GSL Season One
Code A

Group A Preview
RorO, TAiLS, Classic, Seed

Group B Preview
Dark, INnoVation, Sora, Armani

Brackets and standings on Liquipedia

Partial VODs on YouTube

It's been scarcely a week since Zest won the GSL Season 1 Championship and we're already marching straight ahead into Season 2. 48 players have been confirmed for GSL Season 2 Code A, only half of whom will survive to see Code S.

Here's a quick reminder about how the Code A format has changed since 2013. Instead of the multiple rounds and stages of the past, Code A has been simplified to be a single group stage. The players are split into twelve groups of four players each, who play a double-elimination tournament (same as Code S groups) to decide which two players will advance to Code S and which two will be sent back down to Code B.

We begin the proceedings with groups A and B, where the first four Code S spots are on the line.

Group A: RorO, TAiLS, Classic, Seed

Countdown:

by Waxangel

Despite featuring the most champions (2) of all the Code A Groups, there's no denying that Group A feels rather ordinary. This is largely due to Seed, a one-time GSL champion whose fall from grace should be a familiar story to our readers. Every season, Seed starts another Code S/A/B campaign, and every season we re-hash the same old narratives about recapturing the glory from Code S Season 3 of 2012. The quest for redemption has gone very poorly so far for Seed, having failed to qualify for Code S in five consecutive GSL/OSL seasons.

Seed fans have a few reasons to hope this season might be different. He played well in the previous season of Code A, narrowly losing to both Pet and Rogue before getting eliminated. Controversially, he had to play the unadjusted version of Daedalus Point (a map known to favor Zerg very heavily in ZvP) twice, losing in both matches. If Seed had been able to play on a more reasonable set of maps, he may have been able to reach Code S.

Additionally, Seed fans can look to jjakji for hope. The Code S November 2011 champion spent nearly two years being considered a one-hit wonder before reappearing out of nowhere to make a top six run in Code S. Though it might be a stretch to compare the two players, just knowing that a comeback is possible after such a long time provides a small amount of comfort.

The other player Seed could look to for hope is in this very group. Samsung_RorO was the final Code S champion of Wings of Liberty, but subsequently fell into a deep slump with the release of Heart of the Swarm. He was destined to be remembered as the PatchZerg to rule all PatchZergs until he started to turn things around toward the end of 2013. Employing an especially frustrating brand of swarm host play that is reminiscent of his BL-infestor abuse in WoL, RorO has emerged once more as a player of note.

RorO had a respectable run in the last Code S season, reaching the Ro16 before being eliminated in two ZvZ losses to Life. In Proleague, RorO has quietly recorded an excellent 9-4 record after two rounds, which is the best of all Zergs in that tournament. Because RorO hasn't had that many matches against Code S title contenders, it's hard to say how deep a run he could make this season. But at least in Code A, he's strongly favored to dominate the competition and advance.

SKT_Classic might not have RorO's championship pedigree, but he enters this season with a similar background in other aspects. He also reached the Ro16 of the previous Code S season, only to be eliminated with losses in the mirror match-up. Like RorO, he's going under the radar in Proleague despite having a very solid 7-3 record. And just like RorO, he's a player who seems like he has the potential to make a deep run despite some lingering doubts.

Classic is a very good player for sure, finding plenty of playing time on a stacked SKT roster and making the top eight in a stacked IEM Cologne (his qualifier run was more impressive than his showing at the actual tournament). His creative all-ins give him a unique edge, while he can play a mean macro game as well. Yet, it feels like Classic has hit a wall in terms of individual league success, unable to overcome the more experienced players in the scene. Rain and PartinG sent him hurtling out of Code S, while Polt eliminated him from IEM Cologne. We're eager to see if Classic has learned from his losses and has come back a stronger player.

Rounding out the group is MVP.TAiLS, who returns to Korea after spending four seasons playing in WCS Europe. It's not so shocking that he made it back to Code A in his first attempt – the qualifiers have become considerably easier due to several players leaving for EU and AM, while most of the players who "should" be in Code S have already made it. TAiLS only needed to beat virtual unknowns in Pegasus and Fox to advance. Considering that TAiLS never even made it to the live stages of WCS Europe, he seems like the weakest player in this group.

But before we count TAiLS out, there's one recent circumstance we have to take into account. For fourteen consecutive Proleague matches, MVP kept TAiLS off their roster. Then, when the stakes couldn't have been higher in the Round 2 playoffs, MVP abruptly decided to field TAiLS in every single match. While we have no idea how to explain how that happened, the fact that MVP trusted TAiLS in such an important situation speaks positively about his skill.

Overall thoughts and prediction: Though we made the case for Seed and TAiLS above, the reasoning really just amounts "why they might not be dead" instead of a convincing argument for them advancing. Neither of them has enjoyed any Code S success in a very long time, while Classic and RorO are coming in with Ro16 finishes in the previous season and excellent Proleague records to boot. Classic might suffer an upset due to the PvP factor, but it's hard to see RorO failing to go through unless he drops the ball completely.

RorO > TAiLS
Classic > Seed
Classic > RorO
TAiLS > Seed
RorO > TAiLS

Classic and RorO advance

Group B: Dark, INnoVation, Sora, Armani

Countdown:

by lichter

We're sure you all noticed that Acer.INnoVation was very conspicuously absent from Code S last season. Still, it bears repeating: Holy s***, INnoVation wasn't in Code S last season! Still considered a championship contender in anything he enters, INnoVation's elimination was a reminder of how much talent we have in SC2 and how unforgiving the new Code A format can be (and about how Protoss is imba, if you're into that kind of thing).

Despite sporting 70 percent-ish winrates in both TvZ and TvP, INnoVation was still knocked back down to Code B for the first time since August 2012. It was nothing to be ashamed of, however, as he lost at the hands of Zest and herO – one a GSL champion and the other a two-time IEM champion (and a $100k loser). It was a perhaps one of the most difficult groups we've ever seen in Code A, and we were bound to miss whichever two players were eliminated.

INnoVation's path back into Code S has not been without peril. After 2 byes and an easy win against Trickster in the qualifier, INnoVation suffered defeat at the hands of ByuL and was sent down into the loser's bracket. He was forced into a TvT – his achilles heel since the Hellbat nerf nearly a year ago – against little known player Sorry where he won a narrow 2-1 victory. Fortunately, Group B contains 0 Terrans and 2 Zergs ripe for a beating. The fact that neither of them have displayed any semblance of a threatening ZvT should make INnoVation confident that he already has one foot through the door.

The only player in Group B that should pose a threat to the Acer Terran is former-next-Protoss-bonjwa, CJ Sora, who has shown excellent PvT. His is a story of unattainable expectations. Everyone is aware of his amazing, underdog run through WCG last year (largely because we hyped the hell out of it), but since then he has done little to suggest that his prime hasn't passed already.

Sora's debut in Code S was unkind to him as he was bumped out in last place with losses to Soulkey and Pet, and his Proleague performances haven't been encouraging either. After a disappointing 2-4 performance in Round 1, it looks like Coach Park has lost faith in his man as he only played a single map in Round 2. The burden of great expectations has felled many a progamer, but Sora still has a chance to prove that he has the talent and determination to be more than a one-hit wonder. But if he is to find a way back into Code S, he will have to find a way to break his PvZ cold spell.

While INnoVation will welcome a TvZ against any Zerg in the world, Sora's PvZ woes make even a match-up against Samsung_Armani a danger. Armani has little in the way of notable performances besides playing in numerous foreign cups, but his stats still suggest that he is a decent ZvP player. With Sora struggling in the matchup, posting a 45.83% win rate on the year, Armani can hope to cause a minor upset in his Code A debut.

In the end, however, Armani is still a little used benchwarmer making his first Code A appearance. The real threat to what looks like a two horse race on paper, is SKT_Dark. While he isn't a notable name like INnoVation or even Sora, Dark was in Code S last season, even beating once Dear in the Ro32 before losing in the rematch to drop back to Code A. He was briefly a favorite among hipster fans, with rumors emerging that he held he #1 spot on the Korean ladder. Dark has played in few live matches and has only been trusted with one Proleague appearance so far. But if he was able to keep up with Dear last season, then he could pose a threat to Sora and INnoVation as well.

Predictions: INnoVation is getting out of this group because the two Zergs likely won't present enough of a threat. Sora's chances on the other hand diminish with each Zerg he must face. If INnoVation goes through in first place as many expect, the last match of the night will likely be contested by Sora and Dark. For what it's worth, Sora did beat Dark a few days ago in the GSL Global Tournament qualifier. It seems like a toss-up, so we might as well stick with our horse.

Dark < INnoVation
Sora > Armani
INnoVation > Sora
Dark > Armani
Sora > Dark

INnoVation and Sora advance.

Writers: lichter and Waxangel.
Graphics: GomTV, shiroiusagi.
Editor: Waxangel.