Washington set to skip EPIC.LAN 46
For the first time since EPIC.LAN 42, the core of Washington, will not be attending the BYOC LAN, thus missing out on the opportunity to seize valuable VRS points.
Washington has been the champion of EPIC.LAN multiple times, granted under different names. The core of Tom “arTisT” Clarke, Matas “Extinct” Strumila and Mason “Vacancy” Haines have won EPIC.LAN a total of three times – in a row. If you switch out Vacancy for Callum “Girafffe” Jones, there are four additional victories.
Despite departing the strongest core in the UK in April this year, Girafffe has since rejoined them under the banner of Washington, with Jakub “nestee” Lempart as the fifth to round out the roster.
In total, between the four of them, they have won EPIC in either its LAN or WAN variant a combined 24 times. Undeniably, they have been the most dominant players the UK scene has ever seen in recent history. Despite this success, the roster has surprisingly decided not to attend the Kettering event, despite its recent growth.
arTisT and co will not be returning to Kettering to reclaim the EPIC.LAN trophy.
The lack of Washington comes as a surprise, not just because these players are almost part of the furniture because of how often you see them there. But also because with fewer EU teams in attendance, it offers an opportunity to reclaim the crown they lost at EPIC.LAN 45.
Despite a deep placement at EPIC.LAN 45, the core, then under the banner of NXT, weren’t able to pull off the four-on-the-bounce win they were looking for. The barrage of EU teams coming from across the Channel and beyond made it tough for any UK team to contend for the title. NXT came the closest, placing fourth after losing to Alliance in both the upper and lower bracket.
It’s unclear why Washington won’t be attending EPIC.LAN 46, but in a tale as old as time for the UK Scene, lack of organisational support certainly won’t help. This is further exacerbated by the two Irish players and nestee having to travel from abroad and rent PCs to attend.
As mentioned, Washington was under the Benelux organisation NXT for two events, EPIC.LAN 45 and UKIC Season 6 Division 1 Finals. Despite going far in the first and winning the latter, it wasn’t enough to secure a contract extension. Since Washington departed the organisation, they played for Max in the UKIC Season 7 Masters Finals, but swiftly departed after the event ended.
Another factor that would hinder Washington’s attendance is their schedule. Their VRS ranking means they are securing invites to Tier-2, such as the NODWIN Clutch Series 2, ESL Challenger League Season 50 Europe Cup 4 and various CCT Season 3 Europe Series.
As much as Washington is grinding in online events, they aren’t winning much. Because of this, their standings in the European VRS rankings are slipping, currently sitting 99th. A good run at EPIC.LAN 46 could have put them back into the threshold of being invited to Tier-2 events. However, as it stands, Washington’s invites will start to dry up next month.
You can read more about the European teams that will be attending EPIC.LAN 46 below.
Which international teams are coming to EPIC.LAN 46?
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