Road to BlizzCon #11 - mYi.Rain - WCS 2015 Text by TL.net ESPORTS Graphics by shiroiusagi, dravernor Story

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Analysis The Road to Blizzcon - Ch XI - Rain







Chapter XI The Prodigal Son Returns by lichter







Another mimosa? How many have I had?



Heck, who cares, I'm on vacation.



Rain fumbled for his drink on the side table, knocking it into the sand. The flute emptied into the waiter's sandals and they both stared at his orange feet for a good few seconds.



"Another mimosa it is, then."



Fumbled drinks aside, Rain was making the most of his exile. Sure, it was mostly a self imposed exile, but who could blame him? He and his clan didn't exactly see eye to eye anymore. After becoming SKT's undisputed star, Rain had amassed the largest harem of fangirls known to man. Streets were lined with devotees whenever he came home from a victory, and they screamed in delight for a chance to touch the beautiful one. He had become the pop star of pulp wars with his magazine covers, close up posters and life sized standees. And SKT were jealous.



The waiter returned with a new drink but still looked annoyed. His disposition changed, however, once he was able to get a good look at Rain.



"Excuse me sir, but you look familiar. You must be famous," the attendant asked sheepishly.



Rain tilted his glasses down, uncertain whether or not he should answer. The waiter squinted. "Wait, wait, no. The guy on the noodle pack has a sharper nose. My mistake!" The little man in sandals shuttled away like a crab, slightly embarrassed. Rain on the other hand wasn't even offended. He wasn't exactly famous anywhere else but home. And this was a pretty long way from home.



That too, had been a point of contention between him and his clan. When they shooed away his loyal groupies, Rain begrudgingly acquiesced. But when they failed to approve his request to fight abroad—he had global conquest in mind, of course—he felt deceived. He was their best commander and he had rallied popular opinion in SKT's favor, yet his clan had failed to treat him like a star. Once the perennial happy camper, disgruntled thoughts had been sown throughout that year. And it had all started with PartinG.



When the Rascal joined the SKT clan, he had already been well known for his antics as well as his foreign conquests. Still, he was a capable leader and knew how to win when it mattered. It was a gamble SKT were willing to take, even though he'd basically be a year long loan. He endeared himself to the family very quickly by riling up their rivals on every occasion, and his ceremonies became the stuff of legend. Unfortunately, they didn't expect him to have such a profound impact on their once uncomplicated ace.



It was a complete shock, then, when Rain put his foot down and chose to leave the clan. They could no longer meet his demands and it was possible that no clan in the region could. That was when Rain decided that it was a good time for a vacation, which was branded an exile in local papers. Perhaps it was PartinG's charisma that drew Rain to like him. Maybe it was the Rascal's growing fame as the team's bad boy. It could have even been his tales of debauchery abroad. Whatever it was, Rain had recognizably changed since the start of the year, and it reached its tipping point in SKT's loss in the final battle for royalty against their most bitter rivals, those KT bastards, in last year's rebellion. He had wanted more—fame, glory, fangirls—and SKT could not provide it even after all he had done.



Rain certainly embraced his banishment, but it still hurt to leave home. Thinking about it left him a bit upset, and he downed his mimosa with a twinge for the aftertaste. The waiter returned, presumably to refill his drink.



"Yeah yeah, another one," Rain groaned in resignation.



"Ah.. oh, sir, there's someone here for you. He says he's an old friend."



Rain dropped his sunglasses and looked over his lounge chair. There, by the bar, was PartinG, in a Hawaiian shirt and clutching a bag of sun chips. He waved. It looked like he had been enjoying his exile more thoroughly than Rain and he walked over with that patented grin on his face.



"YO Yoon Jong, my man! How've you been?" PartinG gleamed. He was obviously up to something.



"Well. My drink is empty and you're standing in my sun. Sit down, you rascal." Rain handed his glass to the waiter and signaled for two more. PartinG lay down on the beach chair beside him.



"I've got a neat idea!" Suddenly, PartinG was serious. "I want the capital."



Rain was slightly confused. "The capital?? We're supposed to be in exile," he thought to himself.



"The thing is, when you're banished, you don't really care what the clan thinks anymore," PartinG continued. "So I will just go back anyway. If it wasn't for that lucky kid Life, I would've already been king."



King. Rain liked the sound of that.



"I heard he got beaten pretty hard recently. Pretty good reason to go back home. Now's a better time than ever." The waiter returned and handed PartinG the first glass, which he handed to Rain. After receiving the second glass, PartinG offered a mischievous toast, "To brothers in exile; maybe it's not so bad doing nothing all the time."



PartinG took a few sips from his mimosa and stood. Rain sat up perplexed and asked, "You're leaving already? You only just got here."



"Yeah, I've got to take care of the preparations. SKT's doing pretty well again according to these rumors, and we can't have that can we?" PartinG pushed the sun chips into Rain's arms, "Happy vacationing."



Rain nodded his head and looked into the bag. It was empty. "Classic PartinG," Rain sighed, "I can't believe he's leading me on again."









It felt good to be back in action, Rain thought. He laid down a blanket of psionic storms in front of him and watched as the swarm evaporated. It would not be long until he reached the gate of the capital, where he expected the guard's commander Curious to block his way. He pressed on until the arch of the south entrance became visible. In front stood the stalwart Zerg commander.



"This is Zerg territory. Retreat and we won't pursue." he bellowed, the grinds of his throat echoing from the ramparts.



Rain was undeterred, "Do you really think I'd come back to this continent just to be turned away by a security guard?"



Curious had been known as the calm and collected general, but Rain's mockery had turned him into an irascible beast. He rushed headlong into Rain, only for the Protoss champion to blink behind him. The Zerg commander clumsily stumbled forward. "This'll be easier than I thought."



Rain continued to goad Curious into attacking before backing off. With each blink Curious became even more enraged. It didn't matter how fast or how hard he charged, there was no way for him to catch the clever Protoss. Rain blinked right under the gate as if to insult him, and taunted the Zerg with his hands. "Not much of a gatekeeper, are you? I'm already inside!" he hollered.



Curious' eyes bore into his skull. His madness grew. While others had ridiculed his position, he had learned to take pride in the doing the defender's dirty work. He had every qualification to become a field general, and yet he was resigned to keeping his post by a door. It was an important task that no one respected, but he understood its value. He raised his axe and lunged with both his feet off the ground. Curious had expected Rain to blink away, and prepared to bounce after landing. Instead, Rain stood there, psionic blades ready, skewering Curious under the gate he had sworn to protect. The laughter died, and soon, so did Curious.



The Protoss simply walked past in silence and marched into the capital like a funeral procession, leaving the body where it once stood watch.



From the south entrance, Rain's small Protoss force flooded into the capital, and fighting commenced everywhere. It was all a distraction, however, as Rain cut straight towards the throne hall. There, he knew, ruled ByuL in everyone's absence. He was the last obstacle of his conquest and revenge. Nestea's Stronghold, the inner circle of walls protecting the throne hall, had been barricaded and fortified, and it appeared as though ByuL had prepared to buckle down and survive a direct attack. Rain, however, had other plans.



While perched atop a precipice, the slope on the eastern side leading up to Nestea's Stronghold was kind enough to consider. The walls on that side of the keep were left without reinforcement, and the royal tower was located there, as well. As Rain and his elite guard neared the ascent, the Protoss army encircled the district and deployed their heavy immortal artillery facing the fort. The thunderous psionic cannons volleyed once, twice, thrice, intentionally avoiding the stronghold. Rain and his men labored halfway up the cliffside when the fourth volley sounded, and all they heard was a loud crash above them. They doubled the pace of their climb until they finally reached an embankment; there, in front of them, a fracture in the wall just large enough to enter single file.



ByuL's commanders were too preoccupied with trying to retain key positions in the city to notice that the heart of their defense had been infiltrated. The hallway leading to the spiring tower was conspicuously empty, which was slightly disappointing for the battle hungry commandos. Yet they raced up the stairwell with discipline, until a window gave Rain a view of the scampering fields below. His forces outside had been gaining ground, but this provided an easy opportunity to "get more ahead" as the sages recited. Rain's eyes washed with an ocean blue before a pearly maelstrom twisted them into whites, and then back to the way they were. He signaled for his troops to continue up the flight of stairs before glancing back at the creep below. The skies darkened behind them, and storms laid waste to much of the castle and the Zerg leader's army.



Soon, Rain reached the crown of ByuL's spire. There, hunched over topographical maps and wooden army figurines, was ByuL. He had been waiting for his lunch to cool, a humble bowl of rice porridge, while discussing his next move. Though his entire command was prepared for war, the general was still in his bedroom attire, as if to present the aura of calm. The drum of treads into the large hall called the meeting's attention.



"So, this is it? Where the great ByuL hatches his visionary strategies," Rain interrupted.



ByuL turned around and subdued his surprise. Any sign of weakness would embolden the Protoss commander, he thought. "Finally. I've been waiting for this." But he wasn't.



"Really, now? Is that why you're still in the royal slippers?" Rain's flair for mockery continued to improve, "it looks like you're ready to go to bed. How fitting."



ByuL's scabbard had been placed upon the table during their conference, and he slid his hand back to retrieve it. "I heard you outwitted Curious. You may have been too fast for him, but you're not going to fool me. I've studied you, Rain. You're predictable," ByuL explained with a grin on his face.



"Am I really," Rain answered. He knew that even with the edge in positioning, ByuL was still favored in a straight up fight. However, Rain understood that ByuL had prepared for him well and he had to try something unexpected. So, he recalled Curious' own directness and sprang straight towards ByuL with his psi blades drawn.



That, though, was exactly what ByuL had wanted. He had studied iaido—the martial art of drawing and sheathing a blade—and Rain had effectively offered himself as sacrifice. ByuL pulled his scabbard to his side, but in his rashness he failed to remember one thing: the bowl of porridge that he was to have for lunch. The hilt of his sword knocked it over the table.



The royal slippers offered no protection and his feet were scalded by his meal. That moment of negligence was just enough time for Rain to close the distance, and though ByuL drew as fast as he could, he sliced at the air while two psi blades wedged themselves between his ribs.



"You lucky sunofa—"



The blades expanded, piercing ByuL's heart for a final interruption.









Rain placed his beach chair in the castle lawn, tossed his armor to the side, and wore his sunglasses before lying down. One of his officers, clad in battlesuit and sandals, handed him a champagne flute. Glostalea didn't have oranges, only limes, however, and Rain didn't enjoy that twist in his favorite drink. He did, however, enjoy victory.



The officer returned, presumably with a better mix. Instead, he had a message, "Sir, there's someone here for you. He says he's an old friend."



Even without looking, Rain knew who it was. He closed his eyes and pretended to ignore his guest.



"YO! Yoon Jong! You da man!"



Rain felt a pair of hands on his shoulders before everything began to shake. His glasses had wiggled loose from his face and fell to the floor. They both heard a crack. The two friends stared at the shattered lenses for a good few seconds.



"What is it now, PartinG? Can't you see I'm trying to relax," Rain muttered, with his hands on his temples. PartinG had a different Hawaiian shirt on, and a different flavor of sun chips.



"I heard you were about to take Glostalea so I hurried right over. Couldn't miss this for anything! I told you you could do it. Too bad you went ahead without me though."



Rain sat up and looked at his friend. Perhaps he never would have come back to take the capital if it wasn't because of PartinG. How fitting that his great friend would be there on his big occasion. PartinG put his hands on his waist and gazed into the distance.



"Dang, what a beautiful sight to behold!"



Several districts were still burning, and Nestea's Stronghold had a giant hole in its eastern wall. Fruitdealer Market had turned into Moon Crater, and Mount Mvp, the foundation of this enormous city, had developed a sudden case of bullet acne.



"Well, okay, it isn't much. Oops. But hear me out."



Rain rolled his eyes and covered it with his palms.



"We missed the rebellion last year following SKT's orders. They totally cheated us, man. That scepter should have been ours!"



"I know the story, PartinG. What does that have to do with us now?"



"Well, guess why only ByuL was here? Another rebellion is brewing. The scepter's up for grabs. This is our chance!"



The officer with bad taste in drinks returned, this time with two glasses. Instead of mimosas, he brought two strawberry daiquiris.



"Plus, I heard three SKT generals are going to be there."



Rain looked around for a few seconds and wondered, "Why would I want to leave the capital behind after all that?"



"Well, why be the mayor when you can be king?"



King. Rain liked the sound of that.



Rain handed PartinG the first glass and received the second before offering a toast, "I guess we're heading west then. But I'm leading this time."



The two friends clinked their glasses and laughed. Their conquest wasn't over yet.







"Sir, would you like another mimosa?"Rain fumbled for his drink on the side table, knocking it into the sand. The flute emptied into the waiter's sandals and they both stared at his orange feet for a good few seconds."Another mimosa it is, then."Fumbled drinks aside, Rain was making the most of his exile. Sure, it was mostly a self imposed exile, but who could blame him? He and his clan didn't exactly see eye to eye anymore. After becoming SKT's undisputed star, Rain had amassed the largest harem of fangirls known to man. Streets were lined with devotees whenever he came home from a victory, and they screamed in delight for a chance to touch the beautiful one. He had become the pop star of pulp wars with his magazine covers, close up posters and life sized standees. And SKT were jealous.The waiter returned with a new drink but still looked annoyed. His disposition changed, however, once he was able to get a good look at Rain."Excuse me sir, but you look familiar. You must be famous," the attendant asked sheepishly.Rain tilted his glasses down, uncertain whether or not he should answer. The waiter squinted. "Wait, wait, no. The guy on the noodle pack has a sharper nose. My mistake!" The little man in sandals shuttled away like a crab, slightly embarrassed. Rain on the other hand wasn't even offended. He wasn't exactly famous anywhere else but home. And this was a pretty long way from home.That too, had been a point of contention between him and his clan. When they shooed away his loyal groupies, Rain begrudgingly acquiesced. But when they failed to approve his request to fight abroad—he had global conquest in mind, of course—he felt deceived. He was their best commander and he had rallied popular opinion in SKT's favor, yet his clan had failed to treat him like a star. Once the perennial happy camper, disgruntled thoughts had been sown throughout that year. And it had all started with PartinG.When the Rascal joined the SKT clan, he had already been well known for his antics as well as his foreign conquests. Still, he was a capable leader and knew how to win when it mattered. It was a gamble SKT were willing to take, even though he'd basically be a year long loan. He endeared himself to the family very quickly by riling up their rivals on every occasion, and his ceremonies became the stuff of legend. Unfortunately, they didn't expect him to have such a profound impact on their once uncomplicated ace.It was a complete shock, then, when Rain put his foot down and chose to leave the clan. They could no longer meet his demands and it was possible that no clan in the region could. That was when Rain decided that it was a good time for a vacation, which was branded an exile in local papers. Perhaps it was PartinG's charisma that drew Rain to like him. Maybe it was the Rascal's growing fame as the team's bad boy. It could have even been his tales of debauchery abroad. Whatever it was, Rain had recognizably changed since the start of the year, and it reached its tipping point in SKT's loss in the final battle for royalty against their most bitter rivals, those KT bastards, in last year's rebellion. He had wanted more—fame, glory, fangirls—and SKT could not provide it even after all he had done.Rain certainly embraced his banishment, but it still hurt to leave home. Thinking about it left him a bit upset, and he downed his mimosa with a twinge for the aftertaste. The waiter returned, presumably to refill his drink."Yeah yeah, another one," Rain groaned in resignation."Ah.. oh, sir, there's someone here for you. He says he's an old friend."Rain dropped his sunglasses and looked over his lounge chair. There, by the bar, was PartinG, in a Hawaiian shirt and clutching a bag of sun chips. He waved. It looked like he had been enjoying his exile more thoroughly than Rain and he walked over with that patented grin on his face."YO Yoon Jong, my man! How've you been?" PartinG gleamed. He was obviously up to something."Well. My drink is empty and you're standing in my sun. Sit down, you rascal." Rain handed his glass to the waiter and signaled for two more. PartinG lay down on the beach chair beside him."I've got a neat idea!" Suddenly, PartinG was serious. "I want the capital."Rain was slightly confused. "The capital?? We're supposed to be in exile," he thought to himself."The thing is, when you're banished, you don't really care what the clan thinks anymore," PartinG continued. "So I will just go back anyway. If it wasn't for that lucky kid Life, I would've already been king."King. Rain liked the sound of that."I heard he got beaten pretty hard recently. Pretty good reason to go back home. Now's a better time than ever." The waiter returned and handed PartinG the first glass, which he handed to Rain. After receiving the second glass, PartinG offered a mischievous toast, "To brothers in exile; maybe it's not so bad doing nothing all the time."PartinG took a few sips from his mimosa and stood. Rain sat up perplexed and asked, "You're leaving already? You only just got here.""Yeah, I've got to take care of the preparations. SKT's doing pretty well again according to these rumors, and we can't have that can we?" PartinG pushed the sun chips into Rain's arms, "Happy vacationing."Rain nodded his head and looked into the bag. It was empty. "Classic PartinG," Rain sighed, "I can't believe he's leading me on again."It felt good to be back in action, Rain thought. He laid down a blanket of psionic storms in front of him and watched as the swarm evaporated. It would not be long until he reached the gate of the capital, where he expected the guard's commander Curious to block his way. He pressed on until the arch of the south entrance became visible. In front stood the stalwart Zerg commander."This is Zerg territory. Retreat and we won't pursue." he bellowed, the grinds of his throat echoing from the ramparts.Rain was undeterred, "Do you really think I'd come back to this continent just to be turned away by a security guard?"Curious had been known as the calm and collected general, but Rain's mockery had turned him into an irascible beast. He rushed headlong into Rain, only for the Protoss champion to blink behind him. The Zerg commander clumsily stumbled forward. "This'll be easier than I thought."Rain continued to goad Curious into attacking before backing off. With each blink Curious became even more enraged. It didn't matter how fast or how hard he charged, there was no way for him to catch the clever Protoss. Rain blinked right under the gate as if to insult him, and taunted the Zerg with his hands. "Not much of a gatekeeper, are you? I'm already inside!" he hollered.Curious' eyes bore into his skull. His madness grew. While others had ridiculed his position, he had learned to take pride in the doing the defender's dirty work. He had every qualification to become a field general, and yet he was resigned to keeping his post by a door. It was an important task that no one respected, but he understood its value. He raised his axe and lunged with both his feet off the ground. Curious had expected Rain to blink away, and prepared to bounce after landing. Instead, Rain stood there, psionic blades ready, skewering Curious under the gate he had sworn to protect. The laughter died, and soon, so did Curious.The Protoss simply walked past in silence and marched into the capital like a funeral procession, leaving the body where it once stood watch.From the south entrance, Rain's small Protoss force flooded into the capital, and fighting commenced everywhere. It was all a distraction, however, as Rain cut straight towards the throne hall. There, he knew, ruled ByuL in everyone's absence. He was the last obstacle of his conquest and revenge. Nestea's Stronghold, the inner circle of walls protecting the throne hall, had been barricaded and fortified, and it appeared as though ByuL had prepared to buckle down and survive a direct attack. Rain, however, had other plans.While perched atop a precipice, the slope on the eastern side leading up to Nestea's Stronghold was kind enough to consider. The walls on that side of the keep were left without reinforcement, and the royal tower was located there, as well. As Rain and his elite guard neared the ascent, the Protoss army encircled the district and deployed their heavy immortal artillery facing the fort. The thunderous psionic cannons volleyed once, twice, thrice, intentionally avoiding the stronghold. Rain and his men labored halfway up the cliffside when the fourth volley sounded, and all they heard was a loud crash above them. They doubled the pace of their climb until they finally reached an embankment; there, in front of them, a fracture in the wall just large enough to enter single file.ByuL's commanders were too preoccupied with trying to retain key positions in the city to notice that the heart of their defense had been infiltrated. The hallway leading to the spiring tower was conspicuously empty, which was slightly disappointing for the battle hungry commandos. Yet they raced up the stairwell with discipline, until a window gave Rain a view of the scampering fields below. His forces outside had been gaining ground, but this provided an easy opportunity to "get more ahead" as the sages recited. Rain's eyes washed with an ocean blue before a pearly maelstrom twisted them into whites, and then back to the way they were. He signaled for his troops to continue up the flight of stairs before glancing back at the creep below. The skies darkened behind them, and storms laid waste to much of the castle and the Zerg leader's army.Soon, Rain reached the crown of ByuL's spire. There, hunched over topographical maps and wooden army figurines, was ByuL. He had been waiting for his lunch to cool, a humble bowl of rice porridge, while discussing his next move. Though his entire command was prepared for war, the general was still in his bedroom attire, as if to present the aura of calm. The drum of treads into the large hall called the meeting's attention."So, this is it? Where the great ByuL hatches his visionary strategies," Rain interrupted.ByuL turned around and subdued his surprise. Any sign of weakness would embolden the Protoss commander, he thought. "Finally. I've been waiting for this." But he wasn't."Really, now? Is that why you're still in the royal slippers?" Rain's flair for mockery continued to improve, "it looks like you're ready to go to bed. How fitting."ByuL's scabbard had been placed upon the table during their conference, and he slid his hand back to retrieve it. "I heard you outwitted Curious. You may have been too fast for him, but you're not going to fool me. I've studied you, Rain. You're predictable," ByuL explained with a grin on his face."Am I really," Rain answered. He knew that even with the edge in positioning, ByuL was still favored in a straight up fight. However, Rain understood that ByuL had prepared for him well and he had to try something unexpected. So, he recalled Curious' own directness and sprang straight towards ByuL with his psi blades drawn.That, though, was exactly what ByuL had wanted. He had studied iaido—the martial art of drawing and sheathing a blade—and Rain had effectively offered himself as sacrifice. ByuL pulled his scabbard to his side, but in his rashness he failed to remember one thing: the bowl of porridge that he was to have for lunch. The hilt of his sword knocked it over the table.The royal slippers offered no protection and his feet were scalded by his meal. That moment of negligence was just enough time for Rain to close the distance, and though ByuL drew as fast as he could, he sliced at the air while two psi blades wedged themselves between his ribs."You lucky sunofa—"The blades expanded, piercing ByuL's heart for a final interruption.Rain placed his beach chair in the castle lawn, tossed his armor to the side, and wore his sunglasses before lying down. One of his officers, clad in battlesuit and sandals, handed him a champagne flute. Glostalea didn't have oranges, only limes, however, and Rain didn't enjoy that twist in his favorite drink. He did, however, enjoy victory.The officer returned, presumably with a better mix. Instead, he had a message, "Sir, there's someone here for you. He says he's an old friend."Even without looking, Rain knew who it was. He closed his eyes and pretended to ignore his guest."YO! Yoon Jong! You da man!"Rain felt a pair of hands on his shoulders before everything began to shake. His glasses had wiggled loose from his face and fell to the floor. They both heard a crack. The two friends stared at the shattered lenses for a good few seconds."What is it now, PartinG? Can't you see I'm trying to relax," Rain muttered, with his hands on his temples. PartinG had a different Hawaiian shirt on, and a different flavor of sun chips."I heard you were about to take Glostalea so I hurried right over. Couldn't miss this for anything! I told you you could do it. Too bad you went ahead without me though."Rain sat up and looked at his friend. Perhaps he never would have come back to take the capital if it wasn't because of PartinG. How fitting that his great friend would be there on his big occasion. PartinG put his hands on his waist and gazed into the distance."Dang, what a beautiful sight to behold!"Several districts were still burning, and Nestea's Stronghold had a giant hole in its eastern wall. Fruitdealer Market had turned into Moon Crater, and Mount Mvp, the foundation of this enormous city, had developed a sudden case of bullet acne."Well, okay, it isn't much. Oops. But hear me out."Rain rolled his eyes and covered it with his palms."We missed the rebellion last year following SKT's orders. They totally cheated us, man. That scepter should have been ours!""I know the story, PartinG. What does that have to do with us now?""Well, guess why only ByuL was here? Another rebellion is brewing. The scepter's up for grabs. This is our chance!"The officer with bad taste in drinks returned, this time with two glasses. Instead of mimosas, he brought two strawberry daiquiris."Plus, I heard three SKT generals are going to be there."Rain looked around for a few seconds and wondered, "Why would I want to leave the capital behind after all that?""Well, why be the mayor when you can be king?"King. Rain liked the sound of that.Rain handed PartinG the first glass and received the second before offering a toast, "I guess we're heading west then. But I'm leading this time."The two friends clinked their glasses and laughed. Their conquest wasn't over yet.





Stats are from Aligulac.com







However, success this year hasn’t always looked on the cards. Despite his excellent silver medal earned at IEM San Jose at the back end of 2014, Rain seemed sluggish for the first few months of the year. Poor performances in the GSL Round of 16 were followed by a disastrous 0-3 loss to FanTaSy at IEM Katowice, leaving us wondering what had happened to the solid protoss of yore. Championship-calibre Rain came roaring back in Season 2 though, claiming the GSL trophy for his cabinet alongside his 2012 OSL, before adding a second title in as many weeks at HomeStory Cup XI (albeit for no WCS points). However, his strong performance in the SSL Season 3, reaching the semifinal stage, was unfortunately marred by a bizarre series with herO, where both players underperformed significantly. With sOs or PartinG queuing up to face him should he reach BlizzCon Weekend, he’ll need to ensure that his once dominant PvP is patched up in time.



WCS Points:





Top 5 Games







1. Rain vs Classic, IEM Taipei 2015 - Deadwing

While Rain’s PvP has been somewhat of a weak link for him in 2015, he’s still a formidable player in the matchup when on form. He was practically unbeatable in the matchup at times last year (his 6 match winning streak at the tail end of Proleague 2014, for example), and much of that combination of rock solid decision making and decisive execution was on show in Taipei. His aggressive harassment-based opener had minimal effect initially, and Classic built up a formidable force on two bases and pushed towards Rain’s natural expansion. Rain’s defensive flank was excellent though, and although both traded evenly, the mYi protoss opted to go for the counter. Spotting Classic’s lack of detection, a final DT warp in sealed the decisive engagement for Rain, and brought an end to an enthralling back and forth match.









2. Rain vs Rogue, GSL 2015 Season 1 - Overgrowth

For all the tricks that he’s bolted onto his gameplay in 2015, Rain remains a player who relishes the familiar. When at his best, there are few protosses in the world who can lock down a game as well as him, and that’s a skill he demonstrated yet again in this match against Rogue. As with plenty of Rain games, there’s no individual moment that you can point to as spectacular; more the consistent level of control he exerted over a game that proceeded exactly as planned. In the pre-swarm host patch portion of the year, this was the best execution of utterly standard PvZ that we were treated to.









4. Rain vs Cure, GSL 2015 Season 2 – Overgrowth

"Thou shalt not take a TvP to the late game" is one of the oldest commandments in the Starcraft 2 bible, but that’s exactly what Cure tried in this game. Excellent early bio aggression allowed him to set up a solid four base economy, while a healthy ghost count allowed him to keep Rain’s army at bay. An ill advised charge into a choke left Rain 60 supply down and low on minerals, but Cure’s unwillingness to counter would end up costing him dear. Instead, he seemed intent on starving Rain out. Nukes rained down from the sky onto Rain’s bases constantly, restricting him to minimal income, while the army was under constant threat of wandering into a wayward explosion. With his economy wrecked, Rain went all in again; this time, the storms found their targets, while Cure’s ghosts melted under colossus fire. In a way, it reflected his eventual path through to the GSL championship—he’s no longer merely the ultra-defensive titan of 2014, and the killer instinct he’s displayed at times has powered his surge back to the top.









4. Rain vs INnoVation, GSL 2015 Season 2 - King Sejong Station

It’s one thing to control a game through aggression, to pin an opponent back by sheer aggression à la Maru; it’s quite another to passively assert your authority when on the back foot. Rain’s defensive play against INnoVation is straight from the textbook, forcing the terran back through power of positioning alone. One mistake from the terran was all it took—Rain storming INnoVation’s clumped vikings to take a game he never looked like losing. While his performances in the previous rounds had been solid enough, this was the game which made us believe that championship-quality Rain was back on the warpath.









5. Rain vs Maru, GSL 2015 Season 2 – Vaani Research Station

Going into this match, everything pointed in Maru’s favour. The Jin Air terran had looked unstoppable in TvP for much of 2015, while his victory over Rain in 2014 led to the protoss labeling him as equivalent to the WoL Bl/infestor era of imbalance. That Rain came out of the battle on top was in no small part down to the adjustments that he had made to his game (his proxy oracle into void ray bust on Deadwing was very reminiscent of MC), but the game that kicked off his title charge was the opening game on Vaani Research Station. We’ve seen Maru tear protoss apart on the map, taking advantage of the awkward location of the in-base expansion, but Rain’s defense with phoenixes was as good as it gets, while his DT / warp prism harass was a constant thorn in Maru’s side throughout. It’s a general sign that when Maru techs beyond the basic 4M style, you’ve done well as a protoss; here Maru turned desperately to both ghosts and vikings to help dig him out of the hole. Rain was too far ahead though, and one final wipe of the remaining terran forces left Maru no choice but to GG.



Rain’s eventual lack of silverware last year was a shock to anyone who had watched him play extensively. At his peak, he seemed simply unstoppable, and his results in Proleague were especially astonishing, recording a 17-3 streak towards the second half of the season. While his fans may have feared that a decline in performance was inevitable following his switch to mYinsanity, the former SKT ace has shown that such concerns were unfounded.However, success this year hasn’t always looked on the cards. Despite his excellent silver medal earned at IEM San Jose at the back end of 2014, Rain seemed sluggish for the first few months of the year. Poor performances in the GSL Round of 16 were followed by a disastrous 0-3 loss to FanTaSy at IEM Katowice, leaving us wondering what had happened to the solid protoss of yore. Championship-calibre Rain came roaring back in Season 2 though, claiming the GSL trophy for his cabinet alongside his 2012 OSL, before adding a second title in as many weeks at HomeStory Cup XI (albeit for no WCS points). However, his strong performance in the SSL Season 3, reaching the semifinal stage, was unfortunately marred by a bizarre series with herO, where both players underperformed significantly. With sOs or PartinG queuing up to face him should he reach BlizzCon Weekend, he’ll need to ensure that his once dominant PvP is patched up in time.While Rain’s PvP has been somewhat of a weak link for him in 2015, he’s still a formidable player in the matchup when on form. He was practically unbeatable in the matchup at times last year (his 6 match winning streak at the tail end of Proleague 2014, for example), and much of that combination of rock solid decision making and decisive execution was on show in Taipei. His aggressive harassment-based opener had minimal effect initially, and Classic built up a formidable force on two bases and pushed towards Rain’s natural expansion. Rain’s defensive flank was excellent though, and although both traded evenly, the mYi protoss opted to go for the counter. Spotting Classic’s lack of detection, a final DT warp in sealed the decisive engagement for Rain, and brought an end to an enthralling back and forth match.For all the tricks that he’s bolted onto his gameplay in 2015, Rain remains a player who relishes the familiar. When at his best, there are few protosses in the world who can lock down a game as well as him, and that’s a skill he demonstrated yet again in this match against Rogue. As with plenty of Rain games, there’s no individual moment that you can point to as spectacular; more the consistent level of control he exerted over a game that proceeded exactly as planned. In the pre-swarm host patch portion of the year, this was the best execution of utterly standard PvZ that we were treated to."Thou shalt not take a TvP to the late game" is one of the oldest commandments in the Starcraft 2 bible, but that’s exactly what Cure tried in this game. Excellent early bio aggression allowed him to set up a solid four base economy, while a healthy ghost count allowed him to keep Rain’s army at bay. An ill advised charge into a choke left Rain 60 supply down and low on minerals, but Cure’s unwillingness to counter would end up costing him dear. Instead, he seemed intent on starving Rain out. Nukes rained down from the sky onto Rain’s bases constantly, restricting him to minimal income, while the army was under constant threat of wandering into a wayward explosion. With his economy wrecked, Rain went all in again; this time, the storms found their targets, while Cure’s ghosts melted under colossus fire. In a way, it reflected his eventual path through to the GSL championship—he’s no longer merely the ultra-defensive titan of 2014, and the killer instinct he’s displayed at times has powered his surge back to the top.It’s one thing to control a game through aggression, to pin an opponent back by sheer aggression à la Maru; it’s quite another to passively assert your authority when on the back foot. Rain’s defensive play against INnoVation is straight from the textbook, forcing the terran back through power of positioning alone. One mistake from the terran was all it took—Rain storming INnoVation’s clumped vikings to take a game he never looked like losing. While his performances in the previous rounds had been solid enough, this was the game which made us believe that championship-quality Rain was back on the warpath.Going into this match, everything pointed in Maru’s favour. The Jin Air terran had looked unstoppable in TvP for much of 2015, while his victory over Rain in 2014 led to the protoss labeling him as equivalent to the WoL Bl/infestor era of imbalance. That Rain came out of the battle on top was in no small part down to the adjustments that he had made to his game (his proxy oracle into void ray bust on Deadwing wasreminiscent of MC), but the game that kicked off his title charge was the opening game on Vaani Research Station. We’ve seen Maru tear protoss apart on the map, taking advantage of the awkward location of the in-base expansion, but Rain’s defense with phoenixes was as good as it gets, while his DT / warp prism harass was a constant thorn in Maru’s side throughout. It’s a general sign that when Maru techs beyond the basic 4M style, you’ve done well as a protoss; here Maru turned desperately to both ghosts and vikings to help dig him out of the hole. Rain was too far ahead though, and one final wipe of the remaining terran forces left Maru no choice but to GG.

Rain vs Maru

GSL 2015 Season 2 Ro8 - Vaani Research Station

by: lichter



One of the most difficult concepts to describe and understand in Starcraft is that of control. Not map control, which can easily be followed with the minimap; not unit control, evident in how individual units move and attack; but a 'control' of the flow of the game. This game on Vaani Research Station is a masterclass in control by Rain, one of the best players at dictating the flow of the game. That he he beat Maru at his own game on Vaani, a map notorious for being brutal against players who love to drop, was just exquisite.



Both players postured for a long game, opening with conventionally safe builds. Neither players wanted to risk an expansion first, and it would not be until 6 minutes into the game that their plans would unfold. Maru, of course, teched quickly into his starport as opposed to getting a quick third CC. His factory churned out mine after mine, which he had used to kill lesser protoss many times before. Rain on the other hand was privy to his opponent's proclivities and chose a stargate as his route. Not for oracles, but for phoenix. While relying on phoenixes in the early game can be tricky—due to limited ground ground attacks and weak damage output in small numbers—a player with good positioning and presence of mind can deflect even the largest drops with the right amount of units. Maru's first widowmine drop grabbed 4 probes and a stalker, but Rain handled it well, ensuring that nothing in the drop survived. Rain even felt comfortable enough to take a 9:00 third base while Maru continued to pump out mines and medivacs.



Maru's next destination was the main, but Rain once again mopped up the whole drop at the cost of 2 probes. The Jin Air terran was not detterred, however, and he sent another full mine drop into the third for no reward. The terran dialed back by expanding to his third, but it now appeared that the protoss was in a good position. Other players would have collapsed and suffered more damage after so many drops, but Rain had hardly skipped a beat with his build: he already had his robo bay and additional gateways building.







Realizing that he had not inflicted enough damage, Maru pushed out with a small bio force towards the third, but he only had 2 medivacs (with 2 about to complete). With the protoss in position, the first attack was held with ease. The second attack went better, however, as Maru chopped down two colossus at the cost of most of his bio units. While trading bio for colossus is usually Maru's TvP style, Rain's proactiveness in routing the attack while discouraging drops ensured that Maru could not capitalize on the lack of AoE units. By the time the terran attacked again, Rain already had more colossus up and ready.







This left Maru with no choice but to continue attacking. Rain was in a comfortable position despite his lack of map control and loss of key units. His economy was fine and all the trades had been equal, and Maru could not find an opening to deal a blow big enough to take a commanding lead into the late game. Maru committed to several attacks in succession, and with his incredible micro almost always drew even. His first real success was a 4 medivac drop in the back base to take out the nexus, but at this point Rain already had his templar archives ready and enough colossus to dissuade any frontal attack.







Still, Maru was very marauder heavy, allowing him to poke without much fear of losing units. He still had map control, and his fourth base was well ahead of the protoss. He realized he could not handle double AoE, however, and he was forced to tech into ghosts and vikings—something Maru tended to avoid. That's when Rain decided to switch things around by sending his own drop into Maru's backdoor. The Jin Air ace had all his units rallied forward, confident in his map presence, and a big warp in of zealots created havoc in the natural. At that point the game turned into a dance of main armies with dallying drops and harassment. Marauder squads picked off stray HTs and DTs slashed SCVs wherever the terran was not looking. A big attack in the fourth base of Rain once again ended up even, but at the cost of both players' expensive units.







It was now Maru's turn to be torn apart by harassment. Rain, confident that his main army could not be pierced easily, now had the luxury of sending warp-ins and DTs everywhere. Maru struggled to keep up, and Rain had several opportunities to deny the terran fifth base. The roles had been reversed, and Maru was on the back foot. Even though Maru repeatedly felled every single colossus, he was hemorrhaging SCVs and losing his entire army. The two players battled back and forth near 100 supply, but Maru's lack of SCVs prompted him to base trade, recognizing that Rain would eventually overwhelm him. He did his best to deal damage wherever he could, but Rain's preemptive probe pull and banked 700 minerals ensured that he would survive. Maru micro'd his heart out, but with phoenixes still out on the map (and enough money for a nexus), Maru accepted defeat with no chance to force a draw.







For any other protoss, things could have easily gotten out of hand. Yet Rain remained composed and even lured Maru into sacrificing his army for what appeared to be even trades. That false sense of security allowed him to turn the tables entering the late game, propelling him into a hard fought victory.



click here to watch the game



One of the most difficult concepts to describe and understand in Starcraft is that of control. Not map control, which can easily be followed with the minimap; not unit control, evident in how individual units move and attack; but a 'control' of the flow of the game. This game on Vaani Research Station is a masterclass in control by Rain, one of the best players at dictating the flow of the game. That he he beat Maru at his own game on Vaani, a map notorious for being brutal against players who love to drop, was just exquisite.Both players postured for a long game, opening with conventionally safe builds. Neither players wanted to risk an expansion first, and it would not be until 6 minutes into the game that their plans would unfold. Maru, of course, teched quickly into his starport as opposed to getting a quick third CC. His factory churned out mine after mine, which he had used to kill lesser protoss many times before. Rain on the other hand was privy to his opponent's proclivities and chose a stargate as his route. Not for oracles, but for phoenix. While relying on phoenixes in the early game can be tricky—due to limited ground ground attacks and weak damage output in small numbers—a player with good positioning and presence of mind can deflect even the largest drops with the right amount of units. Maru's first widowmine drop grabbed 4 probes and a stalker, but Rain handled it well, ensuring that nothing in the drop survived. Rain even felt comfortable enough to take a 9:00 third base while Maru continued to pump out mines and medivacs.Maru's next destination was the main, but Rain once again mopped up the whole drop at the cost of 2 probes. The Jin Air terran was not detterred, however, and he sent another full mine drop into the third for no reward. The terran dialed back by expanding to his third, but it now appeared that the protoss was in a good position. Other players would have collapsed and suffered more damage after so many drops, but Rain had hardly skipped a beat with his build: he already had his robo bay and additional gateways building.Realizing that he had not inflicted enough damage, Maru pushed out with a small bio force towards the third, but he only had 2 medivacs (with 2 about to complete). With the protoss in position, the first attack was held with ease. The second attack went better, however, as Maru chopped down two colossus at the cost of most of his bio units. While trading bio for colossus is usually Maru's TvP style, Rain's proactiveness in routing the attack while discouraging drops ensured that Maru could not capitalize on the lack of AoE units. By the time the terran attacked again, Rain already had more colossus up and ready.This left Maru with no choice but to continue attacking. Rain was in a comfortable position despite his lack of map control and loss of key units. His economy was fine and all the trades had been equal, and Maru could not find an opening to deal a blow big enough to take a commanding lead into the late game. Maru committed to several attacks in succession, and with his incredible micro almost always drew even. His first real success was a 4 medivac drop in the back base to take out the nexus, but at this point Rain already had his templar archives ready and enough colossus to dissuade any frontal attack.Still, Maru was very marauder heavy, allowing him to poke without much fear of losing units. He still had map control, and his fourth base was well ahead of the protoss. He realized he could not handle double AoE, however, and he was forced to tech into ghosts and vikings—something Maru tended to avoid. That's when Rain decided to switch things around by sending his own drop into Maru's backdoor. The Jin Air ace had all his units rallied forward, confident in his map presence, and a big warp in of zealots created havoc in the natural. At that point the game turned into a dance of main armies with dallying drops and harassment. Marauder squads picked off stray HTs and DTs slashed SCVs wherever the terran was not looking. A big attack in the fourth base of Rain once again ended up even, but at the cost of both players' expensive units.It was now Maru's turn to be torn apart by harassment. Rain, confident that his main army could not be pierced easily, now had the luxury of sending warp-ins and DTs everywhere. Maru struggled to keep up, and Rain had several opportunities to deny the terran fifth base. The roles had been reversed, and Maru was on the back foot. Even though Maru repeatedly felled every single colossus, he was hemorrhaging SCVs and losing his entire army. The two players battled back and forth near 100 supply, but Maru's lack of SCVs prompted him to base trade, recognizing that Rain would eventually overwhelm him. He did his best to deal damage wherever he could, but Rain's preemptive probe pull and banked 700 minerals ensured that he would survive. Maru micro'd his heart out, but with phoenixes still out on the map (and enough money for a nexus), Maru accepted defeat with no chance to force a draw.For any other protoss, things could have easily gotten out of hand. Yet Rain remained composed and even lured Maru into sacrificing his army for what appeared to be even trades. That false sense of security allowed him to turn the tables entering the late game, propelling him into a hard fought victory.













