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Would Flash be as sucesful if he was zerg or toss?

Forum Index > BW General
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SiarX
Profile Joined December 2021
108 Posts
September 01 2024 18:47 GMT
#1
Or does terran race has the most micro macro potential indeed?
What do you think?
Expensive-Law-9830
Profile Joined April 2024
130 Posts
September 01 2024 19:11 GMT
#2
There is a reason 4/5 bonjwas are terran
M3t4PhYzX
Profile Joined March 2019
Poland4228 Posts
September 01 2024 19:47 GMT
#3
zerg, possible. protoss? no way.
odi profanum vulgus et arceo
Simplistik
Profile Blog Joined November 2007
2094 Posts
Last Edited: 2024-09-01 20:04:50
September 01 2024 20:04 GMT
#4
I kinda doubt it. Not even Jaedong made it to (the perhaps rather arbitrary) Bonjwa level...
Dear BW Gods, it IS now autumn, so...
oxKnu
Profile Joined December 2017
1240 Posts
September 01 2024 22:05 GMT
#5
I think as Zerg he could, but with a worse record.

I think with Protoss he would be the best P of all time but only with a couple of ASLs, a career similar to Rain's but with much better consistency but the only race where he would not dominate the scene/game as a whole, for a significant amount of time.

Protoss would take him longer than Terran to maximize his skill, Zerg much less before he is successful, much longer than both other races before he maxes out.
SiarX
Profile Joined December 2021
108 Posts
Last Edited: 2024-09-01 22:47:38
September 01 2024 22:47 GMT
#6
On September 02 2024 07:05 oxKnu wrote:
I think as Zerg he could, but with a worse record.

I think with Protoss he would be the best P of all time but only with a couple of ASLs, a career similar to Rain's but with much better consistency but the only race where he would not dominate the scene/game as a whole, for a significant amount of time.

Protoss would take him longer than Terran to maximize his skill, Zerg much less before he is successful, much longer than both other races before he maxes out.


Why protoss cannot dominate as a whole, and zerg has worse record?
jinjin5000
Profile Joined May 2010
United States1468 Posts
September 02 2024 02:55 GMT
#7
angry_maia
Profile Joined August 2020
327 Posts
September 02 2024 07:09 GMT
#8
One underrated aspect of Terran is that TvT is by far the lowest variance mirror match-up. Anyone can win or lose in PvP or ZvZ, and this means that if you play P or Z, 1/3 of your match-ups are quite volatile.

Furthermore, I think PvZ is quite volatile as well -- Z can always choose to gamble between 3-hatch hydra, 2-hatch muta, or even a ling bust, which makes it hard to consistently crush Z as P.

I'm not saying T is imba, I"m rather saying that with T, you can more reliably expect the best player to win (at a sufficiently high level).
johnnyh123
Profile Joined February 2023
124 Posts
September 04 2024 06:44 GMT
#9
No I don't think Flash would be as successful if he was a Zerg or Toss. You could argue that the best player will win with any race, but I do think nature/mindset defines you.

Michael Jordan was an amazing basketball player and a great baseball player (yeah his stats sucked as a baseball player, but he was a better baseball player than any of us here on tl.net). If he chose baseball to dedicate his life to, I am 100% sure he will make it into MLB, and might do well, but will in no way be a HoF or the GOAT of baseball.

Flash made the right choice to be Terran, it's what he was meant to be. I'm sure if he choose Zerg/Toss, he will crush any of us here at tl.net, but he wouldn't be the GOAT of SC1.
WombaT
Profile Blog Joined May 2010
Northern Ireland26224 Posts
September 04 2024 08:40 GMT
#10
On September 04 2024 15:44 johnnyh123 wrote:
No I don't think Flash would be as successful if he was a Zerg or Toss. You could argue that the best player will win with any race, but I do think nature/mindset defines you.

Michael Jordan was an amazing basketball player and a great baseball player (yeah his stats sucked as a baseball player, but he was a better baseball player than any of us here on tl.net). If he chose baseball to dedicate his life to, I am 100% sure he will make it into MLB, and might do well, but will in no way be a HoF or the GOAT of baseball.

Flash made the right choice to be Terran, it's what he was meant to be. I'm sure if he choose Zerg/Toss, he will crush any of us here at tl.net, but he wouldn't be the GOAT of SC1.

That’s a great comparison
'You'll always be the cuddly marsupial of my heart, despite the inherent flaws of your ancestry' - Squat
RJBTVYOUTUBE
Profile Joined December 2023
Netherlands1066 Posts
September 04 2024 08:52 GMT
#11
On protoss he would definitely have been succesful. Maybe a little bit less. on zerg definitely not. his carpal tunnel would have been even worse and he would have played much less.
JDON MY SOUL!
Simplistik
Profile Blog Joined November 2007
2094 Posts
September 04 2024 09:23 GMT
#12
On September 02 2024 11:55 jinjin5000 wrote:
https://youtu.be/d7LE1jFd-Yc?si=Us53IH3kK6JWw7bW

What I love most about Flash is his humility.
Dear BW Gods, it IS now autumn, so...
WombaT
Profile Blog Joined May 2010
Northern Ireland26224 Posts
Last Edited: 2024-09-04 09:48:30
September 04 2024 09:48 GMT
#13
Expanding this out, what players actually probably did pick the ‘wrong’ race?

I don’t know a huge amount about BW, more than average Joe and Jane in the street, but fuck all compared to some of you folks so interested to hear your insight

For examples in the inverse, would Clem and Serral be as good if they swapped races? Almost certainly not IMO. Clem has monster micro and quelle surprise does well with the faction that rewards that best. Likewise Serral with his ability to read a game state like no other and playing the defensively reactive faction.

I think most folks tend to gravitate towards what they think is initially cool, and if it really doesn’t suit their approach to the game make a switch. But I mean once you’re a progamer the latter takes on a whole other dimension in importance.

I’m actually surprised that race switching across both games is so comparatively rare
'You'll always be the cuddly marsupial of my heart, despite the inherent flaws of your ancestry' - Squat
Kraekkling
Profile Blog Joined June 2007
582 Posts
September 04 2024 09:52 GMT
#14
People have argued that Terran dominance in broodwar is not due to the fact that Terran is the best race, but people never argued that Zerg or Protoss is the best race.
(*^^)(^*)
Simplistik
Profile Blog Joined November 2007
2094 Posts
September 04 2024 11:03 GMT
#15
If Stork gets out of this with no-carrier PvT's I might call the police.
Dear BW Gods, it IS now autumn, so...
Simplistik
Profile Blog Joined November 2007
2094 Posts
September 04 2024 11:04 GMT
#16
On September 04 2024 18:48 WombaT wrote:
Expanding this out, what players actually probably did pick the ‘wrong’ race?

I don’t know a huge amount about BW, more than average Joe and Jane in the street, but fuck all compared to some of you folks so interested to hear your insight

For examples in the inverse, would Clem and Serral be as good if they swapped races? Almost certainly not IMO. Clem has monster micro and quelle surprise does well with the faction that rewards that best. Likewise Serral with his ability to read a game state like no other and playing the defensively reactive faction.

I think most folks tend to gravitate towards what they think is initially cool, and if it really doesn’t suit their approach to the game make a switch. But I mean once you’re a progamer the latter takes on a whole other dimension in importance.

I’m actually surprised that race switching across both games is so comparatively rare

I suspect a significant factor is who your heroes are. If you got into SC because of Boxer then you'll stick with Terran etc.? There are of course successful players from all races to emulate.
Dear BW Gods, it IS now autumn, so...
Rainalcar
Profile Joined April 2010
Croatia422 Posts
September 04 2024 12:59 GMT
#17
BW is simply slightly imbalanced, but it very much shows on top level. T is ahead because
TvT is far less of a tossup compared to PvP and ZvZ
in TvZ Z has to play almost perfect to survive until defiler, and Z early game cheese is almost non existent (hydra rush, 4/5 pool, lurk all in, ling all in, are all subpar and very rare), while T early game can cripple Z and still transition into normal game, like with a proxy rax
in TvP T is behind by the slightest of margins, if any

On the other hand, P will die to Z ling, muta and specially hydra rushes due to impossibility of scouting, will die to DT rushes, will lose reaver/goon fights here and there, and all in all will never be able to dominate consistently. Similar for Z as it will die to T like nothing sometimes, for example because it didn't defend perfectly vs first drops (which it normally can't scout while T sees everything with scan), or the sunkens or lurkers were 2 seconds late
j.r.r.
Piste
Profile Blog Joined July 2006
6180 Posts
September 04 2024 13:39 GMT
#18
On September 04 2024 18:52 Kraekkling wrote:
People have argued that Terran dominance in broodwar is not due to the fact that Terran is the best race, but people never argued that Zerg or Protoss is the best race.

Who are these people? This is the first time I hear about this :0
TMNT
Profile Joined January 2021
3113 Posts
September 04 2024 13:58 GMT
#19
On September 04 2024 22:39 Piste wrote:
Show nested quote +
On September 04 2024 18:52 Kraekkling wrote:
People have argued that Terran dominance in broodwar is not due to the fact that Terran is the best race, but people never argued that Zerg or Protoss is the best race.

Who are these people? This is the first time I hear about this :0

I think what he means is that there are people who say Terran dominance is not because Terran is the best race. But if that is true, that means either Protoss or Zerg is the best race. But the same people have never said so, effectively contradicting themselves.

Of course said people could also say all 3 races are equal. But that is simply impossible. The fact that they are 3 different races with literally every unit and building being different already confirms there has to be an order of power, no matter how small the margin is.

Now that margin obviously can be overcome with skills, hence we can have things like a pro beating a B ranker with one hand. But at very top when everyone maxes out their skills, so there's less potential to overcome such margin and that's where we see the clearest impact of race power.
Ideas
Profile Blog Joined April 2008
United States8148 Posts
Last Edited: 2024-09-04 14:36:02
September 04 2024 14:35 GMT
#20
On September 02 2024 05:04 Simplistik wrote:
I kinda doubt it. Not even Jaedong made it to (the perhaps rather arbitrary) Bonjwa level...


I think the only thing that stopped JD from being considered a bonjwa was the existence of flash lol. If flash didn't exist JD would have won at least 2-3 more titles and be the most successful progamer ever during the kespa era.
Free Palestine
Biff The Understudy
Profile Blog Joined February 2008
France7928 Posts
September 04 2024 17:57 GMT
#21
On September 02 2024 16:09 angry_maia wrote:
One underrated aspect of Terran is that TvT is by far the lowest variance mirror match-up. Anyone can win or lose in PvP or ZvZ, and this means that if you play P or Z, 1/3 of your match-ups are quite volatile.

Furthermore, I think PvZ is quite volatile as well -- Z can always choose to gamble between 3-hatch hydra, 2-hatch muta, or even a ling bust, which makes it hard to consistently crush Z as P.

I'm not saying T is imba, I"m rather saying that with T, you can more reliably expect the best player to win (at a sufficiently high level).

Jaedong had almost a 90% winrate in ZvZ at his prime. Must have been 2008.

In my mind, Jaedong is absolutely a bonjwa. He and Flash were for very long a clear head above everyone else. And when they were going toe to toe, it was really hard to predict who would win.
The fellow who is out to burn things up is the counterpart of the fool who thinks he can save the world. The world needs neither to be burned up nor to be saved. The world is, we are. Transients, if we buck it; here to stay if we accept it. ~H.Miller
Simplistik
Profile Blog Joined November 2007
2094 Posts
September 04 2024 20:03 GMT
#22
On September 04 2024 23:35 Ideas wrote:
Show nested quote +
On September 02 2024 05:04 Simplistik wrote:
I kinda doubt it. Not even Jaedong made it to (the perhaps rather arbitrary) Bonjwa level...


I think the only thing that stopped JD from being considered a bonjwa was the existence of flash lol. If flash didn't exist JD would have won at least 2-3 more titles and be the most successful progamer ever during the kespa era.

That sounds very plausible. Also Bisu might have picked up another title.
Dear BW Gods, it IS now autumn, so...
BisuDagger
Profile Blog Joined October 2009
Bisutopia19300 Posts
September 04 2024 21:42 GMT
#23
Flash could have been a top 3 Protoss for sure, I’m not as confident he could do the same as Zerg.
ModeratorFormer Afreeca Starleague Caster: http://afreeca.tv/ASL2ENG2
zelevin
Profile Joined January 2012
United States304 Posts
September 04 2024 23:12 GMT
#24
I've been watching a lot of artosis, and i suspect that flash would be BETTER if he was protoss. it sounds like he would be the third or maybe fourth smart player to ever play protoss. (Artosis said that only Rain and snow are smart, but i suspect he would give credit to bisu, not sure.)
Expensive-Law-9830
Profile Joined April 2024
130 Posts
September 04 2024 23:52 GMT
#25
On September 04 2024 22:58 TMNT wrote:
Show nested quote +
On September 04 2024 22:39 Piste wrote:
On September 04 2024 18:52 Kraekkling wrote:
People have argued that Terran dominance in broodwar is not due to the fact that Terran is the best race, but people never argued that Zerg or Protoss is the best race.

Who are these people? This is the first time I hear about this :0


Now that margin obviously can be overcome with skills, hence we can have things like a pro beating a B ranker with one hand. But at very top when everyone maxes out their skills, so there's less potential to overcome such margin and that's where we see the clearest impact of race power.


Why is that 'obvious' that this margin can be overcome with skill?
TMNT
Profile Joined January 2021
3113 Posts
Last Edited: 2024-09-05 00:27:18
September 05 2024 00:26 GMT
#26
On September 05 2024 08:12 zelevin wrote:
I've been watching a lot of artosis, and i suspect that flash would be BETTER if he was protoss. it sounds like he would be the third or maybe fourth smart player to ever play protoss. (Artosis said that only Rain and snow are smart, but i suspect he would give credit to bisu, not sure.)

The 3 Hatch Hydra alone is enough of a reason for Flash to not be better as Protoss. He could even be better than Bisu but he couldn't be better than his Terran version.

That aside, Rain is a bit overrated and is often used by Artosis as an example of a "what if" Protoss bonjwa. It's a way for him to say "Look. Protoss is not weak. They could have had a bonjwa had Rain decided to take the game seriously". Some people do the same thing with Jangbi too.

The best player is always the one on the bench. Truth remains that Rain won two major tournaments off the courtesy of PvP while his PvZ and PvT have never been as good as Bisu and Snow.
RJBTVYOUTUBE
Profile Joined December 2023
Netherlands1066 Posts
Last Edited: 2024-09-05 00:53:08
September 05 2024 00:51 GMT
#27
On September 05 2024 09:26 TMNT wrote:
Show nested quote +
On September 05 2024 08:12 zelevin wrote:
I've been watching a lot of artosis, and i suspect that flash would be BETTER if he was protoss. it sounds like he would be the third or maybe fourth smart player to ever play protoss. (Artosis said that only Rain and snow are smart, but i suspect he would give credit to bisu, not sure.)

The 3 Hatch Hydra alone is enough of a reason for Flash to not be better as Protoss. He could even be better than Bisu but he couldn't be better than his Terran version.

That aside, Rain is a bit overrated and is often used by Artosis as an example of a "what if" Protoss bonjwa. It's a way for him to say "Look. Protoss is not weak. They could have had a bonjwa had Rain decided to take the game seriously". Some people do the same thing with Jangbi too.

The best player is always the one on the bench. Truth remains that Rain won two major tournaments off the courtesy of PvP while his PvZ and PvT have never been as good as Bisu and Snow.


We have to change the metrics. We're having this conversation based off of just two tournaments that happen a year, while ignoring an actual 99% of the pro competition that happens on yearly basis in terms of matches played. In the Kespa Era they didn't base the conversation on just two tournaments. They had way more offline tournaments back then, but do remember, online gaming back then wasn't even 10% as big as it is now. Streaming is big, online gaming is big. We should consider a bunch of the online tournaments and events as viable for the conversation of who is best and who isn't.
JDON MY SOUL!
Severedevil
Profile Blog Joined April 2009
United States4839 Posts
September 05 2024 02:15 GMT
#28
Broodwar is balanced up to the maps. If one faction is disfavored, it's because we've chosen map pools that disfavor that faction.
My strategy is to fork people.
RJBTVYOUTUBE
Profile Joined December 2023
Netherlands1066 Posts
September 05 2024 02:36 GMT
#29
On September 05 2024 11:15 Severedevil wrote:
Broodwar is balanced up to the maps. If one faction is disfavored, it's because we've chosen map pools that disfavor that faction.

this is true. eloboard reflects this well with winrates over larger sample sizes. Current pool seems to be bad for zerg. We are more likely r butdm
JDON MY SOUL!
Biff The Understudy
Profile Blog Joined February 2008
France7928 Posts
Last Edited: 2024-09-05 06:43:30
September 05 2024 06:42 GMT
#30
On September 05 2024 11:15 Severedevil wrote:
Broodwar is balanced up to the maps. If one faction is disfavored, it's because we've chosen map pools that disfavor that faction.

Agree. We talk of balance in a vacuum, while it only makes sense on a given map or set of maps.

In that regard, the game is not balanced, it is balanceable.

In the early days of competitive brood war, we used to play on island maps, maps with no second gas etc. Some matchups were really terrible. It’s only when discovered that Lost Temple had features that balanced the game - such as natural expansion, ramped main, accessible thirds etc… - that a relatively balanced meta emerged.

The other aspect is that the difficulty of each race varies with levels. Protoss is way easier than Terran at D level. But when we talk about elite players, it’s hard to know whether a race dominates because it has bigger talents or because of the map pool. I would love to see statistics at pro level from the Kespa era to now without including Flash for example.
The fellow who is out to burn things up is the counterpart of the fool who thinks he can save the world. The world needs neither to be burned up nor to be saved. The world is, we are. Transients, if we buck it; here to stay if we accept it. ~H.Miller
spets1
Profile Joined November 2009
131 Posts
September 05 2024 13:50 GMT
#31
But in ASL we never have a protoss winner even with changing of map pools. The organizers need to choose protoss favored maps so a protoss can finally win
You were wrong before, what makes you think you're right now
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