Mykhaylo "HoT" Novopashyn

The Night Elf player from Ukraine got his start in professional gaming under the SK banner. He came in as a relative unknown player, but quickly proved that he belonged in the prestigious team. He would go on to become their franchise WarCraft III player, having the longest tenure and the highest results within the team.

However, all good things must come to and end, and this is no exception. When SK saw the golden opportunity to pick up the Korean World Elite lineup, HoT suddenly found himself as the 5th man. No longer was he their go-to guy, but now he was a benched player. Not enjoying this situation, he took a step down from the best team in the world, to join Gravitas Gaming, a team not even participating in the WC3L.

Strengths: He's easily one of the best LAN players in the world. While his online performances are usually great, he seems to just take it to another level at LAN events.

Weaknesses: With the move to Gravitas, he not only lost the ability to participate in the online leagues, but also great practice partners. You can't really compare the expertise coming from Lyn/Soju/ReMinD to his new teammates.

Recent Results: 5-8 WCG 2007, 1st SEC 2007, 2nd Extreme Masters 2007

Predictions: HoT is probably the toughest player to predict. He's capable of winning the entire event, but I have a feeling he'll place 2nd or 3rd in his group, followed by losing his relegation match.

Lars "Protois" Reichelt

Protois has been in mTw for what seems like forever. While this is obviously not true, he's been a staple player in the starting lineup since the team went all-German and continues to be a force through their various changes today. You don't see his name often in the larger international tournaments, but the talent pool in Germany is so deep it's tough to qualify.

To be honest, he was lucky to have even qualified for this tournament. He started off really strong in his group, but with losses to both Satiini and Ciara, found himself placing third. He was a little unlucky in the relegation match, drawing ToD as his opponent. He lost this match and was subsequently eliminated from the tournament. However, he played a final 11th place relegation against Ciara and NightWOlf, in the event one of the top 10 dropped out. He won the relegation, and with Satiini dropping out due to illness, Protois was quick to replace him.

Strengths: He's in good shape. With all of the leagues going strong around this time, Protois has seen a lot of playing time in recent weeks.

Weaknesses: It's cliche to say that an Undead player's weakness is an Orc opponent; however, it seems to ring more true with Protois. He likes to switch races when up against an Orc, and let's just say he might be better off playing Undead.

Recent Results: 4th NGL Season 4 Finals with mTw

Predictions: With the two best Orc players in the world in his group, it would be a miracle if he wasn't eliminated in this stage.