This article was originally published on GameSpot's sister site onGamers.com, which was dedicated to esports coverage.

　　This article was written by Daniel 'd1dx' Yordanov. A database error isn't allowing us to byline him correctly at the moment.

　　Editor's NoteIt is that time of the year again. The final hour is upon us when the best of the best in Korea and undoubtedly the world, will challenge each other for that which is most precious to them. Since mid-November, sixteen teams have gone through gruelling qualifiers, a tricky group stage and finally, a gauntlet of a playoff phase to determine the two most worthy of the throne.

　　One the one hand, we have the behemoths – SK Telecom T1 K. Led by the enigmatic Faker, the squad continues its amazing string of victories. Last time we saw them they not only conquered their domestic scene by taking The Champions Summer 2013, beating the solid KT Rolster Bullets line-up, but also went on a rampage in the Season 3 World Finals, having only a minor slip-up against compatriots Najin White Sword. The kings of the world are demolishing all that stands in their way and have set their sights on the trophy.

　　On the other hand we have the fallen ones – Samsung Galaxy Ozone. In most eastern cultures, hard work, determination and results are held in high regard. Honour comes through a massive amount of work and victory. The Ozone team, however, brought not only defeat, but shame to Korea by going out in the group stage of the Season 3 World Finals. Something that many thought was impossible. Consequently, the Korean netizens were more than outraged by the performance. With their strong, “redeeming” even, run in the Champions tournament, the team led by dade has the chance to wash the shame and replace that with the eternal glory that a repeated first place in Korea’s most prestigious tournament will bestow upon them.

　　Join me in revealing how both top-tier line-ups found their way into the final and what can we expect from arguably the best players in the world once they clash on the Summoner’s Rift!

　　

The Kings of the Rift

Just one year ago, we had a very clear picture of who the best team in world was. The Chinese World Elite were reaping the fruit of their labour and dominated all those who opposed them with ease. Today, we have the rightful heirs of that mantle – SK Telecom T1 K. The line-up had an impressive debut in The Champions Spring 2013, finishing third after beating CJ Entus Frost 3-0. It is interesting to mention that the team which knocked them out and subsequently won the tournament was non-other than Samsung Galaxy Ozone who were known as MVP Ozone back then. Seemingly dissatisfied by this, the squad put in a lot of effort and hard practise, which was evident from their next feat – taking the Champions Summer 2013 tournament by storm, losing three maps in total for the duration of the competition.

　　The star of Faker now shone brightly above our heads. The youngster proved to the world that his incredible play during their debut season is no fluke and his well-rounded abilities paired with an unbelievable amount of skill are no match for Korea’s finest. The Season 3 World Finals were just around the corner and everyone impatiently counted the minutes before the beast was unleashed in Los Angeles. We all know what followed next. SKT’s amazing run was only foreshadowed by the minor opposition from country mates Najin Black Sword, who despite housing the best bot lane in Korea – PraY and Cain, were no match for the youngsters. SK Telecom T1 proceeded to win the Season 3 World Championship after a one-sided game against Royal Club and rightfully assumed the title of best team in the world.

　　Interesting facts:

　　Faker initially garnered attention to his skill by placing first in the Korean Challenger solo queue.

　　The mid laner owns a plant, which he takes care of daily. He states that it helps him battle stress after games or practise sessions.

　　Piglet, the AD Carry of SKT, has earned the nickname “the practise worm” by honing his skills for about 14-15 hours a day, using a mere 6-7 for sleep.

　　Impact, current Top laner for the team, initially started as a support player.

　　Piglet almost left the team after multiple clashes with coach kKoma.

　　If the team wins the tournament with a 3-0 score line, they will become the first participants to win the entire competition without dropping a single map.

　　Coming into the current Champions tournament, the team was still considered as a favourite for the first place. Not letting their guard down for a second, Faker’s men aced their group with a 3-0, beating Team NB, CJ Entus Blaze and sister team SK Telecom T1 S. The line-up passed this stage without dropping a single map, a feat unmatched by any other competitor in this edition of the Champions.

　　Once the playoffs hit, SKT were drawn against Samsung Galaxy Blue, the same team which landed them a surprising 2-0 defeat in the World Cyber Games (WCG) Korean qualifier a month prior to the match. This time, there were no surprises and with stellar play, the team dispatched their opponents with a sound 3-0, showing once again that defeat is not taken lightly in their ranks. In the semi-finals we witnessed the big derby in the Korean LoL scene – SKT versus KT Bullets. Regarded as the number one and two teams in the world, the match between those two was headlining most community websites and everyone expected a clash of epic proportions. Unfortunately, the match disappointed as SK Telecom T1 K was the far better team that day, outplaying the KT roster with ease and on many levels.

　　Now the stage is set and the players are ready to face Samsung Galaxy Ozone who despite being hailed as underdogs, show never be taken lightly, a lesson learned the hard way by CJ Entus Blaze.

　　

What can we expect from SK Telecom T1 K?

There are a lot of terrifying facts surrounding the team. First, the well-rounded composition leaves no room for shutting down a specific player. While Faker may be the obvious choice, we all witnessed how Impact, Piglet and bengi can step up their game and carry despite not being backed up by their famed mid laner. Not to mention that, despite being pressured, Faker always finds a way to remain a threat, impacting games in which he was behind in farm or kills, sometimes both. Second, the well-calculated aggression that SKT demonstrates puts most teams in a deadlock. You either take the risky choice, respond to it and “play their game” by going head to head in engages or you choose the “lesser” of two evils by only answering with appropriate counter-action.

　　With those points in mind we can expect the SK Telecom roster to make the first move. The two obvious targets in the Samsung line-up would be mid laner dade and AD Carry imp. Both are high-valued targets with dade taking a small priorty. Why? Because a straight-up won mid lane match-up for SKT ends up a victory for the team in general. What is more, the deep champion pool of Faker and the comfort with which Piglet plays most AD Carries guarantees a comfortable laning phase for the team.

　　SK Telecom T1 K is favourite coming into this final. However, one must never underestimate the Samsung team. Why? Well…

　　

The Fallen have returned

Samsung Galaxy Ozone started out as MVP Ozone before being bought out and renamed just before the Season 3 World Finals. During their time under the MVP banner, the line-up had a relatively successful run. Taking first place in the Champions Spring 2013 tournament is something most fans of the Korean scene will remember for a long time to come. Regarded as heavy underdogs, the team lead by dade not only demolished CJ Entus Blaze in the final, but outplayed them on a level which crushed their spirit. The clear 3-0 score line speaks for itself, but after the unbelievable defeat, Blaze was just now able to regain a bit of momentum, recently adding a WCG and an NLB (Korea’s version of the Challenger league) title after a long dry period. Despite this amazing achievement, Ozone finished third in the next edition of the Champions, denying CJ Entus Frost in the 3rd/4th place match.

　　With enough circuit points under their belts, the Ozone team qualified for the Season 3 World Finals. Days before the event, the roster was bought out by Samsung and cleverly renamed to Samsung Galaxy Ozone. Unfortunately, this meant that most of the coaching and management staff was replaced, putting the team in a very bizarre scenario coming for the first time into an international tournament. Evidently, spirits were high as jungler DanDy gained notoriety among foreign fans by stating that “there is no way Korean teams will lose to foreigners”. Little did he know that karma was waiting just around the corner…

　　What followed during the Season 3 World Championship was an absolute fiasco. Expected to crush the group stage and easily advance to the playoffs, the Samsung team ended up finishing third behind Gambit and Fnatic, losing once to the former and twice to the latter. Their early exit and aforementioned statement by DanDy came back to bite them in the behinds. Korean forum users quickly started disowning the team, claiming that they have brought shame to Korea. On the other hand were foreign fans, whose “creativity” spawned multiple parodies of DanDy’s statement, including the infamous European “NA mad, KR jelly” meme. Undoubtedly, most flak was received by mid laner dade who had a disastrous performance in almost every game. Tail between their legs, the line-up returned home, waiting for the next tournament where they could potentially redeem themselves.

　　Interesting facts:

　　In the Korean scene, dade is known as “ELO God dade” due to his impeccable performance in Solo Queue.

　　Imp achieved an incredible 711 GPM (gold per minute) in a group stage match during the current Champions tournament.

　　Mata, support player for Ozone, turned pro less than a year ago.

　　Many regard the team’s victory over Blaze at The Champions Spring 2013 as the biggest upset ever in competitive League of Legends.

　　CLG coach and OGN commentator MonteCristo, highly praised the Ozone coaching staff in a Grilled interview, stating that Ozone defeated their opponents on every level.

　　Looper and DanDy currently hold the highest KDA ratios for their respective roles with Looper having 10.40 and DanDy scoring 13.20.

　　With the beginning of the winter edition of the Champions, Ozone saw a chance to erase the dreadful memories of the past and potentially add another podium finish. During the group stage, they finished 2-1-0, losing a game only to Najin White Shield who proved a hard nut to crack. With a comfortable victory against, Alienware Arena and disqualification of Team Dark, Ozone topped group C and were drawn against CJ Entus Frost for the quarterfinals of the tournament.

　　There and then, the last of the “old guard” fell with 3-0 as the Samsung squad advanced to the semi-finals where they met Najin White Shield once again. After their group stage affair, the truly better team would be determined in a best-of-five series. Losing only one map, Ozone quickly found how to remedy the situation and quickly won three games to find a spot in the finals of The Champions Winter 2013 – 2014. After a hard fought battle, the hardest part is yet to come. Facing them is the best team in the world at the moment, a foe with seemingly no weaknesses. How can Ozone stand up to SK Telecom T1 K?

　　

What can we expect from Samsung Galaxy Ozone?

One thing is certain - the team will not rely on their underdog status to pull something out of the blue. The coaching staff of SKT will not be looking to repeat the same mistake as Blaze did almost a year ago. A key role in this clash will be played by the mid and bot lane of Ozone.

　　The heavy burden of “carrying” will be given to dade, who seeks to show everyone that his World’s performance was nothing more than a hiccough. Sharing the load will also be Imp as many believe that the bottom lane of Ozone is the right answer to the SKT puzzle. Regarded as one of the best AD Carry players in Korea, Imp will most definitely garner the attention of bengi who will do all in his power to balance between guarding his bot lane and snowballing his star mid laner.

　　That leaves DanDy’s task in the reverse – protect your mid laner and do your absolute best to allow your bot lane the breathing space they need. If done right, we will once again witness the godlike mechanics of the Ozone bottom lane which decided quite the number of games.

　　

Head to head match-ups

Top lane: Impact versus Looper

In a recent article by Fionn, here on onGamers, Looper claimed the number one spot as rookie of the season. His stellar tank play and amazing KDA has shown that the youngster can rise to the occasion and deliver when it counts the most. On the other side lies an experienced Impact who also had his fair share of good plays during the tournament. Coming closely second in the KDA rankings behind Looper, the SKT top laner is tasked with shutting down the on-fire rookie and without hesitation, winning the top lane battle for his team.

　　

Jungle: Bengi versus DanDy

In my opinion, given there are no sparks of brilliance from the solo or bottom laners, this will be the match-up that will decide the series. Probably the two best junglers in the world at the moment, Bengi and DanDy topped the jungle KDA rankings long ago and judging by the numbers, seem a mile in front of everyone else. What we can expect is champion bans such as Elise, Jarvan IV or Lee Sin as both have showcased their mastery of all three. Right decisions paired with solid mechanics win lanes and games and it will be up to these two to take those decisions when the time comes.

　　

Mid lane: Faker versus Dade

Two of the three best Zed players in Korea clash in this match-up. Excluding his disappointing performance in Los Angeles, dade is actually one of the few solo laners that can hold their own against the young prodigy that is Faker. Already tasted victory against him, the ELO god will have to once again try his best to solve the Faker enigma. On the other hand, the best player in this game at the moment will just have to channel his magic in the right direction and given the right circumstances, wreak havoc among the enemy lines. This match-up favours the youngster not only because of his skill, but overall consistency ever since his Champions debut.

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Bot lane: Piglet and PoohManDu versus Imp and Mata

In this clash we have the polar opposites – the conservative style of Piglet versus the aggressive and flashy style of Imp. Both carries possess the same champion pool and are regarded as Vayne and Ezreal experts. However, given the current metagame, it is more likely to see them switch between Sivir and Lucian. Right by their side are supports Mata and PoohManDu. Hailed as masters of their position, both top the KDA rankings for their role with ManDu coming slightly ahead. It is worth mentioning that Mata recently opted for a Lee Sin support, so hopefully, we will be treated to a surprise pick once again in the finals.

　　The Champions Winter 2013-2014 begins on Saturday, 25th January at 0:00 PST, 03:00 EST, 09:00 CET and 17:00 KST. Regardless of the results, history will be made as the first two-time Champions winner will be crowned. Make sure to tune into the show on OnGameNet hosted by MonteCristo, DoA and Chobra for a League of Legends spectacle and a final worthy of the best and most prestigious Korean tournament out there.