Reign of Gaming

We're just a week away from the All-Star weekend, and Riot has a wild weekend planned for fans of competitive League of Legends. The best of the best will gather from around the world to compete for more than just bragging rights. For full brackets and roster information check out Leaguepedia's All-Star page!

Not only will there be a double elimination tournament taking place between the 5 regions, but a "skills" challenge will pit players in the same roles against each other in interesting competitions. Riot hasn't announced just what these skill competitions entail yet, but a 1v1 between Wickd and Soaz brought 140,000 viewers to Twitch. Just imagine what 1v1 between Misaya and Alex Ich would bring.

The Format and Challenges for Teams

Each region voted in their All-Stars to represent their scene in a double elimination tournament. Southeast Asia receives a bye into the second round because they won Season 2, and that leaves North America to face off against China while Europe is paired with the Koreans. These aren't simply showmatches.

Riot made the winning region earn an extra bid to the Season 3 World Championships later this year, meaning these players might be playing for the right for their own team to compete for a title. Not only the extra spot is at stake, but the last place region will have all its teams forced to play through the brutally tough group stages at worlds.

Relegation week has come and gone for both North America and Europe, and we have 5 new teams out of 8 possibilities. In Europe aAa, Giants, and Dragonborns were replaced by Sinners Never Sleep, Alternate, and MeetYourMakers respectively. In North America MRN and Complexity were shown the door by Velocity and Quantic. Amateur teams exceeded expectations no matter how you look at it, and while we might have believed a few teams were on their way out 5 out of 8 surprised everyone. 

The amateur scene is far from developed yet, and the LCS teams would have seemed to have the advantage of playing better opponents and preparing each week against the best day in and day out. So what led to 62.5% of the teams packing their bags? Was it more about the former LCS teams self-destructing or the improvement of teams around the amateur scene?

Getting to the top is easier than staying on top

Reaching your goal, your dream is a gigantic driving force. It powers people every single day to keep striving and getting into the LCS and being able to play video games for a living certainly falls under this category. It doesn't take a psychologist to see that working towards a goal and pushing yourself to achieve something is a much more powerful and healthy motivator than trying not to lose your job and (most likely) your team breaking up.

As former NFL football coach Herm Edwards once said, "you play to win the game!" In a tournament or certain settings this should always be true and no team should ever intentionally throw a game that would have them out of contention. That being said, losing a game in order to gain a better match-up for your team in a league setting is simply strategy.

It will never be the popular decision. "Throwing" a game makes your team look bad in the moment and gives the opponent extra motivation to play against you. However, teams are in the business of winning and sometimes winning means making unpopular decisions in the now for the better future. People don't remember 2nd or 3rd place, and they don't care how close you came to beating a team that always gives you trouble. People care about winning and teams should do what gives them the best chance to win.

Losing the Battle to Win the War

Certain teams are naturally going to play better against other teams. Players have certain styles and champion pools that are naturally countered by other teams. If a team always has your number, the best way to win long-term is obviously to get better and beat them. The best way to beat them in the now though? Not play them for as long as possible to give your team the best chance at finishing in the highest possible place. Players, coaches, everyone involved with a team will lose their jobs if results are consistently inconsistent.

Relegation has come and gone for EU leaving 3 former LCS teams in its wake. Only Copehagen Wolves managed to retain their spot for the summer season, and if North American teams aren't careful the same thing could happen to them.

Few people would argue that the NA scene is as deep with talented teams as Europe, but Europe should certainly serve as a warning to teams like CLG and Dignitas that relegation is a very possible outcome this weekend. Relegation means more to big teams because not only does it deserve that team, but the LCS and e-Sports as a whole. The LCS is better served by big teams keeping their spots and returning to prominence.

Rivalries and Recognition

Sports has countless things that make it such a tremendous viewing experience that goes beyond the game being played. Sports are real life mini-dramas and the good ones always have several things going on at once. Games are just more interesting when we see teams we know to be rivals are playing and we think, "man i've got to make sure I watch that game." The biggest names and teams bring more eyes to the screen in a way smaller teams and players simply don't and it is like that in any sport from Football to League of Legends.

Minions don't spawn until 1:30 into the game, but it's entirely possible to win or lose before anyone has farmed a single minion. The majority of players in the pro scene have found out just how important level 1 strategies are due to the LCS, and even now have to formulate multiple plans so they don't get predictable in what they do. Level 1 matters, which is what made it such a gigantic deal when CJ Entus Frost's then ADC Woong looked a the screen during a pause against TSM.

A good level 1 can turn an inherently losing match-up into a winning one, or snowball an even / counter match-up even harder than normal. Kills are the best outcome involved, but seemingly small things like opponents buffs or denying the enemy duo lane double golems can lead to winning lanes. We all know how important vision is on Summoner's Rift, and it's as true at 40 minutes as it is as 2 minutes. Even in solo queue, you do your team no favors by waiting in base for that 4th health potion or sitting by your tower while you wait for the minion wave.

The Setup

Certain teams are going to be better at fighting level 1 due to their skill sets. Having a Blitzcrank, Alistar, or Thresh is almost reason enough to want to brawl at level one. The key is forcing something, anything to be done at level 1. Acing a team level 1 will almost certainly obviously win you most games where it happens, but even getting early flashes out of opponents can swing entire lanes in your favor. If your team has heavy level 1 cc, it is in your best interest to look for a fight.

It's a been a wild week in e-Sports leading up to the LCS playoffs where both NA and EU teams will square off for $100,000 in prize money each. The playoffs will certainly dominate the League of Legends news for the next few days, so it's nice to take a deep breath and see just what all is happening around the scene. We have players and teams helping in the face of tragedy, a disqualification of a playoff team, and top-rate playoff previews this week.

aAa Disqualified for Being Unable to Field an Approved Roster

The match between aAa and SK Gaming was delayed this morning, and the reason has just been announced by RedBeard on the LoL forums. Unfortunately, a member of aAa had to tend to a family emergency and aAa could not get their substitutes to the Riot studio in time to play. The community misses out on what would have been a terrific match, and it is a situation where no one really wins.

Here is Redbeard's official statement:

LCS Fans,

We wanted to give you an update on the situation with the SK Gaming vs. aAa match that was delayed earlier today. Unfortunately, we’ve made an official ruling to disqualify aAa from the EU LCS playoffs. This is obviously an extremely disappointing situation as we’re missing out on a great match-up between two fantastic teams fighting for their LCS lives. This difficult decision was made because aAa was unable to field a roster of eligible players, and was necessary in order to maintain the structural integrity of our league.

Earlier this week, a starting aAa team member sadly had to return home for a family emergency and would not be able to make it back to play in today’s match (we want to respect the individual and team’s privacy and can’t share more information). None of their three eligible substitutes were able to act as such in time for these matches despite the best efforts of aAa to scramble for an alternative. The LCS did everything in its power to adjust playoff scheduling to accommodate the team’s needs, including a possible makeup match on Saturday morning, but the team was still unable to fulfill the roster requirements stated in the league rules.

An alternative option was raised to allow for aAa to use a substitute not eligible on their roster, but this would’ve violated the official rules and put SK in the unfair position of playing against a team composition they were never allowed to practice for. We had extensive conversations with aAa and SK to try and find a solution (to SK’s credit, they did their best to accommodate – those guys are studs!). However, in the end the league felt it was unfair to SK and other teams to deviate from a substitution policy that could potentially correlate to an unfair disadvantage for an opponent. Setting this precedent would lead to a very slippery slope.

Our sincere apologies to all of our fans for the inconvenience this created. Despite the elimination of this match, we are extremely excited for the remainder of playoff action occurring in Europe and NA.

RedBeard

The LCS regular season is over, and we saw some truly amazing games in both Europe and North America. Riot saw over 100k+ viewers tune in regularly to matches every week that pit the best against the best in each scene. The real winners were everyone watching these titans clash. It's that time of year where we should recognize some players who had truly incredible seasons.

MVP

MVP (Most Valuable Player) will be given to the player who had an incredible season and went above and beyond at their position. MVP is always a tough choice to make because it can be hard to define how much 1 player truly impacts a team. The decisions weren't easy, but these were my MVPs for the NA and EU scenes.

Europe - xPeke (Honorable mention Diamondprox)

What's not to love about the best player on the best team? The rest of the team is talented around him, but he is the straw that stirs the drink. When xPeke is playing well, the team is nigh unbeatable. He made a gigantic impact on a number of games from split-pushing a nexus for a victory Ender's Game style (the enemy's nexus is down), to teleport ganking with Katarina.

Team Curse's longtime support player, Cody 'Elementz' Sigfusson, has decided to become a free agent. Both Curse management and Elementz feel it is best for the team and Elementz to go their separate ways starting with the Spring playoffs. He will be free to sign with another team during the summer split beginning May 13th, or remain as a reserve for Curse based on his decision.

Elementz offered the following statement on the decision and his time as a player for Curse

"I've decided to become a free agent due to internal issues on the team, but I will remain on Team Curse as a reserve player to help the team finish out the season any way I can. Curse fans I couldn't thank you enough for all your support and helping me get to this point in my life.

I would also like to thank the Curse organization and my teammates for making it this far together. It's unfortunate that this had to happen but life has a way of working things out and Steve and I have agreed that this is best decision for the team and myself. I am looking forward to the things to come and wish everyone I've met along the way the best of luck in the future.

Elementz has been both a great player for top teams, and a pillar of the League of Legends community since beta. His run on Counter Logic Gaming during the early days of the e-Sports scene saw the team dominate time and time again en route to several tournament victories. His famed tier list ranking champions by their effectiveness in the current meta continues to be one of the most viewed and talked about pieces in the scene today.

Over the last few weeks, we've seen teams clawing themselves out of the holes they dug themselves early in the season. Upsets have been abundant in both the European and North American scene in a far greater quantity than early on in the season, So why are there more upsets that have happened now as opposed to early on in the season? Let's take a look at the several factors that have contributed to the recent prevalence of parity.

Knowledge is Power!

Early on in the LCS, teams didn't know or understand what to expect. No one was coming in as a complete unknown, but several players had very little LAN experience. The players and teams weren't use to a demanding schedule of games that matter every week and the preparation needed to be successful. When teams just went in playing it by ear, without the game-planning and preparation, the better team is much more likely to win.

Effort takes no talent. As the season went on, these teams learned what it was like to be a pro, what the game was demanding of them to be successful. Weaknesses are exposed time after time and let teams see where they need to improve. Once the jitters are gone and the teams focused on what they needed to improve on, they started to use those losses as lessons in improvement. Some teams changed players, some teams changed styles or champions, but they have all figured out what they don't do well and have started to address it.

By now, we've all heard about Curse's recent tiff. Curse has been losing all of their recent scrims to CLG, and a screencap of a conversation between Doublelift and Saint arose about how weak the Curse bottom lane was (specifically Elementz). Elementz took offense to the ordeal and made a 33 minute vlog defending himself and criticizing Saint's leadership as team captain. Saint responded with his own vlog questioning Elementz commitment to getting better and attitude further escalating the whole ordeal and here we are.

Let's get one thing out of the way from the beginning: team's fight, especially when they lose. Teams should never air their dirty laundry in public, but in the day and age of Twitter, Facebook, and Youtube, it is going to happen in any sport. Both sides have valid arguments, and in a long season every team will have to overcome adversity at some point. Let's dive a little deeper into this Curse fight and see how all teams can grow from adversity.

Not Everyone has to be an All-Star

Elementz isn't the best support player in the world, nor is he the worst player to ever grace the competitive scene. Not every player on a team has to be the best at his role, just the best for his specific team. Curse shouldn't be freaking out and looking to make a drastic change anytime soon. They have the best record in the NA LCS and show up to play when it matters.

Curse's bottom lane isn't what carries their team, and a team with Voyboy and Saintvicious probably shouldn't be playing that style in the first place. Unequivocally Saint should be a little more measured in his criticism of players and be more mindful of team morale.

We've all sat and wondered the age old question before: What if things were different? A few simple choices can dramatically alter the course of someone's life and the lives of everyone around them. Hundreds of possibilities exist for what might have been in the e-Sports world if things were slightly different. 2 distinct possibilities stick out in my mind for what could have massively altered the timelines we are on today.

First things first. Some things were always destined to end. CLG and SK's roster changes would have always happened because of the people involved will always clash. The belief they are always right and the confidence in themselves is what makes those players successful. To change that aspect of their personality would affect their game as well. That eliminates some obvious choices for what if's but leaves us with some even more exciting ideas to explore.

What if Chicks Dig Elo stayed together?

Rewind the clock back to 2011, when the World Cyber Games offered an Olympic style tournament that mattered. WCG gave us some truly exciting moments and an epic song that went beyond the game (warning: this song will change your life). Teams had to all represent 1 country only, and so CLG and TSM had to mix and match in order to get eligible lineups because of their Canadian members (Chaox, Oddone, HotshotGG, Bigfatjiji, and Elementz all being from Canada).

How many times have we heard a pro gamer being interviewed after a recent loss say, "we were just outpicked badly"? It seems like a cop out answer at first glance, but as the teams draw closer and closer in skill level, picking becomes more important.

In solo queue, it's hard to truly be outpicked because the difference of skill in players and lack of coordination allows for a number of strange and weird things to happen. The competitive scene is much different because the players know their opponents beforehand, what they play, what they don't play, and more importantly how they play. Let's take a closer look at just how important champion select can be in the e-Sports scene.

Comfort Zones

Every single player in League of Legends has a comfort zone. A style of play (and champion pool) that fits their personal play-style the best. Hotshot plays tanks, Reginald plays aggressive, Score plays to survive teamfights (and preserve his fabled KDA). Some tigers can't change their stripes. Great players can switch up on the fly, but they'll always be better at a certain style and any advantage gained before the game starts is invaluable.

It's been an action packed week in the land of League of Legends. The LCS continues through the weekend and Europe in particular has several can't miss matches. Before those start, several teams have shaken up their rosters right before the end of the Spring season and an old organization reunites with a former team. Let's take a look at the week that was in e-Sports news.

NA Roster Moves: Muffinqt and Chuuper out; Bloodwater and Pr0lly in

Vulcun and Complexity both made roster moves with just a few weeks to go in the season. Vulcun's perhaps being the most surprising, as they get rid of longtime support Muffinqt in favor of Bloodwater from GGU. Bloodwater was formerly of CLG.Black and has played with current Vulcun members Zuna and Sycho Sid before. He is affectionately called "Godwater" around the scene because of his penchant for big plays and ability to call shots. This might be just what a consistently mediocre Vulcun team needs to take that next step to break into the "Top 4" of NA.

The official LCS All-Star voting has begun. Summoners can vote once a day from April 2nd through the 15th for who they think deserves to represent each region at the LCS All-Star weekend. Word is that all regions will have an All-Star team, and those teams will be competing in a tournament for an additional slot in the Season 3 Championships. That means instead of sending 2 teams to the finals, a region would get to send 3. Vote for your NA picks here, and EU players can be selected here.

I've tackled the issues of overall "dream" teams before, but the fun experiment is now a reality (and region based!). It's always tough to vote for All-Stars because it's tough to determine whether you vote for the best player, the player who has performed the best, or which players would perform the best together. Europe will run into even more issues with language barriers, but let's do our best to pick which players are most deserving of the All-Star nod.

North American All-Stars

Top: Dyrus (TSM)

Mid: Scarra (Dignitas)

Jungle: Saintvicious (Curse)

Support: Patoy (Dignitas)

AD Carry: Doublelift (CLG)

These picks are based on whom I think has had the best LCS in NA at their respective positions. Dyrus has been TSM's most consistently good player and has fared very well in his 2v1 lane. He gets a slight nod over Voyboy for me personally in the closest positional race, but either would be excellent choices to represent NA because of their versatility. Dyrus has the highest K/D/A of top lanes at 4.9 and passes the eye test for me in terms of consistency. This of course isn't taking away from players like Nickwu and Megazero whom have had a good season, but aren't quite there every game for their team.

It's hard to believe we've been through 7 weeks of the LCS already, and that the season is just a few weeks away from the playoffs. Some truly crazy numbers have come out of the LCS, including Cop's ridiculous 17.0 K/D/A ratio in NA (the top EU K/D/A is Candypanda at 8.0).

Our friends over at Leaguepedia have rounded up some of the most interesting numbers from the LCS, so let's take a dive in and see just what they mean.

Let's take a closer look at champions in the LCS...

• The most commonly used champions in Week 6 by (W-L) were:  Nasus (9-3),  Lulu (5-7),  Thresh (7-3), and  Zed (7-3).

• GIA Babeta has played a female champion in 14 games thus far making him the girliest player in LCS. Next in line are CW Deficio, CLG LiNk, EG Froggen, and d scarra with 12 female games each.

• CLG Chauster, CRS Saintvicious, TSM TheOddOne, and VUL Xmithie are the only players who have not played a female champion (minimum 10 games).

•  Miss Fortune,  Elise, and  Orianna are the only champions to have a winning record on the Red side (minimum 10 games).