EPIC League Season 3 gathers Dota Pro Circuit 2021 teams for a round two

The EPIC League returns with yet another season to keep the Dota 2 fans occupied before the Singapore Major. With the Dota Pro Circuit 2021 (DPC S1 2021) concluded, teams can finally take a breather by participating in more events.

The folks over at EPIC League invited formidable teams, many of which are from the CIS/EU DPC 2021 Divisions. Here’s our tournament breakdown and expectations for this event.

The EPIC League Season 3 Tournament Format and Teams

The EPIC League S3 kickstarts with a sixteen team group stage.  The group stage revolves around a swiss-system format, with a standard best-of-three setup for each match.

The top eight secure entry to Division 1, while the rest falls to the reserved Division 2. It will be playoffs among eight participants at each respective division.  A double-elimination bracket will be set up based on group stage seeding.

As for the participants, many are from the Europe and CIS Lower Division bracket, with Tundra Esports, Vikin.gg, and High Coast Esports being the oddballs out. The three teams have recently participated in the Europe Upper Division, but were all at the bottom of the standings. Vikin.gg and High Coast Esports even received a demotion to the Lower Division next season. Meanwhile, Hellbear Smashers, Brame, PuckChamp, and Winstrike Team have proven their worth to be strong challengers and are heading to next season’s Upper Division.

The rest of the participants are no strangers to the DPC 2021 either, HellRaisers, VP.Prodigy, Dota Team (formerly NoTechies), Team Empire, Team Unique, Team Spirit, and EXTREMUM all played the most recent season. Lastly, the two open qualifier winners, Prosti Esli and RUSSIANDRILL complete the sixteen-way group stage.

EPIC League Season 3 will be a true testing ground between current and former DPC Upper Division teams ahead of Season 2.

Vikin.gg suffers fallout

Perhaps one of the biggest upset at the Dream League Season 14, Vikin.gg did not only missed their ticket to the Singapore Major but also lost their Upper Division slot in the next season. In other words, Vikin.gg has no alternative to secure any DPC points, and their best bet would be to qualify through the regional qualifiers for the International 10.

Being a team that has stood among other European powerhouses, their exit at the Dream League Season 14 was heartbreaking. Nevertheless, they will be looking forward to improving themselves, starting with a new roster. The team has announced the departure of their offlane player, Tobias “Tobi” Buchner. Maurice “KheZu” Gutmann is the likely replacement. and hopefully he can bring a breath of fresh to the team.

Good ol’ Virtus.pro Reunion

At the CIS region, word got out about former Virtus.pro player, Roman “RAMZES666” Kushnarev joining his former teammate Solo in Dota Team (formerly NoTechies). The team has recently secured last-place at the CIS Upper Division, so the change in team name might be a loophole to play in Upper Division again.

🔥 Instead of NoTechies, a team named Dota Team will play at EPIC League S3.

Dota Team Roster:
🇷🇺 Roman “RAMZES666” Kushnarev;
🇺🇦 Rostislav “fn” Lozovoi;
🇰🇿 Abdimalik “Malik” Sajlau;
🇧🇦 Milan “MiLAN” Kozomara;
🇷🇺 Alexey “Solo” Berezin.#EPICLeague pic.twitter.com/vypfrbSGNF

— EPICENTER (@epicentergg) March 4, 2021

Pavel “9pasha” Khvastunov on the other hand, will be playing for Prosti Esli. EPIC League is turning into a good ol’ VP reunion. Both Vladimir “No[o]ne” Minenko and Vladimir “RodjER” Nikogosian have qualified for the Singapore Major and have more important matches to play soon.

Next season’s challengers

It seems like there’s an uprising in every region’s competitive scene. With the fall of veterans come new challengers to take their place. Excitedly, we will have a sneak peek into some of the next seasons’ Upper Division contenders. Hellbear Smashers, led by Marcus “Ace” Hoelgaard, and the Greek team, Brame, came out on top in their nerve-wracking tiebreaker.

Meanwhile, the CIS has their own fighters, namely PuckChamp and Winstrike, that may give the powerhouses a run for their money. EPIC League Season 3 isn’t too shabby for a third-party tournament.

Even without renowned teams the event will still be a thrill to watch. If anything, it’s also a perfect opportunity to meet the next season’s contestants. Additionally, EPIC League is featured at most esports betting sites, but they seem to be struggling with measuring up the strength of CIS and EU teams. Some decent Dota 2 betting odds are present during the Group Stage that you should definitely take a look at.

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