Koreans describe sOs as a merciless psychopath; the foreign community reveres him for his strategic genius. These characterizations are ultimately grasping for the same concept. Just as viewers find it impossible to predict his next move, his peers are constantly caught off guard by his shenanigans. Such is sOs’ quirkiness that it often seems as if he’s playing a completely different game than his opponents. Simultaneously, some of his more befuddling moves give the impression he can hardly keep up with what he’s doing from time to time. He’s prone to horrendouserrors and capable of incomprehensibly flawless moves within the same game. If life is like a box of chocolates, then sOs is the surprise waiting inside. You never know what you’re going to get.
One of the earliest KeSPA imports to find success in StarCraft II, sOs logged his first notable individual performance during the first GSL season of 2013. The standout member of Woongjin Stars surpassed all expectations on his semifinals run, barely losing out to eventual champion Soulkey thanks to a trainwreck all-in of epic proportions on Red City. The way he quickly recovered from his crestfallen fate reinforced the notion his original showing was no fluke. Less than three weeks after falling to Soulkey he one-upped his previous result, reaching the championship match of the WCS Season 1 Finals. Waiting for him was INnoVation, widely regarded as the best Korean Terran and a breakout performer among the KeSPA fraternity. While sOs’ battle with Soulkey brought him within an inch of victory, this matchup proved to be anything but a contest—INnoVation ran him over like a semi-trailer intercepting a doe.
By the end of 2013 sOs had proven himself as a player of immense talent who had grasped StarCraft II far quicker than most of his contemporaries. Yet for all his shining potential he lacked accolades and longevity. A series of tepid results in the following months cemented his place as one challenger among the dozens gnawing on each others’ heels. He did not take center stage again until the end of the year. sOs infamously entered BlizzCon as the 12th seed, reputed as a crafty bugger with a frail strategic backbone. After his earlier playoff loses the unforeseen transformation into an assured, ruthless genius stunned the opposition. The manner in which he dispatched HerO, Polt and Bomber on the way to the finals made him look like the prohibitive favorite all along. Even Jaedong, the Tyrant who had toppled BlizzCon favorites Maru and Dear to raucous cheers, was ill-equipped for the avalanche of cheese that smothered him in the finals. sOs’ guile and subterfuge exposed Jaedong’s methodology as too rigid for the constraints of the current meta. Few predicted it going in, but at the end of the day sOs assumed the mantle of WCS World Champion.
Having sharpened his teeth against the best in the world, sOs morphed into one of the true alpha predators of the professional scene. BlizzCon gave him an identity, a championship pedigree, and the confidence to adhere to his instincts. Over the next two years he collected titles at the IEM World Championship 2014, the Hot6ix Cup and MSI Masters Gaming Arena. The latter two helped him qualify for the WCS Global Finals for the second time in 2015 after missing out the year before. It took sOs five games to survive the opening match, but once PartinG was out of the way he never looked back. He swept Rain and dismissed Rogue in similarly unceremonious fashion to make another BlizzCon finals. Waiting for him was the previous year’s champion and prodigy turned full blown terror, Life. Their series was a back and forth slugfest. sOs was forced to unleash every trick in his arsenal: numerous two base all-ins, one featuring a curious proxy stargate, tempest into three base blink stalker that earned him his third win. In the end his three base blink stalker/sentry attack, the defining build of 2015 PvZ, was the finishing blow he needed.
Nearly three years had passed since that November evening when the second Super Tournament of 2018 launched. By year’s end Maru had accrued so many WCS Korea points that a select group of players, normally out of the running with their abysmal scores, could mathematically reach BlizzCon with a solid showing. GuMiho failure to qualify left Trap, sOs, Solar and soO within striking distance of the WCS Global Finals. sOs’ Super Tournament chances appeared in peril after KeeN surprisingly won the first game of their Round of 16 match. Never one to give up easily, sOs hauled on the reins. His reversion to standard play instead of one base immortal all-ins neutralized KeeN’s momentum. With sOs safely through, the remainder of the Round of 16 saw Trap and soO lose to Stats and Bunny respectively. By the end of the second day only sOs and Solar still had a shot at BlizzCon.
Rank
#8 Korean Standings
WCS Points
4325
2018 Season Stats*
50–19 (72.46%) vs. Terran 36–25 (59.02%) vs. Protoss 26–18 (59.09%) vs. Zerg
*Via Aligulac.com. Matches between 2017-11-15 and 2018-10-16.
His tournament began in earnest in the second round where he faced off against Maru, his teammate and best player in the world. sOs lost a hectic game one in which he barely defended Maru’s proxy cyclones only to un done by a mass banshee follow up. But just as he had against KeeN, sOs elevated his play as the series progressed. Repulsing Maru’s tank push on Lost and Found was the first sign of life from sOs, followed by winning a basetrade ages after their initial engagement. Game three was a much brisker affair, with sOs’ two base aggression bringing an abrupt end to the proceedings. On Para Site sOs never allowed Maru to get anything going. He spent ten minutes shellacking the Terran with absolute control from start to finish. Defeating Maru was a godsend for sOs especially since Solar emerged victorious in the very next match.On the final day of the Super Tournament, sOs and the Infinity Gaming Zerg faced off in a Best of 5 to see who would claim the coveted BlizzCon spot.
It seemed for a moment that sOs would have to resign himself to petitioning God when he fell behind 2-0. Solar thoroughly outplayed him on Acid Plant and Para Site, with some unusual compositions playing a major role in his victories, putting him a win away from the finals. With his back against the wall, sOs fought back in game three with an unanticipated dark templar opener; a follow up attack stocked with archons and immortals sealing that advantage. He revived the hallowed Soul Train in game four—despite it having long since been decried as unviable—and in typical sOs fashion, forced it to work. Game five turned into a topsy-turvy affair. sOs managed to sneak a pylon into Solar’s main, unleashing a dark templar hit squad that notched double digit worker kills. Forced into playing catch up Solar attempted to hide a spire while pumping roaches but sOs pushed the pace. He mustered a brutal army that gutted Solar’s main and, despite losing his entire economy to a mutalisk flock that had slipped away from the carnage, still had enough archons to force Solar to tap out.
sOs had confirmed his place in BlizzCon, but he hardly seemed to notice as the camera tracked his reaction. He took a sip of water and stared dully at the monitor, perhaps not grasping the consequence of the moment. sOs had just pulled off the most thrilling coup in StarCraft II since Rogue’s last ditch BlizzCon qualification a year earlier. Or perhaps it was less puzzling than it first appeared. His complete lack of celebration could be interpreted in a way besides being oblivious: the grim realization that he had hit upon a real stroke of luck during a long dry period.
The last three years have been desolate times for one of the most decorated players in StarCraft II history. sOs’ results had been flagging for quite some time as the calendar turned to 2018. He made it to the GSL finals twice in 2016 and 2017 respectively, but lost both times in rough fashion: he succumbed in a lopsided series to ByuN while INnoVation edged him out 4-3 in the following year. Beyond that he had to settle for a lone Round of 4 Code S exit back in early 2017. Expectations ran high at the beginning of this year as sOs scored solid runs in various qualifiers.
Once more in the spotlight, many anticipated sOs’ return to form would culminate with a victory at IEM Pyeongchang. sOs certainly looked good during the majority of the event; in fact he didn’t drop a game on the way to the finals. Once he got there it was a different story altogether. sOs may have been the odds-on favorite but Scarlett played the match of her life. Her zergling drops and various forms of aggression caught the Jin Air Protoss in a bind, dashing whatever hope sOs’ fans had that 2018 would get off to a prosperous start. Similarly sOs made a good run of it in the first season of Code S, but a curious stim timing from Maru in game five of their quarterfinal blindsided him. It was yet another example of sOs being wrong footed by his opponent and the second such loss to his teammate, with their Round of 12 meeting at IEM Katowice also ending 3-2 in Maru’s favor.
Losing to Maru is the furthest thing from an indictment of poor form, but sOs’ results elsewhere took care of that for us. Despite winning his opening group in the final two Code S seasons of 2018 sOs couldn’t clear the Round of 16 on either occasion. He lost in the first round of the first Super Tournament and didn’t even garner enough votes to join GSL vs. the World. Heading into the second Super Tournament it was inarguable that 2018, along with his dismal effort in 2016, were the worst years of sOs’ StarCraft II career. The fact that it was even possible for him to qualify for BlizzCon was more a result of Maru frontloading the WCS system than sOs displaying any degree of excellence.
We associate certain players with certain events. After 2018, Serral will be inextricably tied to the WCS Circuit. Mvp, soO, INnoVation and Maru reign supreme when it comes to GSL. As far as Dreamhack no one holds a candle to TaeJa. When someone talks about BlizzCon, only one name comes to mind—sOs. sOs has won five premier events over the course of his career, but none shine as brightly as his pair of BlizzCon titles. He entered both events as an underdog, but his lethal genius paved the way to the trophy each time. And while the StarCraft II community pines for a potential final between Maru and Serral, one fact cannot be overlooked. While the other participants of the WCS Global Finals are just visiting Anaheim, sOs is returning home.
$O$ will do good here, I believe. It's Blizzcon! But if sOs doesn't win it, there a chance 1 of the 2 JAGW players can do it: Rogue and of course, Maru.
On October 24 2018 21:34 Rodya wrote: lol I feel like every one of these Korean featured articles is overwhelmingly negative. Even Maru's was negative.
????? how is it overall negative? there are whole passages about all the tournaments he's won and his periods of dominance, and at the end it basically says that he owns blizzcon
the more titanic the player, the more interesting a "dark" narrative is. of course theyre going to dramatize the event by making it seem like all the korean players have problems to overcome, that's how these previews generally work... idk what people expect from sports journalism sometimes
On October 24 2018 21:34 Rodya wrote: lol I feel like every one of these Korean featured articles is overwhelmingly negative. Even Maru's was negative.
Well, that's just due to the nature of things. All the players have long prodigies and literally none of them was able to stay at the very top throughout all the time. Some needed much time to get out of mediocrity, some are chasing former glory, some are barely not winning championships again and again and some lived through all of those phases. Those times are often the most defining for the greatest players, because they had to overcome them to achieve such greatness.
One thing that is never mentioned about sOs is his Proleague record : most Proleague wins under StarCraft II according to Liquipedia. And best ratio among the top 10 winners. This guy is not only a triple world champion and triple GSL finalist, he was also at the top of the hardest SC2 team league.
On October 24 2018 22:20 Ptolemaios wrote: One thing that is never mentioned about sOs is his Proleague record : most Proleague wins under Starcraft II according to Liquipedia. And best ratio among the top 10 winners. This guy is not only a triple world champion and triple GSL finalist, he was also at the top of the hardest SC2 team league.
Agreed. He's also done some all-kills and reverse all-kills, like the one he did vs KT in 2015. He's always cursed to lose in all GSL and GSL-related events. Poor guy. I hope he redeems himself this Blizzcon.
People didn't appreciate how brilliant some of sOs' wins were at the time. The finals against Jaedong, herO, and MKP were strokes of genius as far as sc2 strategy goes.
Unfortunately all of them were massive fan favourites at the time, and protoss cheese was (admittedly appropriately) disliked by most viewers. It wasn't until he beat Life at blizzcon 2015 that people seemed to actually support him.
He's kinda lost the title of clutchest player in LotV, so I don't really expect him to win here. Or even make it out of his group tbh. But there have been glimpses of his former glory at least, so maybe.
On October 24 2018 22:20 Ptolemaios wrote: One thing that is never mentioned about sOs is his Proleague record : most Proleague wins under Starcraft II according to Liquipedia. And best ratio among the top 10 winners. This guy is not only a triple world champion and triple GSL finalist, he was also at the top of the hardest SC2 team league.
That page isn't really accurate btw. For some bizarre reason it doesn't include playoff results. If you include them then other players surpass him in win %. But he still has the most sheer wins and the only reverse allkill.
I still remember that clutch sOs decision during a basetrade against Myungsik in GSL when he send the observer out of the army to protect it from being sniped by Myungsik phoenix during a fight, then Myungsik enganges and dives with the phoenix which get killed and he though he had kill the observer during the fight and sent the last dts to clear sOs army and thats when the observer finallly appears to force a GG of Myungsik. It was beautiful
On October 24 2018 22:20 Ptolemaios wrote: One thing that is never mentioned about sOs is his Proleague record : most Proleague wins under Starcraft II according to Liquipedia. And best ratio among the top 10 winners. This guy is not only a triple world champion and triple GSL finalist, he was also at the top of the hardest SC2 team league.
That page isn't really accurate btw. For some bizarre reason it doesn't include playoff results. If you include them then other players surpass him in win %. But he still has the most sheer wins and the only reverse allkill.
This is probably because the SPL did not count the playoffs in its win records because they were in allkill format.
Very well written piece. Really glad to see sOs returning to BlizzCon. As far as I'm concerned, this years BlizzCon is going to be much, MUCH more interesting compared to last year (though I do love seeing SpeCial's shocking play last year).
On October 25 2018 00:05 Bagration wrote: Hot take time: IF sOs wins this Blizzcon, he's the greatest Protoss of SC2
I think people don't exactly jump to sOs being the greatest Protoss of SC2 because of his lack of a GSL win, but I'm pretty sure it wouldn't be out of question at all to say he is the best. I mean, 3 BlizzCons? That's unheard of.
YESSS! The dungeon wizard of builds, the one and only 4th race of SC2.
I would be so stoked to see him sneak into the finals and win it all after being out of the limelight which the Maru vs Serral hype has gathered for itself.
On October 24 2018 22:20 Ptolemaios wrote: One thing that is never mentioned about sOs is his Proleague record : most Proleague wins under Starcraft II according to Liquipedia. And best ratio among the top 10 winners. This guy is not only a triple world champion and triple GSL finalist, he was also at the top of the hardest SC2 team league.
That page isn't really accurate btw. For some bizarre reason it doesn't include playoff results. If you include them then other players surpass him in win %. But he still has the most sheer wins and the only reverse allkill.
This is probably because the SPL did not count the playoffs in its win records because they were in allkill format.
Which is a shame because the playoffs were arguably the most important part of the season where players had to really step it up.
On October 25 2018 00:05 Bagration wrote: Hot take time: IF sOs wins this Blizzcon, he's the greatest Protoss of SC2
he already is the greatest Protoss tied with Zest imo
I don't think its that clear cut actually. At the moment I feel Classic, Zest, sOs and Stats are pretty close to each other when it comes to overall greatness. Personally I value Classics consistency highly but there are arguments for all four I feel.
On October 25 2018 00:05 Bagration wrote: Hot take time: IF sOs wins this Blizzcon, he's the greatest Protoss of SC2
he already is the greatest Protoss tied with Zest imo
I don't think its that clear cut actually. At the moment I feel Classic, Zest, sOs and Stats are pretty close to each other when it comes to overall greatness. Personally I value Classics consistency highly but there are arguments for all four I feel.
It seems like we got to similar position as with Korean Terrans like 1 year ago when we had this "4 Horseman" narrative which kind of fizzled out when Maru won all GSLs wheras ByuN and Inno feel down with theirs performances I wonder if something similar might happen with those 4 tosses.
On October 25 2018 00:05 Bagration wrote: Hot take time: IF sOs wins this Blizzcon, he's the greatest Protoss of SC2
he already is the greatest Protoss tied with Zest imo
I don't think its that clear cut actually. At the moment I feel Classic, Zest, sOs and Stats are pretty close to each other when it comes to overall greatness. Personally I value Classics consistency highly but there are arguments for all four I feel.
It seems like we got to similar position as with Korean Terrans like 1 year ago when we had this "4 Horseman" narrative which kind of fizzled out when Maru won all GSLs wheras ByuN and Inno feel down with theirs performances I wonder if something similar might happen with those 4 tosses.
God knows how the 4 horsemen ever got traction cause by the time that caught on ByuN was less relevant than GuMiho and aLive.
On October 25 2018 00:05 Bagration wrote: Hot take time: IF sOs wins this Blizzcon, he's the greatest Protoss of SC2
he already is the greatest Protoss tied with Zest imo
I don't think its that clear cut actually. At the moment I feel Classic, Zest, sOs and Stats are pretty close to each other when it comes to overall greatness. Personally I value Classics consistency highly but there are arguments for all four I feel.
It seems like we got to similar position as with Korean Terrans like 1 year ago when we had this "4 Horseman" narrative which kind of fizzled out when Maru won all GSLs wheras ByuN and Inno feel down with theirs performances I wonder if something similar might happen with those 4 tosses.
God knows how the 4 horsemen ever got traction cause by the time that caught on ByuN was less relevant than GuMiho and aLive.
It's not that shocking when you consider INno was the least relevent he's ever been in sc2 when the 4 horsemen thing started. It was around blizzcon 2016 when Artosis first used it I think.
On October 25 2018 00:05 Bagration wrote: Hot take time: IF sOs wins this Blizzcon, he's the greatest Protoss of SC2
he already is the greatest Protoss tied with Zest imo
I don't think its that clear cut actually. At the moment I feel Classic, Zest, sOs and Stats are pretty close to each other when it comes to overall greatness. Personally I value Classics consistency highly but there are arguments for all four I feel.
It seems like we got to similar position as with Korean Terrans like 1 year ago when we had this "4 Horseman" narrative which kind of fizzled out when Maru won all GSLs wheras ByuN and Inno feel down with theirs performances I wonder if something similar might happen with those 4 tosses.
God knows how the 4 horsemen ever got traction cause by the time that caught on ByuN was less relevant than GuMiho and aLive.
Considering when the 4 horsemen thing started INno was the least relevent he's ever been in sc2? It was around blizzcon 2016 when Artosis first started using it I think.
I don't think anyone actually called them that before Inno won IEM Ggyeongi. And I don't think it became popular until around Katowice 2017.
On October 25 2018 05:32 Edpayasugo wrote: The standout member of Woongjin Stars surpassed all expectations on his semifinals run, barely losing out to eventual champion Soulkey
Not sure how this can be true given that Soulkey himself was on Woonjin and was the ace.
This is about GSL, thankfully teammates can play against each other in individual leagues
On October 25 2018 00:05 Bagration wrote: Hot take time: IF sOs wins this Blizzcon, he's the greatest Protoss of SC2
he already is the greatest Protoss tied with Zest imo
I don't think its that clear cut actually. At the moment I feel Classic, Zest, sOs and Stats are pretty close to each other when it comes to overall greatness. Personally I value Classics consistency highly but there are arguments for all four I feel.
Classic and Stats really? They are the best right now but in terms of overall achievements they're lacking behind Zest and sOs by a significant margin. I'd even rate herO and Rain above them.
On October 25 2018 05:32 Edpayasugo wrote: The standout member of Woongjin Stars surpassed all expectations on his semifinals run, barely losing out to eventual champion Soulkey
Not sure how this can be true given that Soulkey himself was on Woonjin and was the ace.
This is about GSL, thankfully teammates can play against each other in individual leagues
I'm not sure what you mean, I'm saying that Soulkey was the standout member of Woonjin, not sOs
On October 25 2018 05:32 Edpayasugo wrote: The standout member of Woongjin Stars surpassed all expectations on his semifinals run, barely losing out to eventual champion Soulkey
Not sure how this can be true given that Soulkey himself was on Woonjin and was the ace.
This is about GSL, thankfully teammates can play against each other in individual leagues
I'm not sure what you mean, I'm saying that Soulkey was the standout member of Woonjin, not sOs
Oh that angle, well even then sOs had the best record and won just as many ace matches.
On October 25 2018 00:05 Bagration wrote: Hot take time: IF sOs wins this Blizzcon, he's the greatest Protoss of SC2
he already is the greatest Protoss tied with Zest imo
I don't think its that clear cut actually. At the moment I feel Classic, Zest, sOs and Stats are pretty close to each other when it comes to overall greatness. Personally I value Classics consistency highly but there are arguments for all four I feel.
Classic and Stats really? They are the best right now but in terms of overall achievements they're lacking behind Zest and sOs by a significant margin. I'd even rate herO and Rain above them.
Yeah, when looking a bit more into the actual results I guess Zest to be slightly ahead of the pack, also pretty crazy this will be Zests fourth wcs finals. However I really tend to rate Classics overall results over a long period and dual SSL and GSL championship titles above sOs results. I do rate GSL higher than the wcs finals to be honest. Stats is farther behind these three and Rain, really this is where I'm pretty surprised. Don't see Rain being comparable to Classic in overall greatness.
On October 25 2018 00:05 Bagration wrote: Hot take time: IF sOs wins this Blizzcon, he's the greatest Protoss of SC2
he already is the greatest Protoss tied with Zest imo
I don't think its that clear cut actually. At the moment I feel Classic, Zest, sOs and Stats are pretty close to each other when it comes to overall greatness. Personally I value Classics consistency highly but there are arguments for all four I feel.
Classic and Stats really? They are the best right now but in terms of overall achievements they're lacking behind Zest and sOs by a significant margin. I'd even rate herO and Rain above them.
Zest and sOs always trade back and forth each year for the top spot imo. I think Zest has pulled back ahead to #1 ever so slightly what with making another final and ro4 this year but sOs could easily change that. Stats trails with the most consistent performance of LotV by far which includes 4 starleague finals appearances and 2 wins among other things.
Zest sOs Stats herO MC PartinG Rain Classic Dear
Is my rough ranking of the great Protoss players. MC and PartinG are sure to catch shit, but idc they both had staggering longevity and PartinG in particular has had the greatest consistency of all but just hasn't quite hit the same peak levels as others on this list. They both get bonus points for being highly relevant in WoL which was the dark age for Protoss (ditto for Rain).
It is also Solar who sent sOs to the Blizzcon 2015 in a weekend tournament, and we know what happened after that. I hope the history will repeat again.
sOs' claim to greatest Protoss is really weakened by the fact that he's usually poor all year, only to show up at the end and push late for BlizzCon, or randomly push for big tournaments. There's hardly ever consistency in his results. In 2015 he only qualified for BlizzCon because Zest forfeited MSI and he replaced him (he won that BlizzCon, remember), in 2016 he qualified through the last GSL, 2017 he qualified through the last GSL again only for Rogue to knock him out with the final map of GSL ST, in 2018 sOs again qualified through the last tournament before BlizzCon.
So the question is whether we rank BlizzCon so highly that it overshadows sOs' rather mediocre performance throughout the rest of the year. And I personally don't. I used to rank Code S more highly because players have to perform over a longer period of time and therefore show more consistency to win it. However, foreigners have massively caught up, to the point where it can actively be held against GSL that a player like Serral isn't in it, while BlizzCon does have him and others that could easily play in Code S in terms of quality. So I don't think Zest's Code S performance this year did much to swing it in his favor, it's rather that sOs' BlizzCons shouldn't be valued as highly as Zest's Code S wins when Code S was still the more impressive tournament to win. That's just my opinion though of course.
Nowadays it's easy sOs to be determined as favorite to win the whole thing. I've always trusted him even from the very first time when he beat Jaedong and nobody believed that because it was obvious - sOs back then was an outsider who came from the disbanded Woonjin stars. Second time I trusted sOs because I saw how he literally grabbed JinAir all alone and put them on the final in Proleague. Alone! Now, sOs deserve his special spot for some reason - especially because he missed the chance last year where he performed some splendid final in Code S against Inno. He and Rain will always remain my two very favorite tosses for all time. But to be honest, I'll be more glad if Classic make it this time because he deserves it in many aspects. Many of the top tosses now were very underrated - sOs in the beginning if his rise back in 2013, Classic - almost all of the time, Stats - it's because he is too balanced and solid Kind of Inno's form, no extraordinary moves, but always keeping the middle high level. Only Zest among the other toss finalists now got the usual respect and fear in those years in the past. It seems that the attitude is changed right now because Zest seems a bit overshadowed by the other tosses. From what I saw in the last Super Tournament I still can't tell how sOs is feeling. Last year he was much stronger in the end of September and unfortunately he lost the final. But strategies belong to many other players - TY, Inno, Dark, Stats... sOs is faith, pure faith and love. Third Blizzcon title will erase the hard feeling that he got no Code S title yet I guess.
Guys, do you mind? The man, who has the most sexiest brain in starcraft is back on a track... and he wantzzz your money! And do you know why? Because he want to buy a new bicycle, mthfckers!
On October 25 2018 00:05 Bagration wrote: Hot take time: IF sOs wins this Blizzcon, he's the greatest Protoss of SC2
he already is the greatest Protoss tied with Zest imo
I don't think its that clear cut actually. At the moment I feel Classic, Zest, sOs and Stats are pretty close to each other when it comes to overall greatness. Personally I value Classics consistency highly but there are arguments for all four I feel.
Classic and Stats really? They are the best right now but in terms of overall achievements they're lacking behind Zest and sOs by a significant margin. I'd even rate herO and Rain above them.
Zest and sOs always trade back and forth each year for the top spot imo. I think Zest has pulled back ahead to #1 ever so slightly what with making another final and ro4 this year but sOs could easily change that. Stats trails with the most consistent performance of LotV by far which includes 4 starleague finals appearances and 2 wins among other things.
Zest sOs Stats herO MC PartinG Rain Classic Dear
Is my rough ranking of the great Protoss players. MC and PartinG are sure to catch shit, but idc they both had staggering longevity and PartinG in particular has had the greatest consistency of all but just hasn't quite hit the same peak levels as others on this list. They both get bonus points for being highly relevant in WoL which was the dark age for Protoss (ditto for Rain).
You might be right about Stats I guess. his resumé has gotten really impressive in the last few years. Though he gets some minus points for having no tournament wins in the Kespa era so I'm not sure.
On October 25 2018 20:15 Acrofales wrote: I am utterly baffled by the order in which TL is publishing these. Did they just ask random.org to sort them or something?
it's the order in which they finished writing the articles.
On October 25 2018 20:15 Acrofales wrote: I am utterly baffled by the order in which TL is publishing these. Did they just ask random.org to sort them or something?
Its the order in which they had their best tournament runs.
On October 25 2018 20:15 Acrofales wrote: I am utterly baffled by the order in which TL is publishing these. Did they just ask random.org to sort them or something?
it's the order in which they finished writing the articles.
On October 25 2018 20:15 Acrofales wrote: I am utterly baffled by the order in which TL is publishing these. Did they just ask random.org to sort them or something?
Its the order in which they had their best tournament runs.
These are both wrong, I explained it the other day.
Maybe the release order of the articles has to do with the time, like the date when the players had their peak achievement of the year? There's the month January in both Nerchio's and Showtime's picture, both had their best result in January and Nerchio had it first. I didn't check all players if Rogue would be the next one though.
Given their were no tournaments between Leipzig (where Showtime made the final) and Katowice that would make sense.
This also means the release order would look something like:
1. Nerchio (not really any notable acheivements) 2. ShoWTimE - January 28th (WCS Leipzig ro4) 3. Rogue - March 4th (IEM Katowice win) 4. Dark - either March 24th (GSL ro4) or April 8th (Super tournament 2nd) 5. Stats - April 8th (Super tournament win) 6. SpeCial - June 3rd (WCS Austin ro4) 7. Zest - June 28th (GSL 2nd) 8. HeRoMaRinE - July 14th (WCS Valencia ro4) 9. Has - July 14th (WCS Valencia 2nd) 10. Serral - August 5th (GSL vs the World win) 11. Neeb - September 5th (GSL ro4) 12. Lambo - September 9th (WCS Montreal ro4) 13. Maru - September 15th (3rd GSL win) 14. TY - September 15th (GSL 2nd) 15. sOs - September 30th (Super tournament 2nd) 16. Classic - September 30th (Super tournament win)
Though I expect Serral and Maru to be the last released for hype reasons.
Wow Fango is a genius. Got everything right except Stats (GSL vs World 2nd instead of Super Tournament #1 win), Heromarine (WCS Montreal Ro8 instead of Valencia Ro4??? makes no sense), and TY/Maru swap (which in retrospect to his sOs/Classic order should've been swapped).
Actual release order: 1. Nerchio (not really any notable acheivements) 2. ShoWTimE - January 28th (WCS Leipzig ro4) 3. Rogue - March 4th (IEM Katowice win) 4. Dark - either March 24th (GSL ro4) or April 8th (Super tournament 2nd) 5. SpeCial - June 3rd (WCS Austin ro4) 6. Zest - June 28th (GSL 2nd) 7. Has - July 14th (WCS Valencia 2nd) 8. Stats - August 5th (GSL vs the World 2nd) 9. Serral - August 5th (GSL vs the World win) 10. Neeb - September 5th (GSL ro4) 11. HeRoMaRinE - September 9th (WCS Montreal Ro8) 12. Lambo - September 9th (WCS Montreal ro4) 13. TY - September 15th (GSL 2nd) 14. Maru - September 15th (3rd GSL win) And most likely: 15. sOs - September 30th (Super tournament 2nd) 16. Classic - September 30th (Super tournament win)
Since it's all been revealed by now, the focus was never on every player's best tournament of the year. It was one that we thought really summed up their narrative going into the Global Finals—or their Road to BlizzCon, if you will. We did this through a vote (similar to Power Ranks). In Heromarine's case for example, we thought the Ro8 elimination by TIME said a lot about where he stands. He's a good player and he's gradually improving, but losing a series like that really tells you he's not the finished article.
It just so happens that a lot of the defining moments were also the best placements of these players.
Then we released them in the chronological order of those moments we picked.
On October 25 2018 05:32 Edpayasugo wrote: The standout member of Woongjin Stars surpassed all expectations on his semifinals run, barely losing out to eventual champion Soulkey
Not sure how this can be true given that Soulkey himself was on Woonjin and was the ace.
This is about GSL, thankfully teammates can play against each other in individual leagues
I'm not sure what you mean, I'm saying that Soulkey was the standout member of Woonjin, not sOs
Oh that angle, well even then sOs had the best record and won just as many ace matches.
Looking back at the stats, youre right, but I still don't think it makes sense to call sOs the standout, given Soulkey achievements that year.
On October 25 2018 20:15 Acrofales wrote: I am utterly baffled by the order in which TL is publishing these. Did they just ask random.org to sort them or something?
it's the order in which they finished writing the articles.
On October 25 2018 20:15 Acrofales wrote: I am utterly baffled by the order in which TL is publishing these. Did they just ask random.org to sort them or something?
Its the order in which they had their best tournament runs.
These are both wrong, I explained it the other day.
Maybe the release order of the articles has to do with the time, like the date when the players had their peak achievement of the year? There's the month January in both Nerchio's and Showtime's picture, both had their best result in January and Nerchio had it first. I didn't check all players if Rogue would be the next one though.
Given their were no tournaments between Leipzig (where Showtime made the final) and Katowice that would make sense.
This also means the release order would look something like:
1. Nerchio (not really any notable acheivements) 2. ShoWTimE - January 28th (WCS Leipzig ro4) 3. Rogue - March 4th (IEM Katowice win) 4. Dark - either March 24th (GSL ro4) or April 8th (Super tournament 2nd) 5. Stats - April 8th (Super tournament win) 6. SpeCial - June 3rd (WCS Austin ro4) 7. Zest - June 28th (GSL 2nd) 8. HeRoMaRinE - July 14th (WCS Valencia ro4) 9. Has - July 14th (WCS Valencia 2nd) 10. Serral - August 5th (GSL vs the World win) 11. Neeb - September 5th (GSL ro4) 12. Lambo - September 9th (WCS Montreal ro4) 13. Maru - September 15th (3rd GSL win) 14. TY - September 15th (GSL 2nd) 15. sOs - September 30th (Super tournament 2nd) 16. Classic - September 30th (Super tournament win)
Though I expect Serral and Maru to be the last released for hype reasons.
Wow Fango is a genius. Got everything right except Stats (GSL vs World 2nd instead of Super Tournament #1 win), Heromarine (WCS Montreal Ro8 instead of Valencia Ro4??? makes no sense), and TY/Maru swap (which in retrospect to his sOs/Classic order should've been swapped).
Actual release order: 1. Nerchio (not really any notable acheivements) 2. ShoWTimE - January 28th (WCS Leipzig ro4) 3. Rogue - March 4th (IEM Katowice win) 4. Dark - either March 24th (GSL ro4) or April 8th (Super tournament 2nd) 5. SpeCial - June 3rd (WCS Austin ro4) 6. Zest - June 28th (GSL 2nd) 7. Has - July 14th (WCS Valencia 2nd) 8. Stats - August 5th (GSL vs the World 2nd) 9. Serral - August 5th (GSL vs the World win) 10. Neeb - September 5th (GSL ro4) 11. HeRoMaRinE - September 9th (WCS Montreal Ro8) 12. Lambo - September 9th (WCS Montreal ro4) 13. TY - September 15th (GSL 2nd) 14. Maru - September 15th (3rd GSL win) And most likely: 15. sOs - September 30th (Super tournament 2nd) 16. Classic - September 30th (Super tournament win)
Since it's all been revealed by now, the focus was never on every player's best tournament of the year. It was one that we thought really summed up their narrative going into the Global Finals—or their Road to BlizzCon, if you will. We did this through a vote (similar to Power Ranks). In Heromarine's case for example, we thought the Ro8 elimination by TIME said a lot about where he stands. He's a good player and he's gradually improving, but losing a series like that really tells you he's not the finished article.
It just so happens that a lot of the defining moments were also the best placements of these players.
Then we released them in the chronological order of those moments we picked.
Another great series of articles, always a highlight of the year, thank you and well done.
Probably an unpopular opinion, but i dont expect much of him. All year he hardly achieved anything. i am not sure how much he practised throughout the year and now before blizzcon. There is some truth to it that he oculd make major runs out of nowhere, but i give Zest more chance and Serral much more chance of advancing.