NOVEL NEXT Chapter 72
A very important moment is approaching for every Legends of League user, or more specifically, for anyone aiming to climb the tiers.
In that moment, some will laugh, and others will cry.
People compare that moment— which can turn someone into a bipolar mess—to a crucial exam that comes around once a year.
The Placement Test, they call it.
From now on, this is a significant test that could determine the future of my games.
Of course, some might say that the Placement Test isn’t all that important.
Tiers tend to find their proper place as the number of games increases.
However, that only applies when you’re casually enjoying Legends of League.
My goal is to become a pro.
Therefore, the higher I can raise my tier as quickly as possible is really important, and the time it takes to do so rests heavily on this Placement Test.
If something goes wrong during the Placement Test, my journey towards the higher tiers could stretch on indefinitely.
“I have no intention of slacking off.”
[Finding a game!]
[Accept / Decline]
The true placement test has begun.
*
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Outlaw has joined the lobby.
Lulurulululu has joined the lobby.
Top Lane Plant has joined the lobby.
SY Gosu has joined the lobby.
Akgan Talabora has joined the lobby.
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First placement.
The thrilling moment that awaited me was none other than—
“Looks like I’m playing ADC.”
I got ADC right from the first game.
I initially set my main position to Jungler but opted for “any” as the secondary, which led to this situation.
“How unexpected.”
Usually, if you queue as [Jungle/Any], you’re likely to be assigned either Jungle or Support.
So, setting my position like this was a casual decision, but I never expected to land ADC right from the first placement.
“Well, it’s whatever.”
Admittedly, ADC was my weakest position.
Top and Mid had a decent overlap in champion pool and my understanding of lanes was pretty good, so I managed fine there, and Support also has somewhat similar responsibilities to Jungling, so I didn’t do badly.
The problem was ADC.
The Bot Lane, a relatively unfamiliar position, with demand for entirely different skill sets compared to Jungle.
Naturally, I was far from being a mechanical champion player, so I didn’t perform well as ADC.
To be exact, I hadn’t performed well.
“Things are different now, though.”
Not being good at ADC was something from a long time ago.
Now? ADC or not, I just play Legends of League well.
I might sound a bit cocky, but it’s true.
[Ezreal]
I quietly selected Ezreal’s portrait.
Ezreal is the champion most frequently picked by non-ADC players when they decide to go ADC, and I was no exception.
No matter how confident an ADC player you are, mastery over champions is another matter entirely.
“And Ezreal is the most fun, too.”
Once you get past the early game into mid-game with two core items, the feeling of playing Ezreal becomes… one of the attractions that draw non-ADC players into the role.
In fact, one of the reasons I chose “any” was that I wanted to try a variety of champions.
As the ban/pick process unfolded…
[Akgan Talabora: I guess you’re on your smurf account, huh?]
[Akgan Talabora: Should I go Jungle?]
…oh ho.
Honestly, this isn’t all that rare.
As mentioned earlier, Placement Tests are one of the most critical tests for Legends of League players, just like promotion matches.
Naturally, the players entering it have to be somewhat serious.
These sorts of voluntary concessions are one of the traits of users thirsty for victory.
These folks have no hesitation in riding the coattails of a presumed smurf among their teammates for the sake of winning.
[Outlaw: I don’t really mind.]
Rejecting someone begging that earnestly to ride along while wanting a free ride makes no sense.
[Akgan Talabora: Okey doke, I’ll go Jungle.]
Well… but the kind who ends up spamming “Roaah, I should’ve just gone Jungle” in-game if I performed even slightly poorly are precisely those individuals.
“I’m not thinking of that.”
The game began.
.
.
.
[Victory]
Perhaps due to the dynamic nature of the normal games I played, the difficulty of the first Placement Test I faced was, in a word, so easy.
[Akgan Talabora: The judgment on giving Jungle was totally the top-tier play, right? Yessir!]
[Lulurulululu: Wow, lol thanks for the carry!]
[SY Gosu: Solo carried this game;;]
[JinxCheckCheckCheck11: Our jungle is gonna be 2 ranked ㅋㅋㅋ so disgusting.]
[NotTheMoleMan: Is this a smurf account?]
[wqe8jqw5irt: Such a dirty booster, gross.]
Receiving glowing praise from both allies and opponents, I exited the lobby.
Well, of course.
From the enemy team’s perspective, it must have felt like being hit by a truck out of nowhere.
“That was easier than I expected.”
When you think about it, it makes sense.
After winning my first Placement Test, the temporary tier assigned to me was Gold 3.
Considering that up until now, I was stuck in a terrible environment where the 5-man SY was being farmed in normal games, this was nothing short of heaven.
“Well, still… it’s well above average for a first placement with no prior record.”
Typically, the temporary tier seen in the first placements of a smurf account tends to average out around Silver based on victory.
This is because the results when people engage in what’s commonly referred to as farming through AI games and normal games usually fall within that range.
In that sense, my first temporary tier being Gold 3 indicates that my impressive 100% win rate in normals had a significant impact on my Placement Test.
“If I win all the remaining 9 games… I’ll at least be Platinum.”
Considering how particularly tough games below Platinum can be while running a smurf account, this is quite a fortunate occurrence.
No matter the tier, it’s pretty much the same, but especially the Silver and Gold tier brackets are often humorously referred to as the “freedom channel” since all sorts of player types mix in there.
Smurf accounts, boosters, trolls, and so on…
If possible, it was wise to either pass through there quickly or avoid it altogether.
[Finding a game!]
[Accept / Decline]
The Placement Tests continued.
[Victory]
[Victory]
.
.
.
[Victory]
I kept winning, winning, and winning again.
+
[Outlaw]
Solo Rank
– Unranked
– 7 Wins 0 Losses
– Win Rate 100%
+
Now my record is 7 wins and 0 losses.
The temporary tier has climbed to Platinum 3, 12 points.
Of course, that was partly due to the fact that I had learned a bit about how to succeed in that devilish domain of normal games.
In short, in relatively lower tier brackets, growth-oriented champions were far more efficient at leading to victory than snowballing champions like Elise.
Even if the outcomes were the same victory, the difficulties encountered on the journey differ.
And among those, if there was a champion I particularly enjoyed playing, it was ‘that champion.’
[Master Yi]
From a Jungler’s point of view, the champion Master Yi is both incredibly appealing and simultaneously a bit troublesome to face.
During normal play, true to its design as a “bug” character, it tends to fit the role perfectly, but if there’s any hiccup in champion composition or within the game that allows Master Yi to snowball, he can transform into a total carnage machine in an instant.
Other similar champions include champions like Requiem and Karthus… but Master Yi stands out far more extreme compared to those two.
Even though the risks are much higher compared to the earlier two champions, under the right conditions, he certainly qualifies as a late-game powerhouse.
“There are plenty of reasons, but… honestly, the biggest reason is just that it’s fun.”
Since Master Yi becomes exponentially less viable the higher tier you go, I picked him with the thought of enjoying him while I still could.
-You killed an enemy!
-The Avatar of the Battlefield!
I felt a sense of nostalgia akin to the distant past when I first played Legends of League, as I slaughtered my enemies.
*
8 Wins 0 Losses.
My tier was now Platinum 2.
I really wanted to finish my placements on the first day, but I felt that taking care of myself is also a form of skill, so I decided to stop.
Throwing myself onto the bed, I casually checked my smartphone for community mentions, but as expected, there was no mention of Outlaw whatsoever.
“Well.”
No matter how high my win rate is, I’m still just an ordinary account that hasn’t even completed its placements yet.
It would be abnormal for me to be talked about.
“I thought maybe someone would recognize me… but that was just wishful thinking.”
Feeling a mix of relief and disappointment, I was struck with a rather strange emotion.
Is this the feeling of a woman’s heart being like a reed?
“…what the.”
It felt strange as I gradually began to grasp the things I probably shouldn’t know.
As I idly browsed the community, I noticed a significant drop in mentions of the Prisoner lately.
“Oh, now that I think about it…”
There’s only one event that could cause a drop in mentions of the Prisoner, who had practically dominated the community for the past few months.
-The Legends of League Champions Korea will kick off the Spring Season on the 15th.
-The first match of the opening ceremony is a big match between SY and SCV.
The season has begun.