Each year, BlizzCon showcases some of the most amazing esport content around and we’re bringing one of the most exciting and successful StarCraft II tournaments to the Anaheim Convention Center. SHOUTcraft Kings, hosted by TotalBiscuit, is a high-risk, high-reward tournament that is guaranteed to put on amazing display of skill.
SHOUTcraft Kings is a monthly tournament that started in July 2016 and has become extremely popular in the StarCraft II Community. The draw comes from the unique format, with mystery challengers and dominant streaks. Players must face a gauntlet of opponents who remain unannounced until the match begins. It is the ultimate test of a player’s ability to adapt immediately to unexpected opposition. There are no second chances. If they win, they’ll earn $1,000 and advance to face the next mystery opponent. If they lose, they are out. The tension is always high in SHOUTcraft Kings, which is bound to be full of unexpected twists and turns. Any StarCraft II player can find something to love about this exciting event.
For this month’s SHOUTcraft Kings, the reigning King ‘uThermal’ will defend the title he claimed after defeating two players in the closing matches of the SHOUTcraft Kings October event. One of Europe's top Terran players, ‘uThermal’ will have his work cut out for him as he faces a lineup of seven of the world's best, including WCS finalists and other special guests, all hungry to take his crown.
To top it all off, this tournament will be played entirely on the most current version of the major balance changes we’re testing. How will some of the best StarCraft II players take advantage of these changes? We might see the birth of a new meta right before our eyes.
Here are all the details: SHOUTcraft Kings at BlizzCon
Format: King-of-the-Hill // Best-of-1
Casters: TotalBiscuit and iNcontroL
Total Players: 8
Prizing: $1,000 per win
Mode: Balance Test Mod
Schedule: Friday, November 4 at 6:45 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. PDT, after WCS Round of 8 concludes.
Where: Twitch.tv/StarCraft and the WCS Arena SHOUTcraft Kings is one the most exciting tournaments to watch, and what better way to take it to the next level than to conduct it live at BlizzCon 2016? You won’t want to miss any of the matches on Friday, November 4. See you at the Arena.
too bad the Incontrol part... he´s done as a caster, that spot should be for Wolf or Demuslim maybe Nate... even Zombiegrub is a better caster !!!! >_<
On November 03 2016 09:38 sa1Ko wrote: too bad the Incontrol part... he´s done as a caster, that spot should be for Wolf or Demuslim maybe Nate... even Zombiegrub is a better caster !!!! >_<
How would they get any of these people to Blizzcon?
Anyhow incontrol isn't bad. We all have our favorites and he's never been one of mine but I can confidently say that he is a capable caster and will deliver solid commentary.
Answers to common questions :- Is it a shorter event? :- Yes, due to lengthier setup times and of course the limited availability of the live arena stage, this is an 8 player event with 7 scheduled matches (and maybe something special if we have time at the end).
Is this the bottom 8 of WCS RO16? :- The majority of players are in fact not part of WCS. We have brought special guest players here specifically for this tournament. None of these players will be revealed before they set foot on stage, with the exception that uThermal will be defending as he is the reigning King.
Is this an entirely offline event? :- Yes. Every player participating will be on the main stage at Blizzcon in person.
Who will cast? :- Myself and Incontrol.
Which other talent will be involved? :- We will have the Kings Couch, featuring Blizzcon talent. Top bants is expected, m8.
Oh god you aren't observing and producing are you? :- Thankfully not. The ESL production team is running the show, with the assets we've provided them.
Is it all on the same balance map? :- No we'll be using our regular Kings map-pool with the latest balance test extension mod. The usual 5 maps will be in play.
On November 03 2016 09:38 sa1Ko wrote: too bad the Incontrol part... he´s done as a caster, that spot should be for Wolf or Demuslim maybe Nate... even Zombiegrub is a better caster !!!! >_<
On November 03 2016 09:38 sa1Ko wrote: too bad the Incontrol part... he´s done as a caster, that spot should be for Wolf or Demuslim maybe Nate... even Zombiegrub is a better caster !!!! >_<
On November 03 2016 10:08 eviltomahawk wrote: One last hurrah for Jaedong?
At least it's definitely one last hurrah for Hydra who specifically mentioned playing a showmatch at least at Blizzcon.
I'm not sure about that. I took that to mean Hydra was playing in the Exhibition matches on Saturday morning.
I don't think they ever specified. There were exhibition matches scheduled for both Friday and Saturday, though the Friday matches were extended from 6-8pm to 6-9:30pm with this Shoutcraft announcement. I would expect him to be there for both days.
On November 03 2016 09:38 sa1Ko wrote: too bad the Incontrol part... he´s done as a caster, that spot should be for Wolf or Demuslim maybe Nate... even Zombiegrub is a better caster !!!! >_<
How would they get any of these people to Blizzcon?
Anyhow incontrol isn't bad. We all have our favorites and he's never been one of mine but I can confidently say that he is a capable caster and will deliver solid commentary.
On November 03 2016 09:38 sa1Ko wrote: too bad the Incontrol part... he´s done as a caster, that spot should be for Wolf or Demuslim maybe Nate... even Zombiegrub is a better caster !!!! >_<
Wolf better than incontrol? LOL. Dude had zero knowledge of the game despite casting it for years.
On November 03 2016 09:38 sa1Ko wrote: too bad the Incontrol part... he´s done as a caster, that spot should be for Wolf or Demuslim maybe Nate... even Zombiegrub is a better caster !!!! >_<
Wolf better than incontrol? LOL. Dude had zero knowledge of the game despite casting it for years.
wolf had some high profile fuckups and was far from the best caster in the world, but he was a master league player iirc and did obviously learn from what he watched. saying he had zero knowledge makes you look like a goofball exaggerator
Blizzard's support of multiplayer is horrible; the game has only been out 6 years and this is all we get? EA continues to add to and evolve C&C4 and Ensemble is doing such amazing work with Age of Empires. David Kim is dumb.
joking aside, This is great and i love that they are using the upcoming balance patch! i'm sure people will manage to find a way to hate this. Its been a really smart move by Blizzard to hand TotalBiscuit some cash and resources. I think Blizzard should either let ATVI's new subsidiary run next year's WCS OR put TotalBiscuit in charge as a Blizzard employee.
TB has done a great job and is flat out better than Blizzard at running competitive events and leagues.
Congratz to TB it is very well deserved.. let the guy run the entire WCS in 2017!
I was upset that I would miss a bunch of the Ro8 on Friday because I will be at work but after seeing this news I am now happy that I still have some awesome SC2 to watch Friday night.
On November 03 2016 09:38 sa1Ko wrote: too bad the Incontrol part... he´s done as a caster, that spot should be for Wolf or Demuslim maybe Nate... even Zombiegrub is a better caster !!!! >_<
Wolf better than incontrol? LOL. Dude had zero knowledge of the game despite casting it for years.
wolf had some high profile fuckups and was far from the best caster in the world, but he was a master league player iirc and did obviously learn from what he watched. saying he had zero knowledge makes you look like a goofball exaggerator
He really doesn't though. I'm talking actually knowing what the fuck is going on not herp derp that building is called a Nexus. Constant shit like saying ByuN is fucked in a recent-ish TvP because the Protoss took a faster third. There were no other circumstances present that he thought ByuN was behind just that. And his opinion was that ByuN was MASSIVELY behind. Like if you cast games this often for a living and you can't realize by now that Protoss takes a faster third in probably 75% of games in TvP there is a problem.
Also in late late hots on multiple occasions freaking out when a Terran went CC first into Marines. Dude would constantly call it a weird opener and comment about how most Terrans went CC first into Reapers. I don't know about you but I literally can't recall a single hots game where I saw CC first into Reaper.
Valdez has infinitely better game analysis. Pretty much all of the main stream casters do.
On November 03 2016 14:08 Little-Chimp wrote: quit being dick heads about casters and enjoy something for once
if the casters make bad mistakes or become obvious shills for Blizzard its hard to just let it slide.
i enjoy the show any way.. but i can see why some players and fans get irked by the casters; if they want to spew some venom about legit issues ... let 'em.
TB has done a great job and is flat out better than Blizzard at running competitive events and leagues.
yeah, because running some online tournament is as easy as running a league with players from all over the world. Clan wars was a huge success...
its tougher but TB has the right instincts. and, its a big stretch but Blizzard has been mediocre. my other suggestion is to let ATVI's new subsidiary run it. Blizzard just doesn't do a good enough job.
On November 03 2016 14:43 ClanWars wrote: You lot really are negative nancies sometimes. If you show up in the crowd at the event you'd better not just sit there whining on TL
But then what would we have to talk about? There's only Stupid Sexy Incontrol then.
Soooo... do we have any TLers in Anaheim. Some unexpected pro-gamer sightings to be reported? Or is TB gonna bring them all in the middle of the night wearing $o$ masks for maximum scare potential?
1. Hydra - as most people already guessed, I think it would be nice to let him play at Blizzcon after all. 2. sOs 3. Maru 4. Innovation 5. Byun - he is still playing in Blizzcon but Buyn is such a viewer drawer that you can't just not let him play. 6. Nerchio - I think he might play. He had nice Shoutcraft run before and dropped out of Blizzcon quite early. 7. Neeblet
They're really going out of their way to promote StarCraft internationally, putting it on the main stage of BlizzCon; that's nice. Hope they have a plan for Korea too...
To top it all off, this tournament will be played entirely on the most current version of the major balance changes we’re testing. How will some of the best StarCraft II players take advantage of these changes? We might see the birth of a new meta right before our eyes.
Ok this makes it extremely intriguing. Can't wait, best get a thread ready !
On November 03 2016 16:17 Argonauta wrote: Maybe Maru? That would explain why he is not in the GSL tournament
No it wouldn't.
On November 03 2016 17:51 opisska wrote: The only drawback is the 2:45 AM timeslot ...
Yeah I didn't really plan to stay up until 5 AM but I guess now there's no choice.
I am not sure if I should stay away long or get up early as nowadays I usually go to sleep around 9 pm and wake up before 7 am.
The downside is, if you went to sleep at 9pm you'd miss the Blizzcon Ro8. So you'll have to carefully plan your sleep schedule.
Oh, my comprehension of time zones sucks so much, I thought at first that Ro8 is after not before. Guess I am too used to the convenient timing of all the great Korean SC2, which ... oh NO DONT THINK ABOUT THE EVENT.
Anyway, there is some serious scheduling to be done and the fact that on LP the times of the matches do not convert to my timezone makes it hard! At least the finals is on Saturday, so I can somewhat make it work with the fact that I need to on Monday at 11:30 am in a place that is 5 hours drive from here ...
This is great, I especially hope it can take a more casual approach to the viewing experience. Players who are not hardcore watchers can easily get engaged by this easy format and the friendly fun casting style that Totalbiscuit and Incontrol can bring. Then if they really loved it, they can tune in to the Starcraft Blizzcon Finals.
On November 03 2016 16:17 Argonauta wrote: Maybe Maru? That would explain why he is not in the GSL tournament
No it wouldn't.
On November 03 2016 17:51 opisska wrote: The only drawback is the 2:45 AM timeslot ...
Yeah I didn't really plan to stay up until 5 AM but I guess now there's no choice.
I am not sure if I should stay away long or get up early as nowadays I usually go to sleep around 9 pm and wake up before 7 am.
The downside is, if you went to sleep at 9pm you'd miss the Blizzcon Ro8. So you'll have to carefully plan your sleep schedule.
Oh, my comprehension of time zones sucks so much, I thought at first that Ro8 is after not before. Guess I am too used to the convenient timing of all the great Korean SC2, which ... oh NO DONT THINK ABOUT THE EVENT.
Anyway, there is some serious scheduling to be done and the fact that on LP the times of the matches do not convert to my timezone makes it hard! At least the finals is on Saturday, so I can somewhat make it work with the fact that I need to on Monday at 11:30 am in a place that is 5 hours drive from here ...
The Blizzcon site has the entire schedule laid out and even an indicator for CET, maybe that'll help.
On November 03 2016 16:17 Argonauta wrote: Maybe Maru? That would explain why he is not in the GSL tournament
No it wouldn't.
On November 03 2016 17:51 opisska wrote: The only drawback is the 2:45 AM timeslot ...
Yeah I didn't really plan to stay up until 5 AM but I guess now there's no choice.
I am not sure if I should stay away long or get up early as nowadays I usually go to sleep around 9 pm and wake up before 7 am.
The downside is, if you went to sleep at 9pm you'd miss the Blizzcon Ro8. So you'll have to carefully plan your sleep schedule.
Oh, my comprehension of time zones sucks so much, I thought at first that Ro8 is after not before. Guess I am too used to the convenient timing of all the great Korean SC2, which ... oh NO DONT THINK ABOUT THE EVENT.
Anyway, there is some serious scheduling to be done and the fact that on LP the times of the matches do not convert to my timezone makes it hard! At least the finals is on Saturday, so I can somewhat make it work with the fact that I need to on Monday at 11:30 am in a place that is 5 hours drive from here ...
The Blizzcon site has the entire schedule laid out and even an indicator for CET, maybe that'll help.
Why are you such a great person? Have you considered candidacy on the president of the world?
Looks fun. Wondering about the lineup - I guess Hydra and Inno's gonna be there, but who else? Like someone said above, I would like to see Gumiho playing this, but I guess that's not too likely.
On November 03 2016 16:17 Argonauta wrote: Maybe Maru? That would explain why he is not in the GSL tournament
No it wouldn't.
On November 03 2016 17:51 opisska wrote: The only drawback is the 2:45 AM timeslot ...
Yeah I didn't really plan to stay up until 5 AM but I guess now there's no choice.
I am not sure if I should stay away long or get up early as nowadays I usually go to sleep around 9 pm and wake up before 7 am.
The downside is, if you went to sleep at 9pm you'd miss the Blizzcon Ro8. So you'll have to carefully plan your sleep schedule.
Oh, my comprehension of time zones sucks so much, I thought at first that Ro8 is after not before. Guess I am too used to the convenient timing of all the great Korean SC2, which ... oh NO DONT THINK ABOUT THE EVENT.
Anyway, there is some serious scheduling to be done and the fact that on LP the times of the matches do not convert to my timezone makes it hard! At least the finals is on Saturday, so I can somewhat make it work with the fact that I need to on Monday at 11:30 am in a place that is 5 hours drive from here ...
The Blizzcon site has the entire schedule laid out and even an indicator for CET, maybe that'll help.
Why are you such a great person? Have you considered candidacy on the president of the world?
I can't say the thought had crossed my mind. And I mean, what's the worst that could happen, right?
What are odds this KeeN account is being used by a Shoutcraft/Blizzcon participant?
Geez, adjusting my sleep schedule for BlizzCon is going to be brutal, but looks like it will be so damn worth it, holy shit. Can't wait for this, pretty sure it's gonna be amazing. :D
On November 03 2016 11:55 JimmyJRaynor wrote: Blizzard's support of multiplayer is horrible; the game has only been out 6 years and this is all we get? EA continues to add to and evolve C&C4 and Ensemble is doing such amazing work with Age of Empires. David Kim is dumb.
joking aside, This is great and i love that they are using the upcoming balance patch! i'm sure people will manage to find a way to hate this. Its been a really smart move by Blizzard to hand TotalBiscuit some cash and resources. I think Blizzard should either let ATVI's new subsidiary run next year's WCS OR put TotalBiscuit in charge as a Blizzard employee.
TB has done a great job and is flat out better than Blizzard at running competitive events and leagues.
Congratz to TB it is very well deserved.. let the guy run the entire WCS in 2017!
On November 04 2016 00:57 NKB wrote: The one weekend I am travelling I miss not only blizzcon but I miss shoutcraft as well. Well it's gonna be vod central for me i guess!
Here some cumulative about shoutcraft kings blizzcon 2016 stats:
There we go, Nerchio [$4,500] now top winner with 12 wins (Mana [$1,250] still top win ratio with 83.3% tho). Zerg [$13,250] has put Protoss [$5,250] back to the last spot in both wins and win ratio. Euronics Gaming [$4,500] is now on 3rd place in the team ranking, heck 2nd when it comes to win ratio. And while Poland [$5,750] is "only" 2nd to Korea [$17,750] in wins, it takes the top place in win ratio.
Solar [$3,750] being a king means the 2nd one for Korea (and Asia), bringing his team Samsung Galaxy [$4,750] the first crown as king of the hill.
Overall, a very exciting event and ofc Stephano [$750] takes 1st place when it comes to banter :-)
Thanks for everyone involved for this entertaining event !
Was fun. But seriously the supposed changes are beyond my understanding. Buff Hydras because They dont get used all too often (Over the incredible easy to use and to get Ravager ) Buff Banelings because if there are only a few left, Zerg should be able to clear drops, despite the terran effort to dodge and snipe. Seems right for a 1/2-Supply unit. Oh and on short rush distance Maps, you will alwas see the ravager win vs terran now. There is no way that you can outproduce Zerg with bio alone, and without the abilty to save a tank from biles...it will just get 1 shot of.
I think Shoutcraft did not really tell anything about balance since all of the pro gamers played poorly. Even pro gamers will need 500+ matches to adjust to the new balance before it is possible to know if certain things are due to balance or if they are just making the wrong decisions.
The only thing we know for certain is that Hydras seems to be a stronger unit. They may be too strong but that is much to early to tell.
Massing cyclones without support also seems like a bad idea, which is a good thing.
On November 06 2016 02:45 MockHamill wrote: I think Shoutcraft did not really tell anything about balance since all of the pro gamers played poorly. Even pro gamers will need 500+ matches to adjust to the new balance before it is possible to know if certain things are due to balance or if they are just making the wrong decisions.
The only thing we know for certain is that Hydras seems to be a stronger unit. They may be too strong but that is much to early to tell.
Massing cyclones without support also seems like a bad idea, which is a good thing.
I agree with the sentiment. There is a Kespa tournament coming up and we may actually see different strategies coming up. I hope though when mech actually wins a game people don't cry OP asap. Let's have the wait and see approach for everything, not just for some.
like i've said before.. just keep giving the guy more responsibility and autonomy in handling SC2 eSports. TB does a great job every time Blizzard gives him a project.
EPT
![[image loading]](http://www.teamliquid.net/staff/Plexa/WVCJ7QO9VDBJ1478123865482.jpg)
