Day 2
Finals
The grand final of the 2016 Hearthstone World Championships was a European showdown between Artem "DrHippi" Kravets and Pavel "Pavel" Beltukov. DrHippi got out to an early 1-0 lead on the back of his Dragon Warrior against the slower C'Thun Warrior of Pavel. He looked poised to take a 2-0 lead, but a big Flamestrike from Pavel cleared DrHippi's board and swung the momentum enough to tie the series at one apiece. Game 3 was a classic Druid vs. Druid showdown, with both players jockeying for position all game long. DrHippi tried to turn the tides with a Yogg-Saron play, but it came up short and Pavel locked up the 2-1 lead.
Game 4 was another classic matchup between C'Thun Warrior from Pavel and the Malygos Druid of DrHippi. In the late-game oriented matchup, the outcome wasn't clear for quite some time. DrHippi once again tried to make a power play with his Yogg-Saron, but it ended up killing itself before doing much damage. Pavel then used his C'Thun to clean, thus winning the game and the showdown between Old Gods. Not content to go quietly into the night, DrHippi grabbed a win in Game 5 with his Zoo Warlock. He controlled the board all game long and was able to easily defeat the Malygos Rogue from Pavel.
With his back still against the wall, DrHippi pulled out his Druid once again to try and top Pavel's Rogue. But for the third time this series, DrHippi's Druid came up short. Pavel brought out a massive 10/10 Edwin Van Cleef that essentially won him the game and the right to be crowned the 2016 Hearthstone World Champion.
Semifinals
Cheonsu vs. DrHippi
The second semifinal of the day saw Kim "Cheonsu" Cheonsu take on Artem "DrHippi" Kravets for the last spot in the grand finals of the 2016 Hearthstone World Championship. Another series, another 1-1 tie to start things off. While Cheonsu took Game 1 with a big Malygos swing turn, DrHippi put his faith in the Old Gods and took Game 2 with some Yogg-Saron magic. Game 3 was fairly straightforward, with Cheonsu using his Midrange Shaman to defeat DrHippi's Tempo Mage.
DrHippi bounced back in a big way in the final three games of the series. After a strong win with his Zoo deck against Dragon Warrior in Game 4, DrHippi put his faith in The Firelord, which helped him grab a 3-2 lead. His Ragnaros was an absolute sniper, as it hit on both a 50/50 and 1-in-3 shot to fuel a big comeback. He then closed out the series with a Game 6 that saw DrHippi's Tempo Mage prevail against the Dragon Warrior of Cheonsu.
Jasonzhou vs. Pavel
The first semifinal of the day saw Jason "Jasonzhou" Zhou take on Pavel "Pavel" Beltukov for a chance at the grand finals. The first two games were tightly contested, with both players taking a game apiece. Jasonzhou grabbed a Game 1 win with a late-game, top-decked Doomguard for lethal, while Pavel used some early ramp cards to top Jasonzhou's Dragon Warrior in Game 2. Pavel took his Tempo Mage into Games 3 and 4, but he posted two very different results. He couldn't overcome Malygos Druid in Game 3, but parlayed an RNG-filled final play with a Firelance Portal to take down Jasonzhou's Dragon Warrior to tie the series at 2-2.
An early misplay with an unactivated Edwin Van Cleef from Jasonzhou left him at a huge disadvantage in a Game 5 Rogue mirror, essentially gifting Pavel the win. Needing just one more win to claim the series, Pavel used his C'Thun Warrior to take down Jasonzhou with a big late-game, 14/14 C'Thun that locked up the game and his spot in the grand finals.
Day 1
Quarterfinals
HotMEOWTH vs. DrHippi
In the final quarterfinal of the day, America saw its last hope, Edwin "HotMEOWTH" Cook, take on the European powerhouse, Artem "DrHippi" Kravetz. When the deck lists were submitted for the tournament, HotMEOWTH's Warrior deck was the biggest story, as it was an extremely unique variation of the once feared Grim Patron deck. As a result, fans were eager to see the deck in action and HotMEOWTH gladly obliged, opting to use the deck throughout the series.
That became a major misstep, as DrHippi won the series in convincing fashion, sweeping HotMEOWTH's Warrior deck in four straight games. Ragnaros the Firelord closed out Game 1 for DrHippi, but he had to earn the rest of the wins in very close matchups. A terrific play with the Midrange Shaman during Game 3 was the highlight of the series, as DrHippi managed to weave through constant board clears to find a 21 damage Bloodlust combo for the win.
Cydonia vs. Cheonsu
The third quarterfinal matchup was a battle between Julien "Cydonia" Perrault of Canada and Kim "Cheonsu" Cheonsu, representing the last hope of the Asia-Pacific Region. Game 1 would wind up being the only competitive match, as the two Warrior archetypes -- Cydonia's Control vs. Cheonsu's Dragon -- came down to the wire. The decks proved evenly matched as it was never clear who would win until the very end. Despite four straight turns within two damage of lethal, Cheonsu could not find the necessary damage, falling to Cydonia in Game 1. That would be Cydonia's only win, however, as Cheonsu was able to take command from there. After his Zoo Warlock took out Cydonia's Tempo Mage deck in Game 2, Cydonia committed to his Secret Hunter deck, a move that backfired spectacularly as he lost the final three games. Cheonsu will face the winner of the Edwin "HotMEOWTH" Cook and Artem "DrHippi" Kravetz matchup in the semifinals tomorrow.
Amnesiac vs. Pavel
The second quarterfinals series saw William "Amnesiac" Barton take on Pavel "Pavel" Beltukov in a battle between North America vs. Europe. Early on, Amnesiac looked poised to take an easy sweep over the European player. He won a hotly contested Game 1 by putting his faith in The Firelord, relying on a ridiculous 33 percent lethal Ragnaros shot to win the first game before easily taking Games 2 and 3. From there, the tides shifted and Pavel made a roaring comeback, completing the reverse sweep on the back of some incredible microplays and game-changing RNG. Every time it looked like Amnesiac had stabilized, Pavel drew into the perfect answer and kept on rolling. With the win, Pavel will now move on to face Jason "Jasonzhou" Zhou in the semifinals.
Jasonzhou vs. Hamster
Jason "Jasonzhou" Zhao was able to grab a 4-2 win over Zhuo "Hamster" Wang during the first quarterfinal matchup of the weekend. The start of the series appeared to be close as each player managed to split the first two games, but Jasonzhou pulled away as the series progressed. Facing a 3-1 lead, Jasonzhou's Dragon Warrior wasn't able to claim the series win in Game 5 thanks to a late Ragnaros draw, which allowed Hamster to heal himself out of lethal range, and force a concede. But Jasonzhou was able to bounce back and earn the win thanks to yet another strong Dragon Warrior Play in Game 6.