EPTI have seriously thought over my life with SC recently due to frustrations with how SC2's experience hasn't really been that fun or social, there's only been 100-200 players in chat channels in the region recently, many custom games are getting really empty. 2v2 is like dominated by Z/Z & Z/P rushes and the only players I have friended never say anything and all play their own thing, I miss sharing the SC2 experience and I still feel like just a lurker on TL even after 5 years.
It's also to hard, competitive/serious (so many 'pros' on bnet go crazy over the outcomes of games and I am tired of their insults and crap) and I am thinking of quitting if the experience continues to deteriorate. I have some observations as T with how the match-ups are being played which are probably a biased perspective and how I've found player decision making to be a bigger factor than BW in such a finely mechanically polished and user friendly automated game.
Since the game came out, I've been in awe of all the new concepts and ideas incorporated into Zerg & Protoss to bolster their race since BW, Queen spells are amazing, nydus worms can be placed off creep, warpgates being able to warp DT's across the map already gave me nightmares before beta, colossus being able to walk over cliffs and all the new incredible spells (sentry/infestor.)
What bothers me the most about TvZ is the virtually 3-5 sec short micro until either T gets surrounded (Dead) or Z gets outnumbered (Dead) compared to the epic micro dances of BW TvZ. Watching Marines dodging lurker spines at 300+ apm was amazing to behold (Boxer's immortal marines etc) and equally so to watch lurkers flawlessly flank and slaughter an army. I miss this head to head micro players had the influence over and not superior unit AI giving it this automated 1a feeling with limited input from the players. (Vulture/Wraith Patrol micro R.I.P :/)
Every time a GSL TvZ enters mid-game, every time it's up to T to push out, he hopes that Z doesn't have enough banelings to blow up his entire army, you can't really micro against units with a move speed of almost 5 whose sole function is to suicide against your army, the baneling's function is just completely different from any other unit in the game and it causes such a strange meta game.
It doesn't really feel like a head to head micro battle...just for the T to run as fuck, try to split instantly and hope banelings blow up against non-light and that you come up on top with more units than the Z lost, this battle dynamic kinda bothers me. In GSL I've seen so many T pushes get demolished over and over again, much like my own games. I feel T is left in the dark making the same units as expected, always having to scan after the enemy tech/army. While Z granted it has massive vision from creep & army speed should always have the advantage in decision making which I feel is the most important factor after everything basic.
Creep is virtually resources free, can be spread anywhere (overlord/queens) which can give MASSIVE vision and I never understood why it should be so easy to spread, (forcing T to scan instead of mule) fungal growth even nullifies movement all together and zerg defensively with creep vision will always see when the perfect timing is to attack a T (Tank unsiege/army position) or counter attack P or just run around and avoid their army until an opportunity opens.
Creep is also very bothersome in team games on maps with shared bases and close naturals preventing T/P allies from placing structures there. Idk maybe I'm just biased towards creep, banelings and how different production works in SC2 and the decision making of players having the aid of different racial advantages.
The earlier T decides his tech pattern, the earlier Z can make counter units, T production cycle makes the decision for what units to go for at the start while Z can wait, switch tech to what suits and have 20 larva waiting that can counter what the T produced. PvT's production cycle for instance is not similar to each other at all like in BW, WG's can freely choose what units to warp in normally at the timing of the end of T's production cycle. Basically it allows P more opportunity to spawn counter-units after the T production time is normally done, it might not matter in a long game but during an offence/defence it's definably an advantage to warp in the right counter unit.
Most of all of what bothers me is army mobility and reinforcements, Z with faster than 'The Flash' units on creep can reinforce and respond easily (to drops) and on large maps can re-make a 100 supply worth of army if lost when maxed, (something I think Day9 talked about as a problem if the supply cap is raised.) T production especially mech is generally built over time with the appropriate production structures being decided at the start of the game. And usually the first push or mech 'doom push' decides the successfulness or general outcome of the game with new units being stationed at home to fend off counter attacks. There just doesn't seem much room for T switching tech after making the early-game decision of what army composition to go for.
This difference in production cycles and player decision making bothers me, what units T makes is very predictable, as anyone who has tried early aggresion as T or timing push can quickly find themselves outnumbered by 'sudden reinforcements'. Either because Z saved up larva and/or switched techs, or because P instantly warped in units near a pylon to join their main army suddenly outnumbering yours or warped in HT's/DT's taking you by surprise. (Now Imagine Barracks Drop Pods from Campaign :o)
Idk, just some decision making tendencies I noticed having watched GSL every day and finding those high level of refined plays to come down to important player decisions which can be aided in different scenarios by different racial advantages and perks of sorts.
Reading Liquipedia which in Terran strategy often writes about an opponents adaptation to particular builds and alternative transitions to take when this happens and the general seemingly incorporation of Bio in every matchup.
Mobility seems to reign supreme in this game and mech is not exactly that, I'm frustrated with how slow tanks siege/unsiege and get demolished on any open area or are forced to unsiege due to mobile counter attacks in every match up. Units just MOVE so much faster and organized in a group than BW, while tanks have the positional advantage of high burst damage sieged, their usefulness is limited because rarely can you out-position a FAST mobile army and so much more time is wasted unsieging them in response until you finally get rushed.
Idk in writing this I've realized the real problem I'm having with my race, it's the fact that I don't know how to make better decisions than my opponents and I feel like I should switch to Z or P because frankly I've always felt they have so much amazing new gameplay concepts going for them and good opportunities to make better decisions.
I just can't see myself switching because I've played T since BW 05-07 and when SC2 came out, I played T really well right off the bat and I fear my mechanics/experience will become wasted and whether or not I could be a better Z/P player, my game results may end up worse.
Throughout the process of thinking over this post, I have realized that while I've been playing T for competitive reasons, I don't really find the race to be fun to play (Protoss seems like loads of fun.) Maybe it's just the general repetitive gameplay since every game it's the same mechanics, same decisions on what to build and having to stick to it, tech switching I haven't been successful with ever. I just find it boring because micro is the only thing that's really 'fun' and enjoyable in every game and battles are just over so very fast...
My MMR value is pretty high from teamgames so the matchmaking system in 1v1 puts me against opponents that are way better than me and who have x10-1000 the 1v1 experience that I have. There's no time to learn, losses become so frustrating due to my own bad decisions, inability to outplay my opponents and simply to much pressure to play as good as them which frankly I don't think I am at all.
Sigh, I'm getting way off track here and I know this is probably a waste of time :/ but if there's any insightful and experienced people that know better than me please share your thoughts, I'd appreciate it
Are these observations plain wrong? What should I do to learn better decision making in 1v1 as T and how 'should' I play the matchups? How do I really socialise with other SC2 players on EU or improve my SC2 experience? Should I just give up, hang up the hat and quit?
