Aleksander “Kolento” Malsh is probably one of the most well known players in the Hearthstone scene. He has been around since the early stages of the game, and was one of the favorites for the Hearthstone World Championship in 2014. He has managed to take first place in 12 tournaments, of which seven were held in 2015. Very few people dare argue with Kolento’s analyses when it comes to Hearthstone plays, and those skills made some people dub him as “Godlento”. Proof can be found in the first two Top 5 Plays video, made by Trolden, in which he is awarded the #1 spot. We interviewed him right after he eliminated ThijsNL in the Under Bracket final at the WCA Pro Qualifiers.
Welcome Kolento, congratulations on making it through to the main event in China. How do you feel?
I feel good. It always feels good to win.
Did you prepare for the tournament with any other Cloud9 players?
I didn’t have much time to prepare, I was really busy arranging my visa for Germany. I mainly played on ladder to prepare for the tournament.
The format of WCA Pro Qualifiers allowed you to go 0-3 in the group stage, but still make it to the finals. Do you think this is fair?
I don’t really like the format. 75% of the players advance to China, and only four players participated. With a 50% win rate you can win the tournament (editor's note - Kolento did that himself eventually). The tournament takes so much time as well. Getting up early because we stay quite far from the venue is something I consider a waste of time. Then after we’ve played our matches, we have to wait very long. Being at Gamescom is cool for a couple of hours, but being here for five days limits the things I’d like to do.
"I play Patron a lot, but it's a hard deck to play. You have very limited amount of time to think about your plays."
Let’s move on. In your first game against ThijsNL today, you had an amazing board clear with your Patron Warrior. Yet you told me just before the interview that you weren’t satisfied with it. Why are you so hard on yourself?
The board clear itself wasn’t really the problem, that felt fine for me. It was the turn before in which I didn’t sequence my draws properly, so that moment wasn’t optimized in my opinion. I play Patron Warrior a lot, but it’s a hard deck to play. You have very limited amount of time to think about your plays. For example in this situation: how could I clear his board? Or in some other cases: how would I have lethal? For example if you have 4 whirlwind effects, and a Patron. There is probably a way, but it’s very difficult to find. You have to keep in mind that a [card]Warsong Commander[/card] dies after 3 whirlwind effects. Also the board will be filled with so many Patrons that you don’t have enough space to play anything else, which can be very important. Cards like [card]Inner Rage[/card] are sometimes even better if not played, because it can force you to make an unfavorable trade. It’s really tough.
You are one of the few players who is seen bringing Priest to tournaments. What do you think of the new Grand Tournament Priest cards?
I’m really not sure about Priest. The Priest cards so far are not that exciting for me. [card]Holy Champion[/card] is meh, just a 3/5 to me. [card]Flash Heal[/card] is not that good in my opinion. [card]Light of the Naaru[/card] already does the same kind of job, and that is a questionable card too. The new legendaries ([card]Fjola Lightbane[/card] and [card]Eydis Darkbane[/card]) look quite good, because Priest can use cards like [card]Power Word: Shield[/card] on it. But Priest already has [card]Dark Cultist[/card], which I find a good 3 drop.
Which revealed card of the new expansion do you find the most interesting so far?
"I'm not really sure about Priest in TGT."
I don’t really have a favorite card so far, at least that I can think of now. I do have a most hated card for sure: [card]Tuskarr Totemic[/card]. It’s really stupid. Either you get a 3/4 ([card]Totem Golem[/card]), or just a normal totem. I mean, why?!
Do you think it is too overpowered then?
I just think it’s stupid because it’s so RNG related. The difference between getting a regular totem or a 3/4 on turn 3 is so huge. It’s even more impactful RNG than [card]Bane of Doom[/card], because that gets played later in the game.
Then how do you feel about a card like [card]Nexus-Champion Saraad[/card]?
I feel ok about Nexus-Champion Saraad, simply because I think he will be unplayable or close to unplayable anyway. I don’t see it in competitive Hearthstone, so it’s fine.
The World Championship is drawing closer every day. Which player do you think, based on performances so far, will make it far?
Lifecoach is doing well, but Hearthstone is a lot about the RNG. If he draws bad cards, or his opponent draws very well, it’s very easy to beat him. I’d pick Lifecoach, but it’s still all about RNG.
"It's all about RNG. I just try to maximize my chances."
How would you rate your own chances?
I can’t say that. Again, it’s all about the RNG in my opinion. I just try to maximize my chances.
Your point is definitely clear. To conclude, is there something you’d still like to say?
To the community of Hearthstone I want to say: I understand why you like the game so much, and I like the community for loving Hearthstone as much as they do. That really gives me motivation to keep playing it. Also to the people supporting me and my team, thank you and please keep doing that.
Ok that concludes the interview, thanks for your time, Kolento.
You’re welcome.
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