As reported, T1 recently suffered a defeat against Hanwha Life Esports in the second round of the LCK Spring 2024 playoffs. T1’s 0-3 loss was not only unimaginable for many but also highlighted that Faker and his teammates are facing numerous issues. One of these, as Faker shared after the defeat, is that T1 was not well prepared as they continuously faced DDoS attacks. The inability to scrim, train, or rank clearly had a significant impact on T1’s preparation for the playoffs, leading to a frustrating mindset as every game was disrupted by DDoS, causing the players’ performance to fall short of their expectations.
In this context, many opinions have “suggested” that T1 change accounts or move to different locations to alter the situation. However, according to recent comments from Rekkles – the former ADC of LEC and currently part of T1 Challengers, the situation is much more serious than many think. Specifically, Rekkles revealed details about the incident on Caedrel’s stream while he returned home to rest after a stressful season with T1 CL.
According to Rekkles, he stated: “As soon as we enter the game, we get DDoSed. Sometimes it lasts for an hour right when the game just starts. Both the VALORANT team and the main T1 (LoL) team cannot practice. Actually, I was lucky to have finished the season and got to rest right when the issue started becoming more serious. […] We tried many ways. Riot itself provided us with many different accounts, but it kept happening repeatedly, so we gradually lost motivation. Up to now, since December, I’ve been given 6 accounts and the problem is still unresolved.”
It can be said that, according to Rekkles’ revelations, T1 Challengers players have been provided with 5 to 6 accounts or more for practice. If so, considering the incident began (identified by T1 as from December 2023), it is possible that the main team players were given even more accounts. These accounts have low rank levels, and as they reach higher ranks, they get DDoSed, so they contribute almost nothing to solving the problem.
Notably, as Rekkles revealed, the T1 building has been DDoSed, meaning that other Esports teams under T1 have also encountered issues. This, as seen with T1, will clearly pull the team’s performance down. In fact, considering the long-term consequences, it could be viewed as “destroying” an entire powerful Esports organization.
Currently, on April 7, T1 will face DK, and this is the last chance for both teams to advance in the LCK Spring 2024 playoffs. It remains unclear whether T1 players have regained their form and are adequately prepared. However, they will certainly need to give their all to save their Spring season and hold onto their chances of participating in MSI 2024.