CSGO pro Elige upset for not getting an invite to Valorant 10-mans

Fariha Bhatti Published 20/04/2021

Counter-Strike: Global Offensive professional player Jonathan “EliGE” Jablonowski is not happy with Valorant 10-mans Discord admin Roy “StrongLegs” Ahad.

10-mans servers are a solid platform for pro players to showcase their abilities and compete against other skilled players. These servers are often divided into tiers based on in-game ranks, accomplishments in the relevant esports scene, and skill level. The division helps maintain fairness in all games so that players can hone up their skills in an orderly setting.

Renegades’ in-game leader was in charge of a similar Discord server for Valorant pros, which was also approved by the developer Riot Games. However, StrongLegs’ Discord 10-man server is under fire after Elige revealed that he didn’t get an invite due to “power tripping” and the admin’s “ego.”

well he is being super cringe power tripping cuz he was the first one that rushed to admin a discord. hopefully he relaxes a bit
— Jonathan Jablonowski (@EliGE) April 17, 2021

The drama started when MeL tweeted that StrongLegs is getting hate in his messages for rejecting a voting system that allows famous pros in a 10-mans queue. Her tweet also confirmed that Cloud9 White’s members are part of the server, which didn’t sit right with Elige’s fans since he is one of the best players in CSGO and still got excluded. Considering his experience in FPS games, being turned away from Valorant 10-mans greatly upset him.

In response, StrongLegs clarified that he’s simply filtering out talent based on their accomplishments in Valorant, a title that Elige doesn’t compete it. However, Elige refuted his comment and claimed that StrongLegs is abusing his power as the admin.

Elige excluded from Valorant 10-mans discord

Elige being counted out caused a bit of havoc among the players who’ve seen the pro player in action. Sentinel’s Michael “dapr” Gulino also chipped in and criticized the stance that CSGO’s best player couldn’t partake in Valorant 10-mans, a game that is quite similar to Valorant in terms of mechanics.

best NA CSGO player cant play in the 10mans? I bet you people could learn just from his comms more than anybody else in the 10mans

i get you want to be strict or whatever for invites but cmon bru wake up and make these obvious exceptions
— darp (@daprcs) April 17, 2021

However, StrongLegs remained unruffled as his decision to restrict Elige wasn’t based on skill level. The former admin was striving to keep a fair system to ensure that dedicated Valorant players can queue in a healthy environment.

The situation soon went through the roof after Elige and StrongLegs had a Twitter interaction, leading the Renegades IGL to remove himself from the admin post. The pro player clarified his stance in a detailed post before handing the torch to a new admin.

“I wasn’t ever against Elige playing. I just thought it would be extremely weird of us to allow him to play before we have established any rules for ‘exceptional players.’ So I revoked his access until we could figure out the inevitable future of other pros from other titles requesting to join the Discord,” StrongLegs said.

The dust has settled for now but the fans are left confused whether Valorant’s biggest 10-mans Discord server is actually being marred by gatekeeping.

Fariha Bhatti

About Fariha Bhatti

Fariha Bhatti is a long-time gaming writer who loves competitive FPS games and slots with particularly fun themes. She got her start playing classic games developed by SNK, from legendary fighting game series The King of Fighters to challenging platform franchise Metal Slug. She now spends most of her time playing Valorant and Counter-Strike 2 while working her way through new slot releases to find her next favorite. Fariha has been published at PCGamesN, TalkEsport and ONE Esports.

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