'League of Legends' semifinals: What the last weekend before Regionals holds

And then there were four. North America and Europe are on to the semifinals of the League of Legends Championship Series, which means higher stakes. Not only are the remaining teams playing for a spot in their regional finals, but the race for points to make it into the World Championships is also hitting a fever pitch.

Who will make it through this stage of the gauntlet? Here are our predictions for the weekend’s semifinal matches.

Europe

G2 vs Unicorns of Love

Unicorns of Love turned in an impressive upset over Giants in their quarterfinal match, but they’d have to dig very deep to pull out another surprise win over G2. Not only have G2 been dominant through the entire summer split, but they’ve already secured their spot at the World Championship by points alone even before the EU playoffs conclude. That’s a steep mountain to climb for the scrappy Unicorns. G2 will probably take this match and move through to the EU finals.

Original image has been replaced. Credit: Mashable

H2K vs Splyce

This semifinals match could be much closer. All of H2K’s members roared through their quarterfinal, turning in a playoffs performance that fans always knew the team was capable of. Jungler Jankos in particular turned the dial up to 11, scoring all three first bloods are making big plays in the clean sweep of Fnatic.

Splyce was the surprise success story of the split. The roster’s team-fighting approach carried them to the No. 2 spot, but we haven’t seen them play yet on stage with this patch. Trashy’s supportive jungle style made him one of the players to watch, but everyone on Splyce had many moments of excellence during the season. But will they have the fire to beat out a newly surging H2K?

This match seems likely to go the distance of all five games. Who’ll get the three wins? And relatedly, which team would be the most likely to pose a threat to the dominant G2 in the finals? We’re giving the edge to Splyce.

North America

Immortals vs Cloud9

It wasn’t quite an undefeated season, but Immortals did still impress in the summer split. At their best, the squad demonstrated that they’re more than a one-trick pony, with serious skills up their teal and black sleeves. They had a bye for the quarterfinals, and will be playing their first playoffs match against Cloud9.

Despite their demonstrated skills, Immortals can be a tough squad to read. They favor a play style of barely-controlled chaos, and that can fall apart if the quintet doesn’t stay in sync. Everything fell apart during their spring playoffs run, but given the improvements the squad had over the course of the summer, things are looking positive for Immortals this time around.

Cloud9 is on the upswing following a quick dispatch of Team Envy in the quarterfinals. However, Immortals have come out victorious in all of their other on-stage encounters. This one doesn’t seem likely to be any different, but C9 will surely keep the match interesting.

Original image has been replaced. Credit: Mashable

Team SoloMid vs Counter Logic Gaming

Last split’s North American final is getting recreated in the semis, and it could be, in the words of the great Riv, a barn-burner. Team SoloMid has been unstoppable so far, and a loss after comfortably trouncing every one team in NA would be a shock. Not only are they performing as powerfully as ever, but most of the players also have experience in front of huge crowds and under huge pressure. By all accounts, this should be yet another win for the TSM column.

CLG won’t just roll over, though. The squad looked rock-solid against Team Liquid in the quarterfinals. Darshan rocked the top lane. Xmithie ganked like a champion. Huhi worked magic at mid with his Viktor and Syndra play. Stixxay continued to impress in his first LCS year. And of course, Aphromoo at support kept them all coordinated and motivated. They may not come out victorious this time around, but CLG’s teamwork should at least keep this showdown competitive.