Nirvana Top Laner, Reborn Tokyo Girl

Chapter 279 276.4 Strong Battle T1
In this match, T1 demonstrated the tactical foundation and raw strength that a top LCK team should possess.

However, fighting KT to the very last game also forced them to reveal all their cards.

That's what I said before.
In the quarterfinals against CFO, WBG can hold back and not reveal their tactics.

It can even be used to test tactics that were previously unsure of their effectiveness.

T1 has no room for error and can only go all out against KT.

Even so, they still fought until the final game, which ended in a 3-2 score.

However, if we were to say what was revealed...
It's really just so-so.

Because this team hasn't actually changed much compared to the previous two years.

The only change is that Zeus, a player who could purely be the ball handler for the team, left the top lane.

Instead, it was Dolan who took his place.

Unlike Zeus, Dolan is not a player who can shoulder the team's damage output needs with a relatively high probability.

More often than not, he is a fairly conventional top laner.

that is.
He can play most top laners, whether they are fighters or tanks, and there are basically no obvious shortcomings in his hero pool.

However, compared to Zeus or Shimamura Yuna, his style seems rather mediocre when it comes to playing characters that can carry the game.

This is one of the main reasons why T1 this year doesn't seem as impactful as it did last year and the year before.

Regardless of anything else, Zeus was one of the most impactful top laners in the entire LCK, and even the world, before Shimamura Yuna appeared.

It wasn't until Shimamura Yuna appeared that the word "most" became somewhat open to discussion.

However, it is undeniable that Zeus remains one of the most competitive top laners in the world today.

T1 was once known as "the team that best nurtures its top laner".

This is why many fans hoped that Shimamura Yuna would go to T1 at the time.

T1 fans hope that the team that best nurtures its top laner will finally have its own top laner worth nurturing.

Shimamura Yuna's fans also hope that their favorite top laner will go to a team that is best at nurturing top laners.

However, this did not happen in the end.

Replacing Zeus with Doran in this team is an objective weakening for T1.

This has resulted in them being much weaker in terms of tactical scalability and feasibility compared to the past.

Even so, this T1 is still the same T1.

Strong execution, reliable tactics, and a stable mindset in major competitions.
But that's all.

Their performance this year is not much different from last year.

Moreover, in this slightly customized top lane meta, Doran's weaknesses compared to Zeus are even more apparent.

The current T1 is a significantly weaker version compared to last year's T1.

The team can only rely on the bottom lane's solo ability and the pressure that the support's unusual champion pool puts on the opponent.

Keria put a lot of pressure on KT's draft picks in this BO5 match.

His pool of support heroes is unpredictable; some support characters that others would never consider playing can be given a wonderful new lease on life in his hands, playing a rather subtle role.

Parker, Big Head, Bard.
In three consecutive matches, he used some support roles that were not so conventional in the eyes of ordinary people.

And it always has a remarkable effect.

It can be said that, to a large extent, T1's current tactical depth is supported by the support player Keria.

Without Keria, this team's system simply doesn't work.

But that's it.
These things were within WBG's expectations.

The early-game fast-paced dragon rush, with the AD carry positioned alone and the support roaming, is a well-established tactic for this T1 team, and one that everyone knows.

Very strong, but within WBG's expectations.

Ultimately, your T1 team has support heroes who can pick and counter-pick.

We at WBG also have some mid-to-high-level players selected for the rematch.

In this respect, they are not at a significant disadvantage compared to WBG.

It could even be said that it has advantages.

After all, the mid and top laners can switch roles, and they can also come up with a bunch of counter-version items to put pressure on the draft.

WBG's only concern is whether T1 has more tactics than in previous years, or whether they have some version understanding that WBG is unaware of.

结果
not at all.

It's the same setup as last year: support roams, AD carries stays alone.

Keria's playstyle involves relieving pressure on other lanes, setting the pace, and also accelerating dragon control.

Even from what I've seen, it seems that WBG's understanding of the version is not as advanced as theirs.

No.
Can't say that.

With the accumulation of capital and time, T1's training team can be said to be the most mature and reliable training team in the entire LCK.

With the help of this training team, T1 will almost certainly find the answer to the current version.

If what they're playing doesn't seem to offer a universally accepted answer, then there's only one answer.
That is, their personnel and their hero pool can only support them to play like this.

WBG is currently playing a strategy purely centered around the mid-top lane swap system, aiming to ensure that Shimamura Ayana has a lane advantage and can take over the late game.

No other team can replicate this strategy at present.

Because no other team can do what WBG does now—switch mid and top laners and adapt perfectly to each other's hero pools.

This is not like Season 8, where there were some heroes that were interchangeable between mid and top lane and required practice in both positions.

In the current version, while there is some overlap between the mid and top lane hero pools, it is by no means large, and the number of heroes that can be used flexibly is definitely not large.

Some heroes may seem to be able to switch lanes, but in reality, they generally have a clear advantage in one lane and will have various shortcomings when going to another lane.

It can only be used occasionally as a surprise weapon.

The reason why Xiaohu and Shimamura Yuna can switch between playing different lanes is essentially because both of them can play both mid and top lane.

Shimamura Yuna's hero pool is basically all for mid laners, so let's not even talk about that.

Xiaohu himself has also practiced many top lane heroes.

There's no need to elaborate on champions like Gnar and Renekton, which were popular when he played top lane.

The key point is that Xiaohu is surprisingly proficient with champions like Quesanti, which weren't even released when he was playing top lane.

Maybe Xiaohu was born to play top lane.

I remember when he first started playing top lane, many people said, "I feel like you're more suited to top lane than mid lane."

After all, Xiaohu has always been someone who gives the impression of being better at utility and teamwork than carry heroes.

Ultimately, perhaps because the LPL is a region that lacks more mid-laners than top-laners, Xiaohu returned to the mid-lane position and continued to play as a mid-laner.

This experience has given him an unexpected competitive edge today.

Many professional players play both mid and top lanes in ranked matches.

Whether it's Chovy or Knight, these mid-lane players who are known for their individual skill can basically carry both the mid and top lanes in ranked games.

However, when it comes to actual matches, experience in different positions is not as simple as it is in ranked matches.

Or, what if Knight and Chovy can play both mid and top lane?
Could their top laners, BIN and Kiin, be moved to the mid lane?

The premise for swapping mid and top laners is that both mid and top laners are actually good at playing the same heroes.

Currently, apart from WBG, no other team in the world can achieve this.

After watching the match, the entire WBG team gained a lot of confidence and felt a strong sense of assurance.

"We should be able to win the next match."
-
The four teams advancing to the knockout stage have now been determined.

GEN, BLG, WBG, and T1. These two best-of-five matches will determine who will advance to the finals.

Judging from the team rosters, it's fair to say that this year has been a year without any upsets.

Both sides basically predicted that the two strongest teams in their respective regions would enter the semifinals.

Both GENG and WBG are number one seeds.

BLG is the second seed.

Although T1 is the fourth seed, because T1 provides the same version for the World Championship, no one thinks T1 is weak. They just think, "Ah, as expected, T1 at the World Championship is different from the league."

Even the single-elimination quarterfinals failed to select an unexpected Black Cat team through luck.

With the four strongest teams naturally advancing to the semifinals, this year's competition can be considered to be of the highest quality.

After a short adjustment and rest, the semi-finals officially began.

The first match to start was GENG vs BLG in the upper bracket.

To be honest.
Yuna Shimamura hopes BLG will win.

Although her current stance is different from the past, she is no longer a Chinese citizen and is now considered a foreign player in the LPL.

But deep down, she still acknowledges the simple emotions she once had.

Simply put...
I hope my favorite region wins.

The situation remains the same even now.

She hopes BLG can beat GENG and prove the LPL region right.

She hopes to meet BLG in the finals.

just
The reality is very cruel.

Before WBG strengthened its roster, the LPL was in a state of near collapse this year, unable to even compete for the title of the second-best region.

It's fair to say that this competition zone is visibly lacking in vitality.

It looked lifeless.

At this point, many viewers, though pessimistic, still harbored a sliver of hope.

That is, "What if things are different in the World Championship?"

That's right, what if things are different in the World Championship?

What if a miracle happens at the World Championship?

What if BLG suddenly becomes incredibly powerful?

What if TES learns from their shame and becomes even stronger?

What if?
Everyone held this expectation.

Unfortunately, in the end, there was no "what if".

BLG lost to GENG.

BLG has performed quite well.

Fighting GENG until the very last round, almost everyone gave their best performance during the process.

Whether it's BIN or Knight.

They all harbored a strong belief in achieving good results.

However.
Everything that happened this year was foreshadowed.

BLG's Miyano Revolution.

LPL suffered crushing defeats in two World Championships and even in the Regional Championship.

Everything proves that this region is slowly weakening and becoming vulnerable.

In the foreseeable future, victories will become fewer and fewer, while defeats will become more and more frequent.

Both the fans and the players in this region will gradually become more accustomed to failure.

In the end, BLG lost.

They lost the game in a way that was regrettable in terms of the result, but not so regrettable in terms of the process.

Everyone can see that BLG has done its best.

Everyone has done their best.

Everyone gave it their all.

Making it to the fifth game is already quite an achievement.

After BLG lost, the comments section was filled with sighs and lamentations.

Holy crap, it's hard to believe. If it weren't for WBG, this BLG team would be the strongest in the LPL this year. We'd be in the semifinals again!

Okay, relax. Even if we make it to the semifinals, we're still in the second-best region. That's a big improvement over the Vanguard Tournament and MSI.

Has there really been progress? If WBG hadn't strengthened their roster with Shimamura, and she were currently with CFO, CFO would most likely have made it to the top four, or even contend for the championship. Whether they could have become the second-best region is hard to say.

No, I feel that CFO is clearly not as strong as the current WBG. Both of WBG's championship wins had an element of exceptional performance, the kind of play they themselves might not be able to replicate. Even with the original CFO roster, honestly, I don't think their chances of winning are high; there's only a slight possibility.

That's true. The main reason is that Tiger, who can currently swap positions with Shimamura, is just too good a player; the CFO can't do that.

Sigh, I really can't imagine what the LPL would do without WBG this year.

Forget WBG, even WBG might not be able to beat T1. T1 in the World Championship is a different team.

Indeed, after BLG lost, the atmosphere in the entire LPL community was one of pessimism.

Everyone regarded WBG as LPL's last hope and Shimamura Yuna as their final savior.

However, even the fate of this last savior remains unknown.

After all, the semi-finals haven't even started yet.

Some people are pessimistic, saying that T1 in the World Championship is different, and that WBG has no chance of winning.

But more people choose to believe.

After all, at this point, apart from WBG, there were no other teams that could be trusted.

At this moment, WBG truly embodies the expectations of all LPL viewers.

It embodies the expectations of Chinese fans.

Simultaneously
She is still the hope of LOL esports in Japan.

She may also be the most influential female professional athlete in the world.

So many eyes, so many expectations, were all focused on her.

让她
It sparkles.

And she will carry this expectation with her as she continues on her journey.

In a pre-match interview, Shimamura Yuna said, "I've heard that no matter what happens before Worlds, T1 is different once Worlds arrives."

"I've also heard that LPL teams seem to have never won against T1 in the knockout stage of the World Championship."

“There are many urban legends like this, and everyone seems to be very pessimistic.”

"But what I want to say is that victory and defeat are not determined by something like fate. You either win or you lose."

"The claim that T1 has never been defeated by LPL is simply the accumulation of countless achievements."

"And this time, we will shatter this so-called 'legend'."

The interview with Yuna Shimamura and the interview with T1 were recorded separately.

When T1 was interviewed, they indeed said, "We, T1, have never lost to an LPL team in the World Championship, and I think it will be the same this time."

The interviews from both sides were broadcast live one after the other, immediately creating a tense atmosphere.

(End of this chapter)