FACE CHECK: Demise Academy

Earlier this week I was lucky enough to have the opportunity to sit down and talk with some of the new faces coming into the UKEL in the 2021 Spring Split next year. They won the promotion tournament last month, in which they beat actually_CBA (another new entry to the UKEL) to secure
their victory, and now you are going to get to know a few of them. I spoke with their team manager Kaya, their rookie ADC Slated, and the returning Jojo, who is once again gracing the UKEL with his participation.

Interview with Demise Academy, with topics ranging from preparation for the promotion tournament, their aims for next split, and how they look forward to their rematch against actually_CBA once they are in the league.

Kaya

When talking to Kaya, he revealed to me that the team had not initially been prepared for the tournament, having only 4 days of scrims before the open qualifiers, making their overall win a huge accomplishment for the team. He commented on how he has a team that are “all willing to
learn from each other” and that the team “gels together well”. He spoke about how the team perhaps underestimated their competition in the qualifiers, and that they had learned from this and will not be making the same mistake again, it is clear that Kaya and the rest of Demise Academy are well aware that the teams in the UKEL are not to be taken lightly.

When asked about the aims of the team, he responded that Demise Academy has no intention of being “middle of the pack” and that they have an “agenda to do well”. The team has a “hunger to prove themselves” and they have the drive to make playoffs and even win the league, to which Kaya believes the team already has the components necessary to do so. Kaya believes that the qualifiers were a good experience for the team, as they have already faced the pressure of having to fight a Best of 3 for a promotion, which could give them an edge over some rosters that may have
never been in that setting.

Kaya spoke about his eagerness to face off against actually_CBA again, talking of them in high regard and wanting to beat them again, an opinion shared by his team. When I asked Kaya if he could use one word to describe his team, he said AMBITION and explained that he believes his
team has all the necessary hunger and willingness to improve and win the league.

Slated

A new face to the competitive scene, Slated is a rookie ADC hailing from Sweden who has never played a split before. He spoke about having no interest in the competitive scene, thinking as League of Legends as nothing more than a hobby. However, after speaking to him I can guarantee that that attitude is dead in the dirt, he speaks with confidence, passion and has a clear determination to succeed and improve. One of the main things I spoke to Slated about was the team’s transition from Best of 3 games to the Best of 1 format, and how that might be a unique change for them, despite that, Slated is confident in his team’s ability to win.

Slated spoke about one of his main goals being consistency, something that his teammates also commented on – he discussed with me how he believes he has an adaptable playstyle in the bot lane but also has a strong voice on how he wants the game to be played. When addressing the chemistry, he has with his support, he stated that something he highly regards in a support is “individual decision making”, something that he believes his Dandy does incredibly well, which is something important to himself.

Slated spoke about the league being a huge experience for him, and how in a way, this is the greatest chance he has to prove to himself that he can do it. Despite this, he believes his team are extremely humble which moved his focus from himself and performing more for the team, and making them proud, and a good name for Demise Academy. I asked Slated the same question, one word to describe his team, this time around I was given ADAPTATION, he went on to explain that he believes the team is very flexible in their playstyle.

Jojo

As the player on the team with the most experience under his belt, Jojo finds himself in a unique position in which he is returning to the UKEL with a brand-new team. Thankfully, he is looking forward to coming back and believes that in his absence that he has been able to “improve himself and is much more confident”, saying that he is more confident to take trades and push his leads. Jojo spoke highly of actually_CBA’s top laner, saying he is one of the more interesting top laners he has faced off against but believes that most of the UKEL’s top laners from the last split were
“too passive”, and hopes that his unique style of play will be able to punish this.

Jojo spoke about how he was initially “reassuring” some of the newer players, especially during the early games of the qualifiers, however, they are now a lot more confident, which is demonstrated in their promotion tournament finals dominance and he believes that they will only improve as the split goes on. He spoke on the team’s “good synergy and communication” and stated that he believes that Demise Academy can become a “very deadly” team once they have had more time to play together. Jojo shares the similar confidence that the other members of his team have in that they believe they will make it to playoffs.

Similarly, to Slated’s point of adaptation, Jojo spoke of the flexibility of the team in both draft and playstyle, describing the team as being somewhat unpredictable. Jojo had the most poignant statement of all three interviews with “I want to win, I will try my best to win”, which I think summarises the goal of the team perfectly. When asked what word he would use to describe
the team, he simply said MECHANICS, as at the end of the day the most important thing in the game is being better than your opponents, and he has every faith in himself and his teammates that they are.

The spirit that this brand new team is showing is something spectacular to behold, they’ve not been together long but they are so ideologically aligned and ambitious that it seems like they’re not going to let anyone stop them, and they’re confident that no one will. All three of the people interviewed
really had a strong sense of what Demise Academy’s aims are and their respect for one another really emphasises the comments of synergy and chemistry that they claim to have. Each player and staff member of this team shine equally as bright, and I for one, cannot wait to see what they have to show for themselves in the UKEL 2021 Spring Split.