Coming into the final week of LCS play, we still had a very slim chance of being able to qualify for playoffs. We were required to win both of our games, whilst hoping a few other teams wouldn't be able to reach the magic 8-10 scoreline. However, we faced the undefeated Fnatic and an Elements squad sensing the chance to make amends for another poor season.

Ever since MSI, no team had managed to figure out Fnatic. Looking to become the first team in LCS history to go undefeated in the regular season, their mixture of raw talent and an impressive coaching and strategical setup has dominated the entirety of this split. It was always going to be a tough task to beat them.

Stop Trolling?

There were standard picks all round, nRated getting his favoured Lulu, and some classic comfort picks for both squads. Until YellOwStaR picked Trundle. A champion not seen for a long time, Trundle has the ability to steal stats form an enemy making him inherently tanky. Whilst it may have been a fun pick, it certainly worked wonders for Fnatic in this game.



Fnatic possess the best LCS record of all time

Reignover had a stellar performance, his cross map pressure syncing well with Febiven's Twisted Fate ultimate and Huni's teleports. Despite a good 1vs1 and general play from CandyPanda, Fnatic were simply much more proactive. They knew exactly what they wanted to achieve, and although we were able to keep it very close in the early game, Fnatic's powerful mid game demolished us.

We kept good dragon control, but a 25 minute ace from Fnatic really turned the tide, suddenly we lost all momentum and another 4 kills found the game running quickly away from us. Fnatic wasted no time cleaning up, and even with a scaling composition on their side, they ended the game in a quick 29 minutes.



A Tahm good showing

Coming off a loss is always tough, but we were able to bounce back against Elements. After beating Gambit the day before, Froggen and crew were going for the last playoff spot and looked determined to seize it. But with nothing on the line, we played with a freedom rarely seen this split and played terrifically.



Elements narrowly miss out on playoffs 2 splits in a row

The first Tahm Kench honours went to Fredy, picking the River King in the top lane, and showing just how annoying he is to play against. Svenskeren continued his great form, and was the catalyst for gold lead heading into the mid game. Some good map play allowed us to grab some turrets and Elements looked a little rattled. CandyPanda provided a constant threat on Corki and the team looked confident when it came to playing around Element's poke.

A 38 minute baron really opened up the game for us, but Elements pinned their hopes on the Aspect of the Dragon, securing it at the same time and setting up an interesting question as to which buff is better. We cracked the Elements base at the 43 minute mark, and it was plain sailing from there on out, preventing another 5th dragon take and winning our final game of the season after an exciting 9 death team fight.



Player of the week: Adrian "CandyPanda" Wübbelmann



While Sven is the constant star in the team, Candy really showed up in the final week. 2 great Corki games including a solokill onto Rekkles showed that Candy still has what it take to be a good LCS level ADC. A deathless game vs Elements secures his Week 9 SK MVP and it was great to see him back to his best.


We end the LCS split in 9th place, meaning we have to play in the promotion tournament. We can still retain our spot and look to improve for next season, so don't forget to tune in after the playoffs when we fight for our LCS future!

Images courtesy of LoLesports flickr.