| Rank |
Player |
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High |
Description |
| 1. |
Bisu
(P) (stats) |
0 |
1 |
After he trounced GoRush, I knew I had to keep Bisu at the #1 slot for this month. And the reason for that—I’ll go into even more depth later—is that I don’t think Stork would have stood a chance against GoRush in that series. Both Bisu and Stork are hot right now, and I’ll even admit that Stork is on more of a tear; his record’s a little better, anyway. (Stork is 36-16 since March. Bisu is 31-15 in that same span of time). But a strong Zerg could have derailed Stork’s tear at any point, and that’s exactly what happened. At this point in time, Bisu would be the favorite, or at least be given relatively even odds, against just about any player in the world. That’s not something you can say about Stork; his PvZ doesn’t allow it. |
| 2. |
Stork[gm]
(P) (stats) |
+1 |
1 |
I had an incredibly difficult time choosing whether Bisu or Stork should hold the #1 slot this month, and it came down to this: Stork got lucky. Bisu didn’t. By all rights, Stork should not still be in the MSL. He lost 0-2 to Savior in the Ro16, and at no point in those two games did he show any degree of feel for PvZ; he looked bad. But Oversky joined the military, and Stork managed to wriggle his way back into the Ro8.
Bisu didn’t get that chance. He lost to two cheese builds in a row, and just like that, he was out of the OSL. Stork’s record as of late is beastly, but I can’t in good conscience bump Bisu, the reigning MSL champion and most well-rounded Protoss player in the world, from his perch until he starts to falter in his play or someone clearly better rears his head, and neither has happened—not yet, anyway. |
| 3. |
Iris[gm]
(T) (stats) |
- |
2 |
I’ll come out and say it: Iris looked unimpressive in the group stages of this OSL. Reach demolished him, and he looked sloppy in his win against Shark. It’s as if, when he arrived in the Ro8 and saw Savior attempting to block his path, he screamed, “NEVER AGAIN,” and immediately started practicing 20 hours a day. He underwent a complete transformation in the course of a single week.
Iris is 15-3 since May, but more than that, he eliminated Savior and Stork from the OSL. Respectively—and there’s not much room for debate on this—those two are the strongest ZvT and PvT players in the world. And the craziest part is that Iris is best-known for his TvT. |
| 4. |
Firebathero
(T) (stats) |
- |
4 |
Even with his loss to Stork in one of the uglier Bo5s I’ve ever seen, FirebatHero is on such an amazing tear that denying him his rightful slot in the Power Rank would be criminal. FirebatHero is 22-9 since April, advancing to the semifinals of the MSL and holding a 9-1 Proleague record in that time. |
| 5. |
sAviOr
(Z) (stats) |
-3 |
1 |
After watching Savior’s recent performances and discussing the matter with Hot_Bid, I’ve come to the following conclusion: while Savior might not have “it” anymore (Hot_Bid called it “the magic”), he’s still the best Zerg in the world. Losing to FirebatHero in that fashion and dropping a couple games against the new, methamphetamine-charged Iris doesn’t change that, even if those games eliminated him from both Starleagues. Savior is still 13-10 since May against the stiffest possible competition, and he made the quarterfinals of both Starleagues. |
| 6. |
Hwasin
(T) (stats) |
-2 |
2 |
Like Savior, Hwasin lost in the quarterfinals of both Starleagues, but unlike some people, he lost each series by only a single game and looked pretty darn strong regardless of the result. Hwasin is 22-12 since April, and he recently triumped over the new Terran golden boy, Flash, in the Proleague. |
| 7. |
Flash
(T) (stats) |
- |
1 |
Trying to place Flash in this month’s Power Rank was a frustrating experience for me. On the one hand, his record is incredible, but on the other hand, I can make an “excuse” for every one of his wins. Many of his wins are against players who are weak vT. Others involve favorable maps or cheese builds. Then there was his recent Bo3 against Bisu, which didn’t reflect much in the way of confidence despite his 2-0 win. Still, with an unprecedented career record of 15-3 and losses to only Savior, Boxer, and Hwasin, Flash is getting results. I know he has some skill, but Flash isn't making it easy for me to figure out just how much. |
| 8. |
GGPlay
(Z) (stats) |
+1 |
3 |
Although GGPlay’s Proleague record is a less than spectacular 5-10, he looked good against Hwasin, who’s one of the premier TvZ players in the world. GGPlay is 10-4 ZvT since April, which doesn’t bode well for Flash, his opponent in the OSL semifinals. |
| 9. |
GoRush
(Z) (stats) |
- |
7 |
Though Bisu trounced him, GoRush’s 11-3 record before that Bo5 is enough for me to consider him—or at least his ZvT and ZvZ, anyway—back in form. |
| 10. |
Sea[Shield]
(T) (stats) |
-3 |
1 |
Sea confounds me. His career record of 74-42 puts him among the elite of StarCraft (with his recent wins, Sea now has the highest career winning percentage of any player with 50 or more televised games), and yet he hasn’t managed to advance past the quarterfinals of a Starleague. Still, with a 15-5 Proleague record and his easy victories in the OSC, Sea is deserving of a low slot in the Power Rank. |
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Close, but no cigar…
Reach – Despite your somewhat-impressive Starleague run, you’re still only 8-8 since April. As my friends typically say when we chug beer, “MAN UP.”
July – After going 18-8 to start off 2007, you went 0-3 against GoRush. That’s just not going to cut it.
Nal_Ra – I… I’m just so happy right now; I don’t know what to say.
Free – You’re 20-13 in 2007—and your talent is undeniable—but you’ve got to clean up your PvT (don’t quote me your Proleague record; it’s still sloppy) and make a Starleague before I seriously consider you for the Power Rank.
Midas – Your Proleague play has picked up as of late, but you’re still not Power Rank material.
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u gotta skate8152 Posts
Finally!
Time to read now :
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Belgium6775 Posts
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On July 06 2007 07:46 Jathin wrote:
You're a fag etter. That is all.
You're still drunk from last night, and it's 10:49 AM.
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Good to see Stork up there
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Damn! I was writing comment about luck and stuff for last PR when you posted new >.<
My odds there were Bisu, Iris, FBH, sAviOr, Stork and I agree with your write-up about luck, but I don't think Stork's PvZ allows him such a high place ;P
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Well it's easy when you wait for all the decisive matchups. 
I'd notch FBH below Savior, GGPlay over Flash, and maybe replace Sea with July (but I like the fat man).
Also: agreed about Nal_rA. I was so happy to see him get knocked out and then not get back in on the wildcard. I hate, haaaatteee, hate watching him. ~_~
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Nice read as always, thank you.
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you PR is always the same
very nice 
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+ Show Spoiler +Wow, Savior really did cast a massive shadow over progaming. Bisu, Iris and FBH are most known for beating him (and Stork wins Savior by proxy by beating FBH), and so they get the top slots. It's almost like Savior is the bar to which all other gamers are compared. If you can play straight up and beat him or someone that has beaten him, you get notice and respect. If you haven't beaten him or someone that can (or cheese to win), it doesn't matter how great your results are, you get a review like Flash's "I know he has some skill, but Flash isn't making it easy for me to figure out just how much."
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Ok so here's what I think:
I pretty much agree on the enitre PR this month o.O amazing I know :-)
That would be my Top-6 for sure, in that exact same order. Flash for 7th is a tough call as you wrote as well, I just can't find myself thinking of him as a strong player, well not 'solid' anyway, he's too much.. Flash :-) I'd rank him below GGPlay but it really doesn't matter.
imo you can definitely add some words in 'close but no cigar' (lets call its CBNC) or even just some kind of side notes, about players that were in PR not long ago, but now dissapeared and aren't even in CBNC, like Light[Alive], iloveOov, Much[gm], or whoever was there and is now nowhere. And I dislike your disliking of Nal_Ra, every month the same... its not funny.
In my mind, Free > Sea, he's just more impressive, I think he's going to shock everyone next season. Sea had all sorts of opportunities, vs XellOs at Wildcard, and that 0-2 vs GoRush.. But Sea for 10th is fine. Others that will destroy everyone next season and should have been perhaphs mentioned in CBNC include: Jaedong (Proleague is one thing, but his Star Challenge group is another plus), Luxury, UpMagiC I guess, and Chalrenge if he can find some focus... I'd consider fOrGG and Anytime, I think Lecaf players will show some sparks next individual season. I'm happy you mentioned Midas, there's some possitive changes in his play, he may really comeback stronger next season :-) Oov should have been mentioned for sure.. but you'd only say mean things so forget about it -_- I'd mention XellOs just for showing some nice games, even in the wildcard group (and then some terrible ones, but I forgive him) so I'd say "XellOs thanks for showing up and fading out again"
So good job, I'd prefer it on the 1st, even before GoRush vs July, absolutely before Stork-FBH-Iris, it would make things completely heat up in the PR discussion :-) You went for the ultra safe way by waiting so long, but it won't be that entertaining in here until finals, and even then... Lets just say I'd much prefer massive changes after the entire semi-finals rounds, into next month. Well anyway, nice PR. I'm only writing what I think each PR to bring about some ideas, some criticism, after all this is sort of a 1-man opinion that kind of ?suppose to? represent the opinion of many others in here, or it wouldn't be linked in the main page. So that being said, you shouldn't take things to heart, as I'm sure you don't, but just making sure :-)
"Even with his loss to Stork in one of the uglier Bo5s I’ve ever seen"
100% agree, that Bo5 was a disgrace to progaming, Bisu should have been given the MSL title right then and there by default, for them having played such a terrible semifinals. Koreans that actually paid to watch the games should get a refund.
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Aotearoa39261 Posts
Interesting given recent results;
im quite surprised to be honest
+ Show Spoiler +IMO iris should be number 2 given the beating he just gave stork, and GGplay a tad higher.. but that is all
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On July 06 2007 08:18 Plexa wrote:Interesting given recent results; im quite surprised to be honest + Show Spoiler +IMO iris should be number 2 given the beating he just gave stork, and GGplay a tad higher.. but that is all
Stork got in 2 semifinals....i think he deserves
Iris not even qualify in a 32 players competition
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is awesome32278 Posts
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On July 06 2007 08:32 Mouriner wrote:Show nested quote +On July 06 2007 08:18 Plexa wrote:Interesting given recent results; im quite surprised to be honest + Show Spoiler +IMO iris should be number 2 given the beating he just gave stork, and GGplay a tad higher.. but that is all Stork got in 2 semifinals....i think he deserves Iris not even qualify in a 32 players competition
Qualifying for both starleagues isn't necessarly that overpowering when you compare a 1 Starleague player with a 2 Starleague player. Infact playing on both Starleagues seems to be the downfall of many great players, I have no special sympathy for players like Hwasin and sAviOr, that have to get ready for several different matchups.
And its also luck based, some players just fall in dual style groups with some tough luck, there's nothing to do about it, example if you're a Zerg and you get Monty Hall on a dual style group, your chances are already shit, not all progamers can qualify for both Starleagues every time. I think we're just used to seeing specific names in both leagues, but its due to seeds and Star Challenge, or Survivor League, well some of them haven't seen offline qualifiers in ages. Lets see how sAviOr doesn in ODT next season :-)
Anyway point is, I wouldn't say Stork has such a huge advantage over Iris mainly because of 2 Starleague, but I think its more due to his *amazing Proleague performances.
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Live2Win
United States6657 Posts
but there's also the fact that Stork got into BOTH semi-finals, which is hard to do.
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Yeah. but it kind of annoys me that both those semis are pretty bad, I mean, not fun to watch, almost lame :/ The one thing is common is Stork. Compare to last season, sAviOr in both semis, both were a spectacle of epic proportions... Last two days of semis Bo5, just weren't worthy. Nothing to look back on and smile, actually nothing to look back on at all.
But of course you're right, making it to both semi-finlas is an amazing achievement :-) I'd rank Stork above Iris anyway, for this month.
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United States33603 Posts
it's interesting to have a period where no one is ultra dominant anymore, though I think the 'who can beat BestPlayerOftheTime' angle makes for better entertainment in progaming overall.
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EPT
