The End of an Era – TNC Releases their Dota 2 Roster

With only 2 SEA teams making it to The International this year, the other rosters in the region have already begun to shuffle. In an abrupt announcement on their Twitter, TNC Predator have declared the free agency of their entire lineup.

The TNC Predator squad consists of the following members:

With this announcement, these players will no longer be part of the TNC Predator organization.

While no official reason has been stated, the decision comes after TNC failed to qualify for TI10. We've already seen other teams drop their entire rosters for the same reason. This update comes just a few months after their initial announcement of an extended hiatus.

This year has already been a very different and difficult one for the Dota 2 scene. On top of the raging pandemic and the issues that come along with it, this iteration of the DPC system has left much to be desired.

In TNC's case, they had a rather shaky start in Season 1, failing to qualify for the Singapore Major. Subsequently, they would release Damien "kpii" Chok and Kim "Febby" Yong-min shortly before Season 2. With the addition of Boomy and Bok, TNC managed to finish 2nd in the DPC Regional League. This secured them a Group Stage seed in the WePlay AniMajor.

TNC fought fiercely, and made it through to the Playoffs Stage. There, they defeated the Chinese favorites Team Aster in emphatic fashion. Unfortunately, TNC would then fall to EG 2-1, and finish in 7th/8th Place.

Without enough DPC Points for a Direct Invite, TNC were slated to face off in the bloodbath that would be the SEA TI10 Qualifiers. As the dust settled, they would fall in a reverse sweep to Fnatic 3-2 after an epic Grand Finals. This would be the first time the TNC organization would be missing TI since 2015.

Since their iconic upset against OG in TI6, the TNC name has been at the forefront of SEA Dota. While the squad has gone through many iterations, the core trio of Gabbi, Armel and Tims have kept TNC at the top. It's not a reach to suggest that their many achievements have set the tone for SEA Dota's rising relevance in the past years.

While this change will no doubt leave many fans heartbroken, there may just be a silver lining.

Many SEA fans were heartbroken in just the same way when Daryl "iceiceice" Koh left the region for EG. And yet, SEA Dota has not stopped evolving and growing stronger. While it remains to be seen where these talented players will end up, one thing is for sure. More so than an ending, this is perhaps an even bigger beginning.

Stay tuned to esports.gg for the latest Dota 2 news and updates.