After 8 weeks of qualifiers we now have our finalists of the QLASH SC2 Community Series who will compete in the Ro8 final bracket. They each won a weekly event and given the high level of the competition so far we can definitely say their spot is well deserved.

Format, date and starting time

The final bracket was drawn once we got the 8th weekly winner in a completely random manner and there was no seeding mechanics. You can have a look at the final bracket here. 

The whole Ro8 bracket will be played on the 17th of April starting at 18:00 CEST. More importantly, ALL the games will be casted live on our dedicated StarCraft2 Twitch Channel so you won’t miss any of the action. The whole bracket will be co-casted by Kevin ‘RotterdaM’ van der Kooi and Yoan ‘ToD’ Merlo so we hope you enjoy the show.

All matches will be played in a Bo5 format and the bracket will be a single elimination one. As already announced previously, the grand prize is a paid trip and accommodation to a WCS event this year which will be coordinated directly with the champion. Make sure to follow our dedicated SC2 Twitter channel and join our SC2 Discord server for regular updates. 

The contenders

One of the main objectives of the whole tournament was to give exposure to players that are not as prominent on the StarCraft2 scene as the top pros and to raise awareness about them. As such, we would like to briefly introduce you the Ro8 players below:

Nickname: InZaNe
Full name: André Becker
Age: 21
Nationality: German
Preferred race: Terran
Current MMR: 6400
How long have you been playing SC?: I've started playing 8 years ago
Favourite SC2 player?: Kas
What do you like to do when you are not playing SC2?: Besides SC2 I also enjoy playing Paradox games and fps. Other than that I'm currently in my 4th semester studying economics.
FunFact about yourself?: I've been to Korea with my old teammates from ECV.

Nickname: HateMe
Full name: Moritz Pölzl
Age: 21
Nationality: Austria
Preferred race: Zerg
Current MMR: 6400
How long have you been playing SC?: I started a few months after release but I didn't play play any 1 on 1 until HotS was released. Before that i mainly played team games with my brother.
Favourite SC2 player?: SoO
What do you like to do when you are not playing SC2?: For the most part just spending time with my friends.
FunFact about yourself?: I had no idea that eSports existed until I met another player from Austria on the ladder and he randomly asked me where I’m from. After that he asked me why I’m never participating in tournaments and he basically introduced me to the scene.

Nickname: Gerald
Full name: Mateusz Budziak
Age: 20
Nationality: Polish
Preferred race: Protoss
Current MMR: 6501
How long have you been playing SC?: For 7 years
Favourite SC2 player?: Zest
What do you like to do when you are not playing SC2?: I like to do sports like tennis or running
FunFact about yourself?: At the beginning of the Wings of Liberty i was playing Terran. I was playing proxy cloak banshee every game, but after I saw dark templar and switched to Protoss xD

Nickname: goblin
Full name: Leon Vrhovec
Age: 17
Nationality: Croatian
Preferred race: Protoss
Current MMR: 6400-6700
How long have you been playing SC?: Been playing SC2 since when it came out basically, although I was utter garbage until like 2017
Favourite SC2 player?: If we're saying who I respect/like the most as a personality I'd go with Snute. favourite player to watch no idea honestly, I like uThermal a lot and I'd watch pretty much any high level Protoss.
What do you like to do when you are not playing SC2?: Wasting time refreshing Youtube/Twitch/Twitter and watching TV shows/movies, looking for other random games to play so I have an excuse not to play StarCraft because I'm a lazy.
FunFact about yourself?: I love marvel

Nickname: Bee
Name: Pavel Zhigarev
Age: 23
Nationality: Russian
Preferred race: Zerg
Current MMR: 6000-6400
How long have you been playing SC?: 2 years Wings of Liberty and 2 Legacy of the Void
Favourite SC2 player?: Idra
What do you like to do when you are not playing SC2?: I love dancing (hip-hop), electric and acoustic guitars, acting and science
FunFact about yourself?: I still haven't flown a plane. I would like to fix it by visiting any pro cup

Nickname: SKillous
Full name: Nikita Gurevich
Age: 17 or 18 on 17th of April (Birthday boy)
Nationality: Russian
Preferred race: Protoss
Current MMR: 6400
How long have you been playing SC?: About 6 years with breaks 
Favourite SC2 player?: Adonminus
What do you like to do when you are not playing SC2?: Read books 
FunFact about yourself?: I hate fish

Nickname: Lillekanin
Full name: Steffen Hovmand
Age: 25
Nationality: Danish
Preferred race: Terran
Current MMR: 6200
How long have you been playing SC?: Since WOL Beta
Favourite SC2 player?: I dontt really have one. So i see myself as my favorite player :)
What do you like to do when you are not playing SC2?: I spend a lot of time in the gym, spending time with friends, family and partying. Besides that I also do some research within radiography
FunFact about yourself?: Finished with the highest grades as a radiographer the year i finished (A-) 

Unfortunately, the 8th finalist Gungfubanda did not provide the above details but we're sure you are going to know more and more about him as he is becoming one of the names we often see at the big tournaments out there.

The battle is shaping to be fierce and all of the players can certainly make it to the very end. Join us on the 17th at 18:00 CEST for some intense match-ups and fun moments!