Meet Your Makers vs. Copenhagen Wolves

The closest thing to a clear call is undoubtedly the final game. Copenhagen Wolves were the kings of the European Amateur scene in Season 3, taking three out of four major amateur LANs during their run with Shook and Rekkles. When Rekkles returned to Fnatic and Shook prepared for his trip to Alliance, many fans thought perhaps it was the end for YoungBuck, cowTard and Unlimited, but they couldn’t have been more wrong. Amazing and Forg1ven joined and the domination continued, including a clear 2-0 victory over Ninjas in Pyjamas and a flawless 5-0 in the promotional qualifiers. Compare this to Meet Your Makers who have floundered since their entry into the LCS. After a 4-1 opening week, they ended up 8-20 and have not placed in any of the amateur tournaments since then. While we’ve been surprised by mYm before, the momentum is clearly on Copenhagen Wolves side and they weren’t picked by NiP and SK for a reason. The skill is there, the teamwork, and the consistency are all there for Wolves more than any other amateur team. This is Wolves’ game to lose.

SK Gaming vs. Supa Hot Crew XD

The new SK Gaming are one of the most intriguing enigmas to hit the European scene in a while. The second most intriguing enigma is Supa Hot Crew XD. The new SK has ignited Nyph and created a monster support that dwarves even his S1 fame. While fredy122 and Jesiz are question marks, they’ve swept weaker opposition aside. If we see Svenskeren play like he did in the Spring Split and their recent amateur games, we’ll have a strong and highly motivated team. SK Gaming have been all over the amateur scene, sometimes simply crushing their opponents (take their recent 3-0ing of TheRed) and other times looking a bit iffy. Their only major losses recently have all come from Copenhagen Wolves in games where they haven’t looked convincing. On the other hand, Supa Hot Crew XD have been a surprise to many who haven’t followed the scene closely. The only recognizable name on the current roster for many is Mimer, who left a lot to be desired during his time on the shaky NiP roster of the Summer Split and had only just joined SHC before their promotion games. Aside from that, they have a former SK sub (fredy and Svenskeren in turn left SHC for SK), a former Millenium player, and the former botlane of Eternity Gaming. Adding to all that uncertainty, their jungler k0u is too young to join the LCS, so they are currently using Impaler from Dignitas UK as a substitute. And yet, a good chunk of their success in the promotion series is actually coming from Impaler making plays in the early game! When all these facts are considered, it’s mind-blowing to comprehend quite how Supa Hot Crew are doing so well. They have no sponsor, they barely have a stable squad, and, as far as we know, they’re playing with a substitute. We can only imagine what the hell we’re going to see here, but just for the sheer possibility of how ridiculous this match could be, it’s definitely a must-watch.

Ninjas in Pyjamas vs. Kiedys Mialem Team

If there’s a word to describe the current NiP team, it’s “Lemony.” Only Freeze returns to join a team that is now 3 former members of Lemondogs and Hyrqbot. Zorozero was a strong and solid top lane and Mithy helped Lemondogs as their shot-caller and team leader, but after game 1 at worlds, the team of Lemondogs looked different. Nukeduck did not play to his usual standard and the team made mistakes completely uncharacteristic of their normal selves. We saw incredible potential, but it burnt up like magnesium before our eyes. NiP before that were the same, with the sole returning member, Freeze, never living up to his own hype. The new addition of Hyrqbot doesn’t look too set to change the world and so, once again, we’re left with an incredible amount of potential. The problem is, potential doesn’t mean anything if it isn’t realised. The last time we saw NiP they lost to a comfortable looking Copenhagen Wolves. On the other hand, Kiedys Mialem Team have been quietly beavering away in the amateur scene, scoring two second place spots in major amateur LANs. While here second place wouldn’t be enough, a step up from KTM and a step down from NiP could easily lead to a promotion for the Poles. It could just as easily be the most one-sided match of the day. It would also be remiss of us not to mention that NiP chose KTM over the other teams in their matchup picking. We’ll have to see if NiP are ready to assassinate their opponents, or were simply preparing for a sleepover.

The sun hangs in the sky. High noon.* Two regions face off in the center of the dusty town, each yearning after the title: the Best of the West. The LCS's Western Showdown may not have stakes like the All-Star Matches, but the competition is essential nonetheless. In this show match tournament, the top five LCS teams of Season 3 from EU and NA battle their opposite numbers to see on which side of the ocean the most skill lies. Each match has a point value (the number next to the match), and whichever region takes home the most points at the end of the tournament (including next weekend's matches) will prove that they are the strongest going into the 2014 Season. After SKT T1's immaculate World Championship run, the Best of the West is more than just a title: it's an indication of which region will have the best shot at challenging their eastern competition in the coming year.

* EST

Dignitas v. Alliance - 1

The battle between the fourth place finishers is one that might confuse a casual LCS viewer. While NA's Dignitas is a long-standing fixture in professional League of Legends, Alliance is a new name in the LoL scene. Fans of other esports, however, will recognize this new handle as the same one backing Starcraft 2's Swedish superstar Naniwa and the squad that took the crown at The International 3, Dota 2's premiere event. On the other hand, much of Alliance's League team are familiar faces, including former EG members Wickd and Froggen and Lemondog's Season 3 marksman, Tabzz. Joining these three LCS veterans are Shook, the former jungler of the Copenhagen Wolves, and Kazmitch, a highly-ranked Czech player who is subbing in the support slot for the Battle of the Atlantic. Their spot for the Battle of the Atlantic was once occupied by Evil Geniuses, but with the majority of the EG roster transitioning to the NA LCS, Alliance (also owned by EG's Alex Garfield) moved into that fourth position. They’re a wholly new team though, and it would be surprising if they are in top form for this match. Only Wickd and Froggen have played together professionally prior to this match, and it's unlikely that the lineup's teamwork will be perfect with only a month and a half of off-season time together. However, they are not the only reformed roster in this match. Dignitas' lineup also changed after Season 3 came to close, starting with the induction of Cruzerthebruzer to the team in the solo Top position. Cruzer is a familiar face in the NA scene, but not a stable one: he's moved between five different teams since 2012, including Team Marn, the Azure Cats and Team LoLPro. Team Dignitas is the first major NA team to recruit him and his debut will be on a large stage. His predecessor, KiWiKiD, will be subbing for the team from now on and will fill in for the missing patoy. Dignitas' missing support is sure to be a thorn in their side; it will be difficult for imaqtpie to duo lane as effectively with KiWiKiD as he would with his longtime partner. Furthermore, Cruzer will have his work cut out for him against one of EU's best top laners, adding to the pressure of his first outing for Dignitas. This match is full of unknowns, so predictions will be difficult, but it's hard to imagine Alliance's roster falling to Dignitas. While members of all teams have had professional challenges, Dignitas' penchant for throwing (particularly when the stakes are high) makes it hard to have confidence in them. If the name Alliance means in LoL what it means in other esports, this battle is likely to be their first victory of many.

TSM v. Lemondogs - 2

Change is the keyword for the matchup between the second place finishers in the Battle of the Atlantic. On one hand, there's TSM, one of the oldest teams in League of Legends with one of the most stable lineups, particularly during this preseason roster flipping frenzy. Only one of TSM's positions changed between the Season 3 finals and this first premiere event: the mid lane, where Bjergsen, formerly of Ninjas in Pyjamas, steps in to replace team captain and original TSM member, Reginald. While many teams' rosters rotated and shifted far more than this in the past few weeks, there are few changes to the NA scene as impactful as this one. Reginald acted as TSM's shotcaller and leader through his many years of playing with the team, and is, in many ways, responsible for the strategic choices that have made TSM the most consistent team in North America throughout LoL's history. Bjergsen, while perhaps a mechanically superior player, is unlikely to bring the same aggressive and decisive playmaking to TSM. Even though fans will chant the same acronym as they always have and for many of the same players, the single roster position change makes TSM an almost entirely new team. Amusingly enough, they face an entirely new team in Lemondogs' completely revamped lineup. Despite the Lemondogs' impressive season and their decent showing at Worlds, the entirety of their roster left the team to pursue other goals, leaving the Lemondogs' management with one LCS slot and no LCS players. Lucky for them there's no shortage of strong players looking to pursue a career in professional esports. The two biggest names in the new Lemondogs are ShLaYa and ImSoFresh, the former mid and jungle for Millenium and Eclypsia before that. Neither player is new to the stage, yet neither have they encountered a stage as large as that of the LCS thus far in their careers. The other members of the roster, Myw, Crazycaps, and Zeriouz, are even less experienced with professional play. Crazycaps and Zeriouz both played briefly for amateur squad The Fox Sound (who qualified for, but couldn’t play in, promotions due to availability problems), while Myw is just a Challenger-level top laner from EUW. It's impossible to say how the new Lemondogs will play in their first competitive outing, but calling them anything other than incredible underdogs would be disingenuous. Even after swapping out Reginald, the solid core of TSM still sits in the booth and they have Bjergsen's powerful mid lane play to make up for any deficiencies left in the retired owner's wake. As history has shown time and time again, putting a new team against TSM is a donation to TSM's collection of trophies. This game is absolutely TSM's to lose, unless Lemondogs' new blood performs a miracle.