IEM Katowice 2014 Finals: A Recap

By Helmight           

             

            Intel Extreme Masters Katowice 2014 concluded this Sunday with a showdown between OGN’s KT Rolster Bullets and EU LCS’s Fnatic. Though both teams had fought hard to earn their place in the finals, KTB stomped Fnatic in three games to take home the trophy.

            Game 1 was a hotly contested, hour-long match for the two teams. Though sOAZ’s Shyvana struggled against Leopard’s Olaf in the top lane, xPeke managed to go even in farm despite Ryu’s aggressive LeBlanc plays and Fnatic’s botlane had a decisive advantage. It only took a single gank from Cyanide’s Elise to get Fnatic’s ball rolling with a double kill bot and an early dragon.

            Despite their early advantages though, Fnatic was never able to get far enough ahead that they felt comfortable sieging on the Bullet’s inner towers. As a result, KTB was able to farm up and equalize the kill score thanks to the constant threat of their roaming assassins. Though the European squad made moves towards Baron, the Bullets’ vision control proved to be too much and the Koreans were the first to gain the buff after a devastating teamfight. Though Fnatic fought hard for the rest of the game, they weren’t able to stave off the Bullet’s onslaught.

            The second game had Fnatic switching up their tactics, taking early-game lane bullies like Pantheon and Renekton in an effort to win hard and win early. However, the Bullets countered Fnatic’s comp with an unusual Ryze pick in the top lane and with Mafa playing Karma. It appeared as though Fnatic’s early game dominance would go to waste during the laning phase, but a clutch teamfight at dragon yielded a double kill for xPeke and the objective gold. Fnatic immediately tried to put the pressure on the KT squad’s towers, but smart rotations from the Bullets prevented the European team from making the most of their advantage.

            It was at the dragon pit that Fnatic finally broke. As the Europeans pushed for their second dragon of the game, inSec leaped in and stole the objective from under their noses – then escaped thanks to Kha’Zix’s ultimate. By the time the fight ended, the Bullets had lost two members but aced Fnatic, handing them a solid lead that they’d hold for the rest of the game. As the early game ended, so too did Fnatic’s hopes of victory: the Bullets smart rotations and objective pressure kept them from mounting any sort of comeback.

            Game 3 was entirely lopsided in favor of the Bullets. While first blood went to Fnatic after YellOwStaR’s hook landed on Ryu at the top tower, xPeke was rendered impotent by his inability to farm mid against the Bullets’ duo lane.  sOAZ’s Aatrox meanwhile couldn’t handle the early aggression put out by Leopard on Renekton – by the time Cyanide finally showed up to gank, it was easy for Leopard to simply kill sOAZ and walk away from Fnatic’s jungler.

            Midgame proved to be too much for Fnatic, as KTB claimed each and every dragon and stole away Fnatic’s buffs. With the gold lead rising against them, Fnatic tried sending Rekkles to splitpush bot, only to have the Korean squad group up and shove the top lane. With Rekkles too far away to help, Fnatic lost their jungler and their inhibitor for only a single kill onto Score’s Lucian. Finally, after chasing Fnatic away from their desperate Baron attempt, the Bullets shoved down the mid lane for the eventual win.