Interview with Erik “Bloodx” Guttormsen - The world’s best Fortnite coach
Bloodx acts as a mentor and coach for several elite Fortnite players. Among his impressive list of current and previous players are IDrop, Krizzii, TaySon, Kami, Setty, Queasy, Jur3ky, pinq, Anas, Clix and Eomz0. The results speak for themselves - in aggregate these hold about 10 FNCS wins per August 2022 - probably making him the best Fortnite coach there is.
Bloodx played a key role as my son Martin “MrSavage” Foss Andersen’s breakthrough in professional Fortnite esports in late 2018. He takes a direct approach and is not afraid of challenging his elite players.
This interview originally appeared in 2021 in the book Build It Like benjyfishy & MrSavage: The Unofficial Fortnite Esports Guide for Players and Parents, written by Anne Fish and me. I interviewed him while he still worked as a mentor and Fortnite head coach at Apeks, a Norwegian esports organisation.
Bloodx in his Apeks jersey, during the period he was mentor and Fortnite head coach at Apeks. Photo credit BetongFilm.
What brought you to the position you have today?
Bloodx: ‘I’ve always been extremely competitive and grew up playing football, FIFA and a lot of World of Warcraft (WoW). I was top ranked in Europe in WoW during my teenage years but my parents didn’t allow me to play competitions, so I empathise with any young players in the same situation. When Fortnite launched in 2017 I fell in love with the game. I was probably among the first professional players to work hard at the game from a deep strategic perspective.’
How did you meet Martin?
Bloodx: ‘I saw Martin in July 2018 when he was streaming solo custom games and I instantly noticed his mechanical skills. We started chatting on Discord and I was delighted when I found out that he also was Norwegian. A week later he won a Solo Showdown tournament (a limited time game mode) and we eventually decided to play duos together. Playing duos with him gave me the opportunity to teach him the importance of strategical out-of-the-box thinking.’
Martin meeting Bloodx for the first time IRL in Trondheim, Norway, in December 2018. Photo credit Johnny Troset Andersen.
“Bloodx opened up my eyes to the creative and strategical side of Fortnite and he was essential in helping me reach some of my potential.”
How do you select the players you work with?
Bloodx: ‘I say no to most requests from players as I only want to work with the best EU pro players – what I call elite pro players. These players have the winning mentality necessary to progress on a steady learning curve, and they really want to put in the hours to get to the top level. Since EU is the largest Fortnite region, there is likely that these players are at a top level globally.’
What characterises an elite player?
Bloodx: ‘They are extremely intuitive in how they approach situations, and are fast and keen learners. They quickly get to the core of problems as they have the ability to correct things proactively, when most other players don’t even realize that they are about to run into a problem in-game. They have a good memory of past situations, they think and react fast which is necessary to analyse all options in complex surroundings.’
How do you work with players at that level?
Bloodx: ‘I start out with establishing a clear structure of how to play the game and a routine for the player to strictly follow until they master it. This is needed to avoid wasting time on unnecessary considerations during a game. After all, Fortnite is among the fastest paced games there is. A prerequisite is that the player is ready and has faith in my process and abilities. There is a difference between asking for help and being ready for help.’
And how do you build on this foundation as a coach?
Bloodx: ‘When the players master the routine and structure, they can start making it their own. Fortnite players are exposed to an unimaginable high number of different scenarios in-game. The way I approach this is to help players to learn not only by analysing past games, but to learn how to foresee as much as possible while in-game. It is perhaps this ability that makes TaySon and MrSavage among the best players in the world.’
How do you teach players this?
Bloodx: ‘I need to work with players one-on-one and spend a lot of time with each one of them to adjust their gameplay. And not only in hours but also over time periods of months and preferably years. This is why I can’t work with more than a few players at a time. I don’t spend time on what players can do themselves – they need to learn by doing, even the simplest of tasks.’
The media sometimes present elite players in traditional sports as arrogant individuals who think they know it all. Is that the same in Fortnite?
Bloodx: ‘Elite players are of course strong headed with a winner mentality and not afraid of sharing their opinion. But you will not get to the absolute top if you don’t listen to criticism. I’m a straight talker and I tell them exactly what I think they do wrong and what they need to improve. I focus on their weaknesses, which are mostly in-game qualities but also things outside the game. I think it is essential that these players meet some pushback on their weak sides. This sometimes develops into heated debates but it is these situations, more often than not, when the real progress takes place. Don’t get me wrong, of course I support my players, but on an elite level the focus is different. One needs to challenge the players in various creative ways to bring out the best in them. In doing this one feels manipulative and crazy at times – but I strongly think this is needed. It is all about winning and not being carried by a well-meaning friend.’
How intense do the ‘heated debates’ get?
Bloodx: ‘Quite intense at times! That’s why we put some distance between us once in a while – both in time and space. Now and then it gets to the point that we are so fed up with each other that we don’t speak for days and even weeks.’
Do you decide your players’ playstyle?
Bloodx: ‘I challenge them with my views, which makes them re-evaluate and improve their own playstyle. A players’ style is an expression of their innate qualities and I don’t want to take that away from them. I just want to improve on their weaknesses and make them the best version of themselves - capable of learning and winning consistently – as a solo or a trio, or in whatever game mode.’
Do you also advise on players out-of-game routines such as nutrition, sleep etc?
Bloodx: ‘Fortnite has only been around for a few years and I think as the competitive environment matures we will see the importance of these aspects increase. Fortnite tournaments typically last for nearly 3.5 hours and you sometimes play two of them in one day. It goes without saying that a top player needs to work out physically, get enough regular sleep and eat properly.’
Does the young age of fortnite players pose a problem?
Bloodx: ‘I’m tempted to answer a straight yes. It is of course a question of maturity. You can’t expect players at thirteen years of age to be mature. But what you can expect is to be treated with respect as a mentor and coach, and through this give the young players enough leeway to mature over time. But it feels like parenting at times, where participants in discussion groups don’t respect and appreciate my experience and results.
Hopefully books like this can increase awareness and make players and parents aware of what it takes to compete and win.’
What is the difference between a mentor and a coach?
Bloodx: ‘In my opinion coaching is about guidance toward clear goals, while mentoring is about sharing a wider range of skills and experience. Mentoring is more long term and I would love for my players to be able to pass it on to the next generation of players.’
What would your advice be to young aspiring fortnite coaches?
Bloodx: ‘I’ve seen some Fortnite coaches that simply don’t know their game well enough. I think it is a clear advantage to have played and studied the game for thousands of hours. Since the game is still quite new, there isn’t many well-structured courses and textbooks yet. I think a coach needs to have played on a high pro level to make a significant difference for their players.’
Any advice for aspiring pro players?
Bloodx: ‘You need to be quite tough with yourself to win. At some point not everything is fun anymore – you need to set goals and be honest with yourself. Take a look around – there are few that actually succeed as top athletes in any sports and even fewer that are able to stay at the top over time. But the most important thing is to be curious and keep learning; otherwise you will be surpassed quickly. You can’t have a negative attitude towards learning and a key part of learning is to listen and reflect on what you learn.’
Questions or comments?
Leave a reply to this Tweet or check here for other alternatives to connect with me. You will find my co-author Anne Fish on Twitter by the name @mamabenjyfishy or live at twitch.tv/mamabenjyfishy1.
