Swagger is often found deeply embedded in a well of confidence, and for Enigma 6, that confidence has never been lacking.
Shortly after finishing second at the Halo World Championships in March, Carlos "Cratos" Ayala was encouraged to build something of his own. Bringing on the talented young duo of Jesse "Bubu Dubu" Moeller and Cuyler "Huke" Garland along with Ryan "Shooter" Sondhi, Cratos created a team -- Enigma 6 -- that could collapse the titans of Halo.
The Enigma 6 organization made their first steps into the competitive Halo scene at the PAX East Invitational. E6, Evil Geniuses, OpTic Gaming, and Team EnVyUs were brought together to compete for one spot on the HCS Pro League. E6 had a disastrous event, coming in dead last and losing to both nV and OpTic Gaming in the process. Their confidence never faltered and they continued to work in order to qualify for the Pro League. Their second showing, the HCS Pro League Summer Qualifier, was an immense improvement for this squad. They swept Denial eSports and tasted revenge against OpTic Gaming in the finals of their bracket to clinch a spot in the Pro League.
That confidence began to grow as the season began, although things didn't always go smoothly. Enigma 6 played .500 ball for the first three weeks of the season, including losses to Cloud9 and Team Allegiance. The results of the season were not backing up the confidence that the team was flaunting, but the team chose not to make a roster change during the allowed period. With a 3-3 record, E6 headed into Week 4 with a schedule against the struggling OpTic Gaming and defending world champions and (at the time) undefeated Counter Logic Gaming. Enigma 6 had successful scrimmages against CLG, but they came into the matchup with their guard up, knowing that practice match results didn't always translate to the competitive stage.
E6 made quick work of the Green Wall before focusing on CLG and accomplished something many people believed would not happen all season. The team handed CLG its first series loss since the X Games.
Cratos, the outspoken leader of the team, was interviewed along with Bubu dubu, and head coach Nick "Showtime" Laskaras. In E6 fashion, he confidently stated, "I feel like we are the best team in the world right now."
That confidence was well placed. E6 finished the rest of the season without dropping a single series, and have only lost five maps since then. That 11-3 record and nine-series win streak has placed this team as the second seed heading into the Summer Finals.
Huke heads into this tournament as one of the hottest players in the league. He leads his team in kills and has the second least amount of deaths so far. A newcomer to the Halo scene -- making the change over from Call of Duty -- has taken the community by storm with his crowd-erupting plays and clutch moments. He placed second at his first major Halo LAN, the North American Regionals, then followed that up with a top four finish at the Halo World Championships.
Shooter is known as one of the more underrated players participating in the Pro League right now. He is not always the one making the big plays or wielding power weapons, but has been a consistent cornerstone for this team all season. He has only placed first at an event once, RTX 2014. During the interview, it was revealed that Shooter was the one to spark the flame that led to the upset over CLG.
Bubu Dubu, much like his duo Huke, is well-known for the ability to produce highlight reels within a series. Having previously teamed together while playing for Denial last season, these two have a chemistry as teammates that is evident when they play.