EPT10 basic/simple tips that got me out of Copper and into Gold!
AKA: "The 10 Things I had to keep in mind to stop sucking ASS!"
(No particular order.)
Note: This list is more Terran related since I play Terran, although, most of the tips do relate to the other races! I might just get unit names/references wrong, but I’m sure you know what I mean.
Backstory: + Show Spoiler +
“Everyone has to start somewhere.” was what I kept telling myself when I landed COPPER in my placement matches during the SCII beta. It was quite embarrassing since everyone I knew was at least Bronze+. Nevertheless, I gathered up any courage I had left to continue a few more matches. Breaking free from Copper to Bronze was a slow and painful journey. It was simply the lack of understanding that kept me from playing a well as I could. I didn’t even know what all the units did, it was THAT bad!
So, I did what any frustrated gamer would do when a game/opponent is kicking their ass. I turned to the Internet. I constantly visited TeamLiquid.net for StarCraft news and I finally decided to post a blog post about my recent troubles in Copper. Not really expecting anyone to reply, and was kind of hoping nobody would see it, I was pleasantly surprised to see the first few comments being words of encouragement. Though the OP sounded as if I were just whining about being a shitty player, I ended up having in depth discussions with various players who offered AMAZING and USEFUL basic tips. The blog stayed active for a couple of days, advice coming in from all different types of players. Platinum-Copper players gave their two cents and were willing to answer any/all my questions. With all the information that I had learned just by ASKING FOR HELP, my game drastically changed from being complete scrubby game play... to someone who actually knows what they’re doing.
After carefully considering every one's advice, reading threads, watching replays/examples that were suggested to me, I decided to go ahead and compile a list of the common tips that everyone had offered to me. It took a lot of wins and losses, but I finally clawed my way out of Copper and into the higher ground amongst the Gold players. The feeling of accomplishment and pride was quietly satisfying. I shared this list with a few of my friends who were also struggling in Copper/Bronze, including “gootecks” who is also a Gold Terran player. We’ve discussed this list numerous times and often times refer to it when we are having a shitty few rounds. These tips have also been presented to Plat’s who have graciously confirmed it’s validity.
I am not claiming to know more than the advanced players, hell, I’m only 25th in Gold! Regardless, I truly want to share this list with the ones that need it most: Beginners, Casuals, Lost & Confused, and most of all, those of you that are much better than I am. I wish to continue learning from all of you, and share my own thoughts/ideas/experiences along the way. This basic tip list/podcast is the first of many that I plan to do for the SCII community. It may not be amazing reading material, but I have put a lot of thought and time into this, so I hope you all find SOME use for it.
I hope you find this useful and can apply it to your game. Feel free to contact me if there are any questions or discrepancies! Thanks, again, for reading and not flaming this post.
So, I did what any frustrated gamer would do when a game/opponent is kicking their ass. I turned to the Internet. I constantly visited TeamLiquid.net for StarCraft news and I finally decided to post a blog post about my recent troubles in Copper. Not really expecting anyone to reply, and was kind of hoping nobody would see it, I was pleasantly surprised to see the first few comments being words of encouragement. Though the OP sounded as if I were just whining about being a shitty player, I ended up having in depth discussions with various players who offered AMAZING and USEFUL basic tips. The blog stayed active for a couple of days, advice coming in from all different types of players. Platinum-Copper players gave their two cents and were willing to answer any/all my questions. With all the information that I had learned just by ASKING FOR HELP, my game drastically changed from being complete scrubby game play... to someone who actually knows what they’re doing.
After carefully considering every one's advice, reading threads, watching replays/examples that were suggested to me, I decided to go ahead and compile a list of the common tips that everyone had offered to me. It took a lot of wins and losses, but I finally clawed my way out of Copper and into the higher ground amongst the Gold players. The feeling of accomplishment and pride was quietly satisfying. I shared this list with a few of my friends who were also struggling in Copper/Bronze, including “gootecks” who is also a Gold Terran player. We’ve discussed this list numerous times and often times refer to it when we are having a shitty few rounds. These tips have also been presented to Plat’s who have graciously confirmed it’s validity.
I am not claiming to know more than the advanced players, hell, I’m only 25th in Gold! Regardless, I truly want to share this list with the ones that need it most: Beginners, Casuals, Lost & Confused, and most of all, those of you that are much better than I am. I wish to continue learning from all of you, and share my own thoughts/ideas/experiences along the way. This basic tip list/podcast is the first of many that I plan to do for the SCII community. It may not be amazing reading material, but I have put a lot of thought and time into this, so I hope you all find SOME use for it.
I hope you find this useful and can apply it to your game. Feel free to contact me if there are any questions or discrepancies! Thanks, again, for reading and not flaming this post.
1) 400 Mineral Rule - Early/Mid Game
In any RTS, especially StarCraft II, being rich means you’re losing! If you constantly find yourself hitting 1k and minerals keep pouring in, then you aren’t spending them as much as you probably should be. There is always something that you can be building or units that can be produced while you are monitoring other tasks. Try to keep yourself under 400 Minerals, even if it’s just making the concious effort in doing so. Start out by staying under 600 if it’s still too difficult to do at first. Then, work your way down to 400. (Of course, in the later game and with 3+ expansions, you’re GOING to be hella rich. So, at that point, it’s okay to be Daddy Fat Sacks.)
2) Scout w. Purpose - Early/Mid/Late Game
One of the main things I had to learn when I was in Copper/Bronze was that knowing the lay of the land is EVERYTHING. At the beginning of the game you are given your own starting location, and the where your opponent *might* be. Normally, I would just send out a scout to find them if it wasn’t a 1v1 map, then head on back to my base or do something silly like try to take out one of their workers. That was a huge mistake. I now am CONSTANTLY scouting, even after I find out where they are. Capturing the Xel’Naga towers are a HUGE part of gaining more vision over the map. Scouting the other expansions and leaving units there just so you can have an extra eyes all around will obviously give you a better understanding of his position in the game. Doing this made me see that you can control the map and your opponent just by actively scouting.
Some things to look for while scouting would be:
* Your opponent's building composition. If you could decipher from what structures he's gotten together, you can decide whether or not you have to switch up your game plan.
* Capturing a Xel'Naga tower towards the center of the map can give you the advantage of watching your opponent move through the map. He may be trying to expand to another location, or slowly making the move across thew way towards your base.
* When dealing with a lot of lower level play, you tend to run into a lot of Cheese Moves where players will do ridiculously shady shit just to get a quick win. Though these tactics' legitimacy is up for debate, scouting properly will give you a heads up for when he's setting up some shenanigans for you.
3) Structures > Units - Mid Game
There were many times that I found myself over 400 Minerals and needed to spend it on something, and fast! Initially, I thought producing more units would hold me off until the next mineral dump was in place. I later found out that taking the 150 and spending it on an extra Barracks (even though I already had two) was worth more in the long run than queuing up a Marauder and Marine. Sometimes, having many buildings just leads to faster production of units when you really need it.
4) Healthy Economy = Constant Worker Production - Early/Mid/Late Game
What’s the point of spending all the minerals on buildings/structures when you have no money to spend on units? A very basic tip to keep in mind is that you can NEVER be producing too many workers. (You can have too many workers in one base, but you definitely can never have too many workers.) It’s best to have the max (28-30ish) on each base to get the best out of the harvesting game. When you lose workers due to an early rush, REBUILD them as quick as possible! When you’ve safely expanded, send half of those workers to start harvesting and CONTINUE to produce worker units. You’ll find yourself sitting pretty on a steady flow of gas/minerals all for you to spend as you please.
5) Avoid Supply Caps - Early/Mid/Late Game
It took a while for me to realize that this was a huge reason for my terrible game play. This might be a bit more Terran related, but I would always hit the supply cap and have to waste a minute or so waiting for the next Supply Depot to build. I find that I could have produced some valuable units in the time it took to make room for them. Keeping an eye on your supply count can really help you out in the next situation where you have to quickly produce some units and you have NO time for having to wait for a depot to build.
(Terran Tip: If you hit the supply cap and you’re pressed for time, using the Command Center to call down Extra Supplies ‘X’ will give you a small window of opportunity to build the units as well as put down a Supply Depot, that way you have some breathing room while you continue to other tasks.)
6) Micro/Macro Mechanics - Early/Mid/Late Game
Just knowing what Micro/Macro is only half the battle. Knowing WHEN to do which is the other half. There are times where you can definitely be laying down your Macro game (Expanding, Building more structures, scouting the other expansions, etc), usually when you’ve defended your base or have some time to kill because of a successful early rush. Dedicating yourself to your Micro game is as simple as not leaving a battle once you’ve started it. Even if you think you’ve ‘got it in the bag’, leaving the scene of activity is a sure way to lose out to your opponent if they begin to focus their micro more while you are away.
7) EXPAND, EXPAND, EXPAND! - Early/Mid Game
When I was first starting out, I spent too much time worrying about expanding to my Natural, and less on actually fuckign doing it. While I sat there defending my main with my thumb up my ass I lost to many matches just because I was too chicken shit to expand and harvest more precious minerals. After having been suggested numerous times to expand my ass off, I finally tried keeping up or being ahead of my opponent. When he expanded, so did I. If he tried to expand, I would try and harass the new expansion. Expanding safely and consistently leads to such a rich economy that you need not worry about having the minerals/gas for the units, and start worrying about amassing your perfect army to start fuckign shit up!
8) Never Be Idle - Early/Mid/Late Game
This definitely goes out to the beginners/rookies who still have to take time to think about their strategy or pay careful attention to when they attempt to attack. There are times where you need to stop and think for a second, which is completely understandable. You can still be producing units or working on an expansion, passively, working on your game. I would watch my replays and be super pissed at myself when I find that I had perfect opportunities to be queuing up some units, but instead, I mindlessly click around ‘looking’ for something to do. Learning to hot key your structures can greatly ease the task of multitasking while keeping up unit production. There is ALWAYS something to be doing in StarCraft!!!
9) Know Your Races - Early/Mid/Late Game
Now, I still struggle with this, which is probably why I’m still a mid-Gold player and haven’t even gotten to top 10 yet. Since I mainly play Terran, and my partner in crime is also a Terran player, I become slightly oblivious to the other races. Don’t get me wrong, I know what my pro’s and con’s are as a Terran player, but I am completely lost with the pro’s and con’s of the other races. Knowing each match up before you go into the game will either put you ahead or level the playing field with your opponent. It will help when you need to make quick decisions based on your plan of attack/defense. I realized SCII isn’t just about making choices, but making THE BEST choices for every situation that you are in.
* I suggest playing the Single Player Challenges for those who are just starting out. They will walk you through learning how to play the different races as well as other basic things that might just surprise you.
* Doing your homework also can help reveal the secrets of the races to you. Read forums, articles, or just ask a friend who plays the other race. It’s not hard to get the information, it’s out there!
10) Respect the Tech Tree - Mid/Late Game
There are two ways you can take this, both include understanding the power of the tech tree. In all of your matches you will find yourself having to constantly mix and match your army with the various amounts of units that you can create. Having a strong composition of units can make or break your plan of attack. If you find that your plan of rushing with Reapers is failing against his quick tech to Hydralisks, you might want to consider teching up to vikings, or at least aiding Marines with a Medivac.
Another way to look at this tip is to realize that the Tech Tree is law. If you tech straight up to Banshee, leaving you with little to no army, don’t be surprised when your opponent rushes in with a stronger force, therefore foiling your plan. Knowing where in the Tree you have to be is another chapter in the StarCraft Book of Basics that you should brush up on. Having this kind of information logged away in the back of your head is quicker than pulling up the in-game menu, and doing unnecessary calculations in your head.
*) Honorary Mention: Know When It’s Over!
I’m sure all of you have experienced playing someone that is losing who just will NOT give up, dragging the game on longer than it should be. This advice is for those of you guys who have already lost their bases and refuse to GG. Do us all a favor and just end it for the both of you! This also relates to having an attack attempt go wrong. Instead of pushing all in and losing precious units, realize that it’s over and retreat back to safety. It’s better to save your units and regroup, than to lose them all and have to rebuild an army.
Whew!!! That wraps it up for my 10 Beginner’s Tips on How to Get Out of Bronze! Again, this was mainly for the beginners or the lost and confused. Hopefully all of the New comers and Bronze players that have been struggling with Multiplayer 1v1 matches will find some sort of comfort in this list and you walk away slightly better now than you were before. If you are the same level as I am, or higher, and found this completely boring and redundant, sorry, it wasn’t meant for you guys. Although, if you found this useful and entertaining, then my hard work has paid itself off!
Thanks for reading, and if you liked it, please pass it on!
GLHF!
