The Royal Road is a double-edged sword. The consequence of doing the unthinkable and winning the hardest tournament in the world on your very first try is that a metric ton of expectations are immediately piled upon your shoulders. After all, a Royal Roader is the very embodiment of everything we want to see in a professional gamer: prodigious skill in the present and the potential to reach even greater heights in the future.
Most live up to expectations. Jaedong walked the Royal Road and became not a king but a Tyrant, establishing a reign of terror matched by no other Zerg in Brood War. The prodigy Life used his first Code S victory to embark on a seven month spree of destruction, the likes of which had not been seen in StarCraft 2. July, Bisu, and iloveoov all walked the royal road and are now legends in the Brood War pantheon.
But just as the Royal Road can be a blessing, a means to catapult oneself into the spotlight, it can also be a curse. Not all Royal Roaders can bear the weight of expectations, and some buckle under the pressure. The days where you could lose games without being questioned are gone, never to return. The Royal Road will make you a star overnight, but it demands tribute in a steady stream of victories, or it will turn from a blessing into a curse.
Anytime was a Protoss who walked the Royal Road in 2005, winning the So1 OSL seemingly out of nowhere, shocking the entire world by defeating the legendary Terran mentor-student duo of iloveoov and Boxer during his run. Although Anytime performed admirably after winning his first championship, he would not lift the OSL trophy again. The royal road made him a star, but a star haunted to his final day by the question "What if he could have done more?"
Somewhere in all this, we find our third GSL Royal Roader, Baek "Dear" Dong Jun. He first caught our eye during the Shinhan Bank Proleague, but like all his STX Soul teammates, he was largely overshadowed by the titan known as INnoVation. Dear would end up winning the second most games for eventual champions STX Soul, but even then his Protoss teammates Classic and Trap attracted more attention for their more entertaining and risky play. It was already hard enough for a Protoss to distinguish himself in PvProleague, and Dear's style was excruciatingly normal on top of that.
In spite of STX's financial troubles and the chaos surrounding Soul, Dear continued to improve and did what only Life and FruitDealer had done before him: win Code S in his very first attempt. Unfortunately for Dear, his Royal Road run was very different from the ones that had preceded him, largely because most of the big stars had dropped out in the earlier stages of the tournament. It gave Dear what was perceived to be an easy run to the championship, and the questions popped up almost immediately: What if he had faced INnoVation? What if Maru hadn't wasted a game cheesing? Were those two games he lost against soO a sign of weakness?
So unlike other Royal Roaders, who had the pressure of living up to lofty expectations, Dear went into the WCS Season 3 Finals with the pressure of proving that he deserved the same lofty expectations as his esteemed predecessors. A different kind of pressure indeed, but no less burdensome on the shoulders.
Dear took on the challenge with gusto, riding his momentum from Code S and turned the Season Finals into what could be considered a continuation of the Royal Road. After a relatively bland Code S run, Dear tore through a who's who of modern StarCraft to claim his second title. He schooled MC 3 - 0 in PvP, dismantled Maru (again) in some of the most thrilling PvT games ever seen, and mauled #1 Zerg Soulkey in a 4 - 0 rout. If Dear's original Royal Road was received with a collective shrug of the shoulders, then the sequel Royal Road II: WCS S3 Finals had fans dying to see more.
With barely any time to gather our breath, we're moving onto part three: Blizzcon. The opposition at Blizzcon could hardly be any tougher, but it's clear that difficulty doesn't bother Dear. From being the player who broke Flash's 14-win streak in Brood War to being a Royal Roader in Starcraft II, he is a player who beats the best, whether people expect it or not. At this very moment, there are few, if any players that can claim to be on Dear's level. He is playing the best Starcraft of his life, seemingly without weakness, just in time for the most important tournament he has ever played in.
More impressive than anything else, Dear plays with composure in every situation. Maru's relentless aggression is normally enough to pick apart any Protoss, with one mistake enough to cascade into ruinous defeat. Dear parried Maru's attacks with unmatched precision, even finding the breathing room to riposte with precisely measured templar drops and zealot harassment. He made few mistakes in the GSL and even fewer still at the Season Finals. He is winning everything in his first attempt, but his play is flawless as if he has rehearsed all his games in a past life.
In a stark contrast from when Dear headed to Canada, the expectations are now sky high as he heads to Anaheim. His legacy has yet to be written, and he enters Blizzcon with a still relatively clean slate. The WCS Grand Finals represent Dear's chance to create a lasting legacy as the greatest player of 2013. With two championships and a third within reach, he can immortalize himself as the player who won it all, all on his very first try.
I didn't actually think about the fact that his royal road is extending. Interesting. If he makes it, it will be a mile stone I think few players in the future will ever be able to match.
On November 02 2013 17:49 lystier wrote: Dear lost to Hydra in KR/TW qualifiers of IEM Singapore and fell to the lower's brackets. He's gonna face Byul in loser's round 1 soon.
He didn't want to really play. He even forfeited his game in the lower bracket. The reason might be simple: in a couple days he has a shot at 100.000 $ and a lot of prestige. why in the world should he unveil strategies in a televised qualifier where the first place at the very end gets 10.000 $. He gets 5k for just attending blizzcon and nearly gets the same for just making it into the next round.
It really does not make sense for him to participate in that tournament at all.
Most live up to expectations. Jaedong walked the Royal Road and became not a king but a Tyrant, establishing a reign of terror matched by no other Zerg in Brood War.
I know we hate Savior now, but come on...
Loving all these previews by the way, they really made me look forward to Blizzcon.
If Dear wins Blizzcon, he's going to have a strong argument to being the world's best player at the moment, and the best Protoss in SC2 history. The word "bonjwa" gets overused, but Dear is one of the only guys who we could legitimately put in that conversation if he does win Blizzcon.
Nice article, btw, though I think it sort of glossed over how fun Dear is to watch these days. He plays an extremely exciting and spectator friendly style of Protoss--not as defensive as Rain or as aggressive as MC, but just doing all the little things right, multitasking like crazy, and never losing his composure even in the most high pressure situations
On November 07 2013 03:01 awesomoecalypse wrote: If Dear wins Blizzcon, he's going to have a strong argument to being the world's best player at the moment, and the best Protoss in SC2 history. The word "bonjwa" gets overused, but Dear is one of the only guys who we could legitimately put in that conversation if he does win Blizzcon.
Nice article, btw, though I think it sort of glossed over how fun Dear is to watch these days. He plays an extremely exciting and spectator friendly style of Protoss--not as defensive as Rain or as aggressive as MC, but just doing all the little things right, multitasking like crazy, and never losing his composure even in the most high pressure situations
Well, unfortunately, no.
Dear may be very strong at the moment, and even more if he wins Blizzcon, but "best Protoss SC2 in history"?
You need much much more than a few months of success than that. Right now, he is more akin to "Summer of Taeja" than "King of Wings"
On November 07 2013 03:01 awesomoecalypse wrote: If Dear wins Blizzcon, he's going to have a strong argument to being the world's best player at the moment, and the best Protoss in SC2 history. The word "bonjwa" gets overused, but Dear is one of the only guys who we could legitimately put in that conversation if he does win Blizzcon.
Nice article, btw, though I think it sort of glossed over how fun Dear is to watch these days. He plays an extremely exciting and spectator friendly style of Protoss--not as defensive as Rain or as aggressive as MC, but just doing all the little things right, multitasking like crazy, and never losing his composure even in the most high pressure situations
Well, unfortunately, no.
Dear may be very strong at the moment, and even more if he wins Blizzcon, but "best Protoss SC2 in history"?
You need much much more than a few months of success than that. Right now, he is more akin to "Summer of Taeja" than "King of Wings"
Which is more impressive, consistently being very good for a long time, or a streak of absolute unparalleled dominance? MC is the only Protoss to have the former (PartinG and Her0 both came fairly close), but NO Protoss has looked as unbeatable and utterly dominant as Dear currently does. Winning the 3 biggest tournaments on the scene all in a row like this would be completely unprecedented for any Protoss to achieve.
On November 07 2013 03:01 awesomoecalypse wrote: If Dear wins Blizzcon, he's going to have a strong argument to being the world's best player at the moment, and the best Protoss in SC2 history. The word "bonjwa" gets overused, but Dear is one of the only guys who we could legitimately put in that conversation if he does win Blizzcon.
Nice article, btw, though I think it sort of glossed over how fun Dear is to watch these days. He plays an extremely exciting and spectator friendly style of Protoss--not as defensive as Rain or as aggressive as MC, but just doing all the little things right, multitasking like crazy, and never losing his composure even in the most high pressure situations
Well, unfortunately, no.
Dear may be very strong at the moment, and even more if he wins Blizzcon, but "best Protoss SC2 in history"?
You need much much more than a few months of success than that. Right now, he is more akin to "Summer of Taeja" than "King of Wings"
Which is more impressive, consistently being very good for a long time, or a streak of absolute unparalleled dominance? MC is the only Protoss to have the former (PartinG and Her0 both came fairly close), but NO Protoss has looked as unbeatable and utterly dominant as Dear currently does. Winning the 3 biggest tournaments on the scene all in a row like this would be completely unprecedented for any Protoss to achieve.
In the SC2 scene, I'd say consistently being very good for a long time is more impressive
As for dominance, I think Rain came close, though maybe not quite at Dear's level
On November 07 2013 03:00 movac wrote: Another nice article. Since we've only got today and tomorrow left before BlizzCon, you'll need to put them all out before the end of tomorrow.
I have followed and believed in Dear and sOs/sHy ever since they were second line protosses in Hwaseung OZ under the guidance of Anytime. Now we actually have three guys from the old team in this sc2 grand finals. It makes me proud.
On November 07 2013 03:01 awesomoecalypse wrote: If Dear wins Blizzcon, he's going to have a strong argument to being the world's best player at the moment, and the best Protoss in SC2 history. The word "bonjwa" gets overused, but Dear is one of the only guys who we could legitimately put in that conversation if he does win Blizzcon.
Nice article, btw, though I think it sort of glossed over how fun Dear is to watch these days. He plays an extremely exciting and spectator friendly style of Protoss--not as defensive as Rain or as aggressive as MC, but just doing all the little things right, multitasking like crazy, and never losing his composure even in the most high pressure situations
Well, unfortunately, no.
Dear may be very strong at the moment, and even more if he wins Blizzcon, but "best Protoss SC2 in history"?
You need much much more than a few months of success than that. Right now, he is more akin to "Summer of Taeja" than "King of Wings"
Which is more impressive, consistently being very good for a long time, or a streak of absolute unparalleled dominance? MC is the only Protoss to have the former (PartinG and Her0 both came fairly close), but NO Protoss has looked as unbeatable and utterly dominant as Dear currently does. Winning the 3 biggest tournaments on the scene all in a row like this would be completely unprecedented for any Protoss to achieve.
The fact that no Protoss has done this before probably says more about Protoss as a race than anything else. No doubt that Dear is on an impressive streak, but complete and utter dominance within a month does not make one a bonjwa. It would appear that in SC2 it is a far greater achievement to stay relevant for a long time, than it is to dominate for a short while.
On November 07 2013 03:01 awesomoecalypse wrote: If Dear wins Blizzcon, he's going to have a strong argument to being the world's best player at the moment, and the best Protoss in SC2 history. The word "bonjwa" gets overused, but Dear is one of the only guys who we could legitimately put in that conversation if he does win Blizzcon.
Nice article, btw, though I think it sort of glossed over how fun Dear is to watch these days. He plays an extremely exciting and spectator friendly style of Protoss--not as defensive as Rain or as aggressive as MC, but just doing all the little things right, multitasking like crazy, and never losing his composure even in the most high pressure situations
Well, unfortunately, no.
Dear may be very strong at the moment, and even more if he wins Blizzcon, but "best Protoss SC2 in history"?
You need much much more than a few months of success than that. Right now, he is more akin to "Summer of Taeja" than "King of Wings"
Autumn of Dear? Now all we need is someone to only play well during the spring season lol
On November 07 2013 03:01 awesomoecalypse wrote: If Dear wins Blizzcon, he's going to have a strong argument to being the world's best player at the moment, and the best Protoss in SC2 history. The word "bonjwa" gets overused, but Dear is one of the only guys who we could legitimately put in that conversation if he does win Blizzcon.
Nice article, btw, though I think it sort of glossed over how fun Dear is to watch these days. He plays an extremely exciting and spectator friendly style of Protoss--not as defensive as Rain or as aggressive as MC, but just doing all the little things right, multitasking like crazy, and never losing his composure even in the most high pressure situations
Well, unfortunately, no.
Dear may be very strong at the moment, and even more if he wins Blizzcon, but "best Protoss SC2 in history"?
You need much much more than a few months of success than that. Right now, he is more akin to "Summer of Taeja" than "King of Wings"
Bonjwa definitely too early but He's heads and shoulders above Taeja. WCS KR GSL championship and then winning the season finals right afterwards? No one else has done that (I think).
Dear is still dare I say it underhyped going into this tournament. It's almost criminal how ruthlessly he dismantled Soulkey. If this was Innovation people would be spasming everywhere. Mind Innovation always seemed to be rather over hyped from the limited games I caught. Honestly, Taeja's my biggest fear for him. Taeja's always had the smartest TvP IMO and he won't offer the same choices that a Bomber or Maru would.
On November 07 2013 03:01 awesomoecalypse wrote: If Dear wins Blizzcon, he's going to have a strong argument to being the world's best player at the moment, and the best Protoss in SC2 history. The word "bonjwa" gets overused, but Dear is one of the only guys who we could legitimately put in that conversation if he does win Blizzcon.
Nice article, btw, though I think it sort of glossed over how fun Dear is to watch these days. He plays an extremely exciting and spectator friendly style of Protoss--not as defensive as Rain or as aggressive as MC, but just doing all the little things right, multitasking like crazy, and never losing his composure even in the most high pressure situations
Well, unfortunately, no.
Dear may be very strong at the moment, and even more if he wins Blizzcon, but "best Protoss SC2 in history"?
You need much much more than a few months of success than that. Right now, he is more akin to "Summer of Taeja" than "King of Wings"
Bonjwa definitely too early but He's heads and shoulders above Taeja. WCS KR GSL championship and then winning the season finals right afterwards? No one else has done that (I think).
Dear is still dare I say it underhyped going into this tournament. It's almost criminal how ruthlessly he dismantled Soulkey. If this was Innovation people would be spasming everywhere. Mind Innovation always seemed to be rather over hyped from the limited games I caught. Honestly, Taeja's my biggest fear for him. Taeja's always had the smartest TvP IMO and he won't offer the same choices that a Bomber or Maru would.
I completely agree that Taeja is the biggest threat to Dear. I wouldn't be surprised to see Dear lose in the first round, but if he does beat Taeja, I also wouldn't be surprised if he went on to win it all.
The nice thing about Taeja vs Dear is that it should play out so differently from Dear's matches with Maru. Maru was all about constant pressure with lower tier units, trying to force Dear into a mistake which never came. But Taeja loves going into lategame against Toss and stomping them with Ghosts, so it could end up being a very different sort of challenge.
I actually think he's a bit overhyped. It was so flukey to have the average Soo and the good, but not incredible, Dear in the GSL finals this year. Literally every single game I've seen of Dear's, apart from the Maru games, consist of him doing exactly what other Protoss do, but just attacking about 30 seconds earlier. The two lategame scenarios I saw him in, he did very well, but not inspiringly so. Just seemed like a more solid Hero, or a more active Rain. I think he's going to get embarrassingly flattened by Taeja, and then forgotten as his particular style of all-ins get figured out. Granted, he'll probably be a top-5 Protoss in the lategame for quite some time, but I see this streak as nothing more than just that - a streak.
On November 07 2013 Zealously wrote: Dear proved took on the challenge with gusto, riding his momentum from Code S and turned the Season Finals into what could be considered a continuation of the Royal Road.
On November 07 2013 04:22 Pontius Pirate wrote: I actually think he's a bit overhyped. It was so flukey to have the average Soo and the good, but not incredible, Dear in the GSL finals this year. Literally every single game I've seen of Dear's, apart from the Maru games, consist of him doing exactly what other Protoss do, but just attacking about 30 seconds earlier. The two lategame scenarios I saw him in, he did very well, but not inspiringly so. Just seemed like a more solid Hero, or a more active Rain. I think he's going to get embarrassingly flattened by Taeja, and then forgotten as his particular style of all-ins get figured out. Granted, he'll probably be a top-5 Protoss in the lategame for quite some time, but I see this streak as nothing more than just that - a streak.
Those 30 seconds earlier make him da best toss in the world atm though. Seriously, i remember attentively watching HerO vs Dear in Season 3 finals. In 1 game at minute X HerO was in total advantage (both, worker and army) supply wise. 5 minutes of nothing happening (without even more tech from HerO) and Dear has both more army and workers. WTF. And yes, more solid HerO or more active Rain is about as good as you can get as toss. Not to mention he does not even all-in alot :D
On November 02 2013 17:49 lystier wrote: Dear lost to Hydra in KR/TW qualifiers of IEM Singapore and fell to the lower's brackets. He's gonna face Byul in loser's round 1 soon.
He didn't want to really play. He even forfeited his game in the lower bracket. The reason might be simple: in a couple days he has a shot at 100.000 $ and a lot of prestige. why in the world should he unveil strategies in a televised qualifier where the first place at the very end gets 10.000 $. He gets 5k for just attending blizzcon and nearly gets the same for just making it into the next round.
It really does not make sense for him to participate in that tournament at all.
Not sure if I buy this excuse. If he didn't want to play, why is he in the event, and why did he not forfeit the first set against Hydra.
That's only a speculation that he lost on purpose.
On November 07 2013 03:01 awesomoecalypse wrote: If Dear wins Blizzcon, he's going to have a strong argument to being the world's best player at the moment, and the best Protoss in SC2 history. The word "bonjwa" gets overused, but Dear is one of the only guys who we could legitimately put in that conversation if he does win Blizzcon.
Nice article, btw, though I think it sort of glossed over how fun Dear is to watch these days. He plays an extremely exciting and spectator friendly style of Protoss--not as defensive as Rain or as aggressive as MC, but just doing all the little things right, multitasking like crazy, and never losing his composure even in the most high pressure situations
Maybe he's had the best protoss play, but you seriously can't call him the best when MC exists. How many finals has MC been in? Over the course of SC2's history MC has proven himself again and again. Dear is impressive, but how long has he been at the top for now? Surely a fraction of the time MC has been around. MC dominates SC2 earnings even topping MVP (wanna talk about the word "bonjwa?" there's a guy who I think deserves it)
On November 07 2013 03:01 awesomoecalypse wrote: If Dear wins Blizzcon, he's going to have a strong argument to being the world's best player at the moment, and the best Protoss in SC2 history. The word "bonjwa" gets overused, but Dear is one of the only guys who we could legitimately put in that conversation if he does win Blizzcon.
Nice article, btw, though I think it sort of glossed over how fun Dear is to watch these days. He plays an extremely exciting and spectator friendly style of Protoss--not as defensive as Rain or as aggressive as MC, but just doing all the little things right, multitasking like crazy, and never losing his composure even in the most high pressure situations
Maybe he's had the best protoss play, but you seriously can't call him the best when MC exists. How many finals has MC been in? Over the course of SC2's history MC has proven himself again and again. Dear is impressive, but how long has he been at the top for now? Surely a fraction of the time MC has been around. MC dominates SC2 earnings even topping MVP (wanna talk about the word "bonjwa?" there's a guy who I think deserves it)
I already said that MC's consistency is unparalleled, but there's something to be said for being absolutely unbeatably dominant as well. If Dear wins Blizzcon, we're looking at a streak of absolutely dominant play that hasn't been shown by any Protoss in SC2 before.
On November 07 2013 03:01 awesomoecalypse wrote: If Dear wins Blizzcon, he's going to have a strong argument to being the world's best player at the moment, and the best Protoss in SC2 history. The word "bonjwa" gets overused, but Dear is one of the only guys who we could legitimately put in that conversation if he does win Blizzcon.
Nice article, btw, though I think it sort of glossed over how fun Dear is to watch these days. He plays an extremely exciting and spectator friendly style of Protoss--not as defensive as Rain or as aggressive as MC, but just doing all the little things right, multitasking like crazy, and never losing his composure even in the most high pressure situations
Maybe he's had the best protoss play, but you seriously can't call him the best when MC exists. How many finals has MC been in? Over the course of SC2's history MC has proven himself again and again. Dear is impressive, but how long has he been at the top for now? Surely a fraction of the time MC has been around. MC dominates SC2 earnings even topping MVP (wanna talk about the word "bonjwa?" there's a guy who I think deserves it)
I already said that MC's consistency is unparalleled, but there's something to be said for being absolutely unbeatably dominant as well. If Dear wins Blizzcon, we're looking at a streak of absolutely dominant play that hasn't been shown by any Protoss in SC2 before.
On November 07 2013 03:01 awesomoecalypse wrote: If Dear wins Blizzcon, he's going to have a strong argument to being the world's best player at the moment, and the best Protoss in SC2 history. The word "bonjwa" gets overused, but Dear is one of the only guys who we could legitimately put in that conversation if he does win Blizzcon.
Nice article, btw, though I think it sort of glossed over how fun Dear is to watch these days. He plays an extremely exciting and spectator friendly style of Protoss--not as defensive as Rain or as aggressive as MC, but just doing all the little things right, multitasking like crazy, and never losing his composure even in the most high pressure situations
Maybe he's had the best protoss play, but you seriously can't call him the best when MC exists. How many finals has MC been in? Over the course of SC2's history MC has proven himself again and again. Dear is impressive, but how long has he been at the top for now? Surely a fraction of the time MC has been around. MC dominates SC2 earnings even topping MVP (wanna talk about the word "bonjwa?" there's a guy who I think deserves it)
If you ever want to declare MC bonjwa or anything close, better make sure you count amount of tournaments MC participated in and how many he won.
On November 07 2013 03:01 awesomoecalypse wrote: If Dear wins Blizzcon, he's going to have a strong argument to being the world's best player at the moment, and the best Protoss in SC2 history. The word "bonjwa" gets overused, but Dear is one of the only guys who we could legitimately put in that conversation if he does win Blizzcon.
Nice article, btw, though I think it sort of glossed over how fun Dear is to watch these days. He plays an extremely exciting and spectator friendly style of Protoss--not as defensive as Rain or as aggressive as MC, but just doing all the little things right, multitasking like crazy, and never losing his composure even in the most high pressure situations
Maybe he's had the best protoss play, but you seriously can't call him the best when MC exists. How many finals has MC been in? Over the course of SC2's history MC has proven himself again and again. Dear is impressive, but how long has he been at the top for now? Surely a fraction of the time MC has been around. MC dominates SC2 earnings even topping MVP (wanna talk about the word "bonjwa?" there's a guy who I think deserves it)
I already said that MC's consistency is unparalleled, but there's something to be said for being absolutely unbeatably dominant as well. If Dear wins Blizzcon, we're looking at a streak of absolutely dominant play that hasn't been shown by any Protoss in SC2 before.
Not shown by anyone, regardless of race.
Not even Life or Innovation? Dear's won WCS Korea and Season Finals, while Innovation got 2nd in WCS and won his Season Finals, not to mention looking good in other tournaments. I think it's at least comparable.
On November 07 2013 03:01 awesomoecalypse wrote: If Dear wins Blizzcon, he's going to have a strong argument to being the world's best player at the moment, and the best Protoss in SC2 history. The word "bonjwa" gets overused, but Dear is one of the only guys who we could legitimately put in that conversation if he does win Blizzcon.
Nice article, btw, though I think it sort of glossed over how fun Dear is to watch these days. He plays an extremely exciting and spectator friendly style of Protoss--not as defensive as Rain or as aggressive as MC, but just doing all the little things right, multitasking like crazy, and never losing his composure even in the most high pressure situations
Maybe he's had the best protoss play, but you seriously can't call him the best when MC exists. How many finals has MC been in? Over the course of SC2's history MC has proven himself again and again. Dear is impressive, but how long has he been at the top for now? Surely a fraction of the time MC has been around. MC dominates SC2 earnings even topping MVP (wanna talk about the word "bonjwa?" there's a guy who I think deserves it)
I already said that MC's consistency is unparalleled, but there's something to be said for being absolutely unbeatably dominant as well. If Dear wins Blizzcon, we're looking at a streak of absolutely dominant play that hasn't been shown by any Protoss in SC2 before.
Not shown by anyone, regardless of race.
Not even Life or Innovation? Dear's won WCS Korea and Season Finals, while Innovation got 2nd in WCS and won his Season Finals, not to mention looking good in other tournaments. I think it's at least comparable.
Right now it's comparable. If Dear also wins Blizzcon though, that puts this run on another level from anything anyone else has done. That's whats at stake for him here--he's had an impressive run no matter what, but if he wins Blizzcon it will become legendary.
On November 07 2013 03:01 awesomoecalypse wrote: If Dear wins Blizzcon, he's going to have a strong argument to being the world's best player at the moment, and the best Protoss in SC2 history. The word "bonjwa" gets overused, but Dear is one of the only guys who we could legitimately put in that conversation if he does win Blizzcon.
Nice article, btw, though I think it sort of glossed over how fun Dear is to watch these days. He plays an extremely exciting and spectator friendly style of Protoss--not as defensive as Rain or as aggressive as MC, but just doing all the little things right, multitasking like crazy, and never losing his composure even in the most high pressure situations
Maybe he's had the best protoss play, but you seriously can't call him the best when MC exists. How many finals has MC been in? Over the course of SC2's history MC has proven himself again and again. Dear is impressive, but how long has he been at the top for now? Surely a fraction of the time MC has been around. MC dominates SC2 earnings even topping MVP (wanna talk about the word "bonjwa?" there's a guy who I think deserves it)
I already said that MC's consistency is unparalleled, but there's something to be said for being absolutely unbeatably dominant as well. If Dear wins Blizzcon, we're looking at a streak of absolutely dominant play that hasn't been shown by any Protoss in SC2 before.
Not shown by anyone, regardless of race.
Not even Life or Innovation? Dear's won WCS Korea and Season Finals, while Innovation got 2nd in WCS and won his Season Finals, not to mention looking good in other tournaments. I think it's at least comparable.
I'm the biggest Life fan on the planet and while I would agree that Life was two steps above everyone the week he won GSL and MLG, neither Life nor Innovation can claim to have won three elite tournaments in such a short span, with each tournament's lineup tougher than the last one's. Their stretches would be comparable, but Dear's would still one-up them in my eyes.
On November 07 2013 03:01 awesomoecalypse wrote: If Dear wins Blizzcon, he's going to have a strong argument to being the world's best player at the moment, and the best Protoss in SC2 history. The word "bonjwa" gets overused, but Dear is one of the only guys who we could legitimately put in that conversation if he does win Blizzcon.
Nice article, btw, though I think it sort of glossed over how fun Dear is to watch these days. He plays an extremely exciting and spectator friendly style of Protoss--not as defensive as Rain or as aggressive as MC, but just doing all the little things right, multitasking like crazy, and never losing his composure even in the most high pressure situations
Maybe he's had the best protoss play, but you seriously can't call him the best when MC exists. How many finals has MC been in? Over the course of SC2's history MC has proven himself again and again. Dear is impressive, but how long has he been at the top for now? Surely a fraction of the time MC has been around. MC dominates SC2 earnings even topping MVP (wanna talk about the word "bonjwa?" there's a guy who I think deserves it)
I already said that MC's consistency is unparalleled, but there's something to be said for being absolutely unbeatably dominant as well. If Dear wins Blizzcon, we're looking at a streak of absolutely dominant play that hasn't been shown by any Protoss in SC2 before.
Not shown by anyone, regardless of race.
Not even Life or Innovation? Dear's won WCS Korea and Season Finals, while Innovation got 2nd in WCS and won his Season Finals, not to mention looking good in other tournaments. I think it's at least comparable.
Right now it's comparable. If Dear also wins Blizzcon though, that puts this run on another level from anything anyone else has done. That's whats at stake for him here--he's had an impressive run no matter what, but if he wins Blizzcon it will become legendary.
On November 07 2013 03:01 awesomoecalypse wrote: If Dear wins Blizzcon, he's going to have a strong argument to being the world's best player at the moment, and the best Protoss in SC2 history. The word "bonjwa" gets overused, but Dear is one of the only guys who we could legitimately put in that conversation if he does win Blizzcon.
Nice article, btw, though I think it sort of glossed over how fun Dear is to watch these days. He plays an extremely exciting and spectator friendly style of Protoss--not as defensive as Rain or as aggressive as MC, but just doing all the little things right, multitasking like crazy, and never losing his composure even in the most high pressure situations
Maybe he's had the best protoss play, but you seriously can't call him the best when MC exists. How many finals has MC been in? Over the course of SC2's history MC has proven himself again and again. Dear is impressive, but how long has he been at the top for now? Surely a fraction of the time MC has been around. MC dominates SC2 earnings even topping MVP (wanna talk about the word "bonjwa?" there's a guy who I think deserves it)
I already said that MC's consistency is unparalleled, but there's something to be said for being absolutely unbeatably dominant as well. If Dear wins Blizzcon, we're looking at a streak of absolutely dominant play that hasn't been shown by any Protoss in SC2 before.
Not shown by anyone, regardless of race.
Not even Life or Innovation? Dear's won WCS Korea and Season Finals, while Innovation got 2nd in WCS and won his Season Finals, not to mention looking good in other tournaments. I think it's at least comparable.
Right now it's comparable. If Dear also wins Blizzcon though, that puts this run on another level from anything anyone else has done. That's whats at stake for him here--he's had an impressive run no matter what, but if he wins Blizzcon it will become legendary.
I'm so torn about whether I want Dear or Mvp to win. By winning this Dear would be showing a level of dominance that no player has ever came close to before. But I love Mvp..
On November 07 2013 02:14 highsis wrote: Dear was defeated in IEM by Hydra 2-0, just saying even if he wasn't putting his best effort.
Coach Park!
On November 07 2013 02:57 eurTsItniH wrote:
On November 07 2013 02:56 lolfail9001 wrote:
On November 07 2013 02:55 eurTsItniH wrote: Very well written, however:
"From being the player who broke Flash's 14-win streak in Brood War to being a Royal Roader in Starcraft II"
Wasn't it Stardust who broke that win streak?
StarDust broke another streak :D
Oh lol I did not know, thanks for clarifying.
Note that it's always protoss players breaking these streaks. (all-ins yay)
Hey, we are talking SC1 Protoss here. Hehehe
Ask Artosis about DT drops.
Not our fault he sucks at defending against such things. Heck it was easy going right down the middle of his mech play too as a protoss. As for Dear beating Flash in BW I was expecting a protoss to do something like that with regards to his gateway press-up proxy.
I have to agree that if Dear wins this he will have achieved something that deserves a name: A Dear Year: Win the 3rd WCS region final + the 3rd WCS end of season final + Blizzcon - all in the same year.
On November 07 2013 03:01 awesomoecalypse wrote: If Dear wins Blizzcon, he's going to have a strong argument to being the world's best player at the moment, and the best Protoss in SC2 history. The word "bonjwa" gets overused, but Dear is one of the only guys who we could legitimately put in that conversation if he does win Blizzcon.
Nice article, btw, though I think it sort of glossed over how fun Dear is to watch these days. He plays an extremely exciting and spectator friendly style of Protoss--not as defensive as Rain or as aggressive as MC, but just doing all the little things right, multitasking like crazy, and never losing his composure even in the most high pressure situations
Maybe he's had the best protoss play, but you seriously can't call him the best when MC exists. How many finals has MC been in? Over the course of SC2's history MC has proven himself again and again. Dear is impressive, but how long has he been at the top for now? Surely a fraction of the time MC has been around. MC dominates SC2 earnings even topping MVP (wanna talk about the word "bonjwa?" there's a guy who I think deserves it)
I already said that MC's consistency is unparalleled, but there's something to be said for being absolutely unbeatably dominant as well. If Dear wins Blizzcon, we're looking at a streak of absolutely dominant play that hasn't been shown by any Protoss in SC2 before.
Not shown by anyone, regardless of race.
Not even Life or Innovation? Dear's won WCS Korea and Season Finals, while Innovation got 2nd in WCS and won his Season Finals, not to mention looking good in other tournaments. I think it's at least comparable.
I'm the biggest Life fan on the planet and while I would agree that Life was two steps above everyone the week he won GSL and MLG, neither Life nor Innovation can claim to have won three elite tournaments in such a short span, with each tournament's lineup tougher than the last one's. Their stretches would be comparable, but Dear's would still one-up them in my eyes.
I think, regardless of what will happen at Blizzcon, that Life's streak was the best.
It's just not the fact that he walked the Royal Road, at the GSL and the MLG (defeating LEENOCK :c), it's the WAY he played. We saw in Life's gameplay relentless aggression, impeccable micro (his trademark zergling micro), unparalled decision making, flawless macro (man, he did'nt lose a single spit !!!!!). Life just took the Zerg race and heighten his skill cap and he just make things with the Zerg that no one has ever done. Even his Zerg peers claimed that they cannot emulate his style because of his difficulty.
On November 07 2013 03:01 awesomoecalypse wrote: If Dear wins Blizzcon, he's going to have a strong argument to being the world's best player at the moment, and the best Protoss in SC2 history. The word "bonjwa" gets overused, but Dear is one of the only guys who we could legitimately put in that conversation if he does win Blizzcon.
Nice article, btw, though I think it sort of glossed over how fun Dear is to watch these days. He plays an extremely exciting and spectator friendly style of Protoss--not as defensive as Rain or as aggressive as MC, but just doing all the little things right, multitasking like crazy, and never losing his composure even in the most high pressure situations
Maybe he's had the best protoss play, but you seriously can't call him the best when MC exists. How many finals has MC been in? Over the course of SC2's history MC has proven himself again and again. Dear is impressive, but how long has he been at the top for now? Surely a fraction of the time MC has been around. MC dominates SC2 earnings even topping MVP (wanna talk about the word "bonjwa?" there's a guy who I think deserves it)
I already said that MC's consistency is unparalleled, but there's something to be said for being absolutely unbeatably dominant as well. If Dear wins Blizzcon, we're looking at a streak of absolutely dominant play that hasn't been shown by any Protoss in SC2 before.
Not shown by anyone, regardless of race.
Not even Life or Innovation? Dear's won WCS Korea and Season Finals, while Innovation got 2nd in WCS and won his Season Finals, not to mention looking good in other tournaments. I think it's at least comparable.
I'm the biggest Life fan on the planet and while I would agree that Life was two steps above everyone the week he won GSL and MLG, neither Life nor Innovation can claim to have won three elite tournaments in such a short span, with each tournament's lineup tougher than the last one's. Their stretches would be comparable, but Dear's would still one-up them in my eyes.
Well he did go GSL - MLG - Blizzard Cup - Iron Squid 2 pretty rapidly.
On November 07 2013 03:01 awesomoecalypse wrote: If Dear wins Blizzcon, he's going to have a strong argument to being the world's best player at the moment, and the best Protoss in SC2 history. The word "bonjwa" gets overused, but Dear is one of the only guys who we could legitimately put in that conversation if he does win Blizzcon.
Nice article, btw, though I think it sort of glossed over how fun Dear is to watch these days. He plays an extremely exciting and spectator friendly style of Protoss--not as defensive as Rain or as aggressive as MC, but just doing all the little things right, multitasking like crazy, and never losing his composure even in the most high pressure situations
Maybe he's had the best protoss play, but you seriously can't call him the best when MC exists. How many finals has MC been in? Over the course of SC2's history MC has proven himself again and again. Dear is impressive, but how long has he been at the top for now? Surely a fraction of the time MC has been around. MC dominates SC2 earnings even topping MVP (wanna talk about the word "bonjwa?" there's a guy who I think deserves it)
I already said that MC's consistency is unparalleled, but there's something to be said for being absolutely unbeatably dominant as well. If Dear wins Blizzcon, we're looking at a streak of absolutely dominant play that hasn't been shown by any Protoss in SC2 before.
Not shown by anyone, regardless of race.
Not even Life or Innovation? Dear's won WCS Korea and Season Finals, while Innovation got 2nd in WCS and won his Season Finals, not to mention looking good in other tournaments. I think it's at least comparable.
I'm the biggest Life fan on the planet and while I would agree that Life was two steps above everyone the week he won GSL and MLG, neither Life nor Innovation can claim to have won three elite tournaments in such a short span, with each tournament's lineup tougher than the last one's. Their stretches would be comparable, but Dear's would still one-up them in my eyes.
No doubt that it would unprecedented if Dear should actually also win Blizzcon, but i think it is important to note that it is extremely rare to see three tournaments this stacked in such as short time span. If Dear wins Blizzcon the time between he advanced to Code S ro4 and winning Blizzcon would be only 48 days or so. In comparrison Life was undefeated for 55 consecutive days, where as Dear as of right now has not even been undefeated for two weeks.
I'm not trying to take anything away from Dear, he is obviously an amazing player. I'm merely pointing out the fact that while his achievement is unprecedented, the setting for his victory is also unique, and i have no doubt that other extremely dominant progamers could have done the same, had they been as dominant right now.
On November 07 2013 05:53 JJH777 wrote: I'm so torn about whether I want Dear or Mvp to win. By winning this Dear would be showing a level of dominance that no player has ever came close to before. But I love Mvp..
Exactly how I feel aswell. I love Mvp more than anyone else in Starcraft, but Dear winning this would make such a great storyline. Also his play is incredible and entertaining, even though he is Protoss. Additionaly he seems to be a awesome person. Will be heartbreaking if they meet in the second round...
I never played Brood War, but some time after Starcraft 2 came out, I also started to pay attention to the Brood War leagues. At this time, Flash was dominating proleague with a 20+ win streak or something ridiculous like that, and Dear was the one that ended it. Flash was playing a perfect game like always, except he was unusually slow at preparing missile turrets at a common drop location. Dear blindly hit this weakness with a fast shuttle, killing most of Flash's workers and taking the game easily.
Everyone thought he was one lucky bugger, but he sure is proving us wrong in SC2.
It's just not the fact that he walked the Royal Road, at the GSL and the MLG (defeating LEENOCK :c), it's the WAY he played. We saw in Life's gameplay relentless aggression, impeccable micro (his trademark zergling micro), unparalled decision making, flawless macro (man, he did'nt lose a single spit !!!!!). Life just took the Zerg race and heighten his skill cap and he just make things with the Zerg that no one has ever done. Even his Zerg peers claimed that they cannot emulate his style because of his difficulty.
Life ftw !!!
Dear's playstye is another level than any other Protoss currently. He seems to have combined Rain's impeccable defensive skills with HerO's knack for constant multitasking, PartinG's insane army control in engagements, and MC's skill at hitting absolutely perfect timings. Other players might do one or two things really well, but Dear has the whole package to a degree we haven't seen before.
It's just not the fact that he walked the Royal Road, at the GSL and the MLG (defeating LEENOCK :c), it's the WAY he played. We saw in Life's gameplay relentless aggression, impeccable micro (his trademark zergling micro), unparalled decision making, flawless macro (man, he did'nt lose a single spit !!!!!). Life just took the Zerg race and heighten his skill cap and he just make things with the Zerg that no one has ever done. Even his Zerg peers claimed that they cannot emulate his style because of his difficulty.
Life ftw !!!
Dear's playstye is another level than any other Protoss currently. He seems to have combined Rain's impeccable defensive skills with HerO's knack for constant multitasking, PartinG's insane army control in engagements, and MC's skill at hitting absolutely perfect timings. Other players might do one or two things really well, but Dear has the whole package to a degree we haven't seen before.
Definitely excited to see Taeja Dear.
Most of what you say is pretty true... but I still think Rain has better control. The thing is that Dear doesn't seem to have that same ultradefensive fetish Rain does. That and Rain has been a touch off the boil. Argh Kinda dicing hairs with this but I would put Dear ahead at hte moment but within the last 3 months I would hold Rain as the best protoss and probably the best Protoss to ever play based on his hyper intelligent playstyle.
On November 07 2013 06:56 Tanukki wrote: I never played Brood War, but some time after Starcraft 2 came out, I also started to pay attention to the Brood War leagues. At this time, Flash was dominating proleague with a 20+ win streak or something ridiculous like that, and Dear was the one that ended it. Flash was playing a perfect game like always, except he was unusually slow at preparing missile turrets at a common drop location. Dear blindly hit this weakness with a fast shuttle, killing most of Flash's workers and taking the game easily.
Everyone thought he was one lucky bugger, but he sure is proving us wrong in SC2.
I think your mixing up the games. You're thinking about when Stardust won with reaver drops to break one of Flash's streaks. Flash canceled a turrent just moments before the drop came. Stardust said in the interview that he managed to trick Flash because he had studied his scan patterns and intentionally made the timings look wrong. Pretty sick if you ask me.
On November 07 2013 06:56 Tanukki wrote: I never played Brood War, but some time after Starcraft 2 came out, I also started to pay attention to the Brood War leagues. At this time, Flash was dominating proleague with a 20+ win streak or something ridiculous like that, and Dear was the one that ended it. Flash was playing a perfect game like always, except he was unusually slow at preparing missile turrets at a common drop location. Dear blindly hit this weakness with a fast shuttle, killing most of Flash's workers and taking the game easily.
Everyone thought he was one lucky bugger, but he sure is proving us wrong in SC2.
I think your mixing up the games. You're thinking about when Stardust won with reaver drops to break one of Flash's streaks. Flash canceled a turrent just moments before the drop came. Stardust said in the interview that he managed to trick Flash because he had studied his scan patterns and intentionally made the timings look wrong. Pretty sick if you ask me.
Separately from his play, I thought Dear's audience comments at S3 Finals were very memorable. Remember that time when he praised Canadian fans for being so good-looking (if I recall, the way the translator said it was "the men are all studs and the women are smoking hot") and basically apologized he's not as handsome as they are? It was such a random and bizarre thing to say, and I loved that--all too often all we get from Korean players is "I will play hard and show good games." It shows a lot of personality, and we need more of that from the top players.
On November 07 2013 09:51 Yakikorosu wrote: Separately from his play, I thought Dear's audience comments at S3 Finals were very memorable. Remember that time when he praised Canadian fans for being so good-looking (if I recall, the way the translator said it was "the men are all studs and the women are smoking hot") and basically apologized he's not as handsome as they are? It was such a random and bizarre thing to say, and I loved that--all too often all we get from Korean players is "I will play hard and show good games." It shows a lot of personality, and we need more of that from the top players.
Yeah and the audience are shouting like "Dear is sexy" lol. Thats really heartwarming.
On November 07 2013 03:01 awesomoecalypse wrote: If Dear wins Blizzcon, he's going to have a strong argument to being the world's best player at the moment, and the best Protoss in SC2 history. The word "bonjwa" gets overused, but Dear is one of the only guys who we could legitimately put in that conversation if he does win Blizzcon.
Nice article, btw, though I think it sort of glossed over how fun Dear is to watch these days. He plays an extremely exciting and spectator friendly style of Protoss--not as defensive as Rain or as aggressive as MC, but just doing all the little things right, multitasking like crazy, and never losing his composure even in the most high pressure situations
Maybe he's had the best protoss play, but you seriously can't call him the best when MC exists. How many finals has MC been in? Over the course of SC2's history MC has proven himself again and again. Dear is impressive, but how long has he been at the top for now? Surely a fraction of the time MC has been around. MC dominates SC2 earnings even topping MVP (wanna talk about the word "bonjwa?" there's a guy who I think deserves it)
I already said that MC's consistency is unparalleled, but there's something to be said for being absolutely unbeatably dominant as well. If Dear wins Blizzcon, we're looking at a streak of absolutely dominant play that hasn't been shown by any Protoss in SC2 before.
Not shown by anyone, regardless of race.
Not even Life or Innovation? Dear's won WCS Korea and Season Finals, while Innovation got 2nd in WCS and won his Season Finals, not to mention looking good in other tournaments. I think it's at least comparable.
I'm the biggest Life fan on the planet and while I would agree that Life was two steps above everyone the week he won GSL and MLG, neither Life nor Innovation can claim to have won three elite tournaments in such a short span, with each tournament's lineup tougher than the last one's. Their stretches would be comparable, but Dear's would still one-up them in my eyes.
Love the articles! TL Fighting! Thanks Zealously for the write up!
I agree with you in that I don't think anyone can get this close again to winning 3 back-to-back championships, although I would disagree and say that long periods of consistency are more important to me than streaky wins. So while it is still incredibly impressive, I would argue that winning in different periods and getting Ro4 consistently would be more impressive. It's like comparing the PartinG of 2012 with Dear of 2013. He will need more time to be considered dominant, IMO.
In any case, there's a strong case for him to win. I think Legend of the Fall still applies in this case, right? Winter is coming, but only in December.
On November 07 2013 03:01 awesomoecalypse wrote: If Dear wins Blizzcon, he's going to have a strong argument to being the world's best player at the moment, and the best Protoss in SC2 history. The word "bonjwa" gets overused, but Dear is one of the only guys who we could legitimately put in that conversation if he does win Blizzcon.
Nice article, btw, though I think it sort of glossed over how fun Dear is to watch these days. He plays an extremely exciting and spectator friendly style of Protoss--not as defensive as Rain or as aggressive as MC, but just doing all the little things right, multitasking like crazy, and never losing his composure even in the most high pressure situations
Well, unfortunately, no.
Dear may be very strong at the moment, and even more if he wins Blizzcon, but "best Protoss SC2 in history"?
You need much much more than a few months of success than that. Right now, he is more akin to "Summer of Taeja" than "King of Wings"
Which is more impressive, consistently being very good for a long time, or a streak of absolute unparalleled dominance? MC is the only Protoss to have the former (PartinG and Her0 both came fairly close), but NO Protoss has looked as unbeatable and utterly dominant as Dear currently does. Winning the 3 biggest tournaments on the scene all in a row like this would be completely unprecedented for any Protoss to achieve.
The fact that no Protoss has done this before probably says more about Protoss as a race than anything else. No doubt that Dear is on an impressive streak, but complete and utter dominance within a month does not make one a bonjwa. It would appear that in SC2 it is a far greater achievement to stay relevant for a long time, than it is to dominate for a short while.
Nup awesomoecalypse is right. Winning a code S, a season finals and then if he would go on to win Blizzcon definitely makes him the best contender for Bonjwa the game has seen. Short periods of crushing dominance are totally acceptable - see iloveoov's multiple finals/titles in a short period. There's arguably something much more impressive about dominance over a shorter period than longer spread out titles. That's why Jaedong was never called Bonjwa while Flash was. Jaedong was the best player for a long time and won multiple titles. Which is similar to MVP, the most overly touted (and wrong) suggested Bonjwa, who was the best in the world for a long time but who didn't dominate and didn't win enough. Although Jaedong was unstoppable for a long time, so he was actually a lot closer, statistics aside.
On November 07 2013 06:56 Tanukki wrote: I never played Brood War, but some time after Starcraft 2 came out, I also started to pay attention to the Brood War leagues. At this time, Flash was dominating proleague with a 20+ win streak or something ridiculous like that, and Dear was the one that ended it. Flash was playing a perfect game like always, except he was unusually slow at preparing missile turrets at a common drop location. Dear blindly hit this weakness with a fast shuttle, killing most of Flash's workers and taking the game easily.
Everyone thought he was one lucky bugger, but he sure is proving us wrong in SC2.
Flash was making a turret at the perfect spot, but he cancelled it. Probably as a response to the observer that entered his base.
The WCS Grand Finals represent Dear's chance to create a lasting legacy as the greatest player of 2013. With two championships and a third within reach, he can immortalize himself as the player who won it all, all on his very first try.
On November 07 2013 23:34 VArsovskiSC wrote: This article just made me wonder one thing:
Whose pressure is greater to win the thing --> Naniwa's or Dear's.. :D
The community pressure on Dear is greater, but I think Nani puts a lot more pressure on himself than Dear does now that the latter has already won two prestigious championships in so short a time span. That isn't to say he isn't under a lot of pressure, though - he most certainly will be.
EPT
Dear" Dong Jun. He first caught our eye during the Shinhan Bank Proleague, but like all his STX Soul teammates, he was largely overshadowed by the titan known as INnoVation. Dear would end up winning the second most games for eventual champions STX Soul, but even then his Protoss teammates Classic and Trap attracted more attention for their more entertaining and risky play. It was already hard enough for a Protoss to distinguish himself in PvProleague, and Dear's style was excruciatingly normal on top of that. 
, not 
