The League of Legends S16 season has arrived, and the first segment of the new season in all major regions will kick off in about a week. Since Korea’s server updates a bit earlier than China’s, many pro players have been practicing on the Korean server to adjust to the changes. Faker naturally follows suit. After wrapping up several activities, he recently restarted his stream and was about to play the new patch when he encountered a frustrating problem.

TT team’s support player Feather matched with Faker in ranked. After their bottom lane fell behind early, Feather chose to go AFK, which infuriated Faker. He immediately reported him twice, sparking widespread discussion. To summarize: TT’s support Feather and EDG’s jungler Xiaohao were on Faker’s team. Xiaohao was filling in as AD carry, so their bottom lane struggled early on.

Within the first three minutes, the duo was killed under tower. After Feather died, he started playing passively, typing “15” (meaning surrender) in chat. Xiaohao didn’t hold back either and responded with “ZZ,” to which Feather replied the same. The duo’s cooperation broke down completely after that. Feather left the bottom lane and roamed around the top and mid jungle. Then things got worse: Faker was being chased but Feather didn’t come to assist.

Faker immediately complained: I was sure he was right behind me, yet he didn’t cover me. After this, Faker turned into the “Rift Police,” switching views to keep an eye on Feather. Soon enough, Faker caught Feather AFK under the top lane tower, motionless. Faker decisively opened the report panel and selected all the offenses: poor attitude, unsportsmanlike conduct, spamming, and signal abuse.

The game ended with an unsurprising surrender. Faker expressed again: I hope he gets suspended. Feather wasn’t the first to be reported this stream. Since Faker resumed streaming, he encounters players AFK in ranked almost daily. But this time, he was genuinely upset. Interestingly, after finishing the first game, Feather appeared again on the opposing team in the second match.

Seeing Feather hadn’t been banned, Faker was surprised and said: This guy still hasn’t been banned? However, in this game, Faker teamed up with his old teammate Marin, and together they defeated Feather’s team. Honestly, AFKing is really frustrating. Even in casual games like ARAM, encountering AFK players makes people angry. Punishments are definitely necessary.

TT team has not yet responded to this incident. Personally, I think a fine is inevitable, and in severe cases, a suspension for one BO3 series could happen, depending on TT’s handling of the situation. Faker’s fans are very upset; TT’s official Weibo has been flooded with comments demanding a ban on the support. This isn’t Faker’s first time reporting LPL players — the earlier incident with Qingtian had a big impact.

Perhaps Feather didn’t even realize he was matched with Faker. His passive gameplay was completely unmasked. The key point is Faker was streaming live, watched by many domestic and international viewers. Feather’s AFK behavior not only embarrassed himself but also damaged the LPL region’s reputation. But honestly, even if it wasn’t Faker, no one should AFK and disrupt ranked games.

In conclusion:

Players who show such negative attitudes toward the game should not be tolerated. They must be punished. Even if the AFK player wasn’t Faker, AFKing in any match is the most hated behavior. It ruins the game for others and shows selfishness. Let’s see how TT responds; Feather will likely face penalties.

What are your thoughts on AFK players?

Feel free to leave your comments and join the discussion!