Interview with Tenebra, Valorant Coach for Underground Gaming

Yoann: Hey, hello everyone! Today I’m with Tenebra, Valorant coach for Underground gaming! 

How would you introduce yourself?

Tenebra: Hey! I’m Tenebra, my real name is Alessandro, I live in Italy, and I’ve been coaching for the past five years in esports, in Overwatch first, and then in Valorant!

Yoann: When and how did you get into esports?

Tenebra: I got into esports thanks to another Italian coach, named Joynt! He started a program to get into coaching in Overwatch. My career really started with a team called Asura, I got new offers, and I became the coach for Team Italy in Overwatch, and from there, I switched to Valorant! 

Yoann: You recently joined Underground Gaming as the coach, how is it going so far?

Tenebra: It’s going great! We were supposed to join the VCL, but for some reason, we had to play relegation. Two of the easiest matches I’ve had to play! We then qualified after winning the Saudi League Arab Qualifier with a sub. So we are pretty confident!

Yoann: Amazing! You have previously worked with teams like Wave and Enterprise, what did you learn working with these orgs?

Tenebra: In Wave, we started working with Chris, the performance coach you interviewed, he helped us a lot! I also had the chance to work with another head coach named Crovex. We had to work with very young players, which was a very good experience!

Then, Enterprise helped me grow as a person, I also worked with Benjifishy, he told me about his experience during his Fortnite career, it was very interesting!

Yoann: How would you define your playstyle, or coaching style?

Tenebra: Calm and collected, they call me the “default coach” because I always call to default! I love playing slow, gathering info, and collecting kills around the map! I love putting my players in situations where they will eventually fight at an advantage!

Yoann: Great! You have a brand new roster for the 2024 season, how confident are you heading into the first tournament?

Tenebra: We’re pretty confident! We are heading into the VCL MENA confident that we’ll end up in the top 2! It’s definitely in our reach, we’re very confident, we’re working toward that goal. 

Yoann: That’s nice! Chris Greulich sent me a question: What was it like to have a performance coach helping out in Enterprise?

Tenebra: It was actually great! He helped us a lot, he made us realize how much emotions were important in our team, and not to be overwhelmed by these emotions. When we were playing against Acend, he made us realize that it’s fine if we don’t win, and play these games with the right mentality, to always give it our all. And thanks to that, in our recent matches, we started winning some maps, and more and more rounds. This is all thanks to Chris!  

Yoann: Amazing haha! Let’s now move on to the Quick Questions part, I will ask you 10 quick questions, and you'll have to answer as fast as possible! Ready?

Tenebra: Yeah!

Yoann: Phantom or Vandal?

Tenebra: Phantom!

Yoann: What's your favorite map?

Tenebra: Lotus!

Yoann: What's your favorite agent?

Tenebra: Cypher!

Yoann: Nice! What's your favorite skin collection?

Tenebra: I love the Prelude To Chaos!

Yoann: What's your best memory working in esports?

Tenebra: When I went to the boot camp with Wave!

Yoann: How often do you play Valorant in your free time?

Tenebra: Not much! Only twice a week!

Yoann: Can you name the eight teams that won an international event?

Tenebra: Fnatic, EG, Loud, Sentinels… FPX, Acend, Gambit…

Yoann: The last one was Optic! Which team would you like to play against, in the near future?

Tenebra: I’d love to have a rematch against Acend!

Yoann: What kind of music do you listen to while working?

Tenebra: I love some EDM, the beat gets me in the zone!

Yoann: Can you quote a voice line from your favorite agent, Cypher?

Tenebra: Probably the most famous one, Give me a corpse!

Yoann: Haha awesome! What are your hobbies or passions aside from gaming?

Tenebra: I love watching sports, I used to do horse riding, so I love watching some competitions in my free time. I also like to play some offline games, like Dungeons & Dragons with my friends. 

Yoann: Nice! How do you feel about the current meta?

Tenebra: I think it’s one of the most boring, because there’s only one way to play, that’s how I feel! Maybe it’ll change with the new changes to Skye. But I really loved the Chamber meta!

Yoann: What would you change to Valorant if you were a developer?

Tenebra: I’d absolutely remove the Outlaw! I think it’s too strong against the current meta, especially with the light shield. Also doing 140 damage for a bodyshot is just too much! It’s not fun to play against a sort of operator on the second round! I would reduce the damage to 125 or something like that, it would still counter the light shield meta, without being too broken!

Yoann: Yeah I understand! What would you say to someone aspiring to be a Valorant coach?

Tenebra: The best advice I received was to be ready to start over anytime! If you don’t get offers, be ready to start over, from scratch. Be ready to join a new team, or building your own!

Yoann: Great! What are your short and long-term ambitions as a coach?

Tenebra: Short term would be to win the VCL and to get into Ascension, that’s the main goal. My dream in the long term is to join a Tier 1 organization in franchising, and performing on stage! I would love to join Fnatic on Navi!

Yoann: For sure! Is there anything else you would like to say?

Tenebra: Thank you for having me, I read most of your interviews, they’re very nice! To anyone reading this, go read Yoann’s interviews, they’re great for self growth, they’re containing stuff that can help out a lot of people! 

I’m trying to be a better version of myself everyday!

Yoann: Thank you so much! Thanks for your time, and I wish you the best for this new season!

Tenebra:  Thank you!

Tenebra’s socials:

Twitter (X): https://twitter.com/Tenebra__

Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/TenebraONE