LIGHTNOVELWORLD Chapter 422
Of course, objectively speaking, our team’s combination doesn’t lose power in the late game or anything.
The damage balance within the combo isn’t bad, and the value of each champion doesn’t significantly fall behind compared to the opponents.
However, when we face a top-tier team that’s usually at a higher weight class, can we truly outmaneuver them in the late game?
To be perfectly honest, I couldn’t help but question that.
There’s a very high probability that mistakes will emerge from our side first, and considering the nature of late-game, that could easily lead to an outcome that ends the game.
Therefore, we need to ensure we steer the game firmly while we still have any advantage left.
The key to that would be, of course, the Mid Tier 1 turret and the ensuing Baron.
– The Red Team’s turret has been destroyed!
Even though the enemy took the Rift Herald, it was our team that snagged the turret first blood.
We had earned quite a lead on the bot side, so in the meantime, we managed to chip away significantly at the turret’s health.
[“Nice.”]
[“Kim Jae-min, recall. We’re switching top and bot.”]
[“You got it.”]
[“I’ll catch my home timing as well.”]
[“Ah, this is top gone.”]
– The Blue Team’s turret has been destroyed!
Soon after, the enemy also used the Rift Herald to smash the top turret, allowing Vayne’s growth to finally get rolling.
That said, she’s still quite behind Kai’Sa in terms of growth.
Tick-tock, tick-tock.
I felt the timer of the ticking bomb in my head gradually decreasing.
From an objective standpoint, the current situation could be considered a stalemate.
Even though we managed to land a successful gank on the enemy mid, they, too, had released Vayne’s growth.
[“This turn, enemy mid is pushing.”]
[“Rakan showed up near blue.”]
[“I’ll farm.”]
Amid the fierce underground designs where we both target each other, time flows.
Soon, it will be time for the Rift Herald and the Dragon to spawn together.
The Dragon’s respawn time is five minutes, while the Rift Herald’s is six, but we took the Dragon just a tad later, so the timings almost overlap.
Typically, when object timers overlap like this, many teams opt for compromise rather than fighting.
The team with even a slight advantage gets to choose, while the other team picks up the remainder of the objects.
“We’re going to fight at the Rift Herald.”
[“Um, are you sure?”]
“Yeah.”
[“Got it.”]
The reason for choosing the Rift Herald as the battle location was quite simple.
For the enemy team, sitting at zero Dragon stacks, the Dragon isn’t as appealing of an objective right now.
If they want to start stacking Dragon now, it’ll take a considerable amount of time, and trying to interrupt our stacks, considering we only have one, wouldn’t be effective.
On the other hand, the Rift Herald, even without any turret barricades left, is directly tied to the Mid Tier 1 turret, making it relatively more valuable at this timing.
Given that both teams have overlapping object timings, the Rift Herald is inevitably viewed more favorably.
“Let’s sweep for vision.”
[“Okay.”]
Sejuani and Nautilus stepped up to secure vision around the Rift Herald.
SCV, too, seemed unwilling to give up control over that sight, as Rakan and Rakham poked their heads in and cleared our wards.
[“It’s close. Be careful.”]
“Yeah.”
While I said that, it’s usually at times like this that skirmishes break out.
Both sides continue vision battles for the sake of a fight, leading to an engagement or being caught.
Rakham was the first to check angles.
He stealthily circled around us, looking for an opportunity, before subtly initiating.
Naturally, that initiation, without any spells or ultimates used, lacked sincerity. When it ended fruitlessly, Rakham backed off using Rakan as a shield.
Right, it’s common for both sides to retreat at this point.
“Engage.”
With that brief command, Kim Ji-hoon’s Nautilus launched an anchor straight at Rakan.
Of course, Rakan reacted, activating his Spell Shield, but he couldn’t block Sejuani’s ultimate that followed.
Along with that, the flames of teleportation began to rise from both teams’ wards.
The vision battle had transitioned into combat.
– Embrace the darkness.
Rakan hurriedly activated his ultimate, trying to fend off any additional attacks, but Rakan’s ult isn’t a survival skill for dashing in.
While it can technically be used to survive, at least not in the current situation.
So, Rakham turned on his ultimate to help Rakan while thrashing around Sejuani and Nautilus.
The crowd control was quite neatly synced up, but Sejuani and Nautilus’s damage alone wasn’t enough to finish off Rakan, giving Rakham some room to react.
And as soon as Rakham’s ultimate was fired off, I said:
“Now.”
[“Okay.”]
Along with that, Nikon, who had been waiting in stealth as a ward, revealed himself with his ultimate.
It was a variable play made possible only by Nikon.
In an instant, both Rakham and Rakan were swept away by Nikon’s ultimate.
No matter how skilled the players may be, seeing Nikon transforming into a ward isn’t something that happens often, so they momentarily couldn’t react.
– You have slain an enemy!
– Double Kill!
In the end, the two kills that couldn’t withstand the crowd control landed firmly in Nikon’s lap.
However, the situation didn’t end there.
Rumble, who appeared via teleport, emerged breathing fire.
[“Watch out for Rumble’s R.”]
“Yeah.”
Rumble arrived late and used his ultimate, but it didn’t create a decent angle for damage from Vayne and Tristana, who were standing a little far away.
Both Nautilus and I managed to evade back with dangerously low health.
That was until Tristana boldly jumped in with her forward flash.
[“Here she comes!”]
It could be seen as a somewhat reckless chase, but Tristana’s jump resets when she either scores a kill or assist, making it a chase with plenty of justification.
“Tristana’s overcommitting. Let’s back.”
[“Okay.”]
Kim Ji-hoon didn’t hesitate.
Even if it meant his death at the end of it.
– An ally has been slain!
Nautilus threw an anchor at Tristana, who jumped forward, but soon after, he met her ultimate and exploded.
Due to being in poor health to begin with, he couldn’t withstand Tristana’s damage.
With Nautilus down, Tristana’s jump would have been reset.
However, I wasn’t willing to let Tristana escape peacefully.
Boom!
Tristana’s jump was interrupted by Sejuani’s Q, followed closely by Jason’s EQ.
Boom!
Along with that, Kai’Sa’s W came soaring in from afar.
Struck helplessly by the W, Tristana couldn’t withstand the onslaught from the advancing Kai’Sa.
– You have slain an enemy!
From then on, it was Jason and Kai’Sa’s stage.
The enemy had already lost their front lines, and no matter how strong Vayne might be in skirmishes, she was still behind Kai’Sa at the moment.
[“Come here, you little rascal!”]
Kim Jae-min was reveling in the power of his well-farmed Kai’Sa.
Of course, even if she had farmed well, it wasn’t quite the time for AP itemization to shine, but since she was big, that didn’t matter at all.
In the game Legends of League, as long as you’re well-farmed, anything goes!
[“Ah, what a miss.”]
Rumble and Vayne barely escaped using their flashes, and naturally, the Rift Herald fell into our hands.
[“It’s a pity, but you did well.”]
[“I was gonna grab all of them, though.”]
[“You really initiated well in the beginning. If we hadn’t burst Rakan, I’d have been in trouble.”]
That was true.
Had the initiation come from the enemy instead of us, we might have been the ones getting cooked by Rumble’s ultimate in the darkness.
However, during the vision battle, the enemy, trusting Rumble’s teleport, showed a somewhat careless movement, and we didn’t miss that chance.
‘If only Rakan had extinguished his fire a little sooner, or if Yeon-woo had been a tad later, the timing to teleport would’ve been delayed.’
This calculation was made possible by obscuring vision, allowing us to momentarily hold a numerical advantage and control the initiation.
Perhaps that carelessness in vision battle was tied to it.
It sounded like an easily won skirmish, but it could have easily turned into a disastrous defeat with just a slight misstep.
‘When we debrief, I need to mention this part.’
It wasn’t a win born out of recklessly starting a fight, but rather a well-timed one.
If this isn’t clarified, it’s bound to lead to problems down the line.
– You have defeated the Rift Herald!
Anyway, the Rift Herald is now ours, and the opponents, having suffered heavily in the team fight, had no choice but to cede the Mid Tier 1 turret and the Dragon to us.
– The Red Team’s turret has been destroyed!
– The Blue Team has slain the Wind Dragon!
The balance of the game was completely shattered.