Chapter 277-God-level flanking, great advantage at the start!

10 month 7 number.

It has been three days since IG's last game.

At the same time, the first day of the second round of the 2016 World Finals group stage begins today!
Early in the morning, everyone on IG got up early, washed, and then took a bus to the Bill Graham Auditorium.

There is no accompaniment from EDG and RNG this time, because today is the special show for Group A and it is also a personal show belonging to IG alone.

As the most watched team in the world, it would be a lie for IG to say they are not nervous.

Moreover, their schedule today is very tight, with three games in one day, and they also have to determine the qualifying and elimination spots today.

It can be said to be tense and exciting, with no desire to relax at all.

In this quiet environment, you can observe scenes that you could not see before.

For example, at this moment, on the way to the competition venue, seeing those enthusiastic fans holding IG support items, undoubtedly gave all IG members more confidence and belief that they would win the game.

As we were almost at the venue, the atmosphere in the car gradually recovered and everyone was making adjustments before the fight.

"We will strive to qualify as the first in the group. There is no pressure, so just relax."

"There are so many people watching today. Let's set an example for EDG and RNG. Just charge and it's done!"

"Last year, we defeated KT and made it to the round of 16. I wonder if we can also defeat Samsung in the round of 16 today."

Jack finished speaking, and everyone else cheered up.

"It would be great if we could break their mentality, but Samsung adjusted very quickly. Their coaching staff is quite good."

Yuan Shen touched his chin and thought.

It is still difficult to stop Samsung in the round of 16, but it is not impossible.

Last year, if KT hadn't met KOO, they would have been basically sure to make it to the top four.

It would be difficult to just rely on ANX or H2K to beat SSG.

After the first round of the group stage, ANX's assets were basically destroyed.

At 11 o'clock, they arrived at the venue, and as usual, all the IG members did not eat.

Started studying the tactical arrangements and today's three opponents in the backstage lounge.

As time passed, Wawa Miller and other LPL staff in front of and behind the scenes came to watch IG and cheer them on.

The venue opened at 2 p.m., and the huge Bill Graham Auditorium was instantly filled.

The large square outside the venue was also packed with people.

All major live broadcast rooms around the world are connected, showing highlights of the major teams in the past two weeks, as well as personal interviews with players, fan support, etc.
At the same time, the number of spectators was increasing at a terrifying rate. By 2:30, it had broken the record of the group stage and reached a new peak.

Everyone on IG could hear the noise and cheers in the venue from the backstage.

The director notified everyone to go backstage to prepare for the opening match.

The first game of the day is the battle between IG and SSG.

As long as IG can beat SSG, they will basically secure first place in the group.

Even if they lose to ANX, it will be difficult for ANX to win three games in a row.

What's more, losing to ANX...

The chances are really too low.

almost negligible.

"IG!!IG!!"

When the IG members came out, the audience cheered.

"We can see that everyone is very relaxed. It seems like we have a sure win today."

"Yes, IG's mentality should be adjusted very well. At this point, mentality is also a very important factor affecting performance."

"In this game, IG is on the blue side and Samsung is on the red side, which is also a test for us."

"That's right, but IG is not at a disadvantage. The opponent has too many points to target them, such as climbing combinations, fast push systems, Lucian, and EZ."

As soon as Wawa finished speaking, the director immediately switched to the BP interface.

As soon as they came on, IG banned Miss Fortune, Varus and An's Lee Sin.

SSG banned EZ, Taliyah and Graves.

The bans of both sides were very targeted, but the LPL commentator was a little surprised to see IG's ban.

"The Gragas is out! Master An used this hero twice in the first round of the group stage. Although he had one win and one loss, his early game rhythm was almost perfect. This is one of his signature skills."

"Yes, it seems that IG has a way to deal with it. Lucian can also be used in this game, but I don't know whether it will be the top or mid laner."

After Wawa and Miller finished talking, IG first-hand gave them a big surprise.

"Grand Barrel?? No... if we have Kindred and Spider, should we choose Gragas?"

Immediately afterwards, the scene seemed to explode, with crazy screams one after another.

“Happy hour is about to begin!”

Barrel - Gragas!
"It seems that Yuan Shen rarely plays Gragas. Excavator appears more often than Gragas."

"This……"

"Teach you how to play barrel? Teaching Bureau?"

The Barrel can be regarded as a trump card in Master An's hand and also his most confident hero.

In the three group stage games, Master An used Prince in one game and Gragas in two games.

Yuan Shen uses more heroes.

Prince, EZ, Jayce...

Yuan Shen didn’t play the hero Gragas much, either in this World Championship or in the LPL League.

"You really chose it! You must have practiced it, otherwise you wouldn't have taken it out at such a critical moment."

"IG picked Gragas, and if we have three stars here... Rat and Tamer? With Ezreal, Caitlyn, and Varus banned, it seems that there aren't many heroes that Shakudi can play."

"Rat plus Tam, this is too stable, I feel it is not as reliable as Kog'Maw plus Lulu."

"It's destined to be a late game. The formation of rats is a bit too slow in this version."

Compared to SSG's procrastination, IG is much more straightforward.

For the second and third heroes, I directly locked on the combination of Ashe and Braum.

Freljord Polar Combo!
And Samsung also got its third hero.

Prince.

A very solid choice.

As a version hero, although the appearance rate of Prince in the S6 World Championship is not as high as Lee Sin, Nidalee and Spider, it is similar to that of Graves.

It’s just that when you choose a hero like Prince, the playing style will be slightly different.

This hero can be both a damage dealer and a tank in the early and middle stages. For Master An, the Prince is a heavy tank and a ruthless team-fighting machine.

In the fourth hand, SSG hesitated for a long time and finally decided to leave a counter position for the middle lane and chose Maokai, a versatile hero, for the top lane.

IG chose Gnar.

The last move is to draw the sword!

The Fairy Trickster——LeBlanc!

"I chose it! Rookie's signature LeBlanc!! The man who owns the champion skin of LeBlanc!"

"Right. Rookie played Crocodile, Pantheon, Lucian, and Kled too many times before, which made people forget about his main heroes. Rookie's most signature heroes are still traditional mages and assassins!!"

SSG hesitated for a long time and chose Malzahar between Viktor and Malzahar.

Although Viktor is Crown's signature, playing against Rookie is too stressful.

Heroes like Malzahar are able to withstand pressure.

The lineups of both sides were selected, and finally when they exchanged positions, the lineups of both sides were revealed to the audience.

“IG Blue Side:
Top laner TheShy: Lost Fang - Gnar
Jungler Yuanshen: Barrel-Gragas
Mid laner Rookie: LeBlanc

Bottom lane JackeyLove: Ice Archer - Ashe
Support Name: Heart of Freljord - Braum
SSG Red Side:
CuVee Top Lane: Maokai
Jungle Ambition: Jarvan IV, Prince of Demacia
Mid Crown: Void Prophet - Malzahar
Bottom Lane Ruler: Plague Source - Twitch
Support CoreJJ: River Lord - Tam. "

"The lineups of both teams are very clear. IG has changed their thinking. Although they are good at fighting in the lane, they are also not weak in teamfights."

"That's right. Both the top and jungle heroes can force the start. It's clear that they want to put enough pressure on SSG in the early stages. Coupled with the bottom lane combination, level 6 is the starting point of IG's lineup."

Wawa and Miller commented that compared to the IG lineup, Samsung is much more stable.

They brought out a combination of Treant, Jamal, Zahar, and Rat Tam. There isn't much they can do in the early and mid-game, but they are very good at protection and defensive counterattacks.

"Samsung is going to drag the game to the later stages. Once this lineup is dragged to 35 minutes, Samsung will enter its strong period."

“Almost no team would play like this now…”

Miller was speechless.

Samsung's style is completely different from that of other teams.

In other words, the S6 version is not suitable for Samsung.

If Samsung hadn't encountered weak teams along the way, it would be hard to say whether it could have made it to the finals.

As for the 3-2 tie with SKT...

Perhaps it's the power of blood at work.

The game screen was loaded and cheers for IG could be heard from the crowd.

The sound lingered for a long time, but instead became louder and louder.

Several commentators standing on the commentary desk also felt a little emotional at this time.

"This is still in North America. If the World Championships were held in China, IG's popularity would probably reach even higher heights!"

Everyone thinks this in their hearts.

At the same time, the barrage of comments in all major live broadcast rooms was filled with the words "Go IG!", which instantly blocked the screen and made the picture almost invisible.

"Go, go, go!"

IG's lineup for the first level group is very good, with Ashe and Leblanc, as well as Braum, who is known as the king of the first level group, plus Gnar and Gragas, their combat effectiveness at the first level is very strong.

Following Braum, the IG team gathered and rushed directly into the lower zone of An Zhangmen, trying to invade and counter-jungle.

However, Samsung seemed to have been prepared for IG's attack.

The most terrifying thing about this team is not the operation, but the awareness and teamwork, including vision. These aspects are the basis for Samsung to gain a foothold in LCK and even the world championship.

After the ten Samsung executives left, Samsung became a completely operational team.

They are the best operational team in the world and also the best at defensive counterattacks.

"IG's moves seem like they're going to run into SSG!"

The doll lowered her voice.

"We have the advantage in the level one fight, but Samsung seems to be on guard as well, so we probably won't be able to fight."

During the game, the IG team had already arrived at the lower half of the area in advance.

But what was strange was that they did not rush in first.

Gragas walked in the front and went in alone from the middle river and the entrance to the wild area next to the dragon pit.

Then he followed closely and slowly circled to the location of the stone beetle. The whole process was silent and no one noticed it at all.

"No... Isn't Yuan Shen's position too risky? It will be a disaster if he is discovered! The position is too deep, and he can't escape even if he wants to!"

The entire audience was stunned when they saw this scene.

Opening lightning strike!
"No, SSG didn't notice this time. Gragas is too brave."

During the game, SSG stood together in the grass behind the red buff pit, waiting for the enemy to invade.

Their attention was completely focused on the IG four-member team in the middle of the river.

As for the barrel that had never appeared, they thought he was crouching in the bushes or in the shadows in the rear view.

No one expected that Jiutong would actually sneak up behind them alone.

"Ultimate flank, the other IG players haven't shown up yet, this wave has blind vision, can Gragas flank? SSG... eh?? CoreJJ got through!!"

Wawa was just getting excited. Since the Gragas was not discovered behind them, they could take the opponent by surprise in the first-level team fight. Then, with the cooperation of the IG players in front, IG, which was already strong in the early stage, would definitely win!

But before he could finish his words, he saw Tam at the end of a group of people lined up in a row. He subconsciously turned around and saw a yellow eye inserted through the wall at the position of the stone beetle.

This is the position where the barrel was just now!
But at this moment, after placing this ward, Gragas had already circled to the other side of the wall and was only a corner away from Tam!

The two men were almost face to face, but the barrel was not seen!
"Ouch! Did CoreJJ notice this ward position? Samsung's overall awareness is too strong. Do they need to insert it?"

"No! No one saw it! Wow, what a great show by Yuan Shen! He just moved back and was just out of CoreJJ's sight. What's going on? Are both sides starting this?" Wawa's emotions were fluctuating and he was completely confused. The same was true for the others. When this scene happened at this moment, everyone felt their heartbeat quicken.

"Master Yuan is so brave! But it looks like this wave of Gragas will succeed! He went around the opponent's field of vision and the opponent just didn't notice it."

"I feel like Yuan Shen's consciousness is really terrifying! Samsung didn't notice him the whole time!"

"And... and Xiao Ming is signaling. IG has guessed the location of the SSG members! Here they come, Gragas is coming!"

In the game, Yuan Shen had already circled around to the bushes opposite the red buff, and with his vision blocked, he had very effectively come to the red buff pit, behind the five SSG players.

"Alone and behind, this time Yuan Shen approached Sanxing without anyone noticing, and he was still not discovered!"

The scene was completely boiling.

"Yuan Shen is trying too hard! He did this at level 1. If he fails, his early game rhythm will be gone and he will start at a disadvantage. He didn't notice the three stars this time, and Gragas is already very close to the three stars. What does IG say? Should we open it?

"You should give Gragas vision. If you don't, you won't be able to stun many people even if you use E!"

During the game, the Samsung players were wandering around the bushes behind the red buff pit and the entrance to the jungle area, waiting to be harassed by IG and others.

And Gragas’ current position is only separated from the Samsung team by a wall!
Seeing this scene, everyone's heart was lifted.

"Can you give us vision? It should be okay for Gragas to place a ward now, but it might also allow Samsung's players to react... but if we don't place a ward, there will be no vision. Let's see what IG decides..."

In the game, at this tense moment, there was no vision in front of the Barrel, because Samsung had left the red buff pit. On the other side, the IG people had been crouching outside the jungle wall. They were discussing whether to move over to give the Barrel vision. Although this would make the Samsung people alert and keep their distance, it would also have some effect.

But at this moment, Yuan Shen took action directly!

A blind vision E skill goes through the wall!
On the other side, Samsung's AD and support, including Malzahar, were leaning against the wall.

The prince was not far away from the crowd.

Gragas didn't even use E flash. Relying on this predictive E with completely blind vision, he instantly knocked all four three-star players unconscious on the spot!

The scene was shocking and everyone was stunned for a moment!

"Oh my god! This wave of wine barrels knocked out four people!"

"IG is up! Braum Q'd Twitch, Samsung is going to explode!!"

"This wave of spiritual power has done a great job behind the scenes!!"

The mouse's health line was the first to reach the bottom, and at this time the control on him was finally over. He quickly used a DF combo and used both skills to escape.

Among the others, the Prince was beaten by Han Bing and the IG team, leaving only half of his health left, and he was at the front of the crowd, so if he walked back by himself, he would definitely be dead.

Sect Leader An also left without hesitation.

IG was indeed too strong in the first-level group fight. Three of the four three-star heroes were strong in the mid-to-late stages. Moreover, with the rat leaving first, there was no way they could fight against IG with all their members at full health!

Twitch used both skills to escape, and Prince used Flash. Only Tam and Malzahar were left on the Samsung side. The two had no way to deal with the five IG players who were as fierce as wolves and tigers, and could only retreat again and again. Finally, Tam also used his Flash, learned W to swallow Malzahar through the wall, and escaped madly.

But at this moment, RooKie suddenly flashed and used W to step over, relying on his weak vision just now and pure consciousness to kill the rat who was secretly returning to the city nearby.

"IG-Rookie (Leblanc) killed SSG-Ruler (Plague)!!!"

"First Blood!"

first drop of blood!

IG got first blood!

From the beginning to the end, Gragas was just attacking and his health was only half left.

As this level 1 team fight ended, the scene instantly became boiling!
"IG played so beautifully this time!" When Wawa saw IG's level one team fight end in such a crushing manner, he jumped up!

"This Gragas has done a great job! This time, Yuan Shen used his E skill to blind the vision and directly E-ed four people from Samsung. Samsung was collectively confused and didn't understand what was going on, and they were all defeated!"

"Samsung is confused. Really confused. Why did this barrel appear in our rear area? How did he suddenly appear? Did he suddenly appear out of nowhere?"

"It's amazing, this Gragas blocked the vision and used E to hit four people, wow!! This is IG, no matter what time it is, IG has never let us down!!"

"Ahhhhh!!"

“IG!! IG is awesome!!”

"IG come on!!"

"This barrel is so outrageous, it's going around half the map?"

The audience went completely crazy at this moment
We'll attack you right from the start. IG's recklessness and crazy attack are no joke!
"Rookie was also very decisive. He flashed and used W to get the kill! IG made a lot of money in this level 1 team fight!" Wawa said excitedly.

"It's definitely a big win. Samsung used three flashes. If a jungler like Prince didn't have flash in the early game, IG would have an easier time on the laning line. It's very likely that Master An's rhythm would be seriously delayed because of this flash! And there's also the duo in the bottom lane. Rat lost both of his skills, and the guy died too. This is really a big deal! Gragas' E is a devastating move! It directly ruined Samsung's early game rhythm!"

"And Rookie got the kill, Crown had a hard time in the early game!"

In the game, at the end of this level 1 fight, IG got three flashes, a healer, and the first blood of the rat!
Just because of Gragas' E skill, it's a huge profit!
The kind that makes a lot of money!
"Wow, Brother Yuan, you are too awesome, aren't you? Why did you just go up there? I told you to go up there and give me some vision."

Everyone in the IG team was in high spirits and extremely excited.

Xiao Ming, in particular, was extremely excited.

Just now, when Gragas used his E, he didn't even discuss it with them, he just went straight for it!
If he wasn't young, he really wouldn't be able to react.

"I'll give it a try. Several Samsung players have been in that position the whole time. I could at least hit one or two with E, so that I could at least force them to use some skills. I didn't expect the opponents to stand so close together..." Yuan Shen himself was also confused. He knew that this wave would succeed, but he didn't expect to gain such a big advantage.

The most important thing is that if you don’t open it, you will miss the refresh of wild monsters when you return to the city.

"strong."

As the teammates were talking, replays were played off the court.

In this wave of replays, we actually followed Gragas throughout the whole process. Gragas blocked vision several times, including the last blind vision E. The director deliberately gave a personal shot to Yuan Shen.

Billions of viewers around the world looked at the dark fog of war in front of the Barrel, and then after E passed, the four Samsung players stood up collectively in an instant.

All I can say is, awesome!
"So cool, this wave of Gragas is so cool, I didn't expect that he could E four."

"Sometimes luck is also a part of strength, and I don't think this is necessarily luck. The IG people here have already gone home. We are comfortable this time out!"

"It's much easier to play online!" Miller said with a smile.

"Yes, and the prince must now consider the movements of this barrel. If he doesn't flash, the barrel will probably go looking for him!"

in the game.

Gragas went home to recover his condition, and then went straight to the lower jungle area to get blue buff.

After getting the blue buff, he went to the Toad as usual, and finally got the red buff. At this time, he was already level three.

At this time, the laning situation in each lane and the impact of the first-level group fight have already produced a butterfly effect.

In all lanes of IG, except for the bottom lane where there is less pressure, there are some advantages in the middle and top lanes. The top lane is okay, but the advantage in the middle lane is visible to the naked eye.

Rookie almost pushed Crown back home. In this game, he was in great shape from the beginning, and it was obvious that he really wanted to win the game.

The opposing prince did not do anything during this period because he had no flash. In addition, knowing Yuan Shen's strength, Sect Leader An played more conservatively.

It was not until this moment that he made any new moves.

Go straight up the road.

On the top lane, the confrontation between the two sides was also quite entertaining, with the two sides going back and forth and it was very tense.

Gnar has been suppressing the Trident a little bit, which is the advantage of long arms. Similarly, the opposing CuVee is not weak, and the Trident is even stronger in this version, so it seems that he only suppressed it by a few hits.

But Theshy's playing style is very aggressive, so it feels easy to catch.

"Master An... the prince has moved! Master An can't bear it anymore, he must move, otherwise the pressure on all lines will be too great!"

"Yes, Gnar is a bit dangerous here. Theshy is pushing too far forward. Did you realize that? No. IG didn't even place wards on the top lane. This... isn't right!"

Miller looked at the map and was stunned: "Hey, the barrel is also nearby, has Yuan Shen realized it?

During the game, Gragas didn't even take the river crab, and rushed straight to the top lane without hesitation!
Because he was walking in his own jungle, Gragas was not seen when he went to the top lane.

At this moment, the two people in the top lane were in the middle of the river, facing the line steadily, and the Barrel deliberately created a vision, then walked from behind the first tower to the first bush in the top lane.

Without any movement, he just crouched there quietly.

But just standing there, everyone went crazy.

"God Yuan's awareness! This wave of counter-camping is too crucial. If the prince comes to catch us, we will be blown up!!"

"Master An, haven't you noticed yet? He has taken down the river crab in the top lane and is still trying to move up, but the Gragas has already taken over."

The audience cheered in unison, but the LCK commentators were in mourning.

The Roaring Emperor could no longer roar. The defeat at the start made his voice weak. Seeing Sect Leader An walking towards the top lane, he covered his face in pain.

"You can't go there! That's a dead end!"

(End of this chapter)