Making units is a very useful talent to have.

tree.hugger

Philadelphia, PA10406 Posts

November 17 2009 23:37 GMT

On September 11 2009 05:32 tree.hugger wrote:
With the new Iccup season starting up, I have set myself the goal of ending the season at D+.

All fresh-faced and opportunistic, our intrepid explorer departs the Twin Cities with dreams of a new settlement in Oregon!

+ Show Spoiler +

Just to be clear, this is a random photo from the internet.

On September 12 2009 00:46 tree.hugger wrote:
I am not completely surprised that my D+ campaign is going poorly at this part in the season...

Reality sets in, our intrepid explorer figures the trip may take a little longer than expected. But not too much longer, right?

On September 15 2009 10:50 tree.hugger wrote:
At this stage in my quest to D+, I admit it looks fairly bleak.

Winter falls, food supplies are scarce, the pass is ways away. Our intrepid explorer fears the worst but tries to put a good face on it.

On September 25 2009 07:43 tree.hugger wrote:My rating plummeted all the way to 293, the lowest it has ever been. Even in my very first iccup season I never fell so low.

Alone, in the wilderness with little hope of survival, our intrepid explorer keeps a journal... why? Even he doesn't know.

On October 02 2009 00:14 tree.hugger wrote:
This post comes as I have finally pulled myself out of the pit and gotten back to a D... I felt after this game that my mindset has changed for the better. I can only hope that'll improve.

An adult moose is killed in a freak hailstorm near camp. Hope abounds! Little Susie has thankfully recovered from her typhoid.

***

The budding spring sun is melting the snow on the mountain, threading little rivers of water down the slope to join with the torrent below.
Our intrepid explorer stands upon a ridge above the valley, surveying the newly unearthed landscape. This has been the domain of his party for three months now, and it is as if he has only just seen it. The clump of spruce hiding a trove of berries. The jagged mountain with the small pond near it's summit. It's all new, and all wonderful.

The explorer looks down at the camp in the valley, and then up at the pass, now clearly visible in the clear spring air.
"It's time." He thinks.

***

So I'm not there yet, but I've reached a personal peak of 1650, and I'm feeling confident in my TvT and TvZ. It's been quite a surprise, but my TvT has become my strongest match-up recently, and I've gained an appreciation for it. It's all a balancing game, and I've found a playstyle that really works for me in games. I've exacted vicious contains on a variety of opponents, and pulled nukes once or twice, although not in the linked game.

+ Show Spoiler +

My TvZ has been alright. What has improved is my bio control, I used to only mech, but now I reserve that mostly for destination, and other maps I feel comfortable walling in on. Speaking of mech, I should have been at 1800 after rolling the third of a zerg player and getting into his nat. He proceeded to make only zerglings and I couldn't deal with it for some reason. Quite probably one of the most frustrating games I've ever played, because I was better than this guy, and I was playing well... so annoying in fact, that I ended up lifting all my buildings and tabbing out to listen to NPR music. Forgive me IdrA, I now know how you feel!
+ Show Spoiler +

My TvP is weird. I often die early on, as I need to get my siege expand down better. But if it gets to the late game, I invariably lose. However, my last game was something to be proud of, I think. I made a point to macro that game, and there was a slight improvement. With the help of spamming EMP, I finally beat his army down, and forced a "I dunno why I'm doing this but, gg". Made me happy that one.
+ Show Spoiler +

***

Alright, I'm feeling better about my play, but this is also the typical midseason boost as well. And honestly, nobody I'm playing right now is technically any good, so there's clearly a long long way to go. But I've been able to compete with the occasional D+ player I play, and so I'm optimistic. With the extended season, and this strange off-time I have in my schedule, I have the time to play a lot more than normal. This is definately translating into better overall skills. I know, I know APM is a poor indicator of anything (I mean, I beat the two guys I was slower than, and lost to the guy who I was miles faster than.) but I've seen my apm increase measurably this season. From 68apm in the very first game I posted, to an average in the 80's, I can see the wisdom in the TL adage "If you work on your basic builds and mechanics, apm will follow."

So basically life is good.

Also, thanks to anyone who tuned in to my livestream during WCG! It was fun watching.

***

This is a new great song.