There has been no small shortage of excitement in the League of Legends world this summer. The competitive landscape has been overtaken by glossy marketing, stuffed venues, and eager hype-men crawling out of the woodwork to wow you with their narratives.



In Europe, Fnatic – carrying the banner of hope for the western world since the Mid-Season Invitational – took on Origen, a team built upon the original household names that made Fnatic the well-known entity today. In North America – a meeting of two teams integral to League’s early history: Counter Logic Gaming and Team SoloMid headlined a sold-out show at Madison Square Garden in New York City.



But those contrived narratives pale in comparison to that of SK Telecom T1 versus KT Rolster. Their rivalry spans more than a decade of esports, their clashes in League of Legends have marked the best series in the scene's competitive history, and their banner is one of proven dominance over all other regions to date.

Korean Days, We Used to Know, Where Have They Gone?

This wouldn't be 2015 Korea without wistful, sepia-tinged, and nostalgic glances back at days gone by. While SK Telecom T1 and KT Rolster meeting in the Champions Summer Final is occasion enough to raise your figurative glass to the glory of Korean League of Legends, their reunion will inevitably leave a bittersweet aftertaste. A lot has changed this year, and the international outlook is cautiously optimistic at best.



No sooner had Samsung Galaxy White lifted the 2014 Summoner's Cup than the lucrative offers began pouring in from various Chinese teams with deep pockets and championship dreams. Within Samsung alone, all ten players left, landing on one of the major Chinese organizations. A large amount of talent was suddenly gone from Korea, leaving a gaping hole that was slower to fill than it was to take from.



The Korean talent vacuum was exacerbated by massive changes to the regional competitive structure. Most notably, organizations were no longer allowed sister teams, or two teams under one managerial umbrella.



First put into practice by Maximum Impact Gaming's Coach Kang Hyun-jong, sister teams were a perfect League of Legends addition to Korea's touted esports infrastructure that had developed throughout the country's Starcraft: Brood War glory days. While comparing the overall difficulty of League to Brood War is akin to comparing a five year-old's finger painting with a trompe l'oeil masterpiece, League of Legends differs in one key aspect: corralling five players into working together. If accompanied by sufficient coaching staff and used well, sister teams allow for further development of specific strategies. More importantly, it provides a method for mining talent that focuses not only on one's solo queue ladder prowess, but how prodigious individuals work in a team environment or dynamic.



On the heels of MiG Frost and MiG Blaze's 2012 successes, other organizations in Korea followed suit. Sister teams became an integral part of Korea's rapid League of Legends growth. Samsung Galaxy White's 2014 World Championship win was a bittersweet conclusion to what a two-team system could do, as White was continuously pushed – and often bested – by their sister, Samsung Galaxy Blue, to become the top team in the world. Combined with the loss of top-tier talent, the destruction of this system left Korea reeling.



Thoroughly gutted and reorganized, Korea persevered, albeit without the depth shown in prior Champions seasons. Rebuilding takes time, and while the old system may have continued merrily along without much fuss following the so-called Korean Exodus, organizations adjusted to the new system while additionally training their new talent.

SK Telecom T1 K And the Faker Halo Effect

From the smoldering ashes of the 2014-15 Winter offseason rose SK Telecom T1. One of the few organizations that survived the exodus relatively unscathed, SKT T1 combined their prior rosters of S and K.



Unremarkable is perhaps the best adjective for the current SK Telecom T1 roster on paper, aside from their crown jewel – and best player in the history of League of Legends – Lee "Faker" Sang-hyeok. The move allowed for retroactive reassessment of SK Telecom T1 K's supporting cast. Were the individual pieces some of the best in their respective positions, or was it simply the 2013 World Championship talking?



By their competitive standards, SK Telecom T1 K struggled outside of their perfect Champions Winter 2013-14 run. Barely making it out of Group A in 2014 Champions Spring, T1 K's distinct downturn accompanied their lowest Champions finish to date: 5-8th place after a Quarterfinals loss to Samsung Galaxy Ozone. Many were quick to identify the loss of support Lee "PoohManDu" Jeong-hyeon as the cause for T1 K's Spring mediocrity, yet a side-by-side comparison with substitute support Kwon "Wraith" Ji-min reveals more than a simple difference in individual playstyle.



As previously mentioned, League of Legends is about a team of five, and how an organization can best allocate their in-game resources and adjust their strategy to suit the individuals they have on a team. It's also heavily-reliant on team chemistry, which was admittedly disrupted when PoohManDu left. SK Telecom T1 K in 2013 managed to evolve beyond their star player Faker – no small thanks due to their 2013 Spring Semifinals loss to MVP Ozone – and properly coordinate their efforts around him. However, as the meta shifted in 2014 along with PoohManDu's brief absence, T1 K struggled to adapt. Their team fighting, which had never been a true strength of T1 K, was further exposed by their opponents, both in smaller skirmishes and full 5v5 brawls. The team tried to fall back on poke and siege compositions with Faker on champions like Nidalee as opposed to the Season 3 assassins. Faker was impressive as ever, turning disadvantageous situations into surprising 1v1 kill trades, but was often unable to carry the team to victory.

SK Telecom T1 K's struggles with team chemistry were additionally accompanied by jungler Bae "bengi" Seong-ung's lack of jungle pressure. As the meta shifted, lane swaps and fast turret pushes were all the rage. Jungle follows became commonplace in order to keep top laners relevant, which shifted bengi's role on the team. Previously, bengi had excelled in carpeting opponents' jungles with deep wards, taking advantage of the information granted by such vision to get Faker ahead in the mid lane. Now a glorified babysitter for top laner Jung "Impact" Eon-yeong, bengi faltered and in many matchups was non-existent.



Like their sister team, T1 K, SK Telecom T1 S was also focused around their mid laner, although not purposefully. Initially designed around solo queue superstar Jang "MaRin" Gyeong-Hwan, the carrying duties soon fell to mid laner Lee "Easyhoon" Ji-Hoon thanks to MaRin's struggles and the meta. In spite of out-performing T1 K in both 2014 Champions Summer and the 2014 SK Telecom LTE-A Masters tournament, T1 S's reputation was that of a team who were more likely to put opponents and spectators to sleep than win.



The amalgamation of these two mid-centric teams has created an odd Frankenstein's monster: a T1 S with Faker and bengi, or sometimes just bengi. Amidst the SK Telecom T1 S crew and another meta shift, bengi has happily found a new home that is once again built on laying down deep vision to snowball his mid laner. If that mid laner is Faker, bengi will get him ahead. If that mid laner is Easyhoon, bengi will go elsewhere – usually top lane – while his mid farms safely until the time comes to take objectives.



For most, the Easyhoon versus Faker comparison ends quickly with one word: Faker.



Easyhoon is consistent and steady, but lacks Faker's calculation, outplay potential, and ability to singlehandedly turn a bad situation in his favor. Regardless of which mid laner plays, SK Telecom T1 is focused on funneling the vast majority of their resources to him, with Easyhoon actually edging out Faker at 25.8 percent of his team's gold earned as opposed to 25.3 percent. The only argument for Easyhoon is a dubious but interesting one: team fighting. Although SK Telecom T1 has never been widely regarded for their 5v5 team fights, Easyhoon's positioning and zoning on control mages like Azir, Cassiopeia, and Ziggs guides SKT T1 through larger fights with ease, making MaRin's job easier while allowing Bae "Bang" Jun-sik to fire away on the backline.



Throughout the Spring season, SK Telecom T1 purposefully rotated their mid laners every other game. This led to a playoff run underscored by how many times their star player, Faker, remained seated on the bench. Their loss to Edward Gaming at the Mid-Season Invitational appeared to shut down what few advantages – flexibility in drafting, unpredictability, varying playstyles – a rotating roster provided in favor of a more cohesive unit of five. SK Telecom T1 seemingly took this to heart, and used Easyhoon much more sparingly in Champions Summer. The result is a cleaner SK Telecom T1 for which the 2015 Champions Summer Final is simply another conquest en route to another international title.

The Curious Case of the KT Jungle

He was nicknamed "The Immortal," a paragon of defensive backline positioning with a team audacious enough to draw pressure elsewhere, away from him. Go "Score" Dong-bin always stayed safe in lane alongside his support, Won "Mafa" Sang-yeon until the time came to fight or tear down structures. His penchant for living often drew criticism for being too safe, not outputting as much damage as possible. However, the KT Rolster Bullets were above all a team effort, and Score's team earned the AD carry his nickname as much as his playstyle did.



Jungle, Score said, was a role that he'd always wanted to try, but KT Rolster had not had a vacancy for him with the likes of Choi "inSec" In-seok and Lee "KaKAO" Byung-kwon occupying the position. Score finally received a chance to try his luck in the jungle during the 2015 Champions Spring Preseason.



His first jungle game was against SK Telecom T1, KT's aforementioned esports rival extending far beyond the reach of League of Legends. Score locked in Rengar, forgot to purchase Bonetooth Necklace, and still managed to lead his team to victory. In spite of a loss in the second game of the set, Score also looked surprisingly comfortable on Lee Sin. Most notably, he was incredibly aggressive, especially considering his AD carry legacy of playing it safe.



The 2015 KT Rolster is an interesting and often unwieldy beast, with the newly assertive Score in the jungle attempting to guide the team. Unfortunately, while his lengthy in-game experience lends itself to strong game and strategic knowledge, Score's individual prowess in the jungle reveals a lack of deep understanding of the position.



This was disastrous for KT Rolster throughout much of Champions Spring 2015, with Ha "Hachani" Seung-chan an inadequate partner for the green jungler. Continuously caught out while warding or roaming, Hachani was a liability for the entire team, and his fondness for dying exacerbated another KT problem: losing lanes. No "Arrow" Dong-hyeon struggled in lane, often falling 30-50 CS behind opposing AD carries. Mid laner Kim "Nagne" Sang-moon's steady and safe playstyle seemed at odds with the rest of KT, and it took a long time for him to gel in team fights. Ssumday erred on the side of daring and often paid the price with his life.



With so many holes in the KT Rolster laning phase, Score was left without opportunities to showcase his audacious jungle playstyle. He additionally lacked the wherewithal to stem the bleeding, and without a reliable support partner, Score and KT Rolster struggled mightily.



Help arrived for the second half of the Spring split in the form of Jung 'Fixer" Jae-woo. An impressive Thresh player, Fixer shored up Score's weaknesses in vision control and pathing by sharing the burden. He kept Arrow safe and, unlike Hachani, wasn't a liability in or out of lane. Unfortunately out of playoff contention, KT used the remainder of 2015 Champions Spring to test compositions and stretch their creative muscles.



The Fixer honeymoon period lasted into the early Summer season. KT Rolster continued to improve before plateauing mid-season. Score's pathing became better, but he often responded to situations too late, and his vision control was still lacking compared to other, more experienced junglers. Unable to consistently dictate the pace of KT's games, Score and KT looked shaky mid-season.



Week 7 of 2015 Champions Summer, former SK Telecom T1 support Lee "Piccaboo" Jong-Beom started over Fixer, and a new honeymoon phase began for KT Rolster.

Previously of Chunnam Techno University and the same Xenics Storm team as KT Rolster AD carry Arrow, Piccaboo was widely regarded as one of the best up and coming support talents. He left SK Telecom T1 earlier this year due to a wrist injury, and signed with KT Rolster mid Summer Season. Starting for the team two weeks later, Piccaboo was everything that Score needed.



The addition of Fixer significantly improved KT's Spring performance, but Piccaboo's Summer presence had a similar effect on the team and pushed KT Rolster to new heights.



Score and Piccaboo have become one of the most fearsome jungle-support pairings in Korea. Piccaboo covers up Score's deficiencies while providing a stronger vision net for the team. He's also able to harass the KT jungler's opponents in their own territory so Score can farm more freely or gank lanes earlier.



The Piccaboo effect has also benefited KT Rolster across all lanes now that KT's formidable early pressure facilitates top laner Kim "Ssumday" Chan-ho's ability to hard carry the team. Ssumday takes the slightest lead and turns it into a significant CS advantage, additionally often soloing his opponents at timely intervals to widen the gap. The KT top laner now sits atop both the Champions KDA standings and the MVP standings well on his way to a banner year.



Where Nagne struggled to find synergy with the team in Spring, he has evolved into a more efficient mid laner who uses cooldowns effectively and skirmishes well. With Ssumday drawing enemy attention top, and Piccaboo aiding Score in keeping opposing junglers down, Score is also able to give Nagne more resources. Nagne now fills a similar role to what KT Arrows former mid laner Song "RooKie" Eui-jin currently does for Invictus Gaming, able to farm safely until needed in skirmishes or teamfights.



Meanwhile, reunited with Arrow, Piccaboo is able to keep his former Xenics AD carry safe through vision and jungle pressure. Everything goes through the KT jungle, and with Score and Piccaboo controlling the tempo, KT's individual players are all the better for it.



As an organization, KT Rolster teams have always lived and died in by their jungle. KaKAO and inSec became household names among League of Legends fans when Score was still an immortal AD carry. Now in the same position, Score is hardly at the level of his ex-KT counterparts, but has Piccaboo, who acts as a secondary jungler.



This iteration of KT Rolster is still far more 2014 Arrows than they are 2013 Bullets. While Score is creative, his weaknesses are still exploited by more experienced junglers, even with Piccaboo covering for him. Adept at building early leads, KT often concedes objectives due to overly aggressive dives or poor mid and late game decision making. They are impatient and sometimes reckless.



At their best, KT annihilates their competition, thanks to the early advantages that Score and Piccaboo provide. At their worst, KT hands their opponents victories on a silver platter due to their inability to close out even the largest of leads. No longer immortal nor safe, Score is still not on par with his predecessors; however, with help from Piccaboo, KT can still create stifling jungle pressure that could finally lead the organization to victory over their telecom rivals. That is, if they don't throw their early lead away.

Reigniting the Telecom War

For most League of Legends fans, mention of the 2013 Champions Summer Final conjures up images of Faker's brilliant 1v1 Zed duel against Ryu "Ryu" Sang-ook in Game 5. However, the entire series is a story – that play only a single chapter of the larger narrative. Not only the best League of Legends series of 2013, that Summer Final between SK Telecom T1 2 (later called K) and KT Rolster Bullets is the best series of all time. In no other match have two teams pushed each other to the same heights of both in-game innovation and miraculous individual play.



It's fitting that SK Telecom T1 and KT Rolster would both be a part of League of Legends' best series to date, as their rivalry extends far beyond this one game and is entrenched in Korean esports as a whole. Following the downfall of Brood War, the atmosphere in Korea – and infrastructure – was primed for a new esport and League of Legends fit the bill. Both organizations contributed to its rise in Korea and internationally.



Now they meet again in a Champions Summer Final not as up-and-coming teams who are shoo-ins for the 2015 World Championship, but as seasoned competitors made of players who were either unwanted or unable to be courted by Chinese organizations. While SK Telecom T1 has already secured a place at Worlds, this Final is KT's most simple route. Lose to SKT T1, and KT suddenly finds themselves back in the Korean Regional gauntlet where they have failed to qualify from for the past two years.



More than this, there is regional pride and that same banner of esports dominance fluttering in the Seoul breeze. Popular opinion states that Korea's days as the strongest League of Legends powerhouse may be numbered. This final could prove otherwise.