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Following Acend’s reports that Shady “Shaady” Zer will be departing their dominant Halo Infinite team, official sign-ups for the second week of the HCS Pro Series have disclosed their prospective future plans. Brandon “Respectful” Stones will begin with Acend this week after being removed from Natus Vincere and then finishing second in last week’s tournament with his new team.
The organization is still yet to make a formal release on the roster change. However, the HCS has revealed the lineup alongside the 15 other teams competing in the EU HCS Pro Series this week. The scrim details made available by Halo Data Hive also revealed that such a shift had occurred.
The highlight of last week’s opening tournament for split two of the Pro Series was Respectful’s journey. He and his new team, Online Warriors, made news after being discharged from NAVI after the Kansas City Major by seeking retribution on NAVI and defeating Acend’s original roster, a previously undefeated regional powerhouse. While Online Warrior’s run was over in the grand finals against Quadrant, Respectful had shown that he was still a valuable asset in Europe.
Acend’s Halo team now includes Respectful, Sica, Lqgend, and Snipedrone, due to this roster update.
Scrims have indeed proven to be a promising upgrade to Acend’s revamped lineup, defeating Quadrant and NAVI with ease. Last week’s scrim performances have blossomed into an opportunity to compete at a much higher level than previously, if Respectful’s time at the top of Halo can be transformed into domination equal to Acend’s original tournament streak in Europe. Despite the player move, they will be hoping to put in a strong performance against last week’s champions Quadrant and reassert themselves as Europe’s best.
In the HCS Europe Pro Series, Respectful’s new team jolted EU powerhouse Acend and exacted revenge on NAVI’s Halo roster.
Respectful has had an adventurous week. He and his new team, Online Warriors, squared off against NAVI in the winners’ bracket in round two of the HCS Pro Series competition after being removed from Natus Vincere’s Halo Infinite lineup following the team’s dismal performance in Kansas City.
They not only won the series against NAVI 2-1 with strong target mode wins, but they also defeated Acend in a 2-1 match to inflict on them their first-ever setback in a European event.
For the first time, the Acend roster will not be included in the winners’ bracket finals. Respectful and his team members, Phlux, and SoSnakey—will be faced against Quadrant instead.
Respectful had a point to prove, as seen by the stats from the NAVI vs. Online Warriors series. Respectful finished the set with a tremendous 1.6 K/D and yet the most kills in the lobby with 72. His teammates hovered around an average 1.0 K/D ratio. Regardless of the fact that blows were traded in the slaying department, numbers alone do not adequately reflect how thoroughly the Online Warriors won.
NAVI managed a 50-49 Slayer win on Aquarius to preserve their best-of-three series intact, but Online Warriors appeared in charge in the King of the Hill and Oddball games, when objective efficiency and team cooperation were key.
The loss of NAVI would have been an incredible plot on its own, but the Online Warriors’ following clash against Acend was even more significant, given that Acend had never lost on home ground before. Acend had a perfect record in European events going into the match, with only a few blemishes due to less-than-stellar performances versus North American teams.
Whether it was the enthusiasm gained from their retaliation on NAVI or Acend’s faults, the Online Warriors put a stop to the run. Acend swept Online Warriors 250-45 in game one of Live Fire Strongholds. Many thought the series was already over, but a nail-biting Slayer on Catalyst game two came down to the wire before the Online Warriors snuck away with a 50-48 victory. Respectful was his team’s best performer once again, scoring 16 points to help his squad cross the finish line and retain their winner’s bracket chances afloat.
Even the Slayer had no idea how close the game three margins would be. In Oddball on Recharge, both sides took a round off each other, and the final round would be decided by time, with just a few points differentiating them.
