Power Rankings - 2/24/2015

Riot·Feb 25, 2015·0 votes·35,133 views

We've hit the half way point for the Spring Split and the picture of pretenders and contenders is laid out in all its glory. While Korea, China, and Taiwan were all on break for the Lunar New Year, other regions raged on. It's still difficult to make much of the middle of standings in most regions, but even at the top we now have a level of inconsistency we haven't seen before. How have the teams fared this past week?

Korea

GE Tigers (7-0) [14-2]
SKTelecom T1 (4-3) [9-7]
Jin Air Green Wings (4-3) [11-7]
CJ Entus (5-2) [10-7]
Najin e-mFire (3-4) [8-9]
KT Rolster (2-5) [5-11]
Incredible Miracle (3-4) [7-9]
Samsung Galaxy (0-7) [2-14]

(Match Score) [Game Score] Korea was on break, but there are some notable matches to track this week, including CJ Entus vs SKTelecom T1. CJ gets a chance to prove they are the No. 2 team behind the GE Tigers. If CJ wins the match, it will be their second match win over SKT this season. Panel: Alex Manisier, Erik "DoA" Lonnquist, Christopher "MonteCristo" Mykles, and Mike "Noctt" Huh

China

Edward Gaming (9-1-0)
OMG (6-0-4)
LGD Gaming (5-3-2)
Snake (6-0-4)
Invictus Gaming (5-3-3)
Vici Gaming (3-3-4)
Star Horn Royal Club (3-5-2)
Team King (2-6-2)
Gamtee (1-4-5)
Master3 (2-5-3)
Team WE (0-6-4)
Energy Pacemaker (0-6-3)

Record format is (W-L-T)

China also had a week off for Lunar New Year, and like Korea have some marquee matchups coming this week. The top two teams in LPL finally play when OMG takes on Edward Gaming. Panel: Barento "Raz" Mohammed, Michale "Drexxin" Lalor, and Ryanne "Froskurinn" Mohr.

North America

Team SoloMid (8-2)
Counter Logic Gaming (7-3)
Cloud9 (6-4)
Gravity (5-5)
Team Liquid (5-5)
Winterfox (5-5)
Team Impulse (5-5)
Team Dignitas (4-6)
Team8 (4-6)
Team Coast (1-9)

Despite Asia having a week off, there was in fact professional League played in the West. Though nearly every team went 1-1 in their games, some teams looked better than others. Cloud9 seems to have pulled themselves together a bit after defeating CLG -- a team that many regarded as North America's best. Hai in particular showed why he can still be a dangerous player in the right circumstances. Team Liquid might be on the rebound with better team synergy as evidenced in their win over TSM, though consistency and better closing skills have to be demonstrated in future games for us to move them too high.

Given that the top two teams in North America both went 1-1 as a result of Liquid and Cloud9's ascension, it's hard to know exactly what that means for the state of their teams, but we feel fairly confident both will be on top when playoffs comes around. Panel: Cameron Gilbert, Mattias "Gentleman Gustaf" Lehman, Taylor "Riot RoboTayCo" Cocke, Jason "Riot Jayway" Wai, Joshua "Riot Jatt" Leesman, and Frank "Riot Mirhi" Fields.

Europe

SK Gaming (8-2)
Fnatic (7-3)
H2K (6-4)
Copenhagen Wolves (6-4)
Gambit Gaming (5-5)
Unicorns of Love (5-5)
Team ROCCAT (4-6)
Elements (4-6)
Giants Gaming (4-6)
MeetYourMakers (1-9)

Brutal. What should have been a straight forward 2-0 week for Elements turned into disaster. After dominating Giants Gaming for 95% of their game, a series of three deaths in quick succession put an end to the game. Against ROCCAT, Elements looked to be on a new level of tilt. It's fair to say now that this is a team in crisis. With two roster changes in as many weeks, it seems that the end isn't in sight for Elements' problems. Meanwhile, SK Gaming suffered not only their first, but also their second, loss against Fnatic and H2K respectively. It took a while, but it seems that SK Gaming's weaknesses in map awareness and vision control have started to catch up to them. They still hold onto the top spot in Europe, but just barely. Panel: Devin "PiraTechnics" Young, Mattias "Gentleman Gustaf" Lehman, Taylor "Riot RoboTayCo" Cocke, Jason "Riot Jayway" Wai, and Frank "Riot Mirhi" Fields.

Taiwan

Yoe Flash Wolves (9-1)
Taipei Assassins (11-1)
Hong Kong Esports (8-3)
AHQ e-Sports Club (7-5)
Midnight Sun Esports (3-9)
Logitech Snipers (5-6)
Never Give Up (4-8)
Dream or Reality (0-14)

Asia seems to have timed their breaks and schedule well. After getting back from Lunar New Year in Taiwan, Flash Wolves play against AHQ and Hong Kong Esports, both sure to be impressive matchups. Panel: James "Obscurica" Chen and Chia "Reazony" Yu.

Brazil

INTZ e-Sports (4-0-2)
Keyd Stars (4-0-2)
CNB e-Sports Club (3-2-1)
paiN Gaming (2-0-4)
KaBuM! Black (1-1-4)
KaBuM! Orange (1-4-1)
Dexterity Team (1-4-1)
JAYOB e-Sports (0-5-1)

Record format is (W-L-T) Following Week 6 of CBLoL 2015, the playoff picture is shaping up nicely. INTZ and Keyd Stars both qualified for the semifinals with 2-0 sweeps of JAYOB e-Sports and KaBuM! Black respectively. After a strong performance in Week 5, paiN Gaming stumbled in Week 6, unexpectedly dropping their first game to Dexterity. In this loss paiN was sluggish, unable to properly chain their crowd control to make picks or win teamfights. They dominated in their second game, but this lack of consistency is worrying for paiN. Meanwhile, CNB e-Sports Club posted an impressive sweep over KaBuM! Orange, controlling the game tempo in both of their matches. CNB has evolved immensely over the course of this season, finding synergy and coordination to overcome their mechanical weaknesses. Coupled with the best drafting in Brazil, thanks to coach Thiago "Djoko" Maia, CNB moves up into the third place spot, a formidable playoff contender. Written by Emily Rand Panel: Emily Rand

Japan

DetonatioN FocusMe (4-2)
DetonatioN RabbitFive (4-2)
7th Heaven (4-2)
Rascal Jester (3-3)
Ozone Rampage (3-3)
Salvage Javelin (0-6)

After a double-size week, several upsets, and an online tournament final, we wound up with the exact same power ranking but with much less certainty in the teams' positions. DetonatioN FocusMe took down RabbitFive convincingly to kick things off, but lost to Rascal Jester after picking Anivia. 7th Heaven lost to fifth ranked Ozone Rampage, then beat RabbitFive. RF certainly would have dropped from the No. 2 spot were it not for their strong performance in the JCG Grand Championship, where they looked rejuvenated in their close 1-2 loss to FocusMe. Overall, based on what we've seen, it was difficult to justify any of the teams jumping one another. However, the gap between them seems to be smaller than it looked last week. Rascal Jester in particular seems to be improving every round, and RabbitFive's perfect record finally crumbled. While FocusMe still have the best rotations and team play in the league, they can't afford to take flashy risks like they have in the pick/ban phase if they want to stay on top. Written by Cameron Gilbert Panel: Cameron Gilbert

International

GE Tigers (7-0)
Edward Gaming (9-1)
SKTelecom T1 (4-3)
OMG (6-0-4)
LGD Gaming (5-3-2)
Snake (6-0-4)
Jin Air Green Wings (4-3)
CJ Entus (5-2)
Invictus Gaming (5-3-3)
Najin e-mFire (2-4)
SK Gaming (8-2)
Vici Gaming (3-3-4)
Star Horn Royal Club (3-5-2)
Team SoloMid (8-2)
Counter Logic Gaming (7-3)
Fnatic (7-3)
Yoe Flash Wolves (9-1)
Taipei Assassins (11-1)
KT Rolster (2-5)
Incredible Miracle (3-4)

There wasn't a lot of movement here because of the lack of Asian games, but SK's fall certainly pushed them down in our mind after they proved they couldn't adapt when teams exploited their weaknesses.

It's easy to imagine a lot of change after this week, given the number of marquee matchups in every region. Stay tuned to see the continued movement of the international landscape as we countdown to the IEM World Championship and the Mid Season Invitational. Let us know what you think of the rankings, write your own, and give us feedback on things to improve either on Twitter or in the comments below. Images courtesy of Inven, CGA, Garena, ESL, SANKO and INTZ e-Sports

41 Comments

DTKKFeb 25, 201513 votes

can't wait until the Mid Season Invitational.

EvanLegendFeb 27, 20156 votes

It's time to show which sucks more, EU or NA

KP NSFeb 28, 20155 votes

We all know that NA is gonna get fucked pretty hard

Jace the MightyMar 1, 20155 votes

Because at the last international event eu wasnt a joke?

TrollFan01Feb 25, 20156 votes

I'm glad TSM stayed at #14 and hopefully they'll climb the ladder next week.

Souli GFeb 25, 20156 votes

I guess I'm just never going to agree with this powerrankings.

im CrisFeb 25, 20151 votes

You and me both brother.

warpedmindFeb 25, 20153 votes

thats the good thing in opinions but i would like to hear yours too

MeleeArtistFeb 26, 20156 votes

The LCS power rankings are kinda worthless as they are simply a list of the teams ranked by current standing. Also the international rankings are poorly done speculation. Look at SK: when they are 8-0 they are #8 internationally, now at 8-2 they are suddenly #11 when they have been playing the same aggressive, exploitable style in all 10 games. The difference is not the team's power, but the fact that their competition has begun to exploit their predictable style. Also, I suspect their power to be at a close level with Fanatic, TSM, and CLG and I think Katowice will prove this. Actually, Fanatic has beaten them 1-0 and TSM's mid priority style may have an early edge against SK's bot priority style which traditionally takes longer to come online.

KP NSFeb 28, 20153 votes

Please, stop saying Fanatic

Hotline DongerFeb 28, 20152 votes

"The difference is not the team's power, but the fact that their competition has begun to exploit their predictable style."

Well, how strong you are depends on how good other teams are at exploiting your playstyle. so the fact that their playstyle is being countered means they are weaker. How else would you measure relative power levels? I dont think that basic mechanics are that different between the regions.

Yandere CarryMar 1, 20151 votes

I see where you're coming from, but what I think the he is getting at is that the international Power Rankings doesn't seem to take a lot of this stuff into account. What I mean by this is that they go "oh SK is undefeated!"... Well, yea, in EU... But this is putting them up against a number of teams all of whom are likely more than capable of exploiting glaring weaknesses like their lack of vision control.

Booty SnypahFeb 25, 20155 votes

SKT1 Ahead of OMG is kind of head scratching, IMO. Rest is just matter of opinion, IEM will clear some things up for us, IMO.

suan leFeb 25, 20151 votes

only W.E. will go to IEM

amardil94Feb 26, 20153 votes

True, but it will clear other things up, like whether or not SK should be ranked above TSM or whether the top western teams can take down CJ.

EvanLegendFeb 27, 20151 votes

Wake up dude

StyzzzzFeb 27, 20151 votes

I feel like IEM will display an unfair representation of the power of the Chinese region since W.E. is placed 11 out of 12 in the LPL.

xBIacK0uTxFeb 25, 20155 votes

Najin at 10 is a fucking joke

LiLNickyFeb 25, 20154 votes

tsm

TheSequelsRBadFeb 25, 20154 votes

Come on C9, lets make the comeback! Prove who the kings of NA really are!

Buffed Purifier Feb 25, 20154 votes

Tsm tsm tsm

AddarobFeb 25, 20154 votes

Interesting that SK is still a good distance ahead of Fnatic in the world rankings, even though it was said in the EU rankings that SK just barely held onto their lead.

KP NSFeb 28, 20151 votes

do you even watch the games yourself? lol what the fuck

shamas888Feb 25, 20154 votes

so essentially what their saying is the number 5 Korean team is better then every western team? I don't think that is fully accurate.

WubbaDubbaLubLubFeb 26, 20151 votes

Well i guess power rankings are why Koreans are so good in everyone's eyes

AverageTurtleFeb 28, 20154 votes

I honestly am not sure why Fnatic is ranked lower than TSM, and I am a TSM fan.

BurlingamerFeb 25, 20153 votes

Extremely accurate, I agree with the rankings completely

Angus McFifeFeb 25, 20152 votes

Such stronk sarcasm. I'm proud sheds a tear

WubbaDubbaLubLubFeb 26, 20151 votes

Let's just talk about this on Skype. Joel and Jatt you better be there

DawnzFeb 28, 20153 votes

shrc at 13? is this a joke? they look awful

KP NSFeb 28, 20151 votes

So does TSM and they're at 14, be happy.

samHmon3yMar 1, 20153 votes

TSM looks awful? HAHAHA have you seen any of the SK games recently. That's looking awful.

ryejinFeb 25, 20152 votes

NA teams not even close for the Internationals. :( But hopefull CLG could make it at the Finals!!

RATMpattaFeb 26, 20152 votes

This way of doing powerrankings just isn't working. They just take the rankings as they are and maybe change 1 around. Isn't the purpose of powerrankings ranking the strongest team at this very moment?

The international rankings make even less sense. The entire top 10 is CN/KR, talk about overhyped. Of course the top teams of these regions will be the strongest most of the time but mid table CN/KR teams aren't better than the top western teams.

DPRK Rammus RamMar 1, 20151 votes

Looking at the regional standings, you'll notice that there's actually a lot of switching around going on. Sure, there's not as much of it in say, NA and EU - but let's be honest here. In leagues with a round robin, better teams will typically have the better placements in the standings.

As for the international scene, these teams generally don't play each other. Looking at actual gameplay however, the skill in rotations, teamfighting coordination and decision making of teams like IG and CJ makes the LCS look like the challenger league. Granted, SK for example had some really clean looking games, rising up to the top ten and were only held back by concerns that they were untested against teams that would try to exploit SK's low ward count strategy. Unfortunately for SK, this finally happened and we see the consequential drop in their rating until they solve the problem. Naturally, should they do so we will likely see them rise even higher in the standings. Similarly, CLG would likely be much higher in the standings if it were not for their occasional game-throwing (see their match against TSM). Granted, I haven't seen much of Vici, SHRC or Najin, so I can't speak to how I feel they should be rated. Given how strong CJ and IG have looked however, there just really isn't much room in the top ten for other regions.

WubbaDubbaLubLubFeb 26, 20151 votes

Im an Elements fan. Hopefully Elements find some form and synergy to use for the rest of the Spring Split and then bounce back in Summer Split like last time. #KEEPKREPO

CragionFeb 26, 20151 votes

SKT T1 being 3rd in the standings makes me excited for worlds this year, as well as the GE Tigers. At least Faker will be at the World Championship this year!

PerkyTheParrotFeb 27, 20151 votes

skt was first in the world around this time last year that dosnt mean they will make it. teams can go on hot streaks and losing streaks. teams will get better others wont. these power rankings really dont matter we got a half of year

CragionMar 27, 20151 votes

{quoted}

skt was first in the world around this time last year that dosnt mean they will make it. teams can go on hot streaks and losing streaks. teams will get better others wont. these power rankings really dont matter we got a half of year

I think you're wrong. A lot of the problems with SKT T1 are better this year and I feel like SKT is close to TSM right now - they rely on their mid laner, faker and Bjergsen, to carry the game with the junglers support them throughout the match. They're number 2 currently, which shows even more hope than before.