How did DRX's smoke timing on Ascent win that last round?

[LukeG]

I just watched the VCT Masters grand finals and I'm still trying to figure out how DRX's controller player pulled off that last round. Their smoke placement on Ascent seemed to cut our rotations in half every single time, and I feel like I'm missing the specific timing they used.

[Charles57]

That last round stuck with me too. It looked like DRX kept those smokes on Ascent timing the way you lock a door before a rush, and our rotates hit a wall every time. They’d drop a smoke near jungle or stairs and then another toward mid, and suddenly the lanes are dark and your options shrink.

[Ella_W]

I tried to map it in a game I played after, wrote down in a notebook when the first smoke lands and when they follow with the second. The second smoke seemed to arrive about a half beat late compared to what we’d called, which bought them an extra couple seconds to swing.

[Kenneth_B]

Do you think the real issue is the communication and call cadence rather than the smoke timing itself?

[AuroraWG]

I got caught up watching the crowd and second-guessing, then remembered I was just guessing at timing anyway, which made me miss the small rhythm in the moment.