All-Round Mid Laner - Chapter 114-1

ARML Chapter 114.1: Final Match

Updated: Apr 2

After losing the first game, Luoshendian’s coach swiftly entered the soundproofed room.

Watching this game from an eagle-eye view, it was very evident that Tianhuan had improved a lot in this period of time. From the starting when the mid laner had set the rhythm, to the end where the mid/jungle duo worked together to take objectives or when Chi Shuo’s jungler core made a reappearance, their improved progress since last season is evident.  

Even today, the entire team had displayed tacit understanding with each other and when the five of them cooperated during the team fight, their skills were smoothly interwoven. This was especially true for Cheng Xing who was playing the marksman. His performance was commendable. 

Tianhuan’s improvement was really frightening. Once Luoshendian loses the second game, they would have no way of getting promoted from Group A according to the current point situation. Hence, they have to think of a way to win the second game!

The coach frowned, then quickly calmed himself down. 

“Lieyang’s hero pool is extremely deep, and even if we only focus on banning mid lane heroes, we won’t be able to ban them all. We’ll focus on the bottom lane in the second game instead and breakthrough from there!”

No matter how they see it, Tianhuan’s bottom lane is their weakness. If they break through on the bottom lane first and let their marksman and support interfere with the mid lane’s development frequently, then Ye Shaoyang would have no way of setting the rhythm.

The picks and bans phase of the second game for both teams was drastically different from the first——Luoshendian banned marksmen heroes consecutively. They banned the Wind Nymph, which was a flexible marksman, and the Machine Gun Huntsman, which was a hero that could clear minions at a rapid pace. This resulted in Cheng Xing being forced to pick the Divine Archer. 

There were only a few strong all-rounder marksmen heroes. Other marksmen heroes must be played with particular comps to work well. 

If Cheng Xing picked the Divine Archer, Luoshendian could retaliate by locking in the Warlock of Poison for the marksman and a kill-oriented assassin jungler, both there to specifically hunt him down. The Divine Archer was extremely fragile in the early-game and couldn’t deal much damage.

How would Tianhuan respond to this?

The audience all stared at the big screens anxiously.

In the end, Tianhuan’s first pick wasn’t for the marksman, but they locked in the Holy Knight instead.

Luoshendian’s coach was elated, and he immediately took the Warlock of Poison for the marksman and the Stealthy Rogue as the core. This way, the jungler would be able to circle around Cheng Xing and kill him regardless of the marksman hero he picked.  

Tianhuan then chose the Master Archer and Thunder Goddess.

Both commentators looked at each other, their eyes full of doubt——

“The Thunder Goddess is paired with the Master Archer this time. The Thunder Goddess’s arc lightning could scatter towards the surroundings and as for the Master Archer’s flame arrows, they could also branch out towards the surroundings after his ult is unleashed!”

“So… Tianhuan is going for an AOE damage fighting style this round?”
TL/n: Raws used ‘splash damage’ but I used AOE to prevent any confusion.

At the backstage spectating area, Xu Zhuo couldn’t help but curse when he saw this, “Tianhuan has many weird comps this season. The Thunder Goddess as the mid laner and paired with the Master Archer as the marksman, with a double carry AOE fighting style, they would really be a fierce duo when it comes to team fights! But these two heroes don’t have many movement skills and their self-sustainability isn’t great. It’s very easy for them to get ganked by the enemy jungler.”

Xie Wieyu analyzed carefully and said, “However, Luoshendian’s jungler chose the Stealthy Rogue. Even if he wants to kill people in front of Captain Chi using the Stealthy Rogue, he may not be able to do so, right?”

Xu Zhuo smiled, “That’s true.”

In the second phase, Luoshendian banned two supports in succession. Chi Shuo took the Knight-Errant, which was a support jungler, and Tianhuan followed up by picking the Dark Angel——the Dark Angel was a mage tank that was often played by top laners.

“Didn’t Tianhuan choose the Holy Knight just now? Wait, is the Holy Knight a support this round?”

“This is really a perplexing tactic! Old Qin played the Holy Knight as a top laner just now, so the opponents’ coach would think that they would be using the Holy Knight as a top laner just like before. In the end, the Holy Knight was given to Qu Jiang while Old Qin chose the Dark Angel.”

“This is a comp that initiates team fights seamlessly. Tianhuan just wants to purely fight this game!”

The Holy Knight could leap over to taunt and initiate team fights while also standing in as a tank.

The Dark Angel’s ult, the Dark Curse, could forcefully immobilize all enemies within its range while also lowering their defenses at the same time.

The Knight-Errant was a support jungler and was a hero that dealt damage by kicking. He could send the designated target flying a distance away with a kick, or kick his enemies into the fray, letting the fragile enemies land right into the center of his teammates.

Three team fight initiators plus a mid laner and marksman that acted as the double carry of the team for AOE damage, Tianhuan’s comp this time practically had a single line written all over it: ‘I want to engage in a team fight with you.’

Because Luoshendian targeted the bottom lane during the picks and bans phase, their bottom lane locked in the Warlock of Poison and Forest Envoy which were heroes with great endurance. Their jungler was the Stealthy Rogue which can pose a threat to Tianhuan’s double carry, their top laner was the Vampiric Duke that could tank and attack, and their mid laner was the Storm Goddess, a terrain control hero.

On the surface, it looked as though both teams’ comps were evenly matched. Tianhuan’s comp was strong in initiating fights (various control skills), while Luoshendian’s comp had strong endurance ability (life-stealing and healing skills). Now, it all depends on whose side would be the first to put a stop to their opponents’ damage output in team fights. 

The game began.

Luoshendian didn’t invade the jungle this game, and Chi Shuo’s support jungler also conscientiously continued to let his teammates take buffs. This was right until Luoshendian’s jungler hit Level 6 and went to gank his opponents in the first bout.

The Stealthy Rogue can go into stealth, and it wouldn’t be possible to locate him on the map. However, Chi Shuo had a hunch that the enemy jungler would definitely attack the bottom lane.

Chi Shuo kept an eye on the bottom lane long ago and was currently hiding in the bushes on the side. Right at the moment when the Stealthy Rogue circled around the back and wanted to kill Cheng Xing, Chi Shuo suddenly leaped out from the bushes and sent him flying away with a single kick.

The Stealthy Rogue is indeed deserving of being called the core. His explosive power shocks people and as long as one was hit by his big move, the fragile hero would either be dead or crippled.

However, the level of understanding Chi Shuo had towards the Stealthy Rogue… was just like looking from an eagle-eye view. He had calculated the Stealthy Rogue’s stealth time accurately and even the path he took when he wanted to launch an ambush!

The effect this scene caused made people feel satisfaction. Just when the Stealthy Rogue revealed himself and wanted to kill Cheng Xing, the Knight-Errant descended from the sky and sent him flying away with a kick.

Just like a hero saving the damsel in dramas!

TL/n: This chapter was so difficult to translate. I had to get three!! different editors with MOBA knowledge to help me out huhuhu. I was so confused with the splash damage/AOE thing and all. Also, there’s been some changes to my usual working schedule so some updates may be at night instead of the morning! As always, thank you for reading! (and join our discord server to get update pings :D)