Former EHOME player 357: 'Discussions are still on-going'

Not long ago news broke of former EHOME members seeking sponsorship for their new team (see). SGamer conducted an interview with one of the players involved; Yao "357" Yi to find out more about the progress since the announcement and the current situation.

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Firstly thank you for accepting this interview, when did the thought of creating a new team first appear?
-"After the new year, shortly after Nirvana.cn disbanded and Crystal was released by WE. Since we got along well as players we decided to form a team together and try to win something in the new year."



Who's idea was it (creating a new team)? Did you think that finding sponsors would not be tricky given the influence the players in the team had in the DotA scene?
-"The idea came up after discussions. Finding a sponsor is easy, but to find a good and stable sponsor is not, it all boils down to the details."

Is that the reason behind the delay in announcing sponsorships? Crystal has been complaining a lot on QQ. Roughly how many offers did you guys receive?
-"There is no definite number. Crystal has more contacts, but a lot of them went silent after initial discussions, it was a bit awkward."

How many confirmed offers did you guys receive then?
-"We'll keep it a secret, discussions are still on-going and talking about them now would not be the right thing to do."

Is there an estimate as to when can we officially announce the establishment of your team?
-"Naturally after negotiations are concluded there will be an announcement."




Regarding Awoke, to our knowledge his contract with iG has not run its due, did iG contact you about a transfer agreement?
-"No, I think he is free already. iG did not pay his salary, neither was the choice to play for them extended to him, I don't think the contract will be an issue."

What is your ideal sponsor?
-"Provide a place for training, give salaries on time, do not tax our winnings, that's about it."

When Crystal was interviewed he claimed that you guys would win many titles in 2012, but at the end of 2011 a lot of your team members were not exactly in top shape. How well do you think you guys will fare against teams like DK, LGD and iG?
-"What Crystal said was probably the ideal goal for us. Results in 2011 were indeed not good, but I have faith that after rigorous training we will produce results."

How will roles in the team be distributed?
-"This is also a secret, but I can say that Crystal will not be in the number 1 spot (carry)."

Why not?
-"The effect is not good."



A lot of people feel you are one of the best support players in the country, could you share some tips with us?
-"Its hard to explain. Experience is a factor, knowing when to be aggressive and when to play passive. One needs to be decisive during teamfights and ganks, when the pace slows down analyse the situation and discuss with team members the next course of action."

"Many of your early ganks secured the win for your team, where does this high rate of success come from?
-"Mainly its from watching replays of other teams, knowing their ward positions, then in the match itself try to stay away from those wards and confuse the opponent. The rest is up to one's self, predicting what your opponent would do etc."

What have you been doing when not looking for sponsors?
-"Finding other sources of entertainment. Finding things to wind down the time and the sorts."

Will the team's main focus be DotA, Dota 2 or both?
-"Currently it will be DotA, but in our free time we would play Dota 2, Dota 2 is after all still in beta phase."

Any last words before we conclude this interview?
-"We will strive to be the best in 2012!"

Team Roster:
357
KingJ
Dai
Awoke
Crystal