The Hearthstone Americas Championship Qualifier Tournament is fast approaching, and qualified card-slingers will soon be dueling for the chance to head to the Hearthstone World Championship at BlizzCon 2014, where they’ll compete for glory and a $250,000 prize pool.
The players who will be competing in the Championship Qualifier have earned their spots in a variety of ways, such as winning invitational tournaments, conquering community tournaments, or exhibiting excellence in ranked play.
All of these worthy competitors have victory on their minds, but each of them also brings their own unique spark to the journey! Join us as we get to know the people behind the decks: their stories, their favorite cards, how they convince Ragnaros to hit their intended target, and more!
DTWO
Tennis player. Musician. Pokemon enthusiast. DTwo is all of these things, on top of being a talented card-slinger. The multifaceted member of Team DKMR (Don’t Kick My Robot) enjoys a wide range of decks, as well as a wide range of activities outside of Hearthstone. DTwo enjoys a more conservative style in Hearthstone, opting for methodical, intelligent decisions over complicated, flashy plays.
What got you into Hearthstone?
I was always a fan of StarCraft II, and when the Hearthstone closed beta started, a lot of my favorite commentators like Artosis, Husky, Totalbiscuit, and DoA started playing Hearthstone on their streams and uploading videos to YouTube. I got hooked just watching people play, and wanting to watch some more, found my way to the streams of Trump, Kripp, and Hafu. Before I even received my beta key, I had already written an article about each class’s burst potential for ihearthu.com. By the time I started, I was already well-versed in the mechanics and strategy of the game.
What is your favorite deck to play?
There are so many fun decks to play in Hearthstone, it’s hard to choose just one. In general, I like to have control of the board and put pressure on my opponent, so Mid-range Druid and Shaman (and recently, Hunter) fit the bill. Miracle Rogue is also very fun to play as long as you get the right hand.
What’s your favorite/craziest play you’ve ever made in Hearthstone?
I don’t really get caught up in making amazing or crazy plays. Many “crazy” plays take a couple turns to set up, so it takes either a bad or unlucky opponent to pull off, and in neither case would I be particularly proud of myself. There is one particular game, though, in which I was proud of the plays I made. Against GG’s Dart in game 3 of the NESL finals, I started out with an extremely clunky hand, and managed to scrap and claw my way back to victory by using Ancient of Lore for healing instead of card draw twice.
What’s your process for testing decks? When does a deck officially become a success?
The process for testing decks involves playing them roughly a bajillion times against other popular meta decks with my teammates. “Success” is a bit subjective, but I’d say it’s successful if 1) it gets netdecked on the ladder or 2) it wins an important game in an important match.
If you could design a card, what would it be?
“Spectral Sludge Belcher Knight”
6 Mana 4/6, can’t be targeted by spells or Hero Powers, and Deathrattle: Summon a 1/3 Spectral (untargetable) Slime with Taunt.
Are there any players you’re looking forward to or nervous about playing against?
I’m just looking forward to competing against, and hopefully beating, the best players in the world. I’ve played a lot of the qualifiers on the ladder and in tournaments, but players I haven’t played include Reynad, Forsen, Admirable, and Strifecro.
If you could make Polymorph turn a minion into something other than a sheep, what would it be?
Pikachu!
How does one go about making a deal with Ragnaros?
One does not simply make a deal with Ragnoros. One must pray to His Fiery Lord-ness for at least one Earth-hour before each Hearthstone session, and repent each time one speaks or thinks ill of Him. Still, He may not hit what you want him to hit, as He works in mysterious ways. . . .
What are you passionate about outside of Hearthstone and other video games?
I’ve played tennis nearly my entire life and once had dreams of becoming a professional tennis player. I also used to play the cello, and played in orchestras and quartets while entering competitions before I didn’t have time for it anymore. I currently live in Japan, so you could say I enjoy Japanese culture. I also enjoy watching sports, with my favorite team being the Los Angeles Clippers (inb4 “bandwagon fan”—I’ve been following them since the days of Eric Piatkowski).
Check out DTwo on both Twitter and Twitch!