Introduction: The S15 season matches have officially started, and the majority of players have been paying attention to the recent clashes. The World Championship is highly intense, and with the Swiss rounds unfolding, two teams have secured spots in the top eight — KT from the LCK and AL from the LPL. Honestly, AL performing this well on the global stage is already a big success, and their top laner, Saint Gunner, has become the key "excavator" player. Throughout this World Championship, the excavator has appeared six times, with only Saint Gunner achieving a perfect winning record; other players lost all their games. Many have joked that in Old Beijing there are no lanes, only authentic flanking entries.

S15’s most genuine Old Beijing excavator

Most players are quite familiar with the AL team. As the dark horse of the LPL this season, their overall performance has often been criticized, mainly because their manager, Aixiao, tends to boast loudly after victories and immediately block communication after losses. However, with the start of the World Championship, AL has once again demonstrated exceptional team coordination. They are arguably the most disciplined team in the LPL. After three rounds, they have defeated Gen.G, HLE, and CFO — the latter having beaten T1 — facing nearly all top-tier teams in this tournament.

Top laner Saint Gunner has become the focus of all players. Although he didn’t earn MVP in the match against CFO, he played a crucial role. In the first game’s early phase, AL had an advantage, but during mid-game resource team fights, CFO’s flawless execution secured Elder Dragon, essentially sealing the match. In the second game, AL fell behind initially, but thanks to Xin Zhao’s continuous efforts, the team stabilized. In a key top-lane team fight, Xin Zhao held the line alone while Saint Gunner used his ultimate to dive in, turning a disadvantage into a one-for-four trade. After securing Baron, they pushed for the win.

The most exciting part was the third game, where Saint Gunner confidently picked the excavator. Both teams played cautiously early on, and during the opponent’s power spike, AL chose to avoid team fights. At 18 minutes, a mid-lane clash seemed disastrous for AL, but at 21 minutes, Saint Gunner’s excavator teleported to the top lane and flashed in with his ultimate, not only stealing Elder Dragon but also wiping the enemy team. Even commentator Guan Zeyuan remarked this was truly authentic Old Beijing style — all excavators, all flanking entrances.

After the matches, I checked the excavator’s win rate and found that there were six excavator games in this World Championship, played by TheShy, Bin, Doran, and Saint Gunner (three games). These players are all top-tier top laners, but only Saint Gunner’s three excavator games resulted in wins; the others lost. Bin was even mockingly nicknamed "Traveling Hole Bin." Honestly, this isn’t a coincidence. Reviewing Saint Gunner’s ranked matches, I noticed he had been intensely practicing excavator for the past month. Everything reflects his hard work paying off.

Farewell thoughts

After the match, manager Aixiao was very happy and even defended AD carry Hope. Indeed, Hope is considered AL’s weak point, but sometimes he understands his role well — taking resources when needed and yielding them to teammates when appropriate. AL’s rhythm is driven strongly by top, mid, and jungle. As long as Hope farms steadily to build items, Kael can roam and initiate fights.

What do you, the audience, think about this situation?