Dota 2 Rosters Locked: What Do Teams Look Like After Post-TI6 Shuffle?

After a hectic month of shuffling, the Dota 2 Majors registration period is over. Rosters are locked, and fans can finally start exploring the game's new competitive landscape. 

With the next big tournament, The Summit 6 in December, still a way away, it's worth taking a good look over where players went and what organizations look like after four busy weeks.

Team NP	Team Faceless	LGD Gaming	LGD.Forever Young	Vici Gaming J
Aui_2000	Black^	Ame	Monet	Agressif
EternaLEnVy	Jabz	Maybe	Super	Nono
MSS	iceiceice	Jixing	Yao	rOtK
SVG	xy-	Xz	xiao8	hym
1437	NutZ	Victoria	lpc	Fenrir

All-New Teams

One of the most exciting parts of any post-TI shuffle is the dream teams that come about and the old favorites who suddenly reappear. TI6 was no different, and there are some new, interesting teams that have popped up in recent weeks. 

The most interesting on the whole is Team NP, founded by Team Secret defector Jacky "EternaLEnVy" Mao. The squad features a number of competitors from past Internationals (most notably TI5 champion Kurtis "Aui_2000" Ling) that have, at one point or another, all crossed paths on other teams.

While there's no guarantee they will hold up against high-level competition, it's most certainly worth keeping an eye on them going forward.

Right alongside Team NP is Team Faceless. The Singaporean squad, which houses Daryl Koh "iceiceice" Pei Xiang, has formed at a transitional period for the entire SEA region, whose 2016 has been defined by exceeding expectations but still falling short of the top.

While there is some debate as to whether they have a roster that can compete with the established elite, the individual talent is there and could potentially synergize into a high-tier group.

The LGD Gaming franchise has undergone a major shakeup as it looks to field two high-end squads for the first time since 2014. Lu "Maybe" Yao is the only player remaining on the primary LGD team from that year and will look to gain ground with four new teammates. Meanwhile, Yao "Yao" Zhengzheng and Zhang "xiao8" Ning have founded a new LGD team, LGD.Forever Young.

Vici Gaming Reborn was dissolved outright. While four of its players were reassigned to the main VG team, Wang "NoNo" Xin now helms the all-new Vici Gaming J, a squad that includes remnants of the previous VG team, alongside additions from other major Chinese teams. 

Wings Gaming	Digital Chaos	Vici Gaming	Na'Vi
shadow	Resolut1on	END	Ditya Ra
bLink	w33	ghost	Dendi
Faith_bian	MoonMeander	Yang	GeneRaL
y`	MiSeRy	fy	SoNNeikO
iceice	Saksa	DDC	Artstyle

Teams That Are the Same—More or Less

Not every team has gone through a major shakeup. Some actually managed to stick together through last-place thick and first-place thin. 

TI6 winners Wings Gaming remain intact and, as such, enter the next season of Dota 2 as the odds-on favorites. Granted, changes to the Dota 2 metagame have historically kept any past champions from repeating their success year-over-year, making it safe to assume they won't be the first-ever two-time International champions. Still, it's not unreasonable to expect their established chemistry to translate into continued success through early 2017.

Credit: Daniel Najarian, @missing_data

TI6 runners-up Digital Chaos also largely remain intact. The team that was dissolved and rebuilt in a day made a shocking run to the Grand Final of TI6 through a combination of pure guts and great chemistry. The sole change to the team is the release of David "Moo" Hull in favor of former OG offlaner David "MoonMeander" Tan.

As previously discussed, the Vici Gaming Reborn name was dissolved, but most of the team was simply reassigned. Four of the TI6 VGR squadron have been moved from the Reborn team to the primary Vici Gaming squad. NoNo is now on VGJ, with Zheng "ghost" Jie replacing him as the No. 2 player for VG. 

And, of course, Natus Vincere will return! Despite their disappointing last-place finish at TI6, they remain one of the most popular troupes in the game.

EG	Fnatic	TnC	MVP	OG	Liquid
Arteezy	Raven	Teehee	QO	N0tail	MATUMBAMAN
Suma1L	Mushi	Kuku	Febby	ana	Miracle-
UNiVeRsE	Ohayo	Sam_H	Velo	s4	MinD_ContRol
zai	eyyou	ryOyr	Reisen	JerAx	KuroKy
Cr1t-	DeMoN	Cast	DuBu	Fly	BuLba

Teams That Went Through Major Shakeups

While some teams were completely revamped and some were left untouched, most underwent some serious transitions.

Starting from the top of the TI6 leaderboard, Evil Geniuses emerged from a brief period of uncertainty largely unscathed. While team captain Peter "ppd" Dager and longtime face of the team Clinton "Fear" Loomis both retired from competitive play, the rest of the team will return alongside on-again-off EG member Artour "Arteezy" Babaev. They will be captained by former OG member Andreas Franck "Cr1t-" Nielsen.

Southeast Asian underdogs-turned-contenders Fnatic and TnC Gaming both lost three members of their squads following TI6. Fnatic, however, took advantage of the situation by absorbing TnC's departures and now have a formidable-looking roster moving forward. TnC, meanwhile, filled the gaps with players from other Filipino teams.

European favorites-turned-early washouts OG and Team Liquid both underwent serious changes. While they traded Amer "Miracle-" Al-Barqawi and Jesse "JerAx" Vainikka, respectively, they fleshed things out with new signees.

After some rumors of discontent, MVP Phoenix more or less managed to survive a contract dispute with its TI6 squad. The team lost Sang-don "Forev" Lee and No-A "MP" Pyo left the team, but it retained the other three and called in replacements from MVP HOT6ix. 

Secret	Newbee	EHOME	Alliance	compLexity
MP	uuu9	Sylar	Loda	Justin
MidOne	Sccc	old chiken	Limmp	canceL^^
Forev	kpii	eLeVeN	jonassomfan	Moo
Puppey	Faith	LaNm	EGM	Zfreek
pieliedie	Kaka	Guardian	Handsken	melonzz

Forev and MP joined the new-look Team Secret. The eternally embattled team had its now-traditional post-major purge of talent and added the pair of Koreans alongside Fnatic castoff Zheng "MidOne" Yeik Nai. Alongside Clement "Puppey" Ivanov and Johan "pieliedie" Astrom, Secret once again fields a talent-rich team. Whether that will translate into success, though, is anyone's guess.

China's Newbee was was forced to rebuild after three players either retired or took a break from competitive Dota. EHOME, meanwhile, had to replace two departures.

Sweden's premier Dota 2 group, Alliance, managed to stay true to the Tre Kronor approach by replacing its three departures with fellow Swedes: Simon "Handsken" Haag and Linus "Limmp" Blomdin, formerly of compLexity Gaming, and Jonas "jonassomfan" Lindholm.

As for compLexity? They replaced their departures with the aforementioned ex-Digital Chaos offlaner, Moo, Mihai "canceL^^" Antonio and Justin "justin" Rosselle. 

What Does the Future Hold?

This is a tired fact, but it's worth repeating: No team has ever won back-to-back Internationals. While past TI winners often have success immediately following the tournament, in-game changes and out-of-game tension can turn a good team into a mediocre one quickly. 

As DC showed at TI6, the right combination of players hitting their stride at the right time can yield great things, and there are a lot of talented squads in the game today.

Could Wings make a strong run in the coming months and become the first back-to-back TI winners? Could a revamped Team Liquid or OG finish their work from 2016? Could a Team NP or a Vici Gaming J immediately click and dominate?

The answer to all of those questions is "absolutely."

All fans can do is sit back and enjoy. There's a lot to look forward to.