"Rat-tat-tat-tat."
"Bang."
The crisp report of an M4A1 and the crack of a Scout Rifle rang out almost simultaneously.
[OG.mantuu killed Fnatic.mezii with an M4A1]
[Fnatic.Aether headshot and killed OG.mantuu with an SSG-08]
Just as mantuu thought he was about to regain his confidence and take control of the match, a sudden frustration washed over him.
He hadn't expected the first Terrorist to come flying out with a run boost to be bait, allowing Aether to pinpoint the CT position.
"Careful, nexa. They definitely know there's one more. Aether might have his Scout trained on you from mid."
mantuu called out helplessly to nexa, who was helping him with a double-peek in Underpass.
"Okay, got it. Can you toss some utility from Arch? It's not safe for me to get back there from Underpass right now."
Nexa began calling out plays over team comms as well.
But Qin Feng had already trained his aim on the Underpass entrance from the mid sandbags.
"Bang."
Another Scout shot rang out. Nexa had just used a Smoke Grenade and a Flashbang to make it back to Arch on A Site, but he was left with only 14 health.
With mid control lost and nexa down to just 14 health, OG's players once again decided to gamble on a site.
Four players stacked B.
Fnatic, meanwhile, stuck to their default map-control setup.
"B doesn't seem to have much going on."
KRIMZ, holding B Second Floor alone with a Mac-10, reported back.
ALEX glanced at the minimap and raised an eyebrow. "KRIMZ, push out. If it's clear, we'll bring the bomb to B. If you die, we'll hit A."
When nexa was at a disadvantage in map control, he liked to gamble on a site. Most CSGO players knew that.
But even ALEX couldn't figure out whether OG had stacked A or B this round.
Only the viewers with a bird's-eye view could tell who the unlucky one was.
Of course, it was Electronic—no, KRIMZ.
"Fnatic's IGL really gets it. OG's the kind of team that likes to gamble on a site."
"ALEX's having KRIMZ push out alone from B Second Floor to gather intel on B."
"B looks quiet right now, but aside from one CT at B Small, there are three more hiding at B Site."
Watching KRIMZ head in, completely unaware, Wan Ji Qi sighed.
"KRIMZ is about to get caught in a crossfire from the Counter-Terrorists."
"There are too many angles for him to clear."
"Hm? KRIMZ threw a Flashbang and jumped out the window."
"valde at B Catwalk didn't give him a chance."
"The CTs at B Site haven't shown themselves, but KRIMZ may have figured out there are a lot of them at B before he died."
"..."
Meanwhile, in Fnatic's practice room,
ALEX, eyes fixed on the minimap, realized OG's stack direction the moment KRIMZ jumped down.
Besides valde firing at B Small, two red question marks had flashed up at B Site.
There could be no more than one player at A Site!
"Hit A now. There's at most one at A. Clear your angles so you don't get caught off guard."
ALEX quickly picked up the bomb and headed for A Site.
"Aether, cover B Catwalk for me in a moment."
"Bang."
Another Scout shot rang out.
Qin Feng, holding the angle from the Arch ledge onto B Small, put a bullet through valde's arm, spraying blood.
"One at B Small, tagged hard."
He wasn't worried about the CTs catching him from the side.
Even if the other two CTs at B had rotated as soon as KRIMZ died, they had barely made it out of Market by now.
The last CT, who didn't know where Qin Feng was, was most likely tucked away on A Main or A2, and was unlikely to pose much of a threat to him at the Arch ledge.
Of course, OG had actually stacked four players at B.
ALEX and poizon cleared the undefended A Site and began planting.
"Beep. Beep. Beep."
The bomb's warning beeps started up at an unhurried pace.
Nexa looked at his own low health and valde's, then shook his head. "Save. We're both badly tagged."
OG chose to save their guns.
Qin Feng also swapped in the M4A1 he'd picked up in Underpass.
The bomb exploded, making it 3–0.
Qin Feng casually tossed his M4A1 to mezii, then spent 4,750 on an AWP.
"Let's keep controlling mid," ALEX said, suddenly feeling that calling the game had gotten easier.
All they had to do was pair Qin Feng's AWP with their mid control.
He knew that even the best tactics depended on the players' aim.
What could OG do now, even if they knew Fnatic wanted to control mid?
Send mantuu's AWP over to hunt down Aether?
Of course not.
If mantuu were that good, Fnatic probably wouldn't have had a chance to play this Mirage map in the first place.
Sometimes you knew exactly what the other team planned to do, but you still couldn't stop them.
North's 16–1 win over Astralis on Dust II was the perfect example.
Every player on Astralis knew North would contest A Main at the start of each round, but they still couldn't hold it.
OG now faced the same problem.
They couldn't deal with Aether's AWP in mid.
On Mirage, if you lost control of mid and VIP, the Terrorists had practically won half the round before it even began.
No matter how much nexa liked to gamble, he wouldn't stack all five players mid and push out.
With their momentum in full swing, Fnatic finished the first half with a 12–3 lead.
OG, who had started on the Counter-Terrorist side, had managed a measly three rounds.
A bright smile had spread across ALEX's face.
Was 12 rounds enough?
More than enough!
Especially since Fnatic would be on the Counter-Terrorist side in the second half.
6657, commentating in the Livestream Room, was also visibly excited.
It had been a long time since a Chinese player had appeared on the CSGO Major stage.
No one had expected Aether, still unknown just three months earlier, to single-handedly drag Fnatic onto the Antwerp stage.
But somehow, Aether had done it.
"With a 12-round lead, Fnatic have a huge advantage."
Wan Ji Qi forced himself to calm down. "You could almost say Fnatic already have one foot in the Challengers Stage of the Antwerp Major."
"..."
The second half began.
OG rushed B Site in a fast Pistol Round, doggedly claiming the win and keeping some suspense in the match.
After losing the second-half Pistol Round, Fnatic's players—except Qin Feng—chose to force-buy MP9s and Desert Eagles.
Unfortunately, although they traded three Terrorists with their force buy, Fnatic still couldn't turn the round around.
As expected, OG cut the score to 6–12.
Qin Feng picked up an AWP, while his teammates bought full rifles and utility.
But before Qin Feng's AWP could make an impact in mid, poizon and ALEX caught the Terrorists pushing out onto A Site in a crossfire, scoring four kills.
The bomb was dropped, and valde, left to cover the retreat, had no chance.
6–13.
The Terrorists decided to force-buy again.
After a simple A Site Execute, ALEX and poizon pulled off another 2-for-4 at the site, more than completing their objective.
mantuu was the last one left. Before he could even plant the bomb, Qin Feng—rotating from VIP to A—took him out with a single AWP shot.
6–14. OG chose to ECO.
OG rushed B and were wiped out in seconds by KRIMZ's M4.
Fnatic reached Match Point.
First, thank you all so much for your tips, monthly votes, and recommendations!
Second, I'll check for typos and awkward phrasing at least five times before posting next time, and do my best not to make mistakes!
Third, could some of these plays actually happen? I've been watching FPL demos and testing things out myself in-game. I'll only write things that are theoretically possible. Of course, every extraordinary play involves not only the player's form, but also, to some extent, the opponent's mistakes.
That's all.
Before you continue