GSL Ro32 Group D Recap




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No one in Group D was immune from elimination, but the final results still managed to surprise and disappoint all the same. (T)Bomber, whom many predicted to come out on top after great results in 2014, was unceremoniously dumped out in last place despite respectable in-game performances. Once again, lackluster scouting was his bane as he was failed to detect several atypical strategies that were nevertheless defensible. Instead (T)TY leapt into the empty void with a showing worthy of his unfulfilled talent. He looked like the TY that exists in the dreams of his most ardent fans, outpacing his opponents with the merciless speed of his decision-making and execution. Behind him came the prodigy (T)Dream, overcoming some marked TvT weakness with scrappy aggressive TvP. This sadly left (P)YongHwa out in the cold. Although he had an exemplary showing against Bomber, the craft and planning did not extent to his encounters with Dream.




Game 1

Overgrowth

RATING:


TY elected to open CC first while Bomber sought to punish this hubris with fast banshees. A well-timed scout from TY spots it and he builds turrets just in time. TY transferred his economic advantage into a considerably army lead and pushed out across the map, managing to pick off several of Bomber's tanks before entrenching himself for a siege. Bomber smartly chose to work around the threat, sending out units to counterattack; these caught TY by surprise and nearly destroyed his newly completed 3rd base. Compounding off said distraction, Bomber used his regrouped units to break through TY's siege line and reclaim his natural. He poked and prodded with his new-found map control until he found a weakness and struck viciously, forcing another lift on the 3rd. Things looked bad for TY until he chose to mimic Bomber's tactic, sending out an undetected double drop. Finding an undefended base with 2/2 just finished, his units ransacked Bomber's economy while TY's main force successfully held off Bomber's main force.

KT.TYT7 RATING:

TY had excellent early game scouting, giving him the initiative to move out on the map and do damage in response. However, he failed to adequately cushion his lead into a decisive advantage. He was overly greedy with his third base and nearly lost it twice, which would have cost him the game both times..

T1 Redbull BomberRATING:

Oddly enough, despite losing Bomber came out looking like the slightly better player. He rebounded nicely from his early game deficit using his brilliant sense of positioning and killer instinct, nearly winning. However he did not factor in the possibility of drops and the upgrade advantage of TY. He ended up paying dearly for that.




Unfortunately the series ended anticlimactically on Merry Go Round. Bomber tried to play greedy this time and TY punished it harshly.

YongHwa looked to be taking a nice lead in the series after he effortlessly won Game 1, enduring a SCV pull train off an untouched 3 base economy. However he was unable to hold a similar SCV pull on Merry Go Round. On King Sejong Station YongHwa went for a risky proxy DT Shrine but failed to do a lot of damage, while Dream's widow mine drop inflicted plenty of casualties. Dream amassed a strong army, destroyed the 3rd of YongHwa and then crushed the Protoss' forces.

The winner's match was a straightforward affair, TY looking perfectly comfortable as he swept Dream. TY opened up with some drop-oriented pressure on Catallena and did critical damage, quickly ending the game. On KSS Dream elected to open with a banshee while TY got a quicker CC. The banshee did some damage but it didn't destabilize TY. After entering the mid game outmaneuvering on both sides triggered a weird doom drop base trade. TY's management of the situation was better, allowing him to walk away with the series.

In the loser's match, YongHwa gave Bomber a taste of his own medicine in the form of an antiquated immortal bust. Bomber put up a good fight but ran out of steam in the end. Still panting from all that exertion, he was blindsided by proxy oracles in game 2. The first patrol took out 10 SCVs, putting YongHwa in a lead he would never relinquish. Bomber could not get back into the game through any means, as those oracles plus 4 observers gave YongHwa a constant view of the map. Bomber knew he was incapable of catching up in economy and decided on a powerful 2 base SCV pull, but he was forced to engage without a concave and got annihilated.

Thus we had a rematch in the second series between Dream and YongHwa. Fortunately it was much closer and more exciting than the first go-around. YongHwa opened with an aggressive blink on Foxtrot, but failed to do crippling damage to Dream. Sensing weakness Dream pushed across the map and sieged YongHwa's natural; the move would have succeeded if not for a well-timed colossus. A moment of inattention afterwards cost YongHwa part of his army and then the game. Dream shot ahead on King Sejong after WM drops scored some kills. Dream transitioned into a standard mid game composition, unaware that YongHwa had decided upon chargelot/archon with a sprinkling of immortals. The strange composition caught the SKT1 Terran totally off guard and despite having a quicker 3rd, Dream didn't know how to handle it. He was left so weakened after YongHwa's assault that he was powerless to handle the follow-up.




Game 3

Merry Go Round

RATING:

This game got off to a normal start as both opted for macro openings to set up the mid-games. YongHwa deviated from the standard blink -> colossus pattern, upgrading charge first and producing a warp prism. Once Dream moved out on to the map YongHwa pounced, slaughtering 21 SCV's in Dream's natural before being cleaned up. YongHwa looked to be in a marvelous position, but in that very moment Artosis decided to expound on his advantage. Before you could blink YongHwa's army was caught in the middle of the map and destroyed. Dream seized the moment to destroy YongHwa's 3rd before pushing into the natural, almost finishing the game right there. From there Dream consolidated his economy while continuing to keep YongHwa pinned with drops. Despite trading very well and defending his bases, YongHwa neither exceeded 120 supply for a significant period nor took a 3rd. Once Dream's ghosts marched unto the field, he forced and won the final fight.

SKT.DreamT10 RATING:

Dream's micro and multitasking remain his scariest attributes and he frequently bludgeoned YongHwa into submission with the speed of his attacks. Unfortunately he tunnel visioned too much on dropping at the expense of his economy. If YongHwa had been able to stabilize, Dream might've killed himself through neglect.

P6 MVP.YongHwaRATING:

YongHwa displayed many interesting builds and moves today. His most intriguing maneuver was a chargelot/warp prism assault, clearly meant to reverse tempo away from Terran in the mid-game (where the race wants it most). However, his attention and execution weren't up to par with his strategic insight and it cost him a spot in the Ro16.



With Group D complete, the Round of 32 finally drew to a close. For fans of the perfectionism inherent in Korean play, it was a mixed bag. Many series between theoretically equal foes turned into lopsided affairs, and many games that should have been amazing were...not recommendable. What the tournament lacked in aggregate high-level play, it made up with compelling storylines. It was a pleasant revelation to see old-school Korean players like MMA and MC prove they could still tangle with the new titans, and a new crop of stellar players like Terminator and Dark are finally getting results. With one of the most even race distributions in Ro16 history, the group nominations will assuredly give us some unexpected and anticipated matchups.