Amazing: "I’ve been gifted another chance to do something great"
He came, he saw, he conquered, then returned home for more. In the increasingly international world of professional League of Legends, few players have had a more tumultuous year and a half than Maurice “Amazing” Stückenschneider. In a single Split, Amazing went from a standout jungler on a middling team to an LCS champion in a foreign land. Only a few months later, he returned to his European homeland to start on a new journey. Now back in the EU LCS as Origen's jungler, he's poised to earn the chance to stand on the Worlds stage once again.
Leaving home
[[{"fid":"8047","view_mode":"article_image","fields":{"format":"article_image","field_file_image_alt_text[und][0][value]":"","field_file_image_title_text[und][0][value]":""},"tagName":"IMG","src":"http%3A//riot-web-cdn.s3-us-west-1.amazonaws.com/lolesports/s3fs-public/styles/article_image/public/Amazing.JPG%3Fitok%3D7KV1UX-V","type":"media","attributes":{"class":"media-element file-article-image","height":"315","style":"color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 16px; line-height: 24px;","width":"700"}}]]
It took Amazing several tries to make it into the LCS, but in the 2014 EU Spring Split he was finally making a splash with the Copenhagen Wolves. While his team had trouble getting off the ground and was sent to the Promotion Tournament, Amazing managed to earn the Weekly MVP award twice and turn some heads in the process. He left the Wolves after relegations, and that was when an opportunity came knocking on his door: a visitor from across the sea.
The NA LCS' Team SoloMid had a General-sized hole to fill, and Amazing was tempted by the opportunity. But taking TSM up on their offer would mean leaving behind everything he'd ever known in Europe. “I was extremely excited and nervous at the same time,” he remembers. “On one hand, I'd be playing for the most famous League of Legends team in the world. On the other hand I'd be living across the Atlantic without my family for an extended period of time."
[[{"fid":"18096","view_mode":"article_image","fields":{"format":"article_image","field_file_image_alt_text[und][0][value]":"","field_file_image_title_text[und][0][value]":""},"tagName":"IMG","src":"http%3A//riot-web-cdn.s3-us-west-1.amazonaws.com/lolesports/s3fs-public/styles/article_image/public/Amazing3_0.jpg%3Fitok%3DKETl9Nrs","type":"media","attributes":{"class":"media-element file-article-image","height":"315","style":"color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 16px; line-height: 24px;","width":"700"}}]]
"I wasn't necessarily sure what to expect, since all I knew was how to play League of Legends."
He ultimately decided to go for it, and packed his bags for North America. Though things were touch-and-go for a while as the roster settled in, TSM were able to pull it together and took home the 2014 Summer Split title in an unforgettable series against Cloud9. From there, it was off to the 2014 World Championship. Up against the strongest teams in the world, Amazing quickly learned what it meant to play on the international stage, despite being knocked out in the Quarterfinals by eventual champions Samsung White.
“I have never improved as rapidly as I did at Worlds,” he says, looking back. “My view on the game became more complete, and my view on being an LCS player changed too. It's not about being great domestically anymore, it's about being great on a worldwide scale.”
There and back again
After Worlds, the stress of playing abroad led to a career-defining move: Amazing stepped down from TSM and moved back to Germany. Even so, he didn't return empty-handed. “Not only was I able to play with such ambitious players and an organization driving to be the best at all times, but I was also presented with a lot of opportunities to learn more about myself.”
[[{"fid":"18097","view_mode":"article_image","fields":{"format":"article_image","field_file_image_alt_text[und][0][value]":"","field_file_image_title_text[und][0][value]":""},"tagName":"IMG","src":"http%3A//riot-web-cdn.s3-us-west-1.amazonaws.com/lolesports/s3fs-public/styles/article_image/public/Amazing2_0.jpg%3Fitok%3D-72QAGYm","type":"media","attributes":{"class":"media-element file-article-image","height":"315","width":"700"}}]]
His decision was made without the promise of a new team back home, so Amazing returned to Europe with his future uncertain. But players who make Top 8 at Worlds tend not to remain teamless for long, and something exciting was brewing behind the scenes. Enrique “xPeke” Martinez had left Fnatic to begin anew as well, and he sent an envoy to bring Amazing into the fold.
“Pretty much out of the blue Mithy asked me about joining a hypothetical team with Peke and Niels and I was open to it from the beginning,” Amazing says. Though many with his resume would despair of ever returning to the Challenger Series, he was undaunted. “The prospect of starting from scratch didn't really drive me off, but actually attracted me.”
With a roster made up of Worlds veterans and top European free agents, their rapid ascension into the EU LCS was nearly a foregone conclusion. They dominated the Spring Challenger season, went 3-0 in the Finals, and took their place in Summer without missing a beat. And though his teammates have changed, Amazing feels his approach remains the same. “I am and always was a playmaker. A jungler shouldn't have any style dictated by tendencies -- and that's something I live by.”
The Next Stage
Origen's momentum has scarcely slowed since the Summer Split began. Though they've been unable to overcome the undefeated Fnatic, Amazing and his team ended the split with a strong claim to be the No. 2 team in Europe. In their debut season as a team, Origen's made their experience obvious to all viewers.
[[{"fid":"17838","view_mode":"article_image","fields":{"format":"article_image","field_file_image_alt_text[und][0][value]":"","field_file_image_title_text[und][0][value]":""},"tagName":"IMG","src":"http%3A//riot-web-cdn.s3-us-west-1.amazonaws.com/lolesports/s3fs-public/styles/article_image/public/Amazing_4.jpg%3Fitok%3DFmLeD-3-","type":"media","attributes":{"class":"media-element file-article-image","height":"315","width":"700"}}]]
Describing his team's strengths, Amazing explains, “We have five playmakers. We are smart, we are mechanically gifted." But he also admits they've still got a few kinks to work out. "The thing we're lacking is coordination. We all have great ideas and plays in mind, but seem to have issues making the right play at the right time as a team. Playoff practice should fix that though. We'll be pulling on the same string when the pressure goes up.”
Now with a hard-earned first round bye, Amazing and Origen have an extra week to make those adjustments. But is a week enough time? Because they're starting with no Championship Points, Origen need every win they can get in their hunt for a spot at Worlds. And while they’re looking strong, the vulnerabilities Amazing's alluded to could be exploitable by EU LCS teams at the top of their game.
But if they keep it together and clinch a spot to represent EU at Worlds, they won’t have far to travel: the World Championship is on their home turf this year, after all. To Amazing, this would be a chance to play in front of the crowd that welcomed him back home with open arms.
[[{"fid":"18098","view_mode":"article_image","fields":{"format":"article_image","field_file_image_alt_text[und][0][value]":"","field_file_image_title_text[und][0][value]":""},"tagName":"IMG","src":"http%3A//riot-web-cdn.s3-us-west-1.amazonaws.com/lolesports/s3fs-public/styles/article_image/public/Amazing4_0.jpg%3Fitok%3DDd_04zce","type":"media","attributes":{"class":"media-element file-article-image","height":"315","width":"700"}}]]
"I've been gifted another chance to do something great, and this time in front of a home crowd I can't and don't want to disappoint," he says. "Therefore it'd be an honor to represent EU at Worlds and use that experience to reach another level."
His journey may have brought him home, but Amazing's road goes ever on and on.
You can see how Amazing and Origen come together when they face off in the EU LCS Playoffs Semifinals against the winner of H2K and Giants on August 16th, right here on Lolesports.
