The LPL third stage group matches have been underway for two days in the second week. EDG, with an 0-3 start, got swept by WE again. The first round robin is more than half done, and EDG is 0-4. It seems unlikely that EDG will secure their first win in the first round. JDG, after two losses, went to three games against TT and finally won. Even beating TT was so hard; JDG is really disappointing this year.

In the Phoenix Group, WBG lost their first match against IG. Then in their second match against NIP, everyone thought WBG would get their first win, but the players made a huge blunder. NIP swept WBG 2-0 to secure their first victory. NIP had lost their AD and support during the transfer period, so their overall strength was lower than the previous stage. Yet WBG still couldn't win; "ridiculous" is no longer enough to describe WBG.

WBG is reported to have three players wanting to rest

The Phoenix Group double round-robin only has six matches in total. Starting 0-2 makes it difficult to enter the Knight's Path. It's hard to believe that WBG's five-player lineup can't even win in the Phoenix Group. After losing to NIP, it seems internal conflicts have erupted within WBG. Several players no longer want to continue playing. Lianlian Hongcha and the former RA manager both posted leaks saying that three players from WBG want to skip the rest and rest.

Lianlian Hongcha said that two of them are from the same agency. Park also revealed that one starter definitely won't play, and there's a high probability of two substitutions. The ones from the same agency seem to be only Jiejie and Zika. As for the remaining one, it's not known yet. Quitting at this point is probably to protect themselves; otherwise, if they keep losing, they might not find jobs next year.

Aming responds to internal conflict

After KT finished the K杯, internal conflicts erupted. Bot laner Aming was demoted, and the second-team AD was temporarily promoted. Recently, KT and KRX simultaneously announced an AD swap: Jiwoo left for KT, and Aming transferred to KRX. Moving from the Legend Group to the Phoenix Group, Aming's hopes of entering Worlds this year are almost zero. KRX is also at the bottom of the Rising Group in terms of strength.

After the departure announcement, Aming posted on social media to respond to the internal conflict at KT. Aming stated that during the review process, the other party (BDD) first made emotional comments, so he rebutted. Subsequently, Aming had a face-to-face meeting with the club. He was still willing to play as part of the team, but BDD strongly expressed that it was difficult to continue playing together. Ultimately, he had to transfer.

Designer announces adjustments to bot lane

In this year's competitive version of League of Legends, mages dominate the bot lane. Many top AD players have expressed dissatisfaction with the meta. Guma complained a few days ago during a livestream: "Pro players should indeed try to adapt to the meta, but the bot lane environment feels like I'm changing roles. Cassiopeia lanes better than Draven, Ziggs has longer range than Caitlyn, Xerath has crowd control, wave clear, and high damage. I can't do anything."

Perhaps the designer heard Guma's complaints. Recently, the League of Legends gameplay lead revealed in a long post on his personal account that the next patch will adjust the bot lane meta. The general direction is: increase penalties for leaving lane, reduce support roaming power, buff traditional AD items and runes (e.g., Berserker's Greaves, Fleet Footwork), and also increase base magic resistance for ADCs while buffing healing. This aims to bring the bot lane meta back to traditional marksmen.

Conclusion:

WBG only has four matches left. If they lose again, the Knight's Path is truly out of reach. If the club lets the players rest, they can be declared out of the playoffs. These five players are all famous and talented, but when put together, they play worse and worse. It's unclear how the coach is training them.

So, which LPL team do you think will be the strongest when traditional ADs return?

Feel free to leave comments and discuss!