Flash Wolves lose Maple, SwordArt, and more

The biggest League of Legends team in Southeast Asia is about to look very different.

Kim “MooJin” Moo-jin, Huang “Maple” Yi-Tang, and Hu “SwordArt” Shuo-Chieh are leaving Flash Wolves, while Yu “MMD” Li-Hong is retiring from competitive League of Legends.

After a mediocre performance at the 2018 World Championship, the most successful team from the LMS is losing four key players. According to a message on Facebook, the players are in conversation with other teams and looking to leave the region.

Rumors point to the LPL as a possible destination for Maple, SwordArt, and Moojin, with LPL team Rogue Warriors being singled out. It wouldn’t be the first time a former Flash Wolves player has joined a Chinese team. Hung “Karsa” Hau-Hsuan joined Royal Never Give Up and went on to win back-to-back LPL titles and the 2018 Mid-Season Invitational.

Other rumors point to Moojin potentially being in negotiations with the LCK’s SK Telecom T1. The Korean jungler could possibly return home after brief stops in Europe and in the LMS. And what better way to return than playing alongside the game’s biggest superstar, Lee “Faker” Sang-hyeok.

As for MMD, the mid laner decided to stop competing and focus on his career as a streamer. He will continue working under Flash Wolves while streaming.

Flash Wolves also parted ways with multiple members of the team’s coaching staff. Chen “WarHorse” Ju-Chih and Chen “REFRA1N” Kuan-Ting are leaving their roles as head coach and coach, respectively. Former jungler Chen “Morning” Kuan-Ting is stepping up temporarily to fill the void as coach.

Su “Hanabi” Chia-Hsiang and Lu “Betty” Yu-Hung will continue under contract with Flash Wolves. The future is otherwise uncertain for the organization that has now won six consecutive LMS titles.