We at ROOT Gaming are proud to announce the addition of Erik ‘ErA’ Anderssen and Sebastian ‘Xixo’ Bentert to the ROOT Hearthstone squad! ErA, a 22-year-old player from Sweden, and Xixo, a contender hailing from Germany, will join Jason ‘Amaz’ Chan, Sebastian ‘Eggy’ Swierard, and Jeffrey ‘SjoW’ Brusi on the diverse and highly competitive ROOT Hearthstone roster. ErA is currently rank 80 Legend on the NA ladder. Xixo is Legend on the the EU, NA, and Asia ladders.
I asked both ErA and Xixo how they came across their nicknames. “My gamer tag is ErA, it's just a mix of my first & last name. The meaning behind it is me being too uncreative to come up with some epic nickname!” replied ErA. Xixo explained, “The first online game I played was Silkroad Online. One of the people in my guild had the gamertag ‘Xixo’. When I started playing World of WarCraft, all the nicknames I tried were already taken. I cycled through all of the ones that I could think of and eventually settled on ‘Xixo’.”
Both Xixo and ErA began their eSports careers similarly. ErA played StarCraft II competitively for a year. He won online tournaments and even qualified for WCS Sweden during the final season of Wings of Liberty. Xixo met StarCraft II players from Mouz Gaming at IFA 2011. The pro-gamers were so nice that Xixo went out and bought the game the same day! When I asked whether either of them expected to be a pro-gamer in a competitive card game, Xixo answered, “Totally! ..not.” ErA explained that he did not expect it either.
I sat down with these Hearthstone masters for a discussion of Hearthstone and eSports.
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Which is your favorite Hearthstone class?
ErA: My favorite Hearthstone class is Priest because of fun cards like Thoughtsteal and fun combos such as Crazed Alchemist into Cabal Shadow Priest. Thoughtsteal is a card that makes the games that you play more unique. One game is never like the other because your deck always contains four extra random cards. It's a class that comes down a lot to improvisation. When I play other classes, the games tend bleed together and the game feels a bit more repetitive.
Xixo: I have to go with Warrior. Killing 9 mana minions for 1 feels good.
Which Hearthstone class currently gives you the most trouble?
ErA: It depends which class I'm playing at the time. After playing a lot of Priest, I've got to go with Handlock. Especially latest version that can pull 28 damage out of nowhere!
Xixo: Even though I currently play control Warrior, I still hate playing against Hunter. Leeroy Jenkins plus Starving Buzzard with Unleash the Hounds is painful.
Why do you play Hearthstone? What is it about Hearthstone that you like?
ErA: Why Hearthstone indeed. It is a very addictive yet relaxing game, unlike something like StarCraft II, that you can play while listening to a podcast or browsing the net during your opponent’s turn. It’s a simple, chill, fun game!
Xixo: I started playing Hearthstone when I heard about the first season of Fight Night. I noticed that the game had a competitive community so I wanted to be the best! I also really enjoy the RNG (random number generation) factor in this game because it makes risk calculation more fun.
What is your philosophy when constructing a new deck?
ErA: Deck creation for me is usually a never-ending process. I can't say that I have a specific technique. If I make a new deck, I mash a bunch of good cards together. Then I make small improvements of one card here and there whenever I sense a weakness in accordance to the current meta.
Xixo: I think about the idea of the deck I want to build. Is it something others already play with, or a new one with some obvious card choices? I build from there and add cards I like. Once I finish the deck, it's easy to adjust by taking notes on how often a card is wanted when it’s in play.
What is the best card in Hearthstone?
ErA: Unleash the Hounds. When combined with Starving Buzzard, Timber Wolf, and/or Leeroy Jenkins, it's simply far too strong. Being able to draw between two to six cards and fill your board for four mana is just unbelievably broken. I would suggest making Unleash the Hounds 3 mana (a middle ground between the old and the current version) and perhaps buff something else, such as the Gladiator’s Longbow. Perhaps increase its durability but render it unable to hit enemy heroes. This way Hunters will not just go for the enemy hero but they will make strategic trades. As it stands right now, Hunter is a very easy class to play. I understand that some classes need to be easier than others for the game to appeal to everyone, but the strategic thinking required to play hunter at a competitive level is just a bit low as it stands right now.
Xixo: Faceless Manipulator.
If you could be any Hearthstone card, which one would you be?
ErA: Crazed Alchemist maybe? Perhaps I could try his recipes. I've always been fascinated about how chemicals affect the brain.
Xixo: “Convincing" people as Cabal Shadow Priest should be fun!
Do you wish for more stuff to click on in the Hearthstone interface?
ErA: Umm, I don't really care. I never click them anyways as I'm usually alt tabbed during the opponent’s turn. I just like clicking the sand to the beat of the music I'm listening to if I'm not alt tabbed. The ability to draw in the sand would be so cool!
Xixo: Something that changes the color dependent on the speed you click on it to show your APM (actions per minute) would be fun.
If there were one thing you could change about Hearthstone, what would it be and how would you change it?
ErA: I would make Holy Fire cost 5 mana. Priest has a lot of trouble against 4-attack minions and over the top horrible reach after nerfing the Mind Control mana cost. I don't think buffing the Holy Fire cost would be too much to ask for.
Xixo: Delete Hunter by... deleting Hunter, i guess.
When you’re not busy dominating the Hearthstone ladder, what do you enjoy spending your time on?
Era: I like going out jogging in the woods in the morning and I have a passion for skiing. Other than that, I do play a lot of Hearthstone. Maybe watch a movie now and then?
Xixo: Farming mod-status on as many Twitch.tv channels as possible. I also like food.
Do you see yourself being involved in eSports long-term?
ErA: I don't know. I quit my job the moment I got into the Hearthstone Beta. I'll probably just play Hearthstone for as long as I'm having fun.
Xixo: I'm currently in high school with four out of eight exams done. Once I am finished, I will either start studies or take a break from it - let's see where Hearthstone goes!
What do you hope to accomplish as a ROOT Hearthstone player?
ErA: I hope to improve and become the best I can.
Xixo: I hope become the best player and part of the best team would be awesome, so let's do that!
ErA, if you could have a lifetime supply of Hearthstone cards or a lifetime supply of meatballs, which would you choose?
ErA: Meatballs!
Xixo, if you could have a lifetime supply of Schnitzel or a lifetime supply of Hearthstone cards, which you choose?
Xixo: Schnitzel. I eat way too much to pass up on that.
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Xixo and Era are sure to bring good times and great honor to the ROOT Hearthstone division. Their passion for Hearthstone is undeniable and we look forward to seeing them compete and dominate!
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Era can be found on Twitter as well as his Twitch.tv stream.
Xixo can also be found on Twitter as well as his Twitch.tv stream.
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Written by David Wise (@wiselingsc2)
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