The initial lock-in date for 2016 LCS teams has passed, and most of the top teams have revealed their upcoming rosters. Although teams like Team Impulse and Gravity have yet to announce new ownership, the free agent market has developed well enough to crown the biggest winners and losers of 2015 Free-Agency.

Forg1ven is widely considered a world-class AD - Gambit Gaming

Winner: H2k

Despite the loss of their main shotcalling support, Kasing, H2k managed to net two of the biggest names in Europe: Forg1ven and Jankos. H2k’s lineup is stacked with talented players from Top to Bottom. Odoamne was one of the most consistent top laners in the West -- maintaining an average gold lead at 10 minutes of 260.8 gold, the best in Europe during the Summer split.The departure of Huni from Fnatic solidifies his claim as a top 3 top laner in Europe.

The acquisition of Jankos will give the talented jungler a better environment to make plays across the map. Jankos led all junglers in total kills during the Summer split, and H2k should stand to benefit from the noticeable improvement over Loulex. Ryu also proved he was still a formidable opponent last year, as the Korean import was in the top 3 in KDA (5.0) and average gold differential at 10 minutes (88.6). The acquisitions of Vander and Forg1ven solidify the strength of H2k’s roster by pairing the veteran support with one of the most mechanically gifted players in the west.

Forg1ven was a top free agent target, drawing offers from both NA and EU teams, but the gifted Greek AD carry opted to round out H2k’s star studded lineup. This team has the potential to go toe-to-toe with some of the top western teams, and we should have a good idea of how the team will mesh on December 18th when they compete in IEM Cologne against international teams such as Qiao Gu and Cloud 9.

Shiphtur enters his fourth split under Team Dignitas - Riot Games

Loser: Team Dignitas  

Although not a terrible team in 2015, Team Dignitas struggled being anything more than mediocre. Failing to take a game off of the XiaoWeiXiao-less Team Impulse in the Summer Playoffs, Team Dignitas cemented themselves as a lower-tier NA team. Dignitas struggled with personalities and language gaps. according to statements from personnel -- so the move towards an all English-speaking team made sense. Dignitas failed. however, to replace their Korean imports with any noticeable improvements.

The acquisitions of SmittyJ and Kerei are underwhelming when compared to the blockbuster deals being made throughout NA and EU. Apollo may be a decent pick-up at AD, but his successes in 2015 undoubtedly benefited from the play of Impact and Rush.

With a wave of new money invading the NA LCS, teams must either keep up with the pace or risk being left in the dust. Many teams are giving it their all in 2016 - Team Dignitas will have an uphill battle if they wish to survive the looming relegations.

Winner: Team Solomid

TSM has managed improve their roster at nearly every position. Hauntzer is a motivated young talent that should do well with the coaching and infrastructure that TSM has in place. Svenskeren should give the team the aggressive playmaking jungler that they’ve been missing internationally. Doublelift jumping ship also takes carry pressure off of Bjergsen, as TSM will benefit from versatile carry threats at every position. These moves assembled the pieces of a talented team, yet it's the rumored acquisition of Yellowstar, as reported by the Daily Dot, that bumps TSM to a potential threat internationally.

Yellowstar’s work ethic and shot-calling help round out an already impressive mechanical group. The move would deliver the veteran anchor this team of young superstars needs, if they want to make it past the group stages at Worlds. It remains to be seen how well the squad will click, but TSM’s new roster looks to be one of the standouts this offseason.

Yellowstar is rumored to be joining TSM’s star-studded line-up - Red Bull Esports  

Loser: Team Roccat

Team Roccat finished the 2015 season on the verge of being a Worlds-caliber team by being bested narrowly by the heavily favored Origen squad in the regional qualifiers. Roccat entered the offseason poised to find the missing link that would propel them into international contention.

Over the next few months, Roccat managed to go from a rumored superteam to an empty shell -- losing their entire roster in the process. It’s unclear what players will be playing under the Roccat banner, but with so many top free agents under contract with other teams- Roccat finds themselves with a tremendous amount of obstacles to overcome, if they want to sign and train a competitive squad before the start of the season.  

Winner: T8->Immortals

Nothing spices up a scene like a squad of business savvy millionaires! Immortals purchased the slot owned by 8th place Team 8, and followed up their investment by making a splash in free-agency. The synergy between Huni and Reignover should not be underestimated while Pobelter and Adrian are strong domestic players in their own rights.

The weakest link appears to be the AD Carry Wildturtle, but a change of scenery could be all the once solid Canuck needs to bring back his confident playing mentality. Immortals will need a dedicated support staff if they want to compete with North America’s best, but if their coaching plans go anything like their free-agency, you can expect Immortals to compete with North America’s best.

Huni and Reignover are taking their talents to North America - Riot Games

Loser: Fnatic

I know what you’re thinking! Fnatic has always been one of the top two teams in the European LCS era. They’ve proven they have a formula for longstanding success. That said, Fnatic was one of the top teams internationally in 2015, and pressing the reset button on such success cannot be considered a win. Spirit is a clear improvement over Reignover, but Gamsu will have a lot to prove if he wants to replace Huni.

Losing Yellowstar, however, solidifies Fnatic’s offseason as a loss in my book. Yellowstar was heralded as a top-class support and shotcaller. Patching up the holes left behind will be damn-near impossible, and the rumored acquisition of Noxiak seems underwhelming. Although the squad’s synergy will have a strong infrastructure to develop in, I doubt we will see the kind of chemistry that Huni and Reignover possessed. I won’t be surprised to see Fnatic succeeding come playoffs, but last year’s squad was destined for so much more…

Winner: CST->NRG

We real sports now!

The Sacramento Kings owners who invested in Coast’s LCS slot made a strong contender out of a perennial bottom feeder. Impact and GBM are proven competitors, while Moon and Altec have high ceilings if provided the proper setting to grow. KonKwon may not be an attractive addition, but breaking the language barrier could be huge for a team with two Korean imports. NRG is not guaranteed to succeed out of the gate, yet there is plenty of room for growing pains throughout the next 8 months. Having the wherewithal to import a top Korean, like GBM, is likely the centerpiece of a successful offseason.

NRG made a splash in free-agency by signing GBM and Impact - NRG

Loser: Team Liquid

With the loss of Quas, TL must scramble to replace one of their top players. The team has shown no significant signs of improvements through free-agency. Smoothie could be a net upgrade over an aging Xpecial, but TL failed to address the player weaknesses that swept them out of Worlds contention. TL must now improve through personal growth, rather than free-agency.

Winner: Cloud 9

Cloud 9 nabbed the top jungling free agent, Rush. The team also brought in the talented shotcalling support, Bunnyfufu, to help transition Hai back into retirement. It will be interesting to see if Balls can regain his former strength, but the efforts of the 2015 NA LCS Spring Split MVP will go a long way to cushion the load off of the lanes which includes a budding Incarnati0n and the talented American AD, Sneaky.

C9 adds Bunnyfufu and Rush - Red Bull Esports

Notable mentions-

Origen -  fresh off an impressive IEM San Jose victory, Origen seems to be the strongest Western team, and the addition of PowerofEvil will give Xpeke the time to handle the business side of things.

Counter Logic Gaming -  Despite protests by fans, CLG replaced Doublelift and Pobelter with LCS rookies, Huhi and Stixxay. The team performed better than expected at IEM San Jose, giving CLG some room to grow before 2016 Spring Split.

LA Renegades -  If their rumored acquisition of Freeze is true, the Renegades will have a solid foundation to grow. We know they’ve already invested in sports psychology training, and it will be interesting to see if the former Misfits can make a name for themselves.

Real Winners: Western Fans

Western talent is more consolidated than ever! If the increased wealth in esports brings about improvements to coaching and infrastructure, these talented lineups may finally have resources to make Worlds more competitive than ever!

Western Fans can expect a competitive Spring Split - Polygon

TBA:

There are currently four new teams (Vitality, Elements-TBA, TiP-TBA and GV-TBA) that have yet to announce rosters, but considering the dwindling free-agent pool- it’s unlikely that more than one of these teams will field a competitive roster come January.

If you enjoyed this article, feel free to connect with the author at @conitosmith.

Stats courtesy of oracleselixir.com Cover image: Lolnews.com.br