EU Promotion tournament blog and what to expect from each games

Game 1: Ninjas in Pyjamas vs. Millenium

This match can either be the closest out of the three games or the one with the biggest upset. Going into this series it’s important to know that both teams have had their struggles. NiP is known for choking on big LAN events and already had the huge upset in the last promotion tournament where they got 3-0’d by team ROCCAT. Ever since the roster change, NiP hasn’t really showed up big in really important matches and this is the final test where they can show that they are a team that deserves to be in LCS. Millenium on the other hand had a really rough season and swapped their veteran jungler Araneae out for Kottenx who has had a name in the scene for a while, but personally I’m not a 100% sold on the idea that he can perform under pressure. I have my concerns with Millenium putting up a good fight, but it’s a new patch and everything can happen; it’s a matter of who adapted the fastest.

Personally I can’t predict this series. NiP plays a very predictable style and this never changed over the past year. Having the typical 1-3-1 setup might be enough to claim victory against Mil since they haven’t had the best performance lately and went under roster changes recently. I have said multiple times in the past that tournaments are just a walk in the park for NiP, and then they choked, which is probably their biggest weakness. NiP is stacked with talent and they probably have some of the strongest solo laners available in EU right now, but they lack the strategic knowledge to close out games and personally I think that this series can go either way. I wouldn’t be surprised to see a 3-0 stomp in either direction or an extremely close 3-2 series for either of the teams.

Players to watch from MIL: Kerp and Creaton

Players to watch from NiP: nukeduck and Zorozero

Game 2: Supa Hot Crew vs. Cloud9 HyperX Eclipse

I think this series should slightly favor SHC. Talking about Supa Hot Crew, I think they have immense talent in their botlane and can rely on a solid top lane performance from Mimer. For me, it all depends on MrRallez showing up big and proving that he’s one of the best AD carries in Europe right now. I have a lot of respect for that guy and he was one of my go-to choices for a team that I considered before joining CLG.

Knowing that C9E won’t have their young talent, K0u, in the jungle is giving me a weird feeling. He has been a playmaking jungler with extreme early aggression that can either win the game within 5 minutes or throw it. I think that both solo lanes of C9E are incredibly strong as well for an amateur team. They have proven themselves to be highly mechanically skilled and worthy of their spot in LCS. They are also the winners of the Coke Zero League and won fairly convincingly against NiP in the finals. I watched some of their games and can say that they seem to be a really decent team from a strategic standpoint and have the right idea about the newest patch. It probably helps that they have Charlie as their analyst, who also helps out their NA counterpart C9 in the LCS.

I will think that this match might be a 3-2 for SHC but then again I have no idea what teams did on the 4.5 patch, how they practiced, and if they prioritized the right stuff. Knowing that they have a dedicated analyst, I assume that C9E should be fine but it definitely won’t be easy for them and they will have a really hard time getting into LCS without their jungler k0u.

Players to watch from SHC: MrRallez and Migxa

Players to watch from C9: Odoamne and Febiven

Game 3: Copenhagen Wolves vs. Denial eSports

I think Copenhagen Wolves proved themselves to be a really good LCS team last split and they definitely have two of the best players on two positions: AD carry (Forg1ven) and jungle (Amazing). I honestly don’t think that Denial eSports is experienced enough to even take a game off of the Copenhagen Wolves which will make this series a really fast 3-0 stomp. Even with a weak midlane performance from cowTard in the recent split, CW took games of the best teams in Europe because their jungler has proven to be very mechanically gifted and generally controls the flow of the game with ease. CW’s botlane is really really scary to play against. Forg1ven is probably the best laning AD carry in EU and if he gets his chance to play Lucian I can only feel sorry for Denial eSports because I think he will single-handedly carry the game in a one-on-five fashion.

Other than that there’s really nothing much to expect from this series other than a strong and dominant performance of CW to get back into LCS where they almost relegated Gambit in the playoffs.

Players to watch from CW: Amazing and Forg1ven

Players to watch from DNE: They are all equally balanced so I can’t recommend one.

No matter how good a team is looking in scrims or online tournament games it doesn’t matter the second you enter the stage. People get nervous and will make mistakes. Some people don’t really have any LAN experience at all or it might be their second time on stage. I’m sure that the most exciting game will be NiP vs Millenium from a viewer standpoint, simply because NiP has a team that represents 3 former Worlds players.