RadoN's rosters is a series dedicated to thought experiments regarding potential rosters, roster moves and etc.





On August 1 began Overwatch League's first off-season and until 30th October the participating teams will have the opportunity to sign players for the league's inaugural season. With the results from the latest season of APEX, Korea has cemented its position as the overall best region and even though the top teams aren't lacking for talent, fans are yet to see a lineup that can be considered a superteam. Post-APEX S1, some teams, for ex. LW Blue and KD Panthera, have worked toward unifying the talent in their organizations. Others, like Lunatic-Hai and AF Blue, have worked on fixing their flaws. Yet, more than half a year of improvements and roster upgrades down the line, none of those squads managed to appear as a team without a discernible weak link, let alone a superteam.



When one considers the current economic reality of the Korean Overwatch scene and costs of a single OWL slot, it seems more than likely that the Kevin Chou-owned team will be the first from the region fans will be able to call a true superteam. The prospect of such a squad is exciting because not only will it be the first of its kind, but would also have the opportunity to dominate the scene for a prolonged period of time. It can be argued that Lunatic-Hai's core has already done something of the sort by winning two consecutive seasons of APEX, but that was in part reliant on the metagame favoring them and other top teams experiencing dips in terms of form. For now, they are still the best in the world, but their position is far from secure. A change in the metagame or the offseason recruitment among other top Korean rosters could quickly offset that. The aim of my dream team will be to pick the six-player roster, that can stand impervious to shifting metas, as well as pack a punch in terms of firepower. Additionally, rather than simply pick the most skilled and versatile players for each position, I will select players who could theoretically play together on the server and build up synergy.





THE BASE

The following players define the style -- or as Koreans call it, the color -- of the team to a huge degree, but regardless of their skill level and impact aren't the primary focal point. While they are far from pure roleplayers and will bear the responsibility of carrying more than their own weight, they will not be the go-to receiver of the lion's share of resources and attention. Instead, their task is to provide solid and stable performances, creating space for the squad's primary carry or carries.





ryujehong and tobi - since their emergence onto the international stage, the two Lunatic-Hai supports have been the clear cut best within their home region. Furthermore, within their position, they are arguably the two best individual performers in the world and most definitely the best duo. Making such a statement for tobi, as a player who plays predominantly Lucio, can be somewhat contentious. Some have already questioned how much of his performances is predicated on his individual ability and how much is based on being in the right environment to look good. Nevertheless, his aggressive playstyle has thrived in tandem with ryujehong's. It has allowed him to dominate both on the server and the scoreboard for the last two seasons, even though Lunatic-Hai faced the majority of the toughest opponents the APEX had to offer and didn't go through without losses. In addition to his prowess with the Sonic Amplifier and Soundwave, tobi has also showcased an impeccable timing on his Sound barriers and reportedly has the smarts to call at least some of the shots for what is the best team in the world.



The presence of the two-times voted season's MVP by the fans, ryujehong, on the other hand is almost a must for any 'superteam'. After his debut on the global stage at APAC, he's been widely recognized as the support player with the most impact in his game and a case can certainly be made for him as the best individual performer in the world. However, as someone on the older spectrum of professional gamers, especially in Korea, he offers maturity alongside the abilities and playmaking of a superstar. In interviews, he's clearly shown that he has the ambition to continue playing for years to come and be one of the all-time greats in Overwatch. Years down the line he might lose his impressive mechanics and become complacent, but right now, age age shouldn't prevent anyone from planning around him as their franchise's centerpiece. Furthermore, he's one of the few players who has finished his mandatory military service, which means he can be the mainstay even when others come and go.



Another benefit of recruiting him is that his ability to lead by example. He isn't someone known for shotcalling and Lunatic-Hai has mentioned that he lacks the composure of a natural at the captain role, but the one way he can contribute is by showing younger players that you shouldn't loosen up even if you're at the top. Given his stature and legacy of success, including other FPS titles, and the emphasis Korean culture puts on respect and listening to one's elders, ryujehong would be the go-to pick even if he wasn't a superstar on the sever. With his abilities in mind? He is the very first player every Korean organization should aim to get.



Still, with all the ability and accolades on the side of Lunatic-Hai's duo many might ask, why start with the supports if you can pick any player from any position for this imaginary team?



Overall the support positions offer less natural impact, but the discrepancy between Lunatic-Hai's duo and the next best supports in Korea is much bigger than the one between any the of the best damage dealers and tanks. Therefore, especially combined with the social aspect, the loss of potential star power in other position to create a team that fits the two is justified. This is one of the things their current team seems to have taken to heart, even if one might argue they sacrificed too much firepower for it in their latest iteration.





birdring - the KongDoo star player would take on the hitscan DPS position, offering versatility and a stable output of pressure and frags. In the last two seasons, we've seen him grow more and more into a primary carry for his teams, but, on this squad, he will once again take on a lesser responsibility, more in line with what he did on Uncia during APEX S1. His primary role would be to stay alive and safely apply pressure through flanks and creating solo picks. However, he will have to do that without much help and resources, other than being allowed the freedom to play off of his individual game-sense and decision making. In most strategies, birdring will also be tasked with cleaning up fights due to his more passive playstyle.





THE FOCAL POINT



This player or players, depending on the team and its style of play, will take on the majority of a team's resources in exchange for delivering a huge portion of the damage and/or game-changing plays in fights. The focal point isn't necessary the most skilled individual on the team, but rather the ones who can utilize the resources in an effective manner. A perfect example of such a player are Lunatic-Hai's EscA prior to APEX S1 and WhoRU during APEX S2. The focal point of a squad doesn't have to be a damage dealer either. Runaway and Uncia were championship-level teams by putting their faith and resources in the hands of main tank players and Meta Athena went on an unbelievable winning streak with an off-tank taking on that role.





Fl0w3R - in this case though, the focal point of the team is in fact the most talented player on the team and takes on the position of most natural impact, projectile DPS. The last two seasons of APEX, finishing 3rd and 5th-6th, haven't gone as well as they could for his team, LuxuryWatch Blue, but that isn't due to any fault of his own. If anything, the superstar dealer has shown that his play is even better than what he showed on his previous team and at IEM Gyeongi. Even though he has excelled on hard-carry heroes like Pharah, he has demonstrated the ability to play seemingly every hero in the game at the highest level. Despite not being a Genji one-trick pony, his impressive mechanics allow him to rival just about any of the specialists, who've played predominantly the ninja. Yet, the limit of his versatility goes even beyond the ability to play different heroes and positions. Fl0w3R has also shown himself to be more than capable to fill the role of facilitator and play the second fiddle to someone else on his team. The most notable occasion on which fans saw that is LW's win at IEM Gyeonggi. The capacity for a mid-game switch from an oppressive Pharah to a supportive Soldier 76, or a Mei to create space for the rest of this star-studded roster will be a valuable tactical option, if the metagame in future allows for such maneuvers.



In terms of firepower and peak impact potential, Fl0w3R might be behind players like Recry and Haksal, but his versatility, consistency, and reliability more than make up for it, particularly in a lineup that won't be lacking for raw talent. Whereas the other two's explosive aggression can often lead them to situations which require them to be rescued, Fl0w3R's playmaking is somewhat measured and rarely backfires on his team.





ROLEPLAYERS



The final batch of players fills a more supportive role, regardless of their positions. Even though heroes have somewhat defined roles within tactics, those are by no means final and different individuals' talents allow them to utilize character's strengths and abilities in different manners. For ex., whereas Hoon has mastered an aggressive Zarya to destroy opponents at high energy, zunba's pink-haired bodybuilder will more often than not be seen defending his teammates and fending off opponents. A similar differences, but this time due to skill discrepancy as opposed to being a result of a different system, can be seen between EscA's and Rascal's Sombra performances. Despite the former lacking the skills to devastate opponents as the latter does, his play on the hacker is still an important cog in the Lunatic-Hai machine by utilizing her kit to secure health packs and disable opponents.





Libero and janus - so far Libero has played in the position of a dealer, flexing to off-tank quite a bit, but on this roster, he'd become the off-tank player, with the option of flexing on DPS heroes. Fitting to the theme of the rest of the players, he offers a lot of smarts and the option of a versatile third dealer, as opposed to a more limited hero-pool from someone like zunba . While mechanically, the Meta Athena player can't compete with the elite Korean dealers, he has been able to make up with good positioning and playing off of his teammates. LW Blue's tank brings similar qualities to the author's proposed roster as he's shown himself more than capable to play both Winston and Reinhardt at the highest level. He has not blown viewers away with otherworldly plays like Miro or Panker, but he offers consistency and willingness to play entirely within a system and do his job, regardless of the hero he has to pick. Libero and janus will have to adopt a slight change in playstyle, as neither was anywhere near this low down the pecking order on their previous teams, but both players have shown that they have the mentality for it in interviews and, more importantly, on the server.



Neither of the two will offer a crazy peak performances, but their role on the team is to fit in and fill the gaps left by the other four players. Considering that they are both top3 performers on their current squads and would be the worst and second worst -- for the lack of a better word -- on the author's dream team, the squad will be by no means struggling for firepower due to having them instead of two other all-stars.





SUBSTITUTES



As the starting roster is already star-studded and versatile as it is, the bench is going to be used for young and up-and-coming players, and one-trick specialists, who could use the environment to develop into better players, assist the starters in learning the peculiarities of playing a specific hero, or come in for specific strategies.





CoMa and Prove - for the support positions, I've selected two players who've shown some promise, but haven't had the experience or the opportunity to play for a top team. Giving them the opportunity to play and practice in a professional environment, as well as learn directly from the best there would be the fastest way to help them fulfill their potential.





Panker - Panker's level dropped off after Uncia added Butcherr to the roster, but his past heights are enough for the author to justify a spot as a substitute for him. If a return to form occurs, he'll offer a Reinhardt play on par with just about anyone and the strategic option for the squad to play around their tank player.





Mek0 and Hoon - both are arguably the two very best at their respective main heroes, D.Va and Zarya. However, both play can be quite questionable when not playing those. Their main role here would be to help Libero develop his off-tank play and possibly start within a very particular meta. With how obvious their niches are, it is unlikely either will be able to command a starting spot in the league, especially if they'll have to learn join a foreign team.





Haksal - ever since his debut on the international stage in which he devastated Reunited, (cur. eUnited) the one thing that has distinguished him from all the other Genji specialist is his superb accuracy with shuriken. Three seasons later, he has still maintained that edge over everyone else, but his decision-making is just as questionable as it was back then. In his defense, even though Runaway reached the APEX S2 final, the squad hasn't been a perfect environment and he hasn't had neither the help, nor the mentors someone like WhoRU has. Bringing him into a team with such a high in-game IQ, if only as a substitute, would be the best way to help him improve his own understanding of how to play.





What do you think of RadoN’s dream team, do you think it could beat the current Lunatic-Hai roster? Who are the players you would have chosen if you had a say? Let us know on twitter at @InvenGlobal and @RadoNonfire!



Disclaimer : The following article was written freely based on the author's opinion, and it may not necessarily represent Inven Global's editorial stance.