The closer we get to playoffs, the more clear the standings become. Rogue has found itself rising above the average, but pushing just enough to guarantee their spot. Top Laner Finn "Finn"Wiestål talks about what Rogue has been missing, growing as a player and learning to play with a purpose.

Finn, you are technically starting your second year in the LEC. What has changed in you since your first appearance?

I came in Summer last year, kind of. For Spring, I played six games, and then I left, to return only at the end of Summer.

Remind me, why did you leave?

Well, we couldn’t make it to playoffs, in a way, and I kind of wanted to play with the Academy team.

"I have learned how to play with a purpose"

Now, regarding the changes…

I think I have matured a lot as a player and in-game, which means I don’t take a lot of risky decisions anymore, or do a lot of uncalculated plays. I have had a lot more control in what I do. Now it is no longer the case of “if I get in and get lucky, I will play well”, it is more like, if I go in and play well, it’s because I have put a lot of thought into it. 

On my first splits, when I came in I was just playing for fun, you know? I have learned how to play with a purpose and calculate how to do my plays.

How did you learn the purpose, then? By yourself or someone in your team guided you?

Playing a lot against good players really helps. Having good teammates helps too. They will teach you to do your plays well, and tell you when you are doing something wrong, and eventually, by trial and error, you start filtering out the bad stuff and become a better player.

Rogue was very dominant in 2019. So far, the team has performed well, but you are still struggling in the middle of the standings. What is stopping you from rising to the top?

For now, our stage performances have not been as good as our scrim performances, we are lacking confidence in our plays. In a lot of games we just had bad preparation, like when we faced Origen, G2 Esports and MAD Lions. Since our preparation was really off, we ended up not playing well either.

And what goes into your preparation?

More than just the draft. We talk about the possible outcomes, what we think that we will do, what we think that we will play. I feel like we just were not prepared to face G2, MAD and Origen, but if we had been better prepared, we would have been on the same level as them.

There were so many teams tied for first place. What’s your opinion on that?

It is kind of interesting in a way, and nice, I think. That makes it really easy for us to rise above the rest if we have a good sprint. It gives me the impression that the first place is up for grabs, for anyone to take, and this means we can go and reverse swipe in the playoffs, hopefully.

This split has been a lot more competitive between the teams, and in every week of practice I have seen new things coming up, so we all have to be quick and adapt to it, or we will just fall behind.

Do you think we are approaching a higher gap between the top teams?

Right now they are very similar in level, but with time, in the upcoming weeks, playoffs will come and two or three of these teams will rise far above the rest, and I am confident we will be one of them.

What are your expectations for the progression of the split?

Rogue will make sure to take as many victories as we can, we will not take any games for granted. If we are playing a team lower in standings, we still need to give our best, because at this point, every game matters. Reaching a high seed for playoffs will increase our chances of making it far. All of us really want to go to the Mid Season Invitational right now, so this is what we are fighting for.

When it comes to playing, since you mentioned wanting to make it far, do you consider yourself a perfectionist?

I am not a perfectionist. Sometimes I do things really messy, not always clean and precise, but honestly, as long as I get the work done, I am happy! *laughs*

And a word to your lovely fans?

Yeah! I am thankful for the comments people write to me. I will try to keep going forward and show good performance, so they have something to be proud of.

Have you heard of the newest build for Senna? Focusing on not farming, but stacking souls, “Fasting Senna” has quickly made her way to EU. In Korean, the term “farming” is substituted by “eating”, and given Senna does not farm in this type of play, the build is called “Fasting Senna”. Read Finn’s insight on the article right next to this paragraph!