Mineski's League of Legends team arrived in South Korea for boot camp leading up to the GPL finals and Worlds.

The team or organization may not be familiar to the rest of the world. However, Mineski has an enormous footprint and history within Esports and League itself. After the creation of Mineski's League of Legends team in 2013, Mineski made the Season 3 World Championships on their first year as a team. Although they were unable to leave the group stage back in 2013, Mineski is now seen as one of the strongest SouthEast Asia teams.

Returning for another chance at the Championship cup, Mineski has come to Korea for boot camp. Inven Global had the opportunity to meet these talented players and view their understanding of League.

Below are the group interview responses from Mineski's League of Legends team.

¤ You guys may not be that well known in Korea. Could you guys briefly introduce yourselves with maybe a unique trait to make things interesting?

Tgee: Hi, I am Tgee. I am the sub support for Mineski League of Legends. For a unique trait, I am the oldest one here.

Shiro: Tgee gets the most likes from girls out of all the players (laughs).

Hamezz: I am Hamezz. I am Mineski’s main support. I love making my team laugh, and I am the team’s comedian.

Gari: I can speak in Korean right (laughs)? Hi, my name is Gari, and I am the ADC for Mineski. I love winning.

Exosen: Hi, I am the mid laner for Mineski League of Legends. I am the nicest person on the team (laughs).

*Entire team laughs*

Jjun: Hi, I am Jjun. I am the jungler for Mineski League of Legends. I’m not too sure about what I should say.

Kaigu: I am Kaigu, and I am the top laner for Mineski. I am the crazy one.


¤ Welcome to Korea! How long have you guys been here for?

Hamezz: 5-6 days?

¤ You guys must have eaten some delicious Korean food and went to amazing places. What was your favorite place to go and favorite food to eat?

Hamezz: This is my first time in Korea. We didn’t have the chance to go to any restaurants as of yet. However, if I were to pick my favorite Korean food, it would probably be ‘Kimchi Jjigae’ (Korean Kimchi stew dish with pork and tofu). Oh, and bbq Chicken (laughs).


¤ Are there any specifics foods that you guys want to try?

Tgee: Hanwoo beef (laughs), but *points at Gari* he won’t buy it for me.

*Entire team laughs*

Gari: Never...never…

¤ This question is for Gari and Jjun. How does it feel to come back to Korea?

*Gari and Jjun forcing each other to answer the question*

Hamezz: Why are you so shy (laughs)? You can just answer it in Korean.

Gari: It is so weird to say this. Everything feels amazing. The food, is of course, really good. The ping is amazing as well. Literally, everything is great except for the weather. It is scorching hot. Right now, Korea is hotter than the Philippines.

¤ Did you guys (Gari and Jjun) have any particular Korean foods that you missed?

Gari: Definitely Doenjang Jjigae (Korean soybean paste soup).

Jjun: For me, it was the Ddeokbokki (Korean hot and spicy rice cake).

¤ As a team, communication is the foundations for a successful team. With two Koreans on Mineski, are there any problems with communication?

Hamezz: I think sometimes, it is difficult. When they try to give calls, Gari and Jjun are unable to fully translate it into English. Therefore, they are resulted in communicating with us with basic English words. From time to time, it is difficult to understand what they are saying. We are all still trying our best to communicate with basic English.


¤ Do you guys have any sayings or terms only used inside the team to help communicate with each other better?

Hamezz: Yeah! Every now and then, Gari and Jjun teach us one Korean word. They taught us how to say ‘Chun chun hi’ which means go slower or play slower. Another word would be ‘Bballi bballi’ which means faster, faster, faster!


¤ What is your favorite Korean word that Gari and Jjun have taught you so far?

*Entire team laughs*

Tgee and Hamezz: We can’t say it (laughs).

Gari: We really can’t say it (laughs).

Hamezz: Maybe… ‘Bbap mok ja’ which means let’s eat.

Exosen: What about ‘Kkabbi’ (Mean unlucky or close).

¤ Mineski as a team and organization has a long history embedded into Esports. When Mineski’s League team was first found, the team made their way to the Season 3 World Championships. This brings a lot of expectation onto the table. What have you guys set for expectations and goals for this year?

Tgee: For this year, I want to go back to Worlds. Three members on the team now have been to the 2013 World Championships. I want to go back and prove to the audience that our feat in 2013 was not out of luck.

Hamezz: Although I did not go with the team back in 2013 for Worlds, I want to go this year and prove that a young/new player like me can also make it. If all else fails, my goal is to at least reach playoffs.

Gari: All that is left now is the GPL and Worlds. My goals for this year are those. But first, I want to win the GPL finals.

Exosen: My goal is to also go back to Worlds.

Jjun: For me this year, I want to win GPL finals and win one game at the group stages of the World Championships.

Kaigu: As of now, I am solely focusing on winning Conquerors. Hopefully, if we do get to go to Worlds this year, we will at least win some games. Last time I went, we didn’t win any games (laughs).

¤ Every region has their own take on new metas. An example would be EU taking Heimerdinger to the bot lane. How has your team or your region adapted to this current meta?

Hamezz: I think we did adapt well in regards to other region’s unique team comps. However, macro-wise, I believe we are still left so far behind compared to the rest of the regions. We can duplicate certain team comps but when we try to execute them, we make so many mistakes. Our draft is solid, but as I said before… our macro is still not on par with other regions.

In terms of interesting picks, while adapting to the meta, we really like Zyra bot lane as ADC. We pair it with Morgana support. When we hit lvl 6, Morgana will just Flash in and kill the enemy bot lane.


¤ Some of you guys have already played in Korean solo q while others have not. What are your opinions on Korean solo q?

Exosen: Unlike our server in the Philippines, it is very competitive. Our server kind of sucks (laughs).  

Hamezz: I have Platinum 1 friends here. When they went to the Philippines, they all hit Challenger. It is really easy there. In Korean solo q, it is extremely hard (laughs). My account, as of now, is Diamond 1.

Exosen: I’m stuck too (laughs). I’m Diamond 1.


¤ What are the advantages and disadvantages of playing in Korean solo q?

Hamezz: The disadvantages of playing Korean solo q is that there are so many toxic players.

Tgee: They easily surrender. They always open.

Hamezz: The players give up easily. Once they die once, the game is already over when they say “15 minutes GG”.

Exosen: The advantages are obviously the high level of mechanics. You can learn a lot from Korean players.

¤ Out of everyone here, who is the highest ranking in KR solo q and who is the lowest?

Hamezz: Jjun is the highest. He is in Challenger right now.

Tgee: I am the lowest here. My account right now is Diamond 4.


¤ There has been a recent discussion on NA solo q being the worst for pro players to practice in. What are your thoughts on this?

Hamezz: I don’t think NA players can complain until they played in the Philippine server (laughs).

Exosen: I think I would love to play in NA (laughs).

¤ Do you guys think NA solo q is the worst or not that bad?

Exosen: I don’t believe NA solo q is that bad.

Hamezz: It is a lot better than our server (laughs).


¤ Have you guys met any famous Korean pro players in solo q yet? If so, who?

Hamezz: I think once you hit Diamond 1, you get to play with a lot of pro players. The player that I met was MVP Ian. It was very interesting (laughs). At first, my opinion on Korean pro players was that they were always all high Master or Challenger. MVP Ian was in like Diamond (laughs). The reason why it was so amazing to see this was because I realized you didn’t need to be in Challenger to play for a Korean team.


¤ Do you guys have any funny moments in solo q that you care to share?

Exosen: I love it when the enemy team opens mid in solo q and starts flaming each other, but I can’t understand (laughs).

Hamezz: I remember when I duo’d with Jjun, he would pick unorthodox jungle picks like Riven.

¤ Did you win with Riven jungle on your team?

Hamezz: Uh… (laughs). Sometimes? However, most of the times, we lost really hard (laughs).


¤ Would you say that Jjun is the most experimental when it comes to picks?

Hamezz: Oh, he only picks those champions on this smurf account. Jjun plays seriously on his main.


¤ A question to everyone. Who would you guys pick to be the most trustworthy player on the team? If you spammed pinged for help, who would be there 100% of the time?

Hamezz: Probably Gari...just because he is our main dealer for our team. Oh, also because his heals are really clutch.


¤ It is strange because most players would pick their support as supports tend to be more utility based. Are you not the most trustworthy player on the team Hamezz?

Hamezz: Not to them (laughs).


¤ Jjun, as a jungle, your role is to cover and gank lanes. Which lane or player is the most worrisome as a jungler? Who do you look and think “I have to go cover for this guy again…”?

Gari: You can answer it in Korean. I already know who it is (laughs).

Jjun: Uh...it is everyone (laughs). Legit everyone.

¤ This question is for you, Tgee. With all interesting nicknames in League, there is always a story behind it. What is the story behind Tgee?

Tgee: My full name is Gerald Gianne Gelacio. Because all three of my names start with a ‘G’, my nickname stands for ‘Three Gs’.


¤ Previously, Exosen was the bot lane for Mineski until you moved to the mid lane. How was that transition? Are there any interesting stories or difficulties when you moved roles?

Exosen: During Season 5, I realized that ADCs cannot carry the game as efficiently as they did before. Henceforth, I decided I could carry better in the mid lane.


¤ Are you happy that you swapped? This is because the Marksmen role is not looking too hot right now.

Exosen: Oh yeah. I am very happy (laughs). I believe ADC is the most difficult role to play right now. You need to practice a variety of champions, and you have to go up against champions like Swain or Yasuo.

¤ If you guys qualify for Worlds 2018 in Korea, which teams/players do you guys want to meet?

Kaigu: I want to meet Chiefs Esports from Oceania. This is because they are the only teams that beat us at Rift Rivals. I want to get revenge on them.

Hamezz: I just fear all Korean and Chinese teams. Out of these teams, the teams I fear and think are the best is Griffin and RNG. However, I can think we win.

Exosen: I would say Gen.G and RNG.

Hamezz: Really? Gen.G? I would say, Griffin, because Chovy is really good.


¤ Gari and jjun, what are your thoughts on this? Which teams do you think are the best right now?

Gari: The LCK is nothing like before. A week ago, I thought Griffin was extremely good. However, recently, kt is playing well and Gen.G is also stepping up their game. kt will most certainly outperform the other Korean teams when they go to an international stage.

In terms of China, I also agree that RNG is the best Chinese team. They are just playing so well.

¤ Are there any Korean teams that you want to beat to prove yourself as a Korean player?

Gari: Hmm…. I think I want to go up against Griffin. I chose Griffin because they play a lot of unorthodox team comps. I want to experience and learn from something that is not the norm.


¤ The devil himself, Teemo, made an appearance on the LCK and won. What are your thoughts on this?

Hamezz: I actually think Teemo is not bad. Teemo is good into ADC matchups such as Jhin. His shrooms are good for lane control, and he is a lane bully. If you pair him with an oppressive support like Morgana or Soraka, I believe Teemo can easily dominate the bot lane. In addition to this, if Teemo places his shroom on common jungle routes, the jungler can never come to gank due to vision granted and the slow.


¤ Playing against annoying champions like Teemo can bring your mental over the edge. Which member on the team is easily tilted? Before you guys say anything, when I count to three, you guys point at that one player who has the weakest mental.

One…

Two…

Three!

*Everyone points at Jjun, including himself*

*The whole team laughs*

¤ Why did everyone pick Jjun? Is there a story behind it?

Hamezz: We try new strategies and team comps in scrims. However, since we do the same strategies and picks over and over again, Jjun got a little bit pissed (laughs). He would go into the enemy jungle without thinking and give up on the game. But, I think I understand him.


¤ Jjun, do you care to explain what your opinion is on everyone picking you?

Jjun: Uh, I don’t know how to explain this.

Gari: Jjun’s mental was good. He was always a player who didn’t tilt.

Jjun: Yeah. My mental used to be good. When I was on my previous team, I didn’t fight once. In the most recent 6 months, I started to tilt more. Everyday (laughs). Ever since I came to Korea, I have been mentally shaken every day.


¤ Jjun, how do you recover when you are tilted. Do you take a 30-minute break or?

Gari: Jjun has this weird habit. He needs to throw a game in order to recover from his tilt (laughs).

Jjun: I only recover and play even better than before if I throw a game.
Gari: Jjun is incredibly weird. He is so extreme. Although he doesn’t throw in solo q games, he throws hard in scrim games.

Jjun: I never throw in solo q games, but I throw every game in scrims.

¤ While almost everyone pointed at Jjun, you (Kaigu) pointed at yourself. Why do you think you have the weakest mental?

Kaigu: I guess I just feel like I get easily tilted. Also, the enemy jungler only comes to my lane and my jungler...well… (laughs).


¤ Do you want to say anything to your jungler now?

Kaigu: No no no no (laughs).


¤ I see that you are wearing a Playboy shirt, Gari. Could you comment on your outfit?

*Entire team laughs*

Gari: I actually knew you were going to ask me that question...I didn’t even know this shirt had ‘Playboy’ written on it. My older sister bought it for me.

*Everyone looks at Gari*

Gari: I swear...I actually didn’t know. Really...

¤ Lastly, is there anything you guys want to say to your fans, rivals, and Worlds if you make it?

Tgee: To our fans, please keep supporting Mineski League of Legends. We will do our best to win the Manila Conqueror.

Hamezz: To all our supporters out there, we are constantly doing our best for you guys. We will not let you down.

Gari: For me, I don’t plan on losing. I will win the GPL and see you guys at Worlds.

Exosen: To all of our fans, we will practice hard and won’t let you guys down. Maybe we can even win the Manila Conquerors...maybe (laughs).

Jjun: After we win the Manila Conquerors, I hope I can meet you guys again at Worlds.

Kaigu: Thank you to all the fans who have been supporting us throughout the years. We will do our best to win Conquerors.