Yes you're right, though I'll add:
* Rubble is also important because attackers can go stairs and A has two entrances accessible from rubble. (I know you know this, just stating it)
* Having one defender on B isn't that bad since they can early-rotate to reinforce A or C as they see fit. Or push out B. Also, if the Omen plays A-Link they can paranoia the attackers rollout onto rubble fairly easily.
Pro teams often just put an alarmbot/trip in b entrance and play 1 hard anchor c and 1 waterfall, idea is once you have rubble control you break the door and 1 plays cube looking at b main ( usually the initiator) while raze and omen hold rubble
AFAIK it's normal for Omen to hold rubble alone after it's cleared. Raze can definitely stick around too though.
For Cypher, at least based on what I've seen (generally but also from G2 vs TH) will lock C down with both trips, outside of occasional changeups (B-main as you said, sometimes A-link, or just switching to A if a hit is likely). That said, I'm no pro, so personally I throw the B-main trip most times to give my B player more freedom unless I'm getting crushed at C.
KJ generally does slap a turret on B, which I also prefer over alarm bot (mainly due to the leash range, and it's tougher to sneak by with a smoke)
All maps have to be played a certain way, if you play for rubble control and they go B, you can push through A while 1 in on B stalling or pinch from the door on C. On C we mostly have a sentinal who can use util to stall or maybe play retake.
And you don't have to always play 3 A, you can always fake the rubble presence with a smoke and a nade and then play slow. Or play for mount control with a one way, you dont have to always play the same way.
One c is fine since there’s only one entrance. It’s why you’ll frequently see the sentinel, usually a kj, on c as they can stall long enough for the B player(s) to quick rotate thru waterfall and help out.
The reason why rubble control is so important, especially for defenders, is that letting attackers take control of it opens up options, and very good ones at that. At a moments notice they can hit b instead of c thru little door, and if played right at worse they only face 2 defending players, something a b split (one or two lurked up b main) should take care of.
If defenders take early control of rubble, they basically cancel out the whole of a site to be able to taken, while also making it way easier to defend since there’s now only one choke point they have to focus on, which is a main.
Obviously this is just the ideal scenario, it may not always work out in either sides favor, given a player can always make a god like hero play to save their side.
Easy to hold/stall C site with a competent controller, which is why you don't usually need 2 on site. B is an extremely easy retake for defenders because you can essentially come from 4 entry points and rotate is quick enough so that attackers can't properly set up a defence quick enough. A is by far the easiest to hold as attackers because taking control of tree is hard and you can decently hold spike from a main. I believe there are multiple analyses that show, if you control a main as attackers your win rate is something around 80% (don't quote me on that one) because you can rotate b and even c within a few seconds. The defenders aren't quick enough to rotate from a site to c to contest you. 3 a is the meta because you kind of need to contest a main to up your win rate. I know it's not commonly seen on the lower ranks, but you can use util to easily win a 3v5 fight there and from experience: it helps your win rate MASSIVELY.
the idea is that it’s one person defending each lane. C only has one way in, so one defender. B has main and broken door, A has main (near stairs) and rotating door to tree. 3 people can defend 3 lanes from A so it cuts off the most options of attackers. also C is a reasonable retake site while A is just harder to retake because of all the places attackers can be post plant.
The map is designed for the defenders to take space on either side and use that space to pinch the attackers when they try to take site. You can do it on either side (A or C) but most people do it A, although since the start of 2024 pro teams have been doing it more on C.
The map is obviously too big for defenders to just sit back and watch all three sites so it’s optimal to stack one side and push for space so that you can quickly flank attackers trying to push whatever side you didn’t. This is why anchor type characters (Viper, KJ etc) will often play on the other side of the map from the stack to delay the push into site in order for the flank to have a chance at finding value.
Lotus is an attacker focused map to the point that it's too easy to rotate as an attacker. Having rubble control means the attacking team enters through a single chokepoint and will risk losing players if they commit A. Once this happens the defenders get a good scenario because:
1. You know they aren't going A and can't do a fast rotate to B through the A link
2. If they go B, the defenders can retake B from 4 different angles
3. If they go C they can only push through a single chokepoint so they have to hard push (which is where a sentinel is setup) and even if they use the door to rotate to B you are back to scenario 2.
You are right with the breakable door assumption. It is vital for many teams in pro play that they fight for rubble because it gives them so many options and makes the game a lot harder for the defenders. The same thing can be said for many other maps. Like sunset A site if I'm not mistaken the one without the pillar anyway. There is a split that essentially makes two lanes out of one so having control over that area is essential because of the added pressure it creates. And basically makes the rest of the map easier/ less defended as defenders have to bolster the defense of that site. That's why you then can see a lot of omen one-ways, cypher trips and other utility that prevent attackers from easily taking it.
The whole game is basically like this, you fight an area to gain control and the upper hand into the late round. Good map design makes these areas instinctual to fight for and make them equally hard/easy for both teams to take.
most team attack A since it gives you the option to hit both A and B due to the breakable door. once you pushed to the breakable door, the whole map opens up for you.
if defenders control rubble they reduce the map to three chokepoints effectively which makes the map way easier to defend
if attackers control rubble they can threaten a very strong A hit by splitting through tree, while also threatening to immediately threaten a B split through breakable with a lurker B main.
That's it pretty much, attackers having A rubble lets them threaten 2 very strong site executes, and you can only stack for one of those possibilities so you really don't want to give them that map control without at least making them invest a good amount of util if possible
You can't really keep control of mound as easy as you can as rubble is the biggest reason.
Even if you get control of mound you have a pretty large choke and very few spots to play from you can't just keep your KJ or omen on a lane and have most of it under control you have to continually fight to keep it.
Defenders are at a disadvantage on 3 bombsite maps as one or two bombsites can only have 1-2 people on it max. The counter to that is for the defense to play offensively on one bombsite. Take the space, get info, and react accordingly. So on lotus, if you take A main control as defenders and you see zero enemies, your team can quickly rotate to reinforce the other bombsites and leave one person at rubble to hold the choke.
And then if the person holding rubble sees an enemy, your team has time to rotate back to A in time
Right....think like this.....
For C site...u can only push from that narrow choke point....so 1 sentinel can hold it down most of the time
While A site is Big af...attackers can go stair and backstab u /
open tree door and pinch u /
flood from main AND
break the b link wall and rotate B
So its really important u take that rubble control to prevent attackers from having all that advantage.
While Retaking C is also not very hard if u have good util usage....1 player that was on rubble can flank / open mound door to create pressure
And other 4 can do a 2-2 split from CT/Waterfall
Also theres much less angles to clear while Retaking C compared to retaking A
I thinks people play 3 A because C is usually possessed by KJ or Cypher, which is pain to push against - and teammates have time to rotate from B almost immediately.
I personally try to guess what site they are going to push and play
2A-1B-2C
or 2A -1B - 1Waterfall - 1C.
But I remember a pro play I watched and they often played even 1-1-3.
Yes you're right, though I'll add: * Rubble is also important because attackers can go stairs and A has two entrances accessible from rubble. (I know you know this, just stating it) * Having one defender on B isn't that bad since they can early-rotate to reinforce A or C as they see fit. Or push out B. Also, if the Omen plays A-Link they can paranoia the attackers rollout onto rubble fairly easily.
Pro teams often just put an alarmbot/trip in b entrance and play 1 hard anchor c and 1 waterfall, idea is once you have rubble control you break the door and 1 plays cube looking at b main ( usually the initiator) while raze and omen hold rubble
AFAIK it's normal for Omen to hold rubble alone after it's cleared. Raze can definitely stick around too though. For Cypher, at least based on what I've seen (generally but also from G2 vs TH) will lock C down with both trips, outside of occasional changeups (B-main as you said, sometimes A-link, or just switching to A if a hit is likely). That said, I'm no pro, so personally I throw the B-main trip most times to give my B player more freedom unless I'm getting crushed at C. KJ generally does slap a turret on B, which I also prefer over alarm bot (mainly due to the leash range, and it's tougher to sneak by with a smoke)
Where is cube
I presume where the breakable door is
Also taking rubble control gives you access to breakable for a pretty cracked b split
All maps have to be played a certain way, if you play for rubble control and they go B, you can push through A while 1 in on B stalling or pinch from the door on C. On C we mostly have a sentinal who can use util to stall or maybe play retake. And you don't have to always play 3 A, you can always fake the rubble presence with a smoke and a nade and then play slow. Or play for mount control with a one way, you dont have to always play the same way.
Also, you often will have someone rotating fast over as soon as they use their utility for rubble to help control the rest of the map
One c is fine since there’s only one entrance. It’s why you’ll frequently see the sentinel, usually a kj, on c as they can stall long enough for the B player(s) to quick rotate thru waterfall and help out. The reason why rubble control is so important, especially for defenders, is that letting attackers take control of it opens up options, and very good ones at that. At a moments notice they can hit b instead of c thru little door, and if played right at worse they only face 2 defending players, something a b split (one or two lurked up b main) should take care of. If defenders take early control of rubble, they basically cancel out the whole of a site to be able to taken, while also making it way easier to defend since there’s now only one choke point they have to focus on, which is a main. Obviously this is just the ideal scenario, it may not always work out in either sides favor, given a player can always make a god like hero play to save their side.
Easy to hold/stall C site with a competent controller, which is why you don't usually need 2 on site. B is an extremely easy retake for defenders because you can essentially come from 4 entry points and rotate is quick enough so that attackers can't properly set up a defence quick enough. A is by far the easiest to hold as attackers because taking control of tree is hard and you can decently hold spike from a main. I believe there are multiple analyses that show, if you control a main as attackers your win rate is something around 80% (don't quote me on that one) because you can rotate b and even c within a few seconds. The defenders aren't quick enough to rotate from a site to c to contest you. 3 a is the meta because you kind of need to contest a main to up your win rate. I know it's not commonly seen on the lower ranks, but you can use util to easily win a 3v5 fight there and from experience: it helps your win rate MASSIVELY.
the idea is that it’s one person defending each lane. C only has one way in, so one defender. B has main and broken door, A has main (near stairs) and rotating door to tree. 3 people can defend 3 lanes from A so it cuts off the most options of attackers. also C is a reasonable retake site while A is just harder to retake because of all the places attackers can be post plant.
The map is designed for the defenders to take space on either side and use that space to pinch the attackers when they try to take site. You can do it on either side (A or C) but most people do it A, although since the start of 2024 pro teams have been doing it more on C. The map is obviously too big for defenders to just sit back and watch all three sites so it’s optimal to stack one side and push for space so that you can quickly flank attackers trying to push whatever side you didn’t. This is why anchor type characters (Viper, KJ etc) will often play on the other side of the map from the stack to delay the push into site in order for the flank to have a chance at finding value.
Lotus is an attacker focused map to the point that it's too easy to rotate as an attacker. Having rubble control means the attacking team enters through a single chokepoint and will risk losing players if they commit A. Once this happens the defenders get a good scenario because: 1. You know they aren't going A and can't do a fast rotate to B through the A link 2. If they go B, the defenders can retake B from 4 different angles 3. If they go C they can only push through a single chokepoint so they have to hard push (which is where a sentinel is setup) and even if they use the door to rotate to B you are back to scenario 2.
You are right with the breakable door assumption. It is vital for many teams in pro play that they fight for rubble because it gives them so many options and makes the game a lot harder for the defenders. The same thing can be said for many other maps. Like sunset A site if I'm not mistaken the one without the pillar anyway. There is a split that essentially makes two lanes out of one so having control over that area is essential because of the added pressure it creates. And basically makes the rest of the map easier/ less defended as defenders have to bolster the defense of that site. That's why you then can see a lot of omen one-ways, cypher trips and other utility that prevent attackers from easily taking it. The whole game is basically like this, you fight an area to gain control and the upper hand into the late round. Good map design makes these areas instinctual to fight for and make them equally hard/easy for both teams to take.
most team attack A since it gives you the option to hit both A and B due to the breakable door. once you pushed to the breakable door, the whole map opens up for you.
if defenders control rubble they reduce the map to three chokepoints effectively which makes the map way easier to defend if attackers control rubble they can threaten a very strong A hit by splitting through tree, while also threatening to immediately threaten a B split through breakable with a lurker B main. That's it pretty much, attackers having A rubble lets them threaten 2 very strong site executes, and you can only stack for one of those possibilities so you really don't want to give them that map control without at least making them invest a good amount of util if possible
You can't really keep control of mound as easy as you can as rubble is the biggest reason. Even if you get control of mound you have a pretty large choke and very few spots to play from you can't just keep your KJ or omen on a lane and have most of it under control you have to continually fight to keep it.
Defenders are at a disadvantage on 3 bombsite maps as one or two bombsites can only have 1-2 people on it max. The counter to that is for the defense to play offensively on one bombsite. Take the space, get info, and react accordingly. So on lotus, if you take A main control as defenders and you see zero enemies, your team can quickly rotate to reinforce the other bombsites and leave one person at rubble to hold the choke. And then if the person holding rubble sees an enemy, your team has time to rotate back to A in time
Right....think like this..... For C site...u can only push from that narrow choke point....so 1 sentinel can hold it down most of the time While A site is Big af...attackers can go stair and backstab u / open tree door and pinch u / flood from main AND break the b link wall and rotate B So its really important u take that rubble control to prevent attackers from having all that advantage. While Retaking C is also not very hard if u have good util usage....1 player that was on rubble can flank / open mound door to create pressure And other 4 can do a 2-2 split from CT/Waterfall Also theres much less angles to clear while Retaking C compared to retaking A
I prefer to play 3 A 2 C with just a cypher or chamber trip on B to notify on lurks and execs .
I thinks people play 3 A because C is usually possessed by KJ or Cypher, which is pain to push against - and teammates have time to rotate from B almost immediately. I personally try to guess what site they are going to push and play 2A-1B-2C or 2A -1B - 1Waterfall - 1C. But I remember a pro play I watched and they often played even 1-1-3.