EPT![[image loading]](/staff/DoctorHelvetica/banners/christmasstork.png)
This is my little pre-christmas contribution to TL. Nothing big just a small article about Stork. I'm have something much bigger for christmas, I just got tired of not writing all week :o
Stork is a player who has been fresh in the minds of progaming fans since his defeat of foru in the 2004 CYON Challenge League finals. Although his individual league attempts in 2005 were short lived, his performance in Proleague was very impressive.His consistent performance in proleague brought Samsung KHAN to the Proleague finals against SK Telecom T1 which they ultimately lost. However, Song Byung Goo didn't disappoint on the PL finals stage. His games against sAviOr and GoRush on Neo Requiem live in infamy. His game against GoRush was actually listed as the number one greatest Proleague game of all time by OGN and for good reason.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FPoMIn8WBHw&feature=player_embedded
#1 PL Game of all-time
#1 PL Game of all-time
For his consistency, adaptive playstyle, and strength in all areas of gameplay Stork was given the nickname "Commander in Chief of No Weaknesses" and dubbed one of the three neo-kings of Protoss along with Pusan and Anytime.
He slumped hard in 2006, not playing well in Proleague and failing to qualify for any Starleagues. However, when 2007 turned the corner, Stork would show very strong performances in the individual leagues. Stork beat Flash 3-0 for the bronze medal in the 2007 Daum OSL and lost a close series against Bisu in the 2007 GOMtv MSL S2.
Stork's strong usage of carriers and reavers in PvT and genius usage of sair-reaver during the era in which Bisu style builds were very popular made him a very fearsome opponent going into 2008. There didn't seem to be a style Stork wasn't comfortable playing and while one particular aspect of his game play didn't stand out on the same level as Iloveoov's macro did, Bisu's multitask, or sAviOr's management; Stork was able to compete with even the strongest gamers in any aspect of play and rarely lost when gaining even a small advantage early on.
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The Commander in Chief- Song Byung Goo
Stork was a bright, friendly, and honest individual. Samsung KHAN has it's share of flashy personalities (Exhibit A: Lee Sung Eun) and Stork is definitely amongst them. Brutally honest in his interviews, Stork has an endearing realness about him that wins fans over. His endearing smile and good sense of humor continues to be one of the most obvious aspects of Mr. Song and now more than ever people have been talking about his personality: particularly his alleged rude comments against Kwanro and china bashing.
As a player, Stork became known for his string of silvers. Indeed, after his MSL silver that he obtained during a 2-3 loss to Bisu, he would receive an OSL silver medal to Jaedong only to get yet another silver medal after being embarrassed by Flash in the 2008 Bacchus OSL.
Flash's revolution of TvP will always be remembered as Stork's failure; his stubborn usage of 2 base reaver into Carriers was absolutely decimated by Flash's ingenious double armory build. But hey, let's cut Stork some slack. There was no protoss in that era who was prepared to take a series from Flash and that was more due to Flash's brilliance than a lack of skill from Stork.
Stork would be called the new YellOw. A player who would tear through group stages like a murderous cyborg and rule the proleague with an iron fist. When it came time for the real pressure, he would crumble apart and fail.
But then there was Incruit '08.
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Hey fantasy, who's the king of silver now bitch?
Incruit 2008 came and Stork showed the world that, yeah, he can win a Starleague final and look damn good doing it. Getting to the quarterfinals of the MSL, winning the finals of the OSL, and earning stunning statistics in Proleague; Stork made the latter part of the 2008 season his bitch.
As though he was satisfied with his accomplishments up to that point, Stork slumped hard yet again. It was a long slump and Stork really struggled in the Starleagues. It was a long time before his play would be up to snuff but his recovery is now in full effect.
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The Commander returns
Stork started off the 09-10 season impressively, getting a 10 game win streak in the month of November, the best of his career. Despite a 4 game loss streak and an elimination from the MSL, Stork has found himself doing well in Proleague and the OSL. He has helped to revive a dying Samsung team and has beaten the likes of Flash in the group stages of the OGN Starleague.
Stork is by far the strongest protoss right now and while his performance isn't as impressive as Flash in terms of statistics, he doesn't have a weak matchup. He's beaten strong zergs in dominant fashion during an era where zerg has been thought invincible against protoss. He showed KaL, Bisu, and BeSt what it means to play PvP and proved he's the best in the world. He schooled Flash on Heartbreak Ridge and he doesn't look any weaker in PvT than he should be.
Stork fans are having a great time this season. So let's hope when we wake up on Christmas morning and load up those OSL VOD's that we see Stork put an end to Shine's little killing spree.
Merry Christmas Stork fans, the commander is back.
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