T1 signs Munchkin, continues VALORANT roster overhaul

T1 continued the overhaul of the organization’s VALORANT roster on Wednesday, officially announcing the signing of Byeon “Munchkin” Sang-beom.

VALORANT fans will recognize Munchkin’s name from his days with Crazy Raccoon, with whom he competed both in last year’s Masters Berlin event, as well as VALORANT Champions. Munchkin comes with plenty of experience even beyond VALORANT, as he was formerly a DPS player for both Seoul Dynasty and Boston Uprising in the Overwatch League.

The move comes in the midst of a bigger roster shuffle for T1, who failed to qualify for any major event in VCT 2022. The team made a big splash by signing Xeta and Autumn a little over a week ago. The trade with Cloud9, which saw T1 give up Rahul “curry” Nemani, was first reported by Dot Esports. Today’s move reunited Xeta and Munchkin, who were formerly teammates on the now-disbanded C9 Korea roster.

While T1 parted ways with multiple members of the team that failed to qualify for both main events in VCT Challengers, including current TSM member Johann “seven” Hernandez and former coach David Denis, it remains to be seen just how much of the old roster T1 might keep around for next year. Comments from T1 CEO Joe Marsh following the signings of Xeta and Autumn suggested the team wanted to remain in North America, which might be good news for the players still signed to T1. 

Munchkin is best known for his aggressive duelist play and could fill that role with the departure of seven, who was the team’s regular Jett player. He can also flex to other roles, however, and is likely valued for his ability to fill multiple positions on a roster that’s still being built.