It turned out not so much an interview as a heart-to-heart conversation...
Of course, I had to remove a lot and put several periods in Alex's strong phrases, but this dialogue simply has the right to exist...
You can hear it a hundred times, but it's better to read it once (a brief overview of the interview):
1. I'm a newbie, what's the problem???
2. Sam's story...
3. Our fathers, who are they???
4. Poker or Heroes?? Pros and cons...
5. The CIS Tournament, Kingisepp...
6. World Championship, who kicked whose ass with a score of 5-0???
7. The story of an opera singer, from children's matinees to the Bolshoi Theatre...
AlexTheGreat
Hi, this is AliaSmehova, this is Alex the Great, I just don't remember when I registered or if I registered at all. So I decided to have some fun with the NICK
So everything is fine, I'll tear you all apart there :-))
And here I read about 5 games, I can say I've played much more than 5 with many of those who are registered :-)
and with Lebron, and with Voland, etc., I just didn't post, so everything is fine, no deception :-)
SEM_56
Yes, it was funny and cool, I know how good you are, but sorry, I won't take you into the tournament with that attitude!!!!
AlexTheGreat
What attitude*?
SEM_56
And hello to you too....
AlexTheGreat
Yo, I didn't see any greetings from you in my last message, if you're going to be so consistent!..
SEM_56
At least you could have thrown in some smileys at the start...
AlexTheGreat
I don't understand...
I wrote that I'm a newbie on the site, that's true, I've played more than 30 games with players from the site, and lost 1
I don't see a problem with my participation in a tournament where there aren't that many strong players anyway
Since you want to determine the strongest, determine it among the strongest!..
But otherwise I wrote everything fine right away, that I'm ready to play any templates, any versions of Heroes and politely asked to be included in the selection!.
Well, what do you say?
SEM_56
Well, forgive me for my green ignorance, if you had written your real nickname, there wouldn't have been any questions at all...
I know you, I've heard of you more than once...
AlexTheGreat
I don't understand, what does it matter what NICK I registered, in general, as I understand it, there are no problems with accepting me.
Do they call you Stepa?
oh
I mean Semyon :-)
SEM_56
Ramon
Roma, to be precise..
AlexTheGreat
Aaa, right, so why the nick Sem??
SEM_56
I've been Sem for 8 years...
AlexTheGreat
There on the site, Dubrovin recognized me :-)))
nice
AlexTheGreat
And what is Sem?
SEM_56
Since school, my parents have a vineyard...
So I always have something to drink in terms of alcohol, so they called me Uncle Sem...
AlexTheGreat
Aaa, got it, so are you playing with anyone right now?
SEM_56
Well yeah, I need to finish a game...
AlexTheGreat
by the way, I have some saves with Paladin, do you know him?
SEM_56
of course...
AlexTheGreat
Well, we played an RP-3 here
on MM6
there are excellent saves for both
SEM_56
I know all your notable brethren, I've heard, they've told me and shown me...
AlexTheGreat
:-)))
the game turned out simply brilliant
start on 200%
SEM_56
I'm working on a theme with Nagan, Heroic Stories...
a lot is written there about you...
if you can, send it...
AlexTheGreat
so by day 3 we were almost ready to break nearly maxed stacks, I played a bit better on week 2, that's why I won, and even then I made a mistake, damn, but the saves exist
SEM_56
yeah, I know you work miracles...
AlexTheGreat
well, not miracles
but we play pretty well :-)_
SEM_56
maybe I shouldn't tell anymore, my eyes have been popping out of my head for a while..
AlexTheGreat
come on, why's that, what have you seen there, what's your email
SEM_56
well, a Dragon Utopia on the first, that's already master status!!!
kerizz@bigmir.net
AlexTheGreat
I didn't take it on day 1
SEM_56
I know..
AlexTheGreat
the earliest I played in a tournament game was on 123
SEM_56
exactly like "In SoD if I played, then there was Shakti 110 + two of mine at 35 each plus 4 external dwellings and that's it on the third day, two Griffin Conservatories at 3 break immediately on 114 with scout heroes, another three Conservatories 2-2-2, well, there was a Pandora's Box with pigs for fattening.
sword +2+2 expert offense bless and on 116 I really wanted to take the Dragon Utopia which I did, lost 100 trogs and all the fattening."
AlexTheGreat
Is that Stinger?
or who
SEM_56
yes, as I was told...
AlexTheGreat
:-)
yeah, he's a notable clown, a lucky bastard, one of the 3 with whom I have an even record :-)
in terms of games
SEM_56
who are the other two???
AlexTheGreat
Paladin and Vasya
SEM_56
Palladin and Forrest??
AlexTheGreat
there is actually a guy I had a losing record against, but I was playing weaker then
SEM_56
Vasya, nick???
AlexTheGreat
DC-Vasya
what are you
he's a beast
SEM_56
ah, I see, I've read...
AlexTheGreat
he taught Palych how to play, he's his student
SEM_56
then who is the very father???
AlexTheGreat
well, that's us, although Stinger is only afraid of me for some reason, he thinks no one plays stronger than me now,
but before there were Bishops, Andre
SEM_56
maybe he's not afraid, but knows what you're capable of???
AlexTheGreat
Antals
etc.
Well, there were games where Vasya played him to a draw, and he told me that it was hopeless, if I had played, although Vasya is no weaker,
I don't know. Stinger thinks Vasya has gotten old. Maybe..
Though our last games were just brutal, simply insane
SEM_56
gotten old???
AlexTheGreat
well, in terms of skill dropping, although Vasya once killed 1000 trogs for me on week 6 :-)))
I actually decided to die myself, I didn't play particularly strong, but still, and I once slaughtered him in TE on 124 with 6 angels, 70 7th-rank wyrms and fattening with Expert Bless
SEM_56
then why do the guys leave Heroes, no one to compete with???
AlexTheGreat
:-))
well, generally we're not interested anymore, we play more poker, especially since there's money involved
SEM_56
and a lot??
AlexTheGreat
but for Heroes I got 200 bucks for 1st places in the CIS, what kind of money is that, well, I earned at most 6000 bucks in one night
Vasya 16000, but in Heroes, 3 days wasted and 200 bucks for 1st place, not fair :-)
SEM_56
you could not work, just sit and play poker, eh???
and if the prize was 10 grand, would you bother???
3 days??
AlexTheGreat
Of course, everyone would play, the strongest, when there was talk of a 10K usd prize, we all wanted to go
SEM_56
you're a complete materialist though...
AlexTheGreat
there would have been a battle, why, I play Heroes, against Decont or Voland, I consistently tear them apart and play on
SEM_56
so it turns out in a couple of years, you'll rake in cash from poker, buy yourself an island somewhere, settle down there and laugh at the common folk..
and they'll sometimes remember you, like there was Alex the Great...
then he disappeared, and left Heroes to the young and inexperienced...
AlexTheGreat
Why, I'm not that young anymore, that's the first thing.
second, I don't earn that much, because of variance, damn it.
second, and now I laugh, not maliciously of course, at how people go to work in the mornings, well, what can you do, my fiancée goes too when I'm asleep, that's how the world works
SEM_56
and how old are you???
AlexTheGreat
not everyone can play poker, and I'm not that old, just unfortunately no longer a boy, but I'd like to be 20 again
I'm 27
SEM_56
I used to play for high stakes too, live, but I stepped away, it's not for me...
AlexTheGreat
I don't understand, why did you step away? Wasn't it working out?
or did you play Hold'em?
SEM_56
on the contrary, I made a lot of unpleasant people as enemies...
we used to gather at some rich guy's place, me and my friend, and shake them down for every last buck...
AlexTheGreat
well, that's fine, that's their problem, so you played Hold'em?
which city are you from?
SEM_56
Kyiv...
AlexTheGreat
I see, they were supposedly going to shut it down there too
SEM_56
no, just poker, as it was for 2005...
AlexTheGreat
what do you mean just poker, I also just play poker, one of the variants
SEM_56
and what's this CIS tournament, I haven't heard of it...
???
AlexTheGreat
it was in St. Petersburg, the Open Champ of St. P, Stinger and others came too
SEM_56
and you showed everyone in the end...
for 27, you're still pretty young, unlike Decontaminator, a proper old man...
AlexTheGreat
well, I lost there, ended up in the lower bracket, made it to the final and there I had to beat Mike 2 times
won by a miracle
SEM_56
Mike??
AlexTheGreat
he's on Fixes, well yeah, a very strong player of ours
SEM_56
sorry, I haven't heard of him..
AlexTheGreat
something always seems to be missing for him, strange, he's always 2nd, at all tournaments, well, I mean often
SEM_56
Mike and all with that nick??
AlexTheGreat
yeah
MikeSPb, on Fixes, at least on randoms it's harder
SEM_56
I'll look more closely later, thank you Alex the Great...
and for the dialogue too, you enlightened me a bit..
AlexTheGreat
about what?
my name is just Alex
without the Great :-)
SEM_56
the status demands it, even though you're full of yourself...
AlexTheGreat
one thing I don't understand
what did I enlighten you about?
SEM_56
well, you told me about the tournament, who played with whom and how...
but it's already clear there
well, you didn't really tell much
AlexTheGreat
well, with Stinger maybe, it was a good game, in the 2nd round, oh I'm lying, in the 1st
in the 2nd Mike took me out, I fell into the losers' bracket, miraculously climbed out into the final
Stinger didn't know me back then, and I didn't know him
SEM_56
it happens, you lose sometimes...
AlexTheGreat
in 2005 he was already a mega-monster on Baa, and I wasn't playing online yet then, only live, I was tearing everyone apart at various meetups
SEM_56
it's more useful live, in my opinion...
AlexTheGreat
yeah, it's interesting, watching others play, that's a thrill, that's why we wanted to go to Yekaterinburg
SEM_56
it's a pity I didn't have serious opponents live...
AlexTheGreat
when they were planning to have a championship there with 10000 in prizes
SEM_56
what in Yekaterinburg???
AlexTheGreat
champ
SEM_56
ah, right..
it's a pity there aren't such big tournaments now, I would have gone myself...
AlexTheGreat
well, there might be again, we hold one in Kingisepp every year, organized by Napalm and Vietnam
SEM_56
I've heard...
AlexTheGreat
well, this year Vasya and I shared 1st-2nd places, I conceded the final to Vasya, he really wanted to finally win something in his life, the old fool :-)))
and we agreed in advance to split the money :-)
the prize money :-)
SEM_56
aha, so that's it, well, you're loyal though...
AlexTheGreat
well, I've already won that tournament, and Vasya is a close friend, I don't mind
SEM_56
then it's clear...
AlexTheGreat
and we split the money anyway, I have nothing left to prove, so what difference does it make which of us won the final, we originally went there to split the prize money with Vasya :-)))
SEM_56
and was there ever a world championship in Heroes???
AlexTheGreat
officially no, but CIS champs were, they are probably the world champs, the Simferopol people, one of them won it, I gave it away like an idiot, out of stupidity, I was still playing weakly then, now I wouldn't give it away for anything!..
SEM_56
and what was that joke, Stinger, Paladin and Forrest, I think, tore apart the world team???
AlexTheGreat
2004, well, we played, me, Sting, Palych, Vasya and Forest, against the world team, won 5-0
:-D
SEM_56
I know, and who was against you, some Chinese people???:-D
and I can't even imagine how such an event, a world championship, could be organized...
AlexTheGreat
no
from Denmark, England, Lithuania and somewhere else
SEM_56
Was Black Knight there??
AlexTheGreat
yes
SEM_56
good...
I don't remember anyone from the English team who played, don't you remember???
AlexTheGreat
Nope, well, Sting played Jebus Cross there, Palych played Balance, I played Panic.
Only Vasya screwed up, I think
He started messing around with some crap
decided to joke around, and that's how he lost to Black, even though he plays weakly, I've played him, nothing special, I killed his Papa in Castle like a noob:-D
he was still snapping back, the little bastard :-)
18-year-old
SEM_56
young and green..
AlexTheGreat
he considers himself a God, and when guys like me and Sting started spanking him without a chance, he got upset :-))
SEM_56
I bet, you mixed his pride with shit and that happened to me too...
thought I knew how to play, turned out I don't know a damn thing...
AlexTheGreat
so that's a good thing when they mix it up, because I, thanks to them mixing it up, accepted it as a given, and became an opera singer
otherwise I would have been a sucker if I hadn't perceived the information correctly
SEM_56
an opera singer, explain, I'm reading this from you for the second time???
AlexTheGreat
well, I'm an opera singer, studied at a music school as a child, have a very good musical ear and a strong voice
but I couldn't sing, earlier, I sang in various competitions, but unsuccessfully
then I auditioned for an artistic director, and he told me straight up that I was a brat
so I went to study at a music-pedagogical college
now I'm almost a solid soloist, I'm going to try out for one of the best theatres in St. P
SEM_56
cool, but given your materialistic interest, what motivates your passion for singing??
AlexTheGreat
one of the greatest thrills in life..
what do you do for a living?
SEM_56
translator...
and kickboxing...
AlexTheGreat
what language?
what's your punch like?
SEM_56
English, German, Spanish...
and as for my punch, I don't know, a European champion trains me, whom I sent into a knockdown during a sparring session last summer...
So this is the dialogue that came out. Judge me or not, it's not that important...
What matters is that now everyone can find out how the heroes' war was waged in those great days and who was, is, and will remain those great commanders of our world-wide heroic history:smile03:
With respect SEM_56!!!