Red Bull’s R1v1r Runes is a yearly 1v1 Dota 2 tournament, described as “an action-packed Dota 2 1v1 mirror mode tournament suited for amateur as well as advanced players.” This series started last year with the first edition at Ambience Mall, Gurugram in which Sahil “micro” Viradia won the tournament, beating Abhishek Yadav (Delhi) with a convincing 3-1.
This year’s tournament was hosted at Indiajoy, HICC Hyderabad on 22-23rd November. Before the LAN event, 2 months of qualifiers took place in across 20 cities in India. A total of 42 players qualified for the final event. Among these 42 players, there were a few notable players:
- Sahil Viradia (Mumbai) – Winner of last year’s Red Bull R1v1r Runes and a part of Team Global Esports.
- Ayusman Samal (Lucknow) – Attended almost all offline qualifying events across the country.
- Bari Naser Anwar (Hyderabad) – Played for ROG Titans and captained Beyond Infinity.
R1v1r Runes Format
Red Bull R1v1r Runes is a one-versus-one modification of Dota 2, that’s played only in the middle lane of a regular Dota 2 map with several adjustments to the game mechanics that make this a far more exciting and intense experience for individual gamers. This also means matches end faster, pushing your skill and reflexes to the limit.
Choose the hero you can dominate with to gain the upper hand and turn the tide in your favor within seconds. The win conditions are simple; the player to slay their opponent thrice or eliminate the T1 tower achieves victory and will rise as India’s top Dota 2 1v1 player.
Red Bull R1v1r Runes is played on a custom Dota 2 map which was made specially for this tournament. This custom map functions similar to the solo 1v1 mode in Dota 2 match-making, but adds a few features and some flavor. Here’s more info on the game-mode:
Game-mode Information
- Length: 5-15 minutes
- Type: PvP
- Number of Players: 2
Features
- Players start with a bottle, blink dagger, and a ward
- Runes have a 50% chance of spawning at the top and bottom spots every minute
- At 7 minutes, runes are upgraded to super runes
- Random items are dropped at the 5 and 10-minute mark
- A divine rapier is dropped at each player’s towers at 15 minutes
- A display showing the next item drop and next rune spawns
- A hero drafting utility
Other changes
- Neutral camps don’t spawn
- The Secret Shop is removed. All secret shop items are available in the regular shop.
- Two shrines are disabled
- Roshan will not spawn
- Respawn times are 5 seconds
Here’s a short video of Purge explaining Red Bull R1v1r Runes.
Sahil Viradia again came out on top, beating Rohan ‘Devoid’ Prattipati 3-1 after a tense battle in the final series. You can watch the full VOD of the finals here. The victory earns Sahil an all-expenses paid trip for a unique, once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to meet members of OG, the current, two-time winners of The International.
Sahil was awarded the Red Bull R1V1r Runes 2019 trophy by Red Bull Esports athlete Ankit ‘Venom’ Panth, during which Sahil spoke a few words:
“It has been a swift journey for me, since I have the practice. I think my performance speaks for itself. I look forward to meeting team OG soon.”
Congrats to Sahil from the Esportsportal team. He’s got a bright future in Dota 2.
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