Ro8 Interviews [NEW 2/16]

PokerStrategy.com TSL:
The interview is a little after the fact, but how were you feelings after the 5th game against ret? Were you nervous going into it?

DuskBin.Sen:
I went to my grandmother's house along with my family after my series against ret to celebrate for Chinese New year, which is why I did not have the time for an interview at that point .

I was really nervous when our series got to game 5, because as you know the prize money for TSL is really a lot. I actually had a lot of thoughts for the opening build before game 5 started, and decided to go 12 pool expand, but due to the fact that he was playing greedily the past 4 games I changed my initial plan and went from 12 pool hatch to 12 hatch pool instead.

The outcome was really out of my expectation that ret only wanted to push the game to the Mutalisk stage, hence I took advantage of that. I wanted to exploit the timing by mass Zerglings attacking when his Mutalisks were hatching and his Overlords were leaving my base

PokerStrategy.com TSL:
How did you prepare for this series?

DuskBin.Sen:
I prepared a lot before the series. Especially against Zergs, I know when they make static defense they will tend to overestimate the strenght of their defense. Hence as long as ret built a Sunken, I tried to exploit the timing when his Mutalisks were hatching and attack with Zerglings. I didn't expect my attacks to be so efficient, and was kind of surprised actually. I feel this was the weakness coming from ret's lack of experience in ZvZ and I prepared in order to take advantage of it.

PokerStrategy.com TSL:
Did you consider yourself the underdog against ret?

DuskBin.Sen:
No, I did not consider myself the underdog against ret at all. F91 has provided me with many strategies for every map, including the most appropriate builds and their risks. He also spent a whole day practicing with me. I felt confident going into the series.

PokerStrategy.com TSL:
You have another ZvZ coming up vs Mondragon. You were in ToT right? What are your thoughts about him?

DuskBin.Sen:
Yea he used to be my teammate back in ToT days and has always been one of the best players around since 2004. Even though I stopped the game for a period, I had a chance to witness his series against Fenix and BRAT_OK and he looked much stronger than before. I'm going to have a tough ZvZ semi-final

PokerStrategy.com TSL:
Many considered Idra a sure win against you or Mondragon. But now that it is a guaranteed PvZ final, and your ZvP is quite strong, were you excited when you found out Nony won?

DuskBin.Sen:
Yeah I watched the broadcast and I'm very surprised to see Nony beating Idra. To be honest, I feel the feeling of joy much more than the feeling of surprise. ZvT has been the matchup I have had the greatest problems getting back the touch in and the matchup that has given me the most headaches since I came back. I've even thought of playing PvT to cover my weakness, but the Terrans today are totally different for my protoss to handle compared to what they were before, which is why I've always set my target to be top 2 with Idra being no.1 of course. Everything has changed since last night, when I witnessed NonY's gosu cheese defeating the player I fear the most. If I manage to get to final it will be my strongest ZvP instead of my absolutely terrible ZvT. Now the championship is closer to me than ever before.

PokerStrategy.com TSL:
Who would you rather play, NonY or IefNaij?

DuskBin.Sen:
I prefer to play against NonY because I don't really know him hence defeating him will make me feel less guilty . You will never know how I felt after I defeated Draco because it was not just happiness but also complicated. I've known him for a long time and we participated in PGL China together a few years ago. I've also met him in WCG 2009 Chengdu. As for Iefnaij, I think I will have the same feeling as I had for Draco if I beat him.

PokerStrategy.com TSL:
You recently celebrated Chinese New Year at home with your family. Do they know about the TSL and how much money is at stake? What do they think?

DuskBin.Sen:
My parents dont know about it yet as Ive only told my brothers about it since I have not won the tournament yet, and if I really do happen to win then I'll tell them and it still won't be too late.

PokerStrategy.com TSL:
Thanks for the interview. Do you have any last words for fans?

DuskBin.Sen:
I'm very thankful to all the fans who have supported me even though I've left BW for quite some time; I can't believe that I still have your support. I would also like to thank F91 for being my practice partner and PokerStrategy, the sponsor for TSL2 including all the people who work so hard behind, not forgetting the 4 amazing casters . I could still understand a little bit with my poor english. I also hope that there will be TL3 in the future and I'm sure you know what I'm gonna say to end this.
~~~ SEN IS BACK!!!!

PokerStrategy.com TSL:
Congratulations! How do you feel after such a close victory?

Liquid`NonY:
I'm feeling a bit jittery. It was an intense series.
I was just happy to pull out the win no matter how ugly it was. Winning is the only thing that matters.

PokerStrategy.com TSL:
No games went into the late game; what was your strategic thought process entering into this series?

Liquid`NonY:
I wanted to take Tornado, Destination, and Fighting Spirit into the late game, but I ended up improvising on Destination. I think my rush could have worked but I just executed it poorly. I didn't practice that at all. And then on Fighting Spirit, I found that proxy gates counter that FE Terran build pretty hard so I just went for it.

PokerStrategy.com TSL:
Let's go through the series game by game; the first game was on the Protoss-favored Andromeda - what were your feelings after seeing his Dropship?

Liquid`NonY:
My very first thought was "I should have had my Goons hugging the bottom of my base" and then soon after that I realized I was just perfectly countered so there was nothing I could do.

PokerStrategy.com TSL:
Were you surprised that IdrA, who normally is known for such standard and macro-heavy play, did a 2 Factory Dropship build?

Liquid`NonY:
Yeah, it definitely surprised me. I was counting on him doing the same build as the other game no matter what positions we were in. In that case, my DT drop was timed to land before his Academy/Ebay finished. But, it was cross positions last game, and vertical positions this game, so maybe he made his decision based on that instead.

PokerStrategy.com TSL:
Were you saddened that you lost on what many considered the map you had the best chances of victory on? Did you manage to just put it behind you immediately with no problems?

Liquid`NonY:
I really thought I was going to get a free win on that map. But during my preparation, it hit me that there's no such thing as a free win, even when a Protoss is planning to DT drop a Terran, so I made sure that I wouldn't go into panic mode in case I lost the first game.
I just immediately went into my Tornado mindset and moved on.

PokerStrategy.com TSL:
How about in the infamous game 2? What went through your head when IdrA "gg"ed before 3 minutes?

Liquid`NonY:
I set a record for fastest win in the TSL that will never be broken.

PokerStrategy.com TSL:
Unless someone four pools! But seriously, what did you think when that CC canceled?

Liquid`NonY:
Hmm yeah. He had the wrong thing selected when he hit ESC... I didn't immediately register that he made a mistake; I was confused. Then he just "gg"ed and I figured it out. There was probably like a 1% chance he could have won from there. Anyone who argues that he had any better chance is crazy... he was really screwed.

PokerStrategy.com TSL:
For the Outsider game, tell us your thoughts at each stage of the game.

Liquid`NonY
I'll start before the game. Thought #1: I have no idea how I ought to play Outsider. Thought #2: download a ton of VODs of PvTs on Outsider. Thought #3: I like this rush that Much did. Then I did it in single player a few times and bam I'm ready! The game went pretty much exactly how I thought it would. Once I recognized what build he did, I knew that I ought to win and I just needed to execute.

When the SCV scouted the Support Bay and he actually made a Starport, I realized that I should have either killed the SCV or else proxied the Bay.

PokerStrategy.com TSL:
For the next game on Destination your rush failed due to some excellent micro by Idra. How far behind were you at the disc?

Liquid`NonY:
Yeah, IdrA microed it great, and I'm sure his build was perfect up to that point to get those units and upgrades out by that time. I was very far behind. I very sloppily let Vultures get into my mineral lines twice. Even if those Vulture raids had been prevented, I think I still would have been at a slight disadvantage. And I'm the one who caused the disc, so I'm not going to argue for a re-game unless it's very obvious.

PokerStrategy.com TSL:
That should earn you a lot of respect among the fans even though it was relatively clear you were behind. What did you think when your computer crashed? Did you immediately check if your power heater was plugged into the wrong socket?

Liquid`NonY:
Haha yeah. We now have proof that TSL > MSL (at least at crisis management). My PC has been crashing 1 in 20 games or so. I tried a few fixes and it hadn't crashed for about 50 games, so I was hoping it wouldn't happen. But of course it was just waiting for me to play my TSL match. Still, it was very fortunate that it happened when I was losing.

PokerStrategy.com TSL:
In game 5, IdrA almost scouted the center gates 2-3 times before you attacked. How confident were you that the rush would work?

Liquid`NonY:
I felt pretty confident because that rush has worked for me against A/A- Terrans. But then it occurred to me that IdrA was doing this build for the second time now, so he must have practiced it a lot, and those cheesy CJ Protosses must've proxied him at some point, so maybe he could handle it.

When I saw how many SCVs he was pulling off, I felt like I had tow in. He couldn't afford to do much else other than make 1 Tank at a time, and a Zealot/Goon mix is going to own SCV/Tank.

PokerStrategy.com TSL:
What did you do immediately after you saw him "gg"? Did you yell, call your wife, or what?

Liquid`NonY:
No joyous outbursts. I'll save that for winning $10k. I texted my wife because she was at a concert and wouldn't be able to talk on the phone. That's about it. I can't tell anyone haha.

PokerStrategy.com TSL:
Next round you're up against a fellow Protoss, JF/White-Ra (interview was done before result was published -ed). You've been playing exclusively PvTs for the past few weeks, so how does your PvP feel?

Liquid`NonY:
It feels good. I've always thought that PvP is a tricky matchup to dominate because of how builds work. During my PvP practice games I've been figuring out surefire ways to snag advantages and all the things I have to do to hold on to them. I think I've come along nicely and JF/Ra is gonna have a tough time finding any weak points in my play.

PokerStrategy.com TSL:
Do you have a preference on who you play?

Liquid`NonY:
I'd rather play Ra because I have more information on him. I know what I'm up against. But I don't think JF would end up being more difficult to face. They're both pretty damn even, and it would take an extremely one-sided series to convince me otherwise.

PokerStrategy.com TSL:
Not to look too far forward, but there have been very few PvZs in teh TSL and by eliminating the last Terran, you have guaranteed two PvZs for the final and 3/4 match. You stated you wanted to play PvZ quite a bit--are you going to just focus on PvP for now or look forward a little?

Liquid`NonY:
Well first of all, I'm happy to have played the last important PvT I'll ever play (at least in SC1). Good riddance PvT; I never really understood you. I will probably equally focus on PvP and PvZ. I feel like my PvP is ready right now actually. I'd like to have a few more tricks up my sleeve for PvZ, so I'll be working on that as I encounter Zergs in practice.

PokerStrategy.com TSL:
Do you have any predictions for the other series?

Liquid`NonY:
Nah, no idea. I think I'd rather face Sen in the finals so maybe I'll cheer for him. But I like cheering for Mondragon--he's just good. I'm a fan of his play.

PokerStrategy.com TSL:
Are you going to celebrate tonight at all?

Liquid`NonY:
Nope, can't do it haha. No celebration until it's completely over. I have a lot of homework to do, and when I'm not doing homework I ought to be practicing. So I'm back to SWP (sweep work practice).

PokerStrategy.com TSL:
Do you feel more pressure now that you're the final American remaining? Many fans consider Mondi/Sen to have a much better chance versus the remaining Protosses than versus Idra.

Liquid`NonY:
I think I have a better chance against JF/Ra than IdrA. But yeah, IdrA's TvZ is so dominant against foreigners that it's probably true that IdrA's chances against Mondi/Sen are better than mine. Nonetheless I'm confident that I have the skill to make the "Winner of IdrA/NonY will win the tournament" prediction come true.

PokerStrategy.com TSL:
Any last shoutouts to practice partners?

Liquid`NonY:
Shoutout to Much for giving me an easy build to steal. And thanks to all the pros who populate the highest ranks of iCCup. I couldn't do it without ya!

PokerStrategy.com TSL:
Thanks for the interview, you certainly made your fans very happy. Good luck next round!

Liquid`NonY:
Thank you. And thanks for running this amazing event!

PokerStrategy.com TSL:
Congratulations on your victory over Fenix today; can you provide us some insight on how you felt about each game throughout the series?

ToT)Mondragon(:
Thanks. The first game was up and down in the beginning. I saw his Marines moving out and I decided to counter and make Sunkens in the meantime. First of all, my Drones blocked each other and one of my Creep Colonies wasn't built. That's why his Marines killed a bunch of Drones, and I had to save myself with the popping out Mutas.
At that point I thought it looked a bit bad for me, but luckily I could turn the game around with decent Muta micro and some very nice harass. After that, it was just bringing the game home.

Second game, I tried to surprise him with early Lurkers. This strategy was totally freestyle, and I haven't ever used it before. I just thought at that moment that it could be nice if Lurkers were there in time to harass and then block his bridge with Lurkers and Hydras. My execution wasn't the best, and I pretty much got stomped here.

Third game, he opened with a Bunker rush which I expected, and thus was mentally prepared for. It didn't surprise me at all, and thus I beat the rush back with ease. At that point I knew that I should win the game unless something unexpected happened. In my opinion it was a more or less flawless game afterwards without any big problems.

The fourth game was pretty standard except for his opening 2 Rax to fake early pressure, which delays both his tech a bit as well as mine due to playing safer. Unluckily while I was moving towards his Marines to snipe them there were a few lag spikes which kind of pissed me off and then I just screwed the micro up and lost way too many Mutas and was far behind after that.
I knew I would lose the game, but I enjoyed fighting with only a few units and practiced my Defiler usage a bit!

Fifth game, the deciding one! He opened 2 Rax with early Marine/Medic pressure, which wasn't the best strategy to take on Andromeda if I was able to see it. I did see it, I was prepared for it, and I didn't take any damage from his Marines. Afterwards I was able to harass a bit with Mutas, and then it turned into a standard game and I wasn't in trouble once I think. Unluckily none recognized the heart I was 'drawing' in the top middle of the map after I infested the CC since I was excited to have won the series
Though I must mention, I didn't have enough time to make a cute heart; I had to rush it because I thought Fenix was about to leave.

PokerStrategy.com TSL:
What did you think of the games between Ret and Sen? How about your chances vs Sen?

ToT)Mondragon(:
They both played the standard ZvZ. I mean, you always see the same strategies and same setups in ZvZ, nothing is really surprising. In the end it does not matter if I face Sen or Jos--it's ZvZ, and ZvZ is a coinflip, though I would've preferred to play Jos apparently.

PokerStrategy.com TSL:
Your Muta micro seemed very clean today except for the lag issue, and overall people have remarked upon how much stronger you have been looking, especially in the late game. Have you been practicing a lot?

ToT)Mondragon(:
I've been working a lot on my ZvT, and especially on my Muta micro. But sometimes there are days or just a few games where you don't get into the "Muta micro feeling rhythm", and that happened vs BRAT_OK. There I didn't get to micro anywhere near close to what I could micro. Luckily this worked a bit better vs Fenix and helped me win the series.

PokerStrategy.com TSL:
You've been showing Guardians nearly every game much to Day's delight. Do you think they get an undeservedly bad reputation on the whole? If not, why are you using them practically every game?

ToT)Mondragon(:
Guardians are really amazing in ZvT in my opinion. You don't necessarily make them to do huge damage--they usually won't do that anyway. You rather use them to make the Terran use his Irradiates on the Guardians, so that you can move forward on the map with your Defilers while the Terran is out of energy to irradiate them. So either way, he can Irradiate the Guardians or the Defilers, but neither option is the perfect one for the Terran.

PokerStrategy.com TSL:
I noticed you infested yet another CC today. Is this some personal goal to infest at least one CC vs each Terran? Do you have some similar 'fun' thing planned vs a Protoss or Zerg?

ToT)Mondragon(:
Hehe. Seems it's going to become my trademark in this TSL! Last TSL it was my Zergling run-by, and now it's infesting the CC. I never really planned out my infestations, I just promised it vs Shaman if I had the chance, and now I had to stick to it out of fun reasons and because it's actually really good vs BRAT_OK and Fenix. If the game continues much longer after you infested the CC, the Infested Terrans can actually be very useful.

But I don't have anything planned like that vs Protoss or Zerg. Do you have any specific suggestions? :D

PokerStrategy.com TSL:
I'm afraid I don't . Last week you had a "$500 strategy". Were any of your strategies today a $1000 strategy? Did you have one prepared that you didn't get a chance to use?

ToT)Mondragon(:
I was seriously thinking about a $1000 strategy, but I didn't plan any because I didn't have enough time, and then I ended up using a freestyle strategy on Destination. But I have to admit, that strategy was not a $1000 strategy!

PokerStrategy.com TSL:
How did you feel about Fenix's play compared to BRAT_OK's? Artosis and NonY I believe evaluated BRAT's play as "lacking flair". What did you feel it was about Fenix's play that held him back from victory against you today?

ToT)Mondragon(:
To be honest, except for his style on Tornado I didn't really notice any major differences between their styles except for Fenix sometimes using inferior build orders like 2 Rax MM or 2 Rax into expansion. On destination, they both played more or less the game, just that BRAT's play couldn't evolve like Fenix's because I had my $500 strategy working!

PokerStrategy.com TSL:
In a more general question, how do you feel about the maps in the TSL?

ToT)Mondragon(:
It's definitely a good mixture, and all of them are pretty nice. I wouldn't have chosen Andromeda personally, as the map is very old and I don't think it's so balanced in some matchups, but I suppose that balances out with other maps being imbalanced in other ways.

PokerStrategy.com TSL:
With SC2 coming out soon, are you planning to play it much? Or are you going to be calling it quits with competitive gaming when BW is no longer around?

ToT)Mondragon(:
I haven't really thought that much about it yet. I don't know in which direction I will be going with SC2. It really depends upon my future plans, whether I continue education to follow up with a master's or if I decide to start working after my bachelor's this September. I'll just see how good I am in the beta, and then consider that when SC2 is actually released.

PokerStrategy.com TSL:
IdrA and NonY recently made some confident comments publicly about their chances against each other, as well as making some comments about how poorly some of the ro16 players played.
Do you feel it detracts from the concept of e-sports as a legitimate entity when the top players do such things, or do you think the extra drama it creates contributes to the scene?

ToT)Mondragon(:
I think there are different opinions on this. IdrA is known for his useless disregarding comments about his opponents' skill / play to provoke people but only the outside observer really goes nuts about it; players don't really give a damn about that. If he finds it appropriate, he can do it that way, that's fine.

NonY is different and does it in a mannered way, and I see NonY as a cool guy overall.
But yeah, it does not fit in my way of interacting with people to trash talk in public to grab some attention; for the spectators it's always fun to see some drama being created.

PokerStrategy.com TSL:
Any last comments or shoutouts you'd like to make before we wrap it up?

ToT)Mondragon(:
Thanks to DaZe + Hayder once again for their time and practice with me and thanks to everyone who cheered for me. Hopefully I can get to the finals and try to prepare my ZvZ as well as I can due to a lack of time!
Gotta give Day[9] props for awesome commentary!

PokerStrategy.com TSL:
Alright, thanks and good luck!

ToT)Mondragon(:
Thank you too!