League of Legends Worlds Analysis, Quarterfinals - OMG vs. NWS Game #3

Najin White Shield vs. OMG Game #3

2v1 Lanes, OMG Top

Bans

Irelia Zilean

Lucian Alistar

Jayce Thresh

Picks

1. Lee Sin 2. Ryze

3. Kog'maw 2. Corki

3. Maokai 4. Khazix

5. Orianna 4. Janna

5. Nami 6. Zed

Lane Match-ups – Najin White Shield

Top -

Ryze vs. Maokai will be a fairly farm centric lane. Maokai will sustain through Ryze's harassment while being unable to apply solo kill pressure against him. Both champions will be picking up Rod of Ages and will begin to scale up slowly. Gank pressure will be stronger for Maokai, with Lee Sin they will be able to put kill pressure onto Ryze, alternately, Maokai should only be under threat of a gank if he is pushes up to Ryze's tower.

Mid -

I tend to like this match-up as Orianna, though it can be a risky one. Orianna has a lot more options in this match-up, able to farm safely, light bullying, super aggressive, or heavy tower pushing. The ball is really in Orianna's court in this match-up. Skilled enough, she will be able to weave in Auto Attacks and ball movements in between Zed's Q harass. Orianna should never stray too far from her ball though, if Zed tries to go all in with his shadow, then she needs to be able to bring it back quickly to fight back. As long as Orianna can dodge harassment, and is ready for Zed's all-in, then she should come out on top in this match-up. At 6 it becomes a little bit more risky, as Zed gains more kill/movement potential, but a well played Orianna can still beat him. If Orianna ever gets behind though, Zed will be able to control her very well.

Bot -

Kog'maw/Nami are going to be weaker than Corki/Janna from level 1, but around level 4/5 things will really start to turn around. Avoiding the 2v2 for the first few levels might be ideal. Because of weak burst/trade ability early on, Kog'maw/Nami should look to play defensively and farm, trying not to fall behind in HP/Mana. If they can make it to the level 4/5 mark, and pick up their first item, then NWS's bot lane should be able to start fighting back. Kog'maw range will be long enough to make great use of Nami's slow buff, and her heal should be able to sustain through the Q damage of Corki. At 6 the match gets pretty even, with both sides having poke and all-in potential. Fights at this point will most likely go to the lane that is already ahead or who is more skilled.

Jungle -

Lee Sin should look for a gank onto Ryze if possible. Getting Maokai ahead of Ryze will be extremely useful for the mid-game, and slowing down Ryze is always useful. If Ryze is pushed, this will also be his most successful opportunity. Outside of the top lane, Lee Sin should farm to get his play making level 6 while watching to protect mid from ganks. Bot lane should be sufficiently safe, being pushed to tower and there may be an opportunity for Lee Sin to gank Janna with Nami CC follow-up.

Lane Match-ups – OMG

Top -

Ryze should be able to easily farm and scale up in this lane, while applying some pressure to Maokai. It is unlikely that he will be able to apply enough pressure early on to matter though, and the same goes for Maokai. This lane will be an even farm fest unless the jungler's intervene. Ryze must be wary of the gank from SSW, while knowing that Maokai must be far down the lane for Ryze and Khazix to secure a kill onto him.

Mid -

Zed has a skill match-up against Orianna in the mid-lane, though I'd give the match-up a slight edge to Orianna. Zed is going to have to dodge Orianna's ball movements while weaving in his own harassment. He must also be aware of the auto attacks, as Orianna's does end up adding up. Before 6, focus should be on keeping up in farm, and potentially going for a trade/all-in if Zed can get Orianna to send her ball far from her. Once 6 is reached, Zed has more potential for the all-in. After using his ultimate, it may be wise for him to toss his shadow behind Orianna, dashing back to his R shadow when she tries to ultimate, and then back to the W shadow after, dodging out on a good amount of damage and CC. If Zed can get ahead, he should take complete control of the lane, however if he falls behind, there will be little he can do against Orianna.

Bot -

Corki/Janna have a strong lane against Kog'maw/Nami early on, and though that will shift as levels and items come into play, they will always be on even footing in the laning phase. From level 1, Corki should be looking to harass Kog'maw using Janna's shield. Getting enough damage early on will be essential to keep control of the lane. As the levels progress, Corki/Janna should be safe, if early on they have kept Kog'maw around half to 3/4 HP, doing enough harassment to keep him from being topped off by Janna. Once the first back comes into play, and level 6 is reached, both sides will have similar fight power, with similar poke/disengage, slight all-in potential on OMG's side, while sustain/CC is on NWS's side. OMG can decide to either go extremely aggressive, looking for all-in's whenever possible, or just cede to a farm lane from level 6 until one of the other lanes come to influence this lane.

Jungle -

Khazix should mostly look to mirror Lee Sin around the map, providing counter-ganks and protection for his lanes. Most likely, look to top for Lee Sin to try to gank a pushed Ryze. If possible, gank middle and snowball Zed. While difficult, if OMG is able to pull it off, Zed will be able to take over the lane.

Team Composition/Strategy – Najin White Shield

*Win Condition – 5v5 team-fight and come out on top. Very strong 5v5 team with engage and protection options. Needs to keep Zed/Ryze from being able to split-push.

NWS have a very strong, very coordinated team composition that excels in the team-fight situation. They have the option of play 3 similar strategies, death-ball, protect the ADC, and engagement with Orianna delivery system. There is plenty of potential both mid-game with their team composition power, and late game with the strong scaling of Kog'maw/Orianna/Maokai. As an added bonus, picks can be made with Lee Sin, and Kog'maw can provide some decent poke. NWS need to make sure that they are not drawn into small skirmishes and do not allow Ryze or Zed to get ahead enough to split-push with success. Focus on getting to the 10-15 minute mark, then group up to take objectives

Team Composition/Strategy – OMG

*Win Condition – Get Ryze and Zed going so that OMG can run a 1-3-1 split-push.

OMG's team is very much about the split-push. Ryze and Zed, after they get going, can easily push both side lanes and force NWS to have to pull their strong 5v5 team-fight composition apart. Early skirmishes, preferably as Ryze/Khazix/Zed trio can net some early kills and the gold that OMG needs, as could a fast push by the duo lane. Corki/Janna/Khazix should be able to wave clear at turret defense very effectively, as well as run/disengage if things go bad. OMG have no shown a big propensity for sticking to the split-push, but we shall see how it goes.

Game Notes -

OMG pull out the lane swap, but it is not expected by NWS and Maokai stays top. Very standard play by OMG in this situation has them doing a 4 on 1 dive, getting First Blood, and burning Maokai's TP as he tries to escape.

OMG move around as 3, trying to check through NWS's jungle and get Ryze to lane safely, however a split ends up with Ryze in a bad spot, getting caught by Kog'maw/Nami and dieing.

OMG attempt a dive top, but Janna starts it off too early, and it is no longer viable.

A lot of movement around the map, essentially roaming support and junglers. Light pressure is being put across the map by both teams, but no solid attempts at ganks or invades at the moment.

First turret goes to OMG in the top lane, but NWS take dragon in response.

A gank by Khazix is just enough for Zed to get a kill on Orianna. That tiny bit of help is what Zed needs to solidify kills against the protective champs that tend to shut him down.

Another gank, this time by Ryze, ends up with another kill onto Orianna, but Ryze dieing. Both would have lived if not for Lee Sin kicking Ryze into Orianna.

Lee Sin is in OMG's jungle for no real reason, and gets caught out by TP Ryze. NWS do take the bot turret though.

Gold is running even, but Ryze is a bit strong. NWS should still look to prepare and fight for the next Dragon while NWS should split-push 1-3-1 to hold NWS back from being able to group up and take vision control.

NWS do group up for the dragon, and OMG try to fight/poke. NWS take the dragon without anything else really happening.

OMG catch out Maokai, but NWS collapse. OMG do get the kill, and escape, but lose the top turret. Maokai went in to early, should have kept backing up a bit longer for Kog'maw and Nami to get closer. Also Orianna used her ultimate too early and misses Zed completely.

OMG's recall timing and lane movements are out of sync and they are not properly starting their 1-3-1 split-push.

Zed is able to 1v1 Maokai up top, however he dies to the turret. Maokai could have flashed earlier to save his life, and Zed could have let Maokai go and then taken the turret.

Lee Sin is able to make a good pick against Janna in the 3 man squad of OMG and NWS nab a kill. However it does cost them 2 of their ultimates for the upcoming dragon.

OMG do not recognize this or react fast enough to snipe dragon out. When NWS head to dragon, Maokai TP's way behind OMG and catches onto Janna, forcing out her ultimate, but then has to retreat. Khazix leaps in and gets deleted. Trade goes Nami for Khazix, but then Orianna runs the wrong way to safety and gets caught, making it 2v1, and OMG are able to take both mid turret and dragon. A bit too deep on the Maokai TP.

OMG have a decent lead now and can split-push against NWS and look for the small picks in rotations.

A great bubble gets NWS a kill on Ryze when OMG try to 5v5 push the mid T2 turret.

Zed catches Kog'maw up top and OMG draw NWS into a 4v4 fight without their ADC and OMG are able to turn it into a 4 for 1.

OMG need to keep up the split-push and NWS need to get that 5v5 fight. Dragon is coming up, and OMG do group up for it, but NWS are a little scared to go in against OMG and that scary Ryze. NWS are able to get the smite steal and just back out.

OMG, worried about Baron, are not split-pushing, they really should be. Let Khazix/Corki poke NWS if they try Baron and split-push bottom with Ryze, and top with Zed. Force NWS to make a decision rather. than letting them dictate the pace.

NWS start Baron, draw OMG to the fight and kill Ryze without using Orianna or Nami ultimate. Huge win for NWS.

Zed wastes his ultimate trying to catch Nami who is easily able to toss out a bubble and get help. So much is down for OMG that NWS are going to force Baron with their strong 5v5 team. Ryze tries to TP in but a Nami bubble forces Ryze to cancel or get stunned and killed by all 5 of NWS.

NWS take too much damage from the poke and do not back off. OMG are able to lock them in with Janna/Ryze and OMG get the ACE for 1 and Baron, and then take the mid inhibitor of NWS and the dragon. Nail in the coffin for NWS, massive gold gain for OMG.

OMG no longer need to split, they can just force down a lane of NWS. Though they should still run that 1-3-1 and take multiple lanes. Either way, OMG take out the bottom inhibitor for NWS and take the game.

End Game Notes -

OMG show the proper way to play Zed against protective mid laners, with help.

Gogoing is a monster on Ryze.

NWS do not respect the 2v1 lane swap.

This was a solid game by both sides, but with a major mistake at baron by NWS.

What Najin White Shield should have done -

NWS really got behind early, which allowed OMG to be able to keep up in the 5v5 granted that they make a few outplays, and they did. If NWS would not have given up a few kills early on, they would have had an easier time making plays around dragon and generating a lead.

Outside of that, the game went even and fairly well, both sides getting caught out. NWS could possibly have pushed hard and forced turrets down while ignore the split-push, but it would be hard against Corki.

The real ending of this game, was the Baron fight. NWS had no need to force that, and they pay for it. NWS needed to be patient, as they were scaling better, and being impatient causes them to get obliterated and there be a massive gold swing in OMG's favor.

In pick/ban, hindsight is 20/20 but they should have banned Ryze, not Lucian.

League of Legends Worlds Analysis, Quarterfinals - OMG vs. NWS Game #2

OMG vs. Najin White Shield Game #2

2v1 Lanes, NWS Top

Bans

Alistar Zilean

Lulu Irelia

Thresh Lee Sin

Picks

1. Ryze 2. Zed

3. Janna 2. Khazix

3. Lucian 4. Braum

5. Rengar 4. Corki

5. Jayce 6. Nidalee

Lane Match-ups – OMG

Top -

Ryze has the advantage in this lane, throughout all stages of the game when on even footing. Early on Ryze can trade easily with his spells, dealing more damage than Nidalee can heal for. As long as Ryze can dodge spears, particularly by sitting inside of the creep waves, he will come out on top in any trade or harass situation. As the lane progresses, the advantage he has will only grow until Nidalee is no longer able to challenge him. The only time that Ryze would be vulnerable to Nidalee, is if he gets hit by a spear, so dodging these should take priority over anything else. Just watch out for Elise gank, as the stun could lead into a Nidalee spear.

Mid -

Jayce is at the advantage in this lane. He has range and poke over Zed, while still be really strong in the all-in's or the damage trades. Jayce should look to farm and keep the lane pushed, try to deny Zed farm by getting him low and forcing him to back. Build up your tear and damage and move into the mid game siege with your team. It would be advised to bring exhaust, as this will be a huge deterrent when Zed reaches level 6 and should win the fights in this situation. When exhaust is down, a good knock-back should keep Zed from being able to deal enough damage to get the kill.

Bot -

Lucian/Janna is pretty standard, shield Lucian and have him use his bullying ability to push Corki out of lane/keep him low. Lucian will have to be careful though, as Corki can bully back, especially if Braum is able to get his passive off. A lot of this lane will come down to, how well Lucian can manage his harassment ability, against not getting stunned by Braum's passive. Can expect either the lane to go farm heavy, or end up with a lot of little trades, with Lucian/Janna coming out on top when dodging the skillshots of OMG. At 6, the all-in potential grows for NWS, especially if Lucian can dive in for his burst followed by his ultimate to keep Corki back. Lucian should save his dash for dodging, Braum's Q or ultimate.

Jungle -

Rengar should look to farm until 6. There is not much in terms of gank opportunities before hand, except for maybe on Nidalee in the top lane. If she is pushed against Ryze, then there will definitely be an opportunity. At 6, any lane will offer great gank potential, with bottom lane being the weakest, but also having a huge amount of damage to offer for him.

Lane Match-ups – Najin White Shield

Top -

Nidalee is going to have a rough time against Ryze. While Nidalee can out-sustain Ryze early on, its going to take quite awhile to overcome the damage that Ryze is able to put out. When it comes to full trades or all-in's, Ryze will come out on top, unless Nidalee can land a spear to mark him with Hunt. It's gong to be a tough match for Nidalee, and only get tougher as Ryze scales into the mid/late-game. All in all, a losing lane for Nidalee, but one she will be able to sit in and farm, in relative safety.

Mid -

A bit of a volatile match for Zed. He is fighting against a ranged champion who can poke and who is also very strong in trades and all-in fights. It will be hard for Zed to harass Jayce, but should be able to keep up in farm. The lane will change once Zed gets his ultimate, as he will now have kill pressure, however Jayce's ability to fight back is really strong still, especially if he nabs Exhaust as a summoner. Zed will need good shadow play to keep on Jayce against his knock-back. This lane will require more work from Zed.

Bot -

Corki/Braum are fairly even against Lucian/Janna, however their damage is harder to hit. Hitting Corki/Braum Q's are going to of utmost importance in this lane, as all of NWS's damage is going to be guaranteed. If OMG are able to hit Lucian with Braum's passive, and are able to proc it, then that will offer a huge swing in the lane, as the damage will be at least if not more than half of Lucian's HP. Throughout the laning phase, it is going to be tense, but if OMG can keep Janna shielding defensively, then OMG can come out on top in this lane. At 6, Corki should use his poke to soften up NWS's duo lane, before going all-in with Braum's CC and protection.

Jungle -

Khazix should be looking to farm mainly, and then mirror Rengar at level 6. Getting wards into Rengar's jungle around the 6:30 mark will be amazing for finding out where he is headed. Before then, the best opportunity is going to be top, if Ryze is pushed, or on bottom lane against Janna. Khazix will really need to keep good knowledge of Rengar, if he wants to be able to provide the lane presence that Rengar can at 6.

Team Composition/Strategy – OMG

*Win Condition – Brawl and 5v5 fight. Poke with Jayce until an opportunity to engage or fight shows up.

OMG have a strong fight comp, that also has the option to poke with Jayce. The itself is strong at particularly anything, other than brawling in small skirmishes and 5v5 fights. This team composition fits OMG's chaotic fight and deep dive style once a fight starts. Outside of some strong mid-game play and the late game scaling of Ryze, they have that strong poke when teams are tentative to engage.

Team Composition/Strategy – Najin White Shield

*Win Condition – Get more poke than OMG and prevent them from being able to all-in until there is an HP advantage. Turret siege as soon as the lanes hit 6 and when Jayce is stacking his tear.

I don't like the NWS team this match. It was looking decent until the Nidalee pick. I feel that Ryze can stay even or beat her in lane, and will only get stronger in the split-push as the match goes on. Nidalee also does not offer a solid response to Jayce. NWS could have picked up Maokai and had a strong mid-game fight team with 4 members diving in and Corki allowed to blast OMG from range. As NWS's team stands, they have to poke, and be able to out-poke Jayce, who is much easier to land hits with than Nidalee. NWS do have 2 members who can poke though, where as OMG only have Jayce. NWS's team lacks good disengage though, Braum only able to do so much, and normally only on 1-2 targets. NWS are going to have a hard time poking down OMG when they have weak disengage and OMG have Ryze to TP from behind and Rengar to stealth engage. I feel that NWS should fast push in 2v1 lane swap, and move into their siege/poke team almost immediately upon hitting level 6, with Zed potentially swapping to split-push then. Corki/Nidalee should be able to keep Jayce away from creeps at the low levels and he will not have the damage to wave clear properly yet.

Game Notes -

An early ward in the river lets NWS know about early dragons, and when OMG enter/leave NWS blue side jungle.

OMG are letting Nidalee get some lane experience while Ryze is taking experience from the jungle.

OMG is the one to fast push the bottom lane and then switch to 2v2 in the top lane. OMG get the advantage from the swap, getting that NWS turret for free.

Zed loses a lot of time trying to find a dive onto Ryze, but diving Ryze with Zed/Nidalee is a bad prospect. Rune prison to stop Zed, flash to dodge Nidalee spear to prevent Hunt. Zed is falling far behind Jayce.

NWS start Dragon for who knows what reason. They are behind, Ryze has a closer path than Nidalee as does Jayce over Zed, OMG have the stronger team-fight, and NWS decide to take dragon damage. There's 0 reason for them to even be trying this. OMG are able to get First Blood +1 kill, and dragon, where as NWS just get 1 kill.

OMG return top as their duo to take the top turret while the other 3 members of OMG push middle.

The more I watch Zed in the World Championship, the less I like him in coordinated team play. More and more he seems super weak compared to most every other mid lane we see.

Case and point, he gets completely shut down by Janna in a 2v2 and OMG collapse to go 2 kills for 1 and get dragon after.

NWS do finally come together to siege mid turret. It's about 5-8 minutes later than I would have liked.

NWS move a bit to far forward and take some good Ryze damage. They need to focus on hitting the turret during the waves. OMG are able to defend middle, only having the tower take half damage. The siege is just too late and with OMG having a 4k gold lead.

Zed tries to 1v1 Ryze and does not even come close. OMG send 2 bottom to help Ryze, was not needed. NWS dive the mid turret, and get a 2 for 1, just barely, but do not get the turret, though Nidalee is able to get the turret up top.

Rengar show's his power against a poke comp, especially one that has weak disengage. Rengar starts a fight against NWS, catching Khazix, getting 2 more kills, and then taking dragon.

NWS really don't have to much they can do at the moment. Behind and can't poke, behind and can't split, behind and can't team-fight. Playing the best poke their team composition can, a 1-4 siege, leaves them super vulnerable to Rengar and Ryze engage.

NWS try to make the best of a bad situation, sacrificing Zed for Jayce, and then pushing mid with their poke, they do get the turret, but OMG are able to engage and get 2 kills.

Game will most likely be pretty boring from this point on. OMG will siege turrets and poke with Jayce till they whittle down a turret. NWS can get all the poke they want, but they can't engage and can't fight in 5v5. Even if NWS come out on top in the poke war, they will have lost turret damage, and HP, and will be unable to chase OMG when they decide to back off. This happens exactly at NWS T2 bot turret.

As dragon respawns, both teams start to move towards it. Rengar tries to engage but Khazix W is able to slow and stop the engage. A poke fight occurs at dragon while Rengar takes it. Turns into a smite fight, and OMG win, was a desperate, but needed chance for NWS to take. OMG chase NWS after, not letting them escape, and with no real disengage, NWS are eventually caught and forced to flee for days. Eventually OMG catch Zed and Nidalee, but Zed is able to trade kill, fight goes 2v1. Could have gone way worse for NWS.

I wish there was more to say here, but NWS just can't do anything. I mean, the best they could try to do is a 2 man split-push in a side lane while NWS turret defend with 3. That would probably be their best option.

OMG are able to find a fight, and take the mid inhibitor.

OMG do Baron, but Khazix is able to be a hero and steal the Baron. Still does not change the landscape of the game though. OMG can still play how they have been and just realize they need to be slightly safer. They still have the inhibitor down to apply pressure while they take side lanes.

^Repeats itself again. OMG should be being a bit safer with these Barons. 2 more times after this and NWS may be able to fight.

OMG muscle down the top and mid inhibitor or NWS, even though NWS have baron.

Too be honest, there isn't much of a reason to watch anymore, unless you want to see The Hunt quest get completed.

End Game Notes -

I don't have much to say here. NWS's composition was just bad against OMG's and they didn't take the risk they had to early to try to make it work.

Also that dragon attempt, just awful.

OMG do need to do a better job at not letting Baron go 50/50. If the match had been closer or the team compositions different, it could have really hurt OMG.

What Najin White Shield should have done -

Gone with an engagement/fight comp by picking Maokai instead of Nidalee and creating this sort of, 4 man wall that Corki could fire from behind. NWS could have taken the fight to OMG, rather than fighting this poke war with bad disengage, and a much weaker team-fight. The Nidalee pick just made me sad x.x

In the game, NWS needed to do something to take over the game super early. NWS let OMG be the ones to fast push, take the first turret, and open up the map. NWS needed to respond with their own fast push, getting some gold flow across the team, taking out a turret to open up the map and minion control, and then push for the siege, IMMEDIATELY when Corki hits 6, before Jayce can get strong poke. NWS had to work with the base damages that Nidalee/Corki could provide while Jayce and Ryze are building up their Tears.

Going forward, I want to see NWS drop the Zed, its not working at all, and have Save get on a champion that will really help the team, not just what he wants. NWS need to pick a strong early-mid game composition and get a lead again like the first game. They play great when ahead, but really bad when behind.

League of Legends Worlds Analysis, Quarterfinals - OMG vs. NWS Game #1

Najin White Shield vs. OMG Game #1

Reverse Lanes

Bans

Maokai Zilean

Jayce Thresh

Ryze Alistar

Picks

1. Zed 2. Janna

3. Khazix 2. Lee Sin

3. Corki 4. Ahri

5. Kassadin 4. Lucian

5. Morgana 6. Irelia

Lane Match-ups – Najin White Shield

Top -

Kassadin is going to be in a lot of trouble in this lane. There really isn't much he can do, Irelia will out-trade and out-sustain Kassadin, as well as hitting a much stronger spike at level 6 and at first item. Not too much else to say. The best Kassadin can do is to focus on farming and leave Irelia alone. Get your CS, get to level 6, and then try to make plays elsewhere on the map. It almost might be worthwhile to go super late-game with tear and Rod of Ages, knowing you must be defensive for a good 25-30 minutes against Irelia. Letting go of the turret, or getting theirs quickly would be a good way to let Kassadin roam post 6 without a mass amount of CS being lost.

Mid -

A very even match-up in mid lane. The winner will be determined by skill. Zed has a lot of mobility with his shadows to dodge out on Ahri's skills and both have good farming and poke abilities. Zed should play out the lane, getting CS, poking with his Q, and absolutely dodging out on Ahri's charm. Getting charmed will turn the match-up. Things will get explosive once level 6 is reached as the kill potential for both champions is very high. Zed must remember that where he shows up after his ultimate is completely predictable and expect a Charm to be en-route. However, if Ahri's Charm is ever down, Zed has the opportunity to go completely all in without fear of much repercussion. Should be safe against ganks, as long as he keeps his shadow up when SSB does not know where Lee Sin is.

Bot -

Corki/Morgana are going to have a pretty even time against Lucian/Janna. A lot of this lane will be dependent on Morgana landing her bindings, keeping Lucian or Janna in place for Corki bombs while providing damage. If Morgana misses her bindings, Lucian will have free reign to go in against Corki and out-trade him with Janna's shield. As a couple levels come into play, it will be harder to catch Lucian, due to his dash, but will be necessary to keep the lane going even. At level 6, NWS will gain poke, as well as all-in, provided they don't let Lucian dive in to his bullying right away and push one of them out. Morgana will have to think about when to shield herself at level 6, to prevent Janna from knocking her away when Morgana uses her ultimate.

Jungle -

Khazix does not have to many options on where to gank in this match-up, the only CC to help him out is Morgana, and if she can land it on Lucian or Janna when he is near, should be very successful. Other than that, Khazix is going to need to farm primarily farm, and be ready to counter-gank Lee Sin. Irelia might offer a possibility for a gank, if she is pushed up, however with her stun, and with only slows from Lee Sin/Kassadin, it is going to be difficult. It may however, be necessary for Kassadin to survive.

Lane Match-ups – OMG

Top -

Straight up in Irelia's favor. She should have this lane match-up easily, if no outside help comes for Kassadin. With sustain, strength in trade, and all-in potential in her favor, she really doesn't have much, if anything, to fear from Kassadin. At every opportunity, she should be looking to dash in to a ranged creep, and then start trading damage with Kassadin, burning through his mana and making it harder for him to CS. It won't be until way after the laning phase that Kassadin will even pose a threat to her, and for a very long time Irelia can easily split-push and force Kassadin to fight in this weak lane.

Mid -

A very even, skill based match-up. Both Ahri and Zed have even amounts of farm, harass, and all-in potential. The deciding factor will really be how well Ahri can land Charms and how well they both play with their ultimates. Getting help from Lee Sin can really turn this match-up, but getting in on Zed will be hard.

Bot -

An even match-up, Lucian/Janna can turn it in their favor early and keep it that way if they play it right though. Janna shield + Lucian Q will be very strong at level 1, and should win them the lane, as long as they can dodge Morgana's binding. As the lane progresses, OMG's lane should continue to bully Corki, with Lucian saving his dash to dodge Morgana's binding and effectively winning the lane by dodge out on that damage. At 6, poke will be going over to Corki, as well as some strong all-in potential with Morgana's ultimate. Lucian however, come dive Corki instantly, putting down his burst damage and moving into the culling to get him to half hp or lower. This will prevent a lot of NWS's ability to fight back if he can pull it off successfully.

Jungle -

Lee Sin doesn't really have any solid options for a gank in this match-up, however, he doesn't really need them. All his lanes are strong and can stand on their own. Any opportunity he gets to gank will just be a bonus. Mostly he should be sticking to farming and being ready to protect his lanes from Khazix ganks.

Team Composition/Strategy – Najin White Shield

*Win Condition – Heavy mobility and assassin focus. Skirmish early and avoid big fights. Split-push in the late-game 1-1-3.

NWS are playing a team that does not really work together, but is one of their signature top/mid assassin combos. For most of the game, Corki/Morgana/Khazix are going to be on their own (would have preferred to see Nami for this) and relying on the poke/clear power of Corki and Khazix to delay OMG. Meanwhile, Kassadin and Zed will be split-pushing, trying to draw OMG's members away and into fights and then winning through lead or skill. The big problem though, is that Kassadin and Zed do not really spike early, where as Irelia will, and Ahri has the ability to get ahead of Zed. If defenses come in to either of OMG's solo lanes, then NWS has the option to swap top/mid and fight. The real down fall is how long this is going to take for NWS to build up to. They will have to survive and look for objective trades, rather than looking to fight 5v5. Jungle skirmishes with Kassadin/Zed collapse towards Khazix should be a plan that NWS look into.

Team Composition/Strategy – OMG

*Win Condition – Get an early lead and win the mid-game. Snowball mid-game 5v5 wins and neutral control into a gold lead and the win.

It's really up to OMG to win this game and not lose it. They have a much bigger power spike in the mid-game and they need to group up and take objectives during this time. Force dragons, force 4/5 man buff invades. Irelia, Janna, Lee Sin are all stronger than their opponents early on and OMG can abuse this. Keep Irelia fighting a 1v1 as she can kill either Kassadin or Zed, and if she gets rolling will be unstoppable for a large portion of the game. Ahri should focus on farm, and going even/ahead of Zed with CS, allowing her to provide greater value to her team in the mid-game with equal power and much better catch/pick. If OMG can get even a small lead, they will be able to bully NWS around the map.

Game Notes -

NWS and OMG walk into each other 4v4, but Janna Tornado is too strong for NWS and OMG come out with First Blood.

Lee Sin tries to invade on Khazix, however he loses the smite fight and gets caught out. Zed gets the kill onto Lee Sin and gets red buff from it.

The first blood allows Lucian to buy a very early pick-ax. OMG then initiate a lane swap, sending the duo bot lane and Irelia top. NWS do eventually follow.

NWS try to gank bottom, but Morgana gets antsy and completely whiffs her binding.

Game is going pretty slow at the moment. Expecting things to pick up the once the next backs happen.

OMG's duo heads back, Lucian gets a Brutalizer. Huge harrass potential now, and a strong spike for Lucian. Will delay his Infinity Edge, but the early strenght is going to be better right now.

Seeing Zed back, OMG should have ran for dragon immediately. It would have been a 5v4 with all of OMG stronger than their lane opponents. Instead, when Zed gets back, NWS take the dragon for free after Ahri and Lee Sin burn their ultimates trying to kill Khazix.

OMG get a great catch on Khazix in the jungle as OMG heads to take the blue of NWS. Khazix goes down to Irelia, and NWS take the blue buff.

Irelia has picked up her Trinity Force now, expect her to start making plays.

Very strong poke coming out of NWS in the bot lane now that Corki has his Trinity Force.

Finally, dragon is back up and something will happen this game, lets hope. OMG should have the strenght to fight, but they choose not to. I'm not sure why OMG is not fighting, especially with Lucian/Irelia.

NWS get the dragon, and then a pick with Morgana in the middle, killing Ahri and NWS push down the middle and bottom turret.

OMG get a pick mid, killing Zed, while Ahri 1v1's Kassadin in the bot lane and then takes the bot turret.

Ahri bought a DFG instead of finishing Zhonya's. Very good choice since Kassadin/Zed can switch around who fights who.

NWS rotate top and take the turret. OMG try to collapse as 5, however NWS are able to disengage. OMG miss out on the chance to take the mid turret.

I'm a bit disappointed at how little OMG has done this match. NWS are starting to scale that Kassadin up, though Ahri now has a response for Zed.

Very slick Lee Sin play gets OMG the pick on Khazix and the kill. OMG are able to take the low mid turret. But Kassadin is able to get a return kill as OMG retreat. Irelia gets caught heading towards dragon, but with no vision, she dies and NWS get dragon, again.

OMG are getting hit by way too many bindings and are letting NWS dictate the game.

NWS press mid and bottom lane, and take T2 of OMG. At this point in the game, the power has really started to shift and OMG are going to need some picks to get back into the match, instead, OMG rotate around and make a cheeky play on Baron, taking it for free before NWS even have a clue.

OMG push middle, with Zed pushing the bot lane. Zed should continue to push. Corki/Khazix have decent wave clear. Zed however backs.

OMG start a fight with a Lee Sin kick onto Kassadin. Janna just barely misses placing her Monsoon and Kassadin gets blown into the turret. Zed could have been pushing at OMG's inhibitor turret if he had kept up his split-push.

OMG get a good positional advantage and are able to get some damage onto the mid turret. Kassadin tries to harass from the back, throwing the game for NWS. Playing around with Lee Sin gets you flash kicked into OMG's team. OMG kill Kassadin and Zed, take the mid T2 turret, and dive the inhibitor turret, killing Morgana and take the inhibitor turret. Now OMG can back out and go take dragon.

OMG shop and return to mid to brute force down the open inhibitor. They are unable to get it, however, and retreat. When they do NWS head to Baron. Irelia has to sacrifice her life to stop NWS from taking Baron.

Things slow slightly, as the teams are evenly matched at the moment. NWS can use their mobility to wait for a pick or map movement chance. OMG however, need to really get a good Charm or Lee Sin kick. Anyone's game at the moment, however the next team-fight or Baron should determine the winner.

Kassadin and Morgana force the flash from Janna and get some decent damage down. But Kassadin sticks around in a bad spot instead of just backing up and gets caught by Irelia, allowing Ahri to catch up, then they both chase down Kassadin while OMG pushes into NWS's team. Another great Lee Sin ultimate knocks Corki into the OMG team. OMG get 2 kills and then get Baron for free.

OMG can brute force down the mid inhibitor.

NWS try to make a last stand as OMG push the bottom inhibitor turret with Irelia top. A great Janna Monsoon really saves Lucian from instant death. Zed gets annihilated when he goes in, and then Irelia joins the fight form behind. OMG get 3 kills and then move to kill the Nexus.

Item Notes -

Morgana is working towards Zhonya's when she should be getting Mikael's to stop Ahri's charm. Morgana does not want to dive into the OMG team, even with Zhonya's. NWS is much more about picks and mobility.

End Game Notes -

OMG took a long time to even start to try to fight. They really handed the game to NWS for the first 20 minutes. It is only the sneaky Baron that allow them to get back into the game and prevent NWS from being able to split-push.

OMG are going to need to change this passive style that they opted into for some odd reason if they want to go farther this series.

Irelia was a perfect pick into Zed and Kassadin and it showed.

*Silly Note – I almost wonder how well an AP Corki would have done in this match. Very rarely did he ever have time to auto attack and Irelia had so much armor.

What Najin White Shield should have done -

Ward Baron earlier. That's the number one reason why they lost. If they had not let OMG take that first Baron, NWS had full control of the game. NWS need to look at this, realize they were playing so strongly early and just let this match go. Ward up Baron early in the next match.

Kassadin did get caught out three times, by trying to be a little to aggressive when he doesn't need to be. Save will have to be more careful about this next time.

There was one point, where OMG was pushing 5v4, before the Baron play, and Zed was alone on the top side of OMG's bottom. Zed could have kept up this push, while his team, who is ahead at this point, protects the mid turret with the strong wave clear and poke of Corki/Morgana/Khazix. This would have changed the landscape of the choices that led up to Baron.

Going forward, NWS need to play just as strong, take away Lee Sin, and keep up the Baron wards.

League of Legends Worlds Analysis, Quarterfinals - OMG vs. NWS, Post-Game

  NWS vs. OMG Quarterfinals

Top

Save vs. Gogoing

1. L – Kassadin 1/4/2 1. W – Irelia 5/2/4

2. L – Nidalee 0/5/2 2. W – Ryze 7/1/11

3. L – Maokai 3/6/4 3. W – Ryze 12/4/7

Jungle

Watch vs. LoveLing

1. L – Khazix 1/2/2 1. W – Lee Sin 2/1/7

2. L – Khazix 3/4/2 2. W – Rengar 5/1/12

3. L – Lee Sin 2/5/2 3. W – Khazix 5/1/9

Mid

Ggoong vs. cool

1. L – Zed 2/3/2 1. W – Ahri 1/1/6

2. L – Zed 3/6/1 2. W – Jayce 4/1/14

3. L – Orianna 1/6/6 3. W – Zed 5/3/7

ADC

Zefa vs. san

1. L – Corki 1/1/3 1. W – Lucian 5/0/4

2. L – Corki 0/6/4 2. W – Lucian 9/1/13

3. L – Kog'maw 3/3/3 3. W – Corki 2/1/10

Support

GorillA vs. Cloud

1. L – Morgana 0/3/4 1. W – Janna 0/1/10

2. L – Braum 0/5/4 2. W – Janna 1/2/21

3. L – Nami 1/4/6 3. W – Janna 0/1/16

End Series Notes -

*Note – Dada777 has been subbed out for Cloud in the support role of OMG

OMG step up massively in this series. They are able to get a lead and keep it, go even and win, and come from behind to win. They have shown a huge amount of growth from the Group Stages.

The support change has worked out very well.

Gogoing should probably be banned from playing Ryze.

League of Legends Worlds Analysis, Quarterfinals - OMG vs. NWS, Pre-Game

Najin White Shield vs. OMG

Picks and Bans – Najin White Shield and OMG

I don't feel that these two teams have many differences in who they will pick/ban in their opening matches. Standard bans we have been seeing from the group stages and the more generic bans so far from the bracket stages will be making it through. Zilean/Alistar/Maokai/Lee Sin are likely to be pretty standard bans. Ryze, potentially 1 ADC or 1 support will be making it through, however full target bans against 1 player are unlikely during the first or even the second match. I feel that the bans are going to be standard in game 1, deviate a little in game 2, and then be based upon the picks in game 3 and beyond.

Ryze will be a very contested pick between these two teams, as will Zed. The other contested picks will be your standard top laners and junglers that we see picked or banned most games. The ADC's have a little crossover, in Tristana and Lucian, but primarily we see NWS picking up Corki/Twitch and OMG picking up Kog'maw when those two are not available. The support role is fairly stale, both teams having played Janna/Nami/Thresh. However we do have OMG bringing in a substitute support so who knows what that will change.

In mid, I expect to see Orianna getting some contention, but I feel that it won't be too great, maybe in game 3 and beyond we will see some tension over her. OMG may want to ban or pick her with Zed, just to reduce Ggoong's champion pool and push him onto something he is weaker at.

Outside of that, the pick/ban phase for these teams look to be very standard in terms of what we have seen in Group Stages already.

Play-styles – Najin White Shield

NWS have shown a lot of trouble playing mid-game oriented teams and seem to only be able to succeed with teams that make it to the late game. This is a real hindrance especially with how strong the mid-game teams have been in this championship so far. NWS really prefer the post 35 minute mark and the roving 5 man team-fight play, even when their compositions speak otherwise. In group stages, NWS looked to be built and to play to individual skill rather than with strong team compositions and rotations around the map.

Play-styles – OMG

OMG play a bit overaggressive, especially when it comes to positioning during team-fights and skirmishes. They want to get the kills, they want to keep going, their team should almost be called, More More More. They fight and play like they have never taken enough and it very often gets them into trouble or even loses them games. They make a lot of mistakes.

Because of their fight mentality, they do make the game a bit chaotic and turn on the pressure from a very early stage of the game. If they can keep up the chaotic play-style and force NWS into it, there is a high chance, that even with their mistakes, that they can force even more out of NWS.

Weaknesses/Strengths – Najin White Shield

The biggest weakness I saw out of NWS was their inability to play the early-mid game. They make a massive amount of mistakes during this period of the game and if they are unable to get a lead they tend to fall apart.

On top of that, their decision making is slow and can be seen in the matches against C9. When faced with a situation they are not ready for, they lose crucial seconds in making a plan and decision.

However, in situations that they are prepared for, NWS know how to handle them and respond with determination. Hopefully they have mapped out well for this series, as they do not play well when on the back foot.

Weaknesses/Strengths – OMG

I think OMG's weakness and strength is the same thing. They play chaotic and love to brawl and fight, like other teams in this tournament, however they are not as good at it as them. While they will go for kills, they are not above giving up kills to get them and missing out on objectives. OMG play an accelerated game style because of the increase in gold influx from all the fighting. Take that away from them and force them into a methodical play and I do not think they will respond well.

In this match, and potentially this match only, I think OMG have the strength of champion pool size over NWS.

How to win – Najin White Shield

Shore up your weaknesses from the group stages. Make a lot of plans for this match, and be ready for almost any situation. NWS fall prey to other teams when caught off guard.

Ditch your late-game mindset for at least 1 match, and go hard for early and mid-game pressure. NWS can play from a lead, but they cannot play from behind.

How to win – OMG

I think OMG can win this simply from playing their own game. NWS have weak early-mid game and OMG are likely to fight and brawl in those portions of the game. OMG can throw NWS off of their game and push them onto the back foot early. As long as OMG can get ahead and stay ahead of NWS, they should have this series.

League of Legends Worlds Analysis, Group Stage - NWS vs. ALL Game #2

Alliance vs. Najin White Shield Game #2

2v1 Lanes, KBM top

Bans

Nidalee Rammus

Thresh Alistar

Zed Maokai

Picks

1. Zilean 2. Ryze

3. Lee Sin 2. Tristana

3. Irelia 4. Khazix

5. Kog'maw 4. Janna

5. Ahri 6. Lulu

Lane Match-ups – Alliance

Top -

Irelia will get bullied by Ryze early and will be reduced to surviving and farming. It will be rough for a while, but being lower than Ryze will keep his kill potential almost non-existent during the low levels, as well as providing Irelia with an easy way to set up a gank through the long duration of her stun. Once Irelia reaches and 6 and picks up a Sheen, she will have more control over the lane than Ryze. Her all-in onto Ryze will be superior while Ryze is scaling up with his tear/catalyst. Every opportunity after this point should be used to push Ryze out of lane and potentially kill him. Jungle ganks from Lee Sin will be extremely potent and should be a priority.

Mid -

Ahri vs Orianna is a very even match-up. Both have good wave clear and decent kill potential on each other. Ahri will have to rely on Charm to get harassment off and then quickly back off after it wears off. Ahri has a stronger burst and fast trade ability and needs to use it. Once 6 hits, going all-in can be effective, but she must dodge Orianna's Shockwave, which is harder than it seems it would be for Ahri. If Ahri goes all-in and misses her charm, she will lose to Orianna who has much higher sustained damage.

Bot -

Slightly better match-up for Alliance. The lane will go even for the first few levels, as Janna can stop most if not all of Zilean's damage while Kog'maw cannot trade too hard until he gets a few levels. As the lane continues though, it will shift in the favor of Alliance who will have higher trade potential and range with Kog'maw. At six, and once Kog'maw picks up Sheen, Alliance will have a very large advantage over Tristana/Janna.

Jungle -

Another Lee Sin against Khazix. Farm and look for opportunities. The best will be with Irelia against Ryze around the level 4/5 mark. Lee Sin should feel confident in having the stronger/even lanes that means he will come out ahead, even in a counter-gank.

Lane Match-ups – Najin White Shield

Top -

Ryze can bully Irelia, though it might not be so wise. With Irelia lower than Ryze, it will put Ryze at risk to be ganked easily by Rengar. Harassment should only be done when he knows that Rengar is on the other side of the map and must be wary anytime his presence is not accounted for. Be especially mindful of low hp ranged creeps and the ability of Irelia to double gap close in those situations. If possible, try to keep the wave slightly on NWS's side of the river, giving more time to chase Irelia in a gank, since she has built in tenacity to deal with Ryze CC, and because Ryze will need a short escape route if he gets ganked.

Mid -

Against Ahri, Orianna will have an even lane. Farm should go even as well as wave clear speed and trades. The only thing Orianna needs to do is dodge charms. As long as she can dodge charms she has stronger bully potential and with her sustained damage can take down Ahri. However, getting charmed will let Ahri put on a huge amount of burst and possibly kill her.

Bot -

Tristana/Janna will be ok in the first 2-3 levels, being able to trade evenly and get farm, however as the lane progresses it will only get harder and harder for NWS to do well in this lane. More burst and longer range will allow Alliance to start to bully around level 3. Once level 6 comes into play, and the first back, NWS's duo will be in real trouble. Kog'maw will be able to get free poke while also having the stronger all-in with Zilean ultimate in his back pocket. Lane swap would be advised.

Jungle -

Khazix will need to focus on farming, get past the stronger point of Lee Sin. Look to mirror his movements and counter-gank. Potential gank opportunity on top lane, but must make sure Lee Sin does not counter it.

Team Composition/Strategy – Alliance's

*Win Condition – Get rolling early and use the mid-game power-spikes of every member on their team to create a gold lead and map advantage. Snowball this into a win.

Alliance have drafted a team that has a very strong mid-game spike. Irelia, Kog'maw, and Ahri will all get consistently stronger from level 1 on up until the very late game. Once the lanes start to gain power, Alliance can shift that into objective control and pressure, especially with the Trinity Force spikes of Kog'maw and Irelia. The mid-game power needs to be used to pressure all over the map, taking vision control and denying NWS vision. Without vision, Ahri will have prime opportunity to get picks in the jungle. Lee Sin will also supplement this teams power, by being able to provide very strong early game ganks.

Team Composition/Strategy – Najin White Shield

*Win Condition – Survive the early and mid-game and get to the late game.

NWS have once again drafted a very late game focused team. They will have to survive the power-spike of Alliance and concede neutral objectives at times so as not to let them get too far ahead. Early wave kill potential from any of NWS's member will be useful in slowing down the tower push progress of Alliance. NWS have their work cut out for themselves, surviving lanes with disadvantages and making it past the heavy mid-game power of Alliance. If they are able to, they can defeat Alliance in the late game.

Game Notes -

Look at the super solo queue style start. Irelia is not even near Lee Sin in case of an invade.

Irelia gets level 2 first and is able to put great harass onto Ryze, trading damage while Irelia has way more potions to sustain.

Instant reaction flash from Ahri away from Khazix saves her from possibly dieing, or at least from being forced out.

Lee Sin is in place, looking for a gank onto Ryze, and is perfectly ready for the counter-gank. Lee Sin holds onto his second part of his Q until after Khazix flashes. Alliance gets First Blood.

Orianna is really bullying Ahri.

Lee Sin buys Mobility Boots with the FB money, and it gets him another gank and kill in the bot lane.

The Mobility Boots pay dividends as Lee Sin is able to lane gank Ryze in the top lane, Irelia able to set it up with her dash and stun.

Kog'maw gets a snipe at the tower, killing Tristana off guard.

The early Lee Sin power has really been used amazingly, snowballing all the lanes.

NWS try a desperate Dragon, and Alliance collapse 5v4. A great kick and steal from Lee Sin get the dragon and the team also gets a kill and chase NWS back to base. ALL take mid and bottom turret. Completing the destruction of NWS's outer ring.

*NOTE – What is Kog'maw doing.... He left base without completing his Trinity Force. The combine cost is 3 gold >.>'

Alliance are very far ahead already. 6K gold at 14 minutes. Alliance will start to siege turrets, and look for picks with Ahri and Lee Sin during rotations.

Kog'maw picks up a very early Negatron Cloak. I really like this as the majority of NWS's damage is magic, even Tristana's burst, at this point and will keep him safe while they already have a big gold lead.

Vision control allows Ahri to find a pick onto Khazix in his own jungle.

Ahri going Deathfire Grasp first is the right choice in this match, as just shown. Alliance want to find picks and with the lead they have, 1 charm will lead to a kill.

Alliance continue to rotate between top and mid, while Kog'maw stays on bot lane alone, pushing. This means all the lanes are stronger than their counterparts and Alliance will be able to maintain the control over all 3 lanes, and just need to wait for a rotational opportunity.

As Kog'maw/Zilean/Lee Sin take dragon, Ahri delays in middle, running away with her ultimate, however she makes a sneaky play when hiding in the side bush, picking out Janna and annihilating her.

Irelia could have TP'ed in to the mid lane ward, and chased down NWS, but they do not.

With rotational play, Alliance bait NWS into a fight, and are able to get 2 kills for 0, and push NWS away for the free Baron.

Alliance are able to clear the final T2 turret and start to push into the base, however a great Orianna Shockwave pushes Alliance off and forces them to shop.

Alliance return to play the map and get a catch onto Ryze. Alliance do flub here a bit, they have a 5v4 and could dive and force there way into NWS's base. They are playing a bit too safe, but they are very very ahead and NWS need another 10-15 minutes to start to fight back.

With a new baron, Alliance start to siege NWS's base again, this time to success, taking bot inhibitor and then making a great Lee Sin play in mid to take the mid inhibitor and the game.

End Game Notes -

GG Shook on Lee Sin. Snowballed all 3 lanes. NWS do not have proper wards to stop him, and the early Mobility Boots really get him into the ganks.

Alliance did take a bit of time to close out the game, but they did reach the point of no return and won a Perfect Game.

What Najin White Shield should have done -

After the first 8 minutes? Not much. In champ select, they should not have let Alliance get Lee Sin and Irelia, their best champions for those roles. They also could have not played a full-scaling team and picked up a more mid-game focused champion in 1 or 2 of the roles.

In the game, NWS made some sloppy plays, ganking top predictably without knowing where Lee Sin was, and then playing over confident against a Lee Sin who got First Blood.

NWS tried to take a dragon, which is somewhat the right play, they had to do something, but it was more up to ALL to lose the fight at this point than for NWS to win it, and NWS solidified their loss here.

League of Legends Worlds Analysis, Group Stage - NWS vs. ALL Game #1

Najin White Shield vs. Alliance Game #1

2v1 Lanes, NWS top

Bans

Fizz Nidalee

Maokai Zed

Ryze Alistar

Picks

1. Lee Sin 2. Zilean

3. Thresh 2. Khazix

3. Tristana 4. Irelia

5. Lulu 4. Lucian

5. Riven 6. Twisted Fate

Lane Match-ups – Najin White Shield

Top -

A very dangerous lane on both sides, Riven and Irelia will be spending a good amount of time bullying each other. Riven has the ability to create strong burst trades, and to guarantee a stun and block some damage with her shield. Using this combo well, and as much as possible will be key in the match. However, Irelia will be able to respond strongly, with her dash and follow-up stun if behind. Irelia will also be able to out-sustain Riven, after the trades. Riven will have to create one or two strong trades in her favor and then go all in. As the level's progress and items come into play, Riven will have to be able to all-in and kill Irelia, which will be hard without ignite, and keep her out of lane after, otherwise Irelia will become too strong for Riven to deal with in an extended period of time.

Mid -

Lulu can push Twisted Fate in extremely hard in the early levels and again when she gets some AP. The lane will remain a solid farm lane without jungle interference. The winner of the lane will be whoever can push the lane the most while getting harassment down with their wave clear abilities. Lulu should just seek to push hard, and keep an eye on TF to stop his ultimate. At 6, Lulu can really start to duel/bully Twisted Fate, since he has the ultimate advantage over him. Lulu must be wary of Khazix ganks though, they will be highly effective with TF stun.

Bot -

A somewhat weaker lane that ALL's. Lucian and Zilean can bully Tristana well, and even if Thresh lands a hook, the burst damage that will come out onto Tristana after the hook is very high. Going to be a bit of a tentative and risky to go for the 2v2 and should expect to come out behind in CS if they do. If behind by too much at level 6, ALL's duo will have massive all-in bully potential.

Jungle -

Have we seen this match before? Yes! Another Lee v Khazix farm fest. Both sides will look to get to their ultimates, watching the lanes for opportunities to gank, but never truly trying to force them. Once level 6 comes in across the board, Lee Sin may be able to make plays against Irelia or Twisted Fate, but will still be unlikely.

Lane Match-ups – Alliance

Top -

A volatile lane for Irelia. She has the sustain advantage as well as being able to trade almost evenly with Riven. However, Riven's all-in potential is higher as is her mobility for getting trades and getting out. Irelia will need to respond by holding onto her dash and engaging Riven after her combo harass, applying Irelia's only trade potential. Utilizing the windows of Riven down-time will be essential for Irelia to stay in this match. As the lane goes on, it will turn more and more into Irelia's favor over extended durations, as long as she can avoid getting bursted in an all-in by Riven when she gets her ultimate.

Mid -

Twisted Fate is going to need to look to wave clear almost instantly as soon as possible. Lulu is going to be able to push him very heavily into his turret, as well as having guaranteed harassment. TF's best bet is going to be getting to the point where he can Red Card and Q clear the wave in one go, otherwise Lulu will be able to put down a lot of turret damage. Request a Khazix gank early to burn Lulu flash and return later. When level 6 hits, TF will probably have to sacrifice his turret for the ability to gank the side lanes.

Bot -

Alliance definitely have the advantage in the lane. Both Zilean and Lucian are lane bullies, especially against a Tristana who has weak trade and all-in ability early on. Should look to get harassment damage onto Tristana right from the start and continually keep her low and pushed back. Just beware of hooks into tower and lantern ganks.

Jungle -

Farm and try to mirror Lee Sin to prevent ganks. Just get your cs and be near the lanes when needed for defensive purposes. Look for triple ganks with Twisted Fate once he gets level 6.

Team Composition/Strategy – Najin White Shield

*Win Condition – Reach the late game and overrun Alliance's team with your protect the ADC/Death-ball composition.

NWS have drafted a very Tristana reliant team. They are all about the 5v5 team-fight, sticking together as a very grouped, death ball composition. With a lack of strong AoE on Alliance's side, this will become highly effective once Tristana reaches her power point and there will be little to stop them. NWS are however, weak in the mid-game, especially against the pick potential that Irelia and Twisted Fate can offer. They will have to make sure not to fall behind in the mid-game, otherwise Alliance can force them to split up and vastly lower NWS's team power. Riven is an odd pick in this line-up, as it doesn't really offer anything for the group protection, other than a stun. I assume its picked mostly to fight Irelia, through Irelia will out perform Riven in most cases. Does not really fit here.

It does however, given NWS a sort of, weak pseudo engagement in the mid-game, with Lulu using her ultimate on Riven when Riven dives into the Alliance team.

Team Composition/Strategy – Alliance

*Win Condition – Get picks in the mid-game and use the early-mid power of the lanes to generate a lead. Snowball this lead into a win by running a 1-4 or 1-3-1 split-push, forcing NWS to split up their protection composition.

Alliance need to get an early lead, especially using Irelia and Twisted Fate, and then turn that into pressure in multiple lanes. Alliance's only weak lane is Twisted Fate up against Lulu, however this can be mitigated by early AP onto TF for the wave clear. The rest of Alliance's lanes should be able to win on their own, and with a lead be able to put huge pressure on a lane during the mid game. Alliance should run either a 1-4 or some split of a 1-3-1 split-push once a lead is generated. Keep Twisted Fate in range to use his ultimate onto Irelia and have her split-push while the 3 man squad of Alliance pushes a weak tower/lane. Keep up the pressure, denying vision, and only back off for dragons and then shopping right after. Alliance need to keep up the mid-game pressure in multiple lanes, to prevent NWS from being able to scale and come together with their 5v5 composition.

Game Notes -

NWS initiate the lane swap, running double jungle from the start while Irelia attempts to nab experience up top. NWS did not pull off a successful freeze in the top lane, and this will allow Irelia to get experience.

Irelia wards behind in order to watch for the tower dive that is normal in non frozen 2v1 lanes.

Alliance does not pull off the freeze either, and NWS are able to get Riven to the bot lane before the wave reaches the turret.

Lanes turn into Tristana vs. Irelia top with Riven bot and Thresh roaming.

Riven flashes unnecessarily so, and Lucian is warding when the gank opportunity happens.

Zilean dances around in the enemy minion line and gets hooked, taking a ton of damage from the minions.

Twisted Fate behind in CS by a good amount.

BF sword on Tristana against Lucian pick-ax means that Lucian cannot bully Tristana like he normally can.

When NWS try to push mid tower, Lee Sin gets a little too forward, hitting the tower, causing Twisted Fate to flash in and stun, and Khazix to dive when Zilean shows up with his ultimate. Alliance get 2 kills, including First Blood.

Irelia has her sheen and a small lead on Riven and can now bully her in lane, having stronger trades and being able to avoid Riven's burst by dashing back to minions.

Alliance shop, and when they return gank bottom, forcing NWS back. ALL attempt dragon, but do not juggle the damage well and are forced back when Khazix gets low.

Lulu is still ahead in CS, being unrelenting in pushing TF to his turret and getting turret damage.

ALL's duo gets Tristana to half hp and then go all-in. With a level advantage against Thresh and a solid amount of AD, they are able to get the kill on Thresh while TF ultimates top lane, scaring NWS from fighting back in bot, as well as getting a kill on Riven in the top lane.

ALL move the fight to dragon, and get 2 kills for 0 and dragon. The double stuns from Twisted Fate and Irelia are wreaking havoc against NWS.

NWS chase too deep onto Twisted Fate and the gank is turned around by Irelia TPing in.

Alliance at this point should knock down the bottom turret and then run a 1-4 lane with Irelia split-pushing, or run a 1-3-1 with Irelia and Twisted Fate splitting.

ALL do get caught by NWS in the bot lane as they go too aggressive against the tower. An accidental save from TF keeps Zilean alive and ALL are able to run away with low HP.

Lucian gets caught on bot lane out by himself.

NWS do have a way to come back in Tristana late game with the protection of Lulu/Thresh/Lee Sin.

Alliance piddle around, not doing much of anything for a bit, while Zilean and Khazix try to get vision alone, both getting caught by NWS, particularly Thresh. NWS get 2 kills and dragon due to a bunch of solo attempts at vision control by ALL.

Alliance are not playing and have not played this lead right. They need to have Twisted Fate keep mid pushing and be in range to TP top, while Lucian/Khazix/Zilean push bot lane. NWS would be forced to go for a fight with the man advantage, and Alliance can use that opportunity to take an objective in the other lanes.

Alliance try to force a fight/dive at the bottom T2 turret of NWS, but a hook by Thresh prevents the fight and turns it into NWS's favor. Both teams end up low and getting everyone away.

28 minutes in is the first time that ALL run their 1-3-1 lane, but they do it a bit uneven and NWS take dragon while ALL take the top T2 turret. Somewhat even trade, but dragon is worth so much more gold at this point. Baron side T2 turrets are just ok advantages, as teams will want to be on that side anyways at this point.

ALL do a good 2 man split on bottom taking the T2 and inhibitor turret, trading the top T2 for it. ALL were able to get a winning fight top, 2 for 1, while at the bottom inhibitor, they almost take down Riven who is barely saved by Lulu.

NWS are getting Tristana very strong now though, with good back-up.

Lucian gets triple critical hit by Tristana, surprisingly, and it kills him, costs ALL the Baron as NWS take it.

Alliance have lost their mid-game power, and the Tristana/Lulu in NWS' back pocket has reached a very deadly point. Without solid ranged AoE, Alliance cannot do much against the death ball/protect the ADC strategy NWS can now run.

Alliance pick a fight just outside their base. Irelia dashes into 3, even though Tristana is out of position to the side. Really should have focused the actual threat. Alliance do turn to focus Tristana, but a good Riven flank scares them off and splits up Alliance. They should have all ran towards Tristana. Zilean ultimate is wasted by the moves of Alliance, used on Lucian but Lucian dashes and flashes out, getting no use from it.

NWS's death ball is too strong for Alliance at this point, and though Alliance had the best chance they could in the fight positioning, they miss the opportunity and lose their mid inhibitor for it.

Alliance try to make an engage near baron, but are forced away, losing Irelia, and NWS takes baron.

Item Notes -

Thresh sells his gold item to be able to afford the Mikael's, a potential game changer when used on Tristana.

Zilean build Aegis against only Lulu and spends money onto T3 gold item. Zilean really needed some mana regen and CDR, as they are huge for constantly having his ultimate up for fights. Mikael's would have been a much better choice.

End Game Notes -

Both sides mess up the freeze at level 1. Either side freezing could have given them a large advantage in terms of the team's top laner match-up. Would have really benefited Irelia more of this had happened, and hurt Riven the most if both lanes had been frozen

Alliance did not use their mid-game pressure properly and it really cost them the game.

NWS got picked off by Twisted Fate and Irelia way too much. They did not respect the Stun cards or the power of Irelia and it honestly should have cost them the game.

What Alliance should have done -

Alliance had the right team composition and the right early game and start of the mid-game strategy. They generated a large lead and took control of the game. However, once they reached this point, they seemed to stop doing anything. 3 people got picked off in a row, all by themselves. NWS started roaming as a team while Alliance sat around.

When Alliance had the lead, they needed to use it to pressure all 3 lanes. NWS's team had to team-fight and could not fight back against Alliance with their lead. Alliance needed to run 1-4 and 1-3-1 split-pushes. Force down the bottom turret while Irelia takes top and Twisted Fate pressures mid, then switch and have the 3 man squad take down middle. Alliance needed to have Irelia use her power to create pressure, Twisted Fates ability to show up to a gank, and the power of Lucian over Tristana to work down a lane. Alliance had the power in all 3 lanes to split NWS apart, but they did not do this.