James ‘Kaelaris’ Carrol is a British caster for ESL and mousesports. He casted big tournaments like IEM Cologne, ASUS ROG, WCS Europe / South America Finals and the Iron Squid 2 European Qualifier. Although he is a very busy look-a-like of Boromir (Lord of the Rings), Kaelaris made some time to reply to my questions about his casting history, eSports and more.

In April you tweeted that you were going to cover the TeSL (Taiwanese StarCraft League) for the English audience. What happened then and are there any plans to cover the TeSL in the future?

Kaelaris: You might want to take a look at the date that tweet was sent out. Indeed it was tweeted in April on a very specific day!

On a serious note though I really do hope that in the future TeSL brings their tournaments and leagues to an English crowd, even if it's just by incorporating community streams. They're a part of the world that very little is really known about in terms of SC2 really, quite like China and their play styles for example. It would be extremely interesting, to me at least, to have a little look into their scene.

You recently casted a Best of 69 between FXO.BabyKnight and GL.Snute. What gave you the idea to do this?

Kaelaris: I was actually not the one to come up with the idea. BabyKnight and Snute have a very interesting bromance going on and they approached me to do some casting for it. Initially I said "Ok, I’ll see how much of it I can do", but it got to a point where I just didn't feel anymore fatigue, regardless of how poor my casting eventually got after the first 40 or so games. We had backup casters ready to go but I think they went to sleep before I’d even finished my stint.

I’ve seen you cast a lot on your own but also with some well-known casters like Artosis and Tasteless but also players like Grubby. Who have you casted with and who was your favorite pairing so far?

Kaelaris: I've only really ever had the opportunity at events to cast alongside the duo of Tastosis, never actually with one of them, but you’re right: I’ve pretty much cast with 90% of the biggest names in SC2 casting right now. Honorable mentions will certainly have to go to the likes of Apollo and Day9. In the case of Apollo I think when working together, having that double Brit combo for both analytical and play-by-play elements really bounces off one-another well. Whereas the latter, Day9, it was just a real pleasure working with him in general and would relish the opportunity to do so again, which I believe we actually will be doing during the Iron Squid 2.

Right now though, I would have to say that my favorite person to cast with is Grubby. I don't consider myself a funny guy or a funny caster, and I believe it to be my biggest weakness right now. However, when casting with Grubby, I think our happy personalities really work in tandem with each other, and I feel the duo just meshes so very well. Any chance I get to cast with the Grubster is something I will rarely turn down.

Are you looking for a permanent co-caster or will you keep casting on an individual basis?

Kaelaris: I would say that I am yes, however it's difficult for me since I have a very precise outlook on what I would actually want in a co-caster. For me it's really important for me to have the analytical conversations mid-cast even if I’m not the superior in knowledge. As such if or when I eventually strike upon my ideal, permanent co-caster, it's likely going to be either an ex-pro or someone who is playing at least at Masters level, who can also bring the excitement and hype.

How did you get into casting?

Kaelaris: Well, a long story that can be pretty much summed up by saying, I had very little to do in a country where the language barrier was brutal. Most people come into SC2 casting and are of the opinion that A. It's difficult to get into the higher levels, technically true, but also B. They're not sure HOW to actually get there step by step. So perhaps I had a long time to think about it, but for me, finding that route to the next level was pretty straight forward in my head. I started on YouTube and once I felt I had enough experience I then began to ask around tournament organizers, using my YouTube as sort of a Portfolio, a CV being the real life equivalent I guess. From there I just worked my way up the Streaming ladder, getting to know more and more people where I could, integrating myself into the circles required to finally break through. People that really helped me out here are CSN, mouz, Petri of the ASUS ROG tournaments in Finland, Khaldor and last but certainly not least, Mr. Bitter.

Do you want to keep on casting for as long as possible or is there something else you would like to do eventually?

Kaelaris: For me this is something I worked on extremely hard in a very condensed period of time. Despite going to University to do Business and Law, I always wanted to do something in Gaming but felt shoehorned into taking up something more "stable" in conventional thought. Regardless, I’m here now and I hope it never ends. It's a dream job to me, and I intend to be here for the long term, and will work as hard as I did before to retain this position.

There are some things i'd like to do eventually. Right now I’m pretty jealous of Genna and TB for starting their own team. I'd like to eventually take a stab at being involved in a team on a higher level than just a caster. I'd like to perhaps have a hand in designing a game sometime. I understand everyone says that and I also understand that I think i'd need to accrue some more wisdom before I launch myself into such a task.

What do you think of the current position of eSports in comparison to normal sports (think media coverage etc.)?

Kaelaris: It would be hard to say that eSports right now is sitting up there with the other recreational activities in terms of popularity or coverage, however there's certainly no reason that eSports cannot attain such a level if the general consensus of people were to get past their stereotypical outlook upon gamers and gaming. I personally think it's a generation thing. As time goes on, it's not existing people adopting and accepting eSports, it's literally just as more people are born, they're introduced to this kind of thing from a younger age, and thus accept it, as opposed to older people who have an extremely hard time accepting it. To be fair this view is subjective. My parents/family were very skeptical of Gaming as a career, hence why I took up Business and Law at university, however since they've had a glimpse into my world, they're much more accepting, especially my mum who watches everything I do. Again though, this is a special case.

So to summarize: I feel eSports will take perhaps another generation to REALLY take off, but being around at the "ground floor" is certainly a lot of fun.

What are your goals when it comes to casting and working in eSports?

Kaelaris: Sadly for me at least, I think I set myself too many goals and end up getting annoyed at myself for not achieving them. Yes I have many, but the main ones are to try attaining the highest position in Casting, which can be difficult, but also to further myself as a caster and tell the stories that deserve telling for the gamers. I guess just furthering eSports as a whole is a goal i'd love to try achieving, but again this is one of those that are difficult to quantify.

Is there anything you would like to tell our readers?

Kaelaris: Thank you for having me for this interview :) Thank you to ESL for supporting my endeavors. Please go follow me at Kaelaris on Twitter/Facebook/YouTube/Twitch - as well as catch all my casts over at ESLtv.