NA LCS Regional Qualifier Recap
Unlike the EU LCS regional qualifier, the North American League of Legends Championship Series ended its Summer Split with an absolute bang. While the NA LCS regional qualifier wasn’t nearly as close as people had expected (or hoped), it was a pretty good way to determine which team has what it takes to represent NA at the World Championship in Korea.
NA LCS Regional Qualifier – Echo Fox vs. Clutch Gaming
The NA LCS regional qualifier gauntlet started off on an underwhelming note though. After the LCK, LPL, and EU LCS went the five-game distance, Echo Fox and Clutch Gaming only went to three, and it wasn’t close. It was a shellacking. No one gave Clutch a chance, but to see them get outclassed to such a degree was underwhelming.
Echo Fox wanted to advance to the second round of the gauntlet and avenge their quarterfinal loss to TSM, and they didn’t want to waste any time. In short, Echo Fox put on a clinic. They weren’t overly aggressive, but they always had the lead, and they knew it. There was no need to overstep and maybe give the edge over to Clutch – they wanted to do things “by the book.”
That didn’t stop them from performing exceptionally well on an individual level – Huni had a sensational series, and he played more aggressively and confidently as the series developed. It was a refreshing sight after seeing him feed and misposition throughout their series against TSM just a couple of weeks prior.
Regardless of the game, Echo Fox always had the gold lead and closing things out was just a matter of formality.
In the end, there wasn’t a lot that you could take away from this series other than the fact that Clutch was outmatched in every way, shape, and form. Even though that’s something everyone expected, it was still a bit surprising to see them outclassed in such dominant fashion.
NA LCS Regional Qualifier – Echo Fox vs. TSM
After a very clean 3-0-win, Echo Fox was entering their round two clash against TSM with a fair amount of hype. After all, these two teams fought a five-game war that was decided by the slimmest of margins.
However, against all the odds, it was as one-sided as the match before it.
TSM came out aggressive, they drafted winning lanes all-around, and more importantly, they gave Bjergsen Syndra instead of a more supportive, utility mid lane champion. They gave him the tools to dominate, and he didn’t disappoint. In the end, TSM was too fast on the map for Echo Fox to handle and after a couple of decisive team fights, they already had the lead that was necessary to close things out.
Game two of the NA LCS regional qualifier started off a bit differently seeing how Echo Fox ended up with a better team comp – more tools to engage, a beefy front line, and some fantastic late game scaling with Lost on Kai’Sa. TSM drafted a bit more of a reactive team comp this time around so you’d think that Echo Fox would be able to come back and tie the series but to no avail.
TSM was once again the better team in clutch moments. The team fought a lot better, and Bjergsen’s play on Vel’Koz was spotless. As soon as they engaged, they had ample amounts of damage to obliterate Echo Fox. In under twenty minutes, TSM accrued 15 kills and had an eleven thousand gold lead before going for Baron. It was a masterclass on all fronts and coming into game three it seemed like Echo Fox didn’t have what it took to compete at TSM’s level.
Game three was essentially much of the same, with TSM going for a strong quad tank front line and a Varus that could shred anything Echo Fox come forth with. Even though they went even in gold and objectives throughout most of the game, it wasn’t enough, and after a very decisive team fight around the forty-minute mark, TSM closed out the game and completed the clean sweep.
You could argue that Bjergsen was once again the most significant factor in TSM’s clean win, and you wouldn’t be wrong. He finished the series with a 45 KDA, with some fantastic damage numbers to boot. He was the stable, consistent rock in the mid lane that they needed, and with him performing so well, the rest of the team didn’t need much to get online – especially TSM’s bottom lane duo.
NA LCS Regional Qualifier – TSM vs. Cloud9
After seeing TSM demolish Echo Fox, the finals match-up had everything it needed to be insane. You had two teams at the top of their form, two stacked rosters with a ton of talent, and two giants that have stood across each other in the finals more times than anyone else.
However, much like the two best-of-five matches before it, the gauntlet final was as one-sided as possible, but it was at least a barn-burner, and a showcase of some insane creativity and team play.
Game one of the NA LCS regional qualifier finals started off with an excellent draft for Cloud9 – Kai’Sa for Sneaky, Cassiopeia for Jensen, Aatrox for Licorice and perhaps most importantly Camille for Blaber. TSM was the faster team on the map early on, but once Cloud9 started to mount a comeback, there was no return for TSM. Zeyzal was huge with his Alistar engages, and the rest of the team never feared to go in without hesitation.
C9 bested TSM in the team fighting department and eventually took over the map – and everything on it. They went for the risky plays, they were willing to take risks, and when they commit as a five-person unit to a single play, they almost always execute to a tee.
Game two of the NA LCS Regional Qualifier was where things went off the rails. TSM drafted a fantastic team comp with Cassio for Bjerg, Aatrox for Hauntzer and the Xayah and Rakan duo for Zven and Mithy. Cloud9 were a lot more careful with their picks, and it looked like they didn’t have an answer in the draft.
So then came the Hecarim and Nocturne top/jungle duo out of nowhere.
It was a risky decision to go for, but Blaber’s execution was perfect, and after he got a two-kill lead at the very beginning of the game there was no turning back. What followed was some insane top-tier team fighting from Cloud9. They were clutch, cohesive, and all on the same page.
Whenever Hecarim or Nocturne engaged and went deep into the TSM backline, Jensen’s Galio ultimate was always ready. It was a nutty game filled with chaotic fights and a ton of kills, and the third game of the series didn’t disappoint either.
Even though it started on a calmer note seeing how neither team wanted to pull the first punch and throw away the game, it was Cloud9 that scaled better and didn’t hesitate when it mattered the most.
In the end, they completely obliterated TSM, and they’ve managed to “dethrone” their (historically) most prominent rival. No one expected a clean 3-0 after seeing just how well TSM played against Echo Fox, but it was an impressive display of Cloud9’s dominance.
The fact that Licorice, Blaber, and Zeyzal were doing so much heavy lifting in such an important best-of-five – three players that never played on big stages, three rookies – is an incredible sign of Cloud9’s approach to taking rookies and developing them into top-tier talent.
This was one of the most exciting best-of-five match throughout the entire year. It was a display of exceptional skill – both as a team as well as on an individual level, their team fighting was sublime, and they also displayed a ton of creativity and fearlessness when it mattered the most. They didn’t go “let’s play meta” and try to eek out a win.
Instead, they picked a champion that hasn’t been a part of the meta in years and demolished their perennial rivals. It was a fantastic end to the regular season for a team that’s been through some wild oscillations throughout 2018, and the fact that they were able to go from tenth place in Summer to representing North America at Worlds is staggering.
Furthermore, they have a unique approach to the game and many bravadoes to go with it, which should give them an edge at Worlds, given that they don’t start playing like other regions. They’re not playing standard, they’re not drafting standard, they have a fantastic seven-man roster, and they’re not afraid to experiment. Whenever a Western team came out and played like they had nothing to lose they attained success almost immediately. It was when they tried copying Korea or China that things started falling apart.
So, in other words, if you’re an NA LCS fan, Worlds is going to be must-watch.
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