The IPL6 Amateur Regional qualifier kicked off right after the streaming of a very quick IPTL set. The amateur stipulations states that all players that are qualified to play must have less than $1,000 earned in live events. This means that the players on display can be easier to connect to -- they're closer to the majority than the top. But, no disrespect, pro play is still pro play.
Semi-final #1 St.Zero v. Pink
Ohana -- Game one
Zero marched in with fearless abandon with great zergling pressure.
Zero dominated this one early and often. Zergling pressure against the misplaced defensive cannons for Pink and this ZvP was an quick win. Pink's early expansion backfired and Zero crushed the first game.
Entombed Valley -- Game two
Zero cleaned up Pink's all-in cannon rush.
Pink went for cheese in game two with a cannon rush on Zero. The response from Zero was a perfectly timed drone pull and zergling defense to end the cannon threat. The wall to prevent Zero's push with zerglings was too late and Pink had no choice but to GG out.
Semi-final #2 ST.Panic v. Arthur
Ohana -- Game one
Both started in defensive positions for the PvP mirror. Arthur played safe and expanded, while Panic expended resources for a great timing push of immortals/colossus. Unfortunately for Arthur, his defensive play ended with no scouting of the impending army push from Panic and he loses the first game.
Entombed Valley -- Game two
Arthur's better tech and economic advantage was enough for the defense.
Arthur changed his game plan with probe scouting and an early phoenix harass. The denied expansion for Panic led to an all-in push with immortals/stalkers and warped in units, but Arthur's harass damage gave him the advantage and the high ground. The tie goes to Arthur and we move to game three.
Daybreak -- Game three
Panic's advantage of dark templars won the base race.
The mirror match ended with both players settling with different beginning builds. Arthur transitioned to blink stalkers, while Panic went with stalkers and dark templars. Arthur's late scout to see the dark templar and he lost all his ability to scout invisible units. Panic's great base race and distraction gave him the Nexus kill and the map reveal. The deck was stacked against Arthur as his units kept dying to dark templar chase-down, and his base race could not continue.
Grand final ST.Zero v. ST.Panic
Cloud Kingdom -- Game one
Zero's six-pool, all-in, strategy falls on its head.
Teammates in the grand finals, but enemies to get into IPL6 with a free ride on the line. Zero began the game with a six-pool. Panic scouted it out and created a forge in response, but his cannon timing was a bit late and was forced to pull his mining line. Unfortunately, for Zero, his over commitment to speedlings and constant pressure was a bit too much. Panic's response and counter push crushed the small defense of weak zerglings.
Daybreak -- Game two
Zero's beginning was not a six-pool, but rather a 15-hatch and a third expansion shortly after. The lack of aggression, however, led to a very tech-heavy, standard ZvP. While Panic tried to harass and scout with phoenixes, Zero committed to some defense and droned up. Finally, both parties simultaneously pushed out with timing attacks on expansions. Zero's great defense and resistance (not to mention great fungal use) bonded all of Panic's units and forced the last game.
Ohana -- Game three
Zero's new zerg metagame -- mass zerglings and push early and often.
No need to explain game three. Zero's all-in of drones and zerglings was amazingly good enough. Zero's all-in actually won with small reinforcements of zerglings to take the game early.
Timothy Lee is known more for his writing than his playing. He specializes in analysis, profiles, and news reporting. You can find his work on IGN.com, RotoAnalysis.com, 1UP.com, and the Daily Breeze. He is currently a free-lance video game and sports writer.
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