Monash to Play for First Ever Unigames League of Legends Gold
James Wong
The rapidly growing field of eSports will make its
Australian University Games debut in 2016 when Monash University play Queensland
University of Technology in the final of the Oceania University League of
Legends Championship.
Monash won through to the Grand Final by beating the
University of Western Australia in a playoff, after making their way through a
field of university teams from Australia and New Zealand.
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| The Monash University 2016 LOL team, from L-R: Tim Jie, Eric Lee, Evan Mascarenhas, William Huang, Jordan Sturgess & Morgan Khuu |
Monash Team Manager Eric Lee said the team are excited about the chance to be the first AUG League of Legends champions.
“We’re extremely excited for the Grand Final of AUG. We’re working
really hard and practicing as much as possible before the final stage so we can
bring this trophy home.”
League of Legends and other eSports are on the rise. Major
tournaments draw millions of viewers worldwide, and prize money for the best
players can be in the millions of dollars.
League of Legends is a ‘multiplayer online battle arena’ or ‘MOBA’
game, where two teams of five compete to be the first to destroy the other
team’s base, known as a Nexus.
The players control characters called champions that each
have unique abilities. The champions start out the game weak and get stronger
as the players defeat enemies or complete objectives.
The game takes place on a map with top, middle and bottom
lanes that players travel through. There are also ‘jungle’ areas where players
can find the enemies they need to defeat in order to gain the gold and
experience necessary to make their champions stronger.
Winning requires the players to work as a team and play to
the strengths of their champions; and it can take players hundreds of hours to master
the strategies and skills needed to succeed.
Lee said that while in other sports, physical skills and
technique are key, in League of Legends, the best players need to master strategy
and have an in-depth knowledge of the game.
“In League of Legends we practise a lot of strategy, we
study a lot, we watch other teams and players to improve.
“There are over 100 different champions you can play and
every player needs to study up on each champion to know their strengths,
weaknesses and capabilities. We spend a lot of time practising, learning and
studying."
“The really good players play thousands of hours more than
the average player, but it's not just that. To actually be a really good player
you have to constantly study and look for areas to improve and try to fix your
weaknesses.”
The current line-up of the Monash team has been playing
together for four months and Lee said the team dynamic will be key to their
chances at AUG.
“It’s rare for a League of Legends team to come together and
have such a great natural team dynamic.
“Every player in our team is a vital piece in the puzzle and
through competing in AUG we have only gotten stronger.
“These are some of the best players in Oceania and some of
the most hard working and dedicated people I have met, and I only expect them
to get better.”
Monash will face QUT on Thursday night at 6pm in Perth. Get
down and support the team as they try to bring home the gold for Monash!
To watch the event live in person, head down to the Northbridge Piazza in Perth from 6:00pm. Entry is free.
To watch the event online, watch it streamed live on https://www.twitch.tv/uniloloce from 8:00pm AEST (6:00pm Perth time).
