Looks like the Agents finally decoded the formula that can lift DOTA 2 trophies.
Blacklist Rivalry finally crowned themselves as champions in competitive DOTA after a flawless run in the Asia Pacific Predator League 2024 on Sunday, January 14 at the SM Mall of Asia.
Composed of an all-star roster of Timothy ‘Tims’ Randrup, Kim ‘Gabbi’ Santos, Abed ‘Abed’ Yusop, Mark ‘Raven Fausto, Carlo ‘Carlo’ Manalo, Blacklist met little resistance in the five-day tourney going unbeaten in five games before ultimately sweeping fellow Pinoy representatives Execration (2-0) in an all-Filipino final.
The victory marks Blacklist’s first championship in the game since the franchise entered the scene last November 2022. The Agents will also be taking the lion’s share of the $100,000 prize pool.
After trading blows in the opening phase, momentum slowly tipped towards the Agents’ table after Abed’s Dragon Knight secured a three-man wipeout on Execration’s already low-health heroes during a bottom lane skirmish.
Crucial takedowns on Gabbi’s Spirit Breaker and Abed briefly inspired Execration to a potential fightback but Gabbi’s bold Charge of Darkness in the final clash put their foes out of position, just enough for the Agents to seal the Game 1 dub in 43 minutes of play.
Game 2 carried the same tune but this time, early firepower in Justine Ryan “Tino” Grimaldo and Mark Jubert “Shanks” Redira paced Execration into well-compensated teamfights which transitioned to a no-contest Roshan take.
Undeterred, Blacklist found headway during the 32nd minute after a three-to-nothing clash down under with Raven, Carlo, and Abed ripping off EXE with one kill each.
Four minutes later, Gabbi’s Naga Siren and Raven’s Luna would tag-team the opposition’s quintet on their own turf with ease and leave Execration without any option but to call GG.
The Agents take home $65,000 (₱3.6M) while runners-up Execration receive $20,000 (₱1.1M).
Decode and dominate
Blacklist International, one of the premier and most established esports organization in the country with successful franchises in titular MOBA games like Mobile Legends and Wild Rift, finally dared to make the big leap on November 2022 when it linked up with online betting site Rivalry to form what would be Blacklist Rivalry (BLR).
The move came with the announcement of its inaugural lineup which featured the signings of Raven and Tims, along with Karl ‘Kuku’ Palad, Karl ‘Karl’ Baldovino, Nico ‘eyyou’ Barcelon. Though past their glory days, Filipino DOTA fans cheered in glee as the roster spurred nostalgia of the celebrated 2017 TNC Pro Team that brought pride to the country after winning the World Electronic Sports Game and booting out OG during the Manila Major.
But nostalgia can only bring you far when your players are already just shadows of themselves.
What followed next for Blacklist Rivalry was, let’s just say, a rather disappointing series of heartbreaks. From not making it past the Group Stages of Tier 2 tournaments like Mansion Invitational and finishing third in the BTS Pro Series, to narrowly missing out on a guaranteed The International appearance last year, Blacklist sure knew how it felt to be on the losing side of the coin.
Fast forward, several members of the first lineup left, while some joined and then also exited after a while. Only Raven and Tims had remained, while Abed, Gabbi, and Carlo all boarded the crew last November 10, 2023. They aced the ESL One Kuala Lumpur Open and Closed Qualifiers but were quickly thwarted out of the main tournament, finishing as 9th-10th placers.
Blacklist’s revamped lineup welcomed the new year with a shot on Tier 3 tournament Asia Pacific Predator League as one of the four invited teams.
They proceeded to secure one-sided victories throughout the single round-robin Group Stages, dominating their opponents in the single-day segment against Myth Avenue Gaming from Malaysia, Whoops! from India, as well as their fellow Filipino teams Execration and ZOL Esports.
Heading to the playoffs with a perfect 4-0 card, the Agents produced the same output on Mongolia’s IHC Esports in their best-of-1 semifinal contest with a crushing 41-8 kill count.
Their grand finals sweep of Execration then led them to lift their first-ever hardware – the Shield; a breakthrough for a franchise initially riddled and ridiculed for its prior losses.
Needless to say, it finally looks like Blacklist Rivalry decoded the formula that can lift DOTA 2 titles.
Article by Patrick Joseph Dincol