How Team Secret tried to hold their high ground against Team Liquid
Player Images © Team Secret
Team Secret was able to create their own rendition of Natus Vincere’s historic Fountain Hook play from The International 2012 with, of course, Puppey’s Chen and MidOne’s Storm Spirit at The International 2018.
The fifth main event day of this year’s grand Dota 2 championships kicked off with the do-or-die duel between two of the Dota Pro Circuit top dogs, Team Liquid and Team Secret. In the first game, Puppey decided to bless the defending champions with his iconic Chen while drafting his midlaner a Storm Spirit as a decent matchup against MATUMBAMAN’s Broodmother. Well actually, all their heroes were a pretty decent counter against the pesky spider, but since it’s MATUMBAMAN playing Broodmother, who by the way has a perfect win rate with the hero in seven games, Team Secret was forced to do some high ground defending.
It was during their match point game against TongFu at The International 2013 when Puppey first had his light bulb moment with Chen’s teleport ally ability which was under Test of Faith back then. They were slowly losing the game and were in the brink of getting kicked down the lower bracket. In order to save them from the almost certain defeat, Puppey turned the tables with game-breaking Meat Hooks from Dendi’s Pudge.
Na`Vi ended up winning that match thanks to the Fountain Hook shenanigan. Hoping to replicate the same outcome, Puppey decided to pull off another teleport ally trick featuring MidOne’s Ball Lightning as a defensive tactic against Team Liquid’s highground push.
Video Clip © DOTA 2
At first, Team Liquid had no answer against the reinvented Fountain Hook. MATUMBAMAN tried to catch MidOne out and dispel the Holy Persuasion teleport with Nullifier, but Puppey and MidOne’s timing are just too perfect.
Video © DOTA 2
Team Secret had their fun, but it wasn’t enough to fend off the high ground onslaught of Team Liquid. Puppey and MidOne ultimately failed to replicate the outcome of Na`Vi’s fountain hook and eventually had to give the game to the defending champions.
Team Secret was the first team to try the Storm Spirit and Chen combo at version 7.19, but the strategy itself was actually first pulled off by Alliance at the BTS Summer CUP DOTA 2, the qualifier for the DOTA Summit 9. They were up against ESPADA in a 60+ minute game that they were losing. They were able to fight their way back to the game by the seemingly overpowered Ball Lightning and Holy Persuasion cheese strat.
Despite Team Secret and Team Liquid bowing out of The International 2018 at the end of the day, both teams were still able to deliver exciting Dota 2 games.
