No salaries, no sponsors, and no bootcamp: BOSS fight the odds at the RMR

"That's kind of the goal," Warden says. "Get on the radar so hard that it doesn't make sense to ignore us."

There are 56 teams slated to compete at the RMRs for 24 coveted spots at the Perfect World Shanghai Major, and only one side enters the fray without backing of any kind: BOSS. No salaries, no sponsors, and no bootcamp.

Akin to perennial underdogs Bad News Eagles of Majors past, BOSS stand out in a Counter-Strike scene where open qualifiers are soon to become a relic, offering little room for unsupported squads like these to make a name for themselves.

Despite the lack of financial support, most of BOSS's players are no strangers to RMRs. Matthew "⁠Cryptic⁠" Whitmore, Keller "⁠SLIGHT⁠" Nilan, and Adam "⁠freshie⁠" Paterson qualified for their first RMR during the BLAST.tv Paris Major cycle with DETONATE, but complications forced the team to withdraw from the event just days before it was set to begin.

A year later, Cryptic and freshie qualified for the PGL Major Copenhagen Americas RMR under the BOSS moniker alongside Matthew "⁠d4rty⁠" Paplawskas. While they attended the event this time around, it was only with the hasty addition of Josh "⁠PwnAlone⁠" Pigue, who filled in for the team after the tragic passing of David "⁠cynic⁠" Polster weeks ahead of the RMR.

Despite the unfortunate circumstances preceding the Copenhagen RMR, BOSS still managed to do some damage, upsetting MIBR in their opening match before losing to Complexity in a close game and subsequently being eliminated by Liquid.

For most Counter-Strike fans, who may overlook the minutiae and constant shuffles in the North American scene, BOSS is far from a household name. Most viewers were likely introduced to the orgless side earlier this year when the team made its Big Event LAN debut at ESL Pro League Season 19.

BOSS only won one map in Malta, a tight victory over a Ninjas in Pyjamas squad missing stalwart Fredrik "⁠REZ⁠" Sterner, although they played several close maps against BIG and FlyQuest before departing the studio LAN in last place.

"We pretty much never left the hotel room, because we were constantly prepping for Pro League," BOSS captain Cryptic says about the team's trip to the island nation in the Mediterranean. "It was a really good experience because we had the best competition possible to play against. We just want to get back there."

Unfortunately for BOSS, opportunities to return to Europe are fleeting in North America, and they even struggled to make meaningful runs in the domestic circuit, often falling short at the hands of local heavyweights such as Nouns and NRG.

Matters were only made worse by the lineup's instability following the departures of PwnAlone, Justin "⁠FaNg⁠" Coakley, and coach Tommy "⁠Axed⁠" Ryan less than two months from the Shanghai Major Americas RMR qualifier.

To take on the AWP, BOSS acquired the services of an old friend, SLIGHT, who previously played alongside members of the team's core in DETONATE and Wildcard. The newcomer also brought coach Matt "⁠Warden⁠" Dickens, most known for his years with Complexity, along with him.

Rather than wresting control of leadership reigns in the fairly inexperienced squad, Warden made clear that his role was working to support Cryptic as best he could in his captaining duties.

"When I joined the team I didn't know what to expect," Warden states. "But [Cryptic] surprised me pleasantly with not only his knowledge but also his ability to lead in-game.

"He's received some of my criticism well and made the adjustments, and it's been good to work with him. He's got a really strong lead of the team, and I'm more of just an assistant to him when it comes to strategy, [letting] him do his thing and helping where I see fit."

Cryptic similarly offers praises for his new coach. "Warden has helped us bond more as a team, giving everyone better mindsets going into the games," he says. "That has helped a lot more for a lot of our teammates because some have tilt issues, but once we got him, those issues went away."

Jack "⁠micro⁠" Ryan was initially brought on to fill in the final rifling spot in July, but BOSS decided in mid-August to gamble on an ESEA Advanced player who had never even reached the ESL Challenger League: Gavin "⁠Fruitcupx⁠" Norman.

"We scrimmed Fruitcupx a couple of times when he was under Final Form, and he was doing decent," Cryptic says. "We did think he was kind of an idiot while playing against him."

Despite the criticism, Cryptic realized that Fruitcupx fit the bill of what the team needed. "In the trial, he was aiming really well, and we're like, 'Okay, all he has to do is work on his communication,' and it was a pretty easy pickup at that point."

Days after finalizing their starting five, BOSS started their journey to the Americas RMR in the qualifier and secured one of just four spots up for grabs, beating back domestic rivals Legacy and Elevate.

Outside of their RMR qualification, BOSS have recorded mixed results. A victory in CCT Season 2 North America Series 3 fueled by Fruitcupx over names like NRG and Party Astronauts served as a boon for Cryptic's men, but an early finish in the ECL playoffs not long after left more to be desired.

Despite the up-and-down domestic results since reaching the RMR, Cryptic and Warden are confident about their chances of securing a place at the Major.

"At the last RMR, we had PwnAlone as a sub because of what happened to cynic, so we only had two weeks of prep for that tournament," Cryptic says.

"Now, we have an actual set five that have more time and experience together. If we were able to beat MIBR last time, I have very high standards for us going into this RMR. We are actually hedging our bets really well going into this."

Warden painted a very similar picture of BOSS's chances in Shanghai. "There are sixteen teams in the RMR and we have to be top seven, with three losses finally in the Americas RMR," he says. "I think we have a good shot, as long as we can win some of these matches against teams that are kind of around our seed."

BOSS are slated to face top domestic side M80 in their Shanghai opener, a tough opponent albeit one that the team has hardly played against due to the latter side's more frequent international outings.

"It's a good draw for us. They're obviously a strong team, but there's a bunch of strong teams in the tournament," Warden says. "We're going to have to beat one of the stronger teams eventually, or right off the bat, with our seed.

"We could have drawn Liquid, and I would prefer to play M80 over Liquid, and there are a few others out that I think I prefer M80 over. We're not fearful of them. We know [M80] are good, but it's a team I think we can knock off as well."

While the team could probably continue for a while without organizational backing, Warden recognizes that, in a domestic ecosystem with limited resources, Major qualification offers BOSS their best chance to secure support.

"This is a really deserving team. They practice really hard and have been unsponsored for a while now," Warden says. "I'm not exactly spiteful towards the NA esports economy; it is what it is and it has been that way for a minute.

"Hopefully we are able to prove ourselves at the RMR, and maybe even secure one of the spots to the point where teams can't ignore us anymore. That's kind of the goal: Get on the radar so hard that it doesn't make sense to ignore us."

Date	Matches
Perfect World Shanghai Major 2024 Americas RMR
12/11/2024	M80 07:30 BOSS	Match