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Violet ISL Ro32 Interviews: Groups A-D
by FearlessMango · 2012-12-08
Hello everyone, after the Ro32, I had a chat with the winners from the first four groups to get their thoughts on just about everything. Enjoy your reading.
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##Group A Winner: HidE
Hello, HidE . As expected, you've made it past the group stage of the Ro32, so let's talk about your loss to BIRDMAN in the ace match of your PL round against WTM instead. Can you tell us what happened there?
HidE : Hi! It was a typical BO loss in a ZvZ. Usually I overcome the BO disadvantage, but this wasn't the case. It could happen vs anybody, though. I'm glad that it didn't influence our eventual standing :)
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Wouldn't it be special if you could get revenge in the biggest way by playing against him in the ISL Grand Final?
HidE : My goal is to win the tournament, I don't really care about revenge and all these things.
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As the premier Zerg player right now, you've been leading the charge as the swarm have taken over the ISL and the team leagues. What do you make of this shift in power between the races?
HidE : At the beginning Terrans seemed to have the upper hand, but my coach predicted that with the current Zerg player pool, the race will become dominant. It's also partly due to efficient use of build orders and strategy. I believe that some Protoss players from the December draft can take a more or less leading role in the future.
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Your next opponent will be TORRES , whom I think many people will agree is someone you can look past, since you're essentially 100% guaranteed to advance. Your quarterfinal opponent will be either 1 or StaRbouNd . Who would you rather face out of those two players?
HidE : ZvZ is a very unpredictable matchup, even though I'm the favourite I certainly will be preparing hard for the series. As for my next possible opponent I think I'd prefer StaRbouNd , as we both appeared at the scene at the same time, so it will be fun to challenge him. I also heard that StaRbouNd is very good at TvT, so I guess I will give him the edge (laugh).
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Finally, to end the interview, is there anything else you'd like to say? Perhaps give a shoutout to someone? Anything to say to the rest of the competitors in the ISL? After all, you're the reigning champion.
HidE : I want to thank all those supporting me and I also wish Badger to meet me in the finals (laugh).
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##Group A Runner-Up: Hatred
Hello, Hatred , congratulations on making it to the last 16 of the ISL. You managed to navigate your way through a tricky ZvZ group, how do you feel?
Hatred : I definitely feel I have something to prove. This is not the first time I've made the Ro16--I still remember being knocked out by my teammate a while ago. But I do still feel like a newcomer. So many players are consistently dominating. I feel left out. As for my group, it was a tough from the start if only because HidE was in it. There was little room for error. I'm very pleased with my performance overall.
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This is the first time I've had the chance to interview you, so tell the readers a bit about yourself. How did you get into starcraft and who is Hatred , exactly?
Hatred : I call myself Hatred because I hate the sponsors in shakuras. I can subsist off of the $900 I get paid per season no problem. $300/month is pathetic and although I by definition live in poverty, I can make do. But the meager $60-90 pay raises at the end of the season are insulting, and add to my Hatred. We need to unionize shakuras. If I win the ISL, I'll use my new-found leverage to dramatically increase player salaries.
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I see, that's very interesting. Unfortunately, Blungy wasn't able to join you in the next round. As the lone survivor and representative of Blungus, you now will face BIRDMAN in the Ro16. How do you go about preparing for a match like this? Will you have anything special planned to take down the infamous bird?
Hatred : BIRDMAN 's very tough. If I get past him though, I think I have a chance to make the finals. Every season, everyone gets better and better, especially the zergs. I hope this is my chance. I know BIRDMAN 's history in the game, but I won't let that prevent me from winning the prize, which is four times my seasonal salary or more, and then lackadaisically give it away entirely to my team with no actual benefits to me. I have so much personal motivation to do well.
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Excellent. Now, it's about time to wrap up this interview, is there anything else you'd like to say? Perhaps to your fans, or your opponent?
Hatred : I just want to point out to BIRDMAN that despite winning three starleagues and propelling his team to a PL championship, he still gets paid basically what I do. Ha-ha at you.
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##Group B Winner: Badger
Hi Badger, congratulations on making it to the final 16 competitors of the ISL. How does it feel to be among this group of elite players?
Badger : Hello. It's been my first time in Ro16 and now that I'm here I want to win it all.
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You managed to advance from a pretty tough group, consisting of two quite strong Zerg players, and a Terran that does very well in TvZ. What was your mindset heading into the group?
Badger : I was a bit surprised CrazyHydra defeated Blungy in his match. Frankly, I was more preparing for ZvT rather than ZvZ on Tau Cross, but thankfully my skills let me comfortably win the match.
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Your Ro16 opponent will be TORRES , who has had a rough season in terms of TvZ. How will you be taking advantage of this?
Badger : TORRES is a good player but he is going down. My preparation for this game is very thorough.
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Finally, is there anything else you'd like to say before we end the interview?
Badger : Thanks for all my fans and my coach, who is standing right beside me.
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##Group B Runner-Up: CrazyHydra
Hi, CrazyHydra , and congratulations on advancing from what many could argue as the group of death in this round. Tell us, how did you manage to do it?
CrazyHydra : Hello and thank you. Since the end of last ISL, Mafia Zerg came back to take his burden of proleague, leaving much more time for the rest to practice freely, so Sync helped me a lot to anticipate what Blungy could do. I barely practiced ZvZ though, as Mafia Zerg had to practice other matchups, I was fortunate to face Blungy twice.
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Much has changed in just one season. In the last ISL, Terran were abundant in the Ro16, but throughout this current ISL and across many team leagues this season, the swarm have overtaken just about everything. As one of the top 10 Zerg players, what do you make of this shift in power?
CrazyHydra : I think it has something to do with the metagame shift. We often simply followed the reactive style to counter what other races do. Recently, we focus a lot more on perfecting strategies while still perfecting our macro, but less on other details. The current trend is about why should we micro, harass or even scout while we can just outmacro and have a better build order than the opponent. Other races focused too much practice on other things, something that I blame my teammates a lot for.
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That seems to be the case these days.
Speaking of the swarm, you'll be playing another top Zerg this weekend in the Ro16. You and Kolll have met previously, twice in fact, and you actually hold the advantage 2-0. However, those games were played way back in season 2 and times have changed drastically since then. That being said, how will you be preparing for this match? Since you and Mafia Zerg will both be playing ZvZ, will you be practicing with one another?
CrazyHydra : Kolll is really a force to be reckoned with. Back when he was playing for GOAT, I always felt he'd be great, maybe not that much though. Also, as I said previously, practicing ZvZ against Mafia Zerg actually makes you forget how to win, so we're practicing but he won't be my only sparring partner.
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Before we end this interview, is there anything else you'd like to add? Perhaps a shoutout to someone or a word of caution to your opponent?
CrazyHydra : Kolll will be hard to beat, but I'm confident I can do it. I hope for a teamkill where I'll be victorious. Mafia Zerg was too kind last ISL when he faced HidE , he didn't play in his real form, when I'll face HidE I won't be that easy and show no mercy before facing whoever will end up as the 2nd place in finals. At least that'll happen if I beat Kolll . Oh and shoutout to the Dynasty manager for looking pretty today.
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##Group C Winner: Xello
Hello, Xello , glad to be interviewing you for the first time. And congratulations on making it back to the Ro16. Many people said that your group was the group of death, but you managed to advance so easily. Tell us about it, how did you do it?
Xello : In the past TvP was the matchup I felt the most uncomfortable with. So I decided to concentrate my work on it to even out my matchups. After all it was easier to win the first map vs Riven than I expected. The match was played on my favorite map La Mancha and I had a lot of solid builds prepared for all kinds of situations. In contrast to that, my second match vs StaRbouNd on Tau Cross was pure improvisation. In TvT I tend to experiment a lot more and create builds and compositions on the fly. In this particular match I only won because StaRbouNd was tired and fucked up.
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Ah, a war of attrition, well done.
Many people consider you and your teammate Kolll among the top players out there. With both of you still alive and vying for the gold, as well as your team being promoted to ProLeague, surely you'll be wanting to wreak some havoc in both instances. Tell us about your goals, anything specific?
Xello : For once Kolll and me are in different parts of the bracket. We talked about it and agreed on our individual goals: reaching the semi-finals of ISL. Going further than that doesn't seem realistic with HidE and Badger still in the running. As for Proleague, it's going to be the hardest season in a long time. There are a lot of good teams already, and with Dynasty, Team 69 and Blungus getting promoted, aiming for anything higher than top 6 would be disrespectful to the other managers.
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Your next opponent will be Harmony , just one of the many Zerg players in this round. In fact, over this past season, Zerg have continually grown stronger while Terran have tapered off a bit. As a Terran, what do you make of this shift in power? And how will you be preparing for your match with Harmony ?
Xello : I have to say I've come to the point where I don't care anymore which Zerg I'm playing against because there are so many. I can say from personal experience that I've been performing worse and worse in training matches against my team mate Kolll . As to how I'm training for my upcoming match with Harmony , I'll just tell Kolll to play drunk.
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Haha, that's certainly one way of practicing. Well then, before we end this interview, do you have anything else you'd like to say? Maybe a shoutout or two? Maybe a word to your opponent?
Xello : First shoutout goes to my "new" team mate NTT for reigniting my will to train hard. I've never seen him sleep, and at this point I doubt he sleeps at all. Another shoutout to BIRDMAN , I hope we can continue our rivalry in the next round. Harmony , let's show good games and make it 2:1 either way!
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##Group C Runner-Up: StaRbouNd
Hi Consonance, and congratulations on advancing to the Ro16 in the ISL. You've been absent from the Ro16 for the past two ISL's, how does it feel to be there again?
StaRbouNd : It's been great, lately I've been busy carrying my team to victory but I got to relax with the addition of Huskar to our team.
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Your path to the final 16 was quite difficult, especially in the last round. You were in what many would say was the group of death. Give us a bit of insight into the matches you played. How did you prepare for this group and manage to take down a rising star, JustnBiebr , not only once but twice?
StaRbouNd : I actually didn't practice TvZ that much, Harmony was busy practicing for his match and Ezkiel was on vacation so I didn't have anyone to practice with (laugh). We definitely need more practice players. JustnBiebr wasn't at his best today so I guess I'm lucky in that regard.
I trusted in my TvT so that was no problem, I'm a little disappointed that I lost especially since I held the advantage in mid-game, but Xello is a fantastic player so I wasn't too upset. I was actually practicing TvP until Abraxas 's fingers bled. Sadly I didn't get a chance to face him (Riven ). It looks like I won't be facing another Protoss in the ISL so I'll let Abraxas rest (laugh).
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So your next match will be against 1 . In the past, the two of you have played 4 times, splitting those games 2-2. In the event everything goes horribly wrong, the winner of this match may be the only Terran left in the ISL. Since you seem rather confident in your TvT, how will you be approaching this Ro16 match? Will you be receiving any help from your teammates?
StaRbouNd : Although I'm always confident in my TvT though my results haven't reflected on that lately. I still want to show people that my TvT is still on the level of my first three seasons when I went 48-11 (81%).
With Huskar joining our team, I think I have a lot to learn from him. He's showing me some awesome harassment tactics so I'm hoping to use them in my upcoming match. I still don't feel 100%, given that ProLeague just ended, but I'll try my best anyways.
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That's good to hear. Well, it's near time to wrap up this interview. Is there anything else you'd like to say? Maybe a shoutout to someone? Or maybe you'd like to extend some words to 1 ?
StaRbouNd : 1 's time is long over, I'm going to put him into a retirement home for good.
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##Group D Winner: Mafia Zerg
Hello, Mafia Zerg , congrats on advancing from your group. It can be said that your group was probably the easiest to predict, since everyone knew you wouldn't be eliminated. How does it feel to be back in the Ro16?
Mafia Zerg : It's disappointing to be back, I'd rather be in HidE 's position right now, not only does he have easier bracket, but he has the PL and ISL championship on his resume. I hope on making sure both championships come to our team as fast as possible. About last group, it wasn't as easy as it may seem. I haven't had a break since last ISL, not that I want one, but we needed someone to carry the team late in the season and the manager relied on me, I'm getting tired.
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Since your loss to HidE in the previous ISL, your record stands at an astonishing 29-1, including impressive victories over 1 , StaRbouNd , and Hatred . With such an impressive winrate, along with a current win streak of 20 games, how do you prevent yourself from getting overconfident while playing?
Mafia Zerg : I can't ever be overconfident because as you said, I lost to HidE , and he's not the only good zerg out here. Until I win an ISL, if I ever do, being overconfident would be a mistake since I'll always have to prove myself to forget that lost final.
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Your upcoming opponent will be Don Bilbo , an upstart Zerg who has played extremely well in his own right this season. He went undefeated in league play with a record of 35-0, and he's only lost one ZvZ so far, that was to BIRDMAN . How will you be preparing for this match? After all, ZvZ is quite volatile.
Mafia Zerg : I acknowledge that Don Bilbo is a scary zerg, having a perfect record in any league is no small feat. My teammates says that I should already think about facing Kolll (they tease CrazyHydra that he will lose to him lol). But I think that Don Bilbo shouldn't be underestimated, thus I will practice my strategies with CrazyHydra , Tokki and Sin mainly. Maybe I'll try a few things with external help, but I'm not done preparing my builds yet.
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Should you go on to win this ISL, you could possibly be taking the hardest route of all time. Your next opponent would be either your teammate CrazyHydra or Kolll , then most likely HidE in the semifinal and the final might be against Badger . Anyway, the point is that it's a lot of ZvZ. Do you think this is the future of the ISL? Will Terran and Protoss come back up to challenge the swarm soon?
Mafia Zerg : I think the main problem is that Zergs worked lately to evolve the metagame on our side (read: have more strategy) while the other races focused on their personal skills and mechanics. I think that eventually they will catch up with us and be superior mechanically, though we also have the time to catch up on that. But yeah, defilers are OP and it counters Protoss and Terran units pretty well. Until Terrans find a way to D-Matrix vessels to tank scourge shots before eradicating defilers or that Protoss find a way to defend an hydrabust, we're on to a lot of ZvZs.
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Superb insight, now before we end this interview, would you like to say any final words to anyone?
Mafia Zerg : As long as I will be in ISL I will give everything I got, but to be honest I'm satisfied with my silver, as it was an incredible accomplishment. My main focus will remain ProLeague, as I believe that this game wouldn't meant to be played if not from the other players you live with or chat with everyday. Getting a PL title is more rewarding because you share your victory with your teammates, whatever their skill levels are and with the whole organisation and all the fans who rooted for you. It's about sharing, which makes the victory much more precious to me. That being said, I hope this is not my last ISL interview and I'll still give my best to win despite the short nights of sleep.
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##Group D Runner-Up: Kalkaros
Hi Kalkaros , and congratulations on making it to the last 16 of the ISL. Unfortunately your teammate couldn't advance with you, but otherwise, how does it feel?
Kalkaros : Muahahaha, it always makes my day when I beat Setä fair and square! He deserved to drop out, and he is pretty mad :) It feels awesome!
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This is the first time I've gotten a chance to interview you, and similarly, the first time you've made it this far in an ISL. Tell the readers something about yourself that they might not know.
Kalkaros : Something they don't know? Hmm... I like bunnies and kittens and like to cross-dress sometimes :) No but seriously, I don't really have any big things about myself except that I love cheesy builds. I am mostly cheesing everyone during practice which my team mates don't like one bit.
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Haha, that's quite a team dynamic you guys have going there. Well, your next ro16 opponent will be Nal_rA , probably the best Protoss as of right now. Do you think your cheesy builds will work against him? Or maybe you have something else up your sleeve..
Kalkaros : I am always confident when I play so I hardly make mistakes due to stress. I should be ok :)
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Very well then. Now, before we end this interview, is there anything else you'd like to say? Maybe to your fans? Any shoutouts? Or some words to your opponent?
Kalkaros : I'll see you in the finals BIRDMAN , prepare for some team-killing action! Also, I want to say that Whisperkill is my favourite manager and I'd join his team but WTM keeps me chained to the computer so I cannot leave :(
PS. I'll cheese the fuck out of you BIRDMAN if we ever meet in ISL!
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The End, thanks for taking the time to read the interviews. Also, I want to thank all the managers for participating as well. I hope you've had as much fun emulating your players as I did making up the questions.
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##Group A Winner: HidE
Hello, HidE . As expected, you've made it past the group stage of the Ro32, so let's talk about your loss to BIRDMAN in the ace match of your PL round against WTM instead. Can you tell us what happened there?
HidE : Hi! It was a typical BO loss in a ZvZ. Usually I overcome the BO disadvantage, but this wasn't the case. It could happen vs anybody, though. I'm glad that it didn't influence our eventual standing :)
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Wouldn't it be special if you could get revenge in the biggest way by playing against him in the ISL Grand Final?
HidE : My goal is to win the tournament, I don't really care about revenge and all these things.
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As the premier Zerg player right now, you've been leading the charge as the swarm have taken over the ISL and the team leagues. What do you make of this shift in power between the races?
HidE : At the beginning Terrans seemed to have the upper hand, but my coach predicted that with the current Zerg player pool, the race will become dominant. It's also partly due to efficient use of build orders and strategy. I believe that some Protoss players from the December draft can take a more or less leading role in the future.
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Your next opponent will be TORRES , whom I think many people will agree is someone you can look past, since you're essentially 100% guaranteed to advance. Your quarterfinal opponent will be either 1 or StaRbouNd . Who would you rather face out of those two players?
HidE : ZvZ is a very unpredictable matchup, even though I'm the favourite I certainly will be preparing hard for the series. As for my next possible opponent I think I'd prefer StaRbouNd , as we both appeared at the scene at the same time, so it will be fun to challenge him. I also heard that StaRbouNd is very good at TvT, so I guess I will give him the edge (laugh).
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Finally, to end the interview, is there anything else you'd like to say? Perhaps give a shoutout to someone? Anything to say to the rest of the competitors in the ISL? After all, you're the reigning champion.
HidE : I want to thank all those supporting me and I also wish Badger to meet me in the finals (laugh).
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##Group A Runner-Up: Hatred
Hello, Hatred , congratulations on making it to the last 16 of the ISL. You managed to navigate your way through a tricky ZvZ group, how do you feel?
Hatred : I definitely feel I have something to prove. This is not the first time I've made the Ro16--I still remember being knocked out by my teammate a while ago. But I do still feel like a newcomer. So many players are consistently dominating. I feel left out. As for my group, it was a tough from the start if only because HidE was in it. There was little room for error. I'm very pleased with my performance overall.
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This is the first time I've had the chance to interview you, so tell the readers a bit about yourself. How did you get into starcraft and who is Hatred , exactly?
Hatred : I call myself Hatred because I hate the sponsors in shakuras. I can subsist off of the $900 I get paid per season no problem. $300/month is pathetic and although I by definition live in poverty, I can make do. But the meager $60-90 pay raises at the end of the season are insulting, and add to my Hatred. We need to unionize shakuras. If I win the ISL, I'll use my new-found leverage to dramatically increase player salaries.
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I see, that's very interesting. Unfortunately, Blungy wasn't able to join you in the next round. As the lone survivor and representative of Blungus, you now will face BIRDMAN in the Ro16. How do you go about preparing for a match like this? Will you have anything special planned to take down the infamous bird?
Hatred : BIRDMAN 's very tough. If I get past him though, I think I have a chance to make the finals. Every season, everyone gets better and better, especially the zergs. I hope this is my chance. I know BIRDMAN 's history in the game, but I won't let that prevent me from winning the prize, which is four times my seasonal salary or more, and then lackadaisically give it away entirely to my team with no actual benefits to me. I have so much personal motivation to do well.
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Excellent. Now, it's about time to wrap up this interview, is there anything else you'd like to say? Perhaps to your fans, or your opponent?
Hatred : I just want to point out to BIRDMAN that despite winning three starleagues and propelling his team to a PL championship, he still gets paid basically what I do. Ha-ha at you.
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##Group B Winner: Badger
Hi Badger, congratulations on making it to the final 16 competitors of the ISL. How does it feel to be among this group of elite players?
Badger : Hello. It's been my first time in Ro16 and now that I'm here I want to win it all.
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You managed to advance from a pretty tough group, consisting of two quite strong Zerg players, and a Terran that does very well in TvZ. What was your mindset heading into the group?
Badger : I was a bit surprised CrazyHydra defeated Blungy in his match. Frankly, I was more preparing for ZvT rather than ZvZ on Tau Cross, but thankfully my skills let me comfortably win the match.
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Your Ro16 opponent will be TORRES , who has had a rough season in terms of TvZ. How will you be taking advantage of this?
Badger : TORRES is a good player but he is going down. My preparation for this game is very thorough.
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Finally, is there anything else you'd like to say before we end the interview?
Badger : Thanks for all my fans and my coach, who is standing right beside me.
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##Group B Runner-Up: CrazyHydra
Hi, CrazyHydra , and congratulations on advancing from what many could argue as the group of death in this round. Tell us, how did you manage to do it?
CrazyHydra : Hello and thank you. Since the end of last ISL, Mafia Zerg came back to take his burden of proleague, leaving much more time for the rest to practice freely, so Sync helped me a lot to anticipate what Blungy could do. I barely practiced ZvZ though, as Mafia Zerg had to practice other matchups, I was fortunate to face Blungy twice.
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Much has changed in just one season. In the last ISL, Terran were abundant in the Ro16, but throughout this current ISL and across many team leagues this season, the swarm have overtaken just about everything. As one of the top 10 Zerg players, what do you make of this shift in power?
CrazyHydra : I think it has something to do with the metagame shift. We often simply followed the reactive style to counter what other races do. Recently, we focus a lot more on perfecting strategies while still perfecting our macro, but less on other details. The current trend is about why should we micro, harass or even scout while we can just outmacro and have a better build order than the opponent. Other races focused too much practice on other things, something that I blame my teammates a lot for.
#
That seems to be the case these days.
Speaking of the swarm, you'll be playing another top Zerg this weekend in the Ro16. You and Kolll have met previously, twice in fact, and you actually hold the advantage 2-0. However, those games were played way back in season 2 and times have changed drastically since then. That being said, how will you be preparing for this match? Since you and Mafia Zerg will both be playing ZvZ, will you be practicing with one another?
CrazyHydra : Kolll is really a force to be reckoned with. Back when he was playing for GOAT, I always felt he'd be great, maybe not that much though. Also, as I said previously, practicing ZvZ against Mafia Zerg actually makes you forget how to win, so we're practicing but he won't be my only sparring partner.
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Before we end this interview, is there anything else you'd like to add? Perhaps a shoutout to someone or a word of caution to your opponent?
CrazyHydra : Kolll will be hard to beat, but I'm confident I can do it. I hope for a teamkill where I'll be victorious. Mafia Zerg was too kind last ISL when he faced HidE , he didn't play in his real form, when I'll face HidE I won't be that easy and show no mercy before facing whoever will end up as the 2nd place in finals. At least that'll happen if I beat Kolll . Oh and shoutout to the Dynasty manager for looking pretty today.
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##Group C Winner: Xello
Hello, Xello , glad to be interviewing you for the first time. And congratulations on making it back to the Ro16. Many people said that your group was the group of death, but you managed to advance so easily. Tell us about it, how did you do it?
Xello : In the past TvP was the matchup I felt the most uncomfortable with. So I decided to concentrate my work on it to even out my matchups. After all it was easier to win the first map vs Riven than I expected. The match was played on my favorite map La Mancha and I had a lot of solid builds prepared for all kinds of situations. In contrast to that, my second match vs StaRbouNd on Tau Cross was pure improvisation. In TvT I tend to experiment a lot more and create builds and compositions on the fly. In this particular match I only won because StaRbouNd was tired and fucked up.
#
Ah, a war of attrition, well done.
Many people consider you and your teammate Kolll among the top players out there. With both of you still alive and vying for the gold, as well as your team being promoted to ProLeague, surely you'll be wanting to wreak some havoc in both instances. Tell us about your goals, anything specific?
Xello : For once Kolll and me are in different parts of the bracket. We talked about it and agreed on our individual goals: reaching the semi-finals of ISL. Going further than that doesn't seem realistic with HidE and Badger still in the running. As for Proleague, it's going to be the hardest season in a long time. There are a lot of good teams already, and with Dynasty, Team 69 and Blungus getting promoted, aiming for anything higher than top 6 would be disrespectful to the other managers.
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Your next opponent will be Harmony , just one of the many Zerg players in this round. In fact, over this past season, Zerg have continually grown stronger while Terran have tapered off a bit. As a Terran, what do you make of this shift in power? And how will you be preparing for your match with Harmony ?
Xello : I have to say I've come to the point where I don't care anymore which Zerg I'm playing against because there are so many. I can say from personal experience that I've been performing worse and worse in training matches against my team mate Kolll . As to how I'm training for my upcoming match with Harmony , I'll just tell Kolll to play drunk.
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Haha, that's certainly one way of practicing. Well then, before we end this interview, do you have anything else you'd like to say? Maybe a shoutout or two? Maybe a word to your opponent?
Xello : First shoutout goes to my "new" team mate NTT for reigniting my will to train hard. I've never seen him sleep, and at this point I doubt he sleeps at all. Another shoutout to BIRDMAN , I hope we can continue our rivalry in the next round. Harmony , let's show good games and make it 2:1 either way!
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##Group C Runner-Up: StaRbouNd
Hi Consonance, and congratulations on advancing to the Ro16 in the ISL. You've been absent from the Ro16 for the past two ISL's, how does it feel to be there again?
StaRbouNd : It's been great, lately I've been busy carrying my team to victory but I got to relax with the addition of Huskar to our team.
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Your path to the final 16 was quite difficult, especially in the last round. You were in what many would say was the group of death. Give us a bit of insight into the matches you played. How did you prepare for this group and manage to take down a rising star, JustnBiebr , not only once but twice?
StaRbouNd : I actually didn't practice TvZ that much, Harmony was busy practicing for his match and Ezkiel was on vacation so I didn't have anyone to practice with (laugh). We definitely need more practice players. JustnBiebr wasn't at his best today so I guess I'm lucky in that regard.
I trusted in my TvT so that was no problem, I'm a little disappointed that I lost especially since I held the advantage in mid-game, but Xello is a fantastic player so I wasn't too upset. I was actually practicing TvP until Abraxas 's fingers bled. Sadly I didn't get a chance to face him (Riven ). It looks like I won't be facing another Protoss in the ISL so I'll let Abraxas rest (laugh).
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So your next match will be against 1 . In the past, the two of you have played 4 times, splitting those games 2-2. In the event everything goes horribly wrong, the winner of this match may be the only Terran left in the ISL. Since you seem rather confident in your TvT, how will you be approaching this Ro16 match? Will you be receiving any help from your teammates?
StaRbouNd : Although I'm always confident in my TvT though my results haven't reflected on that lately. I still want to show people that my TvT is still on the level of my first three seasons when I went 48-11 (81%).
With Huskar joining our team, I think I have a lot to learn from him. He's showing me some awesome harassment tactics so I'm hoping to use them in my upcoming match. I still don't feel 100%, given that ProLeague just ended, but I'll try my best anyways.
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That's good to hear. Well, it's near time to wrap up this interview. Is there anything else you'd like to say? Maybe a shoutout to someone? Or maybe you'd like to extend some words to 1 ?
StaRbouNd : 1 's time is long over, I'm going to put him into a retirement home for good.
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##Group D Winner: Mafia Zerg
Hello, Mafia Zerg , congrats on advancing from your group. It can be said that your group was probably the easiest to predict, since everyone knew you wouldn't be eliminated. How does it feel to be back in the Ro16?
Mafia Zerg : It's disappointing to be back, I'd rather be in HidE 's position right now, not only does he have easier bracket, but he has the PL and ISL championship on his resume. I hope on making sure both championships come to our team as fast as possible. About last group, it wasn't as easy as it may seem. I haven't had a break since last ISL, not that I want one, but we needed someone to carry the team late in the season and the manager relied on me, I'm getting tired.
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Since your loss to HidE in the previous ISL, your record stands at an astonishing 29-1, including impressive victories over 1 , StaRbouNd , and Hatred . With such an impressive winrate, along with a current win streak of 20 games, how do you prevent yourself from getting overconfident while playing?
Mafia Zerg : I can't ever be overconfident because as you said, I lost to HidE , and he's not the only good zerg out here. Until I win an ISL, if I ever do, being overconfident would be a mistake since I'll always have to prove myself to forget that lost final.
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Your upcoming opponent will be Don Bilbo , an upstart Zerg who has played extremely well in his own right this season. He went undefeated in league play with a record of 35-0, and he's only lost one ZvZ so far, that was to BIRDMAN . How will you be preparing for this match? After all, ZvZ is quite volatile.
Mafia Zerg : I acknowledge that Don Bilbo is a scary zerg, having a perfect record in any league is no small feat. My teammates says that I should already think about facing Kolll (they tease CrazyHydra that he will lose to him lol). But I think that Don Bilbo shouldn't be underestimated, thus I will practice my strategies with CrazyHydra , Tokki and Sin mainly. Maybe I'll try a few things with external help, but I'm not done preparing my builds yet.
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Should you go on to win this ISL, you could possibly be taking the hardest route of all time. Your next opponent would be either your teammate CrazyHydra or Kolll , then most likely HidE in the semifinal and the final might be against Badger . Anyway, the point is that it's a lot of ZvZ. Do you think this is the future of the ISL? Will Terran and Protoss come back up to challenge the swarm soon?
Mafia Zerg : I think the main problem is that Zergs worked lately to evolve the metagame on our side (read: have more strategy) while the other races focused on their personal skills and mechanics. I think that eventually they will catch up with us and be superior mechanically, though we also have the time to catch up on that. But yeah, defilers are OP and it counters Protoss and Terran units pretty well. Until Terrans find a way to D-Matrix vessels to tank scourge shots before eradicating defilers or that Protoss find a way to defend an hydrabust, we're on to a lot of ZvZs.
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Superb insight, now before we end this interview, would you like to say any final words to anyone?
Mafia Zerg : As long as I will be in ISL I will give everything I got, but to be honest I'm satisfied with my silver, as it was an incredible accomplishment. My main focus will remain ProLeague, as I believe that this game wouldn't meant to be played if not from the other players you live with or chat with everyday. Getting a PL title is more rewarding because you share your victory with your teammates, whatever their skill levels are and with the whole organisation and all the fans who rooted for you. It's about sharing, which makes the victory much more precious to me. That being said, I hope this is not my last ISL interview and I'll still give my best to win despite the short nights of sleep.
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##Group D Runner-Up: Kalkaros
Hi Kalkaros , and congratulations on making it to the last 16 of the ISL. Unfortunately your teammate couldn't advance with you, but otherwise, how does it feel?
Kalkaros : Muahahaha, it always makes my day when I beat Setä fair and square! He deserved to drop out, and he is pretty mad :) It feels awesome!
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This is the first time I've gotten a chance to interview you, and similarly, the first time you've made it this far in an ISL. Tell the readers something about yourself that they might not know.
Kalkaros : Something they don't know? Hmm... I like bunnies and kittens and like to cross-dress sometimes :) No but seriously, I don't really have any big things about myself except that I love cheesy builds. I am mostly cheesing everyone during practice which my team mates don't like one bit.
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Haha, that's quite a team dynamic you guys have going there. Well, your next ro16 opponent will be Nal_rA , probably the best Protoss as of right now. Do you think your cheesy builds will work against him? Or maybe you have something else up your sleeve..
Kalkaros : I am always confident when I play so I hardly make mistakes due to stress. I should be ok :)
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Very well then. Now, before we end this interview, is there anything else you'd like to say? Maybe to your fans? Any shoutouts? Or some words to your opponent?
Kalkaros : I'll see you in the finals BIRDMAN , prepare for some team-killing action! Also, I want to say that Whisperkill is my favourite manager and I'd join his team but WTM keeps me chained to the computer so I cannot leave :(
PS. I'll cheese the fuck out of you BIRDMAN if we ever meet in ISL!
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The End, thanks for taking the time to read the interviews. Also, I want to thank all the managers for participating as well. I hope you've had as much fun emulating your players as I did making up the questions.