Earlier today we had the opportunity to sit down and have a talk with all three members of eDawgs about their experiences in the tournament, the event and some about Wrath of the Lich King itself.
eDawgs roster:
StGeorge: Priest (rerolled after Wotlk, former Rogue)
Saori: Mage (rerolled after Wotlk, former Rogue)
Raeli: Rogue
It is no secret that Wrath of the Lich King has brought about some fundamental changes to the game and how certain classes and specs are played. It is also no secret that some players like the changes, and some don't, for whatever reason. StGeorge and Saori shared with us some of their thoughts about the rogue class, noting that they miss the ShadowStep style rogue play which was very dominant in the later seasons of TBC.
One of the first things we talked a little bit about was the fact that eDawgs were considered somewhat 'unknown' internationally before this tournament and how that could potentially have affected their expectations and comfort with potentially being pitted up against some of the more well known team names such as SK Gaming and Ensidia. They told us that they had already played against some of these teams on the Tournament Realm prior to coming here, and that the live experience did not change much in regards to their confidence in their ability to play well. As we have seen, they proved this by knocking SK Gaming down to the Lower Brackets in the very first round.
When the topic of the US teams was brought up, eDawgs told us a little bit about how they had played against Evil Geniuses before, and that they thought it was cool that they got to meet up with the US players in the venue alongside all the other EU teams. We suspect that this is the case for most of the teams, as it probably brings more of a 'tournament community' feeling.
As far as tournament experience goes, this was eDawgs second big tournament - the former being the ESL Invitationals where they finished 3rd out of 16 teams. They told us that they were happy with that position, considering they were a new team on the scene. As with quite a few of the teams we have talked with here, practise has been somewhat scarse, particularly against compositions outside the traditional RMP which is very well represented on the EU ladders. They added that they wished they had been able to practise more against teams with Druids, Warlocks and Paladins.
One of the last things we talked about was their general impressions of the 2009 Regional finals. We were happy to hear that they appreciated the support and kindness that had been shown to them despite being a new team. They went on to say that while they were happy with the 3rd place position in the regionals, they would definitely continue playing and practising so that they could come back next year with a vengeance - hopefully reaching the WorldWide Grand Finals.
In the end, we thanked them for their time and congratulated them on their efforts and accomplishments in the tournamet. Hopefully we will see them again next year!
As this will be the last update for the day since the matches are over for now, we would like to thank everyone has played in the matches, talked with us, or otherwise taken part in making this event such a great experience as it has been thus far.
Lastly, we would like to remind everyone that the US final matches will be played tomorrow and that we will, as with today, be providing editorials and updates along the way.
Community Team - English - ♪～ (￣。￣ ) . . . Can't keep my eyes from the circling skies, tongue-tied and twisted just an earth-bound misfit - I
Slorkuz my undead buddy. I haven't been able to watch the streams lately, but you got them covered up so well. I like this approach although it takes a bit of time from you. :) good writing as well...
Q u o t e: Slorkuz my undead buddy. I haven't been able to watch the streams lately, but you got them covered up so well. I like this approach although it takes a bit of time from you. :) good writing as well...
