After battling through a harrowing bracket last weekend, the first four of eight North American teams have qualified for the Tournament of Glory Finals! If qualifying teams meet eligibility requirements they will be invited to the World Tournament Series Invitational Qualifier, where the top teams from North America and Europe will travel to China to compete for $50,000!

North American Tournament of Glory Qualifier #1 Recap

Sharks with Lazers vs Team Teamwork

On Saturday, Sharks with Lazers’ strong capture point control, secondary mechanic awareness, and well-executed opening gambits propelled them to a swift 2-0 victory against Team Teamwork, securing them a spot in the Tournament of Glory Finals in October.

Series MVP: Gorn (Warrior)

Gorn’s dueling prowess and map awareness allowed Sharks with Lazers to focus their attention on winning team fights across the entirety of the map, confident that Gorn would be able to stand strong on back-point and rotate into team fights when afforded the opportunity.

Hashtag Believe vs Europe & Asia

In the second set of Saturday’s finals matches, Hashtag Believe faced off against Europe & Asia in a series of intense matches that resulted in a 1-1 tie after the first two games. Europe & Asia came into the final match looking for blood, keeping Hashtag scoreless for the first few minutes. Determined not to be eliminated from the tournament, Hashtag Believe came back from the rough early game with renewed fervor, ultimately pulling out a decisive 500-248 win.

Series MVP: Karina (Necromancer)

Karina’s well-timed and strategic usage of Corrupt Boon and Plague Form dealt a massive blow to Europe & Asia’s main damage source, a Lich Form necromancer.

You can view brackets for the North American Tournament of Glory Qualifier #1 here.

North American Tournament of Glory Qualifier #2 Recap

Evil Villains vs Seraphs of Fortuna

In Sunday’s first matchup, Evil Villains overcame Seraphs of Fortuna in a clean 2-0 sweep. In game one, Seraphs of Fortuna held a strong lead for the first four minutes of the game, even managing a mid-game three cap reversal, but due to Evil Villains’ superior buff control and team fighting, were unable to use that momentum to catapult themselves to victory. Evil Villains continued their dominance into game two, picking up a 500-319 victory on Forest of Niflhel.

Series MVP: Kizos (Ranger)

Kizos always managed to be in the right place at the right time, win crucial 1v1s, and be the lynchpin Evil Villains needed to pull out the series sweep.

Cognitive Gaming vs Radioactive

By far the most anticipated and hyped matchup of the weekend, the showdown between these two teams did not fail to deliver. The series extended to three grueling, heart-wrenching games, taking viewers and fans on an emotional roller coaster filled with narrow victories, Lich Form, and resurrection elites. After Cognitive took the first game with a 500-176 score, fans assumed that Cognitive was sure to take the second match just as handily. However, the second match took the teams to Forest of Niflhel, where timely use of Lich Form, well-executed baiting, and superior team fighting put Radioactive in the lead. A desperate attempt for secondary objective NPCs by Cognitive was thwarted by a killsteal from Radioactive, putting the final nail in Cognitive’s coffin and giving Radioactive the win. In the last and final match of the weekend, neither Cognitive nor Radioactive gave an inch, forcing the game to end via timer, the final score barely in Cognitive’s favor, 350-317.

Series MVP: Backpack (Engineer)

Backpack earned the MVP nomination by narrowly winning a duel against a Lich Form necromancer mid-game.

Catch all of last weekend’s day one and day two qualifying matches at Digital Pro Sports’ Twitch channel.

You can view brackets for the North American Tournament of Glory Qualifier #2 here.

European Tournament of Glory Qualifiers #1 and #2 happen this weekend!

You can catch the European Tournament of Glory Qualifiers #1 and #2 this weekend, hosted by Mistpedia at Twitch.tv/blu42. Livestream starts at 9:00 a.m. PDT (12:00 p.m. EDT, 18:00 CEST) on both Saturday and Sunday.

We’ll see you there!