DPC standings and latest roster changes

At the start of this new year, the Dota Pro Circuit is still 4 Majors away from The International 2019 and very little has been decided up until this point. With that in mind, new teams are still being created and transfers are still being made, in an attempt to improve things and make the best of the remaining events.

@ The International | Valve Corporation

DPC standings

These are the current Dota Pro Circuit standings, as a result of the first two DPC events of the season: DreamLeague Season 10 and The Kuala Lumpur Major.

• 1^st: Virtus.pro – 4950 points
• 2^nd: Team Secret – 3000 points
• 3^rd: Evil Geniuses – 2100 points
• 4^th: Ninjas in Pyjamas – 1350 points
• 5^th: PSG.LGD – 900 points
• 6^th: TNC Predator – 720 points
• 7^th: Fnatic – 450 points
• 8^th: Vici Gaming – 450 points
• 9^th: Alliance – 150 points
• 10^th: Forward Gaming – 150 points
• 11^th: J.Storm – 120 points
• 12^th: Test123 – 120 points
• 13^th: Tigers – 120 points
• 14^th: Natus Vincere – 100 points
• 15^th: Gambit Esports – 75 points
• 16^th: paiN Gaming – 75 points
• 17^th: Team Aster – 75 points
• 18^th: Infamous – 70 points

Based on these results, Virtus.pro, Team Secret and Evil Geniuses are almost certainly qualified for The International 2019. Everyone else is still some distance away from securing a spot at the event.

Roster changes

The most important roster change at the start of this new year is Pajkatt’s departure from OG. It seems that his style of playing the carry role did not satisfy the TI 8 champions, who did indeed lose their ticket to the second Major of the season, placing just 5^th – 6^th in the European qualifier. OG did however qualify for The Bucharest Major, so a chance still remains. As you probably know, the winner of the Minor that precedes a Major gets the chance to compete at the Major as a reward.

© OG

It’s still not clear why OG decided to part ways with Pajkatt so soon, given that the player had 10+ years of professional experience, a successful previous season with OpTic Gaming and just 6 weeks with OG. The community speculates that perhaps ana, OG’s former superstar who helped the team secure the Aegis of Champions last year, might be stepping out of his second self-imposed retirement to rejoin his friends for the rest of the season.

Thank you Pajkatt !
–> Read: https://t.co/bq4jL1T30A
We'll have another announcement tomorrow ? #DreamOG pic.twitter.com/Swj5jZoRKD

— OG (@OGesports) January 3, 2019

Only time can tell. Meanwhile, OG are not doing too great, struggling pretty much like last year. However, considering the philosophy of N0tail and Mad, they will likely stay together no matter the cost and strive to find a way out of the Dota 2 ghetto. The first chance they will get will be at The Bucharest Minor, where they have to win to qualify for The Chongqing Major.

Another important change in terms of rosters has to do with EnVy’s new stack. It’s called Flying Penguins and we’ve yet to see them play. Individually, the roster looks good on paper, having 5 veterans in its composition: EnVy, Sneyking, Liposa, Ritsu and CC&C. If they synergize, we might see this team do well in the North American region.