An Incredible Reunion Article: TL.net ESPORTS October 22nd, 2015 17:51 GMT











By: Fusilero

In Starcraft 2 Incredible Miracle were kings, home to two of the greatest players to ever grace the game MVP and Nestea with countless championships under their belt. In League of Legends however, they were a joke. Their greatest accomplishment being making OGN playoffs once, while in a series against Frost which to their credit they were close to winning if it wasn’t a for an incredibly bad Ziggs pick. After that for the Incredible Miracle organisation it was always making groups only to bomb out of there and NLB. IM had been seen as the gatekeepers, good enough to keep the amateurs out of OGN but never good enough to beat the actual top teams. It seemed like they would occupy a limbo between Kespa teams and amateurs.



The Rise...



That was until the end of season three. Incredible Miracle would form what would be by far their greatest roster ever on IM #2. Consisting of PLL/Reignover/Kuro/Betkyo/Lasha the IM org would finally scratch up their first ever big result as this roster made it to the NLB finals, while they fell to the kings of NLB Najin Sword for the first time the Incredible Miracle organisation in LoL had made their way to a big stage. Quietly they started to build up hype until OGN Winter 2014 they were dropped into the group of death with KT Bullets, Samsung Blue and Najin Sword. KTB were still considered one of the best teams in the world, Samsung Blue had defeated SKT K after worlds and Najin Sword were coming off a top 4 finish of worlds where they took an SKT K in their prime to five games. Once again IM had found themselves as minnows amongst the giants. Yet they didn’t roll over and die; instead this against three of Korea’s finest they fought to the end. Trading incredibly close games against Najin and Samsung while they lost 0-2 to KTB they certainly didn’t go down without a fight. IM #2 didn’t make it out of group stages but they showed that they weren’t the easy wins that had come to be associated with the org.



And the Fall of IM #2



Sadly these results couldn’t be sustained, in the Spring season IM #2 were only able to abuse the rookies of Xenics while Najin White Shield and CJ Entus Blaze had few problems defeating them. They proceeded to drop down to NLB where they lost to Prime Optimus. After this season IM #2 were delivered what was basically a fatal blow, Kuro left for Najin Sword. Kuro had always been the star of IM #2, finding consistent success he was the sole strong source of carry potential the roster had especially after Betkyo began to slump. This is where the stories of Kuro and Reignover diverged. Kuro went on as a member of the incredibly promising yet raw new Najin Sword with Duke/Hojin/Ohq and Cain while Reignover was put on the bench by IM. Kuro had become an example of a player trapped by bad team mates and Reignover was the chief example of that which was holding Kuro back. Earning the nickname Gameover he often tried to force way too aggressive plays that would cost IM heavily and sometimes outright lose the game. Reignover was a joke and it was seen as fitting that Kuro would abandon him.



Finding Their Own Way



This should have been the end of Gameover, a player that was the weakness on a weak org surely had no future. IM #2 had been plundered for their shining star who was destined for greatness alongside Duke and Ohq. But then something no one saw coming saved Reignover from seemingly certain obscurity. Fnatic while in Korea were impressed by Samsung substitute Huni and decided to bring him on when Xpeke, Soaz and Cyanide left the org. Huni brought along with him none other than Reignover himself. Suddenly the fortunes between the two had turned; Kuro departed from Najin as the collapse of the sister teams forced Najin to chose between him and Ggoong and the org chose the latter. He was forced onto a frankenstein roster with fellow IM refugee Smeb as well as former Najin players Pray, Hojin and Gorilla. Both teams were dismissed initially, Kuro’s Huya Tigers seen as a reject abomination while Fnatic were laughed at losing their legendary roster for a bunch of rookies and the player that became known of Gameover. Yet both would quickly force people to rescind those views.



Reignover’s reborn Fnatic finished second in the regular season behind the by far power of the Forg1ven fuelled SK Gaming. Reignover himself having a redemptive season as his aggression and risk taking seemed to suit Fnatic as he and huni were able to punish countless top laners for their tiniest mistakes and snowball out of control. Meanwhile the Huya Tigers came strong out of the gates going 10-0 in their bo3s looking unstoppable and constantly bringing out new innovations such as the juggermaw and the now all too commonly seen Viktor. From the strugglers of OGN in season four both had become kings in season five. Yet once again both of their stories would diverge when the time came for international competition.



Entering the World Stage



Huya tigers were invited as the Korean representative for the IEM world championship at Katowice. The world remembered well the at best eighth in Korea slumping KT Bullets going undefeated and now the actual best team in Korea had come; to make matters even better the LPL representatives were the last place jokes World Elite. This tournament was free for the Tigers and in the group stages they crushed C9 and were able to overcome Europe’s #1 in SK Gaming. Meanwhile in the other group World Elite beaten Gambit and pulled a big upset over CJ Entus. Yet they were against the actual kings of Korea, even if Spirit tried his best they stood no chance. Then Huya locked in Yasuo; the bizarre Yasuo pick that was utterly out of Kuro’s norm was abused and annihilated by Spirit and Xiye. Seemingly panicked and scrambling the Tigers couldn’t find an answer for Spirit in the third game and it had happened. The free tournament for Huya was gone; they had lost to the last place jokes of the LPL who went on to be crushed by Team Solomid in the finals. Huya were considered a disgrace and even though they finished the season 25-6 for the season they were no longer considered the premier Korean team as the scars of Katowice never truly healed.



Reignover’s fnatic on the other hand went on to win the entire European LCS cutting it close against Ryu’s H2K and surprise finalists Unicorns of Love. The games looked wild, sloppy and without reason so he and the rest of fnatic were expected to fall to the IEM champions TSM as well as the top Asian teams. In the group stages while they were able to take down TSM; China’s EDG and Taiwan’s AHQ had few problems abusing and disposing of Fnatic turning their aggression against them. Yet against SKT Reignover’s legend was becoming born; against SKT’s Lulu/Lucian composition they were able to create a massive lead before an unfortunate Sejuani bug saw Reignover be caught and lose baron. Deciding to not call for a rematch Fnatic would go on to lose to SKT as Bang’s Lulu powered Lucpian got a pentakill. Given how AHQ/EDG crushed them people expected SKT to roll over Fnatic in spite of the close game. Yet Fnatic fought to the end, Febiven solo killed Faker. Huni was ouptlaying SKT and Reignover was finding appreciable impact. Reignover’s Fnatic weren’t a chaotic joke, they were the real deal. While they lost the series Fnatic had shown that they were legitimate contenders on the world stage as Kuro and the Tigers watched at home; they themselves crushed by SKT who didn’t even run Faker in their finals.



Summertime for Reignover, Winter for Kuro



Summer came, the tigers stuck to what they had while Fnatic were able to bring Rekkles back into the fold. This time the tigers struggled; they came limp out of the gate only winning one bo3 in the first three weeks. The one win being a narrow win over the bottom tier Samsung squad. Meanwhile Fnatic were going wild in the EU LCS having an 18-0 undefeated regular season. The now KOO Tigers found their form late in the season and were able to narrowly make playoffs. There both teams confirmed their worlds attendance, KOO beat Najin and CJ before losing a narrow series to KT. As KT went on to lose to SKT in the finals KOO’s 2nd/3rd place finishes trumped KT’s sole 2nd place summer granting the Tigers the 2nd Korean seed from championship points. Fnatic meanwhile confirmed their attendance with their thorough annihilation of the Unicorns of Love to give them top championship points. But as they beat Origen in the finals Fnatic came to worlds at Europe’s first seed and back to back champions.



The Reunion



Surprisingly enough both teams seemed to mirror themselves in the group stages. Their stiffest opposition for both teams came out of the LMS of all places. The Flash Wolves were able to defeat KOO twice while AHQ were able to drag Fnatic into the madness of the LMS and force two incredibly close fought and competitive games. Yet in spite of some initial concerns both teams made it out of groups, KOO as a second seed for group A and Fnatic as first for group B. There they were drawn into the same side of the bracket with KOO v KT and FNC v EDG; after all this time Kuro and Reignover were close to their reunion yet both had tough matches ahead of them. Both teams however utterly defied expectations, Fnatic beat EDG convincingly after being blindsided by their triple TP strat. KOO meanwhile got their revenge with the help of Smeb’s Fiora and Kuro’s Viktor taking the series 3-1 in true KOO fashion of falling behind only to fight their way back into a win.



Now in the semi-finals of worlds; with the now overwhelming favourites SKT likely awaiting them on the other side Kuro and Reignover’s stories will reach their final chapter. The once teammates will have their showdown with the world finals on the line between them. Fnatic the standard bearers of European hope; aiming to be the first European team to defeat a Korean team in a bo5 since CLG EU v Najin Sword all the way back in OGN 2012 Summer. KOO looking for redemption and revenge; seen as a joke team that choked on the world stage and not worthy of being in the presence of SKT want to show that they are a top team, that they are worthy of the legacy of Korean dominance. As for Kuro and Reignover the story of IM #2 will have its conclusion. IM #2 will have a player in the world finals; will it be the redemption of Reignover or the realization of Kuro?



Author’s note: I am aware Smeb is also ex-IM, but he was on IM #1 and the article would be a bit off focus if I tried to insert him and his IM #1 history here so the focus is solely on IM #2 and Reignover/Kuro.





The Redemption Arc: Fnatic vs Koo

By: stuchiu

Going into this semi-finals, many fans would have you think this matchup was inevitable. Fnatic have been the best EU team all year and proved that they could take the fight to the East at MSI (though that was off one single bo5 loss against SKT). Despite their loss to WE at IEM Katowice, the KOO Tigers were regarded as the best LCK team in the earlier parts of the year and quietly one of the best teams all year in LCK. Yet one year ago, when the teams were first forming, no one had an inkling of either team’s success or the peculiar parallels of their career trajectory that would make them meet now.



One year ago, Fnatic was in shambles. After being one of the top two teams in EU LCS, they bombed out of the group stage at Worlds.going last in their group. They were an all-star lineup, but by the end of Worlds, Rekkles, Xpeke and sOAz had left. Cyandie had retired. The only player left was Yellowstar. The Fnatic Manager, Steer could have forced Xpeke and sOAz to fulfil their contractual obligations, but he decided not to force the issue. He was left with the task of recreating Fnatic.



One year ago, Riot and Kespa officially implemented their policy of only allowing each Korean organization to only having one team. This forced NJWS hands as they kicked out kuro, ho-jin and Gorilla. Left with no recourse, the rejects decided to try to create a team of their own. They were left to find two more members, a sponsor and a coach.



One year ago, Steer decides to bet it all. He picks up Huni and has Huni choose a Korean jungler, Reignover. Reignover’s greatest achievement up to that point is being part of the group known as “The Incredible Failures” along with Kuro and Smeb. Steer then picks up two players from challenger in Febiven and Steelback. Febiven has shown some sparks of talent, but seems to choke when the pressure is on. Steelback is a downgrade from Rekkles, one of the best ADCs in EU at the time. Essentially, Fnatic have decided to gamble 4 of their 5 slots on players completely unproven players. The shuffle is regarded as one of the most underwhelming in EU and is questioned both externally and internally by both fans and experts.



One year ago, Kuro meets Smeb on ex-IM teammate Smeb in soloQ. Smeb was a player that was booted long before the implementation of the one-team rule by Riot and has since been spending his days sharpening his skills on the ladder. The two Incredible Failures meet on soloQ and it is there that Kuro sees something in Smeb and asks him to join. He does. Gorilla goes to the graveyard where Korean pro-gamers go to die and resurrects Pray to complete the lineup. Nofe, the coach, was the last to be added. He was about to join with the military, but with multiple talks from both Gorilla and the sponsors, he agreed to coach the newly founded Huya Tigers. Despite that, Nofe was still skeptical of the team because of Smeb and Kuro. Neither had proven themselves in LCK and he considered both liabilities, but after watching them playing in practice, he started to believe the team could really be something. The Tigers then became the dark horse team of Korea as they qualified for the LCK.



Six months ago, Fnatic prove their worth in EU LCS. The gamble pays off and the side-effect of hiring all new/young players is that they all defer to Yellowstar who leads them like a field general. Unlike the old team, there are no All-stars that try to contradict or argue against him. Yellowstar leads the team as they get 2nd in the round robin and win the playoffs. Despite that, it is one of the ugliest playoffs ever seen in EU LCS and no one has high hopes for them coming into the Mid-Season Invitational. They prove the world wrong as they massively improve from the end of EU LCS to MSI, get to the ro4 and play SKT close in the semi-finals losing 2-3.



Six months ago, the team of rejects becomes the strongest team in LCK and arguably the strongest team in the world. They destroy their competition with style both inside and outside the game. Just as it seems like the team is about to reach their fairy tale ending, reality strikes them down as they fall to team WE at IEM Katowice and eventually lose to SKT in the Spring Playoffs of LCK.



By the end of Summer, Fnatic have left no more questions. They sign on Rekkles again to replace Steelback and go on to dominate the EU LCS as they go undefeated in the finals and win the playoffs against Origen 3-2. They are the best EU team and are considered the great hope of the West to do well at worlds.



By the end of Summer, Koo seemed to have gotten back up. The round robin was close as only 1-2 more losses was the difference from being regulated to making it to playoffs. They barely make it in and start at the bottom of the gauntlet playoffs as they play Najin. The Tigers seem to be regaining their skill and confidence as they go on a streak, beating Najin and CJ before losing a close series to KT. SKT win the playoffs which lets the KOO Tigers get in as the second seed to Worlds.



At worlds, both teams get off to a rough start in group stages. Fnatic drop a game to C9 and ahq, but rally back at the end and win the rematch against ahq to make it to the playoffs. KOO drops two games to FW, but still make it out of groups in second. Both teams defeat their quarterfinal opponents. Fnatic end the hopes of China as they defeat EDG 3-0 (or 4-0 depending on who you ask) and look to be the West’s best hope in the last few years of making it to the finals of Worlds. KOO Tigers defeat their rivals in KT and move on to face Fnatic in the semi-finals.



The redemption story has been one year in the making. Fnatic crumbled last year as they lost at Worlds and almost all of their players left, leaving them to scramble for a new roster. The Tigers were created because they all got kicked by their former team, but were able to rise again because they found each other. In just one year, all 10 players have had their lives changed by the actions they took one year ago.



One year ago, Febiven was a challenger league Mid that had problems with pressure. Kuro was a mid that was mocked as an Incredible Failure. Both have had the best playing years of their careers.



One year ago, Reignover’s nickname in Korea was Gameover for his lackluster performance. Ho-jin was the starter for NJBS, but was kicked so that the Najin team could keep Watch. Both are now respected junglers for their teams.



One year ago, Pray was completely on the outs of the Korean pro-scene as no one was willing to pick him up. Rekkles left dissatisfied with the Fnatic team, looking to find a team that could actually win. Pray was resurrected and Rekkles returned to his former team and both have come farther than either thought possible at the end of 2014.



One year ago, Smeb was diligently practicing in soloQ trying to prove to the world and himself that could be more than an Incredible Failure. Huni was a Samsung trainee one year ago trying out for Korean teams. Today both players are considered two of the best, if not the best Top laners in their respective regions.



One year ago, Yellowstar lost in the group stages of Worlds and found himself the sole remaining member of Fnatic. Gorilla lost in the ro8 of Worlds and was subsequently kicked from Najin. Both now find themselves in the semi-finals.



By Friday, the redemption story ends for one of these teams. Fnatic did one of the greatest gambles ever in their roster shuffle, but even the greatest gambling deviant could never have predicted how strong the current Fnatic roster would have become. They are now the team that shoulders the hopes and dreams of the West, the team that shows the strength of new talent when lead by a talented veteran in Yellowstar. The KOO Tigers went against all conventional wisdom and founded their own team, outside of the Kespa organizations. They were a band of rejects and castaways, most of whom were expected to fade away and retire come 2015. Instead they came together to prove that there is no end to your career so long as you still have the will. That finding the right five can be more important than finding the best five. By Friday, the one year story ends and only one will move on.





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Writers: Fusilero, Stuchiu



Fusilero, Stuchiu Graphics: dranblat, JonGalt



