Into the Invitational: J.Storm is looking to solidify their claim as TI contenders

This is part of “Into the Invitational“, a series about the teams competing at the ONE Esports Dota 2 World Pro Invitational. In this series, we’ll look at each team’s DPC season, their TI9 campaign, and any subsequent roster changes to see how they match up before they clash on December 20-22 at the Singapore Indoor Stadium.

2018-2019 Season

J.Storm had a difficult 18/19 DPC season, with a roster made up of a mix of international players with veteran experience and young up and coming talent. The team struggled to find their groove and failed to gain much momentum through the season.

The North American squad did manage to qualify for the first three DPC Majors of the season, but in all three, ended up being eliminated early.

The team did make an impressive run at the North American regional qualifiers for The International 2019, but were stopped by Forward Gaming in the grand finals.

Roster

After TI9, J.Storm made adjustments to their roster. Sivatheeban “1437” Sivanathapillai and Roman “Resolut1on” Fominok both decided to leave the team, and were replaced by Joel “MoOz” Ozambela and Braxton “Brax” Paulson.

J.Storm is now led by Clinton “Fear” Loomis, who was part of Evil Geniuses’ TI5 championship team. Rounding out the team is Dota veteran David “Moo” Hull, and Leon “Nine” Kirilin, previously from CIS squad, Team Spirit.

J.Storm’s roster for the ONE Esports Dota 2 Invitational:

(1) David “Moo” Hull
(2) Leon “Nine” Kirilin
(3) Braxton “Brax” Paulson
(4) Joel Mori “MoOz” Ozambela
(5) Clinton “Fear” Loomis

J.Storm’s newly revamped roster immediately exceeded expectations at the North American Chengdu Major qualifiers, finishing the group stage with a 4-2 record, and beating Quincy Crew (now Chaos Esports Club) in the playoffs to qualify for the first Major of the 19/20 season.

At the Chengdu Major, they finished second in Group D, outperforming Beastcoast and Gambit Esports to secure an upper bracket spot in the Main Event.

In the Upper Bracket, they upset Team Liquid 2-1, before falling to eventual champions, TNC Predator.

In their Lower Bracket match, they were eliminated by Invictus Gaming, finishing in 5th/6th place.

The ONE Esports Dota 2 World Pro Invitational will be another chance for J.Storm to prove themselves against high caliber teams and show that their top six finish at the Major was not just a fluke.