H2K: COMING TO LCS EU

It is perhaps fitting that H2k's playstyle mirrors their journey as a team. Starting out as a feisty Ranked 5v5 team under the name "Apples is good," H2k have impressed from day one. Reaching the #1 spot and converting their Ranked success into a slew of tournament victories in the Challenger scene, the group have always been a team to start strong and finish strong. This was entirely on show in the EU LCS Expansion Tournament during their 6-0 run.

Since forming in late 2013, H2k has been trying to qualify for the EU LCS. Undoubtedly Europe’s top Challenger team of 2014 (with a total of 11 tournament wins), H2k’s qualification story is one of perseverance and belief.

Their first attempt came in the 2014 Summer Promotion Tournament under the name Cloud9 Eclipse. Supa Hot Crew came ready to defend their LCS spot, blowing H2k out of the water in the first two games as jungler Matthew “Impaler” Taylor drove H2k’s lanes into submission. H2k attempted a comeback with spirited play from Andrei “Odoamne” Pascu and Lucas “Santorin” Tao Kilmer Larsen, but the experience of the LCS team won the day, and H2k had to try again.

Undiscouraged, the team worked hard and made a second run at the 2015 Spring Promotion Tournament against the Copenhagen Wolves. H2k immediately ran into trouble as the Wolves came prepared against Fabian “Febiven” Diepstraten’s mid lane champion pool, removing Nidalee and Zed from the rotation every game. His teeth blunted, Febiven was unable to impact the games in any significant way, and H2k faced another 0-3 loss.

H2k's big break came when the LCS expanded to ten teams per league. With no Challenger team in the Expansion Tournament coming as close to qualifying for the LCS as H2k, their motivation was at an all-time high. The team's first match was against n!faculty, and they won in three games off Odoamne and Febiven’s unstoppable carry picks.

H2k’s last step towards the EU LCS would be against Giants Gaming, a Spanish powerhouse led by mid lane maverick Isaac “PePiiNeRo” Flores. H2k called upon the strategy that the Copenhagen Wolves had used to defeat them, and target banned PePiiNeRo’s Syndra and Xerath. Forced onto more aggressive picks, PePiiNeRo found himself countered at every corner by Jean-Victor “loulex” Burgevin’s ferocious jungle ganks. Unable to initiate any kind of aggression, the Giants eventually toppled in a 3-0 victory for H2k.

In two days, H2k had reversed a year of last-minute defeats. Their 0-6 record in EU LCS qualifiers became 6-6, and a year of perseverance and hard work finally paid off.

LOULEX: STRONG THROUGH THE END

H2k’s mechanical, no-nonsense play is anchored by loulex. The jungler consistently leads his team to early gold leads with perfectly predicted counterganks and a strangling vision game. Throughout their Challenger career, H2k were rarely challenged in the early game, as loulex’s strong counterjungling style scared off enemy junglers and created space for H2k’s lanes to play aggressively.

While loulex’s counterjungling is one of H2k’s greatest strengths, it may fall short against experienced EU LCS teams who cannot be read as easily, such as Elements. The majority of H2k’s early leads come when loulex is either able to read the opposing jungler’s movements, or when enemy lanes play overly aggressive without adequate vision. Therefore, they’ll have to watch out against teams with safe, jungler-independent laning phases.

CHANNELING EXPERIENCE

Though H2k are new to the EU LCS as a team, they are not entirely devoid of top-level experience.

H2k’s mid laner, Yoo “Ryu” Sang-ook, brings a wealth of experience to the EU LCS roster. Since his departure from KT Rolster Bullets, he's been floating around the European scene, first with Millenium in the 2015 Spring Promotion Tournament, then with ROCCAT at IEM Cologne. As he only spent a short time with those teams, there's a much greater chance for Ryu to develop synergy with H2k over the course of the EU LCS. For him, the European scene may just be the change he needs to return to his previous world-class form.

Aside from Ryu, loulex brings experience from his brief stint substituting for Gambit Gaming’s Danil “Diamond” Reshetnikov in the 2014 Summer Split. Support player Erih “Voidle” Sommermann also had an extended stint on Gambit in the 2013 Summer Split, which included a World Championship run that was cut short by NaJin Black Sword.

Add on the high-pressure competitive experience of Ryu, and H2k are not as green a team as they might appear at first glance. The battle-hardened veterans will be invaluable in assisting rookies Odoamne and Petter “Hjärnan” Freyschuss in their transition to premier competition.

ONWARD TO THE LCS

H2k’s transition to the LCS will be a test of their adaptability and teamwork. They have gone from being seasoned veterans of the Challenger scene to fresh-faced rookies in the EU LCS, but they are by no means amateur players. There is no getting around the fact that the odds are stacked against them as LCS debutantes, but the experience they do have will be invaluable.

H2k converted their Ranked success into Challenger success - we'll see if they convert their Challenger success into EU LCS success when the 2015 EU LCS season kicks off on January 22, right here on Lolesports.

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