Team Heretics reveals its VALORANT roster

Team Heretics is the latest organization to enter the European VALORANT landscape, following the trend of picking up a multi-national EU roster. The team mostly comprises former Counter-Strike players and also includes talents that have made names for themselves within Riot Games' new FPS title. The team's first event will be the LVP - Genesis Cup Fuego, where the lineup looks to be heavy favorites on paper. 

The Spanish IGL

Heretics' first pick-up came in the form of domestic talent Christian "loWel" Garcia Antoran, who will captain the Spanish organization's new roster. With plenty of experience under his belt, loWel played for the likes of PENTA Sports, mousesports, and HellRaisers in CS:GO, so he doesn't lack experience with English-speaking rosters. He announced his retirement from competitive CS in August and played in LVL Clash 2 with Inferno, a mixed team that comprised many of Heretics' new members. While Inferno bombed out of LVL Clash 2 in last place, losing to Ninjas in Pyjamas and Giants Gaming, loWel was one of the team's best performers. So far, the Spaniard has played Sage and Sova, and his experience with CS:GO should easily translate over to VALORANT.

The Turkish Sentinel

The second member of the new Heretics lineup is nonother than Melih "pAura" Karaduran, one of the best free-agent Cypher players in Europe and easily one of the best talents to come out of Turkey, a country with a rapidly developing VALORANT scene. He has averaged 216 ACS throughout his 42 recorded matches, having played for the likes of Prodigy, looking4org, and Inferno. While he gained popularity by playing in Turkish lineups in early showmatch tournaments, he turned heads in the Vitality European Open, helping Prodigy to a second-place finish. One thing is for certain; he will prove to be an invaluable addition to Team Heretics.

The Lithuanian OPer

Perhaps the most shocking reveal on the new Heretics lineup is that of Žygimantas "nukkye" Chmieliauskas. The Lithuanian was one of the best free agents in CS:GO, being a very skilled AWPer and hybrid player. He rose to prominence in MANS NOT HOT, which eventually signed with The Imperial with whom he even won DreamHack Open Summer 2018. He later played for NoChance and eventually signed with HellRaisers, where he linked up with loWel for the first time. Coming into VALORANT, nukkye will be the OPer for the team and has played Raze and Jett in the LVP.

The German fragger

Team Heretics' last official player comes in the form of Dustin "niesoW" Durnas, the last core member of the Inferno lineup that transitioned to Heretics. While the German previously played a lot of Cypher, he was seen playing Reyna in the LVP, allowing pAura to play his signature character. So far, niesoW has averaged 242 ACS over his 19 recorded games and has showcased incredible mechanical skills with a high headshot percentage. With how the team composition is shaping up, it's highly likely that niesoW will be playing more duelists moving forward. 

The British mentor

The new project will be overseen by Tanishq "Tanizhq" Sabharwal, who joins as head coach and manager. The Brit's previous experience lies mainly in Overwatch, where he worked for the likes of NRG Esports and Montreal Rebellion as an analyst and manager. Having coached the core of loWel, pAura, and niesoW in Inferno, Tanizhq should have a good understanding of his players' strengths and weaknesses and hope to share his wisdom with the team.

The Danish stand-in

Ahead of the LVP, Heretics announced that Auni "AvovA" Chahade would be standing in for the team. As one of the better teamless European Omen players, the Dane could be an interesting prospect for Heretics moving forward, although he does have a buy-out attached to his name given that he is still on AGF Esport's CS:GO bench. AvovA has averaged an impressive 238 ACS over his 23 games, in which he has mostly played Omen and Raze. While his VALORANT experience is rather limited, having only played with Team123, Denmark has always had a good track record with developing Counter-Strike talents. Still, only time will tell who Heretics plans to pick up moving forward.

The crew

It's exciting to see another notable organization enter the European VALORANT scene, especially as Heretics have picked up the core of an already existing roster. While Inferno struggled in its only past event, the new Heretics lineup seems to have already hit the ground running in the LVP, currently sitting at a 2-0 record with loWel and co. already taking their revenge against Giants. Regardless of who the fifth player ends up being, Heretics has signed excellent players so far, and the team easily has the potential to contend for titles within Europe.