LOL: Reborn in Season 3, Taming Lee Sang-hyeok

Chapter 84 Let's take a shot first

"The bans for both sides are finalized! On the blue side, SKT has banned Elise, Vi, and Pantheon – as expected, three junglers banned!"

"On the other side, the red team only banned Caitlyn, Zed, and Ahri, which is relatively conventional."

"And that's not all. Once the champion selection phase began, SKT immediately locked in Lee Sin as their first pick!"

The problems caused by changing the mid laner were already apparent from the beginning.

With the entire SKT team targeting Neo, the draft phase alone is extremely difficult!

As the selection process shifts, the camera switches to the SSR players' seats.

But unexpectedly, Neo still had a smile on his face, as if SKT's targeting had not bothered him at all.

Immediately afterwards, the two heroes appeared on RISE's bench.

One is caution.

In the blind pick against kT last time, Looper didn't even pick his signature Alchemist, but instead picked Shen.

This alone shows how important this hero is to Rise.

The second hero was unexpected—Nunu and Willump.

This version of the Yeti has simple skills. QR is slightly different from later versions, but not by much. W increases attack speed for teammates and himself, and E throws ice balls at enemies.

This single move, chosen to be made, once again shocked the audience.

A snowman? Is this the jungler role?

Snowmen can definitely be used for hunting in the wild.

For example, Clearlove, the jungler for the LPL team WE, loves playing Nunu as a jungler.

This hero has a fast jungle clearing speed, and his W ability allows him to move around the map very quickly. He can also buff teammates with this ability. Although his ganking ability is not strong, his counter-ganking ability is extremely strong. He is a standard counter-ganking and map control jungler.

"Neo's counter-ganking style is indeed unique, but in today's game, should we still pick a counter-ganking jungler?"

Kim Dong-joon scratched his head. "Wouldn't that be too passive?"

Jeon Yong-joon couldn't figure out the reason, but his experience told him that the matter was definitely not that simple, so he didn't rush to make any comments.

The choice returned to SKT, and they acted swiftly, locking in Renekton and Ryze.

There's not much to say about these two picks; both offer stable control and are typical partners for Lee Sin. This top, mid, and jungle trio is the standard match lineup.

"The choice is back with SSR. SKT's bot lane duo hasn't been picked yet. Let's see if SSR wants to give their last counter pick to the bot lane?"

As they were talking, SSR locked in their third and fourth picks in quick succession, choosing Sivir and Morgana.

The purpose of these two choices is crystal clear: to withstand pressure.

KT also used this bot lane duo when they faced RISE previously.

But now a problem arises.

Shen in the top lane is there to withstand pressure, Sivir in the bottom lane is there to withstand pressure, and Nunu in the jungle is there to just get by.

Who's C?

Should we let this substitute mid laner carry?

Even Faker doesn't get this kind of treatment!

Just who is this Horse?!

The camera then inexplicably cut to SSR's backstage lounge.

Faker sat alone in the lounge, his eyes fixed on the screen, but a hint of tension appeared in his eyes.

On the SKT side, everyone also pondered for a long time.

It's just that with the Sivir and Morgana combination, there's not much they can do to counter it; they can only choose their own champions.

They eventually locked in Kog'Maw and Lulu, and decided to focus on farming and developing their characters.

"So, the final choice comes down to the SSR heroes. Let's see which heroes they choose to complete their lineup!"

Commentator Kim Dong-jun's words were tinged with anticipation.

There's nothing he can do; the SSR lineup is just too bizarre, and he really can't think of any mid-laner who could save the team.

At that moment, a hero appeared in the selection box and was quickly locked on!

Immediately afterwards, the audience erupted in uproar!

"Huh? Master Yi?" Kim Dong-joon was also stunned. "Is this for real?"

In a professional match, you're bringing out a Juggernaut to show off?

OGN has been around for half a year now, and there are already quite a few competition samples.

However, some heroes have yet to get a chance to appear on screen.

The Sword Saint is one of them.

In fact, Juggernaut is a relatively popular hero in this version, dominating not only in lower ranks but also appearing in higher ranks.

Moreover, there are two other builds: critical strike and AP Master Yi, making it a diverse and exciting development.

But the shortcomings are also obvious.

As a carry hero, his skill set mechanics make him unpopular in competitive play.

In professional matches, a carry needs to consistently output damage and help the team eliminate opponents early, rather than just standing by and waiting for teammates to finish off low-health enemies.

Therefore, whether it's AD Master Yi or AP Master Yi, as long as the reaping attribute remains the same, it's destined not to be a popular pick in competitive play.

"A mid-lane AP Master Yi? Isn't that a bit over the top?"

Jeon Yong-jun was now puzzled: "Is Horse some kind of master?"

Replace Faker as the starter, and then let the four members of R1SE play a four-protect-one strategy?

Could the rumors be true, and is Horse really RISE's hidden nuclear weapon?

But then, it was Kim Dong-jun who noticed something was wrong.

"No, no, no, the Sword Saint is a jungler!"

As we entered the final replacement phase, it became clear that the second-choice Yeti was transferred to mid-laner Horse.

The Sword Saint, on the other hand, appeared in the hands of Neo, the jungler.

Mid lane Nunu, jungle Master Yi...

"Ah, so it's a wild core..."

"6

Jeon Yong-jun's voice carried a hint of relief.

Although the lineup has become stranger, it has inexplicably become more reasonable.

The Yeti can indeed be played in the mid lane because its Q skill has a high amount of healing, and its passive "Spell Fantasy" allows the next skill to have no mana cost after every five basic attacks, making it extremely suitable for attrition warfare.

Combined with an E skill that has a 1.0 AP bonus and is guaranteed to hit, it can completely stun the opponent.

But this snowman was definitely not chosen to knock out the opponent.

It's used to buff the Blademaster.

The Yeti's W ability can provide teammates with a significant increase in attack speed and movement speed, essentially giving Master Yi a free Phantom Dancer.

It's not just Yeti; Shen, Sivir, and Morgana can also buff Master Yi!

A pure jungle carry playstyle!

Li Zhixing's selection of the Sword Saint was certainly not impromptu.

He has traveled through time with countless competitive experiences from later generations, and now that he has taken on the jungler role, he will naturally lead the team in preparing tactical preparations for jungle carry strategies.

In particular, this version doesn't impose any gold penalty on junglers farming lane minions, making it the perfect breeding ground for jungle carries!

However, Sang-hyeok dislikes the jungle carry playstyle.

Not only was Lee Sang-hyeok unwilling, but Lee Ji-haeng was also unwilling.

When Li Zhixing was leading the team to practice jungle carry, he made a very insightful remark: "If the jungler's status is high, the mid laner has to be treated like a dog."

Li Zhixing has long since moved beyond the stage of being a standout carry, and he doesn't want his overly strong abilities to make his teammates dependent on him, thus suppressing their talents.

He still hopes that his teammates can carry the team themselves.

However, Ma Yingdong was so nervous during his first match that his hands were shaking, so Li Zhixing had no choice but to resort to this jungle carry strategy and carry the team for the first game.