My guests for the first interview with the recently formed Chinese clan Frantic are operator Renny Cheung - doing most of the translation, Tim and Lyx.
First we will introduce the team Frantic: At the moment it has the following players: Tim, Lyx, vivi, Whoop, cl02 (happyhappy) and Ola (GEM/ohoh), with IamOK not having officially joined but being associated. They will take part in all big tournaments, e. g. now in the "AoE All-Stars: Top Player League" and the RTS League.
Question 1: Why was the new clan named Frantic?
A (Renny Cheung): We are all very fierce, very violent players, we hope to let others have the impression of our team is that frantic.
Q2: Will the clan accept international applicants?
A (Renny Cheung): No.
Q3: Who are currently the 4 set players in a 4v4 for Frantic?
A (Renny Cheung): Tim, Lyx, vivi, happyhappy.
Q4: Will LoveCheng and/or Yo join Frantic, if SY can't get a competitive team anymore or will Paladin+Yo+LoveCheng team up with others (e. g. _PBT_Dee (Moonlight), Win_wu_kong (fangxiaoqi), xiaoxiong, Miss_Xue)?
A (Renny Cheung): Maybe, but I think we are enough players. At the moment, SY rarely get together to play, seem to have lost enthusiasm for AoC. I think they will be weaker than us.
Q5: What is the difference between Frantic, CKF and CSC?
A (Renny Cheung): The core of CSC were Tim, Goodboy and Duck. At that time the average strength was not as good as now, but the experience was relatively rich. The core of CKF were Tim, Paladin, yinghua and geoffrey. This time our TG experience is better, but we also have a good understanding for each other. Now our operation will be better. In the past two years the clan members played a lot with each other, ("Who Decides?" and "Clan Masters") understand and trust each other. It can be said that they are stronger than CSC and CKF, the only problem is the lack of experience.
Q6: Your predictions for the Bull King Cup?
A (Renny Cheung): In the last two weeks (before tournament start), they have been practicing each other. The results were Tim beat vivi, vivi beat Yo and Lyx, Yo beat Lyx, Lyx beat Whoop, Whoop beat Tim. It seems that except for Whoop, Tim, Lyx, Yo and vivi have an equal opportunity to become champion. The determining factor is the state of the game time. Yinghua didn't play much recently, hard to evaluate.
In the Chinese Forum there was conducted a vote, the vote's result is Tim (20), Yo (15), Lyx (9), Yinghua (8), vivi (5), so my prediction is: 1. Yo (if he plays to his full strength) or Lyx, 3. Tim, 4. vivi, 5. yinghua.
Q6: Your thoughts on the upcoming Nations Cup?
A (Renny Cheung): In fact, I think SY will not host the National Cup this year, at least Paladin won't. Because Paladin has a bad reputation in the Chinese community now. For more than a year, he has been in conflict with many other players, especially Tim, yingzi (Chinese community administrator, but has resigned now). Tim and yingzi have a lot of fans and supporters. Prior to this, Paladin was able to team up with Yinghua, Yo, Lyx, and Moonlight to participate in international events, but now the situation is Yinghua temporarily lost interest in AoC and Yo is busy working. Lyx seems to be dissatisfied with Paladin. So this year Paladin may be hard to find a strong team to participate in any tournament, I think SY has fallen apart.
Huehuecoyotl22: Do you know anyone else who would host a Nations Cup? Because for all other countries the national teams are independent of clans, so it would not matter if a clan changes. However, the organisation, which I think Paladin and the SY sponsor were involved a lot, needs to be done by someone.
Renny Cheung: Frantic will be the next China A, they are now very active in the practice of raising their skill. And my job is to help them find tournaments from AOCzone and Voobly, no matter what tournament (1v1 to 4v4 ). I don't know at least no anyone from China has the plan. The biggest issue is the prize. The last two NCs were sponsored by SY and CMTFS was sponsored by Douyu TV. But now the SY boss and Douyu all don't want to give money to host a new tournament this year.
[Added by tresu:] Douyu TV seems to have disappointed the Chinese players in late payments of prize money from the previous team tournament, and the Chinese have to resort to public donation for funding of current tournament.
Now, it's time for private questions for Tim and Lyx:
Huehuecoyotl22: Would you provide a photo of yourself?
Tim: My Voobly account picture is my photo. And I always turn on the camera when I stream.
Lyx: Me and vivi:
Huehuecoyotl22: How old are you?
Tim: I'm 32 years old (born in 1985).
Lyx: I'm 30 years old.
Huehuecoyotl22: Since when do you play Age of Empires 2, have you played Age of Empires 1/3?
Tim: I have started playing Age of Empires 2 not long after the release of "The Conquerors". I have played AoE 1 and 3, but just for fun.
Lyx: I have only played AoC, since 2005.
Huehuecoyotl22: What does your Age of Empires nickname mean?
Tim: My name is very casual, I have used a lot of IDs, such as Tim, Kiss_BB, Mars, Kiss_Fairy, tiger, _SWJ_xiaofeng,_GD_007,_VG_solo, CSC_Sie, and sange. Just because I used "Tim" at the peak of my AoE 2 life, so people are familiar with it.
Lyx: It’s my real name’s abbreviation.
Huehuecoyotl22: What is your most-used Chinese AoC nickname? (in Chinese characters)
Renny Cheung about Tim: 三哥 (sange) is the second most widely known ID after Tim returned to AoC in 2015. "san" is "the third" in Chinese, "ge" is a kind of honorific. So sange means "The third of China". Because when he came back he thought only Yo and Yinghua were stronger than him.
Lyx: 冲动 (Chongdong).
Huehuecoyotl22: Which city do you come from/live in?
Tim: I live in Guangdong, Shanwei [Wikipedia link].
Lyx: I live in Chongqing [Wikipedia link].
Huehuecoyotl22: What time do you usually go to sleep?
Tim: 3-4 am.
Lyx: Around 3 am.
Huehuecoyotl22: Have you ever left China? Where did you go to? If not, where would you like to go to?
Tim: I have been to Thailand, Mara Thea and other neighbouring countries.
Lyx: No, I hope I can go to some famous tourist resorts in the future.
Huehuecoyotl22: What are your hobbies beside AoC?
Tim: Now I'm only insterested in AoC.
Lyx: Only AoC.
Huehuecoyotl22: Do you have an AoC idol?
Tim: Yes, I have studied a lot of DauT's and Chris' recorded games, DauT is my idol.
Huehuecoyotl22: What is your favourite civilisation, map and unit?
Tim: Mongols and Aztecs. Migration and Nomad. Mangudai.
Lyx: Spanish and Huns. Arabia. Monks and Archers.
Huehuecoyotl22: Who is your favourite and least favourite 1v1 opponent?
Tim: TheViper.
Lyx: There are many, such as slam, BacT, TheViper, Liereyy. All are good opponents.
Huehuecoyotl22: Who is your favourite team mate?
Tim: vivi.
Lyx: Yinghua.
Huehuecoyotl22: Have you played Age of Empires 2 HD, what do you think of it? If yes, what is your favourite new civilisation and unit?
Tim: Yes, I have participated in many HD tournaments. I think it’s funny. There are many interesting units. At the moment, I am not fully familiar with all the details of HD, I can not make accurate evaluations.
Lyx: Yes, I have played with Tim on HD. But I do not play much, not familiar with the new civilisations and units.
Huehuecoyotl22: Who do you think will be top 5 of the Bull King Cup?
Tim: vivi, Lyx, Whoop, Yo, me. Just top, not rank, it's hard to predict.
Lyx: Yo, Yinghua, Tim, me, vivi.
Huehuecoyotl22: Which 6 players do you think will be in China A for the Nations Cup this summer?
Tim: Frantic will be China A.
Lyx: Me, Tim, vivi, happyhappy, Whoop and maybe Yinghua.
Huehuecoyotl22: Would you join TyRanT if you were invited?
Tim: NO.
Lyx: No, I can't speak English. Difficult to communicate with them.
Huehuecoyotl22: If you can visit AoCZone and Voobly, is there something you like especially or would like to have improved?
Tim: I can't understand English forums, so I do not visit AocZone.
Huehuecoyotl22: If you were not in a relationship, and could date anyone, who would it be?
Tim: I have someone I would like to date, but who is not and AoC player. [Maybe we can find out who.]
Huehuecoyotl22: What would you like to do to make the world better?
Tim: Dedication to the audience and more wonderful games, I can only do that.
Huehuecoyotl22: If you had to call one AoC playe “SB”, who would be your first pick?
Tim: Paladin.
First we will introduce the team Frantic: At the moment it has the following players: Tim, Lyx, vivi, Whoop, cl02 (happyhappy) and Ola (GEM/ohoh), with IamOK not having officially joined but being associated. They will take part in all big tournaments, e. g. now in the "AoE All-Stars: Top Player League" and the RTS League.
Question 1: Why was the new clan named Frantic?
A (Renny Cheung): We are all very fierce, very violent players, we hope to let others have the impression of our team is that frantic.
Q2: Will the clan accept international applicants?
A (Renny Cheung): No.
Q3: Who are currently the 4 set players in a 4v4 for Frantic?
A (Renny Cheung): Tim, Lyx, vivi, happyhappy.
Q4: Will LoveCheng and/or Yo join Frantic, if SY can't get a competitive team anymore or will Paladin+Yo+LoveCheng team up with others (e. g. _PBT_Dee (Moonlight), Win_wu_kong (fangxiaoqi), xiaoxiong, Miss_Xue)?
A (Renny Cheung): Maybe, but I think we are enough players. At the moment, SY rarely get together to play, seem to have lost enthusiasm for AoC. I think they will be weaker than us.
Q5: What is the difference between Frantic, CKF and CSC?
A (Renny Cheung): The core of CSC were Tim, Goodboy and Duck. At that time the average strength was not as good as now, but the experience was relatively rich. The core of CKF were Tim, Paladin, yinghua and geoffrey. This time our TG experience is better, but we also have a good understanding for each other. Now our operation will be better. In the past two years the clan members played a lot with each other, ("Who Decides?" and "Clan Masters") understand and trust each other. It can be said that they are stronger than CSC and CKF, the only problem is the lack of experience.
Q6: Your predictions for the Bull King Cup?
A (Renny Cheung): In the last two weeks (before tournament start), they have been practicing each other. The results were Tim beat vivi, vivi beat Yo and Lyx, Yo beat Lyx, Lyx beat Whoop, Whoop beat Tim. It seems that except for Whoop, Tim, Lyx, Yo and vivi have an equal opportunity to become champion. The determining factor is the state of the game time. Yinghua didn't play much recently, hard to evaluate.
In the Chinese Forum there was conducted a vote, the vote's result is Tim (20), Yo (15), Lyx (9), Yinghua (8), vivi (5), so my prediction is: 1. Yo (if he plays to his full strength) or Lyx, 3. Tim, 4. vivi, 5. yinghua.
Q6: Your thoughts on the upcoming Nations Cup?
A (Renny Cheung): In fact, I think SY will not host the National Cup this year, at least Paladin won't. Because Paladin has a bad reputation in the Chinese community now. For more than a year, he has been in conflict with many other players, especially Tim, yingzi (Chinese community administrator, but has resigned now). Tim and yingzi have a lot of fans and supporters. Prior to this, Paladin was able to team up with Yinghua, Yo, Lyx, and Moonlight to participate in international events, but now the situation is Yinghua temporarily lost interest in AoC and Yo is busy working. Lyx seems to be dissatisfied with Paladin. So this year Paladin may be hard to find a strong team to participate in any tournament, I think SY has fallen apart.
Huehuecoyotl22: Do you know anyone else who would host a Nations Cup? Because for all other countries the national teams are independent of clans, so it would not matter if a clan changes. However, the organisation, which I think Paladin and the SY sponsor were involved a lot, needs to be done by someone.
Renny Cheung: Frantic will be the next China A, they are now very active in the practice of raising their skill. And my job is to help them find tournaments from AOCzone and Voobly, no matter what tournament (1v1 to 4v4 ). I don't know at least no anyone from China has the plan. The biggest issue is the prize. The last two NCs were sponsored by SY and CMTFS was sponsored by Douyu TV. But now the SY boss and Douyu all don't want to give money to host a new tournament this year.
[Added by tresu:] Douyu TV seems to have disappointed the Chinese players in late payments of prize money from the previous team tournament, and the Chinese have to resort to public donation for funding of current tournament.
Now, it's time for private questions for Tim and Lyx:
Huehuecoyotl22: Would you provide a photo of yourself?
Tim: My Voobly account picture is my photo. And I always turn on the camera when I stream.
Lyx: Me and vivi:
Huehuecoyotl22: How old are you?
Tim: I'm 32 years old (born in 1985).
Lyx: I'm 30 years old.
Huehuecoyotl22: Since when do you play Age of Empires 2, have you played Age of Empires 1/3?
Tim: I have started playing Age of Empires 2 not long after the release of "The Conquerors". I have played AoE 1 and 3, but just for fun.
Lyx: I have only played AoC, since 2005.
Huehuecoyotl22: What does your Age of Empires nickname mean?
Tim: My name is very casual, I have used a lot of IDs, such as Tim, Kiss_BB, Mars, Kiss_Fairy, tiger, _SWJ_xiaofeng,_GD_007,_VG_solo, CSC_Sie, and sange. Just because I used "Tim" at the peak of my AoE 2 life, so people are familiar with it.
Lyx: It’s my real name’s abbreviation.
Huehuecoyotl22: What is your most-used Chinese AoC nickname? (in Chinese characters)
Renny Cheung about Tim: 三哥 (sange) is the second most widely known ID after Tim returned to AoC in 2015. "san" is "the third" in Chinese, "ge" is a kind of honorific. So sange means "The third of China". Because when he came back he thought only Yo and Yinghua were stronger than him.
Lyx: 冲动 (Chongdong).
Huehuecoyotl22: Which city do you come from/live in?
Tim: I live in Guangdong, Shanwei [Wikipedia link].
Lyx: I live in Chongqing [Wikipedia link].
Huehuecoyotl22: What time do you usually go to sleep?
Tim: 3-4 am.
Lyx: Around 3 am.
Huehuecoyotl22: Have you ever left China? Where did you go to? If not, where would you like to go to?
Tim: I have been to Thailand, Mara Thea and other neighbouring countries.
Lyx: No, I hope I can go to some famous tourist resorts in the future.
Huehuecoyotl22: What are your hobbies beside AoC?
Tim: Now I'm only insterested in AoC.
Lyx: Only AoC.
Huehuecoyotl22: Do you have an AoC idol?
Tim: Yes, I have studied a lot of DauT's and Chris' recorded games, DauT is my idol.
Huehuecoyotl22: What is your favourite civilisation, map and unit?
Tim: Mongols and Aztecs. Migration and Nomad. Mangudai.
Lyx: Spanish and Huns. Arabia. Monks and Archers.
Huehuecoyotl22: Who is your favourite and least favourite 1v1 opponent?
Tim: TheViper.
Lyx: There are many, such as slam, BacT, TheViper, Liereyy. All are good opponents.
Huehuecoyotl22: Who is your favourite team mate?
Tim: vivi.
Lyx: Yinghua.
Huehuecoyotl22: Have you played Age of Empires 2 HD, what do you think of it? If yes, what is your favourite new civilisation and unit?
Tim: Yes, I have participated in many HD tournaments. I think it’s funny. There are many interesting units. At the moment, I am not fully familiar with all the details of HD, I can not make accurate evaluations.
Lyx: Yes, I have played with Tim on HD. But I do not play much, not familiar with the new civilisations and units.
Huehuecoyotl22: Who do you think will be top 5 of the Bull King Cup?
Tim: vivi, Lyx, Whoop, Yo, me. Just top, not rank, it's hard to predict.
Lyx: Yo, Yinghua, Tim, me, vivi.
Huehuecoyotl22: Which 6 players do you think will be in China A for the Nations Cup this summer?
Tim: Frantic will be China A.
Lyx: Me, Tim, vivi, happyhappy, Whoop and maybe Yinghua.
Huehuecoyotl22: Would you join TyRanT if you were invited?
Tim: NO.
Lyx: No, I can't speak English. Difficult to communicate with them.
Huehuecoyotl22: If you can visit AoCZone and Voobly, is there something you like especially or would like to have improved?
Tim: I can't understand English forums, so I do not visit AocZone.
Huehuecoyotl22: If you were not in a relationship, and could date anyone, who would it be?
Tim: I have someone I would like to date, but who is not and AoC player. [Maybe we can find out who.]
Huehuecoyotl22: What would you like to do to make the world better?
Tim: Dedication to the audience and more wonderful games, I can only do that.
Huehuecoyotl22: If you had to call one AoC playe “SB”, who would be your first pick?
Tim: Paladin.