We have a true star guest in part 3 of our interview series after former SC2 pro HayprO and Rivals YouTuber CptBenzie: AliciaDestiny!
Alicia has been the #1 player for five seasons straight (#1-#5) and already won 5 tournaments in the young history of Rivals, including the Rivals Launch Celebration. Alicia also has a perfect record on every single Champions event so far.
In the unlikely case that you didn’t hear about Alicia so far, you might want to see her in action first. Here’s a recent one of many videos on Alicia’s YouTube channel:
Q: Hey Alicia! Please tell us a bit about yourself.
Alicia: I am a 26 year old transgirl living in Toledo, Ohio. I have a bachelor’s degree in computer engineering and my hobbies include computers (obviously) and cars. I really like cars. I just have a fascination for everything mechanical or electronics; it really intrigues me. I was always a big PC gamer growing up and that has not changed in the slightest.
Q: In the Rivals community, we all know you for your insane ladder and tournament results, and for winning the Rivals launch celebration convincingly. What brought you to Rivals? Did you play other multiplayer games on a high level before? [if well-known ones like SC2, maybe include the race you played or something like that]
Alicia: There were quite a few reasons why I was brought to Rivals. At the time when I started playing. I was getting fed up with the current game I was playing “Star Wars Force Arena” and wanted something new to play. SWFA ended up shutting down due to the game dying and not gaining enough traction. I hope that does not happen to Rivals, as Rivals is also another hyper competitive mobile game. I was looking for a game to get big in.
Shooters were the biggest thing at the time (and is still is) and they are just not my thing. I don’t really fancy the shooter genre as it doesn’t really interest me. I wanted to find content to grow my YouTube and Twitch channels and I felt like Rivals would be the game for it as I’ve played all of the original C&C games PC with the exception of C&C 3 & 4. I’m a huge fan of the franchise and even though the game didn’t look that competitive, upon trying it out I noticed there was a lot of potential.
I’ve always been big on the RTS genre my entire life and have grown up playing games like Age of Empires, C&C, StarCraft (both Broodwar and SC2), etc. Those games already have established professionals and communities and I wanted to be part of something new. C&C Rivals is not there yet. I don’t believe that there is a market for super competitive mobile games as the most competitive gamers are typically ones that either primarily play on PC or console.
The game is in a very niche category and I don’t see it surviving unless EA devotes some serious resources into increasing the playerbase. There is a lot the game is missing and I do believe it’ll get there one point.
The negative press that the game has received at E3 is what is hindering the game right now. What EA needs to do is get two of the best players in the world at E3 and demonstrate to everyone how intense this game can be at the highest level. I don’t believe the launch event wasn’t enough as you can see the event itself doesn’t even have 10k views on YouTube and most people have not even seen it.
Alicia on her decks
Q: I wholeheartedly agree that Redwood could & should do much more to increase the player base. Whether it’s big events like E3, or supporting community-run tournaments.Let’s get to the game itself. Let’s start with a question I bet many have who watch your games from time to time: One of your trademark units seems to be the Rhino / Buggy, which seems to have fallen out of favor even before it’s recent vision range nerf. Is this a personal playstyle, or do you think that there is a strong case for the unit as part of decks or even as the opener? Do you think people underestimate the unit and should more often chose it over the Cyberwheel?
Alicia: Currently, there is little reason to play “hummer and bugger” because there really isn’t much going on for the two vehicles. For Buggy’s case, it deals less damage than Cyberwheels and in some cases it’s less tanky than Cyberwheels. A Predator Tank will take 4 hits to take out the Wheels, while the Buggy takes 3 hits, or 2 if the Predator Tank is at a higher level. Do you think that is fair that a unit that costs 1/3rd the amount of the other is just better in almost every way?
The main reason why I use Rhino and Buggy in ranked ladder is mostly due to levels. I have the rhino at level 14 and Buggy at level 13. I do not put any money into the game so I am stuck with the levels I have and can only slowly grind to get the newer units to a level where I’m comfortable with using them in my current position.
Of course I would use Wheels and Dogs over Rhino and Buggy; I already do when I make decks for the Rivals Champions event as the unit levels have a really low cap compared to the cap of 15 in Tiberium League. I would also not put wheels + buggy or rhino + dogs in the same deck as that would be idiotic as you mainly need them for their anti-infantry capabilities; not their anti-aircraft performance as they’re obviously better choices for dealing with aircraft.
One of Alicia's trademark units – Nod's Inferno bomber
Q: One of your trademark decks has been the 2-2-2 (and more recently 1-3-2) with Inferno and Phantom. Your way to play it seemed to not rely on getting the Inferno out, and your games looked very organically. Do you make your decisions with this deck “on the spot” (e.g. when to save a bit for an Inferno switch), or did you work out a clear game plan for typical situations?
Alicia: I was never known for the “2-2-2” deck. I’ve only starting experimenting with it on ladder recently just to see if my deck would do well with laser troops. My most successful deck of all time has always been my “Nod Air Superiority” deck as I’d like to call it which is Oxanna, Flamers, Buggy, Bikes, Scorpion Tank, Inferno, & Phantom.
A modern variant of this deck would be to replace the useless Buggy with Cyberwheels and it will perform just as well as it always did (maybe even better because wheels are ridiculously strong). I was playing with this Inferno deck before global release and the deck has even won me 1st place in the first tournament the game has ever had. Here is an example of that exact deck being played in that tournament:
FourCourtJester commenting on a tournament final between 13lade and AliciaDestiny
It is also the same deck I used at the Rivals Launch Celebration tournament hosted by EA and I had a 100% winrate in that tournament with that deck. I’ve used the deck to get rank 1 with Nod on several seasons and it still to this day is my go-to deck to use during any in-game events as well as any tournaments that may come by.
AliciaDestiny's advice for new players
Q: Thanks for this background! On a different topic, what’s your advice for newer Rivals players on how to get better?
Alicia: There is a lot of advice I can give. First of all, never expect big results to happen fast. The way the game is structured is that you have to grind every day for a month or two before you can really start competing in the big leagues. You won’t have anything unlocked and you won’t have high levels to compete in Tiberium League, so don’t expect that. With hardcore dedication and every-day grinding you can get there in a couple of months – if you have the drive and commitment to get better at the game.
The Rivals Champions events can be grinded and provide the most progress out of anything else in the game in order to increase your levels. There will be times where you just lose due to high levels and that shouldn’t discourage you from playing the game as any level disadvantage can be overcome with superior tactics.
The easiest way to get better at the game really fast is to watch the best players. Analyze how they play to understand the mechanics of the game. You don’t have to copy their decks but watching them is a good idea on how the game is meant to be played.
For a paid player, I would suggest to get good at the game first, and then spend money on buying in-game diamonds. And when there is an event with a really good payout then keep playing that same event and redoing it over and over again for the rewards.
There has been people who have been playing the game for only 2 months and have already been in Tiberium League. That is an amazing feat and it proves that anything is possible when you put in enough effort.
You can start watching one of the best players right away...
"We need to see more tournaments"
Q: Beyond your top-of-the ladder results, you’ve also performed strongly in a number of the tournaments we have so far. What was your favorite tournament so far, and why?
Alicia: I’m sure no one would be surprised by this answer. My favorite tournament would obviously be the Rivals Launch Celebration tournament. Can you blame me? Lol It was super fun to participate in and super fun to watch on top of it!
Alicia Destiny at the Rivals Launch Celebration
Q: Speaking about tournaments, how would you structure Best-of-5 / Best-of-7 rules so that we see both the skill of the players showing, and diversity in maps and decks used? E.g. fixed mapsets vs. loser’s choice? Forcing to play both factions or not? Allowing only the loser of a map to adjust decks, or grant both full freedom?
Alicia: I would structure those tournaments with set maps. I strongly dislike the loser picks map format as the “loser” can always pick maps in which they practiced hardcore on and had specific decks prepared for it. I want both players to be on an equal footing when talking about tournaments. Forcing people to play both both factions wouldn’t be a bad idea as it’ll keep the tournaments from being boring and seeing one faction be played more than the other. I definitely don’t think there should be a restriction on decks used.. People should be allowed to play whatever they want to play.
Q: What would be your advice for both Redwood and/or the community: What would make tournaments and events great for both the top players, and casual players who like to watch / follow such events?
Alicia: Bottom line is we need to see more events, and the viewerbase needs to be substantially larger. There is not enough energy going around for the esports scene and there needs to be for a competitive mobile game like Rivals to survive.
AliciaDestiny's take on balance
Q: Do you think the latest balance patch went into the right direction? What would be one buff and one nerf that you’d really like the devs to strongly consider?
Alicia: I would definitely say so. I really enjoy seeing 5 out of 6 units in my deck get nerfed… I love how I have to level up new units to try out instead as both my decks no longer work as well as they used too… I LOVE IT!! Thank you KyleF and Nivmett for contributing to ending my reign of terror as the forever rank 1 player on the leaderboards… I’M NOT SALTY IN THE SLIGHTEST !!
Jokes aside... I want to see a buff to the recently nerfed Rhino/Buggy, I don’t really care what it is but something needs to happen.
Also, I want to see every unit that costs 10 tiberium to be nerfed in some way as I believe Riflemen, Militants, War dogs, and Cyberwheels are all way too good and are a must in every single deck. I know I didn’t specify a nerf, but those 4 units all need nerfed and I don’t know what to suggest.
Q: Is there a deck that you’d love to play, but don’t because it’s not fully viable at your high level?
Alicia: Nope, I would say my favorite deck to play is the deck I’m known for the most; the 1-3-2 Nod Inferno Phantoms.
Q: There are some voices who think it’s a sign of imbalance if a certain unit like the Scorpion tank is used in a large number of decks. Would you agree and say a goal should be that most units see regular play at high level? Or do you think it’s okay if there’s a set of core units that most decks include, with playstyles differentiating around a few additional key units?
Alicia: I would strongly disagree. In games where you create a deck, or a lineup of units/cards before the game starts, there tends to be a lot of “netdecking”. What that means is that people usually see what the best of the best play in either tournaments or on ranked ladder and try it out for themselves. If it works for the best why wouldn’t it work for me right? Monkey see, monkey do! Obviously I’d say units with abnormally high win rates need toning down as opposed to units that are used the most. In the end, you cannot control what players use in their decks so frequency shouldn’t be a (huge) factor to determine balance.
Q: Alicia, thank you so much for this interview! Any other messages you’d like to get out to the Rivals community?
A: Keep following your dreams and one day they’ll come true!
Follow AliciaDestiny
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