With another strong showing and a 2-0 Week 5, FlyQuest move into sole possession of second place in the standings.

Reviewing Week 5:

Saturday Match: Golden Guardians (4-4)

Golden Guardians came into the game on a three-game winstreak and a set gameplan: shut down Jason “WildTurtle” Tran and the FlyQuest botlane. Can “Closer” Çelik and Yuri “Keith” Jew both went for flashy plays to do so, but Turtle was having none of it. Turtle walked away from every encounter with a kill, even if he died himself.

While the rest of Golden Guardians were focused on shutting down WildTurtle, Greyson “GoldenGlue” Gilmer was left alone to deal with Tristan “PowerOfEvil” Schrage. It was a rough day for the North American talent, as POE solo-killed GoldenGlue and amassed a 60 CS lead over the course of the game.

FlyQuest was willing to give up objectives if it allowed them to take fights that they wanted. For example, when Golden Guardians secured mid turret, FlyQuest collapsed on them as they tried to retreat, initiating a three for one trade which allowed FlyQuest to set up vision around the cloud drake, take the objective, and then re-engage for the game-ending fight. Their macro may not be as clean as C9’s, but it’s still very much a strength.

Player of the Match: WildTurtle

While POE had a monstrous game, WildTurtle was the target of most of Golden Guardians’ aggression, and he responded by kicking their teeth in. By refusing to fold under pressure, Turtle helped to ensure that the other members of his team could make plays around the map, which allowed for the drake and objective control that won FlyQuest the game.

Sunday Match: Counter Logic Gaming (1-8)

Not much has been going right for CLG this split, and this game didn’t go very well for them, either. PowerOfEvil ran roughshod over his former team, never letting them find a real footing. Things didn’t go quite as smoothly in the early game as that statement might make it sound, however.

Lucas “Santorin” Tao Kilmer Larsen made FlyQuest’s gameplan clear when he ganked mid at level 2. The gank blew Eugene “Pobelter” Park’s flash at level 2, but the lane held steady, with Pobelter having a slight advantage despite the blown flash.

That’s just one example of how FlyQuest stumbled in the early game. The three usual standout members were actually those who looked most off-kilter; Santorin facechecked into three members of CLG in botside river, giving up the second drake. PowerOfEvil was unable to press his advantage midlane during lane phase, allowing CLG to contest (and take) multiple objectives. Lee “IgNar” DOng-geun got caught by a hook from Smoothie, which would have spelled disaster had Omran “V1per” Shoura not TP’d down botlane to get a double kill.

FlyQuest definitively lost early game, giving up the first three out towers before they had even taken one for themselves. However, despite being so far behind in objectives, FlyQuest were up in gold during that same timeframe due to farm advantages and shutdown gold.

The thing that sealed FlyQuest’s victory was not their objective or vision control, unlike their game against Golden Guardians. No, what brought the boys in Yellow and Green victory was an absurd 4 vs 5 teamfight that nearly resulted in a PowerOfEvil Pentakill. Even when the team is not playing the map well, they are still able to farm up, teamfight effectively, and translate won fights into objectives. It’s good to see that they can still do that effectively, but it is unsettling to see them do it against CLG, who they should have stomped in the early game.

Player of the Game: PowerOfEvil

POE is a hell of a teamfighter, isn’t he? With V1per dead, the game’s definitive teamfight was carried by great IgNar engages and POE’s fearless decision to dive the backline. He paid for it with his life, but it won FlyQuest the teamfight and the game.

Previewing Week 6

Saturday Match: C9 (10-0)

C9 is the undisputed best team in NA right now. FlyQuest needs to play a clean early game if they want to have a chance at winning. If they don’t, they will lose to C9 again, just as they did in Week 3. That loss came off the back of FlyQuest mismanaging the wave in botlane; C9 recognized that and rotated Jesper “Zven” Svenningsen and Philippe “Vulcan” Laflamme to Herald on spawn. This allowed them to drop Shelly botlane and secure fist tower. If something similar happens in Week 6, that will be the game. C9 is the one team that can match FlyQuest’s teamfighting abilities, so falling behind early would be a death sentence.

Match up to Watch: Midlane

PowerOfEvil needs to step up in lane this game; if he allows Yasin “Nisqy” Dinçer to roam with Robert “Blaber” Huang or Vulcan, FlyQuest will likely buckle under the pressure. Alternatively, if POE smashes lane, it gives FlyQuest a solid mid-game pressure point to play around. If there’s a game to prove that POE deserves MVP, this is the game to do it.

Prediction: C9 wins.

Sunday Match: Dignitas (5-5)

Teams don’t need to play to win against Dignitas; they just have to play well enough that DIG beat themselves. Case in Point: when FlyQuest first beat Dignitas in Week 2, they did so off the back of catching out Heo “Huni” Seung-hoon early and punishing his over aggression. Huni, being Huni, has not learned from his mistakes. Against Team Liquid in Week 5, he had his flash blown in an early gank by Broxah, and he never recovered. All FlyQuest need to do is tilt Huni and they’ll be able to win handily.

Matchup to Watch: Toplane

V1per and Santorin should team up to take out Huni early; after that point the team just needs to play their usual controlled style. But if Huni gets out of control early, well then FlyQuest are in for a rough ride.

Prediction: FlyQuest win.

Need More?

What are your predictions for Week Six? Tell Richard what you think @Imp_Richard

All images courtesy of LoL Esports Flickr

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