EPT
![[image loading]](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41P6XqjIG6L._SL500_AA300_.png)
This is the first image that comes up when you image search, "Darkhorse" on google. Surprisingly it has nothing to do with Katy Perry and is apparently the logo for "Dark Horse Comics" although I don't know what they do. I considered trying to just make the TL logo black but I suck at paint and this was way less work.
This is a 20k blog!
Hello everyone and welcome to the most random/unorganized blog of all time! Because at this point it is expected of me to make a blog once I reach 20k posts and I don't have any good ideas (but rather several thousand really bad ones) this is what we are going to have. You could say this blog is a bit like a box of Chocolates in that you never know what you're going to get, but it is more like a box of chocolate where some things inside are chocolates, some are animal droppings that look like chocolates, some are miniature explosive devices, and one of them is a god damn onion. I expect this will be pretty long and have a lot of stuff covered so I'll do my best to put everything in an organized list spoilered, so that way you can pick what you want to read based on what interests you!
If I had to suggest one thing worth reading, I would suggest the GOAT list in the SC2 section!
Table of Contents
Starcraft 2 Stuff!
+ Show Spoiler +
Smash Stuff!
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Other Games!
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Avatar/Legend of Korra!
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Fitness
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Closing thoughts and SHOUTOUTS YO
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Thanks for reading!
https://twitter.com/TL_Darkhorse :D
Starcraft 2 Stuff!
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This is a GOAT list that I made a couple of months ago! I never edited it or anything so there are probably mistakes but if you are interested in who I think are the 10 best SC2 players of all time feel free to read! Some stats are slightly off considering it has been about two months since this was written.
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As far as playing Starcraft goes, I don't do much of it these days. I played some team games a few nights ago and had fun but other than that I have been busy with other stuff. Still got that 2v2 grudge match with Lichter and DarkLordOlli on the docket so we'll see when that actually happens. If Shellshock and I win, I will do a battle report. If we lose (we're probably going to lose) I will pretend it never happened.
More random Power Ranks? YOU GOT IT GUYS
TOP 10 UNITS IN STARCRAFT II
10. Dark Templar
Otherwise known as "Inca's infantry" these have been ruining the days of bronzies and GM players alike. Besides Inca, notable users include Alicia, Avenge, and Oz.
9. Roooooaaaaccchhhheeessss
I do indeed believe in a thing called roach, and as a TSL fan, I love these things, preferably when dropped from an overlord or sent through a nydus.
8. Siege Tank
Oh siege tank you have saved me from roaches so many times. I still play marine tank in TvZ even though it's not that good, just because I love it when eight siege tank shots hit a ball of banelings.
7. Widow Mines
These are just on here because players at my level don't know how to run their workers away from them quickly enough.
6. Void Rays
They are rage inducing at low levels and the ultimate 4v4 strategy.
5. Medivacs
Thank god these things exist
4. Marines
I remember back in 2010/2011 when it was a funny joke to talk about how marines are the most overpowered unit in the game. People don't really do that anymore.
3. Ultralisks
Now I play Terran, but I still think these things are pretty fuckin cool. They're pretty intimidating to little old me trying to play bio/mine when 6-10 of them are running at me. Just badass.
2. Carriers
If I die to a Protoss player that goes Carriers, I can't even be mad. I salute you.
1.Swarm HostsHellions!
These units essentially exist to allow you to run in and kill 100% of a Gold League Zergs drones who is just trying to go fast 3 hatch like his boy JD. They're flashy, rage inducing, and allow you to come up with some cool analogies.
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Who is the Greatest of all time?
Unbelievably, Starcraft II and its competitive scene are four years old as of July 27th. It’s been an incredible journey since the early days of the game, and it’s hard to believe how far the competitive scene has come since then. You may be thinking, “The game is too young to declare anyone the Greatest of all time!” and you could be right. But I’m going to try to do it anyway. In the grand tradition of power ranks on Teamliquid, this list may or may not upset you. I don’t expect everyone to agree with the rankings of every player on this list. Being the “Greatest of all time” isn’t exactly something you can measure by the numbers. What I have tried to do is create some rational criteria that can be used to rank the players. The criteria I have chosen are:
• Premier Tournament Wins: This is pretty self explanatory. I will include Major Tournament wins if I feel they were significant based on strength of competition.
• Tournament Prestige: Not all Premier Tournaments are created equally, and winning a GSL will obviously get more credit than winning Homestory Cup. This is one of the hardest to quantify, so I will be grading this category on an A-F scale in an attempt to differentiate between the players.
• Overall Earnings: This is pretty self explanatory. It isn’t all about the money, but I have found it to be a pretty good metric for a successful player.
• Period of Dominance: This is a bit tricky to define, but basically what I am looking for here is a period where they were the best player in the world. If there was no such time, I am looking for a time where they revolutionized the game or had some spectacular achievement in the game.
• Longevity: I don’t write up a specific section on this, it is just something I considered when making this ranking. How long has this player been relevant? Are they still relevant?
After going through those categories I will give a summary of why I think each player deserves their ranking. Are you ready to be disappointed in my judgement? Let’s get started!
Disclaimer: There are no foreigners on this list. If you are looking for a Stephano rank 1, you are going to be disappointed.
Honorable Mentions:
RedBull.Bomber
Bomber is one of the most well known and well loved Korean players ever to play the game. However, there is no way I can put him in this top 10. His stock rose dramatically in mid 2013, but in typical Bomber fashion, he fell hard the following GSL season. What really kills Bomber is his lack of tournament wins, as he has a tendency to have long droughts between his victories. For these reasons, I cannot in good conscience put Bomber in the top 10.
SKTT1.Soulkey
I wanted to put one of the players who came into Starcraft II with the KeSPA switch in this top 10 but I couldn’t do it. They haven’t played the game for long enough and therefore haven’t had the same accomplishments. His consistency since switching to Starcraft II gives him some points, but he just hasn’t been around for long enough. Soulkey won a GSL and a WCG, but doesn’t have the volume of wins that is required to make this list.
Acer.Innovation
Innovation falls pretty much into the same category as Soulkey: he hasn’t been around for long enough and he hasn’t won enough to be a part of this list. He won the Season 1 finals last year, but that remains his only Premier tournament win, despite the fact that he has had ample opportunities over the past year at foreign events. Innovation gets a lot of credit for his teamleague superstardom and his period of dominance in early 2013, where he reached one of the highest ELO peaks in Starcraft II history, but there’s no way a player can make this list with only one victory.
Jinair.sOs
Although his wins at IEM and Blizzcon were impressive, he hasn’t won anything else significant. Those two tournaments filled his bank account, but the 100k Toss needs to win a few more to get himself on this top 10.
Now for the top 10.
10. SKTT1.Parting:
![[image loading]](http://wiki.teamliquid.net/starcraft/images2/thumb/2/2b/Parting-SF20130315.jpg/300px-Parting-SF20130315.jpg)
Tournament wins:
• 2012 Battle.net World Championships
• WCG 2012
• Red Bull Battlegrounds New York City
• 2012 MLG Tournament of Champions
Tournament Prestige:
While PartinG never won a GSL, he has been a consistent fixture in the later rounds of the most prestigious tournaments in the world for years now. He has top four finishes in GSL, Blizzard Cup, and this year’s GSL global Championship. He also performs well in the most prestigious teamleague in the world: Proleague. Oh, and he won the world championship in 2012. That is pretty prestigious.
Prestige Grade: B
Overall Earnings: $244,683 (Rank 8)
Period of Dominance:
PartinG has been a strong and consistent force over the past couple of years in Starcraft II, but if I had to narrow it down to one period where PartinG truly shined, it would be in late Wings of Liberty when Protoss players everywhere were struggling with the PvZ matchup. The lategame seemed nearly impossible for Protoss in the matchup, with the infestor/broodlord composition rendering Protoss armies useless and causing serious frustration regarding the state of the game. It was at this time that PartinG perfected what would become one of the most famous builds in Starcraft II history: The Soul Train. PartinG was the most soulful Protoss around, and his immortal sentry push gave Protoss players everywhere hope in the matchup. Perhaps more importantly, it gave PartinG a peak aligulac rating of over 2000 (link aligulac) at a time when the matchup seemed heavily Zerg favored. Like the build or not, but PartinG forever changed the game with his Soul Train, and that cannot be ignored.
Why he is in the top 10:
Bold, confident, and one of the few top players who is excited to bust out ceremonies after victories, PartinG has been a fan favorite since coming onto the scene in earnest around late 2011. With the exception of Maru, PartinG is the only former ESF player to have a successful switch onto a KeSPA team, and PartinG has made the most of his opportunity. People will point to the fact that PartinG has never won a GSL as a reason that he doesn’t deserve this spot, but PartinG has been a top player for two and a half years now, over two games, with two teams, and in all kinds of balance situations. Combine that with his innovative builds, matchup dominance, and immaculate micro, and you have a player worthy of the top 10 Greatest of all time.
9. MarineKingPrime
![[image loading]](http://wiki.teamliquid.net/starcraft/images2/thumb/b/b3/MKP_profile.jpg/300px-MKP_profile.jpg)
Tournament Wins:
• 2012 MLG Winter Arena
• 2012 MLG Winter Championship
Tournament Prestige:
Looking at his list of Premier Tournament wins, one might wonder how MKP made this list. However, you have to take into account that MarineKing was the original Kong, getting second place in three of the early GSL’s: GSL 2 where he lost 3-4 to Nestea, 2011 GSL January where he was swept by Mvp in the final, and the GSL World Championship where Mvp bested him once again 4-2. MKP also made top four at the oh so stacked GSL Super Tournament back in June of 2011. MarineKing never won the big one, but he was damn close.
Prestige Grade: B-
Overall Earnings: $195,928 (Rank 14)
Period of Dominance:
MarineKing’s strongest period was surprisingly not during his run of second place GSL finishes, but rather in early 2012. It is hard to explain, but somehow MKP was so impressive winning those two MLG events that he was widely considered one of the best players in the world at the time if not the best, despite not having much GSL success at the same time. His most important performance at the time was against Startale in the live GSTL Season 1 finals in April, where he was sent out facing a 1-2 deficit. He then proceeded to four kill the strongest members of Startale’s lineup to secure the victory for Prime. MKP might not have been considered so good at the time if not for DRG, which I will get to later, but MarineKing in early 2012 was an opponent that no one wanted to face.
Why he is in the top 10:
How could he not be? His bio micro is legendary, his teamleague performances were clutch, and he was involved in one of the greatest Starcraft II rivalries of all time. Today’s much diminished MKP managed to pull off a decent 10 wins in Proleague this year, which should tell you how strong he was back when he was in form. Call it nostalgia, but MarineKing’s performance in early GSL’s is almost enough to get him on this list by itself. Combine that with his clutch performance in Las Vegas, and MarineKing is undeniably one of the top 10 Greatest of all time.
8. MVP.DongRaeGu
![[image loading]](http://wiki.teamliquid.net/starcraft/images2/thumb/8/8c/DRG_MLGSpAr1.jpg/450px-DRG_MLGSpAr1.jpg)
Tournament Wins:
• 2012 MLG Spring Arena 1
• Arena of Legends: The King of Kongs
• IEM Season VI New York
• 2012 GSL Season 1 Code S
• 2012 MLG Spring Championship
Tournament Prestige:
DRG is our first GSL Champion on the list, and he has a pretty strong list of slightly lower tier tournament wins to back it up. Not much else to talk about here, as DRG’s tournament record speaks for itself.
Prestige Grade: B+
Overall Earnings: $226,137 (Rank 12)
Period of Dominance:
I thought I would use this section to discuss the close relationship between our number nine ranked MarineKing and DRG. Both players were fairly successful in their early careers, as MKP had his GSL silvers and DRG won IEM and was third at two MLG events. However, both players distanced themselves from their competitors in early 2012. It was almost absurd how the two of them rose so dramatically at the same time, and the two wrestled for dominance in multiple events. The two played each other in five Major or Premier finals over the span of about eight months, with MarineKing winning the MLG Winter Arena and Winter Championship and DRG winning the Spring Arena and Spring Championship. Although MKP defeated DRG in three of their five finals clashes, DRG gets the nod over MKP because he was able to translate his status as best in the world at the time into a GSL Championship.
Why he is in the top 10:
If there is one player that has stood the test of time, it is DRG. While others have taken breaks from the game, left Korea for sunnier pastures, or fallen off dramatically, DRG has remained one of the most consistent players around. He is currently sitting on a record 13 straight Code S appearances, and remains one of the best Zerg players in Korea. He may no longer be the best, but his ability to remain competitive with the strongest players in the world after years of play makes him a member of the ten greatest players of all time.
7. Nestea
![[image loading]](http://wiki.teamliquid.net/starcraft/images2/thumb/a/af/NesTeaIPL4.jpg/300px-NesTeaIPL4.jpg)
Tournament Wins:
• 2010 GSL Open Season 2
• 2011 GSL May Code S
• 2011 GSL July Code S
Tournament Prestige:
It doesn’t get much better than this. Nestea was the first player to win three GSL Championships and was considered the best Zerg in the world at the time. Nestea even pulled off one of two undefeated Premier tournament runs in history as he won GSL July without dropping a single map. Pretty impressive stuff.
Prestige Grade: A
Overall Earnings: $277,555 (Rank 4)
Period of Dominance:
There can be no doubt that Nestea was one of the most dominant players to ever touch the game in the early days of Starcraft II. Winning three GSL Championships is absurd, and only one other player has been able to do it, but winning them in the fashion that he did was incredible. Within eight months Nestea had claimed his three titles and was firmly entrenched as the best Zerg player to ever sit in a GSL booth. His run at GSL July, while somewhat benefitting from a forfeit, was incredible, as it is almost unheard of for someone to win a premier tournament without dropping a single map. Two of Nestea’s GSL finals were one sided 4-0 stomps, as Nestea proved just how much better he was than his finals opponent. There can be no doubt that Nestea had one of the highest peaks that any Starcraft II player has ever reached.
Why he is in the top 10:
While I have been using this section to explain why players belong in the top 10 so far, I feel I have to use Nestea’s section to explain why he isn’t ranked any higher. The simple truth of the matter is that Nestea hasn’t won a tournament since July of 2011, meaning he only had victories span about a year before he started to fall off. He has had a smattering of small success at events following his GSL wins, but he just hasn’t looked the same since the throw to end all throws at the Blizzcon Finals against Mvp. Today, he is the weakest active player still on this list and that is why I couldn’t push Nestea any further up the ranking.
Note: Ranks six through four are all so close they are almost interchangeable.
6. Acer.MMA
![[image loading]](http://wiki.teamliquid.net/starcraft/images2/thumb/2/28/MMA_MLG_Ana2011.jpg/563px-MMA_MLG_Ana2011.jpg)
Tournament Wins:
• 2011 MLG Columbus
• 2011 GSL October Code S
• 2011 Blizzard Cup
• IEM Season VI Kiev
• Iron Squid 1
• 2013 WCS Season 3 Europe
Tournament Prestige:
MMA is the first Triple Crown winner of the list, which means he has claimed a Premier title in North America, Europe, and Korea. He was also the first player in the world to achieve this, winning his triple crown four months before MC became the second triple crown winner. MMA has truly had success all around the world and over a long period of time in Starcraft II. His GSL victory over Mvp at Blizzcon in October of 2011 followed up by his win at the stacked Blizzard Cup gives him the credentials to have earned the sixth spot on this list.
Prestige Grade: A-
Overall Earnings: $254,577 (Rank 5)
Period of Dominance:
MMA’s period of dominance was without a doubt in late 2011, and it carried over to some extent into early 2012. MMA had been building momentum throughout 2011 with an MLG Columbus victory and second place finishes at the GSL Super Tournament and MLG Anaheim. He seemed poised to take over the Starcraft II world and in October of 2011 he did just that. He decisively dethroned Mvp with a 4-1 victory in the first GSL Finals to be held outside of Korea, and with that win he became a superstar. Two months later MMA won the Blizzard Cup, beating Mvp once again on his way to the finals and then defeating DongRaeGu in one of the greatest finals Starcraft II had seen up until that point. He continued to win foreign events in 2012 and 2013, but in those few months of late 2011, MMA was on top of the world.
Why he is in the top 10:
Six Premier tournament titles including two large Korean championships is incredible, but what is more incredible is that these championships span a range of over two years, and MMA is still going strong. Just a few months ago in WCS Europe MMA reached the finals for his second consecutive time. The point is that MMA was a champion in Wings of Liberty, and his longevity has made him a legend of Starcraft II. That is why MMA takes number six in this list of the greatest players of all time.
5. CMStorm.Polt
![[image loading]](http://wiki.teamliquid.net/starcraft/images2/thumb/3/38/PoltMLGChampion.jpg/300px-PoltMLGChampion.jpg)
Tournament Wins:
• 2011 GSL Super Tournament
• ASUS ROG Winter 2012
• 2013 MLG Spring Championship
• 2013 WCS America Season 2
• 2013 WCS America Season 3
Tournament Prestige:
Polt, like MMA, has won himself a Triple Crown for winning events in each of the three major regions. While his European and American tournament victories were impressive, they do not really carry as much weight as a GSL. Enter the Super Tournament, where Polt surprised everyone by making a dominant run through the massive bracket and ended up taking home the $93,000 grand prize. Combine that with being King of America two years later and Polt’s tournament career starts to look extremely impressive.
Prestige Grade: B+
Overall Earnings: $294,706 (Rank 3)
Period of Dominance:
The period I want to discuss regarding Polt isn’t so much a period of dominance as a period of “Wow that is impressive”. I’m referring to late 2013 spilling over into 2014 where Polt managed to balance being one of the best players in the world and being a student at a University in Texas. Not only was he unable to get the best practice environment like players in Korea, but he also had the time constraints and pressure of being a student in a foreign country. Polt has said in interviews that he was frequently sleep deprived during the period and didn’t have nearly as much time to practice as in Korea. Somehow, through all of this, inexplicably, Polt didn’t just survive. He thrived. Polt won back to back WCS Championships in his region and an MLG, two full years after he shocked the world by winning the Super Tournament. If that doesn’t impress you, I don’t know what will.
Why he is in the top 10:
Polt has the almost freakish ability to overcome adversity, and he has displayed that several times. As stated earlier, he overcame the obstacles of living in a lower tier region and being a student and maintained his status as one of the best players in the world. His run at IEM Cologne early this year is unsung because he lost in the finals, but Polt managed to beat players like Classic and Rain in Bo5’s during a time when Terran players were struggling in the matchup. Polt has proven that he can overcome any challenge, and that is why he is the fifth greatest Starcraft II player of all time.
4. Startale.Life
![[image loading]](http://wiki.teamliquid.net/starcraft/images2/thumb/e/e0/Life-SFMLG20130316-130848.jpg/250px-Life-SFMLG20130316-130848.jpg)
Tournament Wins:
• 2012 GSL Season 4 Code S
• 2012 MLG Fall Championship
• 2012 GSL Blizzard Cup
• Iron Squid 2
• 2013 MLG Winter Championship
• IEM Season VIII New York
• 2014 Dreamhack Bucharest
Tournament Prestige:
Life was the first player to walk the royal road to a Code S championship. As if that wasn’t enough, he also managed to win the Blizzard Cup shortly thereafter and won possibly the most stacked and competitive MLG event ever at the 2013 MLG Winter Championship. Prestigious wins: check.
Prestige Grade: A
Overall Earnings: $228,110 (Rank 11)
Period of Dominance:
Life’s rise to the top of the Starcraft II world was astonishingly fast, and it all happened in late 2012. Life had been a member of Zenex, and was a player that always looked promising but not necessarily top tier. All of that changed when Life was picked up by Startale and brushed aside all challengers in his first ever Code S to take the championship. Life went on to prove that his win was no fluke, as he took first place at the MLG Fall Championship and at the stacked year end GSL Blizzard Cup. He was even named “Best Rookie” and “Best Zerg” of 2012 at Blizzard Cup following his win. He then went on to reverse sweep DRG in the Iron Squid II Finals, meaning that he became a Triple Crown winner in just three months and six days (he has since completed a second triple crown, making him only the second player to ever do so). To top off this streak of dominance, Life defeated Flash in the grand finals of the 2013 MLG Winter Championship, which gave him his fifth Premier Tournament win in as many months. Ask anyone objectively who the best player during this time period was and they will tell you: Startale Life.
Why he is in the top 10:
Life has had the shortest career of anyone in this top 10, but he is also one of the best on this list right now. He has already won a Dreamhack this year and made the semifinals of GSL 2014 Season 1. For his streak of brilliance a year and a half ago, as well as his continued status as a player who still has a shot at a Code S title, Life earns the number four spot on this list.
3. Liquid`Taeja
![[image loading]](http://wiki.teamliquid.net/starcraft/images2/thumb/a/aa/TaeJaDHBucharest2013.jpg/300px-TaeJaDHBucharest2013.jpg)
Tournament Wins:
• 2012 MLG Summer Arena
• ASUS ROG Summer 2012
• Dreamhack Open Valencia 2012
• Homestory Cup VII
• ASUS ROG Summer 2013
• Dreamhack Open Bucharest 2013
• Homestory Cup VIII
• Dreamhack Open Winter 2013
• Homestory Cup IX
• Dreamhack Open Summer 2014
• IEM Season IX Shenzen
Tournament Prestige:
This is the perennial argument for Taeja not being placed near the top of any sort of power ranking: Taeja has never won a major championship in Korea. This is true, and Taeja being here is certainly a point you can argue, but eleven premier tournament wins is no joke no matter what they are, and Taeja has proven himself to be a monster in weekend events. He hasn’t won the big one, but at some point you just have to respect the trophies.
Prestige Grade: B
Overall Earnings: $234,451 (Rank 9)
Period of Dominance:
The thing about Taeja is that he has been doing the same thing for three years non-stop. He is said to get stronger during the summer months, and he has won seven of his eleven premier tournaments in the summer months, but he has won them during the summers of 2012, 2013, and 2014. You can tell me that he isn’t consistent because he hasn’t won a GSL, but it takes a certain type of consistency to have three straight multi-championship summers in a row. Taeja is also one of the best teamleague ace players of all time, as at this time he has performed 7 all kills (2 GSTL, 2 IPL TAC, 3 ATC).Taeja’s period of dominance can’t be pinned down to one period in time, because Taeja can win whenever and wherever he is.
Why he is in the top 10:
Taeja was one of the original Slayers Terrans, but he always seemed overshadowed by MMA and Ryung. He was given an opportunity with Team Liquid and he took it, becoming first a superstar, then later a legend. Taeja has said that he will be leaving to perform his military service after this year, but he will be remembered as the weekend warrior, the teamleague all star, and one of the top three Starcraft II players of all time.
2. MC
![[image loading]](http://wiki.teamliquid.net/starcraft/images2/thumb/d/d8/Mc-SF20121103-164736.jpg/300px-Mc-SF20121103-164736.jpg)
Tournament Wins:
• 2010 GSL Season 3 Code S
• 2011 GSL March Code S
• Homestory Cup IV
• IEM Season VI World Championship
• Red Bull Battlegrounds: Austin
• 2014 WCS Season 1 Europe
Tournament Prestige:
MC is one of three players to ever win multiple GSL championships, the second player to earn a Triple Crown, and was the first and only Protoss player to win a GSL in its first fourteen events, and that doesn’t even do MC justice. He has also amassed more prize money than any other Starcraft II player, and has placed top four in a jaw dropping twenty-six Premier events. How he manages it we may never know.
Prestige Grade: A
Overall Earnings: $472,564 (Rank 1)
Period of Dominance:
MC’s period of dominance was without a doubt during the earliest days of competitive Starcraft II. He was the only Protoss player who was able to win a GSL in those days, and he did it twice. I could talk more about how impressive it was that he was able to carry his race in such a way, but I would rather talk about what followed that dominance: an ongoing streak of absurd, four year consistency. Twenty six top four finishes in Premier events is ridiculous to even contemplate. MC has won Premier events in every year of Starcraft II’s existence except for 2013, where he was second twice in WCS Europe and top four in three more Premier tournaments. Seeing MC win WCS Europe Season 1 this year was incredible and inspiring, because it showed that you can stay at the top of Starcraft II forever. Well, maybe only if you’re MC.
Why he is in the top 10:
How could he not be? He is a two time GSL champion, the richest Starcraft II player of all time, and one of the most consistent players to ever grace the scene. I am convinced that in the last Starcraft II tournament that is ever run, MC will still be there in the finals, racking up more cash. The Boss Toss has earned his spot on the list and is the second greatest Starcraft II player of all time.
1. IM.Mvp
![[image loading]](http://wiki.teamliquid.net/starcraft/images2/thumb/0/0f/Mvp-SFMLG20130316-204436.jpg/300px-Mvp-SFMLG20130316-204436.jpg)
Tournament Wins:
• 2011 GSL January Code S
• 2011 GSL World Championship
• 2011 MLG Anaheim
• 2011 GSL August Code S
• Blizzcon 2011
• WCG 2011
• 2012 GSL Season 2 Code S
• IEM Season VII Cologne
• 2013 WCS Season 3 Europe
Tournament Prestige:
There isn’t much to say here. Mvp has won four GSLs, Blizzcon, and was the first player to win two Triple Crowns. Overall he has made six GSL finals. I’ll say he has played in some prestigious tournaments, and most of the time, he won.
Prestige Grade: A+
Overall Earnings: $396,831 (Rank 2)
Period of Dominance:
Mvp spent the early portion of 2011 wrestling his teammate Nestea for dominance of the Starcraft II scene in Korea, but by the end of the year he had established himself as the best player in the world. Mvp won three GSLs over the course of the year and reached the finals of another. Just as importantly, Mvp was able to best Nestea in the Blizzcon finals just one night after disappointingly losing the Code S finals, rounding out a year of five premier tournament wins and roughly $200,000 in prize money. If not for his nemesis MMA, Mvp may very well have taken four GSL titles as well as the Blizzard Cup in 2011, but regardless Mvp’s 2011 showed a level of dominance that we have not seen since.
Why he is our rank 1:
Mvp was the King of Wings of Liberty, and that is a title that cannot be disputed. But what makes him the greatest Starcraft II player of all time? To see that, you have to move beyond his 2011 dominance and look at some of his later years. By late 2011 and early 2012, the Starcraft II community was informed that Mvp struggled with wrist issues that could potentially slow his play and at worst end his career. By GSL Season 2 of 2012, Mvp was no longer considered a favorite to win Code S. Apparently no one told the King. He took a loss to Ryung in the Ro32 but still advanced. He took a loss to HerO in the Ro16 but still advanced. The hotshot foreign hero, Naniwa, awaited him in the Ro8. Mvp was unfazed, and he 3-1’d the Swede to continue his improbable run. PartinG was likewise defeated, and Mvp made his fifth final in the GSL. In the finals, he faced another Protoss, Squirtle. Although the game most people remember from the set was a ridiculous archon toilet executed by Squirtle that killed Mvp’s massive battlecruiser fleet, the most important game of the night was of course, game 7. Only a champion pulls out the riskiest build in the books in the final game of the set, and Mvp was certainly a champion. His 2 rax got the better of Squirtle in one of the most tense games we’ve seen in a GSL final, and Mvp claimed his fourth GSL title, a record that will likely not be broken for some time. In Season four of that same year, Mvp overcame his injuries once again to reach the finals. In his path was one of the hottest up and coming players in Starcraft II: SKTT1 Rain, who was coming off stunning victories over two prolific Terrans in Taeja and Polt in the Ro16. But Mvp did what he has always done: overcome. He beat Symbol in the Ro8, then succeeded where Taeja and Polt had failed and defeated Rain 3-2 to make the final. Yes he lost the Final set to Life in a tense 4-3 series, and yes, his sixth GSL final of his career is likely the last he will ever make, but Mvp has this superhuman ability to stay at the top of his game even as his body fails him. Watching him win WCS Europe Season 1 last year, watching him take the then best player in the world Innovation to the final game in a tense Bo5 set at the season finals, watching him earn his spot at Blizzcon years after he had won his first GSL, you can tell that Mvp is a special player. He is the type of player that is one in a million, and he is the Greatest of all time.
Unbelievably, Starcraft II and its competitive scene are four years old as of July 27th. It’s been an incredible journey since the early days of the game, and it’s hard to believe how far the competitive scene has come since then. You may be thinking, “The game is too young to declare anyone the Greatest of all time!” and you could be right. But I’m going to try to do it anyway. In the grand tradition of power ranks on Teamliquid, this list may or may not upset you. I don’t expect everyone to agree with the rankings of every player on this list. Being the “Greatest of all time” isn’t exactly something you can measure by the numbers. What I have tried to do is create some rational criteria that can be used to rank the players. The criteria I have chosen are:
• Premier Tournament Wins: This is pretty self explanatory. I will include Major Tournament wins if I feel they were significant based on strength of competition.
• Tournament Prestige: Not all Premier Tournaments are created equally, and winning a GSL will obviously get more credit than winning Homestory Cup. This is one of the hardest to quantify, so I will be grading this category on an A-F scale in an attempt to differentiate between the players.
• Overall Earnings: This is pretty self explanatory. It isn’t all about the money, but I have found it to be a pretty good metric for a successful player.
• Period of Dominance: This is a bit tricky to define, but basically what I am looking for here is a period where they were the best player in the world. If there was no such time, I am looking for a time where they revolutionized the game or had some spectacular achievement in the game.
• Longevity: I don’t write up a specific section on this, it is just something I considered when making this ranking. How long has this player been relevant? Are they still relevant?
After going through those categories I will give a summary of why I think each player deserves their ranking. Are you ready to be disappointed in my judgement? Let’s get started!
Disclaimer: There are no foreigners on this list. If you are looking for a Stephano rank 1, you are going to be disappointed.
Honorable Mentions:
RedBull.Bomber
Bomber is one of the most well known and well loved Korean players ever to play the game. However, there is no way I can put him in this top 10. His stock rose dramatically in mid 2013, but in typical Bomber fashion, he fell hard the following GSL season. What really kills Bomber is his lack of tournament wins, as he has a tendency to have long droughts between his victories. For these reasons, I cannot in good conscience put Bomber in the top 10.
SKTT1.Soulkey
I wanted to put one of the players who came into Starcraft II with the KeSPA switch in this top 10 but I couldn’t do it. They haven’t played the game for long enough and therefore haven’t had the same accomplishments. His consistency since switching to Starcraft II gives him some points, but he just hasn’t been around for long enough. Soulkey won a GSL and a WCG, but doesn’t have the volume of wins that is required to make this list.
Acer.Innovation
Innovation falls pretty much into the same category as Soulkey: he hasn’t been around for long enough and he hasn’t won enough to be a part of this list. He won the Season 1 finals last year, but that remains his only Premier tournament win, despite the fact that he has had ample opportunities over the past year at foreign events. Innovation gets a lot of credit for his teamleague superstardom and his period of dominance in early 2013, where he reached one of the highest ELO peaks in Starcraft II history, but there’s no way a player can make this list with only one victory.
Jinair.sOs
Although his wins at IEM and Blizzcon were impressive, he hasn’t won anything else significant. Those two tournaments filled his bank account, but the 100k Toss needs to win a few more to get himself on this top 10.
Now for the top 10.
10. SKTT1.Parting:
Tournament wins:
• 2012 Battle.net World Championships
• WCG 2012
• Red Bull Battlegrounds New York City
• 2012 MLG Tournament of Champions
Tournament Prestige:
While PartinG never won a GSL, he has been a consistent fixture in the later rounds of the most prestigious tournaments in the world for years now. He has top four finishes in GSL, Blizzard Cup, and this year’s GSL global Championship. He also performs well in the most prestigious teamleague in the world: Proleague. Oh, and he won the world championship in 2012. That is pretty prestigious.
Prestige Grade: B
Overall Earnings: $244,683 (Rank 8)
Period of Dominance:
PartinG has been a strong and consistent force over the past couple of years in Starcraft II, but if I had to narrow it down to one period where PartinG truly shined, it would be in late Wings of Liberty when Protoss players everywhere were struggling with the PvZ matchup. The lategame seemed nearly impossible for Protoss in the matchup, with the infestor/broodlord composition rendering Protoss armies useless and causing serious frustration regarding the state of the game. It was at this time that PartinG perfected what would become one of the most famous builds in Starcraft II history: The Soul Train. PartinG was the most soulful Protoss around, and his immortal sentry push gave Protoss players everywhere hope in the matchup. Perhaps more importantly, it gave PartinG a peak aligulac rating of over 2000 (link aligulac) at a time when the matchup seemed heavily Zerg favored. Like the build or not, but PartinG forever changed the game with his Soul Train, and that cannot be ignored.
Why he is in the top 10:
Bold, confident, and one of the few top players who is excited to bust out ceremonies after victories, PartinG has been a fan favorite since coming onto the scene in earnest around late 2011. With the exception of Maru, PartinG is the only former ESF player to have a successful switch onto a KeSPA team, and PartinG has made the most of his opportunity. People will point to the fact that PartinG has never won a GSL as a reason that he doesn’t deserve this spot, but PartinG has been a top player for two and a half years now, over two games, with two teams, and in all kinds of balance situations. Combine that with his innovative builds, matchup dominance, and immaculate micro, and you have a player worthy of the top 10 Greatest of all time.
9. MarineKingPrime
Tournament Wins:
• 2012 MLG Winter Arena
• 2012 MLG Winter Championship
Tournament Prestige:
Looking at his list of Premier Tournament wins, one might wonder how MKP made this list. However, you have to take into account that MarineKing was the original Kong, getting second place in three of the early GSL’s: GSL 2 where he lost 3-4 to Nestea, 2011 GSL January where he was swept by Mvp in the final, and the GSL World Championship where Mvp bested him once again 4-2. MKP also made top four at the oh so stacked GSL Super Tournament back in June of 2011. MarineKing never won the big one, but he was damn close.
Prestige Grade: B-
Overall Earnings: $195,928 (Rank 14)
Period of Dominance:
MarineKing’s strongest period was surprisingly not during his run of second place GSL finishes, but rather in early 2012. It is hard to explain, but somehow MKP was so impressive winning those two MLG events that he was widely considered one of the best players in the world at the time if not the best, despite not having much GSL success at the same time. His most important performance at the time was against Startale in the live GSTL Season 1 finals in April, where he was sent out facing a 1-2 deficit. He then proceeded to four kill the strongest members of Startale’s lineup to secure the victory for Prime. MKP might not have been considered so good at the time if not for DRG, which I will get to later, but MarineKing in early 2012 was an opponent that no one wanted to face.
Why he is in the top 10:
How could he not be? His bio micro is legendary, his teamleague performances were clutch, and he was involved in one of the greatest Starcraft II rivalries of all time. Today’s much diminished MKP managed to pull off a decent 10 wins in Proleague this year, which should tell you how strong he was back when he was in form. Call it nostalgia, but MarineKing’s performance in early GSL’s is almost enough to get him on this list by itself. Combine that with his clutch performance in Las Vegas, and MarineKing is undeniably one of the top 10 Greatest of all time.
8. MVP.DongRaeGu
Tournament Wins:
• 2012 MLG Spring Arena 1
• Arena of Legends: The King of Kongs
• IEM Season VI New York
• 2012 GSL Season 1 Code S
• 2012 MLG Spring Championship
Tournament Prestige:
DRG is our first GSL Champion on the list, and he has a pretty strong list of slightly lower tier tournament wins to back it up. Not much else to talk about here, as DRG’s tournament record speaks for itself.
Prestige Grade: B+
Overall Earnings: $226,137 (Rank 12)
Period of Dominance:
I thought I would use this section to discuss the close relationship between our number nine ranked MarineKing and DRG. Both players were fairly successful in their early careers, as MKP had his GSL silvers and DRG won IEM and was third at two MLG events. However, both players distanced themselves from their competitors in early 2012. It was almost absurd how the two of them rose so dramatically at the same time, and the two wrestled for dominance in multiple events. The two played each other in five Major or Premier finals over the span of about eight months, with MarineKing winning the MLG Winter Arena and Winter Championship and DRG winning the Spring Arena and Spring Championship. Although MKP defeated DRG in three of their five finals clashes, DRG gets the nod over MKP because he was able to translate his status as best in the world at the time into a GSL Championship.
Why he is in the top 10:
If there is one player that has stood the test of time, it is DRG. While others have taken breaks from the game, left Korea for sunnier pastures, or fallen off dramatically, DRG has remained one of the most consistent players around. He is currently sitting on a record 13 straight Code S appearances, and remains one of the best Zerg players in Korea. He may no longer be the best, but his ability to remain competitive with the strongest players in the world after years of play makes him a member of the ten greatest players of all time.
7. Nestea
Tournament Wins:
• 2010 GSL Open Season 2
• 2011 GSL May Code S
• 2011 GSL July Code S
Tournament Prestige:
It doesn’t get much better than this. Nestea was the first player to win three GSL Championships and was considered the best Zerg in the world at the time. Nestea even pulled off one of two undefeated Premier tournament runs in history as he won GSL July without dropping a single map. Pretty impressive stuff.
Prestige Grade: A
Overall Earnings: $277,555 (Rank 4)
Period of Dominance:
There can be no doubt that Nestea was one of the most dominant players to ever touch the game in the early days of Starcraft II. Winning three GSL Championships is absurd, and only one other player has been able to do it, but winning them in the fashion that he did was incredible. Within eight months Nestea had claimed his three titles and was firmly entrenched as the best Zerg player to ever sit in a GSL booth. His run at GSL July, while somewhat benefitting from a forfeit, was incredible, as it is almost unheard of for someone to win a premier tournament without dropping a single map. Two of Nestea’s GSL finals were one sided 4-0 stomps, as Nestea proved just how much better he was than his finals opponent. There can be no doubt that Nestea had one of the highest peaks that any Starcraft II player has ever reached.
Why he is in the top 10:
While I have been using this section to explain why players belong in the top 10 so far, I feel I have to use Nestea’s section to explain why he isn’t ranked any higher. The simple truth of the matter is that Nestea hasn’t won a tournament since July of 2011, meaning he only had victories span about a year before he started to fall off. He has had a smattering of small success at events following his GSL wins, but he just hasn’t looked the same since the throw to end all throws at the Blizzcon Finals against Mvp. Today, he is the weakest active player still on this list and that is why I couldn’t push Nestea any further up the ranking.
Note: Ranks six through four are all so close they are almost interchangeable.
6. Acer.MMA
Tournament Wins:
• 2011 MLG Columbus
• 2011 GSL October Code S
• 2011 Blizzard Cup
• IEM Season VI Kiev
• Iron Squid 1
• 2013 WCS Season 3 Europe
Tournament Prestige:
MMA is the first Triple Crown winner of the list, which means he has claimed a Premier title in North America, Europe, and Korea. He was also the first player in the world to achieve this, winning his triple crown four months before MC became the second triple crown winner. MMA has truly had success all around the world and over a long period of time in Starcraft II. His GSL victory over Mvp at Blizzcon in October of 2011 followed up by his win at the stacked Blizzard Cup gives him the credentials to have earned the sixth spot on this list.
Prestige Grade: A-
Overall Earnings: $254,577 (Rank 5)
Period of Dominance:
MMA’s period of dominance was without a doubt in late 2011, and it carried over to some extent into early 2012. MMA had been building momentum throughout 2011 with an MLG Columbus victory and second place finishes at the GSL Super Tournament and MLG Anaheim. He seemed poised to take over the Starcraft II world and in October of 2011 he did just that. He decisively dethroned Mvp with a 4-1 victory in the first GSL Finals to be held outside of Korea, and with that win he became a superstar. Two months later MMA won the Blizzard Cup, beating Mvp once again on his way to the finals and then defeating DongRaeGu in one of the greatest finals Starcraft II had seen up until that point. He continued to win foreign events in 2012 and 2013, but in those few months of late 2011, MMA was on top of the world.
Why he is in the top 10:
Six Premier tournament titles including two large Korean championships is incredible, but what is more incredible is that these championships span a range of over two years, and MMA is still going strong. Just a few months ago in WCS Europe MMA reached the finals for his second consecutive time. The point is that MMA was a champion in Wings of Liberty, and his longevity has made him a legend of Starcraft II. That is why MMA takes number six in this list of the greatest players of all time.
5. CMStorm.Polt
Tournament Wins:
• 2011 GSL Super Tournament
• ASUS ROG Winter 2012
• 2013 MLG Spring Championship
• 2013 WCS America Season 2
• 2013 WCS America Season 3
Tournament Prestige:
Polt, like MMA, has won himself a Triple Crown for winning events in each of the three major regions. While his European and American tournament victories were impressive, they do not really carry as much weight as a GSL. Enter the Super Tournament, where Polt surprised everyone by making a dominant run through the massive bracket and ended up taking home the $93,000 grand prize. Combine that with being King of America two years later and Polt’s tournament career starts to look extremely impressive.
Prestige Grade: B+
Overall Earnings: $294,706 (Rank 3)
Period of Dominance:
The period I want to discuss regarding Polt isn’t so much a period of dominance as a period of “Wow that is impressive”. I’m referring to late 2013 spilling over into 2014 where Polt managed to balance being one of the best players in the world and being a student at a University in Texas. Not only was he unable to get the best practice environment like players in Korea, but he also had the time constraints and pressure of being a student in a foreign country. Polt has said in interviews that he was frequently sleep deprived during the period and didn’t have nearly as much time to practice as in Korea. Somehow, through all of this, inexplicably, Polt didn’t just survive. He thrived. Polt won back to back WCS Championships in his region and an MLG, two full years after he shocked the world by winning the Super Tournament. If that doesn’t impress you, I don’t know what will.
Why he is in the top 10:
Polt has the almost freakish ability to overcome adversity, and he has displayed that several times. As stated earlier, he overcame the obstacles of living in a lower tier region and being a student and maintained his status as one of the best players in the world. His run at IEM Cologne early this year is unsung because he lost in the finals, but Polt managed to beat players like Classic and Rain in Bo5’s during a time when Terran players were struggling in the matchup. Polt has proven that he can overcome any challenge, and that is why he is the fifth greatest Starcraft II player of all time.
4. Startale.Life
Tournament Wins:
• 2012 GSL Season 4 Code S
• 2012 MLG Fall Championship
• 2012 GSL Blizzard Cup
• Iron Squid 2
• 2013 MLG Winter Championship
• IEM Season VIII New York
• 2014 Dreamhack Bucharest
Tournament Prestige:
Life was the first player to walk the royal road to a Code S championship. As if that wasn’t enough, he also managed to win the Blizzard Cup shortly thereafter and won possibly the most stacked and competitive MLG event ever at the 2013 MLG Winter Championship. Prestigious wins: check.
Prestige Grade: A
Overall Earnings: $228,110 (Rank 11)
Period of Dominance:
Life’s rise to the top of the Starcraft II world was astonishingly fast, and it all happened in late 2012. Life had been a member of Zenex, and was a player that always looked promising but not necessarily top tier. All of that changed when Life was picked up by Startale and brushed aside all challengers in his first ever Code S to take the championship. Life went on to prove that his win was no fluke, as he took first place at the MLG Fall Championship and at the stacked year end GSL Blizzard Cup. He was even named “Best Rookie” and “Best Zerg” of 2012 at Blizzard Cup following his win. He then went on to reverse sweep DRG in the Iron Squid II Finals, meaning that he became a Triple Crown winner in just three months and six days (he has since completed a second triple crown, making him only the second player to ever do so). To top off this streak of dominance, Life defeated Flash in the grand finals of the 2013 MLG Winter Championship, which gave him his fifth Premier Tournament win in as many months. Ask anyone objectively who the best player during this time period was and they will tell you: Startale Life.
Why he is in the top 10:
Life has had the shortest career of anyone in this top 10, but he is also one of the best on this list right now. He has already won a Dreamhack this year and made the semifinals of GSL 2014 Season 1. For his streak of brilliance a year and a half ago, as well as his continued status as a player who still has a shot at a Code S title, Life earns the number four spot on this list.
3. Liquid`Taeja
Tournament Wins:
• 2012 MLG Summer Arena
• ASUS ROG Summer 2012
• Dreamhack Open Valencia 2012
• Homestory Cup VII
• ASUS ROG Summer 2013
• Dreamhack Open Bucharest 2013
• Homestory Cup VIII
• Dreamhack Open Winter 2013
• Homestory Cup IX
• Dreamhack Open Summer 2014
• IEM Season IX Shenzen
Tournament Prestige:
This is the perennial argument for Taeja not being placed near the top of any sort of power ranking: Taeja has never won a major championship in Korea. This is true, and Taeja being here is certainly a point you can argue, but eleven premier tournament wins is no joke no matter what they are, and Taeja has proven himself to be a monster in weekend events. He hasn’t won the big one, but at some point you just have to respect the trophies.
Prestige Grade: B
Overall Earnings: $234,451 (Rank 9)
Period of Dominance:
The thing about Taeja is that he has been doing the same thing for three years non-stop. He is said to get stronger during the summer months, and he has won seven of his eleven premier tournaments in the summer months, but he has won them during the summers of 2012, 2013, and 2014. You can tell me that he isn’t consistent because he hasn’t won a GSL, but it takes a certain type of consistency to have three straight multi-championship summers in a row. Taeja is also one of the best teamleague ace players of all time, as at this time he has performed 7 all kills (2 GSTL, 2 IPL TAC, 3 ATC).Taeja’s period of dominance can’t be pinned down to one period in time, because Taeja can win whenever and wherever he is.
Why he is in the top 10:
Taeja was one of the original Slayers Terrans, but he always seemed overshadowed by MMA and Ryung. He was given an opportunity with Team Liquid and he took it, becoming first a superstar, then later a legend. Taeja has said that he will be leaving to perform his military service after this year, but he will be remembered as the weekend warrior, the teamleague all star, and one of the top three Starcraft II players of all time.
2. MC
Tournament Wins:
• 2010 GSL Season 3 Code S
• 2011 GSL March Code S
• Homestory Cup IV
• IEM Season VI World Championship
• Red Bull Battlegrounds: Austin
• 2014 WCS Season 1 Europe
Tournament Prestige:
MC is one of three players to ever win multiple GSL championships, the second player to earn a Triple Crown, and was the first and only Protoss player to win a GSL in its first fourteen events, and that doesn’t even do MC justice. He has also amassed more prize money than any other Starcraft II player, and has placed top four in a jaw dropping twenty-six Premier events. How he manages it we may never know.
Prestige Grade: A
Overall Earnings: $472,564 (Rank 1)
Period of Dominance:
MC’s period of dominance was without a doubt during the earliest days of competitive Starcraft II. He was the only Protoss player who was able to win a GSL in those days, and he did it twice. I could talk more about how impressive it was that he was able to carry his race in such a way, but I would rather talk about what followed that dominance: an ongoing streak of absurd, four year consistency. Twenty six top four finishes in Premier events is ridiculous to even contemplate. MC has won Premier events in every year of Starcraft II’s existence except for 2013, where he was second twice in WCS Europe and top four in three more Premier tournaments. Seeing MC win WCS Europe Season 1 this year was incredible and inspiring, because it showed that you can stay at the top of Starcraft II forever. Well, maybe only if you’re MC.
Why he is in the top 10:
How could he not be? He is a two time GSL champion, the richest Starcraft II player of all time, and one of the most consistent players to ever grace the scene. I am convinced that in the last Starcraft II tournament that is ever run, MC will still be there in the finals, racking up more cash. The Boss Toss has earned his spot on the list and is the second greatest Starcraft II player of all time.
1. IM.Mvp
Tournament Wins:
• 2011 GSL January Code S
• 2011 GSL World Championship
• 2011 MLG Anaheim
• 2011 GSL August Code S
• Blizzcon 2011
• WCG 2011
• 2012 GSL Season 2 Code S
• IEM Season VII Cologne
• 2013 WCS Season 3 Europe
Tournament Prestige:
There isn’t much to say here. Mvp has won four GSLs, Blizzcon, and was the first player to win two Triple Crowns. Overall he has made six GSL finals. I’ll say he has played in some prestigious tournaments, and most of the time, he won.
Prestige Grade: A+
Overall Earnings: $396,831 (Rank 2)
Period of Dominance:
Mvp spent the early portion of 2011 wrestling his teammate Nestea for dominance of the Starcraft II scene in Korea, but by the end of the year he had established himself as the best player in the world. Mvp won three GSLs over the course of the year and reached the finals of another. Just as importantly, Mvp was able to best Nestea in the Blizzcon finals just one night after disappointingly losing the Code S finals, rounding out a year of five premier tournament wins and roughly $200,000 in prize money. If not for his nemesis MMA, Mvp may very well have taken four GSL titles as well as the Blizzard Cup in 2011, but regardless Mvp’s 2011 showed a level of dominance that we have not seen since.
Why he is our rank 1:
Mvp was the King of Wings of Liberty, and that is a title that cannot be disputed. But what makes him the greatest Starcraft II player of all time? To see that, you have to move beyond his 2011 dominance and look at some of his later years. By late 2011 and early 2012, the Starcraft II community was informed that Mvp struggled with wrist issues that could potentially slow his play and at worst end his career. By GSL Season 2 of 2012, Mvp was no longer considered a favorite to win Code S. Apparently no one told the King. He took a loss to Ryung in the Ro32 but still advanced. He took a loss to HerO in the Ro16 but still advanced. The hotshot foreign hero, Naniwa, awaited him in the Ro8. Mvp was unfazed, and he 3-1’d the Swede to continue his improbable run. PartinG was likewise defeated, and Mvp made his fifth final in the GSL. In the finals, he faced another Protoss, Squirtle. Although the game most people remember from the set was a ridiculous archon toilet executed by Squirtle that killed Mvp’s massive battlecruiser fleet, the most important game of the night was of course, game 7. Only a champion pulls out the riskiest build in the books in the final game of the set, and Mvp was certainly a champion. His 2 rax got the better of Squirtle in one of the most tense games we’ve seen in a GSL final, and Mvp claimed his fourth GSL title, a record that will likely not be broken for some time. In Season four of that same year, Mvp overcame his injuries once again to reach the finals. In his path was one of the hottest up and coming players in Starcraft II: SKTT1 Rain, who was coming off stunning victories over two prolific Terrans in Taeja and Polt in the Ro16. But Mvp did what he has always done: overcome. He beat Symbol in the Ro8, then succeeded where Taeja and Polt had failed and defeated Rain 3-2 to make the final. Yes he lost the Final set to Life in a tense 4-3 series, and yes, his sixth GSL final of his career is likely the last he will ever make, but Mvp has this superhuman ability to stay at the top of his game even as his body fails him. Watching him win WCS Europe Season 1 last year, watching him take the then best player in the world Innovation to the final game in a tense Bo5 set at the season finals, watching him earn his spot at Blizzcon years after he had won his first GSL, you can tell that Mvp is a special player. He is the type of player that is one in a million, and he is the Greatest of all time.
As far as playing Starcraft goes, I don't do much of it these days. I played some team games a few nights ago and had fun but other than that I have been busy with other stuff. Still got that 2v2 grudge match with Lichter and DarkLordOlli on the docket so we'll see when that actually happens. If Shellshock and I win, I will do a battle report. If we lose (we're probably going to lose) I will pretend it never happened.
More random Power Ranks? YOU GOT IT GUYS
TOP 10 UNITS IN STARCRAFT II
10. Dark Templar
Otherwise known as "Inca's infantry" these have been ruining the days of bronzies and GM players alike. Besides Inca, notable users include Alicia, Avenge, and Oz.
9. Roooooaaaaccchhhheeessss
I do indeed believe in a thing called roach, and as a TSL fan, I love these things, preferably when dropped from an overlord or sent through a nydus.
8. Siege Tank
Oh siege tank you have saved me from roaches so many times. I still play marine tank in TvZ even though it's not that good, just because I love it when eight siege tank shots hit a ball of banelings.
7. Widow Mines
These are just on here because players at my level don't know how to run their workers away from them quickly enough.
6. Void Rays
They are rage inducing at low levels and the ultimate 4v4 strategy.
5. Medivacs
Thank god these things exist
4. Marines
I remember back in 2010/2011 when it was a funny joke to talk about how marines are the most overpowered unit in the game. People don't really do that anymore.
3. Ultralisks
Now I play Terran, but I still think these things are pretty fuckin cool. They're pretty intimidating to little old me trying to play bio/mine when 6-10 of them are running at me. Just badass.
2. Carriers
If I die to a Protoss player that goes Carriers, I can't even be mad. I salute you.
1.
These units essentially exist to allow you to run in and kill 100% of a Gold League Zergs drones who is just trying to go fast 3 hatch like his boy JD. They're flashy, rage inducing, and allow you to come up with some cool analogies.
Smash Stuff!
+ Show Spoiler +
So I actually talk about Smash quite a bit here and on twitter (shoutouts to @TL_Darkhorse on twitter go follow) and I really enjoy playing the game competitively. I've been trying to get into tournaments ever since Liquid picked up Ken and KDJ and this summer I finally did!
By the way if you don't know much about the Smash scene I suggest you watch the Smash documentary here!
Either way I went to two huge tournaments this summer: SKTAR 3 and Zenith 2014.
SKTAR 3
So I really can pick'em. My first tournament and it's a huge national where 4/5 of the gods of the game were participating. At the time I was trying to be a Captain Falcon main, which is all well and good except you kind of have to be at least slightly good to make Falcon work.
![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/m4voHg1.png)
This was my winner's match. PB&J is a guy who is fairly well known in the Smash community and can often be seen on M2K's stream. He is also a really nice guy who, after double four stocking my falcon with his falco, offered me some helpful advice and was just generally very kind considering he had just obliterated me. On to loser's!
![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/rdYtMXy.png)
So I managed to win a match in loser's by beating a guy who was also in his first tournament (I decided to play sheik this time around). It was a lot of fun because we both knew we were bad but the set was close and it was a good experience. I got crushed by a fox player the next round so that was the end of my tournament!
Zenith 2014
Getting to Zenith was a bit of a pain in the ass considering it's a 2 hour drive from my house plus it's in Brooklyn so parking/driving through traffic is a bit of a chore, but I really enjoyed the tournament more than SKTAR for a number of reasons. 1. I got to play way more friendlies this time 2. The format was you were placed in a pool of 8 people so you got to play 7 tournament matches no matter what and 3. I met up with some TL bros there.
![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/oOZNVI2.jpg)
From left: Peanuts, XXTN, and the tall guy with the weird look on his face is me.
Anyway so I got placed in pool 29, which was a funny pool for several reasons. For one, it had three ice climbers players, which is just strange. Plus it only had one fox! Just weird. Also we ended up actually having 9 players in our pool because there was a bit of a mix up. There were actually two players named "Lemon" and they both thought they were supposed to be in this pool, when in reality one of them was supposed to have already played earlier in the day. They decided the squeeze both of them (hahahahahahaha) into our pool so we had nine players. The funniest moment of the day was when the TO grabbed one of them and said, "Ok dude. Your name is now Lime."
![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/hJKQZoN.png)
So liquipedia doesn't show the actual scores, but I held my own. I beat Tezzerator and Stone Free (Ice climbers and Captain Falcon respectively) in fairly close sets. I found that my Sheik is quite a bit better than my Marth in most situations, but Marth has a much better vs Ice Climbers and vs Puff matchup so I ended up using Marth about half the time in this pool. Nintendude is a well known ICs player who double four stocked me as I tried in vain to play him as Sheik. I think he wobbled me for 7/8 stocks. Very embarrassing but also pretty funny! Admiral was cool she was actually probably only 16 or so but she was another really good ICs player. I really enjoyed playing at Zenith and I hope to do it again next year!
My top 5 Characters!
5. Captain Falcon
![[image loading]](http://img4.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20120802002908/ssb/images/8/83/Captainfalcon.png)
Oh how I wish I could play him effectively. He is the most fun character in the game in my opinion, but he is a lot more difficult to play at my level than some other characters.
4. Peach
![[image loading]](http://cdn.wikimg.net/strategywiki/images/5/5d/SSBM_Portrait_Peach.png)
There aren't a ton of really good Peach players out there outside of Armada, but Peach is actually pretty fun once you can get some combos going. I've never played Peach in a tournament but I've been practicing her a lot so maybe soon!
3. Fox
![[image loading]](http://img4.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20140221203953/ssb/images/0/0f/Foxmeleeclear.png)
Not much to say here. Fox is top of the tier list, but I don't have the tech skill to play him at a really high level yet. Lots of work to do before 20XX
2. Marth
![[image loading]](http://img4.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20130807013101/ssb/images/f/f6/Marth(Clear).png)
I can play Marth fairly well now, and having a decent Marth really saved me at Zenith when I had to play 3 vs ICs matchups and 1 vs Puff.
1. Sheik
![[image loading]](http://fe867b.medialib.glogster.com/media/5f/5fe15cac344e4c325422ebc109e198357cab08f27d8e6f584352a36a051639d5/sheik-character-super-smash-bros-melee-screenshot.jpg)
Sheik is certainly my best Character at this point and is the character I practice the most. I played probably 70% of my tournament matches as Sheik, and she will probably be my main focus going forward in Smash.
Anyways Smash 4 is coming soon and a lot of the community will be switching to that. I can't wait to play it, although I hope that Melee is still played a lot in tournaments.
By the way if you don't know much about the Smash scene I suggest you watch the Smash documentary here!
Either way I went to two huge tournaments this summer: SKTAR 3 and Zenith 2014.
SKTAR 3
So I really can pick'em. My first tournament and it's a huge national where 4/5 of the gods of the game were participating. At the time I was trying to be a Captain Falcon main, which is all well and good except you kind of have to be at least slightly good to make Falcon work.
This was my winner's match. PB&J is a guy who is fairly well known in the Smash community and can often be seen on M2K's stream. He is also a really nice guy who, after double four stocking my falcon with his falco, offered me some helpful advice and was just generally very kind considering he had just obliterated me. On to loser's!
So I managed to win a match in loser's by beating a guy who was also in his first tournament (I decided to play sheik this time around). It was a lot of fun because we both knew we were bad but the set was close and it was a good experience. I got crushed by a fox player the next round so that was the end of my tournament!
Zenith 2014
Getting to Zenith was a bit of a pain in the ass considering it's a 2 hour drive from my house plus it's in Brooklyn so parking/driving through traffic is a bit of a chore, but I really enjoyed the tournament more than SKTAR for a number of reasons. 1. I got to play way more friendlies this time 2. The format was you were placed in a pool of 8 people so you got to play 7 tournament matches no matter what and 3. I met up with some TL bros there.
From left: Peanuts, XXTN, and the tall guy with the weird look on his face is me.
Anyway so I got placed in pool 29, which was a funny pool for several reasons. For one, it had three ice climbers players, which is just strange. Plus it only had one fox! Just weird. Also we ended up actually having 9 players in our pool because there was a bit of a mix up. There were actually two players named "Lemon" and they both thought they were supposed to be in this pool, when in reality one of them was supposed to have already played earlier in the day. They decided the squeeze both of them (hahahahahahaha) into our pool so we had nine players. The funniest moment of the day was when the TO grabbed one of them and said, "Ok dude. Your name is now Lime."
So liquipedia doesn't show the actual scores, but I held my own. I beat Tezzerator and Stone Free (Ice climbers and Captain Falcon respectively) in fairly close sets. I found that my Sheik is quite a bit better than my Marth in most situations, but Marth has a much better vs Ice Climbers and vs Puff matchup so I ended up using Marth about half the time in this pool. Nintendude is a well known ICs player who double four stocked me as I tried in vain to play him as Sheik. I think he wobbled me for 7/8 stocks. Very embarrassing but also pretty funny! Admiral was cool she was actually probably only 16 or so but she was another really good ICs player. I really enjoyed playing at Zenith and I hope to do it again next year!
My top 5 Characters!
5. Captain Falcon
Oh how I wish I could play him effectively. He is the most fun character in the game in my opinion, but he is a lot more difficult to play at my level than some other characters.
4. Peach
There aren't a ton of really good Peach players out there outside of Armada, but Peach is actually pretty fun once you can get some combos going. I've never played Peach in a tournament but I've been practicing her a lot so maybe soon!
3. Fox
Not much to say here. Fox is top of the tier list, but I don't have the tech skill to play him at a really high level yet. Lots of work to do before 20XX
2. Marth
I can play Marth fairly well now, and having a decent Marth really saved me at Zenith when I had to play 3 vs ICs matchups and 1 vs Puff.
1. Sheik
Sheik is certainly my best Character at this point and is the character I practice the most. I played probably 70% of my tournament matches as Sheik, and she will probably be my main focus going forward in Smash.
Anyways Smash 4 is coming soon and a lot of the community will be switching to that. I can't wait to play it, although I hope that Melee is still played a lot in tournaments.
Other Games!
+ Show Spoiler +
Yes it is true. I do play other games on occasion. For a brief couple of weeks I got really into Hearthstone! I think it is an awesome game and I mostly played control warrior and control Druid, although I was missing quite a few cards. (I didn't really want to spend money on the game). After Naxx came out and I didn't feel like paying for it I pretty much stopped playing the game.
I also sometimes play and sometimes spectate a game called League of Legends (I know I know when you're on TL if you mention LoL you are a casual noobie). I barely play ranked (compared to a lot of people. I have played I think ~30 games of ranked this season) so after I got placed in Bronze I that is where I have stayed all season. I will log on and play some teambuilder/ARAM with friends every now and then, and I enjoy it.
Ranking the roles:
5. Mid
I dunno why, but I SUCK at mid. I am decent at farming, but I just can't seem to get the lane down. One of my main problems is that I haven't bought any decent mid champions (oops). With the exception of Kayle, my champion selection for playing mid sucks. That's fine though, because there is never a time when you can't find someone who wants to play mid.
4. Support
I don't actually hate Support nearly as much as I used to. Now that I have Leona/Thresh/Morgana/Annie I can play a good support pretty much no matter what the picks/bans are and it is generally pretty fun. Of course support is much harder in solo que simply because people will rage at you if you don't have literally everything on the map warded (people there are warding limits qq) and in general supporting is much easier if you have voice communication with your ADC.
3. Jungle
This used to be my preferred role but I got pretty bored with jungling. Xin Zhao is still fun because I yell that Mulan song the entire time I play but other than that it is meh most of the time.
2. ADC
ADC isn't something I'm very good at, but I find it fun. For awhile the only ADC I would really play was Graves or sometimes Caitlyn, but I have recently picked up Corki and Tristana and I'm having fun.
1. Top
This was the role that I latched on to for awhile, which is unfortunate because it is super popular and if you end up one of the bottom picks you generally won't get it. I really enjoyed playing Renekton for awhile but now that he isn't as popular anymore Mundo/Ryze/Warwick are fairly fun!
Anyways if you play League and you are a TLer that wants to play feel free to add me! Here is my Lolking profile so you know what kind of shitty play you are getting yourself into!
I also sometimes play and sometimes spectate a game called League of Legends (I know I know when you're on TL if you mention LoL you are a casual noobie). I barely play ranked (compared to a lot of people. I have played I think ~30 games of ranked this season) so after I got placed in Bronze I that is where I have stayed all season. I will log on and play some teambuilder/ARAM with friends every now and then, and I enjoy it.
Ranking the roles:
5. Mid
I dunno why, but I SUCK at mid. I am decent at farming, but I just can't seem to get the lane down. One of my main problems is that I haven't bought any decent mid champions (oops). With the exception of Kayle, my champion selection for playing mid sucks. That's fine though, because there is never a time when you can't find someone who wants to play mid.
4. Support
I don't actually hate Support nearly as much as I used to. Now that I have Leona/Thresh/Morgana/Annie I can play a good support pretty much no matter what the picks/bans are and it is generally pretty fun. Of course support is much harder in solo que simply because people will rage at you if you don't have literally everything on the map warded (people there are warding limits qq) and in general supporting is much easier if you have voice communication with your ADC.
3. Jungle
This used to be my preferred role but I got pretty bored with jungling. Xin Zhao is still fun because I yell that Mulan song the entire time I play but other than that it is meh most of the time.
2. ADC
ADC isn't something I'm very good at, but I find it fun. For awhile the only ADC I would really play was Graves or sometimes Caitlyn, but I have recently picked up Corki and Tristana and I'm having fun.
1. Top
This was the role that I latched on to for awhile, which is unfortunate because it is super popular and if you end up one of the bottom picks you generally won't get it. I really enjoyed playing Renekton for awhile but now that he isn't as popular anymore Mundo/Ryze/Warwick are fairly fun!
Anyways if you play League and you are a TLer that wants to play feel free to add me! Here is my Lolking profile so you know what kind of shitty play you are getting yourself into!
Avatar/Legend of Korra!
+ Show Spoiler +
This section has a bunch of spoilers for both Avatar the Last Airbender and Legend of Korra. If you haven't watched them and plan on doing so in the future (I recommend that you do) then you shouldn't read this section! Go watch the series instead! You have been warned!
So earlier this summer a friend of mine said that I should watch Legend of Korra. When I was younger I enjoyed The Last Airbender so I told him I would give it a shot. I totally forgot about it until monk asked if anyone watched it in the TL writer's skype chat. I decided to marathon through the show and man it was good!
Ranking the Seasons
3. Season two
Wan's story was cool, but I felt like this season got a little strange in the middle. The spirit world had strange things happening, like Korra becoming a child for no apparent reason and weird new animation. Another water tribe villain was meh, and although the whole good vs evil struggle is epic and the ending of this season was more potentially world ending than the others, I didn't really enjoy giant blue Korra fighting giant black Unalaq that much. This season gave us Varrick and Zhu Li so it wasn't all bad.
2. Season three
Zaheer and his gang were pretty legit bad guys, and the order of the Red Lotus could play a bigger part in the next book. I was glad that Tenzin got his time to shine while fighting Zaheer if only for a moment, and Bolin was hilarious this season. The Beifong conflict was fun to me because fuck yeah Toph and her offspring. Overall I thought this season was pretty good, but I wasn't super into the little thief kid who I want to call Aladdin even though I know that's not his name.
1. Season one
The change of setting was awesome, the integration of tech into the previous old school Avatar world was cool, and the plot was interesting. Pro bending was fun to watch as far as fluff goes, and the character development was good in this season. (Love quadrilaterals are interesting). Also Amon was the best villain in the show, combining fears of urban terrorism with weird supernatural powers that aren't explained until late in the season. Blood bending is freaky, and it didn't really have its time to shine in the first series except for that one episode, so I'm glad we got to see a real villain use it this time.
Ranking the Characters
5. Mako
![[image loading]](https://encrypted-tbn1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQnthzPyj2ilGMD3zWFrX7L-pn0lQlZGPxi3k55nDXqE4gKe07NSA)
Mako is a fire bender, which pretty much automatically makes him cool. He's the most practical of the group, is probably the only reason that they beat Amon, and is a serious lady killer, having dated both of the women that are a part of Team Avatar, sometimes simultaneously. Oh, he is also named after the actor who voiced General Iroh in AtLA so that is cool.
4. Korra
![[image loading]](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/d/db/Korra_The_Legend_of_Korra.jpg)
Although she starts out as the whiny teenager in the first season, she matures a lot and becomes a lot more relatable as an epic hero as the show goes on. This girl has been through a lot ok and she is still a pretty decent Avatar despite the fact that she managed to lose her connection to her past lives and at some point lost her ability to bend. She is only the second Avatar to have faced Vaatu so that is a pretty good point on her resume.
3. Lin Beifong
![[image loading]](http://img1.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20120608221629/avatar/images/8/83/Lin_Beifong.png)
She's Toph's daughter so it makes sense that she would be pretty cool. Although she is serious, there are humorous moments with her that I like, like when she is talking about Tenzin dumping her. She's also strong as hell and plays a role in all three seasons.
2. Varrick (and Zhu Li)
![[image loading]](http://img1.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20131116223858/avatar/images/4/48/Varrick_looking_smug.png)
Varrick is in my opinion the funniest character in the show. He's an eccentric billionaire businessman that alternates between helping team Avatar and occasionally getting them thrown in jail. He pops up everywhere in Seasons 2 and 3, and not even being arrested can keep him down. He and his assistant Zhu Li spend their time living in luxury and creating new inventions such as a giant magnetic suit that he for some reason thought he should try at dinner while staying with the metal benders.
1. Bolin
![[image loading]](http://pokupo.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/Bolin.jpg)
Bolin is hilarious and is probably the most relatable character in the show. He is basically Sokka 2.0 and has a little rodent/red panda thing that is basically Momo 2.0. He messes up a lot and makes lame jokes about everything. Somehow he is even more of a lady killer than his brother Mako, seeing as despite the fact that he couldn't get Korra to like him he still gets involved with several girls throughout the show, including a star actress, an evil water bending chick voiced by Aubrey Plaza, and Opal Beifong. Way to go Bolin. Also he's an Earth Bender and can bend lava/metal but that is secondary to his power to create puns.
Avatar the Last Airbender
So naturally after I watched Korra I had to go back and watch the original series! I like AtLA even more than Korra, and if you don't watch it because you think it is a kid show than I encourage you to reconsider!
Ranking the Seasons
3. Season one
Unlike Korra, AtLA took some time to get going. I don't hate Season 1, but it is definitely a little more dry than the show is later on. They have to get the Aang coming out of the ice exposition out of the way, and there is character development to be done, so I'm not surprised it started off slow. The villains in the season are Zuko (who, let's be honest, everyone knew was going to be a good guy come end of show) and Admiral Zhao who got beat by a teenager in an Agne Kai (is that how that is spelled? basically a duel between firebenders) and got embarrassed by Aang in a 1v1 where Aang just dodged his attacks and makes him blow up his own boats. The final confrontation is fairly cool but Aang just goes full Avatar state water monster on them and wins the battle single handedly.
2. Season two
Toph arrives so fuck yeah that happens. There is a lot of other neat stuff that happens this season including the introduction of Azula as a primary antagonist who is actually moderately scary, Zuko trying to assimilate into the Earth nation with his uncle but being cast out by anyone who finds out he is a firebender, and Bumi's riddles. Appa getting lost = sad times and that was a sad scene where Toph was trying to hold up the library and save Appa at the same time. The final confrontation was cool as Zuko was all struggling inside and shit and Aang go messed up pretty badly. Although he did the usual "I am the protagonist so fatal blows aren't really fatal" thing, there was at least an actual consequence as he couldn't reach the avatar state anymore.
1. Season three
I personally am a member of #teamzuko so it's not surprising that I enjoyed this season, as he finally joins Team Avatar and at the end becomes the new Fire Lord. The invasion was dramatic although you knew it couldn't possibly end in them beating Ozai considering they were so few episodes into the season, and I like that there were actual consequences to failure as a lot of their friends were imprisoned after they lost the battle. The final fight was awesome between Zuko and Azula as well as Aang and Ozai, but man did it make me hate Katara when she fukt up Zuko's dominance over Azula by standing too close. Also the order of the White Lotus is baller.
Ranking the Characters
10. Katara
![[image loading]](http://img3.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20130506151649/avatar/images/7/7a/Katara_smiles_at_coronation.png)
Katara barely qualifies as I'm still mad at her for ruining the Zuko vs Azula fight, but she is sort of useful I guess because she can heal people with her water bending. Also she's a blood bender which is bad ass but of course she's a good guy so she won't use it unless absolutely necessary and will feel guilty about it later if she does.
9. Aang
![[image loading]](http://img2.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20121119085519/avatar/images/c/ce/Aang_meditates.png)
He's the title character so he kind of has to be on this list. He's funny at times, obnoxious at others, but at least he is extremely powerful when he needs to be. Right when he needs to be am I right? (I'm talking to you little rock that hits the exact spot to re-activate Aang's avatar state).
8. Momo
![[image loading]](http://img2.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20081225191217/avatar/images/4/43/Inquisitive_Momo.png)
He's a flying fucking Lemur I don't have to explain this one to you.
7. Suki
![[image loading]](http://img3.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20130819094354/avatar/images/1/14/Suki.png)
Suki gets this spot primarily because Lorning said he would riot if she didn't. Also she does some cool things throughout the show. She holds off Azula so Appa can escape and saves Toph from drowning in Season 2, she all but breaks herself out of prison when Sokka shows up in Season 3, and plays a big role in the final confrontation with the fire nation (although she is bad at trash talk).
6. King Bumi
![[image loading]](http://img3.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20140106141303/avatar/images/e/e8/King_Bumi.png)
Crazy old people are funny and Bumi is no exception. His intro into the show is him trolling Aang and making him think his friends are in actual danger when in the end he is just trying to get Aang to recognize him as his childhood friend. He is also a member of the White Lotus and is an extremely powerful earthbender. Winning combination.
5. Sokka
![[image loading]](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/c/cc/Sokka.png)
Sokka is the comic relief character in the show, and although he tries to be a serious warrior, he is generally not too relevant when it comes to the actual hand to hand fighting. His time to shine is generally when he is making the plans or when he randomly chucks his boomerang and ends up beating serious adversaries. Also girls like him. I dunno why his and Suki's relationship didn't get more spotlight, and Zuko's one flaw was when he cock blocked the shit out of Sokka in season 3.
4. Appa
![[image loading]](http://img2.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20140517110636/avatar/images/6/65/Appa_flying.png)
He's a giant fucking flying bison that literally makes everything that happens in the show possible. He quite literally puts the team on his back and carries them to victory throughout the show, and the saddest moments of the show were probably the few episodes where Appa was stolen by the sand benders. Appa's Lost Days /tear.
3. Toph Bei Fong
![[image loading]](http://media.animevice.com/uploads/1/11232/262770-toph_bei_fong__remastered__super.jpg)
If I had to sum up Toph in one sentence, it would be, "Blind 12 year old girl Earthbender that kicks everyone's ass". Toph is incredibly bad ass, and although blindness is a serious condition obviously, it seems funny in the show.
She also has two kids with two different guys that both show up in LoK, and apparently she is still alive somewhere. And did I mention she invented metal bending? Pretty bad ass.
2. General Iroh
![[image loading]](http://img2.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20130626131914/avatar/images/c/c1/Iroh_smiling.png)
General Iroh is the kind, wise, old guy in the show. He is technically the rightful ruler of the Fire Nation, but because he isn't a prick like his younger brother Ozai, he didn't end up becoming the fire lord. He is one of the most powerful benders in the show and is the de facto leader of the Order of the White Lotus. Also when he gets put in prison he decides to get in shape and ends up becoming the most ripped character in the show.
![[image loading]](http://static.comicvine.com/uploads/original/11112/111129725/3670033-buff+ahh+iroh.png)
Basically Iroh is the kind of guy you wish your Uncle would be.
1. Zuko
![[image loading]](http://img1.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20140628142636/avatar/images/4/4b/Zuko.png)
Now I'll be the first to admit I am a shameless Zuko fanboy. I know a lot of people didn't like his voice acting and I didn't think it was the best, but I still love the character. There is a lot more inner turmoil in Zuko than anyone else including Aang, and I find him to be a more interesting personality than the other main characters in the show. I was happy to see that he gets his moment when he finally becomes the fire lord and I was also happy to see that he got a cameo in Legend of Korra!
Sokka-"My first Girlfriend turned into the moon"
Zuko-"That's rough buddy"
Can't wait for Korra book four!
So earlier this summer a friend of mine said that I should watch Legend of Korra. When I was younger I enjoyed The Last Airbender so I told him I would give it a shot. I totally forgot about it until monk asked if anyone watched it in the TL writer's skype chat. I decided to marathon through the show and man it was good!
Ranking the Seasons
3. Season two
Wan's story was cool, but I felt like this season got a little strange in the middle. The spirit world had strange things happening, like Korra becoming a child for no apparent reason and weird new animation. Another water tribe villain was meh, and although the whole good vs evil struggle is epic and the ending of this season was more potentially world ending than the others, I didn't really enjoy giant blue Korra fighting giant black Unalaq that much. This season gave us Varrick and Zhu Li so it wasn't all bad.
2. Season three
Zaheer and his gang were pretty legit bad guys, and the order of the Red Lotus could play a bigger part in the next book. I was glad that Tenzin got his time to shine while fighting Zaheer if only for a moment, and Bolin was hilarious this season. The Beifong conflict was fun to me because fuck yeah Toph and her offspring. Overall I thought this season was pretty good, but I wasn't super into the little thief kid who I want to call Aladdin even though I know that's not his name.
1. Season one
The change of setting was awesome, the integration of tech into the previous old school Avatar world was cool, and the plot was interesting. Pro bending was fun to watch as far as fluff goes, and the character development was good in this season. (Love quadrilaterals are interesting). Also Amon was the best villain in the show, combining fears of urban terrorism with weird supernatural powers that aren't explained until late in the season. Blood bending is freaky, and it didn't really have its time to shine in the first series except for that one episode, so I'm glad we got to see a real villain use it this time.
Ranking the Characters
5. Mako
Mako is a fire bender, which pretty much automatically makes him cool. He's the most practical of the group, is probably the only reason that they beat Amon, and is a serious lady killer, having dated both of the women that are a part of Team Avatar, sometimes simultaneously. Oh, he is also named after the actor who voiced General Iroh in AtLA so that is cool.
4. Korra
Although she starts out as the whiny teenager in the first season, she matures a lot and becomes a lot more relatable as an epic hero as the show goes on. This girl has been through a lot ok and she is still a pretty decent Avatar despite the fact that she managed to lose her connection to her past lives and at some point lost her ability to bend. She is only the second Avatar to have faced Vaatu so that is a pretty good point on her resume.
3. Lin Beifong
She's Toph's daughter so it makes sense that she would be pretty cool. Although she is serious, there are humorous moments with her that I like, like when she is talking about Tenzin dumping her. She's also strong as hell and plays a role in all three seasons.
2. Varrick (and Zhu Li)
Varrick is in my opinion the funniest character in the show. He's an eccentric billionaire businessman that alternates between helping team Avatar and occasionally getting them thrown in jail. He pops up everywhere in Seasons 2 and 3, and not even being arrested can keep him down. He and his assistant Zhu Li spend their time living in luxury and creating new inventions such as a giant magnetic suit that he for some reason thought he should try at dinner while staying with the metal benders.
1. Bolin
Bolin is hilarious and is probably the most relatable character in the show. He is basically Sokka 2.0 and has a little rodent/red panda thing that is basically Momo 2.0. He messes up a lot and makes lame jokes about everything. Somehow he is even more of a lady killer than his brother Mako, seeing as despite the fact that he couldn't get Korra to like him he still gets involved with several girls throughout the show, including a star actress, an evil water bending chick voiced by Aubrey Plaza, and Opal Beifong. Way to go Bolin. Also he's an Earth Bender and can bend lava/metal but that is secondary to his power to create puns.
Avatar the Last Airbender
So naturally after I watched Korra I had to go back and watch the original series! I like AtLA even more than Korra, and if you don't watch it because you think it is a kid show than I encourage you to reconsider!
Ranking the Seasons
3. Season one
Unlike Korra, AtLA took some time to get going. I don't hate Season 1, but it is definitely a little more dry than the show is later on. They have to get the Aang coming out of the ice exposition out of the way, and there is character development to be done, so I'm not surprised it started off slow. The villains in the season are Zuko (who, let's be honest, everyone knew was going to be a good guy come end of show) and Admiral Zhao who got beat by a teenager in an Agne Kai (is that how that is spelled? basically a duel between firebenders) and got embarrassed by Aang in a 1v1 where Aang just dodged his attacks and makes him blow up his own boats. The final confrontation is fairly cool but Aang just goes full Avatar state water monster on them and wins the battle single handedly.
2. Season two
Toph arrives so fuck yeah that happens. There is a lot of other neat stuff that happens this season including the introduction of Azula as a primary antagonist who is actually moderately scary, Zuko trying to assimilate into the Earth nation with his uncle but being cast out by anyone who finds out he is a firebender, and Bumi's riddles. Appa getting lost = sad times and that was a sad scene where Toph was trying to hold up the library and save Appa at the same time. The final confrontation was cool as Zuko was all struggling inside and shit and Aang go messed up pretty badly. Although he did the usual "I am the protagonist so fatal blows aren't really fatal" thing, there was at least an actual consequence as he couldn't reach the avatar state anymore.
1. Season three
I personally am a member of #teamzuko so it's not surprising that I enjoyed this season, as he finally joins Team Avatar and at the end becomes the new Fire Lord. The invasion was dramatic although you knew it couldn't possibly end in them beating Ozai considering they were so few episodes into the season, and I like that there were actual consequences to failure as a lot of their friends were imprisoned after they lost the battle. The final fight was awesome between Zuko and Azula as well as Aang and Ozai, but man did it make me hate Katara when she fukt up Zuko's dominance over Azula by standing too close. Also the order of the White Lotus is baller.
Ranking the Characters
10. Katara
Katara barely qualifies as I'm still mad at her for ruining the Zuko vs Azula fight, but she is sort of useful I guess because she can heal people with her water bending. Also she's a blood bender which is bad ass but of course she's a good guy so she won't use it unless absolutely necessary and will feel guilty about it later if she does.
9. Aang
He's the title character so he kind of has to be on this list. He's funny at times, obnoxious at others, but at least he is extremely powerful when he needs to be. Right when he needs to be am I right? (I'm talking to you little rock that hits the exact spot to re-activate Aang's avatar state).
8. Momo
He's a flying fucking Lemur I don't have to explain this one to you.
7. Suki
Suki gets this spot primarily because Lorning said he would riot if she didn't. Also she does some cool things throughout the show. She holds off Azula so Appa can escape and saves Toph from drowning in Season 2, she all but breaks herself out of prison when Sokka shows up in Season 3, and plays a big role in the final confrontation with the fire nation (although she is bad at trash talk).
6. King Bumi
Crazy old people are funny and Bumi is no exception. His intro into the show is him trolling Aang and making him think his friends are in actual danger when in the end he is just trying to get Aang to recognize him as his childhood friend. He is also a member of the White Lotus and is an extremely powerful earthbender. Winning combination.
5. Sokka
Sokka is the comic relief character in the show, and although he tries to be a serious warrior, he is generally not too relevant when it comes to the actual hand to hand fighting. His time to shine is generally when he is making the plans or when he randomly chucks his boomerang and ends up beating serious adversaries. Also girls like him. I dunno why his and Suki's relationship didn't get more spotlight, and Zuko's one flaw was when he cock blocked the shit out of Sokka in season 3.
4. Appa
He's a giant fucking flying bison that literally makes everything that happens in the show possible. He quite literally puts the team on his back and carries them to victory throughout the show, and the saddest moments of the show were probably the few episodes where Appa was stolen by the sand benders. Appa's Lost Days /tear.
3. Toph Bei Fong
If I had to sum up Toph in one sentence, it would be, "Blind 12 year old girl Earthbender that kicks everyone's ass". Toph is incredibly bad ass, and although blindness is a serious condition obviously, it seems funny in the show.
She also has two kids with two different guys that both show up in LoK, and apparently she is still alive somewhere. And did I mention she invented metal bending? Pretty bad ass.
2. General Iroh
General Iroh is the kind, wise, old guy in the show. He is technically the rightful ruler of the Fire Nation, but because he isn't a prick like his younger brother Ozai, he didn't end up becoming the fire lord. He is one of the most powerful benders in the show and is the de facto leader of the Order of the White Lotus. Also when he gets put in prison he decides to get in shape and ends up becoming the most ripped character in the show.
Basically Iroh is the kind of guy you wish your Uncle would be.
1. Zuko
Now I'll be the first to admit I am a shameless Zuko fanboy. I know a lot of people didn't like his voice acting and I didn't think it was the best, but I still love the character. There is a lot more inner turmoil in Zuko than anyone else including Aang, and I find him to be a more interesting personality than the other main characters in the show. I was happy to see that he gets his moment when he finally becomes the fire lord and I was also happy to see that he got a cameo in Legend of Korra!
Sokka-"My first Girlfriend turned into the moon"
Zuko-"That's rough buddy"
Can't wait for Korra book four!
Fitness
+ Show Spoiler +
So I have been lifting all summer and I think I'm doing fairly well. I have come up to around 230 (intentionally I'm trying to GET SWOLE), and I'm fairly happy with my weight. For one, I am 6'4" so 230 isn't that high. Additionally, I don't think I'm overweight, and I can still run five miles at a 8 minute mile pace. Although a real distance runner would laugh at me about that I feel pretty good about it considering cardio isn't my focus (although I am running a half marathon at the beginning of October just go ahead and kill me now I am not anywhere near ready). Basically I just do a chest/back/shoulders/arms/legs cycle where I take a day off sometimes once a week sometimes once every two weeks.
I did recently have some shoulder pain after a particularly hard shoulders day but I should be ok now. I always mean to post in the fitness/lifting/running/health threads on here but I almost never do. I do read them though and a lot of people there are really helpful and knowledgeable, which helps noobs like me.
I did recently have some shoulder pain after a particularly hard shoulders day but I should be ok now. I always mean to post in the fitness/lifting/running/health threads on here but I almost never do. I do read them though and a lot of people there are really helpful and knowledgeable, which helps noobs like me.
Closing thoughts and SHOUTOUTS YO
+ Show Spoiler +
That will about do it for me. Other than that my life is just boring stuff that you don't want to read in a blog. I am currently working on writing a book in my spare time but that is not even close to being done so that will probably be a blog for another day.If you have any questions about anything in the blog or questions about anything in general feel free to ask them I will most likely answer you quickly enough.
Shoutouts to of course LICHTER the boss of TL writers these days who demands shoutouts in all blogs.
Shoutouts to LORNING who is my TL rival as well as my TL bro who makes LR threads. He and I talked about the AtLA and LoK stuff and we discussed the GOAT list as well.
Shoutouts to SHELLSHOCK for being a good 2v2 teammate even though we still haven't faced our greatest test.
Shoutouts to YORKIE for being a cool guy.
Shoutouts to ZEALOUSLY and DARKLORDOLLI for being cool new site admins/writers/people who talk about SC2.
Shoutouts to GUMBA. This power rank was supposed to be done awhile ago by you so let me help you along.
LR POWER RANK
7. Everyone else (SGTK, KDHH, vult, other people who make LRs, other cool people in LRs like Frostedminiwheats, Undead, DarkPlasmaBall, etc. this counts as your shoutout)
6. GumBa
5. Me
4. stuchiu
3. Shellshock
2. The_Templar
1. Lorning
Shoutouts to NAZGUL I guess for making a cool site and running a cool team.
Shoutouts to RICH for helping me that one time and keeping an awesome site running.
Shoutouts to YOU, dear reader, who is reading this and wondering where your shoutout is. It's right here. This is specifically for you. Not general or all encompassing at all.
Shoutouts to of course LICHTER the boss of TL writers these days who demands shoutouts in all blogs.
Shoutouts to LORNING who is my TL rival as well as my TL bro who makes LR threads. He and I talked about the AtLA and LoK stuff and we discussed the GOAT list as well.
Shoutouts to SHELLSHOCK for being a good 2v2 teammate even though we still haven't faced our greatest test.
Shoutouts to YORKIE for being a cool guy.
Shoutouts to ZEALOUSLY and DARKLORDOLLI for being cool new site admins/writers/people who talk about SC2.
Shoutouts to GUMBA. This power rank was supposed to be done awhile ago by you so let me help you along.
LR POWER RANK
7. Everyone else (SGTK, KDHH, vult, other people who make LRs, other cool people in LRs like Frostedminiwheats, Undead, DarkPlasmaBall, etc. this counts as your shoutout)
6. GumBa
5. Me
4. stuchiu
3. Shellshock
2. The_Templar
1. Lorning
Shoutouts to NAZGUL I guess for making a cool site and running a cool team.
Shoutouts to RICH for helping me that one time and keeping an awesome site running.
Shoutouts to YOU, dear reader, who is reading this and wondering where your shoutout is. It's right here. This is specifically for you. Not general or all encompassing at all.
Thanks for reading!
https://twitter.com/TL_Darkhorse :D
