novellk 022 The Mantis Behind
022 The Mantis Behind
Taking advantage of the long loading time, Li Zhixing took a final look at the lineups of both sides.
Blue side RICE: Top lane Jax, Jungle Kha'Zix, Mid lane Sion, Bot lane Sivir and Lulu.
Red side SKT: Top lane Kennen, Jungle Jarvan IV, Mid lane Orianna, Bot lane Corki and Thresh.
It has to be said that SKT's lineup in this game was quite good, not only strong in the laning phase, but also with a dreamlike performance in team fights.
If this were placed in the global ban/pick mode ten years from now, this would be a powerful lineup that would likely guarantee a point if selected.
Because later versions had more and more important neutral resources, the importance of team fights was greatly increased, which made this lineup powerful.
But things are different now.
In this version, the only neutral resource is a small dragon that costs 190 gold per person, which is far from the game-changing Dragon Soul, and there is no Vanguard Brood Worm.
In this environment, clinging to team fight lineups demonstrates a lack of understanding of strategy and tactics.
There aren't that many opportunities to team up.
The correct approach is to focus on defense, using split-push tactics and pick off isolated targets to gradually erode the opponent's strength!
Is this looking down on people, choosing a lineup to crush weaker opponents, or is this all the understanding you have?
Regardless of the reason, Li Zhixing was certain that the other side was doomed to defeat.
"In the early game, I don't need you to gain a significant advantage in the three lanes. Especially in the bottom lane, just play it safe."
"The enemy team has a lane advantage on both sides, and their jungler's starting route is hard to predict. Se-hyung, you must buy wards at the start of the game, and then we'll go to the jungle together to place wards and scout out the enemy jungler's starting route."
"As long as you do this, I can guarantee your smooth progress in the early stages."
"Besides that, Sang-hyeok remembers to calculate the respawn time of the enemy's four ghosts. When they respawn for the second time, I need you to be pushing the lane and helping me invade the enemy jungle, understand?"
Li Zhixing spoke calmly and clearly. Almost everyone had their own assigned tasks, so the others naturally had no doubts and responded in unison.
But Mata, as a former commander, still had some questions.
In his opinion, this team composition was really unremarkable. They were at a disadvantage in the laning phase and were completely dominated in team fights. How could they possibly win?
However, Li Zhixing had already demonstrated his amazing command ability in previous training matches, so Mata didn't say much and just watched Li Zhixing perform.
Inside the SKT training room, Kkoma looked at the lineups on both sides and a smile crept onto his face.
How were these lineups, which have absolutely no synergy, chosen? How can a trash champion like Kha'Zix be used in competitive play?
That's why they call it an amateur team; this lineup would only be considered average even in ranked matches!
"Get serious, kids!"
Kkoma shouted loudly, "We've won big in the draft! I believe in your abilities, you definitely won't lose this game!"
Most of the SKT members in front responded excitedly, but only the mid laner Easyhoon looked at the lineup in front of him and saw something different.
Did BP win big? Easyhoon doesn't think so.
Now, he can only hope that things aren't as he thinks.
The game started quickly.
Li Zhixing immediately pinged signals to his teammates to follow him.
The only advantage of training matches over ranked matches is that Li Zhixing can directly control his four teammates, turning them into sand soldiers at his command.
Only in this way can his ability to read the situation be fully unleashed.
The five players rushed into the enemy's top red buff area and placed a ward at the red buff camp.
The SKT team watched all of this unfold, but they were completely unprepared for it, so all they could do was watch.
Li Zhixing returned to the jungle and saw through the wards that the opposing Prince had indeed chosen to start with the red buff in the top half of the map. A smile appeared on his lips, and he then turned to the top half of the map as well.
That's why people these days are so bad at esports, even professional teams.
This version doesn't have a cosmetic system, and each ward costs 75 gold, so Mata's opening ward is quite a significant investment.
But that's precisely why perspective becomes even more important.
Because placing wards costs money, and removing wards is even more expensive, this ward can remain stable for three minutes without scanning, and can even detect the enemy's second round of jungle clearing!
75 yuan can get you two rounds of information from the enemy jungler, that's an absolute steal.
Li Zhixing did not run away, and also chose to brush from top to bottom, preparing for a counter-camping attack.
While scrolling through the chat, Li Zhixing also switched between three screens to observe his teammates' laning situation.
As expected, the laning phase between the two single-player lanes was fairly even.
Although Looper is at a disadvantage in the top lane, his abilities are undeniable, so he shouldn't have much trouble protecting himself in lane.
As for the mid lane, it goes without saying that Sion and Orianna are an easy matchup. Moreover, Lee Sang-hyeok has thoroughly studied Lee Ji-hyeong's tutorial videos on mid lane Sion, so his thinking is crystal clear.
Only the bottom lane struggled.
The duo of SKT's first team are the core of the team and are undoubtedly top-notch players.
Just after reaching level two, Wolf's Thresh flashed forward, used his E to knock Sivir back, and then followed up with a Q "Death Sentence"!
Deft's Sivir was only level 1 and didn't have Cleanse, so he didn't dare take the hook and had to use Flash to get away!
However, Wolf's target was not him.
The grappling hook extended diagonally and accurately struck Lulu from the side!
"Snap!"
The pleasant sound effect of the skill hitting the target rang out, and Li Zhixing raised an eyebrow as he watched the fingers move in all directions.
To be fair, people in this era may have a shallow understanding of games, but when it comes to skillful gameplay, they are absolutely on par.
Taking this opportunity, Bang's plane also followed up with W, using basic attacks in conjunction with machine gun fire!
In just one exchange, Lulu was reduced to low health and had to use her dodge to escape.
In ranked matches, both Corki and Thresh would use Flash to secure a kill on Lulu.
But this is a professional-level competition, and there are better ways to handle it.
SKT's bot lane duo didn't pursue too far and turned back to deal with the minion wave.
The minion wave slowly pushed into the tower. Kim Hyuk-kyu, who didn't have Flash, looked at the situation before him, too nervous to speak. It was Mata who spoke first:
"Bro, looks like the enemy is going to dive the tower..."
The jungler and support, Prince and Thresh, already had top-tier tower-diving abilities. Now that one of them has been severely damaged, they are doomed.
"I'm here." Li Zhixing's calm voice came from beside him, and just hearing it calmed him down a little.
If Mata could think of something, how could Li Zhixing not know it?
At this moment, we can see that Li Zhixing's Kha'Zix has already reached level three by clearing the red buff, but he did not go directly to the bottom lane. Instead, he stood quietly against the short wall opposite the Malphite's entrance, waiting patiently.
If you had a god's-eye view of the game at this moment, you could clearly see that SKT jungler Horo's Jarvan IV was in the bush next to the narrow wall, separated from Kha'Zix by only a corner of the wall.
The difference is that Li Zhixing completely anticipated the existence of the prince, so he did it deliberately.
The prince, however, knew nothing about this.
Seeing the bottom lane minions pushing into the tower, Li Zhixing took two steps back.
The prince was moving forward, and the two circled the narrow wall in perfect unison, yet still couldn't see each other.
In this tower dive, the mantis wasn't actually the mantis, but rather the oriole.