Mille was unusually excited on the commentary platform. Despite the hot weather, he was still wearing a well-ironed suit. He was sweating profusely, and his forehead was covered with a layer of sweat.
"We've won this match …" He let out a long sigh and looked at his two partners. "2: 1 lead. The match point is in our hands. YM has the upper hand!"
He was laughing so hard that his eyes disappeared. "Let's see how SKT adjusts. All I can say is that losing the Battle of Mount Tianwang is a huge blow to SKT."
Doll continued, "SKT has not only lost the Battle of Mount Tianwang, but more importantly, they have lost their right to pick sides!"
"In the next round, YM has the priority to pick sides. With the huge pressure of the match point, how will SKT deal with this situation?" Doll's voice was loud and clear.
At that moment, the tournament organizers announced the MVP of the previous round.
On the screen, Lin Yan, who was wearing a black and red team uniform, was looking straight ahead. His handsome face was serious. His right hand was in front of him, and between his index and middle fingers was a King of Clubs.
"There are no objections. The MVP goes to Ran, who turned the tide in the crucial match!"
Even though Mille was prepared, he was still surprised when he saw the string of numbers.
"What is this?" He shouted subconsciously. "These numbers are too ridiculous!"
714 battle damage ratio, 51.1% damage ratio, 1330 damage per minute, and 40000 damage per minute in the match!
As soon as the damage charts appeared, Lin Yan's damage output seemed so exaggerated compared to the other nine players.
"These numbers are amazing!"
Doll exclaimed excitedly. "More than 50% damage ratio, what does this mean?"
In Mountain Mud's live streaming channel, the viewers who were watching the live stream were already in an uproar.
[GG, so cool!
As expected of the pride of China's eSports!]
[Magic slicing airplanes, hohoho, there will be a bunch of noobs who will use this strategy during the day. I, Pan Pan, will ban airplanes!]
[Middle-fingered mid laner?
In team battles, they always attack the face, but never die. I'm convinced.]
Mountain Mud's face lit up, and he squealed excitedly. "I don't need to tell you who to bet on in the next round, right?
YM, kill them! "
[This wave? This wave is backstabbing his old boss.]
[Where's Faker?
If you change, you won't even trust your old teammate?
Didn't you lose some fishballs in the finals last year?
Is there not even this basic level of trust between people?]
In the end, this long bullet screen successfully attracted the attention of Shan Ni Ruo.
"Any normal person can see that SKT is not up to par, right?"
Mountain Mud said, "The three matches in the middle lane on both sides are mutually explosive. YM has a bit of a breakthrough in the bottom lane, but Little Peanut grabbed it, and Xiao Tian grabbed it in the top lane. Huni is even better than YM in the bottom lane!"
"Hahahaha … Brothers, the game will be over once the next round is over. There won't be a fifth round."
He glanced at the comments. "YM will definitely win. I don't even know what you're saying …"
The entire live broadcast room was filled with Mountain Mud's demonic laughter.
The joys and sorrows of human beings were not connected.
SKT's former meritorious member was all smiles.
SKT's current player was crestfallen.
Kkoma paced back and forth in the lounge.
After losing the battle of Mount Tianwang, SKT's current situation was not optimistic.
He had to come up with a solution.
"Wang Hu, you'll coordinate with Zaiwan in the next round."
There was a short five-minute break between matches. kkoma had to clearly explain the strategy for the next round to his team members.
"I'll try to get you two suitable support heroes in the BP. You guys just focus on the middle lane. Focus on him!"
"You don't have to kill him, but you have to make him feel uncomfortable!"
Arriving at the edge of the cliff, kkoma's tone became more serious.
For both SKT and LCK, this MSI could not be lost.
If they lost this MSI, it would be like losing two international championships in a row.
Since the start of the 2013 All Stars, Korea had only lost one 2015 MSI trophy in the three long years since then.
Before this, there had never been a precedent of losing two international competitions in a row!
The Korean audience and LCK officials had high expectations for this competition. If SKT lost the finals and set a precedent, kkoma and his team members would definitely be nailed to the pillar of shame!
Li Xianghe was pulling at his hair, still digesting the reason for his loss in the previous round.
Once again, he was forced into a desperate situation. Although he had a fighting spirit, he could not hide his disappointment.
He could not suppress the opposing mid laner by himself.
Whether it was the cards in the first round or the airplane in the third round, Lin Yan's development was never affected.
Li Xianghe and Lin Yan had played ten rounds of matches and knew what kind of player their opponent was.
Other than heroes like Lucian who emphasized lane play, Lin Yan's lane play was more stable. In the early stages, he would often provide support in the jungle and the flanks.
In the middle stages, he relied on his strong sense of the big picture to push the solo laner. He relied on the resources in the jungle to ensure his development. This way, regardless of whether the team was evenly matched or at a disadvantage, he could stand out and dominate the battle.
In fact, this playstyle was very similar to Li Xianghe's own.
Starting from S5, Li Xianghe's lane play was also known for its stability. It felt like a mountain, unlike S3, where he fiercely pursued lane suppression.
Of course, this stability was in comparison to other world-class mid laners.
If they were fighting mid laners, Faker and Lin Yan would be riding on the opposing team's face.
In this kind of matchup, where both players' styles and strengths were similar, who would win?
The jungler.
However, that idiot who had telepathy with him had left the team. Now, Little Peanut was standing beside him.
Ever since S6 shone in the Tigers, Little Peanut did not like to play mid lane. After all, the mid lane was Han Hu. Normal people would not play mid lane. It was better to let him develop steadily.
Even after staying in SKT for an entire spring, Little Peanut still did not have the habit of playing mid lane.
On the other hand, Xiao Tian was used to playing mid lane since the beginning of his professional career.
Li Xianghe could not help but recall his performance in the previous round.
Ryze's lane was clearly advantageous, but why did he not achieve good results?
Because Xiao Tian's level two grab had directly crippled Ryze, who did not have the ability to teleport. Li Xianghe was powerless and could only play mid lane.
Thinking of this, Li Xianghe could not help but sigh.
Wolf's chubby body squeezed into the chair. Sitting beside Li Xianghe, he could clearly hear his teammate's sigh.
His small eyes were immediately filled with fierceness.
He was Li Zaiwan, nicknamed SKT's only Brother Li.
The fake Brother Li had fallen. Now, it was the real Brother Li's turn to show his might!
The Fist staff informed them to go on stage.
Kkoma picked up his notebook. Before he left, he glanced at his substitute jungler, Blank, nicknamed Little Black.
Just now, he had been sitting at the side without saying a word. It looked like he was depressed that he could not play.
Kkoma had no choice.
Little Black's last match in the Spring Season was two months ago, on the 29th of March.
In these two months, Little Black had not participated in many mock competitions. He had not participated in a single official match in the entire MSI. kkoma obviously wanted to nurture Little Peanut.
After not participating in an official match for two months, kkoma could not bring himself to carry him to the MSI finals.
Firstly, he was not as stable as Little Peanut, who had good hands before. Secondly, he was not responsible for the players.
Letting a substitute play in such a deciding match was unavoidable. Moreover, it would make the starting player feel bad.
Although Blank's surname was B, he was not stupid.
"Welcome back to the live broadcast of the 2017 MSI Championship …" Doll finished reading the advertisement and looked toward the players' seats.
"YM's players look very relaxed." He saw Lin Yan chatting and laughing with his teammates. He finally relaxed. "With the match point in hand, the psychological pressure is indeed less."
How was it less?
After personally witnessing Lin Yan carry the entire match in the canyon, the Prophet's back was no longer sore and his legs no longer hurt. He was also full of energy. He felt like he was about to fly from Wuhu.
He listened to Xiao Tian's sarcastic remarks about Jack and grinned happily.
"What's more surprising is that YM has chosen the red team this round!"
Mille received the broadcast director's message. "You have to know that in this MSI, everyone is basically fighting for the blue team. Moreover, from the data we have, the blue team has a higher chance of winning …"
Mille and Remember looked at each other and smiled.
"They probably have a trick up their sleeve."
In the deciding match, the live audience cooperatively waved the support items in their hands and cheered for the teams they supported.
In an instant, the stadium's volume rose again. Although the LPL commentary platform had done some silencing, it still could not stop the passionate Brazilians!
The combined cheers of tens of thousands of people resounded through the heavens and the earth. It even completely covered up the system sound that started the BP!
"Both teams have tacitly agreed to ban Sindra and Lucian." Mille cleared his throat.
The second team SKT was the same as the previous round. They still banned Rock Sparrow, while White Crescent banned Nanqiang.
Kkoma sensed that something was amiss.
He frowned and thought for a long time.
They made a decision just as the countdown was about to end. They chose to ban Camille, one of YM's core players who had shone brilliantly in the first round.
"YM confirmed the last lock position very quickly!" Mille had just finished analyzing Camille when he saw that YM had completed the ban!
"Huh?" Remember was stunned for a second. "YM has chosen to ban Verus!"
"They're not banning Kenan?"
Doll was very puzzled. "This is the top laner hero with the highest ban rate in the current version. Are they just going to give it to Huni?" (Kenan's BP rate was shown in the image)
Kkoma frowned.
This Kenan, should he choose or not?
This was difficult!
Electric Rat's strength in the current version was undeniable. Heroes in other versions had always won against top laners. He was also very good in team battles and was not bad as a solo carry.
However, Huni's Kenan's skill level was difficult to explain.
His skill level was poor and he had very few chances to practice.
Other than a few matches in the ranking matches, Huni had banned Kenan in all the mock matches.
Similarly, no team would ban Kenan in the official matches.
White Crescent had banned Kenan in all five matches against SKT. They knew that Kenan was a noob and purposely did not let him practice.
Speaking of which, YM had to thank Lightning Wolf for his cooperation.
Without exception, they had banned Kenan in all five matches in the group stage and semifinals. This had helped YM greatly.
The crystallization of the wisdom of the old yin coins had put kkoma in a difficult position.
"So, if we win this MSI, won't we have Lightning Wolf 13's credit …" White Crescent was overjoyed behind the players' seats.
Beside her, kkoma's face was stiff.
This was the final deciding match of the MSI.
Since he was on the blue team, should he pick Kenan, who had the lowest proficiency level, for Huni?
If he did not pick him, there was a high chance that Kenan would be taken by YM.
He was in a difficult position!
"SKT has been hesitating for a long time on their first pick. They're still debating whether to pick Kenan or not!" Mille was very excited.
The longer SKT took to pick, the more difficult it was for them to make a decision. This was, of course, good news for YM.
"Ice Archer!"
Doll saw that SKT had finally decided on their first pick one second before the countdown ended. "They've let go of Kenan and decided to go for the ADC!"
YM did not hesitate. Kenan + Blind Monk was immediately locked in!
"This Blind Monk is very good. Not only is he Xiao Tian's proficient hero, but he can also prevent Little Peanut from picking Kenan to counter him in the game!"
SKT immediately got the Spider Queen + Airplane.
Up until now, the game of BP between the coaches of both teams had evolved to a new level.
Before the start of the finals, both teams' understanding of the mid lane in the current version was to fight for the right to the top lane.
In the first round, YM's choice of dual cards and dual lanes was the result of such a confrontation.
In the second round, SKT started to lock down Camille. They could not pick the strongest side lane system in the current version.
Under such circumstances, White Crescent knew that it would be difficult to kill SKT in the early and mid stages. It would also be difficult to win solo lanes in the mid and late stages. In the end, they would have to rely on team battles to win.
Kkoma also understood that it was unrealistic for SKT to win against YM in the early and mid stages. It was just right for them to use mid and late stage heroes to pull and pull team battles that they were familiar with.
Therefore, the game of BP in the mid lane began to revolve around the mid and late stage heroes.
Airplane was an excellent choice for both teams to fight for.
Explosive packs could help Airplane provide long-distance support from time to time. Moreover, Special Delivery was very useful in a team battle in a narrow river like Dung Long.
Kkoma planned to let Faker coordinate with No-fu to restrict Lin Yan and drag it out until the late stages of the game.
"Ice and Verus are out of the question. YM's third choice is Callista for Jack." Mille looked at YM's selection and continued his analysis. "This hero is perfect for YM's early and mid stages of the game!"
In the second round, YM banned Little Fishman and Malzahar, while SKT banned Boulogne and Ryze.
Kkoma did not lock down Galio because he was sure that Lin Yan would not pick him.
With YM's current lineup, Blind Monk and Callista's damage output in the late stages of the game was very weak. If Galio was picked as a mid laner, there would be no big damage output in the late stages of the game.
He might as well lock down Boulogne, who was very strong in coordination with Callista, and then lock down Ryze, who was good at attacking Airplane.
"Are you picking Tam or Lulu?" White Crescent offered two choices to the prophet.
In fact, Hammer Stone, who could be paired with Callista to form the Shadow Island combo, was the best choice. However, the prophet's Hammer Stone was a little green. Kkoma was probably aware of this and did not lock down Hammer Stone.
"Lulu."
The prophet had a deep impression of his suicidal Tam in the second round. He did not want to face Tam again in the finals.
"SKT takes Hammer Stone and Shen …" Mille looked at SKT's selection and felt that something was not right. "Wolf is going to team up with Little Peanut!"
White Crescent frowned. Wolf's Hammer Stone was out of his expectations.
"Do we continue?" He lowered his head and asked Lin Yan.
Lin Yan looked at both teams' lineups.
"Yes!" Lin Yan nodded.
They had given Airplane to their opponents in the first round even though they knew that it would be a fight. Naturally, they were prepared.
"YM's fifth pick …" Mille's eyes lit up when he saw YM's selection!
"Kassadin!"
The stadium exploded. Cheers, exclamations, and doubts were endless. Occasionally, there were whistles mixed in!
Voidwalker Kassadin, known to be able to make the opponent's base explode at level 16. His late-game combat ability was extremely strong!
Fist followed the principle of balance. Naturally, it would not let Kassadin, who was a hero, have an easy time in the early game.
Behind his strong late-game ability was his weak laning ability. Moreover, he was easily countered by the physical mid laner.
Even the random ranked was basically a last resort choice. This was enough to prove his weak laning position.
"He's really daring to pick!"
Remember could not help but exclaim. "Picking a hero like this is not only because you believe in yourself, but also because you believe in your teammates!"
"Believe in yourself" was naturally referring to Kassadin's unbeatable late-game carry ability.
Believe in your teammates because picking a hero like this was to transfer the early game pressure to your teammates.
In a match where Kassadin was on his team, his teammates would most likely not have an easy time.
Just looking at the late-game Kassadin's one-man show of strength and brainlessness, one could not ignore the selfless contributions of his teammates.
Behind every Kassadin were four hardworking bosses. Not only did they have to fight four against five in the early game, but they also had to give good minions and a lot of jungle resources to Kassadin.
The lineups of both sides were thus decided.
Blue SKT: top laner Shen, jungler Spider Queen, mid laner Airplane, bottom laner Ice, and Hammer Stone.
Red YM: top laner Kainan, jungler Blind Monk, mid laner Kassadin, bottom laner Spear of Vengeance, and Lulu.
"Uh …" Doll looked at the lineups and pondered for two seconds. "Let me ask a question on behalf of the audience."
"Is Kassadin good at playing Airplane?"
Although Doll said he was asking on behalf of the audience, he did not understand.
However, he could not be blamed. After the redesign, Airplane's appearance rate was not high. This was the first time he had encountered Kassadin. He did not play LOL often and lacked understanding of the game, so he had encountered a blind spot in his knowledge.
This question left the two casters speechless.
"Actually, it's easy to play. Airplane's QWR skills all deal magical damage, and his E Gatling Gun deals half physical and half magical damage," Mille began to explain.
"Also, Airplane's passive [Hex Technologies Armament] converts a portion of his normal damage into magical damage."
Remember added, "Kassadin has a very strong counter to him. His passive [Void Stone] reduces the magical damage he receives by 15%."
"This is equivalent to Airplane hitting Kassadin. He naturally reduces a lot of damage."
Doll understood.
Airplane was a relatively easy matchup against Kassadin, who was weak in the early game.
However, no matter how bad his understanding of the game was, he would not say things like "SKT is desperate" or "SKT is gone".
After all, Doll was superstitious about the economics of lineups. He had to analyze the lineups in detail, and Kassadin alone was not enough.
Kkoma did not expect Kassadin to play this game. He felt that he had stepped on a landmine.
However, it did not have much to do with him. Before the match, Kkoma had been focused on studying Galio. He did not expect the mid lane BP strategy to evolve to such an extent.
If Kassadin, who had been playing in the sewer for the past two years, could come up with such a strategy, who would be prepared for it?
However, in the face of a deciding match, he remained calm.
"Zaiwan, you must pay attention to linking up with Wang Hu. Don't stay online all the time. Crush Kassadin and control a few more minions in the early game. This match will be easy for us to win."
He took off his headphones and turned his head, his expression solemn.
On the other side of the Earth, Yamami-Ruo was laughing maniacally.
"This round of YM's all in, no problem, right?" He yelled in his classic eunuch voice. "Brothers, keep up with him!
Brainlessly believe in Ran. He is the pride of us China! "
[This match depends on the mid lane. As long as Ran doesn't die and continues to develop, the champion will definitely win!]
[Kassadin is here. Ran's hero pool is really strange. Is he still practicing Kassadin in this version?]
[Go, YM!
Go, go, go!]
Amidst the silent cheers of the Chinese audience, the fourth match of the finals officially began!
"Let's give up our red zone. I'll switch to the jungle and start with his red buff."
Xiao Tian had already thought of an early strategy after buying the equipment.
SKT's level one player would definitely make an issue out of Lin Yan's Kassadin. Countering the jungle invasion was the most basic strategy.
"SKT's five-man team will enter YM's red zone. Set up your vision. Little Peanut plans to counter this group of red buffs by himself!"
When Little Peanut successfully landed and did not notice YM's movement to defend the jungle, Wolf led Bang straight to their own red zone.
He had already figured out Xiao Tian's early strategy!
"Xiao Tian has been chased away and can only go back to his own blue zone. This is very hurtful for Blind Monk …" Mille said.
Not only was he forced to go blue, but Xiao Tian could only use a single buff!
SKT's bottom lane started to push the minions as soon as they came online. Ice and Callista's speed was about the same.
However, Wolf deliberately crossed the minions and used the E [Pendulum of Misfortune] passive chain to hit the prophet.
This normal attack messed up the minions.
When YM's minions saw their hero being attacked, they immediately shifted their aggro and focused on Hammer Stone.
SKT's minions were still conscientiously attacking the enemy minions.
As a result, YM's minions were wasted.
Wolf sacrificed a portion of his HP to push the minions over and even had the initiative to snatch the second kill.
Under these circumstances, Xiao Tian naturally did not dare to invade the jungle and forcefully use a red buff.
"Using a single buff is too hurtful for Blind Monk … He's behind in the early stages of the game, and his rhythm is not good!" Remember could not help but say.
However, Lin Yan was really comfortable. With Dolan's Shield, he did not feel any pressure when facing Airplane.
The Magic Shield provided by Q's [Void Ball] allowed Lin Yan to profit every time he traded HP with Airplane.
If there was no other interference and it was just a single lane, Lin Yan would not feel any pressure at all.
In YM's team voice chat, Xiao Tian sighed and stopped talking.
"You're not going to curse, are you?" Lin Yan was terrified when he heard this sigh. "Rebound, rebound!"
"Childish, how many years ago was that …" Xiao Tian pursed his lips, his expression disdainful.
However, on second thought, Lin Yan did not seem like the type to play with "rebound" jokes.
Who did he learn this from?
Great Analyst Su.
When Phyllostachys Pubescens thought of this, the disdain in his expression turned into citric acid.