Could an admin add "Day 1" to the thread title? It'll be confusing to navigate the LR threads for the playoffs without this, unless somone just combines day 1 and day 2 into one thread.
On July 18 2009 02:20 p4NDemik wrote: Could an admin add "Day 1" to the thread title? It'll be confusing to navigate the LR threads for the playoffs without this, unless somone just combines day 1 and day 2 into one thread.
Ah, didn't think about that.
Can someone edit the title to "[SPL] Playoffs - Hite Sparkyz vs CJ Entus Day 1"? Thanks~
On July 18 2009 03:03 TheNessman wrote: How come according to the TL calendar it is saturday the 18th, meaning this match is tonight, but when i look at my google calendar it is the 17th.
also yesterday was thursday so i dont think it is saturday. I AM SO CONFUSED.
TL Calendar runs on Korean Time. Korea is 13 hrs ahead of the US Eastern Time. However, If you click on an event in the calendar it will show you if an event is on the date before in EST or PST. It will also show you how much time is left until the event starts.
I think CJ has more ways to win, but it's very close. I could see sKyHigh beating Leta, Movie beating Horang2 or even sAviOr beating type-b, while Hite could conceivably have Yarnc defeat EffOrt, or maybe Kwanro implode against Justin. But the breaks are more likely to fall CJ's way here.
The best match-up of the night is obviously sKyHigh v. Leta, but I find Movie v. Horang2 more interesting; I have no idea what both players will come out with, Movie can be brilliant (v. fantasy), or terrible (v. Killer). Horang2 is the master of cheese. This'll be a good one.
Something about Cj's players remind me of the bad guys in any kind of teen movie. Effort looks like a ninja, movie is a cigar smoking bad ass, iris is a big bully, savior is the leader obviously. haha
On July 18 2009 08:49 alexpnd wrote: Something about Cj's players remind me of the bad guys in any kind of teen movie. Effort looks like a ninja, movie is a cigar smoking bad ass, iris is a big bully, savior is the leader obviously. haha
i think CJ can very well 4-0 this but there is a chance it will go like this i think.
go.go > iris (maybe)
horang > movie (maybe)
yarnc < effort
justin < kwanro
leta > skyhigh
type-b < savior
leta < effort
* but if iris or movie don't drop a game or skyhigh can pull one over leta CJ can have this pretty easily and the chance are if go.go and horang dont win one in the first 2 this might be 4-0'd unless yarnc can upset again
On July 18 2009 08:49 alexpnd wrote: Something about Cj's players remind me of the bad guys in any kind of teen movie. Effort looks like a ninja, movie is a cigar smoking bad ass, iris is a big bully, savior is the leader obviously. haha
The numbers inside parenthesis represent the player's record for the last 5 games played against the opponent's race in (W-L) format. The numbers between the above statistic represent the players' head to head record.
The man who knocked Bisu out of the OSL versus the man who 2-0ed the man who could have kept Bisu in the OSL... That got confusing. Frankly, I haven't seen the best TvT from go.go lately. His win against Hwasin was a pure build order win, and he posted losses against fantasy and Flash that should be expected. I'm not exactly sure what to think of go.go at the moment. However, when I watch Iris's TvT, he definitely looks pretty solid in the match up. Not S level, but not A level either. His TvT is something to look out for.
Frankly, the pure numbers here are misleading. Movie's PvP isn't really bad, it's just that he gets tossed up (Pun fully intended) against all the good Protoss players. Horang2 is the opposite. He gets matched up against the okay Protoss players. The only good Protoss player he's faced lately is Kal, who he lost against. It's damn hard to make any sort of prediction here.
Now this will be one hell of a ZvZ. These two have had a varying record, with EffOrt most recently coming out on top against Yarnc in the OSL. However, Yarnc did beat Jaedong afterward, but conspiracy theories are about on whether JD did that to keep Flash out of the OSL... Anyway, EffOrt's recent achievements are nothing to be scoffed at. He beat Jaedong in a Bo3 in JvZ in the Gom classic. A feat that... Well has only happened before once in the WCG 2007 Qualifiers against July. I wouldn't count Yarnc either player out though. This is ZvZ after all. There are no guarantees.
Lol Kwanro + Macro Map = Dead Kwanro. All Justin has been doing in the Minor League is play on God's Garden. Then again, Kwanro showed us on Outsider that he can beat Flash straight up (kind of). Kwanro 2-1ed Flash out of the MSL, and beat up Leta and Shine to boot. Justin has beaten.. Umm... No one really significant.
Yes that's right, sKyHigh has beaten Leta before. Neither of these players really need an introduction, and I'm not going to give one. Just one tidbit of information. Although Skyhigh's play has been a little inconsistent recently, he's 2-0 against fantasy, whereas Leta is 0-3 against fantasy. Perhaps skyhigh's style counters fantasy, or Leta's style just sucks against fantasy... Who knows...
I'm not impressed with either of these player's ZvZ. Frankly, both really just are subpar in this match up. Despite type-b's recent record, I can't say that those games were against the best of players. savior recently got Hyuked and HoeJJaed, so I can't say that he's been getting matched up against good ZvZ players.
(T)go.go < Neo Harmony > (T)Iris - go.go has been pretty hot lately as has Iris. Both have recently beaten Hwasin and have been sharpening their TvT for the individual leagues but go.go is 3-0 on Neo Harmony and Iris is 1-1. It's definitely close but I give go.go the edge cause I hate FBH but enjoy some bm for time to time and go.go gives that to me in tolerable doses. (P)Horang2 < Destination > (P)Movie - Horang2 is pretty damn good at PvP and he's beaten Movie recently, coupled with the fact that Movie's been put on the B team this pick is pretty easy (Z)YellOw[ArnC] < Heartbreak Ridge > (Z)EffOrt - EffOrt has the obvious edge but I think out of all the match's tonight, this ones the closest. When it comes down to it, they've both beaten Jaedong recently but ultimately neither are Jaedong; it's still ZvZ and we'll just have to wait and see (T)Justin < Andromeda > (Z)Kwanro - Well Andromeda is T>Z but beyond that Justin has very little going in his favor, Kwanro just recently + Show Spoiler +
and the general tread in the proscene recently has been Z>T (T)Leta < Shades of Twilight > (T)sKyHigh - sKyHigh is pretty good at TvT, I'll give him that, but frankly Leta is better. sKyHigh is clutch (recalling wl finals still makes me ill T.T) but Leta is the Ace match bownja. Also I hate sKyHigh, easy pick. (Z)type-b < Neo Medusa > (Z)sAviOr - sAviOr weakest mu is his ZvZ and type-b's is unproven... but type-b is awesome and I have no fan boyish love for sAviOr left in me
Iris Horang2 Effort (though Yarnc has at least a 30% chance of winning) Justin Leta v Skyhigh is the real tossup. Both are peaking in their TvT elo's. Type-b>Savior.
Go.go. putting up his third and fourth facts. Iris raiding go.go's main with vults. Vults destroying SCVs like mad. Mines going up at facts. Two vults still up. CC going up for Iris at nat. Vults score a TON of SCV kills. More vults follow up into Go.Go's main.
If Movie wins, he gets his acne cream back, as apparently the CJ team has been withholding it from him as a punishment for poor play. Poor kid looks like his skin-care level is critical too.
On July 18 2009 13:25 The Storyteller wrote: Tough build order fight though, to be fair
2 add-ons rape :D
that was actually a massive build order win for gogo pure vulture vs pure vulture and a humongous econ advantage with a 3 marine bunker. had he just kept the marines in the bunker the game was over.
On July 18 2009 13:39 Roffles wrote: Observatory for both players. Movie scouting all over for proxies. Horang surprisingly playing standard so far.
The cheese makes people paranoid so when Horang2 does play standard it's like a new strategy. Though Horang2 hasn't been cheesing much really so not surprised.
Horang also looking to take 8 oclock. Nothing really happening at the moment, just armies moving around the minimap looking to establish position to engage.
Movie was lacking storms in that battle though. Another scuffle outside 10 oclock. Horang just has too many units. Looks like 10 oclock might also go down.
Horang 1a2a3aing across the nat bridges. Storms going off on bridges for Movie, but his econ is shattered. Archons and zeals rolling in. Should be GG anytime soon.
Looked to me like Horang had many more storms in that big engagement in the middle, plus he seemed to have reinforcements faster. Horang's reinforcing temps came too late to make a difference.
Movie is still really raw. His decision making and timings are kinda off. Then again, Kwanro took years before he became halfway decent, so there's hope yet.
On July 18 2009 13:58 FireGuyX wrote: Movie looked terrible, this is the same guy that's 3-3 against Jaedong and kicked By.Hero out of the MSL?
It's sure a good thing that Horang2 plays zerg.
classic reply, rofl
We don't know if movie's pvp is weakest or not, he's still relatively new. He beat some A and S level opponents like Jaedong and By.Hero, so I did expect a better performance from him.
On July 18 2009 13:58 FireGuyX wrote: Movie looked terrible, this is the same guy that's 3-3 against Jaedong and kicked By.Hero out of the MSL?
It's sure a good thing that Horang2 plays zerg.
classic reply, rofl
We don't know if movie's pvp is weakest or not, he's still relatively new, even though he turned pro two years ago. He beat some A and S level opponents like Jaedong and By.Hero, so I did expect a better performance from him.
I think you underestimate Horang2. He is really good and desti is his map
On July 18 2009 14:14 Neos wrote: Doesnt sound like a good reason to pause the game, Disqualification maybe?
Lagging at an important part of the game which could change the outcome... sounds important to me. Although i dont see how he would prove he lagged unless someone was watching his screen.
Interesting. I'm always curious what they will do about these. People seem to get so angry... it's something different anyways. I agree that I hope its not 45 minutes of course.
13:23 konadora : ok kespa referee explaining 13:23 konadora : effort's personal mouse got problem 13:24 konadora : effort's mouse problem is player's personal issue 13:24 konadora : so effort is given warning 13:24 konadora : and game will restart
On July 18 2009 14:25 The Storyteller wrote: Oh, yes, your mouse problem is your personal issue. You have to fix it while playing instead of pausing the game next time, okay? Okay. let's go.
You get bonus points for alt-tabbing, browsing to a porn site and squeezing one off during the match
On July 18 2009 14:27 BlackMagister wrote: Wait did the game restart or was unpaused? I didn't catch the start. If so that means Effort has badly split drones?
Speed done for Effort. Didn't see on Yarncs. Speed done for Yarnc. No spire going up. Yarnc loses ling engagement in mid. But he has two hatches and has a small window to do some damage.
effort lets yarnac in through his choke? but then makes up for it by raping yarnac's lings yarnac has spores building effort has not many drones compared to yarnac effort loses overlord to spore colony
2 things. Is yarnc effort's kryptonite? Also, everyone who has paused and had the game restarted for some reason has lost the game recently.. Maybe having a bored opponent is really bad.
That was a great ZvZ by Effort, I don't think you can take anything away from him yet. But it shows that he's not at JD's level yet. But he is the closest anyone's ever been, and I wouldn't be too surprised if his ZvZ gets even better than JD's.
Nah, that's pretty common in ZvZ. YarnC's economy never fell behind Effort's. So it's not like it was a great comeback or anything. A good fight from Effort, though!
I think Yarnc's first ling attack did a lot more damage than it seemed and by the time Effort took out Yarnc's natural Yarnc was able to make way more muta/scourage than Effort.
1 moment to say that Esports rules: I watched lots of football when I was younger with my Dad, and friends, and it was really really fun... But this is 100% as exciting, and I think far more mentally involved. Not to mention, wacthing shit blow up is really cool.
Oh, there's the lair. SCV dies in Kwanro's base. Three hatch for Kwanro, Justin has nat CC up and running. Looking to add barracks and stuff. Hey lookie, it's a dead OL.
Two facts forced to lift. Wow Leta fails to Break the contain. Skyhigh moving in with his remaining units. SCVS are pulled from the nat. Lots of SCV casualties from Leta.
i love how skyhigh just refused to cancel that cc even though it was super low lol. and it didn't even get killed because of his constant reinforcements hahah
What was that build? A no-tank build on a map with lowered mains seems really silly. It doesn't even accomplish much - what did Leta think a 4 Goliath drop would have really done?
On July 18 2009 15:26 jello24 wrote: wtf is up with that BM command center...? did leta bm skyhigh before or something?
Skyhigh probably just wanted to tell leta to gtfo his terran.
The command center made the path for leta's vultures a little longer, exposing them to more tank fire. Really amazing, actually.
But it could've also been retaliation for the goliath drop which, last time I checked, didn't work against D- players.
EDIT (post below): Isn't a CC larger than an e-bay? I mean, could've been the first thing he thought of. Maybe he was hoping it'd have more health. Dunno
Honestly, I think he's one of those players who might benefit from "becoming BM". It's been said that confidence has been an issue for him (which WL seemed to change a lot for) and that he's the best player in CJ internally. If a BM Skyhigh becomes even more badass, I'm all for it.
On July 18 2009 15:30 darktreb wrote: Skyhigh making a statement.
Honestly, I think he's one of those players who might benefit from "becoming BM". It's been said that confidence has been an issue for him (which WL seemed to change a lot for) and that he's the best player in CJ internally. If a BM Skyhigh becomes even more badass, I'm all for it.
There are so many opportunities for jokes about why CJ traded for Idra in this.
On July 18 2009 15:25 PoP wrote: Didn't think Skyhigh was such an ass. That was totally unnecessary.
I disagree, that was a really well-coached move. Hear me out:
Against a player that had no chance to play in the ace match, that would've been a jerk move, sure... but leta is guaranteed to be sent out for ace. AND skyhigh plays him next match too. Leta will prepare like hell because of his embarrassment tonight, but now he will also play with a little fear -- if skyhigh gains an advantage, there will be a little niggling voice in the back of his head: "Oh no, not again."
BMing when he won was one of the smartest things skyhigh could've done.
On July 18 2009 15:30 darktreb wrote: Skyhigh making a statement.
Honestly, I think he's one of those players who might benefit from "becoming BM". It's been said that confidence has been an issue for him (which WL seemed to change a lot for) and that he's the best player in CJ internally. If a BM Skyhigh becomes even more badass, I'm all for it.
There are so many opportunities for jokes about why CJ traded for Idra in this.
Idra been teaching Skyhigh a thing or two about being bm?
On July 18 2009 15:30 darktreb wrote: Skyhigh making a statement.
Honestly, I think he's one of those players who might benefit from "becoming BM". It's been said that confidence has been an issue for him (which WL seemed to change a lot for) and that he's the best player in CJ internally. If a BM Skyhigh becomes even more badass, I'm all for it.
There are so many opportunities for jokes about why CJ traded for Idra in this.
Idra been teaching Skyhigh a thing or two about being bm?
I actually don't think so, because Idra doesn't seem to be BM unless he's losing.
On July 18 2009 15:30 darktreb wrote: Skyhigh making a statement.
Honestly, I think he's one of those players who might benefit from "becoming BM". It's been said that confidence has been an issue for him (which WL seemed to change a lot for) and that he's the best player in CJ internally. If a BM Skyhigh becomes even more badass, I'm all for it.
There are so many opportunities for jokes about why CJ traded for Idra in this.
Hahah you're right. Skyhigh has been Idra's BM practice partner before this playoff
On July 18 2009 15:25 PoP wrote: Didn't think Skyhigh was such an ass. That was totally unnecessary.
I disagree, that was a really well-coached move. Hear me out:
Against a player that had no chance to play in the ace match, that would've been a jerk move, sure... but leta is guaranteed to be sent out for ace. AND skyhigh plays him next match too. Leta will prepare like hell because of his embarrassment tonight, but now he will also play with a little fear -- if skyhigh gains an advantage, there will be a little niggling voice in the back of his head: "Oh no, not again."
BMing when he won was one of the smartest things skyhigh could've done.
So everyone should do these things all the time during bo series as well?
I don't mind when someone like go.go does it, but seriously I wouldn't like everyone starting to do these kinds of things (however "psychologically thought-out" they might be). That would totally suck for a professional game.
On July 18 2009 15:25 PoP wrote: Didn't think Skyhigh was such an ass. That was totally unnecessary.
I disagree, that was a really well-coached move. Hear me out:
Against a player that had no chance to play in the ace match, that would've been a jerk move, sure... but leta is guaranteed to be sent out for ace. AND skyhigh plays him next match too. Leta will prepare like hell because of his embarrassment tonight, but now he will also play with a little fear -- if skyhigh gains an advantage, there will be a little niggling voice in the back of his head: "Oh no, not again."
BMing when he won was one of the smartest things skyhigh could've done.
So everyone should do these things all the time during bo series as well?
I don't mind when someone like go.go does it, but seriously I wouldn't like everyone starting to do these kinds of things (however "psychologically thought-out" they might be). That would totally suck for a professional game.
its the best thing to do in a box read what July said about his finals
On July 18 2009 15:25 PoP wrote: Didn't think Skyhigh was such an ass. That was totally unnecessary.
I disagree, that was a really well-coached move. Hear me out:
Against a player that had no chance to play in the ace match, that would've been a jerk move, sure... but leta is guaranteed to be sent out for ace. AND skyhigh plays him next match too. Leta will prepare like hell because of his embarrassment tonight, but now he will also play with a little fear -- if skyhigh gains an advantage, there will be a little niggling voice in the back of his head: "Oh no, not again."
BMing when he won was one of the smartest things skyhigh could've done.
So everyone should do these things all the time during bo series as well?
I don't mind when someone like go.go does it, but seriously I wouldn't like everyone starting to do these kinds of things (however "psychologically thought-out" they might be). That would totally suck for a professional game.
its the best thing to do in a box read what July said about his finals
This kind of things always happen
It's to intimidate the opponent and be psychologically ahead of that player the next time they meet.
Like go.go's CCs, Flash's d-matrix on Magma's overlords, stuff like that.
On July 18 2009 15:34 konadora wrote: Wow all you people talking about 'Skyhigh being BM' and flaming
Have you watched Boxer nuking Nal_ra when Nal_ra had 2 bases against Boxer's entire map?
People didn't say that was BM
Nal_rA had been refusing to GG for a long time and Boxer wanted to have some fun. Making a CC is not really fun spectator-wise on the contrary ('amusing' at most), nor was Leta exaggeratedly drawing out the game at that point.
On July 18 2009 15:25 PoP wrote: Didn't think Skyhigh was such an ass. That was totally unnecessary.
I disagree, that was a really well-coached move. Hear me out:
Against a player that had no chance to play in the ace match, that would've been a jerk move, sure... but leta is guaranteed to be sent out for ace. AND skyhigh plays him next match too. Leta will prepare like hell because of his embarrassment tonight, but now he will also play with a little fear -- if skyhigh gains an advantage, there will be a little niggling voice in the back of his head: "Oh no, not again."
BMing when he won was one of the smartest things skyhigh could've done.
So everyone should do these things all the time during bo series as well?
I don't mind when someone like go.go does it, but seriously I wouldn't like everyone starting to do these kinds of things (however "psychologically thought-out" they might be). That would totally suck for a professional game.
I certainly wasn't suggesting that people always be "BM". But in a BoX series I would certainly include psychological warfare as a factor, and that includes embarrassing opponents when you win.
The way I see it it's just part of the game. If everyone did it, the metagame would evolve and it'd just be standard... right now it only succeeds in embarrassing the opponent because it's out of the ordinary. Why would it suck?
On July 18 2009 15:25 PoP wrote: Didn't think Skyhigh was such an ass. That was totally unnecessary.
I disagree, that was a really well-coached move. Hear me out:
Against a player that had no chance to play in the ace match, that would've been a jerk move, sure... but leta is guaranteed to be sent out for ace. AND skyhigh plays him next match too. Leta will prepare like hell because of his embarrassment tonight, but now he will also play with a little fear -- if skyhigh gains an advantage, there will be a little niggling voice in the back of his head: "Oh no, not again."
BMing when he won was one of the smartest things skyhigh could've done.
So everyone should do these things all the time during bo series as well?
I don't mind when someone like go.go does it, but seriously I wouldn't like everyone starting to do these kinds of things (however "psychologically thought-out" they might be). That would totally suck for a professional game.
I certainly wasn't suggesting that people always be "BM". But in a BoX series I would certainly include psychological warfare as a factor, and that includes embarrassing opponents when you win.
The way I see it it's just part of the game. If everyone did it, the metagame would evolve and it'd just be standard... right now it only succeeds in embarrassing the opponent because it's out of the ordinary. Why would it suck?
Exactly. It's just a declaration by Skyhigh, saying "CJ owns your butt anytime. Fear us the next time we meet, I'll pwn you again"
Ladedah, my stream lags and looks like Savior has to pull out again after unsuccessfully breaking. Scourge snipe each other. Type-B sneaking lings into main of Savior.
On July 18 2009 15:43 integral wrote: I certainly wasn't suggesting that people always be "BM". But in a BoX series I would certainly include psychological warfare as a factor, and that includes embarrassing opponents when you win.
Well then at least embarass him with something a little bit useful game-wise? Infesting CC's seems perfectly fine to me for instance. It's embarassing, yet useful therefore not 100% BM.
The way I see it it's just part of the game. If everyone did it, the metagame would evolve and it'd just be standard... right now it only succeeds in embarrassing the opponent because it's out of the ordinary. Why would it suck?
Because that's not what people want to see in a (e-)sport. At least not from half the players.
Type B not mining from main, but Savior only has one drone mining mins. Needs to tap out. And indeed he does. Type-B jumps out of his seat in pure joy after he wins.
Effort prepared ZvZ on a map he's played multiple ZvZs on lately against a player he's played multiple ZvZs against lately. In theory he might be a good choice, but this is Colosseum.
On July 18 2009 15:59 29 fps wrote: and yarnc's reason for picking his username is pretty bad. (he idolized hong jin ho yellow, so he copied his name).
On July 18 2009 15:43 integral wrote: I certainly wasn't suggesting that people always be "BM". But in a BoX series I would certainly include psychological warfare as a factor, and that includes embarrassing opponents when you win.
Well then at least embarass him with something a little bit useful game-wise? Infesting CC's seems perfectly fine to me for instance. It's embarassing, yet useful therefore not 100% BM.
The way I see it it's just part of the game. If everyone did it, the metagame would evolve and it'd just be standard... right now it only succeeds in embarrassing the opponent because it's out of the ordinary. Why would it suck?
Because that's not what people want to see in a (e-)sport. At least not from half the players.
I think that's your personal preference. Plus all that stuff about psychological warfare could be completely off, I don't know their personal relationship -- for example, go.go did an offensive cc against bisu and they're best friends. BM? sort of, but in the same way that I trashtalk with my friends on bnet.
I for one like seeing in-game ceremonies, it gives players personality and makes for memorable games. When I first started watching proleague, every game was interesting... but the more I watch, the more the games all run together. The way I see it, a player putting a signature or a tag on a game can only add to the experience, not take away from it.
On July 18 2009 15:59 29 fps wrote: and yarnc's reason for picking his username is pretty bad. (he idolized hong jin ho yellow, so he copied his name).
funny story behind this;
2004 sky proleague, kor vs ktf and yellow was faced against yellow[arnc] both players entered the game with YellOw, both were confused, so they got out. KOR_YellOw vs KTF_YellOw was both of their names in the end ;p
On July 18 2009 15:59 29 fps wrote: and yarnc's reason for picking his username is pretty bad. (he idolized hong jin ho yellow, so he copied his name).
How is this a bad reason for picking the name? In fact I think that's a great reason to choose your user name.
On July 18 2009 15:59 29 fps wrote: and yarnc's reason for picking his username is pretty bad. (he idolized hong jin ho yellow, so he copied his name).
funny story behind this;
2004 sky proleague, kor vs ktf and yellow was faced against yellow[arnc] both players entered the game with YellOw, both were confused, so they got out. KOR_YellOw vs KTF_YellOw was both of their names in the end ;p
My guess is that movie has been training for the Ace. They had to be ready for this. And... Leta must have been on TvT most of the week... so hopefully coaching will win this. I have faith.
Yup GTR and Kona. Coach Cho is so good at playing his players the right cards. CJ has so many ace cards. The most recent was when people were bitching about Kwanro being sent out as the ace vs Stars. Guess what. Kwanrolledddddddddddd. MOVIE DO IT!
On July 18 2009 16:01 JIJIyO wrote: In coach Cho we trust. Never doubt this man's decisions.
hell yeh. i shat my pants when he decided to send DARKELF against Sea in the semi-final playoff three seasons ago. then he won and cj went wild.
DarkElf was the Monty Hall stud back then. Baller.
actually in like the first set (i think), darkelf lost to sea on monty hall.
then in the ace match on python, cj sends out darkelf and mbc send out sea.
darkelf does some awesome 1fac 1star while sea goes 1fac cc and the rest is history.
Oh wups, confused that for a bit. But damn DarkElf back then was pretty reliable for a stretch run during the playoffs and was pretty awesome on Monty Hall.
On July 18 2009 15:54 JIJIyO wrote: Savior stop breaking my heart man. I can't take it anymore. Hyuk and Type-b? Come on man =(
Yeah, don't lose to that scrub in the OSL quarter finals!
... type-b isn't bad. He's just new not very well known. He's taken down Pure, BeSt, Stork and Backho lately.
He's shown promise here and there. But still, Savior losing to these 'mediocre' guys is saddening. I still believe. I mean I believed during his darkest days, this is just a bump in the road for him.
On July 18 2009 15:54 JIJIyO wrote: Savior stop breaking my heart man. I can't take it anymore. Hyuk and Type-b? Come on man =(
Yeah, don't lose to that scrub in the OSL quarter finals!
... type-b isn't bad. He's just new not very well known. He's taken down Pure, BeSt, Stork and Backho lately.
Four terrible PvZers. Doesn't take much to take them down.
Oh yeah, I forgot beating anyone other than Bisu in ZvP doesn't count.
It's not that, it's just that those players you happened to list are notoriously poor at PvZ, especially Best and Backho. Stork is wildly inconsistent, and Pure meh.
On July 18 2009 15:59 29 fps wrote: and yarnc's reason for picking his username is pretty bad. (he idolized hong jin ho yellow, so he copied his name).
funny story behind this;
2004 sky proleague, kor vs ktf and yellow was faced against yellow[arnc] both players entered the game with YellOw, both were confused, so they got out. KOR_YellOw vs KTF_YellOw was both of their names in the end ;p
On July 18 2009 16:01 integral wrote: I think that's your personal preference. Plus all that stuff about psychological warfare could be completely off, I don't know their personal relationship -- for example, go.go did an offensive cc against bisu and they're best friends. BM? sort of, but in the same way that I trashtalk with my friends on bnet.
I for one like seeing in-game ceremonies, it gives players personality and makes for memorable games. When I first started watching proleague, every game was interesting... but the more I watch, the more the games all run together. The way I see it, a player putting a signature or a tag on a game can only add to the experience, not take away from it.
Are you seriously comparing random bnet BM with what can happen during a professional game? I'm totally fine with a few given players doing their things every once in a while. It's refreshing and good for the game but that's only because it's still rare enough. If it were to start happening all the time with people copying each other's 'moves' then it would quickly become boring as hell imo.
Skyhigh's move today had absolutely 0 originality going for it.
On July 18 2009 16:01 integral wrote: I think that's your personal preference. Plus all that stuff about psychological warfare could be completely off, I don't know their personal relationship -- for example, go.go did an offensive cc against bisu and they're best friends. BM? sort of, but in the same way that I trashtalk with my friends on bnet.
I for one like seeing in-game ceremonies, it gives players personality and makes for memorable games. When I first started watching proleague, every game was interesting... but the more I watch, the more the games all run together. The way I see it, a player putting a signature or a tag on a game can only add to the experience, not take away from it.
Are you seriously comparing random bnet BM with what can happen during a professional game? I'm totally fine with a few given players doing their things every once in a while. It's refreshing and good for the game but that's only because it's still rare enough. If it were to start happening all the time with people copying each other's 'moves' then it would quickly become boring as hell imo.
Skyhigh's move today had absolutely 0 originality going for it.
My analogy was very specific, I was questioning whether gogo was being BM by building an offensive CC against one of his best friends by comparing it to when I trashtalk with my friends -- not random bnet BM. You were the one who said that you didn't want to see stuff like this all the time, and my response to that was that if everyone did it the metagame would evolve and it would become standard, therefore it wasn't a problem.
Criticizing skyhigh for being unoriginal in his in-game ceremony is a different matter entirely.
I like it when players do offensive CCs and stuff like that because it deepens a rivalry. There are a TON of games these days and honestly a lot of them blend in because there's just so many. You better believe people will be talking about the Leta Skyhigh rivalry for a long time to come now (especially since they play again tomorrow)!
Movie does a fail recall into Leta's main. They're even on bases which is never good. Leta is ready for another recall with turrets, mines, and vessels.
holy shit Leta has managed to set up amazing position on the high ground outside Movie's main I think he's good from here on out as long as he can not get owned by a recall on his main
I am amazed by CJ's coach whose gambles often pay off, and by Movie's performance this game. His storms were absolutely amazing. Leta made a few mistakes and Movie capitalized on them all. Props to him and CJ.
Skyhigh blew up in winners league finals. Movie blowing up in the ace match of playoffs. Movie prove all the haters wrong. You are not just some generic toss. You will be a star along with many CJ players.
On July 18 2009 16:43 LCC wrote: Movie went from being taken off the PL roster to winning an ace match in the playoffs pretty quickly.
I think it's readily apparent that he wasn't taken off the roster due to any drop off of skill on his part - they just wanted to get other rookies a shot in the last few weeks. He's without a doubt a staple of CJ's roster.
On July 18 2009 16:44 cUrsOr wrote: Not affraid to build practically a second base, and kept the units comming. That was a very unique game. He was prepared for that map.
He was lucky that Leta didn't kill his templar tech when he razed his main. Had leta done it, he would have had big problems defending his second main.
good stasis and good storms won that game... maybe if leta killed movie's tech that woulda been different... but then again movie had the econ to rebuild everything anyway...
I was soooooooooo scared Movie was going to push his luck and play in his usual raw style of "forcing" things. Good thing he didn't force any recalls, storm when unnecessary, and stasis in stupid spots. Everything was spot on. Stasising those 6-7 tanks close to the end of the game really sealed the deal. CJ is such an incredible team. I love them.
I really thought Leta would gain an advantage when attacking bottom right, but Movie pulled off some really amazing storms which decimated Leta's army, and Movie was prepared from the start to lose his base it seems, already having a bunch of gateways at bottom left when his main was assaulted as well as taking top left. Good game.
Wow movie really stepped up there. I'm very impressed by his performance even more so after loosing the first and being under pressure in the ace match.
So happy that CJ won, still u gotta feel sorry for Leta. He did so well over the season and now he probably feels like he let his team and fans down. Hope he doesn't start an epic slump after this.
Q: "How did you feel before playing in the ace match?" Movie: "I knew I was playing in the ace match so I wasn't that nervous..." Q: "Didn't you feel nervous at all?" Movie: "Not much..."
Q: "How about when Leta pushed into your main?" Movie: "I felt that I lost my first game because I fought badly, so I felt I can't fight badly this time."
Q: "What kind of games will you play tomorrow?" Movie: "I will definitely win."
When they took movie off the a-team they also said something about it being an incentive for him to perform better, because leaving him there when he showed no results wasn't motivation. (I'm paraphrasing)
On July 18 2009 16:51 konadora wrote: Q: "How did you feel before playing in the ace match?" Movie: "I knew I was playing in the ace match so I wasn't that nervous..." Q: "Didn't you feel nervous at all?" Movie: "Not much..."
Q: "How about when Leta pushed into your main?" Movie: "I felt that I lost my first game because I fought badly, so I felt I can't fight badly this time."
Q: "What kind of games will you play tomorrow?" Movie: "I will definitely win."
Can't doubt the man after that performance. I can't wait to see what he has.
On July 18 2009 16:44 cUrsOr wrote: Not affraid to build practically a second base, and kept the units comming. That was a very unique game. He was prepared for that map.
He was lucky that Leta didn't kill his templar tech when he razed his main. Had leta done it, he would have had big problems defending his second main.
A great game any, just sick!
Actually, he rebuild his templar archive in his new base on the bottom left (7 o'clock), so he didn't really lost his templar tech. The only thing I saw left untouch in his destroyed main base was his cybernetic core, forge, stargate, and 1 more building I forgot. Watch the vod when it's up and you'll see.
On July 18 2009 16:44 cUrsOr wrote: Not affraid to build practically a second base, and kept the units comming. That was a very unique game. He was prepared for that map.
He was lucky that Leta didn't kill his templar tech when he razed his main. Had leta done it, he would have had big problems defending his second main.
A great game any, just sick!
Actually, he rebuild his templar archive in his new base on the bottom left (7 o'clock), so he didn't really lost his templar tech. The only thing I saw left untouch in his destroyed main base was his cybernetic core, forge, stargate, and 1 more building I forgot. Watch the vod when it's up and you'll see.
I guess I should have watched the replay they showed after the game. I'll check out the vod.
Leta vs. Movie. This is really what team depth is all about.
It's not like the CJ coach didn't know that, if it went to an Ace match, that Sparkyz would put Leta up. It's assumed. Now, he could put some obvious choice up, like Effort, SkyHigh, or even Kwanro. But he picked Movie.
Before the first game even started, apparently.
Why? Because Leta wouldn't expect it. Leta would be practicing for TvZ or TvT, not TvP. And even though Leta came within a hair's breath of winning, he didn't. That extra little bit of not practicing, plus Movie doing nothing but preparing for this game vs. Leta, was the difference maker.
Well that, and Movie having balls of solid marble. That always helps.
On July 18 2009 17:21 NicolBolas wrote: Leta vs. Movie. This is really what team depth is all about.
It's not like the CJ coach didn't know that, if it went to an Ace match, that Sparkyz would put Leta up. It's assumed. Now, he could put some obvious choice up, like Effort, SkyHigh, or even Kwanro. But he picked Movie.
Before the first game even started, apparently.
Why? Because Leta wouldn't expect it. Leta would be practicing for TvZ or TvT, not TvP. And even though Leta came within a hair's breath of winning, he didn't. That extra little bit of not practicing, plus Movie doing nothing but preparing for this game vs. Leta, was the difference maker.
Well that, and Movie having balls of solid marble. That always helps.
But seeing the map's stats, I'm pretty sure Hite (and Leta) expected a Protoss, but not Movie. Most likely Much.
On July 18 2009 17:21 NicolBolas wrote: Leta vs. Movie. This is really what team depth is all about.
It's not like the CJ coach didn't know that, if it went to an Ace match, that Sparkyz would put Leta up. It's assumed. Now, he could put some obvious choice up, like Effort, SkyHigh, or even Kwanro. But he picked Movie.
Before the first game even started, apparently.
Why? Because Leta wouldn't expect it. Leta would be practicing for TvZ or TvT, not TvP. And even though Leta came within a hair's breath of winning, he didn't. That extra little bit of not practicing, plus Movie doing nothing but preparing for this game vs. Leta, was the difference maker.
Well that, and Movie having balls of solid marble. That always helps.
But seeing the map's stats, I'm pretty sure Hite (and Leta) expected a Protoss, but not Movie. Most likely Much.
CJ has too many ace choices to expect anything. :D
Well...in the new 2-match PL Playoff format, winning an ace game isn't so important — as a determinant of which team will advance, the 7set doesn't matter more than any of the 1-6th sets.
Well...in the new 2-match PL Playoff format, winning an ace game isn't so important — as a determinant of which team will advance, the 7set doesn't matter more than any of the 1-6th sets.
Oh so it's basically like a BO14? I had been wondering how this works, never read it for some reason
On July 18 2009 17:21 NicolBolas wrote: Leta vs. Movie. This is really what team depth is all about.
It's not like the CJ coach didn't know that, if it went to an Ace match, that Sparkyz would put Leta up. It's assumed. Now, he could put some obvious choice up, like Effort, SkyHigh, or even Kwanro. But he picked Movie.
Before the first game even started, apparently.
Why? Because Leta wouldn't expect it. Leta would be practicing for TvZ or TvT, not TvP. And even though Leta came within a hair's breath of winning, he didn't. That extra little bit of not practicing, plus Movie doing nothing but preparing for this game vs. Leta, was the difference maker.
Well that, and Movie having balls of solid marble. That always helps.
What? Why wouldn't they expect them to send out a toss when Letas weakest match-up by quite a margin is TvP.
On July 18 2009 17:21 NicolBolas wrote: Leta vs. Movie. This is really what team depth is all about.
It's not like the CJ coach didn't know that, if it went to an Ace match, that Sparkyz would put Leta up. It's assumed. Now, he could put some obvious choice up, like Effort, SkyHigh, or even Kwanro. But he picked Movie.
Before the first game even started, apparently.
Why? Because Leta wouldn't expect it. Leta would be practicing for TvZ or TvT, not TvP. And even though Leta came within a hair's breath of winning, he didn't. That extra little bit of not practicing, plus Movie doing nothing but preparing for this game vs. Leta, was the difference maker.
Well that, and Movie having balls of solid marble. That always helps.
What? Why wouldn't they expect them to send out a toss when Letas weakest match-up by quite a margin is TvP.
definitely one of the most epic tvps ive ever seen. of course it was made more epic by the fact that it was the ace match and a huge match in general. I'd love to hear the story behind Movie's demotion to the B team, cuz clearly he is one of the best players in the house or he wouldn't be used as much as he is against Hite in thew playoffs. So i'm guessing it was something non related to his skill -_-;
On July 18 2009 17:21 NicolBolas wrote: Leta vs. Movie. This is really what team depth is all about.
It's not like the CJ coach didn't know that, if it went to an Ace match, that Sparkyz would put Leta up. It's assumed. Now, he could put some obvious choice up, like Effort, SkyHigh, or even Kwanro. But he picked Movie.
Before the first game even started, apparently.
Why? Because Leta wouldn't expect it. Leta would be practicing for TvZ or TvT, not TvP. And even though Leta came within a hair's breath of winning, he didn't. That extra little bit of not practicing, plus Movie doing nothing but preparing for this game vs. Leta, was the difference maker.
Well that, and Movie having balls of solid marble. That always helps.
But seeing the map's stats, I'm pretty sure Hite (and Leta) expected a Protoss, but not Movie. Most likely Much.
Yeah Hite probably expected Much(that was my guess as well), so I'm guessing he did practice tvp on colo2 in preparation for that.
On July 18 2009 21:14 cujo2k wrote: definitely one of the most epic tvps ive ever seen. of course it was made more epic by the fact that it was the ace match and a huge match in general. I'd love to hear the story behind Movie's demotion to the B team, cuz clearly he is one of the best players in the house or he wouldn't be used as much as he is against Hite in thew playoffs. So i'm guessing it was something non related to his skill -_-;
I'm still convinced it was due to his smiling after beating Jaedong.
WOW LETA FUCKED UP Thats gotta be so hard on the poor kid, he's let his team down twice against other players you'd expect him to beat, imho they should have sent yarnc
On July 18 2009 23:47 Count9 wrote: Leta loses to B-team, sniped.
Movie is far from being B-team material imo. While the so-called Ace match Bonjwa was indeed sniped, Movie is used to doing that, he's sniped Jaedong before. Coach Cho said he took out Movie from the PL roster because he was doing average, not because he was bad.
maaaaaan players really have to had trained for these, some epic matches here..
yellow vs effort, best ZvZ i've seen so far, if someone knows better ZvZ's please recommend! and the ACE match, can't believe how intense it was, sucks for Leta though, must be shitloads of pressure on him :| i were so surprised seeing CJ sending Movie for ace but it seemed to work.
I just watched Leta-Movie, and damn that was AWESOME! What a snipe by Movie! That decision to sac his main base and attack so that Leta would split his army and get trounced is what turned the game around.
On July 19 2009 01:01 Stratos_speAr wrote: I just watched Leta-Movie, and damn that was AWESOME! What a snipe by Movie! That decision to sac his main base and attack so that Leta would split his army and get trounced is what turned the game around.
Yeah I just watched it too... epic. Great decision making from Movie. He realises that wasting his whole army and more to try to save his base would cost MORE than just rebuilding the base. This was definitely a preempted strategy; notice how quickly he transferred his probes out.
This is the massive weakness with only having one viable ace. When you become too predictable you're fucked. Leta has to practice 3 match-ups?! He's at a massive disadvantage before the game even starts.
I think what I liked most is how each loss CJ had was a close one, could have been a win for us too. But our wins were one-sided rape (except ace match). =)
On July 19 2009 07:17 TwoStep wrote: Isn't that kinda overreacting? He loses one crucial ace game and he shouldn't be sent out? Come on, it was even a close game.
Well it may be overreacting but you also got to consider that he is almost a predictable ace so CJ will be able to make the appropriate snipe.
hmmm, cj might be leading 4-3 now, but on the other hand sparkyz obtained 3 wins without leta contributing to it. imho this is far far far from over for them. imho the whole series is still on a knife´s edge, just like most of them games were.
On July 19 2009 08:42 Pergamon wrote: Leta has the best Ace record in the league. I'd be continuing to send him out even after losing to Movie. If anything, he needs it.
It's risky. If I were the Hite coach, I would prepare two possible Ace match players and two possible players for the final closer, because if it comes down to the Ace and Hite takes it, they still have to win the final closer.
Yesterday was very taxing on Leta. I don't know how much SkyHigh affected him, but after his loss to Movie, he looked absolutely crushed. SkyHigh's move, regardless of how BM you might accuse him of being, was risky and gutsy, but very smart. Most people when faced with that kind of situation tend to get the "not again" feeling creep up their spines the moment things go wrong. Because these matches are all played on the same weekend, and because there is the potential for Leta to play as many as 5 games, attacking Leta's emotional state was a sure way to strike at the core of Hite's line-up.
For that reason, even though Movie played the game of his life to take that series for CJ, I would actually say that SkyHigh was the MVP of the match.
Now we have to look at the consequences of this (and SkyHigh's real risk). If Leta loses again, his emotional state will be very, very bad and it will be pretty much impossible for him to perform his best in the Ace matches. Because Leta won't just be losing a game, he'll be faced with the "not again" scenario from SkyHigh himself. However, the risk is if SkyHigh loses tonight's game. If this happens, then Leta's emotional state will probably be cured and he will be out on a rampage come the Ace match.
This is why, if I were Hite's coach, I would have two Ace players prepared. If Leta loses, someone else will have to play the ace. Because if Leta loses, he's not going to play well in the Ace and he will blame himself if he goes 0-4 in the playoffs against CJ. This could potentially damage his career as a progamer quite a bit. He could lose confidence in himself and we've seen the results of that with many other formerly skilled gamers (cough, Savior, my beloved Savior...).
Skyhigh definitely affected Leta the CC in his base makes frustration settle in. Leta probably had a i have to win 1 game attitude going vs Movie which cost him.
On July 19 2009 09:06 Mykill wrote: Skyhigh definitely affected Leta the CC in his base makes frustration settle in. Leta probably had a i have to win 1 game attitude going vs Movie which cost him.
Come on, now. Give Movie some credit.
Leta was winning that game until Movie switched with JangBi or something and stormed the crap out of everything...
On July 19 2009 08:42 Pergamon wrote: Leta has the best Ace record in the league. I'd be continuing to send him out even after losing to Movie. If anything, he needs it.
It's risky. If I were the Hite coach, I would prepare two possible Ace match players and two possible players for the final closer, because if it comes down to the Ace and Hite takes it, they still have to win the final closer.
Yesterday was very taxing on Leta. I don't know how much SkyHigh affected him, but after his loss to Movie, he looked absolutely crushed. SkyHigh's move, regardless of how BM you might accuse him of being, was risky and gutsy, but very smart. Most people when faced with that kind of situation tend to get the "not again" feeling creep up their spines the moment things go wrong. Because these matches are all played on the same weekend, and because there is the potential for Leta to play as many as 5 games, attacking Leta's emotional state was a sure way to strike at the core of Hite's line-up.
For that reason, even though Movie played the game of his life to take that series for CJ, I would actually say that SkyHigh was the MVP of the match.
Now we have to look at the consequences of this (and SkyHigh's real risk). If Leta loses again, his emotional state will be very, very bad and it will be pretty much impossible for him to perform his best in the Ace matches. Because Leta won't just be losing a game, he'll be faced with the "not again" scenario from SkyHigh himself. However, the risk is if SkyHigh loses tonight's game. If this happens, then Leta's emotional state will probably be cured and he will be out on a rampage come the Ace match.
This is why, if I were Hite's coach, I would have two Ace players prepared. If Leta loses, someone else will have to play the ace. Because if Leta loses, he's not going to play well in the Ace and he will blame himself if he goes 0-4 in the playoffs against CJ. This could potentially damage his career as a progamer quite a bit. He could lose confidence in himself and we've seen the results of that with many other formerly skilled gamers (cough, Savior, my beloved Savior...).
A different question; who does CJ send in ACE now? To send Movie again is risky, he stands to be beaten against almost any other player, and CJ can't afford to gamble that Leta will be so shaken by his loss to Movie that he'd give it up again. Perhaps Leta would step his game up and roll Movie the second time. That said, Movie has likely prepared for Leta on each of the ACE maps. Do you take the chance again? DarkElf
Probably not.
I wouldn't send sKyHigh again either, unless he bm-rolls Leta again in tonight's match, because that'd be assuming that Leta goes in, and sKyHigh is not a sure-fire guarentee against everyone else. I think with a player like Leta, you're pushing your luck if you try to get too cute with him, and think that you can simply play mindgames to win. Hite will get his head into shape for tonight's match.
So that leaves...
Probably EffOrt, I like the idea of going with your best player to close Hite out here. EffOrt's ZvT is as strong as Leta's TvZ, and he is equally capable against any other Hite player. If EffOrt loses tonight, I could see him sitting for this, but only if.
That said, Kwanro or Iris are possibilities, I would think, given last night's choice, that CJ may have prepared someone special for the two ACE matches. But these two aren't as strong as their aforementioned counterparts, and so I think their inclusion is slightly more likely. But you never know, perhaps CJ's golden touch may pick someone entirely different, someone entirely new and fresh and unpracticed for. That's right; + Show Spoiler +
On July 19 2009 08:42 Pergamon wrote: Leta has the best Ace record in the league. I'd be continuing to send him out even after losing to Movie. If anything, he needs it.
It's risky. If I were the Hite coach, I would prepare two possible Ace match players and two possible players for the final closer, because if it comes down to the Ace and Hite takes it, they still have to win the final closer.
Yesterday was very taxing on Leta. I don't know how much SkyHigh affected him, but after his loss to Movie, he looked absolutely crushed. SkyHigh's move, regardless of how BM you might accuse him of being, was risky and gutsy, but very smart. Most people when faced with that kind of situation tend to get the "not again" feeling creep up their spines the moment things go wrong. Because these matches are all played on the same weekend, and because there is the potential for Leta to play as many as 5 games, attacking Leta's emotional state was a sure way to strike at the core of Hite's line-up.
For that reason, even though Movie played the game of his life to take that series for CJ, I would actually say that SkyHigh was the MVP of the match.
Now we have to look at the consequences of this (and SkyHigh's real risk). If Leta loses again, his emotional state will be very, very bad and it will be pretty much impossible for him to perform his best in the Ace matches. Because Leta won't just be losing a game, he'll be faced with the "not again" scenario from SkyHigh himself. However, the risk is if SkyHigh loses tonight's game. If this happens, then Leta's emotional state will probably be cured and he will be out on a rampage come the Ace match.
This is why, if I were Hite's coach, I would have two Ace players prepared. If Leta loses, someone else will have to play the ace. Because if Leta loses, he's not going to play well in the Ace and he will blame himself if he goes 0-4 in the playoffs against CJ. This could potentially damage his career as a progamer quite a bit. He could lose confidence in himself and we've seen the results of that with many other formerly skilled gamers (cough, Savior, my beloved Savior...).
A different question; who does CJ send in ACE now? To send Movie again is risky, he stands to be beaten against almost any other player, and CJ can't afford to gamble that Leta will be so shaken by his loss to Movie that he'd give it up again. Perhaps Leta would step his game up and roll Movie the second time. That said, Movie has likely prepared for Leta on each of the ACE maps. Do you take the chance again? DarkElf
Probably not.
I wouldn't send sKyHigh again either, unless he bm-rolls Leta again in tonight's match, because that'd be assuming that Leta goes in, and sKyHigh is not a sure-fire guarentee against everyone else. I think with a player like Leta, you're pushing your luck if you try to get too cute with him, and think that you can simply play mindgames to win. Hite will get his head into shape for tonight's match.
So that leaves...
Probably EffOrt, I like the idea of going with your best player to close Hite out here. EffOrt's ZvT is as strong as Leta's TvZ, and he is equally capable against any other Hite player. If EffOrt loses tonight, I could see him sitting for this, but only if.
That said, Kwanro or Iris are possibilities, I would think, given last night's choice, that CJ may have prepared someone special for the two ACE matches. But these two aren't as strong as their aforementioned counterparts, and so I think their inclusion is slightly more likely. But you never know, perhaps CJ's golden touch may pick someone entirely different, someone entirely new and fresh and unpracticed for. That's right; + Show Spoiler +
EDIT: I feel like there doesn't even need to be a new thread for tonight, everyone should just keep posting in this thread.
First, let me say that I DO feel there should be a new thread. I'm the type of guy who will disappear for days or weeks and then want to check in on results, so I like it when results can be found quickly (R&S threads are a fucking god send).
Regarding Ace picks, we have to think about both the Ace match for today's match and the overall closer (in case of tie-breaker).
I think it's a pretty straightforward choice either way: On Andromeda, today's Ace match map, CJ has 2 players on the A-team with good stats: Effort (5-1) and Kwanro (5-2). On Heartbreak Ridge, the tie-breaker map, CJ has 2 A-team players with good stats and one with okay stats: Effort (7-3), Iris (4-2), and SkyHigh (3-2).
It's a bad idea to have Effort prepare for both of those games. You don't want that much weight on his shoulders, especially since he already lost yesterday's game. The obvious decision is to prepare Kwanro for today's Ace match and to anticipate having to face either Leta or go.go. If a Zerg is sent it will be Yarnc. Yarnc is 3-1 against Effort in head-to-head but 0-1 against Kwanro, making Kwanro the more obvious choice to face him. I don't think Hite will send Horang2 (ZvP being Kwanro's weakness) and type-b would be a bad choice unless he's been hiding a killer ZvZ all along.
For the tie-breaker, Effort is the obvious choice. Effort is CJ's trump card and the most logical choice for such a situation. However, with sending Effort, you have to consider that: a.) It is the predictable choice b.) Effort seems cursed against Yarnc. The only game he won against Yarnc head-to-head was his OSL match, but then Yarnc somehow beat Jaedong and knocked Effort out of the tourney anyway. Effort may have nerves problems if he faces Yarnc.
This leaves either Iris or SkyHigh.
There are two big advantages to choosing Iris: head-to-head he is 2-1 against both Leta and Yarnc and 2-0 against go.go (giving him the record advantage against all of Hite's top Ace picks), and Iris is also the most experienced, most battle hardened member of the team.
However, SkyHigh is the wildcard pick. Dangerous, but more capable of ruining Hite than ruining CJ. SkyHigh is 2-0 against Leta but 0-2 against Yarnc. However, SkyHigh has proven he has balls of steel as he humiliated Leta and reverse all-killed OZ. SkyHigh seems to really step up his game in the proleague playoffs. What makes SkyHigh the true wildcard is his humiliation of Leta yesterday. The Hite player who goes out there will either feel intimidated (especially if it's Leta, especially if he loses today) or feel angered and driven towards revenge.
I would practice Kwanro for today's Ace. I would practice both Effort and SkyHigh for the tie-breaker. Effort I would practice to face off against Leta in case SkyHigh loses today and SkyHigh I would practice to face off against Yarnc in case Effort loses today. If both Effort and SkyHigh lose, I'd make my decision at the last possible moment on the spot.
Edit: For some reason I was thinking Effort plays Yarnc today, but he doesn't. However, my decisions stay the same regardless...
Those were some beastly storms that brought Movie back in the game. I thought he was done when he gave up his main; but man, what an exciting ace match!