EPTPrevious Starcraft Adventure Blogs
Silver Edition
Part 1 - http://www.teamliquid.net/blogs/viewblog.php?id=320936
Tools
HellGreen's Auto Scene Change application for streaming - http://www.teamliquid.net/forum/viewmessage.php?topic_id=269995
My Own3d.tv channel - http://www.own3d.tv/Live/259165 - Where i'm streaming all of my gaming to.
My YouTube account - http://www.youtube.com/user/c10fnr?feature=mhee
My Clan - Channel 4 News Team - http://www.c4nt.net
My Twitter - https://www.twitter.com/seeton_
Razer Equipment - Blackwidow Ultimate, Naga Hex
Day 2 Streaming
Today I ended up coming home from work unwell. After punching in some meds to help me out and watching Liquid.Ret come out on top of SaSe today at the Red Bull Lan, I thought I'd tackle some Starcraft ladder.
Game 1 - Metalopolis - Replay
My first match for the day, a PVP vs a player named Blink. We exchange nicety's
![[image loading]](http://dl.dropbox.com/u/39038740/SC2%20blog%20screens/20120319G1-1.JPG)
What a pleasant fellow
I decide to go for a 4Gate push, i block his scout probe out with a probe attack moving out , he fails to micro it at all and i kill it. My initial 4gate push fails with him cutting my army with a force field. I work my expansion up and continue building usints, i also pick up 2 forges and start pressing for upgrades. I'm not controlling the XN Tower in the middle, a mistake, as well as not having got an observer out. I also haven't pressured him again after my initial 4 gate. I get my 3d up and before i can get cannons down he pushes in with a large push, he shields me down on the ramp, a mistake, i should have perhaps considered holding back t my natural and letting the 3rd go down, waiting to engage on a better ground for me, instead i threw myself at his forcefields where he destroys my army, shortly thereafter i GG out.
![[image loading]](http://dl.dropbox.com/u/39038740/SC2%20blog%20screens/20120319G1-2.JPG)
Damn you, Own gateways! Curse your wall off!
Learning points
![[image loading]](http://dl.dropbox.com/u/39038740/SC2%20blog%20screens/20120319G1-3.JPG)
Pictured - The importance of XN Towers
+I think my key fault in this game was vision, I had no sight, and after viewing the replay found he had a hidden 3rd base. Further to this, i need to take and hold the XN towers. Also utilize a scout zealot. I also need to keep the pressure on.
+I felt i possibly abandoned the 4 gate too early. However it's probably my weakest build in my repertoire.
+I also had a single colossus out by the 17.5 minute mark. VERY SLOW, again need to tech swap earlier. Again a factor of not expanding with my attack.
+Change to the final encounter would have been pull back to natural, engage with colossus
Game 2 - Cloud Kingdom LE - Replay
My opponent for this match is a terran player by the name of singabore. For this match I opt for the forge fast expand. I've had some success with it previously, and felt that i could hold off any pressure from a terran opponent before any early pressure became an issue. I build my Cyber and it gets over 3/4's done before i pick up gas. A mistake i constantly make.
10 mins pass and the most that's happened is we've exchanged probes. I send a scout zealot and see tanks and marauders. This prompts me to build s few more stalkers and start to build up my infrastructure. I add another 4 Gates, a robo and another gas. I guess I got distracted by pretty colours again. I send a meagre supply of zealots at 14 mins to scout for a third, I do find it there, i take it down 50% before he lifts it off, unfortunately not on fire yet. I decide to get a warp prism out, as well as making my Robotics Facility and adding a templar archives. I send my meagre force at his 3rd again, and the loaded warp prism to his main. It should be noted the 1 missile turret will kill a warp prism if you do a fly over on it. Will try not make that mistake again. 19 mins I move up to the XN watch tower.
![[image loading]](http://dl.dropbox.com/u/39038740/SC2%20blog%20screens/20120319G2-1.JPG)
Wait a minute, wait a minute. What have we here, gentlemen? The police have themselves an RV
I move around to the left and clean up his army in the middle. I replace my army with some zealots and templar and move accross to the second XN tower. He pushes out with some Marauders and Marines and draws me into his tank fire. I decide to kill the rocks first while being shelled and then engage his army. Unfortunately for him, his army wasn't big enough and despite my miscontrol to kill the rocks, he crumbled away.
Learning Points
![[image loading]](http://dl.dropbox.com/u/39038740/SC2%20blog%20screens/20120319G2-2.JPG)
I think we all have this problem some times!
+Spending more, i have to keep my gas and mins lower.
+XN Towers and more vision (Had obs this game, they just say in my base) - Did scout with zealots, adjustment from last game
+Pressure more, even with drops or other forms of harassment. I do think i responded well to the stuff i did scout, and i'm once again happy with my upgrades. I did work during my final attack to get a fourth base up, which my mined out main would have been sent to.
Game 3 - Antiga Shipyard - Replay
This is my second PvP for the day, we exchange niceties. For this PvP I work towards a Forge Fast Expand Getting a couple of cannons and a gate up before the nexus. I move up to 4 gates, and send a probe and my army to make a forward pylon. I realise it's a late 4 gate, but though a bit of pressure would be helpful. I poke up to his third and see a very early 3rd going up (10 mins) my +1 attack finishes as he moves to save his 3rd and we engage, he calls GG almost as soon as we engage, whether he thought he'd win or not I will never know. He retreats back to his main and i force field it off and finish him off.
![[image loading]](http://dl.dropbox.com/u/39038740/SC2%20blog%20screens/20120319G3-1.JPG)
Maybe he has an ace in the hole?
Learning Points
+Keep producing and building back at home while you're fighting, the AI will take care of most of the work for me.
+XN Tower!!!!
+Scout more
+Expand behind an attack
Game 4 - Metalopolis - Replay
My fourth match is against a Terran player named ExAmple. I decide to run a Forge Fast Expand in this game as well. I move to block his barracks and start to build my forge back at home. However in that moment he manages to get enough space to get the barracks up. Dissapointing. I also made a mistake by continuing to rally probes down to my natural after i sent probe 11 to build the forge. Minor mistake but something that shouldn't have let happen. I build a forward pylon then scout his ramp and move back to it. He must have been watching because he killed the pylon shortly thereafter.
At this point i know he's on 1 base still, possibly just getting up his natural, however my warp tech is late, and I've disobeyed my own rule about getting a Robo ASAP. It goes down at 7 mins 50secs I send some Zealots to take the XN tower when the first Cloaked Banshee hits. I move my probes to my natural as there is a cannon there, and then the second one hits. at this point i should have been dropping pylons up and putting a lot more cannons down. Insteadi throw my 3 zealots into his forces at his main, and miscontrol in a panic several times. I finally decide to get some stalkers up, as well as some cannons. My observer that i started finishes. however by then he's already parked a tank outside my base. He's also unfortunately crippled my economy I gg out.
Learning Points
+Try and keep SOMETHING outside a terran base, so i can know what's going on.
+Gateway > Cyber > Robo > 1-2Gates
+If no robo up by 7 mins, put cannons around the mineral line, Make sure i have stalkers
+Obs to scout their base (Had XN towers this game!)
Game 5 - Antiga Shipyard - Replay
My opponent for Game 5 is JayKay, this makes for another PVP game, I opt again to Forge Fast Expand. I toy with the idea of cannon rushing, But the probe moves to the wrong side of the pylon so i'm not able to get a solid wall in behind his minerals, I cancel my 2 pylons, and move to make my natural as well as a cannon and gateway at the ramp. 4mins 50 secs he parks a zealot at the bottom of my ramp, just in sight. I move my building probe to block the gap. 7 mins, taking my lesson from last game i get the factory up, however this time i want. I moved to my third and ran into a scout zealot. He then moves his army at me. My colossus pops as he attacks, deflecting it easily.
![[image loading]](http://dl.dropbox.com/u/39038740/SC2%20blog%20screens/20120319G5-1.JPG)
Here he comes to save the day!
The next time we scuffle is outside my base, I've got a few more Colossus and wipe him out easily. He leaves shortly following.
Learning Points
+Colossus are strong, can feel free to push for them earlier.
+Keep building army
+Use your army to secure bases.
Game 6 - Metalopolis - Replay
The 6th game is a PvZ vs EffingFunny. I opt for a Forge Fast Expand again, he spots this and I scout him dropping a 3rd down. I find myself a little distracted and floating a lot of resources early on. I try and catch up by dropping down more infrastructure and building a lot of zealots but feel like i'm behind still. I take the XN tower with 1 Zealot for each one, he quickly retakes with a small squad of Zerglings.
At the 10 minute mark i'm floating 1500 minerals and 700 gas with only 4 zealots, I had my 3gates and robo up, I just hadn't made anything. His attack hits at 14 and I've got an ok force of Stalkers and a couple of Immortals. I've scouted that he has a fourth and try and pressure it, thinking he'd be limited on army. My mistake, cost me the game. Really just a game where the pretty colours of Metalopolis distracted me.
Learning Points
+Do something... ANYTHING
+Keep probing, keep building,
+Keep money low.
Game 7 - Shakuras Plateau - Replay
My second PvZ in a row is against Ren. Being Shakuras Plateau, I Forge Fast Expand again. I scout early and see he's gone Pool first, so for safety i throw up a Gateways 2 cannon's and my Cybernetics before dropping down my nexus. I take 2 gas early and start pushing out zealots. I remember this time to get my Robotics facility, if i little later than i would have liked. He drops a changeling which i drop and kill quickly. I move up to 7 gtes by 10 mins and have an observer with my army. I build a second Obs to scout his base i move out knowing he hasn't got any upgrades with my 1/1 and press up from his natural into his main. I protected my forward pylon with a single cannon, not much, but would discourage a smaller force from attacking it. Unfortunately for Ren, my timing was quote strong, and the units I'd built countered him perfectly.
Leaning Points
+Build a Twilight council, and a Templar archives before 12 mins.
+Stalkers at or near the mineral line. If he had any muta's he could have killed a lot of probes.
+Hotkey the Observer and utilise it around his base better, sitting it over his Lair isn't going to help
+Build a Robotics Facility as soon as the Bay finishes.
+Expand behind an attack! I needed to take my third at this point.
Game 8 - Entombed Valley - Replay
My 8th and final match is against Timmmmaaaaay, a Zerg player, making my 3rd in a row. Being a comfortable map with an easy to hold expansion, I move to fast expand. I catch him at my first scout location and block his expand for as long as possible, I lose the probe but i get down a pylon in it's place.
![[image loading]](http://dl.dropbox.com/u/39038740/SC2%20blog%20screens/20120319G8-1.JPG)
Suckaaaaaaa
He runs some zerglings through, which takes me a little by surprise, but my cannons took out a bunch as he ran through and my probes took care of the rest, only losing 2 probes overall. The one remaining zergling I check for with a zealot. I move up to 4 gates, my VERY late cyber, and take my gas at my natural. I send my zealots out to scout/harass a little and catch a large force of roaches moving to my base. Some zealots continue along, the others engage. They attack the front of my base with minimal success and only manage to take down 2 cannons. I destroy the destructable rocks and take my third. I've now got my Robotics Facility and am working on a couple of colossus. I flank his army going into my 3rd and wipe him out. Colossus doing a number to a wholly roach hydra force. Timmmmaaaaay taps out shortly after.
![[image loading]](http://dl.dropbox.com/u/39038740/SC2%20blog%20screens/20120319G8-2.JPG)
I felt a great disturbance in the Force, as if millions of voices suddenly cried out in terror and were suddenly silenced
Learning Points
+Really need to get the Robotics up a lot quicker, I've been very very slow on it.
+The Robotics facility needs to follow shortly thereafter, because i only really need a maximum of 4 immortals.
+Keep building, watching the replay i have a few moments where i'm clearly stumped.
+Develop a clear plan for each race, a goal, so that i don't run into those periods where I stand around like a stone goat.
Wrap up
A bit of a longer one today, however I did get a few games in, and went 5-3 overall. I've now broken into the top 25 in Silver League. With a bit more practice hopefully my builds will sort themselves out, and I'll stop being such a stunned mullet.
![[image loading]](http://dl.dropbox.com/u/39038740/SC2%20blog%20screens/20120319G9-1.JPG)
GGWP!
