I have returned: StarCraft II

[geno]

I was watching a rep of me playing an insane, they get 7-8 minerals per patch and 6 gas, and we get 5 minerals and 4 gas. Thats what makes it hard as hell. There economy is Far superior, you just have to hit them early or you lose. Not to mention watching the replay the APM is up to 2000+ lol

I've won a 1hr 22minute game against 2 Insanes (it was a 2v2 and my partner lost his base + SCVs). I gave him control, spammed Banshee/Viking, and we basically abused the AI to keep them from finishing me off and eventually starved them out.

Normally, we would have just left and remade for an easier win, but that was the 5th in a row we needed for a different achievement. Was pretty satisfying honestly, at a certain point near the end, I ended up losing my CC and SCVs also, so we were down to only the units left on the field.

Now I'm at nearly 1200 Achievement points. Probably won't get many more, everything else just seems to be "Win X number of games against ____ AI as _____ race" over and over and in varying combos, which is boring (not to mention, its beta). The others though were actually pretty fun to do, lol. Winning 1 vs 4 Very hards was entertaining, as were most of the outmatched section.

[geno]

How do you play against a single computer for the achievement? Custom game? I wasnt credited the achievement when I did it that way.

You can get the melee achievements by making a custom game and adding any difficulty AI to play against. For the league achievements, you have to either be playing quick match games, or playing from the coop vs AI menu (so you'd need 2-3 people).

edit: by melee and league, i mean the subcategories under the combat section btw. The other sections are pretty self explanatory about where you can do them (custom, quick match, coop v ai).

[Syntex]

I can't play because I keep getting "Invalid Version" when I try to log on

Guess I'll wait 2ish more weeks till its out for real I suppose.

[Kaylia]

I just went on a 9 game losing streak in platinum league...holy crap. I'm not sure if I just suck tonight, or if the average players got much better since yesterday but damn, this is depressing. And I was hoping to get get moved to crystal league. gdi.

[Misuicide]

I just went on a 9 game losing streak in platinum league...holy crap. I'm not sure if I just suck tonight, or if the average players got much better since yesterday but damn, this is depressing. And I was hoping to get get moved to crystal league. gdi.

I've notice the quality of players is a lot better then in Phase 1. So I guess i get to look foreward to either losing horribly or some good fights.

[Kaylia]

My pc always crash in Kulas Ravine? Anyone having this issue?

[Misuicide]

Nope, also haven't even played kulas ravine yet, so yea, lol

[Anakron]

I've played in Kulas Ravine several times, and never crashed. My games always end within 15mins though, so I'm not sure if that has anything to do with it.

[Kaylia]

I lowered the graphic and it got fixed. It's weird since I've no lag issue a. My pc shouldnt have any trouble handling this game (and it did not before the last update).

[edit]
Also, 444/kaylin if anyone want to play tonight..im bored.

[Lyramion]

This game needs Copper league back and then some more... maybe "Mud Leage" and "Dirt League".

[Kurp]

This game needs Copper league back and then some more... maybe "Mud Leage" and "Dirt League".

I can understand that. I'm completely new to Blizzard RTS games; I never played Starcraft or any of the Warcraft games. I'm not much of a match for anyone I play.

For my 1v1 games, I mostly have been playing AI on medium to try and get better with my early game. When playing real players I constantly lose to a bunch of Zealots or Zerglings within minutes. I'm not sure how to stop that. I'm also unable to counter when they expand 5 times and make 1000 Void Rays, Battle cruisers, Mutalisks, etc. I send a scout, but even though I can see what they're likely doing, I have no idea what I should do to counter.

I often find myself with 1000+ minerals and 20 gas and end up sitting there staring at the screen wondering what to do. Should I build a bunch of Hellions? wtf are they good against anyways? Maybe I should build some Marines instead. Oops, I forgot about that Command Center that has been hovering over the expo for quite a few minutes. What was I going to build again?

My friend and I are 2-14 in 2v2 Bronze. We're like the Detroit Lions of Starcraft 2 Bronze play.

Even though I'm awful and rarely win, I'm having more fun with this game than I've had with any other multiplayer game in quite some time.

[geno]

Bleh, just got dropped near the end of a long back and forth 4v4. On the bright side, it gave me a distinct opportunity to rediscover my love for psi storm vs terran balls. It's such a satisfying feeling watching their ultra mobile, incredibly powerful and annoying army forced to run for their lives (and to no avail).

[Anakron]

I can understand that. I'm completely new to Blizzard RTS games; I never played Starcraft or any of the Warcraft games. I'm not much of a match for anyone I play.

Instead of 2v2'ing with your friend against others, you guys can maybe try play each other, adding a hard computer to each of your teams. That will give you a very basic idea of what to do since you can watch your own computer teammate, and neither of you should be dying too quickly, actually giving you an opportunity to learn.

In the long run, you need to be dynamic with your builds, so you'll eventually have to learn from playing other players, but that may be a good way to start.

If you have too much minerals (or gas), it basically means you don't have enough production buildings or you could expand more. Always always put 3 to each geyser, but otherwise, just keep pumping marines or hellions if it's purely minerals that you have, or try to spread your gas consumption. For example, given 500 minerals and 125 gas, you can build 5 marauders, or 1 tank and 7 marines. With 5 marauders, you'll use all 500/125. With the tank, you'll use 150/125 gas and have 350 minerals left over (which you can turn into 7 marines). Now it's situational which is better, but don't get caught in the latter situation too much and be crippled by limited gas.

[Rulke]

Another thing to consider is that eventually when the game comes out, the single player campaign usually does a pretty good job of introducing units as you progress and can build basic skills that way.

[Misuicide]

I can understand that. I'm completely new to Blizzard RTS games; I never played Starcraft or any of the Warcraft games. I'm not much of a match for anyone I play.

For my 1v1 games, I mostly have been playing AI on medium to try and get better with my early game. When playing real players I constantly lose to a bunch of Zealots or Zerglings within minutes. I'm not sure how to stop that. I'm also unable to counter when they expand 5 times and make 1000 Void Rays, Battle cruisers, Mutalisks, etc. I send a scout, but even though I can see what they're likely doing, I have no idea what I should do to counter.

I often find myself with 1000+ minerals and 20 gas and end up sitting there staring at the screen wondering what to do. Should I build a bunch of Hellions? wtf are they good against anyways? Maybe I should build some Marines instead. Oops, I forgot about that Command Center that has been hovering over the expo for quite a few minutes. What was I going to build again?

My friend and I are 2-14 in 2v2 Bronze. We're like the Detroit Lions of Starcraft 2 Bronze play.

Even though I'm awful and rarely win, I'm having more fun with this game than I've had with any other multiplayer game in quite some time.

I was in platinum before the reset in beta1, and I did a lot of 1v1ing with my buddy who is a lot better than me. It helps a lot, trust me on that. SC2 Doesn't come easy as people seem to believe. Trust me you just have to keep at it, you'll get the hang of it soon.
Also, instead of doing league matches, you should try joining custom games, you can get a feel of other peoples strats, cause you could be teamed up with someone who is a lot better than yourself.

You should also check out the HDH Invitational, I learned a lot from watching quite a few of the games.

[Kaylia]

I can understand that. I'm completely new to Blizzard RTS games; I never played Starcraft or any of the Warcraft games. I'm not much of a match for anyone I play.

For my 1v1 games, I mostly have been playing AI on medium to try and get better with my early game. When playing real players I constantly lose to a bunch of Zealots or Zerglings within minutes. I'm not sure how to stop that. I'm also unable to counter when they expand 5 times and make 1000 Void Rays, Battle cruisers, Mutalisks, etc. I send a scout, but even though I can see what they're likely doing, I have no idea what I should do to counter.

I often find myself with 1000+ minerals and 20 gas and end up sitting there staring at the screen wondering what to do. Should I build a bunch of Hellions? wtf are they good against anyways? Maybe I should build some Marines instead. Oops, I forgot about that Command Center that has been hovering over the expo for quite a few minutes. What was I going to build again?

My friend and I are 2-14 in 2v2 Bronze. We're like the Detroit Lions of Starcraft 2 Bronze play.

Even though I'm awful and rarely win, I'm having more fun with this game than I've had with any other multiplayer game in quite some time.

Well, don't give up, you will get better. This game, online, has one hell of a learning curve, it just takes time.

I will point out a few things new people often do wrong. I've no idea what you're doing, but these things are always important

#1 Build order and workers: You need at least 2 worker per mineral patch, and no more than 3. You need 3 workers per gas. Anything less mean your opponent is having a better economy and will produce more shit. Same goes with expansion. If you let your opponent grab an expansion while you stay in your base, he will make twice as much money as you do. Unless you have a particular action plan, you need to match or best your opponent's economy to win a game.

The more worker you build early, the better it is, but you put yourself at risk since you won't have any army in case you get rushed. That's why you need to scout and figure out what will hit you and when.

#2 Scout: Send a probe (or a phoenix hallucination, or an observer, or a phoenix) around the map to find out your opponent action's plan. This is crucial since one of the key element in this game is "countering x with y". Once you figure out what your opponent is going for, you will want to adapt your build order to produce something that can win while minimizing the lost. If they are making muta, start pumping out phoenix. If they are making mass hydra, go for zealot+collosus, if they are making battle cruiser, stalkers work pretty damn well...etc. It's not as simple since you still need to micro these units, and there is no perfect situation, but experience will tell you what build surive against what attack.

#3 Building placement: Try to block ramps and choke point with building and defend them properly. If you're trying to tech, hide your building in a corner of your base that isnt likely to get scouted. If someone see dark templar building or starport tech lab, he will get ready for your imminent banshee and dark templar rush.

#4 Watch replay. Watch your own replay when you got obliterated and want to know why (find out when your economy fell behind and why). Watch professional replay to see how they handle the game (actually, start with this).


[edit]
Hellions are good against mass ground with "light armor" attribute, especially with the upgrade. If you can get 3-4 behind the ennemy front line, you can obliterate all 20 workers in 3 sec. It also work really well against normal zergling (no speed) and zealot (no charge) if you're doing hit and run. Basically, they destroy ling and zealot if you can hit them without getting hit (behind your supply depot). I rarely build a strats around these units since they are microing heavy, but I will use them as a "oh shit" button when I'm about to get overwhelmed by a bunch of small units and need something immediatly.

[Anakron]

It kinda goes without saying, but it's also important to concentrate on why you lost, rather than simply thinking "he's just better" or "he just had more units." Watch the replays to see what exactly he did to win any given battle. Did he flank? Focus-fire? And if he had more units, why? Keep checking your harvester counts throughout a replay.

A lot of times, newer people are afraid of attacking, and just defend or mass without a goal in mind. You will always lose if you do this. If they tech early, then it means they won't have as many units to defend, and that's your chance to attack. However, if you pass up that chance, neglect to build harvesters, and only build your army *without* attacking, then you're going to get crushed when they mass and move out.

[Kurp]

I think I'm doing alright with my workers. In some games, I end up with too many actually (almost 80 for 2 bases). Building more workers is one of my go-to reactions when I have a lot of minerals. I have 3 on gas and then use the rally point on minerals to keep building more. Is around 30 per full base good?

One of the biggest problems I have now is that I forget to do things constantly. I meant that one section as a tongue-in-cheek look at how my typical play ends up. Maybe I just need to come up with a better system to monitor my unit building progress with constant hotkey rotation or something similar. I also look at my resource count and somehow not notice that my supply is nearing cap, so I'm waiting on Depot building time very often. That's something that should be easily correctable if I just look at all three numbers instead of just the first two.

What is a good scouting unit for Terran after the initial SCV? They don't seem to have an Observer type unit, unless I'm missing something. My SCVs get killed before I can get into bases most of the time. Should I save OC energy for more scans instead of using MULEs mostly?

On the Terran note, is there a way to separate similar buildings with different attachments when you're trying to build units without using more than one hotkey? It's really annoying when I bring up my two or three Barracks, Starports, Factories, etc. and queue a few units and they end up being built in the wrong building. As an example, say I want to queue four Marines and two Mauraders. If I choose the Marines first, some will end up in the Tech Lab Barracks, where I obviously want the Mauraders to be built.

[Misuicide]

I'm playing right now, ATFSuicide/654 if you wanna play, i'm 2ing with a buddy of mine.

[Kaylia]

Macro every barracks of the same kind on one hotkey


For scouting on terran, I often use reaper early. They are cheap and make good harass. When I'm too busy, I just stop them at a xel naga tower or behind a mineral line. For emergency (when I havent been able to scout), I will use my satellite. Mules are a better investment though.