By OckE

Oscar Svensson

Interview with Eclypsia's Indy: "The main reason why I changed teams is money"

Mon 9th Jul 2012 - 6:06pm Category: Starcraft II

Igor 'Indy' Kaczmarek is a 18-year old Grandmaster Protoss player from Poland who recently switched teams from BLAST to Eclypsia. We spoke about his switch to Eclypsia and also got to know a little bit about him and his passion for Starcraft 2. Enjoy!

 

Hey man, and thanks a bunch for this interview. What's up?

Indy: I'm doing well. I have recently changed teams and hopefully it will be good for my career.

 

Yeah, I heard about that. You parted ways with Blast, and joined the ranks of Eclypsia. What does that mean for you as a player?

Indy: For me, it's good. In general, changes are good. When you change teams you need to give your absolute best in order to show that you are worth the money and attention that the team gives you. I also have some duties, and one of them is to stream from Monday to Saturday 10am until 1 pm.

 

Is there a reason why you decided to switch now? Does it have anything to do with your teammate Krr joining Eclypsia, as well as your previous managers being in Eclypsia?

Indy: The main reason why I changed teams is money, which is mostly the case when players change. Eclypsia gives me a higher chance to be able to provide for myself through pro-gaming. I already have some friends in Eclypsia like ELVIS or Krr, who both are ex-BLAST players. I also know TaipOuz, who was a manager of BLAST earlier. The other guys are new to me, but everyone seems friendly and professional, so I'm happy about that.

 

image courtesy of Indy's facebook page

How did you get into StarCraft II?

Indy: At the age of 4 or 5 my father brought home the DEMO of the first StarCraft. I loved it, so my parents bought me the full game as well as StarCraft:Broodwar for Christmas when I was 9. After playing it for 6-7 years with a few breaks in between, I saw that StarCraft II would be out soon, and I was more than sure that I was going to play it. With my experience from StarCraft: Broodwar I enjoyed the game even more, 'cause I was winning more than other guys at my level. I guess I was lucky to have played both games. :)

 

That's really cool! How much do you generally play every day?

Indy: It varies anywhere from 6 to 13 hours per day. I stream most of this time. I do not like laddering too much, I'd rather play tournaments or practice in custom games with my friends.

 

So you use practice partners more than ladder? If so, who do you practice with?

Indy: Yes, when you play against the same person 10 times in a row you focus more on what you could have done better. You polish timings and build orders. If you ladder you may play against 3 different races in 3 games, so it is hard to focus on certain build that you want to learn. Lately I've played many customs against ELVIS, but I also want to say that ladder is not a bad place to find practice partners either.

 

You once told me that laddering is ez pz, but tournaments are hard. Why is that?

Indy: Laddering is easy 'cause, at least for me, there is nothing to lose. You can only learn something new or practice mechanics, macro, or micro. When I ladder I am not stressed at all. Tournaments are hard because there is actually something to win. And of course, after you pass 5-6 rounds, you start to meet all these players who know how to play macro very well or cheese very well. Winning tournaments is way harder than doing well in ladder.

 

You can see Indy's profile on Battle.net here

That's completely understandable. Do you have some sort of plan that will make tournaments easier for you?

Indy: Hard work is what makes tournaments easier. If you practice a lot then going to the quarter-finals of almost every cup you participate in becomes a natural thing. Recently I have learned that sometimes, risky things are something worth doing, and it helped me win some tournaments. I used to be that guy that never cheesed, always macro'd and it was far too predictable for my opponents. The more unpredictable you are, the better it is for you.

 

Do you play any other games besides SCII?

Indy: Actually, I have been playing a bit of CS 1.6 and League of Legends, but only for fun. In LoL I have been playing only Ashe because she's most fun for me. She is like a Marine with slowing arrows, simply perfect for me. I enjoyed it a lot.

 

What do you do besides play games? (like sports, etc.)

Indy: I like to swim and try to do some freestyle tricks with a football, but I am bad at it. :D I enjoy volleyball, but lately I haven't had the possibilities to play it. So I stick with e-sports, which I hope to become good at. :)

 

Nice. :D Do you watch other pro gamers' streams to try and perhaps learn some new build orders or tricks from them?

Indy: I prefer replays, because I can stop and replay it all the time and check every little thing, which I obviously can't do in streams. The only players that I learn from are top Koreans. I like their style cause its aggressive, intensive and enjoyable for me. I also watch their streams to see how they operate their mice and keyboard, so I can improve at that too.

 

They are indeed awesome at the game, I do the same, and it's actually working out for me, a gold-level player, as well ^^ Thanks a lot for the interview man, here's the last question: Do you have any shout-outs?

Indy: Thank you for the interview. I would be very thankful if you would follow me on Twitter, like me on facebook, as well as subscribe to me on Youtube & Twitch. And enjoy my stream! :)

 

Thanks for reading this interview, and if you liked it, feel free to follow me on twitter @OckESC2.

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