The Unicorns of Love chomp at the bit
Riot·5/20/2015, 8:25:23 PM·1 votes·10,674 views
When Europe's Unicorns of Love beat the heavily-favored North American giants Team SoloMid with unorthodox picks like like Mateusz “Kikis” Szkudlarek’s jungle Twisted Fate and Kayle at IEM San Jose last year, the world took notice. Ever since, the rookies have continued to exceed expectations and win over the hearts of fans with quirky champion picks and a flair for the comeback game.
But things didn’t always look so promising for these Unicorns. The budding superstars had to fight their way to the top, and in the beginning of the 2015 Spring Split, their goal was to simply remain afloat. “We just literally wanted to stay in LCS,” says their coach, Fabian “Sheepy” Mallant. “We had no expectations on how we stacked up to the other LCS teams.”
Long scrimming sessions and the pressure to keep improving put a strain on the team, but Sheepy was determined to keep the team motivated and positive. “I was never really under stress, and everyone got along well," he says. "We listened to each other and coped with frustration better than most teams.”
Attitude can make all the difference in the world, especially for a new team when it comes to team play. With cheerful attitudes and a hunger for success, the Unicorns managed to end the regular season of the Spring Split with an even 9-9 record. Vardags says that this healthy atmosphere made playing the game a consistently pleasant experience for the team, strengthening their confidence. “We have a lot of fun playing together, and we’re really good at the game," he explains. "We improve all the time because we are dedicated and synergize well as a team."
With their conservative 9-9 record, the Unicorns of Love had narrowly scraped into the Playoffs in the first place. Now, they were poised to take on European powerhouse Fnatic in the Finals.
After the Unicorns of Love took the first game in the series with a Varus pick, the teams juggled victories back and forth. The Unicorns continued to use unconventional champions like Udyr as they approached the final, deciding game of the series.
The crowd buzzed with excitement as Huni was caught out by Vardags and Vizicsacsi, and Unicorns of Love took first blood. Starting strong with a 3-1 lead, the game soon spun in favor of Fnatic as they turned a close teamfight using a Scrying Orb onto a bush where the low-health Vardags and Hylissang were hiding. Fnatic continued dominating the Unicorns as they tried to take Dragon number two, ending up with a six-kill lead. Taking their gold and running with it, Fnatic easily snagged the Baron buff and caught the Unicorns under their mid inhibitor turret. Despite a phenomenal Sejuani/Orianna wombo-combo from Kikis and Power of Evil, the Unicorns of Love really felt their 12k gold deficit as Fnatic still managed to turn the fight in their favor.
Just when the shoutcasters believed that it was all over for the Unicorns of Love, Fnatic’s Huni and Steeelback were killed in a last-second respawn by the Unicorns Taking dragon, and they were given one last shot at a comeback against Fnatic. Although the EU LCS Championship trophy would have been the perfect way to cap the meteoric rise of the Unicorns of Love, they fell to Fnatic in one final teamfight. And with that, the Unicorns of Love walked away at 2nd Place.
While bittersweet, Tamás “Vizicsacsi” Kiss is still pleased with the team’s overall performance. “Our biggest achievement is definitely that we got into the EU LCS finals and got 2nd Place. I don’t think that any of us expected to do that, so we’re very happy.”
The Summer Split promises to bring new challenges, opportunities, and competitors for the Unicorns of Love. This group of friends will have to dig their hooves deep to make an impact in the second half of the 2015 Season if they want to beat their own record and make it to Worlds. But with their positive outlook, steadfast determination, and hopefully a few surprise picks along the way, we'll be waiting to see what these Unicorns have in store for us.
Charging Ahead
The Unicorns' first major test as a team was transitioning from the more casual lifestyle of the Challenger scene to the high-intensity pace of the LCS. “We had to adapt to moving to a different location away from home [to] Berlin, playing together, and practicing every day,” says AD carry Pontus “Vardags” Dahlblom.
Long scrimming sessions and the pressure to keep improving put a strain on the team, but Sheepy was determined to keep the team motivated and positive. “I was never really under stress, and everyone got along well," he says. "We listened to each other and coped with frustration better than most teams.”
Attitude can make all the difference in the world, especially for a new team when it comes to team play. With cheerful attitudes and a hunger for success, the Unicorns managed to end the regular season of the Spring Split with an even 9-9 record. Vardags says that this healthy atmosphere made playing the game a consistently pleasant experience for the team, strengthening their confidence. “We have a lot of fun playing together, and we’re really good at the game," he explains. "We improve all the time because we are dedicated and synergize well as a team."
Believe in Magic
As the regular season came to a close, the Unicorns had already surpassed their own expectations. But their competitive drive was not satisfied. The EU LCS Quarterfinals with Gambit Gaming were rapidly approaching and the team felt confident in their ability to win in a Best of 5 series. “I feel like we do pretty well when we have time to prepare and do the whole series,” says Vardags. This was demonstrated in the 3-1 victory over Gambit, bringing the Unicorns to the Semifinals. Although the team still had big games ahead of them, they were already proud of what they had accomplished. “We knew we were going up against the No. 1 seed in SK and after we won that series we already felt at ease, and that we achieved something great for our split,” Vardags says. Their enthusiasm propelled them through their impressive series against SK Gaming. What the Unicorns believed would be likely an unwinnable series turned into a five-game tussle, with the Unicorns coming out on top. This David had taken down Goliath, and they were determined to do it again.
With their conservative 9-9 record, the Unicorns of Love had narrowly scraped into the Playoffs in the first place. Now, they were poised to take on European powerhouse Fnatic in the Finals.
After the Unicorns of Love took the first game in the series with a Varus pick, the teams juggled victories back and forth. The Unicorns continued to use unconventional champions like Udyr as they approached the final, deciding game of the series.
The crowd buzzed with excitement as Huni was caught out by Vardags and Vizicsacsi, and Unicorns of Love took first blood. Starting strong with a 3-1 lead, the game soon spun in favor of Fnatic as they turned a close teamfight using a Scrying Orb onto a bush where the low-health Vardags and Hylissang were hiding. Fnatic continued dominating the Unicorns as they tried to take Dragon number two, ending up with a six-kill lead. Taking their gold and running with it, Fnatic easily snagged the Baron buff and caught the Unicorns under their mid inhibitor turret. Despite a phenomenal Sejuani/Orianna wombo-combo from Kikis and Power of Evil, the Unicorns of Love really felt their 12k gold deficit as Fnatic still managed to turn the fight in their favor.
Just when the shoutcasters believed that it was all over for the Unicorns of Love, Fnatic’s Huni and Steeelback were killed in a last-second respawn by the Unicorns Taking dragon, and they were given one last shot at a comeback against Fnatic. Although the EU LCS Championship trophy would have been the perfect way to cap the meteoric rise of the Unicorns of Love, they fell to Fnatic in one final teamfight. And with that, the Unicorns of Love walked away at 2nd Place.
While bittersweet, Tamás “Vizicsacsi” Kiss is still pleased with the team’s overall performance. “Our biggest achievement is definitely that we got into the EU LCS finals and got 2nd Place. I don’t think that any of us expected to do that, so we’re very happy.”
No Longer the New Kids
After their successful debut in the EU LCS, the Unicorns have respect for the rookies of the upcoming Summer Split, having proven themselves that new teams can be quite formidable. Vizicsacsi believes that UOL will be up against stronger teams in the Summer Split and that the competition will be fierce. Despite this wariness of their opponents, the Unicorns of Love will settle for nothing less than beating their personal best. “For the next Split, I don’t think we can set our goals lower than winning the Split,” says Vizicsacsi. “I think that if we focus on improving, we can make it into Finals again and possibly win it all this time.”
The Summer Split promises to bring new challenges, opportunities, and competitors for the Unicorns of Love. This group of friends will have to dig their hooves deep to make an impact in the second half of the 2015 Season if they want to beat their own record and make it to Worlds. But with their positive outlook, steadfast determination, and hopefully a few surprise picks along the way, we'll be waiting to see what these Unicorns have in store for us.
