hello! tysm for enjoying my writing <3 and YEAH T1 FIGHTINGGGG AAAAAAAA
essential t1 fics... hoo boy. im sorta gonna base this off the most kudo-ed t1 fics, so in NO PARTICULAR ORDER:
1. The optimal state of happiness by twilightemperor; this was one of the fics that got me into the t1 fic fandom and has faker's most iconic pairing, which is fakenut. also secret agent au x t1? YES!! the players are mostly from the skt days, tho, so keep that in mind.
2. head in the clouds by screamtail; this one is SO GOOD. it's the t1 fic with the most kudos (only one in 200s range), so that kinda speaks for itself. one of the most iconic gumakeria fics istg and guma is such a lovable himbo in that one hafhdjk
3. we just need some time together by gwenisimmune; holy shit this one is good. gumakeria, angst, fluff, slow burn, you name it! it's amazingly written and so so so good dsfhlksahfkjd keria is so angsty in this one and incredibly nuanced and flawed and real and AAAAAA-
4. all my love - gwenisimmune; god if you want found family zofgk + bengi and onerzeus... stuffed with angst, fluff, hurt, comfort, trauma, self-love, plot twists, etc... READ THIS FIC OMFG. the fic is teeming with so much love it's practically bursting at the seams.
5. someday both of us are leaving here by livikattt; this is actually part of a large lol esports au this author cals "ppau" and omfg it slays. it's all platonic so it's good if you're not into shipping and the au has multiple different teams. this particular fic is centered around gumakeria and t1 and man oh man i LOVE summoner aus and the ppau is one of the best. THE RUINATION ARC IS SO BANGER!! read the ruination arc of ppau even if you only know t1 bc the t1 parts are HEARTWRENCHING. READ IT READ IT READ IT
6. Precession of the Equinoxes by Space_Axolotl; i'm actually never getting over this one. chapter 2 especially is SO FUCKING BANGER bc it's such gorgeous prose abt zofgk and faker's legacy and shining stars... read it if you haven't already!
7. deep blue (but you painted me golden) by frostfang; another fakenut fic with one of the most tragic time loops but god is it good and it's a happy ending so! so good and deeply moving <3
8. lights will guide you home by eloboosting; this one is a bit of a guilty pleasure for me but if you like faker, bengi, and the "marriage buff", you'll like this fic. their dynamic is written so well! BENGIIII I MISS YOU AAAAAA
9. play it cool by screamtail; THIS ONE IS SO FUCKING FUNNY??? this fic is basically "fellas is it gay to practice kissing with ur homie". enough said (oh and it's onerzeus).
10. In which T1 accidentally summons the Unkillable Demon King by ginger_owl; didn't want to include my own fic in here but it has lots of kudos (TYTY TYSM READERS AAAAAA) and lots of ppl tell me they like it, so! i contemplated replacing this one with the faker in runeterra one, but that's mostly just faker shenanigans and not really t1, yk?
sheesh this is a long list. i had to battle the urge to stick some of my personal fav fics onto this list, but i think these are all musts for t1 fans! ty for the fun question <3