Dekar173 is a high elo streamer, notorious for his Rengar & Riven play. In the past, he has had multiple accounts in Challenger & has consistently been one of the top Rengar players in the world. Part of his notoriety also comes from his healthy usage of memes. In this interview, we catch up with him on the current state of Rengar, his opinion on high elo dynamic queue, and his goals and plans for the future.

You are notorious for being one of the most consistent high elo Rengar players in the world. Are there any unique trait to your playstyle that allows for you to keep that consistency?

Dekar: I suppose my play style differs from others in that I'm more active over-all. I roam, I follow pings, type timers, and just try to be a team player. On stream... especially with the introduction of my second monitor, this has all fallen apart. The obvious answer is to just "get better" at multi-tasking, but I'm almost at the point where I feel my performance suffers so much on stream I may need to stop using dual monitors. My NA BurgerBelly brain can't handle the sensory overload!

Rengar has undergone a series of changes throughout the last season & has recently received some buffs in Patch 6.9. What do you think of his current state?

Dekar: Rengars good and with his current kit will probably always be. He's a little unsatisfying to play due to his E changes, but occasionally you can get so fed goomba-stomping still occurs (as it should). I'm a bit more into Riven now, though. She's much more technical and I suppose since I played Rengar for so long it's just gotten stale. I've seen and done it all on him so despite these revisions and buffs, I probably won't ever play Rengar as often as I used to.

How do you think you stand against other high elo Riven players, especially the one trick ponies?

Dekar: I'd say when I'm "on", I'm the best Riven out there. While streaming, especially now with my new mic and dual monitor (huge cop out) I haven't been on, at all. I'm trying really hard to be informative, and help my viewers learn while we dynamic queue, but honestly Valkrin doesn't struggle while remaining informative, so its something I just need to work at. Off stream, the dream is fully alive but then people accuse me of scripting, which is a completely valid thought process because being able to do it on stream shouldn't be a problem. We'll see how I perform soon here when I try the new queue system without 50 minute queues

What initially prompted you to play Rengar?

Dekar: My initial fascination with Rengar came from my interest in what he's based off of, Predator. I played the shit out of the ooooooold Alien vs Predator game so when a Predator was made for League, I had to try him. Loved the game-play, and was super effective with him (and finding glitches) so I just stuck with him. I got a ton of fame from some Reddit thread, so I had to stick with him :^) Then DDoS happened forever.

What were your thoughts on the Quadra Doran Blade Rengar build that Ryan Choi popularized back in Season 4?

Dekar: That build was retarded beyond belief. CDR = key and spending 1800 gold on items that you'll end up selling later... was never smart. It's silly so people liked it, but Rengar, due to the exploits at that time, could build 6 rejuv beads and win so it ended up seeming a lot more effective than it was. No SotO... no SotD... FailFish.

What would you suggest as an optimal build/mastery pick for Rengar on the current patch?

Dekar: That question/mentality is a bit of a noobtrap. If I'm against 0 CC, or just nothing but pop-ups, I'm not going to build a QSS, but if I'm against Irelia + Morgana or a Malzahar, I need the QSS, don't I? General rule of thumb is CDR and damage, but there are plenty of cases where you'll need to frontline, or even be the main tank. It depends upon what you're up against/have on your team. I'll answer that the most FUN build is the 1 shot build. IE, Hydra, Statik Shiv, Triforce, Reaver, Youmuu's. Rift Herald proc gives extra damage too, it's Kreygasm.

Since Rengar's release, he's been referred to as an unhealthy champion. Whether it be his highburst, his stealth, or insane tankiness (depending on the meta), something prompts people to complain. If you were the developer responsible for "making Rengar healthy", what would you change or keep the same?

Dekar: Firstly, I'll say it's the adc mains crying all the time. They just can't seem to understand that... certain champs will counter them. Poppy counters Riven and Rengar harder than anything we've ever seen in the game, and I don't even bother banning her any more- so why are there always so many ADCs crying?! I'd wager it's dangerously low testosterone, but that's an argument for another day. As for balancing Rengar... give "healthy" choices for stealth detection. Pinks are cheap and plentiful, but we still don't have a single trinket that gives actual stealth detection, so once everyone has 6 items there's a lot less counter-play. Assuming no new OP AD items come out, I think Rengar will be in a fine spot regarding game health for a while. Bring back Sword of the Occult.

In top lane, what other high elo player do you have the most difficulty playing against?

Dekar: Hashinshin, the God of top lane, without a doubt. Really though, no one's ever struck me as a sort of "nemesis" or terror at top lane. It all comes down to how they're feeling or how the rest of the team is doing. Everyone, myself included, can have a game where they pop off and are seemingly masterminding the entire enemy team into an elaborately constructed checkmate- and the very next game they have a Billyboss (sorry Dig) teleport or decide tower-diving the other Challenger guy at top is the right choice at level 2. Worth.

As a follow up, what specific champion do you think you have the most trouble with when playing both Rengar and Riven?

Dekar: Poppy, without a doubt. She's been brought more in line stat-wise, but her kit still absolutely counters someone like either Riven or Rengar. Nice flash Riven, it'd be a shame if my hammer knocked you 2 screens away :^).

What would you say your main goals are as a streamer?

Dekar: I'm pretty happy where I currently am, floating anywhere from 500-1k viewers. I like my chat, and with Discord I've been able to interact with my regular viewers much more frequently off-stream, so that's nice. We'd all love to be NB3 or QT but I know I got where I am currently with a huge stroke of luck as it is... asking for more would definitely be pushing it. As for long-term, we'll see where life takes me? I mean if people still want to watch a chubby dude play a sword wielding anime character in a bunny suit then I'll gladly fill that niche. I WOULD like to take it in a more "educational" direction like just being much more informative in general but... it's a work in progress.

It's common for you to dynamic queue with your subscribers. Do you think that this is a good way to promote fan interaction for streamers?

Dekar: Good old Dynamic Queue Boosts! It's actually really helped for getting more viewers into my Discord and building a community there, so I suppose I'd say it's a good way to interact. It can also be stressful though, since I'm promising these people elo and sometimes... its more difficult than I anticipate it to be. It's interesting, and I like my subs so it's been fun enough. I'd still rather have old solo queue back, though.

What is your stance on the current state of dynamic queue for high elo, especially with the latest changes (limiting 1-3 queues; the auto-fill mechanism)?

Dekar: All I can say is... what was wrong with the old solo queue?! I've been adamantly against Riots decision making and lack of transparency lately... they are NOT going in the right direction for the longevity of this game. League's my favorite game out there, and how I make a living, so to say the least, it worries me. Until they finally realize they're not infallible, though, come get legally boosted on my stream!

Outside of League of Legends, what have you been up to?

Dekar: Too much heavy drinking, not enough exercise. I read a lot and hang out with my GF most days, or just bullshit around and watch various shows with my roommates. Generally though, League/the stream takes up the majority of my time. I don't mind that at all though, it's my dream job. I get tilted IRL when things like Comcast throttling or 6 hour power outages happen, though.

Do you have any big plans coming up that you want to discuss with fans?

Dekar: Just my guide!

Any last words for the Renglets?

Dekar: I'm sorry for playing so much Riven.

Thank you so much for reading & make sure to follow Dekar173 on all of his social media!

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