Breaking down Group B

Controlled chaos will be the name of the game in Group B. With four squads that love to teamfight, games will be bloody and people will die. A lot. Will the rest of the group be able to handle the ruthless Star Horn Royal Club? Can TSM capitalize on their momentum from the NA LCS Summer Playoffs? Will the teamwork of SK Gaming prevail? Or will the Taipei Assassins shock the world with a repeat performance of Season 2? Here’s how we see it.

Teams

Team SoloMid

Top: Dyrus Jungle: Amazing Mid: Bjergsen ADC: WildTurtle Support: Lustboy The boys are back in town. After three splits of watching Cloud9 take North American championship after North American championship, TSM has finally regained their throne as the kings of NA. On paper, TSM is the full package. They’ve got two long-standing NA LCS veterans in Dyrus and WildTurtle and three immensely talented imports in Lustboy, Amazing, and Bjergsen. They’ve got the leadership and the talent to go far. And despite some struggles during the regular season, it looks like they’re on that train to success after dropping Cloud9 at the NA LCS Summer Playoffs. With the momentum of their huge NA LCS victory at their back, TSM may finally be able to live up to the potential their roster contains and make a run at the World Championship. They’ve just got to get through Group B first.

Star Horn Royal Club

Top: Cola Jungle: inSec Mid: Corn ADC: Uzi Support: Zero If there’s one team that exemplifies the hyper-aggressive Chinese style of League of Legends, it’s Star Horn Royal Club. They never back down from a fight, taking victories in chaotic, snowballing bloodbaths. Despite their decidedly Chinese style of play, SHRC boasts a pair of talented Korean players in jungler inSec and support Zero. Fortunately for the team, the pair are more than capable of matching the team’s aggression - and then some. Perhaps as a result of language barrier issues, inSec became known during the regular season for going far too hard behind enemy lines without his teammates to back him up. When SHRC loses, its typically on the back of those communication issues. And then, there’s Uzi. One of the premier AD carries in the world, he’s known for his ability to single-handedly win teamfights, diving headfirst into danger to do his best to drop as many enemies as possible. A snowballing Uzi turns into a very dangerous Royal Club.

Taipei Assassins

Top: Achie Jungle: Winds Mid: Morning ADC: BeBe Support: Jay Never count out the Taipei Assassins. Way back at the Season 2 World Championship tournament, they came out of nowhere to shock the international scene and walk away with the Summoner’s Cup. Since then, however, the face of TPA has undergone a near-complete overhaul. All but BeBe are gone from that championship roster, leaving the veteran AD carry to lead a brand new squad. It took him a full season to do so, but the 2014 TPA lineup is looking as scary as ever. With huge talent in the mid lane and jungle from Morning and Winds, expect the roaming pressure to be immense. On the sidelines, TPA has new management in former NaJin Black Sword coach Sim, leading to a more focused, precise TPA. With a new lineup and a new lease on life, one question remains: does TPA have what it takes to shock the world again?

SK Gaming

Top: fredy122 Jungle: Svenskeren Mid: Jesiz ADC: CandyPanda Support: nRated Another team forced to rebuild over the 2014 season, SK Gaming looked to replace their long-time mid laner and captain Ocelote. As a result, they struggled early in the Spring split while trying to find their new identity as a team. As the split continued, however, they began to come together. New mid laner Jesiz came into his own, while new support nRated cemented his position on the team as a leader and strategic mastermind. They surged with newfound team unity, finishing in the No. 1 spot going into the EU LCS Spring Playoffs, where they lost in the finals to Fnatic. As the Summer split rolled around, SK Gaming was a clear favorite to make a run at the top slot at the EU LCS. Aided by new coach Incarnati0n and sports psychologist Lukas Schenke, they set their sights at the EU LCS championship, and eventually, Worlds. They may not have succeeded with the former, but their third-place finish allows them to test their teamwork-focused mettle against the international scene.

Group Dynamic

Every single team in Group B has something to prove. TSM wants to show they’re worthy of the top North American spot. Star Horn Royal Club has a chip on their shoulder after losing in the 2013 World Championship grand finals. The Taipei Assassins will be looking to prove that Season 2 wasn’t a fluke for them. Meanwhile, SK Gaming looks to ignore those critical of their talent and focus on what earns them victories - teamwork. As a result, all four teams are extremely hungry for the win. Each will be playing with desperation, fighting to stay alive. Group B will be one of the most exciting, with emotions driving play across the board.

Playstyles

In terms of playstyle, Group B is among the most diverse, making it among the hardest to predict. Will Royal Club’s extreme aggression be able to take down TSM’s strong laners? Can TPA’s experience and talent knock off SK Gaming’s highly coordinated team play? It’s hard to say. We do know this: In a group where teams love to fight, early leads will be paramount. Once any one of these four gets ahead, it can be incredibly difficult for the opposing team to wrestle that lead away.

Key players

Uzi Uzi can win games on his own. Period. If he gets going, Royal Club becomes one of the most frightening teams in professional League of Legends, particularly if he gets to play his perennial favorite, Vayne. Chinese teams notoriously rely on their highly skilled AD carries to win their games, and Royal Club is no different. Bjergsen Since coming over from Europe, Bjergsen has become a dominant mid lane force in North America. His kill-heavy style demands respect from his opposing solo laners, and makes him a monster once he gets going. On the Worlds stage, however, he’ll have a bit more competition. In Group D alone, he’ll have to deal with the likes of Corn and Morning, not to mention heavy jungle pressure from inSec, Winds, and Svenskeren. Winds Winds may have had big shoes to fill upon replacing former TPA jungler DinTer, but he’s more than lived up to expectations. With Morning and Achie at his back, he often initiates roaming death squads to take complete control of the map. More of an aggressive mastermind than a powerful solo jungler, Winds knows when and where to take man advantages and secure leads for his team.

Wildcards

Jesiz Jesiz can look like an absolute god, or one of the worst mid laners in Europe, at any given moment. SK Gaming rarely gives up a strong lead when they get ahead early, and Jesiz’s signature long-range mages are often at the center of those victories. However, he can definitely go on tilt, going too aggressive and picking fights when he should back off. Only time will tell which Jesiz shows up. Dyrus Perpetually TSM’s rock in the top lane, Dyrus rarely loses his lane. What makes him a wildcard is his occasional ability to decide that he’s sick and tired of losing and completely take over a game. Take a look at the NA LCS Summer Playoffs, where his Lulu and Dr. Mundo tore up both LMQ and Cloud9. He may not get emotional often, but don’t make Dyrus angry. Only TSM fans like it when he’s angry. inSec During much of the early season, inSec struggled on Star Horn Royal Club, often finding himself far deeper in enemy territory than he would like to be, likely as a result of communication breakdowns due to language barriers. When he’s on the same page as the rest of the team, however, the legendary Lee Sin player we all know emerges. If he manages to contain his over-aggressive tendencies, expect inSec to show off exactly why he’s been so feared for so long.

Our prediction

With inSec, Uzi, and Zero on the roster, we figure the likelihood of Star Horn Royal Club coming out of Group B at any place other than first to be slim to none. No one else in the group has experience with such ruthless aggression, and they’ll struggle to keep up. Once the bloodbath has let up, the Chinese squad will advance. Second place is a bit tougher to predict. TSM looks incredibly strong coming off of their performance at the LCS Summer Playoffs, and will be on the hunt for an impressive Worlds performance to cap off their run in North America. Meanwhile, SK Gaming’s talented roster and team synergy will be a force to be reckoned with. Finally, there’s TPA, the underdogs who always seem to have a new trick up their sleeve. At the end of the day, we expect TSM to advance to the Knockout stage. They’ve got the international experience, the talent, and the heart needed to face off against the heavy competition and succeed. And with SK Gaming and TPA having glaring weaknesses, you can be sure they’ll be taking advantage. 1. Star Horn Royal Club 2. Team SoloMid 3. Taipei Assassins 4. SK Gaming Taylor 'Riot RoboTayCo' Cocke is a Web Content Coordinator for Riot Games. He only goes all-in, preferably on Leona or Alistar. You can follow him on Twitter, where he will talk your head off about supporting and bands no one has ever heard of.