[TS] Obsessed Gamer: The Ultimate Return – Chapter 254

The game has begun.

-Welcome to Summoner’s Rift!

As always, it was the familiar voice of the announcer, but I dreaded that this game wouldn’t be as friendly.

Surely, today’s Summoner’s Rift would be different from the past.

[⬇] [⬇]

[OLZ Outlaw(K’Sante) is on the move]

[OLZ Outlaw(K’Sante) is on the move]

[“Fighting.”]

“Uh? Ah, fighting.”

-Just… awkward OLZ top jungler!

-Heh…

-So awkward

-LOL

-Come on, let’s get along!

“…We’re close enough. Stop pushing it. Our team members get along well.”

-Okay

-You’re right

-For sure

Damn guys.

‘That aside.’

I surveyed the situation.

‘The enemy jungler is Nidalee. Mid is Twisted Fate against Akali. Our allies are likely to join the mid lane faster.’

‘The bottom lane matchup is clearly stronger for the enemy. There’s a high chance we’ll lose control, so Nidalee might make aggressive moves towards bot lane.’

‘And top…’

The Viktor vs. Jason matchup usually favors Viktor.

But in this game, the difference in early jungle engagement and combat ability forced top to sacrifice a bit.

Basically, given Viktor’s slow-moving nature, if he dominates the lane, he can’t escape Nidalee’s ganks.

‘It’s no wonder top laners dislike picks like K’Sante.’

Fundamentally, growth champions like K’Sante suck the life out of their teammates to grow stronger.

Of course, K’Sante has that ironic mechanism where he has to gank to transform, but that’s the gist of it.

‘For now, let’s go with the standard approach.’

I said.

“Let’s just defend the invade for now.”

[“Yes.”]

Our team comp isn’t bad for early invade fights, but since this game is primarily about scouting the patch, I thought it best to start off smoothly.

After all, if the game became chaotic due to an early invade, it might be hard to figure out what’s changed.

“Don’t bother with the leash.”

[❕] [❕]

[OLZ Outlaw(K’Sante) sends a danger signal]

[OLZ Outlaw(K’Sante) sends a danger signal]

I intended to do a standard bird start, so there was no need for a leash.

If that’s an advantage of K’Sante, then so be it.

[“Huh?”]

“…Not you.”

Though I had spoken to myself as usual, somehow a weirdo responded.

-LOL

-Cute

-Ah haha, just go to lane

-What do you mean, letting a royal jungler jungle without a leash?

-For real, LOL

Regardless of what the viewers were saying, my mind was on the bottom matchup.

‘The laning phase is tough as it is. If we give a leash, it can only get worse.’

Of course, the Ezreal and Leona combo isn’t completely without kill potential, so depending on how it goes, we might have chances.

…As long as our bot lane could gain an advantage over the SY Longbow GuineaPig bottom duo.

‘The chances are minimal.’

Even though our bot lane consists of top-tier players, it’s unlikely to rely on luck with this unfavorable matchup.

And then…

-The minions have spawned!

The real laning phase has begun.

-> Ugh

-Gonna slay those birds!

-Broken champ

-These champs are good for bird-feeding it seems, right?

Thanks to not doing a leash and heading straight to lane, there were no major variables in the early game.

‘Let’s head for a full camp then.’

Since K’Sante is fundamentally a champion that thrives on full camps, forcing lane engagement in the early game would likely lead to negative returns without a good setup.

It’s only natural to prioritize growth.

‘But still, if the lane situation demands intervention, I’ll have to.’

Junglers need to be flexible, so rigidly sticking to a fixed path isn’t ideal.

Birds, red, golems.

Having eaten three camps, I could feel that the moment of choice was approaching.

‘So, what should I do?’

There used to be a path that involved five camps plus the crab to hit level 4.

If I go for six camps, I can reach the crab post-level 4, but it puts me a step behind the enemy and there’s a high possibility the crab gets taken.

Thus, the five camps into the crab has established itself as a safe and standard route that allows for growth and strong ganking.

But now, five camps to crab won’t even get me to level 4.

Thanks to the crab nerf patch, the experience became insufficient.

Considering the difference between hitting level 4 or not in the early game, the five camps into crab route has lost its merit as an option.

‘The crab spawns at 3 minutes and 15 seconds.’

I methodically calculated.

If I go for the full camps after, it’ll be tight, and if I go through five camps, I won’t hit 4 either.

Moreover, the value of the crab has decreased, so the route seems better to take either the full camp and then go for crab or after three camps, gank, and then crab aggressively from the start.

So now, I had to make a decision.

I gathered the situation in mind.

I primarily focused on the top and bottom lanes.

‘The top lane is doing well, with Yeon-woo managing things. Even if Nidalee comes up, diving should be tough with that lane.’

‘The bottom lane is being pushed as expected. Even if we try to gank, there’s a good chance we’ll lose a 2:3 fight.’

‘So…’

I concluded.

‘Full camps.’

Having made my decision, I headed straight for the top jungle.

To start the full camp smoothly.

Since K’Sante is one of the full camp junglers known for fast jungle clears, I had nothing to fear.

In fact, skipping the crab would only make me faster.

The decrease in crab value was actually good news for champs like K’Sante.

Not just because of the rewards the crab provided, but also because it meant there’s no longer a widening gap between the junglers, and the early crab skirmishes that dominated the previous crab meta have almost vanished.

‘Of course, it’s still a good objective, though.’

The vision effect from the crab is part of its identity, so it’s quite valuable for junglers and laners alike during lane fights.

There’s no harm in eating it.

-The early game’s smooth, huh?

-I heard the crab got heavily nerfed; how bad is it?

-You can even let them have it all if you want.

-Really?

-Not quite that, but it’s not like before.

The jungling continued.

Wolves, then blue and the golems together.

[4 level K’Sante]

Hitting level 4, I headed straight to the top river.

‘The crab should be there.’

Moreover, since I paced through the buff route, Nidalee’s appearance, which should’ve been visible by now, was notably absent.

This likely meant that Nidalee started at the red on my diagonal side.

‘In this situation, the dangerous part is a dive on the bottom lane.’

With Caitlyn and Ruler on the same team, it seemed Nidalee was focused on strengthening the bottom.

Given the current lane situation, after taking the lower crab, Nidalee might attempt a dive on the bottom.

I needed to issue a warning.

[❗] [❗]

[OLZ Outlaw(K’Sante) sends a danger signal]

[OLZ Outlaw(K’Sante) sends a danger signal]

“I think it’s safe to assume Nidalee is diagonal from me.”

[“Yes.”]

“How’s top looking?”

[“It’s fine.”]

“Are you getting a gank angle?”

[“I don’t think we can get a kill, but we might force out some summoners.”]

“In that case, let’s eat the crab and meet right after.”

Whether it was a ward or just the enemy Jason anticipating my location, he had eased the pressure he’d been putting on the lane and started to play defensively.

‘Then…’

Having eaten the crab, I crossed through the Baron nest into the enemy jungle.

And checked the golems.

Current time: 3 minutes 47 seconds.

The golems are gone.

This clearly indicates something.

‘The golem’s respawn time is 2 minutes 15 seconds.’

Assuming Nidalee went through red and golems, she’d be expected back around 2 minutes 3 seconds.

So, if the golems respawn around 4 minutes 18 seconds, I’d know her jungle route precisely.

Of course, I had more definite intel too.

“Nidalee’s on the bottom side.”

[❕]

[OLZ Outlaw(K’Sante) sends a danger signal]

I warned the bottom lane one more time before turning top.

Jason, thinking I had left, or perhaps unable to maintain the pressure, resumed the lane phase.

“Want to play overly aggressive?”

[“Sure.”]

Though a pretty vague request, Seoyeon-woo always complied as usual.

Even though there was a risk of Jason’s burst taking us down.

‘There’s basically no chance of reverse gank.’

Plus, with the new teleport patch, the middle’s support couldn’t come.

So, Jason was now completely alone.

“Going in.”

[⨷]


[OLZ Outlaw(K’Sante) targets BAN EZ(Jason)]

I flew towards Jason, scaling the wall.


The moment to charge the gauge had arrived.