"No matter what, SKT is now behind YM with a score of 1: 2." Doll was very excited. "YM from our LPL region has taken the lead to obtain the final point!"
"Yes, just one step away!"
At this point, Mille could not help but feel a little absent-minded. He turned to the center of the stage, where YM and SKT were taking off their headphones and leaving the contestants' seats.
"I'll be honest." He looked at PDD beside him. "Before the finals, I didn't even dare to think that YM would be able to obtain the match point from SKT."
"The last time an LPL team forced SKT into a corner was in the 2015 MSI. However, at that time, Bang and Wolf's abilities in the bottom lane were incomparable to now. Now, YM is facing the undefeated Double Champion of the S Tournament!"
"It's hard to imagine that YM, who is entering the finals for the first time, can force SKT to the edge of the cliff!"
Not only were the commentators excited, but the Chinese viewers were also excited.
"Previously, it was said in the Tieba that YM could only win one match at most. Does your face hurt?"
"What's the point of saying that? This kind of stupid face-slapping is all done by stinky little brothers in the Tieba. What does it have to do with me?
Don't make fun of me. "
"Previously, Han Za said that Lucian is a black technology. What about this Ryze?
Using SKT's skin to defeat SKT, and even stealing your house, hehe. "
"YM first took down Samsung, then Tiger. Don't tell me they'll topple SKT's throne?
If they win, won't they be able to defeat three Koreans by themselves? "
"It's not too much to beat Lifetime's fans in the finals, right?"
"They're the first champions of the S Tournament. I'll buy a set of the champion's skin for each account. I'll keep my word!"
The Chinese viewers vented their emotions in their own way.
From the S5 finals to the S6 finals, the LPL region had been quiet for a year.
In that year, many players had given up on the game. Many people no longer paid attention to the competition and simply went online to play a few rounds of free-for-all, relaxing and enjoying the game.
However, there were still many viewers who held on silently. The LPL and LCK matches were never missed, and the Tieba forums were in full swing.
They were waiting, waiting for the LPL region to return to its former glory.
Before the finals began, most of the audience thought that this year's LPL performance had already met their expectations.
One in the top eight, one in the top four, and one in the finals. It was the same as LPL's ranking in the S4 global finals. The audience was undoubtedly satisfied with this result.
As of now, as long as it wasn't a one-sided slaughter, everyone could accept it in their hearts. They had already tacitly acknowledged the huge difference in strength between the two regions.
But today, YM's performance gave them a shot of adrenaline.
In the first match, Lucian was too strong when facing the traditional Mages in the middle lane. He was able to easily seize control of the lane, and with the equipment advantage of a Level 1 team, he won the match by rolling a snowball. But what about the third match?
Although YM was slightly inferior to SKT in terms of operating rhythm and seizing opportunities, anyone with a discerning eye could see that the gap between the two was not insurmountable.
In the third match, SKT's decision to switch teams made the audience realize that even the mighty Double Champion could still make mistakes. One mistake was enough to send them to the match point.
Now that YM was leading 2: 1, many viewers were even eyeing the Summoner Trophy that LPL had never touched before.
In SKT's lounge, Kkoma stared intently at his notebook. His black pen danced on it as he deduced BP.
As the most successful coach in League of Legends, Kkoma had a deep understanding of BP tactics.
He was used to thinking from his opponent's point of view. As long as he could guess how his opponent would set up their BP, it would be much easier for him to set it up himself.
He had just received news that YM had chosen the blue side for the next match, leaving the pressure of BP to SKT.
From Kkoma's point of view, the opponent's coach, Hanyi, was not that strong.
Especially in the second match, Leehom had confirmed that he had beaten Hanyi in BP.
Their opponent could have taken one more step and sent Sindra to the ban position, forcing SKT, who was already in the red side, to ban Lucian.
Or YM could have banned Olaf, who countered Sindra after reaching level 6. That would have made it harder for SKT.
If they had banned Lucian, Lin Yan would have gotten Sindra, and Faker would not have gotten the lane rights. If they had released both of these heroes, YM would have gotten Sindra, and SKT would have let Faker get Lucian, who had not played much before. The mid lane would have won without a fight.
Leehom was seriously playing a BP role-playing game with himself on the notebook.
Faker was still chatting with the duo in the bottom lane about the lame joke that he had just seen.
On the other side, Dumb Chicken was cheering for the top laner. Although Duke was also a veteran of StarCraft, he was now in a different competition. Now that he was in the finals, he was under a lot of pressure.
As the big brother of SKT, Dumb Chicken played the role of a calmer. He knew what was troubling Duke.
Last year's SKT.
S5's SKT was known as one of the strongest teams in the history of League of Legends. Their individual ability, teamwork, and adaptability were all at the peak.
Ma Datou's Crocodile Nolan and Faker's unique Ryze were the nightmares of all the participating teams that year.
With two world-class mid laners, they easily won the championship with a luxurious 15-1 record. This year, however, a team called YM suddenly jumped out in front of them.
Duke found it hard to accept. The only difference between SKT's current lineup and last year's was that Marin had been replaced by himself. The other world-class mid laner, Master Hou, who had only played four matches in the finals, had gone to LPL to prove that he would not live in Faker's shadow for the rest of his life.
After Faker's condition improved, Master Hou's departure did not have much of an impact on the team's strength.
Last year, he was not there, and SKT had won the championship. Why was it that this year, when it came to him?
Why was he so unlucky?
The unlucky bear Duke held his chin angrily.
Dumb Chicken came over and patted him on the shoulder, trying to comfort him.
Dumb Chicken knew that for the new members of SKT, the team's achievements in the past few years were not only a form of motivation, but also a form of pressure.
If the results were not good, the new members would be met with an overwhelming amount of abuse and suspicion.
Kkoma snapped his fingers.
"Let's go, members, it's time to go on stage!" He shouted loudly. At that moment, Kkoma was full of confidence.
On the LPL commentary platform.
Doll looked at Lin Yan's picture on the screen and said unsurprisingly, "The MVP of the previous match is still given to Ran. The statistics are magnificent. I have to say, the use of that big move, Golden Body, is really amazing."
"The fourth match is about to begin. To be honest, YM has a high chance of winning this match," PDD said. "They've prioritized the blue team, and BP has a huge advantage."
"We all know that the blue team has a natural BP advantage in this version, but there's a very interesting statistic." Mille laughed. "So far, there have been three matches in the finals, and all of them have been won by the red team."
As the three commentators chatted on the platform, the members of YM and SKT were already seated in the players' seats.
"Can we walk around Los Angeles after the finals?" Jack swung his legs. "I'm planning to take a closer look at Hollywood."
"I've asked Hao before, and he said that we can take two days off in Los Angeles." Lin Yan took a sip of his Red Bull, adjusted his headset, and replied.
Phyllostachys Pubescens laughed. "Speaking of which, if we win another match, will we be able to choose a skin?
I want a Blind Monk's skin. "
"Don't be too confident, let's win this match first." Lin Yan shrugged. Jin Gong started the match at the referee's request.
"The BP has started. YM will ban Izreal first." Mille coughed softly and cleared his throat. "Don't let Bang get an AD that can take over the match in the middle of the game."
On the other hand, SKT sent Lucian to the ban position.
Hanyi was ecstatic when he saw that SKT had banned Lucian first.
"Let's not ban Sindra, maybe we can even waste one of their bans," he said confidently. "Let's ban Olaf."
Facing SKT's early game vision, Xiao Tian's Olaf had a hard time finding a rhythm. Moreover, Dumb Chicken had a deep understanding of this hero, so Hanyi decided to ban him.
Kkoma laughed when he saw Hanyi's ban. He was discussing something with the team members beside him. Soon, Dumb Chicken and Faker started laughing as well.
Their smiles were bright, and they looked happier than when they were filming the promotional video before the finals.
Both of them were typical big-game players. Although their opponents had taken the match point, they did not show any signs of panic.
The caster reacted quickly and focused the camera on SKT's mid laner.
When the Chinese audience saw that Airplane was still laughing, they were instantly shocked.
"They're laughing?
That confident? "
"Hohoho, I've already taken a screenshot. If we lose this match, I'll put Faker's screenshot together with Piglet's."
"One smile to S7, one smile to Ironfish?"
Mille raised his voice. "SKT's second ban was hesitant for a long time. In the end, it was given to Spider, not giving Xiao Tian any room to maneuver!"
Hanyi raised her head and pondered for a moment after watching SKT's ban.
"Ban Victor," Hanyi said to Jin Gong. "Release Sindra and Panther Lady."
SKT's last ban was on Policewoman without hesitation.
"Eh, if that's the case, then Panther Lady and Sindra are both outside." Doll was surprised by SKT's BP choice.
"What's SKT thinking?" Mille was also puzzled.
"YM really did snatch Sindra." PDD was happy. "The problem is now SKT's. This Panther Lady, are you going to pick her or not?"
"Dumb Chicken has been a professional player for four years, but he's never played Panther Lady!"
Mille did not understand. He was not the only one who knew this. All the coaches, commentators, and data analysis teams knew this.
"If SKT wanted to use Panther Lady, why didn't they send Xiao Hei up?" As a commentator for the opposing team, Mille could not stand it anymore.
At this time, there were still retired players from SKT who were worried about their coaches' BP.
"Kkoma, what are you doing? Are you committing a crime?"
Yamanuo's expression was already unpleasant after SKT lost the third round. Now that he saw SKT's retarded BP, his anger surged.
"If you want to give away the champion, you should've told me in advance. Don't let me go bankrupt!" he shouted in a eunuch's voice.
The bullet screen in the live stream did not miss any opportunity to ridicule Yamanuo.
Hanyi began to pace confidently after instructing his team members to choose their players. In the previous round, he chose to ban Panther Lady because they did not have the priority to choose from the blue team. Lucian and Sindra were also banned at that time.
At this time, he was in the blue team. It would be best if he could help Lin Yan take down Sindra.
From Hanyi's point of view, it would be a small loss to trade Sindra for Panther Lady. However, now that Victor, Lucian, and Dragon King were all banned, Sindra could easily take down the remaining mid laners in the version.
Moreover, he knew that Dumb Chicken had never used Panther Lady before. Even though Hanyi was not sure if Dumb Chicken knew how to use Panther Lady, he knew that even if Dumb Chicken knew how to use Panther Lady, there was a high chance that he had practiced it at the last minute.
Otherwise, he would have used Panther Lady when she was so strong in the spring of 2016. He would not have kept it hidden until now.
Panther Lady's proficiency was not high. Dumb Chicken could rely on his experienced map control to control the rhythm of the game. However, it was impossible for him to play Panther Lady as tyrannical as Little Peanut.
In this way, Hanyi felt that even if Dumb Chicken used Panther Lady, he would not be able to completely suppress Xiao Tian. In terms of selection value, he felt that the mid laner Sindra was more worth it.
SKT seemed to be hesitating. They had only taken down Panther Lady and Ice when the countdown was about to end.
"Dumb Chicken's taking Panther Lady is like forcing a duck onto a perch." Mille laughed. "However, if he doesn't take Panther Lady, there's a high chance that Xiao Tian will get it."
PDD kept his mouth shut. He did not dare to spread the news that "Xiao Tian's Panther Lady is quite green".
"I don't quite understand Coach Kkoma's BP in the fourth round." Doll was still in a daze. "After the first two rounds, SKT is naturally at a disadvantage. Almost all of your mid laners have been banned. How are you going to fight Sindra?"
"The remaining strong mid laners in the version are Ryze, Clockwork, and Lamia. These three heroes can't fight against Sindra. Once they lose their mid laners, Panther Lady's role will be very small."
YM continued to select players. They first selected Ike + Ember for Jin Gong and Jack.
After SKT's hesitation in the first two rounds, they quickly chose Gnar and Karma.
"Ella and Excavator. YM's last two rounds are filled with junglers!" Mille was beaming with joy. "This lineup is quite strong."
"Coach YM's BP is focused on stability. The rest will be left to the players." Doll nodded in agreement.
SKT's last pick was Wolf. He immediately clicked confirm!
It was a hero with a face full of vicissitudes. Light blue hair and a long beard occupied half of the hero selection window. His eyes shone with the light of wisdom!
The twenty thousand spectators in the stadium exclaimed in unison!
This was S6's undisputed unpopular hero!
"Old Time?"
Mille was slightly surprised, but he immediately reacted. "This hero is also Faker's signature hero. If I remember correctly, Time has always maintained a winning record in his professional career!"
"… Winning all six games." Doll informed the spectators of the news he received from the caster. "You can say that he's Faker's trump card after the Enchantress!"
"It's indeed feasible for Time to fight Sindra." PDD frowned. "He only needs to use his ultimate skill on his teammates who are being focused on by Sindra. He'll have another life when he revives."
YM's side was slightly flustered. They did not expect Faker to suddenly pull out such a hero, which completely messed up their tactical arrangement.
"You guys play as usual. Control the lane in the middle lane and suppress Panther Lady's vision in the jungle. Don't let him control the map!"
Hanyi patted Lin Yan and Xiao Tian's shoulders. "Don't worry, Panther Lady's proficiency won't be very high!"
Xiao Tian nodded.
The lineups of both sides were determined.
The blue side YM: top laner Ike, jungler Excavator, mid laner Sindra, bottom laner Lu Jin + Ella.
The red side SKT: top laner Gnar, jungler Panther Lady, mid laner Time, bottom laner Ice + Karma.
Hanyi took off his headphones and shook kkoma's hand. He saw the smile on SKT's coach's face and knew that he had been tricked again.
He walked back to the team's lounge with a gloomy face.
Accompanied by the cheers of the live audience, the Summoner's Canyon once again appeared on the big screen above the stage!
"YM has the match point in their hands. Let's see if they can end SKT's Red Dynasty in this round!" Mille was very excited.
On the other side of the ocean, countless domestic spectators were also cheering for YM in their hearts.
"Come on, come on!
Let's try to win this round for them! "Lin Yan turned his head to look at his teammates.
"No problem, let's see if I don't crush Panther Lady in the jungle!" Phyllostachys Pubescens was excited.
Lin Yan did not bring Sprint this round. Instead, he chose to purify. His laner, Time's double Q stun and E [Time Spring]'s slow effect were very disgusting.
After going online, Lin Yan relied on Sindra's strong early game to successfully control the lane. Time's level 1 Q [Time Bomb]'s cooldown was a full 10 seconds. Faker did not try to deplete it and used it to clear the lane of minions.
When the third wave of minions arrived, Lin Yan took a look at SKT's F4 camp through the wall.
The four Razorbeak Birds were still alive and well.
Based on the normal farming speed, if Panther Lady were to farm three groups of monsters in blue in the second half of the map, she would be able to farm three groups in 2 minutes and 33 seconds in this version of the game. If she were to go red, F4 would have been wiped out by now.
After all, Panther Lady's farming speed was quite fast. To her, this was definitely a group of monsters with a high cost-performance ratio. Whether it was red or blue, there was no reason for her not to farm F4 in the early game.
Could it be that the dumb chicken Panther Lady's farming speed was too slow?
Lin Yan shook his head and dispelled this thought.
Double Champion Dumb Chicken had always been very diligent. He had a lot of practice time and did not play other games on a daily basis. He only focused on studying LOL.
Although his hand speed was slow, Dumb Chicken could not possibly be like some junglers who did not even know how to farm.
That left only one answer.
Lin Yan quickly ran backward. However, from the bushes below, a Jungle Cheetah ran out!
"Dumb Chicken, after farming the third group in the second half of the map, immediately gank!"
Mille's voice was a little anxious. "Faker has reached level 3 after eating the last soldier. Two bombs have been placed on it!"
Lin Yan twisted his body and dodged one of the bombs to avoid being stunned. However, he was still hit by Time's E [Time Clockwork].
The 40% speed reduction effect lasted 2.5 seconds. Lin Yan saw Panther Lady pouncing towards him. He decisively used [Weaklings Disperse] to push her back and then tried to escape.
However, Dumb Chicken followed up with a stab!
Lin Yan, who had been slowed down, could only use Blink to retreat backward to ensure his condition was maintained.
Dumb Chicken swaggered past the middle lane and ran up the hill.
"SKT's first attack can be considered a success. If Sindra did not use Blink, they would not have dared to push too deep!"