Last Chance Before the Mid-Game

With Jin back in commission, the tug-of-war for lane control resumed. Both sides cleared minions as efficiently as possible. They were more or less equal in terms of speed and accuracy.

However, Jin's movements weren't quite as crisp as before. Something weighed on his mind, enough to make him miss one last-hit.

[I thought she'd attack me as soon as I return.] Jin pondered. [I see. It looks like I misunderstood.]

Even though Ignis seemingly entered her "berserk" mode, it didn't mean she was going to indiscriminately attack Jin at every opportunity that presented itself. That's part of what made her so unpredictable in this state.

Ignis was clearly burning with a desire for vengeance. However, so far, she hasn't launched any obvious big attacks against Jin. Why?

[Perhaps she vented some of that pent-up anger when she attacked our Jungler.][Also, she might be waiting for her ult to come back online.]

The latter was probably the bigger consideration. Without Warrior's ult, Ignis's chances of killing Jin were slim to none. She needed every offensive tool she could get in order to strike him down.

[Which probably means I don't have to worry for a while.] Jin concluded. [Until she gets her ult back, she probably won't strike unless I present a big opening.]

In other words, Jin could ease up for now. There was no need to be so tense about incoming attacks, at least not for a while.

Of course, he still made sure to be alert in case Ignis decides to surprise him. But, he poured most of his focus into clearing minions, as he normally would. Thanks to that, he flawlessly kept up with the pro's farming speed.

As a result, the lane remained at a standstill and Ignis couldn't make any big moves just yet. Without any minion advantage, she resigned herself to "playing nice", at least for now.

[Tch, what an annoying brat.] Ignis clicked her tongue. [He sure can farm, I'll give him that. I'm really itching to go in and kick his ass before we clear the minions, but I no longer got any power advantage here. Lame.]

Earlier in the game, the Warrior's Attack Power was decently boosted by its passive, Battle Thirst. But, it was a flat boost, so its value decreased as the game went on. So, at this point, it meant almost nothing.

[I mean, I'll still royally whoop his ass if we fight.] Ignis asserted. [But, I doubt I can get anything out of it. He'll run away like a pussy the moment I beat him, so I really need my ult back to put the heat on him.]

And so, the waiting game continued. Ignis patiently contested the lane, waiting for the right time to strike.

[We're approaching the mid-game, so I'll probably only have one chance to do it.] She reminded herself every time she had the itch to smack the kid. [We'll have to start rotating for team fights soon, so this will be our last "clean" 1v1 showdown.]

Surely, her opponent was smart enough to realize that as well. So, how did he want things to go down?

[Our next fight is probably going to be our last "real" duel.] Jin reasoned. [From the mid-game onward, any duel opportunity will have a lot more factors to it than just the fight itself.]

Unlike the early-game, where everybody's roles and positions were relatively fixed, the mid-game was a chaotic playground. It revolved primarily around team fights and rotations, so anybody could be anywhere at any given time. So, there was rarely any time to duel anybody in an isolated 1v1 situation.

[In the first place, getting into 1v1 situations is often a misplay in the mid-game.] Jin thought. [It probably happens often in low-level matches, like in the middle school scene here. But, these are pros I'm dealing with here. Even if they're "taking it easy" on us, they surely won't commit big misplays like that.]

The mid-game was the phase when respawn timers started becoming really long, to the point where a single death could have long-lasting consequences. As such, acting alone involved tremendous risk. Everybody had to group up, or at least to stay within the vicinity of each other as much as possible.

[I assume the mid-game will mostly be team fights, or at best 2v2s and 3v3s. So, there might not be many good opportunities for me to show my skill.]

Since Jin was playing with StormBlitz for the first time, it was impossible to expect any impressive cooperation between them during team fights.

Not to mention, nobody in StormBlitz was even half as good as Jin, so they'll always be deadweight for him in fights. Even if Jin himself performs splendidly in a 2v2 or a 3v3, all of it will be overshadowed by his teammates dragging him down.

[I don't know if I'll get more opportunities to play the Sweepers today.] Jin thought. [So, the upcoming duel with Ignis might really be my last big chance of the day. I can't mess it up.]

Most likely, Ignis recognized the importance of this duel as well. That's why she was patiently waiting for her ult to come online and grant her a decisive opportunity to strike Jin down.

[Should I act before she gets her ult?] Jin wondered. [I've already got all my tools in hand, so there's nothing for me to wait for. But...]

Striking first always ran the risk of overextending. Whoever makes the first move will seize the momentum of the battle, but they will also give the enemy the opportunity to dish out a powerful counter.

Therefore, against pros, who were expected to know the right answer for practically every situation, striking first was extremely dangerous. No matter how confident Jin was in his mechanical skill, even he didn't dare to do it.

[But, I have to go for it before her ult comes online, right?] Jin frowned. [No matter how dangerous it is, it'll still be better than dealing with her ult. But, then again, her ult should be coming back online any moment now, so how much time will I actually have to abuse here?]

Jin glanced at the timer. Ignis used her ult sometime around 8:50, and now it was already 9:40. So, she'll get her ult back in a matter of seconds.

[I should have acted earlier. This is what happens when you overthink.] Jin criticized himself.

If only he finished analyzing the situation sooner, he would've arrived at the right conclusion half a minute ago. Alas, most of his attention was preoccupied with farming minions and watching out for incoming attacks, so he didn't have the luxury to finish his thought process earlier.

[That's all excuses.] Jin shook his head. [If I want to play on even ground with pros, I have to be able to make snappy decisions like this without wasting any time. Hmm. I suppose I shall add this to my homework.]

It was already past 9:50. Ignis's ult was online, so the time was nigh. Their final showdown will commence shortly, they were both aware of the fact.

[Heh. So, you're not gonna take the initiative until the very end, huh.] Ignis smirked. [You must be scared shitless of how strong I am, aren't you? Well then, time for the pro to put the brat in his place!]

"I see your ult is up," Hawk commented. "Are you going in now?"

"Yeah, I am."

"I'm pretty close by, actually. So, I can lend a hand if you want to thoroughly wreck this kid."

"Stay out of it. This is my fight. I have to mop him in a duel, or else he won't learn a real lesson."

"Alright, gotcha."

And so, Ignis advanced toward the enemy army. However, instead of circling around the enemy's formation in order to reach the rear, Ignis had every intention of ramming into the swordsmen this time.

The goal was to bring the fight to the enemy. By pushing the frontline toward the rear and then getting rid of the swordsmen, Ignis will leave the enemy bowmen at the mercy of her army while she pursues her prey.

However, her movements were a bit too telegraphed. Her opponent saw through them in an instant.

[This is the same setup as last time.] Jin figured. [She's planning to push and clear the frontline, then go for the kill from that position. It's exactly what she did against our Jungler.]

It was an efficient setup. It eliminated the beefy enemies first while simultaneously pushing her own army forward, like an organized invasion.

With the swordsmen gone, only Jin's bowmen will remain. And, even though they had higher DPS than the swordsmen, the bowmen were far squishier and will shortly die at the hand of Ignis's minions.

Meanwhile, Ignis will have more than enough opportunity to aggress on Jin with everything she had. A solid plan, but a predictable one at this point.

[Is she really going for the same exact setup?] Jin wondered. [It's not wise to use the same trick twice in a row. Though, she does strike me as the type who'll abuse the same strategy over and over as long as it works.]

In the match footage Jin researched, Ignis had no problem going for the same lines of play over and over like a broken record. If the enemy couldn't adapt, then Ignis had no reason to change her approach either.

And so, she often spammed the same tactic until it stopped working. It was a straightforward, but effective, way of submitting the opposition.

[But, I already know a couple of ways to deal with this setup.]

After seeing it once already, Jin's brain automatically came up with multiple solutions to that scenario. Therefore, if Ignis was indeed going for the same exact setup, then Jin will counter it, simple as that.

"LET'S FIGHT!" the Warrior roared. It was the activation of War Cry. Ignis was about to make her move.

[Looks like you're really doing this again.] Jin concluded. [You underestimate me.]

Jin dashed toward his frontline. He already simulated this line of play in his head, so he saw a few steps ahead. Therefore, he'll win this important exchange, no matter what!