The year was 2006. Hwang "Sonic" Hyo Jin was in his third year of high school when he decided to move to Seoul for a casting job and subsequently, to run his own OnGameNet (OGN) show. He finished high school 2 years later and enlisted in the military to complete his mandatory service. This gave him ample amounts of time to contemplate his future direction upon release. After much thought, Sonic decided on a course of action which included opening up his own shoe-selling online business, Sinbal Farm through his own savings and using this business to support his BW endeavors. His BW endeavors consisted of running and sponsoring multiple online leagues and tournaments, however, his lasting legacy was built around his biggest tournament, the SonicTV BJ Starleague (SSL).

As one of the most popular leagues in the post-KeSPA era due to its player lineup, game quality and prizepool, SSL ran for a total of 11 iterations, including a special edition named SSL6.5 and became the flagship starleague that was well liked by the fans. The first SSL was organized and casted by Sonic back in the second half of 2010. Sonic's vision was pretty simple and involved catering to the often forgotten crowd, the amateur players while big name players fought on the OnGameNet Starleague (OSL) and MBCGame StarCraft League (MSL) grand stage.
Being the sole organizer and one of the main sponsors, Sonic had complete control over his league. He decided on the formatting, players and the map pool. Amateur players such as Sea.KH, LYH, Minus)Eagle, force[Name], Cookie etc... filled the ranks of the early SSLs. From these competitive battlefields rose a diverse set of champions with Terror, force[Name], Sea.KH and Shinee all claiming victory and taking first place in the 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th SSL respectively. In July 2011, the 5th edition of SSL commenced. By this point, 24 players were actively participating compared to only 8 players in the first SSL and the prize pool sat at ￦1,150,000 ($1,035).

The format which remained similar for future SSLs, excluding the last two, was dual tournament group stages (various combinations of BoX series) followed by an elimination round starting in the Ro8 and finishing off with a Bo5 or Bo7 finals. It was around this time that rumours from TIG surfaced regarding MSL's non-existent future but they were denied. SSL5 concluded a month later with Candy coming out as the final victor after he defeated IcaruS, SSL1 champion Terror and then SSL2 champion force[Name], 4-0 in the finals. Neither Sea.KH or Shinee were able to make it past the Ro8 to try and defend or claim another title. All seemed well in the StarCraft world until...

Several months later, the rumours were proven to be true as the Korean gaming channel MBCGame, the main broadcaster of MSL, failed to secure sponsors and switched to a music channel. One of the most cherished BW leagues gone in the blink of an eye, ABC Mart MSL turned out to be the last MSL with its finals concluding on June 11, 2011. TeamLiquid even wrote a memoriam to mark this sad event. The OSL, MSL's rival which was broadcasted on OnGameNet and had its longest history with BW since it's early inception in 1999 was also shutting down! Tving OSL was the last BW OSL with its finals concluding on August 4, 2012.


As if this wasn't enough, the final blow was the plan to switch Proleague from BW into StarCraft II. The hybrid Proleague, which was the last time BW teams fought on such a stage finished a little over a month after Tving OSL, on Sept 22, 2012. Within almost a year, BW lost all of its prestigious tournaments and fans were in complete despair over the whole affair. While some opted to leave the scene completely, others stuck around hoping to rebuild the scene from the ground up; a grassroots movement to return BW to its former glory.

During all this, Sonic continued to work tirelessly to expand his business and ran 3 SSLs (6, 6.5 and 7th edition) in 2012. Stories of him casting for 8 hours straight were spoken off on a daily basis and his passion and energy for the game constantly emanated from his casts. Using his charisma, he was able to acquire several sponsors such as Stuff Farm, Old Man Team and others. With their help as well as his own personal sponsorship and the viewers' donations (SSL6), he was able to increase the prize pool and even had a special edition, SSL6.5 sponsored by Onse Telecom.


SSL6 and 6.5 had a prize pool of around ￦2,500,000 ($2,250) and featured the largest addition of ex-professionals at the time with HiyA, Pusan, Mong, Sky, Anytime, BackHo, StarCue and Casy making their SSL debut. The addition of these players increased the game quality immensely. From this new group, Sky was the first player to make his own mark as he dispatched Anytime, Pusan and HiyA to take first place in SSL6. He also made a large impact in SSL6.5, placing second behind Mong, the pig terran who reverse-swept him 4-3 in the finals. Mong himself went on to become a formidable competitor in future SSLs due to his macro and multitasking.
SSL7 was a bit different from previous SSLs. Due to the sudden disappearance of the prestigious starleagues, Sonic decided to act fast in order to help out a scene teetering on the edge. As someone who felt indebted to the scene and its players for providing him with years of entertainment, he decided to restructure SSL from the 7th iteration, which started in Sept 2012, to conform to his new vision. The restructuring included a whole slew of drastic changes such as an expansion to accommodate more players (32 from 24), an increased prize pool which sat at ￦7,000,000 ($6,300), and a brand new map, Wind and Cloud made by the infamous 변종석 (Rose.of.Dream.) who was commissioned by Sonic and is known for making classic maps such as Fighting Spirit.


More importantly though, SSL7 marked the first time that players played their games offline. In the later rounds, games were played out in Sonic's improvised Sinbal farm studio which had three different rooms; one for the players with Juicegirls present, one for the casters and one small room for the fans to watch from. The finals were played out in Kongkuk University Millennial Auditorium rented out by Sonic with Kim Carry joining the cast.


SSL7 featured a lot of entertaining games, storylines and budding rivalries, the most prevalent one being the Larva and PerfectMan rivalry where the two were going at each others' throats on Afreeca. They met up in the quarterfinals where Larva edged out PerfectMan in game 5, relying on his solid ZvP that has carried him far this SSL. Pusan ended up making the quarterfinals on the back of meticulous map preparation while Sky advanced through the heavy use of cheesy strategies that left his opponents such as HiyA confounded.

The biggest news of all though was the return of Jaedong's closest teammate and ex-Hwaseung Oz zerg Killer to the scene. Killer, known as mini-dong, who was an up and coming zerg in the KeSPA era, showed his mettle this SSL through utter domination of the competition. He went 13-2 on his way to the finals where he beat Larva 4-1 to win his first SSL title. To celebrate, he even danced to gangnam style on stage!


Though it all sounds rosy and peachy, SSL7 didn't go off without a hitch. Licensing problems due to the prize pool surpassing the $5,000 threshold threatened the finals but were quickly resolved by Sonic. All in all, SSL7 was quite successful. The starleague was finally starting to hit its stride and grow as a legitimate tournament due to various external and internal factors. With it gaining steam, Sonic looked for bigger sponsors that can help him improve his starleague. If only things had stabilized from this point forth...

Unfortunately, human nature and greed go hand in hand at times. A couple of weeks after SSL7 ended, allegations of match-fixing surfaced. As Sonic was casting some matches, he got a tip from a reliable source that there was some match-fixing occurring in his leagues. This led him to abruptly give walkovers and stop the cast before posting a message online explaining the situation.
While he understood that it's hard to root out match-fixing, he also decided that he will not run anymore leagues. One can't really fault Sonic's decision. After all, the matchfixing incident in the past eroded the trust of sponsors and made fans question the legitimacy of the games. It looked like the beginning of the end all over again for BW!

Sonic took several weeks off to cool down and think things through quite thoroughly considering his hasty decision. He was also given advice from several prominent Korean community members. With their advice in mind and his fans rallying behind him, including support from the TL BW community, Sonic rebounded. His passion flaring more brightly than ever, he announced SSL8. Despite the match-fixing allegations, he was determined to make his starleague even bigger and better than before.



SSL8 had a new sponsor in ItemBay who helped increase the prize pool to ￦11,800,000 ($10,620) and saw the return of former casters Lee Seung Wong and Kim Carrier, a pleasant surprise for many fans. SSL8 also had an MSL style group selection, a brand new map, Pamir Plateau made by 변종석 (Rose.of.Dream.), added to a new map pool and a bigger improvised studio. More ex-professional players rejoined the scene and competition such as Sea, hero, sSak, Iris, Movie, Shuttle etc... leading to even tougher competition and increasing the possibility of a BW revival in the eyes of many fans.


SSL8 had its own surprises and storylines; the early exit of Sea and Iris, two players who many were hopeful for, in the Ro32, Larva's subtle BM to kkong in one of their Ro32 games and his solid ZvP skills that he's been slowly getting recognized for (he was Bisu's practice partner after all!) and sSak's run to the semifinals before meeting and losing to the eventual champion, Killer. Of course, who can forget the fantastic run by the amateur zerg ZeLoT, Sayle's favourite zerg, who eliminated previous SSL champion Sky in Ro32 then Ample in the Ro16 off the back of aggressive and cheesy gameplay.

Before the finals started, there was an even bigger surprise for the viewers. A big BW fan who was blind decided to sing for the crowd. As the story goes, BW sounds are pretty unique and clear, thus he was able to hear them and make out what was going on as a result. However, StarCraft II sounds are much more difficult to listen to so he was unable to follow the action. It was a very touching moment for the fans.


Killer ended up dominating this SSL even more than the last, dropping a single game on his way to the finals where he dispatched HiyA 3-1 to win it all. He became the only player in the history of the starleague to have two championships under his belt and the closest to getting the golden shoe. His dominating performance at the time signaled to all other zergs that Killer will not relinquish the zerg throne!


By the time SSL8 ended, one thing was becoming crystal clear. SSL had grown as a competition and was now fielding a lot of notable ex-professionals. These ex-professionals, whose skills were a cut above the majority of amateur players, had started to dominate the competition and were slowly starting to squeeze out the original bloodline of SSL. The competition had become much more ruthless and 2013 brought with it major changes for both Sinbal Farm and SSL.

As 2013 rolled on, Sonic decided on a change in his business plans. Until then, Sinbal Farm had only been selling famous shoe brands such as Nike. Sonic decided that it would be best if he designed and sold his own shoes, thus SBENU was born. SBENU was heavily marketed using Kpop groups and celebrities such as IU and Song Jae-rim. The shoes went on to become popular with teenagers and young adults. Sonic's business by then had already started to blossom due to his hard work and with the addition of SBENU, it paid off in dividends for the BW scene.


Realizing that the starleague was getting much larger in scale, Sonic started investing in a new studio which opened towards the end of 2013. The opening of this new studio, able to fit 100 spectators, was a joyful occasion marked with some showmatches between top players such as Killer and Bisu, who returned to the scene months prior, with a winner take all format. This was sponsored by Boardtrader, a board renting company who were fans of StarCraft.


With this recent addition, SSL9 which started in January 2014 was now completely played offline, allowing fans to watch their favourite players from the new cozy studio. There was a large hiccup early on after the original sponsor Monkey3 Music pulled out after some contractual changes that they proposed were rejected by Sonic. However, a new sponsor, Humanworks (FIX headphones) was secured after the successful group selection ceremony helping to increase the prize pool to ￦18,000,000 ($16,200). SSL9 also had stargirls again (had juicegirls before), a new map, Mist created by 김응서 (Earthattack) and was promoted by Blizzard using their social media and homepage.


The starleague was even more stacked now as the revolutionist Bisu, the queen's son ZerO, two time OSL champion JangBi, MSL Champion Mind, PianO, Modesty and old timers' Zeus and Midas joined the competition. With a strong lineup of players who were taking the competition seriously, game quality increased further and upsets were abound such as Mong knocking out the two time SSL champion Killer in the Ro32 and having to apologize to the fans afterwards (he made Ro8 with his girlfriend's support), Midas getting knocked out in last place in Ro32 and ZerO, PianO and JangBi all getting eliminated in the Ro16.

On the other hand, Bisu showed why he should be considered the undisputed number one protoss by cruising to the finals through strong gameplay with only Larva and Mind putting up much of a fight. The other finalist, hero, had a much rougher time but still prevailed in the end to make the grand finals. Their series was highly anticipated and went all the way to game 5 with Bisu coming out on top with a two gate opener. It was a great way to close off another successful starleague as many started to see SSL slowly starting to rival the starleagues of old.


It was almost everything that the fans dreamed off. A big sponsored offline tournament that was stacked with the best players playing high quality games with storylines and massive hype surrounding each iteration. There was just one thing that was missing, something that can reflect BW's new status and its ascend back into the spotlight. Something that many fans wished for dearly.
With the help of Kim Carry and his thriving business, Sonic was able to convince OGN of the merits of broadcasting BW. In the eyes of some fans, this was the last thing needed to revive the OSL. Our own tight-knit community on TL was abuzz with people discussing the definition of OSL and whether having OGN onboard officially made SSL, the new OSL. Will SSL now continue the lineage of the old famous starleague? If Bisu won the next SSL, did he officially win an OSL then? What about the golden mouse? Just a few of the many thoughts that floated around.


It was a great time to be a fan as optimism was at its highest!

The next SSL did not disappoint either. Rather, the next SSL was so successful that OGN was surprised at the extremely positive reception, even agreeing to help in the production of more starleagues. With OGN on board, the prize pool now reached a whopping ￦50,000,000 ($45,000) and with their help, production was kicked up a notch! Player and hype videos, which were already decent during previous SSLs reached a new level with a much more experienced crew helping out.


SSL10 began towards the end of 2014 with a slight change in format; dual tournament was changed for round robin in the Ro16. This mimicked the OSL format and helped in terms of scheduling broadcasts. It saw the return of fan favourites such as Snow, Last, firebathero and ToSsGirL, the return of two older maps from the 2008-09 era (Sin Peaks of Baekdu and Return of the King) and a new 128 man amateur tournament with the winner advancing to the main tournament.


Games from the Ro16 onward were broadcasted on OGN and the finals were played in Jamsil Students' Gymnasium. This location was the location of the last OSL and was intended to make a clear statement: BW is back in all its glory! The only thing that was missing was Bisu and Sea with the former opting out to rest after his grueling SSL9 victory took quite a toll on him while not much is known about the latter's intentions.

"BW is back in all its glory!"

SSL10 truly delivered and was the exact definition of hype. Major highlights included Last's run through his opponents using his TvT prowess, group B tie breakers in the Ro16 lasting over 3 hours that saw JangBi eliminated, zerg extinction in the Ro16 followed by protoss extinction in the Ro8 (were dominant beforehand) and Mong taking third place after defeating HiyA. Of course, who can forget sSak edging out Last 3-2 in the grand finals after getting advice from his former teammate, FanTaSy. Many wondered if he would continue the SKT T1 terran lineup and become the new prince! One can't forget about IU's performance in the finals and all the commercials that constantly ran throughout SSL10 such as "Candy, Candy you are My Candy" and "Style, Start, SBENU"?


Side note: While SSL10 was underway, another smaller tournament sprung up. The HungryApp Starz League sponsored by Kongdoo (KSL) had a similar stacked lineup with both Bisu and Sea participating. Though it was smaller in magnitude due to its 16 player pool, it radiated professionalism, much like SSL. It also helped greatly that Yellow, the former kong, was CEO of Kongdoo. Both tournaments ran side by side, reminiscent of the coexistence of OSL and MSL. The possibility of both tournaments continuing to run together for years to come was a thought that many pondered.

Really, to say that the beginning of 2015 felt amazing is a bit of an understatement.

Despite all the hardships that our game faced, it was on the rise again! Sonic managed to pull off a miracle! Many wrote off the possibility of getting a large offline BW tournament, especially one that was broadcasted on OGN after the OSL finished in 2012. Yet, here we were, 2.5 years later with a stacked tournament with a decent prize pool that was broadcasted on OGN. At this point, the BW community had already gotten a lot more than what many thought possible. Regardless, Sonic continued to impress the fans.

Before SSL11 started, Sonic weighed in on the concern of lack of new blood in the scene. If there are no new players that can challenge these ex-professionals, the scene is bound to regress/end when many of them retire and move on. It was a huge problem that had to be tackled sooner or later if BW was to maintain its current grip and grow further. Sonic recognized this major problem and formed team BBARAS acting as their manager. BBARAS consisted of 5 (mostly) amateur players: Bale, BishOp, Luna, Olympus and Sharp.

He provided them with space to practice and even brought in Child, Soulkey's former coach to help them out. He scheduled matches for them with other players and even made some funny videos discussing his thoughts, showing the practice environment and providing the players with some exposure.


Suffice to say, all eyes were on these players to see if they can benefit from this new practice environment. Olympus and Sharp were the only participants from BBARAS in SSL11 and both advanced from the new challenger round after beating Sea and Lazy respectively to make it to the main tournament. With the challenger round completed and the player pool determined, SSL11 resumed in the second quarter of 2015. It had a similar format and prize pool to SSL10 with a pretty stacked line-up which included the previous SSL9 champion Bisu and EffOrt, a former OSL champion and S-class player who had recently come back to the scene.


With a line-up of players that rivaled OSL and MSL, game quality was at its highest since the starleague's inception. This SSL featured many surprises, upsets and drama. EffOrt who managed to make it to the Ro16 withdrew and forfeit after losing his first game to Mind, citing launcher problems, favoritism and personal issues. This led to tiebreakers which saw previous SSL10 champion sSak eliminated. Last was also eliminated in the Ro16 by Killer and ZerO. OSL curse at work? Olympus rose to the challenge and made the Ro16 much to everyone's surprise while his teammate Sharp was eliminated from the onset in the Ro32.

Killer who was looking for his third SSL championship was swept by Mind in the Ro8 while Mong was unable to surpass his previous third place finish. hero was the player to watch this SSL. He made the finals and stomped his competition on the way dropping a single game to free while the other finalist, Bisu had a rougher ride coming close to elimination by Mind. The two met on the fated grand finals stage. A chance for hero to exact revenge for his SSL9 defeat. Unlike SSL9, it was all hero this time as he shut out Bisu 3-0 to become the last SSL champion at Korea University Hwajeong Gymnasium!


Little did we know at the time what the future held in store and that the dream will come to an end. As we all waited excitedly for SSL12 to be announced, Sonic kept expanding further into esports. He sponsored LoL Champions, GSL and a StarCraft II team. He even went as far as signing a deal with Manchester United to help market his products outside Korea. Cracks slowly started to show as Sonic stretched himself thin and claimed that he was unable to convince his board of directions about the reason for continuing his starleague:
With KSL slowly starting to take center stage now, Sonic deferred attention to them apologizing for being unable to deliver on more starleagues and hoped that they would be able to provide the fans with BW now. Months later, details are revealed about Sonic's financial situation and business dealings. Though the SonicTV BJ Starleague closed off for good with the 11th edition, one can't help but wonder where SSL would have been now had things continued as they were. With the return of TBLS and rising stars such as Soulkey and Rain, there was always a possibility, no matter how small, that BW will once again attain the same height it reached before and potentially more under SSL's banner.

Sonic, as a huge fan of SSL, I can't thank you enough. I doubt any of the fans can thank you enough either. You were BW's light for years and helped to support a devastated scene through your passion and work ethics. There is no telling what state our scene would be in right now had it not been for your support. Moving forward, ASL is now carrying the BW banner but SSL will always have a special place in our hearts.
 
 


 
 


Writer: BigFan
Graphics: shiroiusagi
Photo Credits: Sinbal Farm, Daily esports
Sources: Liquipedia, DES
Special Thanks: 2Pacalypse- for his feedback/css/js help and prech and Epoxide for their feedback