M5 World Championship: It's ONIC time

With M5 on the way, we break down each team entering the tournament, starting with ONIC Esports – the Kings of Indonesia.

ONIC Esports is one of those teams that has been at the forefront of Mobile Legends: Bang Bang for some time, and in recent years, their domination has been unprecedented. With three consecutive victories in the Mobile Legends Professional League in Indonesia, the team seems to be on a warpath to take the M-Series title away from the Philippines – who have now held onto it for three iterations. With a powerhouse team that features some of the best players in the world, their M5 World Championship challenge is at its peak.

The team

Muhammad Satrya “BUTSSS” Sanubari
SANZ
Calvin “CW” Winata
Kairi “Kairi” Ygnacio Rayosdelsol
Nicky “Kiboy” Fernando
Albert Neilsen “ALBERTTT” Iskandar

ONIC has no less than three MPL ID championship titles under the belt of each and every one of their players, and that is not even mentioning some of their Mobile Legends Southeast Asia Cup titles. Between the six players, there are 22 MPL titles, including the most recent Season 12 – which brought them to the M5 World Championship. On paper, this team is beyond incredible, and they have been an unstoppable force for some time – but the M-Series seems to be their vulnerability.

The M-Series

While ONIC may have a magnificent lineup, with every player having participated in at least three M-Series events, the one thing that has eluded them is the vital title. It has not been since M1, all the way back in 2019, when an ID team even made it through to the grand finals with two teams (EVOS Legends and Rex Regum Qeon) – but ONIC is looking to break that streak finally. However, if teams can find their way to overcome the force of the Yellow Porcupines and use the Kryptonite of M5 against them, ONIC may see some struggles.

The formula

ONIC’s biggest strength is not just a single player, but the entire squad, which is fairly obvious when you look at it. However, the inclusion of Kairi has made them into an unrelenting force, as one of the best junglers in the world brought his PH experience into ID and took them back to the top. If CW gets a comfortable start, ONIC can steamroll just about any opponent, plus SANZ having transitioned back into his original Season 1 middle lane position is proving perfect. All-in-all, ONIC does feel as though they are finally ready to take on the world – but in MLBB, anything can happen.

At the end of the day, ONIC seems to be one of the biggest and best challengers heading into the M5 World Championship, and with a group of teams without a huge arsenal behind them, the ID squad can get themselves of to a great start. The team will begin their M5 campaign by taking on Bigetron Sons on December 2nd, 2023, with Triple Esports and SeeYouSoon waiting in the wings to give it their best against the Yellow Porcupines.