We are tired of winning championships, and we still need youth training?

Chapter 170 Oh yeah, I've seen chickens before!

After losing the second game, Xu Xinghe patted Rookie next to him without saying much.

For a veteran player like Rookie, offering words of comfort might actually sound like a lack of trust.

Rookie did have some issues with his performance in this game, but Xu Xinghe had already anticipated that before the match.

Back in the lounge, Karam remained calm.

"They started targeting the mid lane and trying to take control of the lane."

It's only natural that they're being targeted.

RNG is not bad. Although the Demacia Cup championship may not be very prestigious, it at least proves their potential.

From the training team to the players, RNG's strength is as undeniable as Cat's catchphrase.

"Let's coordinate the mid, jungle, and support. I'll go to the mid lane to help Rookie clear the wave."

Missing spoke first.

He held his head high, his eyes focused and serious.

As the former crown prince of WE and the hope of JDG, Missing has an excellent sense of game.

Since mid-lane heroes are being banned, the mid-lane loses lane priority.

Why not just have the support roam to the mid lane and help the mid laner secure lane priority?

"That's one approach, but RNG is very skilled at it too."

Saint Gun raised an eyebrow and added a sentence.

He is still very rational.

Many people have watched RNG's matches, and their bot lane is often left to fend for itself.

Although Gala doesn't yet have the title of "strongest bot laner," he's already quite experienced at AFKing in the bottom lane.

Xiao Ming also frequently travels around.

In the first game, RNG planned to focus on the bottom lane, but Xu Xinghe found a weakness instead.

In this final game, RNG can no longer focus all their efforts on the bottom lane.

Both involve mid-jungle-support synergy, so what's the advantage?
“I know, but this is the best way.”

Missing stood firm: "If the mid lane loses control, the bot lane will also be in trouble. RNG's four-man gank on the bot lane is even more threatening."

"Let's pick a mid laner who can roam and provide support during the draft phase, so we can take the initiative and launch a fast attack against RNG."

RNG will collaborate, and so will we at IG.

This is Missing's idea.

Instead of overthinking it, let's just have a real fight with RNG.

"But I can't beat Bin now."

Saint Gun spoke frankly.

His gaze was calm, and he did not shy away from the difference in individual abilities.

"If neither jungler comes, then the top laner has no initiative."

"If he wants to go and provide support, he will definitely get there before me."

"You'll be playing three against four then. How can you fight when you're outnumbered? Are you going to give up the Rift Herald and Dragon? You know how important plating is this patch, right? We can't afford to lose team fights early on."

If you lose a team fight in the early game in this version, you might get beaten down until you're close to winning.

With the addition of a coating and a pioneer, the snowball effect is happening incredibly fast.

This is also the biggest feature of version S10.

Unlike previous games that favored late-game carry team fights, early and mid-game team fights are now more important.

Once an economic gap is created in the early stages, it becomes extremely difficult to turn the tide.

Viewers are tired of the monotonous matches where the final team fight decides the winner after 30 or 40 minutes of development; they prefer the thrill of combat.

Fist, obviously, understands this principle as well.

A match that lacks entertainment value is like a fallen leaf, only fit to be swept into the trash can by sanitation workers.

Worthless.

"........."

Missing understood what Flandre meant, which is why he remained silent.

There's no solution now.

With no lane priority in the top lane and the opponent being adept at roaming in the bottom lane, Rookie's performance in the mid lane becomes extremely crucial.

The problem is that Rookie is being targeted and he can't get lane control.

No matter how good Xu Xinghe is, he can't maintain a perfect early game rhythm after losing control of the top and mid lanes; losing resources is almost inevitable.

But in this version... resources are incredibly important in the early stages.

Did you not play well in the early stages?
Then there's no post-production.

The atmosphere in the lounge became somewhat heavy for a moment, with only Viper staring blankly at the ceiling.

He was just a henchman.

There's not much to say at times like this; just be obedient and listen to instructions.

"Let's pick an early-game hero."

"Use hero strength to make up for laning problems."

Xu Xinghe finally spoke after hearing this for a while.

Saint Gun and Missing frowned almost simultaneously: "This..."

The reason they frowned was simple.

Although resource gathering is crucial in the early stages of this version, the actual game time is quite long.

It will take at least thirty minutes.

Unless things go exceptionally smoothly, you should definitely be able to get the three core items for the carry role before the game ends.

Early game champions are strong, but with the same three items, Caitlyn and Aphelios are no match for Lucian and Draven, it's like beating a dog.

Choosing early-game heroes can indeed help you hold your own in the laning phase.

But the most likely outcome is that you win, win, win, and then lose it all in one go.

Essentially, this is a race against time.

The handsome young man raised his eyes, his voice calm yet powerful.

"If you want to gain something, you must be prepared to lose it."

"Early game heroes really can't drag out the game, and they can't afford any mistakes or breaks in the rhythm."

"But it's okay, all the pressure is on me."

He looked around and uttered his last words briefly and calmly.

"Believe me."

Why can birds fly?
Because they must leap across the sky.

Xu Xinghe didn't say many fancy words; he simply explained the principles to his teammates.

Does IG have a choice?
Actually there is none.

Unless you surrender outright, you have to take risks if you want to win.

The reason is simple: we just can't compete in terms of raw power.

Xu Xinghe didn't want to lose, so he had to step up.

From the very beginning, what he wanted to express was not "I want to win".

Rather, it's "I must win."

Saint Gunner glanced sideways, looking somewhat stunned at the boy beside him.

His voice wasn't particularly passionate, but it conveyed sincerity to Flandre.

In a daze, Flandre thought of his past self.

When he first debuted, he solemnly said the same thing to his teammates from the Snake Esports team at the time:

Believe me.

He lost that time.

Saint Gun suddenly laughed.

He patted Xu Xinghe on the shoulder and said, "Okay."

Missing sighed helplessly, her eyes brightening, but she continued to complain:
"Why make it sound so serious? If we lose, we'll all get scolded together."

"Brother Xinghe, you're too eager to win, aren't you? You're really not convinced..."

Rookie grinned. "To be honest, I want to win too."

"Losing one game in the Demacia Cup was already embarrassing enough, but losing again in the Spring Split is something I can't accept."

The atmosphere is different now.

Xu Xinghe felt relieved and smiled, "Indeed, if you think about it carefully, there's still the Spring Split playoffs, the Summer Split, the Summer Split playoffs, the gauntlet, and the World Championship this year."

"There is a possibility of encountering RNG in these matches."

"Including the Demacia Cup and today's match, let's hope RNG doesn't treat us like Meng Huo (a legendary figure from Chinese mythology) this year?"

puff.

Saint Gun couldn't hold back for a moment.

That's absolutely right. There are indeed seven chances to meet this year. If you lose all of them, wouldn't that be a seven-times capture?

Just thinking about it made him feel ashamed as a clown.

He'll probably be relegated to standing guard in front of McDonald's.

"Okay, no more gossip."

Karam clapped his hands. "Now that you've mostly reached a consensus, I know how to proceed with the draft and ban phase."

"Come here, everyone. I'll tell you how to beat RNG!"

After a short break, both teams returned to the stage. The RNG players appeared relaxed, chatting and laughing.

After all, they had already won the second game, and it seemed that they had indeed found IG's weakness.

As long as they continue to target the mid lane in the third game, they firmly believe that victory will still belong to them.

Therefore, my mindset was naturally more relaxed.

Bin's face darkened after the first game, but now he's all smiles.

However, Xiaohu's expression was completely different from his teammates'.

His expression remained serious, his lips slightly pursed, and he walked to his seat without exchanging any words.

On the other side, the IG players had similar expressions.

[Tiger! Tiger! Tiger! Tiger! Tiger! Tiger! Tiger! Tiger! Tiger! Tiger!]

Why is Little Tiger so serious?

[RNG, don't relax! You haven't won yet!!!]

Go IG! Win the third game!

[Laughs, IG is too serious here, it feels like they're done for]

The live chat was almost entirely filled with RNG fans.

IG fans unanimously chose to remain silent.

Having already lost last time, they are afraid of losing again this time, so naturally they don't want to speak casually.

However, the expressions on the faces of the IG players did indeed make them very worried.

This looks like... a lot of pressure!
After the host warmed up the crowd, the final draft phase of the decisive game officially began, accompanied by upbeat background music.

In this game, IG, the losers from the previous game, got to choose their side first, while Karam chose the blue side.

"Oh? Aren't you going to try having Galaxy act as the fifth counter?"

Guan Zeyuan stroked his chin.

"Do you think RNG has already found the weakness in this playstyle? Or do you simply think that Galaxy has to bear too much pressure?"

"Perhaps it's to get the hero they want even more."

Remember to offer another perspective.

"Actually, looking at the two games today, the battle between the mid and jungle is very important. Whoever has the initiative in the mid and jungle will be able to open up the game faster."

"Then helping Galaxy or Rookie get a stronger hero pick might be a good option."

While the two commentators were chatting, Karam was the first to press the button.

Rock bird!

Xiaohu's Taliyah is very strong.

Both in terms of proficiency and strategic thinking, he is among the best in the LPL.

A veteran mid-laner like him is already an expert in how to provide support and coordinate plays.

Otherwise, how could he be compared to the three LPL mid laners who won the S championship in the original history?

He's won so many MSI championships that he could combine them into a two-star character!

Taliyah's importance in the current version is undeniable; it's no exaggeration to say she's the strongest mid-lane support in the current version. The only one who can rival her is Twisted Fate.

Even Ryze is no good, because Ryze's ultimate range has been nerfed.

However, the card doesn't give you much initiative in lane, so picking it doesn't pose much of a threat.

Taliyah is the one that should be targeted the most.

"Tsk, it's gone as expected."

RNG's coach clicked his tongue lightly, not too surprised.

After all, IG's coach's draft picks are indeed quite skilled, and their level of expertise is evident after several matches against each other.

"Qian Jue."

No doubt, RNG will continue to pick Kindred.

Version OP heroes plus opponent's special skills.

These two factors alone are enough to make Kindred a ban pick for any team facing IG.

Who would be willing to let a Kindred pro play Kindred in an OP version?
RNG's current coach, Steak, may have his moments of irrationality, but he's definitely not incompetent.

"Qinggangying."

Karam spoke casually.

Although the first card eliminated Taliyah, the threat of the card cannot be ruled out.

The easiest way to make a card useless or unselectable is not to reroll other cards, but to reroll Camille.

During the S10 Spring Split, LCK, which started first, has already developed a brand new system:
Dual SIM Dual Standby!

Camille and Twisted Fate, endlessly flying up the mid lane.

They directly trained the opposing top laner.

Then the mid, top, and jungle players invaded the enemy jungle together.

This strategy has a high win rate, especially against young top laners; it's incredibly effective at ganking them.

Without Camille to help keep enemies in place, there's not much that Twisted Fate can actually do.

So, countering this system is quite simple: just disable Camille.

Twisted Fate's laning ability is just so-so; without Camille, he can be played freely.

"Leopard Girl."

RNG's first two bans remained unchanged: Kindred and Nidalee.

There's not much to say about this move.

"Crocodile."

IG's third pick was Karam, who chose to revive the Renekton.

If IG, playing on the blue side, wants to win, they must first pick the mid and jungle.

This also means that it's difficult for both the top and bottom lanes to pick heroes that are particularly comfortable for them.

You can't just release crocodiles anywhere.

Especially now that Camille is gone, the only one who can beat Renekton is Aatrox.

The problem is that Aatrox is playing a purely defensive laning matchup against Renekton, so losing lane control is inevitable.

Therefore, IG had no choice but to accept this ban.

Some people might say...

Won't RNG just move the crocodile?

After all, IG is on the blue side and can pick first, so how can RNG be sure that IG won't pick Renekton?
RNG can't be sure, but they don't care.

RNG can afford for Bin to be on par with Flandre, but IG cannot afford for Rookie to be unable to beat Xiaohu.

"Wind-up clockwork".

RNG's third move was to disable Clockwerk.

Rookie remained expressionless, but his grip on the mouse tightened slightly.

From the opposing side's perspective, his clockwork was indeed the most threatening one.

So, RNG's strategy against him worked in the second game, so are they planning to continue targeting him in the third game?

Rookie was very unhappy.

Should I get it for you first, or for Xinghe?

Coach Karam then walked up behind Rookie and patted his chair.

Rookie set aside his emotions and made the most rational judgment:
"give it to me."

Compared to the mid lane, there are really not many heroes that junglers can choose.

But precisely because of this, the selection of the remaining heroes needs to be more careful.

Picking a jungler later is always a win, because Rookie always believes that Xu Xinghe can deliver the expected counter-effect.

As for RNG making a counter-strategy?
Ha ha.

XiaoWei's hero pool isn't bad, but expecting him to carry so many jungle bans is a huge waste of his talent.

RNG isn't that crazy.

and……

Rookie knew very well that Xu Xinghe's ability to carry was stronger than his.

Nakano and Nakano are inseparable.

If Xu Xinghe can win, then he has an even greater chance of winning.

It's just a matter of sacrificing yourself; Rookie has sacrificed himself countless times already.

He had no choice but to fight for victory.

"Zoe, Syndra?"

Karam gave two strong mid-lane picks, completely ignoring Galio.

If you want to dominate the early to mid-game, then Galio should just roll away.

"Syndra."

Rookie made a decision quickly.

His Zoe proficiency isn't very high.

Syndra is a champion whose success depends not only on skill accuracy but also heavily on player proficiency.

So here's the question: what are the two balls in Rookie's nickname "Two Balls and One Chicken"?
It's Clockwork and Syndra!

He's a true Syndra specialist.

(End of this chapter)