Hello everyone and welcome to the end of another season in Blue Otter League Emerald. Sorry for missing content last week I have been working insane crunch hours to try and push updates at work. With the final game of the season, I turn to the best way to get to know our finalists through interviews. I will then provide you all with my thoughts on the Final matchup and who will be taking home the bacon.
The Shattered Spire Interview Questions
How did you come up with your league name?
I used to be known as Danny Phantòm and had played in BOL gold/platinum I think around just before and during COVID. Took a break for school. Came back and wanted a new name that was a little more simple/one word. Had been listening to a lot of lofi hip-hop/synth wave music around the time so that's where it came from lol.
What do you think the final series score will be?
I'm gonna bet final series score will be 3-1 in favor of us TSS.
Who has been the opposing laner you have played this season in BOL Emerald?
Gonna be honest, no top laners have really stood out to me other then Turpz. Mostly because a lot of elected to play tanks or lane neutralizers into me. But the Turpz Renekton really surprised me because it was almost like he was a completely different player. He gets my vote for sure
I have raised concerns over your champion pool all season long. In playoffs you have shown some new picks is that just due to games going the full distance or were you saving these champions so teams would be less prepared for them?
Definitely a little of both. I have a much deeper pool then people probably think i do. Mostly because i only play in soloq either my best or what i love playing lol, which is mostly Jayce. My motto if hey, if it aint broke, dont fix it.
How do you adjust your playstyle when playing a tank top laner versus a split-pusher or carry? Is it a different mindset that you adapt?
Honestly my playstyle doesnt change too much, in fact i am even more comfy when im on a tank imo. A lot less stress on me lol.
If you had a dollar for every time the enemy top laner typed “?” in all chat after a solo kill, how rich would you be?
I wouldn't be too rich, im usually the one typing the "?". Mostly because the enemy top would get solo killed by me after being 3/0 up from having his piggie jungler sitting in the bush for 5 minutes straight xdd.
GANK ME MORE, PLEASE
How did you come up with your league name?
I got My league name from a song by Black Sabbath
Contrary to popular belief that it is a fiddlesticks reference??? It is from War Pigs. Goated Song
What do you think the final series score will be?
I think that the series score being realistic will be 3:1 us but I want it to be a 3:0. I trust in our team to continue the series streak we are on, and for us to show everyone who thinks we don't got it, we got it
Who has been the opposing laner you have played this season in BOL Emerald?
Difficult to say to be honest for me, as my Jungle opponents genuinely have not been the problematic issues of the teams we've played against. I personally have never felt pressured by an enemy jungle in our BOL Run. So my answer will be none. I have outsmited most of my counterparts if not all.
Last Series against Syndicate Crashouts they spent 2 bans on you for almost the entire series. How did this make you feel were you flattered? Annoyed to be denied your FiddleSticks and Olaf?
I did expect the double ban and to be honest I was expecting the triple, just like they did when they banned Zac. I expect that to Carry over into the series vrs TFF as well. I wasn't annoyed as it was expected, and I was 100% flattered that people think I am a problem, Cause you know....I am infact "The Olaf Merchant".
What are the key mechanics to master for your main jungle champions? Is is mastering the leash ranges on Fiddlesticks? Learning the best ult spots?
Hmmm I think that most of the leash ranges have been removed and skill expression has moreso left the jungle this past year since the leash changes had hit. With Fiddle Specific, it is integral that your team knows what and how you want to play, as he doesn't operate like most jungle champions. So really its on my team for my overall success as a jungle, both on Fiddle and in our BOL Season this whole Season.
What’s your favorite excuse when your gank goes horribly wrong?
No Excuses from me to be honest. I think for example my flash vrs laners flash is always more expendable then any of my laners when it comes to ganks. I trust my teamates to abuse them for getting their flash for mine.
Just wanted to shoutout everyone of my teammates and everyone in our Org The Spire! Grateful for playing/Hanging with every one of you guys
Mid Laner: Eros#414
How did you come up with your league name?
My username before was abreos but my fiance picked up league and were both into greek mythology so we wanted to pick the seemingly least problematic couple name so im eros and shes psyche
What do you think the final series score will be?
Uhh im hoping 3-0/3-1 for us
Who has been the opposing laner you have played this season in BOL Emerald?
Zuiy from crashouts and okami from ak hearts both put the most pressure on me which made the laning phases really fun vs those two
Last Week I would say you were the series MVP despite playing against Zuiy who most people regarded as one of the best mid laners in BOL this split. Did you feel any sort of individual pressure last week to perform better then normal?
So earlier in the year I was on another Spire team and played vs zuiy and he absolutely dumpstered me. Since then i feel like ive grown a lot as a player since this is my first year back in comp since 2019, so i really saw this is a test for me. I want to be considered as one of the best mids in these leagues but to be considered that I would need to beat the best.
What’s your approach to controlling the tempo of the game from the mid lane?
My approach changes from game to game depending on who im playing but the underlying thing i look for is to just be consistent, i tend to play more scaling picks so i feel if i can be consistent enough then we’ll hit that breakpoint with some ease
Do you ever play games just to see how many times you can ping “Enemy Missing” before your team gets mad?
Not usually but i do like to play the game of how many times can i say enemy mid is missing and still have my bot lane die to the roam
ADC: Boostus#NA1
How did you come up with your league name?
It's a nickname some friends gave me in high school when I used to run track and it has stuck with me.
What do you think the final series score will be?
3-0
Who has been the opposing laner you have played this season in BOL Emerald?
I haven't played a good bot lane this season
ADC is often a role where you are forced to play the best or META champions. Have you enjoyed Fearless and the opportunity to play as and against some of the more niche ADC options?
Since I've been playing the game for so long I have enjoyed fearless and the opportunity to play different champions. I think it is a great addition to the comp scene.
Do you prefer supports who engage or those who peel for you?
I think there is a time and place for both but I usually prefer one that peels for me.
What's more terrifying: a fed assassin on the enemy team, or your support trying to engage 1v3?
assassin
Support: wanderer#chime
How did you come up with your league name?
1) bard is one of my favorite champions and I usually try to have my ign champ related. Since bards title is wandering caretaker I just chose to go with wanderer.
What do you think the final series score will be?
2)i think the series score will be 3-1
Who has been the opposing laner you have played this season in BOL Emerald?
3) i don't think I've really had a challenge with any botlane in bol. People clown boostus a lot but im pretty in 2v2 situations without jungle or other lanes intervening we haven't lost a single lane. But ig if I had to say at least one bot lane ig syndicate crash outs was probably our hardest lane. Jake is a very good adc it's ashame his support was a passenger princess and was essentially a caster minion.
Both you and Cheongseolmo play a lot of bard. Do you think Bard will be a priority pick this series? What draws you to play such a unique support champion?
4) i don't think bard will be that prio. I haven't had the best history on the champ in comp until this split so I usually don't play it.
What do you look for in an ideal ADC partner, and how do you build synergy with them?
5) someone that can take criticism and trust me.
Do you ever pretend to miss a heal or shield just to teach your ADC a lesson?
6) no i wouldnt do that to teach my adc a lesson. But if I have a perfect game on the line and we have no chance of losing ill let them die to keep the flawless kda
TFF Aftershock Interview Questions
Top Laner: Wock Warlock#lean
How did you come up with your league name?
Its to honor a friend of mine who passed, I was left with some things he wanted me to have and my most memorable is his DND character the infamous "Wock Warlock"
What do you think the final series score will be?
Anything can happen but we seem to be comfortable in long series so ill say 3-2.
Who has been the opposing laner you have played this season in BOL Emerald?
Spoobert def has been the strongerst laner ive played against. I remember seaboyer being favored in a machup against me and i just ran through him. Spoob's on a different level.
You have one of the highest surrender rates I have ever seen FFing half of your ranked games. Is there a reason why? Hatred of solo queue?
Before it was definitely a tilt factor. These past two seasons ive gotten better at reading game states, and if my team is incohesive id just rather move on than sit and watch grown adults get mad at each other over 60 gold in a video game.
Zac has been the champion you have played the most often as blue side blind pick despite not having a lot of mastery or games on the champion. Why Zac? Is it the flexibility in the draft?
One of my weaknesses has been my lack of tank play. Ive been working hard with a higher elo player in resolving that and zac has been my standout as he gives me the ability to trade heavily and have a ton of sustain while giving my jungler a chance to be on one of his more proficient picks.
What’s worse: being camped by the enemy jungler or being ignored by your own?
I'd say neither, I really dont mind being camped by the enemy. What I hate the most is resources! I tell any team i join that i prefer to completely isolate myself in lane and sides as i feel I can play at 150% and push my limits. Alot of champs I play are great at 1v2 so I actually like the attention top so my team can do whatever they want to win us the game ;3
Jungler:CocoPuffs#egirl
How did you come up with your league name?
Came up with the name since my nickname irl is coco so i just made cocopuffs.
What do you think the final series score will be?
3-2
Who has been the best opposing laner you have played this season in BOL Emerald?
Saelor
It Seems like almost every jungler I look at has Viego as their most played champion and he is the most popular jungler in the game. What draws you and other junglers to play the Ruined King?
What do you expect from your laners when you’re planning a gank? For them to communicate who to focus? The optimal time for you come? The excited monkey noises that you have decided to grace their lane?
Tbh I just ask for summs and I ask what wave state is like if its cool if i come or not.
How often do you pretend to be busy just to avoid a laner pinging you for a gank?
I can't I'm on a leash.
Mid Laner: Rutledge#OSU
How did you come up with your league name?
Just my name
What do you think the final series score will be?
3-2 Because we can't win unless its 5 games.
Who has been the best opposing laner you have played this season in BOL Emerald?
Probably AK Hearts Mid
Teams that you play on often focus around you as the star player trying to do the most. Is that due to how you play league? Or is it the shotcalling and drafting you bring?
Variety of factors, but when I play mid my pool is typically high damage, so it just works out that way.
You have been in the Emerald/Platnium scene for a long time. Do you think that players have generally improved in this ELO or are the problems the same?
Over time, I think the average Emerald player has improved overall. The skill curve tends to rise gradually, but there have also been periods of Elo inflation if you've been playing long enough. So yes, the average Emerald player is better now, but some players still struggle in competitive for a variety of reasons—like champion pool, communication, or drafting. However, they can still climb in solo queue, where there are fewer variables at play
Do you ever feel bad for one-shotting people?
Nope. Only reason I play the game.
ADC: Keorra#OwO
How did you come up with your league name?
Veorra was my favorite music group so i just changed the first letter to what mine used to be
What do you think the final series score will be?
it will be 5 games like all of our series most likely, so 3-2 TSS.
Who has been the best opposing laner you have played this season in BOL Emerald?
Mei and Mcfeeds are pretty good and i got to play 8 games against them this season and with recency i have to go with them.
How true are the Seraphine allegations?
I am a huge seraphine abuser and enjoyer and 100% the only reason i hit my peak is due to it.
Which ADC mechanics do you think are essential to getting better at the role? Are any more specific towards ADC than other roles?
the ability to get gold and income regardless of how your team is doing and teamfight positioning, both of those matter for any carry role, but it is most obvious with ADCs.
Do you ever have dreams of becoming a tank and just running into the enemy team with 5000 HP and a giant sword?
No? i suck at tanks so i have 0 desire to be one. a bruiser? maybe.
Would you trade your support for an extra item slot if you could?
No, while an extra item slot would be nice i need my support to be my ward bot cause no way am i building a 0 damage item in the game.
Support: Cheongseolmo#BDB
How did you come up with your league name?
I came up with my league name after going by Goos3 for awhile when I became a big fan of Nuguri. So I took a name similar to his, which became Cheongseolmo translating to Squirrel in Korean.
What do you think the final series score will be?
Finals score of the series will be 3-2 TFF win. Won't be a TFF playoff series if we don't go the distance.
Who has been the best opposing laner you have played this season in BOL Emerald?
Best opposing laner for me was either CaCollin of McFeeds. They are the best 2 supports in the league and knew how to expose me and put me in awkward positions so I'm happy I was able to clean up my gameplay for later games in the series and get those wins.
Do you ever stand just far enough back to see if your ADC can handle a 1v1 on their own? You know… as a “learning moment”?
Nah what i do to Keorra is either straight up abandon him in teamfights or TK ult him and keep him in the middle of the enemy team.
How many allies dying in the same spot does it take for you to refuse to ward that area out of pure spite?
I will always ward for my team, even if I die. Classic Cheong warding moments are what I am known for.
Both you and Wanderer play a lot of bard. Do you think Bard will be a priority pick for this series? What draws you to play such a unique support champion?
I do not think Bard will be a priority pick, I haven't played it since week 1 even when teams leave it up. I chose to play Bard when I role swapped from jungle to support and asked myself, "what support champs are fun?" And that is how I became a Bard main
What’s scarier: an assassin diving your carry, or your ADC flashing forward?
What's scarier? Neither. The correct answer is CocoPuffs in Amumu. He will go either 1/11 or 9/3 there are no other options
Finals Predictions:
3-1 for The Shattered Spire
So why do I favour The Shattered Spire over TFF Aftershock? Is it the fact that TSS has a much higher solo queue average? No its not that. Is it their playoff dominance? Yeah, that for sure is part of it but not the main reason. The reason is that I think where TFF is strongest and establishes most of their leads TSS matches them or surpasses them.Both TSS and TFF have played this season with their solo lanes dominating but I think that TSS has the better lanes.
In the top lane of this series we have WockWarlock for TFF going against SynthWave of TSS. WockWarlock joined BOLE late this season and has played almost entirely as a strong side carry. Wock Warlock has won games and dominated top laners when given counter-pick practising and is playing Top laners that are designed to destroy blind picks. But Synthwave is not just another tank top laner like most of the people Wock Warlock has played. Synthwave is going to slam a blind pick Jayce or other strong early-game champions. Wock Warlock has shown that he plays the same ahead and behind and has had some really bad games when they are weak-sided (Like the 0-10-3 Aatrox game against Spoobert or the 1-4-1 Volibear game). With both of these top laners playing more aggressively I do not know if WockWarlock will get the chance to play the champions like Illaoi and Moredkaiser whom he has shown his best performances. Synthwave had way better stats this season having a much higher KDA(5.03 to Wocks 3.7), farmed more CS on average, made more gold a game, did 100 more DPM. took 300 DPM less and did more tower damage. Synthwave looks to be the clear favorite in my mind and without a winning top lane independently I think the wheels start to fall off for TFF.
Both WitchAtBlackMass and CocoPuffs are honestly playing more as engage and frontline facilitators than overall carries. While WitchAtBlackMass has the potential and ability to play Olaf or something more aggressive I am expecting most of this series for these 2 players to be playing more of a supportive role. While neither of these players are making the flashy game winning plays both have tremendous upside. CocoPuffs has all season been able to play early ganking champions like Reksai and Vi to get early leads and allow Ruteldge to gain his massive foothold on the game. WitchAtBlackMass has several pocket picks that demand respect and in most cases bans. Again I favor TSS as I feel that WitchAtBlackMass has more of an upside in this series. I cannot foresee CoCoPuffs being allowed to play something wild to carry a game with but WitchAtBlackMass certainly will be given that freedom.
Mid Lane is where this series all comes down to. Eros of TSS Vs. Rutledge of TFF. Both of these mid-laners have absolutely obliterated everyone they have come up against. They finished the season rated as the top 2 mid laners for a reason both have been incredible. In just about every stat BOLE tracked this season Eros was up there. Eros was top 10 in Kills a game, CS a minute, damage dealt a minute and gold a minute. Conversely, Rutledge has just 1 stat they were top 10 in damage a minute but oh boy is Rutledge good at that one thing. Rutledge is king of DPM with his weird pocket picks of Velkoz, Ziggs and Vex Rutledge has put up some freak numbers doing almost 1000 DPM(about 20% more than Eros who was 5th). If Rutledge can keep these damage numbers in the stratosphere he will win this series like he has had all playoffs. But I believe that Eros is more than up to the task of keeping Rutledge caged and allowing TFF to slowly fall apart.
Of every lane, I think bot lane is the most even in this series. Both Boostus and Keorra have been very good ADCs and both supportts share a similar roam-heavy playstyle with lots of engage options and deep champion pools. The most interesting thing about these 2 ADC players is that they do not get weaker as a series progresses. Keorra has looked just as comfortable playing Smolder and Sivir as they have on Jinx and Ashe. Boostus has been the weak side ADC God. Keorra is the player that I truly expect to take over the game but Boostus has shown every hotshot ADC that they are not as important to their team and teamwork is key.
When it comes to team stats TSS stand atop everyone in the league TSS has dropped just 6 games. TSS have a higher team KDA, killed more dragons, barons inhibs, towers and made more gold then TFF. Not just do TSS have mostly matchups that I think favor them they have the stats to back them up. Best of luck to both teams in the Finals!
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