EPTSoon after, once gamestop started offering the Beta keys for simply pre-ordering Starcraft 2, Jinsin had gone through TeamLiquid (the website where he and I originally met a few years prior) with the intent of starting a practice group. We started at 4, but through JinSin's efforts and the addition of friends of our new found practice partners, we soon after became 30! JinSin and I were the hosts of the skype call, and we almost always left our computers running with Skype open so people could join/leave the call at will (much like a Vent Server). People from Canada, the Dominican Republic, and parts all over the US were united with the purpose of bettering themselves at Starcraft 2 and enjoying the game for what it is through the support of our practice group, "The GentleNerd's Club"! I believe during this time, I experienced my most exponential growth in the game by going from a gold level newbie to a diamond level player with vastly improved mechanics and understanding of the game!
Although this group was hugely successful for a few of the members, classes started soon after and many became inactive due to their school schedules while others quit entirely and began playing different games. Some I have not heard from in a while.
The purpose for my writing this post today would be with the intention to recreate a group of the same caliber.
I already have about 6 people in the practice group, but again, because of school and work, not everyone is able to play all of the time. I feel that with the addition of more players, it will be possible to almost always have someone to play/practice with! ^^
Although the purpose of being in a practice group is to better yourself and having fun while doing it, I feel that there should still be some requirements in order to have a truly successful group:
-Have Skype! The reason I chose Skype is because it is highly accessible to almost everybody, and it has an extremely use-friendly interface. The IM feature is also very clean and great for casual chat.
-Have a good/decent quality microphone with little background noise. Since Skype is not PTT, it can be pretty annoying/ hurtful to the ears to have constant background noise or random sounds blaring in your ears :X
-Be Masters! During the Beta and early release, people were still figuring out the game and thus any skill level was fine, but now that the game has been out for nearly a year, I feel that a majority of the people who have been committed to this game were able to achieve the level of Masters. It will be much easier to improve as a group if all of the players already have a good understanding of the game. Very few exceptions will be made. (Friends are always welcome to sit in on the call/observe the games though!)
-Be friendly! This is one of the most important. Although the previous practice group was pretty fun, a few people were either rude, annoying, or extremely cocky. This did drive one or two people to leave the group :X
- Although it's evident that Masters level itself has a wide array of skill levels, please don't put yourself too far or below anyone. Assume that everyone is of equal skill, even if their ladder points are 500 below yours ^^
-Always be willing to help/play practice games! I'm not looking for people to join the skype conversation and just ladder all day
-Don't be afraid to ask for help. If you are having difficulty in a certain match-up or versus a certain build, feel free to share replays with someone and ask them to imitate the build so you can practice against it!
-No talk of extreme racial imbalance. It's fun to joke around about "Protoss imba!" or "collosus 1a ezpz win!", but even some bronze players have the mentality that certain races or builds are imbalanced/overpowered simply by reading posts jokingly accusing a race of being imbalanced.
-Don't be afraid to speak up! If you don't like the way someone is joking with you or treating you, let them know. It's also painful to see a player never interact with us in the skype call. Your input and opinions matter! Let us know ^^
-Tell us something about yourself! It's always interesting to see the wide variety of people that can be united through Starcraft! :D
-I understand people will be AFK often, especially with school ending in the coming month. Tell people when you'll be gone so we don't remove you/ miss you
This is what I have come up with so far. Some other rules may apply further down the road. Just remember to be friendly and willing to help a fellow player!
Also, an important note: This is not a clan! I understand that many Masters level players are already in clans and I myself am in one. Please do not view this as abandoning your team/clan. This group is simply to enjoy ourselves while bettering our play!
Please post below with your Skype handle and a little bit about yourself! I'm looking forward to this!
Contact Me-
Skype:GabeBeasts
Teamliquid PM!
AIM: jumpingspidercat
Current Player List
AKidNamedOmni- Zerg/Protoss
Sentry- Terran/Random
ArtOfWar- Zerg
DisOwnMe- Protoss
Hannibal- Protoss
KStyle- Protoss
WalkeR- Terran
Deux- Terran
Lethal- Terran/Protoss
Corinthos- Terran
OuThere- Terran/Protoss
OmniEulogy- Protoss
Deux- Protoss
I've forgotten a few people's in-game names >< I'm trying to learn actual names.
P.S. Sorry for the wall of Text! :D
Edit: MUST BE A TLO FAN! THIS IS THE MOST IMPORTANT PART! OMGOMG xD (It's fine if you aren't a fan of him
I just don't understand who wouldn't be!!!!)First Night: Had about 9 new people tonight and we played from like 1am-4:30am EST. Was really fun! ^^ Hopefully we'll be a bit more organized starting tomorrow so everyone gets a chance to play. Looking forward to people practicing certain match ups and improving :D
