IM_First, mYi.jjakji, Soul_hyvaa, KT_Flash

by Lichter

Realization, redemption, and resurrection. All the players in Group E have something to prove and much to gain in the ultimate WCS Korea Season before the Grand Finals at Blizzcon. Only First (at 19th as of writing) has a shot of making it to Blizzcon barring at least a second place finish in WCS Korea or the Season 3 finals, but each player will have more than an invitation at stake in today’s games.

IM_First is arguablyclearly the most accomplished player in Group E. He entered the OSL a darkhorse to win the tournament—a player that everyone knew had both the potential and the safe play style to do it—even as a complete royal roader. It looked like OSL was going to be his breakthrough tournament after he advanced to the Round of 8 and drew Bomber in his favored matchup, but he was unceremoniously dumped out 0 - 3 in surprising fashion. The player he is most compared to, SKT T1's safety-first Protoss Rain, dismantled Bomber in the next round and everyone was once again left wondering if this was First’s ceiling.

First bounced back by beating both Symbol and SuperNova in the 5th place matches to earn his trip to Europe where he once again looked good in the group stages, but his "breakthrough moment" (not like he won IEM Katowice or anything) eluded him once more as he struggled to advance past aLive and was crushed by a resurgent Jaedong in the semis. Despite being considered a top Protoss player, First has struggled to perform as the stakes grow higher. Will he finally realize his potential, or will he cement his place as a ‘really good but not good enough to win it all’ tier of Code S player?

In his initial match, he faces a player out to prove that he wasn’t just a fluke. NSH mYi.jjakji is finally back in Code S after 6 seasons lost in the “Irrelevant Champ” abyss (which currently contains Sniper and Seed, soon to include RorO). 6 seasons doesn’t sound very long until you realize his last Code S appearance was in April 2012, more than a year ago.

We might think of him as a SC2 veteran or old timer, but aside from that one miraculous triumph, jjakji has actually been conspicuously absent for most of the game’s history, with only four Code S appearances total. His recovery has been a slow process, but just like his November 2011 run, we perhaps we could be in for a surprise? After all, he’s gone straight from Code B to Challenger to Code S in a single season. Still, no one is really talking about his championship potential. His Challenger League games didn’t look good as he survived a series vs. an aggressive CJ Trust and got utterly demolished by a struggling ST_Life. His Up&Down games looked more impressive as he advanced in 1st place—winning against 3 Zergs and losing to Hurricane due to a failed proxy 2rax—though he did show a tendency to lose concentration and miss his micro during high intensity moments. Basically he looks like the jjakji of November 2011. Maybe this is the redemptive sequel we’ve been waiting for.

In the other starting match we have Soul_hyvaa versus KT_Flash, two players whose situations are more similar than you might think. hyvaa, the Soul Survivor, the Injustice Leaguer, the famed cheeser, has so far done well for himself by qualifying for a second successive Premier League. Unfortunately, the dissolution of STX’s sponsorship of SouL left him to look for new opportunities, but for now it seems like he's settled down on just plain ol' SouL. It's easy to see why he may have been a hard sell to prospective employers despite his Premier League credentials, as he only has a winrate of 48% (22-24) in HotS. With so many decent, good, or great ex-BW players retiring in the Proleague off-season, this might be hyvaa’s last chance to make a real impact in his SC2 career.

His opponent is another middling Code S player hoping to show his SC2 career hasn’t dried up. Yup, it’s KT_Flash. With only 2 Round of 16 exits and a 2nd place at the Asian Indoor Games since his silver at MLG Winter Championship back in March, Flash hasn’t done much in SC2 lately. While that's blasphemous to his reputation as 'God,' it’s true. Flash hasn’t even played a televised game since July 30. For a player nicknamed God and the Ultimate Weapon, that’s not what we’ve come to expect from him. Heck, even Jaedong has had more success in the last few months (who would have thought we’d be saying that?). This is Flash's last chance to make a mark in 2013 and try to make it to Blizzcon as he sits in 44th place with 800 points. A championship run here and a good result at the Season 3 Finals could yet catapult him up the rankings, but no one can blame you for being a nonbeliever.

Overall, expect Flash and First to advance in whatever order. Both have successful winrates in their relevant matchups and cruised past their Round of 32 groups last season in Best of 1s. hyvaa is and always will be a dangerous opponent, but First is known for safe play and Flash will be desperate to make something of Season 3 (so don’t expect him to go blind 14cc every game). The wild card of the group is jjakji because we have very little to go on with only 36 games played (and only 9 in WCS). His TvZ looked strong in his Up&Down games (3-0 vZ)—a macro game vs KangHo, a successful roach rush defense with 3CCs vs EffOrt, a timing attack vs Shine—so he should be favored against hyvaa. Both First and Flash have had vT woes recently, especially against Bomber, so jjakji will have a shot of pulling a rabbit out of his hat. It’s unlikely, but not much more than his GSL title run.

Overall Predictions
First > jjakji
hyvaa < Flash

First < Flash
hyvaa < jjakji

First > jjakji

Flash and First advance.

Progamer Pokedex: By Popular Request

by monk


Incredible Miracle certainly has no shortage of Water-based Protoss Pokemon with shells. Of those, First is Cloyster! The most defensively based Pokemon of original 151, Cloyster, in the olden days, often relied on his opponents tiring themselves out when they tried to break his near-indestructible shell.

More recently, Cloyster has learned some neat new tricks, one of them being a new move in the form of Shell Smash. By using a turn to setup, it increases all its offenses at the cost of his formidable defenses. Though somewhat more gimmicky and though he sometimes falls flat on his face when using it, when his opponents allow him the freedom to take such risks, the results can be miraculous.


Jjakji is Moltres! Reborn in a flash of flames, Moltres is the phoenix of the first generation. Though he was once one of the best of his time, Moltres sports several glaring weaknesses that make him an unpredictable Pokemon in terms of battling results. Though not nearly as good or as legendary as his cousin, Ho-oh, Moltres' still formidable regenerative powers allow him to come back into the scene when all have pronounced him irrelevant.


Hyvaa is Persian! Always at Team Rocket Boss Giovanni's side, Persian was perhaps the first "evil" Pokemon. Though he's mainly known for his tricks and deception, he's a surprisingly capable battler when push comes to shove. And if all else fails, he can still score an upset with a lucky critical hit from his signature Slash attack.


Flash is Dragonite! In the first generation, Dragonite was a legendary Pokemon. In fact, it was one of THE most legendary Pokemon, so rare that the famed researcher Bill had never seen one and many of Team Rocket's plans revolved around obtaining one (or a pre-evolved form). But as the Pokemon world grew larger, the anime retcon'd both Dragonite's ability and rarity (They even gave one to a main character). Though still powerful and pseudo-legendary, Dragonite was now one of many, a situation he was not used to in Generation I.