Titan Strength: Net and YamateH interviewed

Hello and thank you for agreeing to do this interview with us. To start off, your WPC ACE groupstage games are behind you now. How was it like being back in China for a major tournament for the first time since YamateH joined up? Were you happy with your performance?

Net: "We performed quite well in this tournament. Ever since Mushi left our team we've been looking for a player like YamateH to play as our fifth, and overall we're really satisfied about our performance at WPC this time round."

Was there any game in particular that you think you could have won if you played it slightly differently?

YamateH: "We could actually have won LGD Game 1, Newbee Game 1 & both games vs DK."

Could you expand a bit on that? What would you do differently if you had the chance?

YMT: "There were a lot of bad decision-makings esp in the late game, also issues with buybacks and item choices. For the LGD game 1, there was a point where we could've stuck together and pushed mid after winning a teamfight, but Kyxy was caught out soon after due to his bad positioning and had no buyback and that lost us the game. If we had the chance to play the game again we would stick more closely together so that we wouldn't get caught out in such a careless manner."

Since WPC ACE you've been looking stronger in SEA competitions as well. How did the China trip affect your team and how you play together?

Net: "It definitely affected us, we've actually learnt a lot from the Chinese teams about in-game decision-makings, drafts and how they're always able to catch up when they're at a disadvantage."

Anything in particular that stands out that you do differently now compared to before?

YMT: "I believe the way we perform our individual roles is now more stable than before - and little things like letting our supporters catch up on levels more efficiently have seen significant improvement after our China trip."

How does drafting differ between China and SEA?

YMT: "Chinese drafts are more strategy-based, while SEA drafts are generally more focused on the laning phase - we tend to pick more aggressive heroes for domination in the early stages."

How do you view the current state of the SEA scene?

Net: "There are a lot of individually-skilled players in SEA, but most of the teams here tend to be lacking in their gameplay. They need to think of more strategies like how the Chinese teams would, and only then would the SEA teams improve as a whole."

You are considered a top contender for a direct invite to TI4. Is there anything you wish you could have done further to improve your chances?

Net: "Right now we've only won about 70% of the tournaments in SEA. If we won every single SEA tournament we participated in, like how we did back in Orange last year, I believe no one would doubt our chances in getting a direct invite."

What about last season of WPC ACE? Why did you not take part back then, and do you think that would have changed how the end of last year went for you?

Net: "We were still in the middle of a roster change at the end of last year, and struggling to find a suitable replacement for our fifth as Mushi was determined to leave for China. So even if we went it'd mean poor results for us which would only lower our morale, hence we decided that not going was probably a better choice."

For a lot of people YamateH seemed the obvious choice when Mushi left. Why did he not join the team from the start?

YMT: "At that point of time I wasn't actually planning to play full-time and they knew about it, so they didn't approach me. But I changed my mind later on."

Did this have something to do with your family business? There's been a bit of confusion surrounding this topic, could you expand a bit on it?

YMT: "Yes it was indeed due to my family business initially. But now that I've made the decision to play full-time, I only help out in my family business when I'm on leave. Hope that clears things up for everyone!"

How has becoming a full-time professional player impacted your life outside of Dota 2?

YMT: "It means I have less time to accompany my family and girlfriend, also less time for clubbing and stuff! Otherwise I'd say not much difference."

Before YamateH joined the team you were playing with Meracle for a while. Can you (Net) tell us a bit about what that was like and why you felt YamateH fits better into the team in the end?

Net: "Actually the initial plan was for Meracle to stand-in for us for the Chinese tournaments (G-League & ECL), so it's safe to say that he was never in our team as a full-time player due of his National Service issues. And by the end of it, it was his own decision whether to stay with us or leave, and he chose the latter because he wasn't used to our training schedule which he described as "too hardcore", haha.

YamateH's in-game role is more similar to Mushi's, and we were mainly looking for a mid player. Also, his playstyle just seems more familiar and suitable for us."

Speaking of Mushi, Orange had a playstyle at TI3 which relied heavily on countering the opponents drafts. As we've seen this weekend, DK have carried on that tradition. How have you made use of these ideas in Titan?

Net: "I think it really depends on how our drafter thinks. Here in Titan we don't really stick to how Mushi drafts, like we don't counter-pick on purpose, so it's ultimately up to how YamateH strategizes about each game at hand. We'd just follow our drafter's commands."

Orange was given a strategy book by a fan prior to TI3. Could you tell us a little bit about that, and is it still in use?

Net: "Back then a friend of Mushi (named 'underminer') decided to compile some stats for us that would enable us to understand the other TI teams better, and we're very grateful for it. And nope it's no longer in use or relevant due to the several patches between then and now."

Have you considered trying to create a similar document for your TI4 prep?

YMT: "Yes, hopefully we can have someone to do it for us this year! (If we get invited to TI, that is)"

Both Orange and now Titan are highly regarded for your early support rotations. Walk us through how you approach the early game in terms of the supports.

Net: "It depends on the support heroes picked in each game - also depends on our draft, whether it's to push early or drag it late. Also depends on whether the opponent's mid hero can be ganked, if yes then we'll smoke gank, if not then we'll probably just pull creeps and try to gain levels!"

There's been a discussion going recently about the solo mid position becoming a lot harder to gank, with some even calling it the new safe lane. Do you agree, and why?

YMT: "Indeed it's getting harder to gank mid nowadays because mid heroes tend to be more impactful than before, and thus both teams' supports will place more focus on the mid-lane. That said, I think it still depends on heroes."

Net, you've become famous for how you hide away and lay in wait with heroes like Sandking. How did you get so good at this?

Net: "From my long-time experience in Dota (:"

What would a perfect hiding place look like?

Net: "Just stay in the trees!"

Any shoutouts for your fans or sponsors?

Net: "We'd like to thank Titan and Razer, and also our fans for their continuous support!"

All images used in the artilce courtesy of Titan eSports.