You promised a top lane tutorial, but you're just using Worlds as material for your videos?

Chapter 468 Who says the Incense Burner Monster can only be in the bottom lane?

"Wow! Lee Sin as the first pick? That's a powerful pick!" Miller exclaimed in surprise.

Who would have thought of that!

"Samsung lost the last game, did that make Ambition lose his temper? Is he going to play Lee Sin again to prove himself?" Wawa joked.

“That’s possible!” Miller nodded seriously.

Samsung locked in Lee Sin on the first floor, and LGD quickly responded by picking Caitlyn on the red side's first floor.

Then the red team immediately locked in Karma on the second floor.

"It's Karma, the female police officer!" Wawa's voice suddenly rose. "I think this bot lane duo is a great pick. Let's keep using the winning duo!"

"We won, but it seems like the female police officer didn't perform as well as expected in the last game!" Miller said with some concern.

Miller's ideal female police officer would be someone who pushes down the bottom lane, then the top lane, and then the mid lane.

Anyway, it's all about rapid expansion everywhere.

But this scenario is too idealistic. The opponent isn't stupid, and it's difficult to make the female police officer achieve this effect.

LGD's choice of Caitlyn is solely for early-game lane dominance; everything else is up to chance.

It's best not to be too idealistic when making a business plan; you should prepare contingency plans for when the plan is thwarted.

After LGD picked their bot lane duo, Samsung also picked their bot lane duo on the second and third floors of the blue side.

Varus and the gem.

Anyway, Ruler is determined to play Varus today.

However, to be fair, in this version, when facing Caitlyn in the bot lane, apart from the Xayah-Rakan combo which is almost impossible to pick, Varus is the only one who is somewhat effective.

"gem!"

"After much deliberation, Samsung probably feels that Gem is the most suitable support for them," Miller said seriously.

Miller clearly thought Samsung made an excellent choice with this gem.

For a team like Samsung with extremely strong defensive capabilities, the hero Taric undoubtedly strengthens the team's overall defensive capabilities.

When it's LGD's turn to pick their third champion, they'll likely choose a jungler, echoing Samsung's first three picks.

The same applies to the draft picks and bans (BP) of both sides in the first few games.

"Damn it, you're not choosing the wine barrels that Master An has?! If you won't choose, I will!" Eimy muttered loudly.

"Then let's go with the barrel!" Dgc nodded.

So Wei Shen locked the wine barrel on the third floor of the red team's building.

"Watch me single-handedly defend against Master An's blindness!" Eimy exuded considerable confidence.

Eimy himself didn't realize that whenever he carried a game strongly during the week, he would always play the jungle role with exceptional confidence in the next game.

Perhaps this is what it feels like to have someone to back you up!

The first round of business matching (BP) is complete.

We've moved on to the second round of draft picks.

LGD banned Galio and Taliyah.

Samsung banned Jayce and Camille.

"LGD's goal is very clear: ban the mid-lane heroes that can roam," Miller said.

"Anyway, I'm going to lock you all online and make you lane against me!"

"But what does Samsung mean by this? Banning Fiora isn't enough, they also have to ban Jayce and Camille!"

"Uh"

After thinking for a moment, Wawa said, "I think LGD's bans of Galio and Taliyah, while limiting Samsung, also restricted themselves."

"How to say?"

"Without these heroes, it's harder for Wei Shen to help in the mid lane!"

"cuvee is just too steady. Even Zhou Shen would have a hard time gaining an advantage against him in a 1v1 and could only farm."

"So when Samsung saw that you banned Galio and Taliyah, they simply banned all the top lane champions that are good at split pushing."

"That seems to make sense. Let's see how both sides choose their representatives!"

The countdown for hero selection was ticking away, but LGD's fourth player hadn't revealed their hero yet.

LGD only revealed Lucian on the fourth floor of the red team when there were only three seconds left in the hero selection countdown.

Then, when the countdown reached 0, it was locked.

"Huh? Lucian? He really picked him!" Miller's tone changed instantly.

He really didn't think highly of this hero.

This mid-lane champion, which was incredibly popular in the summer playoffs of various regions, has become somewhat of a meta trap by the time it reached the World Championship.

To put it bluntly, it means that once you've chosen a player, it's hard to win the game.

If you play Lucian in the mid lane and you're skilled, you can definitely dominate whoever you're facing.

However, the team's weaknesses include short range, fragility, and other issues that make Lucian a problematic mid-laner.

Especially in the current version, with the game pace slowed down, Lucian in the mid lane can actually be considered as an ADC.

However, compared to the current mainstream ADCs, Lucian can be said to be all weaknesses.

More importantly, their ADC has Ardent Censer to protect them.

You're standing in the mid lane, and no support is protecting you!

It's fine for the support to frequently gank mid lane to protect you, but that would mean sacrificing the ADC, which is definitely not an option.

Therefore, Miller really doesn't have a high opinion of Lucian in the current mid lane.

Many of the group stage matches also demonstrated this fact.

"Do you think it's possible that Lucian might be a top laner? Let's put Lucian here and see how it goes," Wawa suddenly said.

"Uh, I forgot about that!" Miller nodded slightly. "After all, Zhou hasn't played this kind of unconventional top laner in a long, long time!"

"But... this version of Lucian is better suited for mid lane than top lane!"

It's Samsung's turn to choose.

Samsung chose Shen and Malzahar on the fourth and fifth floors of the blue team.

"I thought Cuvee would pick Gnar again, but I didn't expect him to choose Shen!"

Miller continued, "Malzaha is one of Crown's signature champions, and picking this champion further enhances Samsung's defensive capabilities."

"Samsung has such a solid lineup and such a strong counter-attack ability!"

Miller's words already carried a hint of worry.

Samsung's lineup is solid, but Miller mainly thinks that this Lucian pick is really bad. Who will protect Lucian so he can deal damage?

"Let's take a look at LGD's last pick! I think it should still be their last pick, the top laner," Wawa said calmly.

"Top lane is tough to pick this game. CuVee didn't pick Gnar but Shen. With Shen and Lee Sin in the top and jungle, it's so easy to target the top lane!"

"The fact that Zhou Shen's Jayce got caught and lost first blood in the third game is a bloody example!" Miller shook his head again.

Miller felt increasingly uneasy.

Then, when the countdown to select a player was halfway through, a Lulu appeared on the fifth floor of the red team and was locked in.

"Lulu top lane? Lucian mid lane?"

"No, Lucian top lane? Lulu mid lane?" Wawa and Miller each had their own opinion.

"You just said Lucian had no one to protect him, and now you've picked someone to protect him?" Wawa chuckled. "Lulu playing solo lane, so retro, it feels like going back two years."

"Hopefully it will work wonders!" Miller felt numb.

At this point, none of the commentators on stage could figure out how LGD's solo lanes were actually allocated.

However, in the official live broadcast room, knowledgeable netizens have already provided the answer in the comments.

LGD's true top laner in this game is known as the "Iron-Willed Old Woman"—

Top lane Sona!
Karma top lane is basically only seen in solo queue games.

Moreover, even in casual games, you only encounter them occasionally.

This hero, when played in the top lane, is nothing special except for being incredibly torturous.

Whether you're melee or ranged, if you encounter this thing in the top lane, you're just going to get beaten up.

But to say that Karma is particularly strong in the top lane is debatable.

As long as you don't intend to kill, Karma can only harass you, not actually kill you.

In casual games, this thing can be played in the top lane, and you can be sure you won't be at a disadvantage.

But even if I wanted to carry, I couldn't; I still had to rely on my teammates.

Top lane Karma is built with full tank items and acts as a semi-support. With the healing from RW and the shield from E, she can often survive three kills in and three kills in team fights without dealing much damage.

A complete troublemaker, a master at disgusting his opponents.

This is why Karma, the top laner in casual games, is jokingly referred to as "the old woman with steel bones".

When it comes to competitions, it's still the same old game, nothing new.

After the incense burner was enhanced and the "incense burner monster" was created, Zhou Dian had been considering a question.

Incense Burner doesn't necessarily have to stay in the bottom lane; it can probably be in other lanes too.

After all, the incense burner is a truly overpowered piece of equipment.

So Zhou Dian had the idea of ​​playing Karma in the top lane during the game, paired with a marksman in the mid lane or jungle.

This combination of a 'Cigarette Monster' and a marksman actually forms faster than the bottom lane duo.

Of course, the downside is that the mid laner and top laner are not as inseparable as the bot lane duo.

But you can adapt to different situations.

Zhou Dian had mentioned this idea to Dgc a long time ago, and the LGD coaching staff had also seriously studied the feasibility of playing this way.

Finally, it was brought out in this crucial life-or-death situation.

When it came to trying something new in a do-or-die match, the LGD players on the field not only didn't object, but were actually quite excited.

The current LGD team has only one motto: celebrate together when they win, and shoulder the burden together when they lose.

Once the fear of being blamed is greatly reduced, everyone will naturally dare to take action and make decisions.

Didn't Samsung pick an incredibly solid lineup this game?
Alright, if you want to fight head-on, then I'll fight you.

When the Incense Burner was first created, it was as if archers had an extra piece of equipment.

If LGD's two marksmen can continuously benefit from the Ardent Censer's buff, it's no exaggeration to say that it's at least equivalent to having an extra person dealing damage.

Of course, this is just an ideal situation; the actual outcome will depend on the actual implementation.

Zhou Dian's strategy in this game was to rush the Ardent Censer and then build tank items normally afterwards.

Karma can solo a lane and build an Ardent Censer much faster than a support.

Furthermore, Karma doesn't benefit much from ability power.

With an Ardent Censer equipped, disregarding the buffs it provides to teammates, Karma herself can be considered a normal top laner with a one-piece set.

This is due to the unique nature of Karma's skill set.

Back to the game, both teams finished their draft picks and bans. The two head coaches walked to the center of the stage, shook hands, and then turned and walked towards the players' tunnel.

On the large screen at the venue, the BP interface had not yet disappeared, and the countdown for the last minute before the game loaded had begun.

The two players then swapped heroes to their respective positions.

A few seconds later, the exchange was complete, and all ten heroes on both sides were in their positions and motionless.

There was no need to pay attention to Samsung; all the commentators and viewers' eyes were fixed on LGD's five heroes on the right side of the big screen.

Ultimately, Lulu landed on the fifth floor to play support, while Lucian was on the third floor as mid laner.

Then
Most people then realized that LGD had Karma as their top laner in this game.

Miller paused for a moment, then laughed and said, "Looks like neither of us guessed right. Zhou Shen used Karma top lane this game!"

“But my thinking can’t be wrong!” Wawa immediately said, “Didn’t you say that Lucian in the mid lane has no one to protect him? Then it shouldn’t be a problem for me to protect him with Karma in the top lane!”

"There's nothing wrong with it, I give up!" This was Miller's last act of defiance.

"Although I don't quite understand LGD's lineup, I still hope everyone can cheer them on, because they are the last representatives of our LPL!"

“During the final decisive game of the semifinals between RNG and SKT yesterday, the commentator said something that I think is still very relevant here.” Miller’s voice suddenly turned low. “It just so happens that today is also the decisive game of another semifinal.”

"Perhaps one day, we will lose faith in League of Legends, because until now, this game is still dominated by Koreans!"

"Perhaps one day, these athletes we love will no longer be on the field!"

"But at least, that day isn't today. Today, LGD is still fighting tooth and nail on the field, facing off against Samsung in the decisive game, preparing to enter Summoner's Rift!"

Go LGD!

"Go LGD! ~~~"

As soon as the commentator on stage shouted, the audience below immediately responded.

The live broadcast camera then focused on the audience at the scene.

Accompanied by the "battle song," the audience kept shouting "Go LGD!"

As the atmosphere reached its peak, the crowd roared and the ten heroes entered Summoner's Rift.

Blue team Samsung:
Top lane: Shen; Jungle: Lee Sin; Mid lane: Malzahar; Bot lane: Varus and Taric.

Red team LGD:

Top lane Karma, jungle Gragas, mid lane Lucian, bot lane Caitlyn and Lulu.

The fifth game of the BO5 series between LGD and Samsung in the semifinals of the S7 World Championship has officially begun.

Upon entering Summoner's Rift, the observer camera first surveyed the entire Summoner's Rift from above, then panned down over every corner of the Rift.

The ten heroes from both sides appeared so small under this ultra-wide field of view.

Finally, the camera lingered briefly on the elemental dragon mark on the side of the small dragon pit before returning to the normal observer view.

The first elemental dragon in this match is a water dragon!

"Water Dragon, good luck!" Zhou Dian said to his teammates as soon as they entered the game.

Throughout the entire S7 season, Xiaolong was completely ignored and neglected.

Simply put, it lacks strategic value.

This often leads to both sides being too lazy to fight for the dragon.

Often, the team with the advantage will easily take down the dragon, or the jungler of the losing team will steal a dragon because they have nothing else to do.

If the first dragon is a wind dragon, it often happens that even after 10 or 20 minutes of game time, the dragon has not been touched by anyone.

(End of this chapter)