One of the more awkward stories in Korean League of Legends is that of Longzhu Gaming, formerly known as Incredible Miracle. After a 4 year run in the scene the rebrand was well warranted, the organization's time in LoL has been anything but an incredible miracle. The organization has had players such as Reignover, although before performing anywhere near his level on Fnatic, Smeb, Cpt Jack, Flame, CoCo, Chaser, and Expession. Despite having all this talent and more go through the team there has be little to no success domestically or internationally.

With a failed 10-man roster set up in 2016 the organization missed playoffs and retooled the roster for the 2017 splits. When the 2016 Rox Tigers split up Longzhu were able to sign the dynamic and mechanically inclined duo of Kim “PraY” Jong-in and Kang “GorillA” Beom-hyeon. Finishing 7th in the spring resulted in yet another roster change for the team. It would seem as if this time around the management put their faith in PraY and GorillA to be the consistent backbone of the team. Longzhu signed rookie jungler and Korean ladder solo queue star Lee “Cuzz” Woo-jin. Cuzz’s hot start to the split has so far backed up the hype he has received, but it is early into the split and time will tell if his form will continue. Kim “Khan” Dong-ha has found his form early on as well, playing lane dominant aggressive champions such as Renekton, Jarvan IV, and Fiora. With the departure of former KT Rolster midlaner Song “Fly” Young-jun, Kwak “BDD” Bo-seong will be the starting midlaner as the split continues.

Longzhu was able to 2-0 a KT Rolster squad that should have been well prepared coming into the Summer split, seeing as they failed to qualify for MSI. Longzhu was able to control the series from start to finish. BDD on his Orianna finished the series with 0 deaths and completely outperformed his lane opponent Heo “PawN” Won-seok. PraY was given his signature Ashe pick and showed why he is regarded as one of, if not the best Ashe player in the world. Throughout his career PraY has hit some of the sickest Enchanted Crystal Arrows you’ve ever seen, and the series against KT was no exception. While taking Baron, PraY hit an arrow onto a retreating Cho “Mata” Se-hyeong which stunned him long enough for BDD to finish him off. PraY also hit an arrow onto PawN’s Fizz in the second game that resulted in a huge gain for Longzhu. With such reliable playmakers in the bot lane for Longzhu it allows the other three members of the team to play with much more flexibility. PraY and GorillA’s ability to consistently win lane will be paramount in the success of the team throughout the split. If the bot duo can reliable win lane it frees up top and mid lane picks that require a bit more support from the jungler but have high snowball potential to carry the game.

In the second matchup of the split for Longzhu, against BBQ Olivers, game 2 was a great example of PraY and GorillA’s success being indicative of the success of the team. PraY was unable to get ahead of his lane opponent and ultimately BBQ was victorious and forced a game 3. Every member of Longzhu was able to get leads and snowball those leads unto vision control, objectives and ultimately a victory bringing Longzhu to the top of the table after the first week of the season. Another high point in the strategy on Longzhu is the realization of the power of the reworked Rift Herald buff. The new buff is excellent for taking towers and pushing an incredible amount of pressure into a single lane. This new buff can bring teams back from a deficit or snowball a lead into an even greater lead. The buff is actually so good that a typical “good use” of the buff results in one tower being destroyed and the next tower being taken to at least half health. Longzhu’s early recognition of the power of this buff is a sign that players and coaching staff alike are able to recognize trends in the ever changing meta and adapt. This element is paramount to the long term success of a team. With qualifying for the World Championship being the end goal for many organizations, the ability to quickly adapt to maintain good form is critical.

Longzhu has a path to the coveted tournament at the end of summer, just not an easy one. The team will have to rally behind their bot lane and rely on the experience of the only two members on the roster to have won an LCK Final, PraY and GorillA. PraY has consistently been regarded as one of the top ADC’s in the world, and this split would be a great time to remind the world why. With a hyped up, well-performing, rookie jungler and two solid solo laners, PraY and GorillA should be able to focus on winning lane and snowballing that lead into victory. In a straight up 2v2 scenario there are few bottom lanes in the LCK that can match Longzhu’s duo. One of them being the bot lane of Longzhu’s next opponent, SKT. If PraY and GorillA are able to defeat Bae “Bang” Jun-sik and Lee “Wolf” Jae-wan this will set Longzhu up with the greatest opportunity to take down the kings of Korea.

Simply put, Longzhu will ultimately only get as far as PraY and GorillA are able to take them. But that is not to discount the other members of Longzhu, without them maintaining form the season will yet again result in a bottom half of the table placing and possibly missing out on playoffs and, in turn Worlds. PraY and GorillA will be the core carries of the team, but as the ever-changing meta of League of Legends has shown, the game is a team game after all. If Khan and BDD can at least stay even with their respective lane opponents, PraY will have a much easier time farming and powering up in the early game. Enemy teleport plays and roams can be matched by teammates of greater or equal power, which then should result in a successful fight for the side of Longzhu. If PraY and GorillA can get ahead and stay ahead then Longzhu will have the best chance at winning any given match.

It would be slightly foolish to expect Khan and Cuzz to keep performing at their current level through the duration of the split. We have seen Khan succeed on damage oriented top, but what if top lane reverts to the tank meta? Will Cuzz be able to maintain a high level of play? These are questions that the split will answer and at the moment it may be too early to tell. BDD has shown himself to be a highly versatile player with a pretty sizeable champion pool, so it would be expected for BDD to consistently show up and perform decently. This sets the stage for PraY and GorillA. They have proven themselves as one of the best duo lanes in the world and to give themselves a shot at making Worlds they will need to regain that form once more. The famed duo was an integral part of when their former team, the Tigers, were regarded as possibly the best team in the world and were also able to defeat KT Rolster and win the 2016 Summer LCK final. PraY’s famous game winning Enchanted Crystal Arrow in game 2 of the 2016 Worlds Semifinal was arguably the best and most memorable play of the entire tournament. That semifinal match that saw PraY and GorillA’s Rox Tigers fall 3-2 to SKT had to leave a sour taste in the duo’s mouth, one that they must desire to cleanse. While Longzhu does not look like a world champion roster, carrying the team to a qualifying spot would be a great achievement for the two. While this roster has many unanswered questions one thing can be sure; if Longzhu does manage to qualify for Worlds it will be on the backs of PraY and GorillA.

Photo Credits: Riot Games, Longzhu

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