.
It was evident that Tianhuan's overall strength had been recognized by many foreign coaches.
At the same time, Team Jingzhe was also training intensely.
Coach Chen said seriously, "Lie Yang won the S10 Individual Championship, and Chi Shu was the S6 Individual Champion. Tianhuan now has double champions, and their morale is high. We must be extra cautious when playing Tianhuan in the playoffs."
Fang Zhengqing glanced at Xie Yuan, narrowed his eyes, and said, "We are also double champions."
Xie Yuan smiled. "Double-player tournament champions versus two single-player tournament champions. Sounds like a 50-50 split?"
Li Yunmo said calmly, "When playing Tianhuan, should the breakthrough point be placed in the Mid lane?"
Everyone looked at Fang Zhengqing in unison. "Captain Fang, want to do a reverse elimination?"
Fang Zhengqing rubbed his forehead helplessly. "My reverse tacit understanding with Chi Shu probably doesn't work anymore, right? Playing against Jingzhe, I think it's highly likely Lie Yang will be commanding. I can't guess Lie Yang's train of thought."
Xie Yuan said, "Yangyang and Chi Shu have a lot of tacit understanding. His thinking should be similar to Chi Shu's. You say first, will Chi Shu pick the new hero [Soul Reaper]? Should we Ban the new hero?"
Fang Zhengqing said, "I think he will pick it. Doesn't Tianhuan love new strategies?"
Coach Chen interrupted their joking. "Reverse elimination is just a joke; don't take it seriously. What specific lineup Tianhuan picks is a decision made by their entire coaching staff after research, not something Chi Shu decides alone. Regarding the new hero [Soul Reaper], Chi Shu will definitely practice it, and we must guard against him picking it."
Fang Zhengqing nodded. "They have priority side selection. They should pick Blue Side for the first game, right?"
Coach Chen said, "Mn. The Blue Side has a faster tempo and is more suitable for Mid-Jungle synergy. The playoffs use Global BP, so we also need to make some arrangements based on Tianhuan's style. Yunmo is right; against Tianhuan, target the Mid-laner. Don't let Lie Yang and Chi Shu link up."
Fang Zhengqing looked thoughtful. "Looks like the Mid lane is going to be the focus of attention again."
The tactical arrangements and gaming strategies of both coaches were also key to victory or defeat in the playoffs. Sometimes, a BP error could lead to losing the match. Exactly which game to bring out a strong hero required careful consideration and deliberation.
Jingzhe's coaching staff was also very professional. They conducted comprehensive research on the new heroes and also found some new lineup ideas.
A month passed quickly. In September, students began their new semester, and the Clash of Gods Official Professional League finally entered the tense and exciting playoff stage.
The first match of the first round of the playoffs, Tianhuan vs. Jingzhe, would be held at the Star City E-sports Center.
Ye Shaoyang still remembered that this time last year, he and Xiao Rui went to the Star City E-sports Center as spectators. Tianhuan had been eliminated in the first round of the playoffs, resulting in a wave of scolding online.
In the blink of an eye, it had been a year since he transmigrated to this world.
He believed that this time, Tianhuan would definitely be able to stand on the big stage until the very end.
On September 9th, all members of Tianhuan arrived in Star City early. Everyone checked into the official partner hotel and happened to run into the members of Team Jingzhe in the hotel lobby.
Fang Zhengqing was carrying a cage containing his seal-point Ragdoll cat. Chi Shu glanced at his cage and couldn't help but say, "Aren't you exaggerating a bit, bringing the cat over to cheer for you?"
Fang Zhengqing explained, "I've been too busy lately to bring Little Fang home for my parents to take care of."
His home was near Star City. It seemed Fang Zhengqing wanted to focus on the competition, so he brought the cat to take back to his family home. It was Ye Shaoyang's first time seeing the cat raised by Fang Zhengqing. Feeling a sense of familiarity, he couldn't help but lean over to tease it. "Little Fang, hello."
The kitten lifted its eyelids, too lazy to pay attention to people.
This cat's forehead and nose were black, looking quite cool. Its personality took after its owner; it lay there lazily without moving a muscle, with a sleepy expression that said, "Do not disturb my slumber."
Fang Zhengqing smiled and explained, "It's like this at the team base too. It finds a place to sleep and can sleep all day without moving. Even when I call it, it doesn't really respond to me."
Ye Shaoyang lamented, "That's actually quite nice; at least it doesn't cause trouble. Our Xiao Bai jumps up and down at home every day; the sofa is almost demolished by it."
Fang Zhengqing said, "My Little Fang was also quite lively when it was small. Now that it's grown up, it's getting lazier and lazier."
Xie Yuan teased from the side, "Isn't that quite similar to its owner? Lively when young, getting lazier and lazier as he grows up."
Fang Zhengqing raised an eyebrow. "You have a big problem with me, huh?"
Xie Yuan waved his hand with a smile. "I wouldn't dare, I wouldn't dare."
After checking in, everyone said goodbye in the lobby and returned to their respective rooms. Ye Shaoyang privately messaged Chi Shu: "Did Xie Yuan and Fang Zhengqing know each other when they were kids?"
Chi Shu replied: "Mn. They are friends who grew up together. I heard their houses were just across the street from each other. They came to the youth training camp together back then, and their relationship has always been very good."
This was the key to the 'Square-Circle' combination winning the World Duo Tournament in their second year of debut.
In fact, the Square-Circle duo had trained together since they were young, and later signed with Team Jingzhe together. Their tacit understanding was no less than that of the Sun-Moon combination.
Although Jingzhe hadn't won a World Team Championship in these years, their results had consistently been in the top four domestically. They had won quite a few domestic champion, runner-up, and third-place trophies, and the Square-Circle dual carries had contributed immensely.
Winning against Jingzhe in the regular season had involved some element of luck. The competition in the playoffs would be even fiercer. Jingzhe had definitely made ample preparations, so they absolutely couldn't be careless.
Thinking of this, Ye Shaoyang said to Chi Shu, "Jingzhe's dual carries are very strong individually, and their coordination is very seamless. We'd best defeat them separately. Establish an advantage in the early game and try to fight for more farming opportunities for Little Xing."
Chi Shu said, "Mn. Direct the game well tomorrow. I believe in you."
Ye Shaoyang sent a hugging emoji. "Let's do our best together."
Against Jingzhe, the command authority was completely handed over to Ye Shaoyang. This was the decision made after Chi Shu discussed it with the coach.
Since Chi Shu and Fang Zhengqing were famously lacking in tacit understanding and often had opposite trains of thought, commanding might lead to hesitation. It was better to let Ye Shaoyang take charge of command, allowing them to cast aside all psychological concerns and give it their all.
On September 10th, the first match of the S10 Playoffs opened grandly.
The Star City E-sports Center was packed with people; not a single seat was empty.
At the venue, fans had made a large number of cheering signs and banners. Of course, photos of the cats raised by Fang Zhengqing and Ye Shaoyang were indispensable. Every time Tianhuan played Jingzhe, the two cats would make an appearance. The duel between the League's two great 'Shovel Officers' also attracted the attention of many fans.
At the commentary booth on the second floor, Yao Mu, wearing a white dress, smiled and said, "Hello friends in the audience, welcome to the Clash of Gods Official Professional League, the site of the S10 Season Playoffs! Today will be the first showdown of the playoffs, the long-awaited Tianhuan vs. Jingzhe!"
Brother Dong said, "Two months have passed since the regular season. A lot has happened during this time, such as the star-studded All-Star entertainment event and the exciting World Invitational! Our player, Tianhuan Lie Yang, won the World Championship in the individual event of the World Invitational!"
"This is undoubtedly good news. Jingzhe's dual carries, the Square-Circle combination, once won the World Duo Championship. Tianhuan's Mid-Jungle, the Sun-Moon combination, have each won World Individual Championships. Today, in the duel between Tianhuan and Jingzhe, both sides are double champions, and their strength is evenly matched!"
"Yes! The new hero [Soul Reaper] from season 10-1 and [Meteor Arrow] from season 10-2 will both be logged onto the tournament server. Whether the major teams have practiced lineups targeting the new heroes during this time is also something worth looking forward to. Let us welcome the players from both sides to the big stage with warm applause!"
The elevator descended from the air, and players from both sides arrived on stage simultaneously.
The host briefly interviewed the captains of both sides, and then everyone entered the soundproof booths to prepare.
The first game began quickly. The BP phase was no longer a random decision of Red or Blue side. Due to their better regular-season results, Tianhuan had the priority right of choice.
Tianhuan's coach chose the Blue Side.
Yao Mu said, "Tianhuan chose Blue Side for the first game. Next, it will alternate between Red and Blue sides."
Brother Dong said, "Let's look at the BP for the first game."
Tianhuan on Blue Side banned first and picked first. For the first Ban slot, Coach Lin gave it to [Cobra King]. This was out of respect for Fang Zhengqing, to prevent Jingzhe from taking the Poison Team.
Jingzhe backhand banned [Abyssal Lord], preventing Ye Shaoyang from taking a harvesting-type core Mid.
Tianhuan's second Ban went to [Wind Elf], not wanting to let Xie Yuan take this flexible Marksman. Jingzhe's second Ban continued to target the Mid lane, banning Ye Shaoyang's [Goddess of Destiny].
Both sides clearly thought out their ideas in advance. The BP speed in the first phase was very fast, without hesitation.
Yao Mu said, "Jingzhe consecutively banned Mid-laners in the first phase! It seems that in this game, Jingzhe intends to build their strategy around breaking through the Mid lane and targeting Yangyang like crazy!"
Brother Dong asked curiously, "What hero will Tianhuan grab first?"
As soon as the voice fell, a strange avatar appeared in Tianhuan's 1st selection slot—
[Soul Reaper].
A burst of screams and applause erupted at the scene, and a large row of question marks flooded the live stream barrage.
[The new hero is played directly? Tianhuan is really daring!]
[First picking a Wild Core in slot 1, 6666! Tianhuan is stubborn, truly stubborn!]
[This hero needs to kill like crazy to deal damage. If he doesn't get kills, he's a scrub!]
[I tried it in the online game. Soul Reaper? No, this is 'Distance-Delivery-of-Soul' Reaper!]
After the new hero [Soul Reaper] went online in the 10-1 season, netizens practiced it many times in the game, but the win rate remained below 50%. This was because the hero's mechanic was summoning undead souls to assist in battle; no undead souls meant no damage.
The prerequisite for undead souls was killing people.
If you didn't get kills, this hero wasn't even as good as a super minion.
Netizens often produced ugly scores like 0-4 or 1-6 with this hero. Since this hero hadn't been on the tournament server, no one had seen the lineup systems paired with him in the professional league yet.
Pro players' thinking was definitely much more comprehensive than that of online gamers. Seeing the new hero appear, everyone stared at the big screen with anticipation. After all, for Chi Shu to dare take a Wild Core in the 1st slot, he was obviously very confident!
Seeing this, Jingzhe's Coach Chen decisively took the [Moonlight Mage] and [Sharpshooter] dual carries. These were the Mid and Marksman with the furthest attack range, intending to go the POKE route for long-range attrition.
You want to kill people? You can't reach us.
It was Tianhuan's turn to choose.
Tianhuan took the Marksman [Machine Gun Hunter] in the 2nd slot, and in the 3rd slot, directly took the Mid-laner [Spirit Butterfly].
The entire audience was in an uproar!
[Holy crap, [Spirit Butterfly] paired with [Soul Reaper]? What kind of flashy strategy is this!]
[Is it a tracking style strategy?]
[Spirit Butterfly can open vision, Spirit Butterfly Tracking, taking Soul Reaper to kill people?]
Yao Mu and Brother Dong looked at each other, and the latter said excitedly, "This is the legendary Global Tracking Strategy! Whether they can farm up depends on the tacit understanding between the Mid and Jungle!"
Yao Mu said excitedly, "This game looks like it will be very exciting! Tianhuan will try every means to fight and kill. The more kills they get, the higher the damage stacked by the undead souls summoned by [Soul Reaper]. I wonder how many souls Captain Chi can summon in the end? Let us wait and see!"