Team Aster sign Xwy as new mid, rOtk as coach to complete roster for upcoming DPC season
Chinese Dota 2 powerhouse Team Aster have completed their roster for the upcoming Dota Pro Circuit (DPC) season by signing Zhai "Xwy" Jingkai as their new midlaner and Bai "rOtk" Fan as their new coach, the team announced on its official Weibo account on Sunday (November 13).
Xwy, who previously played under the tag "一" (the Chinese character for 'one'), is a relatively new midlaner that has been bouncing between teams in Divisions I and II of the DPC's Chinese regional league.
The 26-year old started his career in 2017, having played for the likes of EHOME, Keen Gaming, and Phoenix Gaming. He last played for Aster's secondary team, Aster.Aries, before being promoted to the organisation's main roster.
Xwy is coming in to replace Zeng "Ori" Jiaoyang, who suddenly announced his retirement from competitive Dota 2 earlier this month.
Meanwhile, rOtk will be taking over as Aster's coach from Zhang "LaNm" Zhicheng, who has stepped down from his position.
ROtk is a legend of the Chinese Dota 2 scene, being one of its most decorated players before he moved to coaching in 2017. Prior to joining Aster, rOtk had been in a one-year hiatus after coaching Elephant from March to November 2021.
Xwy and rOtk will be looking to help Aster retain its standing as the best team in China. The team was previously considered a step below the top tier in the region, performing well in the regional league but faltering against international competition.
Aster finally lived up to their promise in the 2021-2022 season, remaining dominant in China while also showing out in international tournaments. They placed third in the PGL Arlington Major in August, second in ESL One Malaysia 2022 in September, and fourth in The International 11 (TI11) in October — the highest placement for the organisation in a TI since its inception.
Aster notably defeated regional rivals PSG.LGD en route to their fourth place finish at TI11, letting them stake their claim as the best team in China.
It remains to be seen if Aster can retain their spot atop the Chinese scene, which has now relinquished its title as the best region in Dota 2 over to Western Europe.
Aster's addition of Xyw and rOtk is the latest of many roster moves in the global Dota 2 scene's ongoing post-TI roster shuffle.
With so much of the Dota 2 competitive scene cantered around TI and its multimillion-dollar prize pools, most teams are formed with the goal of getting to the game's world championship tournament in a bid to claim the Aegis of Champions and the lion's share of the massive prize pool.
But only one team can win TI, with Tundra Esports being crowned as the champions of TI11 this year. With that, the rest of the scene are now scrambling to assemble the best rosters possible to try again next year.
For all the biggest moves in the ongoing Dota 2 post-TI roster shuffle you should know about, check here.
Team Aster roster:
Du "Monet" Peng
Zhai "Xwy" Jingkai
Lin "Xxs" Jing
Ye "BoBoKa" Zhibiao
Yu "皮球" Yajun
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