The Guangzhou Charge officially added off-tank player Hyung-seok "Bischu" "Aaron" Kim and tank Joona "Fragi" Laine on Wednesday ahead of the start of Stage 4 of the Overwatch League next week.
The changes come ahead of a new meta in Stage 4 after the expansion team failed to reach the playoffs in each of the first three stages.
Fragi was acquired from the Philadelphia Fusion last week in exchange for DPS player Finley "Kyb" Adisi. Both players are expected to see playing time in the rumored 2-2-2 role lock after being on the bench for their former teams.
Fragi will provide a second tank for the Charge alongside Seung-pyo "Rio" Oh, while Kyb will replace Simon "snillo" Ekstrom for the Fusion, who is in Korea with Fusion University. One concern for Fragi is how quickly the Finnish player can acclimate to the Charge's mostly Korean roster.
The Charge also sent an undisclosed amount of cash to the Los Angeles Gladiators in exchange for Bischu, who helped the team finish fourth in the OWL's inaugural season last year. However, he dealt with some health issues earlier this season and has seen his playing time reduced.
"As of today, I am no longer with the LA Gladiators," Bischu wrote in a Twitter post. "Luckily I'm unaffected by the ex-Glads curse of retirement, so I'll be playing for the Guangzhou Charge now, woo! I think the most painful thing for any professional player is not being able to play, since you can only improve so much by watching instead of practicing with the team. So despite all the sadness and goodbyes, I'm super excited for this new opportunity with Guangzhou. There's only one stage left, but I'm going to give it 110%. You could say I've been Charging my energy on the bench for this moment :^)
"But I'm not going to lie, leaving really sucks. I love the Gladiators. The staff, the coaches, and the players are all incredibly talented. It has been an honor to play and work with everyone. For so long, we basically were -- and are -- the home team, and it's thanks not only to our efforts, but to our dedicated and passionate fans. I'm extremely grateful for all of you. Thank you.
"A long time ago, Dpei sent me an article about "glue guys" written by former NBA player Shane Battier, who ended up being the inspiration behind my jersey number (31). In order to be the glue guy, both in and out of game I worked hard at translating, connecting my teammates, maintaining my health, and improving my teamwork skills, on top of my own gameplay. It was tough, but at the end of the day I believe going through all those challenges made me into a better player as well as a better and stronger person overall. I can't wait to bring everything I've learned to the Charge now!
"Initially this twitlonger was very long and a little emotional but I'll end it now by saying I will truly cherish everything I've experienced and learned while I was a Gladiator. I couldn't have asked for a better team to begin my Overwatch League career with. Shields Up, always."
--Field Level Media