After Week 9 of the LCS 2020 Summer Split, two teams were left vying for the final playoff spot: Dignitas and Counter Logic Gaming. Despite going into this match with an equal number of wins and losses, Dignitas absolutely dominated the game, winning with seventeen kills to CLG’s seven and ten towers to CLG’s three. From the start of the game, it seemed evident that Dignitas’ roster was going to be victorious, but how did they manage to translate an early first blood into a spot in the LCS playoffs? This analysis will explore three easy-to-miss takeaways from this game that can hopefully help you win your League of Legends games by turning an early lead into a unstoppable snowball!

Lesson 1: Translating One Victory into Several

Barring an effective draft which offered Joshua ‘Dardoch’ Harnett’s Olaf all of the tools it needed to take over this game, the first major success for Dignitas’ players was their first blood against Kristopher ‘Fragas’ Myhal’s Sett before a minute had even passed on Summoner's Rift. Yet, this one success was multiplied into many through several key decisions made by Dardoch and the rest of the Dignitas team.

The first of these decisions was to recall and purchase a Hunter’s Machete with the gold handed over by first blood. One aspect of gold that is very easy to overlook is that it effectively does nothing when it’s sitting in your inventory. If Dardoch had chosen to simply go to one of his buffs and defend it from a potential (but unlikely) invade, this game could have gone much differently. However, by choosing to back and buy, Dardoch’s first clear of the jungle was faster and left him much healthier than usual.

Dardoch then transferred this above-average clear into a successful attempt at counter-jungling, aided by the vision provided by a Hawkshot from Johnson ‘Johnsun’ Nguyen’s Ashe. This bit of knowledge allowed for several things to occur: Ashe and Zaqueri ‘aphromoo’ Black’s Soraka were allowed to push in, which in turn allowed Olaf and Kim ‘Fenix’ Jae-hun’s Zoe to take a successful trade with Sett once both junglers were back in the bottom jungle, which eventually resulted in a kill against Trevor ‘Stixxay’ Hayes’ Ezreal. In short, through playing proactively and utilizing the abilities of his teammates, Dardoch was able to transfer his own advantage onto his bottom-side allies, producing momentum that would last their team until well after Baron spawned.

However, beyond simply clearing out his side of the jungle and helping his teammates, it is important that Dardoch didn’t neglect the big neutral objective at this point in the game: Dragon. It’s almost hard to fathom that so much happened in the first six minutes of the game, but first few minutes are perhaps most crucial. Through the culmination of jungle domination and the pressure in the bottom lane, Dardoch and Dignitas were able to successfully claim the first Dragon of the game at only six minutes in.

The major lesson from these points is that once you have an advantage early game, you must translate that into other victories for it to be meaningful. In just over five minutes, Dignitas translated one kill into several and a Dragon through Dardoch’s proactive jungling. If this small advantage were left to fester, CLG would have had more time to recover and regain control over the map, altering the trajectory of the game entirely.

Lesson 2: Multiplying Money and Itemizing Effectively

Suppose that you’re one of Dignitas’ players in this moment: you’re six minutes into a League of Legends game and you’re up several kills plus a dragon. What do you do next to transfer early game victories into midgame triumph? As these players present it, the simple answer is to focus on collecting gold.

Returning to the idea of securing neutral objectives, Dignitas’ early successes placed them in a prime position to secure the Rift Herald at just after eight minutes into the game. However, this was not without contest, as Dardoch and Fenix had to fend off not only the enemy jungler, but also Eugune ‘Pobelter’ Park’s Twisted Fate and Kim ‘Ruin’ Hyeong-min’s Camille. While Sett and Twisted Fate might not seem terribly threatening, it is important to note that Camille was ahead due to an advantageous lane matchup against Omran ‘V1per’ Shoura’s Shen.

However, because of the gold advantage that Dignitas and Dardoch held at this point in the game, Dardoch was simply able to use Olaf’s ultimate to stall for time while the rest of his team arrived. This Rift Herald would then be used to secure top tower, furthering the economic gap between CLG and Dignitas. Simply put, Dignitas’ copious amounts of gold from the first six minutes of the game put them in a position where they could make more money by winning fights and securing towers.

Focusing in for a moment onto V1per’s Shen, it is important to note that V1per’s ability to serve as a loss leader for Dignitas’ players had an immense impact on this game. Shen’s main purpose on most teams is to use his ultimate, Stand United, to sway teamfights in favour of his allies. As a result of such, his laning phase leaves much to be desired, especially against dedicated splitpushers like Camille. However, by weathering the storm and surviving a potentially volatile lane with little trouble, V1per facilitated Dardoch’s antics on the bottom side of the map, creating the opportunity for the aforementioned advantages to exist. Furthermore, when Dignitas finally prioritized the topside, V1per yielded his minions to Johnsun, funneling gold onto the people who were already snowballing anyway. Thus, by standing back and letting his team collect gold that could have been his, V1per allowed his snowballing team to do so to an even greater extent.

At risk of repeating a point from Lesson 1, Dardoch’s itemization once again created an opportunity for his team to snowball through leaning into the randomness of League of Legends. Where Dardoch initially took advantage of an unexpected first blood, in this case he recognized the opportunity to benefit from the Cloud Dragon Soul and itemized in a way that synergizes with such by building Movement Speed enhancing items. Through rushing second tier boots and a Righteous Glory, Dardoch circumvented Olaf’s inherent lack of movement abilities and compensated for not being able to take the Summoner Spell Ghost. By doing so, he transformed Olaf from a threat which turns off slightly once everyone has items which allow them to kite effectively to a character with potent backline access.

Summarizing the key point of this lesson into a few words, it is necessary to note that the importance of gold cannot be understated. Dignitas’ early successes produced gold which let them translate those victories into midgame domination which in turn increased the wealth chasm between them and CLG. Dardoch serves as an example of how to lean into the more random aspects of League, turning unexpected kills and dragons into opportunities to increase the efficiency of his items. Through using their money to make money, Dignitas kept themselves on track to achieve their dominant victory throughout the midgame.

Lesson 3: Recovering from Mistakes and Securing Victory

Just because Dignitas’ roster played an impressive game up until this point doesn’t mean that they were infallible, something that CLG proved by catching V1per out in a 1v5 then defeating Dignitas in a Baron tussle. While this singular victory for CLG certainly didn’t turn the game entirely around, it did turn what seemed like a one-sided stomp into a game where Dignitas’ players had to show that they could play from a position where they lacked map presence and lane pressure. Let’s examine how they managed to still win from this precarious place.

One way in which Dignitas mitigated the losses caused by V1per dying was by attempting to take Baron. To most players, this might seem counterintuitive: trying to take Baron when your team is down a player doesn’t seem to outwardly make sense. However, as was mentioned before, it is important to note that V1per’s role on this team was in part to take losses for them so that more resources could be funneled into other players. Thus, V1per dying did little to impact their ability to threaten Baron. Furthermore, by threatening to take Baron, Dignitas forced CLG to not push to take their towers but instead to fight them at the Baron pit. While CLG did win this fight, the fact that Dignitas still had its big carries in the form of Dardoch’s Olaf and Johnsun’s Ashe meant that CLG simply couldn’t take the Baron after the fight even if they won. Thus, what might seem like a failed Baron attempt on the part of Dignitas was, in reality, a measured decision wherein losing the Baron fight meant not losing towers or Baron.

Recovering from this ‘failed’ Baron attempt also showcased another important aspect of closing out a game: patience and untiltability. Once Dignitas had all five players back on the map, rather than attempting a risky objective take or to push out aggressively, they grouped as five and forced a skirmish at the Dragon pit. In doing this rather than any of the other possible options, the players showcased their ability to not tilt in the face of one misstep, knowing that in a 5v5 with variables like the Baron eliminated from consideration, their previous advantages would result in victory. Patiently waiting for the opportunity to arise for a gimmick-less teamfight gave Dignitas both objectives and the chance to end the game. Keeping in line with a simple 5v5, utilizing Elder, Baron, and Soul to end the game through brute force is about as straightforward as closing out a match gets, and Dignitas’ roster showcased that knowing your own strength and that the enemy simply cannot stop you makes ending the game simple as can be.

If there is one key takeaway from this section, it is to not lose heart in the face of missteps and mistakes. Even after losing a fight at Baron, Dignitas’ players kept in mind that they were still ahead in kills, gold, towers, and items. Playing to these simple, yet easy to miss when tilted, strengths allowed Dignitas to secure a spot in the LCS Summer 2020 Playoffs.

Conclusion

Keeping these points in mind, you might be wondering how you can apply these LCS-tier strategies in your solo queue matches. Breaking it down lane-by-lane, let’s run back through the main techniques that each lane (plus the jungler) showcased that allowed them to achieve victory:

V1per: If there’s one mindset that you should be applying in your solo queue games that V1per had in this game, it was playing selflessly. Through letting the jungler prioritize the bottom side of the map and giving resources that could have easily been his to the ADC, V1per facilitated his team’s snowballing not by compounding on it, but by letting more potent roles do so.

Dardoch: Dardoch took this game as an opportunity to remind solo queue players of the importance of proactivity. By not waiting for the enemy to misplay and instead forcing them into unwinnable positions, Dardoch allowed his teammates to pressure their lanes and was able to secure the neutral objectives with impeccable tempo.

Fenix: In this game, Fenix showed the importance of taking opportunities as they arise. If it weren’t for him throwing a Sleepy Trouble Bubble without vision at the start of the game, and the other members of Dignitas engaging after it hit, this article might have gone over something entirely different. Instead, Fenix took every opportunity to support Dardoch and other lanes throughout the game, helping the team snowball as best as he could.

Johnsun/aphromoo: At a more mechanical level, Johnsun and aphromoo both showcased the importance of playing to the strengths of your champion. Through the effective utilization of Hawkshots and Enchanted Crystal Arrows, Johnsun supported Dardoch through providing the vision and engage tools that Olaf would struggle to otherwise have. Alternatively, aphromoo’s choice to play a lane-dominant enchanter with aggressive and potent poke allowed the bottom lane to translate the advantages provided to them into a dominant showing.

Overall, Dignitas’ players showcased the fundamental tenets of playing a snowbally game of League of Legends: either support the snowball or get out of its way.