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New Champions are Crowned at LoL Worlds 2014
Decided by very decisive and dominant play, this year's finals were no laughing matter.
Worlds' stage was bigger than ever
© LoL eSports
At times, this year’s League of Legends World Championship Final looked like it could go in either direction. With Chinese and South Korean powerhouses bringing their own unique play styles to the world stage the competition was fierce.
In the end Samsung White continued the dominance that carried them through this year’s tournament, winning over Star Horn Royal Club. With a deep champion pool and consistent vision control, White steamrolled Royal Club in three of four games to claim the Summoner’s Cup and the Season 4 World Championship.
A Dominant Start
Samsung White opened Game 1 with a bang, picking up a First Blood only 88 seconds in—the fastest in the entire tournament. The aggression continued as White picked up another kill with an impressive turret dive at the five-minute mark.
These early kills put Star Horn Royal Club on their heels and they lost control of vision in their own jungle shortly after.
By ignoring Royal Club’s biggest threat in their ADC Uzi, White was able to focus on kills and objectives elsewhere on the map, giving them more kills and gold in the early game. At the fifteen-minute mark, White had a 6-0 kill lead, two turrets more than Royal Club, and a 5K gold lead. Victory came soon afterward, with White destroying the enemy Nexus in 24 minutes.
Star Horn Royal Club and Samsung White line up
© LoL eSports
Game 2 began better for Royal Club, but the ending was much the same. Unlike in the first match, the opening minutes were relatively uneventful; with both teams making trades and exchanges but avoiding a full engage. Finally, a teamfight erupted at the ten-minute mark, killing every person on the map except White’s Looper.
Royal Club capitalized on this and quickly moved in to secure a Dragon kill. However, this lead didn’t last long, as White had total control of the match mere minutes later. By picking up a few extremely well timed ganks on Royal Club, White once again took a gold lead and quickly turned it toward their advantage.
With a 19K gold lead, the largest in Finals history, White exerted complete dominance over Royal Club and secured a W in under 30 minutes.
A Breath of Hope
Beaten up and far away from the title, Star Horn Royal Club remained strong. After their second disappointing loss, Uzi could still be seen smiling as if his team still had a few tricks left. And as Game 3 showed, they weren’t done yet.
The game got off to a dreary start for Royal Club, as they gave up yet another First Blood to Samsung White during the opening salvos. Royal Club responded with a kill that almost became two and quickly moved to Dragon just before the ten-minute mark.
For the next few minutes, the score remained fairly even until White forced a teamfight around Dragon. Although they lost the Dragon kill to White, Royal Club emerged with four kills to White’s three. Royal Club’s surprise pick on Rammus gave them much more mobility and presence on the map and White struggled to respond.
By the 20-minute mark, Royal Club held a noticeable lead that continued to grow with occasional kills and objectives. As they displayed during their only loss before the Finals, White could not pull ahead without their traditional early game lead. Royal Club continued to push hard and after a fight in their jungle went 4-1 in their favor, they owned the map 30 minutes into the game.
White was not out yet, however. Displaying just how talented they are, White held off Royal Club with two inhibitors down and a significant gold deficit, taking four kills and forcing a retreat. Unfortunately, these efforts were in vain as Royal Club’s gold lead proved insurmountable and they locked down a win in just under 40 minutes.
Worlds Finals -- Get Hyped!
© LoL eSports
Providing Samsung White’s second loss in the entire tournament, Royal Club looked as if they could win another game and force a fifth. As Game 4 began, Uzi’s five-minute First Blood on Imp certainly looked promising, as did the other kill that came only seconds later.
But a failed gank around the eight-minute mark spelled the beginning of the end for Royal Club. White began chipping away at Royal Club’s vision and took a Dragon before ten minutes. Then, another unsuccessful gank that looked like Déjà vu resulted in two more Royal Club deaths. A 15-minute fight at Dragon turned strongly in favor of White, showing that they were in control of the game, and they finished off Royal Club in just over 23 minutes.
A Good Fight
Although the series went much as analysts predicted, Star Horn Royal Club fought hard and refused to give White an easy three-game victory. Clearly outmatched, Royal Club tried to force advantages where they could. This strategy worked well in Game 3, but otherwise doomed them to quick losses.
White’s unforgiving play style and devious map movement ensured that they took the lead early and held it stingily. The all-or-nothing attitude Royal Club brought to the World stage was delightful to watch, even when it flopped spectacularly. Uzi now becomes not only the first player to compete in two World Finals, but the first to lose both. However, unlike last year he was able to walk away with at least one victory.
Samsung White is now the second Korean team to walk away with the world title, joining Season 3’s victor SK Telecom.
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