Esports Update: Change has been the name of the game this offseason in League of Legends, with every major team making significant moves. This will have a major impact in the New Year as teams try to find their best combinations. A majority of the offseason roster moves that have rocked League of Legends have occurred in North America, due to franchising. Almost every team has had a major overhaul, with Liquid and Team SoloMid having major acquisitions.
Liquid completely overhaul their team
Team Liquid have completely revamped their roster in recent months, first acquiring three former Immortals members in Pobelter, Xmithie, and Olleh. With that core, Liquid then added Cloud9 top laner Impact, arguably the best top laner last split along with Hauntzer. The AD Carry role is filled by Doublelift, another player who has made the role his own, and Liquid look primed to finally break through and fight for the Finals of North America.
TS, on the other hand, kept their solo lanes in Hauntzer and Bjergsen, while adding domestic talent MikeYeung to the Jungle. This freed up an import slot, as teams must have at least three North American residency players, allowing TSM to acquire the best bot lane in the west: former G2 members Zven and mithy. Long considered the best of Europe, Zven and mithy bring an element of stability to TSM. TSM made fewer wholesale changes than Liquid, choosing to build around a few members while acquiring top talent from elsewhere. Regardless, TSM and Team Liquid should be in a battle for the top spot.
Cloud9 make questionable choices
Cloud9 find themselves in unknown territory after the offseason, losing both star top laner Impact, now with Liquid, while also losing rising star in Jungler Contractz, who moved to the Golden Guardians. In their place is Licorice, who is most well known for his impressive play in the North American Challenger Series as well as Svenskeren, who struggled to find himself as part of TSM.
The loss of Contractz appears, on the surface, to make limited sense, given C9’s dedication to the young star just this past year. However, Svenskeren is due for a return to form, and pairing him with star support Smoothie could be a nice pairing in the early-to-mid-game. Cloud9, for the first time, are in a bit of a curious position, appearing to be on the outside looking in for the top spots, given the moves of both TSM and Team Liquid.
Shakeup in Europe
Europe has seen a myriad of roster moves, with many players leaving the region to either North America (PowerOfEvil, Zven, mithy, Febiven, etc) or Korea (IgNar). The kings of Europe for some time have been G2 Esports, but the loss of Zven and mithy prompted a complete overhaul of the lineup, leaving the throne of Europe up for grabs.
Four new players join mid laner PerkZ, with top laner Wunder, formerly of Splyce; Jungler Jankos, previously with H2K; and the ROCCAT duo of Hjarnan and Wadid rounding out the roster. The top side of the squad appears to be an improvement, with continual top performer Wunder joining with star Jungler Jankos to create a dynamic pairing. G2 will more than likely have an interesting pick and ban phase this coming year, given they have assembled a roster with many players that are willing to roll the dice on risky champion selections.
Misfits, after their incredible run during Worlds, lost PowerOfEvil and IgNar while gaining former Splyce members Sencux and Mikyx. Given the complete overhaul of G2, Misfits, along with Fnatic, appear primed to challenge for the number one ranking within Europe. The underappreciated core to Misfits is top laner Alphari, who represents a foundation that the team is built around. Misfits may struggle early, as they have been known to do, with a probable run of good form come mid-season.
Peanut moves in Korea
In Korea, the major roster move is the addition of one player to Longzhu, Peanut. Peanut was one of the best Junglers in the world before he joined SKT, where he continually struggled to perform. However, the addition of Peanut to an already stacked Longzhu lineup bolsters the LCK champions’ chances this coming year. While performing well in the Summer Split within Korea, Longzhu were a disappointment come playoffs at Worlds, given their 0-3 loss to eventual winners Samsung.
Peanut will be unleashed with Longzhu, as his aggression and willingness to make big plays was suppressed while part of SKT as they attempted to play a more controlled style of play. If Peanut has any resemblance to his form pre-SKT, Longzhu are surely the favourite to win the LCK Spring Split.
All in all, some fascinating moves that leave numerous questions heading into the New Year, with upsets likely in tournaments before the teams find their feet.
