Road to BlizzCon #4 - yFw.PartinG - WCS 2015 Text by TL.net ESPORTS Graphics by shiroiusagi, dravernor Story

Player Spotlight

Analysis The Road to Blizzcon - Ch IV - Parting







Chapter IV The Passenger by DarkLordOlli



The smoke that hung in the air was thick and sweet, yet its scent bordered on bitterness. Colors exploded around him— blood red and the ethereal blue of Protoss energy. The grating sound of his own gasps reverberated through his chest like an echo in a symposium. PartinG had taken a hefty beating at the start of their war for Glostalea, but turned the tides into his favor soon after. Life’s gigantic swarm of Zerg creatures was reduced to his ever present trusty zerglings, but PartinG knew he didn’t have much of his fighting force left either. Close combat would decide whether his gamble would pay off. Still breathing heavily, he took a moment to look around and admire the destruction laid upon the fields outside the city gates. What had once been a peaceful, fruitful field was now a bizarre painting of trampled, brown grass drowning in crimson. PartinG grinned. "They shall blossom again once I’m king," he thought to himself. He closed his eyes for one deep breath, readying his mind for the attack that would surely conquer the world. In that very moment he heard the rushing footsteps and shrill screams of Life’s zerglings. PartinG’s eyes shot open, just in time to catch a flash of white fangs. His arm raised too slowly.



The shock woke PartinG, and the dull pain of a headache soon followed. He let out a disgruntled moan and tried to sit up straight. “Ugh…” he groaned as the darkness before his eyes slowly cleared.



Attempting to wipe his eyelids, he noticed that his fingers were sticky. “Oh, right,” he mumbled to himself. He was still at the bar.



That’s a lot of bottles. Not bad.



He admired last night’s workload in front of him on the table: vodka, whiskey, beer, wine.



Where’d the girls go though? And where the hell did all the sand come from?



He tried to stand up but had to hold on for a second. Just a barf in the end; nothing serious. Onwards.



“Oh, you finally woke up!” yelled a familiar voice from across the room. PartinG looked up and found the barkeeper, carefully sponging down a glass that PartinG was sure he’d drunk from not too long ago.



The guy gave him a cheeky grin and waved him over, “Had a good sleep, eh?”



PartinG shrugged as he stumbled across the wooden room and sank into the closest barstool. “Got any gin left?” he yawned, but the waiter broke into a swell of laughter. “Not for you, I don’t! Try a water first, you look like shit,” he recommended, which PartinG found quite reasonable.



“A water then. To go with my gin and tonic. Do you know where the girls went?”



“Went home I s’pose.” The bartender slid a smaller-than-usual glass of gin and tonic down the bar, followed by a large glass of water.



“Wait, how late is it?” PartinG wondered. The sun was already up outside and he could hear birds chirping annoyingly. The barkeeper winked at him and replied, “11am. I kicked everyone out early after ya passed out. So ya could sleep. Gotta keep my clients happy, ya know?”



PartinG gave a tired smile. “So you kick them out?”



“Yeah. You make me more cash than all of ‘em combined!” Resounding laughter filled the place.



I’m good business wherever I go, PartinG thought to himself.



“How can you afford it anyway? You come here almost every day and drink a month’s worth of booze. You must have found treasure or something…” the waiter asked him, a spark of curiosity in his eyes.



Yeah, I bet you wanna know that.



“I’m not from here,” PartinG answered slowly, “I brought my riches with me.”



The bartender was staring at him expectantly. “Exiled. I rebelled against a king,” PartinG added.



The waiter’s eyes lit up. “Ooooh, really?!” It must have been the first interesting story he’d ever heard from any of his guests. No wonder, there weren’t a lot of interesting people on this island. “Which one’d you fight?”



“Current one,” PartinG sighed. “Life.”



“Ah, one of those, were ya? Heard there was lots of ‘em.” PartinG almost choked on the water.



“Hold on,” he coughed angrily. “Not ‘one of them’. I was there when everyone was dead. When there was nobody left except me and him. I had him on the ropes. I did what no one could in that entire war. I came closer to the throne than anyone else.” He heard himself become ever louder, almost shouting at the end. The gin did good work. It lifted the cloudy veil around his mind, at least temporarily.



“Didn’t mean to offend ya. What went wrong then?” he was asked.



PartinG took a long sip and sighed again. “I let my guard down. I got too greedy, I guess. Took a second I didn’t have.”



The waiter put on a fascinated face, slowly shaking his head. “So I've had a big shot from Glostalea drinking at my bar for the last couple months, huh… Worse ways to be exiled if ya ask me.”



PartinG smirked a little. “Yeah, could be worse.”



The islander’s face lit up and he let out a loud “oh!” as if surprised by his own realization. “Since ya said Life was the ‘current’ king, ya mustn’t have heard the news yet, I s’pose!”



The smirk was wiped off PartinG’s face immediately. “News?” he probed his opposite who eagerly nodded.



“Some SKT hotshot took ‘em out on his way to Spostalea. I forget his name, but he was a Terran. Some that starts with D.”



“Dream?” PartinG had heard that SKT had brought in a few new recruits after he and Rain had left, Dream being one of them. “Must’ve grown up quite fast.”



He took another sip of the steadily mind-clearing drink. “So who’d SKT put on the throne? INnoVation? Classic?” He almost spat out his drink chuckling, “soO?”



“Last I heard that’s all up in the air. Even though Life’s down, there’s no king. Everybody’s just fightin’ for it apparently.”



PartinG laughed out loudly. “Those idiots will never stay quiet for long. Anyone smells the slightest scent of power and suddenly everyone’s at war. Happens every few months, really.”



Still a bit dizzy and tired, but with lifted spirits, he climbed out of the barstool, pulled out a gold coin from his pocket and tossed it in the barkeeper’s general direction. “Thanks for the good rest. And for making my day.”



“Sure thing, mate.” The man winked at him and tucked the coin away. “Coming back tonight? A few ladies are having a party here. Birthday party too!” He suggestively twitched his eyebrows and PartinG had to chuckle as he made his way to the door.



“Sounds lovely. Yeah, don’t be surprised if I show up.” With these words he stepped out of the bar, into the sunlight.



“Oh god…” he moaned as the sunlight blinded him immediately. As his eyes slowly adjusted, he found himself at the beach. Hot sand found its way into his sandals as PartinG tramped along the shore.



Ah right, that’s where it came from.



It was a wonderful morning, like so many had been on this island, but PartinG was already too deep in his thoughts to appreciate it. Life dethroned, nobody in charge. He must’ve dropped the scepter somewhere near Spostalea. The scepter he was supposed to take from the kid.



Waves softly lapped around his feet as he made his way to his house. Every now and then he looked down at them vacantly as if he were surprised anew each time the water touched him. A vision of Glostalea's fields shot through his mind, a memory of him wading not through sea water, but through Zerg blood.



PartinG stopped. A short way down the beach he spotted his friend in exile, Rain, resting on a sunbed, getting tanned as he did nearly every day, comfortably sipping from what PartinG guessed had to be a mimosa. Rain loved his mimosas.



He was about to raise his hand and greet his companion, when, for a split second, PartinG’s body froze in place as his mind finally sprung into action. The devilish grin that was oh-so characteristic of him appeared on his face. Whether it was the gin spurring him on or a flare of inspiration he’d been lacking recently, he couldn’t really tell. But it did make sense.



Maybe he’d have to disappoint the bartender tonight. Maybe he wasn’t going to come back after all.







The shock woke PartinG, and the dull pain of a headache soon followed. He let out a disgruntled moan and tried to sit up straight. “Ugh…” he groaned as the darkness before his eyes slowly cleared.Attempting to wipe his eyelids, he noticed that his fingers were sticky. “Oh, right,” he mumbled to himself. He was still at the bar.He admired last night’s workload in front of him on the table: vodka, whiskey, beer, wine.He tried to stand up but had to hold on for a second. Just a barf in the end; nothing serious. Onwards.“Oh, you finally woke up!” yelled a familiar voice from across the room. PartinG looked up and found the barkeeper, carefully sponging down a glass that PartinG was sure he’d drunk from not too long ago.The guy gave him a cheeky grin and waved him over, “Had a good sleep, eh?”PartinG shrugged as he stumbled across the wooden room and sank into the closest barstool. “Got any gin left?” he yawned, but the waiter broke into a swell of laughter. “Not for you, I don’t! Try a water first, you look like shit,” he recommended, which PartinG found quite reasonable.“A water then. To go with my gin and tonic. Do you know where the girls went?”“Went home I s’pose.” The bartender slid a smaller-than-usual glass of gin and tonic down the bar, followed by a large glass of water.“Wait, how late is it?” PartinG wondered. The sun was already up outside and he could hear birds chirping annoyingly. The barkeeper winked at him and replied, “11am. I kicked everyone out early after ya passed out. So ya could sleep. Gotta keep my clients happy, ya know?”PartinG gave a tired smile. “So you kick them out?”“Yeah. You make me more cash than all of ‘em combined!” Resounding laughter filled the place., PartinG thought to himself.“How can you afford it anyway? You come here almost every day and drink a month’s worth of booze. You must have found treasure or something…” the waiter asked him, a spark of curiosity in his eyes.“I’m not from here,” PartinG answered slowly, “I brought my riches with me.”The bartender was staring at him expectantly. “Exiled. I rebelled against a king,” PartinG added.The waiter’s eyes lit up. “Ooooh, really?!” It must have been the first interesting story he’d ever heard from any of his guests. No wonder, there weren’t a lot of interesting people on this island. “Which one’d you fight?”“Current one,” PartinG sighed. “Life.”“Ah, one of those, were ya? Heard there was lots of ‘em.” PartinG almost choked on the water.“Hold on,” he coughed angrily. “Not ‘one of them’. I was there when everyone was dead. When there was nobody left except me and him. I had him on the ropes. I did what no one could in that entire war. I came closer to the throne than anyone else.” He heard himself become ever louder, almost shouting at the end. The gin did good work. It lifted the cloudy veil around his mind, at least temporarily.“Didn’t mean to offend ya. What went wrong then?” he was asked.PartinG took a long sip and sighed again. “I let my guard down. I got too greedy, I guess. Took a second I didn’t have.”The waiter put on a fascinated face, slowly shaking his head. “So I've had a big shot from Glostalea drinking at my bar for the last couple months, huh… Worse ways to be exiled if ya ask me.”PartinG smirked a little. “Yeah, could be worse.”The islander’s face lit up and he let out a loud “oh!” as if surprised by his own realization. “Since ya said Life was the ‘current’ king, ya mustn’t have heard the news yet, I s’pose!”The smirk was wiped off PartinG’s face immediately. “News?” he probed his opposite who eagerly nodded.“Some SKT hotshot took ‘em out on his way to Spostalea. I forget his name, but he was a Terran. Some that starts with D.”“Dream?” PartinG had heard that SKT had brought in a few new recruits after he and Rain had left, Dream being one of them. “Must’ve grown up quite fast.”He took another sip of the steadily mind-clearing drink. “So who’d SKT put on the throne? INnoVation? Classic?” He almost spat out his drink chuckling, “soO?”“Last I heard that’s all up in the air. Even though Life’s down, there’s no king. Everybody’s just fightin’ for it apparently.”PartinG laughed out loudly. “Those idiots will never stay quiet for long. Anyone smells the slightest scent of power and suddenly everyone’s at war. Happens every few months, really.”Still a bit dizzy and tired, but with lifted spirits, he climbed out of the barstool, pulled out a gold coin from his pocket and tossed it in the barkeeper’s general direction. “Thanks for the good rest. And for making my day.”“Sure thing, mate.” The man winked at him and tucked the coin away. “Coming back tonight? A few ladies are having a party here. Birthday party too!” He suggestively twitched his eyebrows and PartinG had to chuckle as he made his way to the door.“Sounds lovely. Yeah, don’t be surprised if I show up.” With these words he stepped out of the bar, into the sunlight.“Oh god…” he moaned as the sunlight blinded him immediately. As his eyes slowly adjusted, he found himself at the beach. Hot sand found its way into his sandals as PartinG tramped along the shore.It was a wonderful morning, like so many had been on this island, but PartinG was already too deep in his thoughts to appreciate it. Life dethroned, nobody in charge. He must’ve dropped the scepter somewhere near Spostalea. The scepter he was supposed to take from the kid.Waves softly lapped around his feet as he made his way to his house. Every now and then he looked down at them vacantly as if he were surprised anew each time the water touched him. A vision of Glostalea's fields shot through his mind, a memory of him wading not through sea water, but through Zerg blood.PartinG stopped. A short way down the beach he spotted his friend in exile, Rain, resting on a sunbed, getting tanned as he did nearly every day, comfortably sipping from what PartinG guessed had to be a mimosa. Rain loved his mimosas.He was about to raise his hand and greet his companion, when, for a split second, PartinG’s body froze in place as his mind finally sprung into action. The devilish grin that was oh-so characteristic of him appeared on his face. Whether it was the gin spurring him on or a flare of inspiration he’d been lacking recently, he couldn’t really tell. But it did make sense.Maybe he’d have to disappoint the bartender tonight. Maybe he wasn’t going to come back after all.





Stats are from Aligulac.com







PartinG’s problem has forever been in preparation competitions—a fact that his terrifying consistency in the GSL continues to obfuscate. He may have become the one and only recipient of the ‘PartinG Award’ for ten consecutive Round of 16 appearances, but the fact that he’s only broken the quarterfinal barrier twice in his career in the GSL format tells its own tale. His run through the gauntlet in GSL Season 1 all the way to the final was therefore a welcome break from the norm; a suggestion that he’d perhaps undergone his final evolution as a player. Alas, it turned out to be a false dawn. Following his narrow defeat to Life in Game 7 of the finals, he failed to reach those heights in the individual leagues for the rest of the year, stuck in his perpetual quarterfinal purgatory.



It’s fortunate for him, then, that his thirst for pillaging points and prize money from weekend tournaments remains unquenched. Event after event fell to him, from his 13-1 run through the Copenhagen Games bracket (dropping a game to Ryung) to his similar stompy route through Dreamhack Open: Tours. At his peak, there are few players who make the game look quite as unfair; waltzing his way past his opponents through sheer force of micro alone. The only criticism he could possibly draw at this point is that the majority of his points were won in easier tournaments, against inferior opposition compared to the remaining fifteen that will be in attendance at BlizzCon. Time will tell if PartinG can rise to the challenge once the stakes have been raised.



WCS Points:





Top 5 Games







1. PartinG vs Classic, IEM Taipei 2015 Ro.8 - Vaani Research Station

Cheeses are amongst the most mapped out strategies in Starcraft 2. The aggressor goes in knowing his plan, while the defender switches into his prepared defense upon scouting. That is, of course, unless both players decide to break out the cheddar simultaneously. Both players had to think on their feet here, and just when all hope seemed lost, a Classic blunder combined with PartinG’s persistence led to a surprising conclusion









2. PartinG vs herO, SSL 2015 Season 2 – King Sejong Station

It’s no secret that herO hates early protoss aggression. The fact that he refers to PartinG as ‘the Devil’ probably tells you just as much, while That Series against sOs at Katowice last year will live on in the memory for a long, long time. So clearly the obvious opener for PartinG was an in-base 2-gate—herO’s famous Kryptonite—but in a reversal of all we know about Starcraft, herO held it off. It’s the follow up to this setback that makes this the most ‘PartinG’ game of the year; a cocky, swaggering sleight of hand that wins him the game in a single move.









3. PartinG vs Rain Dreamhack Open: Tours 2015 – Expedition Lost

Let’s get this out of the way first; Rain blundered in this game. There’s no way for a player of Rain’s quality to lose when playing on two bases against a one base opponent without making some errors. That said, to use a tennis analogy, there are unforced errors and forced errors, and this was certainly a case of the latter. On the ropes after a horrible early game, PartinG’s answer was to go for constant phoenix harass while consistently taking better engagements. Slowly but surely, he edged his way back into the game, before an unnerved Rain opted to go on the attack. One final superior engagement settled the game, as a combination of PartinG’s phoenixes and photon overcharge easily cut through Rain’s forces, and PartinG was well on the way to claiming the title.









4. PartinG vs GuMiho Dreamhack Open:Tours 2015 – Echo

GuMiho is famously a player who could care less about perceived wisdom. He’s a player who’ll stray from tradition wherever possible; playing the game his way, striving for chaos while others seek order. He’s one of the few players in the world who opts for tanks in TvP, as he demonstrated to mesmerizing effect in game 1 of the grand finals in Tours (which may well have been the game of the tournament—









5. PartinG vs Rogue, GSL 2015 Season 2 – Overgrowth

Chances are, if someone brings up the classic 2 base immortal all-in, your thoughts naturally gravitate straight to PartinG. For good reason too—his version of it was simply superior to everybody else’s, whether due to his world class micro or because of his famous claim that he ‘put more soul into it than anyone else’. These days, he’s put the Soul Train away in favour of more macro oriented builds in PvZ, but there are still occasions when it’s still the best option available in his box of toys. Take this game against Rogue for example: early ling harass delayed PartinG’s natural expansion so much that all three zerg bases were up and running by the time the nexus had been planted. After such a heavy setback, PartinG reached for his most tried and tested response. Down by more than 70 supply, PartinG still found a way to make it work, with forcefield placement that would delight protoss and enrage zergs in equal measure. There’s an oft-abused commentator’s cliché that ‘only X player could have won from this position’, but three years on from the build’s heyday, PartinG still remains the world’s leading conductor. Choo choo indeed.



It’s easy to split the players attending BlizzCon this year into two groups: those primarily banking points in the individual leagues in either Korea or under the unified WCS umbrella, and those travelling the world, collecting cheques and points wherever a tournament’s being held. In 2015, PartinG’s clearly been an example of the latter, and has made full use of his increased freedom to roam the world following his transfer from Korea-based SKT to Taiwanese outfit yoe Flash Wolves. While his points contribution from individual leagues is still a respectable 2,250, it’s his enormous haul of 3,300 points from cups, both in Korea and abroad, that has elevated him to 3rd in the WCS rankings.PartinG’s problem has forever been in preparation competitions—a fact that his terrifying consistency in the GSL continues to obfuscate. He may have become the one and only recipient of the ‘PartinG Award’ for ten consecutive Round of 16 appearances, but the fact that he’s only broken the quarterfinal barrier twice in his career in the GSL format tells its own tale. His run through the gauntlet in GSL Season 1 all the way to the final was therefore a welcome break from the norm; a suggestion that he’d perhaps undergone his final evolution as a player. Alas, it turned out to be a false dawn. Following his narrow defeat to Life in Game 7 of the finals, he failed to reach those heights in the individual leagues for the rest of the year, stuck in his perpetual quarterfinal purgatory.It’s fortunate for him, then, that his thirst for pillaging points and prize money from weekend tournaments remains unquenched. Event after event fell to him, from his 13-1 run through the Copenhagen Games bracket (dropping a game to Ryung) to his similar stompy route through Dreamhack Open: Tours. At his peak, there are few players who make the game look quite as unfair; waltzing his way past his opponents through sheer force of micro alone. The only criticism he could possibly draw at this point is that the majority of his points were won in easier tournaments, against inferior opposition compared to the remaining fifteen that will be in attendance at BlizzCon. Time will tell if PartinG can rise to the challenge once the stakes have been raised.Cheeses are amongst the most mapped out strategies in Starcraft 2. The aggressor goes in knowing his plan, while the defender switches into his prepared defense upon scouting. That is, of course, unless both players decide to break out the cheddar simultaneously. Both players had to think on their feet here, and just when all hope seemed lost, a Classic blunder combined with PartinG’s persistence led to a surprising conclusionIt’s no secret that herO hates early protoss aggression. The fact that he refers to PartinG as ‘the Devil’ probably tells you just as much, whileagainst sOs at Katowice last year will live on in the memory for a long, long time. So clearly the obvious opener for PartinG was an in-base 2-gate—herO’s famous Kryptonite—but in a reversal of all we know about Starcraft, herO held it off. It’s the follow up to this setback that makes this the most ‘PartinG’ game of the year; a cocky, swaggering sleight of hand that wins him the game in a single move.Let’s get this out of the way first; Rain blundered in this game. There’s no way for a player of Rain’s quality to lose when playing on two bases against a one base opponent without making some errors. That said, to use a tennis analogy, there are unforced errors and forced errors, and this was certainly a case of the latter. On the ropes after a horrible early game, PartinG’s answer was to go for constant phoenix harass while consistently taking better engagements. Slowly but surely, he edged his way back into the game, before an unnerved Rain opted to go on the attack. One final superior engagement settled the game, as a combination of PartinG’s phoenixes and photon overcharge easily cut through Rain’s forces, and PartinG was well on the way to claiming the title.GuMiho is famously a player who could care less about perceived wisdom. He’s a player who’ll stray from tradition wherever possible; playing the game his way, striving for chaos while others seek order. He’s one of the few players in the world who opts for tanks in TvP, as he demonstrated to mesmerizing effect in game 1 of the grand finals in Tours (which may well have been the game of the tournament— watch it! ). Having taken the win on Cactus Valley, he decided to one up himself and go for full-blown mech on Echo. The onus was all on PartinG to find a solution to that rarely seen problem, and in that respect he certainly didn’t disappoint. He constantly shifted his point of attack, never allowing GuMiho to settle, while picking apart the Towel Terran’s defensive line link by link. Blink stalkers took out the third and colossi harassed safely from range, while substantial economic damage left the terran no choice but to go for a desperate, doomed all-in.Chances are, if someone brings up the classic 2 base immortal all-in, your thoughts naturally gravitate straight to PartinG. For good reason too—his version of it was simply superior to everybody else’s, whether due to his world class micro or because of his famous claim that he ‘put more soul into it than anyone else’. These days, he’s put the Soul Train away in favour of more macro oriented builds in PvZ, but there are still occasions when it’s still the best option available in his box of toys. Take this game against Rogue for example: early ling harass delayed PartinG’s natural expansion so much that all three zerg bases were up and running by the time the nexus had been planted. After such a heavy setback, PartinG reached for his most tried and tested response. Down by more than 70 supply, PartinG still found a way to make it work, with forcefield placement that would delight protoss and enrage zergs in equal measure. There’s an oft-abused commentator’s cliché that ‘only X player could have won from this position’, but three years on from the build’s heyday, PartinG still remains the world’s leading conductor. Choo choo indeed.

Parting vs Rain

DreamHack Open Tours 2015 - Expedition Lost LE

by: lichter



There are very few protoss players who can do more with less than PartinG. Perhaps his prowess in low unit count situations can be attributed to his experience in 2011-2012 era PvP, but viewers should not discount the man's savvy in tight situations. While his micro is often highlighted as his defining characteristic, he is one of the few players that inherited MC's signature decisiveness. Basically, PartinG's just really good at killing people.



This game from DH Tours perfectly illustrates the subtle ways PartinG is able to make more from less. Except in this game, it wasn't so subtle: For almost 8 minutes, PartinG survived one 1 base versus 2. Economic asymmetry may be a big part of Starcraft, but players are expected to keep up on base counts in mirror matches if they expect to survive.



In the opening 5 minutes, however, both players opted for almost identical builds: gateway first, 2 gases, a cybercore then a stargate. It was not until the 5th minute of the game that their paths diverged. PartinG followed up with a robotics facility while Rain added on two more gateways. Normally, a robotics signals a desire to defend while additional gates the intention to be aggressive. Their stargates followed suit as PartinG built a phoenix while Rain pushed out a quick oracle as well as a twilight council.





As expected, Rain's oracle proved ineffective, intercepted by the defending phoenixes. However, Rain cancelled his twilight realizing that PartinG had postured to expand. While phoenixes are excellent defensive units, they are poor in low numbers against large gateway forces. Rain pushed across the map with his gateway force hoping to punish the expansion before PartinG could boost out more than one immortal.





Even with an overcharge ready, PartinG was forced to cancel his shield-less nexus. In the meantime, Rain had switched to phoenixes of his own hoping to catch up with his opponent. Although often difficult to achieve, Rain did have the advantage of a half finished nexus. The mYi protoss eventually retreated with the knowledge that PartinG's rising phoenix count would eventually decimate his force. The roles had now switched: Rain had decided to sit back on his base advantage while PartinG had to decide on whether to play catch up or go all out.



Of course, this being PartinG, he decided to attack. With a small phoenix advantage, PartinG would have won a fight on open ground. Realizing this fact, Rain fell back as far as he could to take advantage of photon overcharge. With the clock ticking, PartinG eventually walked up the ramp only to have his ground army wiped out. Even though he still had control of the skies, PartinG was now without an army and without an expansion.





Other players would have tried a different approach at this point, but not PartinG. He may have not had an extra base, but he still had his phoenixes. He slowly chipped away at Rain's economy whenever his opponent was out of position while pumping out more units as his economy allowed. Both players were on similar compositions and no upgrades, but PartinG continued to be the aggressor with his slightly larger army (but a worker deficit throughout).





What followed was a brilliant display of efficiency as PartinG used his phoenixes to harass Rain's main while pulling back to defend just as Rain had decided to try and overwhelm his ground force. At one point, PartinG had a 4000 advantage in units lots, a shocking disparity considering the fact that they were on the same units. The manner in which the Rascal Toss weaseled his way into drawing even almost every time was uncanny, and can only be explained by watching his movements.







After several minutes of constant small skirmishes, Rain decided that he had had enough. He had the superior ground force and economy, while he knew that PartinG was close to drying up. It was time for his deathblow, but PartinG had other ideas. When PartinG pulled more than half his probes, he showed exactly what sets him apart. While others would have kept them mining inefficiently, PartinG understood that there was no use keeping them as dead supply. Instead, he sent them across the map to buffer for his small stalker force. It may have seemed academic to send them to their death, but without the meat shields, there was a good chance that Rain's probe surround would have held. With 2 low health stalkers left after the battle, PartinG had ravaged Rain's economy to ensure that there would be no more reinforcements. Without the probe pull, Rain's economy would have likely survived. It's a small detail that adds to the yoe Flash Wolves player's mystique.





At that point, Rain had no choice but to attack. PartinG cleverly goaded his opponent into committing deep into photon overcharge range before lifting the stalkers with his remaining phoenixes, blocking their retreat. No amount of micro could have won the game at that point, and PartinG had outwitted his two base foe with startling efficiency.



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There are very few protoss players who can do more with less than PartinG. Perhaps his prowess in low unit count situations can be attributed to his experience in 2011-2012 era PvP, but viewers should not discount the man's savvy in tight situations. While his micro is often highlighted as his defining characteristic, he is one of the few players that inherited MC's signature decisiveness. Basically, PartinG's just really good at killing people.This game from DH Tours perfectly illustrates the subtle ways PartinG is able to make more from less. Except in this game, it wasn't so subtle: For almost 8 minutes, PartinG survived one 1 base versus 2. Economic asymmetry may be a big part of Starcraft, but players are expected to keep up on base counts in mirror matches if they expect to survive.In the opening 5 minutes, however, both players opted for almost identical builds: gateway first, 2 gases, a cybercore then a stargate. It was not until the 5th minute of the game that their paths diverged. PartinG followed up with a robotics facility while Rain added on two more gateways. Normally, a robotics signals a desire to defend while additional gates the intention to be aggressive. Their stargates followed suit as PartinG built a phoenix while Rain pushed out a quick oracle as well as a twilight council.As expected, Rain's oracle proved ineffective, intercepted by the defending phoenixes. However, Rain cancelled his twilight realizing that PartinG had postured to expand. While phoenixes are excellent defensive units, they are poor in low numbers against large gateway forces. Rain pushed across the map with his gateway force hoping to punish the expansion before PartinG could boost out more than one immortal.Even with an overcharge ready, PartinG was forced to cancel his shield-less nexus. In the meantime, Rain had switched to phoenixes of his own hoping to catch up with his opponent. Although often difficult to achieve, Rain did have the advantage of a half finished nexus. The mYi protoss eventually retreated with the knowledge that PartinG's rising phoenix count would eventually decimate his force. The roles had now switched: Rain had decided to sit back on his base advantage while PartinG had to decide on whether to play catch up or go all out.Of course, this being PartinG, he decided to attack. With a small phoenix advantage, PartinG would have won a fight on open ground. Realizing this fact, Rain fell back as far as he could to take advantage of photon overcharge. With the clock ticking, PartinG eventually walked up the ramp only to have his ground army wiped out. Even though he still had control of the skies, PartinG was now without an army and without an expansion.Other players would have tried a different approach at this point, but not PartinG. He may have not had an extra base, but he still had his phoenixes. He slowly chipped away at Rain's economy whenever his opponent was out of position while pumping out more units as his economy allowed. Both players were on similar compositions and no upgrades, but PartinG continued to be the aggressor with his slightly larger army (but a worker deficit throughout).What followed was a brilliant display of efficiency as PartinG used his phoenixes to harass Rain's main while pulling back to defend just as Rain had decided to try and overwhelm his ground force. At one point, PartinG had a 4000 advantage in units lots, a shocking disparity considering the fact that they were on the same units. The manner in which the Rascal Toss weaseled his way into drawing even almost every time was uncanny, and can only be explained by watching his movements.After several minutes of constant small skirmishes, Rain decided that he had had enough. He had the superior ground force and economy, while he knew that PartinG was close to drying up. It was time for his deathblow, but PartinG had other ideas. When PartinG pulled more than half his probes, he showed exactly what sets him apart. While others would have kept them mining inefficiently, PartinG understood that there was no use keeping them as dead supply. Instead, he sent them across the map to buffer for his small stalker force. It may have seemed academic to send them to their death, but without the meat shields, there was a good chance that Rain's probe surround would have held. With 2 low health stalkers left after the battle, PartinG had ravaged Rain's economy to ensure that there would be no more reinforcements. Without the probe pull, Rain's economy would have likely survived. It's a small detail that adds to the yoe Flash Wolves player's mystique.At that point, Rain had no choice but to attack. PartinG cleverly goaded his opponent into committing deep into photon overcharge range before lifting the stalkers with his remaining phoenixes, blocking their retreat. No amount of micro could have won the game at that point, and PartinG had outwitted his two base foe with startling efficiency. Story

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