After the 10 minutes break, both teams returned to their seats. The drafting phase for the second game began.

Since Howard’s team lost, he could choose whether to go first or second. There was no conclusive research about whether going first gave an edge in Classmancers, but most of the most statistics Howard came across suggested it’s slightly more advantageous. It also felt good banning three classes instead of just two since whoever went second was obligated to waste a ban on Shadow Walker.

Therefore, Howard chose to go first. But still, even with three bans at his disposal, he was in quite the predicament. Yuel pretty much dictated Howard’s bans for him.

In the previous game, the playmakers were Roi and Lars. Lars rampaged thanks to his superhuman Trickshooter skills while Roi dominated with Dark Knight. Allowing these two play the same classes for a second time would demoralize Howard’s team.

So, Howard would like to ban them. But, if he bans Dark Knight due to its early game strength, then he also has to ban Orc for the same reason because these two were known as the most notorious early game bullies. If Dark Knight is banned, Yuel will surely make Roi play Orc next. Gregory said he was less familiar with Orc because it was a rather rare pick, so it may pose him even more trouble than Dark Knight despite not being as overwhelming during the early game.

So, there were three classes to ban: Trickshooter, Dark Knight and Orc. That filled up Howard’s entire banning phase. There was no doubt Yuel planned this advance. Rather than keeping Dark Knight as a surprise for a more decisive game, Yuel exhibited its strength on the very first match to seed anxiety.

He really got some nasty ideas. Howard smiled wryly. This was an annoying lockdown but Howard didn’t see much choice other than playing along with it.

Therefore, the first ban: Trickshooter. Yuel answered by banning Paladin, this time he had no intention letting Howard grab Paladin. A shame.

Though, it’s a little odd. Whoever goes second would normally start off by banning Shadow Walker to get the “mandatory ban” out of the way. It was banned in almost every match, so banning it gave the least amount of information to the enemy. Yet, Yuel started with Paladin instead. Huh.

I hope he’s not planning to pull what I think... Howard frowned and proceeded with the banning order he discussed with the team. Second ban: Orc.

Yuel responded with a Cleric ban. Another understandable jab at Howard which limited the pool of strong defensive picks. Cleric’s revival ability was the bane of existence for early game teams which sought to gain an early momentum via kills.

But, Cleric was no Shadow Walker. That was already the second ban. Why?

He can’t be serious. Howard paused. How naive of him. He thought Yuel’s “banning lockdown” was the whole extent of the trap, but he was wrong - it went even further.

This third ban was Howard’s last opportunity to ban Shadow Walker before they move on to the class selection phase. Normally, this wouldn’t even be worth considering. After all, it’s the other team’s “responsibility” to ban Shadow Walker. Howard’s team will be picking a class first, so if Yuel doesn’t ban Shadow Walker - Howard could grab Shadow Walker for his team.

Except, Howard couldn’t really do it in this particular case because one of Taison’s whims was that how he only played bruisers as Jungler. Unfortunately, Shadow Walker was as assassin-y as assassins could possibly get. It was infamous for its insane burst damage and chase potential, especially when the player followed a specific famous build invented by one Korean pro. Said build spread around after overperforming in a world championship, which is how Shadow Walker shot up to S tier.

Howard tried teaching Taison how to play assassin Junglers over the week, but he soon gave up and tried teaching the brat how to at least pilot Shadow Walker. Alas, that was a disaster too. A single week simply wasn’t enough. Taison was too much of a rascal, always eager to exchange blows with his opponents in 1v1. An assassin wasn’t designed to last long in a fight so, naturally, Taison performed terribly with that mentality. S tier meant nothing when the player couldn’t pilot the class correctly.

So, in the end, Taison remained a bruiser-only Jungler. But, this was something only Howard and the team should have known for sure. Yuel definitely knew Taison favored bruisers, as already proven by his Venomancer pick last game, but he had no way to know for sure that Taison couldn’t go for Shadow Walker.

Would he gamble on something like that? Howard pondered. If it’s Yuel, it’s possible. He must’ve figured Taison can’t learn to play even a single assassin class in just a week. And, even if Taison DID learn to play Shadow Walker, he’d likely perform worse than with a bruiser anyway. Sigh.

“My,” Ellen poked Howard’s forehead. “You’ll get wrinkles if you frown so hard~ What’s wrong?”

“Say,” Howard lowered his arms and leaned back. “You think Yuel will take a gamble here by not banning Walker? He knows Tai prefers bruisers, so he may be thinking Tai won’t be able to pick Walker even it’s available.”

“Hmm, I can see that. I mean, they got a one-win advantage, right? Yuyu got some leeway, so he can go crazy.”

“Right.” Howard got all the confirmation he needed. All of this may just be a part of Yuel’s mind games, but Howard didn’t want to take the risk. He already took a huge risk with the previous game, so no further risks were allowed. Even if it meant leaving Dark Knight open for a second time, Howard to prevent another disastrous game at any cost.

“Greg,” Howard called out. “You said you’re alright with playing heavy defense against Dark Knight, right? Even if it means outright turtling and lane freezing.”

“Well, I don’t have much choice, do I? I’m not exactly into suicide, kek.”

“Alright.” Howard nodded. It was settled then. Third ban: Shadow Walker.

“Wow,” Dan exclaimed. “They banned Walker?”

“As I thought,” Yuel nodded. “Taison can’t play assassins.”

“Heh, you were really gonna bet on it and not ban Walker?”

“Maybe.” Honestly, Yuel wasn't sure what he would have done if Howard hadn’t banned Shadow Walker. It most likely would have come down to analyzing Howard’s behavior. If Howard were to immediately ban something other than Shadow Walker, it’d suggest he was confident about Taison’s skill as Shadow Walker. On the other hand, if Howard were to take his time before banning something other than Shadow Walker, it’d suggest he wasn’t confident and was probably just trying to play around Yue’s bluff. In that case, Yuel would have gambled by not banning Shadow Walker.

In some ways, the drafting phase was similar to poker. When both teams knew each other’s strengths and weaknesses, it became a game of bluffing and reading the opponent’s intentions. In this case, Yuel’s bluff won them the right to pick Dark Knight again.

The enemy locked their first pick: Druid. A very defensive class, as expected from a team led by Howard.

“Yo,” Lars exclaimed. “Look at ‘em pilling on the defense from the beginning, they’re shook. Gonna be a pain to play against that wood dude on lane, though.”

“Assuming that’s their Support pick,” Yuel pointed out. Druid was a good Support, but it was also a well-known lane freezer for Top Lane. It’s quite likely this was a counter-strategy to Dark Knight.

On paper, this was a disadvantageous matchup for Dark Knight. If Druid freezes the lane for long enough, Dark Knight won’t be able to get the advantage he needs for mid-game. But, it should be fine considering Roi’s skill.

“I’m picking Dark Knight again,” Yuel announced.

“Again?” Roi made a face. “You really think it gonna work twice in a row? If that Druid is for Top Lane, I don’t think I wanna bump into that thing with a DK, lol.”

“I’m aware it’s not the most favorable matchup,” Yuel nodded. “But, Gregory isn’t that amazing of a defender. With your skill, you should be able to pressure him into submission. He will concede either kills or lane control.”

“That’s some big expectations ya got for me. No pressure at all, lol. But okay, if that’s what you want. It worked last time, so maybe it’ll work again.”

“Okay then,” Yuel locked in Dark Knight. Next, he picked Gunslinger for Lars.

“Oh!” Lars grinned. “We’re going with that bad boy? Noice.”

“Let’s show them the training you’ve done this week.”

“You got it! Gonna knock their socks off!”

Gunslinger was the pick Yuel originally planned to start with today because he was under the assumption Trickshooter was a guaranteed ban. Hopefully, the enemy team will underestimate this Gunslinger pick because it's not the famous “Lars with Trickshooter”, which was a beast from an entirely different dimension and transcended any common sense.

“Gunslinger, huh.” Howard narrowed his eyes. Similarly to Trickshooter, it's another tricky class which required high mastery and mechanical skill to be truly effective. While with Trickshooter it was about landing bouncing Trickshots, with Gunslinger it was all about landing headshots for guaranteed crits. “Say, Tai. How strong is Lars’s Gunslinger?”

“He sucks ass, khaha.”

“Funny, but serious now: How good is he at scoring headshots and using Gunslinger's kit in general?

“He's alright, I guess,” Taison shrugged. “Can't say it’s anything special. It sucks balls just like anything else he plays. Except for Shooter, I guess.”

“So, you wouldn't call Gunslinger his ‘best second’ or anything like that?”

“Nah, not really. I know he really likes that cowboy boi, but that's about it. By the way, in case you're wondering, I think that class is trash, yo.”

Nobody asked. Howard locked his palms. So, Gunslinger was just one of the classes Lars played well and really liked? Was that really all? Considering how early it was picked, it felt like there was some sort of strong conviction behind it. It's better to stay on guard. “How do you usually combat his Gunslinger?”

“Oh, that's easy peasy. Here's my protip: just don't get headshot! Khaha.”

“And how exactly you do that?”

“Umm, ya just don’t get too close to him, I guess. It's hella easy to headshot ya when yo head is right in front of the gun. It’s like head-shotting a watermelon, khaha.”

“So, maintaining distance is key. Alright.” Howard has already passed the one minute mark, so he had only one more minute to decide on the next two picks.

In order to maintain distance against Lars, Taison would need a ranged Jungler. The first idea that came to mind was Ranger, but unfortunately, that's an assassin. Taison would most likely drag it into drawn-out combat and will get obliterated.

Were there any good ranged bruisers? Howard felt like the answer was at the tip of his tongue, but he was drawing a blank. Well, no need to mull over this on his own.

“Tai,” Howard said. “Got any ideas for a Jungler you’d pick against Gunslinger?”

“Hmm, gimme Vampire. This gon be gud.”

“Alright.” Howard nodded. Vampire was a decent choice. Not only it was a ranged bruiser but it also had Coffin Slumber, a skill which turned him invincible for a short period of time. It'd be extremely efficient against Gunslinger's barrages.

As for the second pick, Howard went with Cryomancer. A melee tank didn’t sound like a good idea because it'd require getting close to Lars, so Cryomancer was the next best thing against Gunslinger.

A very tight defense. Yuel frowned as the turn passed back to him. The Cryomancer pick pretty much confirmed that the Druid pick was meant for Top instead of Bot. Running a Dark Knight into Druid was far from optimal, but Roi should manage.

More importantly, Vampire had Coffin Slumber and Cryomancer had Cryo-Freeze, both were abilities which granted temporary invincibility. This must have been Howard's idea of countering Gunslinger's barrage during Fan the Hammer. Druid's shield from Gaia’s Protection was also a decent counter because it could soak a couple of shots.

It was a nasty defensive lineup for sure, but not an impenetrable one. Coffin Slumber, Cryo-Freeze and Gaia's Protection all had one element in common: they were treated as protective special effects. There was actually one class which specialized at nullifying those: Aquamancer.

He got me. Howard smacked his forehead. He didn’t realize he was packing so many defensive effects into his lineup. Of course Yuel would notice that and strike with an Aquamancer pick. It was a mid-tier class under normal circumstances, but it was a hard counter when the enemy comp had many protection effects. Kudos for finding that right away.

After that third pick, the drafting phase transitioned into the second banning phase. Yuel started off by banning Elf for a very obvious reason.

Oh, I missed that one too. Howard made a face. It was another potential mistake on his end. Considering how maintaining distance was a huge factor against Gunslinger, picking Elf for Ellen should have been a high priority. Alas, Howard was preoccupied with Taison's pick at the time and didn't want to pick a Carry so early into the drafting. That came back to bite him.

I wonder how much of this drafting phase Yuel has already predicted days in advance. That damn Yuel must have played out this drafting routine at least a hundred times in his head in preparation for today. His picks and bans were quick but they struck hard. Especially, that Aquamancer was good. That wasn’t a class somebody would pick instantly without pondering first, it was clearly a result of preparation. In that area, Yuel seemed to be a step ahead of Howard. Not fun.

But, that didn't mean the game was lost, far from it. It’s true that winning the drafting phase was like winning half the game. At pro levels, some even claimed that the drafting phase pretty much decided the entire game before it was played.

However, at this club’s level, the execution part was even more important. Therefore, even though Howard's team suffered from a disadvantage during drafting, they'll just make up for it during the game itself.

Once the second banning phase ended, it was Yuel's turn to pick again. He wanted to keep the Jungler pick to last due to Dan's flexibility, so the next pick will be Mid Laner.

“So,” Yuel turned to Julia. “A defensive class like we discussed right?”

“Sure,” Julia chewed her lip for a moment but didn't antagonize him. “What you got?”

“Aeromancer is looking good. It's a good counter to both Coffin Slumber and Cryo-Freeze because you can-”

“Set up Whirlwind or charge Hurricane while they're not moving,” Julia filled in the blanks with frightening accuracy. She literally took the words from Yuel's mouth, word for word. “Did I pass the exam, teach?”

“Full marks.” Yuel nodded. Did he teach Julia this specific tidbit before? Probably among the many other considerations he covered with her about picking a Mid class. She was a surprisingly good student, unlike a certain goof...

“Aero sounds fine,” Julia said. “It sucks to not know their Mid pick, though.”

“Aero it is then.” Yuel locked Aeromancer and the turn passed to Howard.

“A defensive pick?” Howard couldn't help but blurt his thoughts. Aeromancer didn't quite mesh with an aggressive early game composition. What was the catch?

“I told you,” Ellen smiled like a know-it-all. “July can't play aggressively when Larsy is there. She probably came to terms with it after the first game.”

“Alright, makes sense.” Howard nodded. Julia indeed put on a shabby performance last game when it came to grabbing kill opportunities. Her defense was rock solid and she set up some good opportunities for others, but her offense had effectively zero impact on the game. Her final score of 0/0/4 only further proved that.

“Can I take Electro?” Gilbert asked.

“Hm?” Howard blinked. “That's a rather aggressive pick. Reason?”

“I didn't get to do it last time,” Gilbert's eyes glinted. “But, this game, I want to make it clear who is the best Mid Laner.”

Seems like my little motivator worked wonders. Howard smiled to himself. The mere possibility of losing the starter spot would drive anybody to perform their best, even a stoic guy like Gilbert. “Sure, let's go with Electro. It's a good counter for Aero in team fights.”

After Electromancer, the final pick was Pirate for Ellen. It wasn’t much of a counter for Gunslinger, but it had the option to quickly create distance with Backfire Cannon and to knock down Gunslinger with Kraken to stop his barrage. That should be more than enough for Ellen.

After that, the turn passed back to Yuel. It was the final pick of the drafting phase: the Jungler pick for Dan. The possibilities were infinite and Yuel had to figure the best counter to the enemy's comp.

“Got anything in mind?” Yuel asked.

“Beastmaster,” Dan answered without thinking twice, with a mischievous smile spread across his face.

“Really.” Yuel narrowed his eyes. This was clearly just Dan asking to meme.

“Hey, Beastmaster is actually not that bad here,” Dan claimed. “Vampire has slow clear and Electro can't farm both lane and jungle at once, so Beastmaster can thrive.”

“You'll make any class you like to sound good.”

“Heh, maybe.”

Admittedly, Yuel didn't have a good retort there. Dan's argument was very convincing and made Beastmaster sound like a good pick. However, Dan's smile betrayed him. It’s clear Dan was just pulling Yuel's leg to play a class he liked.

“So, any real picks?”

“Heh, I'm telling you Beast is legit good. But sure, tiers and all that. Hmm, I guess Lion then? None of them got a good way to escape the ult except for Electro's blink.”

“Vampire's ult also passes through, but you're right. That'll pretty much force all of them to buy Blink. Good catch.”

“Beast would be totally better, though.”

“Right.” Yuel shook his head and locked Lionfolk. This wasn't the time nor place to mess around. They'll win the second game and wrap up the whole match.

With that, the drafting phase was over. The second game will now begin!

Lineups:

Yuel: Aquamancer

Lars: Gunslinger

Julia: Aeromancer

Roi: Dark Knight

Dan: Lionfolk

Howard: Cryomancer

Ellen: Pirate

Gilbert: Electromancer

Taison: Vampire

Gregory: Druid