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Jano conquers DM-Deck in a rocket storm, winning 30:15

From a negative start through the only lead change to a rocket-signed thirtieth point.

DM-Deck welcomed the trio without a warm-up, but the first mark on the scoreboard looked more like comedy than a declaration of war. At 11 seconds, Jano eliminated himself with the Bio Rifle and fell to minus one. Twenty seconds later he repaired the damage: a Rocket Launcher hit on Necrolite from 14.8 metres delivered the official first blood, although it merely restored Jano to zero. Stvanec exploited the early uncertainty best. A Shock Combo, a Shock Rifle kill and an Enforcer finish carried him to a 3:1 lead by 106 seconds. The match had already displayed its full vocabulary: rockets, slime, nuclear surprises and a scoreboard unwilling to behave politely.

Stvanec sets the pace, Necrolite rings a double alarm

Stvanec was the most convincing player in the opening two minutes. After catching Necrolite with a Shock Combo at 51 seconds, he added Jano with the Shock Rifle and later the Enforcer, moving to 3:1. Jano answered with rockets and added a Flak Cannon kill at 126 seconds, while Necrolite refused to remain target practice. After an unfortunate visit to the slime, he produced the Sniper Rifle and then the Redeemer.

The first major blast arrived at 153 seconds: Necrolite killed Jano and Stvanec in the same instant with the Redeemer for a Double Kill. The table tightened to Stvanec 3, Jano 2, Necrolite 2. Jano replied at 166 seconds by rocketing Necrolite and, fifteen seconds later, removed Stvanec to lead 4:3. That was the match’s only true change of leader. Stvanec tied it at 4:4 at 202 seconds, but he never regained first place.

Silence after four, then Jano's first major streak

The equaliser was followed by the longest quiet spell of the match: 67 seconds without a kill, from 202 to 269. Jano broke the silence with a Redeemer strike on Stvanec and moved to 5:4. Necrolite responded with three kills between 284 and 305 seconds, including two point-blank Flak Cannon finishes, but Jano ended the surge only three seconds later.

That kill at 308 seconds opened the longest spree of the night. Jano successively removed Necrolite, Necrolite again, Stvanec and finally Necrolite once more at 411 seconds. Four unanswered kills lifted him to nine points. Necrolite stopped the streak with the Link Gun at 422 seconds. By then Jano had seized control of the middle phase, and his Rocket Launcher was becoming less a favourite weapon than local building control: anyone entering the corridor received an immediate inspection notice.

The rivalry boils as Redeemers fly both ways

From 450 seconds onward, Jano expanded the gap methodically. Rockets against Necrolite landed from 13.1, 53.7, 7.7 and 8.2 metres; the 53.7-metre hit was sniper work performed with a weapon nobody would call a sniper rifle. Necrolite answered immediately with the Stinger at 497 seconds, but Jano returned a rocket one second later. The winner accumulated 17 revenge kills, compared with 11 for Necrolite and eight for Stvanec.

The middle of the match remained chaotic. At 595 seconds Jano rocketed Stvanec, and Stvanec killed him with the Bio Rifle in the same second. Necrolite closed in with two rocket kills at 710 and 716 seconds, then lost a point to his own Flak Cannon; one second later Jano blew himself up with his own rocket. At 770 seconds Stvanec made his statement, catching both opponents with the Redeemer for a Double Kill. Jano still held the lead, helped by an average life of 54 seconds versus 38 for Necrolite and 41 for Stvanec.

Point twenty opens the finish, rockets close it

After 842 seconds, Jano removed Stvanec three times in succession and climbed to 19 points. Necrolite then produced a curious Redeemer sequence at 891 seconds: he killed Stvanec and himself at the same moment, a result resembling accountancy after an explosion. At 958 seconds he repaired the damage with the Stinger, eliminating Jano and Stvanec together for his second Double Kill.

Jano reached twenty with a Redeemer at 988 seconds, and the final exchange began. Stvanec recorded the longest kill of the match, landing a Shock Combo on Jano from 54.9 metres at 1015 seconds. Jano replied with points 22 and 23 and, after a simultaneous trade with Stvanec at 1099 seconds, point 24. From 1121 seconds onward he controlled the finish: a Redeemer, two rockets, another rocket on Stvanec and, after Necrolite’s unexplained death, the final two accurate shots. At 1255 seconds he hit Stvanec with the Rocket Launcher from 7.5 metres and closed the score at 30:15:12.

Match moments

• Jano claimed first blood at 31 seconds with a rocket on Necrolite, although it only erased his earlier negative point.
• Stvanec led 3:1, but Jano moved ahead 4:3 at 181 seconds for the match’s only lead change.
• Necrolite scored a Redeemer Double Kill against both opponents at 153 seconds.
• Jano built a four-kill spree from 308 to 411 seconds before Necrolite ended it.
• Stvanec delivered the longest kill with a 54.9-metre Shock Combo.
• Jano scored 23 of his 32 kills with the Rocket Launcher and sealed 30:15:12 with one last rocket.

After 20 minutes and 55 seconds, the clearest signature left on DM-Deck belonged to the Rocket Launcher. Jano won 30:15:12, collected 32 kills, survived longest on average and fought from the greatest average distance at 18.2 metres. Necrolite supplied two Double Kills, a broad arsenal and seven suicides that repeatedly damaged his comeback. Stvanec opened with the lead and took the technically finest long-range hit. The pace was uneven: minutes three, six, twelve, sixteen and nineteen each produced five kills. When the action accelerated, Deck thundered; when it stopped, everyone was probably looking for the next rocket.