Classmancers - A MOBA Esport Story - Part 3

Vol.15 Ch.6: Matthew's Small Pool of Options

"Kai," Yuel called out. "I forgot to ask you something during the break. What was your impression of Merlin's Aeromancer?"

"Pft, my impression?" Kai sneered. "Bastard is a bona fide turtle, that's the long and short of my impression. He was such a damn pain in the ass. Damn, I get irritated just from remembering it."

"It was that bad?"

"Hell yeah, it was. The bastard straight-up refuses to fight, no matter what. He doesn't even care if I outfarm him as long as he's safe. He'd rather leech off his Jungler's help than try to confront me. Disgusting."

"Yes, that does sound to be his usual playstyle." Yuel nodded. "But, I was asking more about his skill with Aeromancer. Did it look like he was good with it?"

"Yeah, I guess you can say that, in a way." Kai shrugged. "I mean, he barely ever dragged his lazy ass into any fights, but he usually got the job done when he wanted to. He even deflected the few attacks I fired at him, though it's hardly an achievement for somebody who turtles 24/7."

"I see." Yuel knotted his brows. It sounds like Merlin can wield his Aeromancer pretty well. That's a little disappointing. Was my guess off the mark?

Back when he was analyzing the Leopards, there was one particular detail that stood out. It was regarding Merlin and the guy's apparent lack of class variety.

While most of the Leopards rotated through multiple different classes in a healthy manner, Merlin stuck with just Warlock for all the games he participated in. No matter what his teammates picked, no matter what his opponents picked - Merlin only ever played Warlock.

That led to a certain hypothesis: perhaps Merlin was only good at playing Warlock? It was a long shot, considering Merlin was a member of the Leopards, but it wasn't too out there.

After all, last year, Freezer was exactly that kind of player. Once Yuel banned Warlock, the guy received an obvious blow to his performance.

Unfortunately, the Warlock ban didn't seem to tickle Merlin at all. The guy went straight for Aeromancer next, and according to Kai, the guy's performance didn't suffer in any notable way. He still "got the job done", same as always.

So, either my initial impression of Merlin was wrong, or Aeromancer is his second favorite. Hmm.

Of course, a single game wasn't enough to prove anything, but it was a fair assumption. And so, that begged the question: what was Merlin's third favorite class?

I can't shake the feeling that he doesn't have many classes in his arsenal. Yuel insisted even though he couldn't quite explain what he was basing this conviction on. He just reminds me of Freezer so much. Not just the fact he likes Warlock, but also that passive yet efficient playstyle.

Both Freezer and Merlin seemed to worship the concept of being "lazy and effective". The mentality radiated from their playstyles and likely extended to their training regimes as well.

As such, there was a very good chance that Merlin didn't bother practicing too many classes. If so, banning every class he plays on stage might lead to something.

"I'd like to ban Aeromancer," Yuel informed. "There is no deep or particularly sophisticated reason behind it. I just want to see what Merlin will pick next."

"I see, I see." Vincent nodded strongly. "You are scouting the enemy's options via the drafting phase, are you not? Brilliant strategy! As expected from Chessmaster!"

"Well, you won't hear any objections from me," Kai said. "I'd ban every defensive mage if it was possible. That turtle seriously gets on my nerves."

And so, it was decided. For the third and last ban of this phase, Yuel removed Aeromancer from the table.