How does this change of players occurred in Titan?
 
NiaK: First, as you ask me this question, I want to clarify something really important about the team’s functioning. On the team, unlike what I’ve read everywhere, these are not the players who initiate the roster changes and who create the team. This responsibility is shared by the management and I, Kevin and the players are integrated in the process but the decision is ours.

To come back on the making of these changes, after our elimination in Cologne, I had a long talk with Titan’s management and we concluded that it was necessary to restructure the team. The most pertinent thing to do seemed to release Eddy and Adil and make an offer to Maniac and apEX. We were going on holidays for a week and wanted to use this time to take some distance and take a decision when we came back.

Then, at the beginning of the week I called Nathan to explain him the decision we wanted to make, and he seemed to agree with it but asked for time to think this through. Later, I called Kenny for the same reasons, and despite his strong affinities with Adil, he shared our opinion about the changes. At the same time, I heard by an anonymous source that a team was being created by Nathan. Kenny confirmed me this was true, after having declined an offer he received from them. Two days later, Nathan and Eddy contacted me to plan a meeting at which they told me they wanted to leave the team. In the meantime, I decided to contact apEX and Maniac. After a few hours of reflexion, they decided to take a step further and to find the missing player… everybody agreed on KQLY.

This is when you found out everything on VaKarM. We still haven’t spoken to KQLY, neither we had contacted LDLC or informed our staff and partners. I would have liked things to be different, but VaKarM did its job, and I don’t blame them for this.

Why choosing Maniac, apEX and KQLY and why not shox, Happy or Kioshima?
 
NiaK: Maniac and Ex6TenZ share a lot of common ground, including their vision of a team and the mentality with which to approach such a project. They complement one another and will use this to be more efficient both individually and for the team.

Gaming-wise, Dan and Mani are both actively implied in the communication and the strategic decisions. With only a few hours of training, we can already feel the positive effects. Add to this the freshness and the outstanding capacities of Kenny and Hovik and we have, I think, a well-balanced team who can achieve big things.

Beyond in game homogeneity, the mindset and the personalities of every played were decisive aspect in our choice. This trio seems to be the one which will work on the long term with Kevin and Kenny.

The end of an era

Could you tell us more about what motivated this trio to join the team despite the good dynamic they had with Team-LDLC?
 
apEX: To be honest, this choice was certainly the most difficult of my carrier. After having achieved a great season with LDLC and results going better, I took the decision to leave the boat… A lot of you asked me why I did this, and I will explain myself to you. 

First of all, you have to know this is not a question of money, as LDLC made a counter offer to Titan’s proposition. My first question was concerning the game: “can this line-up be better than the one we already have?” The answer to this question was essential for me to take a decision… And I think that with a strong personality such as Kevin, who works hard for the team, and an outstanding sniper like kennyS, I was convinced at 1000% that this team could fill the flaws we had with LDLC and make this team the best I have ever played with. With LDLC we were missing a real "leader", someone one step ahead of us… Happy is a great superstratcaller and a great player, but in this role, he wasn’t the best. Vincent has an individualistic side which makes him a great player, but this limits him as a leader.

Organization-wise, Titan has a lot of assets like Jérôme who works really hard for the team. The manager is essential for the team, and I know this because I had part of these responsibilities with LDLC… which was bothering me as it took a lot of time… The communication between the players is one of the great assets of Titan, and it’s an essential factor for a team to succeed on the long term.

You might have the impression that I question a lot of things about my former team and organization, but I really enjoyed the months I spent with them and all the moments we shared… with Cologne as defining moment! A big thanks to LDLC, Vincent and Kevin for all of this, I wish them the best.

This is the end of a chapter in your respective careers, how do you live this change?
 
Ex6TenZ: I am currently very happy about it. When shox left, we had big problems of homogeneity inside the team. With three good but really individualistic players, and Eddy who wasn’t always at his best form… I don’t say this to bash him, believe me, I like him. By the way, I think he is one of the most underrated players in Europe. He has a lot of assets to bring in a team.

We found ourselves in a situation where we had to play two times more than our opponents to achieve the same productivity. The homogeneity has been our biggest issue even though there were other problems… It was time for all of us to breathe.

On a personal point of view, the new version of Titan is kind of a godsend team to me. I never would have believed that KQLY, Mani and apEX would accept to join us. They are players who fit me both humanly and in the game. To be totally honest to those who know me, it’s been a long time I wanted to play with Maniac. I had some issues in the past with Dan but behind his big temper, he is a truly kind person who is important in the game. He managed to show the impact he could have in a team with LDLC, I have a lot of respect for what he achieved. And then there is KQLY and kennyS, the two ultra-performing players. This is the new breath I needed!

I think we are all on the same page and I think we have the required qualities to be on a constant evolution. To be honest, I am really confident about the long term. This team might be less appealing than the others on the paper, but I really like it ;)

Maniac: I will try to be the most honest possible. When Jérôme contacted me for this project, I felt euphoric at first. Why? Because I knew directly that it was the opportunity I had so long awaited, and that it was probably the last step of my career. After all the excitement and enthusiasm, I had to think this through and to evaluate the situation, as we were in a good dynamic with LDLC and everything was going well with the team. I had to choose between two opposite ideas: either following my instinct and trying to play with Titan, or playing it safe and staying with LDLC. When I realised the morning after that my will to join Titan was still as strong as the day before, I realised I had to try my chance.

It’s not a secret for anyone that after I left Crystal-Serv on CS:Source back in 2014, I have been tested one month in VeryGames when NBK didn’t knew if he still wanted to play. After a rather conclusive test, they decided to continue with Nathan (which was the best solution at that time). Nonetheless, I experienced with this test a new way of working which was really close to the way I see Counter-Strike.

Kévin and I have a similar approach to the way a team should behave to be at its best level, and the opportunity to play with this team arrived, I knew that if everyone tried hard enough and do the right efforts, we would have no limits. I am not scared to say that if we keep questioning ourselves regularly for the team, we can aim at the first place. This is a big challenge for us, a long term challenge. We have all the tools we need to succeed. If I look at the 5 players, I see raw talent, reflexion, determination, desire, calm and maturity. We will have to be the best in our domain and to coordinate our strengths and weaknesses. If we work rigorously I’m convinced it will pay out. And this will be the last step of my career, whether it lasts 6 months or 5 years!

A turning point in Maniac's carrer

Could you please explain to us the new Titan setup today? How do you manage playing with two snipers? Who will help Ex6TenZ with the lead?
 
Ex6TenZ: It’s sure we can’t always play with two snipers, and kennyS will be the main AWPer. KQLY has to work hard on rifling, and he might not be very performing right away. He has a lot of qualities, he thinks about the interest of the team before all, he is mature, perseverant, and curious, is a good listener and is motivated… I have no doubt he will manage to adapt his style. From the our first practice he didn’t hesitated to point out the problems and asked us to adapt his placement for him to be more at ease.

The advantage? We will be strong. The disadvantage? A lot of you will say I restrain my players.
To conclude with: It’s been 6 years now that my only interest is the team and it will never change. We are 5 players to help each other out. Every player is as important as the other.
 
ESWC is coming soon, and probably a new major in a few months. How do you train? Will you attend a lan before these events? What are your short, middle and long term goals?
 
Maniac: For now, we are training on a regular yet reduced basis because I am in internship for my Master degree, and it takes a lot of my time and energy. From next week, I will work part-time, and have more free time for the team. The agenda is full of events by the end of the season, and we have to juggle with various goals. On the short term, we have to find our method of training, to establish the bases and to figure out how we want to play our sides on each and every map. For this, a few pracc are enough to see if the coherence is here or not.

On the middle-term, we need to create new strategies to go with our basics. These strategies will be used as "Jokers" during big matches. Then, on a long term, we need to adapt our game to the one of our opponents, which we can’t really do right now as we are still building the foundations.

Regarding the tournaments, we can’t focus only on the results but on the way the team works under stress and competition. Even if our participations are not confirmed yet, there will be at least 6 lans before the end of the year (DreamHack Stockholm, ESEA, StarSeries, ESWC, DreamHack Winter, Faceit....) which is a really tight schedule.

As I said it before, we will need to watch at our short term result with distance to achieve big in the long term. Whether we win or we lose, the important thing is to understand WHY, in order to face the problems we have. The only goal (as far as I’m concerned) will be the following: never make the same mistake twice at two different events, to always improve, tournament after tournament.
 
To finish with, the last words are for you.
 
KQLY: A big thank you to LDLC for these 6 months of joy and the results which were always getting better. Thank you to MoMaN for supporting us and for the good moments at the two major events. Thank you to Titan for trusting us and doing all they can to help us achieve our goals. To finish with, shout out to the night owls  who watch my stream on the evening and who enjoy it ;)