The Piltover Post

With the third split underway and a shot at the 2026 World Championships on the line, teams are making drastic changes to put their best foot forward. In a move that surprised a lot of fans, Cloud9 decided on a 7-man roster. With Jesper “Zven” Svenningsen on the sidelines, Edward “Tactical” Ra had to prove that he is up for the task. After Immortals Progressive left the league, Tactical found himself without a team and doubting that he ever would again after IMT’s abysmal results. C9 took a leap of faith with him, and it is paying off so far.

Q: You’ve been playing competitive LoL for at least a decade now, with stints in and out of LCS since 2020. The last time we saw you in tier 1 was with Immortals Progressive, who didn’t exactly have the best track record. Cloud9 Kia, barring internationals, have been a consistent top-half finisher in the LCS for several years. How much of a difference do you notice between competing with C9 over IMT? Do you have more support? Is the environment more charged as you fight for a win?

A: I think there are some different circumstances; for example, I’m joining a team that’s been together for a while already, and they already have their own systems and ways they function as a team, as to Immortals, where maybe we had to figure out what our identity was. I think there’s more clear identity here, and my current teammates have been consistently top half finisher like you said, so naturally the standards are held higher here. I’d say the environment is more like the winner’s mentality; people are limit testing more, trying to push the edge more, whereas in the lower-placed teams, you often don’t even get to try to do that because you’re having to focus way more on the team aspect of the game to outplay the enemy.

Q: After 2024, when it was revealed that IMT wouldn’t have a slot in the LTA North merger, did you struggle to find a team when your most recent experience was with an org that consistently finished at the bottom of the standings?

A: I did struggle to find a team. I just assumed teams were done with me since I kind of had a decline in results, so I kind of expected to not be able to find an LCS slot. It sucked, but it is what it is. I wasn’t really sure what orgs/players thought of me; I just assumed I was out of the game forever, honestly, but luckily I have this opportunity now!

Q: A good number of LCS fans feel that the region is a 4-team region, with the bottom 4 teams just along for the ride. As someone who was on a bottom-tier team previously, do you agree with that sentiment, or do you think every org has something to bring to the table?

A: I feel like there are always glimpses of hope from the lower-tier teams, but the problem is the lack of consistency that is shown or lack of sharpness overall. It’s always hard because it’s not always you can swap out a single player and everything changes, maybe the team dynamic can change and help your team be more smoothflowing, but in the end, you’re always gonna need players that are smart or aware of fighting angles, even if they may not be the best team player, I think it’s good to have those kinds of players, they can help elevate the individual level of others. But to answer your question, I think every org has something to bring; it’s just whether they can really show it on stage.

Q: Many people felt you were a player who repeatedly would get caught out and punished for being in a bad position while you were with IMT. Do you think returning to NACL and playing with other former LCS pros (Rayan “Sniper” Shoura, Tomio Phanlith “Tomio” Chan, and David “Insanity” Challe) helped you change and learn from that bad habit?

A: I think I just had a mindset shift; I don’t think playing with others necessarily directly impacted that change. I think I kind of took a step back, and, let’s say if there were a scale between playing safe vs playing on the line/edge, I went back towards playing safe as a default more.

Q: What was going through your mind in week 3 when you took down Disguised, the team that kept you from promoting to the LCS in the 2025 Promotional Tournament? Did you feel satisfied that you were able to get revenge?

A: Since it wasn’t the exact roster that prevented me from promoting last year, it wasn’t “satisfying” per-say but it was nice getting my revenge anyway. I felt pretty confident going into that match, so the result was what I had expected.

Q: With LYON hosting their home-ground event in Mexico City, you return to the historic city, but this time with an audience. How are you feeling going into those matches next week? Are there any places you would want to revisit?

A: I’m very excited about the matches in Mexico. I’ve never travelled (I don’t know if anyone has) for regular season matches. It’s also our first audience match since the opening week, so I’m very excited. One of my goals has always been to play on the bigger stages with an audience, since in the past, even though I had gone to Worlds twice and played two LCS Finals, COVID made it so there was never any audience. Even though these upcoming matches in Mexico may not be finals or Worlds, I’m still very excited!

Q: Despite losing to Team Liquid Alienware in week 1, C9 looks like they are continuing to ramp up their win streak. Do you think you are the missing piece they need to end the international tournament drought and qualify for the 2026 World Championships?

A: I think we’ve done a lot of learning of good habits since our match vs TL, especially me. I think I was extra nervous since it had been a while, but as the weeks went on, I got more comfortable with the stage and even my team, so I’m looking forward to a rematch. I’m hoping I can be a reason for Cloud9’s push for the Worlds run. I’m just here to try my best and hope I’m enough to help the team be better.