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Find out how OG used next-level trolling tactics to win TI9
To win The International, you need to use everything you can to your advantage and for 2019 OG came up with some interesting ways to use Battle Pass cosmetics.
When it comes to The International, you need some kind of edge to even come close to winning. That could be having the best analytical team in the world behind you, to figure out how to outdraft opponents. It could be that you have some crazy, never before seen strategies, or have found a way to consistently deflate the meta strategies heading into the competition. Or, if you're OG, you could have come up with a seemingly crazy strategy to get inside your opponents' heads while in-game and sat metres apart.
Now, we aren’t suggesting that these mind games are the sole reason OG became the only team in The International history to win back-to-back titles. They of course played some incredible Dota and did have a never-before-seen strategy in the shape of a carry Io that was certainly a big factor in their win, but there's definitely the chance that OG's constant use of voice lines, sprays, tips and flags, as well as even their Steam profile pictures, certainly did give them a slight psychological advantage.
If your opponent is busy thinking about you taunting them, then they aren't thinking about their next move, or how they can win the game. It's potentially a tiny advantage, but one that can make a difference in the close games and have a lasting impact over an entire series.
Watch OG's journey to winning their first TI in the video below:
1 h 21 min
Against the Odds
This is the story of Team OG’s incredible journey from underdogs to contenders for gaming’s biggest prize.
With the continued expansion of Battle Pass rewards, there were more options at TI9 for OG to try and troll their opponents than ever. Team sprays can throw their logo onto the ground, flags with their Steam profile picture on can be planted across the map and there are even more voice lines than ever, some of which carry certain connotations or meanings. And of course there is the iconic "Ceeeeeeeeeeeb" voice line from Owen 'ODPixel' Davies, which OG can spam whenever the man himself does something impressive.
We reckon the thing that would have perhaps tilted their opponents the most was their use of the OG team spray whenever they managed to gain some ground on the map. Take a Tier 1 Tower? Put down an OG spray in its place. Dive under Tier 3 Towers at the 18 minute mark? Put down a spray. Dive into the fountain to secure a win? Put down a spray.
Being able to put down their mark on the opponent's side of the map, albeit temporarily, signalled that they felt they had control of that area and was a warning to opponents that they need to stay away, otherwise they could find themselves surrounded by OG players.
One of the most frustrating things in Dota is knowing that your opponents have such a lead that you can't venture into certain parts of the map without serious back-up, because you're doomed if they spot you. When the opponent is telling you that information for free by planting down their mark in areas of the map that should be safe for you, that makes it even worse and no doubt got in some teams' heads at TI.
In a similar vein, OG would plant flags that contain their Steam profile pictures on the map, as well. For some games, the team set their pictures as Disney's Goofy, but just before the EG match they switched to the N0tail death stare from TI8, clearly trying to get inside the head of Tal 'Fly' Aizik, who was on the receiving end of the stare last year. While the Goofy flags were in response to an interview from Newbee, who said OG had a goofy style of play, the team embraced it and made a point of showing Newbee just how strong goofy Dota can be.
OG would plant these flags at many different times. Sometimes it would be after winning a close 1v1 fight in the lane, others if an opponent just managed to slip away alive with a sliver of health, or if they managed to snatch a rune away from the other team. Their use was never consistent, but it was always during a moment where something big happened and even if OG weren't favoured by a fight, planting a Goofy flag showed the other team they were laughing about it and having fun.
Then there was, of course, the classic tips, where players can gift battle points to any other player on the map. OG have become masters of this art, which has been around for quite a while now. Mass tips come in if the opponents' mid laner dies, or if they mess up in any way. And if an OG player pulls off something impressive, all four other players will tip them. Most teams probably don't get too bothered by these nowadays, but every weapon in OG's trolling arsenal is important.
The key thing to all of this is that, ultimately, this was just OG having some fun in game and enjoying their TI run. As the players said throughout the event, they were having a bit of a laugh, especially with the Goofy pictures, and trying to make TI – a tournament that everyone takes incredibly seriously – a bit lighter and more entertaining for fans to watch.
There's no doubt, though, that at certain times they were trying to get inside the heads of their foes. And sometimes it worked. Surely Evil Geniuses were impacted by the trolling at least a little, especially when they saw OG changed their pictures to N0tail's stare, while PSG.LGD looked unflappable until they came up against OG.
Now that OG have taken the Aegis again with a little help from this strategy, it wouldn't be a surprise to see this kind of thing become even more commonplace in the future. We do think that when teams are intentionally doing it to cause mind games it won't have the same effect, though.
It worked for OG, because they were genuinely having fun, enjoying playing Dota and making the most of their 'goofy' playing style. For them, it was just an extra level of banter, which probably made it even more effective, and without that we have to think that it would fall flat for any other team.
