Xpecial

Early Success with Team SoloMid

Alex Chu, known by his in-game name Xpecial, began his professional League of Legends career with Team SoloMid. His time with TSM was marked by a series of tournament victories that helped define the organization's early dominance in North America. These wins included the 2012 MLG Spring Championship, the 2012 IGN Pro League Season 4, and the 2012 Season 2 Regional Finals in Seattle. This success qualified TSM for the 2012 World Championship, where they finished between fifth and eighth place.

The competitive structure formalized with the creation of the League of Legends Championship Series (LCS). Xpecial continued to be a key part of TSM's roster, winning the 2013 NA LCS Season 3 Spring Playoffs. His individual skill was recognized internationally when he was selected for the North American All-Star team in Shanghai during Season 3. There, he and teammate Doublelift placed second in the Bottom Lane Skill Competition, losing to the Korean duo of Pray and MadLife. The North American All-Star team itself finished in the top four of the main event.

In the 2014 LCS season, Xpecial earned the Week 9 MVP award for achieving the highest KDA of the week, an impressive 11.5 across two games. Despite this individual accolade and a second-place finish in the 2014 Spring Playoffs, his tenure with TSM ended unexpectedly. He was benched in April 2014 and released in early May. Xpecial initially stated on his stream that his release was due to a passive aggressive attitude, though he later retracted that explanation.

Joining Team Curse and the Birth of Team Liquid

Immediately after his release from TSM, Xpecial joined Team Curse. Before the start of the 2015 Spring Split, the organization merged with Team Liquid and rebranded under the Team Liquid name. The spring season was challenging, with the team cycling through AD carries Keith and Piglet. They finished the regular season with a 9-9 record and secured the sixth playoff seed after a tiebreaker victory over Team 8.

The 2015 Spring Playoffs became a historic moment for the organization. Team Liquid defeated CLG 3-0 in the quarterfinals before a narrow 3-2 loss to Cloud9 in the semifinals. This set up a third-place match against Team Impulse. By winning that series 3-2, Team Liquid finally broke the infamous fourth-place curse, a long-running pattern where the team, previously as Team Curse, had never finished higher than fourth in any playoff event.

A First-Place Finish and Playoff Disappointment

The 2015 Summer Split saw Team Liquid reach new heights in the regular season. They finished the round robin in first place after winning a tiebreaker match over Counter Logic Gaming. This achievement made them the first team other than TSM or Cloud9 to finish first in an NA LCS round robin. However, their playoff run was short, as they lost immediately in the semifinals to TSM. This also made them the first team to finish first in a round robin but fail to reach the playoff finals.

Because CLG won the playoff finals over TSM, Team Liquid did not receive a direct seed to the World Championship via Championship Points. Instead, they entered the regional finals gauntlet. There, they were defeated by Cloud9, who were considered underdogs, which abruptly ended Team Liquid's season and their hopes of reaching the World Championship. Xpecial confirmed his benching and subsequent departure from Team Liquid in September 2015.

Challenger Series and Final Professional Stops

For the 2016 season, Xpecial joined the NA Challenger Series team Apex Gaming. With this squad, he found success by winning the 2016 Spring NA CS, which earned the team promotion to the LCS. Later in 2016, both Apex Gaming and Team Dignitas were acquired by the Philadelphia 76ers. The players from Apex were transferred to the Team Dignitas organization, and Xpecial competed in the 2016 NA LCS Summer regular season under that banner, finishing in sixth place. The team was then eliminated in the first round of the summer playoffs, placing between fifth and sixth.

This period with Apex and Dignitas represented the final chapter of Xpecial's professional playing career. He had briefly played with Cloud9's new Challenger team during his free agency in late 2015, but it did not lead to a permanent position. His career as a player concluded after the 2016 season.

Transition to Coaching

After retiring from play, Xpecial moved into coaching. He began his coaching career at the professional level with Golden Guardians during the 2018 NA LCS Summer Split. He then transitioned to the collegiate esports scene, accepting a full-time position as the varsity League of Legends coach for Harrisburg University in June 2019. In this role, he was responsible for leading the university's official team. He parted ways with Harrisburg University in July 2022, marking the end of his formal involvement in competitive League of Legends structures.

Legacy in North American League of Legends

Xpecial's career spanned the formative years of professional League of Legends in North America. He was active during the transition from independent tournaments to the structured LCS system. Throughout Season 3 and into Season 4, he was widely regarded as one of the best support players in the region, if not the best. His gameplay was noted for its consistency and strategic understanding.

He is remembered for his time with two of North America's major organizations, Team SoloMid and Team Liquid. With TSM, he was part of a roster that collected numerous early tournament wins and an LCS playoff title. With Team Liquid, he was part of the team that finally overcame the organization's long-standing fourth-place hurdle and achieved a first-place regular season finish. His later work as a coach helped apply his professional experience to the development of players at both the LCS and collegiate levels, bridging different tiers of the competitive ecosystem.