Hello this is Tjernobyl from GosuGamers and I'm standing here with ixmike from Team Liquid at The International 3. How are the preparations going for your team so far?
I think it is going alright. We didn't get as much as we want from the boot camp but we're comfortable as long as we run the stuff that we practice.
How long did you boot camp for?
A month. All of July and straight to here.
What kind of expectations did you have? You said it didn't go quite as you expected?
We knew coming into the event, we can take games off any of these teams. It comes down to execution and actually doing our own thing rather than getting caught up in the moment.
What about past experience from tournaments like Dreamhack, and G-1 League. How does it shape you guys?
LAN experience is good for our team because we played together since last year and all the LAN visits and the time we have together. G-1 League is very good in learning how the Chinese teams play than just replays. It's just good experience for TI3.
About the Chinese teams, how do you think they are performing in comparison to western teams?
I think Chinese teams are a lot weaker this year. Either that or western teams are stronger this year but I think they are all overhyped. All the forum posters and general consensus is that the Chinese will stomp but that's not how it is. There's a huge jump for western teams this year.
What is the reason for the shift?
There are a lot more supports in the western scene compared to two years ago. One example I have is D2L finals and first The Defense finals. The stream viewers was like 20,000 people and now every game has that amount of viewers. There's a lot more players, sponsors, money, and dedication and so, western teams get better and close the gap.
A lot of teams from the East seem to complain a little about not many tournaments going on, how do you think that affected their performance?
I think that definitely is one of the factors that they aren't that good. I don't know why that is but 2-3 tournaments a year... I don't know why. LGD.Int said the whole ten months they were in China, they only played 25 matches which is like really nothing at all.
Yeah, 25 matches in western scene is like two weeks or something.
That's a group stage!
Exactly. What is the team dynamics? Who call the shots?
TC and Fluff do the draft together. Usually TC and if he wants input, everybody else will add in. In-game is usually Fluff making most of the calls. If we have initiating heroes, he will make the call on when to start the fight.
Does everybody just follow the command or are there confusion and bickering?
Sometimes they are okay but there are times where there are arguments.
Do you guys do anything else together when you meet up?
We just play Dota. Over the boot camp, we played stuff like basketball, board game, and go out to eat together.
Who is the best board game player in your team?
One of the Team Liquid owners Hotbid, he always wins.
What kind of board game do you usually play?
I'm not familiar with it. They play Agricola and Power Grid which is like strategy games. I don't play though.
I guess it can be something to prepare your mind?
They are actually pretty deep for board games and it is like a lot of thinking and strategy.
What do you think about this year's TI compared to last year's? You played for Complexity right?
This one is better for sure. Valve listens to the community feedback and players complaint and stuff. For me, the biggest change is the hotel is nicer and the group stage is played in the hotel. So, we don't have to go to Valve office and come back. If you want to relax, you can just go back to your room and it is no big deal. It is convenient.
Were you able to play any games on the 6th?
We scheduled to go to a LAN but we didn't prepare extra peripherals. So, we didn't.
Would you have rather played that day or it doesn't matter?
You are not going to develop anything on that day. It is just a warm-up but relaxing is good too.
What do you think of the format? It is the same as last year with three rounds of the LB being best-of-one?
The third round is actually best-of-three now. I think it's alright. Best-of-one is obviously very stressful but you can't reward the lower bracket teams with the same best-of-three as the winner bracket. I think that's too rewarding.
But right now, you have teams dropping down to the lower bracket like Orange and now they have to play best-of-one. What do you think about that?
I think compared to starting in the bottom eight, there is more stress on those people to play best-of-one and win it like Orange. Sure they have the demotivation from losing the first match but their tournament life is not on the line before that.
What about once they drop down to the lower bracket, do you think there is a bigger advantage is starting from the lower bracket or dropping down?
I think it's better to start from the lower bracket because you play less game and they are less fatigued. They also get more data from opponents and more opportunity to study them.
Maybe if you begin from the lower bracket, you get more prepared for the stress of the best-of-one and being close to elimination?
Yeah, there's also confidence boost for the team from the lower bracket because they just won the game while the opponent lost.
Well Dignitas lost earlier but the crowd was still going crazy. Do you like playing along this crowd?
Oh yeah I love this crowd. I love the USA chant when we make big plays.
Well last year they were even chanting USA when Na`Vi was playing.
If you're not Chinese you're not American.
What about the NA scene. How is it looking? What is the status of the NA scene?
There's a lot flak for results but I think it's pretty good. We have two teams in The International more or same as every other country. EG tried to play as well but they lost. I don't think it is as bad as everybody thinks and it is getting better every year. I think we are on equal playing ground with most of the European and Chinese teams.
Recently NA also have the American Dota League, which is the first proper Dota 2 tournament for NA. You obviously hope for more of that right?
I actually don't really like it because we play on European schedule and we play very early and finish around afternoon our time. the problem with ADL is it is catered towards American, so it starts really late but as for the American teams, it is really good for that and I would prefer there to be a qualifier than invites because that help teams develop and help create more teams to play in the qualifiers.
Do you have an plans after TI3?
I'm undecided.
Are you going on vacation?
At least a month.
I think that's it from me. Do you have any last shoutout?
Shoutout to my friends, fans. Shoutout to my sponsors Twitch, Barracuda, Razer Shiny Things and Need for Seat. That's it.
