We've got interviews for you from our three GSL S3 qualifiers, so read on to see what they have to say about practice, play, and the Ro64 that is to come. Please note that the Jinro and Haypro interviews are cross posted from yesterday's interview thread and are included here for fans that may have missed them the first time around. The Ret interview is hot off the presses, though. Enjoy!

Destroyer of Dallas and protector of everything that is good and righteous and in Starcraft 2, Jinro rode into the GSL S3 qualifiers on his battlecruiser and managed to qualify with ease. This interview was conducted a few days before his quals, and goes into MLG, his expectations for the GSL qualifiers, and what the future has in store for both himself and Liquid. When you're done reading, don't forget to grab the Jinro replay pack we have for you this week as well.

Hi Jinro. We haven't spoken to you in some time, but what better time to say hi again than soon after you've become MLG National Champion? Congratulations!

Hi! And thank you!


I think what everyone wants to know is - how was the rest of the event for you, and more importantly, what was the after party like?

The event was fine, the party was fine but I was too sick to enjoy it. I could barely eat/drink anything. I wasn’t like actively sick but just enough to not be able to enjoy it. :/ Damn you, Jos.


Oh, that sucks! Feeling better now? Getting ready for the GSL quals?
Yeah, still a bit of a cough etc. but mostly fine - Haypro is worse off.


Well, good luck with practice as you prepare for the quals next week. But let’s talk more about MLG Dallas. It was your first non-GSL tournament in months. How did you prepare for it and what was your mindset as you flew out to the US?

I didn’t prepare specifically for it, just general GSL practice - ie ranking games on GSL maps every day. In terms of mindset, uhm, I was a bit down before the event due to doing poorly in practice the last few weeks, but everyone (ie oGs guys and TL) told me I’d do good.


This was also the first time, or at least the first time in months that you played against many of the players there. Did you get a chance to think about any of your opponents and their play styles or did you just roll with what you had in general?

Hm, I didn’t get to do much thinking about my opponents. However, I deliberately didn’t make any banshees vs Socke because I remembered how much he liked phoenix (also positions / maps were bad for it).

I knew nothing about Painuser or Response so I couldn’t do much but just play. Vs TT1 I didn’t really know much except that he was considered a strong macro/standard Protoss, so overall I’d say I just played my own game.


At MLG you looked really strong all-round, but were there any matchups you were still unsure of as you went into the tourney?

TvZ and TvP. I got lucky I didn’t have to play any TvZs, as I didn’ t really have any builds prepared beyond the one I used vs Ret.

TvP I still don’t feel entirely comfortable with, but the banshee build I used is pretty strong except vs a few openings.


That's funny in retrospect, especially seeing that what was arguably your best game, and indeed what many would say was the best game of the tournament, was your TvP vs Socke on Oasis!

I got a huge lead from the early game, as Socke turned his scout back before seeing my lack of gas, and proceeded to open phoenix vs 1 rax CC - pretty much the only BO phoenix is really bad vs.

Game 1 I still don’t know how I won!


Your multi task was impeccable throughout the game, and at times you seemed to be everywhere at once. How did you continue to stay alert and focused even as the match dragged on?


Just in whatever mental place you are always in when gaming. It got harder and harder though, hands were getting colder and colder. This only seemed to be a problem on Day 2 though as the temperature was different the last day from what I remember anyway.


We don't often see nukes in TvP, or at all, in fact. Were they a part of your build from the start?

No, I just always use them late game TvP if the Protoss player makes templars/cannons as you can’t harass with dropships once he has that combination.


What would you say was the most challenging part about that game and after which point were you more or less sure that you had it in the bag?

I thought I had won and then I was beating myself up for having lost it. Then, I had it won again - I dunno, dealing with all the warp prisms I guess would be the most challenging part.


Soon after becoming the only Terran on Liquid you went out and won a major tourney. Would you say this is enough evidence to declare your race OP once and for all?

Yeah, I’m pretty sure TLO was just holding me back with his radical ideas - once free of his influence I was able to unleash the true imba inherent in the race.


In TvP you once favoured Raven auto-turrent harass with mech but also get it with bio for point defence drone now, as seen in your games at MLG. Not a lot of Terrans do this at the moment, but do you see it catching on?

It will catch on because it’s incredibly useful for protecting your air units from stalkers when facing colossi, and lets you kill observers and dts at will.


Now that Ret and HuK are both there, is Liquid hard at work preparing for the quals next week?

No, mostly just drinking and doing drugs.


Sounds about right.

Not really yet, just been too busy - picked up Huk at 5 am yesterday, said good bye to Dario at 12, picked up Ret at 4 - just no time.


You guys are coming from a strong showing at Dalls though. Is everyone pumped and ready to rumble? What about you?

I’m feeling pretty ok, just gotta do some more TvZ work and I should be good. Jos is still feeling the trip, but I think everyone is pretty ready to go.


Awesome! On that note we’re gonna let you go then, but good luck as you prepare for Monday and obviously, all of us will be here rooting for you as all of you take on the quals. Jinro fighting! Gogo Liquid!

Thank you, hopefully I won’t let anyone down.

Hi Tyler, Hi Dario! What's going on?

Tyler: Hello, just enjoying the end of a relaxing Sunday. =]

TLO: Haha still being jetlagged and sleeping at bad times!

Tyler: http://content9.flixster.com/rtmovie/71/25/71251_gal.jpg
This is my expression for you, Dario.

I feel for you and I wish you the best.
http://content8.flixster.com/rtmovie/71/25/71250_gal.jpg

And when you finally do fall asleep, I stare at you all night.

TLO: wtf

Tyler: http://content9.flixster.com/rtmovie/71/23/71239_gal.jpg

There's your wtf face.



Is HuK on Tyler's MSN?

TLO: No this is Tyler alright.

HuK has been added to the conversation.

Tyler: I invited him too.


LOL


Tyler: Oh man all these harry potter pictures. So many expressions.

TLO: You basically don’t need any other way to express your feelings any more!


HuK, thanks for your cameo appearance during this Dreamhack Winter 2010 interview.

Tyler: OK continue interview gogogo. He is in game, he won’t be talking.


Tyler, Dario - if your counterpart was a Harry Potter character who would he be?

Tyler: I would be Tom Riddle, aka Voldemort. But I would have become Dumbledore's pupil while I had the chance. Though Salazar Slytherin's blood may have run through my veins, I would overcome it with love.


No, no! You have to give Dario and character, and vice versa.

TLO:I didn't get that either.

Tyler: Oh I see. Dario would be... hmm… Dario would be Cedric Diggory. So handsome, so charismatic, so lovely.

TLO: Haha thanks, but that is not Voldemort speaking. It’s tough really, especially now that he gave himself the character already, and apparently actually knows the harry potter lore unlike me.

Tyler: Dario is totally a Ravenclaw.


OK on to a more serious question - if the following HP characters played SC2, which races would they play? Harry, Draco, Mad Eye Moody, Fred and George Weasely (2v2 team).

Tyler: Harry Protoss, Draco Zerg, Mad Eye Moody random, Fred and George double Zerg.
Apparently, Harry Potter characters need more Terrans.


Hermione?

HuK: You guys are having wayyy to much fun with this.

Tyler: Hermione would be a commentator obv. Hermione would be the Artosis of the wizarding world.


Hi HuK - who is your favourite Harry Potter character, and what race would he/she play?

Tyler: This conversation is too high level for Huk.

TLO: Aww.. poor Huk,, he gets too much BM from us lately.


Tyler, as we keep looking for Harry Potter Terrans, what do you think of Snape? At first glance at least he seems secretive, ultra-defensive and also frequently resorts to bm and various kinds of cheese to get what he wants.

TLO: Snape is Idra. He seems like a jerk but in his heart he is a good guy.

Tyler: But Snape is like the 3rd best wizard after Voldemort and Dumbledore. IdrA is what like, top 16 maybe?

TLO: But its true ^^ yea... well, he still has work ahead of course.

Tyler: Yeah

TLO: Maybe one day he can be Snape.


K so no Terrans in Harry Potter land. How sad. Anyway, on to the mundane now. Dreamhack. It's the first time for both of you, so what are you looking forward to the most?

Tyler: I am looking forward to visiting Europe again. What a nice part of the world.

TLO: Sweden is a very nice country, I wanted to visit it for a long time and its soo advanced when it comes to e-Sport. Can’t wait for it Really


Tyler, what do you like about Europe?

Tyler: The friendly people of course. I just... I'll have to be careful to avoid Dario's eyes, lest I get lost in them

TLO: Careful you are married!

HuK: Sorry I keep getting games. Favorite harry potter character would have to be w/e fat kid they put in it for comedic relief.


MLG Dallas was a big event, but Dreamhack is going to many times that size. Have you ever been to a massive LAN like this before, and if so, what did you take away from it? If you haven't, what are you looking forward to the most about being at the world's biggest LAN?

Huk: I wish I was going. TT

TLO: I haven’t been to any event like Dreamhack before, and it’s gonna be sick to see so many players. Of course there are tons of fans at other events but here were actually have thousands of competitors gathering in a bunch of tours. So I guess that will be quite different from any other experience so far.

Tyler: Oh hey Huk, I’m really really, really tired of PvP now so tomorrow I’m going to play single player a ton and solve it. And I’m not gonna teach it to you. I will horde my discoveries so I can smash you in a tournament for once.

TLO: I solved Protoss. Switch from random to Terran or Zerg.

Tyler: I really love the atmosphere of these big events and I can only imagine Dreamhack is gonna be 10x better!


You guys were out in force at MLG Dallas, but only two of you will be there in Sweden next week. What will you miss about not having Liquid there in its entirety?

Tyler: I need the cheers. My biggest fan, Chris Loranger (he's a pretty decent Protoss player himself, maybe he'll make a name for himself some day) was leading cheers for me whenever I was playing a commentated match.

TLO: Haypro’s incredible humour. Seriously I would never have realised how amazingly funny he is if not for MLG.


The brackets are looking pretty stacked, with the likes of Whitera, Idra, BRAT_OK, Morrow, Demuslim, Dimaga and Socke showing up. If you could choose, which players would you have in your group, and why?

TLO: I like how you dont mention Idra

Tyler: He mentioned IdrA... the question is why did your mind ignore it?

TLO: Haha no reason^^


Paging Dr. Freud.

Tyler: Hmmmmmm… Of those players, I'll take Dimaga and Socke. I think I can beat their ZvP and PvP respectively.

TLO: I think I would pick Morrow. I saw one of his ZvZs and it looked like 1st week beta.

HuK: Wow so bm, Tyler. You owe me like 210391290x strategies, I made you many fan in Dallas
with my awesome cheers.

Tyler: lol


Alright, well good luck at Dreamhack Winter, and we hope you guys grab the podium places! Anything you'd like to say to your fans before they see you live on stream?

TLO: We need your support guys, give us all you got. Cheerfuls, show up with your TL shirt. Scream your heart out! People shall know no team is anything compared to us. And the most awesome team in the world also goes with the best fans you could imagine!

Tyler: Thanks for your support, it's great!!!! I will continue to show you all awesome Protoss builds I promise!!