UoL’s Six Year Journey To Worlds
Upon their EULCS debut in 2015, the Unicorns of Love became an instant fan-favourite. Delivering crazy picks and pink unicorn madness, they were the injection of wackiness and unpredictability that Europe needed. To top it all off, the team was actually good – featuring players like PowerOfEvil, Hylissang, and Vizicsacsi, the original roster was immediately able to compete with Europe’s best, and it showed in their results.
In their debut split, UoL was on the verge of making history, just a win away from beating Fnatic in the Finals. While they couldn’t pull it off, eventually losing 2-3, the team’s unique branding and playstyle attracted legions of loyal supporters.
A Four Year Curse
No amount of domestic success or fan support could compare to a place at the biggest tournament of the year though – Worlds. After their promising Spring split, UoL were shaping up to be a favourite in Summer, but things didn’t go according to plan. Coming fourth in playoffs left UoL with one last chance to secure a Worlds spot through the Regional Finals, and with just Origen standing between them and the final seed, it was within arm’s reach. Unfortunately, the Unicorns were swept 3-0, crushing their dreams of going to Worlds.
2016 saw the Unicorns come even closer, with a spot at Worlds practically within their grasp. Having come fourth in playoffs, the Unicorns had to fight from the bottom of Regional Finals to the top, sweeping Giants and Fnatic in the process. With such strong performances, UoL was primed to carry their momentum into the Finals and head to Worlds, but waiting for them was Splyce. An intense five-game series followed, but Splyce managed to edge out the Unicorns and snatch the spot away.
Despite coming so close, the Unicorns and their fans faced disappointment once again, and by 2017 it felt like a bad joke. Coming second in Spring and then second in Rift Rivals set up fans with high expectations, only for UoL to get swept out of Summer Playoffs in the first round. Regional Finals didn’t go much better, as UoL was one game away from beating H2K and heading to the Finals. 2018 saw an even sharper decline, as UoL came last in the Spring Regular Season and seventh in Summer, missing playoffs and a shot at Worlds entirely.
Having come so close multiple times and being such a beloved organisation, UoL’s long absence at Worlds stung fans deeply. It was to the dismay of many, then, when UoL failed to secure a spot in the LEC in 2019’s rebranding. It seemed that our wacky, pink Unicorns would disappear forever, never having played on the biggest stage of them all.
Click to enlargeA Russian Resurgence
In hindsight though, perhaps this exit from Europe was a blessing in disguise. Now free to find greener pastures, the Unicorns turned their attention to the Russian LCL and German Second Division. Acquiring the spot of Team Just, UoL announced their entrance to the LCL in May of 2019. Starting completely afresh, UoL acquired a brand new roster consisting of three Vega Squadron members; BOSS, AHaHaCiK, and Nomanz. Vega Squadron had just won the LCL Spring Split and finished in seventh at MSI 2019, making these three players some of the best the CIS region had to offer.
With Innaxe and Edward filling in the botside, UoL’s first LCL roster was something to be feared. The only issue was the language barrier; neither Innaxe nor Head Coach Fabian “Sheepy” Mallant spoke Russian. This problem was solved by bringing in Vega Squadron’s coach, Dmitrii “Invi” Protasov. With all of the pieces now in place and the entire Mallant family managing the organisation behind the scenes, UoL was ready to make a statement in the LCL.
The new roster debuted at the LCL 2019 Summer Cup, while simultaneously ironing out the creases in their communication. Of the 16 competing teams, UoL came second, only falling to Gambit Esports. Gambit proved to be UoL’s greatest contender in the Regular Season too, as both ended with dominant 12-2 records. By the time playoffs came around, a Gambit vs UoL Finals seemed inevitable, but Vega Squadron upset Gambit to face UoL instead.
A five-game Grand Final ensued, with Vega Squadron’s hopes resting squarely on the shoulders of their bot laners Gadget and Santas. The two had been teammates with BOSS, AHaHaCiK, and Nomanz, but for some reason were not picked up by UoL at the start of Summer. Facing their old friends in the Finals, and with a Worlds spot at stake, neither team was willing to give in.
UoL picked up the first game with ease, flawlessly crushing Vega without a single death. Vega bit back in the next two games though, putting them at series and split point. It almost seemed as if the Unicorns would never escape their second-place ways, once again missing out on Worlds. Fortunately, two more wins in under an hour secured the organisation their first-ever split title and first-ever Worlds qualification. With the curse seemingly broken and a split under their belt, the only question was how far they could go.
History Repeats Itself
Seeded into Group A of Play-Ins, the CIS squad would have to beat NA’s Clutch Gaming, and OCE’s Mammoth Gaming if they wanted to make it to the main stage. There they would have the opportunity to follow in the footsteps of Albus NoX Luna, who escaped groups against all odds. Nearly topping a group of G2, CLG, and ROX Tigers and reaching quarter-finals, Albus was the team that put CIS on the map. Their incredible success at Worlds 2016 was still fresh in the minds of many, and UoL had all the tools to make it a reality once again.
By the end of their round-robin though, Group A had ended up in a three-way tie, with each team 2-2. A three-way tiebreaker was the only solution, and a dominant win over Mammoth allowed the Unicorns to slip through to the knockout stage. In a cruel twist though, their opponent would be rival EU team Splyce; the same Splyce that swiped their Worlds spot in 2016. To make things worse, Vizicsacsi, one of the original Unicorns, and Xerxe, a later member of UoL, would be facing BOSS and AHaHaCiK. Whether it was up to fate, the scriptwriters, or some higher power, the new Unicorns had ended up on the Rift against their predecessors, and in the most important series of their lives.
Click to enlargeIn many ways, UoL exceeded everyone’s expectations, but it was all for nought. Despite going toe-to-toe with one of Europe’s top teams for four games, the fifth and final game slipped through their fingers. Xerxe’s Qiyana jungle put the final nail in the coffin with some pivotal picks, dooming his old team to miss groups in their first Worlds qualification. Splyce went on to escape their group with FPX, even taking a game off SKT in the quarterfinals. For the new UoL squad to nearly beat them was a feat to be proud of, but a loss was still a loss. Heading back home for the new season, UoL set their sights on Worlds 2020.
Reuniting Vega Squadron
Upon returning to the LCL, UoL got to work prepping for their next attempt at Worlds. “I think we made several improvements,” said Sheepy in a recent interview with ESPN.
“First up, we changed our bot lane from Edward and Innaxe back to Gadget and Santas. It has a lot of positive effects, we are able now to speak fully Russian in-game. For the players, it’s obviously way more comfortable, and player-wise Santas and Gadget fit way better into the team, and I think they fit better together as a combo.”
By bringing back Gadget and Santas, the original 2019 Vega Squadron roster was reunited. While Innaxe and Edward were by no means bad players, Sheepy also mentioned that they had difficulties working together. Sheepy also talked about the advantages of the new botlane – “I think Santas is a more stable player than Edward by far, he plays all of the meta champions, and Gadget, what he brings to the table is all the flex picks and all the bot lane off-meta surprise picks.”
The changes certainly paid off, as UoL’s new roster absolutely dominated the LCL in 2020, winning both Spring and Summer Splits. With the help of Sheepy teaching them proper macro, the team has developed far past their roots in Vega Squadron last year, and it has certainly shown in Play-Ins this year.
Worlds 2020
Despite qualifying to Worlds, UoL’s first challenge was actually getting to Shanghai. Apparently, they faced serious problems trying to get to China, as the second-place Gambit Esports was put on standby to take their place. Fortunately, and after many phone calls, UoL managed to reach Shanghai for Play-Ins. This time though, they weren’t going home so early.
Exceeding expectations, UoL beat almost everyone in Group B, including LGD, PSG Talon, and V3, only dropping a game to R7. In the process each player showed off their prowess, with Nomanz earning the best play of Play-Ins with his Kassadin. Gadget too, showed off his weird picks with Ori and Swain bot, and an amazing Twitch carry game against LGD.
While PSG managed to beat UoL in a tiebreaker and take the direct bye to groups, UoL’s second place spot in Group B gave them the opportunity to compete in the knockout stage for their spot on the main stage.
They would have to face SuperMassive, the TCL team who had just beaten MAD Lions, the rookie LEC team. As the first TCL team to ever beat an EU team in a best-of-five, SUP was expected to be a tough opponent for UoL, but the reality was shocking. UoL swept SUP easily, ending KaKAO’s Worlds run prematurely.
Now in Groups, UoL have finally reached the heights they never could in Europe. The organisation’s rebirth in the LCL has given the Unicorns a whole new fanbase, and as old European fans remember their glory days in the EULCS, they too are rallying around UoL. Slotted into a group with TOP, DRX, and FLY, Nomanz will have his work cut out for him against Knight and Chovy, as well as PowerOfEvil, UoL’s original mid laner. We can only wait and see how far these Unicorns will go.
Images via Unicorns of Love