EPTGSL Season One
Code S
Mad Scientists
Ro32 Group D:
Bomber, TY, Dream, YongHwa
Brackets and standings on Liquipedia
Mad Scientists
by Destructicon
Given how wild and unpredictable each player in this group can be, the D must stand for dynamic. Most of these players are veterans of the scene in one way or another, and how they approach series often leads to some truly spectacular games.
First off we have a member of KT's Fantastic Four, the sniper
TY. By now TY can be considered a veteran of both SC2 and BW, having made his official debut in BW when he was 13 years old. Yet despite years of gaming, TY has yet to find success in an individual league. He managed to qualify for the first SC2 OSL but dropped out before the playoffs; he qualified for the GSL 4 times but never made it past the RO16; at DH Bucharest, he was ousted by 
MC in the RO16. However TY's stock is currently on the rise as he was one of the few players to qualify for both S2SL and GSL. It's worth noting that the first player TY ever confronted in the GSL was Bomber, who promptly sent him back to Code B. It feels strangely appropriate that it is TY greets a returning Bomber upon the latter's return to Korea.TY's style is multitasking-heavy and excels with preparation. He comes out with brilliant snipe builds that have made victims of
Soulkey, herO and Maru. His multitasking is some of the finest in the world, letting him run circles around the best players. However, closing a game out is his primary weakness. If an opponent stabilizes against his harassment, TY doesn't seem to know how to retake the initiative. For this group he'll need to work hard to either gain an insurmountable lead or work on his follow ups.After a year abroad touring the world and drinking in the spoils of Red Bull's tournaments,
Bomber has come home. Bomber's career can be compared to a fine wine in that it has improved with age. Despite having macro prowess from the beginning of his career, he only won two tournaments in 2011, Code A (back when it was a separate tournament) and MLG Raleigh. He spent the next couple of years improving, unable to replicate his past results but going deeper and deeper in the tournaments he participated in. Finally the results started showing. First, a surprise performance in the 2nd OSL where Bomber topped a group that included Flash, INnoVation and Bbyong. Then Bomber finally tasted victory again by winning the 2013 WCS Season 2 Finals with a 4-0 mauling of Jaedong. After leaving StarTale In 2014 Bomber had the best year of his career, earning 3 golds, a silver and making several deep runs. If the trend holds then this year could surpass 2014, which would coincide nicely with his GSL return.For the longest time, Bomber's style used to be summed up as "overwhelming macro". To some degree it still holds true. Bomber's macro mechanics remain some of the best in the world. But as the years wore on Bomber has nurtured another deadly ability, the art of planning series and using vintage builds at the right time. Today we like to think he rolls a 30 sided dice and just goes with what strategy comes up. This unpredictability makes him look like a genius at certain times and a total fool at others.
Poor
YongHwa was one of the original victims of the Artosis curse. After showing promise in the GSTL with a 5-1 record, the Dark Wizard prophesied YongHwa would quickly develop into a top Protoss. Shortly thereafter, the IM player's career took a nosedive. He crash landed straight into Code B from which he tried, in vain, to escape for the next 2 years. He didn't have magnificent success abroad either. He got 2nd place at HSC V; as part of the IM expeditionary force that conquered the IEM World Championship in 2013, he ended up in 3/4th place. YongHwa gradually reasserted himself in the GSL, and his results started to improve. Over the years he slowly moved up the ranks advancing into Code A to Code S but never making it to the round of 16. However recent trends indicate he may be ready to make a deep run. Like TY he is one of the rare few to have qualified for both S2SL and GSL; his qualifier runs saw him take down many notable players including: Bunny, MMA, BrAvO, soO and DongRaeGu. He also notably defeated Zest in the ace match of MVP vs KT. Results indicate that YongHwa has what it take down anyone, yet he may still possess a mental block of sorts when it comes to the round of 32. Recently he fell to Leenock in the S2SL challenge. If he wants to break the mold here, YongHwa will really have to work on his mindset.Stylistically YongHwa is quite standard. He mostly focuses on macro but sprinkles in some cheese every now and then. YongHwa is a lot more old school in terms of builds, preferring colossus based openings and compositions almost exclusively even before the widow mine buff against shields. The upside is that this gives him a valuable foundation for success in today's meta; the downside is that he can be slow to transition to HT at inopportune times. After his mentality YongHwa should work on his transitions and his defense against SCV all-ins.
Ever since his debut many have spoken highly of
Dream, lauding him as a future star in the next generation of Terrans. In particular, his multitasking and uncanny ability to swarm opponents with careful control have captured the imagination of the public. It looked like Dream was well on his way to fulfilling his potential after making a deep run at IEM Katowice 2013. Unfortunately for him, he ran into an in-form First. Despite his brilliance in previous rounds Dream couldn't find an answer for First's rock solid templar style, falling unceremoniously in a 1-3 defeat. Since then, Dream has struggled in individual leagues. He has made brief appearances in Code A and before this season, only reached Code S once. By contrast Dream was a pivotal part of MVP's success during the first season of ATC, slaying Nerchio and Scarlett in the winners final and then 3-killing Acer again in the grand final; in last year's Proleague, he garnered a 6-6 record. SKT1 saw untapped potential in him and once MVP released their entire old roster, he was picked up by the telecom titan. Being signed by SKT1 is a huge nod of approval towards his skill and potential. He will need to step it up and convert that skill into wins to prove his worth.Dream's style has traditionally been flashy, as is the case with most multitask oriented players. He looks best when he has seized control of the game's tempo. He looks like a true savant when he is dropping everywhere, forcing bad moves out of his opponents and capitalizing on their mistakes. However, he has traditionally looked weak if someone can wrestle control away from him. It's hard to say anything regarding his TvT, given he hasn't had a major televised TvT since his game vs jjakji on Whirlwind. Due to these circumstances Dream is a bit of a wild card. It's hard to know the shape he is in or read too much into his style without much evidence.
Predictions
I believe Bomber will make it out of this group first. Bomber is a TvT specialist and hard to read, giving him a substantial advantage over TY. His bag of tricks should also help him get the upper hand vs Dream and carefully timed SCV pulls ought to take care of YongHwa. After this, I expect TY to advance as his careful preparation and mastery of TvT (67% win rate according to Aligulac) will push him to victory. I don't favor YongHwa's chances. Despite only having to practice one MU, he seems a bit too predictable for this group and matches up poorly against Dream's style.
Bomber > TY
Dream > YongHwa
Bomber > Dream
TY > YongHwa
TY > Dream
Bomber and TY advance.
