Chapter 21: VLL final (3)

“Hello viewers. Welcome to the VLL finals with the LCK, I’m caster Kim Dong-jin.”

“Greetings again. I’m commentator Yoo Seung-hwan.”

[Dong-jin and Seung-hwan, the perfect combo]

[VLL has grown a lot, they even brought in LCK casters]

[It’s sponsored by the LCK in the first place, isn’t it?]

[Is Para playing today?]

[Queen Seo-ha Fighting]

“Then, let’s meet our players, whom many of you have been waiting for.”

“The first players to appear, the strong vanguard of the team. Top! Sheen and Zenith!”

[????]

[What’s that?]

[He’s cosplaying Sheen LOL]

[It’ll be fun if Sheen plays today]

[He’ll definitely be unbanned, they’ll probably use 3 bans on mid]

“Next up is the jungle! The masterminds who command the game with their brains.”

“Pressure and Luka, both players with incredible careers.”

“Pressure, who has won the World Championship, and Luka, who has won the LCK four times in a row. I’m looking forward to seeing what they’ll show us.”

[You don’t have Worlds LOL]

[Yeah, yeah, you lost to Luka 9 times in a row in the LCK, but you won Worlds]

[But Luka is better now, right? Pressure retired 2 years ago]

[Ban the excessive flame wars]

“Ah~ Next up are the two players everyone is looking forward to.”

“That’s right. A player who truly deserves to be called a super rookie, and a veteran. I think many people are looking forward to this matchup.”

“Para in mid, and Seong-ho!”

[Wow, she’s so pretty]

[She doesn’t seem to be wearing much makeup, but look how fair her skin is]

[In terms of pure skill in solo queue, Para >>> (insurmountable wall) >> Seong-ho]

[Solo queue warrior;;]

[Pure skill is Eugene LOL]

[Didn’t you see the gallery? Watch your words if you don’t want to get in trouble LOL]

[What’s that supposed to mean?]

[They say Para’s parents are lawyers?]

[CC]

“Now, the bot duo should be next, right?”

“This is also a very interesting match, personally.”

“I agree. How can the team’s styles be so different?”

“Eugene and Fpot, and Count and Lucia.”

[Hyper carry + playmaking vs. support + utility god]

[I think Count will definitely win in the ADC matchup, but Fpot’s form is so crazy these days, I don’t know]

[Fpot, who abandoned damage supports, is a god]

[LOL When he picks Rakan after playing things like support Rumble, he’s just a golden flash LOL]

“Then let’s summarize the rosters of both teams.”

TEAM – We’re Good at LOL Even When We’re Retired

Top: Zenith

Jungle: Luka

Mid: Seong-ho

ADC: Count

Support: Lucia

“Before the match starts, we see the captains of both teams bumping fists.”

“Seeing it here, it really feels like Sheen is in the stadium.”

“The quality is really good. By the way, Team ‘Talent,’ their outfits are unusual?”

[Did they get matching uniforms?]

[VLL doesn’t have uniform regulations, right?]

[Some teams just wear them for their own satisfaction]

“Para definitely stands out.”

“It’s a strange sight to see her as the only woman among all these guys.”

“But it’s also her charm point that she shows a completely different side in-game.”

“Let’s see what kind of plays she’ll show us today. The draft begins!”

****

“Ah… they banned Sheen right away.”

Sheen’s deep sigh could be heard through the headset.

Our predicted draft for today was that they would use all their bans on mid to target me.

However, contrary to our expectations, the opposing team banned Sheen’s Sheen and Eugene’s Kai’Sa.

“They’ll probably unban him for at least one game.”

But today’s match was a best-of-five, a multi-game series.

I could guarantee that he would be unbanned for at least one of the minimum three sets.

“Then let’s revise the draft for this game like we did in the semifinals. We’ll pick jungle and bot duo first, then go down and pick top and mid.”

“That sounds good.”

“Yeah, it’s definitely a disaster if we let you first-pick.”

Everyone agreed with my suggestion, and our team banned the opponent’s most-played champions: Kalista, Rumble, and Ashe.

“But are we sure about choosing red side… will it be okay?”

In LOL, there are blue and red sides.

Apart from the geographical advantages, both teams had their own pros and cons from the draft phase.

In the first phase, the blue team picks once, the red team picks twice, and then the remaining picks are filled.

This is where the advantage of the blue team comes in.

In a game where the same champion cannot be chosen, they could always take a good pick.

Conversely, the advantage of the red team was that they could choose two champions in a row, allowing them to create their desired combinations, such as top-jungle, jungle-mid, or bot duo.

In addition, they had the last pick counter.

However, in most games, the blue team’s win rate was overwhelmingly higher.

It was much easier to just take a good pick than to give up a good pick and try to counter it.

Despite this, the reason our team chose red was.

“They’re taking Jinx right away.”

Even if they gave up the opponent’s ADC’s signature champion, Jinx, which was currently considered a strong pick in the meta.

“Then let’s take Leona.”

They judged that if they could get Leona, the partner support, they could draft comfortably.

“Can you play Lucian?”

“It’s not bad with Jinx, but it’s a bit boring if it’s not with Nami…”

“Just pick it.”

As if there was no more value in listening, Pressure picked Lucian for the ADC position.

So far, the draft was Jinx vs. Lucian and Leona.

The opposing team would probably pick their support and jungle here.

“Wow, they just picked Viego for jungle and Maokai for support? They’re just going to crush us?”

“Then what should we pick for jungle?”

It was our team’s third pick, and it was my turn to pick a champion as the mid laner.

“What should we do? Honestly, I think we can fill in the value even if we go down.”

“I can play both AD and AP, so you can just pick whatever you’re comfortable with.”

“Then let’s pick Lee Sin. We need to match the tempo against Viego.”

After our picks were over, the ban phase came again.

The opponent’s bans were Yone and Malphite.

We banned Poppy and LeBlanc.

“Should we pick top first?”

“I think it would be better to give Seo-ha the last pick. Pick Ornn.”

Sheen chose Ornn.

The opponent picked Gragas to counter Ornn in the top lane, and Ahri for mid.

‘So they’re planning to counter Ornn with Gragas.’

I needed to pick an AP champion here.

I ran through the possible picks in my head.

“Give me Sylas.”

“Sylas? Won’t the laning phase be tough against Ahri?”

“Even if I lose a little, I think I can hold on.”

Among the opponent’s champions, Ahri and Maokai had decent ultimates.

In particular, Maokai’s ultimate was one of the most valuable ultimates.

It was often called the essence of point-and-click champions.

TEAM – We’re Good at LOL Even When We’re Retired

TOP: Gragas

JG: Viego

MID: Ahri

AD: Jinx

SUP: Maokai

“So, this is how the draft ends.”

“Yes, all the viewers probably thought that Sheen’s Sheen would be unbanned today. Since it’s the first set, I think they banned him as they are still feeling each other out.”

“A Sheen player who is pro-level. There’s even a saying, isn’t there?”

“That’s right. Actually, he came to our team for a test before I retired. Of course, we couldn’t play together due to champion pool issues.”

“There was such a hidden story.”

[It’s a shame that Sheen is banned]

[It’s a best-of-five, he’ll be unbanned for one game]

[? What best-of-five, it’s obvious they’ll get stomped 3-0]

[You mean the retired team will get stomped, right?]

[Seo-ha’s Sylas incoming]

“The game hasn’t started yet because it’s still loading.”

“Then, let’s take a look at the people who came today.”

“There are about 600 seats in this Sangam Stadium. All the seats were sold out within 30 minutes of the tickets going on sale, showing how much interest there is.”

“There are people who came alone, people who came together, and people who wrote cheering slogans.”

[What was that just now?]

[I saw someone really pretty]

[What was written on the cheering slogan?]

[It said something about Para, maybe a fan?]

“Now, it seems that the game is ready. The first set of both teams begins!”

[It’s coming, it’s coming, it’s coming]

[Whoever wins, the mid diff is certain]

[Let’s go, let’s go, let’s go~]

[? What’s up with Sylas’ runes?]

“There’s something unusual as soon as the game starts.”

“Yes, it’s Sylas’ runes. First Strike… with Minion Dematerializer and Cosmic Insight. Does it mean, if you want to fight, then fight?”

Or maybe he is aiming for small skirmishes with the popular rune Conqueror.

“Usually, you take Inspiration for an easier laning phase. I wonder what kind of plays he will show us. Let’s find out!”