Denis Yoon, aka Escha, surprised many to make it to the final day of play for Teamfight Tactics Reckoning World Championship. The Oceanic region (OCE) is often considered an underdog region in international esports. Escha proved that OCE can bring it at the highest level of competition.
The TFT Reckoning World Championship took place over four days – 1-4 October 2021. Escha, OCE’s representative at Worlds, faced a gauntlet of the best TFT competitors.
The format for the world championship required Escha to place in the top four in the Qualifiers, and in the top 4 for Groups, to make it to the Finals. The final day of action used a different scoring structure to find the 2021 Reckoning Champion. Check out the TFT Reckoning Championship Tournament Roadmap video above for the format details.
On day 1, Escha made it throught the Qualifiers round displaying composure under pressure. Escha was able to come back after a rocky start in round 2 to finish at the top of the Qualifiers standings.
On day 2, Escha stumbled out of the blocks, finishing in last place for the 1st round. A consistent performance, finishing in 2nd and 3rd positions for the following four rounds, landed Escha in 3rd place – earning his spot in the Finals.
The Finals saw eight players from six regions competing for the top prize, $44,500 (USD) and the TFT Reckoning World Championship title. For the final day of play, competitors had to earn a total of 18 points over the played rounds. After a player earned 18 points they would need to be the first competitor to secure 1st place in a following round to win the Championship.
In the 1st round, Escha took 3rd place using a Hellion composition, earning him 6 points. The 2nd round saw Escha take 1st place, bringing the ultimate squid game to his opponents – an expertly itemised three-star Velkoz.
After the first two rounds, Escha was tied with QituX. Both competitors were on 16 points, 4 points ahead of the next competitor Sergio “Sealcune Mbappe” Cuitiva (screen name TA SMbappe). The 3rd round saw Escha and QituX pass the 18 point checkpoint. If Escha or QituX were to win round 4 they would take home the TFT Reckoning World Championship title.
In the 3rd round, Escha opened strong with a five round win streak, running a Skirmisher, Sentinel, Knight composition. Nukomaru ended his streak with a highrolled Dawnbringer composition at stage 3-1. Despite the early advantage, Escha could not capitalise, ending in 8th position. QiuX was also unable to secure 1st place finishing in 6th position. Rival Daminov Ruslanovich, aka DeliciousMilkGG, won the 3rd round of action.
Game 4 brought intense play, with players competing to reach the checkpoint score of 18 or above. Escha was performing well, and showed discipline holding off using two Neeko’s Help special items until the right opportunity presented itself. Unfortunately the right scenario did not come to play and Escha was unable to secure 1st place.
After Game 4, five players reached the 18 point checkpoint. DeliciousMilkGG, Qitux, Huanmie, Escha and Kacper “shircane” Piśniak (screen name DVI Skircane) were now all in contention to take the championship title in the 5th round of play.
The 5th round brought tight and technical gameplay from all competitors. All players were between 47 and 21 hit points at stage 5-1. Escha tried to make it through the late stages of the round relying on a Velkoz carry, but he was taken out in 5th position. The round came down to DVI Shircane and Huanmie. Huanmie managed to win the round with an 8 Legionnaire composition.
With the 5th round win, Huanmie earned the TFT Reckoning World Championship. Escha landed in 5th place, earning $15,000 (USD), and proving that the oceanic region is highly competitive on the global stage.
TFT is one of a handful of international esports where the Oceania region has a direct entry slot for the world championship competition, without having to qualify by playing through North America or broader Asia/Pacific regions. With his success at the TFT Reckoning World Championship, Escha joins the chorus of voices calling for Oceania to be provided an additional direct entry slot.
