MO didnât think much of it, nor did the other members of Steel Helmets.
After all, it was Tylooâthey were one of the few domestic teams capable of earning sticker spots.
The gap between Tyloo and professional teams like Newhappy was still substantial.
If Tyloo couldnât even beat Steel Helmets and failed to even deliver a "valiant defeat," then tomorrow would definitely be a major upset!
After the interview, the members of Steel Helmets didnât dwell on it, instead focusing on how to approach their next match.
Even though they felt their chances of winning were slim, they still wanted to take a few points off Tyloo if possible.
In Stream 6657 on Mouyu (Fish Live)
The streamer, âWan Ji Qi,â was speaking energetically in his unique and charming voice.
âOf course, Steel Helmets!â
âSteel Helmets has the coach with the strongest voice in the entire pro scene, former Tyloo core members MO, DD, and Su Di, and the now top genius of CNCS, Biaodi (Cousin). How could they lose, huh?â
Wan Ji Qi tried to keep a straight face but burst out laughing mid-sentence.
ãâSaying Steel Helmets can winâWan Shen, youâre such a comedian.âã
ãâIsnât this the gathering place for comedy routines?âã
ãâActually, I feel like thereâs a chance.âã
ãâIâm more curious about where Ma Xixiâs cousin will go after this RMR. His talent is genuinely ridiculous.âã
The chat was buzzing with discussion, and when Wan Ji Qi noticed his streamâs volume had dropped, he quickly switched screens.
As he returned, the BP (ban-pick) phase had just begun.
âTyloo took the initiative to pick maps and instantly removed Nuke. They never play this map.â Wan Ji Qi sighed nostalgically.
Back in the 1.6 era, Nuke was a point of pride for CNCS.
But now, even the strongest domestic teams no longer invested much effort into it.
Steel Helmets, after some deliberation, removed Vertigoâa map theyâd never practiced.
It was Tylooâs first pick next.
â?â Jiang Yang was surprised. âTheyâre locking in Mirage?â
He found it odd. Didnât Tyloo know that Steel Helmets recently had a high win rate on Mirage?
Sensing Jiang Yangâs confusion, DD explained, âMakes sense. Mirage is also one of Tylooâs strong maps. They donât need to change their pick just for us.â
Though harsh, the reality was that Steel Helmets didnât pose enough of a threat to Tyloo.
Still, for Jiang Yang, this was good news.
MO asked in voice chat, âWhat map do you want for the second pick?â
Jiang Yang quickly suggested, âHow about Dust2? Itâs simple and not too difficult for us to handle.â
Dust2 was a map that favored snipers, giving Jiang Yang a chance to shine. Maps like Inferno were too restrictive, making it hard for him to play effectively.
After each team vetoed one more map, Ancient was left as the third.
With the BP phase concluded, Wan Ji Qi excused himself for a quick bathroom break.
When Wan Ji Qi returned, the score was already 0:1.
âWhat the heck? Howâs the pistol round already over?â he exclaimed.
ãâClassic 6657 stream moment!âã
ãâNo pistol round againânever forget!âã
ãâLook at what youâve been guarding, 6657!âã
Wan Ji Qi, no longer a young streamer, didnât bother with âIâm so wrongedâ theatrics. With his skin thickened by years of streaming, the banter didnât faze him. He casually started his commentary:
âAlright, welcome to this Asian RMR match! Iâm your commentator, Wan Ji Qi!â
âJust as I finished my introduction, Tyloo swept the eco round without losing a single player, bringing the score to 0:2.â
âThe next round will be the rifle round, and weâll see if Steel Helmets has any counter-strategies.â
The first two rounds went to Tyloo with ease, putting some pressure on Steel Helmets.
MO began strategizing: âFor this round, letâs have Xiaoyang and DD anchor A-site. At the start, letâs push aggressively at B and see how it goes.â
Without an AWP and with Jiang Yangâs positioning suboptimal, MO didnât plan to build the round around him.
Jiang Yang was fine with it but added, âI wonât take mid-control, then. Iâll stay on the CT-side of the A-site with DD.â
If they werenât contesting mid, they might as well commit fully elsewhere.
After finalizing their plan, each player moved to their respective positions.
DD opened with a molly at A1 to counter a rush, while Jiang Yang casually tossed a flash into mid for pressure.
However, before their utility even landed, flashes and smokes came flying from T-spawn.
âA-site execute!â Jiang Yang warned. âDD, fall back to CT. Tylooâs just throwing this round away!â
DD initially planned to delay with a defensive smoke but listened to Jiang Yang and retreated.
Jiang Yangâs thought process was clear, and he quickly advised, âDonât rush to use utility. Our captain has the defuse kit, so we donât need to hurry.â
âWait for the CT and connector smokes to fade, then use our utility to clear key positions. After that, smoke A1 and A2 to cut them off.â
Jiang Yangâs instructions made the strategy straightforward for his teammates.
Although executing A-site on Mirage was relatively simple, failing to contest CT or connector left the attackers highly vulnerable, especially without extensive utility trades earlier in the round.
Jiang Yang realized this and concluded that Tyloo was handing them the round.
From the casterâs omniscient perspective, Wan Ji Qi was impressed by Steel Helmetsâ calm response.
âEven though Tyloo successfully executed the bombsite take, they used all their utility in the process.â
âBut Steel Helmets still has theirs. Can Tyloo withstand the counterplay?â
âMolotov on site! HE grenade at short! The two players hiding on-site were burned and blasted out!â
âA2 balcony is smoked off. The player at A1 is forced into a duel but is instantly headshotted by Young from CT!â
âNow itâs just Danking and one other player left at A2 balcony. The second player tries to sneak through the smoke but is caught by Young!â
âDanking, still hiding in the smoke, gives it a shot, but the young gun doesnât give him any chanceâsprays him down through the smoke!â
âSteel Helmets just pulled off an ACE in the rifle round!â Wan Ji Qi exclaimed. âMOâs calling is spot-on todayâtheir discipline is top-notch!â
In Steel Helmetsâ voice chat, everyone was ecstatic.
âXiaoyang, youâre insane!â
âThis strat was perfect. Way better than Liu Keâs plans!â
âExactly! How about we let you be the IGL-sniper from now on and sideline Liu Ke?â
Hearing this, MOâs face darkened. âYou guys just love roasting me, donât you?â
The team burst into laughter, dismissing the banter as nothing serious.
Even MO didnât care much about command authorityâon Steel Helmets, most decisions came down to whoever shouted loudest.
That said, Jiang Yangâs call was excellent, catching an opportunity and capitalizing on it. Winning was all that mattered.
Jiang Yang glanced at the scoreboard, now 1:2.
Although still behind, he had a strange feeling:
This Tyloo team⦠seemed prone to messing up.
Were they treating this like a ranked match?