Considering that it has been almost six weeks since the last SPL update, attempting to recap each series as I have done in the past would be an exercise in futility. Instead i'll try and sum up what happened in this eventful round of Proleague to help catch you up if you haven't been following closely.

Firstly, let's take a look at the standings table (courtesy of Liquipedia). To see specific results of the series played throughout the round, please visit the liquipedia page.



Anyone who followed last season would expect to see KT Rolster and SK Telecom T1 high up on the table as they featured in the grand final. Surprisingly it is Woongjin Stars who sit atop the heap at the end of the first round. Considering that this season will only consist of three rounds this is no mean feat. While the second and third members of the top four are no surprise in the form of Samsung Khan and CJ Entus who both qualified for the playoffs last season, the final member being STX Soul is most definitely a surprise. Coming off an awful few seasons, the fact that STX are so high up this far into the competition can only mean good things for the beleaguered team in the future.

The final two teams sitting at the bottom of the table are both no surprise considering their performances last season. Both Ace and Team 8 failed miserably in the important end of last season and this poor performance has continued into the new season. With a third of the season already gone they are going to have to pick up their act significantly if they hope to get into play-off contention come the post season. Team 8 in particular could use a resurgence in form, considering they are still lacking a sponsor, a fact that probably weighs quite heavily on the players and affects their performance.

BW Round 1


SC2 Round 1


These tables show the performance of each team in the seperate games that are a part of this hybrid season of Proleague. Some interesting results to note are SKT's eighth place in BW sets and fifth place in SC2 sets, but still managing to come in at fifth place overall. It's clear that SC2 performance is far more important than BW performance, shown by Team 8's decent BW performance not carrying them to a decent rank overall. One piece of data not covered by these tables is the Ace match. With the overall series only being decided based on two best of three's and a single ace match when there is a tie, the ace match weighting is much greater than the other games played during the series.

With the ace match always being played in SC2 this means that teams fostering competent SC2 talent, but also SC2 talent capable of holding their nerve in an ace match should cause them to do well in this format. Most interestingly however, the team at the top of the table, Woongjin Stars, have not won an ace match all season. It turns out that simply winning both the Brood War and SC2 components without requiring the ace match is a far more stable solution, with all of the Stars lineup contributing handily to their success.

Flash was coming off of a brilliant performance in the Kespa Invitational, in front of thousands of hardened SC2 fans. We saw him perform to his name and he delivered a refined performance in each match. Six days later he met against RorO in SPL and now, six days after that, I present a battle report of the action that took place. Scene set, curtain fall, begin Act I



Ohana, a 1v1 map with only two possible spawn positions, Flash starts at one o’clock RorO five o’clock. RorO opens standard hatch first and Flash reciprocates with a 15CC. Apparently, some builds were just too good not to carry over.



RorO goes against the current trends and stays on three queens in exchange for a very fast third hatch. He blindly adds a roach warren as his overlord reaches around the natural and scouts three rax and an additional command center under construction. He adds on a baneling nest and duplicates Flash by adding a very late zergling speed and double evolution chambers. RorO has done everything Flash has done plus more. Except the fatal flaw, Flash has also made an army.



With a fistful of roach-ling made to stave off hellions that never came, RorO is forced onto his heel in a dash to save his third from the driving Terran army. He immediately invests his entire gas supply into a clutch of banelings and then immediately expends them on marauders. Flash, lacking medivacs, withdraws. Casualties: four marauders, three creep tumors, two dozen zerglings and the timing Flash needed to curtail endless drone production.

Behind his push Flash is able to clear an overlord denying his third and secure it without further contest. He begins turreting his base twenty seconds before RorO plants a spire- a credit to his timing as RorO is four minutes late on standard spire timing. Sadly it serves to foreshadow how misplaced Flash would soon be; the spire was in conjunction with a quicksilver twelve minute Hive.



RorO pumps infestors and adrenal glands before 2/2 even finishes. He senses blood and crosses the map with his roach/ling/bling train and drives into Flash's 1/1 marines without passion or mercy. Medivacs are finally in tow and a bio army revenges itself on the RorO's sixth base. With two tanks, too late and mineral-short, the first brood lord starts to morph followed by nearly a dozen others. A bio army is a fierocious and terrifying force, but with minimal tanks to cover them and only an unlucky pair of vikings to ward off the siege crushing brood lords, there is no hope.



Predictably, marines turn shades of green and then into an unpleasant dead color. Tanks are crushed by eruptions of broodlings. The two lost vikings perish to queen and corruptor attacks. Flashes push is cracked, crunched and crushed.

RorO drifts across the map and annihilates a smaller reinforcement army as well as Flash's last hope. He GGs and drops his first TvZ since his incredible Kespa Invitational run. Samsung Khan picks up a win, takes a bow and exits, stage left.

Remember Terrans; Happy drones are dangerous drones. One small oversight like not bringing medivacs with your timing can be the snowball that becomes an avalanche. Unable to stim-kite a clutch of banelings, Flash retreated to take his third and the absence of harassment meant the difference between an even late game and staring up at dark, uncontested skies.

The battle took place on Neo Electric Circuit. The Revolutionist, Bisu, spawned in teal at seven o'clock. The brave Terran commander, Last, spawned in yellow at eleven o'clock.

Bisu opened up with 11-nex, planting his nexus at the backdoor mineral-only expansion, away from direct harm. His Terran foe also opted for an economic build, attaining a CC after his barracks was completed.
An SCV scout sent out to gather intelligence on the alien threat.

Bisu warped in his gate and core, a second gateway quickly followed. Last finished his factory and sent out two marines to survey their immediate surroundings, which spotted a probe and zealot duo.

The marines fell back, as did the SCV trying to mine away the backdoor minerals. A skillful glitch allowed Bisu's zealot to jump through the temple, but Last was viligant with his scouting, an SCV arrived just in time to spot the zealot come through and marines were quickly dispatched to neutralize the threat.
The zealot was backed into the corner and terminated, but not before it cut down one of the marines.


A handful of dragoons moved out, they arrived at the Terran natural where they bombarded the bunker protecting the vinicity. Without range upgrades the marines were helpless, Last quickly called a tank over to provide cover, forcing the goons back before they could demolish the bunker.

As the bunker assault took place, Bisu took the opportunity to get his third up at the natural and fourth at six o'clock, along with a robo and observatory. As his economy grew so did his number of gateways. Last's SCV managed to infiltrate Bisu's base, which allowed the worker spy to relay information back about on-going enemy activities.

Back at the Terran stronghold, Last built himself another CC and floated it over to his mineral-only expansion, he brought his factory count up, built an ebay for turrets, and an academy for scans.

As the game progressed, Bisu acquired reaver tech, soon a shuttle was spotted intruding Terran airspace, Last responded swiftly with marines and tanks. A zealot was dropped along with the reaver, a scarab let loose which made its way towards the marines, they're blown to pieces before they could to scramble to safety. The zealot succumbs to tank fire and the reaver is shuttled to safety. As the small skirmish took place Bisu continued to raise his gateway count for the battle ahead.

Last ramped up his production from his eight factories, moved his units out as soon as he felt he had a large enough force. The formidable army left the Terran base and traversed across the map at great speed. Last was attempting to hit Bisu before he could fully take advantage of his economy and gateways.
Bisu advanced as Last set up his seige position and began to build turrets, zealots charged forward as leg speed kicked in, vultures were shot down, the reaver blown apart as it fired another scarab, both sides sustained heavy damage but the Terran commander suffered further losses when Bisu's reinformcements arrived, which annihilated the remaining Terran units. Bisu's gateways were in full production and now Last was on the backfoot.



Bisu warped in his templar archive and stargate as he prepared to add arbiters to his arsenal. Vultures raced across the map, mines scattered everywhere in an attempt to halt Bisu's movements and gain some map control, but Bisu cleared them almost as quickly as they were being laid.

Vultures and two tanks made their way towards Bisu's fourth, where they began to tear down the pylon walls protecting the expansion. Bisu's units arrived in short order, tearing through the metal units, a shuttle floated over the mech battalion, zealot bombs were deployed which drew the mines into the Terran army, taking out a large chunk of vultures and tanks.

As Bisu established his fifth base and 5.5, vast numbers of Protoss units are seen heading through the center and towards the north. Last scrambled to get a depot and turret up to partially protect the side of his army, but Bisu struck before Last had any chance of completing them. Zealots and goons engaged into the clumped-up Terran battalion, with so much firepower concentrated together and vultures to support the the powerful cannons, zealots and goons were quickly obliterated. Bisu ordered a quick retreat upon realizing he could not break through Last's defenses.



Last took his fourth in a less than optimal fashion, vultures were once again deployed, this time in larger numbers, they roamed the map and were able to catch a small number of goons that strayed too far from the main force. Mines were scattered around the goons and before they could escape the mines quickly attached themselves and blew them all apart.
Last knew arbiters were on the way and quickly got his starport up along with his science facility.

An arbiter is spotted on the battlefield, making the Protoss force invisible to the naked eye. Under the veil of the arbiter the Protoss force advanced through the center and camped closed to Last's fourth expo. The units began to huddle, creating a tight formation.

Bisu took nine o'clock and gave orders for the arbiter to split from the main force, it made its way through the high ground and into the Terran backdoor expansion. As the arbiter flew over the CC a large fraction of the protoss force is recalled, hitting the expansion hard and fast. The CC quickly lifted, workers fled the scene, and forces were called back to defend the sudden incursion.
Bisu's zealots and goons dash down the ramp and into the main where they wrecked more havok on the tanks and buildings. Last called more units in to finally clean up the invasion, but was unable to save his floating third CC.

Bisu immediately mounted another attack, this time attacking the battalion protecting the third and fourth. Zealots and goons clashed with Terran metal again, but Last's defensive efforts were strong and managed to hold off yet another frontal assault.

Bisu continued to expand; Last knew he had to inflict some sort of damage to slow Bisu down, he mustered his units and commanded them to tear down the closest expansion. Bisu's arbiter arrived immediately which casted stasis over several units, Bisu's legion of zealots and dragoons then stormed forth under the cloak of the arbiters and tore through the Terran battalion.


As his army disappeared before his eyes and without enough units to withstand another blitz, the brave Terran commander typed out.

Neo.G_Soulkey. An above average record and a lack of notable finishes. He’s like many Brood War progamers. He has devoted fans but in a scene where the big three (Flash, Bisu, Jaedong) are the constant focus of attention it is easy to miss stellar play that does not result in tournament finals. Starcraft 2 has been a place for him, like IrOn, ZergBong, MVP and others, to stretch their legs and make a mark. Unlike the three GSL winners listed, he is coming from the pinnacle of a progaming career.

In the short months since hybrid SPL has begun Soulkey has made only three appearances. Against Chavi and By.Sun on Antiga Shipyards and against Trap on ESV Cloud Kingdom. Antiga was favorable to young Soulkey, bringing him his two victories. In both games facing off against older or more experienced opponents he displayed extravagant execution and multi tasking to divide and conquer his opponents army. Chavi could not halt his zergling-infestor run bys and mass infested terran eruptions even with the odds stacked against a zergling heavy composition by Chavis colossus production. against By.Sun he managed to showcase his APM and despite setbacks like a late third and being on equal bases with his opponent for the majority of the match, he stretched and strained By.Suns army until By.Sun cracked. I highly recommend the VOD as an entertaining and diverse ZvP in its own right.

Find it here

It hasn’t been a perfect season for Woongjin Stars and it hasn’t been a perfect run for Soulkey. In his opening match against Trap he would lose by the elimination of all his buildings in a base race turned into a steamroller. 8 minutes before the game he gambled on countering into Traps third instead of taking a larger army head on. 2 minutes before that, in a moment that would make Day[9] proud, Trap saw Soulkey trying to harass, tech and upgrade at the same time and took the simpler approach of walking across the map with intent on killing Soulkey. Judging by his subsequent matches Soulkey took a lesson from what happened and hasn’t left his opponents army to its own devices since.



Despite not being SPL matches, Soulkeys performance in the Kespa Invitational is worth mentioning in passing. He provided two great ZvTs against Fantasy in the first round and provided two good TvZs against Flash in the second. For a majority of SC2 fans it was the first time his name has been shined as bright as the big three. Although he could not stop the ultimate weapon, he did manage to showcase incredible creep spread and spectacular mechanics.

In a recent interview Soulkey dodged evaluating his skill compared to GSL competitors but he affirmed that he was one of the best in the SPL to make the transition into SC2. He has shown a propensity in ZvP with multiple styles and learned from the errors of his first match. He is already becoming a ZvP expert and gaining fans with his fearless decision making in game. Soulkey is already on the leading edge of SC2-BW Progamers and he continues to improve each match.

The current Proleague season represents the evolution of Starcraft. Top Brood War players, the undisputed elite of ESPORTS, now get to show off their skills in this latest incarnation of our favorite game. People have long been awaiting the day when brilliant SC2 players are put to the test against the very best of BW. And the results will not disappoint.

However, Proleague is also an opportunity to travel back in time. Once in a while, we are able to witness digital anachronisms: SC2 professionals playing Brood War. It has been a topic of huge debate. Are SC2 players truly able to handle the difficulty of BW? Will pros be able to show the same brilliance, despite the removal of MBS, control groups of no more than twelve units, harder-to-cast spells, and stiffer competition? Is mastery in Starcraft backwards compatible?

The answer to all these questions is a resounding "yes".

Like Javascript on IE6, the transition for Starcraft 2 players to Brood War has been smooth, efficient, and most of all, impressive. Take a look at KT Motive. An up and coming SC2 player, Motive recently had an opportunity to put his skills to the test against two Brood War legends. He faced his opponents, Ace’s Canata and STX’s Trap, on their home turf and played by their rules. For those unfamiliar with these two players, it’s hard to truly appreciate the challenge Motive was facing. As recently as five years ago, Canata was considered by many to be Boxer’s successor for the title of Terran Emperor. Motive's other opponent, Trap, is known for his brilliant 66.66% PvP winrate on Neo Ground Zero.

vs. Canata
This was a short and sweet game. Canata started off in the bottom left corner, while Motive spawned in the bottom right. Motive, ever the ambitious player, decided to attempt one of the most difficult PvT builds in the history of the game – a 10/13 gate goon all-in. After cutting probes at thirteen, he decided to put a twist on things by constructing a zealot as soon as his gate finished. Instead of using the Zealot to kill the scouting SCV in his base, Motive used the unit to pressure the T by hold-positioning just outside of range of two marines and a half-finished bunker.

He followed up this act of aggression by using the first few goons to chase the scouting SCV all over the map. As soon as Canata was ready to defend, Motive bravely charged the Terran wall. Supported by two sieged tanks and five SCVs repairing the bunker and wall, Canata was barely able to hold the line. Motive's brilliant micro in the fight only lost him five of his seven attacking units and he was able to successfully kill two of Canata's SCV. Even the Korean commentators were awed by Motive, going so far as to say, "This fight doesn't make sense". Clearly, they were impressed. After a brief period of macro, Motive gathered up his army once more and attempted to break the Terran wall through sheer willpower and blue goo. Canata quickly typed “gg” in response to Motive’s “gg” and the game ended.


vs. Trap
This PvP started with players spawning cross-positions. Motive, at the top right, decided to play it safe and warped in two zealots before his core. His cautiousness paid off as Trap decided to apply early goon pressure. Motive was caught off guard and lost all of his goons. However, he was able to hold the ramp, once again making use of his sublime hold-position micro on his zealots.

Both players then teched up to reavers, with Trap electing to forgo a shuttle in favor of an earlier expansion. Motive moved out with an army of goons, supported by two reavers and a shuttle, with the intent of shutting down Trap's natural. After forming up his army right outside of the chokepoint, Motive sent in his shuttle to provide some initial firepower. It was quickly sniped, and the armies (sans reavers for Motive) engaged in glorious battle. Needless to say, the Protoss was victorious.


Starcraft fans are so very fortunate. Greats may rise and fall, legends may come and go, but there always seems to be new talent ready to take up the mantle. Were Jaedong, Flash, Bisu, Stork, Fantasy, Zero, and ninety of the top SC players to simultaneously retire, the future of ESPORTS would be safe in Motive’s hands.

A little over a month has passed since the eight-hour marathon that marked the beginning of the first hybrid Proleague season. Although the Starcraft 2 and Brood War hierarchy amongst the teams has slowly become clearer over the course of the first round, this season remains a learning experience for both players and fans. With new rules forcing players to be used in both games, the role of the management in determining the results of their team has become more important than ever. Player selection for one best of seven series now has far reaching effects, and we have borne witness as coaches have attempted to come to terms with how to manage their roster in this brave new world.


At the beginning of this season, many fans were genuinely concerned about how KHAN would fare following the introduction of SC2. Of all the teams, KHAN appeared to be the one least prepared for the transition with Coach January herself stating that she believed her team had the weakest SC2 line-up. Five weeks and seven games later, KHAN have picked up exactly where it left off last season, sitting in second place with a 5-2 record. Key to KHAN's success so far this season has been RorO, with the former WeMade Zerg coming into his own late in Round 1, and now beginning to look like one of the few players who is able to excel in BW and SC2 equally.

Much like their opponents this weekend, ACE have picked up this season right where they left off- dead last. Although there was some hope that the presence of SC2 may have helped ACE, given its vast array of experienced and strategically-minded (read: cheesy) players. Unfortunately for ACE, this has not proven to be the case, with the gap between it and the real professional teams appearing to have made the transition from SC2 to BW far more smoothly than any of its players. Although ACE is without a player who looks truly able to lead the line this season, the return of Guemchi from retirement SC2 India has proven a decent move for both player and team.

ACE has actually done reasonably well in Brood War series so far, beating KT, STX, and SKT. This would be good news for ACE, were it not for the fact that KHAN have the best record of any team in Brood War sets this season and will have captain and Brood War ace Stork available for selection this weekend. Also concerning for ACE will be the eligibility of RorO in SC2, right off the back of his ace match win over Flash. What good work ACE has done in Brood War this season has been undone by the fact that only three of their players have actually managed to win a single game in SC2 so far. The eligibility of two of those players, Guemchi and Kal, for selection against KHAN in SC2 is a small ray of light in what otherwise is a bleak outlook for ACE.

The first meeting between these two teams this season ended in a one-sided 4-1 victory for KHAN, with ACE's only set win coming from a customarily strange M18M PvZ. Since then, there's been little in either team's form to suggest the result will be much different. The need for KHAN to use Reality (and potentially Kop) in the BW sets is a vulnerability that ACE may be able to exploit. However, ACE's lack of a real SC2 powerhouse means that it's difficult to imagine a scenario in which this match is anything but a one-sided victory for KHAN.


Woongjin's start to the season has been nothing short of spectacular; sitting atop the table with a 6-1 record, its only loss coming against second place KHAN. Woongjin's unmatched strength in SC2, where it ended Round 1 with a 15-4 record in individual sets, has been complimented by the continuing strength of its core line-up in BW. Especially impressive is the sheer depth of the Woongjin lineup, with every player it has used so far picking up at least one win. Woongjin has also benefited from the apparent return to form of both Light and free in BW. Both players ended last season with decidedly average records but a mixture of cheese and standard play has seen them take important wins when called upon in the BW sets.

STX has been inconsistent so far this season but will be pleased to go into Round 2 in fourth place, tied with CJ on match wins. One of the key features of STX's form so far this season has been the rapid descent of their “big three” from last season, with Dear, Last and Calm all currently winless in the Brood War sets. This deficit in STX's Brood War line-up has been offset somewhat by the returning form of Bogus and hyvaa, as well as a couple of decent wins for SC2 ace Trap. Overall, STX appears to be struggling for balance, with a number of players who are doing well in one game doing poorly in the other, most notably in the case of Bogus and Last.

From the perspective of STX, one of the most intimidating things about Woongjin is the way in which its level has continuously risen week by week during Round 1. While on other teams the old BW stars appeared to begin catching up, Woongjin appears to have been able to maintain or perhaps increase the gap between its SC2 level and that of other teams. Woongjin's only loss so far this season has come as the result of an ace match against KHAN, having lost the BW series. While Woongjin's record in BW is good, with Soulkey and ZerO both on SC2 duties this weekend there may be an opportunity for the likes of mini and Last to make an impact.

The 4-2 score line in Woongjin's opening day victory over STX at the time appeared to be a little flattering, with Woongjin narrowly avoiding an ace match. The difference in this match will be the progression made by the two teams since the start of Round 1. Although STX has proven a solid team in the new format, Woongjin has so far been unmatched in its ability to improve week by week. Although the BW series may provide STX with a chance, Woongjin's strength in SC2 will most likely win out.


Following Jaedong's ace match victory versus KT, Team 8 looked ready to finally realise the potential that lead to it being known as the “KeSPA Dream Team” in the early days of its formation. However, this proved to be yet another in a series of false dawns in the team's short history. If the rumours of Team 8's heavy focus on SC2 are true, then its performances in Round 1 are all the more disappointing. Although it has hardly been a BW powerhouse, Team 8 has been especially poor in SC2, ending Round 1 with a 5-14 record and having no player with more than one win to his name. This is especially disappointing for Sang, who was touted as Team 8's SC2 ace, but has since only managed one win against Guemchi in a 4-0 demolition of fellow strugglers, ACE.

SKT's early experimentation with SC2 does not appear to have made up for the time lost in preparation for last season's Proleague final as it finds itself in sixth place, tied with KT on three wins and four losses. This delay is not only apparent from SKT's position in the Round 1 standings but also in the way the line-up has taken shape over the course of the first five weeks. Although its fortunes look to be improving in this regard, SKT is still struggling to find a balance between BW and SC2 in their lineup. This is most evident with Bisu and Best, two of the three that made up the FBB core of SKT's roster in recent years. Although he showed signs of promise at the recent MLG Invitational, Bisu's SC2 performances so far in Proleague have been underwhelming. Best, on the other hand, is still without a win in BW, even with both of his games so far coming in what was his strongest match-up last season.

Although both teams lost in their most recent matches, there were a handful of encouraging performances, particularly in the SC2 sets. For SKT, Fantasy's win over Crazy-Hydra gives some how that it will soon have a player capable of leading the team in both BW and SC2. Meanwhile, Team 8's victory over STX in the SC2 series is impressive with Baby and Sea's wins coming against two of STX's strongest and most used SC2 players. Although it's reasonable to expect SKT to be in its element in the BW sets, the need for rotation between BW and SC2 has left SKT vulnerable at times, even when fielding its strongest players. Team 8's lack of clearly defined SC2 and BW players (or perhaps just its lack of SC2 players) means its level of performance across an entire best of seven is generally more consistent. However, the ineligibility of Jaedong and Jaehoon for BW against SKT means that Team 8 are left with only Baby as a player who really has the potential to win against Fantasy or Bisu.

This series is unlikely to be quite as one-sided as the 4-0 SKT win on opening day, but Team 8 is still likely to struggle. Whereas SKT are beginning to show clear signs of progression, Team 8 continues to wait for the spark of inspiration that it so desperately needs to win and remain in existence. Jaedong's recent interviews about his desire to succeed in SC2 speak volumes about his character, but questions remain about his ability to lead the team into the new game. With the BW series seemingly over before it’s begun, this match will hinge on Team 8's ability to produce in SC2, as does the future of the team itself.


After its ace match victory over CJ on the first day of this season, KT looked well equipped to succeed this season. Seemingly it had the best BW player and the best SC2 player in Proleague, what could possibly go wrong? Following two of the worst performances in the history of professional Brood War, the efficacy of an “SC2 sniper” has been somewhat diminished.

Over the last five weeks it has been made abundantly clear that the key to consistently good performances in this format is to have players who are good at both games, not just excellent at one. In the final weeks of Round 1, a core of players who can win in both games has begun to appear for KT. Although its recent losses to KHAN and Woongjin show that KT still isn't quite ready to mix with the strongest teams in the hybrid format, the likes of Wooki, HoeJJa, and of course Flash are forming the makings of a strong SC2/BW line-up which should give it a base for progression in Round 2.

CJ has shaped up as by far the most top-heavy team in Round 1, with nine of its eleven SC2 wins coming from two players, herO[jOin] and Effort. Although CJ is very much a two man team in SC2, its trademark depth has been more apparent in its BW line-up with the likes of sKyHigh and BByong returning from the best of five wilderness. With Effort and herO's strength in SC2 well established at the end of Round 1, the worry for CJ going forward will be its ability to win without those two.

CJ has won only one SC2 set featuring neither of those two players and poor form from Hydra, as well as CJ's reluctance to use Leta in SC2, means that the constant swing between Effort and no-Effort leaves at least one part of CJ's line-up uncharacteristically weak. Unlike the teams above them, CJ appears to have found a formula for success early on this season and has ridden it through Round 1 without any obvious evolution. As other teams and players continue to catch-up, CJ needs to find something more in Round 2 if it hopes to keep hold of a play-off place.

When looking at the available players, there is potential for a match between two teams that are “out of synch”, so to speak. With Effort and Hero having most recently played SC2, and Flash and HoeJJa having most recently played BW, neither team has its strongest players available in the same game. As a result, the possibility of a series of mismatches looms large. An interesting commonality of KT and CJ is the presence of two players who have seemingly been worst affected by the hybrid format; Stats and Hydra were core members of their respective teams last season, but have struggled to make an impact in SC2, or indeed to measure up to their previous level of performance in BW sets. Although, at this stage of the season, plenty of time remains for these formerly senior players to regain their form, the demands of the hybrid format make such a revival much more difficult than it would have been in the past.

The opening day match between KT and CJ saw the first ace-match of the season and gave fans the first glimpse into the strange series that the hybrid format can produce. Following Flash's recent struggles with SC2 TvZ and his impending OSL quarterfinal, even a possible Flash versus Effort ace match seems somewhat less significant. This match appears to be the most likely to produce an ace match and, although KT's SC2 line-up is beginning to grow in strength in Effort and HerO, CJ has two of the best SC2 players in Proleague at the moment.


One of the more interesting features of KHAN in Round 1 was that both of its losses came as a result of ace match game. The first was against STX when January made the baffling decision to send Jangbi who promptly lost to hyvaa and who hasn't played an SC2 set since. KHAN's BW line-up ended Round 1 with only one series loss on the weekend when Stork was absent due to MLG. Although STX's line-up has been solid in BW this season, the poor form of Calm, Last and Dear means that its up to Bogus to lead the line against the likes of Jangbi, Shine and RorO.

With RorO and Jangbi likely to be unavailable, KHAN is clearly more vulnerable in SC2 than STX's previous opponents, Woongjin. With STX likely to have two of its strongest SC2 players, Trap and mini, eligible for selection, it has a good opportunity to force an ace match. The question then becomes whether or not STX has available any player able to beat KHAN's new SC2 ace, RorO. Trap's 3-0 PvZ record and recent ace match win over Jaedong would imply that if this match does go to the seventh game, STX has a good chance of reproducing their Round 1 upset.


ACE has become something of a bogey team for KT in recent years, with KT having won only one of the last five meetings between the two teams. From the opening day reverse sweep last season, to M18M's elevator cheese versus Flash on Electric Circuit, and finally Canata's heroic victory over sixth Bonjwa Lizzy, ACE has probably begun to look forward to its matches versus KT. With ACE winless since its Round 1 meeting with KT, and tipped to lose against its first opponents in Round 2, ACE may just be due another unlikely victory.

Unfortunately for ACE, circumstances are slightly different in this meeting, KT having already settled down into a steady rotation of BW and SC2. KT is likely to have Flash, Stats and HoeJJa available for BW selection, depending on the line-up used versus CJ, meaning ACE will likely have to rely on SC2 if it hopes to truly contest the series.

ACE has been poor in SC2 pretty much since their series versus KT, but the likes of Guemchi, Kal and M18M still have the potential to beat any of the KT players at their current level in SC2, especially in a match-up as volatile as SC2’s PvP. Common sense would suggest that, with a month of experience and professional team practice under its belt, the gap between KT and ACE would have widened considerably since their meeting earlier this season. However, ACE has shown KT in the past that no gap is impossible to bridge.