League of Legends: League of Unknowns

Just like the World Cup, every year was full of hope and passion, and yet, also full of disappointment.

It was the first time Team 71 had gotten into an international competition, gaining only one victory before being disqualified, but doing pretty well all things considered.

But the spotlight was on Team Daemons. They had given an outstanding performance early in the competition, showing a lot of potential to advance into the next round, and yet, it wasn’t meant to be.

Their flame burned out too quickly, and they only got third in the Group Competitions, unable to proceed into the quarter finals.

But unlike the World Cup which was met with a rain of hatred from upset fans, every single person in the LOL community knew that Team Daemons had already done their absolute best.

Team Daemons didn’t have any quirks in their team like the other teams did, they were just a bunch of kids who were in it for their passion toward gaming. They were humble and wouldn’t be caught involved in scandals of any sort, unlike some other high-profile teams (*cough* Team Sky *cough cough*). Their attitudes and actions made spectators within the country feel sorry for their loss instead of getting angry toward their failure.

“Team Daemons were so strong, but why couldn’t they keep up with the other international teams?” Questions quickly popped up in Demacia Cafe.

“I don’t know, it felt as though they were playing pretty safely during the competition, not as freely as they used to.”

“It’s such a shame, if they won that last round, they would’ve been able to advance to the top 8…”

“It was probably the overwhelming stress they were under. America’s Team Far didn’t have any chance of advancing further and player comparatively much more freely than Team Daemons, while Team Daemons on the other hand not only shouldered the responsibility of representing China to get into the top 8, but also whether or not our skills would be recognized by the international community. Having to perform to your fullest under that sort of stress is no easy feat,” Bing Bing said.

Following Team Daemon’s defeat, hype around the S Worlds died down a fair bit within the country. After all, if there wasn’t a local team in an international competition, that sense of inclusivity just wouldn’t be there, since no matter who the victor was, it would always be some other country.

Of course, there was still a large group of people who would continue to follow the competition’s every update. They were true LOL fans, and they craved the excitement of a competition where every second, every action, and every choice mattered, where five members from a team worked together to achieve something greater. These fans had their favorite teams outside of the country and would oversee them to the bitter end.

“Looks like these legacy teams are still doing alright, I wonder if Team Sunlight will be able to represent our country in Worlds next year,” Bing Bing said. Currently, he had the most insider knowledge regarding the e-sports scene.

“Team Sunlight? That team from the Xuhui District?” Duo Duo asked.

“Team Sunlight didn’t even participate in the LPL, how could they get into Worlds? And besides, our defending team is going to be the one to go to Worlds, not them!” Jian Feng was the first to speak up, voicing his disdain.

Following Team Skycrown’s undefeated streak in Demacia Cafe, more and more people were comparing their seemingly invincible defending team and the outstanding Team Sunlight. LOL enthusiasts from Jingan and Xuhui had gotten into more than a few arguments regarding the subject of which of these Shanghai teams were stronger.

“Look, if our defending team doesn’t get a new Support, Team Sunlight could sweep the floor with them with one hand behind their backs. Saying that they’re going to Worlds, don’t make me laugh.” Bing Bing drank his Budweiser with a smug smile on his face.

Everyone in the club knew that the defending team was strong, but that was only thanks to the 4 other members who played at a godlike level. Their Support, on the other hand, trolled every game.

At first everyone had just assumed that their leader was intentionally increasing the difficulty for them, but people soon started to realize that there was nothing intentional about the Support’s feeding, he was just really, really bad!

“Haha, stop joking around Jian Feng, Worlds aside, I’ll eat all the keyboards in the cafe if our defending team even makes it to the LPL,” Duo Duo said in amusement.

“Okay, you said it!” A rush of adrenaline filled Jian Feng’s body as he grabbed Duo Duo by the collar.

“And so what if I said it!” Duo Duo wasn’t about to get tossed around by some kid.

“Actually, it would be pretty d*mn cool if our defending team actually got to the LPL, we’d be able to feel a bit of their glory by climbing ranked here,” Fei laughed.

Feng Da disagreed, saying, “There’s no way, what do you take the LPL for? Not just anyone can get in, if they really manage to make their way there, I’ll eat the keyboards with Duo Duo.”

“You guys better remember what you’ve said, no backing down when they actually make it,” Jian Feng said.

“Does anyone else want to munch on some keyboards?”

“He’s insane.”

“I call BS, they were just joking around, it’s not as if our defending team would actually make it to the LPL!”

“Actually, those guys from the defending team do look pretty familiar, don’t you think? Especially that troll Support, he reminds me of that one team from the LPL… I don’t know why, but I just can’t find the video of their match.”

“Ha, and people say I look like Bai Feng.”

“Don’t call yourself Bai Feng when you look like a block of coal.”

The club was filled with people chatting, exchanging disses and harsh glares without any malice behind them. Eventually, all the seats were filled with people looking to solo rank deep into the night.

***

S Worlds had ended, and as expected, Team Vic took the champion spot during this year’s Worlds, the entire world bearing witness to the unmatched skills and techniques of their ADC.

After S Worlds, the next competition that held any weight in the LOL scene would be the WCG.

But then came the news that struck Team Skycrown like a bolt of lightning on a sunny day, shocking them speechless for quite some time.

“The international e-sports competition WCG has been cancelled…”

Staring at the headline online, all five members of Team Skycrown couldn’t quite believe what they were seeing!

Before LOL became mainstream and before Seasons one, two, and three even existed, getting to participate in the WCG was one of the highest honors a professional video game player could get, and winning at that tournament was proof of one’s unquestionable skills!

Team Wing’s second place had also been won at that tournament, their brush past first place leaving them in tears for the longest time.

Getting banned from the LPL didn’t matter, and not being able to participate in S Worlds didn’t matter, because they knew that aside from the LPL and S Worlds, there was another tournament that had been going on for a whopping 14 years, holding strong amidst the drama and hatred within the e-sports community. That was the WCG, where they could finally win back their glory.

But there wouldn’t be a WCG this year…

How were they going to win back their title as the champions, how were they going to fulfill that foolish kid’s last dream?

“How could this happen…”

Without the WCG, where would the e-sports players within the country go?

Starcraft, Warcraft 3, Fifa, Counter Strike… were all of these just going to be relics of the past?

Who else would be willing to hold competitions like these except for the WCG and Samsung?

The news weighed heavily on Team Skycrown. The WCG had always been their palace, but now that the WCG was in shambles, what was going to be left of Team Skycrown?

***

Some time went by and Team Skycrown was finally back on its feet.

“Looks like we don’t have any other choice,” Luocheng said, trying to maintain the calmness in his voice.

That champion trophy, they had bet it all on the WCG. They had wanted to stand on the stage of the WCG one day to take that trophy back, but now, they were out of chances.

The only thing left for them was to wait for the S Worlds Tournament held by Riot Games themselves, the battlefield for the bravest and toughest teams from the LPL!

The S Worlds Champion!

This was their only path. They were going to have to defeat all those teams that they had stayed up to watch during the tournament season, the elite of the elites!

“Do you have any confidence that you’ll be able to beat those teams?” Jian Feng asked.

“Nope,” Da Luo and Lin Dong answered almost simultaneously.

They were telling the truth. Those A-list international teams were so, so strong, exceeding even their wildest imaginations.

But even so, they had to grit their teeth and fight on.

They would rest at nothing until the title of World Champion was finally theirs!