AG has kicked off their title defense "trilogy," sweeping Wolves 4-0 in the winners' bracket first round to advance to the semifinals!

In the playoff opener, the losers' bracket match between JDG and DRG provided an exceptionally exciting and fierce battle for viewers across the internet! Yet, it’s impossible for every game to be as thrilling as that one. Take the second match, for example: the winners' bracket first round between AG Super Play and Wolves likely won’t turn into a top-tier contest because AG won’t allow Wolves that opportunity!

Although AG Super Play experienced some inconsistency in the second round this season, their overall regular season performance still places them as the top contender for the championship. Since returning from Saudi Arabia in the third round, they have won 4 out of 5 matches, only losing 2-3 to WB. All four victories were clean 3-0 sweeps, leading the S group by a significant margin in net score.

Despite head coach Zwy receiving criticism for heavy BP burden during the regular season, AG Super Play’s team composition truly withstands such a strategy, with every position capable of stepping up and taking control of the game. Now entering the playoffs against their old rival Wolves, AG Super Play is expected to unleash full firepower tonight.

Wolves showed signs of a strong start but a gradual decline this season. They topped their group in the first round and led the S group in the second round, making many believe Wolves were returning to the league’s summit. During this period, Xiaopang’s MVP count surged, finishing the second round as the clear leader. However, approaching the playoffs in the third round, Wolves only managed a 2-3 record, placing fourth in the S group.

Losing 2-3 to WB, getting swept 0-3 by AG, and dropping 1-3 to LGD for their first S group win — each of these matches was tough to watch. Tonight, facing AG Super Play who have already beaten them 9-0 this year, let’s see if Wolves can pull off a surprise.

Xiaopang earned a total of 18 MVPs this season, topping the MVP leaderboard by a wide margin, ranking second in jungle KDA, and leading in average kills, assists, gold per minute, and damage share among junglers. As Wolves’ tactical core this season, Xiaopang’s stats justify the team’s trust in him. Although the team only placed fourth in the third round, his performance still made him a deserving regular season MVP.

Zhongyi’s brief slump during the second round of the regular season lowered his personal stats, but in the third round’s rematch against Wolves, he bounced back with all-around stats, even outplaying Xiaopang head-to-head. He secured 12 MVPs this season, placing second on the MVP leaderboard, and helped the team achieve a strong net score in the S group, though he couldn’t overturn the MVP decision in the end.

However, the regular season is behind us now; the playoffs are where true skill shows. Let’s see which of Xiaopang or Zhongyi can lead their team further in the postseason.

The 8.14 update buffed Yuan Ge, focusing on fragment collection. Now, collected hero fragments can be used for any hero. For example, if I’m laning against a top lane hero, the fragments I gather from fighting them can be converted to other heroes. This lowers the skill threshold and makes collecting fragments easier, greatly enhancing playability. The collection cap increased from 100 to 150, allowing one transformation at 50 fragments and up to three consecutive transformations at 150, even into the same hero multiple times.

Builds featuring Shadow Battle Axe and Mingdao greatly boost Yuan Ge’s HP, while Broken Army and Infinity Edge increase damage. In late game, try to transform into the enemy’s highest damage dealer. This build benefits from an 80%-90% damage amplification on transformations. Simply put, the higher Yuan Ge’s attack power, the stronger the transformed hero’s damage; the more HP Yuan Ge has, the tankier the transformed hero becomes. For those new to playing Yuan Ge, remember the combo 1433223 — mastering this sequence means you’ve got the basics down.