SK Telecom T1 K: Finding the Repeat
Riot·8/26/2014, 11:31:05 PM·1 votes·43,588 views
Since the very first World Championship, an unusual curse has struck each season’s champion. During Season 2, champions Fnatic fell into obscurity, unable to maintain the dominance that they once had over the world. And after Season 2’s World Championship, the Taipei Assassins were crippled by roster changes and shifts in management, failing to make it back to the Season 3 World Championship.
The same story almost played out for SK Telecom T1 K. Although their performance during 2014 has been a far cry from their dominant Season 3 form, the incumbent world champions have managed to hold on. Now, with an opportunity to return to the world stage, SK Telecom T1 K are in search of the elusive repeat.
T1 #2 made an explosive debut as they finished at the top of Group A - a momentous feat, considering they were able to tie with tournament favourites CJ Entus Blaze. Though they faced teams with much more experience in the group stage, their raw talent and individual mechanics saw them steamroll the veteran teams. In the bracket stage, T1 #2 were drawn against the newly-reformed NaJin Shield. It was a fast 3-0, as T1 #2 outclassed the NaJin side in every single lane to set up a semi-final match against MVP Ozone.
Unflinching in the face of a dangerous opponent, Ozone came out with a plan for T1 #2. Rather than focusing their attention on Faker as other teams had done, they chose to ignore him, allowing him to farm up on more passive champions such as Ryze and Karthus. Although T1 #2 scraped one win, in the end Ozone were able to overwhelm T1 #2’s weaker lanes for the victory. In the aftermath of Champions Spring, T1 #1 disbanded, allowing more resources to be focused into developing this talented rookie squad.
Revenge came sooner than expected, with the two teams meeting again in the semi-final of Champions Summer 2013. This time, SK Telecom T1 came out on top, partially thanks to banning out Ozone star mid laner Bae “Dade” Uh-jin’s Zed. T1 punched their ticket to face the KT Rolster Bullets in the grand final, setting up one of the most significant League of Legends matches ever played.
SK Telecom T1 started off on the backfoot, with the Bullets taking two convincing wins off some exceptional play from support Won “Mafa” Sang-yeon’s Fiddlesticks. But T1 mounted a comeback, picking up Vi in the jungle for Bae “Bengi Seong-ung in order to feed kills to Faker. The Piltover Enforcer’s strong dive ability catapulted T1 to two wins in a row, setting up a climactic blind pick Game 5.
Freed from the burden of bans, both teams picked up Shen and Zed, but it was Bengi’s Vi that made the difference, countering Lee “KaKAO” Byung-kwon’s Evelynn. As T1 funneled into the KT base, the Bullets desperately attempted to claw their way back into the game. Ryu “Ryu” Sang-wook made one final play on Faker’s Zed, in a moment that would go down in history as one of the greatest individual League of Legends plays ever made.
SK Telecom T1 made history by winning their first-ever Champions a mere six months after formation. Setting their sights on the World Championship, they faced the Bullets once again to decide Korea’s last seed in Los Angeles. T1 asserted their dominance, winning 3-1 and quashing any doubts about whether or not the Bullets were better. They were on their way to the World Championship.
Still recovering from illness, Impact was not able to produce a strong Day 1 performance, as T1 dropped one game to Chinese powerhouses OMG. Fortunately for the Korean squad, Impact would be in fighting form eventually. From that point onward, the only team to take a game off the Korean champions would be fellow Korean team NaJin Black Sword, who were able to drive T1 to Game 5 with masterful play from Kim “Nagne” Sang-moon’s Gragas.
Already familiar with the high pressure of a fifth game, T1 rallied to pull out the win, as Faker’s Orianna controlled the pace of the game beautifully. They would go on to face Royal Club in the grand final, a team that had already disposed of OMG and Fnatic with some innovative support Annie play from Pak Kan “Tabe” Wong. T1 were completely unfettered, however, banning out the Dark Child in all three games.
In the most one-sided final in World Championship history, T1 dominated Royal Club, sending them home in three quick games. From OGN Champions to the World Championship, T1 established their status as the best team in the world.
Following their success on the international stage, T1 acquired a sister team and renamed to SK Telecom T1 K. The world champions were returning home.
Their dominance would continue into Champions Winter 2013-14, as they became not only the first team to win two OGN championships, but also the first team to go undefeated in the tournament. With three major championships in a row, T1 K looked unbeatable. They had constructed the world’s greatest esports dynasty, and it did not show any signs of falling soon.
That is, until it began to crumble from the inside.
It was at this time that PoohManDu made his return to the team, but he did not come back as the same player who won the Season 3 World Championship. Instead, SK Telecom fans witnessed a sloppy, frustrated support player, who may well have been the cause of the team’s failure to beat the Arrows. T1 K’s problems would not cease, as they lost 1-3 to Samsung Ozone, finishing in their lowest position ever at 5th-8th.
All-Star Paris rolled around, and T1 K were out to gain some confidence against relatively weaker international teams. Faker finally used a skin of his own volition against Fnatic, as T1 K picked Jax, Lee Sin, Zed, Vayne and Zyra - the five champions with SK Telecom T1 skins. As they rampaged through the group stage to set up a grand final clash against Chinese frontrunners OMG, they were met with next to no resistance. T1 K did not drop a single game throughout the weekend.
Champions Summer 2014 was around the corner, and with it, T1 K’s last opportunity to guarantee themselves a seed in the 2014 World Championship. Unfortunately, for the second time in a row, T1 K would have to play Samsung White in the Round of 8. Another 1-3 defeat would force T1 K to play through Korea’s Regional Finals for a shot at the World Championship.
From Rookies to Riches
No team in history has entered the forefront of League of Legends as fast as SK Telecom T1 K. They made their debut in Champions Spring 2013 as SK Telecom T1 #2, sister team to Bok “Reapered” Han-gyu’s SK Telecom T1 #1. Coach Kim “KkOma” Jeong-gyun built the team around the incredible solo queue talents of Lee “Faker” Sang-hyeok and Chae “Piglet” Gwang-jin, two players considered to be the most promising rookies in Korea.
T1 #2 made an explosive debut as they finished at the top of Group A - a momentous feat, considering they were able to tie with tournament favourites CJ Entus Blaze. Though they faced teams with much more experience in the group stage, their raw talent and individual mechanics saw them steamroll the veteran teams. In the bracket stage, T1 #2 were drawn against the newly-reformed NaJin Shield. It was a fast 3-0, as T1 #2 outclassed the NaJin side in every single lane to set up a semi-final match against MVP Ozone.
Unflinching in the face of a dangerous opponent, Ozone came out with a plan for T1 #2. Rather than focusing their attention on Faker as other teams had done, they chose to ignore him, allowing him to farm up on more passive champions such as Ryze and Karthus. Although T1 #2 scraped one win, in the end Ozone were able to overwhelm T1 #2’s weaker lanes for the victory. In the aftermath of Champions Spring, T1 #1 disbanded, allowing more resources to be focused into developing this talented rookie squad.
Revenge came sooner than expected, with the two teams meeting again in the semi-final of Champions Summer 2013. This time, SK Telecom T1 came out on top, partially thanks to banning out Ozone star mid laner Bae “Dade” Uh-jin’s Zed. T1 punched their ticket to face the KT Rolster Bullets in the grand final, setting up one of the most significant League of Legends matches ever played.
SK Telecom T1 started off on the backfoot, with the Bullets taking two convincing wins off some exceptional play from support Won “Mafa” Sang-yeon’s Fiddlesticks. But T1 mounted a comeback, picking up Vi in the jungle for Bae “Bengi Seong-ung in order to feed kills to Faker. The Piltover Enforcer’s strong dive ability catapulted T1 to two wins in a row, setting up a climactic blind pick Game 5.
Freed from the burden of bans, both teams picked up Shen and Zed, but it was Bengi’s Vi that made the difference, countering Lee “KaKAO” Byung-kwon’s Evelynn. As T1 funneled into the KT base, the Bullets desperately attempted to claw their way back into the game. Ryu “Ryu” Sang-wook made one final play on Faker’s Zed, in a moment that would go down in history as one of the greatest individual League of Legends plays ever made.
SK Telecom T1 made history by winning their first-ever Champions a mere six months after formation. Setting their sights on the World Championship, they faced the Bullets once again to decide Korea’s last seed in Los Angeles. T1 asserted their dominance, winning 3-1 and quashing any doubts about whether or not the Bullets were better. They were on their way to the World Championship.
World Champions
For SK Telecom T1, the Season 3 World Championship was an exciting adventure overseas, in which they would have the opportunity to meet and play against many international teams. After such a strong regional performance, victory at the World Championship was virtually assured. Unfortunately for T1, however, top laner Jung “Impact” Eon-yeong was struck with food poisoning upon arriving in the United States, hindering their practice.
Still recovering from illness, Impact was not able to produce a strong Day 1 performance, as T1 dropped one game to Chinese powerhouses OMG. Fortunately for the Korean squad, Impact would be in fighting form eventually. From that point onward, the only team to take a game off the Korean champions would be fellow Korean team NaJin Black Sword, who were able to drive T1 to Game 5 with masterful play from Kim “Nagne” Sang-moon’s Gragas.
Already familiar with the high pressure of a fifth game, T1 rallied to pull out the win, as Faker’s Orianna controlled the pace of the game beautifully. They would go on to face Royal Club in the grand final, a team that had already disposed of OMG and Fnatic with some innovative support Annie play from Pak Kan “Tabe” Wong. T1 were completely unfettered, however, banning out the Dark Child in all three games.
In the most one-sided final in World Championship history, T1 dominated Royal Club, sending them home in three quick games. From OGN Champions to the World Championship, T1 established their status as the best team in the world.
Following their success on the international stage, T1 acquired a sister team and renamed to SK Telecom T1 K. The world champions were returning home.
Their dominance would continue into Champions Winter 2013-14, as they became not only the first team to win two OGN championships, but also the first team to go undefeated in the tournament. With three major championships in a row, T1 K looked unbeatable. They had constructed the world’s greatest esports dynasty, and it did not show any signs of falling soon.
That is, until it began to crumble from the inside.
A Fallen Empire
Plagued by health issues for much of his career, support Lee “PoohManDu” Jeong-hyeon took a leave of absence from the team, and was replaced with Jin Air talent Kwon “Casper” Ji-min. Though Casper’s actual performance was solid, T1 K suffered severely from the loss of one of their key shotcallers. Indecisive and lethargic, the world champions scraped wins against T1 S and Prime Optimus, but would have to beat the KT Rolster Arrows for a guaranteed spot in the bracket stage.
It was at this time that PoohManDu made his return to the team, but he did not come back as the same player who won the Season 3 World Championship. Instead, SK Telecom fans witnessed a sloppy, frustrated support player, who may well have been the cause of the team’s failure to beat the Arrows. T1 K’s problems would not cease, as they lost 1-3 to Samsung Ozone, finishing in their lowest position ever at 5th-8th.
All-Star Paris rolled around, and T1 K were out to gain some confidence against relatively weaker international teams. Faker finally used a skin of his own volition against Fnatic, as T1 K picked Jax, Lee Sin, Zed, Vayne and Zyra - the five champions with SK Telecom T1 skins. As they rampaged through the group stage to set up a grand final clash against Chinese frontrunners OMG, they were met with next to no resistance. T1 K did not drop a single game throughout the weekend.
Champions Summer 2014 was around the corner, and with it, T1 K’s last opportunity to guarantee themselves a seed in the 2014 World Championship. Unfortunately, for the second time in a row, T1 K would have to play Samsung White in the Round of 8. Another 1-3 defeat would force T1 K to play through Korea’s Regional Finals for a shot at the World Championship.
