Tactical Thursday – Day[9]’s Legion of Learning

Next week's Funday Monday? Wall-in tech to a 200-supply army of SCVs.

Back in the dark ages before Tactical Tuesdays and Thursdays, I recommended two Starcraft 2 commentary channels I heartily enjoy. These commentators offered humor and insight into the game, serving as a window into laughing through the blunders of pro and noob alike.

However, there exists a greater force in the Starcraft 2 commentary circuit. A man who now commands hundreds of thousands (if not millions) of fans. Does he have a job? Is he a mole for the South Korean version of the FBI? Is Hypnotoad somehow behind it all?*

Well, I suppose you’d just have to ask Day[9].

Who is Day[9]? He’s an old-school RTS pro with a lot of time on his hands and a lot of high-level insight to share. And his rabid fanbase is of no small credit to his endless well of strategic insight and zany (if not distracting) requests of his audience. He’s more than a Starcraft 2 commentator.

He’s the de facto Starcraft 2 persona. (sorry, Idra)

Day9** isn’t as funny as Husky, but he’s definitely a much more skilled player. Having claimed several Starcraft 1 awards back in the day, he knows a thing or two about beating the ever-loving snot out of one’s opponents while building 3 bases and, oh yeah, dropping a siege tank above your mineral line. He can look at any Starcraft game this side of Aiur*** and tell you why the winner’s winning and the loser’s losing. And in a game like Starcraft, that kind of insight is certainly appreciated when the majority of gameplay discussion is “X is overpowered.”

Outside of his strategic insight, Day9’s appeal comes from his outrageous personality, which vacillates between pensive and manic. One minute he’s explaining the most effective way of preventing Marauder drops, the next he’s drinking Bear Semen and laughing about genocide. When you watch Day9, you have to abandon the idea that you can follow this man’s thought processes, as they can come from any angle. Hell, rumors abound that Day9 may, in fact, be Tyler Durden.

Day9’s following may also be attributed to his themed daily casts. On “Funday Monday,” he gives his audience an odd request. For instance, a recent challenge involved winning after telling your opponent the units you were going to build. Or winning as Terran without any part of the MMM combo. On “Nooby Tuesday,” Day9 provides a tutorial explaining how to overcome strategies that commonly destroy new players. “Frienday Wednesday” sees guest hosts like HuK (my favorite), who share some replays and talk about their thought processes. If there are other themed days, I don’t know what they are. Bear Semen Saturday?

Overall, Day9’s channel is incredily informative, and as far as commentators go, he’s definitely among the most well educated in Starcraft 2. That said, his personality can, at times, be grating. His insistence on constantly pausing the game to give the audience a chance to stare at his horrible haircut can sometimes ruin the momentum and tension of an epic battle. And while his jokes are funny, I don’t know if it’s really necessary that we watch him deliver them into his webcam.

Still, his appeal is undeniable, and his textbook of tactical maneuvers unparalleled. Why don’t you check out his channel and decide for yourself?

*All hail Hypnotoad.
**I refuse to type hundreds of extra brackets into the remainder of this post.
***RIP Aiur.