German League of Legends pro player Noway4u slams fellow streamer TFBlade for using an “intentionally downranked” account for his content.
TFBlade, one of the biggest League of Legends streamers on Twitch and a former Esports player, found himself in the middle of a brewing controversy after a fellow streamer and LoL figure called him out for using a “deboosted iron account” for content.
In his post on X, the No Need Orga (formerly Ad Hoc Gaming)’s Mid-laner, Noway4u, has raised some valid questions about TFBlade’s use of a smurf account. He has questioned the necessity of such a move, particularly given TFBlade’s skill level.
To further his point, Noway4u has even attached Riot Games’ recently re-issued statement about their rules on using smurf accounts, adding more weight to his argument.
Riot Games stands firm in its position to ban players using an account not on the same rank as their actual skill level (whether it be boosted or under-ranked). The company stated that using ELO-manipulated accounts harms the integrity of the ranked system and is a bannable offense.
The screenshot attached to Noway4u’s post shows that TFBlade absolutely decimated his opponents in his “fake” rank, with perfect KDA ratios reaching 20 kills without any death.
League of Legends fans and players agree that Riot Games should stand true to their sanctions, even for a streamer as popular as TFBlade. As of writing, TFBlade has 1.3 million followers on his official Twitch account.
This is not the first time that TFBlade has been embroiled in a League of Legends controversy. The streamer was formerly booted out of the League Partner Program after not “meeting necessary improvements” amid repeated bans for on-stream behavior.
However, some fans doubt TFBlade will get more than a “slap on the wrist.” Given Riot Games’ history of “coddling” their biggest content creators, even for those who committed bannable offenses, some members of the LoL community expect nothing but a statement from the popular streamer.
Some fans chose to find humor in the situation and point out the irony of TFBlade’s smurf account. The said account’s in-game name, Humility is Key, is opposite to the act of smurfing in Iron rank when you’re a pro player.
Both Riot Games and TFBlade have yet to issue a statement addressing the situation.