Both Tundra and Starforce Played Brilliantly
Both Tundra Silver Airs and Starforce Gaming had played exceptionally well. It was a match worthy of being called a masterpiece—both teams had given their all and delivered peak performance.
But no matter how brilliantly they played, only one team could survive in the end.
In this final set, where the match's victor would be decided, their fates were about to be sealed.
Naturally, all eyes were glued to the ban-pick phase. Everyone watched tensely, wondering who would pick what and what compositions each team would choose.
They say best-of-fives are a battle of stamina and focus. Playing five games in a row is incredibly grueling. Unlike solo queue, tournaments demand immense concentration per game, so even if it's five games like in solo queue, the difference is night and day.
That's why the experts say it: In the fifth set, it's best to go for stable compositions and solid setups.
High-difficulty comps offer big payoffs, but using them when your stamina and focus are waning only amplifies their already high risks.
So people predicted both teams would opt for safe, standard picks... but
Tundra feared no adventure.
Just like the explorers who once ventured into the frozen wastes.
"Tundra first-picks Kunoichi!"
The thief-class ADC with unmatched close-range response against short-range foes. She wasn't great at wave clear, so she was usually played top, but I'd known for a while that Suhyun—Durumi, our ADC—had been prepping Kunoichi.
And so the bans and picks continued, with Tundra completing a composition that was like a battering-ram dinosaur—pure, unstoppable dive power. It was strong, but with zero fallback options.
No sane team would pick this in a fifth set. Everyone gasped at Tundra's boldness with each selection, but Starforce was no pushover either.
"Proud draws his blade!!!"
Starforce's comp wasn't early snowball, late-game value, poke, or even balanced.
What they chose was... an extreme mid-carry all-in composition. Proud picked Swordmaster. Top: Guardian. Jungle: Druid. ADC: Frost Archer. Support: Shrine Maiden.
A comp built solely to protect the Swordmaster, create angles for him, heal and buff him. For Proud, by Proud, of Proud. Excluding Swordmaster and Frost Archer, they had zero damage output—and even Frost Archer wasn't a powerhouse ADC.
In other words, every teammate picked for mid-sitting duty.
It wasn't baseless. The enemy was an all-in dive comp, and Starforce had counters that could fight back.
But it was still something you'd never see in pro play. The burden on mid was immense—one mistake and it's over. The second mid's growth stalls, the win plan vanishes. More extreme than Tundra's pick, even.
Swordmaster had stellar mobility and sustain, but melee was melee. Drag it out, and Tundra's comp with an ADC would gain the edge.
Kunoichi wasn't a long-range ADC, so biting her was game-changing—but factoring in her survivability and close-range prowess, it wasn't easy.
This ban-pick defied tournament norms. Both teams ignored matchup metas for teamfight concepts—classic wall-picking.
The atmosphere exploded, of course. Rare comps, but explosive and undeniably fun.
The casters sided with Tundra. Both extreme, but Starforce's was riskier. Consensus: Tundra had the edge.
Even for Proud, it was too reckless, an insane gamble. Casters gasped, crowd gasped, Yuseung gasped.
As the arena buzzed with excitement, worry, and hype, maybe some doubted Proud.
Even his diehard fans might feel uneasy.
Proud was human too. Humans err; perfection doesn't exist.
But I—I alone in this stadium—believed in Proud's choice 100%, without a shred of doubt.
Because Proud was Proud.
The world's strongest mid-laner.
...My strongest, greatest rival.
He had to be.
~
And so the fifth set began, unfolding into another masterpiece that lived up to the previous ones.
Tundra's comp was slammed as brainless all-in, but they weren't idiots. They wouldn't just blindly charge.
They always timed their dives perfectly, optimally. Even knowing it was coming, you couldn't dodge.
Early laning favored Starforce. Kunoichi's short range meant bot was inevitably pushed. Mid, Proud's Swordmaster held a slight edge over AOD Gladiator.
Top, Tundra's Lancer was beating on Guardian, but he was a tank—expected that.
Tundra didn't crumble easily, though, and started gaining from skirmishes.
Starforce had some counterplay, but only in 5v5s with Guardian and Druid. Frost Archer and Shrine Maiden were sitting ducks—delicious prey for Tundra.
By teamfight phase, Tundra had a solid lead. But Swordmaster being unscathed kept it from being complacent territory.
Neither comp wanted standoffs. Creating angles was tough; they needed variables. But Tundra didn't have to target Swordmaster first.
Better to pick off easy Frost Archer or Shrine Maiden. Numbers beat even a rampaging Proud.
Catching them was profit; forcing their cares elsewhere gave teamfight edge.
It had worked so far.
But in full teamfights, it got harder. Swordmaster was the issue.
Tundra knew they couldn't win without taking him. But his sustain and cares made it impossible in one go. Someone had to commit.
25 minutes in, Epic Monster Frost Lord spawned. Killing it summons advancing wolf packs with minions—lethal if stolen, given poor wave clear.
"Tundra didn't want to stall—they start on Frost Lord first! 'Guardian bot, get your ass here!'—that's what they're yelling!"
Tundra dove aggressively; Starforce grouped to contest. Not going full burst—bait Guardian's tele, create a gap, force the fight.
Enemy advanced as planned. Then, Kim Seongchan—Pola's Champion—slipped from vision, marked Swordmaster, and charged.
Champion's ult: unblockable dash-airborne target lock. Even Proud's mechanics couldn't dodge a designated hit.
They weren't solo-killing with it. Swordmaster had a dash-invincibility skill left.
Burn it first with ult, then burst the naked Swordmaster. Wasteful ult for one skill, but showed his comp weight.
But then, Proud made an insane call. Spotting the incoming Champion, Swordmaster advanced.
And Starforce trusted it.
Guardian ulted shield on Proud; Druid and Shrine Maiden buffed. In that window, exposed Kunoichi got bit.
Inevitable range gap. Swordmaster barely dashed into Kunoichi, airborne-ing her—just as Champion ult hit him.
Meaning:
"Proud!!! Proud blocks Pola's ult, Guardian's ult shatters their formation! Frost Archer follows up! Proud survives! He's eating poke but clawing through!"
Swordmaster ate Champion ult with invuln; Kunoichi hung airborne.
Formation wrecked.
Main carry Kunoichi, bloodied, flashed back—out of the fight.
Tundra had backup damage sans ADC; Starforce still had Frost Archer. Not powerhouse, but an ADC.
And immortal Swordmaster with heals and buffs refused to die.
Proud's mad advance crushed the teamfight. Fleeing Kunoichi fell soon after; only Pola's Champion survived.
Should escape for later... but Pola, Kim Seongchan, didn't flee.
He went for Frost Lord steal.
Sharper angle than Starforce expected. Maybe they got cocky. Steal fails = GG, so bold in doom scenario.
Success: massive gain even in death, flips the scales.
But failure = loss. Ultimate high-risk, high-reward.
And Kim Seongchan exploited vision blindspot and overconfidence, slamming a heavy blow into Frost Lord.