EPT
MarineKingPrime![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/illZb.jpg)
Source: This Is Game
You made it first out of your group into the Round of 16. Please tell us how you feel.
Because of how strong the other players in my group were, I knew that there was a possibility that I would fall out, so I played without feeling too pressured. That's why I was able to do well today.
How did you prepare for your matches once you saw which players would be in your group?
While I was practicing, I met Sniper on ladder, and playing against him was as difficult as facing DongRaeGu. Meanwhile, sHy was a KeSPA player, so I thought he would be fairly easy to beat. I've always been pretty good against Protosses, so when I practiced, I focused on my TvP in order to get out of my group.
Seed was unexpectedly unable to advance from the group.
I thought that once I beat sHy, I would meet Seed in the winners' match due to how good his PvZ is. When Sniper came up instead, I believed that he was going to win, so I looked all the way forward to my final match and played without feeling much pressure.
You dropped your first game against sHy, then took the second set by inflicting heavy damage with Reaper play.
I didn't choose to use the build on the spot. I learned from practice that it's hard to defend against Reapers if the Protoss doesn't manage to secure vision at the center of the map.
During the third set, you were hit by a dangerous Blink Stalker attack, but you were able to defend against it and win.
I haven't played once on Bel'Shir Vestige before. I decided to open with Hellions and play safely, and luck was on my side. I was quickly able to identify my opponent's unit composition in order to defend.
During the winners' match, you played very well using your Marine splits. Do you have any tips on unit splitting that you could tell us?
Split micro isn't very useful against Protoss. Instead of splitting up my army while fighting, I split them in advance and move them around together during engagements.
During your final game, you went for a proxy 2 Barracks play, but Sniper went for quick Zerglings. He was prepared for a possible early attack.
It's true, and I had seen it, but the build that Sniper used has a weak follow-up. After making the Zerglings, he had no choice but to build Drones, so I believed that I would be able to successfully penetrate his defenses if I attacked.
You have the group nominations ahead of you. Do you have anyone that you want to be paired with?
During practice, I got the feeling that my TvT is my most comfortable matchup, followed by my TvP, although I do have trouble against Protoss during the late game. Although there aren't many Terran players, I would prefer to play against them, and I would like to avoid Zergs. Whenever I play against Zergs, I try to play without worrying about whether I win or lose, but I still feel a lot of stress. Even during tournament games, I feel that I have to play perfectly in order to win.
The Heart of the Swarm invitational is going to begin soon. How do you think things will go?
When the HotS beta first came out, I tried it out several times, whenever I had free time. Since I won today's matches, I'm thinking of practicing some more HotS once I return. I know that some patches have come out, but I don't know for sure about what the changes are. I'll have to play to find out.
Do you have anything more to say?
I want to thank Creator, Classic, and Lucy for helping me practice, and I would like to treat them to something later. This week, we're facing FXO in the GSTL, and I won't lose to FXO. I want to declare war against FXO and their coach, Choya. I hear a lot of things during instant messenging conversations, and I've been told that FXO is apparently planning to snipe me. I sincerely hope that they try it. Creator, our ace, is also doing well, so please look forward to a possible all-kill. I also want to thank my team's sponsors, Tt eSports and OCZ. Tt eSports is releasing a mouse pad with my photo and autograph, so please show some interest, and we've recently also been trying to reach out to the fans with our Prime TV broadcasts, so please look forward to that as well.
MVP_Sniper![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/vZSMr.jpg)
Source: This Is Game
This is your first time in the Code S Round of 16. Please tell us how you feel.
I'm very relieved now that I've advanced to the Round of 16. I feel like I could be able to rise even higher if I just managed to make it to the Round of 16, so I'm glad that I succeeded.
Did you anticipate that you would play all the way up to the final match?
After making it to the winners' match, I tried playing comfortably. Even when I lost and had to play the final match, I wasn't too concerned about whom I would face. I just waited with the mindset that no matter whom I played against, I would win.
Were you really that prepared?
I felt confident enough that I could win, and I became even more confident once I beat Seed.
You've showed some strong confidence. Why do you think that you lost to Seed during the first set?
He performed a mass Sentry build, and even though I had to amass Infestors quickly, I wasn't able to. I needed to engage more quickly, and I fell to Seed's Force Fields.
Looking at your matches today, you've performed a lot of Zergling-Roach surrounds.
I prepared extensively against Immortal rushes, and I believe that I was able to win because of how well I was able to surround my opponents' armies. It's easy to win once you bait out all of the Force Fields, but I wasn't able to do so as well as I had thought I would.
During your third game against Seed, you scouted with an Overseer that your opponent was not going for Colossi. It appeared as if you had planned in advance to keep track your opponent's army movements using burrowed Zerglings.
I learned how Seed plays by watching his VODs. Seed's usual style is to go for quick three bases followed by an Immortal attack, so I made preparations to counter that.
You faced MarineKing during the winners' match. Even though you didn't make any big mistakes, you looked as if you were falling apart.
I wasted too many of my Banelings on Marauders. MarineKing's split micro was also good, and he had a lot of units, too. I thought that I would win, but things didn't go as planned.
SHy, your opponent during the final match, was transitioning into a very strong unit composition, but you were undeterred and defeated him with a single powerful blow. Had you identified his pattern?
I didn't know what he was doing. I just recognized from his movements that he was faking Immortal production and went in for the attack.
This is your first group nomination. How would you like things to go?
I really don't want to face Zergs. Regardless of how often I may win or lose, I feel very uncomfortable playing ZvZ. I want to enter a group with Terrans and Protosses.
Watching Life, a fellow Zerg, perform spectacularly must have had a ripple effect within your own team.
It's true. We've studied almost all of his matches, but it's hard to copy him. Mixing his style into our builds once in a while feels okay, but committing to it is too difficult. Watching another Zerg do so well has been inspirational, and seeing him win makes me want to practice hard in order to follow in his footsteps.
What are your goals for this season?
I haven't had experience participating in overseas events yet, so my goal is reach the semifinals and go to Las Vegas. I feel like my greater obstacle will be other Zergs.
Please tell us anything more that you would like to say.
I want to thank my coach and my father for coming with me today. I also want to thank my teammates for helping me with practice, as well as my parents, younger brother, and other relatives for cheering me on. Finally, I would like to send my thanks to my team's partners, MYM and Wayi Spider, in addition to our sponsors, Razer, GOMTV, and Lotte Chilsung.
