EPTPROVIDENCE, R.I. -- Col.Naniwa beat IMMvp in 2 to 1 in the MLG Global Invitational semifinals.
In game one on Daybreak, Col.Naniwa opened with a nexus first to IMMvp's one barracks expand. After massing a strong number of marines, IMMvp pushed Col.Naniwa's natural which was defended as Col.Naniwa began his colossus tech.
Col.Naniwa expaned to his third base with three colossus while gathering a group of immortals, zealots and archons, and IMMvp attacked with a flock of vikings over the high ground in front of Naniwa's natural expansion and snagged a kill on a colossus before retreating and taking a fourth and fifth base.
Col.Naniwa swung ahead in upgrades while taking his fifth base in the middle of the map, and IMMvp's one attack and one armor marines, marauders and ghosts could do little to stop Col.Naniwa's three attack, three armor army. After killing off two of IMMvp's mining bases while producing three colossus at a time, Col.Naniwa forced a final engagement to take game one.
IMMvp selected Shattered Temple as the game two map and opened with a two barracks expand. Col.Naniwa's unusual two gateway opening fell victim to IMMvp's early marines and marauders, losing two stalkers and a zealot while retreating from IMMvp's natural expansion.
With high ground micro, and the addition of two more gates, Col.Naniwa held the pressure and began aggression on IMMvp's natural, delaying the completion of a bunker and running up the ramp into the main base. IMMvp held the aggression however, and counter-attacked with a drop in Col.Naniwa's main which he followed up with an attack to the front to win game two.
To break the tie in the series, Col.Naniwa chose Dual Sight as the final match. Opening with two zealots and a sentry, Col.Naniwa pushed across the map to meet up with a four chronoboosted stalkers and delayed IMMvp's expansion while taking his own. After IMMvp forced Col.Naniwa back, Col.Naniwa invested into high templar tech for archons and attempted to take his third which was forced to cancel by IMMvp.
During the mid-game, both player's armies passed by one another undetected and a base race ensued. Naniwa dropped a Nexus at the bottom right expansion, and IMMvp floated his command center to the top gold position. In a last ditch effort to win the game, Col.Naniwa attacked directly into IMMvp's base where the marine, marauder army tried to hold strong against two archons, a pack of zealots and stalkers along with a few sentries whose forcefields gave Col.Naniwa an edge in the fight earning Col.Naniwa a trip to the Global Invitational grand finals against IMNestea.
Thanks for the kind remarks, bbm!
