AliasV is an up-and-coming Twitch Streamer who was chosen to do play-by-play commentary for the Mythic Invitational next weekend at PAX East. We spoke to her on Twitter to find out more about her and how she’s feeling about commentating at one of Magic’s most high-profile tournaments.

The Mythic Invitational at PAX East is Wizards of the Coast’s first major step into the world of esports following their massive December 2018 announcement committing $10 million to Magic Esports in 2019. The Mythic Invitational will feature the debut of MTG Arena in a premier tournament setting, will award $1 million in prizes, and will bring along some new faces in the coverage team—AliasV will join both Day9 and Becca Scott as Magic’s newest commentators.

A Rising Star on Twitch

AliasV is a popular Twitch streamer who made Twitch Partner last year while playing Gwent. The name AliasV comes from the fact that her real name, Eilidh, sounds very similar to Alias when pronounced correctly. “It’s also my nickname my sister gave me,” she said, and “the V is a 5.”

She was an early adopter and streamer of Magic Arena while it was in Closed Beta and her stream has only continued to grow, currently sitting at an average of 600 viewers per stream with a peak viewer count of 2,738. She also has a growing YouTube channel, which hosts deck techs, Twitch videos, and her podcast Duels, Decks, and Discourse.

In addition to her successful Twitch channel, AliasV has a full-time job in “post-production for feature films and television” and is a member of compLexity Gaming, a professional esports organization. “I joined compLexity (coL) in November last year,” she said. “My good friend and mentor, Merchant [who will be competing at the Mythic Invitational], is on the team, so I naturally gravitated towards them.”

New to Casting

AliasV has only been playing Magic for the last year since MTG Arena was in Closed Beta. “I fell head over heels for it, even have it tattooed on my arm now,” she revealed.

But Magic isn’t the only thing she is somewhat new to—the Mythic Invitational will be her first time casting such a high-profile event. “[I’ve never done anything] on this scale at all so it’s pretty daunting,” she said. “I organized and cast my Super Spiffy community tournament alongside a good friend,” she continued, and that experience should serve her well in the booth next weekend as she commentates alongside Paul Cheon.

No matter her level of experience, AliasV is very excited about the prospect of doing commentary for the Mythic Invitational. “When Wizards asked if I’d be interested, I said heck yes. Who wouldn’t?”

Looking Forward to the Mythic Invitational

The Mythic Invitational will feature a brand new format, Duo Standard, and AliasV seemed to be very optimistic about the format’s potential. “I think if anything, it evens out the playing field,” she said. “I strongly doubt we’ll see an all-Magic Pro League Top 16 due to the higher variance of this format.”

Along with the changes in the coverage team, there will also be plenty of new faces among the Invitational competitors. They will include players like AnnaMae, a Commander-player-turned Arena streamer; NessaMeowMeow, a Magic cosplayer and streamer; Edoardo Annunziata (quicksort), who qualified through MTG Arena; and Skybilz, a Mario speedrunner and common GDQ host and commentator.

“I think [all of these new faces will] make for a much more exciting viewing experience as well because some names will be launched into the spotlight from out of nowhere,” AliasV said. “This event is showcasing Magic and getting people excited about it and playing it, so I’m keen to see what happens and which decks and players come out on top.”

“I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t most excited to see all these players I’ve come to know and love in one place,” she continued. “It’s gonna be an absolute blast. I also can’t wait to see what the stage and arena will look like. From what I’ve gleaned, it should be pretty spectacular.”

Be sure to catch the Mythic Invitational from March 28-31 on the official Magic Twitch channel.

David McCoy conducted the interview AliasV that appears in this article.