hofven Profile Joined January 2012 Sweden 43 Posts Last Edited: 2012-06-04 13:56:17 #1



NASL TargA Vs Puzzle, Solving the Enigma



This Sunday TargA has a puzzle to solve. And not one of those easy jigsaw puzzles with 10 or so pieces. It is one of those 1,000 piece bad boys, and he has to solve it before the time limit is up and a pack of raging Colossi comes and shreds him out of existence. The magnitude of this Sunday's NASL match against the Korean threat is of that magnitude. But this much is true, even a Rubiks cube is easy as pie with the proper preparation. And TargA will need just that to take this series, foresight. And perhaps a bit of luck with the proper risks.



A glance at Puzzle's recent accomplishments says it all. Recently snagging silver in the MSI Pro Cup #10, and putting a stop to Life's onslaught in Slayer's recent GSTL win against ZeNEX. Puzzle has been performing well lately. Especially in the NASL's format, where he currently sits 6-1 in series wins at the top of Division 5.



In fact the only one who has cracked the riddle of Puzzles play in NASL thus far has been MorroW. In a very close series it came down to the last game on Dual Sight. After a very sneaky play where he used vision from his Void Rays to warp in a few sentries and zealots into Morrow's main to kill his hatch. Morrow used a combination of Nydus play and a roll of the dice with a base race to just narrowly secure the win. The series as a whole is a testament to the Protoss' crafty play and execution. Game one Puzzle displayed a certain genius when he cannoned MorroW's third base. The cannon finished before the hatchery did. To avoid allowing MorroW an opportunity relinquish his minerals with a cancel upon seeing the cannon, Puzzle made the cannon attack his own pylon so as to let the hatchery finish. Puzzle secured a clean kill, and later the game. Game 2 on Ohana Puzzle again showed his intelligent strategy as he killed MorroW's third with a clean gateway pressure while securing his own third base. Had it not been for MorroW's excellent multitasking and Baneling bombs on mineral lines it would've been a clean 2-0 for the Protoss. Given MorroW's caliber of play, the closeness of the series makes TargA's chance for victory rather bleak.



Where does TargA's chance for victory lay? One thing can be said for Puzzle's play that allows a light of hope for our hero Zerg. He relies on a degree of trickery in his two base timings. Puzzle's playstyle relies heavily on the success of his two base play. Sometimes going as far as an 8 gate on two base as seen in game 1 of his series against Sheth. Yes, an 8 gate. Also, this is one Protoss who absolutely loves his Stargate play with Void Rays. Often times with a +1 attack force of zealots and stalkers to pressure. Even when not all-inning on two base, the Protoss takes a rather naked third behind sentry pressure. If TargA can put the Kabosh on these plays a wide window of opportunity opens for him throughout the mid-game. Also interestingly enough, in his games against MorroW, he did not bother punishing the Zerg when he chose to greedily go for Hatch first builds in two of the games. Additionally it seems Puzzle prefers a Forge fast expand instead of the more economical Nexus first option. Whether or not these are things TargA will attempt to exploit is something to watch for this Sunday.



To win, TargA will need to study the instructions of this Puzzle. Though well concealed behind well thought out strategy and gosu micro, the solution is there. Ingenuity will be the linchpin of TargA's play. Without a doubt TargA has studied the algorithm for success against this crafty toss. One thing TargA may consider is a quick burrow in the conspicuous absence of a Robotics Facility. Will Mindfreak's TargA's execution be where it needs to be, or will Puzzle withhold the pieces necessary for finding victory? Tune into to NASL's Division 5 matches this Sunday to find out.



~ By Stephen Spor



Don't forget to check out the other posts of TargA's NASL journey



Match preview vs MorroW:

Match preview vs White-ra:

Match preview vs Jinro:

Match preview vs MC:

Match preview vs Sheth:

Match preview vs QXC:



Links:



+ Show Spoiler +

Mindfreak Esports Twitter - Facebook

SteelSeries Twitter - Facebook

ScufGaming Twitter - Facebook

Follow TargA on Twitter Mindfreak Esports www.mindfreak-esports.com SteelSeries www.steelseries.com ScufGaming www.scufgaming.com This Sunday TargA has a puzzle to solve. And not one of those easy jigsaw puzzles with 10 or so pieces. It is one of those 1,000 piece bad boys, and he has to solve it before the time limit is up and a pack of raging Colossi comes and shreds him out of existence. The magnitude of this Sunday's NASL match against the Korean threat is of that magnitude. But this much is true, even a Rubiks cube is easy as pie with the proper preparation. And TargA will need just that to take this series, foresight. And perhaps a bit of luck with the proper risks.A glance at Puzzle's recent accomplishments says it all. Recently snagging silver in the MSI Pro Cup #10, and putting a stop to Life's onslaught in Slayer's recent GSTL win against ZeNEX. Puzzle has been performing well lately. Especially in the NASL's format, where he currently sits 6-1 in series wins at the top of Division 5.In fact the only one who has cracked the riddle of Puzzles play in NASL thus far has been MorroW. In a very close series it came down to the last game on Dual Sight. After a very sneaky play where he used vision from his Void Rays to warp in a few sentries and zealots into Morrow's main to kill his hatch. Morrow used a combination of Nydus play and a roll of the dice with a base race to just narrowly secure the win. The series as a whole is a testament to the Protoss' crafty play and execution. Game one Puzzle displayed a certain genius when he cannoned MorroW's third base. The cannon finished before the hatchery did. To avoid allowing MorroW an opportunity relinquish his minerals with a cancel upon seeing the cannon, Puzzle made the cannon attack his own pylon so as to let the hatchery finish. Puzzle secured a clean kill, and later the game. Game 2 on Ohana Puzzle again showed his intelligent strategy as he killed MorroW's third with a clean gateway pressure while securing his own third base. Had it not been for MorroW's excellent multitasking and Baneling bombs on mineral lines it would've been a clean 2-0 for the Protoss. Given MorroW's caliber of play, the closeness of the series makes TargA's chance for victory rather bleak.Where does TargA's chance for victory lay? One thing can be said for Puzzle's play that allows a light of hope for our hero Zerg. He relies on a degree of trickery in his two base timings. Puzzle's playstyle relies heavily on the success of his two base play. Sometimes going as far as an 8 gate on two base as seen in game 1 of his series against Sheth. Yes, an 8 gate. Also, this is one Protoss who absolutely loves his Stargate play with Void Rays. Often times with a +1 attack force of zealots and stalkers to pressure. Even when not all-inning on two base, the Protoss takes a rather naked third behind sentry pressure. If TargA can put the Kabosh on these plays a wide window of opportunity opens for him throughout the mid-game. Also interestingly enough, in his games against MorroW, he did not bother punishing the Zerg when he chose to greedily go for Hatch first builds in two of the games. Additionally it seems Puzzle prefers a Forge fast expand instead of the more economical Nexus first option. Whether or not these are things TargA will attempt to exploit is something to watch for this Sunday.To win, TargA will need to study the instructions of this Puzzle. Though well concealed behind well thought out strategy and gosu micro, the solution is there. Ingenuity will be the linchpin of TargA's play. Without a doubt TargA has studied the algorithm for success against this crafty toss. One thing TargA may consider is a quick burrow in the conspicuous absence of a Robotics Facility. Will Mindfreak's TargA's execution be where it needs to be, or will Puzzle withhold the pieces necessary for finding victory? Tune into to NASL's Division 5 matches this Sunday to find out.Don't forget to check out the other posts of TargA's NASL journeyMatch preview vs MorroW: http://www.teamliquid.net/forum/viewmessage.php?topic_id=338768 Match preview vs White-ra: http://www.teamliquid.net/forum/viewmessage.php?topic_id=337066 Match preview vs Jinro: http://www.teamliquid.net/forum/viewmessage.php?topic_id=335244 Match preview vs MC: http://www.teamliquid.net/forum/viewmessage.php?topic_id=332947 Match preview vs Sheth: http://www.teamliquid.net/forum/viewmessage.php?topic_id=331357 Match preview vs QXC: http://www.teamliquid.net/forum/viewmessage.php?topic_id=329135 Links: "The only mistake in life is the lesson not learned" https://twitter.com/Quantichofven