Arena: Captain's Log

Riot·9/6/2017, 2:12:57 PM·1 votes·12,883 views

I’m Clayton Raines. I’m a pretty ordinary guy from Ohio who likes playing video games -- but you probably know me better as CaptainFlowers.

It might look like I just show up and cast, but a lot of the work actually goes into getting ready for each game, especially for NA LCS Summer Finals at TD Garden. Jatt and Pastrytime took you behind-the-scenes at Spring Finals, but I’m the Captain now. Welcome to my Finals weekend from Boston!

Pre-Event Prep

Before we leave for Boston, we do our story meeting where we talk through the Finals match-ups. This discussion can vary, but we talk about our expectations for each match, who we expect to be big performers, which storylines are the biggest and most important, and what each specific caster on the broadcast wants to prioritize and focus on (in terms of specific things like matchups and stats).

Ever since the Quarterfinals cast where I started to lose my voice, the team will shush me like Dr. Evil in meetings so I’m not talking unless necessary to save my voice for game days. This story meeting is my first shush-free meeting in two weeks! Thanks for looking out, guys!

Tech Checks and Venue Time

The big thing on the Friday is getting everything set up and making sure it all works before the show. For everything on the caster end, this is called “Readthrough” and involves us reading through the introductions and openings for the day, checking phrasings, making changes, and ensuring everything sounds as good as it can. With this being our first time at TD Garden, we also take the time to check all our casting headsets, computers, and stations to make sure things are the way we need them to be for the big games! After readthrough, we all go to dinner as a team and eat some awesome food before everything officially kicks off the next day!

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My team surprises me with an early cake for my birthday. The turkey isn’t a Thanksgiving misprint, it’s a meme from the many pre-show conversations we all have together throughout the split.

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This leftover cake and cannolis will be great post-Finals snacks. We can take some kind of ride back to the hotel, but why do that when you can spend more quality time with the team?

Game Day Rehearsal

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Hours before we go on-air, we practice and warm up. Rehearsal is critical to making sure everything feels right on show day. In rehearsal we read the intro from the prompter, see it exactly as it’ll be shown to us live, and make any necessary last-minute changes. If any changes are made since readthrough, we’ll go over those here.

Pre-Show Routine

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After rehearsal, I prepare to cast the games by watching the EU LCS, going to makeup, getting dressed, grabbing some food, and checking the script one last time.

Our makeup and wardrobe teammates are seriously OP. I don’t know what I’d do without them.

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I write down one last note before I put on my headset to cast.

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Before we go on-air, I mentally remind myself to slow down and take in the gravity of this entire amazing situation. I stand there for a good couple minutes just looking around and appreciating this massive thing that I’m about to be a part of.

Counting Down to the 3rd Place Match

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It’s my first Finals weekend so I gotta bring the hype! When I cast with Kobe and Azael, I always turn the energy up an extra notch to match their excitement levels.

Post-Show

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After the broadcast, I take off my makeup, change out of my show clothes, celebrate, and prepare for the next show. I can’t help but be excited for being part of the Boston event, and share a “We did it!” hug, high five, or fist bump with everyone on the team when I walk past as I leave.

With Finals done, we prepare for the next challenge: NA Regional Qualifiers (aka The Gauntlet). This event will determine who gets the last seed for NA at Worlds 2017. As I fly back to Los Angeles, I think about how the performance of both teams I casted in the 3rd place match will influence the way that I tell their stories at Regional Qualifiers.

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CLAYTON "CAPTAINFLOWERS" RAINES is a play-by-play caster focused on the NA LCS. He’s proudly taken on the roles of unofficial hypeman and advocate for more Skarner in competitive play for the NA LCS.