For the spectator a normal WC3L match starts approximately thirty minutes before the actual kickoff, when the ESL and myMYM.com websites spit out the lineups. Then the discussion about the work of the manager starts: Did they give their players the right matchups? Or is it like chasing the opponent from the beginning?

In the playoff showdown between mTw and MeetYourMakers nobody really felt in advantage. The mTw-manager quiZZ told ESL TV that the team was just thinking about the best starting maps and didn’t want to jeopardize the important match because of lineup games. From the beginning they felt like having a shot in one of the most important matches of the season.

On the other side Matthias ‘Losemann’ Beyer from MYM was discussing the upcoming match for over an hour with his players. “Every player got some preferences or their favorite map; others tend to over- or underestimate themselves. We are talking to everybody and decide together as a team. In the last year Grubby was very important for us in this process.”

Grubby, Losemann and Susiria discussing lineups

For Losemann, MYM]Grubby got special skills in this kind of discussion: “He just knows every player and can tell you on what map they want to play which race. It’s just unbelievable how much he can help us with that knowledge.” Sometimes even Grubby thinks a little too far. “He thinks around three corners and tries to read every possible move of the opponent. We need to stop him sometimes”, says Losemann and smiles.

The Grand Final of the last WC3L season is the perfect example of such a lineup thriller for Losemann. When MYM had to beat mousesports twice to win the event, it was all about the matchups. “At that point we had to decide to sacrifice our Undead players and let them lose in front of three thousand spectators for the team. Because of this we could score easily with Grubby, and Moon had to beat the German HasuObs. In the end the 2on2 had to decide the clanwar.“

Sexy captain Susiria - set to win

For the match against mTw the MYM manager tried to get the right seed for every player to be able to grab some points. In the past the team didn’t go for that in the final matches. “During the WC3L finals in the past we tried to get three safe points. You could see that when we were seeding one of our Undead players on a map like Lost Temple or Gnoll Wood. But in the online season we were always playing for the most possible points. That’s a little more risky, because on a bad day you will lose some games, but in general you can reach more points.”

This day you could see why this strategy is risky sometimes. Surprisingly the 2on2 match of WCG winner und runner-up Grubby and Moon was lost and suddenly players like Susiria or Soccer had to win to secure the victory. When the 1on1 game of Grubby was lost as well, both had to win their games. A scenario Losemann didn’t expect, but because of the even lineups there were no “already lost points” and MYM could fight back and win the match in the end.