EDG: Rebuilding a Chinese Powerhouse
Riot·6/17/2014, 1:37:08 AM·2 votes·1,369 views
Most have heard of Edward Gaming, the team formed from a selection of accomplished Chinese players, that dominated the 2014 LPL Summer Playoffs and has begun to establish themselves as the best team in China. Many have even watched them transform from an uncertain squad, winning games by stalling, to a confident, lane-crushing force.
Yet it’s the story of where they came from, how half the roster rose from one fractured powerhouse with the goal of taking down another, that makes Edward Gaming worth our attention both on and off the rift. EDG hasn’t taken the easy road to the top, having made enemies early on of not just their former teammates and China’s most popular team, World Elite, but also of WE’s long-time rivals, Invictus Gaming.
Where they come from has us guessing how high they’ll rise.
WE came back with a vengeance in IPL 5. They smashed through groups, then nearly the entire tournament, only losing two games to Fnatic as they climbed. Along the way, they defeated Azubu Blaze, Moscow Five, and the same CLG EU team that had bested them at S2WC. This marked the start of the peak of WE’s dominance, not just abroad, but in China.
Few things last forever. Communication disputes began to rear their head. WE lost confidence when they dropped the Star Wars League 2 to Invictus Gaming in the Grand Finals after beating them in the upper bracket. The team further imploded during 2013 LPL Spring, losing games to not just iG and OMG, but the likes of Wings of Aurora, Team Livemore, and Positive Energy, ending the regular season in third place.
Conflict and petty arguments began to plague interactions between team members. WE continued to struggle, barely keeping their heads above water, until their failure to qualify for the Season Three World Championships. Mid laner Yu “Misaya” Jing-Xi announced his retirement, partially as a result of his team’s in-fighting. The arguments had split the team in half, and the last additions from the fall of 2012 left with analyst Aaron.
At the time of World Elite’s crash, Invictus Gaming was climbing the ranks. They found success in the offseason between Season Three and Season Four at IEM Season VIII Singapore and Demacia Cup. Ed Zhu and the other founders of EDG sought to create a team that could contest iG's dominance and purchased the vacant LPL spot left by LMQ TianCi. EDG welcomed Aaron, Clearlove, and Fzzf under its umbrella and offered an $80,000 transfer fee for any player interested in joining the group.
With Clearlove and Fzzf, the team already had two stars. Fzzf, sometimes called “Curly” by casters and fans for his wavy hair, had a reputation as a support-carry, and the role of a team fight initiator came naturally to him. Clearlove, called “pig-raiser” for plays that left his opponents “as defenseless piggies before him” performed well as a high-farm jungler for WE. He would emerge after his team’s strong laning phase and help take down targets, even when jungle was considered a gold-starved role.
The organization wanted to create a team that could work well around Clearlove and Fzzf, rather than steal their spotlight. At the time of WE’s crumble, another recognized team disbanded. RisingStars, a team most insisted would one day get into and make its mark on the LPL, had failed to escape groups at the 2013 TGA Grand Prix Winter, and its members decided to go their separate ways. With iG’s acquisition of Liu “Kitties” Hong-Jun and WE perusing Chen “suk1M” Zhin-Yuan and Teng-Yang “Ruo” Tian-Xia to replace Misaya and Clearlove, these players were already being snatched up by LPL teams.
Clearlove had served as a personal mentor to RisingStars’ top laner, Tong “Koro1” Yang, then known as “mindreader.” Knowing they worked well together, Clearlove recommended Koro1 to the team. His reputation for performing with little farm and preferring tanky champions was seen as an asset rather than a flaw with Clearlove intent upon carry style junglers.
The next acquisition, Ceng “U” Long, came as a transfer from Doran Esports. He was attractive for his versatility, as the team sought a utility-based mid laner who could serve as a rock when the meta changed. As an added bonus, it’s rumored Doran’s members had a score to settle with the WE organization, making U a potential ally against Fzzf and Clearlove’s former team. He changed his name from Jie to U, short for “Unstoppable,” traded in his preferred Zed and Nidalee for a long split of Ziggs and Lulu play, and joined EDG in LPL.
The main target of the $80,000 transfer fee was clear to many. Positive Energy was fresh off a playoff victory in a long best-of-five against OMG, and many believed the team had their bottom lane, Zhu “NaMei” Jia-Wen and Li “Sicca” Hao-Yu, to thank. While EDG already had an impressive support player of their own, Fzzf would need an AD carry that could help him return to the status he held with WeiXiao in early 2013. As the marksmen main previously known as “Devil” who had made it his goal to surpass WeiXiao and succeeded, NaMei seemed like the obvious choice.
With NaMei’s transfer from PE, EDG had the roster they wanted. Then, when plans to settle differences and form an organizational union with WE fell through, WE fans would brand EDG a “team of traitors,” but their own select supporters referred to them quietly as the “revenge team.”
Every game in the regular season against iG lasted at least 40 minutes, and in one match, iG took a 10,000 gold lead over EDG. U’s Ziggs, and Koro1’s impeccable zone control saw impossible fights turn in EDG’s favor. They finished the split with a 4-0 record against iG, and a presumably gleeful proprietor. The only team EDG constantly failed to best was the still-powerful OMG.
Things were less smooth off the rift. WE fans saw EDG as a team of turncoats, and the organization’s PR did nothing to aid them. One graphic artist for WE openly hoped violence would befall Clearlove. Fans saw WE as victims in the team’s break and believed Clearlove and Fzzf had ruined the Chinese team’s chances of returning to prominence by defecting. When EDG members did not speak while streaming, it was rumored they did so to avoid giving WE fans ammunition.
Yet EDG grew stronger throughout LPL Spring. At the International Esports Tournament, a tournament featuring seven LPL teams and the newly risen World Elite Academy, EDG failed to drop a game all the way through the finals, where they beat OMG, defeating them handily and for the first time. They focused down the mid laner, Hu “xiyang” Bin, in champion select and in ganks, finding a swift victory and a new collection of fans.
When OMG lost to SK Telecom T1 K at AllStars as the result of a similar strategy, more fans began to flock toward EDG. They saw them as China’s hope after OMG’s failure, and journalists began to actively seek video interviews with the team. Their success was only compounded by powerful performances against both WE and iG in the LPL Playoffs. Their shortest game against iG in the regular season lasted 40 minutes. In the playoffs, they forced iG into a 26 minute surrender. EDG guaranteed themselves a spot at the Chinese regionals, and if they can take a summer playoff victory, they’ll pick up China’s first seed at World’s.
As EDG grows, they haven’t forgotten their roots. Clearlove and WeiXiao, captains of their respective squads, have taken steps to mend fences. They were spotted duo queueing on ex-iG member, Sun “XiaoXiao” Yalong’s stream. When XiaoXiao asked if they were playing together to try to force each other to lose, Clearlove said “yes,” but the ever-serious WeiXiao denied XiaoXiao’s jab. Perhaps a split playing apart has reminded the remnants of WE why they were so good together in the first place, and the next time EDG and WE face off, they’ll meet as opponents, but not enemies.
Special thanks to Felon Lee for helping to clarify context and locate specific anecdotes.
THE ELITE WERE WORLDS APART
In the early fall just before the Season Two World Championships, the last two members of the team that would go on to become the among the best in the world for the early months of 2013 joined World Elite’s lineup. Ming “Clearlove” Kai joined the team in August as their jungler, followed shortly after by Feng “Fzzf” Zhuo-Jun. Technical difficulties plagued WE’s games against CLG EU in the round of eight at the Season 2 World Championships, and WE ultimately dropped from the tournament early.
WE came back with a vengeance in IPL 5. They smashed through groups, then nearly the entire tournament, only losing two games to Fnatic as they climbed. Along the way, they defeated Azubu Blaze, Moscow Five, and the same CLG EU team that had bested them at S2WC. This marked the start of the peak of WE’s dominance, not just abroad, but in China.
Few things last forever. Communication disputes began to rear their head. WE lost confidence when they dropped the Star Wars League 2 to Invictus Gaming in the Grand Finals after beating them in the upper bracket. The team further imploded during 2013 LPL Spring, losing games to not just iG and OMG, but the likes of Wings of Aurora, Team Livemore, and Positive Energy, ending the regular season in third place.
Conflict and petty arguments began to plague interactions between team members. WE continued to struggle, barely keeping their heads above water, until their failure to qualify for the Season Three World Championships. Mid laner Yu “Misaya” Jing-Xi announced his retirement, partially as a result of his team’s in-fighting. The arguments had split the team in half, and the last additions from the fall of 2012 left with analyst Aaron.
A BAND OF “TRAITORS”
At the time of World Elite’s crash, Invictus Gaming was climbing the ranks. They found success in the offseason between Season Three and Season Four at IEM Season VIII Singapore and Demacia Cup. Ed Zhu and the other founders of EDG sought to create a team that could contest iG's dominance and purchased the vacant LPL spot left by LMQ TianCi. EDG welcomed Aaron, Clearlove, and Fzzf under its umbrella and offered an $80,000 transfer fee for any player interested in joining the group.
With Clearlove and Fzzf, the team already had two stars. Fzzf, sometimes called “Curly” by casters and fans for his wavy hair, had a reputation as a support-carry, and the role of a team fight initiator came naturally to him. Clearlove, called “pig-raiser” for plays that left his opponents “as defenseless piggies before him” performed well as a high-farm jungler for WE. He would emerge after his team’s strong laning phase and help take down targets, even when jungle was considered a gold-starved role.
The organization wanted to create a team that could work well around Clearlove and Fzzf, rather than steal their spotlight. At the time of WE’s crumble, another recognized team disbanded. RisingStars, a team most insisted would one day get into and make its mark on the LPL, had failed to escape groups at the 2013 TGA Grand Prix Winter, and its members decided to go their separate ways. With iG’s acquisition of Liu “Kitties” Hong-Jun and WE perusing Chen “suk1M” Zhin-Yuan and Teng-Yang “Ruo” Tian-Xia to replace Misaya and Clearlove, these players were already being snatched up by LPL teams.
Clearlove had served as a personal mentor to RisingStars’ top laner, Tong “Koro1” Yang, then known as “mindreader.” Knowing they worked well together, Clearlove recommended Koro1 to the team. His reputation for performing with little farm and preferring tanky champions was seen as an asset rather than a flaw with Clearlove intent upon carry style junglers.
The next acquisition, Ceng “U” Long, came as a transfer from Doran Esports. He was attractive for his versatility, as the team sought a utility-based mid laner who could serve as a rock when the meta changed. As an added bonus, it’s rumored Doran’s members had a score to settle with the WE organization, making U a potential ally against Fzzf and Clearlove’s former team. He changed his name from Jie to U, short for “Unstoppable,” traded in his preferred Zed and Nidalee for a long split of Ziggs and Lulu play, and joined EDG in LPL.
The main target of the $80,000 transfer fee was clear to many. Positive Energy was fresh off a playoff victory in a long best-of-five against OMG, and many believed the team had their bottom lane, Zhu “NaMei” Jia-Wen and Li “Sicca” Hao-Yu, to thank. While EDG already had an impressive support player of their own, Fzzf would need an AD carry that could help him return to the status he held with WeiXiao in early 2013. As the marksmen main previously known as “Devil” who had made it his goal to surpass WeiXiao and succeeded, NaMei seemed like the obvious choice.
With NaMei’s transfer from PE, EDG had the roster they wanted. Then, when plans to settle differences and form an organizational union with WE fell through, WE fans would brand EDG a “team of traitors,” but their own select supporters referred to them quietly as the “revenge team.”
HESITATION IS THE SEED OF VICTORY
Immediately, EDG were favorites to take LPL Spring. Rumors claimed Clearlove and Koro1’s synergy transferred into nearly consistent first blood pickups in scrimmages. The iG and EDG rivalry, it was said, would last throughout the split, and no one else would be able to touch them. With OMG’s less than stellar offseason and Yu “Cool” Jia-Jun taking a split off to be replaced by a solo queue mid laner who only played three champions primarily, most dismissed OMG offhand. WE’s new lineup was considered a dark horse, and everyone else wasn’t worth mentioning. One of the only offseason predictions that held true throughout 2014 LPL Summer was the power EDG brought to the table, but it took an unusual form. The LPL, long known as a war zone of constant 5v5s and early tower dives, gave way to very different group stage leaders. EDG, OMG, iG, and WE ended the season with the longest average game times in LPL and the four playoff seeds. EDG would give up advantages early game, but their ability to stall and turn with a single team fight carried them through.
Every game in the regular season against iG lasted at least 40 minutes, and in one match, iG took a 10,000 gold lead over EDG. U’s Ziggs, and Koro1’s impeccable zone control saw impossible fights turn in EDG’s favor. They finished the split with a 4-0 record against iG, and a presumably gleeful proprietor. The only team EDG constantly failed to best was the still-powerful OMG.
Things were less smooth off the rift. WE fans saw EDG as a team of turncoats, and the organization’s PR did nothing to aid them. One graphic artist for WE openly hoped violence would befall Clearlove. Fans saw WE as victims in the team’s break and believed Clearlove and Fzzf had ruined the Chinese team’s chances of returning to prominence by defecting. When EDG members did not speak while streaming, it was rumored they did so to avoid giving WE fans ammunition.
Yet EDG grew stronger throughout LPL Spring. At the International Esports Tournament, a tournament featuring seven LPL teams and the newly risen World Elite Academy, EDG failed to drop a game all the way through the finals, where they beat OMG, defeating them handily and for the first time. They focused down the mid laner, Hu “xiyang” Bin, in champion select and in ganks, finding a swift victory and a new collection of fans.
When OMG lost to SK Telecom T1 K at AllStars as the result of a similar strategy, more fans began to flock toward EDG. They saw them as China’s hope after OMG’s failure, and journalists began to actively seek video interviews with the team. Their success was only compounded by powerful performances against both WE and iG in the LPL Playoffs. Their shortest game against iG in the regular season lasted 40 minutes. In the playoffs, they forced iG into a 26 minute surrender. EDG guaranteed themselves a spot at the Chinese regionals, and if they can take a summer playoff victory, they’ll pick up China’s first seed at World’s.
(RE)FORGING AHEAD
When Ed Zhu created EDG to rival iG, it’s unclear whether or not he understood the true value of the talent he had mined. Though EDG split even in their first best-of-two against OMG in 2014 LPL Summer, they’ve retained their tight early game and maintained their commanding control of team fights. Still, they’re unsatisfied. Clearlove hopes to begin to think more creatively about the map so that the team might rival the Koreans and even defeat SK Telecom T1 K should they meet at the Season Four World Championships in Seoul, South Korea.
As EDG grows, they haven’t forgotten their roots. Clearlove and WeiXiao, captains of their respective squads, have taken steps to mend fences. They were spotted duo queueing on ex-iG member, Sun “XiaoXiao” Yalong’s stream. When XiaoXiao asked if they were playing together to try to force each other to lose, Clearlove said “yes,” but the ever-serious WeiXiao denied XiaoXiao’s jab. Perhaps a split playing apart has reminded the remnants of WE why they were so good together in the first place, and the next time EDG and WE face off, they’ll meet as opponents, but not enemies.
Special thanks to Felon Lee for helping to clarify context and locate specific anecdotes.
