"Summoners, this is the first day of the Fusan Convention and Exhibition Center's first round of the quarter-finals. Hello everyone, I'm Doll, the commentator!"
Two familiar faces appeared in front of the camera.
Today's commentators were still Doll and Mille.
"Before the competition begins, I'd like to praise the LPL teams." Doll was quite excited. "YM, IG, and RNG have all won first place in their groups and successfully avoided the quarter-finals!"
"This is also the second year in a row that all three teams have made it to the quarter-finals. I have to admit that the LPL is getting stronger and stronger. It's currently the number one division in the world!" Mille was filled with emotion.
He and Doll were both veterans of the LPL. They had been in the commentary booth since the establishment of the division. They had followed the LPL to the top and had also fallen to the bottom. They had watched the ups and downs of the division. Now that YM had won twice in a row, the LPL was finally in full bloom.
The two commentators went back and forth, summarizing the history and looking forward to the future. Finally, they shifted the topic to the match.
"The first match of the day is between the European division and our LPL division's first seed …"
"Fnatic's results this year are quite good. Their team composition is quite balanced and their individual strength is not particularly bad," Doll said with a smile. "It's a pity that they met YM. Otherwise, it's very likely that they would have taken a step forward."
"I think that in today's match, YM can try to target Broxah," Mille suggested. "After all, we all know that FNC relies on junglers to get through the early stages."
"If they can kill him, then their rhythm will be very difficult."
Doll received the backstage notification and immediately became excited. "The live broadcast is ready. Let's turn the screen to the ten players on stage!"
The BP panel was displayed in the center of the live broadcast.
"Since YM is first in their group, they have the right to choose sides in the first, third, and fifth rounds. They chose the blue side for the first round!"
Red Rice's BP train of thought was shocking.
"Banned Little Pao?" Mille was puzzled. "This isn't a strong AD at all!"
FNC's head coach, Youngbuck, immediately frowned.
He had a guess in his heart, but he didn't dare to jump to conclusions.
Being on the red side, he was severely restricted in the first round of BP. He had no choice but to block Sindra first.
Ballgirl was a T1 Mage in the current version. Her mid-to-low swing was quite strong. There was no reason for her to be given to YM.
"YM's second player has been given to Chiwil..." Mille's eyes widened. "What are they doing? Are they really targeting Ou Cheng?"
The camera panned to the FNC player area. Rekkles was expressionless, but his constantly moving mouse seemed to reveal his inner panic.
"They're going to restrain Martin," Harrison said from behind. "Should we release the Ice?"
He felt that if Eich and Ember were both released, YM would only be able to choose one. That way, Ou Cheng would still be able to get his handy hero, Ember.
Youngbuck thought for a moment. "Don't worry. Let's wait for another round …"
In any case, FNC was on the red side. They could choose after the ban. In the first round of BP, they could formulate countermeasures based on the opponent's thoughts. When the time came, it wouldn't be a problem to decide whether to place the Ice.
In the end, he chose to block Bull's Head, who had good opening ability and candor.
"YM's last ban in the first round has been given to Explosive Man!"
Doll had contributed her first shout before the game had even started. "All three bans have been given to Rekkles. They're certain that he has no other AD choices!"
This made FNC very uncomfortable.
Youngbuck didn't expect Red Rice to be so crazy.
It was important to know that the first round of BP was very important. Basically, it was given to strong characters or the opponent's signature hero.
Nowadays, the bottom lane's tactical position was not high. Moreover, Rekkles didn't have strong lane suppression ability like Ouze. It was impossible for him to penetrate the lane. Even if the ban was given to a duo, it should be given to a support with stronger ability to drive the tempo.
What did you mean by banning Archer and Explosive Man in the first round?
Youngbuck had no other choice. He could only release Eich and Ember as Hai Sang had said before to ensure that Ou Cheng had a suitable character to use.
"FNC chose to ban Troll … YM snatched it up and locked down the Ice Archer without hesitation!"
Youngbuck flipped through the notebook in his hand and decided to give the other party a taste of their own medicine. "How about we just take out Yasso?"
YM had invested all their ban in the first round on the AD. They had even released Yasso, who was usually banned.
He felt that there was no reason for him not to choose.
"No problem. We'll play the mid lane this round. Martin, you just need to supplement our control." Broxah was full of confidence.
Rekkles responded to indicate that he understood.
Since he had taken on so much BP firepower, he didn't need to be so eye-catching in the game.
"YM's second and third picks are Boulogne and Sword Demon," Mille said loudly as he looked at the BP panel. "They chose a single lane swing position to pave the way for their next pick!"
Youngbuck originally wanted to pick Lo for the team. That way, he could provide space for Yasso. Moreover, he was very good at roaming and providing support. He also had a hand in starting the team.
However, because too many ADCs had been banned, he couldn't choose to support now. Otherwise, Ember wouldn't have been able to get it.
In the next round, Youngbuck targeted Phyllostachys Pubescens and sent Qing Gang Yin and Zhao Xin, the two jungler heroes, to the ban position.
"In this way, Xiao Tian doesn't have any heroes to choose from, right?"
Doll commented. "The only two junglers left are Blind Monk and Olaf, who aren't very high priorities."
Li Qing and Berserker were all-powerful in the S6 global finals. Now that two years had passed, they could only rank at the top of T2 in the S8 World Championship. Their strength was relatively average.
"On the other hand, YM has banned Hai Sang's Luo and Hammerstone. They are trying their best to prevent them from using Roaming to support their teammates …" Miller pondered for a moment and then said, "Didn't they ban Swordsister?
Arielia is also a good choice to swing between mid and top. She's also very good for Counter's Sword Demon. "
However, Red Rice did it on purpose.
He had previously studied the hero pool of FNC members. Other than Ou Cheng, the most obvious point was that Bwipo never used Swordmeister.
Yes, from the eve of the mid-season tournament until now, Swordmeister had always been a top T1 pick for nearly half a year. However, Bwipo had never used her even once.
The analyst, Gou Ba, looked through the opponent's Korean server ranking records and found that Arielia didn't have many practice matches.
This was obviously a problem with her proficiency.
Unless Bwipo was like Lin Yan and deliberately hid a big move for the knockout round, it was basically a conclusion.
However, Red Rice didn't directly rule out the possibility that FNC was hiding a top solo Swordmeister. That was why he chose to do this in the first round of the best-5.
Even if Bwipo chose Arielia later, Red Rice could see how well the other party had mastered the game and make countermeasures in the subsequent rounds. There wouldn't be any particularly serious consequences.
It seemed that there was only one hidden danger in releasing Arielia …
The FNC player and coach were still discussing their next choice.
Hai Sang searched through the hero list for a long time. "Give me Leona."
Now that Bull's Head, Boulogne, Lo, and Hammer Stone had been banned or taken, only Sunshine Girl was suitable for the role.
Youngbuck wanted to leave the Counter position for Bwipo, so he readily agreed to let Ou Cheng help him choose the role first.
"YM's fourth and fifth picks … Olaf and Ryze. They still haven't decided on the two solo lanes. They're still wavering!"
Ryze and Sword Demon were both heroes that could be mid or top. Red Rice made it difficult for the other party to figure out his lane.
Bwipo, who had a comedic face, also didn't know who he should pick.
If Caps used Yasso and put Sword Demon in the mid lane, then the mid lane was destined to be countered. He had to pick a hero that could steadily take down Ryze in order to achieve balance in the lane.
Among the remaining top laners, there weren't many who could take down Ryze …
In fact, Red Rice made the right bet.
Bwipo wasn't very good at Swordmeister. At least, it wasn't good enough to be picked in the top eight of the world.
"How about we let Bwipo pick Yasso, and I'll use Swordmeister against Ran?" Little Hat noticed that his top laner was in a difficult position and immediately took the initiative to suggest.
Caps wasn't afraid of YM's wavering. Swordmeister had an advantage against both Sword Demon and Ryze.
This way, one lane would still be at an advantage while the other was at a disadvantage. However, FNC's advantage would be the mid laner who had a strong influence on the entire map.
But this was the hidden danger that Red Rice had thought of before!
He was meticulous and had made full preparations in advance. He wasn't afraid that FNC would pick Swordmeister.
Caps thought that they could relieve the team's pressure, but they didn't know that everything was within Red Rice's calculations.
The two teams quickly swapped heroes, and the lane splitting was settled.
"This way, Brother Ran will use Ryze to take the mid lane, and Jin Gong will use Sword Demon to take down Bwipo's Yasso!"
The lineups of the two teams were settled.
Blue YM: top laner Sword Demon, jungler Olaf, mid laner Ryze, bottom laner Ice and Boulogne.
Red FNC: top laner Yasso, jungler Wine Barrel, mid laner Swordmeister, bottom laner Lu Jin and Leona.
"In terms of lineups, I think YM is slightly better," Doll bragged again. "After all, FNC is a bit of a noob. They rely on Wine Barrel to support the team's magic damage."
Mille voiced his concern. "The main point is how YM will deal with this mid laner Swordmeister. Ryze against Irelia … To be honest, it'll be difficult."
"If Swordmeister picks up the pace and keeps harassing them in the jungle and the side lanes, then YM will have a hard time in the middle of this game."
The Haier brothers had been partners for so many years. One played the good cop, the other played the bad cop. They had a clear division of labor and a tacit understanding.
The YM fans in the stands also shouted loudly, cheering for the home team they supported.
In contrast, FNC's fans were much quieter.
The director switched the screen to an interview that had been recorded in advance.
Caps sat in his chair and heard the question from the narrator. "What do you think about facing the strongest mid laner in League of Legends in the quarterfinals?"
"Well …" Little Red Hat habitually smiled. "I think this is also an opportunity for me to learn and improve. I learned a lot from Ran during the mid-season tournament."
"This time, I want to show him my results," he said firmly. "And I don't think FNC will lose. Before the results are out, I think FNC and YM have a 50-50 chance."
This sentence caused a huge reaction in the LPL live broadcast room.
[I didn't expect a 50-50 chance.]
[Ran isn't that strong. I often solo-killed him in training matches.]
[It's indeed a 50-50 chance. After all, there are only two outcomes. FNC's chances of winning are as high as 50%!]
[That's a logical demon.]
Lin Yan also appeared in the following interview.
"FNC is quite a strong team. After all, they're the double champions of the European division." He first praised his opponent, then changed the topic. "But I don't think they're a match for YM."
"My teammates are much stronger than FNC. This is why I've been able to maintain my confidence for so long."
After the short pre-match interview, Summoner's Rift descended on the Busan Convention and Exhibition Center!
The ten heroes quickly bought equipment from the fountain and left the highland.
"YM's five players will walk along the top lane. After passing through their own tower, they will turn down and head towards FNC's jungle through the triangle of grass!"
Mille's eyes were locked on the minimap.
"They're going to use Liu Qingsong and Boulogne's strength for a level one invasion!"
YM's level one team's strength was practically at the ceiling.
The bottom lane was the combination of Ice and Boulogne's Freljord. They had both control and damage.
The mid laner was Ryze. His level one W [Rune Imprisonment] was relatively stable.
The jungler, Olaf, was even more so. Q … [Countercurrent Throw] and passive attack speed. He was practically a god in a duel.
Only Jin Gong's Sword Demon, Q [Dark Informant Sharp Blade], without E [Shadow Charge], would have a hard time hitting the opponent.
However, FNC's lineup was incomparable. Therefore, Lin Yan and his teammates decisively chose to invade early. They wanted to forcefully negate their opponent's red buff in the first half.
"FNC is also prepared. They've set up scouts in their own camp and saw YM's movements in advance!"
Broxah decisively chose to avoid the battle. He planned to drag his two teammates to YM's jungle and start from the opponent's red buff.
"When Jack returned to the game, he seemed to have noticed Broxah's movements. He ran to his Stone Beetle's camp and threw a W [Thousand Arrows] at the red buff in the jungle!"
The icy-cold arrow hit the three FNC players in the jungle.
Jack, who had received the news, immediately reminded his teammates to let them know the opponent's jungle Wine Barrel's route.
"Both sides didn't engage further. They each returned to the game to finish off their opponents …"
At this time, the caster finally had some free time. He showed the rune configuration of both sides on the data panel.
Mille instinctively glanced at it.
However, his gaze immediately froze.
Doll also realized that something was wrong.
"Brother Ran, what's going on?" His voice instantly went up an octave.
"Ryze brought Aftershock?!"