Joshua “Dardoch” Hartnett is a player that has a rich and deep history in the North American pro scene, and this Summer Split we get to see him in action under the Dignitas banner! Having played a key role in a number of teams over his career, Dardoch is no stranger to the spotlight. We had the opportunity to talk with him about the season ahead and how he's feeling about this new chapter in his League of Legends story!

Okay Dardoch, what would you be doing right now if it weren’t for League of Legends?

Dardoch: Honestly, I’d probably still be in school! I’m not sure what I’d be working towards; I never gave it much thought since I’ve played League for so long.

Many fans of Dignitas will have heard of you over the years but, for those who haven't, what kind of a player is Dardoch?

Dardoch: I’m definitely on the aggressive side. That’s been a main characteristic of my gameplay since I started playing. I like champion vs. champion combat, and that’s not to say I don’t have strategy in my gameplay, but most of my play revolves around combat.

How does it feel to be wearing DIG colors this Summer Split?

Dardoch: It feels good! It always feels nice to get a chance at a fresh start, and being close to many of my old friends and teammates on DIG also makes me feel great about wearing the colors. As an organization, DIG has made me feel very welcome so I’m grateful to be here for sure.

Although it’s only been a very short amount of time, how has it been working with the team so far?

Dardoch: The first few weeks of practice have been really fun, it’s unfortunate that we went 0-2 in the first week but the work we’ve put in has been very productive so far for sure.

There is a lot of anticipation among the fans about the next few months in League of Legends; so what are your expectations and goals for the season ahead?

Dardoch: I think my goals will depend on which roster I’ll be primarily playing for, but more personally my goal is to get back in solid form and be playing at a higher level again. I’m hopeful to have the rosters move around as we have a lot of talent on both teams, so there’s great worth in that in my opinion.

Which teams, of all those in the NA LCS, would you expect to see at the top of the ladder at the end of the Split and which team/s do you think are most likely to shake things up?

Dardoch: I think EG (Evil Geniuses) is a team that will shake things up in both Academy and the LCS, because depending on which roster iteration they’re using they’re going to have Huni or Kumo playing in Academy, which will be super interesting. At the top I think you could expect Cloud9 and FlyQuest to be up there, as they’re both in great form, but as for everyone else I think it’s still up in the air.

Having been awarded the Rookie of the Split in 2016 and playing for many teams since, I think it’s fair to say you have a good understanding of the LCS. What do you make of your competition in the LCS for the coming Split?

Dardoch: As far as individual competition goes, I think it’s been a while since the game has been in the place where you can have too much influence on the game as one player. It’s become much more reliant on how you function with your team as a whole. With that in mind, I’m not necessarily worried about my competition as an individual because the better teams will always win so my main focus is being at the highest level of teamwork with my teammates.

The state of quarantine that we’ve been faced with over the last few months has been a challenge for many, but how have you coped with your self-isolation?

Dardoch: Cope is a good word. I’m kind of just… existing, haha. To be fair, not much has changed as I’m still spending a lot of my time playing games and watching VODs but it just feels more repetitive than before as there’s no option to go out and get food or watch a movie, as I’d usually do during the week. Every day unfortunately feels like the last, but hopefully things will all change sooner rather than later.

How have you felt about your own preparation during the preseason?

Dardoch: I didn’t really do anything specific to prepare. I took a little longer of a break during the offseason thanks to the drama that I was involved in and changing teams. But I think I came back pretty quickly and started duoing with my teammates before too long to prepare for the season.

To end on a fun one; if you had to role-swap to any other position in League of Legends, which do you think you’d be best at and which do you think you’d struggle with the most?

Dardoch: The role I’d struggle with the most would be Mid Lane for sure. I think it’s the hardest role in the game by a large margin, and a lot of it is due to how mechanical it is, meaning the lane matchups can be skewed pretty easily if your enemy laner is better than you. The role I’d most easily swap to would be Support, which is by far the easiest role in my opinion. Having experience in Jungle in the past when the meta was to buy a Sightstone and opt for the green Smite for vision control would definitely help me if I moved into that position.

Thank you for taking the time out of your day to answer our questions! Do you have anyone that you’d like to give a shoutout to?

Dardoch: Yeah, I just want to shoutout to everybody who supports me on my stream and my Discord channel, and everyone who supported me when the drama and TSM stuff happened; thanks for sticking with me.

We'd like to thank Dardoch for giving us the opportunity to get an insight on his thoughts; we wish him and the team the best of luck for the season ahead, and you can catch Dardoch @Dardoch on Twitter to stay up to date with him in between games!