With well-executed drafts, Buff Enjoyers return to winning ways against Abrahams and secure the victory during the Night Shift

The Deadlock community gathered once again for its most popular weekly event, Night Shift. After suffering setbacks in both the R1 Tourney 2 and Night Shift 45, Buff Enjoyers managed to turn the tide this time, first defeating Leviathan in the Challenger match before exacting revenge on Abrahams in the final.

A standout feature of this Night Shift was the mastery of the drafts fielded by Buff Enjoyers, all of which were highly inspired. This was evident right from the opening match against Leviathan, where they utilized a highly aggressive draft backed by a flawlessly executed early game, leaving Leviathan’s far more balanced composition no chance to mount a comeback.

The Challenger match was defined by Lystic’s absolute dominance on Shiv, he delivered quite simply the best RNG-rated performance of his career, achieving a score of 2.98.

Next came yet another final between Buff Enjoyers and Abrahams. This showdown was marked by bold hero choices from both sides, exemplified by the first game of the final, where Buff Enjoyers allowed Abrahams to take Pocket while prioritizing Mirage and Shiv for themselves.

empty dreams had two opportunities to play Pocket, but neither proved successful, Buff Enjoyers had clearly done their homework, constantly neutralizing the threat posed by Pocket, aided significantly by a multitude of completely botched ultimate.

Another interesting and recurring theme across the drafts was the way Leviathan and Abrahams consistently targeted obikym by repeatedly banning Apollo, forcing him to play characters he had not mastered, such as Mina and Drifter.

The first two games of the final followed a similar pattern. First Buff Enjoyers, then Abrahams, secured victories through perfectly executed snowball strategies, never giving their opponents a chance to get back into the match.

The third game, however, was much more hard-fought. Despite holding a lead for a large portion of the match, Abrahams never managed to land the decisive blow. Buff Enjoyers stayed within striking distance until the turning point of the game, when they secured the mid boss after more than 30 minutes of play. This control allowed them to seize the initiative for good before closing out the match about ten minutes later.

With this victory, Buff Enjoyers claimed their 17th Night Shift title. Meanwhile, Zerggy took home his eighth RNG MVP trophy, and Cosmetical secured his fourth RNG EVP title.