The Seoul Dynasty is in a must win situation. In the Summer Show down it was the Chengdu Hunters in the lowest seeded position, but with their win against the NYXL last weekend, if Seoul doesn’t beat them, they might be the lowest position during the Countdown Cup. This is not just for the monthly tournament, but for their standing in the League. Their overall ranking as of now is 11th, which has fallen past the half mark. The team needs to start racking up some wins on the board with an 8:8 win loss split. This week for the Seoul Dynasty is a deja vu from Week 21 where they went up against the Chengdu Hunters and Shanghai Dragons in the same week. All eyes will be on the Dynasty to see if Week 25 can be the week that Seoul pulls out a double win.
Chengdu Hunters: 4-12-0 (June 28)
The Hunters created quite a stir when they upset the NYXL in a 5 match game last weekend. This makes them a dangerous opponent as their ‘non meta’ ways tend to bring teams out of the meta as well. It is important to note that the team as of now does not have a main coach. It seemed that the players tended to rely on going back to their ‘main’ comfort picks in match.
To win this match the Dynasty needs to fix many aspects. It is hard to figure out where to start, but it is going back to basics. The team needs to stop with the odd strategies and or compositions and go back to the basics. Just like how the Hunters went back to their more basic core of their best heroes and played mechanically sound Overwatch in the second half against the NYXL. Seoul needs to focus on playing like a team, not getting picked via positioning, and focusing on decisive shot calling. There is no doubt that the players are amazing, but Overwatch is a team game. Even if all the parts are great, if together they don’t fit then it won’t work.
Prediction: 3:2 Dynasty
The last match that they played it was a 3:0 victory for the Dynasty. This time around, it seems as if it will be closer. Seoul showed that they can crush on meta, if Route 66 attack, was any indication. But when the coaches put strategies that have the players get off meta, that is when they get stomped. It was like when the Dynasty had 3 minutes on Route 66 to push a little past A, but Junyoung ‘Profit’ Park opted for a Sombra instead of Tracer. That essentially put not pressure on the Spark and they were held at spawn for 2 minutes.
The Dynasty if they want to win can’t out meta the off-meta team and needs to focus on communication, especially since they lucked out with no Hunter Widow this time around. This is Dynasty’s match to lose and will possibly set the narrative for the team for the rest of the season.
Player to Watch: Dongeon ‘FITS’ Kim
FITS did not have the best match against the Hangzhou Spark. He long has been one of the most consistent components of the team. When the Hunters came back in the reverse sweep it was largely on the backs of the DPS. The Dynasty’s DPS needs to match and also keep the Hunters in line, so that there is space made to get positioning. Can FITS regain his footing and help be that Fleta dead-lift carry that the Dynasty seemingly is depending on to secure maps.
Shanghai Dragons: 16-2-0
The Shanghai Dragons seems like a huge wall that is standing right in front of the Dynasty. It is hard to believe there isn’t a way to win. Unlike the Hunter match this is not a Seoul vs Dynasty match in which they have to overcome themselves to win. The Dragons have multiple threats on multiples levels. The Dynasty has played the Dragons close on a few occasions. The community has yet to see the Dragons play with the new hero bans, but other than the match the Dragons play against the London Spitfire there will not be much data.
What does the Dynasty need to do to win? Pray to the Overwatch League Gods. The coaches need to be correct on what will be run and have designated strategies to counter them. There can’t be any weird starting line up. They need to start off strong. The Seoul Dynasty must win Ilios or Numbani as they haven’t reverse swept since 2018, and the third map is Hanamura one of their worst maps. To have Hanamura in 3rd is bad. If they win the first two maps, and lose the third that will break momentum and swing it into the favor of the Dragons. If the Dragons win the first two maps and Seoul needs to clutch on the third map, it is Hanamura. Their mental has to be strong.
Prediction: 3:0 Dragons
With all map selection and explanation above, that is one of the strongest reasons why the 3-0 score line was picked. The Dynasty might be able to win Ilios, but it is a huge mountain that they would need to climb to win it straight out. It is smarter to focus on the win that has a better probability of happening, the Hunters, so there can be a win on the board then prepare for the Dragons and lose both matches. If the Dynasty pulls out a win, that would be one of the biggest upsets on the weekend. Here are fingers crossed that the Seoul Dynasty pull out the two win weekend, and a huge offering to the Overwatch Gods that their favor may look down on the Tiger Nation this coming weekend.
Player to Watch: Minhyuk ‘Michelle’ Choi
Orisa is still out this week. That means double shield with Minseo ‘Marve1’ Hwang is not as impactful. Michelle’s Zarya is amazing. The Tiger Nation might not rank him the highest of all the Zarya’s the Dynasty has had, Joonhyuk ‘Zunba’ Kim Zarya GOD, but he is the best Zarya on the team. If Marve1 is in with Jaehui ‘Gesture’ Hong, here is a controversial take; bench FITS and put Michelle in for DPS. The first time Seoul won against the NYXL it was off the back of Michelle’s Sombra. It is risky as Michelle’s DPS hero pool is Reaper, Pharah and Sombra? Yes. If they stick to a comp that is Genji-Sombra could it work on Hanamura as a hail Mary? Maybe.
Week 25
It is important to remember that the Seoul Dynasty is comprised not just the players. Overwatch is almost like a game of chess. The coaches are the players as the pros are the pieces that the coaches use to win the match. The Seoul Dynasty pros puts so much of themselves into the game. Whether they win or lose remember that words impact them and there is nobody who wants to win more than them! Go leave some kind words in Seoulcord for them all. https://discord.gg/SeoulDynasty
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