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Test of Faith - Reynor - Road to BlizzCon 2019

Forum Index > SC2 General
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Test of Faith - Reynor - Road to BlizzCon 2019

Text byTL.net ESPORTS
October 21st, 2019 02:36 GMT

Road to BlizzCon 2019: Reynor (#2 WCS Circuit)

Test of Faith

by Soularion

Going into 2019, one of the biggest questions of the WCS Circuit was how Reynor would fare in a full, complete year of competition. In just two Circuit events in 2018, Reynor finished #9 in the WCS Circuit standings and was just one game away from toppling Serral at WCS Montreal to qualify for the Global Finals. He impressed outside the Circuit as well, reaching the round-of-16 in Code S and finishing top eight at the WESG Grand Finals.

A cursory glance at Reynor's 2019 results suggests that he has already blown by the lofty expectations set in 2018. He's won back-to-back Circuit championships, following in Serral and Neeb's footsteps as the third repeat champion in Legacy of the Void. He's clearly the second best player in WCS Circuit competitions, going 2-2 with the seemingly invincible Serral in BO5+ series. No one on the Circuit has really challenged Reynor for second place either, as he's won every single offline series against non-Serral players.

So, what gives? How is that not successful? Why is this entire intro setting up a huge "HOWEVER...."?

More info: 2019 World Championship Series Global Finals

Let's go back to that Code S Season 2 Ro16 run in 2018, which was a major component of the Reynor hype at the time. Before Reynor was even age-eligible to play in his first WCS Circuit event, he had already gone over to Korea to train and try his hand at GSL Code S. In a surprising turn of events, the fifteen-year-old Reynor managed to make it through the qualifiers on his first attempt. Even if the players he beat weren't the strongest (TOP, Trust, Rookie among others), fans were pleasantly surprised that a kid who couldn't even compete on the WCS Circuit had managed to qualify for an even more difficult tournament.

While Reynor had been hyped as a rising prospect on the ladder, no one could have expected how well he'd perform once he actually sat down to play in the AfreecaTV studio. At first, he looked like a token foreigner there to hand out free wins, losing 0-2 to the previous season's semifinalist in Classic (arguably a top three player in the world at the time). But the loss hardly seemed to discourage Reynor—in fact it ended up being more of a warm-up match. Reynor roared back by defeating Ryung 2-0, and then won a shocking upset against Classic in the decider match to eliminate him from the tournament. In the Ro16, Reynor actually came within a single map of reaching the Code S quarterfinals, reaching match-point against Maru in the winners match (he'd lose, and then lose to Neeb in the decider match). All told, Reynor won three series against Korean players in Code S that season (Classic, Ryung, Impact), and even gave Maru a run for his money.



After beating three Korean players in a single Code S run last year, Reynor has just barely matched that number in offline matches in 2019 (wins vs PartinG, Solar, and Creator). IEM Katowice might have been his most disappointing showing of the year, where he failed to escape the Ro76 after losing to GuMiho (#11 WCS Korea) and Creator (#26). He followed that up with another disappointing showing at WESG, where he blew a 2-0 lead against Neeb to lose their single-elimination Ro16 match in a reverse sweep.

All the other tournaments without the words "WCS Circuit" in it have gone similarly. Stats and GuMiho sent him out of Assembly Summer in the Ro16 group stage, while HeRoMaRinE swept him out of HomeStory Cup 19 to a meager top 12 finish. The most telling result might have been his loss to SpeCial at GSL vs. The World—Reynor had been undefeated against the Mexican Terran in three prior WCS Circuit meetings, but gave up a 0-3 sweep to a SpeCial armed with GSL-style™ preparation. All-in-all, Reynor's Ro16 run in Code S from 2018 is looking more and more like the singular outlier, with the talented young Zerg unable to recreate his success outside the WCS Circuit on any other occasion.

This isn't anything new for top foreigners. WCS 2016, one of the heavily segregated seasons in the history of StarCraft II (even the HomeStory Cup somehow ended up being Circuit-only), didn't see Korean and WCS Circuit players collide in a meaningful event until the Global Finals. It's there that the top foreigners, having been mixed into an interchangeable jumble all year, were sorted into their proper order. Nerchio, for all of his consistently great play on the year (#3 seed), was essentially forgotten after a disappointing showing. ShoWTimE, just one rank above Nerchio on the Circuit, was celebrated as a hero for defeating ByuN and Dear to reach the quarterfinals. Whether it's fair or unfair, success against Koreans has always been the measuring stick for foreigners. If you asked any of NaNiwa's contemporaries about how good he was in his prime, they'd probably say he wasn't that much better than the other Europeans. But, because he went to the GSL, and because he faced and beat the Koreans, there was no choice but to rate him as being a class above. Snute and Scarlett, who never impressed domestically yet often performed well at mixed-region events, commanded far more respect than Lilbow and his single WCS Circuit title.

Even Serral, who had won two Circuit titles and placed top four at IEM Katowice by the midway mark of 2018, was still heavily doubted until he won the championship at GSL vs. The World 2018. Thus, it's understandable that Reynor, despite having won two WCS Circuit titles and having a 2-2 major match record against Serral on the year, is the recipient of the same kinds of doubts. It's why TL.net's Neeb preview posited that Neeb is still the 2nd best Circuit player, even if this makes no sense when you go up and down the Liquipedia results sheet. Unless Reynor delivers in the biggest, most difficult tournaments in the world, all of his Circuit success will end up as just shadows on the wall, a tantalizing outline of what could be.

Time forces one to rethink Reynor's surprise Code S run, which is now over a year old. Now, we have to wonder what Reynor's 'normal' level is. Is it that Code S run, or his WESG 2017 run where he beat every foreigner in his path before going 0-8 against the Korean big three of Dark, Classic and Maru? Is it that Code S run, or his performance in Nation Wars V where he all-killed* China and Norway, but was helpless to prevent INnoVation from all-killing Italy?

All that puts foreigner fans in that familiar position of facing gnawing uncertainty as Reynor heads into his first Global Finals. It's not quite 'Lilbow vs Life' level dread, but more like that of when Scarlett, Neeb, and NaNiwa were headed into the Code S quarterfinals. We all know Reynor is excellent, we all know he has a chance to beat the odds, and we all know that if he does advance from his Ro16 group, we're going to say we saw it coming all along. But history has also conditioned foreigner fans to expect disappointment, to know that moments like these exist to remind us of Korea's supremacy at StarCraft.



herO, in many ways is the worst possible initial opponent—an unpredictable and aggressive player who has a knack for coming through in the clutch. There's not much glory to defeating a faded star like herO, but there's every chance of suffering a one-sided defeat where you barely get to play StarCraft. And sneakily, herO is one of the most successful vs foreigner players of all-time, with an all-time match record of 50–6. Classic has been more shaky against foreign opposition with a 31–8 all-time record, but the meticulous build order preparation he's shown this year will be unlike anything Reynor has experienced on the Circuit.

This whole region-locked WCS Circuit experiment has been a giant test of faith, as foreigners slowly begin to compete with Koreans. And I don't mean just Blizzard's faith in talented young gamers that they'd grow, rather than stagnate, inside of their protected pastures. It was a gamble that fans around the world would watch the WCS Circuit, be excited by the matches, and become invested in the players, believing that what happens on the Circuit actually mattered in the big picture. Reynor's BlizzCon journey carries with it all the weight of that belief. For Neeb and Serral, their success validated Neeb and Serral. In Reynor's case, his success will validate the Circuit.




Road to BlizzCon 2019

WCS Circuit
Serral - Reynor - Neeb - SpeCial - TIME - HeroMarine - Elazer - ShoWTimE

WCS Korea
Dark - Trap - Classic - Maru - soO - Rogue - herO - Stats



Credits and acknowledgements

Writer: Soularion
Editor: Wax
Images: Starladder
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TL+ Member
ThunderJunk
Profile Joined December 2015
United States677 Posts
October 21 2019 03:15 GMT
#2
HerO is extremely good. He's the only player with timing sharp enough to use an oracle's stasis ward against nydus. Reynor's gonna need to give it his all to come out over HerO.
I am free because I know that I alone am morally responsible for everything I do.
emperorofwild
Profile Joined July 2019
87 Posts
October 21 2019 03:59 GMT
#3
Reynors performance against KR players were so bad
but now its said He is dominanting KR ladder, and often swept players like Time and all protoss players(states included) 4-0 in practicing
junkratsdog
Profile Joined October 2019
6 Posts
Last Edited: 2019-10-21 05:39:43
October 21 2019 05:34 GMT
#4
If Reynor brings out the best out of himself, he can take it all. I would not be surprised. These guys are at the top this year because they all have that potential. Much respect to all the players.

LOL I suppose this can be seen as a social experiment.. A social Starcraft II experiment.
dbRic1203
Profile Joined July 2019
Germany2655 Posts
October 21 2019 05:43 GMT
#5
On October 21 2019 12:59 emperorofwild wrote:
Reynors performance against KR players were so bad
but now its said He is dominanting KR ladder, and often swept players like Time and all protoss players(states included) 4-0 in practicing

So Reynor is allready in Korea right now?
MaxPax
junkratsdog
Profile Joined October 2019
6 Posts
Last Edited: 2019-10-21 05:59:36
October 21 2019 05:56 GMT
#6
On October 21 2019 14:43 dbRic1203 wrote:
Show nested quote +
On October 21 2019 12:59 emperorofwild wrote:
Reynors performance against KR players were so bad
but now its said He is dominanting KR ladder, and often swept players like Time and all protoss players(states included) 4-0 in practicing

So Reynor is allready in Korea right now?


Starts in about 3 days, so probably ya. Gotta get the jetlag out of the system.

Reynor's matches are on the 25th though.

HAYPEEE. HAYPEEE. HAYPEEE.
Htime
Profile Joined March 2019
58 Posts
October 21 2019 06:15 GMT
#7
I'm going to put money and my Liquibet on Reynor of anyone in Group C. While I am on board for the WCS Circuit-validation narrative of the article, the battle I see is Reynor vs himself. He has such a overflowing pile of talent and just lacks the wisdom of 10 years extra experience that someone like Classic has under his belt. When Reynor plays his game, when he appears to be comfortable against his opponent, then he is at the level of anyone in the world. Yet, he seems to lack consistency, make mistakes instead of being outplayed, and you see it in the results.
As long as Reynor realizes that the Global Finals are the next progression of WCS, then he will easily defeat HeRoMaRinE, who in the last year is ... 11–11 in games and 3–3 in matches against Reynor since they play outside of WCS as well. I'd be afraid of Big Gabe, probably one of the strongest Circuit players vs him, but a familiar opponent that should make him a favorite.
How quickly can Reynor internalize the Korean ZvP meta and deliver against two experienced players in Classic and herO? Youth, balance, talent favors the young Italian, but home stage advantage, 10+ yrs of pro-gaming experience each, and history are on the side of the two Korean Protoss. Last-hurrah Classic ('91) in particular would be hard to root against, but it is also an epic passing of the torch to next generation (and region?) if someone born in 2002 (!) from Italy advanced at the Global Finals in Seoul against one or more 5-time Premier Tournament winners.
Dave4
Profile Joined August 2018
494 Posts
October 21 2019 06:52 GMT
#8
Great article thanks guys. One constructive criticism, it'd be cool if these articles had like a table of each player's major results/aligulac stats from the year. Then it could really be like reading the year to date for each one.

Can't argue with the fact that he has done poorly vs Korean competition this year, but the way he has dismantled the circuit has been tantalising. We know the gap is closer than ever after GSLvWorld, though granted some of Koreans have looked absurd in the last couple of months. He has dodged most of the scary ones and there's no reason Reynor can't make semi finals or better.
Waxangel
Profile Blog Joined September 2002
United States33377 Posts
October 21 2019 07:03 GMT
#9
I think Reynor will finally play up to his potential this time around ^_^
AdministratorHey HP can you redo everything youve ever done because i have a small complaint?
deacon.frost
Profile Joined February 2013
Czech Republic12129 Posts
October 21 2019 07:04 GMT
#10
On October 21 2019 12:15 ThunderJunk wrote:
HerO is extremely good. He's the only player with timing sharp enough to use an oracle's stasis ward against nydus. Reynor's gonna need to give it his all to come out over HerO.

HerO retired
I imagine France should be able to take this unless Lilbow is busy practicing for Starcraft III. | KadaverBB is my fairy ban mother.
BerserkSword
Profile Joined December 2018
United States2123 Posts
October 21 2019 07:15 GMT
#11
This might almost be the worst possible kind of group for Reynor.

Two timing-oriented protoss players. In fact Korean protoss' whose timings are legendarily sharp

And a robust well-rounded terran player in heromarine.

No zerg players for reynor to bust out his killer zvz
TL+ Member
deacon.frost
Profile Joined February 2013
Czech Republic12129 Posts
October 21 2019 08:39 GMT
#12
On October 21 2019 16:15 BerserkSword wrote:
This might almost be the worst possible kind of group for Reynor.

Two timing-oriented protoss players. In fact Korean protoss' whose timings are legendarily sharp

And a robust well-rounded terran player in heromarine.

No zerg players for reynor to bust out his killer zvz

At least he has a chance to prove he's not just ZvZ player
I imagine France should be able to take this unless Lilbow is busy practicing for Starcraft III. | KadaverBB is my fairy ban mother.
RealityTheGreat
Profile Joined January 2018
China564 Posts
October 21 2019 08:39 GMT
#13
On October 21 2019 16:15 BerserkSword wrote:
This might almost be the worst possible kind of group for Reynor.

Two timing-oriented protoss players. In fact Korean protoss' whose timings are legendarily sharp

And a robust well-rounded terran player in heromarine.

No zerg players for reynor to bust out his killer zvz

Only one strong Terran and he may be somked in his group,
Protoss is nerfed,
and Reynor's ZvZ is almost like Serral.
Best chance.
Betrayed, forgotten, abandoned.
DSh1
Profile Joined April 2017
292 Posts
October 21 2019 10:03 GMT
#14
back-to-back Circuit championships? I think there is one in between unless I'm confused.

Actually quite nice, that WCS has a rising champion each year. Keep coming :D
General_Winter
Profile Joined February 2011
United States719 Posts
October 21 2019 10:25 GMT
#15
I love Reynors late game beastly macro against players who durdle and let him get there. But that’s not going to happen here. The toss players will attack him and I don’t have faith in his unit control to hold swift decisive timings. I don’t think he wins a match against any of the Korean toss in this group and it’s hard to advance without that.
WombaT
Profile Blog Joined May 2010
Northern Ireland25231 Posts
October 21 2019 12:30 GMT
#16
On October 21 2019 15:52 Dave4 wrote:
Great article thanks guys. One constructive criticism, it'd be cool if these articles had like a table of each player's major results/aligulac stats from the year. Then it could really be like reading the year to date for each one.

Can't argue with the fact that he has done poorly vs Korean competition this year, but the way he has dismantled the circuit has been tantalising. We know the gap is closer than ever after GSLvWorld, though granted some of Koreans have looked absurd in the last couple of months. He has dodged most of the scary ones and there's no reason Reynor can't make semi finals or better.

Yeah it’d be nice information to have to hand, especially as the writers appear to have used the information to inform their articles.

Still, minor quibble these are great writeups nonetheless. Reynor is the most interesting participants for me, I can’t really think of another player where neither bombing out in groups or having a really deep run would surprise me.
'You'll always be the cuddly marsupial of my heart, despite the inherent flaws of your ancestry' - Squat
ZugzwangSC
Profile Joined October 2019
87 Posts
October 21 2019 12:53 GMT
#17
This kid's ceiling has yet to be found. If he's got the mental game under control for the big stage, he'll be going places.

Go get em Reynor!
www.youtube.com/c/zugzwangstarcraft
Nakajin
Profile Blog Joined September 2014
Canada8989 Posts
October 21 2019 13:01 GMT
#18
Probably the player I'm the most curious about I could see him go 0-2 or get a deep run
Writerhttp://i.imgur.com/9p6ufcB.jpg
Poaktree
Profile Joined January 2017
165 Posts
October 21 2019 13:18 GMT
#19
For me, Reynor is the wild card of the tournament. I'll say it bluntly: I think Reynor's problem is mentality and with enough exposure and practice, it will go away. And once it goes away, we might have a Serral 2.0 phenomenon. He can tear up the global finals. He can reach the finals, he can win the whole thing.
tigon_ridge
Profile Joined March 2019
482 Posts
Last Edited: 2019-10-21 14:01:16
October 21 2019 13:54 GMT
#20
On October 21 2019 22:18 Poaktree wrote:
For me, Reynor is the wild card of the tournament. I'll say it bluntly: I think Reynor's problem is mentality and with enough exposure and practice, it will go away. And once it goes away, we might have a Serral 2.0 phenomenon. He can tear up the global finals. He can reach the finals, he can win the whole thing.

Wishful thinking. There will be no Serral 2.0 for a very, very long time. Reynor has had years to develop, whereas Serral went from low-6000s MMR, playing while in school, to >7200 in literally within one year of going full-time. This goes to show that players generally hit their plateau very quickly.
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