Groups and maps are announced for the 32 player, $20 000 ASUS ROG StarCraft II Tournament played on 24-25. February at ASSEMBLY Winter 2012.
A couple of days ago we revealed the full player list for the ASUS ROG StarCraft II Tournament, sponsored by NVIDIA which starts next week on February 24. Now it’s time to put the players in their starting groups of four. Each player was given a seed between 1 and 4. Next, each group was given a random player from each seed group. Lastly, some adjustments were made to avoid team mate collisions.
A reminder of the format: all group matches are best-of-3. Two players will advance from each group to the playoffs where matches are best-of-3 until the semi-finals which are best-of-5, and the final which is a best-of-7 match.
Groups and starting times on Friday 24. February (in GMT+2)
The tournament will be played in the following maps:
(2) ESV Cloud Kingdom - SUPEROUMAN
(2) GSL Daybreak (Official.) - Veritas
(2) Korhal Compound LE - Blizzard
(4) MLG Metalopolis - MLGMaps
(4) MLG Shakuras Plateau - MLGMaps
(4) GSL Antiga Shipyard - TeamClash
(4) GSL Terminus SE (Official.) - TeamClash
Prize pool
The 20 000 $ prize pool will be divided for the top four contestants:
1. 10 000 $
2. 6 000 $
3. 3 000 $
4. 1 000 $
Win Tasty ASUS ROG Hardware – Another Facebook Competition We know how much everyone likes Facebook competitions and now ASUS ROG Tournament has its very own. To give you some really nice incentive this is what we have on the prize table:
To enter the competition simply like us and enter your e-mail address (so we can get in touch with you). Head on over to the competition at the following URL; http://www.facebook.com/rognordic
ASUS ROG Finally, to remind you all of the company who makes this tournament possible, ROG -- Republic of Gamers, a gaming sub brand of ASUS that is comprised of cutting edge hardware tailored for serious gamers. The product branches include; Motherboards, Graphics Cards, LCD Monitors, Gaming Peripherals, Desktops and Notebooks. The ASUS ROG Tournament will be solely powered by ASUS and ROG hardware.
About ASUS ASUS, the world’s top 3 consumer notebook vendor and the maker of the world’s best-selling and most award winning motherboards, is a leading enterprise in the new digital era. ASUS designs and manufactures products that perfectly meet the needs of today's digital home, office and person, with a broad portfolio that includes motherboards, graphics cards, optical drives, displays, desktops, Eee Box and all-in-one PCs, notebooks, netbooks, tablet devices, servers, multimedia and wireless solutions, networking devices, and mobile phones. With a global staff of more than 10,000 and a world-class R&D team of 3,000 engineers, the company's revenue for 2011 was US$13 billion.
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On February 16 2012 06:26 Zeon0 wrote: B, C and H > rest
why is every torunament still using Terminus? doesnt it have huge balance issues?
Didnt you confuse H with A? Who besides Polt is really good in group H?
Korean-Slayer TLO and Bling who was really strong the last couple of weaks. And I also think Phoenix is pretty good, but probably the inferior player in this group (plus he was training for this in Korea)
Group A: Puma, Kas Group B: Stephano, Mana Group C: Moon, Real Group D: HerO, Select Group E: WhiteRa, JYP Group F: ESC winner, Elfi Group G: Lucky, Bischu Group H: Polt, TLO
On February 16 2012 06:26 Zeon0 wrote: B, C and H > rest
why is every torunament still using Terminus? doesnt it have huge balance issues?
Didnt you confuse H with A? Who besides Polt is really good in group H?
Korean-Slayer TLO and Bling who was really strong the last couple of weaks. And I also think Phoenix is pretty good, but probably the inferior player in this group (plus he was training for this in Korea)
A has 2 great players, but also 2 huge underdogs
Puma Kas and Titan are better than every player of group H except Polt
We get to see Korhal Compound in a major tournament, awesome!
HerO's group looks pretty easy for him to top, Jinro has a decent shot too if his vP is up to par. TLO on the other hand is in for a rough time Polt AND Bling to go up against.
Puma seems a sure pick however actually wouldn't be surprised to see Titan going over Kas OR Puma, kid is sick good and Puma lately hasn't been as impressive.
Group B - 13:00 Millenium\ Stephano Mousesports\ MaNa Empire\ Happy FnaticRaidCall\ NightEnD
Stephano is going to crush this insanely hard. After that I pick Happy because he's on Empire and he's good.
Group C - 14:00 FnaticRaidCall\ Moon Type\ ReaL imba.FXOpen\ BRAT_OK Alternate\ ClouD
Really unsure here. Moons level is unknown, and the other 3 are players who are quite inconsistent.
Group D - 15:00 TLAF-Liquid\ HerO Dignitas\ SeleCT Ai\ Seiplo BLAST\ sYz
Hero and SelecT are just plain better then the rest of this group. Unless Hero tilts I don't see him losing and SelecT should be a solid second.
Group E - 16:00 EG\ JYP Thermaltake\ White-Ra eSahara\ Satiini Millenium\ DieStar
JYP is on another level and Whitera for some reason always wins.
Group F - 17:00 ESV TV/Grand Prix 1 winner Acer\ elfi- Millenium\ Adelscott TLAF-Liquid\ Jinro
Jinro for sure, spot 1 is still unknown but Jinro has been impressing me enough in the EWM's to know that he will beat Elfi and Adelscott
Group G - 18:00 FXOpen\ Lucky imba.FXOpen\ Strelok Acer\ Bly Dignitas\ Bischu
Lucky is like JYP, on a whole different level then the others in his group. Unless he breaks his arm I don't see him losing. Bly has been looking strong lately and his new team should give him the edge.
Group H - 19:00 TSL\ Polt Type\ PhoeNix Dignitas\ BlinG TLAF-Liquid\ TLO
Polt seems a solid choice. But after that it gets messy. If TLO plays as IPL + Show Spoiler +
agianst Prime
then I see him taking second of even first place. However Bling is also mad good and Phoenix is an unknown Korean and therefore likely to win the whole thing Gut says go with Bling
Alright, cannot wait for this. If TLO plays like he did last night, he will advance from his group, possibly even over Polt. JYP has 2 Terrans in his group, but I still think he should be able to overcome his PvT weakness as neither Terran is incredibly difficult. Lucky definitely got a bit lucky here, as he should be able to advance from his group relatively easily.
Any player in group B can take first i think, ill go with Stephano and Happy though. Happy needs a lot more love than hes getting, such a sick player. Best fiend micro in the world for those who remember the good old wc3 days :D.
On February 16 2012 07:32 zazone wrote: I think NightEnD can do it (2nd place behind Stephano), also don't know about Moon his last games were disappointing
sure, but he just started out practicing again. I mean hey he has great practice partners there with aLive and ToD !
I really like the map pull other than Shakuras Plateau! - It's about time the western scene retire that map like GSL did long ago, maybe even Metal too..
On February 16 2012 07:50 mouzKaelaris wrote: I really like the map pull other than Shakuras Plateau! - It's about time the western scene retire that map like GSL did long ago, maybe even Metal too..
Those groups look perfectly divided. It's going to make for an amazing tourney with every group worth watching. I'm not sure how the groups got divided up, but I couldn't have hand picked better groups myself. Can't wait for this
Nice groups, no boring ones and even spread of the favorites to win the tournament. Great casters and free HD is never wrong, I'm really looking forward to this event.
On February 16 2012 07:55 Devolved wrote: Those groups look perfectly divided. It's going to make for an amazing tourney with every group worth watching. I'm not sure how the groups got divided up, but I couldn't have hand picked better groups myself. Can't wait for this
Now it’s time to put the players in their starting groups of four. Each player was given a seed between 1 and 4. Next, each group was given a random player from each seed group. Lastly, some adjustments were made to avoid team mate collisions.
Nice! Groups look amazing! and I also just realized that Assembly always had and now has an even prizepool with mlg. And tbh Im more excited for this one because of possible upsets, MLG is MVP / MC's to win anyway ^^
I bet Assembly guys were angry first with their public letter after mlg announced the arena date but had a fireworks when PPV was announced.
On February 16 2012 08:16 AsnSensation wrote: Nice! Groups look amazing! and I also just realized that Assembly always had and now has an even prizepool with mlg. And tbh Im more excited for this one because of possible upsets, MLG is MVP / MC's to win anyway ^^
I bet Assembly guys were angry first with their public letter after mlg announced the arena date but had a fireworks when PPV was announced.
Yea.. I can watch them wining at GSL:D Sick groups:D I will watch and support Assembly;)
wow.. never realized how stacked this tournament was becuase I was planning on watching MLG. I don't feel so bad anymore, this tournament is going to be great!
On February 16 2012 08:25 crms wrote: wow.. never realized how stacked this tournament was becuase I was planning on watching MLG. I don't feel so bad anymore, this tournament is going to be great!
Everyone is making MLG the tournament to watch... I found this more exciting to
This gonna be Awesome !!!!! predictions A : Kas Titan B : Stephano Mana C : Moon Real D : Hero Syz E : Diestar WhiteRa F : ESVTVwinner Adel G : Lucky Bly H : Polt TLO
Can't wait to see that go stephano and polt. What about the streams and casters ? will it be several streams in english, german, french, russian finnish etc ? It was awesome to have different streams in different language the last assembly, with a planning so we could not miss any games.
I'll predict: Group A: Puma, Kas Group B: Stephano, Mana Group C: Moon, BRAT_OK Group D: HerO, Select Group E: JYP, White-Ra Group F: ESV winner, elfi- Group G: Lucky, Strelok Group H: Polt, BlinG
A: Kas, Titan (Puma has been sort of slumping, so im sure Kas and Titan will be able to take him) B: Stephano, Happy (Tbh, this group is very even, anything can happen) C: Brat_OK, Moon (Haven't seen too much of Moon though..) D: Hero, Select E: WhiteRa, JYP F: Elfi, Jinro (Depends who the 4th player is) G: Lucky, Strelok H: Polt, Bling
On February 16 2012 08:40 Andrew2658 wrote: I'll predict: Group A: Puma, Kas Group B: Stephano, Mana Group C: Moon, BRAT_OK Group D: HerO, Select Group E: JYP, White-Ra Group F: ESV winner, elfi- Group G: Lucky, Strelok Group H: Polt, BlinG
On February 16 2012 08:47 JiYan wrote: good groups. i dont think theres a group of death. Those who are saying group C i think currently overestimate Moon's current skill level
Nice work with the groups, Assembly organizers! So even and hard to predict who will advance.. The only Thing that this tournament lacks is Thorzain =[
On February 16 2012 09:00 Darkfrog wrote: Oh my goodness. Too bad MLG is at the same time ;( Imagine how much bette this already stupidly sick lineup would be.
For a lot of people the choice is pretty obvious with Assembly being free and MLG costing quite significantly. But there's a whole thread for it so I won't continue that here :p
The Winner of the Grand Prix #1 will receive one of 32 invites to the ASUS ROG tournament held at Assembly Winter 2012 in Helsinki, Finland. This invite will include paid travel and accommodation
Yeah, I'd say overall the skill level of the players in the ESV Grand Prix is quite a bit higher than Assembly itself. Whoever wins that is definitely going to be the favorite. Sort of like WCG Korean qualifiers vs. WCG main tourney.
On February 16 2012 09:17 Shinespark wrote: Jinro is playing. I haven't seen him play in a LOOOOONG time. Must be cause TL only sends zergs and Jinro isn't Z.
Jinro was at the majority of MLGs last year + IEM Guangzhou + Homestory Cup 3 + DH Summer and DH Invitational. What do you mean they don't send him? Where did they not send him?
On February 16 2012 09:17 Shinespark wrote: Jinro is playing. I haven't seen him play in a LOOOOONG time. Must be cause TL only sends zergs and Jinro isn't Z.
Jinro was at the majority of MLGs last year + IEM Guangzhou + Homestory Cup 3 + DH Summer and DH Invitational. What do you mean they don't send him? Where did they not send him?
Sorta sad that Jinro has atleast two Protoss in his group and HerO and TLO both have to face one of each race, but I'm sure Liquid will do well, considering it's time for Jinro to shine, HerO is HerO, and if anyone has seen TLO in IPL TAC then you will understand I'm sure Go Liquid! Either way sure to be some great games! Excited :D
On February 16 2012 09:17 Shinespark wrote: Jinro is playing. I haven't seen him play in a LOOOOONG time. Must be cause TL only sends zergs and Jinro isn't Z.
Jinro was at the majority of MLGs last year + IEM Guangzhou + Homestory Cup 3 + DH Summer and DH Invitational. What do you mean they don't send him? Where did they not send him?
I meant that on recent team leagues we've seen like 90% zerg out of TL. It was a joke.
Group B is easily the group of death. Happy and Stephano finish 1st and 2nd in the Grandmaster EU ladder this season. Both Mana and NightEnd are easily among the top 5 Protoss players in Europe.
The map pool looks fantastic. Terminus and Shakuras might not be the best maps to play on but on the spectator side they usually provide pretty awesome games, lots of drop play on Terminus especially.
I've already told you people that Jinro will win, and I stand by that. Even if I'm the only one who thinks he can, I am 100% confident in Jinro's ability to win
Group A: Puma, Kas Group B: Stephano, Mana Group C: Moon, Cloud Group D: Hero, Select Group E: White-Ra, DieStar Group F: Jinro, ESV Winner Group G: Lucky, Stelok Group H: Polt, Bling
The ESV weekly has now been updated into a bracket and both aLive and Jjakji are on opposite sides of the bracket. These 2 will most likely battle it out for this seed
On February 16 2012 15:45 Mycl wrote: The ESV weekly has now been updated into a bracket and both aLive and Jjakji are on opposite sides of the bracket. These 2 will most likely battle it out for this seed
TaeJa and Tiger looked pretty damn good though, imo. Shouldn't count out either of the two even if Tiger had a "relatively" easy way to the QFs.
On February 16 2012 06:26 Zeon0 wrote: B, C and H > rest
why is every torunament still using Terminus? doesnt it have huge balance issues?
Didnt you confuse H with A? Who besides Polt is really good in group H?
Agreed! I saw group A and was like "wow group of death?" then I saw B and C and neither looked any easier! At least D and on might be easier to get out of!
Pretty good map pool overall - do players get any kind of veto? (IIRC the last A.R. was a player veto and all 3-5 maps were selected before play started.)
On February 16 2012 16:14 y0su wrote: Pretty good map pool overall - do players get any kind of veto? (IIRC the last A.R. was a player veto and all 3-5 maps were selected before play started.)
Players veto maps in turns until there are 3 maps left for a bo3 (2 vetoes each) and 5 maps left for a bo5 (1 veto each). After the map veto the players pick the order of the maps in the same manner.
On February 16 2012 16:14 y0su wrote: Pretty good map pool overall - do players get any kind of veto? (IIRC the last A.R. was a player veto and all 3-5 maps were selected before play started.)
Players veto maps in turns until there are 3 maps left for a bo3 (2 vetoes each) and 5 maps left for a bo5 (1 veto each). After the map veto the players pick the order of the maps in the same manner.
Which imo is the best system for events where you can't prepare a week or so for every match.
Sick lineup, I think in A, B, C and H I can see everyone advance, while in the rest their could be some surprises.
Also eager to see how Korhal Compound will play out.
Great, im really looking forward to this tournament! Just 2 things I dont like about it: No qualification besides that one Korean qualifier as far as I know and the prize money distribution, with a prize pool of 20k at least the top 8 if not even the top 16 should get something!
I'm surprised so many people are not predicting TLO to advance from groups, I say he's definitely making it through (Bling? Do people not realize how solid TLO is in ZvP, with wins over Grubby, Real, and CreatorPrime? Hell, I'd say he's on par with Polt to possibly take the group, seeing as how Polt has dropped out of code A and TLO beat MKP/Tarson recently.
On February 17 2012 01:08 Uracil wrote: Anyone knows who is casting.
TB and apollo on 1 stream MrBitter and Khaldor on 2nd stream I believe Kaelaris will be substituting in to give breaks etc. (If you don't know who mouzKaelaris is, I highly suggest you watch him stream some of the EU weekly tournaments.)
A - PuMa, Kas - look out for Titan B - Happy, NightEnD - look out for MaNa or Stephano, very even group C - ReaL, BRAT_OK - look out for Moon D - HerO, SeleCT - look out for nobody, this group should be rapped up by HerO and Select E - JYP, White-Ra - look out for nobody, this group should be rapped up by JYP and White-Ra. F - elfi, (alive, if he makes it out of Grand prix 1) - look out for Adelscott G - Lucky, Strelok - look out for nobody, this group should be rapped up by Lucky and Strelok. H - Polt, BlinG - look out for nobody, this group should be rapped up by Polt and BlinG.
On February 17 2012 00:38 LlamaNamedOsama wrote: I'm surprised so many people are not predicting TLO to advance from groups, I say he's definitely making it through (Bling? Do people not realize how solid TLO is in ZvP, with wins over Grubby, Real, and CreatorPrime? Hell, I'd say he's on par with Polt to possibly take the group, seeing as how Polt has dropped out of code A and TLO beat MKP/Tarson recently.
Meh. All those P players are not that solid in PvZ. We will see how he performs at Assembly.
On February 17 2012 01:29 StrafeJD wrote: Predictions to advance
A - PuMa, Kas - look out for Titan B - Happy, NightEnD - look out for MaNa or Stephano, very even group C - ReaL, BRAT_OK - look out for Moon D - HerO, SeleCT - look out for nobody, this group should be rapped up by HerO and Select E - JYP, White-Ra - look out for nobody, this group should be rapped up by JYP and White-Ra. F - elfi, (alive, if he makes it out of Grand prix 1) - look out for Adelscott G - Lucky, Strelok - look out for nobody, this group should be rapped up by Lucky and Strelok. H - Polt, BlinG - look out for nobody, this group should be rapped up by Polt and BlinG.
Can't see how you'd think both Mana / Stephano wouldn't make it out of that group.
On February 17 2012 01:29 StrafeJD wrote: Predictions to advance
A - PuMa, Kas - look out for Titan B - Happy, NightEnD - look out for MaNa or Stephano, very even group C - ReaL, BRAT_OK - look out for Moon D - HerO, SeleCT - look out for nobody, this group should be rapped up by HerO and Select E - JYP, White-Ra - look out for nobody, this group should be rapped up by JYP and White-Ra. F - elfi, (alive, if he makes it out of Grand prix 1) - look out for Adelscott G - Lucky, Strelok - look out for nobody, this group should be rapped up by Lucky and Strelok. H - Polt, BlinG - look out for nobody, this group should be rapped up by Polt and BlinG.
Can't see how you'd think both Mana / Stephano wouldn't make it out of that group.
Because Stephano went 1-6 in the second group stage of dreamhack winter 2011 and has done nothing good sense then. And MaNa was practicing a lot, but he goes to school so hasn't been able to get a great amount of practice lately.
On February 17 2012 01:08 Uracil wrote: Anyone knows who is casting.
TB and apollo on 1 stream MrBitter and Khaldor on 2nd stream I believe Kaelaris will be substituting in to give breaks etc. (If you don't know who mouzKaelaris is, I highly suggest you watch him stream some of the EU weekly tournaments.)
thx TB and apollo are a good casting duo and we will see how mrbitter and kaldor fit together. Also i will try how good mouz Kaelaris is.
On February 17 2012 01:29 StrafeJD wrote: Predictions to advance
A - PuMa, Kas - look out for Titan B - Happy, NightEnD - look out for MaNa or Stephano, very even group C - ReaL, BRAT_OK - look out for Moon D - HerO, SeleCT - look out for nobody, this group should be rapped up by HerO and Select E - JYP, White-Ra - look out for nobody, this group should be rapped up by JYP and White-Ra. F - elfi, (alive, if he makes it out of Grand prix 1) - look out for Adelscott G - Lucky, Strelok - look out for nobody, this group should be rapped up by Lucky and Strelok. H - Polt, BlinG - look out for nobody, this group should be rapped up by Polt and BlinG.
Can't see how you'd think both Mana / Stephano wouldn't make it out of that group.
Because Stephano went 1-6 in the second group stage of dreamhack winter 2011 and has done nothing good sense then. And MaNa was practicing a lot, but he goes to school so hasn't been able to get a great amount of practice lately.
Since the beginnig of the year, Stephano won Scan Invitational 3 7-0, Shoutcraft Invitational 13-3 and eOSL Winter 13-4, making him the highest earning foreigner in the new year, with about twice as much as the 2/3 place got (Kas/Dimaga). "Nothing good"?
On February 17 2012 01:29 StrafeJD wrote: Predictions to advance
A - PuMa, Kas - look out for Titan B - Happy, NightEnD - look out for MaNa or Stephano, very even group C - ReaL, BRAT_OK - look out for Moon D - HerO, SeleCT - look out for nobody, this group should be rapped up by HerO and Select E - JYP, White-Ra - look out for nobody, this group should be rapped up by JYP and White-Ra. F - elfi, (alive, if he makes it out of Grand prix 1) - look out for Adelscott G - Lucky, Strelok - look out for nobody, this group should be rapped up by Lucky and Strelok. H - Polt, BlinG - look out for nobody, this group should be rapped up by Polt and BlinG.
On February 17 2012 01:29 StrafeJD wrote: Predictions to advance
A - PuMa, Kas - look out for Titan B - Happy, NightEnD - look out for MaNa or Stephano, very even group C - ReaL, BRAT_OK - look out for Moon D - HerO, SeleCT - look out for nobody, this group should be rapped up by HerO and Select E - JYP, White-Ra - look out for nobody, this group should be rapped up by JYP and White-Ra. F - elfi, (alive, if he makes it out of Grand prix 1) - look out for Adelscott G - Lucky, Strelok - look out for nobody, this group should be rapped up by Lucky and Strelok. H - Polt, BlinG - look out for nobody, this group should be rapped up by Polt and BlinG.
WHAT? lol. Joke of the month?
Must be troll, Happy and NightEnD over StephanO and MaNa. O_O
On February 17 2012 01:29 StrafeJD wrote: Predictions to advance
A - PuMa, Kas - look out for Titan B - Happy, NightEnD - look out for MaNa or Stephano, very even group C - ReaL, BRAT_OK - look out for Moon D - HerO, SeleCT - look out for nobody, this group should be rapped up by HerO and Select E - JYP, White-Ra - look out for nobody, this group should be rapped up by JYP and White-Ra. F - elfi, (alive, if he makes it out of Grand prix 1) - look out for Adelscott G - Lucky, Strelok - look out for nobody, this group should be rapped up by Lucky and Strelok. H - Polt, BlinG - look out for nobody, this group should be rapped up by Polt and BlinG.
Can't see how you'd think both Mana / Stephano wouldn't make it out of that group.
Because Stephano went 1-6 in the second group stage of dreamhack winter 2011 and has done nothing good sense then. And MaNa was practicing a lot, but he goes to school so hasn't been able to get a great amount of practice lately.
Since the beginnig of the year, Stephano won Scan Invitational 3 7-0, Shoutcraft Invitational 13-3 and eOSL Winter 13-4, making him the highest earning foreigner in the new year, with about twice as much as the 2/3 place got (Kas/Dimaga). "Nothing good"?
Plus Stephano got to the Final of the ONOG Tournament but pulled out because he was tired. I believe this has been mentioned before on TeamLiquid though!
It should also be mentioned that although Stephano did not have the greatest of tournaments at the Home Story Cup 4, he did beat NightEnd 2-0 in their group match, before ultimately being knocked out by some unknowns called MarineKing and MC. I like NightEnd but cannot see how he would a favourite over Stephano to advance.
On February 17 2012 01:29 StrafeJD wrote: Predictions to advance
A - PuMa, Kas - look out for Titan B - Happy, NightEnD - look out for MaNa or Stephano, very even group C - ReaL, BRAT_OK - look out for Moon D - HerO, SeleCT - look out for nobody, this group should be rapped up by HerO and Select E - JYP, White-Ra - look out for nobody, this group should be rapped up by JYP and White-Ra. F - elfi, (alive, if he makes it out of Grand prix 1) - look out for Adelscott G - Lucky, Strelok - look out for nobody, this group should be rapped up by Lucky and Strelok. H - Polt, BlinG - look out for nobody, this group should be rapped up by Polt and BlinG.
WHAT? lol. Joke of the month?
while i would also give the edge to mana and stephano, based on past big-tournament results, happy or nightend winning wouldnt be completely shocking, empire's terrans are terrifying and nightend's been underrated for a long time
On February 17 2012 01:29 StrafeJD wrote: Predictions to advance
A - PuMa, Kas - look out for Titan B - Happy, NightEnD - look out for MaNa or Stephano, very even group C - ReaL, BRAT_OK - look out for Moon D - HerO, SeleCT - look out for nobody, this group should be rapped up by HerO and Select E - JYP, White-Ra - look out for nobody, this group should be rapped up by JYP and White-Ra. F - elfi, (alive, if he makes it out of Grand prix 1) - look out for Adelscott G - Lucky, Strelok - look out for nobody, this group should be rapped up by Lucky and Strelok. H - Polt, BlinG - look out for nobody, this group should be rapped up by Polt and BlinG.
Can't see how you'd think both Mana / Stephano wouldn't make it out of that group.
Because Stephano went 1-6 in the second group stage of dreamhack winter 2011 and has done nothing good sense then. And MaNa was practicing a lot, but he goes to school so hasn't been able to get a great amount of practice lately.
Since the beginnig of the year, Stephano won Scan Invitational 3 7-0, Shoutcraft Invitational 13-3 and eOSL Winter 13-4, making him the highest earning foreigner in the new year, with about twice as much as the 2/3 place got (Kas/Dimaga). "Nothing good"?
Plus Stephano got to the Final of the ONOG Tournament but pulled out because he was tired. I believe this has been mentioned before on TeamLiquid though!
It should also be mentioned that although Stephano did not have the greatest of tournaments at the Home Story Cup 4, he did beat NightEnd 2-0 in their group match, before ultimately being knocked out by some unknowns called MarineKing and MC. I like NightEnd but cannot see how he would a favourite over Stephano to advance.
so your mentality is if nightend lost recently in a game to stephano , he will lose for ever . cuz he lost once . ye sure ul see nightend 3-0 his group and all mouths will be shuted.
On February 17 2012 01:29 StrafeJD wrote: Predictions to advance
A - PuMa, Kas - look out for Titan B - Happy, NightEnD - look out for MaNa or Stephano, very even group C - ReaL, BRAT_OK - look out for Moon D - HerO, SeleCT - look out for nobody, this group should be rapped up by HerO and Select E - JYP, White-Ra - look out for nobody, this group should be rapped up by JYP and White-Ra. F - elfi, (alive, if he makes it out of Grand prix 1) - look out for Adelscott G - Lucky, Strelok - look out for nobody, this group should be rapped up by Lucky and Strelok. H - Polt, BlinG - look out for nobody, this group should be rapped up by Polt and BlinG.
Can't see how you'd think both Mana / Stephano wouldn't make it out of that group.
Because Stephano went 1-6 in the second group stage of dreamhack winter 2011 and has done nothing good sense then. And MaNa was practicing a lot, but he goes to school so hasn't been able to get a great amount of practice lately.
Since the beginnig of the year, Stephano won Scan Invitational 3 7-0, Shoutcraft Invitational 13-3 and eOSL Winter 13-4, making him the highest earning foreigner in the new year, with about twice as much as the 2/3 place got (Kas/Dimaga). "Nothing good"?
Plus Stephano got to the Final of the ONOG Tournament but pulled out because he was tired. I believe this has been mentioned before on TeamLiquid though!
It should also be mentioned that although Stephano did not have the greatest of tournaments at the Home Story Cup 4, he did beat NightEnd 2-0 in their group match, before ultimately being knocked out by some unknowns called MarineKing and MC. I like NightEnd but cannot see how he would a favourite over Stephano to advance.
so your mentality is if nightend lost recently in a game to stephano , he will lose for ever . cuz he lost once . ye sure ul see nightend 3-0 his group and all mouths will be shuted.
That is not what he said. GAAAAAAHD the dicussion level on these forums..................
On February 17 2012 00:38 LlamaNamedOsama wrote: I'm surprised so many people are not predicting TLO to advance from groups, I say he's definitely making it through (Bling? Do people not realize how solid TLO is in ZvP, with wins over Grubby, Real, and CreatorPrime? Hell, I'd say he's on par with Polt to possibly take the group, seeing as how Polt has dropped out of code A and TLO beat MKP/Tarson recently.
Meh. All those P players are not that solid in PvZ. We will see how he performs at Assembly.
Lol, Grubby beat Darkforce and Ret in homestory 4, and Creator, well, let's just say that "not that solid" Korean PvZ wrecks foreigner PvZ. But whatever, doubters gonna doubt.
On February 17 2012 00:38 LlamaNamedOsama wrote: I'm surprised so many people are not predicting TLO to advance from groups, I say he's definitely making it through (Bling? Do people not realize how solid TLO is in ZvP, with wins over Grubby, Real, and CreatorPrime? Hell, I'd say he's on par with Polt to possibly take the group, seeing as how Polt has dropped out of code A and TLO beat MKP/Tarson recently.
Meh. All those P players are not that solid in PvZ. We will see how he performs at Assembly.
Lol, Grubby beat Darkforce and Ret in homestory 4, and Creator, well, let's just say that "not that solid" Korean PvZ wrecks foreigner PvZ. But whatever, doubters gonna doubt.
I'm going to keep doubting Grubby's PvZ (I'm sold on his PvT though) until he changes my mind. Beating players doesn't prove anything, it's how you beat them. TLO is undoubtedly on the rise but he has not proved himself to be a top player.
Man, it looks like the Koreans will steamroll here, such strong players with every race. Any foreigner other than Stephano winning would be an upset. I'm rooting on Satiini to pull off the miracle. :p
On February 17 2012 01:29 StrafeJD wrote: Predictions to advance
A - PuMa, Kas - look out for Titan B - Happy, NightEnD - look out for MaNa or Stephano, very even group C - ReaL, BRAT_OK - look out for Moon D - HerO, SeleCT - look out for nobody, this group should be rapped up by HerO and Select E - JYP, White-Ra - look out for nobody, this group should be rapped up by JYP and White-Ra. F - elfi, (alive, if he makes it out of Grand prix 1) - look out for Adelscott G - Lucky, Strelok - look out for nobody, this group should be rapped up by Lucky and Strelok. H - Polt, BlinG - look out for nobody, this group should be rapped up by Polt and BlinG.
Can't see how you'd think both Mana / Stephano wouldn't make it out of that group.
Because Stephano went 1-6 in the second group stage of dreamhack winter 2011 and has done nothing good sense then. And MaNa was practicing a lot, but he goes to school so hasn't been able to get a great amount of practice lately.
Since the beginnig of the year, Stephano won Scan Invitational 3 7-0, Shoutcraft Invitational 13-3 and eOSL Winter 13-4, making him the highest earning foreigner in the new year, with about twice as much as the 2/3 place got (Kas/Dimaga). "Nothing good"?
Plus Stephano got to the Final of the ONOG Tournament but pulled out because he was tired. I believe this has been mentioned before on TeamLiquid though!
It should also be mentioned that although Stephano did not have the greatest of tournaments at the Home Story Cup 4, he did beat NightEnd 2-0 in their group match, before ultimately being knocked out by some unknowns called MarineKing and MC. I like NightEnd but cannot see how he would a favourite over Stephano to advance.
so your mentality is if nightend lost recently in a game to stephano , he will lose for ever . cuz he lost once . ye sure ul see nightend 3-0 his group and all mouths will be shuted.
My point was that Stephano has been playing consistently well in tournaments over the past 6 weeks or so apart from HSC4. The results mentioned show this. He is also playing very well against Protoss in particular. He has been practicing a lot against Bling and Mana, both Protoss players. Day[9] is doing a show right now with Sheth, where Sheth is showcasing his style of ZvP that he has just adopted from Stephano. So obviously Sheth is impressed enough with Stephano's ZvP if he decides to adopt it.
So considering all that, I think that Stephano is favourite when he meets NightEnd in this Group. I don't think that it is disrespecting NightEnd to state that he is the underdog in this. If you disagree, then fine.
Without thinking too much about who will come out of groups, I hope Taeja does well at his first foreign tournament! I'm really glad he qualified through the ESV Weekly to go to ASUS ROG. More motivation for me to wake up at 5am >.>. I'd really like Hero, Lucky, and Kas to go deep in the tournament as well
Wow so excited for this tournament. I really like the fact it is only a two day tournament, not having the final day on sunday american time means every single australian (and every other country in same timezone) that works or goes to school will be able to view the finals live. Bring it on!
I appreciate the racial balance and lack of "team collisions" haha. Makes for a more entertaining tourney. MLG groups always make me scratch my head, there will be 4 toss in a group or 3 terran 1 protoss, etc..
To be honest Mana will have hard time advancing from his group judging by his play lately. He doesnt have enough time to practice i am afraid. But i am hope i am mistaken. Also GO DIESTAR!
On February 17 2012 17:52 BreakfastBurrito wrote: I appreciate the racial balance and lack of "team collisions" haha. Makes for a more entertaining tourney. MLG groups always make me scratch my head, there will be 4 toss in a group or 3 terran 1 protoss, etc..
Yeah, I've always thought that "random draw" is fine... However, I do appreciate the effort to avoid early team kills (and possible conflicts of interest) in group play.
Group A seems rather straight-forward : one korean training in the US known for its TvP, a strong ukrainian terran and 2 protoss outsiders. However I don't think it will be that easy for PuMa, TiTaN is capable of beating and show good TvP and Kas is above him right now. Left alone is Welmu, not really a dark horse and a little bit outclassed by the rest of the tournament. Pass : Kas & Winner of TiTaN vs. PuMa
Ah Stephano, the foreigner powerhouse, the devil child, the person on par with NaNiwa for the flak he gets from the community. Yeah, that Stephano and the rest of the group. It seems rather insulting from me to say that he is on another level then MaNa, Happy and NightEnd but there is little room to discussion. That said, his last two big tournaments were god-awful. Dreamhack was disappointing and in HSC 4 he was more interested in having fun with Bling than winning. I guess that's fine but the checks aren't going to the bank by themselves. If you remember well NightEnd beat him at the DH Winter, I don't think it will happen this time. MaNa will once again lose against Stephano and Happy won't be solid or innovative enough. After Stephano everything is possible .. MaNa is traditionnaly stronger than Happy and NightEnd but he seems to lose steam this days. Happy is little more than a solid player and he lacks the spark that will make him a tremendous terran. And NightEnd is somewhat of a darkhorse. Pass : Stephano & ???? (My bet on NightEnd)
What is Moon capable of ? He is the same as in WC3 ? That will be his time to show us. His opposition while good isn't top tier and if he doesn't go 6-0 in his group, it will be a failure for a korean that known. ReaL is gimmicky but very ballsy, Brat_OK is a macro terran but lacking creativity and ClouD is creative but awfully tricky to play. ReaL doesn't have a good PvT so I will favor both EU terrans over him. ClouD is a uncanny TvTer and that will be his main advantage however he is not as solid as Brat_OK so he might lose to a protoss 2 base timing from ReaL. Pass : Moon & Brat_OK
After a dissapointing performance in ESWC, sYz is back. He has been somewhat discreet lately so I'm wondering he if can get out of this group though he is a respectable mid-tier EU. Speaking of huge letdown, HerO shouldn't lose here. That said, the common excuses for his losses are his nerves so I don't know ... he might see too much finnish girls and lose his head ... After some thought that's the only excuse he will have if he doesn't pass. I love SeleCT, he is a serious player and a smart guy (a really smart guy) and I think he is above Seiplo and sYz, the former being also a mid-tier EU. Pass : HerO (jinx) & SeleCT
2 protoss, 2 terrans ? I can see where this is going. JYP should pass if he can win against White-Ra (which is not a given), he should win against DieStar because the polish terran has a horrible PvT on top of his nerves issues (not HerO-like though), Satiini (strongly reinforcing the argument I have with my finnish friends that finnish lacks creativity) should also lose. That leaves us with DieStar losing against White-Ra too and out, and Satiini as a wild-card. Because of karma, I'm going to bet on protosses, GSL is the thermometer of SC2 and Protosses have been doing great. Pass : JYP & White-Ra
Did you watch the ESV Grand Prix ? If no, you are dumb because it was AWESOME. Props to them. So Taeja won, which while unsurprising proves that he isn't the last of SlayerS terrans. I'm going to be buyest and say this will be his international break-out. Elfi has a good PvP and Jinro is coming back and Adelscott really wants to stick with the french ideology of the Maginot line (except Germans always got around it - aren't they smart) of not-scouting. I can't foresee the results of Jinro vs. elfi so I'm going with elfi because his name is Samuli and if it's doesn't make you laugh then you are cold as ice. Pass: Taeja (6-0) & elfi
Interesting group, perhaps the most interesting for me. Bly is an online beast but never did anything major. Bischu is a strong Protoss but inconsistent and Strelok isn't as strong as he was (though he is extra nice and considerate). Lucky had a good IPL3 and has proven to be a strong Code A (almost Code S). He should be the favorite here because he is korean but the others can take him with good odds. I'll go with Bischu this time. No special reasons, pure guts. Pass : Lucky & Bisch
TLO is fun and has improce since his switch to Zerg but he is still only a mid-tier EU, PhoeNix isn't as good as his teammate ReaL and will struggle against Polt and BlinG. Polt should take this group easily even though he is having issues in Korea. So the obvious second finisher is BlinG. Pass : Polt & BlinG
Group A seems rather straight-forward : one korean training in the US known for its TvP, a strong ukrainian terran and 2 protoss outsiders. However I don't think it will be that easy for PuMa, TiTaN is capable of beating and show good TvP and Kas is above him right now. Left alone is Welmu, not really a dark horse and a little bit outclassed by the rest of the tournament. Pass : Kas & Winner of TiTaN vs. PuMa
huh
Puma lives in Korea and always has. He spent a couple weeks at the EG house last year but that is it. He has amazing TvP and should easily make it out of the group.
Ah Stephano, the foreigner powerhouse, the devil child, the person on par with NaNiwa for the flak he gets from the community. Yeah, that Stephano and the rest of the group. It seems rather insulting from me to say that he is on another level then MaNa, Happy and NightEnd but there is little room to discussion. That said, his last two big tournaments were god-awful. Dreamhack was disappointing and in HSC 4 he was more interested in having fun with Bling than winning. I guess that's fine but the checks aren't going to the bank by themselves. If you remember well NightEnd beat him at the DH Winter, I don't think it will happen this time. MaNa will once again lose against Stephano and Happy won't be solid or innovative enough. After Stephano everything is possible .. MaNa is traditionnaly stronger than Happy and NightEnd but he seems to lose steam this days. Happy is little more than a solid player and he lacks the spark that will make him a tremendous terran. And NightEnd is somewhat of a darkhorse. Pass : Stephano & ???? (My bet on NightEnd)
Group C - 14:00 Moon ReaL BRAT_OK ClouD What is Moon capable of ? He is the same as in WC3 ? That will be his time to show us. His opposition while good isn't top tier and if he doesn't go 6-0 in his group, it will be a failure for a korean that known. ReaL is gimmicky but very ballsy, Brat_OK is a macro terran but lacking creativity and ClouD is creative but awfully tricky to play. ReaL doesn't have a good PvT so I will favor both EU terrans over him. ClouD is a uncanny TvTer and that will be his main advantage however he is not as solid as Brat_OK so he might lose to a protoss 2 base timing from ReaL.
Pass : Moon & Brat_OK
ReaL actually has quite good PvT, his PvZ isn't as strong. At IEM he nerly defeated Supernova after having a 2-0 lead, but then he got nervous or something. I think Moon and ReaL will advance even though I also would really like ClouD and ReaL to advance.
Ah Stephano, the foreigner powerhouse, the devil child, the person on par with NaNiwa for the flak he gets from the community. Yeah, that Stephano and the rest of the group. It seems rather insulting from me to say that he is on another level then MaNa, Happy and NightEnd but there is little room to discussion. That said, his last two big tournaments were god-awful. Dreamhack was disappointing and in HSC 4 he was more interested in having fun with Bling than winning. I guess that's fine but the checks aren't going to the bank by themselves. If you remember well NightEnd beat him at the DH Winter, I don't think it will happen this time. MaNa will once again lose against Stephano and Happy won't be solid or innovative enough. After Stephano everything is possible .. MaNa is traditionnaly stronger than Happy and NightEnd but he seems to lose steam this days. Happy is little more than a solid player and he lacks the spark that will make him a tremendous terran. And NightEnd is somewhat of a darkhorse. Pass : Stephano & ???? (My bet on NightEnd)
A: Puma, Kas B: Stephano, Happy (take a look at Happys record the last month) C: Pretty even group, Cloud has been strong lately, Moon is the big ?, in doubt bet on Koreans: Moon, ReaL D: HerO, Select E: JYP, Satiini F: Taeja, elfi (if Taeja overcomes his nerve issues, he is the absolute favourite to take the whole thing) G: Lucky, Strelok/Bly H: Polt, TLO (yeah, betting TLO again!)
On February 17 2012 01:29 StrafeJD wrote: Predictions to advance
A - PuMa, Kas - look out for Titan B - Happy, NightEnD - look out for MaNa or Stephano, very even group C - ReaL, BRAT_OK - look out for Moon D - HerO, SeleCT - look out for nobody, this group should be rapped up by HerO and Select E - JYP, White-Ra - look out for nobody, this group should be rapped up by JYP and White-Ra. F - elfi, (alive, if he makes it out of Grand prix 1) - look out for Adelscott G - Lucky, Strelok - look out for nobody, this group should be rapped up by Lucky and Strelok. H - Polt, BlinG - look out for nobody, this group should be rapped up by Polt and BlinG.
Can't see how you'd think both Mana / Stephano wouldn't make it out of that group.
Because Stephano went 1-6 in the second group stage of dreamhack winter 2011 and has done nothing good sense then. And MaNa was practicing a lot, but he goes to school so hasn't been able to get a great amount of practice lately.
Since the beginnig of the year, Stephano won Scan Invitational 3 7-0, Shoutcraft Invitational 13-3 and eOSL Winter 13-4, making him the highest earning foreigner in the new year, with about twice as much as the 2/3 place got (Kas/Dimaga). "Nothing good"?
I don't consider those as good. I expect him to win qualifiers but until he performs in a large live tournament, he is the underdog in group B
On February 17 2012 01:29 StrafeJD wrote: Predictions to advance
A - PuMa, Kas - look out for Titan B - Happy, NightEnD - look out for MaNa or Stephano, very even group C - ReaL, BRAT_OK - look out for Moon D - HerO, SeleCT - look out for nobody, this group should be rapped up by HerO and Select E - JYP, White-Ra - look out for nobody, this group should be rapped up by JYP and White-Ra. F - elfi, (alive, if he makes it out of Grand prix 1) - look out for Adelscott G - Lucky, Strelok - look out for nobody, this group should be rapped up by Lucky and Strelok. H - Polt, BlinG - look out for nobody, this group should be rapped up by Polt and BlinG.
Can't see how you'd think both Mana / Stephano wouldn't make it out of that group.
Because Stephano went 1-6 in the second group stage of dreamhack winter 2011 and has done nothing good sense then. And MaNa was practicing a lot, but he goes to school so hasn't been able to get a great amount of practice lately.
Since the beginnig of the year, Stephano won Scan Invitational 3 7-0, Shoutcraft Invitational 13-3 and eOSL Winter 13-4, making him the highest earning foreigner in the new year, with about twice as much as the 2/3 place got (Kas/Dimaga). "Nothing good"?
I don't consider those as good. I expect him to win qualifiers but until he performs in a large live tournament, he is the underdog in group B
Stop trolling, you're alone in your little world it seems He won more big LAN events than the 3 other guys of the group combined...
On February 17 2012 01:29 StrafeJD wrote: Predictions to advance
A - PuMa, Kas - look out for Titan B - Happy, NightEnD - look out for MaNa or Stephano, very even group C - ReaL, BRAT_OK - look out for Moon D - HerO, SeleCT - look out for nobody, this group should be rapped up by HerO and Select E - JYP, White-Ra - look out for nobody, this group should be rapped up by JYP and White-Ra. F - elfi, (alive, if he makes it out of Grand prix 1) - look out for Adelscott G - Lucky, Strelok - look out for nobody, this group should be rapped up by Lucky and Strelok. H - Polt, BlinG - look out for nobody, this group should be rapped up by Polt and BlinG.
Can't see how you'd think both Mana / Stephano wouldn't make it out of that group.
Because Stephano went 1-6 in the second group stage of dreamhack winter 2011 and has done nothing good sense then. And MaNa was practicing a lot, but he goes to school so hasn't been able to get a great amount of practice lately.
Since the beginnig of the year, Stephano won Scan Invitational 3 7-0, Shoutcraft Invitational 13-3 and eOSL Winter 13-4, making him the highest earning foreigner in the new year, with about twice as much as the 2/3 place got (Kas/Dimaga). "Nothing good"?
I don't consider those as good. I expect him to win qualifiers but until he performs in a large live tournament, he is the underdog in group B
Happy was in Dreamhack Ro32 like Stephano. He didnt play other live events after that. Nightend was top4 dreamhack, but went out in first groupstage at HSC and IEM Kiev. So they clearly have to be favourites over Stephano due to their strong live performances? You haters are ridiculous.
On February 17 2012 01:29 StrafeJD wrote: Predictions to advance
A - PuMa, Kas - look out for Titan B - Happy, NightEnD - look out for MaNa or Stephano, very even group C - ReaL, BRAT_OK - look out for Moon D - HerO, SeleCT - look out for nobody, this group should be rapped up by HerO and Select E - JYP, White-Ra - look out for nobody, this group should be rapped up by JYP and White-Ra. F - elfi, (alive, if he makes it out of Grand prix 1) - look out for Adelscott G - Lucky, Strelok - look out for nobody, this group should be rapped up by Lucky and Strelok. H - Polt, BlinG - look out for nobody, this group should be rapped up by Polt and BlinG.
Can't see how you'd think both Mana / Stephano wouldn't make it out of that group.
Because Stephano went 1-6 in the second group stage of dreamhack winter 2011 and has done nothing good sense then. And MaNa was practicing a lot, but he goes to school so hasn't been able to get a great amount of practice lately.
Since the beginnig of the year, Stephano won Scan Invitational 3 7-0, Shoutcraft Invitational 13-3 and eOSL Winter 13-4, making him the highest earning foreigner in the new year, with about twice as much as the 2/3 place got (Kas/Dimaga). "Nothing good"?
I don't consider those as good. I expect him to win qualifiers but until he performs in a large live tournament, he is the underdog in group B
Stop trolling, you're alone in your little world it seems He won more big LAN events than the 3 other guys of the group combined...
Indeed. I'm not a stephano fan, but I still think the group is his to lose (and I do think its a VERY solid group).
Group A seems rather straight-forward : one korean training in the US known for its TvP, a strong ukrainian terran and 2 protoss outsiders. However I don't think it will be that easy for PuMa, TiTaN is capable of beating and show good TvP and Kas is above him right now. Left alone is Welmu, not really a dark horse and a little bit outclassed by the rest of the tournament. Pass : Kas & Winner of TiTaN vs. PuMa
Ah Stephano, the foreigner powerhouse, the devil child, the person on par with NaNiwa for the flak he gets from the community. Yeah, that Stephano and the rest of the group. It seems rather insulting from me to say that he is on another level then MaNa, Happy and NightEnd but there is little room to discussion. That said, his last two big tournaments were god-awful. Dreamhack was disappointing and in HSC 4 he was more interested in having fun with Bling than winning. I guess that's fine but the checks aren't going to the bank by themselves. If you remember well NightEnd beat him at the DH Winter, I don't think it will happen this time. MaNa will once again lose against Stephano and Happy won't be solid or innovative enough. After Stephano everything is possible .. MaNa is traditionnaly stronger than Happy and NightEnd but he seems to lose steam this days. Happy is little more than a solid player and he lacks the spark that will make him a tremendous terran. And NightEnd is somewhat of a darkhorse. Pass : Stephano & ???? (My bet on NightEnd)
What is Moon capable of ? He is the same as in WC3 ? That will be his time to show us. His opposition while good isn't top tier and if he doesn't go 6-0 in his group, it will be a failure for a korean that known. ReaL is gimmicky but very ballsy, Brat_OK is a macro terran but lacking creativity and ClouD is creative but awfully tricky to play. ReaL doesn't have a good PvT so I will favor both EU terrans over him. ClouD is a uncanny TvTer and that will be his main advantage however he is not as solid as Brat_OK so he might lose to a protoss 2 base timing from ReaL. Pass : Moon & Brat_OK
After a dissapointing performance in ESWC, sYz is back. He has been somewhat discreet lately so I'm wondering he if can get out of this group though he is a respectable mid-tier EU. Speaking of huge letdown, HerO shouldn't lose here. That said, the common excuses for his losses are his nerves so I don't know ... he might see too much finnish girls and lose his head ... After some thought that's the only excuse he will have if he doesn't pass. I love SeleCT, he is a serious player and a smart guy (a really smart guy) and I think he is above Seiplo and sYz, the former being also a mid-tier EU. Pass : HerO (jinx) & SeleCT
2 protoss, 2 terrans ? I can see where this is going. JYP should pass if he can win against White-Ra (which is not a given), he should win against DieStar because the polish terran has a horrible PvT on top of his nerves issues (not HerO-like though), Satiini (strongly reinforcing the argument I have with my finnish friends that finnish lacks creativity) should also lose. That leaves us with DieStar losing against White-Ra too and out, and Satiini as a wild-card. Because of karma, I'm going to bet on protosses, GSL is the thermometer of SC2 and Protosses have been doing great. Pass : JYP & White-Ra
Did you watch the ESV Grand Prix ? If no, you are dumb because it was AWESOME. Props to them. So Taeja won, which while unsurprising proves that he isn't the last of SlayerS terrans. I'm going to be buyest and say this will be his international break-out. Elfi has a good PvP and Jinro is coming back and Adelscott really wants to stick with the french ideology of the Maginot line (except Germans always got around it - aren't they smart) of not-scouting. I can't foresee the results of Jinro vs. elfi so I'm going with elfi because his name is Samuli and if it's doesn't make you laugh then you are cold as ice. Pass: Taeja (6-0) & elfi
Interesting group, perhaps the most interesting for me. Bly is an online beast but never did anything major. Bischu is a strong Protoss but inconsistent and Strelok isn't as strong as he was (though he is extra nice and considerate). Lucky had a good IPL3 and has proven to be a strong Code A (almost Code S). He should be the favorite here because he is korean but the others can take him with good odds. I'll go with Bischu this time. No special reasons, pure guts. Pass : Lucky & Bisch
TLO is fun and has improce since his switch to Zerg but he is still only a mid-tier EU, PhoeNix isn't as good as his teammate ReaL and will struggle against Polt and BlinG. Polt should take this group easily even though he is having issues in Korea. So the obvious second finisher is BlinG. Pass : Polt & BlinG
Great post. I agree with most of the choices; the only two changes, I would make, are: First I would chose TLO over Bling, maybe I am a bit biased here, because I am german, but recent events + Show Spoiler +
(IPLTAC)
made me think, he has really improved. Also I think, bly should win his group, if he doesn´t have nerve issues, he has one of the top ZvZ in Europe and top-european ZvZ (Dimaga 3-2, Stephano 8-0 against korean zergs offline) has a history of beating korean ZvZ.
Ah Stephano, the foreigner powerhouse, the devil child, the person on par with NaNiwa for the flak he gets from the community. Yeah, that Stephano and the rest of the group. It seems rather insulting from me to say that he is on another level then MaNa, Happy and NightEnd but there is little room to discussion. That said, his last two big tournaments were god-awful. Dreamhack was disappointing and in HSC 4 he was more interested in having fun with Bling than winning. I guess that's fine but the checks aren't going to the bank by themselves. If you remember well NightEnd beat him at the DH Winter, I don't think it will happen this time. MaNa will once again lose against Stephano and Happy won't be solid or innovative enough. After Stephano everything is possible .. MaNa is traditionnaly stronger than Happy and NightEnd but he seems to lose steam this days. Happy is little more than a solid player and he lacks the spark that will make him a tremendous terran. And NightEnd is somewhat of a darkhorse. Pass : Stephano & ???? (My bet on NightEnd)
They did play at HSC4 and Shoutcraft Invitational 4 in Jan 2012 and Stephano beat NightEnd on both occasions.
In fact they played at DH but Steph did two 6pools since the games were not streamed and he was already out of the group
NightEnd did not play Stephano at DreamHack. If Stephano 6 pooled someone. It was not NightEnd. It might have been Cloud who is Terran. NightEnd and Stephano were never in the same groups.
AFAIK Stephano has played NightEnd 4 times in tournaments and won all 4 times. They were Shoutcraft Invitational 4, Home Story Cup 4, ESWC 2011, and Intel Chllenge Super Cup 8. Maybe they have met in other tournaments, but all their tourney meetings so far that I have been able to find, have resulted in a Stephano victory. This alone should make him favourite in their games in this tournament. It is hardly controversial to state Stephano would be the bookies favourite to beat NightEnd. Upsets can happen though.
Group A seems rather straight-forward : one korean training in the US known for its TvP, a strong ukrainian terran and 2 protoss outsiders. However I don't think it will be that easy for PuMa, TiTaN is capable of beating and show good TvP and Kas is above him right now. Left alone is Welmu, not really a dark horse and a little bit outclassed by the rest of the tournament. Pass : Kas & Winner of TiTaN vs. PuMa
Ah Stephano, the foreigner powerhouse, the devil child, the person on par with NaNiwa for the flak he gets from the community. Yeah, that Stephano and the rest of the group. It seems rather insulting from me to say that he is on another level then MaNa, Happy and NightEnd but there is little room to discussion. That said, his last two big tournaments were god-awful. Dreamhack was disappointing and in HSC 4 he was more interested in having fun with Bling than winning. I guess that's fine but the checks aren't going to the bank by themselves. If you remember well NightEnd beat him at the DH Winter, I don't think it will happen this time. MaNa will once again lose against Stephano and Happy won't be solid or innovative enough. After Stephano everything is possible .. MaNa is traditionnaly stronger than Happy and NightEnd but he seems to lose steam this days. Happy is little more than a solid player and he lacks the spark that will make him a tremendous terran. And NightEnd is somewhat of a darkhorse. Pass : Stephano & ???? (My bet on NightEnd)
What is Moon capable of ? He is the same as in WC3 ? That will be his time to show us. His opposition while good isn't top tier and if he doesn't go 6-0 in his group, it will be a failure for a korean that known. ReaL is gimmicky but very ballsy, Brat_OK is a macro terran but lacking creativity and ClouD is creative but awfully tricky to play. ReaL doesn't have a good PvT so I will favor both EU terrans over him. ClouD is a uncanny TvTer and that will be his main advantage however he is not as solid as Brat_OK so he might lose to a protoss 2 base timing from ReaL. Pass : Moon & Brat_OK
After a dissapointing performance in ESWC, sYz is back. He has been somewhat discreet lately so I'm wondering he if can get out of this group though he is a respectable mid-tier EU. Speaking of huge letdown, HerO shouldn't lose here. That said, the common excuses for his losses are his nerves so I don't know ... he might see too much finnish girls and lose his head ... After some thought that's the only excuse he will have if he doesn't pass. I love SeleCT, he is a serious player and a smart guy (a really smart guy) and I think he is above Seiplo and sYz, the former being also a mid-tier EU. Pass : HerO (jinx) & SeleCT
2 protoss, 2 terrans ? I can see where this is going. JYP should pass if he can win against White-Ra (which is not a given), he should win against DieStar because the polish terran has a horrible PvT on top of his nerves issues (not HerO-like though), Satiini (strongly reinforcing the argument I have with my finnish friends that finnish lacks creativity) should also lose. That leaves us with DieStar losing against White-Ra too and out, and Satiini as a wild-card. Because of karma, I'm going to bet on protosses, GSL is the thermometer of SC2 and Protosses have been doing great. Pass : JYP & White-Ra
Did you watch the ESV Grand Prix ? If no, you are dumb because it was AWESOME. Props to them. So Taeja won, which while unsurprising proves that he isn't the last of SlayerS terrans. I'm going to be buyest and say this will be his international break-out. Elfi has a good PvP and Jinro is coming back and Adelscott really wants to stick with the french ideology of the Maginot line (except Germans always got around it - aren't they smart) of not-scouting. I can't foresee the results of Jinro vs. elfi so I'm going with elfi because his name is Samuli and if it's doesn't make you laugh then you are cold as ice. Pass: Taeja (6-0) & elfi
Interesting group, perhaps the most interesting for me. Bly is an online beast but never did anything major. Bischu is a strong Protoss but inconsistent and Strelok isn't as strong as he was (though he is extra nice and considerate). Lucky had a good IPL3 and has proven to be a strong Code A (almost Code S). He should be the favorite here because he is korean but the others can take him with good odds. I'll go with Bischu this time. No special reasons, pure guts. Pass : Lucky & Bisch
TLO is fun and has improce since his switch to Zerg but he is still only a mid-tier EU, PhoeNix isn't as good as his teammate ReaL and will struggle against Polt and BlinG. Polt should take this group easily even though he is having issues in Korea. So the obvious second finisher is BlinG. Pass : Polt & BlinG
Great post. I agree with most of the choices; the only two changes, I would make, are: First I would chose TLO over Bling, maybe I am a bit biased here, because I am german, but recent events + Show Spoiler +
(IPLTAC)
made me think, he has really improved. Also I think, bly should win his group, if he doesn´t have nerve issues, he has one of the top ZvZ in Europe and top-european ZvZ (Dimaga 3-2, Stephano 8-0 against korean zergs offline) has a history of beating korean ZvZ.
Two players' records (including one series that happened months and months ago) is proof?
Group A seems rather straight-forward : one korean training in the US known for its TvP, a strong ukrainian terran and 2 protoss outsiders. However I don't think it will be that easy for PuMa, TiTaN is capable of beating and show good TvP and Kas is above him right now. Left alone is Welmu, not really a dark horse and a little bit outclassed by the rest of the tournament. Pass : Kas & Winner of TiTaN vs. PuMa
Ah Stephano, the foreigner powerhouse, the devil child, the person on par with NaNiwa for the flak he gets from the community. Yeah, that Stephano and the rest of the group. It seems rather insulting from me to say that he is on another level then MaNa, Happy and NightEnd but there is little room to discussion. That said, his last two big tournaments were god-awful. Dreamhack was disappointing and in HSC 4 he was more interested in having fun with Bling than winning. I guess that's fine but the checks aren't going to the bank by themselves. If you remember well NightEnd beat him at the DH Winter, I don't think it will happen this time. MaNa will once again lose against Stephano and Happy won't be solid or innovative enough. After Stephano everything is possible .. MaNa is traditionnaly stronger than Happy and NightEnd but he seems to lose steam this days. Happy is little more than a solid player and he lacks the spark that will make him a tremendous terran. And NightEnd is somewhat of a darkhorse. Pass : Stephano & ???? (My bet on NightEnd)
What is Moon capable of ? He is the same as in WC3 ? That will be his time to show us. His opposition while good isn't top tier and if he doesn't go 6-0 in his group, it will be a failure for a korean that known. ReaL is gimmicky but very ballsy, Brat_OK is a macro terran but lacking creativity and ClouD is creative but awfully tricky to play. ReaL doesn't have a good PvT so I will favor both EU terrans over him. ClouD is a uncanny TvTer and that will be his main advantage however he is not as solid as Brat_OK so he might lose to a protoss 2 base timing from ReaL. Pass : Moon & Brat_OK
After a dissapointing performance in ESWC, sYz is back. He has been somewhat discreet lately so I'm wondering he if can get out of this group though he is a respectable mid-tier EU. Speaking of huge letdown, HerO shouldn't lose here. That said, the common excuses for his losses are his nerves so I don't know ... he might see too much finnish girls and lose his head ... After some thought that's the only excuse he will have if he doesn't pass. I love SeleCT, he is a serious player and a smart guy (a really smart guy) and I think he is above Seiplo and sYz, the former being also a mid-tier EU. Pass : HerO (jinx) & SeleCT
2 protoss, 2 terrans ? I can see where this is going. JYP should pass if he can win against White-Ra (which is not a given), he should win against DieStar because the polish terran has a horrible PvT on top of his nerves issues (not HerO-like though), Satiini (strongly reinforcing the argument I have with my finnish friends that finnish lacks creativity) should also lose. That leaves us with DieStar losing against White-Ra too and out, and Satiini as a wild-card. Because of karma, I'm going to bet on protosses, GSL is the thermometer of SC2 and Protosses have been doing great. Pass : JYP & White-Ra
Did you watch the ESV Grand Prix ? If no, you are dumb because it was AWESOME. Props to them. So Taeja won, which while unsurprising proves that he isn't the last of SlayerS terrans. I'm going to be buyest and say this will be his international break-out. Elfi has a good PvP and Jinro is coming back and Adelscott really wants to stick with the french ideology of the Maginot line (except Germans always got around it - aren't they smart) of not-scouting. I can't foresee the results of Jinro vs. elfi so I'm going with elfi because his name is Samuli and if it's doesn't make you laugh then you are cold as ice. Pass: Taeja (6-0) & elfi
Interesting group, perhaps the most interesting for me. Bly is an online beast but never did anything major. Bischu is a strong Protoss but inconsistent and Strelok isn't as strong as he was (though he is extra nice and considerate). Lucky had a good IPL3 and has proven to be a strong Code A (almost Code S). He should be the favorite here because he is korean but the others can take him with good odds. I'll go with Bischu this time. No special reasons, pure guts. Pass : Lucky & Bisch
TLO is fun and has improce since his switch to Zerg but he is still only a mid-tier EU, PhoeNix isn't as good as his teammate ReaL and will struggle against Polt and BlinG. Polt should take this group easily even though he is having issues in Korea. So the obvious second finisher is BlinG. Pass : Polt & BlinG
Great post. I agree with most of the choices; the only two changes, I would make, are: First I would chose TLO over Bling, maybe I am a bit biased here, because I am german, but recent events + Show Spoiler +
(IPLTAC)
made me think, he has really improved. Also I think, bly should win his group, if he doesn´t have nerve issues, he has one of the top ZvZ in Europe and top-european ZvZ (Dimaga 3-2, Stephano 8-0 against korean zergs offline) has a history of beating korean ZvZ.
Two players' records (including one series that happened months and months ago) is proof?
No, of course it is not a proof, I am biased as shit in this point. I just wanted to say, that this comes not completely out of nowhere and I have a arguments for my thesis. If they are good or not is subjective.
After watching Stephano obliterate his competition at LDLC... I don't think there's a in the tournament that can beat him. Not saying he's going to win it all... but he's scary enough to do it without dropping a map! Edit: looked over the player list again and I suppose some 'special taktiks' or prepared play could of course succeed. Either way: 5 days!
On February 17 2012 00:38 LlamaNamedOsama wrote: I'm surprised so many people are not predicting TLO to advance from groups, I say he's definitely making it through (Bling? Do people not realize how solid TLO is in ZvP, with wins over Grubby, Real, and CreatorPrime? Hell, I'd say he's on par with Polt to possibly take the group, seeing as how Polt has dropped out of code A and TLO beat MKP/Tarson recently.
Meh. All those P players are not that solid in PvZ. We will see how he performs at Assembly.
Lol, Grubby beat Darkforce and Ret in homestory 4, and Creator, well, let's just say that "not that solid" Korean PvZ wrecks foreigner PvZ. But whatever, doubters gonna doubt.
TLO is undoubtedly on the rise but he has not proved himself to be a top player.
Neither has Bling, so in the end, it's really just a judgment of preference, and it's pretty obvious where my support/cheering lies ^^. Gogoliquid!
On February 21 2012 18:52 JustPassingBy wrote: May I call group B as one of the groups of death (say one of the top 3 hardest groups) even though there are no Koreans in it?
Agreed. I think it also says a lot for the tournament that there are so many "solid" groups. We're seeing more and more of this in every tournament too :D
Seems like a really aggressive time schedule, but even if the finals are at midnight on Saturday the games should be awesome-fun-time with this list of players.
I'm also wondering why there's no graphic for the group-->into brackets yet. It would be a lot simpler for fans to anticipate players' progression instead of having to wait till the tourney actually begins... [yuck...lol].
On February 22 2012 01:11 OrD_SC2 wrote: I'm also wondering why there's no graphic for the group-->into brackets yet. It would be a lot simpler for fans to anticipate players' progression instead of having to wait till the tourney actually begins... [yuck...lol].
In the last Assembly event, the progression from groups to brackets was announced beforehand and that led to the infamous Bratok vs Stephano match where neither wanted to win because the winner was going to face Sen. Now this kind of scenario is prevented by releasing the bracket after the last group has finished.
On February 22 2012 16:09 xeo1 wrote: Most likely champions: polt, taeja, hero &moon
Until moon wins i'm skeptical. You're also underestimating puma and jyp (imo). I'm sure others will say I'm underestimating Stephano, Kas and others. :D Anyway, looks like a pretty competitive line up!
Zergs are getting wrecked in Korea, and with a map-pool that looks tough for zerg, I think stephano will have a hard time battling the koreans. Things are just stacked against him. Maybe the ghost-nerf will change things, but there's not much reason to think that stephano will be able to break the tide that left 3 zergs in the top 16 and 1 zerg in the top 8 in the gsl.
EPT![[image loading]](http://sett.fi/sites/default/files/tuotekuvat/tl_rogtour12.png)
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Satiini![[image loading]](http://wiki.teamliquid.net/starcraft/images2/2/28/Eglogo_std.png)
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in the tournament that can beat him. Not saying he's going to win it all... but he's scary enough to do it without dropping a map!
