6. Azubu.Genius

Surprising many by being the SlayerS member not to switch over to League of Legends, Genius is now on a secure team in Azubu and has been handed the ace spot in Korea with Violet living in the United States. Azubu picked up a lot a talent in the past few weeks, but Genius is the key to making them a relevant force in Korea. If he can get himself motivated, have Iris and Nada take away his FIFA Online and LoL, and remind himself that it's never too late to get revenge on DongRaeGu in Code S, he might be able to get back to the championship level he was at during this time last year.

Genius in Season One of 2012 was at his absolute best, highly motivated to take a championship and showing it by making it to the finals in impressive fashion. He lost in the finals to teammate DRG, putting up a valiant effort but not being able to knock off the strongest player in the world. He fell into a slump after that, missing GSTL games for MVP and eventually leaving, moving to Slayers during the point where their ship was starting to sink. He's last in this group because we really don't know what we're going to get from Genius in a group five strong players with some credentials to their name. It would be nice to think that Azubu will bring back the Genius that danced his way to the Code S finals, but you have to remember that Azubu does have the top two LoL teams in Korea...

Don't even think about it, Genius!


5. ByuNPrime

Byun should have won the third season of 2012. Seed was a great story, albeit now in Code B, and he slapped around MC in the finals, but the winner of the season should have been Byun. All the way up till the climactic moments of the fourth game of the semifinals against Seed, Byun was without a doubt the best player in the tournament. He had innovative TvP, brilliant strategies, and was able to find the perfect openings in a player's defense to exploit them. Byun, up in the fourth game of the semifinals and on the verge of making his very first finals, decided that taking all his SCV's and doing an all-or-nothing attack when he was in a good position was the best idea, throwing away the game to Seed and letting the guy known for comebacks get another one on his record.

After pulling his workers and losing in the semifinals, Byun has not been the same. He's still a good Terran and is regarded as one of the better Terran players overall in practice, but he just isn't at the same point he was during the summer of 2012. His aggressive TvP builds that left Protoss baffled in the early game got figured out, and he has been left as a shell of his former self that was in championship contention in the third season. Byun, when at his peak, is still one of the most brilliant players we have in the scene, but a lot like Genius, it's been too long since we saw that brilliance in action.


4. ST_Bomber

Continuing on in the Inconsistency Group of Death 2013, we have the guy that every SC2 pundit in existence thought was going to be a champion two years ago. We are now in 2013, and we are still waiting for Bomber to take his first Code S title after he was expected to in the middle of 2011. Drawing connections to this Up and Down group, the last time Bomber looked like the best player in the world and on his way to a GSL championship was all the way back in July of 2011 against Byun. Bomber was up 2-0 in their quarterfinal series, Artosis was having an orgasm over how godly Bomber was playing, and even noted that no one had ever been able to get to this level before in TvT. Bomber was rolling, Byun was shaken, and it seemed like there was nothing that could stop Bomber from taking the title.

Well, except Bomber himself. The then Startale ace crumbled like a soggy cookie atop a house of cards built by a 4-year-old, turning from the best player in the world to a Code B level scrub in a matter of seconds. Byun fought back with some good play, but the loss was all on Bomber's shoulders, throwing away a golden opportunity to become champion and never getting back to that point in his career. Bomber might look like a young 19 year old kid, but he's actually 24 (non-Korean age) and has gone past the point of a rookie having growing pains. He isn't getting any younger, and if he ever wants to win a Code S title, it's going to have to happen sooner or later.

Out of the three bottom players Bomber has shown the most promise of late, pulling off some great results in foreign tournaments, but if there is one rule in Starcraft 2, we know it's this: Bomber will break your heart sooner or later. [Editor's note: We're deeply conflicted on whether Bomber will decide to disappoint now, or get to Code S and disappoint later]


3. Liquid`HerO

The inconsistency just won't end, will it? To be fair to Hero, he is head and shoulders above the three members below him in this group, having actually won NASL and Dreamhack Winter in December. A forced to be reckoned with in any foreign tournament he enters, Hero is still searching for that first GSL finals. He has the talent to make it there, but even after foreign championships and Code S semi-final appearances, fans will always question the emotional Protoss' ability to keep his composure when the pressure is on. The furthest he's ever gotten in Code S was in the second season of last year, facing off against Squirtle who was on an eleven game win streak at the time in the GSL. Hero got embarrassed, losing in a blow out series and lengthening Squirtle's epic streak.

He has been a constant Code S fixture for most of 2012, but he hasn't been able to consistently get far in the knockout rounds like his teammate Taeja. His PvZ - once his strongest match-up - has now become the bane of existence, losing countless games in Code S in where it looks like he should come out the victor. His PvT has been very solid of late, and his PvP is no longer a cringe worthy experience when he plays. All in all, he has a great chance of making out of this group in his current form, but it all depends on the condition of the night with a group that holds so many inconsistent players.


2. Woongjin_sOs

My prediction of NsOsvember wasn't the greatest, following in the footsteps of Supernovamber in 2011 with another disappointing first round exit. The amazing thing is, even with his faults in Code S and a loss to Mvp in Code A this season, he is still hovering around a 70% win rate in Korea, being one of the top aces in Proleague this season for Woongjin Stars. Bbyong and Trap both failed to make it out of their Up and Down groups, but sOs shouldn't be bunched in the same group as those two. Out of all the KeSPA players participating in the Up and Downs this week, the only one who can match sOs' current skill would be Fantasy, who is playing tomorrow.

His skill hasn't been consistent in transferring over from Proleague to GSL, but maybe the Bo1 format that the Up and Down matches bring will be a benefit to him. He's been able to prepare well for his matches for Stars in Proleague, carrying an 8-3 record this season, and will be a strong favorite to at least take one of the top three spots in the group. With how sub par KeSPA has performed so far in the Up and Downs the past two seasons, sOs is one of their best and last hopes to break through into Code S next season.


1. LG-IM_ByuL

Yeah, I'm picking him because he's Zerg. When the best two Terrans in the group are both wildly inconsistent and the top two players in the group are Protoss, who currently only have four players in next season's Code S, I think I'm going to go with the Zerg. That's not to say that Byul isn't any good, because he definitely is, but after seeing Zerg dominate over and over in the GSL for the past two months, it's time to bet with the percentages and just ride the infestor until the energy finally dies out. Only having to practice his ZvP and ZvT, Byul will already have an advantage over the rest, not having to play his worst match-up that is at a 40% win rate.

Moving to LG-IM will also be a gigantic help, getting to practice with some of the best players at every race. Fnatic, while once strong, had a big downfall in the months leading up to Byul's departure, every single top player falling out of the GSL and posting weak results in Korea. Alive, Moon and Oz continued to slide in performance, Byul left to search for a new team, and eventually found a new home with the most decorated Starcraft 2 team in the world. It might take time for him to get acclimated to his new environment and benefit from his new training situation, but he's a Zerg, so it should be okay.