Delta Fox Analysis

Azeranth·Jun 28, 2017·3 votes·1,247 views

So, I've been watching the DFX games, and really enjoying them all. It's good to see the streamers I love back on the rift showing why they were originally famous. The only thing is, it's so painful watching lose over and over. So, I have been trying to figure out why and I honestly think I figured it out.

It's definitely not micro play. They are mind blowingly good at their champions, impressively flexible and they are just straight up good. Each of them is an experienced game carrier who knows how to play.

Macro play isn't really an issue either. They're communication is definitively sub-par and that's just straight up unfortunate for them, but their awareness, experience, and talent makes up for that. It is definitely a point of improvement, but their success in skirmishes, the consist gank synergy in every lane, and the ability to remain in the game once they're behind is marvelous and goes to show that they do not break down on that point even if they are being generally out rotated in the early game.

The honest issue that DFX is experiencing is in team fights, not even that they're team fights mechanics are poor, illustrated in the first eUnited game where against the 1st seed they won, primarily because eUnited just wanted to keep fighting over and over. DFX excels at fighting, but most unfortunately, they center their game on the wrong play style. The current META includes a fairly diverse cluster of top lane bruisers, strong jungle tanks with semi bursty CC based rotations and maximum damage AP and AD carries, with a significant emphasis on midlaners with catch potential. DFX game after game is falling victim to why this META is so good.

Thankfully the blame is equal on all roles. And breaks down into the following parts

1.) Tanks. Unfortunately for DFX, the game is getting carried against them by the enemy tanks. The enemy Frontline is just doing such a better job, and as a result Dyrus and Shiphtur in paticular end up painfully innefective against such a strong front line and Voyboy and QT hopelessly vulnerable to CC and lockdown. 2.) A dive based comp. Most DFX games are based around the fairly simple and effective strategy of the bruisers jump on the two squishies and get their rotation off quick enough that QT and Voyboy can just mop up. It works, and it's the solo queue special for sure but in a composed team fights, it just doesn't work. 3.)Before the fight. DFX engages fights to quickly. That's just everyone, but it's especially Voyboy. The mid laners job is to use rotations of spells to provide a good balance of both DPS and chunking potential. There are just too many fights where DFX runs in with someone at less than 60% HP but the other team at full life, or able to recover it almost immediately in the fight through lifesteal and healing. 4.) Not sieging. DFX needs to spend more time trading small blows. Invading as a group and zoning. Just as much can be accomplished by pushing the enemy back and splitting them up as can be killing them in the early game.

And that's really it. DFX is far too tunnel visioned on killing the enemy carries and I feel their playstyle can succeed if they develop the patience and fluency as a team to spend more time before the fight chunking, trading rotations, and zoning. It's really that simple and I hope they get this down because I really want to see them win.

7 Comments

III BAKURYU III Jun 29, 20173 votes

Nice list and I actually agree on your points, here are some of mine.

Shiphtur - QT played with Shiphtur for 1 split(2014 Summer) it wasn't impressive and the team actually lost like it's last 9 out of 10 or so games whenever the team put Shiphtur as the vocal carry position. Out of all of the challenger players that DF could possibly grab that has more chemistry with the core group(QT/Dyrus) they grabbed the most passive, 1 sided thinking player in Shiphtur, like I'v maybe seen 2 videos with Shiphtur in QT Pie's videos on youtube. That's how unimportant he is among the group. It's also pretty funny watching QT/Shiphtur play together and QT is like " man, c'mon Shiphtur; X could have gotten me a few kills" but he stops halfway into the comment - pretty much saying Kiwikid > Shiphtur ------- KIWIKID > Shiphtur If you can believe that.
Most of it is because Shiphtur isn't even a support player nor has he ever played support in his career/LCS. He played nothing but Ziggs and if it got banned he would just lose upright like a 35-40% winrate with other champions in his LCS career. He farms only, stays behind his tower 24/7, loses lane after 20 mins and eventually games because of his passive play and DF grabbed him not knowing half of his traits ?
Scarra - This guy just doesn't know what he's doing honestly, it's so annoying watching him play on youtube/twitch( had a friend that use to watch him so I would look over and see his stream from time to time) he makes bad plays in solo Q 24/7 and does his Scarra trait of " LOL, needing to type to the enemy team because the failed play was funny", " WAIT...... WHAT" like a teen girl needing to text to people about their day or something, it's annoying as f$ck. In CS he's always like 0-2 before even being useful.
Communication - You say the calls aren't bad but I say different. The calls are so obvious " Top laner ganks mid, Dyrus can you come............ Dyrus....................... DYRUS - Dyrus-" HUH, oh yeah um.... I'm coming" great calls. Like asking Voy and telling him what to do is like asking a banana to be an apple like it's not going to happen either. Not much of a team player Voy seems he's good but the communication with Voy and the other players are S$it.

Said this before the only way for DF to be somewhat good while keeping the same players is this lineup top - Shiphtur jng - Voyboy mid - Scarra adc - QT sup- Dyrus

Out of all of the players Dyrus is the only player that actually played support in his career and he's been actually been playing support more and more ( Sneaky's TSM fountain camp Dyrus was the support) among other videos that I can't recall sorry ! He's also among the players the more unselfish between them all, he's always been a TP top laner and more team focused.
QT adc I mean it's the most obvious choice. Shlphtur - Top since he's passive and like to farm, top is the most useful since playing tank/LCS minded he just can't die. Like in LCS top laners are on an island and the most deaths is maybe 2 each game that's it.
Voy jungle - People say Scarra's mechanics are S$it but Voy's isn't that great either and never was 10/10 material either. He gets to farm at his own rate and pull off ganks that isn't 100% on him to create, instead QT is a good laner + Dyrus and Scarra is a decent follow up player as a laner( he might not get too many clear cut ganks off but it's better than having Scarra jungle that's for sure)

IDK just me

AzeranthJun 30, 20172 votes

I wanna see Dyrus on that bot lane Bard. Bard is actually a really good champ and Dyrus is good at him

ImPositiveNowJul 1, 20171 votes

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Dyrus is god tier bard

ChompyWulfJun 29, 20171 votes

I think the short version is simply this...they have been passed by. While Stream Dream Meme Team may be enjoyable on some level, these guys aren't on an LCS team for one reason or another, but they all boil down to a lack of evolution. Either in champs, or skills, or meta, they basically are the Neanderthal to the LCS Cro Magnon, and that's OK. They are still getting paid to do what they enjoy and are good at.

III BAKURYU III Jun 29, 20171 votes

What a tongue twister that is dude " Stream Dream Meme Team " but I 100% agree with your " they have been passed by" observation and opinion. Any fan of LCS has to have this in the back of their head " LCS gets better, the players everything" and seeing some of these players it's the age ol' quote goes " 1 day you're being talked about, the next you're the one talking" or something. Dyrus/QT etc are still good but not as good as the average player skill of today's league in my opinion.

HeeroTXJun 29, 20172 votes

I don't know that I agree. I think the clear problem is they're STILL not a TEAM. I think if you took the top player from 5 other teams (irrespective of role) and put them all on one "team" and put them against Delta Fox, DF would do well. Instead, you have 5 guys that are playing against teams that are better than just the sum of their parts because they COORDINATE well. DF are all playing like they're in solo-Q, and they probably do fine/great IN solo-Q, but that doesn't work on the pro scene because the guys they're playing against put a LOT of time into coordinating how they play together. The net result is that DF makes many more mistakes because they're not working well as a team, and thus are easy to punish. Heck, I think it's even possible that DF would be a top team in the league if you made everyone play without comms, simply because DF isn't using them effectively. (They're HILARIOUS to listen to, but they're not working well as a team)

elev8ingJun 29, 20171 votes

This is pretty much exactly what I was going to say. All of DFX plays like they're still in SoloQ. Which, in SoloQ, works very well... However, against 5 people who all play together as a coordinated team, your SoloQ mentality/strats are going to get shredded.

Their weak links are in Scarra and Shiphtur. I'm not 100% on this, but I think shiphtur mains mid and not even support. Shiphtur is definitely the one on their team who has the least potential, and really just gets carried by the rest of the team. I think they should switch up the roles in scrims and really find out what works best for them, because I don't like their current roles.