The YouTuber Maximilian “HandOfBlood” Knabe (30) is mainly associated with League of Legends. However, he mostly operates behind the scenes, for instance as the President of the ESport team Eintracht Spandau. Now he wants to give it another shot and join the active players. In doing so he faces a special challenge.
In LoL, Season 13 has just started and it seems that the Spandau HandOfBlood is itching to get back into the MOBA. The YouTuber does not just want to play casually, but has a high goal in mind: He wants to climb to the highest rank.
As a special incentive, he has made a bet.
In his role as president, Knabe competes with HandOfBlood in the Prime League.
HandOfBlood wants to give it one more serious try
What does HandOfBlood intend to do? On January 16, the YouTuber announced on Twitter that he wants to re-enter LoL with the current season. He aims to reach Challenger, the highest rank in LoL. Depending on the region, this tier includes the top 300 or 200 players.
Correction from January 19, 2022: The description of the ranking system in LoL was partly incorrect and has been corrected. Originally, there was mention of Best-of-Five matches between the ranks, which no longer exist. The promotion matches between the individual divisions have also been abolished.
Why is this such a challenge? The path to Challenger is long and arduous: first, a player is assigned a rank after the so-called Placement Matches. So not everyone starts out at the very bottom. There are 9 ranks in LoL, of which the lower 6 are further divided into 4 divisions.
To rank up, players need to collect League Points, or LP. 100 of these points are required to have a chance to rank up. For the promotion to the next higher rank to succeed, a Best-of-Three must also be won.
The amount of LP gained from a win – or lost from a defeat – depends on one’s skill level and that of the opponent, which is assigned by Riot as matchmaking rank. Thus, ranking up is quite difficult and involves a grueling grind.
Trust in the YouTuber’s skills is limited
In the comments under the tweet, there is a humorous response to the idea. The Let’s Player Pascal “MrMoregame” Rothkegel generously offers to help lift the Spandauer up the rankings – while he himself plays in the second lowest rank, bronze.
Lukas “Karni” Steininger, who plays as support for the team No Need Orga (NNO), expresses skepticism. Before that happens, Eintracht Spandau, HandOfBlood’s team, would be more likely to win the Prime League, the highest league in the German-speaking area.
The Spandauer cannot let that slide and casually proposes a bet: If he fails to rank up to Challenger, he will donate €10,000 to the animal shelter in Berlin, which he has been supporting for some time. If he succeeds, Karni must pay €1,000 to the animal shelter.
In this case, it is a bet for a good cause. However, there is also a problem with betting in LoL that does not pursue noble goals:
How is the initiative received? Quite well. Other German content creators are also getting involved and betting either for or against HandOfBlood. They are willing to donate between 150 and 1,000 to the animal shelter if he reaches the Challenger rank, or not.
Either way, several thousand euros should be raised for the animal shelter.
If you are also eager to jump back into LoL for Season 13, this list might be helpful for you to climb the rankings.
LoL: The best champions for each role at the start of Season 13
