IamA Professional esports Commentator dmbrandon. AMA! <3

What advice would you give someone wanting to get better as a player?

Don't play to win, play to learn.

Whats your opinion on Janus atm and why don't you think he was chosen in worlds?

He's fucking op, and all mids are pissing me off omfg I'm so angry doju;gbs;dioubvg;sudjb

Seriously, he's the best Mage by a dime. People have got to increase those god pools!

[deleted]

I was the first monetarily sponsored Brawl player (along with Shadow). vvv.

As for Smite, my original team got picked up by root, but I decided to commentate instead. I love talking! <3 It's just a better fit for me. But, seeing Andy hold that hammer up yesterday made me sad. I was insanely happy for him, and it was an honor being able to cast the games, but damn I wish I stuck with it just for that moment.

Howdy, DM you did amazing. A small group of us stayed on mumble and watched the whole thing. We all love your work and can't wait for more events.

What did you think of Zimpstar and Allied as analysts? I liked them a lot

I LOOOOOOVED THEM. Allied is obviously my boy, and that was so exciting for me. Him and I started Smite together after some years in Smash/WoW, so being able to share the screen with him was a major highlight of my weekend.

WIll you ever shave your beard? was looking at old youtube videos when you didnt have a beard and you look so young o_o

I was thinking of doing it today and being a baby for a few days :3

Hey dm, what was your opinion of Game 5 of the Grand Finals. I feel if KanyeLife had gone with Bacchus they would have had a better chance. What could Titan have done better to secure a win?

Also, once Awilix becomes part of the ranked meta, I feel that putting her in the duo lane with a blink Sylvanus is going to blow up. Where do you see Awilix going In the current meta?

I answered this in another response, but hte long and short of it was the draft was bad. Ao shouldn't have gotten in, and they shouldn't have picked Athena or Agni

You're in a desert, walking along in the sand, when all of a sudden you look down and see a tortoise. It's crawling toward you. You reach down and you flip the tortoise over on its back. The tortoise lays on its back, its belly baking in the hot sun, beating its legs trying to turn itself over, but it can't. Not without your help. But you're not helping.

Why is that Diem?

The tortoise is a Animagus, and she is trying to, once again, trick me into harming the people I love. This is the only way I can stop her once and for all.

What other esports scenes have you been a part of?

Smash (though, that's not really esports?). Similarly, the FGC. Was grinding League for a bit, as well, but never caught up to top level. Didn't enjoy it enough.

Haven't you heard? We esports now.

WE ESPORTS, BABY

Hey DM. Do you have any advice on how to improve positioning? I'm a competitive mid laner and I've come fairly far but one of my big issues is positioning. When I'm ahead my positioning is very good but early game my positioning is usually off. I watch replays and I study other mids but still in the heat of the moment I find myself doing dumb things. Any advice you could give me or nah?

Focus less on killing and winning, and more on "Can I clear this wave without taking ANY damage"

Once you get acclimated to it, swtich it to "Can I clear this wave and deal 100hp to my opponent without taking ANY damage?"

What are your thoughts on jungle camps not leashing to full health anymore with the new map?

Hard to say, honestly. I'll need to extensively test the possibly broken implications that might arise with certain gods being able to hover around freely without taking damage lol

If you could do it all over again, what's one thing you would do differently in your gaming career?

I would focus more on Halo instead of Smash in 2005/6. Would have started playing League more seriously earlier on. That would have helped me get Smite bigger! XD

Would have practiced commentary sooner, as well.

If you had to pick one other caster to be the person you cast with for the rest of your life, who would it be and why?

Gandhi REALLY wants to be like, THE duo. And that's all I've ever wanted. I wanted it to be JuiceDoom, but he doesn't practice enough. Bart is amazing, but he's also amazingly high amounts of Busy 90% of the time, so practice is hard. That and Hindu lives in some weird, non-american place that I, as an american, don't understand.

Do you think that the matches would have been more interesting if it had been 4 EU and 4 NA teams instead of the teams we had?

(Note: I loved SWC, just curious)

Hard to say. It would have been more competitive, but I can't with 100% certainty say is would have been better.

Likely, tho!

Although, OMG v Titan was like, easily the best single game of the event!

Great casting i must say! To the question, what do you think of the SK vs titan games?

SK drafted Kali to keep it out of Repi's hands, and it hurt them for two reasons:

1. Zyrhoes' Kali is not very good. His ult usage was poor, and his chases were telegraphed. His other characters are amazing, and I wished he stayed away

2. Repi said to me they weren't going Kali either way. ripriprip

a question about the tier list.In Thor description, what do you exactly mean with "enough movement and CC to make him a viable mid liner in the end game"?

Front line

Mid Line

Back Line

How did you first get into esports and casting?

in 2009, there was a tournament with one of the first real video game live streams. Solid Jake, or Smash and Heroes of the Storm fame put it on, and he had me cast it. I loved every second!

As for esports, I've been with Smite from the beginning, so I guess you can say Hirez! <3

First "Real" Video game live streams?

Lookup TsN (Team Sportscast Network) - they paved the way for your profession and were doing live video streaming of games way back in 2003. djWheat who now works for Twitch was a TsN broadcaster.

I understand that, but it wasn't a public feature, nor was it accessible by a market who wanted to use it. Ustream and Justin paved that road effectively.

1. why Thor over Serqet?
2. what is the scariest thing about Ao Kuang? L E S S T H A N T H R E E

1. Thor's presence and long range abilities can kill safely, which is an easier pick into teams with great chemistry. Serqet is still better.

2. Ability to completely destroy tanks/warriors/supports faster than anyone in the game.

How hard is China going to stomp everyone next year?

Everyone should be very, very worried as of right now.

[deleted]

Lass' strategies are becoming outdated, and it seems to me, as an analyst, that he needs to be more aggressive in his work to break and restore the metagame to his liking. That seems to be a lack of fun. He's too pressured and hopefully is utilizaing the down time in off season to get himself hyped.

Zap's small break is already working. The way he played in the show match was the 2013 zap, because he did it for fun and wanted to win badly. He loves the crowd and when he's on, there is no stopping him. But since his break, I see him performing SO WELL. I want to see him come back strong. His build is crazy good, and I think he'll do well.

I see lassiz on his stream and it seems that his confidence in himself was wavering, and also he is seemed broken after not playing in worlds. Will he be able to get back to his dominant self or will he rely on his team more to carry?

While I hope he can be dominant again, I would like to see him rely more on his team.

Two things. 1. Are you going to do a post SWC tierlist update? And 2. If Titan had banned Ao in the 5th game do you think they could have won? Love your stream and casting :D

1. Yes. Ao moves to S+ with Hercules for being broken piles of bullshit. Apollo moves to S. Maybe more, but those are definite.

2. I don't know man, that draft was pretty bad. Honestly, I think Cog might have drafted for both teams while Titan was under the effects of a sleep potion.

Do you think next year's SWC should include more teams? I was worried that the non NA/EU wouldn't be able to hang with the big boys, and in some cases they did not but were still respectable. But hard to say whether they deserve to be there over complexity, dignitas, etc.

I hope we see a 16 team bracket, asap!

so imagine you're in solo as herc, which jungler out of Ao Kuang or Nemesis would you be more euh.. wary (?) of and why

Nemesis can burst me with a teammate, but has a hard time alone. Offset is that she's very slippery and hard to counter initiate on. Ao can kill me alone, but his movement is poor if he initiates. If he teleports, I can kill him if it's 1v1, easily.

Both have merit, Ao is likely stronger right now

I know you probably can't be specific, but how long until we hear about the plans for Season 2 as far as the SPL/Challenger cup or whatever replaces them? Soon? Soonish? Not soon?

Soon, I hope! Can't give you much more than that, but I can say that I was plainly told "Don't plan any trips."

How sad are you that Barra didn't whip out the cupid?

A bit, but very excited he played AMC. It was a great pocket pick.

What is the most awkward moment when you were casting?

Was there any moment where you just got so interested in the game you forgot to talk?

Bart said Radiant instead of Order and I froze lmaoooooooo!

But then later I said Vision ward RIP. It happens! I love all MOBAs (or games, really) so it's a cute mixup. I also said divine ruin instead of devine judgment and stuttered. Thought I was gonna puke after that one.

Generally, we don't freeze all that much. But sometimes I'd have to pick an item at random and discuss it cause I had no talking point ready for when my co-commentator stopped, because I was studying movement of a player. (Which is something most viewers give fuck all about)

Only happened 2~ times, tho

You called kanyelife by his old name during almost a full match too :P

I do it all the time. Kanyelife is a dumb fucking name, and I do my best not to acknowledge it as best I can XD

What do you think was your favourite moment in your entire time of playing Smite? ALSO I LOVE YOU <3

Honestly, med baiting pro players who disregard my meta advances is pretty fun and probably my biggest memories playing. I know that sounds vindictive, but it's vindication!

Otherwise, hard to say. I play at least 6 hours a day generally, so there are a lot that stick out. Goofing off with the Juice kids is always a blast, but playing seriously is definitely my forte. Throughout all, it was a tournament match a LOOOONG time ago, where shing and jerbie traded deaths and he had old bastet whose passive gave her shorted respawn times. It was a double diecide, and that shit passive won us the game. Pretty hype!

Thoughts on Game 3 between COGP and COGR?

Herc is op. Boosh should have picked Ra, definitely, and Omega is unstoppable.

How was it to meet all the people you have only met online. Also seeing all the fans in the crowd with your shirt on?

Meeting Dusty and Salem and Bacon and everyone else was awesome. I had a great time hanging out with all these people I always hang out with online <3

As for the shirts, it's a hubling experience. Knowing all of these people out there look to me is a strange thing that makes me evaluate how I live. I want to do right by them

Also, I was NERVOUS AS ALL HELL on Friday morning, until I saw Stew (President of Hirez Studios, and the lead on the esports/marketing department) rocking the shirt on camera and in interviews. I stopped being nervous and told myself to do the creators of this perfect game as much justice as I can!

what advice would you give to someone looking at getting into casting esports? assuming I have the game knowledge and persona for it

http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/2s792p/iama_professional_esports_commentator_dmbrandon/cnmu3a4

hi dm, i've been lurking in your chat for almost 2 years now and i want to thank you for having such a great channel, being a really cool guy to the community and introducing me to other juice channels on twitch.

As for the question part: Is there a different game that you would be interested in casting other than smash and smite?

Maybe down the line. I was offered spots at other, larger companies, but I took my spot at Hirez because Smite is a better game. Moeny<<<<Gameplay

TV has repeatedly said on stream that he is the best quickscoper in Juice.

Given that this is a callout of the highest order, I was wondering what your response to this would be, and when you're going to 1v1 quickscope Mr Ocasio?

Also, when is TV streaming? Keepo.

TV isn't the best anything. Not even feeder, that's Shadow.

Hey Diem, first off I just want to say that you're a hell of an awesome guy, and I love you, you've gotten me through many hard times in my life and for that I thank you. Second what is your opinion on the growth of smite? Did you expect it to get this large and do you think that it has the capability to get bigger than LoL? Thanks.

Smite's growth has been... Absurd. Unimaginable.

BUT, I don't think we can pass League. League is its own entity at this point; beyond comparison. (EXCEPT IN ESPORTS PRIZES WHAT UP DOOOOOEEEEEE)

I would love to see it grow to that size, but for now, the immediate goal is to just branch out asap! <3

How are your eardrums after the final minute of the final game? Bart sounded like he cast his voice out! LOL

I have volume control on my mic pack <3

Could yo go into some detail on the bans and picks at the SWC ? we saw such a change at the event with some gods being unbanned or not even picked that would otherwise be taken instantly, while on the other side we was seeing unorthodox picks like Ares/

PS love your work man and love your streams.

cough buff Ares cough

Honestly, it was 95% comfort picks. With the 5% remaining being Zyrhoes on Kali and PrettyPrime avoiding Vulcan.

So Janus took a back seat.

What is your opinion on Joust 1v1 as a competitive mode?

poopandpoop

1 more question if you have time, why was the Boosh playing Poseidon instead of Ra? Or even Janus or Scylla for that matter?

Because he hates the fucking casters. That likely the best answer I can give you.

How do you think next season will go? Do you believe the other regions will catch up to Na/Eu in a year?

They could. Nann was fucking AMAZING, as was all of OMG. Be afraid once they can practice for real, man. FightingJ is no joke.

Do you think Sk pulled out Ao Kuang too early in the tournament? I believe they went 2-0 with him and 0-4 without him. Or would Titan have just banned it anyway since they were scrimming each other all the time?

Everyone knew Ao was op. It wasn't some secret tech.

WHo do you think are the top three junglers in the na and eu region and are there any players that can be a dark horse for their time?

NA:

Andi Weaken Garz

EU:

Repi by FAR Raffer (ur support sux homie. go back to the wooooods) Zyrhoes

Dark horses, I'm expecting a new team to do well. Can't spill that (No, it isn't juice lol)

You've mentioned before that most players' god pools are too shallow. Who do you feel the players in each roles. With the deepest?

Optional followup: who have the shallowest?

Deepest, Cyclonespin, Snoopy, Allied, Repikas, Weaken, Incon, Barra, Andi, Psiyo, Maniakk, Xaliea

Shallow: A LOT

No Kiki?

Kiki's godpool is just girls lol

During championships I've seen Chaac being picked a lot against Osiris. Why was he picked against Siris? Looking at their kits green guy has upper hand- physical mitigation, healing reduction and silence don't work well on him because he is an auto attack god. Was that all just to get Chaac's ultimate in teamfights?

I. Have. No. Idea.

Confrey played it well, but it wasn't a great pick, imo. He's strong, but not strong enough to contend effectively in most games. It's a 4-6 matchup even into the end game, but that 4 still means he can win

Hi dm! What do you think of Smite going to Xbox? Will you ever stream Xbox Smite or stay mainly to computer?

I'll be almost 100% PC. I don't use controllers for non-RPG/non-fighting games

Hey Dm is there any chance the Janus game breaking bug involves a guardian? Cause that's the only Janus glitch I know.

NO AND I TOLD YOU IM NOT TELLING YOU KFNDSAOUBGFS';DJBGS

What´s you favourite game ?

Star Ocean 2: The Second Story

As a fellow solo laner, what do you think of the overall current state of solo lane right now? What needs to be changed? When is teleport gonna stop being a thing?

I love the current meta. The risk of Hand vs no hand. Proper warding for early game. It's exciting. And don't be mad a teleport. If you're getting beat by it, you need to play against it.

How do you play against it? The few times I see it picked against me in ranked I normally end up picking it as well and the lane is mostly a stalemate.

By using your second active to push harder against the person and saving your CC to break them down.

If for some reason hirez would let you make any skin, what would you request?

Old man Hun Batz (Ult is a tree with grass as the base and he yells GET OFF MY LAWN, YA DAMN KIDS), white girl Aphro (Back off = Can you not?)

Hey diem, What makes Osiris such a strong solo laner? his clear seems kind of mediocre but he is clearly really strong.

Impossible to kill. MAJOR space control

As a long time smite player i'm seeing a decline in pro's playing ranked due to how bad match making has become due to players in master tier being paired against bronze player and some times even qualifiers and people playing normals are being paired with low level players. Is there going to be a fix soon for ranked so people aren't getting paired against people with way to high of a skill level for people to play against?

Two things:

1. Ranked sucks **** and always has. Ranked is a bad way to get good at smite, and teamwork is always going to be valued more. Hopefully people are doing casuals to favor playing with their teams and not letting a meaningless ranking system dictate their worth in the community.

2. This is why we need god damned duo q.

First of all, what's your favorite sunday ? Also, what was your favorite moment from the CoGP vs Titan game ?

The 4 man tether stun into Ares pulling into Confrey slamming a Spirit Flail for the double kill. EASY. So sick!

That or Omega getting that absurd double driving strike into boulder.

Also, I love solo lane XD

Can we still ask questions even tho its removed?

Yup. It'll be fixed soon. Bot flaked out. <3

Hey there. First, congrats on the successful run you did for the SWC. You and the other casters did a great job all week end long !

Here is a meta related question, with the new conquest map on its way, do you expect the meta to change a lot ( since I've heard some camps were moved around the map ) or will we most likely stick to the current long lane hunter + support, mage mid and whatever god with sustain solo setup ?

I think 2-1-1-1 will be likely, but there might be room for major mixups. I can't really say anymore than that before announcements, but expect that leniency will be provided for metabreakers.

How much were you pay for being on this video?

http://i.imgur.com/tvWHPJU.jpg

Not enough.

This is more of a personal question if you don't mind!

you seem to have a lot of different people on your streams. i i have been lurking for about a year now and you always have fun people on but why don't you play with more people like you use to? like ponpon and krett and allied?

Allied and I play when we can, but he's scrimming a lot, so it's hard. Pon and I are pretty decent friends, imo, but we have different Smite circles. We do some theory crafting and such when we're in the same place! (Usually spl)

If people were on my stream a lot, and they're not anymore, it's likely because they're bad people. Loyalty means more to me than anything. Not crazy following blind loyalty. But approaching when there is an issue and not talking behind people's backs, things like that.

Those people are small, and are likely the same people who question why they don't grow. Those people, subsequently, are not my concern. I have an amazing family we've built in Juice, and I hold no salt over jettisoning those who can't keep it 100%.

Shouts to Fats and pbat. <3 (tv is a lamer tho)

Did Bacon give you a good firm handshake at worlds ? and was wit as weird has he made it out to be .

Twice. Only the first time! XD

Hey Diem just wanted to know your new placement of Ao Kuang after such a strong showing at the SWC??

love your work man keep it up

http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/2s792p/iama_professional_esports_commentator_dmbrandon/cnmsyh9

dm, I have enjoy ur stream for almost two years now as a lurker and keep it up. Questions: Which pro-player has the best escape ability? and What would Team Dignitas have to do in order to attempt to become a powerhouse again?

Escape ability. Right now, looks like Divios or Jeff.

Dig has things coming. I'm sure you'll see soon enough <3

Thank you also: Do you think with the new map that meta will change in anyway if at all?

More than you know

Was Janus banned for SWC? And if so why?

Noticed someone already asked sorry

Nope, but it was possible because there is a game busting glitch. And no, I'm not telling you what it is XD

Will you tell us what it is once it gets patched?

yes

Hey Diem! Good to meet you this weekend. 1. What non-SWC team do you think will be in next year? 2. Tips for beginning streamers? (settings, recommended gear, etc.)

1.Complexity would have the best shot, as of right now!

1. BUY INTEL PRODUCTS ASAP! <3333333

Otherwise, 3500 bitrate is a must. If your internet sucks, change it or move!

What do you think of getting teleport in solo and do you think it will become the meta?

It is already a strong part of it, but I usually don't bother with it. My rotations are pretty clean, usually, and I don't get caught away too often.

Can you tell me a joke?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QFr3bVq1mYM

What do you think Hi-Rez COULD do for the next SWC and what do you think Hi-Rez HAS to do for the next SWC? Kind of a weird question but I guess it translates into what did they do good but can do better and what do they HAVE to change.

Also, for the sake of not being completely pessimist, where did they excel?

More marketing, and earlier. More features on season play to make the event bigger when it comes.

They excel greatly in all facets. We shouldn't be nearly as big as we are. Shouts to Stew.

What do you want to see out of season two of the swc? I would want to see what league does with lcs

More teams and more competition

whos better at each role: you or Shing? also What will Shing need to do to silence the critics this season and why is he always made fun off?

Hunter: shing

Support: me

Mid: shing

Jungle: shing

Solo: me

so I will guess that Shing will need a lot of work to be an elite solo laner?

Shing's performance at regionals was poor. He needs to be in the jungle. He wants to kill people, and that doesn't happen in solo

What was your thoughts after seeing SK steamroll through cog red?

"uh-oh"

Am I a bad person for wanting double ADC to be a thing that's viable at high levels?

Crit, Unicorn, Zapacorn or other and why?

What item/god introduction caused the biggest meta shift that you witnessed?

Zapacorn and Standard unless two or more characters can heal and then unicorn.

MEDITATION.

Hey diem! First of all how do you feel being the father of an awesome community like juice? And having lainbear as a mom... Second of all, what would you say to a lurker so he could stop lurking? Other than that, just wanna say that you are amazing and really nice IRL <3

Honestly, it's weird. I never expected to foster such a bustling and amazing community and I mean that! The amount of support I get from everyone allows me to lead a life of pretty absurd privileged, and I'm doing my best not to squander it.

As for lurking, just chat, man. If people don't respond well, be calmer or chiller. Then try again. Everyone has awesome qualities, and we want to try and learn about all of you <3

why do you think repikas constantly had a negative kda in his games as serqet at swc against cog?

Hard to say. Repi was getting kited pretty hard, but I think the issue is that serq is VERY teamwork oriented, and it seemed like Titan wasn't always on their game in that department

Sorry that I'm late to this but I just saw the tweet and I have a question that I just must ask: why anhur? I saw him picked so favourably in so many games(many as first picks) whereas gods like Apollo and Rama aren't even picked. Apollo was first pick/ban (seemingly) leading up to swc and then during it Apollo was hardly played and anhur is all of the sudden priority even with a near useless late game ult Also loved your casting during the swc <3

Near useless isn't really true. It's CC immunity!

Did you hear any of Goldenboys first cast in the showmatch? It was pretty good for a first time.

Additionally, how do you think Goldenboy did as the host of the analyst desk? How much practice did he get beforehand?

I'm gonna say he was shit and I hate him.

(Only because he threatens my job security with how fucking amazing he is.)

Have you ever had a problem with your voice whilst you were commentating?

Not recently. If a caster loses his/her voice over 3 days, that means they can't properly speak from their diaphragm, and they shouldn't be on the big stage.

One time I had a throat infection in 2011, but I powered through lol

How do you feel about Divios baiting the hell outta Maniakk with the Osiris that led to him getting first blood? OMG!

I can't even...

Thought process:

Maniakk: Hmm, he didn't stop his back. Guess he wasn't baiting me and isn't confident enough to fight me. hits divios

Divios: baited nerd ololol

How much sleep do you think you got this weekend?

Friday night, like 5 hours. Saturday, 7. Last night, don't talk to me zzzzzzzzzzzzzz

We lost ghandi to you. ;(

Do you think smite will switch to XBOX One when it releases?

Hard to say. We'll definitely have a strong push on the xb1, but if it can take over esports from pc? Ehhhh! It's possible, but imo, unlikely.

And Gandhi is mine now!

I want ghandi back ;(

PLAY FOR FREE AT SMITEGAME.COM

With the rate at which Smite is growing, do you think we'll be seeing SWC 2016 at the Cobb Energy Centre again or do you think we'll be able to move on to a bigger center?

Not sure. I like that place though! Hope we outgrow it, but at the same time, it's great!

If you had control over how swc 2016 would run, how would you change it?

I wouldn't change much aside from how many teams go

Coke or pepsi?

Pepsi, only because Pepsi bottles IZZE and IZZE is the goddamned GOAT.

While obviously you can't release any kind of details. The new Conquest map is to be released in fairly short order; has there been any kind of inkling or consideration that the Joust map will be redone at any point?

This is a question I have to ask once a week. I've been pushing a new map with a 2v2 variant harder than you can imagine.

How do you feel about Hou Yi and his Kit?

Seems fun .Haven't played him yet, so I'll try and do that soon. hunters aren't really my thing, but I expect that I'll have some fun breaking his kit asap <3

Out of the top four teams in na, which gods would you not allow them to have in their possessions?

Cogp: scylla/serqet

Red: Herc/Thor

Complexity: Ban girl characters cause kiki doesn't play males

Dig: Janus/Sylv

Do you think the new map new move any of the lower tier gods up the tier list because of the new leashing or just over all map layout? And who would you say most benefits from it?

Honestly, there will be balance changes, so I'm holding off on discussing that until hirez announces their plans. I don't actually know their plans but I DO know they're gonna revisit some abilities and MAYBE some kits.

With that, there are some other changes coming as well that I can't discuss yet, but there is a lot more coming than people know. A lot is going to change!

Do you consider gnaw as the best janus right now, or is someone else hold that title?

I would say Gnaw is best in SPL, but I'd be far more afraid of Puri. Mace is there, too

Hey DM! Great casting as always and I can only imagine how hype the Juice party was based on the tweets :D. My question is why did no one pick Janus and a few others?

Comfort picks, most likely. Janus is difficult, and is a far stretch in playstyle compared to most other gods. Still op doe

Do you like any other Esports if so which ones?

I watch a lot! League, Starcraft, Halo, all FGC <3

I don't really watch a lot of DOTA outside of TI, and I generally don't watch cod cause Gandhi sux lollolool

How about counter strike?

Not a ton. I only watch http://www.twitch.tv/missharvey who was a contestant with me on INTL. She's insanely talented!

Hi DM, I remember playing with you a couple times, maybe you don't remember me but oh well. (I was once an Anubis who got a triple kill while you were streaming and you flipped the fuck out)

Anyway.

Been away from Smite for a while, having trouble getting back into it. I was a really good solo laner before (top picks at the time were Ra, Hercules, Aphrodite, Loki, that kind of thing). What are the top solo picks now?

I always wanted to be a streamer and possibly make it into a professional team (I know its multiple people's dream but I actually could at the time) but I have no idea how to go about it. Should I play more ranked and try to get noticed by other pro players and stuff like that or should I just start streaming and hoping to get more than 5 viewers?

So in general, how do I make it into the professional scene if the only thing I'm missing is getting noticed?

What are the top solo picks now?

Warrior top picks like Herc, Osiris, Baby. Counters like Chang'e and Bakasura. Aphro is a median pick.

Should I play more ranked and try to get noticed by other pro players and stuff like that or should I just start streaming and hoping to get more than 5 viewers?

Passion is key, so the answer is one of two things:

1. Both.

2. If not/can't both, then whatever makes you happier! Whatever is just plain old more fun, to you!

What are things that you would like to see changed/ added to smote by the next SWC?

More bans to people who are shitlords. Someone people slip through the cracks because we don't have a huge QA staff, which is an inherent issue with no real fix at the moment.

OTHER THAN THAT!

I would like to see more gods with kits that rival Chang'es with mechanical prowess emphasized in movement! <3

Since you kinda follow the fgc, who would you use in street fighter and/or your team in marvel?

I use Akuma/Ibuki.

And I play in Marvel:

X23/b Virgil/y Arthur/b

Skullgirls, Val/Filia

KI Orchid

Interesting choices. Thanks for the quick response. The marvel team is pretty solid, good on a casual level, pretty much one character here or there from being a good tournament team.

Smite related, whats with Osiris' sudden rise in popularity in solo? Hes always been a good pick, but during swc he was pretty much a must ban. Is delaying qins to build witchblade necessary?

I had a tournament team lol. I won a fair amount of shit in NJ/NY in my time and have beaten a lot of players I'm sure you still see.

I quit when I lost to Justin Wong last hit g3. It was the best I had ever played, and I knew I wouldn't play that well again.

Arthur daggers was Laura's best assist by a mile, btw. Rapid slash allowed 1.1 million 2 meter without infinite. RS opening gave 670k into 5050 wake up.

Sounds like it could have been a solid team when you played, but the meta's changed where Laura just isn't a viable pick. Wolverine/Vergil/Arthur would be a hell of a team tho, the offensive pressure would be relentless if you got arthur leveled up.

Will you be going to Apex? I'd love to be able to talk some smite with you at the event if youre planning on attending. When I used to be a sub you answered a bunch of questions that helped me out. Thanks again for the responses.

I watch Marvel all the time. I know/knew the meta greatly, and Laura suffers from the same shit she suffered from in 2011. Doom. That's it.

But, the game is dead. Anyone who cares about the meta know is kidding themselves. Capcom killed it. It's done.

And no. Sorry. :(

I've recently come back from the SWC event in Manchester, what do you think to the news of a new Krett? Also Known as KrettEU

I don't know what this means.

Srry for the questions but after watching Cog Red for a while i feel like that the play with a lot of arrogance. Do you think that it can be their downfall in future tournaments?

Not at all. Only Divios is "arrogant."

Arrogant is in quotes because the definition is: "having or revealing an exaggerated sense of one's own importance or abilities."

Anyone who thinks Cod Reg's ability is exaggerated is up their own ass lmao.

I know what you meant, but even so, no. Boosh just needed better gods, imo. And they should have countered Herc

I have a very sad but true story I wanted to share with you. One of my best friends that I play Smite with has two level 10 masteries, and they're Xbalanque and Kukulkan. The (tragic) End.

As for the question: Ymir was first ban for all five games of the Grand Final at worlds, and saw a surprising amount of play since we don't really consider him to be as good as Geb, Sylvanus, Athena, etc. here in the States. Does Europe know something we don't about how to play him? I do realize that his ban in the finals was likely just to limit KanyeLife's god pool, but Europe in general tends to favor him.

Rough life lmaoooo

Kanye is just proficient with him, honestly. It's not much else. It suits him well. He likes slow moving, control gods like Ymir Ares. Surprised we didn't see Sylv.

Given the success that CoG had at the SWC, with Prime, Red and the former Aquilla taking the top 3 spots do you see more sponsors picking up second teams?

What are your totally "out there" predictions for season 2?

I can't comment on this, because I know too much. You will know much in time, as well, young padawan. But for now, you must be patient. <3

Can you think of a player who can be a weak link to a team's success and if so can you say why?

I can think of 4 that should be replaced, imo. But I'm not gonna blast them. That's rude. But I hope teams are making the needed changed.

You often talk about how you think CycloneSpin and Divios are the best players in the world atm.

Divios is kinda obvious, but what makes Cyclone bring to the table that others cant?

Also <3

Cyclone is an idiot child. He has ZERO idea how to farm properly, or to engage on fights. But, like pokemon, if you train them and tell them what to do, they can be unstoppable. That, to me, is cyclone.

He has the single best mechanics I've ever seen, and I've never seen a person outplay so many people before. It's like watching a stronger version of early 2013 Zapman. It's frightening.

What gods do you think should be prioritized for the season 2 reworks?

Anubis, Hades, Cupid. They are some of the most recognizable names in mythology, and we should prioritize their marketing, imo.

Do you think those 3 should get a remodel as well? I mean Hades looks fine but IMO Anubis looks too basic and...Let us not even mention Cupid.

I don't really care about graphics all that much in competitive games. So, I can't really say I've examined them. It's all about the gameplay! <3

(But yes, anubis has weird legs loolo)

Well, I have a bit of a placebo effect when it comes to visuals. The more I like what I'm looking at the better I do. My skill as Apollo skyrocketted once I got Elite Agent for example, but that's just me :P

LOL

Well, then the new map is going to make you a GOD

What's your opinion on Kanyelife having such a small god-pool, and proplayers in general. Don't you find it strange that he didn't practice Geb?

Yes, a lot. It's likely that game 5 was lost by the choices of Athena and Agni vs Geb/Vulcan.

Most pro players that aren't junglers or hunters have weak pools. That won't last in season 2!

Hey dm, do you think that the new trig esports roster can contend with SK and Titan, or will it be another case where roster changes don not amount to anything special? Also, do you think losing the TSM brand will hurt Smite's esports growth?

With only evidence and no opinion, I don't trust any roster with Funball. He's the reason the original Coast Roster broke up, and the after world's a lot of people cited him as too hard to work with.

Though, his attitude which gets him in trouble won't be tolerated by any means by Lawbster. Lawb is a scary, angry, giant man. XD Other than that, No one else could replace Gamehunter than Xaliea. Hunter wise, Funball wouldn't have been my first choice.

With that, Trix, Lawb and Qvo are godlike, for real

What advice would you give to someone who is looking to be a commentator?

The same advice I'd give to anyone trying to be good at anything:

1. You're not that good, and you need to watch others who are already in the field, and try and understand what makes them appealing

2. Practice your ass off and don't make shitty excuses.

So as a person who loves to ADC I was curious, and hyped, at the choice of hunters during the SWC. It seemed that more of the 1v1 hunters, Apollo, Anhur, AMC, were being picked throughout the whole event. My question is, why didn't we see Freya at all during this Championship since she has insane 1v1 potential? Is it because she has a much more tough a time making it through the early game and starts to actually clear at around level 9?

Also, awesome casting Brandon, it was superb!

Freya has a hard early game, and sylvanus makes it worse. Generally, she's risky. She's the hardest carry, but has the worst early game by far.

She also has basically no escape aside from the banish, and realistically, it's not great. VD gets her out of danger, but not for long, and it doesn't scale well until level 13.