World Rankings
LPL, EULCS, NALCS, LCK, GPL/VCS, CBLOL, LMS, Other, Challenger.
1. Edward Gaming +0 2. GE Tigers +0
3. SK Telecom T1 +1
4. Vici Gaming +3
5. Jin Air Green Wings +1
6. Invictus Gaming +5
7. Snake -2
8. OMG -5
9. LGD -1
10. CJ Entus +0
11. Team SoloMid -2
12. SK Gaming +0
13. yoe Flash Wolves +0
14. Fnatic +0
15. Cloud 9 +6
16. World Elite +0
17. Counter Logic Gaming -2
18. Masters 3 +0
19. KT Rolster +5
20. H2k-Gaming -1
21. Qiao Gu +?
22. Team Impulse -2
23. Team King -6
24. Najin e-mFire -1
25. Taipei Assassins -3
Honorable Mention: Star Horn Royal Club, Gambit Gaming, Unicorns of Love, Origen, Gravity Gaming, Team Liquid, Enemy eSports, Hong Kong eSports, Keyd Stars, INTZ e-Sports.
I went back on some previous decisions and made some big some big changes to the Chinese rankings despite the LPL off-week. Teams with big losses that I previously regarded as flukes have now been relocated. The only consistent part of this week is the middle of the pack.
A breakdown of the list:
Edward Gaming has gone 31-5 in the LPL so far and a combined 12-0 in the Demacia Cup in games against Kx.Happy, Masters 3, World Elite, and Invictus Gaming. That's 43-5 in 2015. Korean imports Deft and Pawn are arguably the best at their roles in the world.
The GE Tigers flopped at IEM, taking 3rd/4th in a tournament almost everyone predicted they'd stomp at. They also found their first series lost in Korea to KT. Nonetheless, they are 23-4 in Korea, and 26-6 in all events.
SK Telecom has seen far more losses than either of the top two. Despite their [9-3]+(19-9) record, SKT still has Faker and Marin to carry them in must-win international games.
Jumping up the standings this week, Vici Gaming is a steadily-improving Chinese monster. Led by Vasili, Mata, and Dandy, Vici has gone 21-15 in the LPL to date and 24-18 overall. With a little less attitude from Mata, Vici could climb even higher.
Despite a loss to SKT this week, Jin Air climbed due to their insane early game control over them. Ganked by Mom and Pilot lead Jin Air to the fifth spot with a 17-11 record.
Invictus Gaming is only 19-17 in the LPL and 31-21 overall, but after taking down OMG last week and reaching the finals of the Demacia Cup, they are a force to be reckoned with. They are also the only LPL team so far to take down Qiao Gu. KaKao, Rookie, and Kid are all stars for the team.
Snake slithered its way through the challenger scene to reach the LPL, and now that they're there, they're one of the top teams. They don't have any flashy names on their roster, rather all of their players play as a team to pull out wins. They are 25-13 in the LPL and 32-18 overall. Recently they have slipped a little.
OMG has dropped 5 spots this week, they are still 2nd in China with a 26-12 record there and a 28-15 record overall.
LGD is 19-15 in the LPL and 25-19 overall. They seem to be pretty inconsistent in both their play and their ability to pick between sending Acorn or Flame top.
CJ Entus has looked lackluster after holding the 2nd spot in Korea for most of the season. Ambition and CoCo seem to be performing better than former stars Shy, Space, and most notably, Madlife. They are 16-12 in Korea and 17-14 overall.
American heroes Team SoloMid has looked vulnerable in their region, but do have an IEM World Championship trophy to their name. They are 13-5 in their region, but 20-6 overall. Their weakness is that Bjergsen or Wildturtle NEED to go crazy and carry their games.
SK Gaming is rather the opposite of TSM. They are more dominate in their region: 15-3. But in contrast to TSM, they floundered at IEM, going 1-2, bringing their overall score to 16-5.
yoe Flash Wolves are just barely under SK. The teams are 1-1, but with yoe's win being in the loser's bracket. The team made up of former Gamanian Bears is led by mid laner Maple. They are 19-2, with one loss being a forfeit due to managerial problems. Overall they are 36-9 or 36-8, depending on how one looks at it.
Fnatic is a fun team featuring the smiley Huni and the stern-faced carries Febiven and Steelback. They have taken some games off of SK but have not seen international play yet. They are 13-5.
Everyone has been saying that "Cloud 9 is back," but they never really went anywhere. They are 13-6 in North America, which is admittedly not as impressive as previous seasons, but they are still a top 20 team. At IEM, they lost to two eventual semi-finalist teams, and their overall record is 13-8.
World Elite had big expectations at the beginning of the season, later fell into 11th place in China, and then shocked the world at with 2nd place IEM. They are only 10-24 in the LPL, but they are 25-37 in 2015 overall.
Counter Logic Gaming has been heralded as the best team in North America by others. They, like Fnatic, have seen no international play and are 12-7.
Masters 3, like other top-ranked Chinese teams, fails to break even with their record, but is still strong nonetheless, featuring dade and Looper. They are 15-21 in the LPL and 18-26 overall.
KT Rolster shot up the standings this week after being the first Korean team to take a series off of GE. They are only 11-18 in Korea, but they have so far ruined GE's chance at a 'perfect' season and Jin Air's chance at going to Katowice.
No one had too high of a hope for H2k at the start of the season, but they have crept into a 3rd place position in the EU LCS regular season. The turning point in their season was the addition of support, KaSing. They are 12-6.
Qiao Gu is an up-and-coming LSPL team with former LMQ support Mor and CJ jungler Swift. They have beaten OMG, Snake, and World Elite in series. They are 10-2 in the LSPL and have gone into the 2nd round out of 5 in the playoffs, and if they reach the finals they will automatically qualify for the next LPL split. They play like a Chinese Team 8, winning kind of randomly. They are 24-11 overall so far.
Team King is another challenger team turned LPL leader. They are only 15-21, but on the back of their carry-playing mid-laner, Assassin, they are still a force to be reckoned with. They are 20-24 in total.
Najin e-mFire is 13-15 in Korea, mostly due to their new marksman, OHQ. That's it.
The Taipei Assassins have been 2nd all year in Taiwan, but recent losses to HKE and the Logitech Snipers have put out some steam. The team with a few former world champions is 17-4 in the LMS and 23-7 overall, with with a 3-5 record against yoe.
Honorable mention (in no order):
Star Horn Royal Club has struggled since adding former EDG ADC Namei. I believe that they can pull through if they go to relegations and rise in the Summer. They are 12-22 in the LPL and 15-25 overall.
Gambit Gaming is another team that struggles with inconsistency. They are 10-8 in Europe after starting 0-5, having a 7-0 mid-season burst, and then ending 3-3. Betsy, Diamond, and Cabochard all have good games, but they also have a lot of bad ones. They are 10-10 overall.
Fan favorite Unicorns of Love is 9-9. They get stomped a lot in losses, and have a lot of close wins against top teams.
xPeke's new team, Origen is a dominant 9-1 in the Challenger Series, only losing a game in the last week. These former pros are hungry to get back to the LCS. Counting the CS qualifier and the Road to Gamer's Assembly tournament, Origen is a near-perfect 19-3.
Gravity Gaming is 10-8 on the season, with on and off performances. If Keane can play to his full potential, and if Bunny can keep landing hooks, Gravity can tear through the playoffs.
Team Liquid (after a tiebreaker) is now 10-9 in North America and is still looking flaky. They struggled against Team 8, and lost to Dignitas, but they still fought through to qualify for the playoffs. With good picks and bans and team-fighting, Liquid can climb on the back of Piglet.
Enemy eSports is also 9-1 in their Challenger Series, led by little-known ADC Otter. Counting the CS qualifier and the ESL Pro Series Season 6, they are 16-3.
Hong Kong eSports has consistently been 3rd in Taiwan. Featuring the giant Stanley and the ex-retired hall-of-famer Toyz, HKE took an important game off of TPA. We'll see how they fare in the playoffs. They are 15-6 in the LMS and 21-9 overall.
Keyd Stars and INTZ are both 12-2 in the regular season. They are both 15-2 counting playoff wins. They will face each other in the finals next Saturday. The only discernible differences between these two is that INTZ is definitely the fan favorite and Keyd has two Koreans, Emperor and Daydream.
Games to watch this week (times in EST):
FG vs. KLG on 3/30 at 7 PM. LAS Finals
LLL vs. G2 on 3/31 at 12 PM. EU CS Semifinal
TDK vs. FSN on 3/31 at 9 PM. NA CS Semifinal
D9 vs. LG on 3/31 at 9 PM. LAN Final
OG vs. RG on 4/1 at 12 PM. EU CS Semifinal
NME vs. F5 on 4/1 at 9 PM. NA CS Semifinal
#1. EDG vs. #16. WE on 4/3 at 7 AM. LPL Season Match
BJK vs. DP on 4/4 at 5 AM. TCL Final
#6. iG vs. #17. M3 on 4/4 at 5 AM. LPL Season Match
#5. JA vs. #10. CJ on 4/4 at 6 AM. LCK Season Match
#20. H2k vs. CW on 4/4 at 11 AM. EU LCS Quarterfinal
#17. CLG vs. Team Liquid on 4/4 at 3 PM. NA LCS Quarterfinal
#6. iG vs. Snake on 4/5 at 1 AM. LPL Season Match
#4. VG vs. #9 LDG on 4/5 at 7 AM. LPL Season Match
GMB vs. UoL on 4/5 at 11 AM. EU LCS Quarterfinal
INTZ vs. Keyd on 4/5 at 12 PM. CBLOL Final
#22. TIP vs. GV on 4/5 at 3 PM. NA LCS Quarterfinal
Well that's it from me this week. Lots of teams are suddenly showing their strengths, new champions are being pulled out, new teams are rising up, and still no one looks like they can beat EDG.
Playoffs are starting.
Relegations/Promotions are coming.
The International Wild Card Invitational is in less than a month.
The Mid-Season Invitational is in a month and one week.
What even is League of Legends?
