Starting with Zaozi Ge, a dream lineup

Chapter 229 My Champion's Heart! Unstoppable!

In the first game of the finals, several classic GIFs were created by netizens in no time. The most prominent one was Deft's incredible team fight in the last wave, where he was instantly melted.

It's not a big deal if it's tragic; the important thing is the comparison. In the past, netizens often explained the sudden death of ADCs by the current state of ADCs, but this time, the opposing ADC killed you instantly, which sparked heated discussions.

Open any Korean forum, and the first page is filled with condemnations of the pilot, with all sorts of hot-tempered guys coming out to argue, determined to take down Deft's dog head.

Another portion of the firepower was drawn to Mata, who was also sleepwalking.

In comparison, the situation on the Chinese server forums was much more normal. Although they didn't win the best-of-five series, the overwhelming victory in the first game gave everyone confidence.

With the score at 1-0, everyone, including the esports staff, breathed a long sigh of relief, easing their tension.

Although the first game of the best-of-five finals was a complete rout, several key decision points kept them on edge throughout, watching the game with utmost concentration.

When they saw the five players take down Baron Nashor, they were so excited they wanted to cry. When they saw Ezreal instantly kill Ashe, they roared in fury.

Why don't men take Wu hook and charge Guanshan Fifth State.

Playing for your country, this feeling is a special feeling that LPL and S-series cannot give you.

In the past, even in life-or-death battles and finals in LPL matches, to put it bluntly, these people were just office workers who clocked in and out.

If I lose, sorry, you can't blame me. If I win? You won't give me a single penny of bonus, why would I get excited?

Before this, the opponents the Chinese team encountered at the Asian Games, although they were said to be doing their jobs well, were never considered opponents in their hearts.

Naturally, this feeling is not strong.

And up until this moment, when playing against Korean teams, LCK, and LPL rivals, everyone's mentality has changed from the very beginning.

It's no exaggeration to say that ten minutes on stage requires ten years of practice off stage.

The reason why the team composition and operational strategy were so clear in the first game is inseparable from the analysts who stayed up all night last night, including Li Luo. All five of them proved it with their actions.
As long as everyone works together as one, the South Korean team is nothing but a bunch of chickens and dogs.

"Brothers, come on!"

Standing at the entrance gate, Li Luo looked at the group of people with a serious expression.

We cannot afford to lose today's match; we must even strive to win the smaller games. China must prove itself as number one with its strength.

Seeing that everyone nodded solemnly, Li Luo, just like when he first arrived here and faced SKT in the fifth game, proactively extended his hand to the middle.

The factory manager's hand was the first to reach out, and it was placed under Li Luo's hand. Feeling the slightly rough hand supporting him, Li Luo looked over in surprise.

But the next second, four hands, including Chris's, were placed below, pushing Li Luo's hand to the top.

"Charge! Leave no regrets!"

There were no thunderous cheers or the spotlight of millions; the empty Jakarta esports arena couldn't hide the five teenagers' soaring championship aspirations!

The second round of battle began immediately after the break ended.

CCTV's live broadcast immediately switched back to the scene.

Unlike the Chinese team, the Korean team suffered a crushing defeat in the first game of the finals. The reason for this was that no one could step up.

Brother Li?

The people present were no less experienced or senior than Faker. In esports, one cannot intimidate others with achievements and honors. Faker, whose skills had declined significantly, had no way to deal with these seasoned players.

But there's good news: Peanut has been replaced as the jungler for this game, as Ambition was replaced due to his poor performance in the first game.

In terms of LPL style, Peanut is undoubtedly easier to deal with compared to Ambition's seasoned experience.

Kai'Sa, Ezreal, Syndra.

The Korean team has three bans. They are on the red side this game, so they don't need to rush to ban Rakan first.

As long as the Chinese team on the blue side doesn't remove either Xayah or Rakan, the red side can counter-pick the strongest bot lane duo in this patch.

After the match, the South Korean coaching staff calmly reflected on the situation and realized that targeting Letme, the top laner for the Chinese team, was completely ineffective.

Even if Smeb can gain a slight advantage in the top lane in the early game, it won't matter; what's more important is limiting the development of the mid and bot lanes.

As long as they can prevent Uzi from stepping up immediately in the bottom lane, they still have a chance to win.

Moreover, even if they don't lane against Ornn, they don't have a good way to deal with the 131 playstyle that has evolved from Shen. Whether in the mid-game or late-game, the Chinese team's ability to fight outnumbered is too strong.

The Chinese team, now on the blue side, maintained their clear strategy, first banning Smeb's Kennen and Faker's Galio, and then using Rakan as their last ban.

Rakan is a hero that's neither particularly strong nor weak. Picking Rakan alone doesn't make him strong, but if you don't pick him, the enemy team will pick him too. Therefore, he's usually banned.

Since Ornn has been released, the Chinese team, positioned on the blue side, has no reason not to pick Ornn and should lock him in first.

The Korean team's first and second picks secured the Irelia + Alistar combination.

Immediately afterwards, the Chinese team locked in the Lee Sin + Janna combination to counter.

The first clash between the two sides involved the mainstream choices in the current version, but the next moment, the third pick by the Korean team gave everyone a sense of something different.

Jinx, the Loose Cannon!

Jinx is an ADC who is out of meta; she hasn't even appeared in competitive matches for a long time since the Ardent Censer meta came out.

The last time Jinx appeared in a LPL or LCK-level main tournament was during S7 when Fw's Betty played her.

With a 0-2 score and a completely disorganized performance, Jinx made all ADC players realize the limitations of this hero in the current version.

But the fact that Deft dared to take this shot suggests that it's not as simple as it seems on the surface.

The factory manager, "Jinx," looked at the champion that appeared in the opponent's selection box with a complicated expression. Having partnered with Deft before, he knew that the pilot's specialty was Jinx.

Back in Season 5, with Deft's Jinx, EDG's four-protect-one strategy made them virtually invincible.

Moreover, the most important hero, Alistar, was picked by the Korean team as a surprise pick.

Jinx, a short-legged champion, is most afraid of top laners with hard crowd control. This team first picked Alistar to force the Chinese team to pick a soft support, and then picked Jinx afterward, which can be described as ruthless.

"We can't give their jungler any room to develop; we absolutely must gain an advantage in the bot lane this game."

Chris said firmly, and the factory manager nodded in agreement.

The "Rampaging Lolita" isn't hard to catch; if the team's tactics require it, her catching ability is even more powerful than Xiangguo's.

Chris ordered that two highly mobile heroes, Excavator and Prince, be banned, which clearly aligns with Peanut's playstyle.

The Korean team also banned Draven and Caitlyn, putting pressure on the bot lane picks.

"What puppy?"

Although Chris was asking questions, Li Luo could see the undisguised smile in Chris's eyes when he turned his head.

"Let's take Vayne, they're practically handing her over."

Upon hearing this, not only Chris laughed, but his teammates also chuckled. No lineup is perfect; it has its strengths and weaknesses.

With the South Korean team selecting Olaf as their fourth pick, their strategy for choosing Vayne became even clearer.

If the blue team's lineup can hold its own in the early game, once Ornn gains tankiness, Vayne, protected by Janna, will be virtually unkillable.

Without AoE (Area of ​​Effect) damage, a lineup is practically paper-thin against Vayne.

"Wow, Little Dog's Vayne, Deft's Jinx, I think neither team will hold back in this match," Wawa said with a look of surprise.

"Looking at the lineups on the surface, both teams basically got the systems they wanted, and these are the lineups that both teams have honed to their highest level. For our Chinese team, relying mainly on Vayne is a bit risky. We absolutely need to give Xiaohu a damage dealer to share the pressure in the fifth pick."

Miller finished speaking in one breath, then stared nervously at the selection box.

With Lee Sin and Ornn, you definitely need to add an AP mage to the mid lane to increase burst damage, but now that Syndra is not available, there aren't many AP mages to choose from.

Especially since they also have to fight Irelia, the number of suitable candidates is even smaller.

At the very least, homelessness is definitely not an option.

I knew you'd choose me!

An aged voice suddenly appeared in everyone's ears. With the voice, a hero who shone brightly at the beginning of the season but quickly disappeared announced his triumphant return.

Time Guardian - Kieran.

"Is Xiaohu planning a four-protect-one strategy this game, or does Zilean have some unique advantage against Irelia in lane?"

When the child finished speaking these words for the first time, he stammered. In a major competition, the worst thing you can do is to pass the burden to your teammates.

Picking Zilean means giving up the final damage output sharing and putting all the pressure on Vayne in the bottom lane.

If Vayne is at a disadvantage, this lineup is basically doomed.

In the fifth pick, the Korean team didn't hesitate and helped Smeb choose Camille, a champion known for her strong split-pushing ability, completing their ultimate strategy.

Blue team (China) vs. Red team (South Korea)
Top Lane: Ornn vs Camille

Jungle: Lee Sin vs Olaf

Mid Lane: Zilean vs. Irelia

ADC: Vayne vs Jinx

Support: Janna vs. Alistar
"The Chinese team only has Vayne as their late-game carry, but Lee Sin and Ornn can compensate well for the damage in the mid-game. However, if the game drags on to the late game, it will be very disadvantageous."

"On the contrary, the Korean team, with their Camille-Anivia composition and Irelia, once the two split push, will have to use the 1-3-1 composition that we played so well last game."

"Let's see how the puppy performs."

As they uttered their final words, Doll and Miller exchanged a glance, both seeing disbelief in each other's eyes.

In this kind of situation, to still play a four-protect-one strategy is going too far, isn't it?
The game has already loaded, and what's done is done; there's no way to restart it now.

"Overall, both teams have lineups that can be played in the front or mid lane. This situation places very high demands on the junglers on both sides in the early game. The match has started, and the lineups for both sides have been selected. The second game of the best-of-five series of the League of Legends World Championship Finals at the 2018 Jakarta-Palembang Asian Games has officially begun. Let's cheer for Team China!"

"China will win!"

"Go, puppy! Charge!"

"Factory manager, factory manager, whether it's a metamorphosis or a life-or-death ordeal, it all depends on this!"

"Team China!"

"Wan Sheng!"

The screen abruptly switched to images of countless fans watching the opening match at Zhengda Plaza, cheering for the Chinese team.

Everyone was shouting and waving flags in the stadium, but the light boards they were holding weren't for IG or LGD.

My Chinese heart!
The five large red characters and the small five-star red flag immediately made all the viewers watching the game feel a unique emotion pressing down on their hearts.

The match began, and the ten players quickly bought their starting items and lined up in a long, straight line, showing no intention of engaging in a level 1 team fight.

Gambling is not allowed in national-level competitions; even if you can win, you cannot take the risk.

The factory manager's Lee Sin was on the blue side, and he chose to start with blue buff and gank bot lane at level 3. Similarly, Olaf on the other side also started with red buff and counter-ganked bot lane.

"Both teams are playing very cautiously this game, and their jungle routes are exactly the same. This game is destined to be a fierce battle. Hmm... Olaf starting with red buff, is he planning something?"

Red start, and it was Olaf! This is the first time I've ever seen this in a match.

Before he could finish speaking, Olaf had already secured the red buff, and after using Smite, he headed straight for the top lane, clearly aiming for Ornn.

At this moment, Olaf calmly descended from the red side, ambushing himself in the triangular bushes along the top lane.

Camille, who was grappling with Letme after logging in, used her passive shield to push the lane blindly as soon as she logged in. Without any vision, no one would think that there was someone hiding next to this Camille.

The instant she reached level two, Camille used her E skill and kicked towards Letme.

Surprised!

Even if Camille is level 2 against level 1 without a shield, she might not have much of an advantage in trading blows, unless!

Glancing at the time out of the corner of his eye, Letme jumped and pressed Flash backward.

At the same time, Camille also used Flash to kick Ornn again, and with a slight stun, a large axe flew out.

Peanuts' attack!

"Wow, Flash! Peanut's Olaf actually used Flash right after the kill, making sure he gets it. That's some serious killing intent."

Colonel Guan, who was standing in the sun below the stage, was startled and momentarily stunned. "Is this really necessary?"

As for?
When Camille secured the first blood, the answer to this question seemed to have been found.

Since Olaf has given up the blue buff, failing to secure this kill would mean the game is completely over.

Smeb's victory in securing First Blood not only gave him an economic advantage but also a significant level advantage.

Peanut's first move opened up a completely different situation compared to the previous game.

First blood was lost. Although Olaf's blue buff was successfully stolen by Clearlove, the advantage in the top lane had been established, and Peanut's strategy was extremely clear.

As for the laning phase in the bottom lane, Li Luo noticed something was wrong just a minute and a half into the game.

Deft is too consistent.

Deft's philosophy was extremely clear: focus on farming and developing his character. He would prioritize farming, avoid fights, and even forgo potentially dangerous kills, only farming the safest ones.

The opposing team was very timid, but Li Luo had no way to pressure them, after all, there was Alistar, and Jinx Alistar's burst damage in the early game was still very considerable.

The Chinese team seems to be in trouble!
(End of this chapter)