Battle Report: The First of Many

The Dark Horse who defies expectations against one of the ladder's best players seeking redemption for his failings in brood war. Will it be inauguration or downpour? This is GSL Open Season Three; this is MC vs Rain!

Previous Reports:
Fruitdealer vs Rainbow
Set One: Delta Quadrant
Set Two: Lost Temple
Set Three: Kulas Ravine
Set Four: Desert Oasis
Set Five: Scrap Station
FoxeR vs NesTea
Set One: Shakuras Plateau
Set Two: Lost Temple
Set Three: Scrap Station
Set Four: Jungle Basin
Set Five:Steppes of War
Set Six: Xel'Naga Caverns
Set Seven: Metalopolis

MC; the first of many protoss knights in the finals of the GSL.

Set One: Delta Quadrant

MC spawns in the 1 o'clock position; Rain spawns cross-map in the 7 o'clock position. The positions don't favour Rain; he wants close spawns so that he can start piling on the aggression with every unit in the game. But Rain's tricks are known to MC and he comes prepared.

One probe to scout it all.

MC scouts after pylon, taking a radically early scout to make sure he knows what Rain is doing. He doesn't want to fall victim to the same tricks that took out his contemporaries.

Meanwhile, Rain's SCV is jiving like a boss back at home.

Rain walls the ramp with a rax while MC grabs a gateway. So far, everything is standard. Rain throws down a cheeky gas but it's quickly scouted by the MC probe. MC gets his own gas and a core, but Rain returns the favour by slipping his party SCV into MC's main and scouting a second gas.

There is no hiding from Party SCV.

With a zealot out for MC and a marine out for Rain, the scouting phase of the game is coming to an end. Rain drops a reactor for his barracks and starts pumping out marines. MC scouts but loses his probe.

First probe sacrifice to Rain.

Rain is teching up to a factory and gets a bunker at the front to defend against stalker pokes. MC is going for a sentry, seemingly playing safe, but he's about to show that he has even more tricks up his sleeve than Rain.

Stargate for MC; rallied straight to Rain's base!

Rain, not to be outdone, starts pumping out tanks and grabs a second barracks, gearing up for a big early game marine/tank push across the map. MC is out on the map with his gateway units as they await the arrival of the void ray, and MC sends another probe up Rain's ramp.

Second probe sacrifice to Rain.

It dies, but not before getting a proxy pylon up nearby to facilitate MC's deadly push. MC starts pumping out stalkers to help his void ray, but a third rax for Rain helps give him a strong core of marines. Is MC's micro up to the task of this attack?

Avengers Assemble! Stalker and Void Ray, unite!

Rain has a couple of tanks now to zone back the protoss forces, but MC begins to abuse the terrain of the map to attack Rain's wall-off. With no way to get close to the void rays, Rain sacrifices his reactor and depot while he buys for time.

This ramp is now property of Jang Min Chul.

Rain pulls SCVs to defend but he can't get up a second bunker thanks to great targeting by MC's void ray. The marines start coming to the front lines and MC is forced to back up by the overwhelming numbers of Rain's ground army. At home, MC is busy transitioning into a robo and a second base.

Take that, rocks! This is MC town!

Rain builds a viking to get some control in the sky, and it looks like he's beginning to build up for his attack with a handful of tanks and loads of marines.

Time for Rain to show MC what a real one base attack looks like!

MC scouts the push out with a phoenix and prepares himself at home, pumping out phoenixes for air dominance, immortals to kill the tanks and a small militia of gateway units to move command into enemy lines. Rain pushes out with a couple of SCVs and starts setting up a massive staging point at the bottom of MC's ramp.

Tanks, bunkers, marines; Rain's got everything a girl could want.

MC is desperately trying to stall for time to get out a bigger army with his stronger economy, but Rain wants to push the issue. He's moving up the ramp with tanks now and MC is beginning to panic.

Ah, screw it, let's run into the siege line.

MC slightly bungles the attack and takes massive damage on his units, but he keeps control of the high ground. Rain is still streaming units straight across the map, but MC has a large phoenix count now and he uses it to deny vikings and medivacs from Rain. Swinging round onto the map, he starts picking up reinforcements and he executes a tank.

One less tank for Casa Rain.

Rain manages to snipe the stargate with some suave micro from the tanks and a rogue viking, but MC already has a high phoenix count and he's ready to deal with Rain's reinforced position. The phoenixes zip in and lift a flank of siege tanks, providing ample time for MC's immortals to smash down the door.

Knock, knock.

Countless innocent gateway units die, but the bunkers get crushed and MC's stalker immortal is pitted against Rain's marine count. With overwhelming numbers and a dash of micro, Rain takes out the immortals and it looks like the battle might shift again. However, a handful of hero stalkers from MC appear to save the day and close out the attack from Rain.

These stalkers are the sole survivors of the apocalypse.

MC immediately starts a robotics bay as a follow-up and even throws down a second robo for double colossus production. Rain is stuck on one base so he decides to do what he does best; all-in again!

If at first you don't succeed...

...die to immortal/stalker.

MC ambushes Rain's second attack mid-map before the tanks have time to siege, crushing the marine force quickly and taking out the last few troops as they flee. With no army to attack and no economy to fall back on, Rain GGs.

GG! MC 1-0 Rain.

Rain opens the series with the same tricks he used to get to the finals, but it's not enough for the Protoss superstar. MC uses some stylish phoenix control and tactical decision-making to take game 1 of the finals. Will he be as successful at taking apart Rain's other tricks or does the dark horse have something else in store? To Be Continued...

Battle Report: The First of Many

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