Worlds Groups Day 2

(+105) T1 v EDward Gaming (-135)

(+305) Rogue v Damwon KIA (-475)

(+120) PSG Talon v Hanwha Life Esports (-155)

(-475) Royal Never Give Up v Fnatic (+305)

(-475) FunPlus Phoenix v Cloud9 (+305)

(-230) 100 Thieves v Detonation FocusMe (+175)

(+110) MAD Lions v Gen.G (-145)

(+165) Team Liquid v LNG Esports (-220)

Day 2 of worlds groups proceeds: the Korean teams have looked spectacular in day 1, with all major regions coming away with at least one win. On Tuesday, eyes are on 100 Thieves versus the wildcard Detonation FocusMe, the LPL second seed FPX against Cloud9, and Hanwha Life Esports who looked dominant against Fnatic, looking to repeat that success against PSG Talon. Likewise, Royal Never Give Up look to pick another win off the FNC who have been forced to field a substitute ADC.

Captain

Showmaker ($11,400)

Damwon’s mid laner is the star of the squad and the likely counterpart to HLE’s legendary Chovy on the international stage. Across his time in the LCK, it was consistently Showmaker and Canyon who were able to drag their team into relevance. His opponent in Larssen is a good player, but is probably one of the weaker mid laners in the LEC pool at this point; he can still be good, but the faster paced meta doesn’t favor the slower Larssen. If you want to cash out big, I’d grab Gala against Bean, which is sure to be a pretty hard stomp for RNG.

Alternatives to consider: Gala ($12,300)

Top lane

Flandre ($6,000)

A superstar top laner was just what EDG needed to revive their roster, especially since they’ve never really had a strong one since Koro1 back in 2015. Flandre is a strong laner, which is great into a player who can slip up and tilt like Canna. Combine this with an aggressive jungler in Jiejie who looks to push his laners advantages, and radiate them across the rift, and you have a strong option for top lane. For a different option, I’d grab Nuguri against Cloud9’s Fudge, although he comes at a substantial price increase.

Alternatives to consider: Nuguri ($6,800)

Jungle

Tian ($7,200)

FPX’s jungler had a triumphant return from his break this year, and he slowly progressed back to his 2019 championship form after an underwhelming 2020 season. His opponent across the rift in Blaber has looked absolutely questionable, with strange plays against Rogue yesterday. Tian, alongside his stronger laners should be able to handedly defeat Cloud9. For a different option, I’d choose Closer against Steal; after losing to EDG, a match against the wildcard team DFM is just what the team needs to bounce back.

Alternatives to consider: Closer ($7,000)

Mid lane

Chovy ($7,200)

The best mid laner in the world? Honestly, it’s actually likely. HLE’s mid laner dragged the team to worlds, and he looked great in his match against Fnatic. His next opponent in Maple is another strong mid laner, but Chovy is basically the mid lane GOAT, here to pick up the throne where Faker left it. My other option would be Cryin against Nisqy, who struggled against HLE in their Monday match.

Alternatives to consider: Cryin ($7,800)

ADC

FBI ($7,200)

FBI across his time in NA, excluding his first split or so has been a stud. He is a damage machine unlike any other, and while he has a high gold investment consistently, he’s worth his price, topping the charts consistently domestically and in turn bringing in big points as a result. Yutapon and Gaeng were a good bottom lane in play-ins, but now that groups has began, it’s unlikely that they will continue their success, especially when their bottom lane will be consistently tested.

Alternatives to consider: Deft ($7,400)

Support

Beryl ($5,800)

Trymbi is relatively consistently the weakest part of Rogue in my opinion; Hans and Trymbi just don’t punish lane as hard as Hans did with either Vander, Mikyx, or IgNar in the past, and that can lead to issues elsewhere on the map. Beryl had a great showing against FPX, and I believe he will continue to show strong against Rogue.

Alternatives to consider: Huhi ($5,600)

Team

EDward Gaming ($5,200)

EDward Gaming are the tournament favorite for good reason: they conquered the most difficult league, and FPX had a shaky worlds debut against Damwon KIA, a champion from a slightly less intense league. Versus any opponent, even T1, EDG should be favored to take the win.

Alternatives to consider: FunPlus Phoenix ($6,000)

Stacks

FBI & Huhi

The bottom lane for 100 Thieves shouldn’t be underrated: despite having a rough match against EDward Gaming (to be fair; they were the bright spot in that entire match) the combination of FBI and Huhi is a powerful one, and they should find a more comfortable matchup against the Japanese Detonation FocusMe.

Showmaker & Beryl

Damwon definitely showed up to win against FPX, with a solid performance across the rift. Mid and support should be two lanes to target against Rogue. Larssen has a tendency to be unresponsive to the mid game, which is exactly where this support-mid pairing could come together nicely, alongside the fact that Rogue’s bottom lane is a weaker point on their squad, allowing Beryl to navigate the map and help his team.

Chovy & Deft

The carries for HLE are the team’s primary- and likely only, win condition. Willer and Morgan either aren’t experienced or don’t have the faculties to carry the team, which can be a good thing: it allows ample resources for both Chovy and Deft to bring in massive points. HLE have a relative break on Tuesday against PSG Talon, a representative from the PCS. They do have some solid players; as shown at MSI, but it’s likely the region is clearly a step below the major regions.

Top Picks: Beryl, Showmaker, Gala

Gala has an insane match-up against the substitute Bean on Tuesday, although it’s likely he’s way too pricey for a balanced roster: Showmaker and Beryl are where your eyes should be, they’re relatively strong parts of their roster (especially Showmaker) and stylistically should be able to outmatch their opponents across the rift on Rogue.

Top Value: Flandre, Huhi, FBI

Cheap, cheap! 100 Thieves members are undervalued against the wildcard Detonation FocusMe. Sure, they had a tough time against tournament favorites EDward Gaming, but they still played somewhat respectively albeit with a relatively poor draft. Otherwise, I’d select Flandre against Canna: the latter of which can be a weaker point for T1.