Hearthstone 2018 HCT Fall Playoffs Europe Winners Unveiled

Hearthstone 2018 HCT Fall Playoffs Europe is one of the most important tournaments dedicated to Blizzard’s popular card game in September. The competition started on the first day of the month and concluded the next day, with a total of 87 players signing up. Organized by Blizzard Entertainment, the tournament took place exclusively online and the matches were broadcasted on Twitch.

Prominent Hearthstone commentators from the UK and US provided the broadcast talent. Since this was an online tournament, it was possible to have hundreds of matches played quickly and the winner to be decided in less than 48 hours. Hearthstone 2018 HCT Fall Playoffs Europe is just one of the regional tournaments that take place over the course of three consecutive weeks. Following the European event, the Asia-Pacific event is scheduled for the next weekend and then the Americas on September 15 and 16.

A Milestone for the Hearthstone Tour

Compared to other esports, Hearthstone has fewer prominent tournaments, but this event is one of the most important. The second seasonal championship of the year, brought together some of the best players in the world and it used a Swiss tournament format. There are a total of seven rounds that players needed to complete, in order to advance to the playoffs. During this stage of the competition, the format changes into a dual tournament and players are split into groups. The top two players from each of them advanced to the Seasonal Championship, but the semifinals and finals were not played.

Matches are played in a best-of-five format and players only have one ban, while being able to use only cards from the Standard rotation. The Conquest mode with one ban makes things more interesting, while the double elimination format gives players a second chance. The HCT Fall Playoffs – Europe matches of September 1 and 2 were broadcasted starting at 1 AM until 1 PM.

Four Players Book Seats to the Fall Championship

The Hearthstone 2018 HCT Fall Playoffs Europe has an interesting format, with no cash awarded to the actual winners. 83 out of the 87 participants received some form of financial compensation. The smallest prizes consisted of $1000, while those who made top 10 received in excess of $4000. For each place secured up the leaderboard, $500 was added to the prize, with the biggest amount going to Silvors who finished in the fifth place. HCT points were also awarded to those who finished inside of top 32.

It can come as a surprise that the actual winners seemingly walked away empty-handed, with no cash or prizes. That is obviously only an illusion, because these players have secured a seat to the upcoming Fall Championship. They will be joined by 12 players from the other regions in a tournament with a guaranteed prize pool of $250,000. Even those who were eliminated in the first stage will receive $7500 and 12 HCT points. RENMEN, Moyen, Hatul and Sintolol will represent Europe at the grand final.