Remembering Hearthstone: Praise Amaznaros

Previously on "Remembering Hearthstone":

In the middle of July, one of Hearthstone’s original rivalries saw its second chapter written. In Shenzhen, China, during the second and last IEM event for Hearthstone, Dima “Rdu” Radu and Jason “Amaz” Chan meet for the second time.

It’s exactly one month after their previous encounter, one that came with the first big controversy of the game. The DreamHack Summer finals, which Rdu took 3-0 on the back of his Freeze Mage, are still fresh in the minds of the community and the young Romanian is struggling to clear his image. Amaz is also coming on the back of a major championship win, having taken the Numericable M-House Cup in France. For both players, IEM Shenzhen is a chance to add a second offline trophy to their achievement shelves.

To nobody’s surprise, Rdu and Amaz finish first in their groups, dominating local Asian up-and-comers. Between the two of them, they lose exactly one game and are placed at the same side of the bracket. By the time the semi-finals come, they are also the only two known names left in the tournament as Cong “StrifeCro” Shu and Harry “Massan” Cheong get eliminated. They are also to play each other, and only one is going to the finals.

It’s a metagame where Handlock stands as one of the strongest decks and the first three games pass under the sign of massive Giants getting slapped on the board. Piloting the Warlock with mastery and precision, Rdu takes a 2-1 lead and is looking forward to close the series 3-1, knowing the Handlock is favored against Amaz’s only remaining deck, his signature Priest.

Whether it was by believing in a class nobody else does, or by sheer luck of the draw, Amaz goes on to win that fateful game four, drawing a timely [card]Sylvanas Windrunner[/card] and [card]Shadowflame[/card]’ing it away with the card he stole from Rdu’s own deck to convince the enemy Ragnaros that fighting for Anduin is the correct life decision. And Ragnaros obliges.

Now, Amaz is already somewhat known for bending Firelord’s will to his own. His stream highlights are rich on moments where the accuracy of the demon is uncanny. But nothing could match the final games of IEM Shenzhen.

Ragnaros’ allegiance to Amaz proves more loyal than Rdu ever expected. In the fifth and final game, Amaz is staring in the eyes of death, being down to 8 health against a very angry [card]Grommash Hellscream[/card]. A 50/50 Ragnaros shot is his only way out and the Firelord once again answers the prayers of the Liquid marquee.

With Grommash dead, Rdu has no real way of winning the series. Amaz makes the finals of the biggest event of the month and eventually wins it 3-0 against Azeri on the back of his Druid. Two of the three games in these series are also decided by Ragnaros obeying Amaz’s orders to the letter, hitting the worst or the best possible targets depending on which side of the board he is.