This article is part of our LoL Season Splits series.
As an amusing reddit post reminded me this morning, sitting with my coffee mug in hand, adulthood is like looking both ways before crossing a street, only to have an airplane crash on your head as you do so. Such must be the case for Kontantinos "FORG1VEN" Tzortziou-Napoleon, H2K's starting ADC who admitted in an emotional interview last Thursday that he received a notice of conscription from the Greek military. The future for FORG1VEN and the fairness of this ruling's timing is beyond the scope of this article, but it's safe to admit that the League of Legends fans were first shocked, then angry. FORG1VEN had finally joined a team that could make it into EU LCS finals, just as he had seemed to with Gambit last year, only to have the rug pulled out from underneath him. For a man with such noteworthy skill and, above all, dedication to the game, this series of events must seem to be some sort of divine retribution, as even his critics would agree that few in the LCS era have had a drive for perfection comparable to FORG1VEN.
This article, however, is not about FORG1VEN. Rather, it focuses on the four men he'll be leaving behind on H2K. While FORG1VEN's loss is certainly emotional and tragic, the truth of the matter is that unless H2K makes a truly awful decision in replacing him, it's unlikely to affect the team's outlooks moving forward. The reasons for this are twofold, and range from the obvious to the extremely controversial.
First, there's the fact that even were H2K to lose literally every regular season game they have remaining, they will still have a playoff berth locked in. As the casters are quick to point out, there is a very clear separation between teams in the top 6 and those outside of it. Origen holds the sixth place slot with a decidedly average 7-7 record, but it's still worlds away from the 4-10 record that Splyce and Elements are tied for seventh in. With 6 games remaining in the split, it's statistically impossible for H2K to not make the spring playoffs, and while their prospects once in the playoffs are uncertain, at least they needn't worry about relegation. Additionally, H2K's schedule from here on out is fairly weak, with three of their four remaining games against teams in the bottom four of the league, and only a somewhat troubled Unicorns of Love left to face them amongst the top contenders. For a team that's going to need time to grow, bond, and figure each other out, the breathing room is going to be well appreciated as they can focus solely on playoffs while playing against the comparatively weaker teams. At worst, they have a chance of playing spoiler in the tooth-and-nail fight between Splyce and Elements over the safe seventh place position.
The second, and wildly more controversial point trivializes the first, however. One must ask two simple questions in analyzing how this change will affect H2K: What is the playstyle of H2K, and what are the strengths of FORG1VEN? The first question is simple, as amongst all the teams in the EU LCS H2K has arguably had the most consistent team identity. Under the guidance of their coach, Neil "Pr0lly" Hammad, H2K has always been known as one of the most strategic teams in the West, preferring to take their wins by playing the map, not the other team. It's even been commented, not without basis, that H2K is a team that actively attempts to avoid fights, instead relying on their superior rotations and pressure to earn insurmountable advantages. This brings us to the second question: What does FORG1VEN specialize in, and more importantly, how does that fit into his team's strategy? FORG1VEN has always been a player that will look to dominate his lane. In last year's spring split, he played Lucian and Graves nearly exclusively, both of whom were simply the most dominant laning champions at that time. Last Summer saw him add both Sivir and Corki to that list, due to metagame shifts, and while his individual dominance might have been lessened, his team was no less successful overall. This split has seen Caitlyn rise to the forefront, but even then his aggressive style has been obvious. Jokes about him refusing to take her sole utility skill had been ubiquitous on the caster desk until he surprised everyone viewing Thursday by finally putting a point in it sooner than absolutely necessary. Additionally, it would be disingenuous to not credit his teamfighting ability. He has always been noted for his positioning and superb target selection, making his enemies pay the harshest price possible for his life. The fact that he went nearly 10 games in Spring 2015 without dying is all the proof required to back up the claim that his positioning and intuitive understanding of how to play fights is second to none in his league.
So, what is this wildly controversial point that I have to make about H2K's future? Simply that their future was already written, long before FORG1VEN announced his joining the team. They are a team that thrives in situations where FORG1VEN is little better than his lessers in the EU LCS, and while it's certain that whoever replaces him will have large shoes to fill, I have no doubt that they'll have every opportunity to do so. In short, H2K gave FORG1VEN the ability to look dominant, thanks to them consistently enjoying a commanding lead in games due to their ability to play the map. It's not unreasonable to say that any sufficiently skilled ADC could do the same. The fact that the team seamlessly transitioned from Hjarnan to FORG1VEN and from KaSing to Vander is a testament to the veracity of this conclusion. H2K are, as their name implies, "Hard To Kill", and this unfortunate tragedy won't be the one that does in their chances at being crowned champions of the EU LCS.
