Power Rankings - 4/14/2015

The marathon is over, and the sprint begins. With LCK and LPL finally reaching their Regional Playoffs, every region has now either crowned its champion, or will do so very shortly. Given that most regions have already finished, we have a good picture of what the Mid-Season Invitational will look like. So far it's shaping up like it could be a mid lane fan's dream -- Faker, Westdoor, Bjergsen, Febiven, and Pawn could all plausibly be at the same event, and be forced to play one another. While we're still holding out for one of the most intense mid lane tournaments ever seen, we have a few weeks to go until we see it.

Korea

1. SK Telecom T1 (11-3) [23-9]
2. GE Tigers (12-2) [25-6]
3. CJ Entus (10-4) [20-12]
4. Jin Air Green Wings (7-7) [17-15]

(Match Score) [Game Score] We knew this was coming. After weeks of struggle by the GE Tigers and an impressive adaptation to the meta by SKT, Faker and friends took down the No. 1 seed in Korea. This will certainly give SKT hopes for the inevitable Best of 5 rematch in the Finals. However, before we get there CJ Entus will have to dispatch Jin Air Green Wings. These two teams have displayed odd peaks and valleys, with CJ Entus having its low point at IEM Katowice and enjoying great success since. Meanwhile the Jin Air Green Wings have backslid to a 50% record after looking like the No. 2 team in Korea for a time. While we don't expect many upsets in Korea, anything is possible. Panel: Alex Manisier, Erik "DoA" Lonnquist, Christopher "MonteCristo" Mykles, and Mike "Noctt" Huh

China

1. Edward Gaming (17-1-4)
2. Snake (10-2-10)
3. Invictus Gaming (8-6-8)
4. Vici Gaming (8-4-10)
5. OMG (8-3-11)
6. LGD Gaming (7-5-10)
7. Master3 (4-9-9)
8. Team WE (3-8-10)
9. Team King (5-7-10)
10. Qiao Gu (4-0-2)

Record format is (W-L-T) Well, it was an interesting LPL Spring Split to say the least. While 44 regular season games are probably a bit too much, we were still able to learn a few things. Snake has undoubtedly been the surprise of the split, and introducing some Trundle flavor the last few weeks has been an interesting adaptation to the tank meta. EDG has proven to be the best team in China by a wide margin, and although analysts were expecting big things from King after their great pre-season, we were left wanting. However, the biggest disappointment this season has been OMG. Going 0-4 this week clearly took its toll on Uzi, who was visibly upset about the weekend's results. Meanwhile Vici had a real opportunity to make a statement heading into the playoffs, but after going 0-2 to EDG, it's clear they are still a notch below the best. Playoffs began last night in epic fashion, with Pawn pulling off a Michael Jordan 'flu game' and inspired EDG to a 3-2 victory over WE. Despite managing to hold off Team WE, given the seriousness of Pawn's situation, there is a legitimate chance EDG does not win LPL Spring. Things just got more interesting in China. Written by Carlos "h0tsawce" Bravo Panel: Barento "Raz" Mohammed, Michale "Drexxin" Lalor, and Carlos "H0tsawce" Bravo.

North America

1. Team SoloMid (13-5)
2. Cloud9 (12-6)
3. Team Liquid (9-9)
4. Team Impulse (11-7)
5. Counter Logic Gaming (12-6)
6. Gravity (10-8)

We expected at least one upset going into last weekend in North America, but it seems the more things change, the more they stay the same. We'll have Cloud9 vs Team SoloMid competing for the NA LCS Spring Split Championship. Team Liquid came oh so close. After Liquid's extremely impressive Game 1 and Game 2, Cloud9 managed to run the table in the last two games to advance to the Final. Meanwhile, TSM pulled out an easy 3-1 over Impulse. In their losses, XiaoWeiXiao and Rush both played well below expectations. Should they put on a similar performance this weekend, Liquid may just break its Curse of Fourth Place. Given TSM's strength all season long, we're fairly certain that TSM will be able to take the Final and advance to MSI. That said, Cloud9 has fluctuated from awful to brilliant this split, and the result hinges on which Cloud9 shows up. Panel: Cameron Gilbert, Mattias "Gentleman Gustaf" Lehman, Taylor "Riot RoboTayCo" Cocke, Jason "Riot Jayway" Wai, Joshua "Riot Jatt" Leesman, and Frank "Riot Mirhi" Fields.

Europe

1. Fnatic (13-5)
2. Unicorns of Love (9-9)
3. SK Gaming (15-3)
4. H2K (12-6)
5. Gambit Gaming (10-8)
6. Copenhagen Wolves (8-10)

North America, I'm going to let you finish, but Europe had the best Playoff weekend in LCS history. After excitedly winning his Rookie of the Split award, Huni looked to have an off-series in the most important games of his career so far. But after a chaotic back-and-forth series, Fnatic's whimsical top laner showed up to push his team past H2K and into the Finals. Not many expected the result on the other side of the bracket, when Unicorns of Love defeated SK Gaming. It definitely wasn't pretty at times, but after UOL completed a perfect game and Svenskeren carried two games on Lee Sin, the two teams played one of the most epic Game 5's in the history of League of Legends. Unicorns of Love stalled out the game while down over 7K gold to eventually come back and win. Going into the Finals, UOL acknowledges the unlikeliness of their win. But unlikely wins are in this team's DNA. Panel: Devin "PiraTechnics" Young, Mattias "Gentleman Gustaf" Lehman, Taylor "Riot RoboTayCo" Cocke, Jason "Riot Jayway" Wai, and Frank "Riot Mirhi" Fields.

Taiwan

1. AHQ e-Sports Club - Champion
2. Yoe Flash Wolves - Runner Up
3. Hong Kong Esports - Semifinalist
4. Taipei Assassins - Semifinalist

AHQ pulled off one of the most astonishing gauntlet runs we've ever seen over the weekend. They went a combined 9-1, with 3-0 victories over both TPA and HKE and a 3-1 dismantling of yoe Flash Wolves in the Final to win the LMS Championship. The win books their ticket to the Mid-Season Invitational in May. Surprisingly, the team benched support standout GreenTea in favor of shotcaller Albis, which seemed to give the team much stronger teamwork and coordination. AN and Mountain also came up huge in the match, and team leader and star Westdoor performed admirably, despite being triple banned in multiple games. Panel: James "Obscurica" Chen and Chia "Reazony" Yu.

Brazil

1. INTZ e-Sports (5-0-2)
2. Keyd Stars (5-0-2)
3. paiN Gaming (2-0-5)
4. KaBuM! Black (1-2-4)

Record format is (W-L-T) There were no games in Brazil over the weekend, but INTZ and Keyd Stars are both preparing for their Regional Final. The winner of the match will not only earn the CBLoL Championship, but be heavily favored going into the International Wildcard Invitational. Be sure to catch the CBLoL Championship Saturday at 8:00 AM PDT or 17:00 CEST on Twitch or Azubu. Panel: Emily Rand

Japan

1. DetonatioN FocusMe - Champion
2. DetonatioN RabbitFive - Finalist
3. 7th Heaven - Semifinalist

DetonatioN FocusMe is hard at work at their American boot camp, taking full advantage of the LJL's early conclusion. Initially amazed at the difference in ping (“I'm able to dodge skill shots AFTER I see them!”, or “Did this champion always move like this?!”), the FocusMe players have been scrimming for as long as 10 hours a day with the best opponents they can find. Though they've been keeping their scrim results close to their chest, the team has reported considerable improvement across the past few days. With only a few days left until they're scheduled to depart for Turkey, it won't be long before we see just how far Japan can go in their Wildcard debut. Written by Cameron Gilbert Panel: Cameron Gilbert

Latin America

1. Kaos Latin Gamers - Champion
2. Lyon Gaming - Runner Up
3. Furious Gaming - Semifinalist
4. Dash9 Gaming - Semifinalist

Kaos Latin Gamers (KLG) are the opening split’s Latin American Cup Champions, and will fly out to Turkey to face off against the top teams from the wildcard regions at the 2015 IWCI. Though underdogs, KLG defeated the former Latin American champs Lyon Gaming in a convincing 3-0. As the mostly Chilean team looks to IWCI, they'll be led by their captain and top laner Helior, who exhibited exemplary decision-making in their match against Lyon. If Helior remains on point, and marksman Zeicro continues his domination of the bot lane, KLG very well could earn their seat at MSI in May. Written by Erick “Skyshock” Gonzalez Panel: Erick "Skyshock" Gonzalez

Turkey

1. Beşiktaş - Champion
2. Dark Passage - Runner Up
3. HWA Gaming - Semifinalist
4. Atlas - Semifinalist

After the Winter Split Championship ended last week, all eyes turned to the Turkish Challenger Series Finals. And what did we learn? The ever-growing Challenger scene has the talent enough to catch up with TCL teams real quick. Oyun Hizmetleri won the Winter Challenger Split Championship against CREW, which granted them direct promotion to the professional league. And even though they lost 3-2 at the final, CREW still has a shot, as they take on BPI in the promotion games. CREW's strong teamplay should compare favorably to BPI, who's undergone recent roster changes. ANT, who secured 3rd place at TCS, will play against NumberOne in the other Summer Promotion series. However, NumberOne's late showings proved their strength and they seem to be the favorites in that promotion match-up. Written by Christopher Willekens Panel: Kursad Demirer, Christopher Willekens

Oceania

1. Chiefs eSports Club - Champion
2. Dire Wolves - Runner Up
3. Legacy eSports - Semifinalist
4. Team Immunity - Semifinalist

Chiefs eSports Club have been the de facto strongest team in Oceania since their inception in 2012, but over the last year, they have choked come Playoff season. The inaugural split of the Oceanic Pro League was a different story, as they tore through the round robin with a 13-1 record, and continued their streak into playoffs with 3-0 victories over Team Immunity and Dire Wolves. The big question for the Chiefs is how they will respond when their traditional strategic dominance is challenged by teams with more robust support networks. If they are to find success at IWCI, it will be leveraged by their strong individual play. Otherwise, they may find themselves outpaced by more tested opponents. Written by Alex Manisier Panel: Alex Manisier

Southeast Asia

1. Saigon Fantastic 5 - Champion
2. Bangkok Titans - Runner Up
3. Insidious Gaming Legends - Semifinalist
4. Zotac 269 - Semifinalist

Record format is (W-L-T) With Taiwan out of the picture, GPL is a whole new region. For the first time, a Vietnamese squad -- the Saigon Fantastic 5 -- has won a split in the Garena Premier League, sweeping the Bangkok Titans in the Bo5 Final. SF5 will represent the region at the International Wildcard Invitational tournament in Turkey next week. Though SF5 secured the upset win over BKT, they will face stiff competition in the Summer Split. In addition to BKT, SF5 was dogged by third-place finisher Zotac 269. That squad very nearly defeated SF5 in the semifinal round, and if they can channel a more aggressive playstyle, they stand to be a contender next split.

International

1. Edward Gaming (17-1-4)
2. SKTelecom T1 (11-3)
3. GE Tigers (12-2)
4. Snake (10-2-10)
5. CJ Entus (10-4)
6. Invictus Gaming (8-6-8)
7. Vici Gaming (8-4-10)
8. Team SoloMid (13-5)
9. OMG (8-1-11)
10. Jin Air Green Wings (7-7)
11. Fnatic (13-5)
12. Cloud9 (12-6)
13. LGD Gaming (7-5-10)
14. AHQ E-sports Club - LMS Champions
15. Yoe Flash Wolves - LMS Runner Up
16. Unicorns of Love (9-9)
17. SK Gaming (15-3)
18. Team Liquid (9-9)
19. Team Impulse (11-7)
20. KT Rolster (6-8)

Not a lot changed at the top of the standings given Regional competition has come to a halt, but there is still a bit of movement. The 44 game season, and teams' apathy towards it, made it hard to take a lot of things seriously, but still OMG's 0-4 in the last week makes us think there is something seriously wrong with the team. Big players step up in big games, and this was proven again in Europe with Fnatic and Unicorns of Love playing well in clutch late-game situations. Given their level of play rising to the occasion, we value their improvement significantly. Conversely, Team Impulse had its stars disappear -- even more than other teams in their losses, like FORG1VENGRE or Fenix. Coming down the stretch there are a few significant tests left for our perceived top teams. TSM has to deal with Cloud9; SKT and GE Tigers have to fight it out for glory in Korea; EDG has to overcome their fallen comrade Pawn (or will he simply fight through the pain?); and Fnatic hopes to reclaim its crown against implausible rookie sensation Unicorns of Love. No matter what happens, we'll be excited for the victors at MSI. Let us know what you think of the rankings, write your own, and give us feedback on things to improve either on Twitter or in the comments below. Images courtesy of Inven, Garena, SANKO, INTZ e-Sports, and Lyon Gaming Frank Fields is a Senior Editor for Riot Games' Esports Web Content team. You'll find him flash rune prisoning ADCs in Diamond... or on Twitter where he'd love to talk to you about esports.

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