If you’re a fan of North America and a fan of League of Legends, you’ve heard the meme before -- “LOL, NA Talent.” The argument has been pushed for years now that NA is lacking in good homegrown players. But players like eUnited’s Eric “Licorice” Ritchie are making a strong case against that thought. In what is probably one of the most competitive Challenger scenes NA has seen in years, Licorice is standing firmly as one of the best players in NACS at the moment. 

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This is your third, and most successful, go on a Challenger roster. What do you think has allowed eUnited to be successful where Storm and Frank Fang Gaming were not?

Honestly, I would consider eUnited to be my first real go on a Challenger roster. When I was on Frank Fang Gaming, it was really just a team to get some practice with, where we would just scrim other amateur teams, and with Storm I was actually a last minute substitute, where I joined the team right before the open qualifiers that I then participated in.

I think that the big difference with competing on Storm would be that I was kind of just thrown into the competition and with eUnited we were practicing together as a team months ahead of the Challenger Series.

With this being your first time in a team house environment, what do you think of it?

I've really been enjoying the team house so far, it's been a lot of fun living with my teammates and coaches, and I think we all get along well which really just makes it an enjoyable experience. I think it also works as motivation for me when I see my teammates practicing as well.

And it's also definitely a step up from living with my parents. 

Haha. But is there anything you miss about living at home?

Yeah I definitely miss my friends and family back home and I'm looking forward to seeing them all again.

You're on a team right now with a mix of veterans (Gilius, Fox, and your coaching staff) and rookies (yourself, Zeyzal, Deftly.) What it's like be in that dynamic?

I think it's been a very productive team dynamic with the veterans taking on more of a leadership role within the team, and I think that I've learned a lot by having these veterans on the team.

What's it like in the comms when things get rough? Who's the guy who helps everyone calm down and refocus?

Our comms are usually pretty steady throughout any game and a big part of that would definitely be Zeyzal.

Even though he's one of the rookies he's got a calm and collected personality and he's great at helping us refocus on the game if it starts to get a little crazy.

There are some pretty strong Top laners in the NACS; like Quas and Solo. How do you feel you're matching up both in the NACS and in scrims versus LCS teams?

I think that I've been having a strong performance in NACS so far and with the results that we've been having in scrims I'm confident that I would stack up well against the competition in LCS as well.

What are your thoughts on the state of the Top laner meta currently?

We’re definitely in a tank meta right now for top lane but I think that it could see some change soon if some of the tanky supports and junglers are buffed so that you could build compositions with tanks without having to play them top lane.

Who's a top laner you really wish could come into the meta?

I would have to go with Fiora because I've always been a big Fiora player, although I do think the pick can work right now, but it's really hard to draft a team composition around it that works well.

I'll admit to not being much of analyst. Would you mind explaining what a comp would need to look like to be able to include Fiora?

The main problem is just that when you pick a carry top lane champion like Fiona, there aren't many good tank champions to play in other roles, and while you can win games without having a tank, it makes it a lot easier and more straightforward to play when you have a champion that can reliably go in against the enemy team.

What would you say your weakness as a player is?

I think that the weakest part of my play would probably be setting up plays with my TP.

As a fun way to end this: Describe each of your teammates with one word and a champion.

Gilius - Lee Sin - Aggressive Fox - Ryze - Animal Deftly - Jhin - Dramatic Zeyzal - Alistar - Reliable Bobqinxd (our sub) - Twisted Fate -Roam Myself - Renekton - Stubborn

If you enjoyed this piece, follow the interviewer at @Sagegnosis. 

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