Map of the Swarm

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On April 23 2009 13:21 riptide wrote:
It is difficult not to root for Ma Jae Yoon. As a zerg myself, sAviOr's style of play has always been close to my heart. Maurader of multitudes, and master of the mutalisk, The Maestro dominated progaming for many a season before succumbing to The Revolutionist, who took him out 3 - 0 in the GOMTV MSL Season 1.

Now, I'm not one of those rabid sAviOr fans who calls bonjwa the moment he wins a game. No, as much as I'd like to see him destroy everyone in 2009, I realise that the Starcraft arena he reigned has changed much during his fall from glory.

This morning, however, while catching up on my weekly vods, I came across his Proleague game vs FireBatHero, one of the few gamers I dislike with a passion. There are those who say, of course, that some bad manner is a part of the game, and that it makes for good Starcraft. I vehemently disagree. Savior, The Maestro, was the greatest player on the planet for nearly two years, and even during his reign of fire, was always humble, and benevolent. In fact, the [gm] tag at the end of his name stands as testament to his reputation in Starcraft circles.

Having been crotchdanced at many a time, and sporting a disasterous 3 - 8 record vs FireBatHero, it's difficult to imagine what was going in The Maestro's head as he sat down to play the match opener against the Samsung KHAN terran. sAviOr had not won a game against him since 2006, and therefore was not only battling FireBatHero, but in essence, was challenging his own gaming history.

Firstly, let's get to the game, played on the controversial new map Battle Royal.

+ Show Spoiler [VOD] +

In this opening set, saViOr begins with his patented 9pool opening, and we see FireBatHero grab an early gas. It appears that some mech is on the way. A hatchery goes down at sAvior's nat, and the Terran puts down his factory. Despite being unable to deny scouting, two early lings delay the factory slightly, and the game begins to feel like a sAviOr game of old. Lings take down an assimilator, and very wisely retreat as FireBatHero's first vulture arrives at the now half sized choke. Despite several tries, however, it appears that the Samsung KHAN Terran does not have Boxer-esque vulture control, and that he will not, in fact, make the jump.


FireBatHero demonstrating how not to do a vulture jump.

A CC goes down at the Terran nat, a questionable decision, especially since mutalisks were on the way, and perhaps the call that cost FireBatHero the game.

Meanwhile, Ma Jae Yoon makes an appearance with two hydralisks and a few lings, and FireBatHero very wisely retreats with his motor bikes. A marine gets sniped by a hydra, and MJY loses a ling or two to vulture fire. Of course, it is the Terran who is on the back foot for now. Destroying the SCV that was constructing the Command Center, sAviOr turns his attention to the few vultures and SCVs that have congregated in front of FireBatHero's main.

The amount of harassment he manages here, with just two hydras and four lings is impressive, and if anything, made me recall the days of old when every ling of sAviOr's seemed to be microed individually.

FBH, once again pushes out with two vultures and resumes constructing his Command Center. Of course, two vultures soon become 0.2 vultures, and then it's one hydra vs two SCVs. Meanwhile, the Maestro's spire is down, and it is evident that death is near. Turrets go down in the Terran base, and a lone goliath stands around, gazing nervously at the sky.

The mutas hatch, and as they make their way across the map, my pulse begins to rise. Are these the invincible sAviOr mutalisks we remember? Are they those same horrors of the sky that were feared by Terrans for so many years?


The little guy who used to spin inside this destroyed turret says YES.

Just before this untimely death, several scourge arrive at the Terran natural, and I, like many others I'm sure, was confused.


sAviOr playing ZvP?

No Starport was down, and there was no reason why sAviOr would need scourge. Of course, that's the reason he's The Maestro, and I'm a D noob on ICCUP. As the harrassment at FireBatHero's natural continues, the Terran lifts his Command Center and begins floating it back into his main. Of course, the scourge meet it on its way there, and one last hit from the mutas puts FireBatHero back 400 minerals, a significant loss as he heads into the midgame.

Meanwhile, the Terran seems to have grown tired of his tech, and floats his ebay straight into hydra - muta country, and somewhere in his mineral line SCVs begin to mutter about bad upper management.


FireBatHero, here deciding that he had made enough turrets anyway.

Meanwhile, sAviOr's mutas slowly edge their way into FireBatHero's main, and seem content with sitting in the middle of a goliath and two turrets.


sAviOr's patented invincilisks™ make a triumphant return.

Having denied an expansion, sAviOr performs a brief tactical retreat, and secures another base, bringing in his mutalisks from time to time to harrass FireBatHero's undefended mineral line. Two hydras take down the remaining assimilator, and Terran is forced to find a different way out of his base. Despite now having a sizable goliath force, sAviOr uses his air mobility to harrass on multiple fronts, and bags a few more SCVs in the process.

Finally, FireBatHero moves out and sAviOr rushes to sink down at his expansion. Destroying the neutral building, FireBatHero moves up to the Zerg expansion, and with sunkens still morphing, and mutas mostly neutralised by a flurry of goliath missiles, the future of the zerg expo looks bleak.

The Maestro, of course, stayed positive, and using his invincilisks™,


turned this,


into this.

Lurkers morph, burrow, grab a coffee, check their email, and make a few forum posts. The expo is now well defended. The mutalisks, of course, have unresolved childhood issues, and are a little more aggressive, proceeding to chase down and beat the pulp out of two of the the three remaining goliaths.

FireBatHero types out, sAviOr celebrates.


Having crushed FireBatHero, Ma Jae Yoon performs a ceremony. -_-

This was just one Proleague game, and in the long run really doesn't say much about either player. At their next encounter, either could win, and the odds are, for now, still stacked high in the Terran's favour. Of course, what I'd like to draw your attention to here is the difference we see between these two players, both in victory, and in defeat.

If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster
And treat those two impostors just the same;
[...]
Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it,
And - which is more - you'll be a Man, my son!
- Rudyard Kipling, If

So, Lee Sung Eun, remember this - you can win some games, and do many a crotch dance. The fact remains, however, that when all is said and done, and history of Broodwar is written, the name Ma Jae Yoon will be written in gold, and yours, I'm afraid will barely be remembered. This isn't broadway, and drama aside, results are what matters. You are a decent player, no doubt, but in posterity you will rarely be mentioned in the same breath as Ma Jae Yoon, for he is a true master of the Starcraft universe.

Remember, young Terran, that in battling royalty, you are only grasping at the ankles of a Broodwar giant who was, is, and always will be, more than you can ever aspire to be. Above all, remember that wins and losses aside, this is a game that revolves around respect, humility, and grace. It is my hope that you learn this in the days and years to come.

Ma Jae Yoon, you sir, are a gentleman and a scholar, and win or lose, I will always root for you. Not only because of your mad mutalisk control or your beautiful ling harrassment, but because you, above all other players, truly embody the spirit of Broodwar.

GG sAviOr. GG.

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