“Lifting that trophy would be a testament to all I’ve had to overcome over the years and how far I’ve come on this journey.

TL.net’s live coverage of Code S Season 2 continued thanks to Mizenhauer, who grabbed a word with all four semi-finalists after the RO8 matches.

Group A winners Rogue and GuMiho talked about the uphill battle they will face in the semifinals, and the challenge of trying to secure the GSL’s final EWC seed.

Interviews by Mizenhauer; translated by verecunda

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GuMiho: “Lifting that trophy would be a testament to all I’ve had to overcome over the years and how far I’ve come on this journey.”

TL.net: You’re returning to the Round of 4 for the third time in the past four seasons. What is your mindset heading into the semifinals?

GuMiho: Honestly, I’m less than confident. I’ve been having an increasingly hard time against Protoss as of late. Fortunately, there are still a few days before the Round of 4 for some last minute practice.

That being said, you played a lot better today than you did in Dallas. How do you shrug off a bad result and turn things around so quickly?

I can’t say I have a specific method, but I’ve been playing StarCraft for a long time and, as much as it hurts, losing is part of being a progamer. What’s important is finding a way to focus on what’s ahead of you and not dwell on the past. My ultimate goal at the moment is qualifying for EWC, so you could say I don’t have time to get down on myself until the mission is accomplished.

You decided to play mech in game one against Rogue. Was that a build you had prepared specifically for Magannatha or was the plan to use it against him regardless of the map?

It wasn’t so much about the map and more about the specific in game situation. I went into that game prepared to play mech or bio. It just so happened that mech was the better option.

Last season Maru played Protoss against you in the Round of 8, but he opted for Terran this time around. Did his choice of race change your outlook on the match at all? Also, were you expecting him to try something unexpected today?

I actually didn’t think all that much about it prior to today. Once we did the vetos, however, I knew he was sticking with Terran since he vetoed a number of Protoss friendly maps.

You led with a pair of proxied barracks and reapers in game one, but Maru was able to sniff it out. How did you feel about your chances once he discovered your barracks?

For a moment there I was really frustrated. I just couldn’t believe my luck. Fortunately, I was able to rally and play a solid game from there—especially from a micro perspective.

You decided to follow up your proxy with battlemech. How viable do you think the composition is at the moment?

Battle mech is perfectly viable as a composition—as long as you aren’t playing against bio. The reason I cut tanks and went with cyclone/hellion in that game in particular was because I thought Maru might go for mech as well.

Do you think the strength of mech is due in part to the maps?

You’re right that mech does benefit from certain maps more than others, but what’s even more important is to recognize situations in game where mech is a better choice than bio. Game two against Rogue was a good example of a game where I lost because I tried to force mech instead of properly reacting to what was going on.

Seeing as you’ve played far more mech than any other Terran over the years, do you think you have an advantage when it comes to discerning when to go mech and when not to?

I think that’s fair to say. There are guidelines one can follow to determine when you should or shouldn’t play mech, but I think my willingness and knowledge of when to diverge from those tenets helps me remain unpredictable.

Up 1-0 against Solar, you went completely all-in in game two with a proxy 3 barracks. At what point did you get the idea to run past his spine crawlers and fight in his main base?

I knew that Solar had an overlord just outside my base and that he would see my SCVs crossing the map so I was determined to run past his natural and into his main. I knew Solar might be able to shut it down if he saw it coming, but I was hoping I could catch him off guard and things happened to go my way.

You have a chance to make the finals of GSL for the third time in your career. What would a second Code S championship mean to you?

The first word that comes to mind is overcome. Lifting that trophy would be a testament to all I’ve had to overcome over the years and how far I’ve come on this journey.

You have some extremely ardent fans overseas, including Waxangel at TL. Do you have anything to say to those who will be cheering you on on Sunday?

I haven’t had many opportunities to interact with my foreign fans as of late, but I’m always grateful for their support. I only have three days to prepare for the Round of 4, but I’m going to put my all into practice so that I can show you some great games.

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Rogue: “My results since returning from the military have been so far below my standards that I often feel like I’ve hit a wall and I’ll never get back to where I once was. But, if I were to finally win GSL, that would give me a big confidence boost heading into EWC.”

You had a tough time of things at Dreamhack Dallas and in the EWC qualifiers. Did you do anything different to get back to your winning ways?

I put a lot of effort into ensuring I was in top condition tonight. I made sure to eat well and exercise, as well as relaxing yesterday so I could feel well rested. Lastly, I tried to think through some possible scenarios in advance so I wouldn’t get as nervous once the games began.

The first game against GuMiho looked extremely frustrating. Were you expecting him to play mech?

I actually was expecting him to go that route and even prepared a timing attack specifically for when he went mech. I can’t help but feel disappointed, however, since I didn’t pull it off as well as I did in practice

You bounced back in games two and three, however. Were you planning on playing ling/bane/muta prior to the match or did you make that call on the spot?

On the spot, actually. I had planned on going for another build, but as the game was going on I thought mutalisks might catch him off guard. As it turned out, things worked out in my favor.

You had over 20 mutalisks at one point, which is unusual these days. Do you think mutalisks can be viable in ZvT?

Mutas can be very good in certain situations, especially when you’re able to surprise your opponent, but Zergs don’t use them because it’s extremely hard to get to that point.

You were the aggressor in the winner’s match. Is that how you prefer to play ZvZ or was it specific to Solar?

I mentioned earlier about how I was doing my best to avoid getting nervous. Well, one of the ways I’m able to combat anxiety during tournaments is by playing aggressively and leaning into mind games.

You went for a super aggressive early pool in game three, but Solar held. Did you feel comfortable macro-ing out of that position?

I was actually caught off guard since I’ve never encountered that situation before. I was expecting for Solar to try to defend his natural, but Solar has such good game sense that he decided to sacrifice his natural and defend his main instead.

Now that you’re in the Round of 4 you have the chance to be the second military returnee to win GSL. Would that have extra meaning to you compared to your other championships?

My results since returning from the military have been so far below my standards that I often feel like I’ve hit a wall and I’ll never get back to where I once was. But, if I were to finally win GSL, that would give me a big confidence boost heading into EWC.

You’ve been having a hard time against herO recently, but you displayed your classic bravado when you said you’d like to get him out of the way in the Round of 4. Do you finally feel you’re in the form you showed prior to military service?

Back when I was first discharged from the military, I couldn’t beat herO at all, not even in practice games. Recently it’s become more of a back-and-forth so I’m not as scared of him as I used to be. I think if I’m able to make it to the late game I have a shot since he’s not as strong as, let’s say, Classic,

Last time we spoke you seemed more concerned with your ZvP than ZvT. Do you still feel that way or has something changed?

ZvP is still my weakest matchup so I’m expecting the semifinals to be a massive challenge. GuMiho would be a difficult opponent as well but, since it’s ZvT, I’ll feel much more confident—if only because of his race.

If you do well in the semifinals/finals you could grab the final qualifying spot for EWC? Does this feel anything like 2017 when you won IEM Shanghai and Super Tournament 2 to make it to BlizzCon which you ultimately won?

Honestly, I’ve been practicing so hard this past week that I feel like I’ve given everything I have just to make it to the semifinals. I could definitely use some help from the other players because it’s going to be extremely challenging if I have to qualify for EWC on my own.

We asked you last season if you have any words for your foreign fans, so this time we’ll change things up. If your loved ones were kidnapped by pirates and you could only rescue them by recruiting a team of three other SC2 players, who would you pick and why?

I could have come up with some really good answers back in the old days, but when I met up with everyone at DreamHack Dallas, I realized everyone has gotten so skinny. Let’s just go with Ryung.