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Warning: This is a Silver level blog. It is going to be full of Silver level misconceptions, and any linked replays will contain silver level macro. In this case, not just silver level macro but Silver level "I haven't played this matchup since Skyrim came out" macro.
Do feel free to giggle at how many minerals I'm floating. I know I do.
Basically, I'm a horribly horribly passive player. I'm that guy who sits on 2-3 bases, macros until maxed, and pushes. And if I think that might not win the game right away, I'll make 10 rax as I push and rally marines when my supply starts to drop. The most shameful thing is that the rallying works far too well if my push does any damage at all. I'm sure if I just focused on a winning build I could reach much higher leagues. For now though, I just try things out until I find something I'm comfortable with.
The problem I have is, I'm always too wary or focused on production to think about attacking or gaining map control. The only times I attack are if I'm (near) maxed, or I realised I forgot what my gameplan was and just spend what money I have on the first thing that comes to mind and push ASAP.
This often results in something like this. I bet if I made that into an actual build (and kept my ghosts in front and paid any attention to my army - I only won that because my opponent's army was much smaller), I would be set for TvP for some time.
I do this in TvT too whenever I'm not screwing around with Air Terran. (Speaking of which, HSMs can win games you had no business winning. I was far too lazy that game to deserve a win.)
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Anyway! Rambling aside, after a few months of on-and-off experimenting in this game, I'm finding builds I quite enjoy and am capable of executing at all. But I know from experience that I'm going to lose focus on the point of them and spend not enough time being active with my army.
What do you find helps you stay focused on scouting, attacking and staying army aware? All my experimenting has gotten me better at paying attention to supply and gas (I still find myself bad at balancing minerals), but I'm still really bad at working out what my opponent has and if I should attack. After a session of playing I like to watch replays and laugh at how many moments there are when I can just push and win.
 
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Pick one versatile build (to use in all 3 matchups), and stick with it. Every single game. Practice it to absolute perfection vs AI first; if you can't do it perfectly while talking to a friend you haven't mastered it. Once that's done, search Day[9]'s video on Tapping on youtube, and watch all 3 parts. Learn that until you do it perfectly while talking to friends.
Stop thinking about strategy until that point.
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On December 07 2011 04:45 HyTex wrote:
Pick one versatile build (to use in all 3 matchups), and stick with it. Every single game. Practice it to absolute perfection vs AI first; if you can't do it perfectly while talking to a friend you haven't mastered it. Once that's done, search Day[9]'s video on Tapping on youtube, and watch all 3 parts. Learn that until you do it perfectly while talking to friends.
Stop thinking about strategy until that point.
Although improving macro is obviously the fastest way to achieve league promotion, I don't think it is fair to morally condemn considering strategy in lower leagues. The advice is, of course, valid though.
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I would have hoped that it was clear that I wasn't trying to rush to masters/diamond and was instead trying to take a slow, explorative, enjoyable trip up the ladder.
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I'm just asking a question of what prompts people use to be more active? It seems counter-intuitive to just build up to a certain time, push out and pray. (Unless of course an all-in is scouted or something.)
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I would strongly suggest taking a look at replays and making note of your windows to attack. Sure it will vary based on player/race etc. but it can help give you a better feel for the game and may open your eyes to some nice odd timings. Do this and then apply it where you see fit. You may lose a game or two, but experimenting is a great way to learn.
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You become more active as you familiarize yourself with the details of a strategy. That's why most people recommend sticking to one strategy for each match up when learning. As you repeat a strategy over and over again you use your own timings as a guide for what people can have at various points in the game.
It's not so much building up, pushing out and praying as it is building up then pushing out when you have a good idea of what your opponent has even without being able to see anything.
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I don't play too often, but what I've done is experiment a lot in each matchup (all 9, I play random), to find a build I like that is my own and is successful and Fun.
For example, my TvT build is a 7 minute reaper with speed timing that gets +1 for the second wave:
+ Show Spoiler +9 depot
11 gas
14 rax (add TLab)
15 rax (add TLab)
16 +2 to gas
16 gas
17 depot
17 +2 to gas
21 Fact
23 Orbital
24 Eng bay
Add Rax w/reactor ASAP without stopping reaper production. Research speed and then start stim.
Expand when able without stopping unit production.
Harass with first reaper to show reaper expand, then at 7 minutes hit with 8 reapers. Immediately start producing Marauders and Marines. Sometimes this will kill them outright. This hits just before a tank pops out, and 8 reapers destroy marines and scvs, etc. If they hold, push with your second bio wave.
Is it a GM strategy? No, but its a build that is fun and lets me work on micro and execution! Because I have a set time to attack in, I don't get stuck in the -macromacromacro- mindset. Even my macro games (ZvP 3base Mutabane) have a specific timing that I try to hit. Just play through your build, have fun, find a good time to hit, and push - then in all future games with that build, push at that time.
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On December 07 2011 06:41 Skipper240 wrote:
You become more active as you familiarize yourself with the details of a strategy. That's why most people recommend sticking to one strategy for each match up when learning. As you repeat a strategy over and over again you use your own timings as a guide for what people can have at various points in the game.
It's not so much building up, pushing out and praying as it is building up then pushing out when you have a good idea of what your opponent has even without being able to see anything.
You make a good point in that you learn from practise.
I should really come back and see if I need to ask this again in a week's time, or so.
Thanks for actually explaining instead of spewing out a tl'dr. 
iGrok, I'll bear that in mind. If I just keep going with whatever builds I gravitate to, I'll find out soon enough what I can and can't do.
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On December 07 2011 04:31 LunaSaint wrote:
What do you find helps you stay focused on scouting, attacking and staying army aware? All my experimenting has gotten me better at paying attention to supply and gas (I still find myself bad at balancing minerals), but I'm still really bad at working out what my opponent has and if I should attack. After a session of playing I like to watch replays and laugh at how many moments there are when I can just push and win.
imo by far the best thing you can do is practice looking elsewhere on the map while you are macroing, and try to keep your macro up at all times with your focus/camera away from your base-- even if you aren't doing anything by looking out of your base. You need to be able to macro without a laser-focus in your main in order to make the step you're talking about, and its a skill you'll only develop by actually doing it.
specific builds, as other people mention, is a good way to set-in-stone certain elements of your play so that you don't need to fixate on them, so it's good advice as well, but there are many people that do specific single builds and still stare at their base most of the game. (except when attacking, and then their macro slips)
EDIT: also what is the title of this thread supposed to be?
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First, choose one "gameplan" for each matchup. The gameplan should include build, transition, strategy and such. Something like FFE into 2 port phoenix then get 2 colossi for a timing attack (I just made that up on the spot and I'm not a protoss player, so do not use that gameplan.) Practice said gameplan until you know it inside and out. Then look elsewhere while performing the gameplan. Once you have that mastered, practice moving your army and such while executing the gameplan.
For specific problems that need to be ironed out, play 5-10 games focusing on that problem and not actually winning then 5-10 games focusing on winning in order to keep your other skills sharp.
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On December 07 2011 04:45 HyTex wrote:
Pick one versatile build (to use in all 3 matchups), and stick with it. Every single game. Practice it to absolute perfection vs AI first; if you can't do it perfectly while talking to a friend you haven't mastered it. Once that's done, search Day[9]'s video on Tapping on youtube, and watch all 3 parts. Learn that until you do it perfectly while talking to friends.
Stop thinking about strategy until that point.
Agree with second point, disagree with first. While I agree that you need to limit the amount of builds that you do, you should have a different build for each MU, unless you're silver protoss. It just makes the route you go more effective than going with the normal ideology of "Oh, 3 rax all-in, rage against zerg if no work." Hellions, for instance, grant map control and give you a free semi-economic expansion, but going reactor hellion versus toss, or any major mech play at all, is not a good idea. Bio just works so much better. As for TvT, learn Bio-mech into SkyTerran.
As for not thinking about strats until you have good mechanics, didn't Destiny say that strategy is completely irrelevant if you don't have the mechanics to execute it?
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On December 07 2011 09:02 Conquerer67 wrote:As for not thinking about strats until you have good mechanics, didn't Destiny say that strategy is completely irrelevant if you don't have the mechanics to execute it?
Dunno if he did, but it's certainly true. I tried 4k.warden's mech style TvP a long time ago and just couldn't control anything properly - its also why I try to avoid anything too heavy on the harassment, since I already struggle at paying attention to one army.
Either way, this blog has nothing to do with strategy. D:
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EPT
