GSL Code S finally crowned its first Zerg champion of Legacy of the Void, as Dark defeated Trap 4 to 2 in a grand finals match between a pair of first time Code S finalists. Though Dark had often played the role of an arrogant "heel" in his career, this time he emerged at the end as the hero—tearing up as the crowd chanted his name to celebrate the long overdue coronation of one of StarCraft II's best Zerg players. The victory marked Dark's first major championship since SSL Season 1 in 2016, after which he had recorded six runner-up finishes in major tournaments.
Much controversy surrounded Protoss headed into the series, as Protoss had won a disproportionate number of playoff spots in both GSL Code S and the Super Tournament. While other Zergs had struggled to overcome Protoss' Immortal all-ins and derivative timing attacks, Dark had fought his way through the season by striking at Protoss first with a variety of tactics including Nydus all-ins, fast Pools, and Overlord drops.
However, the series started in surprisingly 'standard' fashion, with both players content to sit back and build up their economies and armies on the expansive Thunderbird. Dark ended up taking the first point of the series, crushing a speculative mid-game attack by Trap with a massive army of Hydras and Ravagers.
From there on out, the tone of the series became significantly more cheesy, as both players began to pull out the specially prepared builds often seen in the GSL finals. Ironically, it became more a showcase for the two finalists' defensive skills than their offensive preparation. Trap took game two after comfortably shutting down Dark's proxy-Hatch into Roach-Ravager, while Dark took game three by holding out against Trap's Cannon-rush + proxy-Robo build with similar ease. Trap then tied the series up at 2-2 in game four, completely neutralizing Dark's Swarm Host-Nydus harassment (making notably good use of Stasis Wards) before overrunning him with a counter attack.
After three one-sided victories for the defender, Dark realized that game five had to be a turning point. In his post-match press conference, Dark said "The player using the prepared strategy was losing. So instead of using what I had prepared, I thought I should turn it into a fight of fundamentals/mechanics." Trap seemed to be of the same mind, and the two players returned to more normal, economy based openers in game five. Unfortunately for Trap, he found himself ever so slightly outmatched in that war of fundamentals. Maxing out on Roach-Ravager, Dark barreled head-on into Trap's third base mere seconds before Psionic Storm completed. While Trap kept things close with with Warp Prism micro (which Dark had praised in pre-match interview), he was eventually forced to GG out after two minutes of almost non-stop fighting.
Up 3-2 and one map away from the championship, Dark decided to throw another aggressive look at Trap: a slow-Overlord Speedling drop followed by a Nydus Worm off just 17 Drones. While defense had prevailed in earlier in the series, this time Trap was caught completely off-guard. "It's not something I prepared for this match. I've only practiced it once or twice before, but I decided to use it because it worked well. [He] didn't know about it at all."said Dark in the press-conference. After a desperate but futile effort on defense, Trap surrendered the final GG of the series to make Dark the Code S Season 2 champion.
Dark won 30,000,000 KRW for his first place finish, and joins soO, Maru, and Serral as a guaranteed seed at the WCS Global Finals. While Dark's mother was in attendance, Dark mentioned in his post-match interview that his father had declined to watch live, saying that his presence seemed to have jinxed his son in previous matches. "Hearing that, I think that made me work a little harder." said Dark. "My mom hasn't changed her KakaoTalk profile picture for three years," said Dark, likely referring to his championship moment at SSL Season 1 in 2016. "I'm so proud that she can change it up now."
"So many people helped me practice and worked hard to prepare, so I don't have any regrets. I think I can get here against next time, and I want to congratulate Dark" said Trap.
After showing his softer side in his on-stage interview, Dark reverted to his more brash persona in the post-match press conference, vowing to use his #1 seed to punish the likes of TY and Maru in the next season's Group Selections—payback for putting him in so many groups of death in the past. Dark also offered some surprising insight on his preparation for the finals, saying he had foregone looking for practice partners and had simply practiced against the AI.
GSL Code S will resume with Season 3, which is set to begin on Wednesday, Jul 03 9:30am GMT (GMT+00:00) with Group A of the round of 32 (groups TBA).
Dark is looking amazing this year. His offline vs-Korean winrate is around 67% this year which is nearly the same as INnovation's in 2017 and Serral's in 2018. Looks like the power rankings ranked him properly after all.
Grats for the win Dark, glad I picked him for the bets. Overall, it's a meh finals considering that the 3 games after game 1 were cheesefest builds that got defended by Dark or Trap. Shows how you react to those builds. Not sure about game 3 but if Trap's placement of the buildings were placed correctly, could he have taken that game? I'll never know.
On June 23 2019 15:37 Mun_Su wrote: very bad final...
to be honest, none of the Maru finals were good except the TY one. It's just that people remember the hype of Maru being so dominant more than the matches themselves.
On June 23 2019 15:37 Mun_Su wrote: very bad final...
I expected a lot worse, the games werent amazing, but okay. Well played, well deserved by Dark, Trap played good as well, he just needs to learn to dodge corrosive-biles better and take some cannonrushing lessons from Has
On June 23 2019 15:37 Mun_Su wrote: very bad final...
to be honest, none of the Maru finals were good except the TY one. It's just that people remember the hype of Maru being so dominant more than the matches themselves.
I didn't like any of Maru's finals, except the Maru vs TY but that final was "bittersweet" since i would have loved to see TY lifting a GSL (after maru's 2 conscutive wins). It's kind of strange but i felt like it has been years since i had enjoyed a GSL final.
He had a dream run there, only P :D I could not watch much of the games unfortunately, but from the couple VoD, that's still the Dark I know, big gg to him!
Excited to see if he can keep achieve more in BlizzCon this year, the 0-3 against Serral was pretty disappointing. Also his ZvT was looking good against INno in ro16, maybe he's ready to overcome Maru, who he struggled against last year in a pretty one-sided fashion
On June 23 2019 15:37 Mun_Su wrote: very bad final...
to be honest, none of the Maru finals were good except the TY one. It's just that people remember the hype of Maru being so dominant more than the matches themselves.
Maru finals were amazing, full of great plays. Even his stomps were amazing because the level of the players he was stomping. This one has the swarm-host game and the roach burrow game.
On June 23 2019 15:37 Mun_Su wrote: very bad final...
to be honest, none of the Maru finals were good except the TY one. It's just that people remember the hype of Maru being so dominant more than the matches themselves.
On June 23 2019 18:47 Akio wrote: VERY well deserved, congrats Dark <3
Excited to see if he can keep achieve more in BlizzCon this year, the 0-3 against Serral was pretty disappointing. Also his ZvT was looking good against INno in ro16, maybe he's ready to overcome Maru, who he struggled against last year in a pretty one-sided fashion
I think he's capable of going 1-3 against Serral at Blizzcon.
Congrats to Dark, he finally got a GSL. Condolences to Trap but he got further than the previous tournament and his team mates - there is positivity in that. GG's.
On June 23 2019 15:37 Mun_Su wrote: very bad final...
to be honest, none of the Maru finals were good except the TY one. It's just that people remember the hype of Maru being so dominant more than the matches themselves.
This is very true. Virtually only Maru's fans seem to have really liked those series. Sometimes I'm afraid that SCII's popular momentum is going to be squandered by the combination of Maru dominance and the current metas involving Protoss which revolve around mid-game all-ins.
On June 23 2019 18:47 Akio wrote: VERY well deserved, congrats Dark <3
Excited to see if he can keep achieve more in BlizzCon this year, the 0-3 against Serral was pretty disappointing. Also his ZvT was looking good against INno in ro16, maybe he's ready to overcome Maru, who he struggled against last year in a pretty one-sided fashion
Dark will surely do well in Blizzcon this year. He could advance deeper as long as Serral doesn't keep stopping him again and again. He could take a map or two vs Serral but he can't seem to find the finishing blow against Serral ever since he defeated Serral in IEM in 2017.
It had a story, it had surprising turns. Admittedly the last game ended anti-climactic, but the players made up with a good interview after the final. I liked how Dark lifted the trophy, as if it belonged to him all the time.
Well deserved, congratulations to Dark. He has always been a scary Zerg player, looking for a personal play style when the meta was not in his favour. I am happy that it has finally payed off in GSL.
On June 23 2019 23:42 [F_]aths wrote: "Bad final", as some comment? Why?
It had a story, it had surprising turns. Admittedly the last game ended anti-climactic, but the players made up with a good interview after the final. I liked how Dark lifted the trophy, as if it belonged to him all the time.
Certainly, but Trap isnt that big of a name, and as you look at the polls 4/5 people predicted Dark would take the series. So the storyline from that point of view isnt that good, especially since it could have been Classic vs Dark, which would have been hyped as the uncontested best P vs the uncontested best Z of 2019 (in Korean sc2). The betting would have been around 50/50, more hype and maybe higher level games (or maybe not, that s hard to tell)
I'm really glad he finally won! I remember he had said something about expecting to win 10 premier tournaments. Everyone thought that it was that ambition that took a big toll on him and made him a kong. I wonder if this Code S will free him from that pressure! Let's see...
On June 23 2019 15:37 Mun_Su wrote: very bad final...
to be honest, none of the Maru finals were good except the TY one. It's just that people remember the hype of Maru being so dominant more than the matches themselves.
This is very true. Virtually only Maru's fans seem to have really liked those series. Sometimes I'm afraid that SCII's popular momentum is going to be squandered by the combination of Maru dominance and the current metas involving Protoss which revolve around mid-game all-ins.
so do you think Maru vs Stats was worse than this one?
On June 23 2019 15:37 Mun_Su wrote: very bad final...
to be honest, none of the Maru finals were good except the TY one. It's just that people remember the hype of Maru being so dominant more than the matches themselves.
This is very true. Virtually only Maru's fans seem to have really liked those series. Sometimes I'm afraid that SCII's popular momentum is going to be squandered by the combination of Maru dominance and the current metas involving Protoss which revolve around mid-game all-ins.
so do you think Maru vs Stats was worse than this one?
On June 23 2019 15:37 Mun_Su wrote: very bad final...
to be honest, none of the Maru finals were good except the TY one. It's just that people remember the hype of Maru being so dominant more than the matches themselves.
This is very true. Virtually only Maru's fans seem to have really liked those series. Sometimes I'm afraid that SCII's popular momentum is going to be squandered by the combination of Maru dominance and the current metas involving Protoss which revolve around mid-game all-ins.
so do you think Maru vs Stats was worse than this one?
Maru vs Stats was awful so yes
I guess we find joy in Sc2 in different ways, Maru vs Stats was one of the best Ive seen.
On June 23 2019 15:37 Mun_Su wrote: very bad final...
to be honest, none of the Maru finals were good except the TY one. It's just that people remember the hype of Maru being so dominant more than the matches themselves.
This is very true. Virtually only Maru's fans seem to have really liked those series. Sometimes I'm afraid that SCII's popular momentum is going to be squandered by the combination of Maru dominance and the current metas involving Protoss which revolve around mid-game all-ins.
so do you think Maru vs Stats was worse than this one?
Maru vs Stats was awful so yes
I guess we find joy in Sc2 in different ways, Maru vs Stats was one of the best Ive seen.
What was best in that? The constant Raven AAM + Ghost abuse or the proxies ?
On June 23 2019 15:37 Mun_Su wrote: very bad final...
to be honest, none of the Maru finals were good except the TY one. It's just that people remember the hype of Maru being so dominant more than the matches themselves.
This is very true. Virtually only Maru's fans seem to have really liked those series. Sometimes I'm afraid that SCII's popular momentum is going to be squandered by the combination of Maru dominance and the current metas involving Protoss which revolve around mid-game all-ins.
so do you think Maru vs Stats was worse than this one?
Tbh I don't think it was a good series, can't really see how it was any better than this one.
On June 23 2019 15:37 Mun_Su wrote: very bad final...
to be honest, none of the Maru finals were good except the TY one. It's just that people remember the hype of Maru being so dominant more than the matches themselves.
This is very true. Virtually only Maru's fans seem to have really liked those series. Sometimes I'm afraid that SCII's popular momentum is going to be squandered by the combination of Maru dominance and the current metas involving Protoss which revolve around mid-game all-ins.
so do you think Maru vs Stats was worse than this one?
Maru vs Stats was awful so yes
^^ this is the correct take!
GG Dark, well deserved!
None of this finals' games was an abuse of overwhelming meta imbalance, like lots of those Maru finals. Sure, some were cheeses, but they were all defendable, as they actually were. I know most people think if it's not a +45mins split-map macro game, then it's insta-bad, but I like to see players pull different strats instead of cookie-cutter builds.
On June 23 2019 23:42 [F_]aths wrote: "Bad final", as some comment? Why?
It had a story, it had surprising turns. Admittedly the last game ended anti-climactic, but the players made up with a good interview after the final. I liked how Dark lifted the trophy, as if it belonged to him all the time.
Certainly, but Trap isnt that big of a name, and as you look at the polls 4/5 people predicted Dark would take the series. So the storyline from that point of view isnt that good, especially since it could have been Classic vs Dark, which would have been hyped as the uncontested best P vs the uncontested best Z of 2019 (in Korean sc2). The betting would have been around 50/50, more hype and maybe higher level games (or maybe not, that s hard to tell)
Right, Dark was favored but it was a real fight as Trap showed he can keep his composure when he defeated classic even after a bungled cannon rush.
Tasteless mentioned Fruitdealer, I see this as part of the story though this time Protoss and not Terran was in the majority. Still, with little zerg representation, there was this zerg beacon of hope.
When Trap got the 2-2 score, for a moment I saw him taking the series. He deflected several Dark all-ins at that point. The individual games had some moments which I experienced being really tense. When Dark got the 3-2 score I expected Trap balancing it again but then we had the overlord drop. In a sense, Dark proved that is the the 'villain' after all.
I agree a Classic vs Dark finals would be the more exciting storyline, but having Trap as the champion killer going to the finals was not bad either. It is "just" season two, not the inaugural sesaon nor the concluding one for the year. I see it a bit as The Empire Strikes Back, or even The Two Towers. The part in the middle, surprisingly good.
On June 23 2019 15:37 Mun_Su wrote: very bad final...
to be honest, none of the Maru finals were good except the TY one. It's just that people remember the hype of Maru being so dominant more than the matches themselves.
This is very true. Virtually only Maru's fans seem to have really liked those series. Sometimes I'm afraid that SCII's popular momentum is going to be squandered by the combination of Maru dominance and the current metas involving Protoss which revolve around mid-game all-ins.
so do you think Maru vs Stats was worse than this one?
Maru vs Stats was awful so yes
I guess we find joy in Sc2 in different ways, Maru vs Stats was one of the best Ive seen.
What was best in that? The constant Raven AAM + Ghost abuse or the proxies ?
Really happy for Dark. Its great seeing him play so well. He is probably the second best Zerg overall, but I expect he will be at top of the Power Rank this month, which is fantastic news for him. If so, he will have topped the power rank more than any other zerg except soO who won a tournament early in the year.
I again think this was a good GSL finals. Good story, mostly good games.
Yes, there were better GSL conclusions but this was was satisfying enough. Dark finally got his GSL win, after all the trash talk, he did do it. Before that, Trap upset Classic, while Dark sent home Hurricane.
Dark put Zerg back on the map in GSL. Despite Soo's many good results or Serral's many wins, we missed a LotV zerg GSL champion. It was Dark who delivered.
Finally my favorite zerg has won. I was waiting for years to see his triumph. Dark played really damn good, but to be honest I've seen him much more exciting games in the past from him when he actually lost. A paradox. Trap played good but not good enough for a final Code S match. Probably in the current meta Dark had no options to reveal his very late macro game which is legendary like 1-2 years ago before Rogue/Maru successes. There was always a fair question why Dark/TY/sOs never got a Code S. Well - Dark finally broke the curse and that was a good final, not the best one but still a worth one. Imagine that semifinal last season against Classic - that could be an epic final when Dark was very close to change Classic's lead. But finally I am so relaxed. Finally - enough terrans, finally no place for JinAir dominance. Two years terran domination in Code S since Gumi started this. And complains about warp prisms. Just protosses learned to use them better than before. Terrans failed seriously this season especially my fav TY who deserved this loss with cheap BC strats. Gumi seemed like the only one along with Inno who deserved to get forward.
On June 25 2019 16:29 RoninKenshin wrote: What is with the size of that trophy? It fits in his palm. Dark had to hold it by the edge to be able to show it to the crowd
The same size as every single Code S trophy for, at least, last 7 years
He’s definitely cemented himself as my favorite Zerg. Such creative builds and one of the few Zergs to not just accept getting pummelled for the first half of every game.
Dark has always been top tier, it's just that every time he is in his prime, there is someone else in their prime competing against him for first place and he just barely misses it. This time however I can't help but feel like Trap had an unusually good run but Dark is just too top tier. Great games, scrappy and exciting, I don't like every game to be a long drawn out macro game anyways.
Dark is just phenomenal, beautiful mechanics and more beautiful reads/reactions/build orders. The dudes been playing at this level for years and it shows.
EPT
