#SKT: round two

[n0tananimegirl]

skts | Sleep Talking

Atsumu knew that Sakusa was weird way before they started dating. Back when they were friends and he began spending more time with the wing spiker, he discovered his quirks like how Omi only used specific lemon-scented surface cleaner; anything else was inadequate and not worth spending hard-earned money on.

He also liked to talk to his plants while he watered them (It helps them grow, Miya) and washed his clothes in a particular order; whites, colors, darks (it has to be that way, Atsumu.)

Sakusa Kiyoomi had many weird habits, weird things that Atsumu was hopelessly enamored with. After several months of being friends and two weeks of dating, he assumed he learned most of Sakusa’s quirks. He quickly found out that he was very very wrong.

It happened the third time he officially spent the night at Sakusa’s apartment as his boyfriend. His sweet Omi had fallen asleep quickly, tired after several rounds of mind-blowing sex leaving Atsumu’s mind to race and think about the euphoria he just experienced. He hadn’t been laying there long, at least he thought he hadn’t; shifting his gaze to the clock seeing that it was 2 am. Adjusting his body to turn and lay on his side, he faced a shirtless Omi. Unable to help himself, he placed a gentle kiss on the corner of that perfect mouth.

Just when he finally shut his eyes, he heard it.

“Gotta do it.”

It was a soft mumble, barely coherent, Atsumu wasn’t even sure he truly heard anything until it happened again. “Gotta save, Atsu.”

Atsumu’s eyes snapped open, turning his head to look at his boyfriend incredulously through the darkness “What?” He whispers hoping Omi would respond.

To his absolute glee, he does. Kiyoomi’s brows furrow before muttering “I gotta save Atsumu.”

Holy fuck. Sakusa sleep talks. Atsumu wasn’t sure he found this to be terrifying or hilarious. So he decides to attempt to coax more out of his slumbering boyfriend.

“Save me from what, baby?” Atsumu pressed, keeping his voice low, trying to hide his smile.

“From the volleyballs.”

A snort escaped him as he slapped a hand over his mouth to keep from laughing out loud and wake Omi up “From the what?“

“The volleyballs. They’re going to hurt him. Have to save him.” He said, a little louder this time. God, if he wasn’t looking right at him, Atsumu would have sworn Omi was awake but after waving a hand in front of his face; he confirmed that he was indeed sleeping.

Atsumu was trying, so, so hard to reign in his laughter. Fuck this was the funniest thing he’s ever experienced. “Gotta save him before Bokuto spikes one to his face and kills him.”

And that’s when he finally loses it. Atsumu lets out a laugh loud enough to startle his boyfriend awake.

“What the fuck? Atsumu, why are you laughing?” Kiyoomi grumbled sitting up to glare at the giggling blond next to him then glances over at the clock to see the time, groaning he plopped back into his pillow “Baby, it’s 2 in the goddamn morning, go to bed.”

“I’m sorry Omi.” He spoke through his laughter, reaching over to smooth down unruly curls, cajoling him back to sleep “I didn’t mean to wake ya up.”

Sakusa sleepily leaned into his touch and opened his arm for Atsumu to slot himself against his side, humming happily “Sleep, Atsu.” Omi murmured, kissing the crown of his head. He decided to keep the sleep-talking information to himself…for now.

The sleep talking happened more often than not; usually when Omi was exhausted from the day and promptly crashes as soon as his head hits the pillow. Half the time it’s hilarious, other times it's terrifying.

One time Atsumu had barely managed to fall asleep when Kiyoomi suddenly shot up from bed and said “If we don’t bleach the room, she will move in and infect us.” Then laid back down calmly as if he didn’t just scare the shit out of Atsumu.

Or the time he rolled over, grabbed the blond’s cheeks, and with all seriousness (as much as a sleeping person could) said “Violence causes and solves all problems.” Then knocked out again.

Needless to say, Kiyoomi either had Atsumu crying laughing or so freaked out, he couldn't go back to bed but there were those sweet little moments in between where Kiyoomi did things in his sleep that made Atsumu nearly combust.

It had been a long day for the both of them, an away game against the Green Rockets with an over two-hour bus ride back home. They played hard that day leaving their bodies fatigued and itching to get into bed.

Atsumu had been sleeping over at Sakusa’s more and more, though his boyfriend never complained, he never questioned it when Atsumu would follow him home, go through their nightly routines, and slide under the covers together.

Although he was tired, he couldn’t seem to shut his brain off for the night. Kiyoomi had quickly fallen asleep after kissing him and mumbling “Goodnight, baby.”

Atsumu sighed deeply, tossing and turning to get comfortable. It was frustrating he just wanted to sleep. He couldn’t stop thinking about their game, had he played enough, what could he have done better? They may have won but he knows there’s more improvement to make. Fuck he hadn’t had intrusive thoughts like this in a while.

He then felt Kiyoomi shift and turn to face him, Atsumu opened his mouth to apologize for moving around too much when he realized Kiyoomi's eyes are shut, brow furrowed indicating he was still sleeping. He froze when Kiyoomi raised a hand and cupped his face, thumb stoking his cheek softly “My perfect setter.” He hummed then his hand fell slack against his face.

Atsumu squeaked, removing the hand away “Omi?!” He whispered and yelled only to be met with silence.

Sleep did not come to him that night, he was too busy trying to calm his blushing face and racing heart. Sometimes Kiyoomi randomly kisses Atsumu on his head, cheek, or lips while completely asleep, murmuring sweet nothings.

It always left him like a puddle in the sheets.

But there was one sleep-talking incident that rivaled all the rest, one that nearly made Atsumu fall out of bed in surprise. He woke in the middle of the night to Kiyoomi burrowing his head into his neck, muttering words under his breath.

Atsumu whined slightly, upset Omi’s sleep talking woke him up. That is until he heard those soft words against golden tan skin. “I love you.”

Well, he was awake now. His face heated up as he tried to make sense of what the hell he just heard “What did ya say, Omi?” He asked gently, his heart was nearly beating out of his chest.

“Atsumu.” He sighed in reply, almost dream-like “I love you.”

Oh fuck. Oh fuck. Omi just told him he loves him. In his fucking sleep.

How does he handle this? Does he say it back? Wait that’s stupid, Omi’s not even awake. “I love you, I love you so much.”

Okay, he had to stop this before he dies of a heart attack. Sitting up in bed swiftly he roughly shook Sakusa’s shoulder.

“Baby? What happened?” Kiyoomi asked, his voice muddled with sleep.

“Did ya know ya talk in yer sleep?!” Atsumu questioned, sounding nearly hysterical.

“Shit, right. I forgot to tell you about that. Motoya used to make fun of me for it.” Kiyoomi stated as if it was the most normal thing in the world “Did I say something weird?”

Atsumu made a strangled noise and covered his face with his hands “Ya - erm- ya said ya loved me.”

He felt Kiyoomi stiffen beside him “Oh.”

“Oh?! That’s all ya have to say?” Atsumu asked looking at him through his fingers with a glare.

“I’m not sure what you want me to say Atsu, can we just talk about this tomorrow?” Kiyoomi sighed running a hand through his hair. He was nervous.

“Do ya?”

“Do I what?”

“Love me?” The question left his lips as he finally turned to face his boyfriend.

“Atsumu.”

“Kiyoomi.” Atsumu snarked back then lowered his voice to something smaller, more vulnerable “Do ya love me?”

Sakusa's head fell against Atsumu’s bare shoulder “Of course I do.”

“Oh.”

His boyfriend snorted a laugh “Oh? That’s all you have to say?“ he mocked.

“I love ya too. Just to be clear.” Atsumu mumbled, feeling a little embarrassed about this whole thing.

Kiyoomi rose to lean on one elbow hovering over Atsumu, he looked at the blond with pure adoration. The moon reflected on his porcelain skin “Yeah?”

“Yeah.” Atsumu breathed out, “I really, really love ya, Omi.”

Kiyoomi smiled, small but fond before leaning forward and pressing a gentle, passionate kiss against his lips, one that made his toes curl “Good. Glad we’re on the same page. We’ll talk more tomorrow, okay?”

Atsumu nodded feeling sleep come over him “Yeah, okay Omi.”

Sakusa pulled him into his arms and pecked his lips again “Goodnight baby, I love you.”

“I love ya too.”

[woodxstone]

JAPANESE BUDDHIST PRAYER BEADS

General

"The Buddhist rosary was introduced to Japan in the early stages of Japanese Buddhism... Although rosaries were probably considered valuable objects since the introduction of Buddhism in Japan, it seems they were not widely used in religious practices for another several centuries. Only by the Kamakura period (1185–1333) do prayer beads seem to have become common ritual implements."

"The form of the first prayer beads in Japan already varied, but over the centuries, the rosary was further modified to fit the usage and doctrine of different schools. As a result, various distinct forms developed, which can be easily distinguished from each other today. The rosaries differ, for example, in the number of larger beads, tassels, or beads on the strings attached to the larger beads... Also, the manner of how to hold a rosary differs depending on the school."

The most common term for the rosary is juzu 数珠 (Ch. shuzhu), literally “counting beads” or “telling beads,” which hints at the ritual usage of the beads for counting recitations. The other common term, nenju 念珠 (Ch. nianzhu), can be understood either as “recitation beads,” describing the beads as an aid in chanting practices, or as “mindfulness beads,” suggesting that “chanting is an aid to meditation and even a form of it.”

(from Prayer beads in Japanese Sōtō Zen, link under Sōtō)

Juzu beads in two different styles. Image from Wikimedia Commons by Suguri_F.

The number of beads

"The earliest text on prayer beads, the Mu huanzi jing, states that the rosary should have 108 beads, which is the most common number of beads in a Buddhist rosary. Other sutras further mention rosaries with 1,080, fifty-four, forty-two, twenty-seven, twenty-one, and fourteen beads. Lower numbers than 108 are encouraged, if one has difficulties obtaining 108 beads. Rosaries with thirty-six or eighteen beads are also used in Japan."

(from Prayer beads in Japanese Sōtō Zen, link under Sōtō)

108: The number 108 has many symbolic associations. Most commonly the 108 beads are associated with the 108 defilements. The number 108 further represents the 108 deities of the diamond realm (kongōkai) in esoteric Buddhism, or the 108 kinds of samādhi.

54: The number fifty-four stands for the fifty four stages of practice consisting of the ten stages of faith, ten abodes, ten practices, ten transferences of merit, ten grounds, and the four wholesome roots.

42: The number forty-two expresses the ten abodes, ten practices, ten transferences of merit, ten grounds, plus the two stages of “equal” and marvelous enlightenment (tōgaku and myōgaku).

27: Twenty-seven symbolizes the stages toward arhatship.

21: The number twenty-one further represents the ten grounds of inherent qualities, plus the ten grounds of the qualities produced by practice, plus buddhahood.

The names of the beads

"A rosary has at least one large bead, which is called the mother bead (boju) or parent bead (oya dama) alerting the user that they have finished one round of the rosary. When finishing one round, the user should not cross over the mother bead, as this would be a major offense; instead, they should reverse the direction."

"Sometimes a rosary has two larger beads; in this case, the second larger bead is either called middle bead (nakadama), as it marks the middle of the rosary, or also mother bead. The other beads on the main string are called retainer beads (ju dama) or children beads (ko dama). There are four beads among the retainer beads that are usually of smaller size and/or different color. They are placed after the seventh and the twenty-first beads on both sides of the (main) mother bead and therefore mark the seventh or twenty-first recitation. These four beads are called shiten 四点 beads (lit. four point beads). They are often interpreted as the four heavenly kings (Shitennō), Jikokuten (Skt. Dhṛtarāṣṭra), Tamonten (also called Bishamonten, Skt. Vaiśravaṇa), Zōjōten (Skt. Virūḍhaka), and Kōmokuten (Skt. Virūpākṣa). The beads are therefore also called “four heavenly kings” (shiten 四天), a homophone of “four points.”

"The main mother bead, and sometimes also the middle bead, has tassels attached. Usually, there are two short strings with smaller beads, known as recorder beads (kishi dama) or disciple beads (deshi dama), attached to the main mother bead. These beads help to count the rounds of recitations. They are thought to symbolize the ten pāramitās or, especially if they are called disciple beads, the Buddha’s direct disciples. At the end of the strings just above the tassels are the recorder bead stoppers, which are called dewdrop beads (tsuyudama), because they are often shaped like teardrops. The string between the mother bead and the recorder beads has usually a small loop, and on one side of this loop is a small bead, which is called jōmyō 浄明 (lit. pure and bright)... The bead is also called successor bodhisattva (fusho bosatsu) because it might take the place of any recorder bead that might be broken."

(from Prayer beads in Japanese Sōtō Zen, link under Sōtō)

Prayer beads in different Japanese schools

Jōdō (Pure Land)

Nichiren

A set of garnet Nichiren Shoshu Juzu prayer beads. Image from Wikimedia Commons by BeccaTrans.

Ōbaku

Rinzai

Honren juzu beads used in the Rinzai sect of Zen Buddhism. Image from Wikimedia Commons by Peehyoro Acala.

Shingon

Sōtō

Dōgen, the founder of the Sōtō Zen school, wrote about prayer beads: “You should not hold a rosary in the hall" and later writes that a monk should not disturb others by making a sound with the rosary on the raised platform. Later still, he elaborates “In the study hall, you should not disturb the pure assembly by reading sutras with loud voices or loudly intoning poems. Do not boisterously raise your voice while chanting dharani. It is further discourteous to hold a rosary facing others.”

"Considering these three brief statements in Dōgen’s works, we can presume that the rosary played no significant role for Dōgen and his community. Yet some prayer beads left by early Sōtō monks have been regarded as temple treasures and have been venerated as a contact relic in remembrance of the master. One example is a rosary made of beautiful rock crystal that Keizan used and that is now preserved at the temple Yōkōji in Ishikawa prefecture."

The form of the Sōtō rosary changed over time. Today’s formal Sōtō rosary has 108 beads and two mother beads, one larger one, and a slightly smaller one, as well as the four point beads. It has tassels only on the main mother bead, but there are no beads on the strings attached to this bead. The contemporary formal Sōtō rosary also has a small metal ring, which symbolizes the circle of rebirth in the six realms. In the Rinzai and Ōbaku schools this ring is not part of the rosary and, therefore, a Sōtō rosary can easily be distinguished from rosaries of the other Zen schools. When Sōtō clerics added this metal ring is unclear. ...This metal ring was not part of the Sōtō rosary in the Tokugawa period and therefore must have been added later."

(from Prayer beads in Japanese Sōtō Zen, link below)

⚫️ Sōtō Zen - Wikipedia

⚫️ Prayer Beads in Japanese Sōtō Zen by Michaela Mross (link to download)

⚫️ Memorial service etiquette (sotozen.com)

Tendai

[thetoxicgamer]

When was the last time T1 played without Faker? A look at T1’s history with mid lane subs

Faker has been the League of Legends player T1 has constantly counted on to be a cornerstone of its starting lineup for more than 11 years. However, because of a right arm injury he sustained, Faker was taken out of the starting lineup this week. Faker said on Sunday, July 2 that he has been experiencing pain in his arm since last month and has been receiving treatment for his condition. On July 5, T1 kicked off the second round robin of the 2023 LCK Summer Split, and Faker was not present for the match. The Faker-less match for T1 was the first of its kind in over two years, and without their star in the lineup, the team was promptly disposed of by eighth-place DRX. There have only been a few occasions in recorded human history where Faker has been subbed out of T1’s lineup for a game, and almost every time, the move has been done in the name of strategy, not necessity. But with Faker’s physical condition at the top of T1’s priority list, the star was forced to take a backseat, with Challenger-level substitute Poby taking up the mid lane mantle for the team. T1 will sit in limbo for at least the next two weeks, according to an update from head coach (and Faker’s former teammate) Bengi. Until then, let’s take a look back at T1’s history as it relates to the substitutes who have played in place of Faker in the mid lane. When was the last time Faker was subbed out of T1’s lineup? The T1 mid lane position is absolutely unrivaled when it comes to job security, especially in recent years. Faker’s absence in the T1 lineup this week marked the first time the team played without the League GOAT in over two years. The last time Faker did not start a game for T1 was March 6, 2021, when the team started Clozer in the mid lane. In that two-game series vs. KT Rolster, Clozer played Zoe in both games, which was a common theme for the sub during his two-season tenure with T1. During his two years with T1, Clozer played Zoe in 13 games, winning 10 of those, according to League stats site Games of Legends. Overall, Clozer posted a 24-12 record in individual games played with T1, although his skills were not used in any international tournaments. Apart from Clozer (and most recently Poby), only three other players have ever played in the mid lane for SKT/T1 during the Faker era. Gori, who currently plays for Golden Guardians, played one game in 2019, while Pirean, who once played for Phoenix1 in the LCS, played 19 games for SKT during a down year for the franchise in 2018. Perhaps the most noteworthy sub to ever play mid for T1, though, was Easyhoon, who played a pivotal role in the team’s 2015 World Championship-winning season. That year, Easyhoon played 42 individual games for SKT, putting up a record of 34-8 in those games. Easyhoon was used most frequently as an alternative to Faker due to their differences in both champion pool and playstyle. While Faker was much more flashy, using champions like LeBlanc, Ezreal, and Ryze to put the team on his back, Easyhoon was more adept with control mages such as Cassiopeia, Xerath, and AP Lulu, all of which gave SKT more options to feed their resources into. When Easyhoon was in the lineup, you could usually bank on another SKT player shouldering the load, although it was still well within his skillset to carry SKT to victory. Following his time with SKT, Easyhoon finished out his brief, four-year career with Vici Gaming in China’s LPL, and the SKT/T1 franchise has not had as effective of a platoon at the mid lane position since. When will Faker return to the T1 lineup? With Faker’s status up in the air right now, it’s possible that Poby could be receiving an increased workload moving forward. Faker’s timetable for a return currently sits at two weeks, meaning he’ll be most likely to come back in time for T1’s July 21 match against Hanwha Life Esports. In those two weeks, though, Faker will likely miss at least three more matches, including a crucial one this Saturday, July 8, against the undefeated Gen.G. Read the full article

[blrowanduck]

The Tantric Staff

In Sanscrit it is called a khaṭvāṅga, खट्वाङ्ग. Which is derived from khatva, meaning a cot-like bed, compounded with anga which is a word for one of the legs of the bed. This type of bed was also the form of the funeral bier. It is easy to image that dwellers of the cemetery grounds such as Kapalikas, Aghoris, Kalamukhas, Nagas and Kanphats using this Anga to break bones, coconuts and bel fruit, and likely as ritual tools and emblems.

As an example, the kapalikas were originally miscreants who had been sentenced to a twelve-year term of penance for the crime of inadvertently killing or injuring a Brahmin. The penitent was prescribed to dwell in a forest hut, at a desolate crossroads, in a charnel ground, or under a tree; to live by begging; to practice austerities; and to wear a loin-cloth of hemp, dog, or donkey-skin. They also had to carry the emblems of a human skull as an alms-bowl, and the skull of the Brahmin they had slain mounted upon a wooden staff as a banner.These Hindu kapalika ascetics soon evolved into an extreme outcaste sect of the 'left-hand' tantric path (Skt. vamamarg) of shakti or goddess worship. The early Buddhist tantric yogins and yoginis adopted the same goddess or dakini attributes of the kapalikas. These attributes consisted of; bone ornaments, an animal skin loincloth, marks of human ash, a skull-cup, damaru, flaying knife, thighbone trumpet, and the skull-topped Tantric staff or khaṭvāṅga" When the Brahmin victim's skull is united with the lathe turned cot leg with its top bulb by an iron shaft molded into a trident on its end the shape of the khaṭvāṅga took on its early theoretical form:

A trident, skull, vase (round knob), vishvavajra (square section), upper shaft (bulbs), lower shaft (tapering leg). Early artistic depictions of the Buddhist khaṭvāṅga portray it as a sturdy skull topped club, as an adoption of a Tribal leaders shaman's staff. In the hands of Tibetian artists the vast majority of Indian weapons took on a much more refined and aesthetic quality.

The khaṭvāṅga is quite a beautiful object, which looks kind of like a walking stick with three upward pointing prongs. An explanation of the khaṭvāṅga is very difficult. Suffice to say, the kapāla (skull-cup) and the khaṭvāṅga (trident) are considered to be two of the greatest substances in the vajrayana, especially if you are one of the highest vajrayana practitioners. In a metaphorical sense, the khaṭvāṅga is also an attribute of a wanderer. It symbolises the practice of a wanderer: a tantric practice whereby the world is always looked on as a strange world, as though it were a place never before encountered. It is as if it is your very first time to visit this earth. In short, having the attitude of a wanderer is also similar to being someone with no food, no mat, no Lonely Planet book in your bag; let alone credit-cards, or a mobile phone to call home with. And as tantric practitioners, it is quite important that you always try to develop the attitude of a wanderer in looking at the world.

As far as the outer symbolism is concerned; the crossed vajra represents the earth that forms the base of the mandala of Mount Meru. The vase with its four leaf shaped pendants represents Mt Meru and its four faces. The freshly severed head above it (red in colour) represents the six heavens of the desire realm (kamaloka) gods. The decaying severed head above that (blue or green in colour) represents the eighteen heavens of the form realm (rupaloka). The decaying head indicates the death of desire in the gods that abide in these heavens. The fleshless skull above that (white in colour) represents the four heavens of the formless realm (arupaloka). The absence of flesh indicates the death of both desire and hatred in these gods. The trident represents the Three Jewels, and the Buddhas of past, present, and future. The hanging damaru and bell represent the union of skilful means and wisdom. The triple-valance pendant symbolises the victory banner placed at the peak of Mount Sumeru. The hanging white scarf tied around the vase represents the mountain and great salt ocean that surround Mount Sumeru.

The inner symbolism is as follows: The crossed vajra symbolises: the purified four elements of earth, water, fire, and air; the four activities (karmas); and the four doors of liberation (emptiness, signlessness, wishlessness, and lack of composition). The vase represents the non-conceptual awareness of mind as the perfection of wisdom's "nectar of attainment". The freshly severed head symbolises the nirmanakaya, and the emptiness of cause. The decaying head symbolises the sambhogakaya, and the emptiness of effect. The completely exposed skull symbolises the dharmakaya, and the emptiness of phenomena. The trident represents the three channels, with the flames around the central channel symbolising the ascent of the inner fire of tummo (Wyl. gtum mo). The meaning of the hanging damaru and bell remain unchanged, while the tri-coloured valance indicates the three vehicles of Hinayana (yellow), Mahayana (red), and Vajrayana (blue). The hanging white scarf symbolises the teachings of all the nine yanas.

In terms of "secret" symbolism: The visualized form of the diety, "Chakrasamvara" arises as a vision and transforms into the body mandala and the khaṭvāṅga transforms into the 62 dieties that reside in the mandala. The khatvanga, as the essence of Chakrasamvara, symbolises his sixty-two deity mandala. The golden vase at the khatvanga's 'heart' symbolises Chakrasamvara's mandala palace. The amrita contained in the vase represents Chakrasamvara himself as the 'essence of great bliss' (Skt. mahasukha). The vishvavajra represents the eight deities of the 'commitment wheel', which arise as the channels of tongue, navel, sex tip, anus, brow, ears, eyes and nostrils. The lower blue head represents the sixteen blue deities of the 'mind wheel'. The middle red head represents the sixteen red deities of the 'speech wheel'. The white skull above represents the sixteen white deities of the 'body wheel'. The five-pointed vajra represents the four directional deities of the 'great bliss wheel', which surround the union of Chakrasamvara and Vajravarahi. Collectively the deities of these five wheels comprise the sixty-two deities of Chakrasamvara's mandala. The eight-sided white sandal wood shaft symbolises the eight great charnel grounds, and the half-vajra at its base symbolises the vajra-tent protection wheel which encircles the charnel grounds.

[gkmbmkf]

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I don't know StarCraft, but I know Lim Yo-Hwan.' [13] An icon symbolizing e-sports in the 2000s.

He is the great senior of all pro gamers who created a new concept of e-sports, put the league on the box office, and enabled countless juniors to become e-sports pro gamers, to the extent that his career can be said to be the histo텐트 밖은 유럽 스페인 7회 다시 보기 tvN 7화 E07ry of e-sports in Korea. It is no exaggeration to say that he is a first-generation e-sports star.

When Terran was a weak race, he won the title of Emperor of Terran with his unique bionic control and novel strategy, winning 2 consecutive championships in the Ongamenet Star League and 3 championships in both major league텐트 밖은 유럽 스페인 7회 다시 보기 tvN 7화 E07s, the only 2 consecutive gold medals in the WCG StarCraft category, advancing to the finals of the oldest individual league, etc. set a record.[14]

Above all, the true feat is the professional sporting of the game. Until Lim Yo-hwan brought in SK to found a corporate team, the reality was that pro gamers were very unstable jobs that depended only on prize money from competitions [15]. , It is significant in that it played a pioneering role in establ텐트 밖은 유럽 스페인 7회 다시 보기 tvN 7화 E07ishing a proper job as an office worker. There is even a point of view that if there had been no such activity, pro gamers would not have developed further in the past, and would have degenerated into a job that would disappear after surviving only on tournament prize money.

In addition, he played an important role in establishing the Air Force ACE, the world's first military professional gaming team, by making the conservative and naive, to say the least, move the first-class armed forces [16], keeping the c텐트 밖은 유럽 스페인 7회 다시 보기 tvN 7화 E07areers of numerous juniors unbroken, and so on. .

During his life as a gamer, he appeared on various terrestrial programs and served as an ambassador to publicize e-sports. In 2003, he appeared on KBS Morning Yard and was mistaken for a game addict, but in 2006, he appeared in a power interview and introduced the upgraded image of e-sports to the world. In addition, he appeared in various enterta텐트 밖은 유럽 스페인 7회 다시 보기 tvN 7화 E07inment programs such as Start Dream Team and Brain Survivor, and actively promoted e-sports by appearing in the movie 'I Can't Live Without Being Stolen' and KBS drama 'This is Love'.

In addition, in team competitions, KTF Magicence, which was at odds with Lim Yo-hwan's SKT T1, recruited Park Jung-seok, Hong Jin-ho, and Kang-min, who were anti-Lim Yo-hwan's symbols, to intensify competition among fandoms and 텐트 밖은 유럽 스페인 7회 다시 보기 tvN 7화 E07benefit from the promotional effect of the pro league.

In the heyday, the number of fan club members recorded 600,000, and after seeing the number of fan club members decrease to 400,000, he said that he felt the need to continuously renew himself, and he actually showed it. However, the 200,000 members did not leave because they did not like Lim Yo-hwan, and the main reason was that Daum organized a 텐트 밖은 유럽 스페인 7회 다시 보기 tvN 7화 E07large number of dormant IDs and duplicate IDs. Of course, in this case also, 'fan' can't have a big meaning, so it can be a motivation to renew your mindset. Just before retiring from Star Edition, the number of members of the fan club was about 450,000.[17]

[18]

In addition to the 'unorganized past record', a phenomenon that inevitably happens to old gamers, I have experienced both a falling win rate and a damaged personal record due to my will to be a gamer in my 30s, and both of the two 텐트 밖은 유럽 스페인 7회 다시 보기 tvN 7화 E07major individual leagues that I wanted to drink sweet water. The organizers put Lim Yo-hwan's name in their Hall of Fame, such as making Golden Mouth, the round of 32 system, and KPGA's MSL transfer, to promote his career. For example, Golden Mouth was created in a hurry when Lim Yo-hwan was able to aim for the championship again by advancing to the finals of So1 Star League 2005, which would later be his last finals. [19] MBC GAME also delivered the MSL winner's badge to Lim Yo-hwan in 2007 and put him in the MSL Hall of Champions. De텐트 밖은 유럽 스페인 7회 다시 보기 tvN 7화 E07spite these efforts, Lim Yo-hwan's performance decline since 2006 has been remarkable, and the records obtained as an exception are almost nonexistent due to the decline in individual skills.

He reached the finals in 2001, 2002, 2004 and 2005, and in 2005, he reached the finals of the Ongamenet Star League once again. Han Dong-wook has not advanced to the finals since winning the championship in 2006 and last enterin텐트 밖은 유럽 스페인 7회 다시 보기 tvN 7화 E07g the individual league in 2007. A match-fixer also won the Ongamenet Star League championship in 2007, but since 2008, he has not even advanced to the round of 36 in the Star League. In fact, among the old gamers, the only players who made it to the finals with a difference in time by year were Yunyeol Lee in 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, and Seongjun Park in 2004, 2005, and 2008.

[koigate]

How The Five Heads Land On LPL’s Blame Mountain

header for 背锅吧, a Chinese league community

背锅吧, literal translation of the name means “taking blames”, 锅 is wok, the action of carrying a big iron wok on your back means you’re taking the blames/fall for the failure.

a 背锅 meme

They have a tradition which has been strictly carried out since the day of founding, each year after worlds, they would pick one single LPL player(excpet for 2017 which I’ll explain later) who should be blamed the most for LPL not winning an international trophy, and paint his face on the blame mountain, which will be the community’s header for an entire year. Keep in mind 背锅吧 has 2,303,106 followers, it’s one of the biggest league communities and yes, pros visit it too.

Without further delay let’s dive into each head on the mountain.

First Head — Illusion

former iG jungler, Illusion可见影子

背锅吧 was founded in 2014, so when choosing for the first head, they went for the easiest target. At S2 worlds, only two LPL teams played, WE was beaten by 6 hour of silver scrapes. On the other hand, iG went out in the first round of elimination, got clean 0–2'd by M5. So picking from iG players is obvious, but who? Back then iG’s roster was Pdd, Illusion, Zz1tai, Kid and Xiaoxiao. There’s no way to sugarcoat it, Illusion has the least fans among the five, and jungler can always be at fault when losing, so he became the first head.

Second Head — Lucky

former Royal jungler Lucky

Royal was clean 0–3'd by SKT T1 at worlds 2013 final. Jungler Lucky’s Elise was outshined by Bengi’s Jarvan in game 1, which earned him the nicknme of “Spider man”. He wasn’t the worst performer that year, but he was the least favorite one.

Third Head — Pomelo

former OMG jungler/support Pomelo

OMG started out strong in 2013, but only achieved stardom level in 2014. They were invited to play in 2014 All Star Event in Paris, and made it all the way into the final by beating C9. At the time, OMG was seen as the best team in China, and SKT T1 has been living under the shadow of the Samsung kingdom since spring, fans had high hopes of OMG bringing back LPL’s first international trophy, and most of all, defeating the demon king by doing so.

Yet again, 0–3'd by SKT T1, the frustration level among fans were high, and jungler Pomelo, who did this ↓↓↓ in game 1 became the easiest target.

He encountered Bengi cashing his jungle and threw his spear for one tiny 4 gold of creep, which caused his life and team’s first blood. Level 4 Patheon challenging level 6 Kha’Zix became a well known meme and Pomelo landed on the blame montain.

Pomelo didn’t necessarily costed OMG the entire game, but nobody landed on blame mountain because they deserved to.

Fourth Head — TBQ

former LGD jungler TBQ

There’s no way around it, 2015 LGD was claimed to win worlds and failed to make it out of groups, leaving out meta op pick Morde three times was also a big meme. Of all five of LGD players, TBQ was choose as head on the blame mountain mostly because in their game against kt, when kt’s draft was Renekton/Gragas/Lulu/Morde/Thresh, this is TBQ’s Eve item builds:

And he was seen constantly running away from enemies, not doing what an Eve should do(sneak out from behind to gank).

Another reason as to why he’s on the mountain is because after worlds, there were rumors going around about him participating in betting, which never had any evidence, but doesn’t stop fans from pouring their frustration on one single target.

GodV also has a “honorary” mention above the montain.

GodV’s backwards Varus Q

Fifth Head — Clearlove

EDG’s jungler, Clearlove

Clearlove is on the mountain because of that one game at worlds 2016 where his Leesin’s damage was 4396. His not being able to sacrifice himself for gank, always being seen running away from fights(in this community’s eye) is another reason.

Sixth Man — Bang

2017’s 背锅吧 header

This was last year’s header. Two LPL teams made it into the semi final, them losing to SKT T1 and the eventual champion Samsung both in intense best of fives has made the community decided to give LPL players a break, also because there was a bigger target, Bang.

In the final, Bang’s Tristana in game 3 failed a rocket jump and died first resulting in SSG securing baron is the key moment for why he’s on the mountain. Faker’s cry after losing the final touched many hearts, and hating on Bang helps some of them getting over the frustration.

Seventh Man — Uzi

The community is currently furious to see Uzi appear on the head as a cute cartoon character but not carved on the blame mountain, they’re posting threads to question mods’ decision everyday since the new header was put up.

This toxic wild side of Chinese league community is very different from the weibo fandom, but both are true sides of the Chinese league community. When it comes to talking trash, Chinese fans beat most people.

[esportsrush-blog]

Griffins - Five as one

Post URL - https://esportsrush.com/griffins-five-as-one/

Griffins - Five as one

The underdogs.

I’m sure most people following the League Championship are aware of a recently formed team that is taking the LCK by storm: Griffins. The team has brought it’s A-game to every match changing up its strategy from a gold funneling team comp to an outright late game scaling team composition and has executed each strategy with utter perfection. The Griffins are clearly the underdogs this season, with a group of five challenger players that nobody knew about. When they first made their debut against Hanwha life, people were expecting a body bag beatdown. What they got instead was the show of a lifetime.

[caption id="attachment_1595" align="aligncenter" width="900"] The bot lane for griffin[/caption]

Who are the Griffin's?

The team currently holds the top seat in the LCK and it doesn’t look like they’ll be leaving it any time soon. What made the creatures with heads of birds and lionlike bodies creatures of myth were of course, the people and in the Championship with scores of fans cheering them on you can be sure the griffins are a team thats here to stay. The Griffins roster comprises of : Sword : Choi "Sword" Sung-won is a top laner for Griffin. Tarzan : Lee "Tarzan" Seung-yong is the jungler for Griffin. Rather and Chovy : Jeong "Chovy" Ji-hoon and Ji hun Shin "Rather" Hyeong-seop are the two oscillating mid laners for Griffin. Viper : Park "Viper" Do-hyeon is the bot laner for Griffin. Lehends : Son "Lehends" Si-woo is the support for Griffin. Kim cvMax Dae-ho is the coach for Griffin.

[caption id="attachment_1598" align="aligncenter" width="600"] From the left Tarzan, Chovy, Rather, Lehends, Viper and Sword[/caption]

Where did they begin?

Only last year, this team lost all their matches in the second round of the 2017 Challengers Korea Spring Split and was nearly relegated. In the following round 1 of the summer split, they went 3-4 and didn’t leave a very strong impression. However, after Kim “cvMax” Dae-ho joined the team as head coach, Griffin began to rise. The team that was nearly relegated finished 3rd in the regular season and 4th in the playoffs. In the KeSPA Cup tournament that followed, they defeated Afreeca Freecs and eventually lost to SKT T1 in the quarterfinals after a close full-set match. Commenting on Griffin’s performance against SKT, Lee “CloudTemplar” Hyun-woo said “I think we’ll be seeing Griffin more often from now on.” [caption id="attachment_1599" align="aligncenter" width="954"] Lehends and Chovy[/caption]

Kim “cvMax” Dae-ho

Griffin’s history thus far can be divided into two eras: before and after cvMax. Their results became drastically better after cvMax was named as head coach. He often answers questions on his team starting with: “I can’t tell you in detail because we need to hide our tactics…” but he still offers small hints about the secret to Griffin’s strength. In an earlier interview, cvMax said “What our team is aiming for is having one big brain that has the capacity of five brains controlling all five champions. Like one person playing an RTS game, controlling all five champions. That way, no calls are needed and there’s no need to debate. Our ultimate goal is to make plays without any calls.” This matches up with what Song “Lehends” Si-woo said about the team motto being “Five as one” in an interview after defeating Kingzone. [caption id="attachment_1600" align="aligncenter" width="600"] Kim “cvMax” Dae-ho Team Griffin's current coach[/caption]

Griffin’s shotcalling

Compared to other teams, they’re very quiet and calm during fights. Another rule that cvMax considers to be important is ‘no risk – low return’. They aim to gain advantages in small ways that have no risks. In the current meta, if a team gains a slight advantage and rolls the snowball in the early game, it’s nearly impossible to turn the game around later. If it is possible to gain small leads without risking anything, it could be the best tactic ever. Playing according to this plan, Griffin lanes safely and doesn’t risk making unnecessary plays. Naturally, warding up the jungle is more convenient for the team and also allows them to take initiative in the game.

Griffin of Teamfights, “Five as one”

Of course, even if the head coach is the best ever, it is the players who play the game. If the players aren’t able to carry out what the head coach has in mind, all the tactics in the world would mean nothing. The most impressive part of Griffin this season is their unbelievable teamfights. These amazing teamfights are the best proof and execution of the team’s “five as one” mantra; it really does seem like all the champions were being micro-controlled by one person. Park “Viper” Do-hyeon and Son “Lehends” Si-woo joined the team before the spring split in order to provide a synergy boost with Choi “Sword” Sung-won, Lee “Tarzan” Seung-yong, and Shin “Rather” Hyeong-seop, all of whom played together for a while. With the addition of rookie Jeong “Chovy” Ji-hoon, the teamwork and synergy they have is at a matchless level. They came back from many losing games through some extraordinary teamfights and earned themselves the nickname: “Griffin of teamfights.”

Griffin of teamfights.

Among them, there are players that stick out more than the others. ADC Viper is called ‘the next Faker’ by some fans, due to his exceptional mechanics and wide range of champions. In the 2018 LCK Summer Split, he played traditional marksman ADC champions only twice, and one of those two times was as mid lane Kai’Sa (Game 1 against SKT). Many say that his Vladimir is even better than the mid laners. [caption id="attachment_1601" align="aligncenter" width="909"] League Championship - Korea[/caption]

Esports, League of Legends

Chovy, cvMax, E-sports, gaming, Griffin, LCK, LCK teams, League, league of legends, Lehends, lol, Rather, Sword, Tarzan, viper, worlds

[gainsbourg17-blog]

The Success and Failure of "Peanut", and a New Challenge

In February of 2015, a young player from Najin e-mFire showed up. He boasted his debut along with 8 months of being a practice member, and solo rank no.1. Unfortunately, he wasn’t able to show his full potential on the team. His official record was 7 wins and 10 losses. This was considerably good, for a rookie. Soon, this rookie joined ROX Tigers. He was reunited with Kim “Ssong” Sang-soo, who first led him to Najin e-mFire. That year, he became the champion of the LCK and KeSPA cup, and went up to the semifinals in that year’s Worlds, solidifying his name in the memory of LoL fans; that name is Han “Peanut” Wang-ho. However, his stay at ROX Tigers ended at just 1 year, and he went to the world’s best team, SKT T1. All LoL fans’ were watching Peanut. If he could grasp the Summoner's Cup, there would be no doubt of him being the world’s best jungler. Unfortunately, reality was cruel. Although he won the spring season and MSI, criticizing voices rose as he was cut off, leaving him as the runner-up at the summer season and Worlds. Being 2nd place in the world isn’t a title easily earned, but the expectations for SKT T1 were higher than that. This was simply too much for this young 20-year-old to handle; he had too much pressure on him, an amount he hadn’t experienced in previous teams. As a result, he left SKT T1 as his contract expired. Peanut looked back at his career and talked about why he left the team.

“I took some time to rest after Worlds, and coach Kang Dong-hun called me after my contract expired with SKT T1. I could have looked for foreign teams, but I wanted to play in Korea so I refused before even hearing any offers [from foreign teams]. I think I wanted to win at Worlds, since I lost at the finals. As soon as I entered the team house, I got the impression that the atmosphere was very lively. I already knew Beom-hyeon (GorillA) and Jong-in (PraY), and the other teammates were overly friendly so I was able to fit in quickly. It really hasn’t been long, but my teammates were impressive. When we had scrimmages, I found  ways I could help Dong-ha (Khan), Bo-seong (Bdd) and Kwang-hee (Rascal). These teammates had certain areas that they didn’t know as much about. It was surprising that they made such good results without being thoroughly prepared. Of course, I was worried about hurting their pride, since this is the first time we’re playing together. But everyone had the will to perform better, so we talked about each others’ problems very bluntly and frankly. We tried to develop [our skills] through the feedback.”

Just as Peanut said, Longzhu reached out for him first. As Longzhu realized the lack of experience at this year’s Worlds, they needed a player with a lot of experience, and head coach Kang Dong-hun moved quickly and took in Peanut. Fans were thrilled with the news of the transfer. The fans who still missed ROX Tigers cheered for the reunion of the PrillA duo and Peanut. Soon after, some unpleasant rumors began following Peanut like a shadow; people were saying that he didn’t leave and was actually released by SKT T1 due to a feud. “We ended the discussion on the contract in good terms. During the 5 days when I was looking for a new team, there was so much gossip on community websites. I thought that I would get tortured with insults whether I win or lose. The important thing was that SKT T1 made up most of my career, and I learned many things there. The results weren’t too good. We were good at the spring season and MSI so we won, but we weren’t good enough afterwards. It was my fault. Especially round 2 of the summer season; that was the worst.”

Since he carried the high expectations of being SKT T1’s jungler, criticism against Peanut didn’t loosen up. The critics went further and started scorning his previous career, and pointed out that he didn’t have what was needed to win. Peanut showed confidence by saying “Being 2nd place means that there’s a high possibility of winning.” “There were only two mistakes I made at the KeSPA Cup. One was dying in the 5th set trying to penetrate with Lee Sin, but this didn’t affect the game much. But we lost the 2nd set because I lost my cool, and started making mistakes. I wasn’t able to sleep after losing like that (Laughs).  4 competitions in a row in 2nd place…. But I’m still confident since I got to the finals in all of this year’s competitions, and being 2nd place means that there’s a high possibility of winning. So I don’t mind all the harsh words directed at me. I will definitely make improvements, and I have a lot up my sleeve to help out Longzhu Gaming. It was a bit regretful not being able to win the KeSPA Cup, which closed the door to this year, but I have a more intense desire to learn, so I’m happy enough.”

Peanut briefly looked back at his career. Reflecting his year, he seemed to be thinking of Najin e-mFire and ROX Tigers as well as SKT T1. He started talking about ‘learning’ after that moment of thought. We were able to hear about the life of a professional gamer, and the life of Han Wang-ho.

“While I was in Najin e-mFire, I didn’t have much time to play in competitions, so I was busy learning. As I joined ROX Tigers, it felt like I knew everything to this world. I think I had the thing that people said I needed to ‘win’. And since my other teammates had more experience, the environment was set for me to become better. Back then, I was good all year, and I thought that ‘It’s simple, I can be good all the time just like now.’ Thinking back on that, what the elders said was all true. Coach Park Jung-seok always said that nothing in life is certain. I felt that to the bone this year. Next year will be my 4th year already as a professional, and everybody is surprised when they hear that. Now that there are a lot of younger players, I start to tease them by starting sentences with “When I was your age-“(Laughs). Of course, I’m still young too, but looking at myself playing in a new team for just a bit and yet adapting quickly to the environment made me feel like a veteran. And…. What do I want to say? I think I was blessed to meet good people. Coach Park Jung-seok, Jeong No-chul (NoFe), Kim Sang-soo (Ssong), Choi Byeong-hun (cCarter) and Kim Jeong-gyun (kkOma). The coaching staff always looked after me even outside of matches. And I think that there’s a lot to learn from the current coaches since all of them have so much experience. The most impressive player I’ve ever met was Sang-hyeok (Faker). Everybody probably wonders ‘what is that man like when he plays games’. I had the chance to learn from him being together in SKT T1, he has some kind of aura that makes him different from others.”

What he said wasn’t long, but we were able to see that Peanut felt and learned many things from his past, and he was thankful. Now the only thing left for him to do is be recognized as one of the best by all. To do so, he wants to grab hold of that Summoner’s Cup, and Longzhu Gaming is one of the best contenders to make that desire a reality. “When I first went to the team house, Dong-ha (Khan) called me ‘master’. After I died to a jungle monster, he warned me that if I still want to be called master, I can’t do stuff like that. He always said that it’s the jungler’s fault if the top laner doesn’t perform well. There’s no reason for the jungler to perform badly (Laughs). I actually thought Dong-ha (Khan) would have a strong personality, but he actually is very mild and easygoing. He respects his teammates’ advice and tries hard to fix his weaknesses. And Kwang-hee (Rascal) is really close with Dong-ha, so there’s great synergy between them. I’ve never seen such competition in a position in my career. And Bo-seong (Bdd) is just really good. It’s hard to express why he is good; there are still many things that he doesn’t know, but he’s good. I took a long time to fix my flaws to become good, but Bo-seong improves almost instantly after getting feedback. Lastly, there’s something I want to say to the fans. Normally I always say ‘Thank you’. I do feel sorry for always saying the same thing over and over again, but this is what I really feel towards you, and that’s why I express it. I was thankful for the support of the fans while I was having a hard time, and I thought that I should be good, thinking of all those fans that cheer me on. I want to make fans out of the people who don’t like me as well. I really will do my best to accomplish that. I thought a lot about my career and the past through this interview. I’m thankful for everyone that gave me advice; that became the blood and flesh of the man named Han Wang-ho. I wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for them, and I wouldn’t even have had the chance to say so. I am a really lucky man.”  ◆

[namisashimi]

Yicun: ‘League of Legends deserves to be understood by more.’

source. yicun special column (mirror) by danneergou (丹尼二狗) and yicun (一村) for pentaq. images by yicun.

translator. it’s been forever, but maya brought my attention to this article by the lpl photographer, yicun, on his experiences at worlds this year. it’s actually a really fascinating and very personal reflection, and i hope you enjoy reading it as much as i did.

Because for those who don't understand, there's so much more excitement to be experienced.

From our first interview with him during the 2016 Mid-Autumn Festival, PentaQ has known this LPL photographer for more than a year. Since we didn’t meet him on the competitive stage, our understanding and knowledge of Yicun comes more from his photography - in it, you can find all that is League of Legends. That five-colored stage, that youthful, passionately shouting audience, the champions lifting their trophy and their glory, the losers crying in the corner, or even those busy passerbys coming and going.

Before the 2017 World Finals began, PentaQ published a series of 'Pre-Game Special Columns,' one of which was on Yicun. In that article, Yicun used photography to reminisce about how from when he first encountered League of Legends at All-Stars 2013 to now. After the finals, we once again contacted Yicun in hopes that we could hear his new feelings after the entire Worlds weekend.

And so, in the same place we saw the same old Yicun – dressed in athletic gear, full of life. From his arrival in Wuhan on 9/20 to his return to Shanghai on 11/5, he said this hectic yet fulfilling journey of a month and a half let him once again see the heyday of esports.

post-worlds memory: a heart under the giant championship cup.

the longest, yet the happiest worlds.

If I had to remember the last time I worked for this long, I would look back to Season 5 Worlds, two years ago. If I calculated carefully, it would only be shorter than this year’s by a few days – that was 9/26/2015, when I and some friends went to watch a concert by Rene Liu, then hurried to Paris.

A person in a foreign country will have a lot of boring moments, a lot of spare time – after all, that place is someone else's center stage, and where you live will not be that close to the players and the competition. But when this year’s Worlds came to China, my life had nothing else. Every day was Season 7 Worlds; there was no spare time, no leisurely moments – just focusing on one thing. Time really flew.

yicun in 2015: carrying his bag and his camera, he followed the world championships across europe.

Looking back on S5, the biggest feeling at the time was regret, but this year - perhaps some people might disagree with me, but I think SSG lives up to this championship. When I experienced this year’s Worlds, I realized the championship was not just determined by strength on paper, but rather by willpower. Sometimes, what we are battling with is not just skill and strategy, not just the player’s in-game performance, but rather their mental strength - in groups, SSG didn’t perform well and lost two matches in a row to RNG, but once they entered the playoffs, they became the team that wanted to win the most.

In competitive sports, ‘the one who is brave wins on a narrow path.’ In that moment, whoever could endure to the end won.

No matter what, looking back on that one and a half months - perhaps it was a shot that was both the longest and yet felt the shortest. It seems like only yesterday that I was preparing my luggage, yet now, the battle in the Bird’s Nest has drawn its curtains.

from short sleeves to long sleeves, from Wuhan to Guangzhou, to Shanghai, to Beijing - a month and a half’s ‘strange journey.’

from play-ins to groups, from excitement and worry to pity.

Most of the time, my photography plan isn’t officially set, but rather determined by myself. To me, photographing Worlds is a kind of mission, a kind of responsibility. It’s not that someone else is making me take these, but rather that I want to take them. To be honest, the official commission I received didn’t include Play-Ins, but I felt that anywhere that had LPL teams, I should attend.

Because I hoped that no matter what the result, even if WE could not make it out of Play-Ins, I could still faithfully chronicle this moment.

Throughout the entirety of Play-Ins, WE still had some stumbles. Apart from the LCK, this was almost a rehearsal for the performance of the other major regions, so even though the wind was calm, the waves were choppy. Compared to later rounds, I was more anxious during Play-Ins, because this was the first year this stage existed and many didn’t consider it a serious competition. As a result, I was all the more worried that WE might not make it out. However, even as I worried over this, I saw the analyst team working to help the LPL. At the time, the three teams had already come to Wuhan and started practicing, and we could once again see the strength of the LPL working together.

the play-ins were a part of we’s world championship experience.

Because my hometown is Huangshi, Wuhan was very close to home. I had originally planned to visit home after Play-Ins ended, but for various reasons failed to do so - I’m usually someone who returns home periodically, but this Worlds, after Play-Ins began I didn’t go home at all.

In the groups, EDG was truly worth pitying. They really had the ability to get out of groups. Sometimes, though, you just get unlucky; that’s all that can be said.

You see, in this year’s Worlds, the Western teams really are not weak. From certain standpoints, the Western teams and the SEA teams have a greater tactical ability than LPL teams, or even LCK teams. Asian teams are more stable in their basic mechanics, in their fighting and teamwork than the West, but when something unusual happens, or when there’s a patch change, our ability to react is less than those of other regions. We are too used to following our own tempo in the game. So, even if it’s just my own opinion, when EDG faced C9, perhaps they had yet to adjust themselves to their best form.

If you want to talk about pain, this year’s EDG was not as painful as that of the past two years. After all, that year was far more regretful. Speaking of something that left a serious impression on me: after EDG lost, Clearlove walked off the stage. At that time, he hadn’t yet gotten his mindset out of the game, and as he walked onto the stairs and saw me, he said something like this.

‘What’s left depends on WE and RNG.’

So, I want to say - our players have their own shared honor, and this honor, it all exists in each of their hearts.

even if i can’t go on, then please take my hopes with you and go forward. this is the honor of a region.

to touch hearts, to leave no regrets.

Quarterfinals and semifinals - one in Guangzhou, one in Shanghai. Comparatively speaking, the quarterfinals most touched our hearts, while the semifinals most caught our attention and left us with no regrets.

Of my entire Worlds photography journey, the quarterfinals were the most unforgettable. Here, whether they sadly left the stage or continued on, each team had their own story to tell.

For example, FNC vs. RNG. I had followed FNC for a long time, while RNG was one of our LPL teams. I liked both teams a lot, so I felt like I had returned to that quarterfinals in 2015, where FNC faced EDG. Another game was MSF vs. SKT. MSF performed incredibly well, and I really hoped they could win. To me, the quarterfinals brought all the highlights from the group stages together. In groups, even if you lost every game the first week, you’d still have a thread of life to cling to in the second week. Quarterfinals were different. If you lost, you lost - win or die.

Luckily, both our LPL teams took the win.

Ah, the quarterfinals. How many years had it been since we last broke out of quarterfinals? That was really a different feeling. In past years, my heart would always feel empty after quarterfinals, because our team was out. Semifinals, finals - those photos were all taken for someone else to see.

The position I gave myself was not just for Worlds, but also for the LPL. So once the LPL teams had all left, my heart would feel that ‘emptiness.’ Even in the Bird’s Nest, it was the same. I knew that in my life, I wouldn’t have many opportunities to take photos in the Bird’s Nest, but as the as the 11/4 finals drew closer, I was more willing to ‘pull myself out’ and experience the match as a spectator - it had been a very long time since I last watched a game as an ordinary spectator.

So if the end result of the quarterfinals were happiness, then in Shanghai, in what could truly be called the ‘esports headquarters,’ what we welcomed was the pain of the LPL teams being eliminated.

Compared to those of the last two years, this year’s results are, of course, slightly better, and perhaps even reminiscent of S4 - really, so close. Even though the Chinese teams didn’t make it to the Bird’s Nest, this year was still a successful year for the LPL. Even if we didn’t have the best competitive results, through our matches we had broadcasted the culture that belonged to us, that belonged to League of Legends. The people around me who played other games had begun to appreciate League of Legends; my friends from other careers, who had no relationship to the game, were also supporting League of Legends, supporting the Bird’s Nest, supporting the S7 World Championships.

‘fighting’ might be the best descriptor of the lpl. it implies ‘no matter who wins or loses, we will put in our best effort.’

After the semi-finals ended, many people said it was like the end of youth.

Hearing this, I felt comforted rather than miserable. Whether our youth had come to an end was not for us to say, but if you could wholeheartedly say something like that, it meant League of Legends had completely affected you, that it had become a part of your youth. Those who said ‘my youth has ended,’ congratulations. You have become adults. But if you are willing to wait, League of Legends is really just like you. It too is growing up.

So, I don’t think ‘youth has ended’ is a sad topic. No matter what, it proves ‘once, it existed.’

So, I don’t care ‘whether youth has ended or not,’ ‘whether the game was deleted or not,’ what I care about is if it really gives you happiness.

league of legends deserves to be understood by more.

Honestly, that day in the Bird’s Nest, before the game started I was worrying the seats wouldn’t fill up, and then the photographs would look ugly. But after Jay Chou finished his song and Legends Never Die began, I looked all around me and discovered I had already sunk into a sea of people.

During the finals, I mostly enjoyed the game from a spectator perspective. Because I spent most of my time in the audience, my photographs were largely of the whole venue; because the stage was so distant, I didn’t take many pictures of the players or match details. There was one photograph - during the most critical moment in the third game of SKT vs SSG, I caught the last rays of the setting sun. The second the setting sun passed through the Bird’s Nest, Faker secured first blood. I had a strange premonition: this could be Faker’s last first blood in this year’s World Championships.

the last ray of the setting sun filters through the top of the Bird’s Nest, alighting on the faces of the audience.

-- but since I’ve been talking so much, many of these questions have been brought up already. So I wonder, is it still important to discuss the final victory more?

I think back to six or seven years ago, maybe 2011 or 2012. I was still in Beijing then and had yet to take up a League of Legends-related photography job. I would often go to the Water Cube to swim, and no matter how many times I saw the Bird’s Nest, how many times I saw the Water Cube, I would never have thought that one day, we would be hosting an esports competition there.

And now, in this very moment, it is truly a golden age, a golden age that belongs to esports.

I began to photograph esports in 2006. In these ten years, I have been through the rise and fall of many games, and I have experienced many of what I felt were golden ages. When I photographed CS, I found like that was a golden age; when I photographed DOTA, I felt like that was also a golden age. But thinking about it now, for those of us in the gaming sphere that was definitely the case, but that’s only a small group of people who love games. It is still a very small circle.

Whereas now, I truly feel the real golden age is not just something that occurs within the community. It needs to influence more people, more people outside its usual sphere of influence, like your parents, like your friends, like those strangers who walk past you - allowing those beside us, who have no understanding of the game, to still feel the beauty of esports. This is something that League of Legends’ World Championships has accomplished.

these musicians from all around the world - in their creations is the best evidence of the golden age.

It’s just like the Kaiyung golden age in the Tang Dynasty. The development of our economy, the strength of our country - those were only internal things. What really radiated out and influenced the whole world was our history, our culture. This kind of intangible power is what endures.

League of Legends is the same way; it is not just a competitive sport. It has the positive energy of a competitive sport, the ability to excite people, but now and in the near future, we can still have more - music, movies, and even more forms of art. We will always be growing. We have not stalled.

In the past, when I photographed esports and games, I’d always have this desire to photograph ‘culture’ - at that time, I didn’t realize what I photographed was actually ‘culture.’

League of Legends deserves to be understood by more.

And to those who do not understand it, I say - there’s so much more excitement to experience.

yicun has many good photographs, but few are of him. this one, taken by ren yijun, is of him at the sixth anniversary celebration.

postscript: a moment for those who left.

'Taking photos is like being a historian. Even if they're not pretty, I still need to document them.'

'Even after so many years of photography, I wouldn't rate my skill too highly. I don't think I'm a talented photographer, but I do think I'm one with a sense of responsibility.'

'I don't take photos just to please people, but rather I hope they'll be like a slice of time, a truthful reflection of what happened.'

'I like photographs with stories. Only those have life.'

As a photographer, Yicun is constantly adjusting his own trajectory, constantly questioning what kind of photographer he wants to be, what kind of photos he wants to take. But his target has never changed: to chase the truth of a photo, to use the photo to tell a story.

So, at the end of this article, we've included some of Yicun's photographs. These represent the departure of the LPL teams from the 2017 World Championships, and in their moments, a story from Yicun's first-person perspective.

Of course, this kind of outcome may have left some people sad, but as Yicun wrote in his previous column, for some things 'the longer we wait, the happier we are when they are fulfilled.'

The night EDG was eliminated, after everyone had left, I went to their practice room and happened to encounter Meiko and iBoy. They were packing their things and preparing to leave. I noticed a commemorative coin left had been left on the desk; each player only got one, so it was especially precious. I asked them, why aren't you taking it? Meiko looked at it and said he was afraid that seeing it later would make him sad, that I should take it as a gift.

The day RNG was eliminated, Mlxg was the last to leave the stage. Even off-stage, he still sat taciturn in his seat, giving the impression that he had turned to stone.

11/14, after the final battle in the Bird's Nest, shouts of 'RNG' were suddenly heard on the stream. At that time, Ming sent me a message – he said, when he heard the audience shouting RNG's name, his heart felt 'empty.' In that moment, I could feel how his heart had stirred, how much he wished that the team appearing there was really RNG.

WE was eliminated in the quarterfinals. After the game, Condi kept smacking the hand-warmers against the chair, hitting it again and again. To him, that may have been a way to vent.

The night WE was eliminated, Mystic and his little sister were outside the hotel. To Mystic, China will always be a foreign country, yet he has made it his home for the sake of his dreams. When he meets his countrymen, his real family, that strong feeling of closeness will burst out.

In the end – thank you, Yicun, for making time for us.

[thefox1982]

Suddenly Orks

It's been a while since the last post. The party had moved on to Tyranny of Dragons, and in truth I found myself hamstrung, since I'd laid so much backstory to seque into Hoard of the Dragon Queen, only to find that the story was poor, it was level inappropriate (for these character). On top of this I discovered that not on did Storm King's Thunder allow characters to come in at level 5, it's more fun.

Now c-19 is happening, one of my players can't play because he's being supportive to his partner and child and another doesn't want to play because he doesn't like fantasy grounds and it's working for fg unity to get a full release. So not wishing to advance Tyranny of Dragons in their absence we started on Storm King's Thunder. Two of my existing players, assisted by two sidekicks to round out a party.

I started by bamboozling the characters. The book has some story threads that could be created for other things the giants are doing, including the idea that a hill giant had transformed a village into pigs and his clan were eating them. In a prologue to the events Arthur Quinn brings a carter over to the party's table in tavern and badgers him into retelling his story. The carter and his boy had been to Ornbridge, a small market town on a toll bridge, to make a delivery. On arrival they'd found the town abandoned and the streets filled with pigs. While investigating the carter and his sun took refuge in the inn when a pair of hill giants walked into the town, picking up pigs and putting them in a cage carried by one of them. While hiding the carter claims a grey pig gave him the exact expression of the old potman that worked at that very inn. At this Quinn roars with laughter, and the carter leaves the table cursing the thief as he leaves.

Boon Douglas thoughtfully points out that bandits would have looted the town, and orcs would have burnt it to the ground. He wonders aloud if there might be riches awaiting them in that abandoned town. And so the party sets off. Along the way the uh stop at Nightstone and enter the adventure.

The players think Ornbridge is an actual destination, which it could be, but I'm not intending it to be. Instead they've cleared the town of goblins, negotiated the release of the town with the Zhentarim and brought the guards out of the manor house. At the end of the session they re-entered the town to find the Zhents taking up defensive positions at the gate as an orc warband attempts to enter the town.

LMoP was quite easy on the party, and having to restart at first level in SKT has been a shock to them, people have had to make death saves already. So leaving the session on a cliff hanger with the risk of orcs is quite fun, they've gone from having to infiltrate the town to having to defend it.

[thewickedwizardofoz]

TSM @ Worlds

I know probably many of my followers don’t care about League but I do need to rant somewhere!!!! I’ll put it under so u can easily skip if you don’t care

I am just so disappointed. TSM yet again split games with everyone in their groups. 1-1 vs everyone at MSI 2017, except SKT who 2-0′d them. 1-1 vs FW and WE, and 1-2 against MSF at this year’s world’s. Even last year 1-1 against SSG (although, admittedly 2-0 against SPY and 0-2 against RNG). Like, this just highlights their inability to adapt to situations at international events; I cannot fathom how TSM always look so good and then just fall flat on their faces.

Their draft is awful. I like the first ban phase though. TSM showed an unwillingness to pick or ban Janna in previous games so I’m glad she was gone first. I thought that TSM would probably win if they had a 4 tank comp and Double on Trist, so MSF taking Galio and J4 off the table is great from MSF. The Kalista must ban really hurt TSM imo since they weren’t on blue they didn’t have that 3rd ban available for another champion like Karma or Taric to ban away, so they had to ban Kalista and Rakan. I think if TSM could’ve forced play-making supports out of MSF, they would’ve won. Biofrost on Thresh or Alistair would’ve looked SO much better than on Karma - that being said, Biofrost still did good on Karma, she’s just too weak right now. 

Then MSF first-picked Taric. Which is fine TSM probably knew they’d play Karma into Taric, but my question is why did you first pick Kog and Sej? They’re not bad but Gragas is MUCH better into Taric AND Kog’maw, so you should take it away to hurt the Taric pick and protect your Kog’maw. However - Tristana would’ve been the better pick imo. She can Buster Shot away the Cosmic Radiance’d tank running at them cancelling the Taric ult and pick basically; she can keep herself safe since Double seemed to forget where his flash key was; and she can go into a side-lane and create pressure!!!! Why bother with Kog’maw? You don’t have Janna or Lulu to protect him. You don’t have Taric to protect him. Nami’s laning and ardent-proccing is ineffective and Karma also can only shield him, providing only a root for CC. Kog’maw needs a better back-line to protect him.

Ban phase 2 is fine, trading one ban in each solo lane. It looked like TSM wanted to first pick Cho’gath and I don’t know why they didn’t. With Mao and Gnar off the table who do you expect to match up to him? Cass is off the table and you already picked Kog, WHO are you going to pick against him if you don’t pick him? They pick Jayce and I thought they wanted to put Bjerg on him but as I’m looking at it again, I realise they didn’t because there were no tanks left to play. Who is Hauntzer gonna play if they first pick Jayce and give it to Bjerg? Shen? what’s he gonna do on shen with TSM’s shitty early game? like just pick the Cho’gath, better late-game scaling and objective control with feast; how can you possibly let it through when you had the first pick in the second pick phase? See my problem with Jayce is that he is a poke-heavy champion, reliant on the 1v1 in a side-lane and individual out play in order to help win the game. You’re not gonna see a Jayce team-fight better than Cho. If you wanted to give MSF Cho, you can’t pick Kog’maw. Cho will build Adaptive Helm/Thornmail and take no damage from Kog. He already took no damage from Jayce! You need someone to shred Cho if you’re going to let him through. Tristana, Twitch, Xayah -- you had your pick of the litter because MSF first picked Taric. If you thought about first-picking Jayce after the second round of bans, you needed to prepare better for the tank - ban away Cho and let Mao through or pick an AD that can actually shred him.

Then PoE picked Oriana which is fine. But if you wanted to let Hauntzer take Jayce, you need to take a more early game mid focussed mid so Bjerg can push in on Ori’s poor early waveclear and roam up top and protect Hauntzer. Ryze isn’t going to out-push Ori despite having a way to roam up. Pick Taliyah, pick Fizz, someone who will give you pressure in mid - either through wave clear and roams (Taliyah) or kill pressure (Fizz) drawing Maxlore away from top. Even Syndra can push in Oriana then roam up, take ghost and go up there. Instead TSM attempted to index a little bit into the early game (Jayce and Karma) while still keeping their late game insurance (Sej, Kog, and Ryze).

But it doesn’t work like that with Jayce. You need to index harder into the early game in order to keep him relevant and ahead. Jayce from behind does nothing. Poke champions are RELIANT on snow-balling. 

Then the actual game. Sven’s pathing was just awful. How do you plan on protecting Hauntzer if you force him to leash enemy blue and then go take your red and then your blue? Either fully clear Maxlore’s blue-side jungle preventing him from going up there without being in a huge deficit or start on your blue side and then go up and gank level 2 after taking your red. If Sven attempting to clear wolves on MSF’s jungle he would’ve had to fight Maxlore, if they both recalled it’s still a win and pressure for Hauntzer, he knows where the Gragas is and has another wave or two to bully Alphari before both junglers get out onto the map. And guess what, if Gragas and Sej both have to back after a fight in MSF blue side jungle - Sven can go to his red side and gank top after a clear. Where is Maxlore gonna go? To his red side because that’s where his camps are. Unless he wants to gank a level 4 Jayce as a level 2 Gragas.

Then, every other lane can’t exert enough pressure to keep Maxlore away from top-side. Karma/Kog aren’t pushing in Xayah/Taric, and PoE is throwing out his ulti everywhere to chunk out Bjerg and Sven preventing them from roaming. 

They needed to draft better, but they also needed to play better. Biofrost was doing all he could to poke the Xayah/Taric and Double was also trying to fight be he’s just too squishy and they have no CC vs the root/stun on MSF bot. Bjerg stayed in lane almost the entire time, only once ulting top whereas PoE was doing his job keeping Bjerg mid and chunking out Sven from time to time. Sven ganked like once in top despite 3-buffing and being a level or 2 ahead of the Gragas on the later-game Sej - not to mention he didn’t even use R - Glacial Prison until like 23 minutes in ON A TANK NO LESS.

They needed the Galio if they wanted to give Hauntzer Jayce but MSF banned it in phase 1 so why pick Jayce at all. Pick a tank. Go harder on protecting Doublelift. If you pick Cho/Ryze or something I think it’s fine.

[wulfderg]

Haters Guide to Worlds Knockout stage (LoL)

(This was written before Knockouts stage which as already ended)

After the craziest play-in stage and group stage in League of Legends history, knockouts is gonna be full of silver scrapes.

Griffin

With having HKA in our group and the dumpster fire that was C9 you had an easy guaranteed spot into the knockout stage but then showed everyone your full power by defeating G2 two times in a row to take 1st seed in group A after losing to them in your first game you'll have an easy game against the 2nd seed from one of the weakest groups. Top 4 is easy but good luck playing either FPX or Fnatic. Time for you to prove that the LCK is back!

Invictus Gaming

You also had an easy group playing against another LCS failure in Team Liquid and AHG and despite being the world champions DAMWON proved that the LCK is relevant again you need to fight back to defend your title but this year it'll be an uphill battle. This year I expect nothing. If last year was the failure of the LCK this year is the fail of the LCS and LPL and the beginning of the LEC era. Prove me wrong.

FPX

Your the LPL’s brightest hope but you've got some roadblocks ahead of you.

You lost to J team in your first game. Need I say more?

The LoL gods have not to pity for you, you've got a quarterfinal matchup against the team that made the demon king look like a civilian. Good luck  

Fnatic

In the group of death which no one could predict you looked all but dead after the first round, the decision to do what you always do and destroy everything in your path in the second half. In a group with SKT, RNG and the team that probably didn't deserve their spot over Mammoth and UoL in Clutch Gaming. Everyone is looking at you as tournament favourites and to make the G2 Fnatic dream final a reality. The LEC era has begun it started in Vietnam and will continue in Germany, Spain and France on home soil it's time to finally take Fnatics second world championship.

SKT

The days of SKT making every world final every time they attend is over and winning the majority of them don't even think about it. You made it out of the group of death sure but Fnatic came for your souls and the rest of Europe will want to dance on your grave. quarterfinal game against Splyce most possibly G2 in semis and Fnatic in the grand finals. The 3 horsemen of the apocalypse.  

Splyce

The team that was taken to a game 5 in the playing is now in the knockout stage. Knowing how dominant the LEC has been the storyline of SKT making finals the appearance of every world could be over. SKT is one of the tournament favourites but they've got a gauntlet to run through and it starts with Splyce. Splyce had a hard time in the group stage almost being knocked out by the J team who took some insane upsets against FPX but had a relatively easy group. This game will be hard but I can definitely see Splyce continuing the storyline from last year where no LCK teams made semi-finals. 

DAMWON

After joining the LCK this year they made it very clear that DAMWON wasn't gonna be relegated at the end of spring placing 4th place and then going one step further taking the 3rd LCK seed to worlds being the first Korean team in the play-in stage.

Undefeated in the play-in stage only losing one game in the best of 5 against Lowkey. 

G2

You won MSI by giving us the fastest best of 5 in International League history and have dominated the LEC since its inception. Need I say more? Yes, Fnatic almost beat you in 2 best of fives in a row but in this new meta, you look far too good in bot lane with the prominence of mages this tournament. I think Fnatic will win but it'll be very close. They found themselves in group D for group stage joining them were current world champion Invictus, MSI finalist and absolute failure Team Liquid and LMS 2nd seed ahq. Easy 5-1 only losing to Liquid. Now they find themselves playing the literal peak of League of legends. No, it isn't from Korea, no it isn't the unkillable demon king Faker and the fallen SKT dynasty. It's the gods of Europe looking for a grand slam on home soil G2 esports. This is a very easy prediction, the tournament favourites vs the lowest seed from the region that got destroyed last year by every other major region. I'll happily watch that 2 years in a row.

Predictions

[yourgamecheats]

League of Legends Worlds Semifinals Drew in Nearly 4 Million Concurrent Viewers at Peak

League of Legends Worlds Semifinals Drew in Nearly 4 Million Concurrent Viewers at Peak

This past weekend, the semifinal round of the League of Legends World Championship 2019 took place in two much-anticipated matchups between G2 Esports and SK Telecom T1 while FunPlus Phoenix took on Invictus Gaming. While both series’ ended up being fantastic in their own ways, Sunday’s showdown between SKT and G2 ended up being record-breaking.

During its peak on Sunday, the broadcast between G2…

[dysfunkcja-a-blog]

Team Liquid Arrives to MSI 2018 event

Even though 2018's Mid-Season Invitational (MSI) brings closer and closer, questions start to pop in my mind concerning the opportunity of a North American / Team Liquid first place finish. It seems fine, do not get me wrong. But I am simply not convinced its plausible.

Along with the celebrity power of Doublelift, Olleh, and Pobelter can not go underestimated regardless of what group they happen to be playing . But contrary to the best opponents on the planet, a few items need to be totally excellent for the entirety tournament, certainly yes .

So let us have a first look at three matters Team Liquid have to keep a watch coming to MSI 2018 to optimize their odds of succeeding.

It seems dull, right? Doublelift should not get caught out, not make bad transactions, and not expire etc. , right?

That is right...

It will seem rudimentary, however league nowadays (particularly with equally matched professional teams) generally brings out for lengthy periods of time, and also together with the late match power of an ADC (supplemented with a gross Janna shield? Its crucial that an ADC remain even with his counter part in the first game to maintain equal ground and remain alive long enough in the late game to wash up on staff fights when all the CC and burst was expended.

Yes, aggression doesn't issue. Yes, appropriate itemization will issue. But these are just two things I can 100% trust Doublelift to execute well on. It is the last touch on the match which will make the gap once the group stage matches hang on a ribbon, along with the ADC powerhouse will have to keep his space perfectly to make sure his team's triumph.

This will be 20 percent Olleh's job, and 180 percent Doublelift's.

With this, we could proceed what I presume is the least significant of the 3 factors I will make.

Be aggressive!"

When there's 1 thing that the first divide of 2018 educated me, it is that mid laners simply don't have the transporting capability they used to.

Just Have a Look at SKT or TSM. Two groups that had unbelievable talent all around the board, convinced, but were famous for their mid laners. SKT boasts Faker, the very best on earth, although TSM has their'face-of-the-franchise' Bjergsen within their grips, and the two groups have done, by their own criteria, horrendously.

They had been only a few losses from becoming the"what went wrong?" Team we thought they'd be. However, the last two weeks of this NA spring divide showcased a tight end between the top 6 clubs, also TSM occurred to be about the happy ending of it.

Had things gone only a bit sideways, they would be SKT tiered in disappointment.

It only goes to show that these tough carry mid laners, the strikers of League, if you will, just don't have the effect they used to possess from the match. It is accurate for Faker. It is accurate for Bjerger king, and its own true for Pobelter.

So what exactly does that mean, exactly?

It usually means that Pobelter should catch himself a wonderful cc-ish laner, and stick out his neck for all those selections every opportunity he gets. No exceptions. No half-decisions.

No miss-clicking cleansing.

Or pleasure .

He wants to be the first to participate each and every fight. Just inquire as many of the competition as possible and create themlocate the proper response, not the other way round, since the teams Team Liquid will probably be up against WILL ask questions when given the chance.

Really. That is it. Keep tabs on him. Does not matter that it is, does not matter up the match. Just keep tabs on him.

It is too risky to combat himbecause these non-NA players are not crap (so I have heard), and it is not sufficient to simply presume that he did his fans and is currently drifting top lane (So that my bot is nice, amirite?) Nope. Not perfect. Not sufficient.

The eyesight game is going to be the way I judge Xmithie that MSI. I really don't believe there could be any increased sign of how well he did or didn't do this championship than just how he played the match of wards. Obviously throwing 100 wards and expiring each two is not great, however if I had been to examine the situation facing him I'd say that when he could keep a 1/1 KDA and conquer the enemy jungler in general information obtained, he has done more than enough to lead his group into team stage victories and outside.

But that is all in the long run. And only time will tell whether these three targets will be sufficient for your team to triumph this invitational (Or whether they will be able to achieve them )

Until that time comes, I will be awaiting a doubtfuln' worried look on my head.

[barbosaasouza]

This Weekend in Esports: What to Watch from May 11-13

Welcome to This Weekend in Esports, a brief overview of what to watch in the world of competitive gaming for the coming weekend.

For this weekend, League of Legends' top teams in the world compete and Hearthstone's top teams from across North America face off. But we begin with one of the biggest college esports tournaments in the world.

Heroes of the Dorm - The Heroic Four

Game: Heroes of the Storm When: May 12 Where to watch: Twitch.tv/blizzheroes

Heroes of the Storm was one of the first MOBA games to take the idea of a collegiate tournament and turn it into an event along the lines of the annual NCAA basketball tournament. It's Blizzard's answer to March Madness, emulating it to the point of inviting the top 64 college teams in the United States and Canada to compete for full scholarships.

This year's Heroic Four brings together two of the top four ranked college teams. Université Laval is the #2 overall seed and also the first Canadian team ever to make it this far. They'll be tough to beat, but they face #3 seed University of Kentucky.

Meanwhile, the #8 University at Buffalo will face off against the home team Cal Poly Pomona, based just 45 minutes away from the Blizzard Arena. While Cal Poly's squad has been a unit for several years, Buffalo carries some crazy momentum with them after having knocked off overall top seed UC Irvine.

Only one team will hoist this year's trophy and call themselves the Heroes of the Dorm. The action all unfolds on Saturday.

The 2018 Mid-Season Invitational - Group Stages

Game: League of Legends When: May 11-15 Where to watch: Twitch.tv/RiotGames

Brace yourselves, because the League of Legends Mid-Season Invitational may look slightly different than it has in recent years. Casual fans who tune in for the big events, grab a chair, because there are a few things you should know.

First off, those looking for SK Telecom T1 can stop looking. They aren't here. That's right. After a disappointing Spring Split, perennial powerhouse SKT got waxed by KT Rolster to leave them on the outside looking in for the first time ever. So then who is the team to watch out for? Well, the answer to that is Kingzone DragonX.

But wait, who's Kingzone DragonX? The answer to that, hypothetical inquisitive reader, is the former Longzhu Gaming. And with a rebranding comes great fire and fury, as Kingzone has rained down terror upon the LCK, racking up a 16-2 Spring Split record and strolling through the playoffs. With their roster of Kim "Khan" Dong-ha, Han "Peanut" Wang-ho, Gwak "Bdd" Bo-seong, Kim "PraY" Jong-in, and Kang "GorillA" Beom-hyeon, they walk into MSI as the heavy favorites.

By the time this feature goes live, Kingzone will have finished its opening group stage match with North America's own Team Liquid. TL is the sole NA squad at MSI this year and their performance against Kingzone should set the tone for the rest of their journey. If they can at least lose respectibly, they should do well. If they get their doors blown off, it could be a very long MSI for North America.

Hearthstone Summer Americas Playoffs

Game: Hearthstone When: May 12-13 Where to watch: Twitch.tv/PlayHearthstone

Hearthstone's top players are gathering across various corners of North America to compete for a chance to reach the HCT Summer Championship stage at the end of June. These are the first playoffs to be held since the release of The Witchwood and there are a few interesting things to think about.

The thought has often crossed those playing the Ranked ladder that the Hearthstone meta has grown somewhat stagnant. However, having seen the European Playoffs just last week, the meta is more varied than people might think. Beyond the Cubelock, Hearthstone players have also been packing in decks like the Spiteful Summoner Druid, Odd Paladin, Odd Rogue, Quest Rogue, Aggro Mage, and Control Priest, just to name a few. In fact, the Spiteful Druid has overtaken the Cubelock in terms of present decks. It's a fascinating dynamic.

While familiar faces like Frank "Fr0zen" Zhang, William "Amnesiac" Barton, and Muzahidul "Muzzy" Islam will be among those competing, the playoff stages can often be a coming out party for new players that the general public had never seen before. Remember that last year's Winter Playoffs prior to the Standard change was where viewers first got to meet Julian "DocPwn" Bachand and Jace "Dr. Jikininki" Garthright. Who knows what new face will come out of this weekend's top four and advance to the championship round?

So what will you be watching this weekend? Join the conversation and let us know in the comments.

This Weekend in Esports: What to Watch from May 11-13 published first on https://superworldrom.tumblr.com/

[aureliasaid]

Bratwurst for Thanksgiving

Stockholm, Copenhagen and Berlin

November 16-25, 2017

Thanksgiving lunch atop Germany’s Reichstag where a delicious restaurant provided a special view and meal

Thursday, November 16

Arrived via SAS airlines into Stockholm with an hour + drive in since it was rush hour. Def would look into the train ride in from the airport next time. Stayed at the Nobis Hotel right in the heart of town, but very close to the main harbor area. It is a boutique hotel from an old bank where the Stockholm Syndrome originated after a bank robbery. Very hip nowadays with a delightful included breakfast.  Crying baby, actually screaming baby, all night en route over on the plane called for a nap and luckily the room was ready. Then for an afternoon oversight of the city, we opted for a guide since we were there only 2 days. Guides are nice cause they eliminate having to think, get you into the front of the line and in places you can't always see on your own. We liked ours, Eva Bromberg Sharp, +46 7 60 45 71. Highly recommend!

We covered much area starting with City Hall, the home of the Nobel Peace Prize Ceremony coming up in 3 weeks on Dec 10, Nobel's birthday. This was cool especially since seeing the ceremony recently when UNC prof Azziz won for chemistry in 2015. Then on through various sections including everyone's fav, Gamla Stan or the Old Town which is very charming as expected. Hot chocolate and a pastry and then a walk through the Cathedral (small by Euro standards) which was fantastic with everything made of wood, Sweden's main resource. See the St George slaying the dragon statue! On to Sodermalm, (home of the ‘Girl with the Dragon Tattoo” author Steig Larson btw,) for a view of the city and then on past numerous sections of the town to end at the Vasa Museum, which is built around a famous ship from the 1600s that sank on its maiden voyage after 20 minutes of setting sail. In the 1950′s, researchers finally found it in the harbor and took 2 years to raise it in its total preserved state complete with some of the dead passengers fairly well preserved. A great day with dinner at Hillenberg, which was hip, yet cozy.

Tip: There are two train stations, so make sure you have the right one.

Tip: Weather was def cold, high around 32 degrees, so be prepared. This is an off time to come, but meant we had sights to ourselves. It is also odd as it is starting to get dark by 3:30, so do outside things in the morning. We had two sunny days which apparently is not the norm for this time of year. Interestingly, the sun never gets high in the sky at this time of year...just sorta stays just above the rooftops all day.

Friday, November 17

A boat tour is in order. Perfect guided tour around the harbor, out into the Baltic and back into the lake for an hour.  Great way to see a lot as well. Afterwards, we cruised past the Parliament bldg, popped into the huge Royal Palace, but parked it at the Nobel Museum, which was small, easy and very interesting. (Good cafe here.) Headed over to the Fotografiska, photography museum, which has a cool top floor huge cafe with harbor views.

Legs and intellect zapped, we blew through some shops (Sweden home to H&M, who knew?) as well as Zara and their big Saks type store NK. Back for a spell (aka nap) before heading to Broms for dinner. Famous for their Swedish meatballs as I had read, but our tour guide also recommended as they are family friends of hers. It was great...more bistro in feel, but buzzy and fun too. Nightcap back in the hip Nobis bar.

TIp: In summer, boat tours may go to the archipelago, but in winter, get a commuter ferry and go.

There are a million ways to see this city with all kinds of creative tours such as the rooftop tour where you are clipped in walking along rooftops! Hop-on Hop-off bus tour is a great way to see the city.  The city is also very walkable, though it is not a small city.

Saturday, November 18 Copenhagen

We debated flying or training, but decided on training which was an excellent decision. 5 hours on the fast train, which probably would have been the same total time by plane. It was easy, on time, and nice to see the countryside.

Arrived Cope at 3:30 and met Relia at our hotel, Hotel Skt Petri in the Latin Quarter. (Saint Petri fyi). We headed straight for Tivoli, the 2nd oldest amusement park in the world that had just re-opened after being closed for 3 weeks to become a Christmas Wonderland with Christmas Market pop-up shops, full blooming hyacinths, white lights adorning everything, lighted trees at every trash can, mulled wine and special Christmas lagers and meals all with the roller coasters and sky drops in full action amidst the decor. It was packed to the hydraulics with merry-makers of all ages. We headed back, popping into Relia's flat first very near the Skt. Petri in the city center, before going to dinner at Bistro Boheme, a hopping French bistro.

Sunday, November 19

Let's just take a moment to talk about bikes...and more bikes and then more bikes. Never in my life. Incredible bike lanes, riding in all weather, all times of the day and night, with few helmets.  But what is most important for non-bikers is to STAY ON THE SIDEWALKS or else you are toast, esp for us American non-bikeminded people. It is serious transportation and they come flying from around the turn just as you are about to jaywalk into their lane.  Sweden similar, but Denmark gives China a run for its money at least in volume of bikes.

Awoke to hideous rainy, cold and windy weather along with Will coming in from the States - spent the morning getting him situated...aka a nap. Met Relia later and went to the Rosenberg Castle very close by in a pretty park, good because its small and most important, the Crown Jewels are on display here....which is worth the trip alone.  

Will bailed for another round of napping and we three headed to the famed old area of Nyhaven, went through the Christmas market there, marveling at the sausages over the firepit, pork inches thick being smoked and salmon being smoked. We blew through the formal D'Ingleterra Hotel, (happy to have saved our $$ not staying there) before crossing the Kissing Bridge to Christianshaven en route to Torvehallerne (or Papiroen or the Copenhagen Street Food Market Hall or Paper Island for non-Danespeak,) which is a huge old warehouse that houses picnic tables and some 30+ food vendors of all sorts.  The pulled duck and duck fries were amazing as were the hot dogs. Sadly, this location is closing in December as capitalism has taken over the warehouse key spot...its too popular not to re-open somewhere else though.

Still licking our chops, we went back to the hotel by way of Strøget, the long pedestrian shopping street.  Ready to be out of the elements, we chilled til going to Mikkeller and Friends, the flagship location (big description for a small, non-descript basement bar of two rooms in the meat packing district) but is all that in the craft beer world called "the most imaginative beer bar in the world." We tried several which were very different, but quite tasty. Then on further into the Meatpacking district for dinner at Kodbyaens Fiskebar, a stark and casual seafood spot back in the depths of the converted warehouses. Delicious. The non-filtered organic cloudy Gruner Veltliner was a surprise, but good. But hey, Will finally awake, so the night is young and over to The Bastard Cafe, a bar dedicated to playing board games, which apparently is a Danish pastime (wouldn't you with dark and cold prevalent? We passed several stores dedicated only to board games in fact.). Most were, of course, Danish games or in Danish, so we opted for Scrabble, which was actually an English version because there is a Danish version with those funky letters.

Monday, November 20

YAY, a beautiful sunny day, albeit still chilly, but sun glorious sun. Relia is in class so we take to the streets first climbing the Round Tower for great views of the city, then on to the Frederick church and across the grounds of Ameliaborg Palace, home to the current Royal Family. (Passed a Segway Tour, which would have been a fun way to see the city, though maybe a bit chilly.) From there, a walk to see The Little Mermaid statue which is said to be underrated, but its still nice to see and a pretty walk along the water. Over the bridge and through Nyhaven to the Gasoline Grill we go...for the "life-changing best hamburger ever..." from a gasoline station.  And it was true....organic meat hand ground daily and fries with choice of salts (vinegar, truffle, etc.)  Day 2 of delightfully junk food content and we perused Nyhaven while awaiting our canal boat tour. Another must.  Of course afterwards, it must be time for a snack so to the famous La Glacé bakery for hot chocolate and their famous cakes and macaroons.  A few pit stops in some Zara's and H&Ms as well.

The heart app showed 6.5 miles of walking and I agree.  DInner was at Geist, a hip and highly touted dining EXPERIENCE with creative and complex, sophisticated small plates in Nyhaven. It did not disappoint, but hurt the wallet for sure, so take note.

Tuesday, November 21

First stop, the Church of Our Savior with the spiraling spire.  400 narrow steps lead to far-reaching views maybe not for the faint-hearted height phobiacs. From sin absolve to sin den, we leave the EU and go into Christiania, the free world of hippies and home of top notch weed. Free living with no laws and it looks it - disorganized, clutter, dirty environs home to the ultimate hippies and their families. Vendors line the streets and photography (and running since that indicates a possible raid) is strictly prohibited. Since it was a Tuesday around 10:30am, the town was still waking up and setting up, and thus sorta eerily quiet. So alas, on to more junk food decadence (inevitably a well traveled path from this locale for those partakers) as we returned to Paper Island to indulge Will and meet hometown friend Bethany Garrison.

There is much to do in Copenhagen and museums of EVERYthing seem to be a Scandinavian requirement.  There were several key spots that we missed, but we were done and thus headed out to the Kronborg Castle in Helsingborg, about a 40 minute train ride (thank goodness for local knowledge of our gals.) This is worth a day trip as the town is quaint and the Castle is everything you ever imagined a castle to be, moat and all.  On a full day, we would have also taken in the Louisiana Modern Art museum, but the girls had been and the day was nigh. Besides, we had a date with dinner that deserves its own paragraph.

Amass, the new restaurant by the chef from the famed Norma (supposedly the best restaurant in the world?) on the outskirts of Cope. Very stark inside, you only order the 6 small plate courses or 9 course and you get what you get which was: perch, salmon, potato bread, and more, all done with complex, minute and subtle layers, multiple cooking styles, steps and processes. E.g. the potato bread was made from potatoes that had been fermented for 2 weeks. This was an incredible experience right down to the chef calling out a command in the open kitchen and the other chefs answering "Yes Chef" in unison. Do not go if you aren't a foodie or are a picky eater. Also, it will put a large dent in your budget.

Wednesday, November 22

Travel day from Cope to Berlin. Since Air Berlin had gone bankrupt the month before, direct flights from Cope to Berlin were still getting reorganized and not existent. So we had to connect through Stockholm.  In retrospect, I think I might have taken the train which would have taken the same 7 hours it took door to door to fly. It was kinda fun though to land back in Stockholm with a dusting of snow.

Arrived at the Grand Hyatt Berlin to find ourselves smack in the middle of it all right near all the major sights and basically at Potsdamer Platz. We loved the location and the hotel. It was 4pm by the time we got organized, so we went to the Jewish museum which is much more about the history of Judaism and Jewish life than it is the Holocaust, though that aspect is of course present. Dinner that night was at Katz Orange, a hip, yet shabby chic sort of place with a modern German/European fare.

Thursday, November 23

We met our guide Lars Jokubeit (who made the visit for us - he was excellent 49 179 524 7810 larsjokubeit@web.de) at 9:15am and did a walking tour of Nazi Berlin and the Cold War Berlin for 4 hours. He reminded us that we were incredibly lucky to have sunshine and temps in the 50s.  It was LUCKY, but still chilly...missed my scarf! We learned and covered so much that I can only list the things to do and see: Sony Pavilion, Potsdamer Platz, Holocaust Memorial, Checkpoint Charlie (study up before you go otherwise it is just a major tourist trap), current Finance Building which was the Chancellory for Hitler, the actual Wall remnant, Topography of Terror, Tiergarten, Russian Gov building with mural, Brandenburg Gate, current government buildings and mall, esp the Reichstag German Parliament bldg and the glass cupola, with a delightful (Thanksgiving) late lunch at the restaurant on top. Wow. SO MUCH TO SEE AND DO.

Lars recommended to get the real understanding and flavor of Berlin, a huge melting pot since the wall came down, was to visit the neighborhoods. He suggested a particular neighborhood around Oranienstraße to see all the immigrants there, the graffiti, of which they embrace and consider part of the cultural heritage and environment, followed by the Thursday night food hall of street food and live music at any number of places afterwards. And that is exactly what we did, starting at the new and hip Orania Hotel, walking Oranienstraße and then going to Markthalle Neun for a great follow up to Thanksgiving with foods from all over the world.  Very much like Paper Island and very fun. Bailed on the music scene though opting for a drink at the Orania Hotel.

Friday, November 24

While still not freezing, the day was very windy, dark and overcast with rain coming in the afternoon which set the tone for the trip with Lars to Sachsenhousen concentration camp 40 mins outside of Berlin. Not an intentional “death camp,” but a labor camp more for the unwanted non-Volks, political prisoners, etc. While most of the original structures do not remain, there is enough and excellent displays for the disgusting and heinous place that it was.

Back in Berlin, we decided to go to the Old Town area and take in a museum after lunch with Lars. Have lunch at das Meisterstück which is tucked away in otherwise fancy restaurants or museum cafes. So fun to have a casual, modern grill restaurant that is dedicated to German sausages cooked right there. Not expensive and fun with lots of craft beers. Will continued his search for the best currywurst. This might have been it.

The old town is more of the huge ornate Baroque type buildings for Gov offices, arts and the famed Museum Island. The Nuese Museum is supposedly the choice museum, but we opted for the German History museum, which is lots of wars and Hapsburgs and such. Do a fly through or you will never emerge. This long strata Unter den Linden leads from the museums at Schloßplatz to Brandenburg gate and is fun to walk, though the parallel street of Fredeickstrasse is also fun to walk reminding me of 5th or Madison Aves. And this is where our dinner was at Crackers, a very euro, hip place with great food. A DJ comes every weekend night, which must be a Euro/German thing and she stood at her pulpit and played, according to our 20 somethings, more 80s dance music as opposed to EDM of nowadays.  Ok.

Saturday, November 25

And so it goes.  Check.  A wonderful Thanksgiving indeed.