- This power rank only includes players who dabbled in SC2 and mostly serves to give an idea of how good the top players today were in WC3. The most notable players who never tried to switch include: Fly, TH000, Ted, Lucifer, Fov, Sweet, Reign, SoJu, Zacard, Insomnia, Deadman, and HoT.
- Note that I'm ranking mostly based on overall achievements. Players will get bonus points points for being in the scene longer. Ranking based on other criteria would result in different placements, especially for the top players.
Unofficial TL WC3 Power Rank
1. Grubby(O)/Moon(NE)/Sky(H)
There is no question that these three players are the best of their respective regions (Europe/Korea/China). However, there is consistent debate as to which of these players is the best and I'm not going to fuel that fire. Instead, I'll list each player's merits and have you decide.
Grubby was always the face of foreign Warcraft III. He dominated foreign WC3 and was always considered the best foreigner since 2004 when he won WCG over Zacard. Since then, he's won multiple WCGs, ESWCs, and Blizzcons, the most successful player in tournaments that aren't hosting in Korea or China. Grubby slumped around 2007, a time when he and other Orcs were having trouble with NE and especially Human. He eventually rebounded though and was considered the best out of the big three at the end of WC3. When asked about who he thinks is the best player of all time, Grubby simply calmly states that he has been the most consistent of the three over the longest period of time. To his credit, this is true as even though Grubby had his slumps, he never sank as low as the other two. The opposite argument is that he arguably was never as dominant as the other two. Playstyle-wise, Grubby was one of the smartest players, often winning games that many thought were unwinnable. WC3 played to Grubby's strengths in this way because it was a game that had a lot of potential decisions and allowed for comebacks.
Achievements
- 1st Cyber X Gaming
- 1st WCG 2004
- 1st ESWC 2005
- 1st Blizzcon 2005
- 3rd WCG 2005
- 2nd Blizzard WWI 2006
- 2nd WEG Masters
- 3rd KODE5
- 1st WSVG 2006
- 3rd BNet Season IV
- 4th WSVG China
- 3rd ESWC 2007
- 3rd Battle.Net Season V (BlizzCon)
- 3rd Blizzard WWI 2008
- 3rd World e-Sports Masters
- 1st WCG 2008
- 1st e-Stars Seoul 2009 Kotg
- 2nd Battle.Net Season VII (BlizzCon)
- 2nd NGL-ONE Season 6
- 2nd e-Stars Seoul 2010 Kotg
- 4th BNet Season VIII (BlizzCon)
- 2nd WCG 2010
Achievements
- 1st WEG1
- 1st WEG2
- 4th WEG Masters
- 1st IEST
- 1st Game-X
- 1st WSVG China
- 4th Blizzard WWI 2007
- 3rd WCG 2007
- 1st PGL2
- 2nd PGL3
- 4th World e-Sports Masters
- 2nd WCG 2008
- 1st IEST 2008
- 4th e-Stars Seoul 2009 Kotg
- 1st NGL-ONE Season 6
- 1st e-Stars Seoul 2010 Kotg
- 3rd BNet Season VIII (BlizzCon)
- 2nd ESWC 2010
- 1st IEST 2011
Sky entered the scene relatively late compared to the other two players, but he made an incredible splash when he won 2005. Since then, he has been akin to Boxer in China, i.e. the face of Chinese esports. In the game, he revolutionized and standardized every Human matchup with the help of his Chinese Human counterparts, Infi and TH000. These include:
- Tier 1 harass, mercenaries, and Panda in HvH
- Tower pushes and expo to mass gryphon in HvO
- Mass tank/flying machine in HvU
- 1 base pushes, mass tank/flying machine, and 2 base pushes in HvNE
Achievements
- 3rd WEG 1
- 1st ACON 5
- 4th ESWC 2005
- 1st WCG 2005
- 3rd WEG Masters
- 1st PGL I
- 3rd ESWC 2006
- 1st WCG 2006
- 2nd IEST 2006
- 2nd WSVG China
- 3rd/4th Blizzard WWI 2007
- 2nd WCG 2007
- 2nd PGL II
- 3rd PGL III
- 2nd ESWC 2008
- 2nd IEST 2008
- 2nd PGL IV
- 1st PGL Championship Challenge
- 2nd WCG 2011
4. Lyn(O)
Lyn is undoubtedly the second best Korean ever. He had played during the beginning of TFT, notably losing to Moon in a finals. Then he fell off the radar for a while(he might have briefly quit) before he came back with a vengeance. From 2007 onward, he was consistently one of the top players and probably better than Grubby overall except for a few short periods. He had exceptional micro and contributed the addition of spirit walkers to Orc vs Undead.
Achievements
- 4th ESWC 2007
- 2nd Blizzard WWI 2008
- 1st BNet Season VI (BlizzCon)
- 2nd World e-Sports Masters
- 2nd e-Stars Seoul 2009 Kotg
- 1st BNet Season VII (BlizzCon)
- 3rd WCG 2009
- 3rd NGL-ONE Season 6
- 3rd e-Stars Seoul 2010 Kotg
- 2nd ESWC 2010
- 3rd WCG 2010
- 2nd IEST 2011
- 1st WCG 2011
5. Tod(H)
Tod was definitively the second best European player, but always took a backseat to Grubby, especially when they were on 4K together. Tod is the face of European humans, adopting a more classical style of human compared to the more modern style of Chinese humans. Tod's biggest accomplishment is perhaps that he won the most prestigious WC3 tournament ever, WEG Masters. He trained in both Korean and China, but quit the game about a year before SC2 was released due to not enjoying it anymore.
Achievements
- 4th ESWC 2003
- 3rd WCG 2004
- 3rd Blizzcon 2007
- 2nd CIG 2005
- 2nd World e-Sports Festival
- 2nd KODE5
- 2nd WCG 2006
- 4th BNet Season IV
- 1st Blizzard WWI 2007
- 3rd IEST 2008
6. Infi(H)
Infi was seen as Sky's younger sibling as they were on the same team and shared strategies. His most defining trait was his usage of towers, whether defensively or offensively. It was not uncommon for to see an Infi game with over 100 towers built. At the end of WC3, he surpassed Sky in skill.
Achievements
- 1st KODE5
- 1st World e-Sports Masters
- 4th IESF 2008
- 3rd/4th PGL IV
- 1st WCG 2009
- 2nd IESF 2009
- 2nd BNet Season VIII (BlizzCon)
- 1st IESF 2010
- 3rd IESF 2011
7. Remind(NE)
Remind had excellent micro and would have been one of the greats had he not been so terrible against Undead early in his career. Then one day, he suddenly figured the matchup out and started realized his potential. Ever since 2007, he had gradually been getting better and he peaked near the end of WC3 and was considered one of the best, if not the best, in the world when he won WCG 2010 over Grubby. He was also part of the best 2v2 team ever in WC3 with SoJu where he played his offrace, Orc
Achievements
- 2nd ACON 5
- 4th CIG
- 1st BNet Season IV
- 2nd BNet Season V (BlizzCon)
- 1st BNet Season VIII (BlizzCon)
- 3rd ESWC 2010
- 1st WCG 2010
8. Creolophus(NE)
Creolophus was a prodigy who shares many characteristics with Snute and Stephano. Like Snute, he is a charismatic Norwegian. Likewise, he shares even more with Stephano:
- They're both intelligent player, often aiming to outsmart their opponents with efficiency.
- Both are nearly undefeated against Grubby(Creo was completely undefeated against him after joining 4k)
- Most importantly, they quit(or plan to quite) the game near their respective peaks.
Achievements
- 2nd ESWC 2007
- 1st BNet Season V (BlizzCon)
- 1st WCG 2007
8.5 Madfrog(U)
Madfrog is difficult to place, because although he was one of the most successful players and a WC3 legend, he quit the game before WC3 competition really took off. He mostly famously popularized gargoyle harass in NE, a cornerstone of the matchup until late in WC3.
Achievements
- 2nd ESWC 2003
- 1st Blizzard WWI 2004
- 2nd ESWC 2004
9. Lucifron(O)
WC3 was often regarded as a old boy's club as very few players could break into the scene. Lucifron was one of the only two players, along with Violet, who accomplished this. However, unfortunately many discredit him for abusing Orc, similar to how the SC2 scene calls WoL Zergs patchzergs.
Achievements
- 2nd BNet Season VI (BlizzCon)
10. Soccer(NE)
Aka SlayerS_Ven, Soccer was one of the best players near the end of WC3. He was especially known for his NE vs Human and his Warden usage in all matchups. Because he was on MYM and then WMF with Moon, he was often referred to as mini-Moon.
Achievements
- 3rd BNet Season VII (BlizzCon)
- 2nd KODE5
11. GoStop(U)
Called the Nerubian King for his successful usage of crypt fiends. Almost beat Moon 2-3 in WEG2. He quit in 2007.
Achievements
- 2nd WEG III
- 2nd WEG II
12. Check(NE)
Check has been around forever in the WC3 scene, and though he has always been relevant, he was always considered mediocre for a Korean late into his career. He's also known for his relatively low APM for a Korean. He switched to Orc for a brief period during early WC3.
Achievements
- 4th PGL I
- 4th BNet Season VI (BlizzCon)
- 4th PGL Championship Challenge
13. Focus(O)
One of the better Korean players, Focus was consistently relevant starting from when he started playing in 2007, but never surpassed the Korean greats in tournaments. He won a lot of Zotac cups though. He tried SC2 for one GSL season but returned back to China to play WC3. He still plays WC3 to this day I believe.
Achievements
- 4th NGL-ONE Season 6
14. Violet(O)
Like Lucifron, Violet is the other player who really broke into the scene late into the game and did quite well online. Because of his Korean heritage however, he very rarely got to go overseas because of the difficulty of qualifying for offline tournaments via Korean qualifiers.
15. Happy(U)
Happy is mainly known for two things:
- He had good micro and extremely high APM.
- He only ever had four strategies total, one against each race. As such, he is probably the most predictable player in all of esports.
Achievements
- 3rd BNet Season VI (BlizzCon)
- 3rd WCG 2008
- 4th WCG 2009
- 4th e-Stars Seoul 2010 Kotg
- 4th ESWC 2010
16. SaSe(NE)
SaSe lived in China for a very long time to train and almost always reached the top 16 of tournaments. He was certainly capable of beating anyone, but has never won an international tournament.
Achievements
- 4th World e-Sports Festival
17. xiaoT(O)
Once the second best Chinese player after Sky, xiaoT's results eventually fell off and he quit the game. His OvO was especially weak in a time when Orc was doing well. He promised to returned in SC2 and dominate, but he quickly gave up on that as well.
Achievements
- 4th PGL II
18. Xlord(U)
Hands down, the best German player in WC3. He was restricted from competing in EPS tournaments early on because of his young age. Also known for being BM, something his teammate, miou, once famously complained about.
19. Demuslim(H)
A promising player who joined 4k right before it collapsed. After that, he seemed to disappear from the scene.
20. Satiini(NE)
A curious NE who never went to lans because he had a fear of traveling.
21. Hasuobs(U)
Another great German player. He had some epic games versus Moon with mass gargoyles.
Achievements
- 4th KODE 5
21. miou(H)
Yet another great German who dominated EPS before Xlord was allowed to play.
Achievements
- 4th ACON 5
(Around this point, it gets a bit arbitrary. I'm still trying to list in relative skill though.)
ThorZaiN(H): Started quite late and was getting good near the end of WC3
Macsed(NE): Was consistently overshadowed by other Chinese players and was probably better than this ranking suggests.
Rotterdam(O): Known for using Farseer when everyone used Blademaster. Also known for being good at OvO and sometimes qualifying over Grubby in Dutch qualifiers.
Ciara(O): Known for being recruited onto EG so they could have a third player to play team leagues with.
Titan(NE): One of the better Russians near the end of WC3
Nightend(U): An underrated Undead player.
Vortix(U): Was way overshadowed by his brother. However, in interviews, Lucifron stated that Vortix had a better win ratio against him than any other Undead in the world.
Kas(H): Known for getting into semifinals of online cups
Elfiittaja(U): A decent Undead.
Targa(NE): Honestly don't remember much
Naama(?): Was the brother of another WC3 player, Sein. Otherwise, don't remember much.
Kiwikaki(O):: Probably the second best player from North America near the end of WC3, overshadowed only by Nilknarf.
Naniwa(U): Known more for BM than skill
Stephano(H): I can't recall any major accomplishments, but he did go to LANs and went a bit far into cups.
SjoW(H): Known for being a part of the best 2v2 team with Delicato in early WC3.
Bly4eg(U): Mostly online player
Cruncher(U): One of the better North Americans near the end of WC3
Moonglade(NE): A night elf. Possibly higher, I don't remember much.
Take(H): I just remember it being funny that he was on the same team as a player named tak3r.
Axslav(R): Known for his 2v2 team with Strifeco. They both massed huntresses and consistently beat all other top teams which consisted of top 1v1 players. Played random in WC3.
Strifeco(NE): see Axslav
Outliers
Polt(?): Qualified for Korean MBC Prime League in 2005-2006, but never made it very deep at all. He was restricted by school and didn't play full-time.
Select(NE): Did well on Korean ladder but never made huge accomplishments and only played for a short period of time.