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//: StarCraft II: Heart of the Swarm |OT| Like Riding a Bike
- Thread starter Corran Horn
- Start date
Ugh, guys, I'm loosing it. I think I'm trying to much at once and just getting overwhelmed with decisions. Trying new things and they aren't really working and they are definitely not as smooth. Should I just go back to my 2 base roach style? and be okay with loosing to superior strategies, or keep on with a new more flexible approach and be okay with loosing due to poor execution?
Ecto311
Member
I was wondering wtf was going on when I won a game earlier and got line 9 achievements. Then I went and checked for them and the zerg portraits was showing that you needed so many wins as toss to get them.
Yoshichan
And they made him a Lord of Cinder. Not for virtue, but for might. Such is a lord, I suppose. But here I ask. Do we have a sodding chance?
Still no achievements/portraits for me 
Maybe an EU/NA-thing?
edit: Nevermind, got the stuff
edit 2: God, I love the SC1 Protoss face... this portrait is MINE.
Maybe an EU/NA-thing?edit: Nevermind, got the stuff
edit 2: God, I love the SC1 Protoss face... this portrait is MINE.
Felix Lighter
Member
I've been watching Grubby play Random for awhile. Oddly enough, I think every match I've seen so far he's been zerg. Interesting games so far as he works his way up the ladder. I think he just hit diamond. I was hoping to see him play Terran but no luck so far.
DryvBy
Member
Message Paches in Gaf. Definitely the quickest go-to guy.
WanderingWind
Mecklemore Is My Favorite Wrapper
I came in to ask for beginner strategies, and lo, fatty hath delivered.
Also, I know everybody is way over this, but I just finished the single player campaign of HotS. They...they didn't even pretend to try on that, did they?
Also, I know everybody is way over this, but I just finished the single player campaign of HotS. They...they didn't even pretend to try on that, did they?
FieryBalrog
Member
The sad thing is, they probably did try.
T
thepotatoman
Unconfirmed Member
Its funny that TvZ is the most unbalanced matchup because I am absolutely clueless about that damned matchup. I've tried 8 minute attacks, I've tried 30 minute attacks, I've tried bio, i've tried mechs, I've tried drops, I just don't understand how to make a bit of it work. Those two wins were both 3 rax with addons/7 minute pushes that low gold players just couldn't handle, but high gold that doesn't seem to have a chance at doing enough damage to be worth the investment, because they'll just scout it and build the defense they need.
There isn't a single unit composition or timing i know to build for and it's making me go insane whenever I play the matchup. Also what's with the damn game matching me up TvZ way more often than the other matchups? It's like it's being cruel to me on purpose.
Anyhow, here's a recent replay if anyone's kind enough to help out, but I feel the bigger problem is figuring what's right to do, not what i'm doing wrong, so maybe watching the replay isn't required. It's probably not my cleanest play, as I was just completely making everything up as I went along, but what else are you to do when you have no idea what to build.
I'm really enjoying the Rotterdam/Frodan ladder commentating duo thats been happening the last couple nights.
Hots is pretty easy, if you can beat wol on hard then you can probably manage hots on brutal without too much trouble.
AdventureRacing
Member
Still no achievements/portraits for me
edit: Nevermind, got the stuff
edit 2: God, I love the SC1 Protoss face... this portrait is MINE.
The terran and zerg ones don't do much for me but the protoss one is amazing.
Yeah i'm enjoying this at the moment.
Rank 2 in my diamond division and had some crazy long games today. People can't seem to stand mech, nobody ever ggs T_T
I just got a vbg just then even though I won
i play mech (the fourth race) only in every MU for about 2 years and yeah, better get used to it. its hard to end games fast, but you get a lot of late and very late game experience that way. ;D
Yoshichan
And they made him a Lord of Cinder. Not for virtue, but for might. Such is a lord, I suppose. But here I ask. Do we have a sodding chance?
Straight up. I don't even know why the toss one strikes as much more awesome to me. Perhaps because the BW cover in EU had that toss face on it as well?
AdventureRacing
Member
To me it looks slightly less cartoony than the other ones but in general it's just badass. The actual marine/hydralisk/zealot where you can see their whole body all look awesome though.
Edit: I've got my copy of starcraft in front of me with the zealot as the main character
.I'm going to try and snipe Frodan, hohohoho.
Oh I know, I started playing Broodwar 6 years ago and I've been meching in every matchup since
I tried bio at the start of WoL but after going on a 20 game losing streak vs toss I decided to switch to mech.
My TvP's usually end within about 20 minutes as I do a 2-2 push, but I can't do it against skytoss so I have to wait for later
AdventureRacing
Member
Gotta give a GAF shoutout.
Oh I know, I started playing Broodwar 6 years ago and I've been meching in every matchup since
I tried bio at the start of WoL but after going on a 20 game losing streak vs toss I decided to switch to mech.
My TvP's usually end within about 20 minutes as I do a 2-2 push, but I can't do it against skytoss so I have to wait for later
I loved mech in BW but honestly for me it was all about tanks, vultures and spider mines. Doing death pushes and slowly coming down on top of them. Basically BW tank > SC2 tank, vulture + mines > hellions, goliaths > Thors. It's basically why i didn't play terran when SC2 came out.
In the past 3 years, I have not had a single issue with SCII's launcher. I had an issue with D3 launcher because the net connection was not the first numbered connection in Windows, but that is it.
Out of curiosity, what issue do you have with the launcher? I've always considered Blizzard's WoW and SC2 launchers to be the best in the business.
Oh I know, I started playing Broodwar 6 years ago and I've been meching in every matchup since
I tried bio at the start of WoL but after going on a 20 game losing streak vs toss I decided to switch to mech.
My TvP's usually end within about 20 minutes as I do a 2-2 push, but I can't do it against skytoss so I have to wait for later
a BW veteran who plays mech only. we should meet up <3
Yoshichan
And they made him a Lord of Cinder. Not for virtue, but for might. Such is a lord, I suppose. But here I ask. Do we have a sodding chance?
The play-button doesn't light up for the most part... I have to go to the task manager and manually quit/relaunch the program until it works (50% chance).
fatty
Member
What strategies are you losing to? How's the scouting going, are you aware of your opponent's unit composition? If your two base roach is working I would stick with that as long as you are able to hit your benchmarks but when you attack (or a little before) throw down that third.
Glad to see they are helpful, keep us updated on your progress!
Keep in mind I'm not a Terran player, so this advice is coming from someone who mains as Zerg. But these are things that I notice when I play Terran.
Your first scout was trapped on the choke against two zerglings so you were blind on what your opponent was doing. As a zerg, most of the time around the 7 minute mark you are going to be able to know what tech path zerg is taking, even if they are being greedy economy wise (as your opponent was). Your first scan wasn't until 9:13. Let's take a look at what you saw.
Well, we see a baneling nest being made. Usually if a baneling nest is being made this late, it is a supplement to another tech, especially when you see that his natural is saturated and he has both gas going. If he has gas going at both naturals chances are he has them both going at his main as well. Also check the spot where you scanned. Most of the time you will see their unit composition with the place that you scanned but you missed just behind the minerals. Because of the base placement in the corners, right behind the minerals is a great spot to place your tech buildings as zerg, and in doing so you missed a completed spire.
I would recommend that you scan both bases around the 8 minute mark, where you could see just behind the minerals. Knowing what your opponent is doing and how to respond is critical. People who play Terran can pop in with better scouting advice but I would even place a marine at their third to know when they are taking another base as well.
Here is a tell for me as zerg. At around the 7 minute mark right before you dropped your expansion you used your whole army to take out his scout. In doing so you let him know that you were going marine/marauder. No need for him to scout later on because he got everything he needed from those two zerglings (when he peeked up the ramp he saw your whole army along with the command center being built). With your first two units I would scout the area around my natural expansion and choke and take out any overlords or zerglings. Most Zerg will have a pair of lings just outside your natural so take those out. As a Zerg it is crucial to know when our opponent is leaving their base so take this away from him with a couple of marines at the start and check again with those two right before your expansion is dropped. Oh and scoot that expansion back just a bit when being built out of his vision. One disadvantage about playing zerg against terran is that early scouting is limited unless we are willing to sacrifice an overlord. Use this to your advantage.
And someone who plays Terran can help you out more here, but after you saw the Mutas you threw down three turrets at the outside of the right of your main. I'm not a fan of using so many turrets at just specific spots, especially so far away from your minerals, because he can just engage you at a different angle. Maybe throw down a couple by your minerals but more importantly the info you gained from scouting will help you better prepare.
In general I would recommend you really focus on a solid build as Terran and make sure you are hitting your benchmarks (make sure your SCV's are constantly producing). I keep singing his praises but if you don't have a build I would recommend FilterSC's guide) It is made by a Terran so it will help you out. I hit a wall as zerg and got knocked down to Gold from Platinum. That made me take a look at how I was approaching things and this guide helped me tremendously and I'm finally in Diamond after being stubborn in trying to do it the wrong way for so long.
I think as a Terran you will have your standard build you should be focusing on and as soon as you scout what Zerg is doing you will have to decide:
- Is he going mass economy, do I need to use this time to punish him?
- Is he going a specific tech (like heavy mutas), how should I react at this point (couple more turrets and more marines?)
- Stay the route since what he is doing is expected?
His guide will help you with these types of things while making sure you are constantly cranking out workers and units.
Yoshichan
And they made him a Lord of Cinder. Not for virtue, but for might. Such is a lord, I suppose. But here I ask. Do we have a sodding chance?
Off-days are common when you play this game. Keep at it, Wunder!
I'm actually getting a lot better at scouting, I know whether they're going air or ground and I know when they take a 3rd. Now when I loose it's because they destroy me with unit abilities/micro. And then I make stupid mistakes like constantly getting supply blocked or rallying my hatches right into their on coming army or just standing in psi-storms. I think I just need to play more or just go back to 2 base roach and incorporate my scouting without trying to get all fancy with different builds for different match ups and stuff.
I have returned! (Got promoted by winning a match where the opponent just immediately quit, though...)
Anyone have any advice for ZvP when Protoss is going with a bunch of air units? Versus Phoenix, Mutalisks are useless (and I feel, to an extent, Corruptors are as well) and Hydralisks melt when they add in Colossi. Mass Void Rays just melt everything.
My guess is the solution is to scout their base properly and if you see that air's going to be their focus, gear up for an attack?
Anyone have any advice for ZvP when Protoss is going with a bunch of air units? Versus Phoenix, Mutalisks are useless (and I feel, to an extent, Corruptors are as well) and Hydralisks melt when they add in Colossi. Mass Void Rays just melt everything.
My guess is the solution is to scout their base properly and if you see that air's going to be their focus, gear up for an attack?
That's wonderful, thanks. I'm emailing my little brother your post and all the links, it's exactly what he needs to really get into the game. I played some 2v2 with him last night, and his total refusal to use control groups AT ALL was killing me. He still plays SC2 almost exactly like you'd play a reskinned BW lol. He doesn't even hotkey his freaking hatchs.
At least he makes queens now. First few games I played with him like 15 minutes in I look at his main base wondering why he hasn't expanded yet and he had 5-8 macro hatches simply for larva because he couldn't spend his money..
So it seems I'm stuck in an endless cycle. I went 8/2 yesterday and today so far I'm 0/5, I realise it's just the system making me 50%, but I feel like I can never seem to break past this spot I'm always stuck in. T_T
I realise why I lost all the games I did as well, it's just always seems to be the same stuff that beats me every time and it gets so annoying. I should be able to learn how to beat this stuff but seemingly my brain switches off when I get close to masters it feels like.
Grats Flux btw!
I realise why I lost all the games I did as well, it's just always seems to be the same stuff that beats me every time and it gets so annoying. I should be able to learn how to beat this stuff but seemingly my brain switches off when I get close to masters it feels like.
Grats Flux btw!
I have one more placement game to play... kinda afraid as to where I'll be placed Got my ass kicked by a gold player in the first game today (went too macro heavy so when he rolled up to my 2 army with his 20 army it was kinda GG) and then just beat a plat player in a drag out base race game... Just put me in silver and let me be happy.
edit: Yay, got what I wanted after losing to a diamond barcode player lol
Got my ass kicked by a gold player in the first game today (went too macro heavy so when he rolled up to my 2 army with his 20 army it was kinda GG) and then just beat a plat player in a drag out base race game... Just put me in silver and let me be happy.edit: Yay, got what I wanted after losing to a diamond barcode player lol
Felix Lighter
Member
I may just go ahead and play my final placement matches today just to see where I end up. I'm 0 and 2 so far but those were against diamond leaguers.
I went
Won - Silver
Won - Gold
Lost - Gold
Won - Platinum
Lost - Diamond
and got placed in silver, which is where I think I belong. It sucked seeing my Oracles show up to a base with no drones
At least in silver I know those svcs/drones/probes will be there to be killed lol.Felix Lighter
Member
6 pooled. Ha! I'm done. Quit the second I saw the lings pass the watch tower.
Felix Lighter
Member
I appreciate the offer. If I wasn't such a nervous wreck when I played I'd probably be able to handle stuff like that. The nervousness is super frustrating and I can't seem to push it aside. It's always been really weird. It's just a game and ultimately, I really don't care if I lose. But still, that game countdown rattles me like nothing else.
Also, I misplaced my barracks for my wall off so I felt pretty dead when I realized it was a 6 pool.
Just keep hitting the play button! I used to suffer from the exact same thing. I'm no longer anxious about playing the ladder, just bummed that I never freakin win.
celestial body
Member
Apparently a dedicated anti air unit doesn't counter void ray, sorry whiny scrub zerg checkin in here
Corruptors are garbage, yes.
I thought I wanted to be good at this game but I give up. Honestly, this game just makes me upset. There's no reason to play a game if it isn't fun.
Whenever I play League of Legends I have a blast. It is challenging but I can relax while playing. StarCraft II is like going into brain surgery without anesthesia.
I can see why SCII is struggling to be a popular game. If it weren't for the super hardcore players who somehow actually enjoy itor do they?then it'd be in shambles.
#OVERIT
Whenever I play League of Legends I have a blast. It is challenging but I can relax while playing. StarCraft II is like going into brain surgery without anesthesia.
I can see why SCII is struggling to be a popular game. If it weren't for the super hardcore players who somehow actually enjoy itor do they?then it'd be in shambles.
#OVERIT
Maybe you'd find 2v2 and up more to your liking? May as well go with whatever mode you enjoy more whilst you learn the game.
EscapingJail
Member
In this game you don't have a team to rely on. If you fail it's only your fault and nobody elses.
Most people who realize that can't handle it. So don't worry you aren't alone there.
The greatest thing about Starcraft is that the skill ceiling is much much higher than almost any other competitive game played today. That's what makes it fun to watch/play.
You can't just go in and have an epic hour long game without learning all the little things that go in between. Those immaculate marine splits, the crazy cheese holds, the imba timing attacks all from hours and hours and hours of practice and dedication.
I guess I went on a little rant there but the point I'm trying to make here is Starcraft puts hair on your chest. if solid snake played a game it would be fuckin Starcraft.
edit: I might be a little drunk right now so please excuse me.