Each week, Upcomer highlights one player in the League of Legends European Championship for their outstanding performance in the weekend prior and crowns them Player of the Week. Flexing his champion pool to secure a first place finish for Rogue, the LEC player of the spring split Week 8 is support Adrian “Trymbi” Trybus.
Fighting uphill against SK Gaming
Rogue entered the LEC’s final week of the spring split at the top of the standings. Their 9-0 start to the year had given them a big buffer and, although the team had three losses in the second half, their competition had not caught up just yet. However, Fnatic and Misfits Gaming were getting uncomfortably close. In the LEC’s super weekend, with three matches for each team, it was imperative for Rogue to stay level-headed.
SK Gaming, however, sought to throw a spanner in the works. Rogue had opted for their traditional scaling composition, with Trymbi on Rakan; an undefeated pick for him in the split. SK answered with a composition that needed to find an advantage early, and they managed to do just that, punishing a greedy play from Emil “Larssen” Larsson in the mid lane.
The opportunity to take over the game was grabbed with both hands by SK as they aggressively pushed in Rogue. However, Rogue didn’t just roll over and die. They found SK mid laner Daniel “Sertuss” Gamani, who Trymbi knocked up to let his teammates drop Sertuss into the grave. Nine minutes later, Trymbi caught Erik “Treatz” Wessén off guard, and Rogue pulled off another clutch pick to keep their heads afloat.
It was an admirable effort, but it wasn’t enough. SK Gaming were too coordinated. Whenever Rogue tried to crank open the window to climb back into the game, SK’s players collapsed on them. With the carries behind, there was little that Trymbi could do to salvage the situation. Whenever he dove in, SK’s players survived and turned the fight around. Rogue dropped the ball, but Trymbi’s play wasn’t at the heart of it: he was simply limited by his role.
Recovering against Team BDS
Fnatic and Misfits did not slip up on the first day and caught up with Rogue. Fnatic now had an equal amount of wins and Misfits were just one win away. Based on the tiebreakers, Fnatic and Misfits would both finish ahead of Rogue in the standings, in case they ended on a similar score. All Rogue could do was win their final two games and pray that their opponents would trip.
On Saturday, BDS took to the arena against Rogue. There was nothing on the line for BDS anymore aside from pride; they had been out of playoffs contention since Week 7. But Rogue couldn’t underestimate them. After all, a team with nothing to lose could surprise you with an endless amount of curveballs.
Trymbi flexed his champion pool size against BDS, opting for his second Lux of the split — and only the third one in the LEC’s spring altogether — alongside the Caitlyn from Markos “Comp” Stamkopoulos. The objective was clear for Trymbi. He needed to be a nuisance with Lux’s slows and stuns. BDS’s bot lane wasn’t given any wiggle room. When BDS lashed out, Trymbi zoned them away to level the playing field, got his team first blood and forced a Flash from Jakub “Cinkrof” Rokicki.
Trymbi kept setting Comp up, who snowballed his lead and dealt serious damage to BDS’ lineup. Rogue, playing by the same playbook they’d been following the entire split, meticulously pushed their advantages. They choked out BDS more and more each passing second.
But BDS kept fighting admirably and they snuck their way to taking down three dragons. They had found a way back into the game: the dragon soul. However, Rogue put their foot down. It’s hard to see the value Lux brings beyond her zoning abilities that can trap enemies, but Trymbi kept loyally pressing his shield button off cooldown in teamfights to ensure his team would survive the fight. Finding a good balance between being close enough to your enemies to zone them away and being far enough not to get caught out can be tough, but Trymbi did it with perfection.
Still, few things are more satisfying than a long distance snipe with Lux’s ult. To put the final nail in the coffin, Trymbi provided that as well.
A Galio clinic against G2 Esports
On the final day, Rogue had their fate in their hands once again. Misfits had defeated Fnatic on the penultimate day of the regular spring split, meaning Rogue were once again one win ahead of their competition at the start of the day. When Fnatic beat Excel, the gap closed once again. If Rogue still wanted to finish first, they had to beat G2 in the very last game of the day.
G2, to the surprise of many, handed Rogue Zeri in the draft phase. The latest bot laner to join Summoner’s Rift had mostly been banned due to her strength, but G2 tried to counter her with their composition. Recognizing that G2 wanted to pick off Rogue’s players one by one with their comp, Trymbi once again displayed his comfort on many champions as he chose Galio to protect his allies.
Trymbi put on a masterclass with Galio. He was in the face of G2. At the very start of the game, it was a clever ambush by Trymbi that put G2 jungler Marcin “Jankos” Jankowski behind. It was a death that would trickle through in the game.
With clever dashes followed by devastating taunts, Trymbi continued to punish G2’s overzealousness. When the bot lane state allowed it, he immediately roamed to flash on G2’s players and send them back to the fountain.
No play in the game was more emblematic of Trymbi’s performance than one that happened twelve minutes into the game. Everything seemed calm, with both teams diligently fulfilling their duties across the map. But Trymbi sensed something was up in the mid lane. Blindly, he dashed into a bush, found two G2 members and helped his team yet another step up the ladder.
But it wasn’t all roses. When G2 forced plays, in order to find a way back into the game, Rogue didn’t always respond correctly. But the early lead Rogue acquired through Trymbi’s aggressive play was insurmountable. Confidently, Rogue followed their game plan and closed out the split with a victory.
The best-of-one kings reign once again
With the win, Rogue locked first place in the LEC spring split. This allowed them to choose between G2 Esports and Misfits Gaming in the first round of the playoffs. They chose Misfits. How that choice will play out is something we’ll have to wait for until March 25. However, what is certain is that Rogue would not have been in that position had it not been for outstanding play from Trymbi in a meta where support players heavily influence the game.
In the spring split, a lot of attention has gone to the champion pool of G2 support player Raphaël “Targamas” Crabbé. While Trymbi admittedly has not played as many different champions as Targamas, something important must be mentioned: Trymbi is far more effective with the champions he locks in. He thinks out of the box but within the parameters of what is actually feasible in the meta.
Rogue have dominated the best-of-one stage in the LEC for a long time now. Once again, they sit on that throne. In the past, the spotlight was on players such as Steven “Hans sama” Liv and Kacper “Inspired” Słoma. But Trymbi is stepping into the spotlight as one of the best supports in the LEC. He is consistent, clutch when he needs to be, and he boasts a large champion pool that helps his team counter whatever their opponents throw at them.
Honorable mentions
Trymbi wasn’t the only player who stood out, though. How could he be, in a weekend with fifteen games across ten teams. There are three other players, though, who deserve a special mention.
Fnatic’s Upset
Elias “Upset” Lipp has had a phenomenal split. If it weren’t for his lane partner Zdravets “Hylissang” Iliev Galabov having a career-high split as well, Upset would probably be in the conversation for MVP of the split.
This synergy, and Upset’s contribution to it, was on display in the final weekend too. Against BDS, Misfits and Excel Esports, Upset played near flawless League of Legends. Were it not for the fact that Fnatic threw their game against Misfits, and by that missed out on finishing first, Upset would have been the player of the week this week.
MAD Lions’ Reeker and Elyoya
It has been a rough split for MAD Lions. The reigning champions struggled after losing main shotcaller Marek “Humanoid” Brázda and did not find their footing with the two rookies they picked up in the offseason. Although they weren’t out of playoffs contention yet, they entered the final weekend with a 5-10 score. Even with a 3-0 weekend, they’d depend on other teams’ results to still make it to the best-of-five stage.
Still, it was impressive to see MAD Lions come together when all hope seemed lost. Mid laner Steven “Reeker” Chen had had a rough split, amplified by the void of Humanoid he had to fill, but played his heart out on three Twisted Fate games.
Jungler Javier “Elyoya” Prades had experienced struggles as well. In 2021, Elyoya was one of the best junglers in the LEC; impressive in his rookie year. But in 2022, he didn’t find the same confidence in MAD Lions. One game he’d play well; the next game he’d be invisible. But in the final weekend, Elyoya played three games that were reminiscent of his highs in 2021 when he won back-to-back championships with MAD Lions. Perhaps it’s the start of a return to glory when the summer split arrives.
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