• (+210) LNG Esports v Suning Gaming (-285)
  • (-275) Team WE v Oh My God (+200)

The LPL enters its postseason starting on Thursday, and continuing into Friday. For the first round, a strong Team WE makes its entrance against the last seed Oh My God, who barely clinched into play-offs. Likewise, a higher seed LNG is underestimated in a match-up against an inconsistent Suning Gaming.

Captain

Shanks ($10,800)

While Team WE is likely to try Mole some time across their run in play-offs (rightfully so, he’s a strong player) Shanks will likely be the player featured out the gate, and the main starter for much of play-offs until he starts losing- an unlikely prospect against OMG, despite their mid laner Creme being a highlight player on the squad. Elk is another main carry for WE, who is the strongest team playing in the round 1 of play-offs.

Alternatives to consider: Elk ($11,700)

Top Lane

Breathe ($6,800)

The top lane match-up between WE and OMG one of the most one sided match-ups in the first round of play-offs. Breathe this season has been a break-out success, and he’s leveled up his play from last split. Team WE has had an issue in the top lane for season upon season after losing the form of a capable 957, but Breathe has picked up the banner and is stalwart. LNG vs SN is generally close, but OMG’s top side is a glaring weakness for the squad, which is a big reason I favor WE over OMG.

Alternatives to consider: Ale ($5,800)

Jungle

Beishang ($6,400)

Likewise, AKi is the weakest jungler in play-offs by a massive margin, and its a testament to the efforts of Creme and Able that he was capable of crossing the finish line in play-offs. Unfortunately, he will likely not get any further against Team WE, whose Beishang is a solid jungler. Team WE thrive against low level teams, and their high propensity to fight is a great characteristic when it comes to picking up points. Your other option is Tarzan, who is the MVP of LNG, and likely the best overall jungler in the league.

Alternatives to consider: Tarzan ($6,600)

Mid Lane

Icon ($6,600)

While Icon is a weak mid laner, he is not likely to be exploited significantly by a weak laner by Angel- Generally, Icon can do well enough by playing around his jungler Tarzan is he’s confronted by a weak willed mid laner, which is exactly what Angel is, archetypally. He thrives on AFK farming mid laners, as a former Kassadin main. LNG have a strong mechanism to punish this playstyle by being a jungle-centric team, so I am comfortable selecting Icon for middle lane- as long as Shanks is already on your roster.

Alternatives to consider: Shanks ($7,200)

ADC

Elk ($7,800)

Mechanically, Elk has an insane ceiling out of LPL ADCs. He’s only held back by his aptitude to overplay situations- sounds familiar at this point, since this was word for word how people used to speak about EDG’s iBoy before he finally came into his own on Rare Atom. Likewise, though, Elk has the makings of a superstar, and while Able is already a star on his team, Elk has the more complete team, and a better bottom lane, relative to Able across the rift. Light is another solid option, and he’s a capable ADC player in his own right.

Alternatives to consider: Light ($7,200)

Support

Iwandy ($5,200)

LNG’s Iwandy is frequently overlooked. The player has a more diverse champion pool relative to many other support players, featuring an assortment of ranged picks alongside the tank staples that currently dominate the meta. This flexibility allows Iwandy access to a greater spread of match-ups, which is to his advantage relative to other supports. Across the rift, ON is one of the more mediocre supports in the LPL play-offs, and I’d say nearly the worst alongside TES’s support spread. Missing is another capable option, but he takes away a precious WE spot.

Alternatives to consider: Missing ($5,600)

Team

LNG Esports ($4,600)

Saving spots for WE: LNG is a decent team, despite their meteoric fall near the end of the split. The squad is capable, despite a relatively weak mid laner that can be punished by the best the LPL has to offer. I don’t see LNG going far in play-offs (sorry, Tarzan) but they should be capable of beating at least Suning, and maybe TES after them depending on the two teams’ forms.

Alternatives to consider: Team WE ($5,200)

Stacks

Shanks & Elk

The two carries of Team WE have a tough match-up against the strongest players on OMG, but despite this, it’s frequent that their actual performance is determined by the strength of their surrounding cast: OMG’s carries can carry harder than many others despite their weak teammates, but WE will likely prove too much to handle.

Ale & Tarzan

The top side for LNG is one of their stronger points. Tarzan is one of the best junglers in the league, whereas SofM has been having an off split this season. Ale has been coming into his own and slowly fulfilling his potential. SN’s counterparts are decent, but I find LNG’s players to be in better form relative to where SN is at, at this point.

Beishang & Breathe

The WE top side against OMG is the largest miss-match in the first round of play-offs; and could potentially be one of the biggest one sided match-ups in the entire play-off run. OMG’s top side is a humongous weakness on the squad, whereas WE have balanced players across the rift, making them capable of exploiting weaknesses across various rosters they play against.

Top Picks: Breathe, Beishang, Elk

The silver bullets in the chamber for WE are Breathe and Beishang, matching up against OMG’s top side. Elk is another player to keep your eyes out for- Able is a capable player, but Elk is worth his price tag in teamfights, where he can farm the behind players on OMG for some quick points.

Top Value: Iwandy, Icon, Ale

LNG in general is undervalued, and these are the players I perceive as making the largest difference in the series. Icon can serve Tarzan through the middle lane handedly, as he does against other lower tier teams. Ale is a strong top laner who should be able to outshine Bin depending on whoever shows up on Thursday, and Iwandy is a strong support, much stronger than ON, and should be a solid choice against SN.