(All photos courtesy of Riot eSports, flickr)
Shame on us for doubting them.
Shame on the pundits who picked against them.
After all, this is SK Telecom T1 we're talking about.
This is the team that walked onstage at Katowice with the baggage of doubt and inconsistency but left undefeated with a trophy in hand. This is the team that played third fiddle to ROX Tigers and KT Rolster all spring. Let us surely not forget that this is a team that has hoisted the Summoner's Cup.
Twice.
At this point, it is no longer wise to doubt Korean teams in a best-of format. Sure, they might drop a Bo1 here or there, as they did multiple times in the group stage. In a series format, however, it has proven nearly impossible to stop the Korean machine. As the chief innovators of the pro metagame, the LoL Champions Korea region is always seemingly ahead of the game, crafting the ideal structures in each patch, and adjusting more efficiently than any other team.
These game-to-game adjustments doomed Royal Never Give Up, who simply could not keep up with SKT's adaptations. They feasted on poor macro play by their Korean adversaries in Game 1, but could not find a rhythm nor an answer for Lee "Faker" Sang-hyeok, who had been a liability in the group stage. Posting a 6.2 KDA throughout the series, the Demon King pulled out the oddball Fizz pick into two horrific matchups (LeBlanc, Azir), leading to his only seven deaths of the series. On Azir and Ryze, though, he was truly his unkillable self.
Business as usual.
Perplexing was the choice by RNG not to continue using Jang "Looper" Hyeong-seok's Trundle, which utterly dismantled SKT in Game 1. Despite the unextravagant 3.0 KDA, the Korean import trolled SKT with a daunting, nearly invincible frontliner who managed to solo kill a tank Poppy in lane. Throughout the rest of the series, even though SKT did not focus one single ban towards Trundle, RNG switched tactics, opting instead for a Ryze and two Poppy picks for Looper, who posted a 0.3 KDA throughout the three losses.
Meanwhile, on the red side of the map, SKT only got better with time. Each performance added another layer of domination to the series, ultimately resulting in a perfect game to cap off the semifinal triumph. Lee "Duke" Ho-seong, after embarrassing himself with horrible teleport attempts in Game 1, spent the rest of the series alive and kicking, posting no deaths and a 29.0 KDA in the three victories, including a 6/0/8 Ekko performance complete with a tank + Mejai's Soulstealer build.
Talk about innovation.
Game 4's perfect performance left the Chinese crowd devoid of energy. An 8-2 group stage performance was capped off by a game wherein the hometown heroes secured no dragons, no towers, no kills, and walked off stage after less than 30 minutes of gameplay. SKT had gone into hostile territory and shattered dreams.
That's exactly how they like it.
SK Telecom T1 will face off against the winner of today's series between Counter Logic Gaming and Flash Wolves.
