• Log InLog In
  • Register
Liquid`
Team Liquid Liquipedia
EST 14:38
CET 20:38
KST 04:38
  • Home
  • Forum
  • Calendar
  • Streams
  • Liquipedia
  • Features
  • Store
  • EPT
  • TL+
  • StarCraft 2
  • Brood War
  • Smash
  • Heroes
  • Counter-Strike
  • Overwatch
  • Liquibet
  • Fantasy StarCraft
  • TLPD
  • StarCraft 2
  • Brood War
  • Blogs
Forum Sidebar
Events/Features
News
Featured News
SC2 All-Star Invitational: Tournament Preview3RSL Revival - 2025 Season Finals Preview8RSL Season 3 - Playoffs Preview0RSL Season 3 - RO16 Groups C & D Preview0RSL Season 3 - RO16 Groups A & B Preview2
Community News
BSL Season 2025 - Full Overview and Conclusion5Weekly Cups (Jan 5-11): Clem wins big offline, Trigger upsets4$21,000 Rongyi Cup Season 3 announced (Jan 22-Feb 7)16Weekly Cups (Dec 29-Jan 4): Protoss rolls, 2v2 returns7[BSL21] Non-Korean Championship - Starts Jan 105
StarCraft 2
General
SC2 All-Star Invitational: Tournament Preview Stellar Fest "01" Jersey Charity Auction Weekly Cups (Jan 5-11): Clem wins big offline, Trigger upsets When will we find out if there are more tournament SC2 Spotted on the EWC 2026 list?
Tourneys
SC2 All-Star Invitational: Jan 17-18 $21,000 Rongyi Cup Season 3 announced (Jan 22-Feb 7) OSC Season 13 World Championship SC2 AI Tournament 2026 Sparkling Tuna Cup - Weekly Open Tournament
Strategy
Simple Questions Simple Answers
Custom Maps
Map Editor closed ?
External Content
Mutation # 508 Violent Night Mutation # 507 Well Trained Mutation # 506 Warp Zone Mutation # 505 Rise From Ashes
Brood War
General
BSL Season 2025 - Full Overview and Conclusion Fantasy's Q&A video [ASL21] Potential Map Candidates BW General Discussion BGH Auto Balance -> http://bghmmr.eu/
Tourneys
[BSL21] Non-Korean Championship - Starts Jan 10 Small VOD Thread 2.0 Azhi's Colosseum - Season 2 [Megathread] Daily Proleagues
Strategy
Soma's 9 hatch build from ASL Game 2 Simple Questions, Simple Answers Game Theory for Starcraft Current Meta
Other Games
General Games
Stormgate/Frost Giant Megathread Beyond All Reason Awesome Games Done Quick 2026! Nintendo Switch Thread Mechabellum
Dota 2
Official 'what is Dota anymore' discussion
League of Legends
Heroes of the Storm
Simple Questions, Simple Answers Heroes of the Storm 2.0
Hearthstone
Deck construction bug Heroes of StarCraft mini-set
TL Mafia
Vanilla Mini Mafia Mafia Game Mode Feedback/Ideas
Community
General
US Politics Mega-thread Things Aren’t Peaceful in Palestine Russo-Ukrainian War Thread Canadian Politics Mega-thread European Politico-economics QA Mega-thread
Fan Clubs
Media & Entertainment
Anime Discussion Thread [Manga] One Piece
Sports
2024 - 2026 Football Thread
World Cup 2022
Tech Support
Computer Build, Upgrade & Buying Resource Thread
TL Community
The Automated Ban List
Blogs
My 2025 Magic: The Gathering…
DARKING
Physical Exercise (HIIT) Bef…
TrAiDoS
Life Update and thoughts.
FuDDx
How do archons sleep?
8882
James Bond movies ranking - pa…
Topin
Customize Sidebar...

Website Feedback

Closed Threads



Active: 2149 users

Greatest HotS Players of All Time: Part 1 - Page 4

Forum Index > SC2 General
158 CommentsPost a Reply
Prev 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Next All
Charoisaur
Profile Joined August 2014
Germany16022 Posts
February 25 2016 01:58 GMT
#61
On February 25 2016 10:51 Ensiferum8 wrote:
Whats really important to take into consideration and I hope, but doubt stuchiu did is the balance of the game.

HotS was imbalanced for teh vast majority fo the time.

Early terrans were OP with hellbats. After that toss were broken with blink and awfull maps like heavy rain, yeonsu, deadlus point etc.... And zerg were also insanely favored vs T after the mine nerf, then in the end, terrans were still weaker judjing by premier tournaments finals representation.

That changes a lot, since Maru semi finals in GSL when only 3 terrans were in code S is worth almost a win IMO, where sOs vs herO in IEM final was just a blink festival, and that win is way less impressive since only 1.5 race were playable at that time

In all his former rankings he did take that into account
Many of the coolest moments in sc2 happen due to worker harassment
Charoisaur
Profile Joined August 2014
Germany16022 Posts
February 25 2016 02:05 GMT
#62
On February 25 2016 10:58 Ensiferum8 wrote:
Also, i would defenitly not rank Life #1. Not only most of his wins were not impressive (he just all ins all the time without being able to play macro most of the time).

But tbh, GSL or SSL is harder to win than blizzcon.

I mean, in blizzcon, you have players like Polt, Hydra, Hyun, Lilbow, San, etc.... And with all due respect, these players are way weaker than 90% of GSL round of 16 or round of 8 player.

In terms of importance, it should be : #1 GSL
#2 SSL
#3 Blizzcon

And considering terrans were the weakest race, statistically, for the vast majority of HotS, i would put

#1 INNO
#2 sOs
#3 Life

but thats just my opnion..........


It's not only about difficulty of winning tournaments but also about prestige.
otherwise a Kespa cup or a Hot6ix cup would count as much as a GSL.
Many of the coolest moments in sc2 happen due to worker harassment
Dumbledore
Profile Joined April 2011
Sweden725 Posts
February 25 2016 03:17 GMT
#63
Who the fk are the people in the drawing?
Have a nice day ;)
Orr
Profile Joined February 2014
United States168 Posts
Last Edited: 2016-02-25 04:33:05
February 25 2016 03:18 GMT
#64
Looking forward to seeing the entire rankings! #15-11 seem fine. Classic was the only one who at first glance felt noticeably too low (Bomber maybe slightly too high), but after contemplation was acceptable. And there's not much importance in my estimation between #9 or 10, versus being #11 or #12. It's only the top five or so that people will generally remember looking back as the greatest of HOTS. Everyone else will just be considered super good. As seen in how we collectively recall Flash and Jaedong being the gods of BW during the golden era. Followed in some order (which isn't of importance) by Bisu, Stork, Fantasy, and Jangbi, all of whom are legends in their own right.

Agree w/ the overwhelming consensus here that the top 3 is some order of: Life, Inno, sOs

Seems pretty clear the 2nd tier right behind is some order of: Maru, Zest

Followed very, very closely by some order of: herO, soO

*The order of Taeja, Rain, Classic, and PartinG in the 3rd tier is mostly irrelevant to me. As I feel they are all very historically noteworthy but decidedly below the aforementioned seven. Polt is extremely memorable, but clearly below this group and would be outside my top ten.


My final HOTS S class tier:
7) soO
6) herO
5) Zest
4) Maru
3) Life
2) sOs
1) Inno
Flash I Jaedong I herO I Best I Maru I Rogue
swissman777
Profile Joined September 2014
1106 Posts
February 25 2016 03:20 GMT
#65
On February 25 2016 08:42 Charoisaur wrote:
Show nested quote +
On February 25 2016 08:29 Nightwishone wrote:
People who were not around in the WOL and HOTS eras cannot understand... There were times in which terran couldn't win shit, zergs dominated, and the only one who was still able to win - not only that - look comfortable and even unbeatable was TaeJa himself.

In addition to that many of the players some people would rate ahead of TaeJa had a lot of their success from foreign tournaments themselves. 4 of sOs 5 tournament victories were foreign tournaments and in terms of difficulty the blizzcons weren't much more difficult than DH Bucharest, DH Winter or IEM Shenzhen. herO had 3 out of his 5 tournament wins from foreign tournaments. Even Life has except his 1 GSL victory not much results in korea.

I would not say a blizzcon win, the tournament that everyone craves and practices for, was as difficult as dh or iem; heck, I would even say that blizzcon is as premier or more than a gsl. Gsl and ssl were the elitest tournament in long preparation type whilst blizzcon is the elitest tournamemt in a short prep type
digmouse
Profile Blog Joined November 2010
China6330 Posts
Last Edited: 2016-02-25 03:22:44
February 25 2016 03:22 GMT
#66
Classic, a multi-time starleague winner and one of the most consistent Protoss of HotS is only #11? Imagine the madness of top 10 then.
TranslatorIf you want to ask anything about Chinese esports, send me a PM or follow me @nerddigmouse.
swissman777
Profile Joined September 2014
1106 Posts
February 25 2016 03:31 GMT
#67
On February 25 2016 11:05 Charoisaur wrote:
Show nested quote +
On February 25 2016 10:58 Ensiferum8 wrote:
Also, i would defenitly not rank Life #1. Not only most of his wins were not impressive (he just all ins all the time without being able to play macro most of the time).

But tbh, GSL or SSL is harder to win than blizzcon.

I mean, in blizzcon, you have players like Polt, Hydra, Hyun, Lilbow, San, etc.... And with all due respect, these players are way weaker than 90% of GSL round of 16 or round of 8 player.

In terms of importance, it should be : #1 GSL
#2 SSL
#3 Blizzcon

And considering terrans were the weakest race, statistically, for the vast majority of HotS, i would put

#1 INNO
#2 sOs
#3 Life

but thats just my opnion..........


It's not only about difficulty of winning tournaments but also about prestige.
otherwise a Kespa cup or a Hot6ix cup would count as much as a GSL.

Then it terms of prestige, blizzcon should be at the top right? I still don’t get why blizzcon is less important then gsl or ssl. They are different types of tournaments; you cant compare them like apples to apples
Ensiferum8
Profile Joined March 2014
Canada103 Posts
February 25 2016 04:11 GMT
#68
On February 25 2016 12:31 swissman777 wrote:
Show nested quote +
On February 25 2016 11:05 Charoisaur wrote:
On February 25 2016 10:58 Ensiferum8 wrote:
Also, i would defenitly not rank Life #1. Not only most of his wins were not impressive (he just all ins all the time without being able to play macro most of the time).

But tbh, GSL or SSL is harder to win than blizzcon.

I mean, in blizzcon, you have players like Polt, Hydra, Hyun, Lilbow, San, etc.... And with all due respect, these players are way weaker than 90% of GSL round of 16 or round of 8 player.

In terms of importance, it should be : #1 GSL
#2 SSL
#3 Blizzcon

And considering terrans were the weakest race, statistically, for the vast majority of HotS, i would put

#1 INNO
#2 sOs
#3 Life

but thats just my opnion..........


It's not only about difficulty of winning tournaments but also about prestige.
otherwise a Kespa cup or a Hot6ix cup would count as much as a GSL.

Then it terms of prestige, blizzcon should be at the top right? I still don’t get why blizzcon is less important then gsl or ssl. They are different types of tournaments; you cant compare them like apples to apples
because foreigners scrubs can go to blizzcon because of the awfull WCS point system. Remember last Blizzcon?

we had stuff like lilbow when people like stats, TY, soO were not there.

Dont get fool by the prize pool, GSL/SSL is way harder
WCS is a shitty joke, with racist rules. Support players who deserves it instead of foreigner scrubs who dont work half as much as koreans. JUN TAEYANG IS THE BEST <3
Charoisaur
Profile Joined August 2014
Germany16022 Posts
February 25 2016 04:27 GMT
#69
On February 25 2016 12:31 swissman777 wrote:
Show nested quote +
On February 25 2016 11:05 Charoisaur wrote:
On February 25 2016 10:58 Ensiferum8 wrote:
Also, i would defenitly not rank Life #1. Not only most of his wins were not impressive (he just all ins all the time without being able to play macro most of the time).

But tbh, GSL or SSL is harder to win than blizzcon.

I mean, in blizzcon, you have players like Polt, Hydra, Hyun, Lilbow, San, etc.... And with all due respect, these players are way weaker than 90% of GSL round of 16 or round of 8 player.

In terms of importance, it should be : #1 GSL
#2 SSL
#3 Blizzcon

And considering terrans were the weakest race, statistically, for the vast majority of HotS, i would put

#1 INNO
#2 sOs
#3 Life

but thats just my opnion..........


It's not only about difficulty of winning tournaments but also about prestige.
otherwise a Kespa cup or a Hot6ix cup would count as much as a GSL.

Then it terms of prestige, blizzcon should be at the top right? I still don’t get why blizzcon is less important then gsl or ssl. They are different types of tournaments; you cant compare them like apples to apples

Yes, blizzcon should be at the top.
My comparison between taejas and sOs runs was only directed at the people who say TaeJa runs weren't impressive because they were against lesser competition while some of his runs weren't easier then sOs run, so by their logic sOs didn't achieve much either.
Not that I think a Dreamhack victory should count as much as a blizzcon.
Many of the coolest moments in sc2 happen due to worker harassment
munch
Profile Joined July 2014
Mute City2363 Posts
Last Edited: 2016-02-25 04:33:01
February 25 2016 04:31 GMT
#70
On February 25 2016 13:11 Ensiferum8 wrote:
Show nested quote +
On February 25 2016 12:31 swissman777 wrote:
On February 25 2016 11:05 Charoisaur wrote:
On February 25 2016 10:58 Ensiferum8 wrote:
Also, i would defenitly not rank Life #1. Not only most of his wins were not impressive (he just all ins all the time without being able to play macro most of the time).

But tbh, GSL or SSL is harder to win than blizzcon.

I mean, in blizzcon, you have players like Polt, Hydra, Hyun, Lilbow, San, etc.... And with all due respect, these players are way weaker than 90% of GSL round of 16 or round of 8 player.

In terms of importance, it should be : #1 GSL
#2 SSL
#3 Blizzcon

And considering terrans were the weakest race, statistically, for the vast majority of HotS, i would put

#1 INNO
#2 sOs
#3 Life

but thats just my opnion..........


It's not only about difficulty of winning tournaments but also about prestige.
otherwise a Kespa cup or a Hot6ix cup would count as much as a GSL.

Then it terms of prestige, blizzcon should be at the top right? I still don’t get why blizzcon is less important then gsl or ssl. They are different types of tournaments; you cant compare them like apples to apples
because foreigners scrubs can go to blizzcon because of the awfull WCS point system. Remember last Blizzcon?

we had stuff like lilbow when people like stats, TY, soO were not there.

Dont get fool by the prize pool, GSL/SSL is way harder


Discounting Blizzcon 2015 purely because of Lilbow is a bit silly. You could argue the same for aLive in 2013, or jjakji in 2014, or even (heresy) Mvp in 2013 if you're going to criticise the competition purely for players' form at that actual tournament.

Blizzcon has never been about finding the best player in the world, nor was it the be-all and end-all of The Top 16 Players in the World. Obviously there's a healthy degree of overlap, but in all 3 years there were certainly players who missed out who I'd rank higher than ones who got in.

Having said that, it's still a pretty fucking stacked tournament. Yes, there's no preparation work, aside from Ro.16 / Ro.8 I guess, but go find me a GSL or SSL where the Ro.16 consists only of the top 16 in the world. It just doesn't happen, ever, whether due to seeding or upsets.

It's the same weekender / starleague argument that gets brought up when TaeJa inevitably (and deservedly) places highly in these rankings. They're different disciplines, and to demand that players excel in both formats essentially asks them to be Mvp or Life. Not matching up to that level is hardly the biggest criticism of a player.
WriterForm is temporary, MMA is permanent || http://www.teamliquid.net/blogs/508630-article-archive
Charoisaur
Profile Joined August 2014
Germany16022 Posts
February 25 2016 04:35 GMT
#71
In terms of how much a tournament should count it's imo:
1. Blizzcon
2. GSL/SSL
3. IEM Katowice/DH Winter
4. Kespa Cup/Hot6ix cup
5. Normal IEMs and DHs
6. Some other tournaments like HSC or RBB
7. Small online cups
8. WCS Premier
Many of the coolest moments in sc2 happen due to worker harassment
munch
Profile Joined July 2014
Mute City2363 Posts
February 25 2016 04:37 GMT
#72
On February 25 2016 13:35 Charoisaur wrote:
In terms of how much a tournament should count it's imo:
1. Blizzcon
2. GSL/SSL
3. IEM Katowice/DH Winter
4. Kespa Cup/Hot6ix cup
5. Normal IEMs and DHs
6. Some other tournaments like HSC or RBB
7. Small online cups
8. WCS Premier


So you'd take some online cup over WCS NA / EU in 2013/14?
:/
WriterForm is temporary, MMA is permanent || http://www.teamliquid.net/blogs/508630-article-archive
Wrath
Profile Blog Joined July 2014
3174 Posts
Last Edited: 2016-02-25 04:52:37
February 25 2016 04:38 GMT
#73
Shouldn't it be "The sons of YellOw"? Or "The brothers of soO"?

I don't know I just don't feel it right with "The sons of soO".
Charoisaur
Profile Joined August 2014
Germany16022 Posts
February 25 2016 05:18 GMT
#74
On February 25 2016 13:37 thecrazymunchkin wrote:
Show nested quote +
On February 25 2016 13:35 Charoisaur wrote:
In terms of how much a tournament should count it's imo:
1. Blizzcon
2. GSL/SSL
3. IEM Katowice/DH Winter
4. Kespa Cup/Hot6ix cup
5. Normal IEMs and DHs
6. Some other tournaments like HSC or RBB
7. Small online cups
8. WCS Premier


So you'd take some online cup over WCS NA / EU in 2013/14?
:/

No, I meant just WCS Premier 2015.
Totally forgot about WCS NA/EU I think I'd rate those at the same level as IEM/DH (normal ones)
Many of the coolest moments in sc2 happen due to worker harassment
machokj
Profile Joined March 2010
Bulgaria74 Posts
February 25 2016 07:40 GMT
#75
Lol, whoever put Maru infront of Innovation should be jailed
Dungeontay
Profile Joined December 2015
126 Posts
February 25 2016 07:51 GMT
#76
you know bomber didnt get top 4 at IEM San Jose??? it was TLO who beat him in order to advanc to the semis, only to get shrekt by hero...
Zzz
neptunusfisk
Profile Blog Joined July 2012
2286 Posts
February 25 2016 07:51 GMT
#77
On February 25 2016 16:40 machokj wrote:
Lol, whoever put Maru infront of Innovation should be jailed


Oh, is that what life did? Wrote a wrong top list?
maru G5L pls
Dungeontay
Profile Joined December 2015
126 Posts
February 25 2016 08:01 GMT
#78
oh, and why the f*** is Classic only 11th?? 2 Korean titles, 2 semis at blizzcon, overall very solid toss. I dare you if Rain is ahead of him with his single GSL title. I think the Classic anti-hype is really undeserved
Zzz
Dungeontay
Profile Joined December 2015
126 Posts
February 25 2016 08:05 GMT
#79
but one also have to give credit to the writer. So far its really enjoyable to read
Zzz
Phredxor
Profile Joined May 2013
New Zealand15076 Posts
February 25 2016 08:08 GMT
#80
On February 25 2016 17:01 Dungeontay wrote:
oh, and why the f*** is Classic only 11th?? 2 Korean titles, 2 semis at blizzcon, overall very solid toss. I dare you if Rain is ahead of him with his single GSL title. I think the Classic anti-hype is really undeserved


I guess it's because he's never really stood out as the clear best Protoss in the world, as Zest/Rain etc have. He has been really good for quite some time now, but I've never thought of him as unbeatable at any point.

Will be interested to see who is ranked above him though.
Prev 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Next All
Please log in or register to reply.
Live Events Refresh
IPSL
17:00
3rd Place
Bonyth vs DragOn
Liquipedia
[ Submit Event ]
Live Streams
Refresh
StarCraft 2
IndyStarCraft 206
SteadfastSC 126
JuggernautJason122
MindelVK 43
StarCraft: Brood War
Calm 2714
Dewaltoss 130
firebathero 116
Barracks 91
Zeus 81
Shuttle 65
Mong 44
ajuk12(nOOB) 10
HiyA 10
NaDa 8
Dota 2
qojqva2314
capcasts37
Counter-Strike
fl0m3009
byalli864
Heroes of the Storm
Liquid`Hasu397
Other Games
summit1g4386
Grubby3169
FrodaN1110
crisheroes444
Fuzer 270
XaKoH 89
minikerr2
Organizations
Other Games
gamesdonequick2705
StarCraft 2
ComeBackTV 1649
Other Games
EGCTV1127
StarCraft 2
WardiTV732
angryscii 35
Other Games
BasetradeTV21
StarCraft 2
Blizzard YouTube
StarCraft: Brood War
BSLTrovo
sctven
[ Show 20 non-featured ]
StarCraft 2
• printf 38
• HeavenSC 36
• iHatsuTV 8
• Kozan
• Migwel
• sooper7s
• AfreecaTV YouTube
• intothetv
• IndyKCrew
• LaughNgamezSOOP
StarCraft: Brood War
• 80smullet 14
• FirePhoenix8
• Pr0nogo 3
• STPLYoutube
• ZZZeroYoutube
• BSLYoutube
League of Legends
• Jankos2726
• TFBlade1139
Other Games
• imaqtpie1324
• WagamamaTV313
Upcoming Events
AI Arena Tournament
22m
BSL 21
22m
Mihu vs eOnzErG
Dewalt vs Sziky
Bonyth vs DuGu
XuanXuan vs eOnzErG
Dewalt vs eOnzErG
All-Star Invitational
7h 22m
MMA vs DongRaeGu
herO vs Solar
Clem vs Reynor
Rogue vs Oliveira
Sparkling Tuna Cup
14h 22m
OSC
16h 22m
Shameless vs NightMare
YoungYakov vs MaNa
Nicoract vs Jumy
Gerald vs TBD
Creator vs TBD
BSL 21
1d
Bonyth vs Sziky
Mihu vs QiaoGege
Sziky vs XuanXuan
eOnzErG vs QiaoGege
Mihu vs DuGu
Dewalt vs Bonyth
IPSL
1d
Dewalt vs Sziky
Replay Cast
1d 13h
Wardi Open
1d 16h
Monday Night Weeklies
1d 21h
[ Show More ]
The PondCast
3 days
Replay Cast
5 days
Big Brain Bouts
5 days
Serral vs TBD
BSL 21
6 days
Liquipedia Results

Completed

Escore Tournament S1: W4
Big Gabe Cup #3
NA Kuram Kup

Ongoing

C-Race Season 1
IPSL Winter 2025-26
BSL 21 Non-Korean Championship
CSL 2025 WINTER (S19)
KCM Race Survival 2026 Season 1
OSC Championship Season 13
SC2 All-Star Inv. 2025
Underdog Cup #3
BLAST Bounty Winter Qual
eXTREMESLAND 2025
SL Budapest Major 2025
ESL Impact League Season 8
BLAST Rivals Fall 2025
IEM Chengdu 2025

Upcoming

Escore Tournament S1: W5
Acropolis #4
IPSL Spring 2026
Bellum Gens Elite Stara Zagora 2026
HSC XXVIII
Rongyi Cup S3
Nations Cup 2026
Stake Ranked Episode 1
BLAST Open Spring 2026
ESL Pro League Season 23
ESL Pro League Season 23
PGL Cluj-Napoca 2026
IEM Kraków 2026
BLAST Bounty Winter 2026
TLPD

1. ByuN
2. TY
3. Dark
4. Solar
5. Stats
6. Nerchio
7. sOs
8. soO
9. INnoVation
10. Elazer
1. Rain
2. Flash
3. EffOrt
4. Last
5. Bisu
6. Soulkey
7. Mini
8. Sharp
Sidebar Settings...

Advertising | Privacy Policy | Terms Of Use | Contact Us

Original banner artwork: Jim Warren
The contents of this webpage are copyright © 2026 TLnet. All Rights Reserved.