The rise of Invictus Gaming
Riot·4/16/2015, 7:37:13 PM·0 votes·12,568 views
In the vast migration of Korean players across the East China Sea for brighter, more lucrative shores, two of the most talked about prospective acquisitions were Lee “KaKAO” Byung-kwon and Song “RooKie” Eui-jin. The two left the KT Rolster organization on October 6, 2014, and immediately became the two names on everyone’s lips as rumors flew furiously.
Chinese teams jockeyed for position in the vast bidding wars over Korean imports, and the KaKAO-RooKie pair were two of the most sought-after players. Money and players continued to change hands and teams for months. At the end of it all, KaKAO and RooKie joined veteran Chinese organization Invictus Gaming in December 2014 after a near three month ordeal.
IG was founded in 2011, and has had many ups and downs throughout multiple iterations of the team. Perennially buoying fans’ hopes before somehow crushing them, iG has vacillated between performing beyond expectations and disappointing them. Their heights include a 2013 GIGABYTE Star Wars League Season 2 victory over then-dominant World Elite, and second place in the 2014 LPL Spring Playoffs. Their lows fall well below expectations: 5th in the 2013 LPL Summer Regular Season and 6th in the 2014 LPL Summer Regular Season, making for a inconsistent picture of iG through the years.
One of the tipping points was that KaKAO played primarily Lee Sin and Nidalee, two junglers that allowed for him to dictate the pace of the game through his actions. His team members followed up based on his actions in game, and if Invictus Gaming were previously having communication issues, KaKAO’s resurgence on these two champions went a long way to abate them.
This, in addition to their well-researched pick/ban phases against their opponents, transformed iG into more of a unit, rather than relying on one member, usually RooKie, to make flashy plays and carry. In spite of falling to EDG in the Demacia Cup Finals, iG closed out 2015 LPL Spring looking stronger.
iG relied on their cunning draft phase, which had two key focal points: the massive champion pools of the majority of their players, and lengthy research on their opponents. After falling to Vici in the first game, iG adjusted, picking stronger disengage compositions with KaKAO on Gragas and Kitties on Janna. Combined with early deep warding to scout out Vici’s signature lane swaps, iG managed to get their lanes ahead, significantly reducing Vici’s mid game power.
From this point, iG out-rotated Vici on the map, forcing them to group for disadvantageous team fights or to follow iG around the map. In Games Two through Four, iG was always a step ahead, with Vici only able to respond to their movements, rather than trade objectives or initiate moves of their own. Individually, Kid and Kitties stepped up, Zzitai looked comfortable and happy in the top lane, KaKAO made a strong case for future Gragas bans against him, and RooKie made the flashy plays he loves on champions like Cassiopeia and Azir. Most impressively, through their map movements and control over the pace of these games, Invictus Gaming looked like a team.
Their next test comes in their Semifinal matchup with domestic powerhouse EDward Gaming. In the regular season, iG dropped all of their four games to EDG. EDG has earned the recent label of the best team in China for a reason, and even with missing their star mid laner, Heo “PawN” Won-Seok, due to illness, EDG are the most formidable opponent that Invictus Gaming will face. To win, KaKAO will need to continue his jungle dominance while showcasing his newfound coordination with all of his teammates. Additionally, their research and champion select must continue to be strong. Invictus Gaming is a group of talented individuals who now have the chance to shine as a unit.
Invictus Gaming will face off against EDward Gaming in the LPL Spring Playoff Semifinals on Saturday, April 18 at 2AM PST right here on Lolesports. In the meantime, catch all the action from the LPL and every other league on our spoiler-free VODs page.
The Core of the KT Rolster Arrows
Following iG’s 5th place finish in the 2014 Season China Regional Finals, their jungler Chen “illuSioN” Xinlin was shipped off to Young Glory and the team acquired former KT Rolster Arrows jungler KaKAO, with mid laner RooKie tagging along for the ride. With a different playstyle than Invictus Gaming, but similarly inconsistent results, the KT Rolster Arrows were an aggressive, mobile team that thrived on flashy plays. At their best, they would pressure their opponents without losing control of the game. At their worst, they were downright reckless. At their core, was KaKAO, who dictated the pace of the Arrows’ matches, with rising talent RooKie shoring up the center of the map. The two’s preexisting mid and jungle synergy was what iG quickly relied upon at the start of the 2015 LPL Spring Season. Cutting their teeth on the former LSPL teams of Gamtee and Energy Pacemaker, iG started off the season 4-0 before falling 0-2 to the fellow hybrid roster of Vici Gaming, which included former Samsung Galaxy White superstars Choi “DanDy” In-kyu and Cho “Mata” Se-hyeong. Invictus Gaming dropped all four of their next games against top teams EDward Gaming and Snake Esports. While they could beat up on their inferior opponents, the new iG was unable to overcome the top tier teams in their region.
Who’s That Pokémon?
Invictus Gaming’s early wins were attributed to KaKAO and RooKie’s aforementioned synergy, or excellent performances from their stalwart bottom lane due of AD carry Ge “Kid” Yan and support Liu “Kitties” Hong-jun. Notably absent from any of iG’s early successes was top laner Zeng “Pokemon” Tao. Picked up in late Oct. 2014, Pokemon joined former Mook Secret top laner Gwon “Yongsoo” Yong-su in another attempt to fill the hole left by former iG superstar top laner, Liu “PDD” Mou. In their 2014-15 offseason, Invictus Gaming also acquired former NaJin White Shield top laner, Baek “Save” Young-jin; however, unable to field three foreign players at once due to roster regulations, iG opted for the strong mid-jungle relationship of RooKie and KaKAO above putting Save in the top lane. Save stayed on the bench and Pokemon became their starting top laner. As iG’s roster, like many hybrid rosters, struggled to find it’s stride, Pokemon was quickly singled out as the weakest link on the new iG team. Struggling on meta top champions like Rumble, Kassadin, and Gnar, it seemed like Pokemon could only play well on Maokai. Aside from one Dr. Mundo game -- a win against Star Horn Royal Club in Week 5 -- Maokai was the sole champion where Pokemon boasted a winning record. Most notably, in several team interviews, Pokemon was teased or singled out by his teammates for his poor performances. Regardless of his Maokai prowess, Invictus Gaming needed a more versatile top laner, with a deeper champion pool, who could hold his own against the LPL’s best? Enter former iG mid laner, Liu “Zztai” Zhihao.
The Motivation of Zzitai
Zzitai has often acted as a microcosm for Invictus Gaming as a whole. Armed with an immense amount of talent and a champion pool that rivals the depths of the Pacific Ocean, Zzitai lacked motivation. When he decided to show up, he was fantastic. When he did not, his oft-unconventional picks hurt his team. As the son of a wealthy family, he sometimes didn’t feel pressure to perform. That is, until he was benched on iG in favor of RooKie. IG began the season relying on the lineup of Pokemon, KaKAO, RooKie, Kid, and Kitties, counting on the aforementioned mid/jungle synergy. In reserve was Save, once called “the last of the carry tops” by pundits, and the jack of all trades, Zzitai. The two played in one disastrous series together in Week 2 against Vici Gaming, before Zzitai and Save were once again relegated to the bench. Zzitai returned to the team as their top laner when Pokemon was benched following iG’s first match against Team WE in Week 6. While he initially had trouble adjusting to the new position, he slid into it easier than most due to his large champion pool. With Zzitai in top, this opened up far more options for iG in champion select.Putting the Pieces Together
In their mid season surge, including a second-place finish in the Spring 2015 Demacia Cup, Invictus Gaming finally began to look like a complete team.
One of the tipping points was that KaKAO played primarily Lee Sin and Nidalee, two junglers that allowed for him to dictate the pace of the game through his actions. His team members followed up based on his actions in game, and if Invictus Gaming were previously having communication issues, KaKAO’s resurgence on these two champions went a long way to abate them.
This, in addition to their well-researched pick/ban phases against their opponents, transformed iG into more of a unit, rather than relying on one member, usually RooKie, to make flashy plays and carry. In spite of falling to EDG in the Demacia Cup Finals, iG closed out 2015 LPL Spring looking stronger.
Vici Gaming vs. Invictus Gaming Quarterfinals
After finishing fifth overall in the regular season, iG was seeded into an incredibly difficult Playoff bracket, where they first faced the hybrid roster of Vici Gaming in the Quarterfinals. Vici’s roster came together more quickly than iG’s, primarily due to the immediate recognition of their own weaknesses in the mid lane and AD carry positions. With DanDy and Mata controlling vision and scouting out the best routes for Vici to get the lanes that they wanted or rotate around the map, Vici looked far more coordinated than iG going into the Quarterfinals Following a shaky game one in the Best of 5, iG had Vici’s number at nearly every turn.iG relied on their cunning draft phase, which had two key focal points: the massive champion pools of the majority of their players, and lengthy research on their opponents. After falling to Vici in the first game, iG adjusted, picking stronger disengage compositions with KaKAO on Gragas and Kitties on Janna. Combined with early deep warding to scout out Vici’s signature lane swaps, iG managed to get their lanes ahead, significantly reducing Vici’s mid game power.
From this point, iG out-rotated Vici on the map, forcing them to group for disadvantageous team fights or to follow iG around the map. In Games Two through Four, iG was always a step ahead, with Vici only able to respond to their movements, rather than trade objectives or initiate moves of their own. Individually, Kid and Kitties stepped up, Zzitai looked comfortable and happy in the top lane, KaKAO made a strong case for future Gragas bans against him, and RooKie made the flashy plays he loves on champions like Cassiopeia and Azir. Most impressively, through their map movements and control over the pace of these games, Invictus Gaming looked like a team.
Their next test comes in their Semifinal matchup with domestic powerhouse EDward Gaming. In the regular season, iG dropped all of their four games to EDG. EDG has earned the recent label of the best team in China for a reason, and even with missing their star mid laner, Heo “PawN” Won-Seok, due to illness, EDG are the most formidable opponent that Invictus Gaming will face. To win, KaKAO will need to continue his jungle dominance while showcasing his newfound coordination with all of his teammates. Additionally, their research and champion select must continue to be strong. Invictus Gaming is a group of talented individuals who now have the chance to shine as a unit.
Invictus Gaming will face off against EDward Gaming in the LPL Spring Playoff Semifinals on Saturday, April 18 at 2AM PST right here on Lolesports. In the meantime, catch all the action from the LPL and every other league on our spoiler-free VODs page.
