The LCS and its shiny new “Lock In” event are just around the corner, and it’s looking like the North American League of Legends competition is in for another cracking year — here’s seven things to keep an eye on as the league returns.
Finally, the League of Legends Championship Series is back. After a rollercoaster free agency period, and what felt like a very lengthy offseason, the premier North American competition is back in all its glory.
This time around, things are a little different. Nailed-on stars like Yilliang ‘Doublelift’ Peng and Søren ‘Bjergsen’ Bjerg have retired, and new star figures like Luka ‘Perkz’ Perković and Hu ‘SwordArt’ Shuo-Chieh have joined the league.
The LCS has also switched formats, in an effort to step into a “new era.”
With all this change, it can be hard to keep up with everything heading into the new season. Luckily, we’ve broken down the seven most important League of Legends storylines in 2021 — here’s all the biggest things to watch in LCS 2021.
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Can Perkz succeed in North America?
This is the big one, the question on every fan’s lips: can eight-time European champ Luka Perković make the jump into the LCS, and bring the same impact, flair, and total domination he’s become renowned for in his glittering six-year career?
Cloud9 had a rollercoaster 2020. In Spring, they returned to the LCS throne for the first time since 2014, and looked destined for Worlds glory. Five months later, they were watching the year-end event on television like everyone else.
It was a sting that forced Cloud9 into dramatic action.
That action turned into a multi-million dollar buyout for G2 Esports’ biggest star, their Croatian captain. Now he has to prove his $8.1m worth.
For our money — and Cloud9’s it seems — it looks all the world like Perkz will adapt. He’s played against plenty of LCS mid laners in his day, and has old friends like Zven and Mithy beside him at C9 to boot. We’ll just have to wait and see.
How Perkz settles in Los Angeles will play a big role in Cloud9’s performance in 2021.
SwordArt must embrace TSM leadership role
TSM have gone all out in 2021, picking up Taiwanese commander Hu ‘SwordArt’ Shuo-Chieh to lead their new-look lineup. The Worlds runner-up slots in the North American title holders on a rich $6 million deal over two years.
Overall, the TSM lineup is a solid one, though question marks potentially hang over Huni. The real puzzle for the 2020 champions will be figuring out how to make all the pieces — including boom jungler Spica, veteran German star PowerOfEvil, and rock-solid bot laner Lost — work in unison to a common goal on the Rift.
Keep a close eye on SwordArt in the LCS Lock-In tournament. How he settles in will determine how brightly TSM shines this year, without a doubt.
Swordart has been a key voice in every League of Legends roster he’s been on.
Can new LCS rookies replace Doublelift, Bjergsen?
This year, a new batch of LCS rookies have been dropped into the competition’s grinder, and have a chance to prove if they can shine. This time around, it’s all the more important too; huge names have left the LCS, and new “stars” need to emerge. Luckily, there’s a few to watch:
- Toàn ‘Neo’ Trần (Dignitas)
- Christian ‘Palafox’ Palafox (FlyQuest)
- David ‘Diamond’ Bérubé (FlyQuest)
- Nicholas ‘Ablazeolive’ Abbott (Golden Guardians)
- Aiden ‘Niles’ Tidwell (Golden Guardians)
- Ethan ‘Iconic’ Wilkinson (Golden Guardians)
Last year saw young stars like Victor ‘FBI’ Huang, Mingyi ‘Spica’ Lu, and Edward ‘Tactical’ Ra explode onto the main stage, solidifying themselves as top long-term prospects. Hopefully we can see the same again from this next batch.
Golden Guardians are one team putting their stock in youngsters for LCS 2021.
Will next wave of OCE stars make the cut?
Four new and returning Oceanic faces have been added to America’s top league in 2021, after changes to the import rules made them LCS residents.
These include Astralis star Mitchell ‘Destiny’ Shaw, who cut his teeth in the LEC last year, as well as Ibrahim ‘Fudge’ Allami, Quin ‘Raes’ Korebrits, and Lawrence ‘Lost’ Hui, last seen flying the Echo Fox flag for a stint between 2017 and 2019.
Combined, these OCE stars boast more than 500 competitive League games in North America, Europe, and Australia. Will they make the cut?
Fudge has been tearing up LCS Academy for the past year with Cloud9.
Can FlyQuest’s roster “click” in 2021?
FlyQuest has “excitement” written all over it heading into their new LCS campaign. The activist organization was 2020’s surprise package, making (and losing) the big dance in both Spring and Summer, and booking a team-first ticket to Worlds.
Heading into the new year, FlyQuest has changed gear slightly. Their star-studded team suffered a not-so-shocking fate as it was picked apart by Team Liquid, Team SoloMid, and Evil Geniuses in the offseason, and they’ve had to rebuild slightly.
What they’ve come up with — Licorice (Cloud9), Josedeodo (Rainbow7), Palafox (C9), Johnsun (Dignitas), and Diamond (C9) — is very interesting.
For an org that was being tipped early to miss playoffs, their roster inspires a lot of confidence. Licorice and Johnsun have tons of LCS experience, and Palafox and Diamond are being billed as next-gen stars. Keep a close eye on FlyQuest.
Watch Now: Best Players to Watch @ LCS Lock In
Could Team Liquid return to the top?
The most simple question many are asking is, “can four-time LCS champs Liquid” get back to their best, and claim another title?
TL were the best LCS had to offer at Worlds 2020, led by youngster Tactical, and they’ve only improved with Alphari and Santorin on the top side of the map. Expect great things from the team that reigned over North America in 2018 and 2019.
How will the pro meta shape out?
We’ve heading into one of the most interesting professional metas League of Legends may ever have; Riot have blown up the item system for their flagship title, and everything is powerful, versatile, and downright busted.
Expect damage, and lots of it. Pro stars have always had a way of finding the biggest avenues of power, and League 2020 is all about that.
Right now, strong picks like Jhin, Samira, and Yone reign supreme in solo queue. Olaf has dominated the LPL, and in the LCK, Aatrox and Kai’Sa have proven unstoppable. Akali and Lucian are also so dangerous they were banned in all five games.
These should be the draft battles in the LCS, either in bans, or first-locks.
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