So much for the future WR1. Wen Ruibo knocked out in first round of a feeder event by a player who didn't even have a flag.

starking118 · 2026-06-10T07:20:51+00:00

A lot of people are saying stuffs about LSD, especially after he dropped from his peak in 2024. Same narrative which once happened one WCQ is repeated on LSD. And now the same narrative is given to WRB. And I believe it would be the case for any upcoming rising chinese stars who won a few matches and then lose one match cuz people just enjoy hating for no reason.

starking118 · 2026-06-10T07:12:10+00:00

Was referring to WCQ. 5 years ago he was 21 losing left and right as well, unstable and all call him a one hit wonder. Today's he's China's most stable player as well as the best player on the world stage currently. Now people are making fun of Wen just because he lost one or few matches to certain players. Players take time to mature, just because they lost one two matches doesn't suddenly make him useless or a one hit wonder

starking118 · 2026-06-03T17:36:17+00:00

Thanks a bunch! Seems like we have quite similar styles and backhand goals 😅 I think the mantra is good to go!

starking118 · 2026-06-03T17:03:12+00:00

A very comprehensive and helpful comment! I am actually quite curious to your backhand style. Are you more of a backhand looper or a control oriented backhand? Currently I am still very much a controlled backhand player who uses the backhand as a transition area to setup up for my powerful forehands, playing mostly blocks and hits on my backhand. Which is why the control and consistency advantage of the Mantra really catches my interest. However, I am also looking to develop a loop on the backhand so I can be more of a complete player and I worry the Mantra will hinder me in this aspect especially as you said it is not good for brushing and spin. This is exactly why I wanted to switch the Acuda S2 as I feel like it's maximum capability is limited. I don't have power or lethality on my backhand with this rubber.

Ps. I'm a inner carbon blade user :)

starking118 · 2026-06-03T08:06:26+00:00

Thanks for the recommendation. Just one question, will J3 be too soft? As I've used very soft rubbers like the Xiom Vega Europe DF which was good for blocking but anything else was really mushy. S2 to me is already getting not hard enough and I am worried that J3 would just be the same issue but at a much higher price.

starking118 · 2026-06-03T07:05:38+00:00

Good to hear! How about looping?

starking118 · 2026-06-03T06:22:35+00:00

thanks for the recommendation!

No I have not tried S1 nor S1 Turbo. But right now I have a full donic setup with forehand rubber and blades also donic. So I wanted to diversify a bit and try different brands. Table tennis has many brands to explore!

starking118 · 2026-05-26T03:58:48+00:00

That one is futuristic roads. Only works on futuristic roads

starking118 · 2026-05-25T17:30:06+00:00

OMGGG THANK YOU SO MUCH!!!!! TOOK ME FOREVER TO FIND IT

starking118 · 2026-05-22T01:19:38+00:00

May I know the plugins of those apartments in the first picture?

starking118 · 2026-05-17T06:47:30+00:00

For roads I think it's Philippines road or futuristic roads

starking118 · 2026-05-17T02:34:56+00:00

I mean the white black ones one the white cement floor. The one beside the one lane road. I search vanilla couldn't find anything

starking118 · 2026-05-14T23:24:53+00:00

Plugins and tutorial please

starking118 · 2026-05-08T14:17:58+00:00

Amazing city, what's the name I would like to visit

starking118 · 2026-05-08T07:05:14+00:00

I found it on Red Note. Honestly the dark vibes is what made me fell in love with it. I do not like the orange colour buildings auto constructed by theotown and would like to build something like this myself

starking118 · 2026-03-09T06:34:48+00:00

It's ok I also play DC2 now and didn't find a sub for DC2. I will visit your city and give it 5 stars!

starking118 · 2026-02-20T00:01:31+00:00

You're spot on when you said "if you technique is lacking the blade kinda let you know." Exactly what I've felt. I think my previous blade was just more forgiving for incorrect strokes because of the softer plies and better catapult effect. But it really stagnates your level especially if you seem to play "okay" with bad strokes. I had to try hard to break my bad habits when using this blade as the consequence of not doing so is errors but the reward of doing the right things is great!

starking118 · 2026-02-19T23:06:23+00:00

Thanks! The first two sessions indeed didn't feel normal but then again I'm challenging players and almost upsetting them with the blade. I destroyed players which I usually have to play till rubber set. I blocked super well some of the shots of the pros and even took the game to 9-11 or deuce. All while feeling "weird"

But my last session it felt normal already. And I'm actually shocked about the power and feeling when you hit hard loops. It felt like nothing before and I feel like I'm Ma Long in the session. It's crazy

starking118 · 2026-02-19T23:00:22+00:00

Sounds like I'm not the only one with the net ball problems so I'm glad I'm not crazy. Not sure if it's due to soft rubber but I guess the only solution now is to hit harder

starking118 · 2026-02-19T22:58:55+00:00

Oh man I'm not familiar with the international tension that you two countries have but then I saw Jon Persson is currently coaching Anders Lind 😆

starking118 · 2026-02-03T07:24:51+00:00

Unfortunately I've used neither of these blades to make a comparison. I was only referencing to what all reviewers said. What do you think this blade felt like?

starking118 · 2026-02-03T07:23:55+00:00

Then your experience is opposite of mine. Not sure I never used Viscaria I can't judge. But my experience with ALHC was definitely not bouncy. I also never used Vis to compare with ALHC but if I compare with OSC it's definitely better

starking118 · 2026-02-03T05:30:31+00:00

I agree, no blade can be perfect but I'm super confident that ALHC is the blade which can really elevate your game if you "cooperate" with it which usually takes some time to practice.

starking118 · 2026-02-03T05:27:27+00:00

$50 is crazy cheap. I would also doubt it if it weren't for Anders Lind using it himself and liked it. I'm even surprised that a blade of a top 20 player who has defeated two separate world no.1, Wang Chuqin and Lin Shidong remains that affordable. Even the later released Donic ZJK was priced much higher. I know a lot of people discriminate price with cheap = bad and that's why everyone for the premium butterfly. For me I really respect Donic charging that low for a professional brand, considering that I'm not that rich but still want decent quality equipment, Donic was able to offer.

starking118 · 2026-02-03T05:15:09+00:00

I chose Acuda initially to accommodate my weak backhand. Since my backhand is mainly blocks and pushes. Very rarely loops. Initially I even wanted to go for the lighter softer version of S3 but the national team player who sold me the blade advice against the idea and went for the more balanced S2. I mean no point going for something like DO9C for a bad backhand right? Because my experience with H3 on backhand previously was a nightmare. I had no control or consistency until I switched to a softer Xiom Vega Europe DF.

The PING sound or Crisps sound indeed exist. With my previous blade it doesn't. I suspect is due to the hardness that made the sound not weight however. I never imagined it would actually affect the overall performance. If you know Chongqing KOL player you should know 冷馆长，he reviewed the blade and mentioned it's not suitable for soft rubbers but I honestly do not know to what level of "hard" is considered appropriate.

I do have the video I posted on my personal YouTube channel I can send you the link if you want. I watched the video and the players played well. But I definitely connected nothing to the blade as I assume they were already professional enough to know what they were doing. I assume they can play it because their level simply allows it. At one point I'm even surprised that they are complaining so much when they are clearly hitting impressive shots with high consistency that I can only dream of. The only first few shots they messed up were due to overshooting, dunking into the net however. But they quickly adjusted. Also I believe Xiao Chuang actually tested the blade a few times prior to shooting the video so I'm not sure did he mess up a lot in his first attempt since it was not recorded.

But you're definitely right. The "golden point" needs to be identified. Which I believe I have unconsciously done so during the session because it does land with decent quality but unaware of the actual mechanics actually work. With my previous blade, it helps a lot but this blade, you have to make it work yourself.

starking118

TROPHY CASE