During the recent Streamers Battle Dota 2 tournament, we had the opportunity to talk with Vladimir Vovapain Tolmachev, a member of the Stray Team roster. We discussed the tournament, his ban on Twitch, appeals, and his alliance with stray228 against DkFogas. The interview was recorded before the start of the Streamers Battle playoff matches.
— First, I want to congratulate you on taking first place in the group.
— Thank you very much.
— Compared to the previous Streamers Battle, you started very confidently. How much do you think the new players in the roster influenced this result?
— I think, for the better. To be honest, no one knew how they played, who they were.
I was responsible for the roster. I recruited them because the guys were all elsewhere and weren`t really up for it. I ran into some of them in public matches — like lowkez, and Retsu… Geez, his nickname just seemed familiar, and I hadn`t seen him play badly, didn`t know anything bad about him, and thought he was our guy. We took these guys, and they`ve been performing awesomely. Our team is just like that, you know — it`s much easier for a newcomer to fit in than on other teams, because we have healthy relationships in the group, so to speak.
— So, basically, you bet on dark horses.
— Yeah, yeah. Exactly.
— After Streamers Battle 6, you change players in the first and fifth positions every tournament. Why is that? Are you trying to build the ideal roster or find people for the right vibe?
— Well, we lost the tournament, so we looked for new players. Our core remains the same, there are three of us: me, stray228, and DkFogas. I don`t know why people play poorly for us. If we take someone like iLTW into our roster, he picks the wrong aspect on Anti-Mage, takes Pipe of Insight on Terrorblade carry — it`s like something strange happens to them. I don`t know why, what happens to them, they turn into some kind of newcomers. In the end, we change them, kick them out of the team in disgrace, and try to get some normal ones.
— Yeah, iLTW`s joke with the aspect was pretty harsh back then. It`s a pity the game restart strategy didn`t work.
— Yeah, yeah, yeah, it didn`t work, we were a bit unlucky there.
— And why did you switch to position five? You always played with DkFogas and were in the fourth position.
— Well, after a while we realized that when I first played with them in the roster, I played very well, because I had climbed rating back then, and I had suitable heroes for position four — like Grimstroke, and some other favorites, and it worked out fine. But then, after some time, I realized they have a very passive playstyle, DkFogas is afraid to go somewhere unnecessarily, Oleg [stray228] doesn`t want to move from the mid lane at all, and I decided it would be better if I played position five.
— Purely for movements around the map?
— Yes.
— How did you and stray228 connect with DkFogas? Because he fit perfectly into your mood and color, he really complements you.
— I suggested inviting him to hang out with us. I came to Voronezh and found out DkFogas was in Voronezh, and I thought: “Why don`t you invite him then?” And we invited him, and in the end, two hours later, they went to wrestle with Oleg on the sand. That`s how it happened when he arrived. And then they fell asleep together on the same bed.
— So, the person passed your selection?
— Yes, he passed, well, he went through it with blood and sweat.
— And look, when will the next “Booth” [community cast with Vovapain, stray228, TpaBoMaH, and ybicanoobov] happen, should we expect DkFogas there?
— Hmm… No (laughs). See, it`s business, you understand, it`s business, why would he be needed there? He`s like media dust — I don`t need him there. You have to differentiate between real life and business, and here, sorry, there`s nothing to be done. In short, forget it, he won`t be there.
— Do you think this chemistry of yours wouldn`t bring any impact to the stream?
— Yes, I think so… Listen, well, no one knows how it will turn out. Maybe with my ban, he might appear there, but… In short, it`s unclear for now, I don`t know how it will happen. Because “Booth” isn`t just Oleg`s and my project, there are other people behind it too, so we`ll see.
— You`ve recently moved, and now you, stray228, and DkFogas live in the same city. How much more often have you started interacting in real life?
— Every day before games we go out to eat somewhere. But we see each other and talk very often.
— So you have team-building events like that?
— I wouldn`t say it`s team building, we just hang out. Not for team building purposes.
— You only recently moved to Moscow, and now you`ve changed cities again. You said there`s no point in living in Moscow now because of the ban, and in Voronezh you could create some joint content. Was this the reason for the move?
— Well, we haven`t started filming any content yet because the guys went elsewhere for a media poker event. In general, ideally, everything will start only after the Streamers Battle. We`ll be doing something on my channel, starting to film IRL content — I`ll share details about these events later. It just hasn`t happened yet, but I didn`t move for the sake of content. I moved simply so I would have something to do. That is, I was alone in Moscow, I was bored, my friends from school are all from Krasnoyarsk, and the friends I`ve newly acquired, so to speak, live in Voronezh. So I moved to Voronezh, I didn`t want to return to Krasnoyarsk because it`s a long flight, very far away, and Voronezh seems okay, not that far.
— And how do you like the city itself?
— It`s okay for me, honestly, I`m not picky. The only thing is it`s hot, the climate here is mostly hot, and I prefer the cold.
— AC/conditioner helps. And what can you say about the situation with RightRoun? You stood up for him and even wrote in the chat after the win against Stariy_bog Team: “For RightRoun”.
— Honestly, I don`t know this person, haven`t listened to any of his songs. I only know he`s a celebrity who was invited into “Dota”. That is, into our Dota community, so to speak (laughs), which isn`t exactly popular and is often spoken of negatively anyway. I don`t want people to think that way because of some individuals. If a celebrity is invited, and he plays badly… Well, that person isn`t supposed to play well. It`s up to you to talk, explain, help somehow, so that everyone has a good time. It`s cool when collaborations happen, even if it`s not with the most — for me, too — popular rap community and “Dota” (laughs).
They didn`t treat the person very nicely, and I thought… Not that I thought, I just wanted to somehow protect him, express my opinion that you shouldn`t do that, it`s not nice, and that`s it. Simply on a human level, you know, he might free up certain days, tell others that he can`t during these days because he has a tournament, and then they just take him and kick him out — it`s wrong. If the roster is finalized, then that`s it, please, play with him. I can understand if there are some strange incidents, but a kick is something else entirely.
— Tell us, which team in the tournament poses the greatest danger to you?
— Probably Ramzes Team. I think that`s it. Maybe Travoman Team too. We played against others, we won. I sincerely think that VooDooSh`s team can play well. They just somehow decided that everything is very bad for them, but they need to shake off these negative shackles and start playing. I believe Cake is a universal guy, he can play all games well. I believe in him, I believe in Goodoq, in these guys, I also believe in Sanya VooDooSh. I want this team to pull themselves together. As for the others — well, obviously, RAMZES666 has a strong roster. Before the tenth Streamers Battle, everyone highlighted them, but judging by their gameplay when I watched their games, I wouldn`t say they play very well. I think they can be easily beaten.
— Well, are you aiming for victory? After all, it`s the anniversary Streamers Battle.
— I don`t know, we`re just having fun. We do want to win, yes, because we`ve never won before. We actually played the last Streamers Battle with a lower rating, just so you know, because some people are still trying to complain about us. We played with 47 thousand rating when 50 thousand was required, in the last two Streamers Battles. For some reason, no one complained: “Why aren`t you getting 50 thousand rating?” — you understand (laughs)? And now we`ve settled down, gotten into the rating, and started playing. But we are aiming for victory, we want to win. But at the same time, we`re also enjoying ourselves.
— You have a working tactic, the essence of which is banning all of LenaGol0vach`s heroes. However, in the match against Rostik Team, he played his heroes and was simply crushed.
— I don`t know, I don`t like dyrachyo`s roster at all, what he put together. That is, when I saw it, I immediately said that this team is the weakest here. I even placed bets on them, and they made me money. In principle, I`m happy, you understand? But it`s unclear to me — why did they even register for this tournament (laughs)? Just to get beaten? And it`s not really about LenaGol0vach, to be honest. They just registered to lose. In short, pretty much like us in the last two Streamers Battles, but we at least reached the top 4, just so you know, with our roster. That is, it was even more combat-ready, even considering the low MMR.
— And even then, the aspect on Anti-Mage decided the outcome last time.
— Last time — yes, that wasn`t our fault anymore. Someone on carry just ruined it for us there.
— In a previous interview with our site, you said that you don`t have an image on streams and you`re the exact same person in real life. But your communication with Oleg on streams looks somewhat artificial, like an image. Do you communicate differently off-stream?
— No, we communicate exactly like that. Well, look, how it was. We talked like that every day, teased each other, wrote some nonsense, and so on. We even called and talked — and exactly the same way in real life without cameras. Now DkFogas has appeared. And it`s a kind of necessary evil, you understand? We`ve united. We`re trying to guide him. And that`s how it happened, like in Marvel, just the main enemies — in the end they united when some necessity arose.
— Against a common evil. But is DkFogas truly evil, or are you just hardening him?
— We`re hardening him, hardening the person. We`re teaching him about life. I can tell you a story. We went to a pretty expensive restaurant and suggested Fogas play “rock, paper, scissors”, like who pays the bill. In the end, he decided to play because he loves eating with our money — I fed him crab yesterday, for example. He decided to play for it and, naturally, lost. Personally, I didn`t want to put too much burden on the person, I only took 200 grams of Chilean sea bass for 20 thousand rubles. And a couple of oysters there, wine — naturally, with seafood. And Fogas, during all this time, just ordered a side dish, fried potatoes, because he didn`t have enough money left to pay. That`s how we weaned him off greed.
— Generally, that`s right, you`re benefactors of a sort.
— Yes, people don`t understand, they think we do it on purpose, they think we`re mean, you know? But we`re not like that at all.
— You are guiding the person onto the true path. You`re driving out all his sins.
— Of course, ever since he connected with us, he never behaved that way again, he saves money. Well, what about it, Dota players often have problems — I don`t know, they don`t discuss this topic. They sit at the computer, and then they get used to paying. All the pro players who are there — they were all stuck on that kind of behavior, you could say, because they don`t have experience communicating with girls. So, we`re teaching him, teaching him little by little.
— And you, didn`t you have such problems?
— No, never, I was active. I played KVN (a comedy game show), studied at the institute, constantly hosted events at school. I socialized with everyone. I honestly like life more than “Dota”.
— That`s good, because you still need to touch grass sometimes, and it`s also useful to look at the sun. Vitamin D is generally what you need. Well, since you mentioned Dota 2, let`s move on to it. How do you like the latest patches?
— I haven`t read the patch, I don`t even know what exactly they changed, I just run around the map, the map got a bit bigger. It`s uninteresting, boring, I don`t want to play “Dota” at all. I haven`t liked it lately.
— And why do you play?
— Because I have to, it`s just some kind of habit. I haven`t found my game yet that will replace it… Although no, I have found one, I really like Warzone. But it`s boring to play Warzone alone, you know, because they kill you there, some guy is sitting in a house, killed you, and that`s it. It depends on the company, so you have to wait until everyone is free, or team up somehow and play.
— I remember you went to play as a stack after the last Streamers Battle.
— In PUBG, I think, we played back then, during breaks. But that was still PUBG, now “Verdansk” has been returned to Warzone, and we rushed into Warzone.
— Didn`t you hold an auction for a game on stream? Haven`t you thought about doing something similar again? And maybe find something new.
— Yes, I did, Resident Evil 4 won, I played it on hardcore. And that mustachioed guy deceived me, said he played this game on hardcore, but I opened his video on YouTube, and the difficulty was medium there. He says: “I beat this game easy, damn”. I say: “Why are you just outright lying to me, why?”
And I started — you know, a person who hasn`t played any other games besides “Dota” at all — just started the game on hardcore, naturally, I was shaking there, but I beat it gritting my teeth. Well, not exactly gritting my teeth, but some moments were tough — one boss was tough there.
And that`s it, I held a game auction, beat the game on hardcore, that`s it, everyone respected it. Then I launch the next game auction, and I get some tedious “Lara Croft” that`s impossible to play, I don`t know. You know, sometimes you don`t want to let your viewers down, but you also don`t want to force yourself to play something. That`s why my game auctions are quite rare. When I really have the vibe to play some game, and it doesn`t matter what it will be, then I do it, but generally, I don`t want to do what I don`t want to do.
— Haven`t you tried choosing a game yourself?
— But I don`t know what interests me, I can`t choose a game, I just can`t, nothing interests me. It`s true. Maybe I like some cinematic games like Detroit: Become Human. Other than that — I don`t know, simply nothing interests me from games.
— You could ask colleagues for advice to help you pick.
— I can`t, I don`t know, there`s just no interest, I can`t start a game. If it weren`t for movie auctions, I honestly wouldn`t even watch films — films don`t interest me either, I can`t choose which film to watch. I like rewatching old films that I watched before, I don`t chase new ones. If it weren`t for game and movie auctions, I would just be grinding this “Dota”.
— Is there any film from the movie auctions that you really liked?
— “Thursday” from 1998. I hadn`t seen it, hadn`t heard of it anywhere. But when I watched this film, I thought: “Wow, what a great film”. It`s shot somewhat like Tarantino. Such a cool picture.
— Only one?
— Well, that`s the first thing I remembered. I need to look further — I have a doc directly with ratings. And I`ve probably watched about 800 films. I`m not just naming some objectively good pictures, you know, popular ones that are really good. I`m talking specifically about those that I hadn`t come across before but turned out to be worthy cinema.
— Let`s talk about your ban: your last appeal was rejected, and you said you seemed to have a lawyer or someone who understands this stuff…
— No, I didn`t say I have a lawyer, but I have a person who handles these appeals, who is knowledgeable.
For some reason, the appeals so far have been a bit weak. When I saw the appeal, I thought it was somewhat weak, I don`t know. For the next appeal, I`ll involve everyone I have. I somehow… you know, trusted blindly. It`s not putting spokes in the person`s wheels, it`s just… I just decided that.
— No, that`s definitely the right approach — to control it personally. This is an important point because a lot stems from it and is built upon it.
— We could have had so many projects, but because of this ban, it`s like I let everyone down. It`s unpleasant, I apologize to all the viewers.
— Right now Twitch has gone wild and is issuing bans left and right. But considering everything you`ve said, what do you think are the chances of being unbanned in August?
— Honestly, I`m not counting on it. It`s like I`ve already come to terms with it and… Well, it`s not like I`m hoping for the best, you know. What happens, happens, it doesn`t matter to me. I`ll survive both ways. But I will put in maximum effort.
— And finally: do you have a dream right now?
— To make at least one person not from my family happy.
— And who does that apply to? Hypothetically, can a random reader count on this?
— Most likely, it will be a girl.
— How do you plan to make her happy? (Laughs)
— (Laughs) I plan to somehow. These are actually Nikulin`s words — I remembered them when I had dark times, so to speak, and chose this as a goal. I felt it suited me if I didn`t see the meaning of life and little interested me. I think every person in this world can set such a goal for themselves, and everything will be great for everyone.
— That`s a cool dream, not selfish, that`s strong. But would you be ready to break your rules to make someone happy, and for example, say, perform cunnilingus?
— Phew, phew, phew, phew, phew, no-no-no, that`s without me. It`s like, I just don`t need to do that. Women already take time off work after me because they can`t walk. She says it`s like lightning struck her. You don`t even need a tongue there, you know?
— So, in any case, there are some limitations on the path to another person`s happiness?
— Well, we`ll talk, we`ll talk, you need to talk there, the main thing in relationships is conversation.
— That`s right, of course, everything should always be discussed, and everything should be 50/50.
— Well, I won`t do that, you can write that.
— It`ll go in the headline, as a quote.
— Your headlines are like that — when I see news about myself, it becomes scary.
— Well, I`ve written a lot of news about you…
— (Laughs) Well, thank God.
— Because I believe people should know their heroes. Otherwise, they only write about people like dyrachyo and Yatoro…
— Thank you very much. Legends need to be revealed, that`s a fact.