Chapter 386

For Red Rice, such a team that doesn't follow the usual path is the hardest to deal with.

Everyone is honestly picking according to the version, but the opposing side suddenly pulls out something outside common sense; regardless of effect, it's a huge variable.

Under the referee's urging, Red Rice came to his senses, looked away from the screen of Xi Ye in front of him, closed his notebook, took off his headphones, left the player bench, came to the center of the stage, and shook hands with Zhu Xiaolong, who had been his subordinate last year but this year had transformed into a coach on equal footing with him.

He had no mood to respond to Zhu Xiaolong's small talk, forced a smile and nodded slightly, then returned to the lounge with heavy thoughts, sitting down in front of the computer screen.

The cheers of the live audience came through; Red Rice watched Summoner's Rift appear on the screen, and his unease could not be dispelled.

He wasn't worried that WE would lose this match; regular season wins and losses mean nothing, this WE lineup guarantees at least a playoff ticket, so there's nothing to worry about.

What Red Rice worries about is something more long-term.

VG has become completely different from the team he remembered; even people he once knew have undergone great changes.

In the previous match VG versus GT, Li Zhixun killed over twenty in two games combined, which was unimaginable during the time Red Rice coached VG—is this still the Easyhoon who was timid in lane and team fights?

VG… is no longer the VG he knew.

Unfortunately, this spring season they ended up in the same group as WE, sigh…

Red Rice rubbed his face, shook off the chaotic thoughts in his mind, and watched the match seriously.

The lineups for both sides in this game are as follows:

WE, Blue Side

ban: Mang Seng, Locust, Syndra; Spider, Rek'Sai.

Top lane: 957, Big Tree

Jungle: Condi, Mantis

Mid lane: Xi Ye, Ryze

Bot lane: Mystic, Ashe

Support: Ben, Lady Gun

Coach: Homme

VG, Red Side

ban: Blue Steel Shadow, Enchantress, Lion Dog; Ember, Sheriff.

Top lane: Flandre, Jayce

Jungle: Firrrrrre, Prince

Mid lane: Easyhoon, Orianna

Bot lane: Smlz, Varus

Support: Caveman, Janna

Coach: Loong

Come on, the battle has begun!

With VG's lineup, I thought the first three picks meant they were going for a poke composition, but I didn't expect that the final pick of the Prince would completely change it!

The first three picks they made were Jayce, Orianna, and Varus—all poke champions; I initially thought they'd add a teamfight-support, but it turns out only Jiao Shen is VG's true engage tool, and they ended up picking the obscure Prince.

In team fights, WE's duo faces great pressure.

Yes, the lane pressure is actually also high; two immobile squishies encountering a Prince who can fly out of the fog to gank you will really panic.

The main reason is that this version's jungler can have a lot of time to act, unlike last year's Worlds where the jungler had endless monsters to clear and the bot lane could constantly press.

That's right, Ashe plus Lady Gun remain strong, but if you keep trying to pin the enemy under tower and beat them up like last year, it's impossible now—the enemy jungler won't allow it, and there will be a cost.

Heroes weren't nerfed; the main reason the S6 strongest bot lane combo fell is the environmental change. Because junglers have more time to act, if needed they can even camp a lane constantly, so last year's bot lane combos that relied on lane pressure are naturally less favored; some teams lacking confidence to win fights early-mid even outright discard long-range poke supports, opting instead for supports that are stronger in mid‑late game or hard engage.

But VG's lineup this game clearly aims for early‑mid game.

In VG's team channel, Sima Laozei confirmed with Liang Yan:

Liang Yan, I'll build armor penetration this game.

Hmm, armor penetration; let's try to finish the fight before thirty minutes.

Are you going to keep camping?

We'll see; when the time comes, you watch my signal.

Oh.

This version of Varus has two build paths.

One is an attack‑speed build: first Blade of the Ruined King, then Hurricane; after the two items are complete the build is initially formed, and if the enemy has lots of crowd control, add a Mercurial Scimitar first to avoid being blown up in team fights; the third item depends on the enemy comp and front‑line development—either Infinity Edge or Redemption (the tribute of Lord Dominik's Regards), and shoes are naturally attack‑speed boots.

Another is an armor‑penetration build: the first three items are Youmuu's Ghostblade, Morellonomicon, and Night Harvester; this saves the cost of buying a Mercurial Scimitar, and the third item can vary greatly—usually Mortal Reminder (the reminder of Piety, called Ionic Spark on Convergence), if the enemy has high AP damage take Blood‑Drinking Blade, if high AD damage take Death's Dance, with no survival pressure you can even add Edge of Night or Black Cleaver, and shoes are cooldown‑reduction boots to reduce ability cooldown.

This year's armor‑penetration Varus is far weaker than last year's dominant version, but it's still strong in lane; paired with a poke system, when contesting mid‑lane priority and vision of the upper river Dragon Pit in the mid‑game, it can also impose huge health‑pressure on the enemy.

If both sides start with normal defense, we shouldn't expect early fights; let's look at the runes: left side is all over the place—two Thunderlords, one Colossus, one Wind‑rider, one Bloodlust; while the right side is neat—four Thunderlords and one Colossus.

Huh? Sheng Qiang Ge, is Jayce taking Thunderlord's Decree this game?

Isn't it normal for Jayce to take Thunderlord's Decree?

No, nowadays most people take Fervor of Battle.

Oh, but Thunderlord's Decree is definitely more bursty, while Fervor of Battle focuses on sustained damage; I feel Thunderlord's Decree suits VG's lineup better.

That's fine.

Jiao Shen is just a supporting leaf this game.

In these few matches he played very team‑oriented; you can tell from his stats—his KDA exploded, but it was all assists, and his damage taken was off the charts, leaving other top laners far behind.

Someone with such strong mechanics and Kai'ri ability can willingly be a teammate's support; Jiao Shen's greatness needs no explanation. Although his debut was less than a year ago, I feel he already qualifies as a benchmark for professional players.

That's because he's appeared on CCTV before.

Remember to give a thumbs up:

「Respect！」

The Joker who didn't get it scratched his head, what does that mean?

Offstage, WE fans felt sour.

In the bullet comments, someone also protested, saying this commentator is biased, always praising VG.

VG fans secretly felt pleased, like a background extra finally becoming the main character.