WCS America 2014
Premier League

Group G Preview
Polt, Illusion, Neeb, Minigun

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Polt, Illusion, Neeb, Minigun

by Waxangel

As I'm sure you've all heard, WCS America has been annexed by ESL placed under the control of ESL due to NASL's inability to continue SC2 operations. It's completely up in the air as to who will be operating WCS America in Season 2, but at least for the rest of this season, it is effectively a European tournament. Nathanias and Rotterdam are flying out to commentate the rest of the Ro32 from ESL's studio in Cologne, while the Ro16 and up will be also be played live from the Cologne studio.

In the most delicious of coincidences, the very first WCS America group to be held under ESL's control will feature four* American players.

Our eyes must first go to Captain America himself, CMStorm_Polt. The two-time WCS America champion might have been born in Korea, but American fans have been more than willing to adopt him as one of their own due to his lengthy stay in the States, charming personality, and considerable English language skills. And just like the Captain America of comic book fame, you expect Polt to go over to Germany and kick some ass.

Polt seems like the prohibitive favorite to top this group after his show-stealing performance at IEM Cologne to finish in second place. However, there is a small wrinkle to consider. Polt's best match-up in the recent past has been by far his TvP, which he has played better than anyone else in the entire world, perhaps with the exception of Maru. However, there is only one Protoss player in this group, and Polt is not guaranteed to play him. On the other hand, Polt's traditionally excellent TvT has been surprisingly shaky as of late.

Even so, you still have to think that Polt will come through in the end. After all, isn't that basically the story of his career? Just like players like Mvp and MC, Polt just knows how to win important games, no matter what the stats say.

Polt's first opponent will be ROOT's Illusion, a once intriguing prospect from the North American scene who has bounced around a few teams. For a while it seemed like the teenage Terran was going to end up as a case wasted potential, but his performances in online competitions have stepped up in recent months. It's culminated in him earning his first WCS America Premier League appearance since season one of 2013, where he received an invitation and was eliminated in the Ro32.

Unfortunately Polt is as difficult a first opponent Illusion could hope for in his Premier League return. With a 1-5 all-time record against Polt and a rather weak showing against him in their most recent IEM qualifier meeting, it's likely that Illusion will head down to the losers match.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the bracket...

Chad "Motown Fire" Jones, better know by his alias ROOT.Minigun, has been on a roll. Though he has been known for some time as one of the USA's best players (alongside Polt, he's the only USA player to play in all four WCS America Premier Leagues), he finally got that big achievement to solidify his reputation as he won the Ender's Game Tournament. Along the way he defeated players like Suppy, viOlet, and MaSa – not to mention WCS groupmates Illusion and Neeb.

With those kind of credentials you expect him to be the strong favorite to advance in second place after Polt, but recent changes in the metagame make the forecast a tad cloudier. Terrans have figured out how to use the buffed widow mines to great effect in TvP, and many Protoss players now consider their old, robo-less styles to be obsolete. Regardless of how balance will shape up in the long term, it does seem that for the time being, Terran is the race that's ahead in the arms race as Protoss scramble to catch up. It's an unfortunate juncture for Minigun to be caught at, and his advancement will depend how he has adapted to the changed TvP landscape.

Minigun's first opponent is a similarly consistent but far less recognized player from the United States in Fnatic.Neeb. In almost sneaky fashion, Neeb has qualified for three WCS Premier tournaments straight, although he has been unable to make it past the Ro32 so far. Neeb's chances of making it to the Ro16 in his third try don't seem good as he has a 2-6 all-time tournament record against initial opponent Minigun. However, with hardly any TvT's on record, he could prove to be a monkey wrench in this group's many mirror matches.

Predictions:

Polt > Illusion
Minigun > Neeb
Polt > Minigun
Illusion > Neeb
Minigun > Illusion

Polt and Minigun advance.