While Cloud9 may joke about losing the offseason, a number of LEC fans are of the mindset that FNATIC actually did lose the offseason this year (and they have a solid argument at that). While I agree that losing their star player is rough, losing said player to their biggest in-league rival is even rougher; there are still some factors to consider in how this could, in the end, play out in FNC’s favor. Let’s break it down!
Rekkles is without a doubt a star and one of the most mechanically-gifted AD Carries in all of professional League of Legends; he’s a legend on the Rift and a role model off of it. Losing a player like that, someone who has been the face of your franchise for nearly a decade, is no easy task to overcome, but it isn’t impossible either. When it comes to Fnatic League of Legends, Rekkles has been there for many of the highlights, but there have been some made without him as well. When we look back to Season 1, pre-Rekkles, Fnatic came home with a World Championship [yes, I know it was prior to Asia-based teams being included, but it is a World Championship all the same] and when we look to when Rekkles left FNC last time (at the end of the 2014 season), FNC went on to win the EU LCS Spring Split with Yellowstar and four rookies. While Fnatic has spent most of their time with Rekkles, they haven’t failed to find success without him in the past either.
That brings us to today, the second time that Rekkles has decided to move on from Fnatic and continue his career elsewhere. After a strong runner-up finish to Invictus Gaming at Worlds 2018, Fnatic went on to lose their star midlaner Caps and has since then struggled to find success against their regional rivals, G2 Esports. Today presents a fresh start for an organization hungry for success both home and abroad and a new opportunity for Rekkles to try to chase his ambition of winning a World Championship from a new angle, alongside former teammate Caps. So where does Fnatic go from here?
At this point Fnatic stands in a bit of a complicated, forced crossroads situation as they are now tasked with rebuilding their roster around 3 veterans and 2 vacant carry positions left to fill. According to rumors, we can safely assume that Nisqy will most likely be taking over for Nemesis as Fnatic’s new midlaner. While Nisqy isn’t known as the most mechanically-gifted mid and will definitely not be the next “Caps”, I think he’ll fit very nicely into Fnatic’s current team composition. Nisqy is know for highlighting his junglers and doing so without demanding many resources; Fnatic has one of the best carry junglers in all of professional League of Legends…this could be a match made in heaven. Having a mid who can play more of a supportive style also offers the option of allowing Bwipo to unlock more of the carry potential that we saw from him in the past as well, in-turn giving Fnatic a lot of flexibility in drafts moving forward. Don’t get me wrong, Nisqy can carry as well; he may not be Caps, but given the right situation, he can elevate a team to a new level entirely. If you want to compare Nisqy to another midlaners’ style, I think the closest comparison is Doinb of the LPL’s 2019 World Champion FunPlus Phoenix; the same FunPlus Phoenix that took down G2 Esports and Caps in a dominate 3-0 performance on the Worlds’ stage. Doinb is not the flashiest midlane player, but he is willing to make sacrifices for the betterment of his team and in-turn allows the team to unlock its true form; Nisqy has this potential as well.
Once again assuming the Nisqy rumors are true, that sets us up with Bwipo in Top, Selfmade in the Jungle, Nisqy in Mid, and Hylissang as Support. Who will the ADC be? I think there are two choices for Fnatic here: (1) go with the next highest, mechanically-gifted, veteran ADC available (in my opinion “Upset”) OR (2) begin the quest to find the next “Rekkles” and invest in a young, up-and-coming ADC talent. I think either way will be a “win” for FNC. If they go with option 1, they pick up a very strong, mechanical ADC who has found himself in Rekkles’ shadow since joining the professional scene. Choosing Upset would put him on his best team yet (by far) and would allow him to showcase his true potential on a team with multiple carry threats and in a lane with a support that will finally be able to match his aggression. While Rekkles and Hylissang looked like the best botlane in the World just a few weeks ago, there have been a number of times throughout the past few seasons where they’ve looked as if they weren’t on the same page. Hylissang almost always opts to play out the laning phase aggressively, while Rekkles tends to lean towards a more passive, farm-heavy style in lane. This is one area where I honestly think Upset could provide a sizeable, instant improvement. It took years for Rekkles and Hyli to show the aggressive lane dominance that was showcased at Worlds this year, while Upset would be coming in with that aggressive mentality from the get-go. I can’t speak for how he would mesh with the team outside of the Rift, but in-game his style would suit them very well.
Now, let’s say Fnatic decides to opt for option B and recruit a young, up-and-coming ADC prospect. I think there are a number of very talented ADCs available from xMatty in FNC’s own academy system to a number of other prospects sprinkled throughout the European Regional Leagues (ERLs) and beyond. Just as they did with Rekkles years ago, this could be another brilliant opportunity for Fnatic to shape the next ADC prodigy, ie the “Rekkles” of tomorrow. With this option, the thing that sticks out to me most is the idea of a young ADC being molded by Hylissang, “The Professor”, early on in his/her career. It is very likely that a rookie would be willing to blindly follow-up on the constant engages that Hyli finds throughout a match, something that veteran ADCs have struggled with by second guessing until it’s too late. Forming a rookie in this way, could produce a devastatingly aggressive, potent ADC to lead Fnatic forward for years to come.
Last, but not least, there is a third option that I didn’t mention above. That would be the option to import a veteran ADC from another region. While this is definitely a possibility, Fnatic has seen both huge success with imports such as Huni and Reignover in 2015 and significant downsides with imports such as Gamsu and Spirit in 2016. Importing a veteran from a non-english speaking region has typically provided strong mechanical talent, but it has also generally provided a language barrier for teams to overcome. With a few considerable LEC free agents like Upset and Crownshot available, alongside a number of talented EU-based rookies, I would be pretty surprised if Fnatic chose to move in the direction of importing an ADC from Asia. With that being said, FNC has made significant import moves in the past, so nothing is off the table as of yet.
All-in-all, as a long time fan of both Fnatic and Rekkles, it is extremely hard for me to see him leave and it makes it even harder knowing that he is going to a significant rival in the scene. Caps walked away as a free agent just a couple years ago and now Rekkles is following in his footsteps to create what will possibly go down as the strongest Western team of all time. While I’m ecstatic as a fan of Western League of Legends, it is tough to see two icons leave the organization that I’ve followed the closest all these years. As the sun sets on the story of FNC Rekkles, a new chapter begins in both G2 and Fnatic; a chapter that could elevate both orgs and all of Western League of Legends to new heights. Best of luck to all. Once Fnatic, #AlwaysFnatic.
Videos:
Fnatic Goodbye Video
G2 Welcome Video
*Image courtesy of @Fnatic
