This past weekend, we stepped into a new era of the LEC. EU has become EMEA, complete with an all-new format and a few fresh faces – including our new competitor Team Heretics, and the newly-rebranded KOI. But at our heart we’re still the same LEC that we’ve always been, and what would the LEC be if we didn’t take a second to look back at our legacy?
Throughout our ten years of compelling competitive play, from the early days of the EU LCS to the current pillar of EMEA esports that is the LEC, we’ve seen some incredible players step up to the plate to write their names in the League of Legends history books. Records have been made, and broken, time and time again as metas develop and players come and go.
Just one weekend in, our players have already laid some strong claims to a spot in those history books. While Team Vitality and G2 Esports set themselves apart, refusing to drop even a single game, we’ve got a messy brawl in the middle of the standings as teams look to assign a pecking order after a long and turbulent offseason.
We saw rookies rise (shoutout to G2 Esports’ Yike, who currently has the highest total kills of any player in the league over their first three days playing on the LEC stage). And we saw veterans stumble, as new synergies and old rivalries led to some shaky showings from former superstars.
With the opening weekend of our LEC Winter Split now behind us, we wanted to take a look back into the misty depths of time at some of the LEC’s longest-standing records. It’ll take a whole lot of skill (and maybe just a little bit of luck), but there’s no better way for our teams to cement themselves as the region’s best by breaking one of our long-standing records.
**LEC Speedrunners - fastest game time **
Winning your games is one thing – winning them so fast the enemy team barely has time to collect their final Biscuit Delivery is another.
We’ve had more than our fair share of dominant victories in the LEC. While we all love a closely-fought back-and-forth nail biter of a game, there’s also nothing better than watching your team take a clean, calculated win that doesn’t even feel like they’ve broken a sweat.
The current record for fastest win in LEC history goes to G2 Esports, who took down Origen in a whiplash-inducing 18 minutes and 31 seconds in Spring 2019. Game speed is largely, although not entirely, decided by the current meta – so the possibility of breaking this record is a little out of our teams’ hands for Winter 2023.
But even if we do see some speedy victories this split, our teams will still have their work cut out to knock G2 Esports off their pedestal.
**One we’d rather forget - highest deaths in a single game **
This is a record most players would honestly rather not write their name next to. The Vikings used to say that dying in battle was the ultimate honour – but in LoL Esports, the same rule does not necessarily apply.
The record for most deaths in a game is actually one of the LEC’s longest-standing records. It was set by Millennium’s Kottenx, all the way back in 2014. Now there are two important caveats to this particular record: yes, this was technically a troll game (Millennium were locked out of playoff contention) and yes, Kottenx was playing Leona jungle. The record for a non-troll game goes to Roccat’s Phaxi with 13 deaths on Jarvan IV in Summer 2017 – so 14 would be the record-breaking number to avoid.
After a weekend of LEC games, Hylissang currently leads the pack in highest deaths in a single game, with seven deaths in MAD Lions' matchup versus Team Vitality. He’s a long way off the record, but it’s a step in the right (or wrong) direction.
**On the warpath - Most Kills**
Now this is a record you really want to beat. The record for most kills in a single domestic game currently sits at 18, and we’ll give you no prizes for guessing who holds it.
Of course, it’s none other than eight-year veteran turned LEC newcomer Rekkles. He set the record for most kills in an LEC game back in 2014 Summer, taking down Copenhagen Wolves in 31 minutes with a KDA of 18/0/3. And now, after a brief stint in the LFL, he’s back to defend the eight-year-long record he set in his first year of competing in the LEC.
So no pressure, rookie class of ‘23, but smashing that record in your opening split will really make you a name to remember. And if you can do it in a game versus the newly-returned record holder himself? Even our best LEC script writers couldn’t write a better story.
But the record is open to all – and currently leading the pack for kills in a single game is veteran mid laner turned AD Carry turned mid laner again, Team Vitality’s Perkz. He racked up 11 kills on Azir in Vitality’s victory versus MAD Lions. While impressive, that’s still seven off the current record (all we’re saying is that real teammates would have pulled off the fountain dive to get their mid laner the record).
**Dragonslayers**
League’s a team game. Without those all-important co-ordinated map rotations, your game’s over before it’s even begun. With many of our LEC teams putting forward altered or even brand-new rosters for Winter 2023, breaking this next record will be the true test of how well those offseason bootcamps have paid off.
That’s right, it’s objective control time. No matter how good your jungler is, objective control is about coordination and communication – and as anyone who’s ever played solo queue will know, getting your bot lane to stop arguing long enough to help take dragon is the truest test of that coordination.
The record for most dragons taken in a single split currently belongs to G2 Esports – who killed 88 of the fearsome beasts in the regular season of Summer 2016. Dragons have gone through some fairly major changes since that record was set, but it is still entirely beatable.
Will G2’s new roster be able to break the precedent set by their predecessors?
**EMEA farming simulator **
We know, we know. Something something KDA is the most important stat, something something Chovy, something something 1v9 hard carry. Here at the LEC, we strive to be the most entertaining sports league broadcast in the world, and that extends to our gameplay. We love a flashy assassination kill or a team-wide one shot just as much as the next viewer.
But we think the consistent, dependable players deserve love too. And you don’t get much more consistent and dependable than racking up 946 CS in a single game – the record held by former G2 Esports AD Carry Zven.
He set that record in a 68-minute brawl against Origen in Summer 2016. Luckily, our games have gotten a little bit faster since then (there’s only so much MediVedi that can fill over an hour of game time), so this might be the most difficult record on this list for our players to beat.
Currently, KOI’s Comp leads the league in average CS per minute. But we’re not talking averages here – we’re not about to give our players an easy record to beat, and 946 is far from easy. There’s a good chance this record won’t be broken at all, with our games currently averaging out at 32 minutes and 52 seconds, but it’s always good to have something to work towards (besides, you know, winning the Winter Split).
Our LEC Winter Split has already gotten off to an explosive start – and trust us, it’s only going to get better from here. Keep your eyes peeled for a record-breaking 2023, which will continue on January 28 as we head into our second week of competition.
