Cloud9 return to competitive Halo with star championship roster

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Cloud9 have announced that they are re-entering the Halo competitive scene with a new roster stacked with experienced, veteran talent that has won it all.

The prominent esports organization had been absent from competitive Halo since 2016, as their third tenure in the scene was ended after several players left for Team Liquid.

Now, C9 are back in the fold, announcing a new, veteran lineup that’ll lead them back into the esport as the series’ next major title – Halo Infinite – is set to release in early 2021.

Cloud9 Halo roster:

• Braedon ‘StelluR’ Boettcher
• Zane ‘Pznguin’ Hearon
• Kevin ‘Eco’Smith
• Jonathan ‘Renegade’ Willette
• Emanuel ‘Hoaxer’ Lovejoy (coach)

All four players formerly featured for the North American-based team Turning Point, which disbanded after all four left in May/June of 2020. The only player who was part of that lineup that’s not been included in C9’s new roster is Swift Kill.

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StelluR and Eco, formerly of Splyce and Team Liquid, bring valuable championship experience to the squad after winning the Halo World Championship in 2018 and finishing third the year prior.

Renegade was also part of that Splyce team that won it all in 2018, and he holds the distinction of being the only player ever to have championships in both 2v2 and 4v4 Free-For-All. Last but not least, there’s Pznguin, who rejoins StelluR and Eco after the trio achieved strong success with Team Liquid in 2017.

Cloud9

Kevin ‘Eco’ Smith said in a video released by Cloud9 that he’ll be acting as In-Game Leader.

The team will be coached by Hoaxer, who’s been around competitive Halo since 2011. His coaching accolades include a third-place finish at the HCS Finals in 2018 and fourth-place at the 2018 Halo World Championship.

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Cloud9 have yet to reveal the details of their plans to ease back into the Halo scene, so it’s unclear when this new roster will make its debut. But with Infinite set to release in 2021, following a delay, it’ll be exciting to see this championship lineup flex its muscles sooner or later.

Written with contributions from Tanner Pierce.