Invictus Gaming's Rebound
Riot·4/30/2014, 10:24:46 PM·0 votes·339 views
OMG's dominance and 25-3 record is turning heads in the regular season, but the Cinderella Story of LPL is Invictus Gaming, the only team to break even in wins and losses with OMG. Before the beginning of the split, iG was predicted to be one of the top three teams, but they quickly fell to seventh place in two weeks. They were even unable to take a 2-0 series off the last place team, Positive Energy. But after 2-0'ing LGD Gaming in Week 7, iG went on a rampage through the ranks, ending at fourth place to find a spot in the playoffs.
However at the end of the second week, iG had won only one of six games. They were written out of lolesports Power Rankings, and the outlook wasn't positive. In the games iG won, they built up an impressive early lead. In games they lost, they either found themselves floundering in the mid game after an early lead or simply never found control. In Week 2, they registered as our biggest disappointment. It seemed shockingly possible that iG would not return for 2014 LPL Summer.
IG went into the final week of LPL ahead of LGD by one point. Still, it seemed likely LGD would take fourth, as they faced last-place Positive Energy, and iG had to contend with the dominant OMG. However, not only did Ycc's jungle Twitch pull an upset and split the series with LGD which would have forced a tie-breaker, but Cool's shaky return to OMG and Zzitai's flashy Zed play allowed iG to pick up a 1-1 of their own, cementing fourth place and tying their head-to-head with OMG.
Throughout the split, iG played the largest number of unique champions at 42, and Zzitai pulled out picks that nearly no one else played in the split like Yasuo, Zed, and Xerath to place iG's opponents in unexpected matchups. Kid proved that Ezreal can still be very relevant and often got the pick completely uncontested. Then, with the top lane meta expanding to include more carry-style champions, PDD shined as well. In a region where most top laners sacrifice for the AD carries and play beefy, zone-controlling tanks, PDD is the rare player who thrives mainly on damage-dealers, even playing a full damage build Renekton when he can get away with it.
IG has a reputation for being an emotional and inconsistent team, but that doesn't define them. IG struggled earlier this season in an effort to identify themselves in the new meta; they rose when they remembered who they've always been. It seems their struggle at IEM was the rude awakening they needed to return to form.
EARLY DISAPPOINTMENTS
Strong off-season performances had iG pitted as favorites for the 2014 LPL Spring season. Initial losses to Edward Gaming only served to bolster the new team's reputation rather than damage iG's, especially since iG looked strong at the start of the first game, taking two uncontested dragons.
However at the end of the second week, iG had won only one of six games. They were written out of lolesports Power Rankings, and the outlook wasn't positive. In the games iG won, they built up an impressive early lead. In games they lost, they either found themselves floundering in the mid game after an early lead or simply never found control. In Week 2, they registered as our biggest disappointment. It seemed shockingly possible that iG would not return for 2014 LPL Summer.
IEM KATOWICE AND IG'S SECOND WIND
At the IEM World Championship, Invictus Gaming continued their skid. In typical fashion, they took intelligent lane swaps and secured the massive early game lead they typically needed to catapult themselves into the late game. But then, they lost to KT Rolster Bullets despite kid's impressive show as he and Kitties outplayed their Korean counterparts. And unfortunately in the loser's bracket against Fnatic, illuSion's faltered in his game to win. His Fiddlesticks was a fearsome foe at both IEM Singpore and in LPL—often warranting bans—but illuSion simply didn't do what he does best: pressure the lanes. Though neither IG nor World Elite had a stellar showing at IEM, both teams returned to China with renewed sense of purpose. The first set for IG on their return to LPL was against their IEM compatriots, WE, and both teams came out swinging, finishing with an explosive 1-1. The real story that week, however, was OMG's first loss. Invictus Gaming came out with a composition specifically designed to put OMG on the back foot with two champions not yet played in the split or since: Xerath and Varus. Grand Skyfalls sandwiched targets against Renekton's Dominus, allowing Zzitai and kid to pick off corralled targets with long range snipes from a safe distance. OMG's main playmakers, bigpomelo and Allen, ended the game with seven and ten deaths respectively; iG didn't just narrowly win, they destroyed.IG'S MIRACLE PUSH FOR FOURTH
Despite an impressive fifth week, iG still hadn't found a 2-0, and though it seemed possible for them to avoid relegation, playoff dreams appeared impossible. LGD was on a hot streak, taking wins from any team in LPL besides OMG and Energy Pacemaker. World Elite was also on the rebound and considerably closer to fourth than iG. OMG and Edward Gaming sat comfortably at the top with no signs of budging. Regardless, iG kept winning. After picking up their first 2-0 against LGD, they started a six-game win streak. In addition, LGD faltered when other LPL teams began banning key champions. As soon as iG found their stride, LGD's downward spiral went into effect, failing to 2-0 another team for the rest of the split.
IG went into the final week of LPL ahead of LGD by one point. Still, it seemed likely LGD would take fourth, as they faced last-place Positive Energy, and iG had to contend with the dominant OMG. However, not only did Ycc's jungle Twitch pull an upset and split the series with LGD which would have forced a tie-breaker, but Cool's shaky return to OMG and Zzitai's flashy Zed play allowed iG to pick up a 1-1 of their own, cementing fourth place and tying their head-to-head with OMG.
FINDING THEIR FOOTING
The real question remains. How did iG manage to start winning? IG went from exhibiting occasional flashes of brilliance to consistently smashing through the ranks; they found themselves capable of both 20 minute wins and controlled comebacks. Given the patch delays in China, LPL began only shortly after the preseason changes went through and Invictus Gaming had a crisis of identity coming into the 2014 season. They wowed through the off-season with controlled snowballs from early jungle invades; but changes to early first blood and buff gold rewards as well as the implementation of the trinket system made earlier invades a less rewarding proposition. It became more difficult to control games from the get-go and easier to get caught. Part of iG's success began when illuSion returned to leading invades and buff trades anyways, but he did so with a great amount of efficiency, as IG ended the season with the most first bloods of any team in LPL. After they had found that a strong early game alone wouldn't grant them simple wins, iG went back to their roots and played on their versatility.
Throughout the split, iG played the largest number of unique champions at 42, and Zzitai pulled out picks that nearly no one else played in the split like Yasuo, Zed, and Xerath to place iG's opponents in unexpected matchups. Kid proved that Ezreal can still be very relevant and often got the pick completely uncontested. Then, with the top lane meta expanding to include more carry-style champions, PDD shined as well. In a region where most top laners sacrifice for the AD carries and play beefy, zone-controlling tanks, PDD is the rare player who thrives mainly on damage-dealers, even playing a full damage build Renekton when he can get away with it.
IG has a reputation for being an emotional and inconsistent team, but that doesn't define them. IG struggled earlier this season in an effort to identify themselves in the new meta; they rose when they remembered who they've always been. It seems their struggle at IEM was the rude awakening they needed to return to form.
