The 4-Time Hall of Famer

By MartyB

​When the Hall of Fame committee considers a nomination, they usually focus on a single series to sell them on the induction. THLers tend to shine in a specific series more than others, as each series is tailored to different skill sets and provides distinct challenges to its players. Occasionally, however, a player is so great that their play in multiple series makes them a lock in the eyes of the  Hall of Fame committee. These players tend to focus on only two series, or are seen dabbling in other series while mimicking their success from their preferred series in a low sample set of matches. One player, however, bucked the trend in the eyes of the committee. Nejiboston may be the only player to ever be considered for his play across every series hosted in THL today.

Neji and I sat down together to discuss some of his experiences in THL and how he looks back on it to this day. The purpose of this piece isn’t solely to focus on how Neji felt during his time in THL, but to highlight the versatility of a player that’s had so many experiences with so many players throughout the league. No other player has seen as much diversity, adversity, and success all at once within THL. His times in each series are stories that stand on their own. Each one deserves individual recognition for the accomplishments they represent.
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​Neji’s start in THL, unsurprisingly, wasn’t his first foray into competitive gaming. Back in 2019, he played in a community league known as Aspirant. There, he met Dragonrider, now also a staple of the THL community. “She was a caster for [Aspirant] and she casted one of my games in late 2019.” The two quickly connected and founded their own esports team, Amber Flight Gaming. “[Dragonrider] reached out to me at the start of 2020 to see if I wanted to join her esports team. I ended up being the first member of AFG.”

Now a duo, the two wanted to expand into leagues more accommodating for groups of players. Aspirant was strictly for singles, making it difficult for friends to prep and play together. THL, however, fit the bill.
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“It was at the start of Ashes of Outland, when Demon Hunter was released. It was also when the pandemic hit and everyone was on lockdown and stuck in their homes,” Neji recalls. “I played on AFG Legacy for 3 seasons (Ashes/Scholomance/Darkmoon).”

Amber Flight Gaming joined THL that year to middling results, but Neji made his name known. A 21-4 match record that year turned heads across the league. His PR quickly skyrocketed, placing him among the best to ever play. Neji, however, wasn’t going to settle for only Legacy. He expanded into multiple other series that year, writing a storyline worthy of the Hall of Fame in each individual series. From this point, each of the following sections is dedicated to a different series Nejiboston took part in.

Legacy

​If you ask anyone in THL where they know Nejiboston from, they’ll probably mention Legacy. His time with Amber Flight Gaming was where he first made some noise, but after that first year of play, Neji moved on to other teams. How that came to be is a story in itself.

​In Spring of 2021, THL’s OctaTHLon event took place. 8-player teams competed in a massive tournament featuring 8 different formats, one for each player on a team to participate in. Amber Flight Gaming had chosen to pass on the event, leaving Neji to find a new group of players to join. It was here that Nejiboston met Diamond.

Huit Faux Diamants, Diamond and Neji’s team, only managed a single bronze metal from the event, but the seeds were planted for a strong friendship. “We started chatting a ton after that and realized we both lived in Canada and were only 2hrs apart too, so that connection brought us closer together. We teamed together for the first time on Clownstone Academy in Legacy Season 20.” Clownstone Academy finished its season 7-3 after losing in the quarterfinal, but the two continued to play together for another two seasons. Neji’s record across this time was 18-12, culminating in a championship in Season 22. Diamond and Neji had won their first of several ‘ships together.

​After season 22, the two went their separate ways in Legacy. Neji continued to play under the Clowns moniker he began and managed another Legacy championship in Season 23. Once again, he led the way as the team’s 1 seed, managing a dominant 7-2 match record. Season 25 then saw the return of Amber Flight Gaming as well. This time, the team made noise with an 8-2 season record, led once again by Nejiboston’s 6-3 score.

​By the time all was said and done, Neji boasted an absurd 78-29 record across 12 seasons of Legacy. Today, he’s the only player with a Legacy PR above 1200. Two championships and a record that would make any opposing player nervous make Neji’s time in Legacy alone worthy of a 30 for 30 writeup. Neji still has plenty more to offer, however. His tale isn’t over just yet.

Hero

Neji’s time in Hero showed that even the best in THL are human. His first season came after his time with Amber Flight Gaming in Legacy. Servants of Yogg-Saron had an average performance in Hero Season 14, but Neji was his usual self with a 6-2 record. Neji would start to slip the first time the following season on the legendary AskHS, finishing “only” 5-6.  Following that, he joined F2L: Black, his third team in three seasons. Neji was already struggling to find his footing in Hero after a successful first season, but the series was only starting to truly test his resolve.

​The F2L: Black era was a time of extreme struggle for Neji. A 5-8 record the first season was already a difficult pill to swallow. The following season was even worse: 1-9. His 16-29 record was the worst among 1 seeds and the 5th worst among everyone who played 5 or more Hero matches that season. To say this was unlike the Nejiboston everyone knew at this point was an understatement. Something had gone terribly wrong.

Most players would give up after a season like Neji’s, but Hall of Famers don’t quit that easily. Neji returned with a new team, this time captained by Nineeyebrows, and managed a triumphant return to form. His 9-2 record propelled the team all the way to a Hero Championship. After struggling with Hero for a year, Nejiboston was rewarded with the highest honor possible.

​A few more average seasons followed the championship as Neji jumped from one team to the next. One year after his first win in Hero, however, the stars would align once again. Neji teamed up with the aforementioned Diamond to create a superteam in Hero Season 21: Let Them Cook. After barely making playoffs with a 3-4 record, the club managed to win their way to a championship, making Diamond and Nejiboston reigning champions together once more.
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Two championships and a 49-49 record (despite a 1-9 season)  in arguably the most competitive era in Hero Series history as a 1 seed is a distinction others in THL would happily accept as their own if they could. Neji’s performance and leadership in Hero show that perseverance through the toughest seasons isn’t just a feat of character, but also a trait that only the best THLers could ever showcase. 

Pro

​If you were to ask Neji what his favorite THL series is, Pro would be his answer. “Pro [seasons] are some of my best memories in THL,” he recalled. His first season there would come with AEON during Scholomance. AEON was commonly known as “the Board team,” with 4 members sitting on the THL Board. “Fuck AEON” was a common riff as a result. Despite all of this, Neji’s time with AEON was a fond memory for him. “I never fully understood the ‘fuck AEON’ [slogan], but figured it was some sort of inside joke from the past so [I] didn't really care.” Having a supportive cast at the time helped when Neji was first starting out. “Everyone was super nice to me on the team. I had a rough start on AEON going 2-4 and was a bit down on myself and felt like I wasn't good enough to be on this Board Member team, but they reassured me that it happens to everyone and they were happy to have me. [I] went 5-0 after that and finished the season 7-4.” Don’t ask Neji what AEON stands for though. He claimed to still have no idea.

Neji’s time on AEON only lasted one season, as our Hall of Famer was destined for greater things in this series. The following season, he paired up with someone who became one of his closest friends in Nails. The Clown franchise, now established in Pro, made a deep run to the semifinals. The series championship was in sight, but Neji and co. couldn’t quite get there yet. As we’ve learned from other series, however, Neji was never one to quit too early.

​Season 6 was a retool of sorts for the Neji-led Clowns. Two players had left, making space for reigning Pro Series champions Germanshep and SuperChicken to join. Despite the additions, the team failed to impress. A 4-4-1 record was far below the expectations Neji had set on his roster. After being hyped up at the start of the seasons, the Clowns were leaving empty-handed and disappointed.

Season 7 would have to turn things around if Neji was going to make a name for himself in Pro. Little did anyone know, however, that it was going to be the start of a dynasty. Neji had adopted more pieces from Diamond’s teams, creating a For The Boys/Clowns amalgamation, For The Clowns. The team cruised to a Pro Championship, giving Neji his first award in the series.

​Diamond returned to his For The boys moniker the following season, winning a championship in the process. That wasn’t going to stop Neji from continuing his dominance in Pro, however. Neji turned to friends he had made from Masters Tour tournaments, including multiple Hearthstone Grandmasters like Lambyseries and Eggowaffle. Clowns secured back-to-back Pro Series championships in Seasons 9 and 10 with the help of Neji and his stacked rosters. In total, 5 Grandmasters (CaelesLuna, Pascoa, Bankyugi, Eggowaffle, and lambyseries) played alongside Neji during his dynasty run. No other team could claim that level of skill presented in Pro at the time.

After winning 3 championships in 4 seasons, Neji’s teams took a step back in Pro. Their records were always among the best, and Neji himself always had a strong performance, but the teams could never find a way to recreate the magic of the previous seasons. It wasn’t until Season 14 that Neji would have the opportunity to win it all once more.

​This time, Diamond and Neji would team up in Pro for one final run together. The Last Dance succeeded with one of the most dominant performances in Pro Series history. Neji held the 1 seed while AgentPWE and D0nkey followed below him with 9-1 records. 10 straight wins earned them another championship together. Neji now had 4 Pro championships to his name.
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​In between all of this, there’s one more ‘ship that Neji also managed to win: an EU Pro Series championship. The series was small, but it was just as competitive as traditional Pro Series had been. Multiple Grandmasters were found here, like Judgement and Rami94 (who unsurprisingly teamed up with Nejiboston here as well). Once again, Neji’s connections and hand in roster creation led to a series win to etch his name in THL history. No matter the region, Neji was among the best.

Wild

Legacy wasn’t the only series Neji started out with. The Wild Series was underway with its inaugural Alpha season during Ashes of Outland. Teams played with rosters of 3 and Neji was mainly looking to get his foot in the door. “I joined Bitbeaker’s team (he was on AFG at the time),” Neji states. The final player to round out that roster was Volkai, a member that old timers will remember for their influence throughout THL. The team missed playoffs, but Neji’s 6-1 record caught the eyes of others playing in the series.

Itachi reached out in the offseason to recruit him to the infamous F2L: Viridian for season 1 of Wild. Neji was dominant once more, finishing 8-3 and winning a coveted championship that season. The team would go on to win 2 more championships with him, securing his place as one of the winningest players in Wild history.

Normally, a player of Neji’s caliber would be a leader on a team like F2L. However, Neji took a different role within the series unlike any other he had occupied in THL. Being primarily focused on standard tournaments, Neji didn’t have the time to practice and build lineups in Wild the way he did in other series. This meant relying both on fellow team members and learned intuition to win matches most weeks. The team had plenty of skill and knowledge to provide lineups, but a fundamental understanding of how to play those decks, as well as how to navigate certain matchups, couldn’t be passed on as easily. Neji’s ability to adapt to any strategy here was a boon to the team. He became the perfect complementary player to round out an already stacked roster. 

​This isn’t to say that Neji didn’t enjoy his position on Viridian either. As Neji states, “[the] vibes were immaculate.” He would often brag to fellow teammates about owning the “5 seed throne” where he could dominate matchups. The team also felt a level of comfort knowing that they could rely on Neji getting a win if anyone else slipped up on a given week. The pressure taken off from a single match knowing that a fellow teammate has a win in the bag cannot be understated. It allowed the others to take risks where they wouldn’t otherwise, and more often than not, those risks paid off. More importantly, it added to the calm and laidback atmosphere that became a trademark of Viridian’s. Neji may not have been the leader at the helm, but he was a core component in creating the winning culture that Viridian is known for today.  

3 Wild Series championships later, Viridian's 5 seed had done everything one could set out to do in the format. Nejiboston had become ingrained in Wild history as one of the winningest THLers to ever play. The Hall of Fame committee always looks to highlight lower seeds to show that THL is for everyone, but Neji had taken it to another level. His performance breaks the mold for what a 5 seed is expected to achieve in THL and is one that few players will ever have the opportunity to repeat.

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​Neji’s history is an anthology within THL. Dozens of players have had the pleasure of competing alongside him, and yet every single one has a completely different story to share regarding their experiences. No matter where Neji played, however, success always followed. From the highest PR player in Legacy history, to one of Wild and Pro’s winningest champions, to the hardships and challenges faced in Hero on the journey to winning it all, Neji has done everything that one could strive to do in THL. His return in Season 30 after a long hiatus is welcomed by all of the old guard, and one that hopefully brings even more stories for a new era to tell.