N0tail: IO-Riki has one of the best potentials to snowball

GosuGamers' Karan 'Mantis-' Jain had the chance to sit down with Johan and discuss about his team's recent adventures to United States for Dota 2 League Season 4 wherein they had to play with two stand-ins, his prolific Io plays and why they prefer him despite the nerf he got in 6.79 patch, his thoughts on 6.80 patch release and also the reason as to why Fnatic tend to falter even though having the best start in many events.

Hello Johan. Thank you for accepting the interview on behalf of GosuGamers. How is life treating you this new year?

Hi kary, and everyone *smiles* The new year has so far been a bit turbulent, but overall I can't complain. I'm certain that the closer we get to summer the easier things get, it's usually like that :P

You have been sick for sometime now. Despite that, you've showed up for all of the official matches (MLG T.K.O) and quite surprisingly you have done pretty well in terms of play. What's the secret behind such a stellar display?

Well, I was not impressed personally but I'm glad to hear someone thinks I still performed. I would say that it's still possible to play while ill, but it just takes more to focus and you shouldn't expect much from yourself if you know you're having a hard time focusing.

Let's start with Dota 2 League season 4 in Vegas. Fnatic ran into a lot of last minute issues such as Era's illness, H4nn1's flight being cancelled and the team having to play with two stand-ins. How was the team morale at that point?

The morale was still high, we changed from doing well and being super serious, to have as much fun as possible while doing our best. It was a strange feeling, but a nice one and I think it was a nice reminder for at least me to not overthink things.

How would you rate DemoN and Aui_2000 as stand-ins for Fnatic and how well did they synergise with your team's play? Also, whose idea was it to invite DemoN and Aui_2000 as stand-ins?

They were 10/10 for us, I don't think I would pick anyone else if we re-did the entire scenario. As for inviting them, it was kind of a spare of the moment deal. We had very little time finding the standin for Era, and even less for Kai as he was told at the airport he couldn't come, so it was pretty much just asking people who could play dota on that continent.

Fnatic displayed some stellar performances in EMS and D2L S4 wherein you faced Chinese juggernauts in Vici Gaming and LGD Gaming, respectively. On both occasions, your team lost out in the grand finals. What is your take on this inconsistency in performances on a major LAN event? Where do you guys seem to falter? Is it over-confidence?

We just have a hard time adapting after a loss, I think it's something that usually happens even though we start super strong we can get thrown off by certain things that lead to a loss.

Speaking of inconsistency, Fnatic has earned the distinction of 'second place doto'. The team has been to numerous grand finals, yet have been denied the crown on multiple occasions; EMS and D2L - to start with. What do you have to say about this possible 'second place curse'?

Broke it at starladder *smiles*

Your Io play is praised across the globe. Despite the nerf it got in 6.79 patch, Fnatic have still managed to make it viable in many matches specifically when playing against RoX.KiS in MLG T.K.O. You picked Io to relocate with Riki at mid lane (a game that ended in 10 minutes 30 seconds). What makes Io so useful even when his tether stun was replaced with slow movement speed?

Io has usually been about the snowball potential, and using the tether overcharge for making situations that would normally seem doable for enemies to suddenly turn on them.

Your opinion on the Io-Riki combo? Also which other heroes (apart from CK) can Io comfortably relocate with?

We played quite a few Io combinations other than Riki, and we haven't really run the Chaos Knight since the nerf except once or twice. I think Io-Riki has one of the best potentials to snowball, but I definitely think Io-Tiny combination is still one of the best if not the best.

I couldn't help but notice that you have taken up the drafting responsiblities in Fnatic instead of Fly, the team's usual drafter. What is the reason behind such a change? Why isn't Fly drafting anymore?

Just trying new stuff, it's sometimes nice with change but I think it can help a team move forward to try new stuff.

Moving on, IceFrog recently released 6.80 patch. How will the meta-game be affected with this patch? Which other heroes could make a comeback or possibly break out in the competitive scene?

There's really too much to talk about, so many weird buffs that might be too powerful, but we won't know untill people start trying it out. One day it can be perma drow, next day warlock is suddenly first pick.

Have you played the game mode that was released with the New Bloom Festival, or more specifically, the ability draft mode? Did you also find a chance to play against the Year Beast?

Played one game of the ability draft mode thing, it was amusing but not something I plan to play too often only on occasion. I haven't tried to play the beast mode thing, the pve (player versus environment) maps never really interested me. Same reason I only played WoW for pvp (player versus player), is that that is what I find interesting, pvp.

With tournaments beginning to pick up from slack, Fnatic will be seen participating in XMG Captains Draft Invitational - hosted by DotaCinema. The prize-pool of $20,000 is fairly large for this type of game mode. Do you think more tournaments like this should be hosted on a regular basis or on occasional basis as compared to the serious Captains Mode tournaments?

Would probably play it but wouldn't recommend it, I think real Dota is still the best thing to watch and play. If the money starts going towards less serious tournaments I'm afraid it could become a trend, I just hope it's not what people prefer to watch.

Which tours do Fnatic intend to participate in? For example, Alliance focus on major tours whereas Fnatic participate from small online events to bigger LAN events. What is the general ideology regarding participation?

Can't really say, if we're signed up officially we'll play, if not then no.

Your team has been appreciated for it's roster stability. A team of friends playing the game they love. However, if your team doesn't achieve much success, will there be a roster change?

Simply looking at the past when we started playing, we didnt have success. After achieving a few things, and going into slumps we didn't go as far as changing the roster then neither. So no, bad results would not be the reason for a roster change.

Being a fanboi, when can we fanbois see your Meepo play in a competitive game? Why you no pick Meepo?

When he recieves a legitmate buff and all his charm / good features stop being taken away from him.

Alright, that concludes our interview. Thank you for taking out time from your busy schedule. Any final shout-outs?

Shoutout to my team, my sponsors and all my fans *smiles*