Summoning Insight

MonteCristo and Thorin are joined by YamatoCannon, Damonte, Memento, and RandomMinionCaster to preview MSI 2024, discuss the goals of FlyQuest at this event, ponder the role that lane swaps will have, roast Doublelift, and more! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

MonteCristo and Thorin discuss the League of Legends regional finals in LCK vs LEC and LCS, more Doublelift drama, why the current broadcast meta may be changing, the economics of professional esports, the Chovy bonjwa debate, the upcoming MSI event, and more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

MonteCristo and Thorin discuss why Monte thinks G2's lane swap strategies were leaked, the G2 vs BDS series, Faker's statements regarding the ongoing DDoS attacks on T1, Sjokz stories, controversy regarding Inspired's recent interview with dGon, Korean top laner Thanatos joining Cloud9, the future of Fudge's career, potential changes to the LCS, and more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

MonteCristo and Thorin discuss League of Legends and Teamfight Tactics being a part of the Esports World Cup (backed by the government of Saudi Arabia), controversy surrounding a strategic coach before the LCS Finals, why Coach Spawn deserves a lot of the credit for Team Liquid's victory at the LCS Finals, the upcoming banger matches in the LCK Playoffs, G2 looking dominant again in LEC, the ongoing LPL Playoffs, and more! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

MonteCristo and Thorin discuss the LCK All-Pro voting, preview the LCS and LCK Playoffs, Cloud9's disappointing games, KC and Rogue finishing 9th and 10th again in LEC, G2's spot on global power rankings, milkyway continuing to impress, and more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

MonteCristo and Thorin discuss Quickshot exiting Riot Games and LEC, Cloud9 returning to form in the LCS Playoffs, HLE defeating T1, results from LEC, Riot's update to the esports franchise model, the VCS match fixing scandal, and more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

MonteCristo and Thorin discuss the latest drama featuring Doublelift and Dodo, milkyway's continued masterful performance in the LPL, the T1 vs Gen.G match, global power rankings, the start of the LEC split, Smolder in pro play, the latest from the Saudi Esports World Cup, a story about Kameto and KC, and more! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

MonteCristo and Thorin discuss the LCS matches that were played in a smaller, grungier studio, Tyler 1 vs Corejj drama, big roster moves at Heretics, Cloud9's 2-0 weekend, an update on the LCK DDoS saga, milkyway and FPX's plot armor, and more! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

MonteCristo and Thorin discuss the DDOS attacks on the LCK, T1 and Faker's current dominance over the league, TSM stories involving Bjergsen and Reginald, updates from the LPL, why FPX jungler milkyway is the player to watch this split, LCS Spring Finals once again being placed on Easter Sunday, and more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

MonteCristo and Thorin discuss the drama involving BDS Adam, Wooloo's decision-making in reporting on certain stories, the LEC Winter Playoffs, T1 fans malding over Monte's power rankings, updates from the LCK, and more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

MonteCristo and Thorin discuss LCS viewership and Commissioner MarkZ's recent series of tweets on the topic, G2 once again rising to the top of the LEC power rankings, Hylissang's history of both strong and questionable plays, the strengths of MAD Lions KOI, the levels of play of the LEC and LCS, new information regarding the recent layoffs at Riot Games, and more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

MonteCristo and Thorin discuss KC benching Yamato and whether the action was deserved, the Cloud9 losing streak and questionable drafts, problems with the LCS, LEC, LCK, and LPL broadcasts, BDS's and their T1 style of play, Team Heretics' chances to win against SK, KDF's rise in power, and more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

MonteCristo and Thorin discuss Riot Games's poor handling of LEC layoffs, Riot's cancelled streaming service, news out of TSM, the end of the split of Karmine Corps, Elyoya's decent performance as captain of Mad Lions KOI, BLG potentially stepping up to be what JDG was last year, Zeka's level of play on HLE, the messy game between CLoud9 and Shopify Rebellion, and more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

MonteCristo and Thorin discuss mass layoffs at Riot Games, the joint letter by the LCK teams + Joe Marsh's dissent, Karmine Corp's weak start in the LEC, the LCS's declining viewership, blue side dominance in Asian leagues, and more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

MonteCristo and Thorin discuss week 1 of the LEC, Ibai and MAD KOI vs Yamato and Karmine Corp, whether MarkZ's ideas can save the LCS, take stock of the LEC rosters, and more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Disquieting news settled on the League of Legends esports world this week with new from Jacob Wolf that the Saudi Arabian government would be including League of Legends in their Esports World Cup in July, 2024. MonteCristo and Thorin discuss the history of the Saudi esports initiatives, including this past year's Gamers8 event, and what it means to have Riot approval for competition. Our hosts also unpack the latest LEC talent announcements, the changes to the Worlds seeding and format, the delays in announcing league schedules, and Riot's "Hall of Legends." Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

We circle back on some old news that we have yet to discuss: long-time analyst and coach Mark "MarkZ" Zimmerman has been named the new commissioner of the LCS. Thorin and Monte give their takes on the news as well as examining the extent to which he can effect real change in the floundering North American league. Travis Gafford unexpectedly entered the conversation surrounding the commissioner role, which leads to quite a few laughs about the ridiculous situation. T1 fans are also compared to the movie Gremlins, but what else is new? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Christian "IWillDominate" Rivera joins the Summoning Insight season finale to discuss the greatest teams of all-time in the history of League of Legends. They discuss over a decades' worth of competitive League of Legends to identify and celebrate the best teams in LoL. Our hosts evaluate teams that peaked at an extraordinary level, such as Samsung White and Invictus Gaming, while also examining the teams that almost managed to walk the Golden Road, including JDG, SKT T1, RNG, and G2. Join us to evaluate each teams' unique aspects, strength of individual players, and fierceness of competition they faced to reveal the best of the best! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

After touching on this year's rostermania in the LCK and LEC, this week Thorin and Monte turn their discussions to North America and Europe. With Cloud9's acquisition of Jojopyun, will they be the presumptive title favorites in the LCS? Over in China, Knight has announced his move to BLG, Weiwei signs with LNG, and OMG topside moves to NiP to play alongside Rookie. Riot finally steps in to takeover the LPL English broadcast as well, but it comes at the cost of downsizing the already meager casting crew on the league. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Jakob "YamatoCannon" Mebdi is back on Summoning Insight to discuss the LEC and LCK rosters for the upcoming 2024 season of League of Legends! They also discuss what he would do in a theoretical universe where he's the head coach of Karmine Corp and his speculations about the team's roster and coaching staff construction. Doublelift announced his retirement (again), so Monte and Thorin discuss what it says about the health of the LCS and the success of his lengthy esports career. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

The 2023 League of Legends World Championship has ended with T1 and Faker's fourth title by beating a lifeless Weibo Gaming. Considering that Zeus, Keria, and Gumayusi are now free agents, what is the legacy of this iteration of T1's roster from their past two years of play together? Evil Geniuses and Golden Guardians suddenly exited the LCS, leaving the league with 8 teams for next season. Thorin and Monte discuss the ramifications on the LoL and broader esports ecosystem as a result of these moves, as well as the unfortunate plight of the players promised spots on these rosters. The free agency window officially opened on November 20th, which means it's time to rampantly speculate about the future of the LCK and LPL considering the huge number of elite players not yet contracted for the 2024 season. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

The show begins with reactions to the semi-final matches and an in-depth breakdown of the high-level series played between T1 and JDG, ending the latter team's attempt at completing the first Golden Road in League of Legends history. Thorin and Monte preview the finals and discuss how Weibo might hope to defeat the T1 juggernaut in a meta the Korean team has defined, but the opportunity appears slim. They chat about the variety of roster moves rumored for LCS and LEC teams, including G2's former members regrouping under Heretics' banner. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

This week, we break down all four of the quarter-final match-ups at the LoL World Championship and debate T1's chances at ending JDG's bid to complete their journey on the Golden Road. BLG should easily beat Weibo en-route to a berth in the finals, but if the series is close does this spell doom for an exciting end to the tournament? The question of the Dade Award looms as Tarzen turns in an unforgiveable performance, and Monte and Thorin contemplate if there should be a winner this year. With another GenG performance at the international level, the guys discuss if this is the end of the Chovy/Peanut partnership that yielded three domestic titles but collapsed at two Worlds and an MSI. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Worlds playoffs have arrived with the quarterfinal match-ups starting this week and you've got Monte and Thorin to preview each of the four match-ups. Fans have worked themselves into a tizzy about the performance of G2 and NRG, so it's time to bust some myths concocted on social media and address logical fallacies about these two teams' tournament runs. G2 released their entire year of scrim results, but it this a good look for the org? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

We've got a few bangers to start off the second stage of the Swiss at the World Championship, particularly KT vs LNG and T1 vs BLG. JDG's performance has been marvelous, but has LNG shown the glimmers of how to beat them in their three recent, close series? Team Liquid's uniquely tragic performance underscores a disappointing Worlds run for Western teams, but thanks to the Swiss format we might still see one of Fnatic, Cloud9, or NRG qualify for the bracket stage. G2 has proven their mettle and deserves a quarterfinal match, with only the minor hurdle of NRG remaining. Would it be Summoning Insight without a little complaining about formats? No, it would not. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

The new format for Worlds Play-Ins has already delivered a much more exciting and robust competition in the early stages of League of Legends' marquee event, but Monte and Thorin still dread the upcoming Swiss format due to poor seeding and unavoidably wacky results. Our hosts discuss each of the match-ups from the first round of Swiss, and what fans can reasonably expect from the performance of each of the 16 teams. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

This year's MEGA PREVIEW episode of Summoning Insight has landed! Guests galore join the show to talk about all major regions and many of the minor ones, making sure you'll be informed heading into the 2023 World Championship in League of Legends. Our featured guests are: Max "Atlus" Anderson (LCK caster), Alex "Nymaera" Hapgood (LPL analyst and LJL expert), Tom "Carix" Newing (VCS caster), Lucas "Maestro" Pierre (Furia head coach), Thomas "Thinkcard" Slotkin (NRG head coach, and Dylan Falco (G2 head coach). Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

The LEC season is finally over after a slow, extended grind through the season finals and, surprise, G2 lifts the European trophy once again. Monte and Thorin discuss their expected victory as well as Fnatic's surprising resurgence with Wunder coming in as a last-minute substitute. The LEC appears to be raising the minimum age of players to 18, but why? Does this mean that they have secured new betting or alcohol sponsors? After many promises from Riot about using Dash for content and VALORANT hosting, it appears to have all been lies now that we can reflect on the amount of work he received over the course of 2023. Is this an ill omen for Riot casters in NA? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Evil Geniuses' embattled CEO Nicole Lapointe Jameson steps down from her position after months of controversy surrounding her handling of Danny's mental health crisis and numerous articles revealing her incompetence in a leadership position. Monte and Thorin discuss the amusing email sent to all EG staff members at her departure, including an outrageous line that she is the "Warren Buffett of esports." LEC finalizes the teams that will be sent to the World Championship with BDS tagging along to face Golden Guardians in the Worlds Qualifying Series. Is there hope for Europe and was their promise shown in the LEC Season Finals so far? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Famous streamer Ibai might be paying 3 million Euros for player salaries and other costs to prop up KOI, whose ownership is struggling to make payments to staff and Riot for their franchise slot. Gabby Durden announces that she will not participate in the LCS next year, to a mixed reaction from fans who enjoyed her interviews and hosting but criticized her casting. The LCS leadership engaged in a bizarre interview with Travis Gafford in which they revealed they reveal their ridiculous goal is to draw more non-domestic viewership like the LCK, with Monte and Thorin here to reveal the difficult reality that impedes their vision. They discuss the LCK playoffs/regionals, the latest on the LEC Season Finals, and more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

LCK playoffs have become surprisingly exciting with the resurgence of T1, and now it feels like anyone's bracket between T1, Gen.G, and KT. Can any of the Korean teams counter JDG's style at Worlds? Monte and Thorin discuss the reasons that JDG has yet to drop a single bo5 this year and theorize how the pre-tournament favorites might be toppled. The LCS playoffs have exposed numerous flaws in North America's play, leading our hosts to ask when we last saw a playoffs this bad considering the number of throws and blown leads. EG's rapid exit in spite of their regular season ranking exposed them as fraudulent, but it's not clear that Cloud9 or Golden Guardians will fare much better on the international stage. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

A healthy roasting of Summoning Insight's nemeses kicks off this week's episode, with more hilarious social media hijinks from Evil Geniuses' staff drawing continued attention on Danny's disappearance. LPL crowned JDG as back-to-back champions in 2023 and the rest of the Chinese Worlds contenders have been decided, so Monte and Thorin break down the teams who will compete in Korea in October. TSM has allegedly played their last game in LCS and somehow Summoning Insight managed to outlast the once-popular American team. Surely, NRG can't pull off a third upset in a row to lock in a place in the LCS finals, right? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

With the end of the LEC's Summer Split and the upcoming Season Finals, Thorin and Monte dive into whether this year's new format has been a success and the changes that need to be made before 2024. The LCK off-season looks insane this year, with players such as Kiin, Canyon, Showmaker, Chovy, and many more stars with their contracts expiring. What super team rosters will be possible to assemble next year in Korea. The LPL playoffs have reached the finals and JDG looks like a lock to win, but the races in LCS and LCK are not so sure and merit in-depth discussion. Faker is back and T1 already looks better, but formidable opponents stand in his way, including a revitalized HLE with their new jungler Grizzly. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

LPL playoffs have reached the double-elimination stage and fans are being treated to some of the best League of Legends in the world. JDG looks to defend their title and seem like the heavy favorites, but can LNG, BLG, or TOP put up a fight and steal the crown? In spite of better-than-expected play from Excel, G2 still should comfortably win the LEC with some adjustments to their strategy, which Monte breaks down. KT vanquishes GenG to claim the number one position in the LCK rankings as they look to continue their massive win streak straight into the playoffs in two weeks' time. Rumors persist that Riot is discussing a possible merger of LCS and CBLOL alongside a move outside of Los Angeles, and the guys insist in would be in the best interest of the competitive scene to proceed. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

The LCK announces new salary restrictions on players/teams, a luxury tax, and exemptions for former champions, which means that Thorin and Monte are here to discuss the details. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

What does it mean for Faker's legacy after seeing T1 play without him? Is the collapse of his team indicative of the essential strength of his leadership in game or a lack of motivation from his teammates given the circumstances. Substitute players abound with Bible, Spirax, and APA coming in for Dplus KIA, FlyQuest, and Team Liquid, and Monte and Thorin are here to discuss the impacts of these roster moves. The guys also chat about the upcoming LEC group stage and a random Apex Legends' caster's hot take on the value of casting. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

T1 announced that Faker will sit out for at least two weeks with an arm injury, but how much will that affect his team's performance before LCK playoffs? The LPL displays a dazzling level of mechanical talent, which Riot has slowly optimized the game toward with new champions and patches, leading the right into China's wheelhouse as they look poised to dominate a weak field at Worlds. LCS viewership was lower than Brazil's CBLOL in the Spring Split and the gulf appears to be widening for Summer, leaving North America in a perilous position moving forward. Vitality's Summer draws to a close in a somehow even more disappointing fashion than the other splits this year, with Monte and Thorin giving a eulogy to the superteam. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Rumors swirl that all major regions, LCS, LCK, and LPL, will be changing their formats next year to accommodate an additional international event, which sounds like a return to the League of Legends circuit from ten years ago. Fnatic's additions of Trymbi and Noah seem to have helped with the longstanding synergy issues between Humanoid and Razork, but will this new bot lane allow them to take the LEC title? JDG is a juggernaut and should be the favorites to win Worlds in almost any scenario, especially as they tore through the TOP Esports last week. Thorin and Monte discuss what makes them so strong and if any teams from the LCK can currently compete with the LPL's best. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

All the major regions in League of Legends are up and running, so it's time to check in on the general level of play at the start of summer with LPL as the clear leader. Teams in LCS and LEC look poor at the moment and the LCS' viewership is hitting an all-time low, so it may be a rough Worlds for the West in 2023. Monte and Thorin chat about the upcoming telecom war in LCK and why fans should have hope that KT can finally beat T1, as well as the possibility of an upset by Dplus over GenG. They also discuss which teams might be currently overperforming, such as Team Liquid, Heretics, and Evil Geniuses, and why they expect those teams to fall back to Earth. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Harris Peskin, attorney at ESG Law, comes on the show to finalize the discussion of the LCS player walk-out and debate whether the players themselves have taken too much money to make the league sustainable. They also discuss the possibility of unionization and salary caps for the professional players, which may be the only path forward to responsibly continue the LCS. The teams appear to have received the worst pain from the bursting of the esports bubble, so what will they need to do to survive? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Richard "RichsWrath" Wells joins the show to discuss the ongoing walk-out saga from the LCS Players' Association and the current financial realities of player salaries within the League of Legends ecosystem. They dive into Doublelift's on-stream responses to the player walkout and his potential sabotage of the collective negotiating efforts. Other topics of discussion include Sjokz's surprise announcement that she'll be taking a break from the LEC broadcast for the Summer Split, the staleness of the meta as LPL kicks off once more, and the ethics of being a scab player for LCS teams. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Monte and Thorin are joined by eight classic Summoning Insight guests to share memories of League of Legends esports as a celebration of 200 episodes of the show! Taking turns on the podcast are Edward "Edward" Abgaryan, Nick "LS" De Cesare, Jakob "YamatoCannon" Mebdi, Maurice "Amazing" Stückenschneider, Yoon-seop "Locodoco" Choi, Erik "DoA" Lonnquist, Will "Chobra" Cho, and Christoph "nRated" Seitz. Learn the truth behind the Gambit Pringles sponsorship, the definition of a toxic cesspool of negativity, and stroll down memory lane from 10 years of League of Legends esports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

MSI ends with an all-LPL final and a convincing win for the JDG super team, and Summoning Insight is here to break down all the details. What went wrong for T1 and Gen.G? TSM announces their departure from the LCS for another region, which ends the TSM holy war in a final victory for Monte and Thorin. The North American academy system is in trouble as the teams vote to end the challenger team requirement and the players' association makes demands, but does this make sense financially in League of Legends? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

T1, JDG, and Gen.G all have strong claims to become the next MSI champion, but who do Thorin and Monte predict will claim the title? Spanish and French fans are crossing a line with player criticism and deserve to be called out, even though player performance from Europe has not been up to its usual international standards. T1 roars back after losing their Korean crown to GenG and we're here to break down why fortunes reversed and the teams evolved since their last best-of-five showdown in the LCK finals. JDG seem like the team to beat with spectacular teamfighting and a favorable meta that enables their superstar ADC, Ruler, but they showed some flaws in the LPL that have yet to be revealed on the MSI stage... Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

On the cusp of MSI playoffs, Thorin and Monte preview each match and discuss why the Western teams have slim odds of an upset and how each team matches up stylistically with their opponents. MAD Lions and Golden Guardians have been borrowing strategies from T1 and GenG, but how can they win as they face the real thing? G2's wacky team compositions won't be enough to topple the macro gods of GenG, especially if they continue to play without a teleport in top lane. Analysts have been talking a big game about NA's performance at play-ins at international tournaments, but Monte and Thorin are here to dispel that delusion and question how satisfied North American fans should be. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

MSI is almost upon us! Monte and Thorin are very excited about the format and chat about their expectations for the teams as they head to London. They recap the LEC finals and celebrate MAD Lions' epic run through the lower bracket while remaining a bit wary about their tendency to throw. Evil Geniuses appear to be cutting their budget and releasing their player, but why not fire the management as well? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Riot's global head of esports, John Needham, wrote a blog post and conducted an interview with Travis Gafford outlining Riot's future plans for esports given the industry's current crisis and the financial struggles of many of the teams. Monte and Thorin react to Riot's plans and pierce through the PR veneer to get to the core issues and evaluate whether the changes to the LoL ecosystem can be successful. Leaks have sprouted around Riot's plans to allow teams to field up to three imported players, but will this be successful at making more competitive teams from LCS? The LPL finals and LEC Spring groups round out the conversation alongside some healthy appreciate for the upcoming MSI and its exciting format. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

This week marks Faker's 10th anniversary as a professional player, with Monte reminiscing about casting his debut game and Thorin contextualizing his career in the context of the greater esports ecosystem. The discussion turns to GenG's surprising victory over T1 and how Chovy's squad was able to conquer their rivals to win back-to-back titles. Cloud9 wins as expected in LCS, but how much did FlyQuest underperform compared to Golden Guardians' overperformance to make the finals? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

CLG gets sold and TSM is on the auction block: is this the true start of esports winter and what does it mean for the LCS and the broader industry? T1 defeats GenG to set up a titillating match between GenG and KT, which is the true gift of LCK's first double-elimination playoffs. The discussion continues around the LCS playoffs and the surprising upset of Evil Geniuses by Golden Guardians, as well as FlyQuest's chances in a rematch against Cloud9. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Dan "Aux" Harrison, LCK analyst, joins the show this week to discuss his recent move to Korea and the exciting start to the playoffs, including the thrilling duel between T1 and KT. They preview each of the remaining teams, focusing on the promising performance of rookie ADC Peyz and the rest of GenG while also lamenting the early exit of Dplus KIA. After a chat about LCS playoffs and the resurgence of Evil Geniuses, attention turns to the surprising Spring Split performance of BDS and Astralis who enter the group stage as the top two seeds. Can either team be relied upon to raise Europe's Spring Split trophy? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.