With so many unique characters in League of Legends, it is normal for some of them to be forgotten. This is the case of Harbinger, which is not very attractive for players in ranked matches, playing mode in which it is selected in only 1% of cases. However, if we want to talk about its great failure as a champion, its low historical presence in the competitive scenario is even more striking. Pro players are far from choosing Hammer, which only appeared in 70 matches in elite games-with those that took place in worlds with a minimum percentage within that number, but still changed the history of Worlds.
The legendary Harding of G2
In 2018, the famous G2 eSports was not exactly in its most powerful formation in history. After not being able to beat LEC's 1st Split and had to be content with the 6th in the 2nd, which still took her to the playoffs. After beating Splice and Schalke 04, the team managed to qualify for the World Cup, but the community wasn't expecting much from the team. But the players were candidates for early elimination to semifinalists.
Much of the good and bad that happened to G2 that year was because of Japan and Wadi. They were not the best companions that Under, Janos and Perez had throughout their careers, and although they were great players, their future explicit that they were not at the same level of demand as the organization.
However, after the disappointing G2 season and its miraculous entry into the World Cup, something that made these two players in figures worthy of worship among the organization's fans. All because of a Harbinger.
Japan chose the champion in the position of shooter, becoming the first player in history to select Harbinger in the final phase of a World Cup. He had already used the character in LEC playoffs, but playing against Splice was not the same as playing in front of the Freecs, which was the second-best Korean team of the competition. It is worth remembering that in 2018, South Korea had won the last five consecutive editions of Worlds and was the most feared region on the planet.
Surprisingly, the G2 won the match in which Hammer and Japan merged into 1. The shooter managed to cause 33% of his team's damage, a performance that, added gradually preceding, resulted in the champion's ban on 87% of the games played by the team in Worlds. In addition, it was only available on another single occasion against Flash Worlds, when Hernán repeated his optimal performance with the iconic Wordle. Again, without dying throughout the match, he was responsible for 36% of the team's damage.
When we say Hammer changed the history of the Worlds, it is not just because it was fundamental for the G2 to reach the championship playoffs, being protagonist in two of the four wins the team needed to get there. The numerous banks the champion received allowed the team to consistently win the champions' selection phases and put Under ahead in almost every game. There was simply no way for opponents to ban Harbinger without also delivering the best champions of the goal to Japan.
One of the most obvious examples came in the quarterfinals when G2 faced the RNG. In this dear series for the community, Royal Bantu Harbinger in all five maps, but G2 always gave a way to get a key champion. This situation, coupled with the selection of very safe champions on the lower route, was the perfect recipe to disable Uzi, which was considered one of the best shooters in the world.
That season, when RNG was a favorite for winning MSI of the year, the Chinese team kept their World Cup curse. In the end, G2 was eliminated by Invictus Gaming, but left its mark in the competition. After the championship, Hernán left the organization, and no other player was able to succeed with Hammer in the tournament, which reappeared in 2019 with a victory and three losses.
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