Game of the Day: Fnatic versus ROCCAT (Game 5)

By Helmight

 

            You have to tip your hat to ROCCAT. Despite their lackluster performance throughout the split, they never gave up the fight and somehow managed to claw their way into the semifinals to face Fnatic. Despite a phenomenal series of games in which they pushed Fnatic to the limit, ROCCAT would eventually fall in game 5.

            In the end, it was Fnatic’s superior objective control and better siege comp that dismantled ROCCAT. With xPeke on Orianna and Rekkles on Kog’Maw, Fnatic’s team could chew through towers from a distance, and more importantly, were able to keep ROCCAT’s members from interfering. That, in conjunction with a few well-played teamfights, gave Fnatic an easy gold lead over their opponents. Fnatic struggled a bit while trying to end the game, but eventually their siege proved to be too effective for ROCCAT to break. With a 10k gold deficit and 2 inhibitors down, ROCCAT made a desperate Baron call. Their hope was likely to secure the objective while Fnatic recalled and then make a final stand at their Nexus – however, Fnatic arrived too soon for ROCCAT to finish off Baron. The fight was brief, and after three members of ROCCAT went down Fnatic was easily able to push in for the win.

            It was the last game for ROCCAT this split, but they played it beautifully. Jankos in particular was an absolute monster in the jungle, showing up to every lane and making ganks happen across the map. The obscene pressure allowed ROCCAT’s lanes to stay even with Fnatic’s and gave them a great setup for the midgame. However, Jankos’s early play was not without its mistakes. The decision to camp top was questionable – 3 kills onto Xaxus was certainly beneficial, but an Alistar and a Jarvan aren’t going to carry the game. Celaver meanwhile had a tough fight against Rekkles and YellOwStaR in the bottom lane and his Tristana never managed to have the same impact on teamfights that Rekkles’s Kog’Maw did.

            Fnatic meanwhile pulled together and gave one of their best performances this split. Every member of the team looked sharp and their powerful Protect the Kog comp was all but unbeatable for ROCCAT. xPeke reminded everyone how terrifying his Orianna can be, first by bullying Overpow mercilessly in the laning phase and then by landing clutch Shockwaves in the mid- and late-game teamfights. Rekkles showed up big for Fnatic too. His Kog’Maw dismantled towers in record time, though he ended up being equally effective at taking down champions.

Clever Teleport shenanigans by ROCCAT were a huge part of their early advantage. A lane gank by Cyanide could have potentially resulted in a pair of kills for Fnatic, but Xaxus and Overpow both TPed down to save their bot lane and pick up a double of their own. That lead to ROCCAT’s first dragon of the game, giving them a slight edge. However, Fnatic was quick to learn and adapt. A second Double Teleport play went awry for ROCCAT after Overpow’s ult missed and they were forced to back off. This allowed Fnatic to pressure down the bottom outer tower, which in turn would help them secure their own dragon. With the gold almost dead even, Fnatic proved who’s comp was superior after a siege in the middle lane gave them two additional towers. With their team slowly falling behind, ROCCAT fought hard to stay in the game, but couldn’t keep up with Fnatic’s beautiful rotations.

Fnatic (W)					ROCCAT (L)
Kills	Turrets		Gold		Kills	Turrets			Gold
15	11		73.4k		11	3			58k
Lineup
Position	Player		Champion	K/D/A	Position		Player			Champion	K/D/A
Top	sOAZ		Lulu	1/5/11	Top	Xaxus				Alistar	3/5/4
Jungle	Cyanide		Rengar	2/1/10	Jungle	Jankos				Jarvan IV	3/2/4
Mid	xPeke		Orianna	4/2/7	Mid	Overpow				Fizz	4/3/3
ADC	Rekkles		Kog’Maw	5/1/6	ADC	Celaver				Tristana	1/3/3
Support	YellOwStaR		Nami	3/2/8	Support	VandeR				Thresh	0/2/4
Bans
Maokai		Elise	Kha’Zix		Nidalee			Evelynn	Kassadin

Questions? Comments? Leave them below!