Pro Division Sunday Stream Preview

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Korea South Vinyanyérë
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Pro Division Sunday Stream Preview

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Post by VinyanyĂ©rĂ« »

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Pro Division Sunday Stream Preview
Kaiserklein vs. KINGofOsmane - 15:00 GMT on ESOCTV

Kaiserklein needs little introduction - he’s a strong contender for the best currently active player. In 2019, Kaiserklein played in 10 tournaments - he finished in the quarterfinals or better in all ten, semifinals or better in nine, finals or better in six, and came out on top in five. He’s the peer-rated top seed of the pro division. No matter who his opponent is, it’s hard not to put him as a favorite.

I’m a lowkey KINGofOsmane stan, but even I have to admit that the pathway to victory here is a rough one. Osmane is one of the hallmarks of the defensive playstyle, the style that haunts the dreams of quicksearch players and always seems to be on the cusp of breaking into the mainstream and ushering in a new Golden Age of hour-long yumi-and-wall stalemates (for some definitions of “golden age”). But the top players of the world are those that are unfazed by off-meta playstyles, and Kaiserklein will be coming into this series well-prepared to deal with a few walls.

It’s worth noting that the civilization restrictions of the Winter 2020 tournament differ from the previous ESOC major, the Autumn 2018. Instead, they use a ruleset similar to EscapeAoE’s New World Championship, where winning with a civilization locks a player out of it for the remainder of the series. For players with small civ pools, this can become a problem, especially in extended best of seven series. KINGofOsmane’s test won’t be in whether or not he can yumi-wall his way to a victory in one game, but in whether he can maintain enough civ diversity to win a full series.

Jerimuno vs. danielek - 17:00 GMT on ESOCTV

This isn’t one of the pro division matches, but don’t mistake this as an opportunity to eat dinner - Jerimuno vs. danielek is the real deal.

Both of these players are on the rise and on the radar for a breakout into a deep run amongst the pros. Jerimuno, with multiple deep runs in ESOC Second Chance Tournaments, is a player whose potential is extremely promising. He fell just short of what was needed in the Qualifiers this tournament, with a 2-3 loss against PrinceOfKabul.

danielek’s tournament history doesn’t go back quite as far, having started with EscapeAoE’s New World Championship. His participation in the inaugural season of the ESOC Premier League speaks to his skill however - danielek drafted a starting team that looked to be an easy favorite to win the league. Even after graciously top-tier player away to make things not too EZ 4 CMC, his roster was widely-regarded to be the best in the league. He’s not just good at player evaluation, however - danielek has gotten very good, very quickly, and is a fearsome sight.

This isn’t the first time that these players have met. They found each other in the finals of the second Wars of Liberty Mod tournament, where Jerimuno won 4-3. Take from that what you will.

LordRaphael vs. snowww - 19:00 GMT on ESOCTV

The match between two of the NWC top 8 players is sure to be a highlight of the day.

Granted, LordRaphael at his best often looks invincible. While Kaiserklein might be good now and _H2O might have been good in 2015, LordRaphael has been good at every period of the ESOC era of AoE3 tournaments. No matter how inactive he is, how long he waits before deciding to sign up for a tournament, Raphael will hit the finals almost every time he decides to play.

Raphael’s Achilles’ heel is that he can win any series but can’t win every game. His tournament history is littered with 3-2 and 4-3 nail-biting victories over players who’d otherwise have no business taking games off the arguable best player in the world (in fact, he took a 4-3 against snowww in the NWC). It’s only a matter of time until a player comes along who’s good enough to call him on his “win a series by as close a margin as possible” style and take a 4-3 in the other direction.

If I had to list the best players in the world from 2015 on, I’d write down about ten or twelve names, submit my list, and then quickly amend it afterwards with an “oh yeah, and snowww too”. That’s meant to be a compliment - snowww deserves way more credit than he gets. If I were a betting duck (and I’m not, I didn’t sign up for this round of betting), I’d put my money on 4-3 scores in both directions.


Mitoe vs The_LastSamurai - 16:00 GMT on ESOCTV2

Well. The last time these players met, it was a close 3-2 series in the Spring 2017 championship. You don’t remember? We didn’t stream it live - our technology wasn’t ready to stream on Mondays back then. But don’t worry, this time they’re playing on a Sunday, and we’ll be streaming live on ESOCTV2.

The_LastSamurai has come to prominence recently for his casting, but before that, he was seen as a slightly mysterious member of the old guard of top players from an age past. One of the most interesting things about a fifteen-year-old game without an overly serious competitive scene is that the flow of time itself is convoluted, with heroes years old phasing in and out. The_LastSamurai has played that part well, with this being his second-ever ESOC tournament and his last one ending due to Mitoe.

2019 was a tough year for Mitoe fans, to put it mildly. It’s not just that he lost; it’s that he almost won. In Bane’s infamous words, there can be no true despair without hope. Get ready to despair. NAmen.

Hazza54321 vs. PrinceOfKabul - 19:00 GMT on ESOCTV2

Another match between NWC top 8 players - with it running concurrently with Raphael vs. snowww, get ready to multitask. Neither of these players were able to make it out of the group stages of NWC, but there’s no shame in losing amongst that caliber of player.

Hazza came third in the rankings when ranked by other players in the Pro Division. He put more work into practicing than perhaps anyone else scheduled for the Sunday stream, and is itching to show off what he’s been up to. Hazza’s trophy case is disappointingly empty for a player of his caliber (he recently won a 2v2 tournament that he hosted which is cool I guess), but Winter 2020 will be an opportunity to put an end to that.

Prince isn’t too different. He’s not won a tournament yet and has had multiple ro16 and ro8 exits, but many of these losses come against top-tier players and eventual finalists. While Raphael vs. snowww may be the highlight of the day, keep an eye on this one - whoever makes it out has a real chance at the gold.

duolckrad vs. n0el - 03:00 GMT Monday on songhyeonDuck

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Germany Aramir
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Re: Pro Division Sunday Stream Preview

Post by Aramir »

Good stuff!
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Re: Pro Division Sunday Stream Preview

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Post by n0el »

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mad cuz bad
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Re: Pro Division Sunday Stream Preview

Post by toriancarconn »

where can i watch the aizamk samwise 12 matchup?
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Great Britain I_HaRRiiSoN_I
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Re: Pro Division Sunday Stream Preview

Post by I_HaRRiiSoN_I »

https://www.twitch.tv/videos/541589381

If link doesnt work then just go through ESOCTV past broadcasts
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Re: Pro Division Sunday Stream Preview

Post by Mr_Bramboy »

Incredible art as always.

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