The World of Tanks World Championship in Warsaw ended with a crushing victory for tankers from HellRaisers. "Born to Win" returned the title of champions Grand final tanks prize fund

For the third year in a row, the capital of Poland, Warsaw, is hosting the Grand Final of the Wargaming.net League. This year the event was hosted by a local sports complex Torwar Hall. Traditionally, there was a real military equipment, namely tanks T-34-85 and M4 Sherman, visitors could not only take photos against the background, but also look inside.

General prize fund is $300,000. 12 teams from all over the globe came to compete for it. The tournament organizers decided to slightly update the rules for this grand final: each team still has 7 participants, the basic principle of attack-defense also remains. For more variety and entertainment, level 10 tanks are now available, and the battle time has been increased from 7 minutes to 10. Meetings between teams are held until 5 wins.

As usual, the teams were selected by region plus 3 "Wild Cards" - invited teams. This year's lineup. Asia and the Pacific: El Gaming and Gold Bass, CIS: Na"Vi, NSS and last year's winners Hellraisers, Europe: Wombats on Tanks, Tornado.Rox and Kazna Kru, America: Eclipse, SIMP, Red Canids from Brazil and Chinese team YaTo. First day - group meetings. The groups were distributed as follows:

From the very opening, visitors had access to Free-to-Play zones in which they could drive tanks on computers, a separate zone with a PlayStation 4, and a VR zone in which they could watch combat operations in a virtual format in real time. Of course, there was also a large area with souvenirs, where there was everything from T-shirts to modeling kits.

At the entrance, everyone was given bracelets that began to flash blue or red depending on the winning team. It all started with a rather spectacular opening ceremony:

After the presentation, the head of the global eSports direction of Wargaming, Mohammed Fadl, came on stage, who greeted all those present and talked about what would be interesting during these two days, in particular, he recalled the updated format of the competition, the opportunity to watch a virtual broadcast in real time and the upcoming exhibition battle in War of Warships. Then all the teams came on stage and the Hellraisers brought out the cup they won last year.

This was followed by the qualifying battles of the group part of the tournament. The first and, perhaps, the most anticipated match was Na"Vi against Hellraisers. At first the fight was equal, but Na"Vi managed to snatch a victory with a score of 5:3. NSS easily defeated El Gaming with a score of 5:1, which was expected. According to the results of the first day, EL Gaming, Gold Bass, Red Canids and Eclipse were eliminated, and the quarterfinals will look like this:

Will once again become the world capital of competitive gaming. Once again, the largest eSports championship of the year from Wargaming will be held there - Grand final 2016. This large-scale event will pit 12 of the strongest World of Tanks teams against each other in the fight for the glory of world champions and a prize fund in US$300,000 .

This year we are taking to new heights! The 2016 Grand Final will be held at Torwar Hall, which will accommodate everyone who wants to attend our tournament. The size of this arena allows for twice as many people to attend the 2015 Grand Final, so if you are looking for an unforgettable eSports experience, welcome to us! By good traditionEntry to the event is free .

Teams

Every year, each gaming region sends its two strongest teams to the Grand Final. The tournament will feature:

• Two teams from Asia and Pacific (APAC zone servers) .
• Two teams from RU-region (RU-servers) .
• Two teams from Europe (EU server) .
• Two teams from North America(NA server) .
• One team from China (CN server).
• Three teams that received Wild Card - teams selected by the organizers for their merits and/or other criteria .

The battles of the second season of the Wargaming.net League are still raging in all regions. Closer to the beginning of the Grand Final we will name all the participants.

We will definitely tell you more about the Grand Final closer
for spring, stay tuned!

To keep up to date with all esports news, watch us at

On April 8 and 9, 2016, the Wargaming.net League grand finals for playing World of Tanks. And although eSports is not yet included Olympic Games, passions are running high here, and the teams are preparing for the final games, just like professional athletes by exercising every day.

The fight for the title of the best, or rather the best team, was accepted by the guys from different countries: Russia, Ukraine, Brazil, Korea and China. And the prize fund was $300,000, and we simply could not ignore this topic.

(Total 30 photos)

The event has been held in Warsaw for the third year and each time in a new location. In 2016, the grand final took place in a place with the very militant name Torwar Hall.

At the entrance, everyone was greeted by a real American Sherman tank and a Soviet T-34-85, which were immediately surrounded by inquisitive children.

The international tournament brought together 12 best teams. Two teams from Asia and the Pacific, two teams from Europe, two teams from North America, one team from China and two teams from the RU region (Russia, Ukraine, Belarus). Plus three teams that were chosen by the tournament organizers for their special merits. Fans from these countries came to support their favorites.

While waiting for the opening ceremony, guests warmed up by playing WoT.

One of the most interesting stands was the Fibrum stand with helmets virtual reality. From the outside it may seem that this man is in the Torwar building, but in fact he is now sitting in a tank and is fighting a serious battle.

They say that Warsaw has the largest percentage of the population that plays World of Tanks - the number of players per capita in this city is off the charts.

The tournament begins with the opening ceremony and introduction of teams.

Each team has its own chip for luck. As someone shakes hands, the North American Eclipse team relies on the power of a magic cap.

In 2015, the guys from the HellRaisers team became champions. They fought in the final with strong team Na’Vi won.

And the first fight in the tournament is between them. Both teams ended up in Group C. An interesting start.

The winner was revealed in this way. At first, 12 teams played in groups A, B, C and D of three teams each. The two leaders from each group made it to the playoffs, where they played each other in a knockout round.

All matches were commentated by analysts, discussing the teams' tactics, analyzing mistakes and successes.

Teams watch the competitors from the hall, noting tactical moves and strategy. In the frame - Red Canids, a team from Brazil.

The essence of each fight at the championship is very simple. One team must attack enemy positions and capture bases.

The second team holds the defense and must either destroy the attackers or hold the position for a certain time. All this makes the game dynamic and entertaining.

The outcome of the battle is decided by the initial sets (tanks that players choose for battle), tactics and the ability to maintain the initiative in the most difficult moments of the match.

Victory was followed by defeat, the teams fought to the last. As a result, the two strongest teams and, one might say, long-time rivals - Na’Vi and HellRaisers - met in the final.

An intense battle, another one, shells exploding, tracks clanging. Nerves to the limit. Swift strikes from HellRaisers were followed by furious attacks from Na’Vi. Score 2:0, 2:5, 5:5, 6:6. Nobody wants to give in.

And in the decisive battle in an incredible fight, Na’Vi snatches victory, regaining the champion title. Congratulations to the guys on their victory!

The Wargaming League offers fans of the company's projects a path from just good players to eminent professionals with their own army of fans, sponsorship contracts and impressive earnings.

Thanks to regular tournaments and special modes tailored for eSports, professionals improve their skills, amateurs learn from the experience of masters, and spectators enjoy a spectacular show and root for their idols.

About Wargaming

Wargaming is one of the world's largest publishers and developers in the free-to-play MMO market. The company was founded in 1998 and during this time managed to develop and release more than 15 projects. Wargaming is currently working on a military series of MMO games dedicated to tank, air and sea battles of the mid-20th century: World of Tanks, World of Warplanes and World of Warships. All three projects are part of the MMO universe Wargaming.net, uniting millions of players in the global wargaming community.

Hi all!

We continue to tell you about the most iconic moments of the Grand Final in Warsaw. Today we have prepared a very interesting video - five best fights with recordings of team conversations. You have a rare opportunity to plunge into the tense atmosphere of battles, where the stakes are higher than ever.

And yes, it's time to talk about perhaps the most controversial moment of the Grand Final - the tiebreaker. Let us remind you that the two most famous teams of the RU cluster reached the last stage of the championship: HellRaisers and Natus Vincere. The world champions of 2015 and 2014 seriously argued for the new title, and went body to body until the tiebreaker. Well, there...

A tense game, both teams are again almost equal. Tanks are exchanged, but no one gives in. When there are a little more than 5 minutes left until the end of the round, HellRaisers seem to have an advantage: Grifon and ApplewOw against one Inspirer, who also has almost half the strength. It would seem that, championship title should stay with HR, but something goes wrong here. ApplewOw worked cheerfully all round from the mountain, so Inspirer decides to pay him a visit. The HellRaisers player has to retreat, gravity intervenes and... then see for yourself!

The player never got out of this stone pocket, so the victory went to Natus Vincere. It is clear that immediately after the battle the tank community began to vigorously discuss this situation. Curses rained down on poor ApplewOw's head, people began to paint the ill-fated stone in NaVi colors with mods and offered to erect a monument there. Of course, it seemed that the championship was lost only due to the carelessness of a single HellRaisers player. Yes, and Natus Vincere was reproached - they say that the fight was not very championship-quality. But is this really so?

Thanks to our video, you can find out what and how Natus Vincere players said during the tiebreak. Watch this fight and see for yourself (the fight starts at 30:20 , moment with stone on 34:33 ), that everything is not so simple. The incident with the stone was not nearly as random as it might seem at first glance. And, despite the fact that this was a military stratagem, and not the will of chance, the guys from Natus Vincere wanted would regaining the title of world champions is not like that (rewind to 39:49 ). Unfortunately, not all wishes are destined to come true.

And now let’s give the floor to the main participants of the events - ApplewOw and Inspirer.

ApplewOw

How did you feel when you realized you were stuck? How will you feel the next time you go to Utes?

When I fell, I believed until the end and tried to get out, but alas. Now on the “Cliff” I can get out of this place in two minutes different ways and I know every piece of relief by heart. I have already reserved that very position in the team.

What emotions will you enter the next season with?

Never in my life have I felt such a surge of motivation as I do now. I am ready to give 200% to make my team number one next season.

What are your impressions of the Grand Final?

For every player, the Grand Final is a key tournament where you need to prove to yourself that you are one of the best players in the world. Playing in the final is an incredible feeling in itself.

Inspirer

How did you like the Grand Final this year?

The third Grand Final has already passed, and every year the organization raises its already highest level of organizing tournaments higher and higher.

What impression did you leave from the general level of your opponents?

The overall level of the opponents has increased significantly! It was more difficult to make it to the finals. HR especially had to go through a very complex network, where they spent the bulk of their efforts.

And, of course, the final round: did you believe in victory when you were left alone against two? What was applewow thinking when he got stuck in the rock? This best fight in your career?

In the final round, when I was left alone, I had a choice: listen to the tips of my comrades or ignore everyone and do it my way. I chose the first option and heard advice from Tolik through five voices that I could try to push Apple off the mountain or simply destroy him there. When we saw that he was stuck, we still weren’t 100% sure whether he would get out of there or not and what holes he had left on the map. But until the last moment I believed in victory. Judging by the reviews, this is the best fight of the Grand Final in terms of entertainment and emotionality!

A game is a game, and you and I know the result very well. The battle of the titans of the RU region did not end quite as we expected, but nothing can be done. Well, the more interesting the next season of the Gold Series will be!