A strong start could fade, but a strong finish could seal the deal.
In the final few rounds, Fnatic gave forZe no chance to score.
The first half ended 11-4, with Fnatic holding a commanding seven-point lead.
After a brief side-switch break, the game resumed.
Fnatic went for a simple A Site Execute in the Pistol Round.
"Fnatic have a huge opportunity here."
"The Terrorists go straight for A, smoking off Jump Platform and Connector, then rushing CT Base."
"What can the CTs at CT Base do without a headshot angle? KENSI doesn't want to fall back. He wants to use the USP's advantage in a duel to tag the T coming out of A1 a few times."
"But Aether has a P250. He swings wide and gets the instant kill."
"mezii plants where the bomb can be seen from both CT Base and A1. ALEX is alone at A1, while the other four Terrorists are near the slope at CT Base."
"What can the CTs do? Two are rotating through Arch and VIP, and two through CT Base. They have no smokes or defuse kits."
"The CTs at Arch and VIP can't see anyone. Jerry and Norwi at CT Base are about to swing wide."
"Fnatic have three rifles holding angles. Jerry and Norwi are instantly taken down."
"The CTs at Arch and VIP are moving, but they're facing crossfire from A1 and the Terrorists on the CT Base slope!"
"They have no chance!"
"Fnatic win the second-half pistol round, extending their lead to 12-4."
The commentators' voices were charged with excitement in the official Livestream Room.
Everyone knew the scales of victory were already tipping toward Fnatic.
Fnatic naturally wasn't about to let this hard-won opportunity slip away.
After winning the gun round and the ECO round in succession, the Terrorists stretched their lead to ten points.
At 14-4, Fnatic needed just two more rounds to win the match.
Meanwhile, forZe's in-game leader, Jerry, called a timeout, but had already given up on turning the map around.
Jerry glanced at Qin Feng in Fnatic's player area. He had the same look on his face as EliGE had when watching kennyS in that showmatch years ago.
That gap between snipers...
Had zorte let forZe down?
Not exactly.
Even with his team in dire straits, zorte was still the only player on the team with a positive score.
But even if zorte hadn't played poorly, he still lacked something compared to Aether, who was helping Fnatic turn the game around.
"Let's push up once. If we don't do it now, we won't get another chance," Jerry sighed. "We can't let Fnatic run their strategies too comfortably."
The team's sniper, zorte, suddenly felt defeated as well.
ForZe weren't weak overall, and he hadn't made many mistakes with the AWP. Yet Fnatic kept widening the score gap.
In reality, the first map was already beyond doubt.
Even when forZe clawed back two rounds, they still couldn't blunt the edge of Aether's AWP.
The first map ended 16-6.
"Congratulations to Fnatic, who take the first win in the 2-1 group of the Challengers Stage."
The commentators in the official main-stage Livestream Room spoke cheerfully and at length.
"Aether's performance is already hard to describe with a word as simple as 'brilliant.'"
"He turned the tide when all seemed lost and held up a collapsing fortress."
"Aether really stepped up in the rounds when Fnatic needed him most."
[You can always count on Aether!]
[Can the stockbrokers take a break? You've driven Aether's gold sticker price through the roof. It was 300 just now, and it's 500 already after that map?]
[Can a ten-year Fnatic fan speak up now?]
[Brothers, stay calm. Don't pop the champagne at halftime. There are still two maps to go.]
During the break, Jerry leaned against the wall in the players' corridor, looking somewhat lost.
He didn't think he'd made any major mistakes with his calls or tactics, and the players had all performed well at first.
After Aether's triple kill, forZe had barely seen another chance to score.
If they'd lost because of their tactics or a communication mistake, Jerry might have been able to help the players reset with coach Fierce during the break.
But if it was because an opposing player was having a godlike game, Jerry couldn't think of any effective solution in such a short time.
Could they really count on Aether suddenly playing like a god one moment and a bot the next?
"Phew. Come on, guys. Let's have a strong second half."
"The next map is Inferno. We'll start as CTs, so we have a bit of an advantage."
"Whatever you do, don't let the loss on the first map, Mirage, affect your mindset."
"..."
Meanwhile, Fnatic's players were in a very different mood during the break.
"Aether, I knew you'd steady that AWP," ALEX said, patting Qin Feng on the shoulder. "Keep it up next map. Let's go for a 2-0."
Then ALEX turned to the rest of the Fnatic players. "Anyway, everyone played well."
"We can also start bringing out some of the things we practiced in scrims."
"Next map is Inferno. We're starting on the Terrorist side, so we need to focus on controlling Banana Alley."
"If we secure Banana Alley early, we'll have a big advantage in map control."
"So our strategy is, first this, then that."
"..."
After the brief break, the players returned to their stations.
The second map was Inferno, Fnatic's map pick.
Almost everyone watching from the CIS region was hoping forZe would put on a better showing than they had on the first map.
That hope lasted barely a minute.
For the second-half pistol round, Fnatic sent four players to quietly work their way up the side lane, leaving only Qin Feng with a P250 holding the Banana Alley entrance.
Of course, this was less an attack than a bet that forZe's players would make a mistake.
The CIS commentators tensed as they watched forZe's CTs take a 4A1B setup. With Jerry alone on B behind Coffins and unable to get any information, the remaining CTs at A would probably try to clear Mid or the side lane.
As it turned out, Fnatic had bet on the right play.
When they heard no movement at either A or B, Norwi and zorte at Connector decided to push into Mid, learning that Fnatic had no one there.
But as the two continued creeping through Mid, the Terrorists under VIP and Qin Feng at T Spawn both aimed their weapons toward Mid.
[Fnatic.mezii killed forZe.Norwi with a Glock-18] [Fnatic.Aether headshot and killed forZe.zorte with a P250]
Norwi and zorte fell to crossfire from Qin Feng at T Spawn and the Terrorist under VIP.
Fnatic seized the opportunity and quickly pushed through Mid.
The grouped-up Terrorists were ready to trade kills, leaving the forZe players no chance to land a lucky USP shot.
Fnatic comfortably won the pistol round.
After winning the pistol round, Fnatic seemed to have found a gap in forZe's defense.
Throughout the first half, forZe, playing as CTs, barely got a moment to breathe.
And after the sides switched, forZe, now on the Terrorist side, had no chance of winning a round.
At 16-5, Fnatic took both maps and secured a 3-1 record, earning a spot in the Legends Stage of the 2022 PGL Major.
Thanks to the generous benefactor Clown Knows Sorrow for a total of 2,000 points in donations.
I've been revising and cutting things all day, and I'm not in great shape, so this should be the only update today.
A lot of people had strong opinions about QUQU, so I've cut quite a bit from the later chapters.
I've been revising the commentary sections all day.
To avoid controversy or putting readers off, the commentary will probably only feature the English stream, the official Chinese stream, 6657, and CSBOY from now on.
Sorry in advance to the guys who like certain streamers.
Lastly, starting tomorrow, I should be posting three updates a day, totaling 6,000 words.
Before you continue