HLE First Stand Team Analysis – Are they the strongest team in the world?

Hanwha Life Esports (HLE) have qualified for First Stand fighting their way through all of the top teams in the LCK. After beating nearly all of them by sheer margin, they will now represent the region in front of the home crowd next week. What can we expect from the team and is HLE in a position to take their first international trophy? Find out in our team analysis.

HLE First Stand Team Analysis – strong points across the board…

Hanwha Life Esports enters First Stand with a stacked roster of veterans. Aside from maintaining four of the five players from the 2024 iteration, HLE found the only possible upgrade by replacing Doran with Zeus, shortly after he took the back-to-back world championship with T1. Judging just by the players themselves, we knew HLE would be a front runner. What many didn’t expect, however, was their win in the LCK Cup. Here’s why they came out on top. 

Draft Versatility – A Crucial Edge

One of HLE’s greatest strengths in the first part of the season was their ability to adapt to the Fearless Draft format better than most teams. They thrived when the drafting phase extends deep into the best-of series, often finding game-deciding picks that swung the odds in their favor. Given that Fearless Draft is the key “selling point” of First Stand, we should expect them to maintain this strength heading into the tournament.

Zeus – The X-Factor

If there’s one player who defines HLE’s potential, it’s Zeus. With his ability to dominate his opponents regardless of matchup, he has been a key difference maker when it came to Game 5 Drafts. Remember the Olaf that took down T1 and eliminated them from the competition? 

That’s not the only pick he has and with the lane-swap mechanic completely gone in the tournament, I don’t see Zeus getting any weaker. On the other hand, I think his value will only go up from here, as he can dictate the pace of his lane and transition his lead into the mid-game.

Viper and Delight – The Reliable Duo

If Zeus is the shining point of this HLE roster, then Viper and Delight are the core that holds the entire team together. While they haven’t been constantly pulling out 2v8 performances, both players have been incredibly consistent throughout the entire first split. 

Regardless of the meta, I feel like Viper and Delight have close to top-tier ceiling and gameplay potential. The ADC can literally play anything and Delight’s ability to make coordinated plays in the mid-game have allowed HLE to always have a say in the game-deciding skirmishes. 

There is a small question mark, and it’s related to the support meta. If the priority picks were to shift to enchanters, we might see one of Delight’s strengths being hindered. The first few series in the tournament will give us a better indication of his impact outside the comfort picks. 

Potential Weaknesses – Can HLE Be Exploited?

While HLE look like an unstoppable force, they are not without flaws. While they may not unveil themselves during the tournament, there have been signs of it throughout the LCK Cup.

Peanut – The Weak Link?

Despite having incredible highs (go check out that 5-man diana ultimate in a nearly lost game), Peanut has shown some level of inconsistency throughout, especially on certain champions. For example, he has had a 0% win rate on Zyra out of four games played in the LCK Cup, which is in great contrast to his stellar performances on other AP champions like Nidalee and Maokai. I don’t think Peanut will necessarily drag the team down, but if there’s an opening to be exploited, he might be one of the first. If he’s forced into specific picks, then we might see him struggle more than expected.

Is Zeka still depending on his comfort picks?

Zeka has been a welcome surprise in terms of performance during the first split, showing he was able to match other top-tier LCK mids. While it was partially thanks to how HLE has played around him to grant him edges, it’s clear that he did his own when called up to the job. 

And while he has definitely improved his champion pool, I still think there might be some doubts in terms of consistency when he moves away from his comfort picks such as Sylas, Akali, and Yone. We saw him having good numbers on Azir but there are several champions that he played once that he struggled with (Hwei, Aurora, Yasuo). If the mid lane meta were to shift slightly, he might also be indirectly affected.

So is HLE the team to beat?

Based on what we’ve seen so far, HLE is the no. 1 team coming into the tournament. That said, I don’t think they are heads and shoulders above everyone else. Especially with the recent lane swap mechanic, a bad initial read might have heavy consequences for the rest of the tournament. Nonetheless, it should be quite easy for HLE to get through the playoff stage and they should be expected in the finals. Anything lower than that would be a failure.