nycdaug Chapter 1018 Match Point
Chapter 1018 Match Point
"Alright! The match begins!" Wawa's voice drew everyone's attention back to the Rift. "Both sides started normally, without choosing to invade at level one."
The middle lane became the epicenter of this storm.
Scout's Ahri displayed immense pressure from level one. He frequently traded blows using the second true damage and movement speed bonus from his Q skill, "Orb of Deception." The orb's trajectory was unpredictable, always whistling in just the time it took for Xu Mo to last-hit minions.
However, Xu Mo's Azir was like a rock. He placed his first Sand Soldier at the boundary between his ranged and melee units, creating a delicate defensive zone. Whenever Ahri advanced, he would command the Sand Soldier to poke once, triggering "Arcane Comet," while simultaneously retreating half a step. Although Scout's attrition was fierce, Xu Mo always managed to retaliate with minimal cost, maintaining a delicate balance in health exchange.
At 3 minutes and 20 seconds, Jiejie's Trundle finished off both buffs and headed directly from the river towards the mid lane. This was a tactic EDG had planned in advance—mid-jungle synergy to create a breakthrough!
Scout understood immediately and his positioning became aggressive. His E skill, "Charm," was unleashed without warning, sending out a pink heart!
"Scout has made his move! Jiejie is right behind him!" Miller's voice suddenly rose.
Just as the bewitching flames were about to touch Azir, Xu Mo's keyboard emitted a crisp tap.
"barrier!"
A golden shield glowed, blocking the charm. But Scout had achieved his goal, forcing Xu Mo to use his crucial summoner spell. At the same time, Jiejie's troll charged out of the bushes, a massive "pillar of ice" rising from the ground, blocking Azir's retreat.
"Ink God is in danger!"
But Xu Mo's face remained as calm as an ice lake. He didn't choose to use Flash immediately, but instead placed a second Sand Soldier at the edge of the pillar. With a perfect QE "Quicksand Shift," he slid past the pillar's edge by the narrowest of margins!
"Beautiful! Mo Shen dodged this fatal gank with a basic WEQ! But he used his Barrier, so he'll have to play very carefully for the next few minutes!" Wawa exclaimed.
This failed gank acted as a fuse, igniting the entire jungle.
At 6 minutes and 30 seconds, the two junglers clashed in the bottom river for the first Rift Scuttler. Karsa's Wukong used his W "True or False Monkey King" stealth ability to successfully smite the Rift Scuttler, but Jiejie's Trundle countered with his ultimate "Mighty Rule," instantly draining Wukong's armor and magic resistance. With Scout's support, they brought Karsa to low health, forcing him to use Flash.
"EDG is playing so aggressively! They're trying to put constant pressure on RNG's nerves with their relentless attacks!"
At 8 minutes and 50 seconds, Scout's Ahri reached level six. He quickly pushed the minion wave under Xu Mo's tower, and then his figure disappeared from the map.
"Scout is missing! Mid laner Miss!" Xu Mo's calm voice rang out in the team voice chat.
Almost simultaneously, in the bottom lane, Uzi and Ming sensed impending doom. They were dealing with the minion wave pushed in by Viper's Zephyr under their tower.
Suddenly, Jiejie's troll appeared from behind, and the huge ice pillar blocked their retreat once again!
At the same time, Scout's Ahri activated her ultimate "Spirit Rush," using three dashes like a ghost. The first dash landed right in Ezreal's face, and the charm from her E skill hit him precisely!
"EDG's four-man gank on the second lane! Viper and Meiko followed up! Uzi is under control!"
The battlefield situation changes in an instant! Letme's Ornn immediately used Teleport to support, while EDG's top laner Flandre's Kennen Teleport also shone brightly behind RNG's tower at the same time!
This is a long-planned 5v5 melee in the bottom lane!
Uzi's Ezreal used his E skill "Arcane Shift" the instant the charm ended, creating a small distance before hitting Zephyr with his Q skill. Ming's Karma then shielded Uzi with her E skill and used her W "Unwavering" to chain the charging Ahri.
"Uzi is still playing! He hasn't given up!"
But EDG's offensive came like a tidal wave! Flandre's Kennen teleported in, flashed into the fray, and activated his ultimate "Thunder Prison"!
"Heavenly Thunder!! Holy Gun Bro's Heavenly Thunder has covered everyone!"
Amidst the ear-piercing crackling of electricity, the health of all RNG players plummeted!
Just at this critical moment, a roar that resounded through the sky came!
"what!"
Karsa's Wukong descended like a divine warrior, stealthily flanking from the side and unleashing his ultimate, "Havoc in Heaven," instantly knocking Zeli and Lulu, who were dealing damage, into the air!
Letme's Ornn ultimate, "Call of the Forging God," also arrived from afar, unleashing a second wave of his ultimate, which knocked up Kennen and Trundle!
RNG's counterattack!
"Attack! Attack! Attack!" Uzi's roar echoed through the voice channel.
Xu Mo's Azir finally finished clearing the minion wave and arrived at the battlefield. He didn't rush in, but stood at a safe distance, using his sand soldiers to constantly poke the controlled EDG backline.
In the chaotic battlefield, the dazzling display of skills exploded like fireworks. Ultimately, Flandre's Kennen, after electrocuting Karma, was finished off by Uzi's Ezreal. Scout's Ahri escaped using the last part of her ultimate. RNG traded their support for EDG's top laner and forced back their offensive.
"A fierce team fight! It ended in a one-for-one trade! Neither side gained an advantage!" Miller wiped the sweat from his brow. "But EDG's tactical intentions were very clear: they wanted to play fast, to create chaos, and not give RNG a chance to develop peacefully!"
The live stream chat also split into two camps:
"EDG's pace was suffocating; they almost got completely crushed by RNG!"
"What's there to be afraid of? My Ezreal is all about being stable. You can't kill me, so the late game is mine!"
"Mo Shen seems to be silent this game? Ahri roamed away."
"Does the guy upstairs even understand? The Tsar's early game is all about farming. As long as he doesn't die, that's his biggest contribution to the team!"
At 14 minutes, the second dragon (Wind Dragon) spawned. With both sides almost evenly matched in gold, another crucial team fight that would determine the mid-game outcome was about to erupt around this dragon.
EDG capitalized on their superior range to secure the dragon pit, and Jiejie's Trundle began attacking the dragon. RNG was forced to engage in a direct team fight.
"RNG's positioning is very poor, are they going to force their way in?"
Just as Letme's Ornn was about to use his ultimate to initiate, Scout's Ahri seized the opportunity! He used his R-Flash from the flank to instantly dash into Ming's Karma's face, landing a precise Charm!
Viper's Zephyr, like a shark smelling blood, activated his ultimate ability and charged forward in the blink of an eye!
"Karma's about to get one-shotted!"
RNG's formation was instantly breached.
At this critical moment, Xu Mo made a move.
His Azir had been standing at the very back of the line, like a detached bystander. Now, he finally made his move.
WQ! The Sand Soldiers charge forward, heading straight for Zeli who is dealing damage!
E! Quicksand Shift! Azir transformed into a golden streak of light, charging towards Zeli!
"Is Mo Shen going to cut into the back row? But he himself will be in danger!" Wawa's heart jumped into her throat.
Scout and Meiko immediately turned their guns on Azir, unleashing all their skills on him as he charged forward.
However, just as Azir's body was about to collide with the sand soldiers and break into the very center of the enemy ranks—
Xu Mo pressed his R key.
Shurima—!
There was no pushback, no spectacular drift.
A golden wall of imperial guards rose from the ground, like a shield of the gods, standing between RNG and EDG!
This wall precisely and completely separated the charging Zephyr, Ahri, and Troll from Lulu and Kennen behind them!
It didn't push anyone back, but it changed the entire battlefield! It forcibly cut a complete EDG formation into a "3+2"!
More importantly, it acted like a wall of sighs, perfectly blocking all of Viper's subsequent damage output and saving Uzi and Karsa from imminent danger!
"My God! What kind of understanding of R is this?! He used his own body as bait and used his ultimate move to draw a line between Chu and Han! This is a divine move to divide the battlefield!" Miller stood up excitedly.
The separated EDG front line was instantly trapped. Karsa's Wukong and Letme's Ornn unleashed all their control and damage.
"Double Kill!" Karsa's Goku secured a double kill.
On the other side, Lulu and Kennen, now without protection, were like lambs to the slaughter in front of Uzi's well-farmed Ezreal.
In the end, RNG sacrificed their support Ming to achieve a perfect 1-for-4 trade! And successfully secured the Wind Dragon!
"RNG! RNG!" The fans at the scene erupted in a thunderous cheer.
Xu Mo's Azir, after securing two kills, silently returned to the mid lane to farm the minions he had missed. His expression remained unchanged, but his teammates' triumphant roars of relief echoed in the team's voice chat.
"Mozi is awesome!! This wall is crucial!"
"My father! You are my god!"
Xu Mo simply said, "Push mid, prepare to take the Rift Herald."
His composure contrasted sharply with the intensity of the battlefield. He knew this was just the beginning. EDG's "electric hogs" hadn't given up yet, and the "Nightingale" lurking in the shadows was surely watching this performance with amusement.
What he had to do was crush their hopes, step by step.
That seemingly out-of-nowhere wall of imperial guards was not only a geographical divide, but also a psychological precipice. It cruelly cleaved EDG's hopes and reality in two.
Inside the Busan Gymnasium, the cheers from the EDG fan section abruptly ceased, replaced by a deathly silence. They watched helplessly as the golden wall on the screen, like an insurmountable chasm, blocked all of Viper's Zephyr's damage output, trapping Scout's Ahri and Jiejie's Trundle within RNG's encirclement. It wasn't a repulsion; it was an imprisonment.
"What... what kind of understanding is this?" Miller's voice was filled with unbelievable shock. "He predicted the dive routes and output positions of all EDG members! He used his own body as bait, not to initiate a team fight, but to close the gap! He's not a general, he's the designer of the battlefield!"
Wawa was at a loss for words to describe it: "Mo Shen... he turned Summoner's Rift into a chessboard! This wall is 'checkmate'! EDG is checkmated!"
The 1-for-4 trade plunged EDG into a huge disadvantage. RNG, having secured the Wind Dragon and the mid-lane tower, began to operate with the ruthless rhythm of a sophisticated war machine.
At 16 minutes, the second Rift Herald spawned. Karsa's Wukong, escorted by Xu Mo's Azir, secured the Herald without any trouble. EDG didn't even dare to harass them. Scout's Ahri could only clear waves from a distance with her Q skill, while Viper's Zephyr was forced to rotate to the mid lane and swap lanes with Uzi's Ezreal to avoid the onslaught of RNG's mid and jungle.
“EDG is in a very difficult situation right now. Their ‘electric mouse’ lineup needs to create space, but RNG doesn’t give them that space at all,” Miller analyzed. “Azir’s positional warfare is too strong. He can block off a large area by himself, making it impossible for Ahri and Kennen to find a comfortable angle to enter the fray.”
At 18 minutes, RNG, with the Rift Herald, pushed straight towards the top lane's second turret. Letme's Ornn stood at the forefront, like a mobile fortress. The entire EDG team could only passively defend.
"Let it go." Clearlove's calm, almost cold voice rang out in EDG's team voice chat. "Don't engage in team fights, trade resources, Jiejie go take our second dragon."
This was the most rational choice under duress. EDG traded a top lane second turret for an earth dragon, adding a bit of resistance to their already fragile lineup and giving their slim hopes of a comeback a second chance.
However, Xu Mo did not intend to give them a chance to catch their breath.
After taking down the second top turret, RNG didn't recall but instead moved into EDG's blue side jungle. Karsa's Wukong and Ming's Karma cleared vision in the front, Xu Mo's Azir was in the middle, and Uzi's Ezreal and Letme's Ornn brought up the rear. Like a group of well-trained hunters, they began clearing out jungle resources and shrinking EDG's living space.
"RNG is suffocating us!" Wawa shouted. "EDG's jungle is completely dark! They can only stay on their high ground now, like they're trapped on an island!"
Meanwhile, in EDG's rest room, Clearlove stood with his arms crossed, his brow furrowed. On the screen, the blue vision zone representing RNG spread across the map like a virus, while the red zone representing EDG was being steadily eroded.
“Be patient, wait for an opportunity.” He said into the microphone, “Flandre, your Kennen is key. Wait for the Baron squad in 25 minutes and find the best position. Scout, your mission is not to kill instantly, but to harass. Use your agility to restrain the Tsar.”
"Understood." The team members' response was brief and heavy. Everyone knew that the next team fight around the dragon would be a matter of life and death for them. Lose, and everything would be over.
Time ticked by, each second an ordeal for EDG, but an accumulation of advantages for RNG.
At 24 minutes and 30 seconds, Xu Mo's Azir completed Nashor's Tooth and Zhonya's Hourglass, combining damage and survivability. Uzi's Ezreal also acquired Trinity Force and Manamune, resulting in terrifyingly high poke damage.
"RNG has started attacking Baron!" Miller's voice rose again. "They're not waiting for the third dragon, they're forcing Baron! This is a decisive move in a match point game! They're going to end the game in one fell swoop!"
Baron Nashor roared, and purple lightning began to strike the RNG players. Letme's Ornn was at the forefront, and his health was rapidly depleted.
"EDG has to come! This is their last chance!"
On the EDG bench, Scout took a deep breath, his Ahri starting from the high ground and circling towards the shadows behind the dragon pit. Flandre's Kennen, meanwhile, disappeared into the fog of war in the upper river, like an assassin waiting for a fatal blow.
This was a tactic they had practiced countless times: "The Thunder King flanks from behind, while the Demon Fox launches a frontal assault."
"Scout's positioning is tricky, he's trying to find Uzi! Flandre's Kennen is also missing!" The camera kept switching between shots. "RNG's positioning is very concentrated; they gave Kennen a perfect opportunity for his ultimate!" (End of Chapter)