Hello Scandal. Thanks for accepting this interview. How are you doing recently?
Hello, I'm doing good enough.
What do you do when not playing Dota 2?
I'm watching movies/series or sleeping. Rarely going outside.
Many still regard you as one of the best solo players in Europe. What do you think of that recognition? Are there any players you hold up high in terms of your role?
I'm really glad that I still have people's support and recognition. I think I have everything I need to keep up with best mid players at the moment. As for the players I hold up high, I really like arteezy of Kaipi and s4 of Alliance. The way they play the mid role is awesome.
The team has really fallen in terms of achievement in the past couple of months, mostly after the departure of Goblak and Silent. Why did they leave the team?
In my opinion our team started falling apart after funn1k left, because he was a really good off-laner and overall player for the team. As for the departure of Goblak and Silent, we had some internal issues and that was the reason for their departure.
After their departures, the team added Mitch, Twista and LoH but you guys were unable to qualify for The International 3. Were the team members expecting to qualify for The International 3 to begin with?
Personally, I was expecting us to do well and probably qualify for TI3 but honestly, we had a really low chance of getting out of the qualifiers. Besides that, the gap between our skills and our opponent's skill was so big that it was hard to keep up with them. As you mentioned, the roster was not polished enough.
What is it like playing with LightofHeaven?
Dmitriy is an extremely experienced player. However, he is sometimes very stealthy and does not share his thoughts. We really enjoy playing with him though and I think he fits quite nicely.
How did LoH feel to be missing out on his first TI event?
I think me and Dmitriy shared the same sentiment, knowing that it will be tough to qualify for the event. It is good that Valve is still sponsoring him for TI3 as a caster but I don’t really know how he feels about not being able to play. I’m sure he will still enjoy the trip.
Empire has been using stand-ins recently and not playing with the full roster. What happened to them?
Well, after finishing the qualifiers for TI3 everyone on our team knew that something needed to be changed. We sat with all our players and a manager to figure out what we should do. In the end we decided to part ways with twista and mitch, because their performance wasn't that great on the roles we gave them, and also due to the language barrier issues within the team. So we're, not being a full team, still using standins in our official matches.
Who are the possible replacements?
We're currently playing with former iCCup players fng and Sunlight. I think they are doing a great job fitting into the team.
When will we see Empire bounce back from this slump?
I think we have already bounced back a little with our recent wins against teams we could not beat before, and also nearly beating top-tier teams. We are still participating in The Defense and Corsair Gaming Summer Tournament, so we'll just see how far we go in these tournaments.
Speaking of The Defense and Corsair Gaming Summer Tournament, you're up against EG and iCCup in those, how do you think these matches will go?
Those teams look quite strong in their recent matches but we have confidence going up against them. Hopefully, we'll produce some good games.
In an interview with ALWAYSWANNAFLY, he mentioned that the CIS scene has taken a small beating recently and is not performing at its best at the moment. Do you share the same sentiment?
You can say that I share the same feeling. CIS teams are not stable in terms of performance. The only team from CIS that is currently shining and in the spotlight is Na`Vi with their multiple wins over Chinese teams.
Why do you think Na`Vi are different from other CIS teams?
Na'Vi has a lot of experience playing together. Besides, they also have strong individual skill in all of their players, and that matters a lot.
Do you think that Na`Vi's trip to China may in fact help the Chinese teams prepare for The International instead of helping out their Western counterparts?
Of course it has helped the Chinese teams. However, there are still plenty of streams and replays available for everyone to grab to do whatever research they need to do, I don't think it really mattered.
Do you or anyone in your team usually watch any replays/VODs of opponents you are about to play against?
I prefer watching games live than watching replays or VODs. Yeah, there are some players that do research of teams we're about to play.
What is the practice routine of Team Empire currently? How long do you play?
We practice about four or five days per week starting at about 16:00 to 17:00 CEST. Each training lasts for about 3-4 hours depending on our opponents.
Is there any team you enjoy playing against more than other teams?
We don't really have a variety of teams to practice with because most of them are busy playing their tournament games. I personally enjoy playing against Alliance, Mousesports and Kaipi though.
Those must be some interesting games, with such strong mid laners (yourself included). When you were trying out players, we saw you playing offlane and support. What was the reason of that?
If I remember correctly, we switched roles a lot after acquiring Mitch and twisTa. We were trying to find the best possible setup before playing The International 3 qualifiers. I wanted to try out as the off-laner or support but I did not have enough experience playing the roles. Besides, all my teammates would like to see me in mid and therefore, I continued playing the solo mid.
Have you changed your mind about that since then?
Definitely! My understanding of the game has changed a lot since and to be honest, I think if you understand the game well enough, you can play any role. The only thing you need is to learn how to push the hero's limits. For example, if a player play a hero he is unfamiliar with, he will need some practice before being able to play as well as the top players. You just have to practice and that will help you understand the hero better and use it to its maximum potential. Some players will do something that others won't while playing the same hero.
Like AdmiralBulldog and Lone Druid.
Yes, precisely. Yaphets' Shadow Fiend as well.
What do you think of the newest hero in Dota 2, Abaddon?
I keep on running into him in public games and he is a really annoying hero to go against. You can't exactly kill him unless you have Axe on your team and you can't exactly run from him either because he's got that Skadi-like passive. The shield can also remove any debuffs his teammates or himself are currently under. That hero is really op.
Do you think Abaddon is the new Treant? Will he get picked up a lot?
I honestly think he will become a popular pick among teams as a support or perhaps a mid hero.
Are there any other heroes you think to have great potential? Huskar, Centaur or some other.
Hero picks really depend on how the team decides to run them but I think Elder Titan, Troll Warlord and Huskar have great potentials.
Returning to the topic of The International. What are your thoughts about the event? Is it good or bad having such a huge tournament once a year?
It's obviously not bad by any means. Of course it would be great if there were more tournaments like this in future, but I'm okay with having a huge one once a year.
Yea, thats true. For some teams it's all about The International though, and if they fail they disband.
In my opinion, every team focuses on TI at some point. Winning The International or ending up second or third will earn you quite a lot of prize money playing the game you love and enjoy. It's not bad by any means but TI is being treated like a final attempt. Some teams are just giving it one last shot and if they fail there, they will most likely disband or change some of the players they have not liked for months. It all comes down to the internal issues. That's the way I see it.
Thanks for the interview Roman, do you have any shout-outs?
Shoutout to Team Empire and all our fans if you are still there with us. Shoutout to our sponsors Razer, TwitchTV and Seagate. And thank you for having me here with you.
Empire and Scandal in social media
