WCS Europe 2014
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Mvp, Bunny, MMA, VortiX:

by Waxangel

From the second the Ro16 groups were drawn on March 6th, we knew that Group A was going to be a tough one to advance from. Somehow, in just under three weeks, the group has taken on an even deadlier look. What's even more surprising is that it's not even because of the Koreans!

Nope, in a highly anticipated group that has six GSL championship's worth of experience, we're going to have to talk about mouz.VortiX first. The Spanish Zerg was hardly the first name that drew your eye amidst the stacked roster of the Vasacast Invitational, but he ended up being the player who won the $2,500 grand prize. He could hardly have asked for a more difficult tournament run, having to face MMA, StarDust, and jjakji as his final three opponents, but showed some of his best form in months to take claim first place.

While VortiX was one of the few foreigners who managed to present a challenge to against Koreans during the BL-Infestor error era, he declined in the HotS era of the game (despite remaining a strong player in Europe). European fans will be hoping that VortiX's excellent outing in the Vasacast tournament was a sign of real and sustained improvement, and not a momentary flash of briliance.

While there's danger in trying to read too deeply into the events of one tournament, VortiX did look mechanically better than ever before. His famously lackadaisical ZvT creep spread seemed improved, while his multitasking on offense and defense was on point. Sure, he did fall victim to 1A syndrome against a few drops, and he did nearly blow a few leads with wasteful engagements, but there was no question that on the whole, he outplayed several great Korean players.

As much as this three Terran group is a challenge, it's also an excellent chance to for VortiX to prove that his online championship run was no fluke and that he's a real contender to take the WCS EU crown.

Before we get to the marquee duo of the group, let's also mention the other European player who's competing. Liquid's newest and least-known recruit Bunny had been hyped up by his peers for some time as one of Europe's stronger Terran players who just hadn't been able to catch a break. He had a galloping debut for Liquid at SeatStory Cup, defeating MC and Harstem to reach the quarterfinals. Combined with his advancement to the WCS EU Ro16, it went some way toward showing that the hype – however limited it may have been – was for real.

The problem with projecting Bunny's performance in this group is his lack of official TvT games on record in the recent path. MMA and Mvp might have declined from their primes, but they are still two of the strongest players in the WCS Europe region. For the GSL championship duo, TvT seems to be the match-up that has aged the best for them both. Even if Bunny shows up boasting some of the best TvT' skill in Europe, he will have a difficult time going through.


Even with two strong European players in the group, all eyes will be focused on IM_Mvp and Acer.MMA, two of the greatest StarCraft 2 players of all time. Koreans are fond of that old English saying that "form is temporary, but class is permanent," and few players embody that notion better than Mvp and MMA. First rising to prominence in 2011, they proved their timeless quality by winning WCS Europe titles two years later in 2013.

But even if you have championship class, some amount of form is still required to win championships. Though we all hope that Mvp and MMA will continue to be a presence for long to come, the hidden dread exists one day we will wake up and see that they have joined Nestea among the ranks of old greats who have truly faded.

As it has been for the last two years, Mvp status is a mystery. His tournament placements have not been consistent since his heyday in 2011, but he has found a way to win just enough major titles at the right intervals to make "never doubt Mvp" a popular adage. His last title came in May of 2013 in the WCS Europe season of that year, and the unimpeachability he earned then has lasted until now. Even IM's head coach Hirai seems to have an almost religious faith in Mvp, entrusting him as the team's ace in a key Proleague game in spite of a weeks long absence from the line-up. Even though Mvp lost that match, we doubt that Hirai's trust in the legend has wavered an inch.

Mvp's last three major tournament finishes are not encouraging: Ro32 of WCS Europe Season 3, Ro16 elimination in the WCS Global Finals, and a Ro8 elimination at IEM Singapore. It's certainly a trough of poor results. However, it's no worse than the two Code S Ro32 finishes and top 16 MLG finish he recorded going on to win his first WCS Europe title. We can't help but trust in that old saying again. Don't doubt Mvp. Well, maybe not until we see his Ro8 opponent...

MMA has been enjoying better recent form than Mvp. Looking at his record since winning WCS Europe Season 3 in 2013, you might even think he's enjoying a second prime. Yet, there's some results that just don't feel right, like losing to Welmu in this season WCS EU Ro32 group and only advancing second. Or what about getting eliminated from both NorthCon and Vasacast by VortiX in the span of four months? Maybe those results aren't so bad considering how well foreigners have played so far in 2014, but it's not what we'd call "vintage MMA." In a way, this feels like a turning point tournament for MMA where he will have to prove he's a Korean in Europe out of choice and not neccessity.

Predictions: Mvp still has a few months until his doubt-immunity wears out, so for now we have to pick him to advance.

As for the other ticket to the Ro8, it seems like it will come down to whether MMA or VortiX will prove to be superior to the other on the night. Kudus to Bunny for having a good 2014 so far, but we just can't pick him in a group of such heavyweights.

So, would it be crazy to pick VortiX to beat MMA? How about picking him to beat MMA twice? MMA did 3-0 VortiX out of WCS Europe nearly five months ago, but VortiX looked every bit as good as MMA when he won 2-1 to send him out of the Vasacast tournament two days ago. It's a not an easy pick by any means, but we'll go with the spirit of WCS Season 1 as the season of upsets and pick VortiX to advance alongside Mvp.

Mvp > Bunny
VortiX > MMA
Mvp > VortiX
MMA > Bunny
VortiX > MMA

Mvp and Vortix advance.