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Tomorrow, the Mid Season Invitational semifinals begin as Royal Never Give Up faces off against Fnatic. It will kickstart a two-day fantasy contest featuring four of the best League of Legends teams in the world.
Today, we’re analyzing this week’s key League fantasy battles and providing you with the picks you need to dominate the fantasy field.
In this analysis, we’ll be looking at both matches and each position, using Skrilla scoring and statistics pulled from the MSI group stage.
Royal Never Give Up vs. Fnatic
China’s champions, Royal Never Give Up, are heavily favored against Europe’s elite. In the MSI group stage, RNG topped the table, led by their strong bottom lane. Meanwhile, Fnatic survived with minimal impact from their ADC in an ADC-focused meta.
The focus of this matchup will once again be on the bottom lane. Jian “Uzi” Zi-Hao dominated Martin “Rekkles” Larsson in their previous group stage meetings. Uzi posted a combined KDA line of 10/1/10, while Rekkles managed a paltry 2/4/7 mark. It’s unlikely things will be much different in the semifinals, which means RNG’s bottom lane will likely shine and provide great fantasy value.
It’s worth noting that in both previous matches, Fnatic mid laner Rasmus “Caps” Winther outperformed RNG’s Li “Xiaohu” Yuan-Hao. If Fnatic continues to prioritize the mid lane, Xiaohu may struggle, even if the rest of his team performs well.
Flash Wolves vs. KINGZONE DragonX
This matchup is more intriguing. While KINGZONE DragonX should be the heavy favorites, the Flash Wolves actually defeated KINGZONE in both of their group stage meetings, finishing ahead of the Korean champions in the standings.
Since you can only start three players from one team, you’ll need to have at least two players competing in this matchup. KINGZONE still seems favored, as Korean teams often excel in knockout rounds. However, the Flash Wolves are a team that could potentially upset the favorites. If the series is close, it will provide opportunities for all players to shine fantasy-wise.
Start — Yan “Letme” Jun-Ze, Royal Never Give Up
If you want to start the superstar ADC Jian “Uzi” Zi-Hao in the bottom lane, it’s important to find value elsewhere due to his high salary. The top lane is the best place to do so.
In the current tank-centric meta, top lane fantasy scoring has been weak, with an average of 13.78 SKPPG during the group stage. The top performers were KING-ZONE DragonX’s “Khan” and Letme. Despite Letme being known for playing tank champions, he still performed well. Letme had a 15.76 SKPPG and led all top laners with a 6.5 KDA.
Both Letme and Khan will be facing rookies in their semifinal games, unless Paul “sOAZ” Boyer’s injury improves. However, Letme is the more cost-effective option, with a lower salary of 15,400, allowing you to save money to include Uzi in your lineup.
Sit — Mads “Broxah” Brock-Pedersen, Fnatic
This is an easy decision. While Fnatic’s jungler may be good at stealing Barons, he usually plays a supportive role and doesn’t generate high fantasy numbers. Additionally, Fnatic is the most likely team to lose their series this weekend, so keeping Broxah out of your lineup is a given.
Now, the more interesting question is who to start in the jungle.
Flash Wolves have a rookie jungler and a tough match against KINGZONE. Royal Never Give Up’s Liu “Mlxg” Shi-Yu had an average performance during the group stage with the lowest kill participation among junglers. We also don’t know who KINGZONE will start as their jungler. Moon “Cuzz” Woo-chan replaced Han “Peanut” Wang-ho midway through the group stage, and Cuzz performed well in his three games. However, if Peanut returns, it adds uncertainty to the situation.
Mlxg may be the safest play, despite his aggressive playstyle, but he may not offer the best value at his higher salary of 20,550. The best choice would be whoever starts for KINGZONE, but unless the team announces their intentions early, it’s a coin flip. If you lose, you’ll still get points for team scoring, which may outweigh the points that Kim “MooJin” Moo-jin generates for Flash Wolves if they lose. However, it’s a risky move to make.
Sit — Rasmus “Caps” Winther, Fnatic
Although this Fnatic player has a stronger case to be included in your lineup compared to Broxah, he should still remain on the bench.
In Fnatic’s two losses to Royal Never Give Up, Caps played well and almost carried his team. He had a combined 9/5/7 KDA line, which is impressive for a player on the losing side. However, it’s unlikely he can maintain that level of performance. While RNG will focus on their bottom lane and Caps may have an advantage over Xiaohu, Caps’ form has been inconsistent lately. In what is likely to be a losing series, it makes him a risky pick, even at a discounted price.
Choosing who should start in the mid lane is another dilemma. While Caps may not be suitable for fantasy on Friday, his counterpart Xiaohu is unlikely to perform much better and comes at a higher salary of 22,800. Xiaohu is expected to play a more supportive role against an enemy laner who previously outperformed him. This leaves two other options: Huang “Maple” Yi-Tang and Gwak “Bdd” Bo-seong. Maple was a standout player in the mid lane during the group stage, and Flash Wolves are likely to play him on carry champions in the current meta. Bdd had a quiet group stage, but he still scored well in fantasy points, and if KING-ZONE performs, he is a strong contender. Although Bdd has a higher salary of 23,150, he may score more points if his team wins the series. It’s unrealistic to field both Bdd and Uzi in the same lineup, so Maple at 18,350 may be the better choice.
Start — Jian “Uzi” Zi-Hao, Royal Never Give Up
This is the easiest pick of the day. It doesn’t matter that Uzi has a high salary of 29,200; he is expected to dominate on Friday. If you don’t have him in your lineup—and as your captain—you’re likely to lose.
Uzi completely outperformed Rekkles in their previous meetings. He has been consistently improving and is unstoppable at the moment. Fnatic won’t be able to contain him.
Start — Shi “Ming” Sen-Ming, Royal Never Give Up
Uzi’s partner in crime, Ming, was perhaps the more valuable fantasy player in the group stage due to playing in a low-scoring position. Ming showcased his skills as a top-level support, outplaying two legendary playmakers in Hu “SwordArt” Shuo-Jie and Kang “GorillA” Beom-hyeon. Like Uzi, Ming has a high salary of 20,050, but it’s worth the investment.
This all-in approach with Uzi is likely the winning fantasy strategy. However, if you believe KING-ZONE will perform as anticipated, there is room for a strategy focused around Kim “PraY” Jong-in. Choosing PraY instead of Uzi allows you to include Mlxg in the jungle and Bdd in the mid lane, which may compensate for any difference in points from the ADC position—especially if KING-ZONE makes frequent substitutions in the jungle. It’s even possible that PraY may outscore Uzi if RNG is too dominant and doesn’t need to rack up kills. But betting against Uzi right now is hard to do.
The semifinals begin on Friday at 6am CT with Royal Never Give Up facing off against Fnatic. Make sure to set your fantasy lineups and tune in.
Related keywords: Mid Season Invitational, Royal Never Give Up, Fnatic, League of Legends, fantasy contest, esports, MSI, Flash Wolves, KINGZONE DragonX, Skrilla, Uzi, Rekkles, Caps, Xiaohu.