World's Groups Predictions-Group B

1st Place: Invictus Gaming

The 2nd seed from China is one of the most inconsistent teams in this tournament. At times, they seem to be unmatched and untouched by any team in China and at other times they seem like they could lose to even the lowest rank team.

Most of this inconsistency comes from the team's carry roles-KiD and Rookie. Both players at their peaks have shown that they can stand toe to toe with the best. KiD actually has quite an illustrious history in E-Sports, one of the few chinese adcs that has remained after the 'Korean Invasion'. This is a testament to his insane mechanics as an ADC. It is often said that Korea is the best region when it comes to ADCs with revered players like NaMei and Uzi, but in actuality, very few have actually survived the Korean imports. Even today,the koreans Deft and Imp are considered the best ADCs in china. So it makes KiD's long standing career is a pleasant surprise in the Chinese scene.

So, this being said- I think IG will either get out first place in the group, or not get out at all. If they show up as the dominant team they have shown they can be- they may not even lose a game. And if they show up as something else they will 'crash and burn' #spicymemes.

2nd Place: Fnatic

At this point, talking about Fnatic almost seems like beating a dead horse. Great individual strength, great early game macro and great late game vision control and positioning. Fnatic is the full package. This being said, they're seemingly unbreakable armor has shown it's chinks. Firstly,  even as Huni and Reignover have shown great synergy in the toplane and have proved more than capable of taking on even the best of the best- one word seems to be their bane: lane swaps. In almost all scenarios, lane swaps have shown to be any team's best shot at beating these Kuropean terrors.

3rd Place: Cloud 9

This is probably the biggest surprise to the readers here. " Cloud 9 over AHQ? lel NA fanboy". I'm not going to lie, I am a fanboy, a big cloud 9 fanboy. But that isn't the reason that i'm placing Cloud 9 at third. I honestly believe that cloud 9's shotcalling is improving at an exponential rate with the addition of Hai. Sneaky and Incarnati0n have both shown to be world class players. Their win against Team Liquid wasn't just 'some fluke' that was planned and carried out to perfection. I believe they can do the same thing this worlds and if they're fortunate (i.e if IG screws up) they can even make it out.

4th Place: AHQ

Ouch, even typing the line above was painful.  The LMS power house has shown massive improvement over the years. Westdooor, SwordArt, GreenTea. ALL know they're shit. They showed at MSi that hey could stand toe to toe with any team in this group yet they still failed to win a game versus any of the top tier teams... Why is cloud 9 better than them? I think on a macro level, Hai's understanding of the game will trump AHQ's and C9 will simply out rotate them on the map. Moreover, I feel that AHQ relies too much on Westdoor to carry their games. It's almost like TSM's case where games are decided by who wins mid lane. In this Meta, things could change. And Ziv arguably 'obliterates' Balls , right? Well not really. So far last season we've seen Balls only on a plethora of tank champs- in this carry meta Balls can actually flourish as he is a player who is very hard to snowball over.

Worlds Groups Predictions - Group A.

1st Place: KOO Tigers.

Even with their mediocre run into the Korean playoff finals, the KOO tigers have shown a vast variety of strategy and innovation though out the korean scene. Innovating comps such as the 'Jugger-maw' and the 'freight-train' they have shown that they are very good at adapting to the new Meta. However, I believe that most of all victories at worlds will be judged by the top laners and their ability to put on their carry socks.

In this context their only real concern is CLG ( that's a sentence I never thought I would say) because time and time again ZionSpartan has shown that he is a very capable player who excels at carry top laners- we are already well aquainted with his riven, which he used to great effect in the 2014 splits with his former team 'Coast'. Smeb, however, has shown no lack of ability in the carry department constantly bolstering his team's success with pocket picks like Lissandra and Jax.

2nd Place: YOE Flash Wolves

Surprised? Yes, I did just say that CLG would be a problem for KOO. But that was in the context of toplaners. Overall, the Flash Wolves are a far more superior team. Before you start busting out the apple pie spirit, hear me out. The Yoe Flash Wolves, within Taiwan, have always been considered the best team in the region- before the LMS playoffs, FW were the biggest predicted to get first seed to worlds. These assertions weren't made on blind fact- Yoe, in taiwan, are revered as the 'china killers' owing to the fact that they can consistently defeat top tier chinese teams in scrims. In my opinion, they may not have shown up for regional playoffs, but they damn sure will show up for worlds. 

3rd Place: Counter Logic Gaming.

This is honestly a hard call to make, especially since Xmithie was just announced as a part of their starting roster in group stages. The only reason I put them below Flash Wolves is a personal 'gut' sensation. Otherwise, the competition between these two teams are actually very comparable. Even with BOTH teams playing at their best it would be hard to call a definite winner.

In fact, on paper, CLG's chances of beating the Flash Wolves are much greater, again owing to the fact that ZionSpartan is a great fit to the current Meta. Furthermore, Steak, is considered one of the weakest toplaners playing at this year's worlds. If CLG can withstand yoe's shear aggression, they should easily be able to place second- I just don't think they can.

4th Place : Pain Gaming.

If anyone could discount a team enough- it's Pain Gaming. Analysts following the brazillian scene will actually tell you that this team is decent. However much i'm inclined to agree with them, I can't place them anywhere above 4th. I will however make the bold assertion that Pain will take two games in this group and one of them will be a stomp.

  A look at The Dragon Knights

This is a team that's been generating some heat in the last few weeks. This team found itself in the bottom of the standings in the past few weeks, appearing as the season's Velocity or Coast. However, last week they acquired two star players whom they hope can carry them out of the sullen hole they have dug themselves into. 

 Emperor and Ninja, two players of Korean origin each have had a unique history for how they reached the NA LCS. Emperor started his professional career as the ADC for CJ Entus Blaze known by the name Topi. Emperor had a broad spectrum of performances throughout the split but relatively stable compared to those of his team members. In each performance one thing was certain: Emperor possessed some of the best mechanical skill seen in league of legends. In fact, at the time Locodoco, the current coach for TSM, considered him as the best mechanical ADC in the world. Many agreed, players like Faker,Impact and Madlife labelled him as the Best Lucian player alive ( apparently Bang wasn't born ;) ) . 

Emperor gets vaynespotted

Since his days at CJ, Emperor has seen mild success in the Brazillian league as AD carry for the Keyd stars. However, the role of AD carry has changed quite a lot since Emperor was at his prime and is difficult to judge his relative skill level. I believe that Emperor will be a great addition to the league and an overall motivation for NA big names,veterans and amateurs alike. So far in the NA lcs, he's shown to be WAY (yes,bold and italics )too aggressive. I mean there's Wildturtle flashing into the enemy base, then there's P1inoy flash ulting people as graves, then a dry day at north Scottish bar and THEN is Emperor's aggression. And in 80 percent of the situations I saw, it got him killed.

Ninja, to me is the more interesting player. He started his career in the rookie team Prime Optimus (AUTOBOTS MOVEOUT- sorry, couldn't resist). Not just any rookie team though, this was the rookie team that manage to upset SK Telecom T1 S (No, that's not the one with faker) in a 2-0 victory at the group stage. Unfortunately, Prime Opitumus didn't qualify in the group stage either way. He was then bought by WE as their new midlaner- which meant he had HUGE shoes to fill. Shoes so big , Shaqille O'Neal woudln't be able to wear them. Shoes, of course, of the great Misaya. His time at WE was a huge failure- the team was placed dead last until himself and his AD carry were replaced. 

Ninja out play:TDK vs NME

As for the NA lcs,from a sample size more than adequate for any redditor, I conclude that he can easily compete for top 3 midlaners in NA. His laning phaze is a spectacle to watch- always aggressive and a thirst for kills. This thirst has also been his bane in teamfights, when it turns into a ravenous gluttony. He, on multiple occasions, has tried to flash in to burst the enemy team- leading to an embarrassing moment of him staring at his grey screen.

Ninja outplay:TDK vs TSM

In the end, I think the road for both TDK and their two new arrivals is a long one. As we've seen countless a times- a team with incredible potential on paper doesn't necessarily lead to the best results. We'll just have to wait and see if they can salvage the rest of the season and materialize all that potential.

                                Player Spotlight: Niels.

The Origen Marksman came out strong at the beginning of the split and has been hyped as one of the best in Europe ever since Xpeke's troupe had acquired him in the fall of 2014. Playing a semi-defensive style akin to that of his european counterpart Rekless and Hjarnan-the Dutch champion dominated the scene.

He is a player formed from the embers of Solo-Q. He reached high challenger grinding Solo Q with a mere 200 or so games. After which, he was recognized by many as a player that is a contender for Rekless' crown as Best Marksman in Europe. Many, such as Krepo and Edward(Gosu Pepper) believed he held that crown already.

 Joining a team composed of seasoned champions can be a daunting task.  On joining Origen, he quickly adapted to the team's 'vetran status'. The team was able to ravage through the challenger scene seamlessly- obliterating opponent after opponent as all 3 players in the team were able to take the team's burden if required.

The reason i'm bringing this up, is simple. After Roccat and nukeduck's medicore performance and Cloud9's abysmal one people were quick to criticize the effects of bringing 'Solo Q' talent into the competitive scene. While in reality there are a plethora of factors that can change the outcome when it comes to the success a player can bring to a team. A majority of that relies not on what the team is gaining but what the team is losing. In Cloud 9's case the team didn't just gain a Class A player with great mechanical ability- they lost a worldclass shotcaller who was pivotal in their success as a team.

PLAYOFF PREDICTIONS : Europe

PART 1- Top 3

1st Place - Fnatic. 

The second obvious choice would have probably been SK. However, from IEM and recent LCS drafts we’ve learnt that SK is somewhat a one-trick pony.  If they win lane- they win game otherwise they just seem to roll over and die. 

Fnatic on the other hand seems to be able to play everything. Reignover probably being their star player with his incredible diversity in the jungle. Fnatic’s main strength lies in their team fights which are sometimes perfectly executed with a good mix of Febiven zoning the back line where as the rest peel for Steelback and allow him to pew pew from the back.

2nd Place- H2K

SK not even second? You gotta be kidding me, right? Well no. For the same reasons as Fnatic being number one on this list. The best of 3/5 dynamic changes this game completely. It becomes more about adaptability and player champion pool and diversity in strategy- things we haven’t seen yet in SK.

H2K on the other hand as shown all of these things and is one of the few teams in the lcs that can handily out lane SK. Sorry for sounding redundant but it's probably the lynch pin of the whole LCS right now- Beat SK in lane, win game.

3rd Place- SK gaming

SK gaming has undisputedly been the best European team throughout the LCS. BECAUSE it was a best of one league. SK consist of 5 players who are incredibly gifted at League of Legends. When they win lane they know how to take advantages of powerspikes and close out the game. The chinks of their armor is revealed when they LOSE their lane. That’s why i’ve chosen H2K and Fnatic above them. Anybody else on this list simply do not have the ability to beat them in lane.

THE FINALS MATCH 

World Elite vs Team Solo Mid

Prediction: Word Elite  3:1

Don’t get me wrong guys i’m no TSM hater. But did you SEE WE? They were DOMINATING the top Korean team, the undefeated team from the supposed best league in the WORLD. After WE’s breathtaking victory yesterday so many people pegged it as GE’s performance or lack there of. However,once you read between the lines it was so obvious that WE’s growth was monumental in the past few days. Xiya and Mystic, the two substitutes were the perfect metaphorical ammunition for the ‘Good Samaritan’ish jungler that is Spirit. I mean seriously, the guy was playing out of his MIND. Always sticking in the fight for just the right amount of time, with just the right amount of work to let the carries eviscerate the Tigers. As spectacular as their team fighting was to watch WE’s true strength lied in their map rotations. There was no point in time in which you felt that they weren’t doing something productive. Every Teemo of distance walked in game paid dividends. 

GE tigers’ only definitive uncanny poor play was seen in Game 2 , in which their atrocious team fighting was their downfall. But overall WE seemed like the BEST TEAM IN THE WORLD. I’m not exaggerating. If WE plays at the 80 percent of what they were yesterday, TSM would be lucky to get even graze by with one victory.

SPLIT PREDICTIONS

                      North America.

10. Team Coast.

Sadly, this is a team that I quite enjoyed watching. They sometimes could pull off the best individual plays. Sometimes,Cris in the toplane has perfect synergy with their jungler Impaler. However, they just seem to have lost contact with each other in teamfights. It looks more or less like a Solo Q game whenever they play. Makes it all the more enjoyable to watch though.

9. Team Dignitas.

Ahh, the fall of the Dongnitas. A team that throughout the split has shown zero signs of improvement; Crumbzz left the jungle only to be replaced by arguably the worst jungler ever to be in the in the LCS. Then he was replaced by Azingy. Either way, Dignitas has shown 0 sign of an upward trajectory. They've either worsened or plateaued.

8. Team Impulse.

Whaaaat? you exclaim as you read this. Yes, Team Impact ;-) has had decent showings. But sometimes their play seems to fall SO flat. Every game they play- TSM to Coast seems to be like watching a person swim up the current with his hands tied behind his back.

7.Team Winterfox

At the beginning of this split I honestly thought this team would on the top half of the bracket. The Pobelter hype and Altec all looked to be doing so great individually. They truly had a bitter case of just falling behind the meta and not researching their opponents enough.

6.Gravity Gaming.

Great performances all around. One of the lower tier teams that actually uses strategy instead of simply trying to win lane and carry from there. 

5. Team 8.

At this point you probably think I'm certifiably insane. Team 8 over Gravity and WFX?  Well yes. This team has truly shown how to play this game AS A TEAM. Their mid- late game is coherent and well executed. They have decent carries in Maple and Slooshi. They really have it all.

4. Counter Logic Gaming.

I have a feeling they will be slightly higher in Playoffs. But as for the split, a dead 4th. Liquid just seems too good right now with 'KEITH' and while they are putting Piglet back as a starter, I have a feeling they are going to revert back to KEITH. In which case CLG is left to be the worse team of the top. 

3. Team Liquid.

THE PRODIGAL SON RETURNS! Yes, Piglet is back and Liquid could plummet again. However, something this time tells me that that's not going to happen. Xpecial and IWD have carried Liquid through so many games and I see more on the Horizon..

2. Team Solo Mid.

This was the toughest call to make in the list. Will TSM be 2nd or 1st?  There's your answer.

1. Cloud 9.

"Just another day in the office" - Cloud 9. Watch them come first in yet another split.

SPLIT PREDICTIONS

    EUROPE.

10. MYM

          

Yeah... No comment.

9.Giants

Solo Queue style play and solo carrying are what the Giants have owed their games to, but against top teams they just haven't had any impact. They seem to use the 'bang your head into the was over and over and hope it breaks' strategy.

8. ROCCAT

We've all heard the promises of how good this team is one paper with star carries like nukeduck and woolite, consistent supporting players like Vander and the metophorical 'cherry on top' jungler i.e - Jankos. However, they just haven't performed. Team communication has been the prime reason for this short cumming. ROCCAT's late game is quite simply atrocious and while they have plenty of 'room to improve' so do their competition.In fact, their competition has already shown some improvement.

7. Copenhagen Wolves. 

The Copenhagen Wolves have shown miraculous improvement through the split, if you function this improvement at the constant rate they would be way higher in this league; However, I don't predict this will be the case.

6. Elements.

To be perfectly honest with you, I wanted to to put Elements and The wolves at a sixth place tie. Unfortunately 6th place is the cutoff for playoff teams, and it felt like somewhat of a sissy move to be on the fence. The former CLG.eu is pulling a CLG.NA, swapping out enough players and create enough 'potential' of an electron spring. Though, somewhere in my stomach, I feel elements is the sort of team to step up when it counts (pls no Kabum jokes).

5.Unicorns of Love

Everybodies' new favorite team. It's a beautfiul gimmick really: 1. Make silly name. 2. Let fans underestimate you. 3. proceed to see their jaws drop as you decimate your enemy.
Unicorns has shown to be one of those teams that 'play to the level of their opponents' and I think will have a well deserved top 4 spot in playoffs.

4.H2K

They have some how been completely overlooked by everybody. They're just this name that occupies one of the games of the week. H2K however is one of the top teams in the EU lcs. The addition of KaSing seems to have really got some communication going. Ryu's rekindled flame has seemed to also carry them through many hard fought games.

3. Gambit Gaming.
Mosc 0-5 has had the highest quality games of the League at the moment. All their games are the best mix of crisp and sloppy and right now, their momentum seems unstoppable


2. SK Gaming
Yeah, maybe SK should be first. or maybe not. Their playstyle has seemed to completely stagnate. Many top teams have figured them out and just won the game in Picks and Bans.

1. Fnatic.

Solid play. Sums up Fnatic. During team fights they have rarely shown any weakness. Reignover completely carries them through the laning phaze and their mid-late game teamfights seems to hive mind and destroy. Not to mention- Huni <3.

LCS EUROPE: Game predictions 

Hot Games of the Week.

UOL vs ROCCAT

Winner: ROCCAT 

Call me a bandwagoner, but Roccat has sold me;Jankos seems to be as good as ever, Nukeduck has been consistent and it's botlane has been impeccable. Their only week point seems to be Overpow, who, when compared to the other toplaners of the league just doesn't seem to measure up. Even worse is the fact that he's up against Viziscaci; the top lane BEAST currently for UOL. 

However, I think if it keep the other lane's winning and that top lane in control, Roccat can make clearer mid-late game calls and bring it home.




H2K vs ROCCAT

Winner: H2K

WHAAT? I call H2K fan" say most of you right now. Well, this is more of a gut feeling. H2K has for almost all of it's games gotten the early game lead. They have some of the best solo lane names in the business and Pr0lly as an analyst. THAT SOUNDS BLOODY PERFECT. I don't understand how they throw so much. Their vision control mistakes should be easy fixes and their mechanics should carry them through teamfights.

FANTASY LCS - Top Picks.

           It's that time of year again boys and girls. The LCS, teams battling teams all of spring. And along with it comes the revamped Fantasy LCS. Which two new teams as an addition to the LCS there are so many choices.
          
This list will give you my top preference for each position. HERE GOES! 

Marksman/ADC.

The ADC is the role that will rack you up the most points over time. Choosing a good consistent AD carry is the key here, on that worries about their KDA as much as you do. Last year , Doublelift racked up the most points out of any player with his farm heavy - strong laning style. I expect this year to be the same- so if you're lucky enough to get your hands on DLift you already have an edge over your fantasy friends

However, not everybody is so lucky - here are some other Marksman I think will excel in the KDA rack up for NA as well as EU from Best ---> Worst


1. Rekkles-----> 2. WildTurtle ---->3. SneakyCastro----> 





4.Forg1ven.-----> 5. P1inoy.


Middle Lane.


           The second most point gathering position. Mids is often known to be the most mechanically challenging lane for 1v1s and of course the lane that often has the most kills. Especially , with assassin meta comps with LeBlanc , Zed , Jayce and Syndra. You'll be guaranteed to have alot of points.... that is, IF you chose the right midlaners. Here are some you can always count on to smash those KDA.


1.Froggen ---->  2. Bjergsen ----> 3.



4. Pobelter ( #hype) ----> 5. Febiven ---> 6. PowerOfEvil




TopLane




1. Balls ----> 2. Wickd ----> 3. Quas ----> 4.Calitrolz




Jungle

1.Meteos ---> 2. Shook---> 3. Svenskeren ---> 4.IWD.



Support

1.Aphromoo --->2. Xpecial --->3. LustBoy ---> 4. YellowStar

LCS NA Power Rankings



Bare in mind these rankings are for the SPLIT only , NOT for playoffs.

Also, this list is VERY speculative. It is based on performances in offseason tournaments (IEM, Expansion tournament etc) , rumors from the pro scene and general thoughts. 

Lastly, This list doesn't include any teams without a full roster - Team Impulse and EG.

8.Team Coast

         Overall, Team Coast's performance in the Expansion tournament was very inconsistent. The european imports of Jesiz and Impaler had alot of pressure to perform after the team's failure in the relegation tournaments; and how they did. Impaler played out of his mind. Not to mention the well above average performance from the botlane Mash and Sheep. A botlane that won against all of it's opposers except that of Curse Academy. 

          This being said however, this was their performance at an  EXPANSION tournament. Their competition is hardly grounds to base them in an LCS stage. 

7. Curse Academy

          

      Indisputably the best team at the expansion tournament and a team that almost took CLG out of the LCS. It's botlane was a spectacle with Mr Consistent- Cop and the playmaker Thresh who is considered on the level Madlife while playing BunnyFuFuu (WHOOPS). 

      Again, the LCS this split seems so stacked that it's hard to place this team any higher on this list. However, if I were to hypothetically travel forward in time, I wouldn't be surprised what so ever that Curse Academy was actually somewhere higher on the LCS list.

6. Dignitas

     

     Dignitas so low???? Well yes. Based off their lackluster performance at IEM  - almost losing to High Aces , a TURKISH team with two subs. And then getting their asses whooped by Gambit they haven't shown much promise.

     Their only shining light - Shiphtur is easily the best player on the team. But even he couldn't carry the team hard enough. Dignitas seemed to have many communication issues between Crumbzz and new top laner Gamsu as well as Core JJ being constantly found out of position -Dignitas seemed like they didn't know what they were doing.

5. Team 8.

    

     Probably the most underrated team to qualify for the LCS. They were the winners of the Challenger series- winning 3-1 against Curse Academy and defeated Complexity , which was considered the best team to drop out from LCS , 3-2 in the relegation. They have a nicely organized team with the support player - Dodo calling the shots and strong carries in Maplestreet and Cali8. Their midlaner Slooshi is also quite solid. Overall I think this team will surprise the fans. 

4. Counter Logic Gaming

 CLG has arguably been THE most inconsistent team in the world. They start the split playing awfully then dig into their 'potential' midway through the split. Have some promising games and then get destroyed in Playoffs.

   Their new outfit along with Zionspartan and Xmithie seems to be quite promising. Even with using a sub (Thinkcard) in IEM they managed to pullout some great games against Roccat and Gambit. Their communication seems on point and their teamfights are great. One evident weakness is their shotcalling. A weakness that needs to be solved quickly.

 3. Curse/ Liquid Gaming

    Sorry, can't put two 4th places. Curse's acquisition of  Piglet seems to be a good one. Doublifit and Scarra have both claimed Curse to be a contender for the top spot in the LCS. Additionally, IWD seems to be right in place with the current Jungle meta- Jarvan, Rengar and maybe even Shaco? 

   Dyrus and Balls have both called Quas the best top laner in NA. Fenix may have large Voyboy's large shoes to fill in for the mid lane but seems to holding his own. Curse may be the biggest surprise for in NA yet.

2. Team Solo Mid

      TSM! TSM! TSM! 

 TSM is just hard to knock out of dominance. You may get them second place or third place , but an organisation so experienced with Regi as the owner has seemed like an NA powerhouse FOREVER. Sure Cloud 9 may be first on this list but c'mon. How long has TSM been around? They are an incredibly talented team with a vast fan base. No matter how unpredictable TSM is. No matter which random EU team they lose to they won't fall out of favour for long. 

  The addition of Santorin didn't seem like a strong one in IEM but in Scrims the dominant TSM jungler has never dropped below a KDA of three which is highly impressive. I have high hopes for this TSM team and hope they succeed in this split

1. Cloud 9

      The obvious first place on this list has only gotten better since it's explosive start into the LCS summer split of 2013. Taking games off Najin Shield and the rank 1 eu team Alliance they seem poised to be the NA champions again. Even when behind in some games at worlds Sneaky's solid play and Hai's shotcalling seemd like they could claw back from anything. Against top tier korean teams this may not have been possible for most NA teams - beating Cloud 9 may well be a dream.