Fnatic's training room.
ALEX picked up the data provided by the analysts and coaching staff, speaking in a relaxed tone.
"This is the most crucial round, guys."
"After these two maps, we've pretty much figured out how OG play. They're just targeting Aether's AWP."
"But now, it's obvious that mantuu can't handle Aether's AWP anymore."
"If they can string together five or more rounds in the gun rounds, we'll call a timeout and stop their momentum."
"Keeping that momentum going is already OG's only hope of winning."
"Let's play well, everyone."
"I guess this is where we say 'let's go'?"
ALEX rarely smiled, but now he flashed a relaxed grin and placed the back of his right hand in the middle of the group.
The other players put their hands on top, and together, in perfect unison, they shouted:
"3"
"2"
"1"
"Let's go!"
In the 6657 Livestream Room.
After the teams finished their knife round and chose sides, Wan Ji Qi quickly switched into commentator mode.
"Okay, enough chatting. Let's watch the match, shall we?"
"Map three. OG won the knife round and chose to start on CT."
"Once again, mezii gave Aether a P250, and then they went straight through mid."
"Nexa at Arch heard a million footsteps coming through mid. Is he going to run?"
"He didn't. He wants to let them into Arch first, then crossfire with his teammate at B Catwalk."
"Fnatic sped straight into Arch. Nexa didn't dare peek, and Aether instantly took down valde at B Catwalk."
"Nexa at Arch tried to trade the kill, but couldn't beat poizon as he entered Arch."
"OG gambled on a 3B setup this round. Now only niko is left at A Site, scouting from behind the CT Booth."
"Little niko didn't choose to save at CT Base. He wants to use the USP in his hands to even up the numbers."
"Can he do it?"
"He couldn't! poizon picked up nexa's USP and didn't give little niko a chance to fire."
[OG don't even control mid? This is so bizarre.]
[Charge, Fnatic!]
[God of Medicine, get those kills! If Fnatic wins today, I'm your ten-year fan. (For today only.)]
After scoring a double headshot, poizon watched ALEX successfully plant the bomb and regained some of his confidence. "Come on, everyone. Win this round and we can start designing our own autographs."
"Bang."
[OG.FlameZ killed Fnatic.poizon with a USP headshot]
poizon made a slight misstep and was taken out with a single shot by flameZ at B Catwalk.
"So, don't go tempting fate like that," Qin Feng joked with a laugh.
"Just hide at the bomb site. If they make a sound, we'll all swing out together and trade," ALEX reminded his teammates cautiously, as the team's leader.
As long as they won the Pistol Round, Fnatic, starting on the Terrorist side, would have a good chance of controlling the pace of the first half.
"Mm." KRIMZ, as serious-faced as ever, nodded.
However, the two remaining CTs from OG chose not to retake, so they could save their 100-point Kevlar vests.
When the bomb exploded, ALEX continued laying out the plan.
"In the second round, we'll buy at most two Mac-10s to build our economy."
"Aether's got a great feel for the AWP, so we'll get him a Scout Rifle to control mid and establish default map control at the start."
"Once we've established default map control, we'll have plenty of options for our attack."
"We can pinch A from Arch, or pinch B from B Catwalk and B Second Floor."
"In short, you don't need to take too many risks. Our tactics will still revolve around Aether."
"..."
Meanwhile, in OG's training room.
"Full Eco next round. Let's gamble on a site."
"If they've got a lot of rifles, let's gamble on all five going A."
"If they choose to rush B, we'll go straight to A Second Floor and save our guns. We won't give their Mac-10s free money."
As he spoke, nexa seemed to think of something and looked at mantuu beside him. After hesitating briefly, he said, "It's just that, mantuu, you still won't have an AWP in the third round."
"It's fine." mantuu shook his head. "Aether probably won't have an AWP in the third round either. Even if I'm holding an angle with a rifle, I won't be at a disadvantage."
As he spoke, mantuu clenched his fist.
He really had been executed by the opposing sniper, Aether, on the previous map.
But surely he couldn't be executed by the other team every single round?
The third map was Mirage. Maybe it would be his chance to wash away the humiliation of the last one!
He shook his head and straightened out his mindset, then followed his four teammates and hid in the dead corner behind the boxes at A Site.
Even though a minute had passed since the round began, OG still hadn't seen a single enemy in their lines of sight.
"If we don't see anyone for 30 seconds, we rotate to B." The gambler, nexa, glanced at the 55 seconds left on the clock. "They might be..."
[The bomb has been planted]
Nexa: ...
"We can see that OG, on a full eco, chose to gamble on a site with all five players."
"But Fnatic didn't choose to attack OG's heavily fortified A Site."
"They pinched B from B Catwalk and B Second Floor, going straight into the undefended B Site."
"The five remaining CTs aren't planning to retake either. All five of them have hidden toward A Second Floor."
Wan Ji Qi surveyed the situation and continued analyzing the match for his livestream audience.
"Actually, there was nothing wrong with OG's decision to gamble on A with all five players."
"If they'd run into Fnatic attacking A, they might've been able to take out some of the Terrorists and hurt their economy."
"If Fnatic went B, OG on a full eco didn't want to let the Terrorists make money with their SMGs, either."
As he spoke, Wan Ji Qi glanced at the weapons Fnatic's players were carrying.
Only ALEX and poizon had AKs.
Qin Feng had picked up a Scout Rifle to control mid, while mezii and KRIMZ, who were leading the push and drawing fire, had only the Mac-10s worth a measly 1,050 dollars.
As for OG, who had chosen a full eco in the second round, they could afford five M4s in the third.
Naturally, the players on OG were well aware of that, too.
mantuu idly pressed F to switch back and forth between the knife in his hands, then looked at the team's in-game leader, nexa. "For the first gun round next, why don't we try something in mid?"
"Can we smoke Underpass, then have someone boost me so I can catch them off guard in mid?"
"They don't have a full buy. I'll definitely be fine taking rifle duels with my M4."
"Sure." Nexa glanced at the team's star player, valde. "But they've got two SMGs, so be careful alone at B Catwalk, valde."
As OG's players talked, the third round began.
Nexa, near VIP, slashed open the wooden panel there, then made a smooth spin jump to the Underpass exit.
mantuu followed nexa down and tossed a one-way smoke for the boost play.
Standing on nexa's shoulders at the boost position, mantuu suddenly felt excited.
Fnatic had smoked VIP and the crossing. They were probably going to use Aether's Scout Rifle or AWP to control mid.
And this was his best chance to get a kill and regain his confidence.
As he thought this, mantuu saw a Terrorist fly into view.
"They're boosting out?"
mantuu instinctively pulled the trigger.
Before you continue