TWO DAYS of nonstop MLBB action in the M3 World Championships reveal a glaring statistical trend.
Out of the 14 matches (including the tiebreakers), both Ling and Hayabusa have constantly appeared in everyone’s ban list. with the Cyan Finch boasting an 86 percent ban rate and the Crimson Shadow securing a 93 percent rate.
At first, I thought that this was a strategy Blacklist International had carried over from the MPL-PH, as these bans have appeared in their gameplan since the Season 8 playoffs to diminish the hero pool of Omega Esports' Dean Christian “Raizen” Samagui.
But to my surprise, majority of the teams playing in M3 have also targeted these two assassins.
Ling and Hayabusa players are everywhere
Just by watching the VODs, one will notice that Ling and Hayabusa players are around the world.
The Philippines boasts one of the best Ling players in Kairi “Kairi” Rayosdelsol. But he isn’t the only one with the bragging rights, as each region has their own Ling gods.
Abraao “JumpStyle” Santos from Red Canids is another Ling player who comes to mind, and he proved his prowess in MPL Brazil, forcing Keyd Stars to ban his signature hero or counterpick it in the Grand Finale.
Then there is RRQ’s Albert “Albertt” Nielsen. Even if he hasn’t yet played a single game in the world series, he's proven that his Ling could shatter anyone’s confidence.
In case Ling isn’t available, teams could still use Hayabusa as an alternative — especially in the hands of players like RRQ’s Yesaya “XINNN” Armando Wowiling and Team SMG’s Muhammad “Wynn” Fahmi Ikhwan.
Heck, there are even videos of Calvin “CW” Winata using Hayabusa. We wouldn’t be surprised if he uses him as a gold laner given the fluid hero pool that Coach Kristoffer “BON CHAN” Ricaplaza praised him for.
The War Axe factor
Hayabusa + War Axe equals a recipe for disaster for teams foolish enough to not ban him, and perhaps this could explain why there are so many Hayabusa players worldwide.
The 10 percent cooldown reduction helps players spam his abilities, but the unique passive serves as the ultimate apple of the eye as Haya-mains could easily burst down key threats due to the additional damage per stacks.
This forces even the tankiest of heroes to tremble in fear, especially when combined with many other factors that we'll outline below.
How these two heroes threaten everyone’s gameplan
Let’s take a look at Blacklist International, one of the most dominant teams in MPL history, and see how they prominently banned these heroes not only during the Season 8 finals, but also the MPL: Invitational and most recently the M3 group stages.
After all, no less than Johnmar “OhMyV33nus” Villaluna has said that these two heroes have served as a major threat in denying their ‘UBE’ strategy.
Here’s why.
They both offer high levels of mobility which allows the opposition to roam around the map and provide a counterattacking setup against the aggressive rotations from V33nus and Hadji. This in turn would weaken the laning phases of Edward “Edward” Jay Dapadap or Kiel “OHEB” Soriano.
Not to mention their mobility could also be used to snatch any buffs away from Danerie James “Wise” Del Rosario, ultimately delaying and hampering the so-called ‘UBE’ timings of the Codebreakers.
Aside from potential UBE spoilers, these two heroes are also lethal in 5-v-5 teamfights.
First, they could jump straight into the battlefield and run away instantly, allowing them to avoid a sudden barrage of abilities. Second, they have a ceiling of invulnerability as their ultimates lets them avoid incoming damage, while bursting their foes to oblivion.
Then you add the slow effect they bring, limiting any hero's escape mechanisms.
All of these could be a lethal threat in teamfights, as Blacklist, or any other team, really, might suddenly be surprised from the sudden hit-and-run assaults from these two assassins.
It's a threat every other team present in M3 has realized, as they have all banned this hero pair in the group stages of the M3.
How teams have also countered the Ling-Hayabusa threat
Besides banning these heroes, some teams have decided to go about it another way> Ban the Hayabusa while tempting the opposition to pick Ling.
Cambodia’s See You Soon banned the ninja while picking Barats, Paquito, and Ruby, but EVOS SG didn’t pick the Cyan Finch, knowing that the three heroes that SYS selected would nerf him.
EVOS was able to look for alternatives and dominated their Cambodian rivals.
We saw this happen again when Red Canids banned Hayabusa, and Malvinas Gaming decided to select Paquito and Aldous as a counter to Ling.
Nevertheless, the Brazilian team still selected him and his sudden outburst combined with the poke damage from Brody and Lylia, combined with the impact from Ruby and Phoveus, overwhelmed the Peruvian-led squad.
And perhaps there could be new methodologies that could be explored as the tournament reaches its climax.
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