Top lane Sejuani was played at Worlds today, and it went as well as you’d expect

This 2017 Worlds story is brought to you by Predator.

Brazil’s Team oNe eSports broke out their secret weapon in game three of their series against 1907 Fenerbahçe at Worlds today—top lane Sejuani. It didn’t make a great first impression.

As soon as it was locked in, the audience and shoutcasters immediately dissected the pick to figure out why Team oNe would pull it out in the most important series of their season. After all, it’s not like they needed to try crazy picks in order to catch Fenerbahçe off guard. The series was tied one-to-one, they could have easily played another meta comp and dominated, just as they had done in the last game.

But no, instead, they chose top lane Sejuani. After some thought, it seemed like it might work in the right circumstance. Mostly, the pick had great synergy with Olaf, the team’s jungle pick, due to his quick basic attacks that could be used to help stack Sejuani’s passive. Her absurd crowd control could also make up for the fact that Olaf can’t very well peel for his carries, making them a decent duo. Sejuani’s lane power, however, is just plain weak, and it showed on the Worlds stage as Team oNe’s Álvaro “Vert” Miguel attempted to turn heads despite all that.

Sejuani’s crowd control is her strength, and as a jungler, she’s able to move about the map to lock down potential carries whenever she needs, providing countless opportunities to shut them down.

When she’s alone in the top lane with only a Teleport at her disposal to impact the rest of the map, however, that crowd control is much less effective. Her damage isn’t nearly high enough to trade damage with a lane opponent, either, so it’s not like staying in top lane suited her either. While she was frozen in the top lane, Fenerbahçe’s Twitch was left to get really, really fed. Eventually, it didn’t matter how tanky she was—Twitch just melted right through her.

As far as oddball picks go, top lane Sejuani certainly isn’t the weirdest idea. She has tankiness, crowd control, and with the right jungler, she could get rolling if the stars aligned. Top lane definitely isn’t her optimal lane, though, and maybe the Worlds stage isn’t the best place to whip out sub optimal picks.