| Rank |
Player |
Prev |
High |
Description |
| 1. |
Sea[Shield]
(T) (stats) |
- |
1 |
Sometimes, the definition of "Power" changes so drastically that weird things happen.
Weird indeed, that Sea[Shield] is at the top of the Power Rank without a title to his name. Friends, Power can means a lot of things. A Powerful build order can win you a StarLeague. A Powerful mind can keep your career long and properous. A Powerful heart can endear you to the masses, and create a wave of fanatics frothing at the mouth just for a chance to cheer you on.
Yum BoSung has the most Powerful heart of any progamer on the scene. For the last several days, Sea has graciously spent time between practice with his adoring english-speaking fans, playing all manner of games. That includes a brutal 2-0 of your hero, sMi.FakeSteve, that consisted of utterly flawless (and I do mean flawless) control over the growth and prowess of his armed forces. Sea's TvT is perfection wielded as a weapon of unimaginable power, something I have never been on the receiving end of before.
Sea's TvZ is a sinister love affair between Casy's aggressiveness and iloveoov's macromanagement. You think you've seen TvZ? Watch Sea vs Hyuk on Othello, a game that transcends build order and mechanics and settles promptly down to raw, unrelenting will to win.
You think you're familiar with TvP timings? Sea frequently screams out of his base with a massive amalgamation of units and delivers his Protoss foe into the eager hands of the Devil himself. Sea is the reckoning and judgment itself for the hapless children who choose the race that carrier rushes.
Yum BoSung has captivated the entirety of TeamLiquid.net with but a few days of generous (by his schedule) interaction. A fresh crop of fans have seen the light, have snapped out of a dreamy sleep of ignorance during which they cheer for... *scoff*... other players. Sea is the single greatest StarCraft player to ever walk the earth, for reasons that go above and beyond the game itself, and certainly beyond the call of duty for a ProGamer.
Sea[Shield] is #1 on the Power Rank this month, and #1 in our hearts, this day and forevermore. |
| 2. |
Jaedong
(Z) (stats) |
0 |
1 |
Hello Jaedong!
So, there's been talk that Jaedong's ZvT is "shaky". There's been whispers here and there in gutters and back alleys that Jaedong isn't quite what he used to be. Well citizens, there's a reason those opinions are found in the sewers and backstreets: they're completely unfounded.
After the savage beating Jaedong laid upon Hwasin this MSL those doubts are washed away. Those three simple wins gave Jaedong's reputation a hose-down, and the strongest zerg on planet Earth is looking fresh and devastating as ever. Jaedong is a lock for the MSL final, where he will undoubtedly meet the next fellow on this list. |
| 3. |
Flash
(T) (stats) |
-2 |
1 |
Flash and Jaedong have been trading this spot for a while now, and usually the difference is a single game or series. The competition between these two really is that close.
In June, both these players faced essentially their strongest competition besides each other; Jaedong faced Hwasin, Flash faced Luxury. The difference here, is that Flash LOST to Luxury. However, Flash is obliterating MSL and is fresh off an impressive series with an upstart named Lomo.
Like Jaedong, Flash is looking toward the MSL final, and only fOrGG remains in his way. While he has technically been overthrown from the top spot on this ranking, he's certainly still the Flash we've grown accustomed to. |
| 4. |
BeSt[HyO]
(P) (stats) |
-1 |
2 |
Best is still great, not much has changed from last month. He came out of a grueling series with Luxury with a berth in the OSL final, where this Royal Road-walking phenom will face a two-time OSL champion. With these three players tearing everything up, it'd be real nice to have a monstrous clash in the near future so we can properly sort out what's what. For now, it has occurred to me from watching all of his games that Best is not quite at the level of Flash and Jaedong, but he's certainly closest. |
| 5. |
fOrGG_V_
(T) (stats) |
- |
1 |
Let me say right up front: This is not a position earned through bias. I don't even like fOrGG. He certainly has been playing some fine StarCraft, though. His series against Kal was one of the most entertaining TvP series we've seen in quite a while, and in my eyes this spot is unquestionably earned. fOrGG is in for the hardest series of his professional career as he tries to crash the MSL Final party this season.
fOrGG is kind of an odd player. Most of the decisions he makes are merely common ProGamer sense. His micro is laughable at times. He has always made more units than anyone on earth (besides iloveoov of course), and therein lies his strength. fOrGG is very hit-or-miss, but he displayed a surprising amount of flair against Kal. Enough for me to publicly acknowledge that he is really, REALLY fucking good at making units. |
| 6. |
Kal
(P) (stats) |
-1 |
3 |
Kal is hangin' around. He doesn't seem to be a one-hit wonder as many (myself included) suspected he might be after he was outclassed by Jaedong an MSL past. He's still one of the better players out there, teetering on the verge of S class. There isn't a whole lot to say about Kal, and there won't be until he does something impressive or unexpected. Until then, he'll cruise the middle of the PR and everyone will agree that his PvZ is much, much better than Stork's. |
| 7. |
Luxury[GsP]
(Z) (stats) |
+2 |
2 |
Luxury made a hell of a run for the OSL title this season, crown among his achievements a 2-0 slaughter of Flash. Luxury is a monster in every single Zerg matchup when he's playing well, and he certainly has been lately. His series against Best was a nail-biter, and I'm certain we haven't seen the last of Luxury in OSL/MSL this year. |
| 8. |
JulyZerg
(Z) (stats) |
- |
4 |
LOOK WHO'S BACK
July is in the OSL FINAL. THE FINALS OF THE OSL FOR A FIFTH TIME. This Golden Mouse candidate has been slaughtering second-rate Protoss players with style and grace lately. The only reason he isn't higher is that his opponents have been, well, terrible. As any strong player should win a series against a lesser player, so has July defeated Rock and BackHo. What remains to be seen is whether this is Tushin returned in earnest, or merely a hand extended longingly toward an unattainable goal. We shall see, or at least I will, because I'll be watching every goddamned July game live from now until he slumps again. It makes me very, VERY happy to put a player that held my 'favourite player' title until Sea came around on the Power Rank. |
| 9. |
Lomo[fOu]
(T) (stats) |
- |
9 |
Like his teammate fOrGG, I don't particularly like Lomo. But, this ain't about feelings, it's about StarCraft, and Lomo's been doing that pretty well lately.
Lomo has brought a unique style to MSL, and took Flash to five games before succumbing to a superior player. This is definitely a kid to watch out for. He's on his way up, and I don't see him going any other direction in the near future. |
| 10. |
Hwasin
(T) (stats) |
-6 |
2 |
Hwasin got completely totalled by Jaedong. But Jaedong is Jaedong, and if anything the existence of the series itself proves that Hwasin hasn't hung up his hat yet. How many times can I fit the letter H in a sentence? Let's hope Hwasin plays well in July as well so we can find out. |
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Valhalla18444 Posts
Close but No Cigar:
Much - If the Power Rank had 11 spots, Much would be on it. He's still what he was last month, except everyone on the list has performed just slightly better, and is thus just slightly more deserving of a spot.
BackHo - roooooooooooooooooofl NO. What an embarassment to the OSL Semifinal.
Pure - Pure is still great. Really great. However, I can't justify giving him a spot above any of the people on this list. Once he makes an individual league, we'll have a better guage of what he's capable of. Last month there simply was room for someone like Pure, who has played exceptionally well but only in proleague, to take the bottom spot. This month, several new faces were more deserving. Still, he's one to watch out for 
More to come later as I find other things to pontificate about!
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CA10829 Posts
sea #1 PR
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Awesome for Lomo. Sad to see the Jaedong/Flash switch but not surprised.
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United States20661 Posts
sea s2
how punny
p.s. julyzerg has been in 5 OSL finals iirc, 2:2 in them [win over iloveoov, goodfriend, loss to julyzerg, iloveoov]
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Rooooooofl @ Sea, but good write indeed.
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Valhalla18444 Posts
On July 06 2008 18:04 Last Romantic wrote:
sea s2
how punny
p.s. julyzerg has been in 5 OSL finals iirc, 2:2 in them [win over iloveoov, goodfriend, loss to julyzerg, iloveoov]
oh shit what am i thinking
yes july has been in 4 previous OSL finals, but he lost to Nada in one of them, not himself. I was just so caught up in the Golden Mouse hype 
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United States20661 Posts
On July 06 2008 18:07 FakeSteve[TPR] wrote:Show nested quote +On July 06 2008 18:04 Last Romantic wrote:
sea s2
how punny
p.s. julyzerg has been in 5 OSL finals iirc, 2:2 in them [win over iloveoov, goodfriend, loss to julyzerg, iloveoov] oh shit what am i thinking yes july has been in 4 previous OSL finals, but he lost to Nada in one of them, not himself. I was just so caught up in the Golden Mouse hype
... i SWORE i wrote nada
what the fuck lol
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Great Fakesteve, Im just waiting for both the new MSL and OSL to start to see if savior can indeed make some noise!
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Nice power ranking and Sea as #1 for heart is wonderful.
Hopefully BeSt will take over #1 soon!
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Stork
WWI winner
over sea kal savior
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9070 Posts
to be honest it was easy to predict that JD will be on top (after Sea ofc), but I strongly disagree with this and cant except that fact and the only reason for that is JD is nothing more than one class above all top level gamers but to think we can say the same about flash and best as well. JD is not dominant enough for the #1, he is not rolling over ppl left and right like he used to and for me the only reason he is the top is because Flash's form is even more questionable than JD's. Yes, I'm a huge BeSt fan, but you shouldnt be one to notice that he is the only one who is destroying his opponents right now and if he wins the OSL you really shouldnt care who is winning the MSL to decide who is the Best right now
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Sea #1.. What a joke. PR didn't even care to read it -_-
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Valhalla18444 Posts
On July 06 2008 18:34 Piste wrote:
Sea #1.. What a joke. PR didn't even care to read it -_-
then don't post here because it just soared right over your head
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Valhalla18444 Posts
On July 06 2008 18:22 eyeballball3 wrote:
Stork
WWI winner
over sea kal savior
You honestly think an exhibition at a Blizzard event is important?
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51523 Posts
I want to take the moment to brag that I won a match vs. Sea[Shield]!
+ Show Spoiler +In a 4v4 with Hot_Bid, IntoTheWow and Insane
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On July 06 2008 18:04 Last Romantic wrote:
sea s2
how punny
p.s. julyzerg has been in 5 OSL finals iirc, 2:2 in them [win over iloveoov, goodfriend, loss to julyzerg, iloveoov]
wins were over reach/goodfriend
he beat oov in the quarters or semis the league he beat reach.
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I personally think that Best deserves the top spot. The "man of the moment" thing has shifted from Flash to Best within the past couple of weeks what with Flash struggling with the mounting schedule demands and with Best basically overcoming all competition he comes across be it the OSL or the proleague.
Another thing, I love Jaedong, but he shouldn't be ranked above Flash and Best in my opinion. Sure he's probably the most skilled out of the three, but the shitty map pool has prevented him from performing as well as the other two. Jaedong has proved his class in the MSL by defeating Hwasin and doing his bit for the team in the proleague despite the map pool, but it doesn't change the fact that there are players out there doing better than him right now.
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LOL at Sea - totally well deserved though! ^^
The rest of the rank I'm not overly supportive of. This has to be your first PR that I've actually disagreed with more or less every single spot, but hey, what do I know?
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On July 06 2008 18:37 FakeSteve[TPR] wrote:You honestly think an exhibition at a Blizzard event is important?
if it wasn't for the "important" blizzard event sea wouldn't be number 1
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EPT
, the other strong players such as Flash , Best played like total noobs and lost their spots . Damn wannabes especially that noob BEST who is he kiding beating Luxury will only upgrade him to a lower level .
