EPT
I am here to provide you with a surefire way to confound your ladder opponents and beat them to show your supremacy as a zerg player. I have used one of my own games as an example, in order to illustrate the 5 main steps that must be followed in order to decimate your competition and claim the zerg throne for yourself:
Step 1: Open up with a cheesy unorthodox build that seems so counter-intuitive and bad for the map that your opponent must subconsciously rule it out without a second thought. The reason for this is to instill fear and make your opponent realize that nothing can be ruled out despite its absurdity. This is what we call "getting into their head", thereby making them play sub-optimally and sloppy. Major bonus points if you manage to mind game them during the chat too to decrease their defense mechanism.
![[image loading]](https://i.imgur.com/uNdI9uo.png)
Step 2: After showing your hand, you must deliberately push your opponent further to the edge. You have to damage your opponent's psyche enough through bad execution then come through to make sure any lead they had disappears. The uncertainty in the game will end up increasing their heart rate and breathing all the while throwing them off their rhythm. The fight or flight response will get activated as a result of your planned gameplay. More bonus points if you manage to throw in a comment explaining that it's not their fault that this is happening.
![[image loading]](https://i.imgur.com/cBj4cY2.png?1)
![[image loading]](https://i.imgur.com/XkcuUpu.png?1)
Step 3: With the rush failing, but only in the opponent's mind, you have already gotten them to where you wanted. They no longer feel safe to even expand without pulling SCVs and adjusting their build on the fly to account for any further aggression. You are now the true master of this game, and have already stolen the initiative with the ability to control the game as you wish. Keeping in mind that the opponent will try to get his game back on track, you must strike while the iron is still hot, and deal a decisive blow.
In order to implement a risky strategy against such a cautious opponent, you must carefully lead them by the nose. This all hinges on your ability to crafty set up a situation where you can lure them into the trap:
![[image loading]](https://i.imgur.com/A9wrOnt.png?1)
Hold lurkers are set at a good location that is likely to be crossed by the opponent. Notice how the lurkers are not centered, but rather closer to your potential third base to prevent them from being discovered. What you want to do is give your opponent a nice surprise. Make sure to take note of the zergling lure, how it darts back and forth just in range of the opponent's vision, in the illustration below which is of extreme importance. This simple normal method, which your opponent has been conditioned with through countless games, makes the opponent feel safe to move up and engage. After all, zerglings run around the map for many reasons all the time. What harm could several small zerglings do to a mighty army?
In order for this to truly succeed, you must be manipulative and plant the idea of normality into their mind:
![[image loading]](https://i.imgur.com/aR8gWMq.gif)
Step 4: Having dealt a great blow to your opponent, you must not relax yet, and should work on another major push to further deteriorate their mindset in order to seal the game in spectacular fashion. A cautious opponent can only work in your favour with a mindset that will make them question everything that they try to do. This would slow their reaction time and APM thereby affecting their macro, micro and decisions. In order to do this, you must follow-up with a strategy that utilizes the tech pathway that you have chosen, and make sure to set this plan in motion. Time is of the essence as the opponent will eventually recover from the shock that he has suffered.
![[image loading]](https://i.imgur.com/YhHChLo.png?1)
Notice how the overlords are ready with speed and drop soon after your trap was sprung. What makes this next move so potent is the ability to use this to destroy his economy through a double drop, all the while dancing your overlords in his face, to absorb marine shots and prolong the lifespan of your own lurkers. Above all, this would surely outrage any normal opponent due to its insanity. What kind of an opponent can handle this kind of blatant in-your-face provocation?
![[image loading]](https://i.imgur.com/mYWaZeB.gif)
Step 5: With his economy in shambles, and his army reduced to a mere joke, the opponent must now make some tough decisions as to how they stay alive and get back into the game. You have made your plan obvious, but this is all part of the master plan. Your double drop has gotten into your opponent's mind and has made them play even safer with the caveat that their small army must now be split defending two separate locations. All you now need to do is move in with the sickest strategy of all and seal the deal:
![[image loading]](https://i.imgur.com/6YkbCY6.png?1)
![[image loading]](https://i.imgur.com/RsrCHWB.png)
