Mixed value for Team MVP
- Noblesse defeats Happy, Dream drops to BBoongBBoong

For Team MVP, it was a mixed bag last night. Noblesse was able to beat code S regular Happy quite soundly in two very action packed games where Noblesse's solid defense overcame Happy's aggression. The games were hectic and Noblesse was stretched thin, but he was able to win a 2 - 0 victory. However, MVP's other rising Terran, Dream, fell down 1 - 2 to MJ’s BBoongBBoong. All three games were long macro games with both sides playing fairly well. B4 didn't always look steady in the early-mid game, but ended up clinching two games with a mixed broodlord/ultralisk/infestor army. All said and told, both Dream and Noblesse continued to show the depth of the MVP bench with strong games, while BBoongBBoong continued to build momentum after a good run at IPL5.

As for Happy, he looks to be following a familiar pattern to defeat in recent games. Against RorO in Code S, he played the worst proxy 11/11 of all time. He then tried it one more time against San in Code A. Against Noblesee, he used a crazy 1 base attack the first game, and a very aggressive bio style in the second. It's good for Happy to try and vary his style up, but so far, the results seem more bad than good.

- Trouble for LG-IM, as only MVP advances among four players on the night.

After Happy dropped his series to Noblesse, things didn't get any better for LG-IM. Jaedong ran rampant over LosirA going 2-0. Losira did mass queen builds, but his defense was sub-par in the first game letting 8 drones die to 2 banes early in the game, before losing to a roach-infestor attack. The second game wasn’t much better as a well-timed infested terran drop coupled with a head on attack killed Losira before he could fully transition into ultralisk/infestor.

What is a Zerg without the infestor? NesTea answered this question last night in his games against CJ_Bbyong. Things started badly on the first map as Nestea GG'd out to a two-rax, but he rallied in game two by getting away with a triple hatch into 70 drones build. From there, Nestea controlled the game with strong ling-bane attacks, mutas and ultras, before finally closing the game with broodlords. It was a game that was reminiscent of 2011 Nestea, before infestors saw regular use, and seemed to showcase his strengths well. The third game was won handily by Bbyong by yet more early marine attacks, with Bbyong dealing enough damage early to take an advantage that lasted until the end of the game. Overall, it was a disappointing showing for Nestea, but with two games swung by early attacks, it's hard to judge his current level.

The last LG-IM player to play was Mvp, who saved face for his team by taking out Flying in an easy 2 - 0. Having defeated Mvp once in the OSL, Flying was warned by his teammates and friends that MVP in groups was a completely different man from MVP in a boX series and he soon learned that first hand. Flying went for two 1 base aggressive strategies in both games. MVP seemed to have read Flying’s playbook and quickly figured out that his opponent was trying something tricky. With good defense and counter-harassment, Mvp was able to get his revenge without breaking a sweat.

- TSL_Center takes down another heavyweight in ByuN

The rising star of this Code A season, TSL_Center once more impressed viewers with his play in the booth. Center seemed to be on an even level with a Code S regular in Byun, and looked very strong when playing from behind. After trading the first two games in marine-tank wars, the series headed to Daybreak for the deciding set. It ended up being a game that showed why people Center could be deserving of the title Polt Jr., with Center showing cool decision making to come back from behind. After falling behind two bases to three, Center went for a hail mary doom drop that hit before ByuN could capitalize on his resource advantage. Center then executed a runby to kill Byun’s own third, and then finished the game by rushing into Byun's natural while tanks were out of siege mode. It was a great sequence from the Code A newcomer, and it appears his upcoming series with PartinG could be a lot closer than anyone would have initially thought.

- Bomber does Bomber things

With Bomber doing so well lately in foreign tournaments, his fans are anxiously waiting to see how that would translate to GSL results. Though it would be easy to call his 0 - 2 to Gumiho a typical Bomber disappointment, it's not really the case. Gumiho is easily on Bomber’s level in terms of skill and has always had Bomber’s number in the GSL (Currently 7-3 in Gumiho’s favor). Furthermore, Bomber still has the Up/Downs to look forward to, so his fans will be left nervously hanging for a few more weeks.

- Flash vs Baby: Battle of the aces

The last series of the night was a battle between the two KeSPA Terrans. Before the match started, KT_Flash had already made a name for himself with his performance at MLG and a handful of standout games from his last run in the GSL. 8th_BaBy on the other hand was given a seed to Code S after dropping from Code A last season. He wasn’t able to make much of an impression, but that all changed for him last night against Flash.

It was an exciting matchup full of different styles and build orders. In the first game, Flash took a big lead with a delayed cloaked banshee that killed 27 scvs. Baby would fight his way back into the game with incredible multi-tasking and army movement all throughout the game constantly harassing and taking small advantages in constant skirmishes. It was an incredibly fast paced game, especially considering it was mech vs mech with small armies fighting all across the map, but Baby was just too much for Flash to handle and he took the game. The second game had Flash do a fast three base BC rush that completely caught Baby off guard and he had to just GG out when the bio BC push hit him.

The last game had Baby start off with a very clever banshee into hellion drop. The banshee killed all the marines and the hellions torched all of the scvs. Despite that, Flash was able to stabilize and Baby would take it to the mid-game with a bio force against Flash’s mech. Baby once more showed his great multi-tasking, finding and exposing weaknesses in Flash’s defense with his medivac drops and runbys. Eventually, Flash was able to push out with a maxed army, but Baby was able to keep killing small parts of the army and stall it out until he caught Flash's tanks unsieged. From there, Baby’s economy and army would be too much for Flash to deal with and Baby would take the series.

Early Games – 04:10 GMT (+00:00)

TSL_Shine vs. Woongjin_sOs

In a Code A that's more stacked than ever, with match-ups one would be happy to see in Code S round of eight and beyond, Shine vs. sOs might not be the most anticipated. Most fans would be happy to call this a match between two players ‘probably belonging in Code A’ and then maybe look up the results a few days later.

But wait, there’s more!

If you look past the veneer of two players who seem forgettable in the sea of Mvps, Nesteas, Jaedongs and MCs, there is a delicious treat waiting for those of us captivated by imagery and hard to detect storylines. Because what will be played out in Mokdong is not your usual, run of the mill PvZ as much as a meeting of two people who have become almost identical but coming from opposite sides. It might feel like a stretch, but there is conclusive evidence to be had:

1. sOs is one of the premier players on Woongjin Stars, one of the overshadowed KeSPA teams. Shine on the other hand is one of the players not named Hyun, Symbol or Polt on TSL, one of the bigger SC2 teams. sOs is a big fish in a small pond in a big world. Shine is a small fish in a big pond in a small world.
2. Shine has been around Code A level for as long as anyone really cares to remember. sOs is new. Shine has never broken through into Code S even with multiple close calls. sOs made it through in his first and only try. Now they meet in Code A round of 32, like destiny intended.
3. In ZvP, Shine has looked mediocre at best. But then he beat Jangbi, who is reaching a point of becoming famously bad in the matchup to reach the round of 32. He has a very poor record statistically. Meanwhile, sOs has looked decent at PvZ, has a favorable record overall but found himself unable to provide much opposition at all to Sniper who evicted him from Code S. Shine has looked poor against Protoss during a time where Zerg struggled. sOs has looked strong against Zerg during a Proleague season where Protoss dominated.

So when sOs meets Shine, we have two players who come from wildly different backgrounds. One is considered one of the strongest players on the team, the other, one of the masses. One has only seen success in Code A, the other has found it a constant stumbling block and a source of frequent near finishes. And in PvZ, we have two players who look like they have not quite found their way, but whose success rate has mostly been what one would expect from an average player in the matchup given the field they have been facing.

Shine 2 - 1 sOs


ST_Squirtle vs. LG-IM_YongHwa

In the grand scheme of things, PvP on the eSF side of things don’t come much better than this. We have in the one corner Squirtle, one of the stalwarts of Startale, a GSL finalist and a player whose name we simply expect to see in Code S. In the other corner we have YongHwa, making his long awaited debut in Code A, an integral part of Incredible Miracle, a player who we have expected to break into Code S for ages.

Startale and Incredible Miracle have had one of the more interesting feuds in Korea. Up until Life won Code S, defeating Mvp in the finals, the rivalry had looked entirely lopsided. But the Zerg and Startale victory seemed to open the floodgates, and while Incredible Miracle has failed to impress much in after season four Parting was able to clinch another victory for the former kongs in taking the world championship in Shanghai.

For Squirtle and YongHwa, their trajectories look strangely at odds with recent team performance. Squirtle was supposed to win Code S season two, looking like the strongest player in the field for most of the competition but falling short in a memorable grand final. On the other hand, YongHwa has looked like the one player on LG-IM who has not taken a bit of a hit in his performance in the later stages of the year. For Squirtle, it has not only been impossible to replicate his Code S run, but he has largely been displaced as the best Protoss on his team and has had rather worrying results in international events. For YongHwa, he has ascended within the ranks of LG-IM, has finally broken into Code A after countless losses in preliminary finals and looks to be the next big thing coming from the most decorated eSF team.

In the end, this will be a match between two very capable PvP players, both with great practice partners and time to devote to making sure they can be in Code S for the start of 2013. It should be an enjoyable match for anyone interested in the mirror, and it should be an interesting match for anyone interested in seeing where the Startale vs. LG-IM rivalry goes next.

Yonghwa 2 - 1 Squirtle


LG-IM_ByuL vs. MVP.KeeN

Byul, the newest LG-IM acquisition comes into this match looking to build on his recent ZvT success. He eliminated MMA in very convincing fashion to get here. With Incredible Miracle looking to be a bit more fragile than a couple of seasons ago, it would do the team well to have a new player break into Code S and it would mean a lot for Byul to make his debut on a personal level.

Meanwhile, Keen had another season of coming close to moving on in Code S, but once again fell short and ended up yet again having to re-qualify through Code A. Not able to solidify his position in Code S, he also failed to turn the tide for MVP in the GSTL finals, being one of the three taken out by a rampaging Gumiho.

Byul has seen most of his success come from ZvT; featuring solid play overall and favoring strong hive based compositions. Against MMA he simply refused to be in danger for the most part and took out the former SlayerS ace with ease. Meanwhile, Keen seems to be going back and forth in his TvZ exploits, at times looking rather one dimensional with his super aggressive hellion play but at others like a new and improved macro player. It remains to be seen both whether Byul can continue to impress and solidify a growing reputation and whether Keen is starting to mature and grow to the point where his former unstable play can be fashioned into a weapon.

Keen 2 - 1 Byul


STX_Trap vs MVP.Vampire

As much as PvP seems to have evolved from a coin-flip, with players getting better at holding off rushes and taking games late, there's always going to be that feeling where you never know what could happen. The fact that every Protoss player to declare the match-up to be skill based immediately falls into a PvP slump indicates that the StarCraft gods have designated it as a permanent realm of chaos.

Already having that to consider, Vampire vs Trap is a match-up between two players of similar relative strength. Trap is one of STX’s core players and was used in their ace match against SKT, but fell to Rain in a late game PvP. Vampire is part of MVP’s large Protoss roster, but distinguished himself by making his way into Code S last season by taking a PvP series off PartinG, only to get knocked out by Ryung in two Code S series. It’s a hard match to predict, but Trap's strong showing against Rain in the Proleague (even though he lost) is the lasting image in my mind, so I'll go with him here.

Trap 2 - 1 Vampire


Late Games – 09:10 GMT (+00:00)


SK_MC vs Samsung_RorO

Here we have one of ESF’s favorite players against the once strongest zerg Kespa had to offer, Roro. Both players were in a good place last month with MC making a third place run in OSL while Roro was killing people at WCS Asia and Code A. Now a month later, they’ve both cooled off significantly. MC got a nice third place in OSL, but has since then been losing most of his matches against Code S level opposition. Roro couldn’t break past his group of death in WCS, nobly sacrificing himself to give hope to IdrA fans. This will be a nice checkup for both of them. MC’s most famous match-up is his PvZ, but his all-ins just don't look as sharp as they used to. Similarly, Roro made his name in SC2 off of his ZvP, but he hasn't had a high profile match in that match-up for a while. I’m expecting Roro to win here as his standard Zerg style matches well against MC’s aggressive tendencies.

Roro 2 - 0 MC


SKT_Fantasy vs MVP.finale

In one of the most interesting matches of the night, we have Fantasy vs Finale. Fantasy, was one of the last two players to have switched over to SC2 due to his OSL with Jangbi. While he has less time compared to his Kespa counterparts, he has quickly improved and evolved already making a nice run in Code B and Code A while still contributing to SKT in the Proleague. On the other hand, Finale is probably the best Protoss player from MVP. He’s been impressive in PvT showing strong aggressive timings as well as defensive macro play. This one's a near toss-up, but we'll take a chance on the rapidly improving Fantasy.

Fantasy 2 - 1 Finale


Liquid`HerO vs. LG-IM_First
Liquid`TaeJa vs. Genius

The key factor in this pair of matches is the effect of travel. HerO and TaeJa have been traveling non-stop for nearly three weeks, beginning with DreamHack Winter, and continuing onto IPL5 and the NASL grand finals. The huge break GSL took for IPL5 means First and Genius (he did have a brief excursion at IPL5) have had almost nothing else to prepare for in the last few weeks, and to make things even worse for the Liquid aces, they'll be dead tired since they'll be playing their games on the same day as their arrival in Seoul.

This all seems very bad on paper, but anecdotal evidence tells us that it might not matter so much. Back in August, then-GSL champion Seed had to play against Gumiho in WCS Korea just two hours after a touching down in Incheon, and still managed to take a 2 – 1 victory over a formidable, well-prepared opponent. Though it's just one example, it might lead one to believe that when a player is red hot, they're always going to find a way to get things done.

In that regard, few players are hotter than HerO is at the moment, coming off double championships at DreamHack Winter and NASL Season Four. While you could argue that the competition in Sweden was a bit soft (consisting mostly of foreigners), HerO's run through TaeJa, Polt, and viOLet in Long Beach was extremely impressive.

First would have been a huge favorite against HerO months ago, back when the Liquid player was still struggling with the PvP match-up. A PvT and PvP expert, First demonstrated his superior understanding of late game PvP tactics as he took out HerO at August's MLG Summer Championship. However, since then, HerO has had something of a PvP epiphany, defeating Seed (x2), PartinG, BabyKnight, and San in major tournaments. Now, it looks to be very even match-up.

While TaeJa isn't nearly as hot as HerO, he looks to be in a good spot against Genius. He has a great record against his old NEX clanmate in prior meetings, and the backstage rumors at IPL5 were that Genius is barely playing StarCraft II nowadays.

Yet, this is Genius we're talking about – a player who has a weird knack for sticking around in Code S and winning as the underdog. Already this Code A, he's beaten hyvaa with three consecutive all-in builds, even making a classic, nearly antiquated 4-gate somehow work in PvZ. Famous for his void-ray all-in in PvT, it still seems good for at least one win every time he goes up against a Terran opponent, even if they know it's coming in at least one of the sets. Seeing as how HerO all-ined TaeJa successfully at DreamHacK and NASL, Genius could take the victory here if he plays his cards right.

First 2 – 1 HerO
TaeJa 2 – 0 Genius