WePlay! Tug of War: Mad Moon Announcement

A young man was sitting over a gigantic tome with yellowish, shabby pages. Judging by the labelling, it was volume three. A mysterious name flashed in the rays that pierced through the loose canvas covering the entrance to the tent:

"Archronicus"

The reader was carefully studying ancient folio for some time. Then, he suddenly took a breath like he has just awakened from a nightmare and put the book down on the table. Among other papers, in the heap of scrolls and treatises, there was a drawing with cracks and scuffs. The ink in some places faded, as if from drops of water or melted ice.

A steady hand carefully swung the linen partition swaying in the wind, and a big man entered the tent, for some reason dressed not like a warrior, which would be much better for his face, but as a travelling merchant.

“The Council of the Guardians is waiting, master,” the merchant said.

A young man stood up and adjusted his emerald-black tunic. The concern and uncertainty of his gaze immediately gave way to unwavering determination …

One of the largest and most significant Dota 2 events is coming this winter! The long-awaited LAN-finals of Tug of War will be held in the newly built WePlay! Arena. The trilogy ends with Tug of War: Mad Moon! Eight hardened teams will fight to become the Champions of the Mad Moon, win a solid prize pool and determine tournament's MVP titles!

Feel the goosebumps? We also do!

Tournament dates

• WePlay! Dota 2 Tug of War: Mad Moon Group Stage: February, 19-20 ;

• WePlay! Dota 2 Tug of War: Mad Moon Playoffs: February, 21-23;

Participants

Eight teams are set to take part in the competition. As you know, ppd and his mates were the first champions at WePlay! Tug of War: Radiant. Then, at WePlay! Tug of War: Dire, Royal Never Give Up, and Infamous were the strongest teams among others. So, here you are:

• European Champion, WePlay! Tug of War: Radiant — Ninjas in Pyjamas;

• American Champion, WePlay! Tug of War: Dire — Infamous;

• Asian Champion, WePlay! Tug of War: Dire — Royal Never Give Up;

And five more teams, which we will reveal later. Huge ones, trust us.

Tug of War: Mad Moon format 

The tournament is divided into two stages: Group stage and Playoffs. All the matches are held within the Double Elimination system.

• Group Stage is played in GSL format. The teams are divided into two groups, four in each. The matches of the first round are played in Bo1 format, the matches of the second round are played in Bo3 format. Two teams who took the last places in their group will leave the tournament.

• In the Playoffs, the six remaining teams start their way to the Grand Final from the top bracket. The teams who take second and third places in the Group Stage will pair in the first round (quarterfinals stage), while group winners proceed to the semifinals. All playoff matches, except the Grand Final, will be held in the Best of 3 format (up to two wins). The winner of WePlay! Tug of War: Mad Moon will be determined in the best of 5 (up to three wins) series.

Prize Pool

The prize pool is $300,000 (equivalent to Valve's Dota 2 Pro Circuit Minors). Prize pool distribution:

• 1st place: $130,000

• 2nd place: $60,000

• 3rd place: $30,000

• 4th place: $20,000

• 5-6th place: $12,000

• 7-8th place: $8,000

• MVP-Core: $10,000*

• MVP-Support: $10,000*

*MVPs will be determined in two phases:

1. The online audience will be able to vote via weplay.tv during the tournament days.

2. After Grand Final, a jury that consists of our talent crew will vote on the players, chosen by viewers.

"Stay sharp when I start casting the spell, do not be surprised," said the young magician in the emerald robes. Six men stood in front of him in a semicircle. All dressed as merchants or artisans. The tall and mighty merchant was there too. "You were well prepared, and up to this point have done your job better than anyone could have imagined. Now it's my turn."

"The moment when the worlds touch is approaching ... Those who are destined to overcome the will of the Ancients and bring peace to these lands will soon take their first step through the lands of the Valley …"

For a few moments, the little congregation was silent. The young man took a deep breath and extended his left hand forward.

"Scepter?"

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