[Code A] Ro32 Day Two Preview/ Day One Recap

Results from Live Report thread by Shellshock1122.

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No One is Safe

Nestea, jjakji, and Oz were some of the first Code A regulars to be eliminated from the tournament last week, but they were not the last. In a night of games with plenty of unexpected results, Genius, PartinG, ByuN, Ryung, and MC all dropped from the Code A tournament. Fortunately for them, they will get a second chance in the Up/Down matches, unlike their peers who were eliminated in the Ro48 and sent straight back to Code B. Even so, the Up/Down matches are guaranteed to be the hardest they've ever been this season, and returning to Code S will be no small feat for the defeated.

– Protoss regulars vanquished: SK_MC, ST_PartinG, and SlayerS_Genius sent to Up/Downs

The most notable upset was the MC's defeat at the hands of FnaticRC aLive, a fellow Code S regular but one with a much thinner resume. Surprisingly, MC defeat was the most one-sided upset loss of the night, with aLive looking like the two-time champion and MC looking like the middle-tier Code S player. After successfully deflecting a two base timing attack in game one, aLive followed it up with brilliant MMM play in game two, running MC ragged with harassment before finishing him off.

PartinG and Genius did a little better, losing 1 – 2 to MVP.Vampire and CJ_Bbyong, but they could not say they lost unfairly. PartinG had nothing to blame but PvP, dropping the final set after his blink stalker build ran up against a safe, immortal-backed fast expand from Vampire. In Genius' case, he managed to take a map with one of his famous void ray all-ins, but lost with a blink-stalker all-in when he was backdoored by a group of hellions. Both players decided they would play at least one macro game in the final set, where Bbyong toppled Genius' colossi and came out with a narrow victory.

– Samsung_RorO rolls on, defeating SlayerS_Ryung 2 – 0

While Bbyong surprised by winning his game against Genius, there was a KeSPA player who drew even more attention. RorO, possibly the best Zerg player from the KeSPA faction, added another GomTV player to his kill-list and devastated Ryung in a 2 – 0 rout. On Entombed Valley, Ryung suffered a slow, inevitable defeat at the hands of a well supported brood lord composition, while on Whirlwind, his mech army was categorically picked apart before it could reach critical mass.

Roro will be able to travel to WCS Asia this weekend with a smile on his face, and on the back of his recent performances, should be one of the top candidates to represent Korea in the World Finals.

– One-sided madness

While the Code S regulars faltered, the rest of the night was filled with fairly predictable, one-sided results. As expected, everywhere-BUT-the-GSL sensations CreatorPrime and TSL_HyuN rolled on to the final round of Code A with 2 – 0 victories, Creator defeating his teammate Byun while Hyun crushed LG-IM's YoDa.

MaruPrime defeated FXOasd in a TvT that more resembled a PvP, gaining a heavy build-order advantage in both games and riding them to easy wins. Finally, ST_Hack outplayed MVP's finale in two straight macro games to make it to the final round of Code A for the second straight season.

– Looking forward: DongRaeGu vs. Roro and other matches.

Before this season started, you could already tell that the next Up/Downs would be the toughest ever. Not only had the general skill level risen considerably, but there would be an influx of extremely skilled KeSPA players to make the path to Code S even more treacherous. With players like MC, Ryung, PartinG, Genius, Byun and YoDa already confirmed for the Up/Downs, the tournament is already shaping up to be a mini-Code S.

Looking ahead at the confirmed matches in the final round of Code A, there's one match that really catches the eye. By defeating Ryung, RorO has booked himself a date with DongRaeGu with a Code S spot on the line. DongRaeGu has fallen hard in the last few months, having only the OSL to hang his hat upon. He needs to make the bleeding stop in the GSL, and a strong ZvZ player like RorO is the last thing he'll have wanted. At the same time, a win over one of KeSPA's best might be exactly what he needs to give himself a much needed boost.

In terms of game quality, aLive vs Creator might be best match of the Ro24, with both players excelling at late game TvP. Whether it's for the Terran or Protoss side, it should prove to be a clinic on how to play the match-up.

The other matches are not as high profile, but offer some interesting storylines nonetheless. JYP will be tested by yet another Terran in Maru, Squirtle will face a teamkill match against Hack, and HyuN seems destined to finally reach Code S after drawing a relatively easy opponent in Vampire. Last, but definitely not least, Bbyong will learn the true meaning of cheese as he goes up against Heart.

Premium-Only Matches

KT_Flash vs. STX_Mini

After a an epic day packed with the biggest stars of the game on display in the semi-finals of Code S, it can feel comforting to return to some premium-only Code A content. Sometimes it is just nice to go back to basics, to see some games where the play is all that matters, independent from the names involved. The afternoon session of Code A is almost a therapeutic experience, especially coming down from the teeth gnashing experiences of Code S/

Oh wait? Oh, hi there Flash. So much for a break from hype, high stakes matches, and that pesky elephant.

As it happens, this day of action opens up with KeSPA vs. KeSPA. Flash is facing off with mini. It has been quite interesting to see the trajectory of Flash in SC2; when ProLeague kicked off its hybrid program it seemed like no Terran would ever compete with Protoss. At this point however, Flash has a TvP record that outshines that of his other matchups. On the other hand, mini has his own intriguing points. Of course, he broke foreign loving hearts when he knocked Naniwa out of the GSL and created some interesting twitter reactions with his interview. But more pertinent to this match is the fact that one can only find a single instance of him facing off against a Terran player, a loss to then-T8_Sea way back in June. Since then, he has won his GSL Code A preliminaries and made it to the finals of the OSL preliminaries solely through facing Protoss and Zerg.

Flash seems quite at home with the metagame we were delivered after seeing Terran struggle to take any game off Protoss a little while ago. His midgame is strong, he is comfortable on two or three bases and has the kind of strengths one might expect him from his Brood War fame. Mini is as close to a complete mystery one would come at this point, but so far no KeSPA Protoss has shown a distinct weakness in PvT.

Prediction: Flash 2 - 1 Mini


T8_Terminator vs. TSL_Shine

One does wonder how Korean progamers go about changing their handles. Terminator, née Sang, was a fairly inconspicuous Protoss on Team 8. He was certainly one of the less celebrated players in his team’s relatively successful ProLeague season, despite being touted during the early phases of the transition as one of the best KeSPA players. However, as Team 8 went out to SKT, Sang became rather noteworthy indeed as he defeated Rain in a PvP. After that, Sang became Terminator. One has to suspect there is a direct correlation.

His opponent, Shine, is in a similar situation; a promising player on a team where his name is dwarfed by others. What makes Shine interesting is what makes TSL an interesting Zerg team in general. Stylistically, the Zerg players have gone through several iterations; the real fascinating aspect is that how they affect one and mold one another. Now that the team has started to shy away Hyun's past obsession with roach drops, perhaps it is time that the followers of Hyun started to explore their master’s new obsession, winning every series he plays.

Prediction: Terminator 2 - 1 Shine


MVP.KeeN vs. MVP.Sniper

Commander Keen is still struggling to get his hands back on that coveted Code S spot. He has held it several times, but fate and Nada have always conspired to keep it just out of safe reach. At least now there is only fate left to contend with, and there have been signs that Keen is making strides to becoming a solid Code S player. Behind the sweet image of having amazing celebrations is a player who clearly has a good TvZ, but struggles to find real consistency and to perform when the pressure is at its highest. Meanwhile, Sniper has shown that there is some growth in the ranks of Mvp Zerg, with himself and Monster starting to come out of the shadow of DRG. He has uncanny ability to appear either amazing or disastrous against Terran, which is just as well. This is a team-kill, and games have a tendency to go along those lines anyway once we enter the murky depths of double and triple mind games. Expect unorthodox builds, mass hellions, low economy and scrappy play.

Prediction: Keen 2 - 1 Sniper


FXOSirius vs. SlayerS_MMA

On paper, this is the most lopsided encounter of the day. Sirius has a long history of not quite making the GSL cut, while MMA is a Code S champion with the most exhilarating TvZ we have seen in StarCraft II.

As much as invoking these words on Team Liquid scares me, it has to be stated that there is an elephant in the room. And while there are a lot of KeSPA professionals competing in the round of 32, in this instance I am referring to the state of SlayerS. A lot has changed since the days of yore, which saw dominating team league performances, a complete upset of TvZ balance caused by their Terrans running rampant at MLG and crowning MMA as the Code S champion at BlizzCon 2011. At the time of writing, SlayerS have found it impossible to recreate a new dynasty in Code S. With Genius and Ryung condemned to up and down matches in order to try to make it in for GSL S5, MMA is their last chance of direct placement.

While his temporary eviction from the team house and following poor results had people wonder whether his days of being a premier player was behind him, MMA has had a rebound of sorts. While not finding any success in Code S this season, it bears remembering that he finished third in a group containing half of the top four in the whole tournament. For MMA personally and SlayerS collectively, this match is important to re-establish some image of not only former glory but continued relevance. It is abundantly clear that the skill set has not disappeared, but the quiet confidence in MMA as a lock against just about any Zerg is diminishing.

Prediction: MMA 2 - 0 Sirius


Regular Matches

ST_Sparta vs. Woongjin_sOs (aka Shy)

It is clear that Sparta has potential and skill. However, one has to wonder if anything he can do will ever eclipse the feat of sending Nestea packing to Code B. Obviously, the way it should work is that the new kid on the block takes out the three time champion, then continues his rampage through the tournament and cements himself as a real contender, propelled by a reputation enhanced by a feat perhaps mundane in terms of skill but significant in terms of creating a buzz.

Meanwhile, sOs, formerly known as sHy, presents a very different challenge than that of the fallen creator of the universe. Not only did he beat Jjakji, another former Code S champion unceremoniously dumped out of the GSL altogether this season, but he did it effortlessly. About as striking as his love of capitalizing the second letter of three letter words is the fact that he has taken out some rather big name Terrans in his short career of SC2. Jjakji is still a fantastic player, but he also have the scalps of fellow Code A round of 32 players Flash and BoguS in his trophy case. sOs certainly looked like the real deal; he has a short but stellar record in SC2. It is pretty easy to pick him to wIn against Sparta.

Prediction: sOs 2 - 0 Sparta


Bogus vs. Bomber

In the last round, Bogus dethroned the King of Code A. However, the perhaps the YuGiOh he defeated was not really the King of Code A at all; and instead YuGiOh as the most obvious vs. KeSPA choker of our time. Adding to the mystery is the fact that BoguS aptitude versus Terran is even less explored than mini’s; which makes it difficult to say just how he will measure up against Bomber.

The Startale Terran also comes with his fair share of stereotypes at this point. Unreliable, temporarily brilliant and sometimes utterly self-defeating come to mind as things associated with the former Code A champion. At this point, it seems the function of his existence is two-fold. Bomber exists to remind everyone just how gifted he is and make us sad when his potential remains inert. Bomber also exists to surprise us by returning to form when he seems to be in a slump while disappointing fans bitterly when he seems to be on form.

Defeating Baby in the last round gave more hope to the ones who wanted Bomber to challenge for Code S titles. However, it is not unlikely that new found hope will once again fuel another quick exit. On the other hand, with a round of 24 match against Happy on the horizon for the winner of here, it seems more reasonable to predict the upset defeat to come there.

Prediction: Bomber 2 - 1 Bogus


STX_Trap vs. mTw.SuperNova

Another STX Protoss, another relatively undecorated player, another PvT. Just as BoguS got a figurative bye into this round by defeating a player who simply refuses to play well against all pachyderms, Trap got here by adding to Oz’ woes in PvP.

Against SuperNova however, he faces the player with the most incentive to do well in all of Code A. SuperNova is a Code S calibre player with a fantastic TvP, no matter how mercurial it can appear at times. But what is important to keep in mind is that SuperNova is but a season away from the NesTea award. While he still would be in with a shot should he lose to Trap, the Up and Down group he was prior to season four was too scary to take any chances. Expect SuperNova to show up in top shape and take no prisoners.

Prediction: SuperNoVa 2 - 1 Trap


BBoongBBoongPrime vs. FXOGuMiho

It is rather strange to see that the final match of the day is only the second featuring two eSF players. And it is the only to feature two GSL mainstays. B4, since defeating NesTea when NesTea was seemingly invincible in ZvZ, has been a player one should expect to be a consistent Code A player at least. However, a distinct inability to produce results against Protoss has left him hanging on the edge between Code A and B for a long time. At least now he is securely entrenched in Code A for another season; his ZvT has been a go-to in order to stay competitive. Against GuMiho, that will certainly come in handy. With Prime showing varied results as of late, getting what is as close to a Zerg star as they have into Code S would be more than welcome.

GuMiho is suffering from some of the same expectation issues. In season one, he looked set to go into a final with Genius at two to nil up against DRG. Unfortunately, DongRaeGu proved that the chance to beat his friend was enough incentive to persevere. Since then, GuMiho has struggled to find the same consistency; he did rekindle the magic when he singlehandedly defeated SlayerS to land the GSTL S2 for FXO, but single league success has been elusive. GuMiho should still be the superior player, and although he is not as likely to go for the crazy, multitask heavy style characteristic of his GSL heyday, he is still deadly in TvZ and should take one step closer to Code S status.

Prediction: Gumiho 2 - 1 B4