June 16th, YM versus VG.
VG's midlaner and jungler this season was quite strong. Brother Long + S4 champion jungler Dandy + S5 champion mid laner Easyhoon. On paper, their strength was one of the best in LPL.
Lin Yan did not have much of an advantage against Easyhoon. He was too steady and had a deep understanding of the minions. With one Tsar, he tied Lin Yan's Little Temptress in the middle lane.
Although Lin Yan also tried to roam twice, the opponent always made up for the losses, either pushing the minions deeper into the tower or eating a group of F4.
Fortunately, VG's bottom lane was a noob. The AD's Endless matchup was dismantled by Jack Love and was suppressed by 50 CS in 15 minutes.
The bottom lane snowball quickly rolled up. YM used their lane switch to take in the neutral resources such as Canyon Vanguard and Lil 'Dinos.
In a wave of team fights that broke out in Dragon River, Lin Yan finally stood up. Little Temptress went in and out three times, toying with VG's players in the palm of his hand.
Relying on Jack Love's excellent performance, YM once again defeated their opponent with a 2: 0 victory, achieving a five-game winning streak and becoming the first in Group B.
At this point, YM finished the first round of Group B. Next up would be the six opponents in Group A.
With their five-game winning streak, YM attracted a large number of fans. This team that loved to accumulate advantages in the early and mid stages of the game was very different from the hypnotic operations that were prevalent in LPL. It also fit the psychology of most of the audience — — they liked to watch more bloody matches.
No one underestimated this new LPL team anymore. There was no doubt that YM had become a strong competitor for the tickets to S6. The dominance of the red team's winning streak reminded people of the legend of QG's undefeated blue team in the 2015 season.
The two trolls also became the most popular player in YM with their excellent looks and daring play.
After watching JKL's excellent performance in several consecutive games, Ning felt that he was in danger.
"Do I still have a chance?"
He asked Hanyi, his eyes blazing. Coupled with his tall stature, this sentence had a different meaning no matter how you looked at it.
The coach was shocked by Ning's gaze and shook his head.
JKL had completely replaced Ning's role. If it weren't for the fact that Ning had helped YM enter the LPL, Hanyi would have sent him back to LSPL a long time ago.
Ning didn't say a word. He returned to his seat and continued practicing his Blind Monk Roundhouse Kick. He still had half a year left on his contract with YM. After half a year, he planned to bring his talent to the jungler position.
After five days of rest, the cycle between groups A and B officially began.
YM's first opponent was EDG, led by MSI champion jungler Ghost Foot Seven.
EDG also had a 5-game winning streak in the first round of the group. They did not even lose a single small match, showing amazing dominance.
Since the establishment of S4, EDG had been known as an expert in internal battles. Whether it was in terms of personnel or playstyle, EDG had always maintained the top level of the league.
"Xiao Tian, you have to pay attention to Ghost Foot Seven's jungler movements. He's very good at anti-crouching and blocking vision. You have to set up your vision deeper in the river. There were problems with your positioning in the previous two games. The F4 wall is a blind spot. If he walks along the wall, we won't be able to find him."
After arriving at the stadium, Hanyi was still explaining the details of the game to them.
"Don't worry, clearlove is my idol. I know him like the back of my hand."
Xiao Tian said confidently.
Hearing this, the rest of the people in the lounge immediately turned to look at Xiao Tian, letting him enjoy the feeling of "the world is focused on you".
Lin Yan was a little suspicious. A week ago, Xiao Tian had also said that Marin was his idol. At that time, Marin's Lamborghini had been trained to the point of being a ghost.
"I'm really his fan!"
Seeing that no one believed him, Xiao Tian quickly explained, "I became his fan after winning the MSI championship. He's the one who gave me the confidence to play professionally."
After staying in the lounge for an hour, Lin Yan started two custom warm-ups.
Before going on stage, he glanced at his phone and found out that Su Cheng had arrived in Shanghai in the afternoon to watch his game.
Lin Yan converted the 700 points that he had obtained from the previous five LPL games and several mock competitions into his ability to farm money and increase his damage output in team battles.
Now, his stats were as follows:
Support Roaming Ability: 83
Team Battle Damage Output: 87
Lane Suppression Ability: 90
Version Development Ability: 67
Farm Money Growth Ability: 82
At this time, the official staff came to inform them to enter the venue. Lin Yan removed the peripherals on the computer and rolled the mouse and keyboard in with the mouse pad.
"Good luck, brothers." Manager Hao smiled and patted Lin Yan on the shoulder. "If you win, you'll have a day off tomorrow."
"What if you lose?" Jack asked.
"If you lose, you'll have to stay in the base and play mock competitions for the whole day," Hanyi replied.
Lin Yan walked in front to be checked by the staff. When he heard the conversation of his teammates behind him, he silently hoped that they would win this game.
The stadium was full. The audience held up their support items and cheered for their favorite teams.
The spotlights flashed several times and focused on the EDG and YM flags above the stadium.
"Welcome to the 2016 LPL Summer Season live broadcast. Hello everyone, I'm Doll."
"Hello everyone, I'm Mille."
Today was the highlight of Group A and Group AB. The LPL officials naturally handed this game to Doll and Mille, their old partners, to commentate.
"What do you think about this game?"
Doll said cheerfully. "They're all the top teams in their respective groups. After the previous rounds, everyone should have a certain understanding of their strength."
"That's right. They're all the top players in the LPL. This game will determine the winner," Mille said. "With this BO3, everyone can roughly judge the strength of Group A and Group AB."
The two commentators were joking around to warm up the atmosphere. The ten players on the stage were chatting in the room.
[Dajiahao] The person who sent this message was EDG's mid laner Scout. He replaced Pawn as EDG's starting mid laner this season and was very strong.
[Hello.]
Lin Yan replied.
[Why do you type with a period?] EDG's top laner Mouse was curious.
[I'm just used to it.]
Lin Yan replied.
[Factory Director, I'm your fan!]
Xiao Tian typed excitedly.
Ghostfoot Seven replied with an ellipsis. Then, he felt that his attitude was too cold and typed again.
[Thank you.]
"The BP of the first game has begun!"
Doll, who was talking about Ghostfoot Seven's glorious history, changed the topic. "Let's watch this exciting showdown together!"
"The red team EDG has banned Qian Jue, Callista, and Lucian, while EDG has banned Big Tree, Bard, and Excavator."
"It's obvious that EDG is going to take down the jungler." Miller had a thorough understanding of BP. "They'll ban the three heroes that you're interested in, and then give you the male gunner. Do you want YM?"
"This is a very contradictory point. Xiao Tian's Nanqiang doesn't really fit the team's style." Doll agreed.
Xiao Tian and his coach discussed for a long time and decided to take down Blind Monk first. If Ghostfoot Seven took down Blind Monk, he would have no heroes to choose from.
EDG instantly took down Nanqiang and Ice Maiden.
"Ice Maiden is a substitute ban to prevent Ran from using this hero to roam without pressure," Mille said. "YM has taken out Policewoman and Hammer Stone as the bottom lane combo. This lineup will have no problem playing the lane."
"EDG has chosen Boulogne and EZ to play the backhand, while YM has chosen Tsar and Murloc."
After EDG took down Ike, the lineups of both teams were confirmed.
The blue team YM: Murloc, Blind Monk, Tsar, Policewoman, Hammer Stone.
The red team EDG: Ike, Nanqiang, Ice Maiden, EZ, Boulogne.
"Let's enter the Summoner's Canyon together and start this focal battle!"