In the lead up to the finals of the StarCraft II WCS ANZ Season 4, Stevivor sat down to chat with Ethan ‘iaguz’ Zugai, the champion of Season 3.
Daniel ‘Deth’ Haynes, Stevivor: You’ve been playing RTS competitively for the better part of 10 years now. First, how are the wrists treating you, and second, what’s kept you motivated?
Ethan ‘iaguz’ Zugai: Jesus Christ, has it been that long?
Wrists are a bit sore but not so much I can’t put good practice in. As for motivation, well, there’s hardly much else I really aspire to do so I’m sticking with Starcraft ‘til I figure that out.
Deth: You’re the most decorated player in the region with the most international events under your belt. What was your favourite tournament to attend, and which victory meant the most to you?
iaguz: Favourite event was probably WCS Krakow in 2014.
They held it in a really awesome venue packed with passionate Polish fans, they debuted the LotV trailer there which was hype as f*ck, Lilbow ended up winning which was the first time a foreigner had won anything in ages and most importantly they served beer at the venues.
Good beer too! As for win that means the most, possibly qualifying for WCS NA back in 2012.
I had to beat some pretty good Protoss’ at like 3am to make it to the round of 16 — Macsed and Alicia, I believe — and that was my earned overseas tournament. My first was IEM Guangzhou but I only went ‘cuz Moonglade dropped out.
Deth: It seems as though Probe is your biggest rival and closest competitor. Is there anyone else you fear might cause you some trouble this weekend?
iaguz: Demilove’s a strong player, though a bit of a choker. Doesn’t thrive in nerve wracking situations. Seither is a strong Terran and isn’t afraid to take TvT in directions I feel uncomfortable.
Deth: On a non-StarCraft related note — you have quite a knack for game reviewing and humorous writing in general. Do you have any plans for fostering your writing talent in a post-progaming future?
iaguz: Not really, that just happens when I’m bored and/or drunk. I can’t currently imagine getting paid to write so it’ll probably just be a hobby I indulge in from time to time when the fancy takes me.
Deth: Since the OSC-ROOT partnership was disbanded, you’ve been teamless. Any plans to join another team?
iaguz: No! Teams generally don’t give you much and I’m comfortable not feeling obligated to anyone for the time being. This may be subject to change. We’ll see.
Deth: Personal curiosity. What’s your drink of choice at the moment?
iaguz: Whiskey on the rocks is always alright. Don’t mind the occasional gin or beer.
Deth: Any shoutouts or thoughts you’d care to share?
iaguz: Shoutouts to Blizzard, ESL and Maccas for making all this happen, and I promise to give THE MOST F*CKING AMAZING GAMES EVER for fans.
The WCS ANZ Season 4 finals are fast approaching. Make sure you don’t miss out — tickets are available here. There’s also still time to win one of 15 double passes from Stevivor.
This content also appears on AusGamers.
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