OGN Champions Winter 2013-2014 returns with the last quarterfinal between Samsung Galaxy Ozone and CJ Entus Frost. With neither team wanting to get knocked down into NLB, it will be do or die for either team to make it past each other into the semifinals. Will we see Ozone prove their critics wrong and be the first team to ever knock CJ Frost down into NLB? Or will Frost rally themselves to take back their former glory by advancing to the semifinals and get some revenge for losing the last series they faced Ozone? The games begin on January 3, 2014 at 1:30 AM PST, 4:30 AM EST, 10:30 AM CET, and 6:30 PM KST!

Samsung Galaxy Club

Samsung Galaxy is a name that people all around the world know well with one of the most popular smartphones used all over the world. Originally, Samsung Galaxy Ozone was part of the MVP Club (Most Valuable Player). MVP had 3 teams: MVP Blue, Red, and White. Red was released due to the fact you are only allowed two teams from the same club in OGN Champions. MVP White was later renamed “MVP Ozone” and right before the Season 3 World Championship, the Samsung organization acquired both MVP Blue and MVP Ozone for the sum of around $500k(Rumored).

Samsung Galaxy Ozone

Going into OGN Champions Spring 2013, Ozone was considered one of the weaker teams. They barely managed to make it out of the group stages against Najin Black Sword, SK Telecom T1 K, and CJ Entus Blaze. Going to the bracket stages, the odds always seemed to stack against them and everyone seemed to favor the opposing team. There was even a controversy between CJ Entus Frost and KT Rolster Bullets purposely throwing their final group stage games against each other so that they would play against Ozone in the round of 8 instead of the defending champions, Najin Sword. Ozone surprised everyone by taking down KT B 3-1 in the round of 8 and then SKT1 K in the semifinals. In the end, Ozone faced the seemingly unstoppable CJ Blaze in the spring finals. Blaze was hot on a 13 win streak and was heavily favored to win the series. Even MonteCristo said that if Ozone manages to take 1 game from Blaze, it would be considered a good series. In the Spring Finals, Ozone shocked Korea with their 3-0 domination of Blaze and taking the OGN Spring Champions title. This is where Ozone became a well-respected team and one of the best teams in Korea.

From left to right: Imp (Marksman), DanDy (Jungler), Mata (Support), Homme (Sub), Dade (Mid), and Looper (Top).

Meet the Team

Looper (Jang Hyeong-seok 장형석)

Looper’s appearance on Ozone was a bit of a surprising at first. His first competitive showing was playing with Ozone in the Season 3 World Championships. It was unknown to why Looper was replacing Homme as the starter for Ozone, but using a new player for something as important as the World Champions was unheard of. However, Looper played well and gained some popularity on his Teleport Singed play. In Champions Winter, Looper has been mostly playing all of the standard meta champions in the top lane but sometimes he still falls back to his Singed. Overall, Looper pretty much is the same as Homme in that there isn’t that much of a difference in their game play or champion pool except for the Singed pick.

Player History

No prior experience in the competitive scene before S3 Worlds. Replaced Homme. Sadface.

DanDy (Choi In-kyu 최인규)

DanDy is one of the best junglers in the Korea and maybe even top 3 in the world. He really shines on highly mechanical champions like Lee Sin and Elise. What makes DanDy a bit different from other junglers is his style of jungling. He is not a gank focused jungler, but rather he focuses on counterganking. You can consider him an Anti-Jungler as his main focus is to prevent your jungler to make any successful ganks happen and snowball any lanes. This however does not mean that DanDy won’t be aggressive when he sees an opportunity. He is arguably one of the best Elise junglers in Korea for his incredible aggression and early game map control. DanDy also prioritizes heavily on movement speed. He often will rush Boots of Mobility on Lee Sin before even upgrading his Machete. On Elise, he prefers to run 4.5% Movement Speed from Quintessences. This shows that his priority is to just be everywhere around the map as much as he can for his team.

Player History

DanDy has a bit of experience in the competitive scene before even joining the MVP team when he was on an amatuer team named SuperStar. He has been in the competitive scene for roughly 2 years. DanDy performed a “Pentakick” on Lee Sin when he kicked an enemy champion into the other four members of the opposing team and knocking them all up at once for his team to clean up and win a teamfight.

Dade (Bae Eo-Jin 배어진)

Based on his performance in 2013, Dade is not a very consistent player. He was always known for his Karthus and Ryze play, but as the meta changed in early Season 3 he was able to show dominating performances on AD casters like Zed, Jayce, Ezreal, and Kha’Zix. Dade was able to dominate Blaze in the Champions Spring finals on Zed with his early roams and snowballing out of Blaze’s control. At the S3 World Championships, Dade had his worst showing with his limited champion pool. He did not pick up Ahri or Gragas while all of the other mid laners did. With Zed being permanently banned as well as Ryze getting nerfed, Dade did not have a viable champion pool. During the time between World Championship and Champions Winter, Dade was able to practice and finally updated his champion pool with strong picks like Gragas and Nidalee. So far, his performance in Champions Winter has been looking much better but still shaky at times.

Player History

Dade’s pro gamer career started when he joined CJ Entus on September 2012. In CJ Entus, he played alongside Space, Longpanda, kkinsh, and Insec. After OGN Champions Winter 2012-2013, CJ Entus split up and Dade joined MVP Ozone. Dade earned the most MVP points and highest KDA as a mid laner in the OGN Champions Spring 2013 season.

Imp (Gu Seung-bin 구승빈)

Before Ozone became a world class team, Imp was always referred to DoubleImp (Referencing DoubleLift) for his mechanics. Typically when the chips are down for Ozone, you can always count on Imp to carry the game on Vayne or Caitlyn. That being said, those are two of his favorite champions and the ones he has had the most success with. Imp can play Vayne against pretty much any match up confidently even against Caitlyn. Imp typically has a passive laning phase but is always able to capitalize on his opponents mistakes. Vayne was always known as a weak laner, but when Imp and Mata played Vayne and Thresh, it became one of the strongest lanes back in OGN Spring. During team fights, Imp’s positioning is one of the best in Korea and he is always able to dish out the most damage while dodging enemy abilities.

Player History

Imp was brought straight out of Solo Queue by MVP in May 2012 due to his impressive mechanics. He thinks that once a player has a girlfriend their performance will start to decline because their focus would be divided. Imp has a rivalry with WeiXiao, but in an interview Mata has said that his rivalry changes often. During their game against Team Dark, Imp achieved 711 Gold Per Minute (The troll CloudTemplar “tribute” game).

Mata (Cho Se-hyeong 조세형)

Mata gained his popularity from his exceptional plays on Thresh. He is often compared to MadLife and said by his fans that “If Madlife is God, then Mata is Buddha”. Mata is the perfect support for a great Marksman like Imp. Together, they have become one of the most feared duo lanes in the world. Mata has also showed great mechanics on champions like Zyra, Nami, Fiddlesticks. Mata has always been some what of a playmaker for Ozone by landing crucial crowd control to set up a perfect teamfight for Ozone. Sometimes, you’ll even see Mata roam mid to set up a gank for Dade.

Player History

Mata was often referred to as the Rookie of the Year by Montecristo due to his amazing performance in OGN Spring. Mata’s first appearance in the competitive scene was in OGN Club Masters and won his first Champions in the spring season.

Homme (Yoon Sung-young 윤성영)

Homme is the big brother of Ozone because he is one of the oldest pro gamers in the world. At the age of 29, he is still able to play top lane at a very high level (His birthday is on New Years). Homme typically plays tanky frontline champions like Renekton and Shyvana. At the start of the spring season, Homme was in a really poor shape performance-wise and he even considered retiring in midst of all of the heavy criticism. When Ozone made it into the bracket stages, he transformed into a completely different player and he was able to stand toe to toe against some of the best top laners in Korea like Flame. During Champions Summer, he was the only player to consistently pick Yorick and he also played Nasus. Homme is not a carry for Ozone by any means, but he sure knows how to do his job and provide the peel and utility that Imp needs. Between Homme and Imp, there is a 10 year age difference, but they are close like real brothers. According to their teammates, these two get the most fangirls.

Play History

I miss Homme. Watch this video and cry with me.

Coach

Overview

Ozone has been known as the team that prepared the most for their matches through extended research of their opponents and disciplined practice. They are an all around a solid team with very few weaknesses. Their biggest weakness is that they get overconfident at times and their play definitely reflects that. Dade is not very consistent, but if DanDy can get him going, he will be able to snowball and carry Ozone. DanDy is the biggest playmaker for Ozone after all so being on his A game will make or break the game. When all the chips are down, Ozone can always count on their duo lane. Imp has singlehandedly carried games before on Vayne and Caitlyn, so it’s not out of the question. Even with all the other teams focusing on picks like Lucian and Sivir, Imp and Mata has stayed true to their roots and played their signature Vayne and Thresh duo lane.

Notable Achievements

• First Place – OLYMPUS Champions Spring 2013

• First Place – AMD-INVEN GamExperience

• FIrst Place – OGN Club Masters (with the whole MVP roster)

• Third place – HOT6iX Champions Summer 2013

CJ Entus Club

CJ Entus is a Korean pro gaming team under KeSPA and sponsored by CJ Group. Under CJ Group is their entertainment and music company named CJ E&M and they produce for quite a few popular K-pop stars in Korea. CJ E&M also composed the awesome music that we hear at the beginning of every OGN broadcast as well as the champion select music. The CJ Entus Club consists of two teams, CJ Entus Blaze and CJ Entus Frost. Prior to acquiring Frost and Blaze, CJ Entus had a team in the winter season with Longpanda, Insec, Space, kkinsh, and Dade. For over a year, Frost and Blaze have been the most dominant force in OGN Champions. Even when they had some hiccups along the way, both teams have consistently made it out of groups.

CJ Entus Frost

After the departure of Woong, Frost has had several issues with their roster. Woong’s first replacement was Hermes, but unfortunately his performance was not up to par and displeased many Frost fans. After moving Hermes over to Blaze, Space was the next replacement brought from the old CJ Entus team. Overall, Space has been really successful with MadLife and they are considered a respectable duo lane in the Korean scene. Frost’s next roster problem was in the mid lane. RapidStar was never considered a great mid laner, but in season 3 his performance was just not up to par. GankedByMom was the replacement of choice for Frost in Champions Summer and he blew people away with his amazing Orianna play. Unfortunately, that Orianna was all he could play at a high level and after being consistently banned out, he had trouble with other champions. In Champions Winter, Frost brought back none other than the infamous MakNooN. MakNooN made the switch from top to mid for Frost, but his performance has been a bit disappointing. Unfortunately, Frost is looking weaker than ever even with their three mid laners. CloudTemplar has also retired to become a caster for OGN and Helios from Blaze moved over to replace him. CJ Entus Frost has made it into the Semifinals for every tournament that they have entered except for the WCG Qualifiers.

From left to right: Shy (Top), RapidStar (Sub), MadLife (Support), GankedByMom (Sub), Helios (Jungler), MakNoon (Mid), and Space (Marksman).

Meet the Team

Shy (Park Sang-myeon 박상면)

Shy is considered one of the best top laners in the world. When he went to the Season 2 World Championship, he has only been playing League for 6 months. Ever since his performance at worlds, he has been consistently performing at his best and receives respect from all of the other top laners in Korea as well as other top laners internationally. Shy has been the backbone of Frost for a very long time now and he can always be relied on to do his job and even carry the game. Shy and Flame standardized several picks in the past including Ryze top and Jayce top.

Player History

Woong was the original top laner for Frost, but he was switched to the Marksman role after Locodoco left. Shy was picked to replace Woong in the top lane. Shy is considered one of best players on Jax, Shen, Ryze, and Jayce.

Helios (Shin Dong-jin 신동진)

Helios was moved to Frost’s roster after CloudTemplar retired to become an OGN caster. Helios had somewhat of the same play style as CloudTemplar, but with a little bit more aggressive twist. Helios was a good addition to Frost in that he is able to help Frost’s lanes a bit better in the early game. Helios has been mostly playing Lee Sin, Elise, Nunu in the past few seasons. While Helios has not been the most flashy Lee Sin player, he has been able to show strong ganks and make his presence known in the early game. Like CloudTemplar, Helios was always the jungler that made better decisions but not mechanically as strong as some of the other junglers in Korea.

Player History

Helios is one of the original members of Blaze even before Azubu and CJ Entus sponsorships. His name comes from the God of the Sun. It was in an interview with him that he said Lustboy and Captain Jack shared a bed together. Helios was introduced to League of Legends by his brother.

MakNooN (Yoon Ha-woon 윤하운)

MakNoob has been one of the most famous and well liked Korean player in the western world after his appearance at the Season 2 World Championship. MakNooN used to be one of the most feared top laners in the world due to his aggressive style and urge to dive. Unfortunately, MakNoon is not the same anymore with his recent performances in the mid lane being fairly lackluster. It seems that he has yet to adapt to the mid lane and looks very uncomfortable during the laning phase which is not very surprising as he has only recently changed from top to mid. Despite that, his game sense and decision making skills still look solid. As long as MakNoon can continue to improve his laning and get more comfortable in the role that he is currently playing, we might see him become a dominant force and fulfill Frost’s desperate need of a solid mid laner.

Player History

Najin Black Sword was formed because MakNooN’s style did not fit well with the old Najin e-mFire team. Sword was built around MakNooN to support his over aggressiveness and dive urges. MakNooN has been one of the most adorable players in Korea with his loud personality and antics.

Space (Seon Ho-san 선호산)

At first, he was the sub for CJ Entus Frost, but after seeing Hermes’ poor performance with Frost he was moved up as the starting Marksman for Frost. Space was never considered a top Marksman in Korea, but he has always consistently played solidly for the team. He doesn’t typically make flashy plays, but he has very good positioning and lane mechanics. His teamfighting skills are excellent which fits perfectly to Frost’s playstyle of going for mid/late game teamfights. In the 7 games, Frost has played during Champions Winter, Space has played 5 different Marksmen (Ezreal, Twitch, Vayne, Lucian, Sivir).

Player History

He played on the original CJ Entus team with Longpanda, kkinsh, Insec, and Dade but stayed around the CJ Entus Club as subs with kkinsh even after the original roster disbanded. His favorite champions are Ashe and Vayne.

MadLife (Hong Min-gi 홍민기)

Originally known for his Blitzbrank and Alistar plays, MadLife has earned the name as God amongst the League of Legends community. His  mechanics and accuracy with skill shots makes him incredibly deadly on champions like Thresh and Blitzcrank. What makes MadLife truly one of the best supports in the world is his ability to mentally keep count of all of his opponent’s summoner spell cooldowns as well as abilities. This allows Frost to get a kill on their opponent mere seconds before their Flash or other escape spells become available. MadLife is also the last remaining original member of Frost.

Player History

Before MiG was picked up by the Azubu organization, fans would say that MiG stood for MadLife is God. He only played the support role because no one else wanted to when Frost was first formed. Woong and Rapidstar has said that MadLife is a better Marksman/Mid Laner than them.

GankedByMom (Lee Chang-seok 이창석)

GankedByMom was the first mid Frost picked up to sub in for RapidStar in the mid lane. He is known in Solo queue for his phenomenal Orianna play and he definitely showed why he was considered as one of the best Orianna players in the world. However, the problem with GBM is his champion pool with Orianna seemingly being to be the only champion that he can play at a high level. Some of his other picks being Zed and Jayce which has not been very effective. During the games he played in Champions Winter, he was able to play Orianna repeatedly but yet the results were disappointing. Even though he does have that pocket AP Kog’maw, it has yet to have been seen in a competitive match.

Player History

He always wears his bowtie because he is a Dr. Who fan. His name came from the fact that his mother would always catch him playing League in the middle of the night.

RapidStar has not played a game in Champions Winter but it might be that surprising to see him played against Ozone. RapidStar can serve as the surprise factor for Frost.

Overview

Frost has been one of the most dominating teams in Korea, but that has come to a stop. Frost is not the same team that they used to be and they have to been looking shaky in the group stages. It’s also a mystery in regards to which of the three mid laners Frost will be using for their match against Ozone. Frost has always been the team to get behind in the early game but repeatedly outplay the enemy team in teamfights in the mid game and gain a lead from it. It’s questionable how well Frost will perform but you can never count Frost out with their individual skill and experience.

Notable Achievements

• Second Place IEM Season VII – Singapore

• Second Place IEM Season VII – World Championships

• Second Place OLYMPUS Champions Spring 2012-2013

• Third Place Season 3 Korea Regional Finals

• 4th HOT6iX Champions Summer 2013

• 4th OLYMPUS Champions Spring 2013

Predictions

Judging the currently shape of both teams, I would have to say that Ozone definitely has an edge. Even though Ozone has not been looking their best, Frost has been looking worse. I would give it a 3-1 to Ozone.

Special thanks to:

DavidWidrick for art@ Davidwidrick.com

Heliosan for editing

Here is a Kpop song produced by CJ E&M!