Eight teams have qualified for the 2015 World of Warcraft Arena Americas Regionals tournament—one from Latin America, one from Australia and New Zealand, and six from North America. On September 12 and 13, three of those teams will advance to the WoW Arena World Championship at BlizzCon 2015 . . . and five will be heading back home.
You’ll be able to watch the carnage unfold live on Twitch.tv/Warcraft on September 12 and 13 at 12 p.m. PT—but in the meantime, let’s meet the contenders who’ve risen through the ranks over the past few months.
The Teams
Method
Under their original moniker "Is Butter a Carb," this was the first North American team to qualify, beating out Luminosity in the Grand Finals of the first North American Online Qualifier Cup back in July. Since then, the group has reunited under the Method banner to prove that their run in Cup 1 was no coincidence and that they deserve a spot in the World Championships at BlizzCon.
- Team Captain: Chanimal – Affliction/Demonology Warlock
- Gorecki – Restoration Shaman, Balance Druid, Beast Mastery Hunter, Affliction Warlock
- Rositajonez – Frost Mage
- Psytrix – Holy Paladin
Juveniles
This team claimed victory under the name "Rise of le Sock" in the second North American Online Qualifier Cup, and eliminated many well-known players to get here. As the only team in the Regionals with only three players on their roster—and only one playable composition—they must prove that numbers don’t make might if they want to advance to BlizzCon.
- Team Captain: Roastyz – Subtlety Rogue
- Wealthysockx – Frost Mage
- Kubzy – Restoration Druid
Tempo Storm
The name Tempo Storm has inspired fear in opponents in many eSports events, and the World of Warcraft Arena is no different. Tempo Storm has proven time and again that they’re a force to be reckoned with in online tournaments, but can they hold up under pressure at the Americas Regionals?
- Team Captain: Elite – Holy Paladin
- Pikaboo – Subtlety Rogue, Arms Warrior
- Jahmilli – Frost Mage, Subtlety/Combat Rogue, Shadow Priest, Enhancement Shaman
- Starship – Restoration Druid, Survival/Beast Mastery Hunter
Luminosity
Luminosity had a very competitive showing in NA Online Qualifier Cups 1 and 2, but it wasn’t until Cup 3 that they secured their position at Regionals. Now they’re out to prove that those defeats were merely a setback and that they’re destined for the Arena stage at BlizzCon.
- Team Captain: Vanguards – Enhancement Shaman, Retribution Paladin, Mistweaver Monk
- Maldiva – Affliction Warlock
- Smexxin – Arms/Fury Warrior
- Dannycarry – Restoration Druid, Mistweaver Monk
Dream Deferred
In the third NA Online Qualifier Cup, this team (previously named "World of Warcats") showed just how much of a threat they can be right out of the gates, scoring two wins in under 60 seconds. Are the other teams prepared for Dream Deferred’s opening onslaught?
- Team Captain: Blackjeff – Frost/Unholy Death Knight
- Beatsbydrake – Affliction/Demonology Warlock
- Sychzy – Feral Druid
- Vincentwong – Holy Paladin
FolloweSports.com
Formerly known as "Carlos’ Bandidos", this team fought to the bitter end to secure their spot, beating out Dream Team 3–2 in the third-place match at NA Online Cup 3. They’re going to need to keep that same determination and tenacity to fight through the other teams in the Americas Regionals.
- Team Captain: Absterge – Restoration Shaman
- Jellybeans – Beast Mastery Hunter
- Vosil – Affliction/Demonology Warlock
- Walterbare – Feral Druid
Hype
Hype (previously "Bang Bang AU") emerged victorious as the winners of the Australia & New Zealand qualifying tournament in July. Although these players are relatively unknown, they had an extremely solid showing in the qualifiers. How will they stack up against the best teams from the Americas?
- Team Captain: Nyz – Unholy Death Knight
- Oyx – Arms Warrior
- Ymcmshred – Restoration Druid
- Creepinbrah – Restoration Druid
Santos Dexterity
Santos Dexterity, originally known as "This is Brasil", dominated the Copa America, winning four out of five play days and not dropping a single game in the finals stage. Consistency was the name of their game, as they won every single game with their preferred composition of Enhancement Shaman, Affliction Warlock, and Restoration Druid.
- Team Captain: Rynd – Restoration Druid, Restoration Shaman, Holy Paladin
- Shapis – Affliction Warlock
- Murmindz – Enhancement Shaman, Shadow Priest
- Xadin – Arms Warrior
The Prizes
The teams at the Americas Regionals will be competing for their share of a massive $100,000 prize pool—the largest of any regional event in World of Warcraft history. Every team will receive a portion of that money, but the amount increases dramatically the further the teams advance through the tournament.
- 1st place team: $50,000
- 2nd place team: $20,000
- 3rd place team: $10,000
- 4th place team: $8,000
- 5th–6th place teams: $4,000
- 7th–8th place teams: $2,000
Of course, that’s not the only prize at stake. The top three teams will also advance to the WoW Arena World Championship at BlizzCon 2015, where they’ll join five more teams from around the world to compete for $250,000 in prize money.
The Event
The World of Warcraft Arena Americas Regionals will be broadcast live on Twitch.tv/Warcraft starting at 12 p.m. PT on Saturday, September 12 and Sunday, September 13. You won’t want to miss a second of the action.
Of course, an epic event needs an epic crew, and we’re pulling out all the stops with a collection of some of the best shoutcasters and analysts in the World of Warcraft Arena scene:
- Sid ’Supatease’ Compston
- Elliott ‘Venruki’ Venczel
- Jared ‘vhell’ Coulston
- Josh ‘Lore’ Allen
- Jackson ‘Bajheera’ Bliton
These guys will be talking spectators through every match, ensuring that you don’t miss any of the high-level strategic play we know we can expect from these amazing teams. We’ll see you there!