After more than a decade, a veteran champion finally makes a debut in the LCK that surprises everyone

In recent years, as the LCK has begun its quest to rejuvenate teams with talented, bold players, it has also become a “cradle” for many new metas to emerge. There are playstyles that have been quite popular but not yet explored, and there are also strategies that seemed to be only for ranking but are now used even in the professional arena. Players like Keria and BeryL possess the confidence and skill to boldly implement these playstyles.

Recently, in a match against a lower-tier opponent, FearX, the Kwangdong Freecs players boldly tried some experimental compositions. Specifically, the team dubbed the “dark horse of LCK Spring 2024” had Top Laner DuDu use the champion Garen to face off against K’Sante from FearX. Unfortunately for KDF players, they lost this game as Garen did not seem to fit the playstyle and contributed very little throughout the match.

Nevertheless, with KDF using it, the champion that debuted back in… 2010 finally made its appearance in the LCK tournament. Notably, in a region with one of the strongest League of Legends scenes in the world, Garen is seen as a champion that “no one wants to use.” Its overly passive playstyle, combined with negligible damage, makes it hard for tank champions to compete with meta champions (K’Sante, Gnar, or Gragas, Aatrox), and especially Garen lacks strong turret-pushing capabilities. All these factors make no team eager to play Garen regardless of how the playstyle changes.

However, from the match between KDF and FearX, it has been realized that not every champion created by Riot is suitable for the professional playstyle of League of Legends. While some names will appear and disappear with each meta, there are champions that, unless played by a top-tier player against a significantly weaker opponent, should probably not be tested, especially in professional matches that hold great significance.