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The North American (NA) team BloodThirstyKings (BTK) caught the attention of Mobile Legends: Bang Bang (MLBB) fans during the M3 World Championship. After upsetting Blacklist International in the playoffs, the team went from an ordinary participant to an immediate celebrity. While BTK only finished in third place, the team's incredible performance allowed them to garner a massive following which still follows them to this day, despite the announcement that the squad shall be disbanding to join another team. Through a podcast, the BTK squad shared the history behind the team and how they became one of the best MLBB teams in the NA region.
How was the NA MLBB team BTK formed?
Through an Indonesian podcast EMPETALK by Jonathan Liandi, the three members of the BTK banner Michael "MobaZane" Cosgun, Ian "FwydChickn" Hohl, and Victor (also known as Carti) shared their stories of how they met and decided to form an esports team.
The team captain, MobaZane, said that he had switched to another game titled Arena of Valor (AoV), but he eventually went back to playing MLBB competitively as he enjoyed it more.
“I was playing a different MOBA game [AoV]…I switched there for esports because at that time Mobile Legends in North America didn’t have any esports,” stated MobaZane. “I switched there but I liked Mobile Legends more, so I came back, and then that’s how me and Victor started talking again.”
The first two members were MobaZane and Victor who were then followed by FwydChickn, Shark, and Huy.
“It’s just a bunch of friends who got along, you know. You Meet people on Discord, in rank games,” stated Victor.
FwydChickn added that this was the reason why they became the talk of the M3 World Championship because that was the first time they met in person.
Victor also revealed that he and MobaZane were former members of Gosu and tried to rejoin the team when the former AoV player wanted to make a comeback in MLBB.
“I was in Gosu at one point, my name was Gosu YL Shadow and he [MobaZane] was also in Gosu at one point,” explained Victor. “We tried to rejoin in Gosu but we weren’t allowed to.”
With no team to join, the duo decided to form BTK and formed the team that played at the M3 World Championship. Huy was meant to join the squad in the world series event but couldn’t due to personal reasons. This is where the Filipino player Zia joined as a substitute player to complete the five-man squad.
“We got along well, the chemistry was there and we just kept on playing and kept on stomping America,” Victor said.
The end of the BTK squad
While it seemed like the NA team showed promise, internal issues caused some of the members to leave and join other teams. With only MobaZane, FwydChickn, and Victor left on the squad, the team was forced to join other teams and abandon the BTK banner for a chance to qualify for the M4 World Championship.
MobaZane and FwydChickn are looking to compete under The Valley. Victor is yet to reveal his plans. Fans will have to keep their eyes peeled for more updates in the future.
