Many who watched the game against 100 Thieves and Team Liquid would put credit in the enormous impact Ryu had on Ryze. However credit where credit is due, a hidden factor was in consideration in regards to 100 Thieves’ win.

There are many factors that contribute to a win in professional League of Legends and shotcalling is one of them. In the game against TL, 100 Thieves perfectly executed a 1-3-1 formation and slowly whittled down TL. The source of this macro play originates from none other than 100 Thieves’ support, Aphromoo. Showing not only a solid performance on support but also as a shot caller, Inven Global seized the opportunity to interview the former CLG support.

Let’s see what Aphromoo has to say about the win, his shotcalling, and his team.

¤ How do you feel about your win against Team Liquid?

I think the match against TL was pretty tough. We thought it was going to be very tough going into the game because they are the super team for NA. I was extremely happy that we got to perform. Going into each game, everyone is curious on how we are going to do since we are a new team coming together. I think this is the joy of competition for us. Seeing how good we really are. Against TL, our marco credited to Meteos and Ryu. Coming into 100 Thieves, these guys are insane in terms of marco and making sure everything is calm. For me coming from CLG as a shotcaller, me being able to work with these guys is excellent. I was very happy with our win.


¤ There was a clear and concise shotcalling throughout the game. Who is the majority shot caller? Is it a group effort or do you take over?

In terms of shotcalling, I think everyone on the team has their moments. If they see the best call before someone else, they will say it. We would all agree on it really quickly and realize it is the best thing to do. It could be me, it could be Meteos, and it could be Ryu. Sometimes, it could be Cody or Ssumday. It really depends on what style we are playing. We played 1-3-1 against TL. Our side lanes, Ssumday and Ryu, were calling a lot. When to fight or not to fight. Stuff like that.

When we are controlling objectives, me and Meteos come in. When we control vision, I’ll be the one calling or Meteos. Meteos would say ‘oh we can’t’ or ‘we can’t get vision’. When it comes to Baron, I am usually the one calling it. I would tell them ‘hit it now’, ‘don’t do it’, and ‘clear their wards’. I think everyone has their strengths when it comes to what area needs calling. If they are very experienced in that, we would go with their call.

In regards to bad calls, most people think in League of Legends that you don’t have a lot of time to talk. However, you have around 1 minute or 1 minute 30 seconds to talk about what you want to do. Our team is really good at figuring out what we need to do in 15 seconds. We realize an idea, discuss, and figure out what we need to do. I think League is the type of game that allows that kind of talk. Most other eSports not really.

¤ To follow up on that, do you think shotcalling in general is better off with one person calling the shots? Or should it be a group effort?

I think for each team, you can’t really just start off and designate one guy to shotcall. I believe that is very hierarchy or dictator based. I personally don’t like that when people would have to listen to me right away. This is because once you start scrimming as a team, you eventually realize who has the best calls on the team. Whatever team it may be. For my team, it is sometimes me, Will, or Ryu. In regards to us 3, I think we have a really good system going for us right now. We are always talking about what is the best thing to do. We’ll discuss after our practice: ‘we should do this’ or ‘oh I was thinking that’. If teams don’t have this and they have one sole shot caller, it is hard to learn and adapt. Since, you do this over and over. Having players on your team that can innovate their own ideas for situations, it helps with the team environment and helps you progress faster.


¤ When we interviewed Ryu. He said that you are the mood maker for the team. Did you know he said that in our interview?

Yeah, I saw the interview. The mood maker? I guess he is talking about how I am always interacting with all my teammates. For me, I think it is very important to build cohesion and a bond as soon as we can. Maybe other players don’t value that. Me personally, I always want to make my team laugh, ask them about something, or tease them. Just get them talking. This is so, we can progress faster. I want to make sure they are comfortable with me. When I do play, I can get a bit forward when I call. I’m like ‘let’s do this right now’. I want people to trust me, and I need to trust them too. Me being the mood maker for the team makes sense. Since, I am always trying to get people to talk. If someone is uncomfortable towards me, I’ll confront them for them and help them figure it out.


¤ It is clear you care a lot about your team. Have you ever considered being in a leadership role in a player association for League?

We have one right now but in the future… no. I don’t really want to do that too much. I like playing competitive a lot, so I’ll do this for awhile. Once I’m done, I don’t want to coach or anything like that. I can tell it is already a hard job as it is. When I see coaches interacting with their team and then me being on a team, I’ll probably just make content. I’ll stream and make videos.

¤ Ryu played extremely well with Ryze in the game against TL. What do you think of Ryu as a person and as a player?

Ryu is insane. He always steps up when it comes down to it. Ryu is a very vocal guy. When a team is going through something difficult, it is always hard for players to do what they normally do. I think for Ryu, we definitely help him out a lot. We are always talking and our mentality is really strong. Most of our players don’t tilt so this definitely helps him play a lot better. I believe a lot of the NA teams last year had this problem of players tilting or nobody wanting to talk. I think Ryu is just a good player. In the 1-3-1 against TL, he was talking so much. He said ‘I can do this for free’, ‘no one can fight me’, ‘don’t fight’, or ‘I am going to f*** them up’ (laughs). I really like playing with Ryu.


¤ So Ryu titled you as the mood maker for the team. Do you have any title you would give him?

Oh jesus. The first thing that came to my head is clown. It sounds so rude (laughs). Ryu is so funny. You guys don’t know because you only see him on camera, but he is a joker. Oh my god, that guy is so funny. Even though he looks like this all the time *imitates Ryu’s face* when he is with me, I can’t stop laughing. I guess I’ll go with ‘The Joker’.

¤ Moving onto bot lane, more specifically Cody Sun. How has Cody Sun fit with the team and with you in the bot lane?

Coming into the team, Cody Sun, all around, had the whole package. I was so surprised. He knew how to play 1-3-1, and he also knows how to play 4-1. I think Cody got that through playing with Olleh. This is because Olleh would roam most of the time. He learned how to play safe in those situations. He also learned how much he could press in those situations as well. In regards to our team, I wanted him to play more aggressive. I told him that to help him out. With my AD carry, I like it when they can play aggressive to get advantages off of that. Cody Sun brought him playing safe from Immortals to 100 Thieves.

For Cody most surprising thing is, he is very open minded and wants to talk all the time. He would take me anywhere, outside or on the roof just to talk. Cody does this to make sure we are good, and everything is progressing. Most players never want to do that. They are mostly to them themselves. But with Cody, he always wants to talk. He is like my big brother even though I am older than him. In terms of him in-game, I don’t have anything bad to say. The kid is good.


¤ Lastly, is there anything you want to say to your fans? Also, what goals do you have set for your team, 100 Thieves, this split?

To our fans, merch is coming soon. This way you guys can support us. Other than that, I want to thank everyone who cheers for us and are looking for us to do well. For us as a team, we just want to be as good as we can. Our organization really cares about what each other feels and wants to achieve. Looking forward to the rest of the season. Once it comes to the playoffs, we are there for the title.