Personal Rules: Play 5 games a day on ICCup (for as long as I can stand it). If I go 0-5, continue playing until I win, by any means necessary (I.e. 5 pool if I have to).
My first day on ICCup Season 2 was not a good sign of things to come. All the games were on Longinus and I went 1-5 for an end-of-the-day rating of 925 and D rank. Ug.
Game 1 + Show Spoiler +
I faced a Korean racepicker named SsaulaBi and I was ill-prepared. When I booted up my computer today my setpoint mouse settings had failed to load, but I didn't pay attention until this game started and when I swiped my mouse to lasso my drones for the split I only grabbed 2 of them, and my mouse was very sluggish. "OMFG!" I thought to myself. But I continued on, trying to make the best of it. My opponent had chosen Terran vs me and spawned at 3, I spawned at 6. He bunker rushed me, adding 6 scvs to his original scout to make sure it stuck. My overlords saw it coming so I sent all my drones to attack the bunker as it was being built, but he finished and repaired it in time to save it. I forgot to make a sunk with one of my drones and lost 6 drones to the combination of scvs and marines while I delayed for lings. I typed out. Game duration 03:37.
Game 2 + Show Spoiler +
After fixing my mouse settings, I began Game 2 vs VanssO who, guessing by his profile, is a Zerg that plays PvZ to dodge ZvZ. He played P vs me, of course. He was at 1 and I was at 6 o'clock. I went 12 hatch 11 pool and drone scouted his FE, so I took my mineral only and then the nearest double gas shortly after. Too much expanding? Probably. He used zealots to harrass the different bits of my empire, and I went lurker to defend the different bits of my empire. I lost my mineral only to a bunch of zealots just before my lurkers finished morphing, but I rebuilt after killing his zealots. He sent DTs after me next, but I had good overlord coverage and he had no corsair so they did minimal damage.
I moved out around 9 minutes to see if I could attack one of his bases. Although I hadn't been scouting, I was sure he'd taken at least one more expo by this point, so I aimed at his mineral only.
As my lurkers crested the hill northwest of my mineral only, they were horrified to see that my opponent had amassed a large army there consisting primarily of dragoons with a few zealots and archons mixed in. The lurkers promptly buried their heads in the sand, but there was obviously an observer nearby because they died very fast. I typed out. Game duration 09:53.
I moved out around 9 minutes to see if I could attack one of his bases. Although I hadn't been scouting, I was sure he'd taken at least one more expo by this point, so I aimed at his mineral only.
As my lurkers crested the hill northwest of my mineral only, they were horrified to see that my opponent had amassed a large army there consisting primarily of dragoons with a few zealots and archons mixed in. The lurkers promptly buried their heads in the sand, but there was obviously an observer nearby because they died very fast. I typed out. Game duration 09:53.
Game 3 + Show Spoiler +
was vs the French protoss named Wind_Follower. I spawned at 3 and went 12 pool 12 hatch, he spawned at 1 and went some manner of 2 gate. I quickly turned my 12 pool into 3 hatch lings, having decided to muster any pressure I could. He handled it well, using probes to assist in the defense. His counters never reached my base as I, for far too long, continued the ling pressure. I lost a large number of lings to a poorly placed rally point when I neglected to take control of them and give them even minimal commands to attack.
Eventually he had DT. Poor overlord coverage led to many drone deaths and I typed out. Game Duration 12:38.
Eventually he had DT. Poor overlord coverage led to many drone deaths and I typed out. Game Duration 12:38.
Game 4 + Show Spoiler +
was vs a Polish zerg named last_chance. I spawned at 6 and opened with 9 pool speedling. He spawned at 1 and opened with what I think was 9 pool 11 hatch. I forced him to cancel his hatch and moved in for the kill. He'd placed a creep colony in his mineral line and his drones were stacking, prepping to defend themselves. If that wasn't enough for defense, he also had a few lings in the mineral line, so I backed off and teched to muta. He put down a second hat inside his main and pumped lings, forcing me to continue replenishing my ling count as well. He got an evo chamber and a spore colony up in his mineral line before my muta arrived in his main, and then he overwhelmed my containing lings (which had been cut to make muta) with his lings. I typed out "gg" alt+q q, losing my first zvz on ICCup and my 4th game in a row. Game Duration 06:17.
After the game he sent me a message congratulating me on the good game. Not in the best of moods for making friends after dropping promptly to D- and doing so by losing my best match up, I replied poorly: "I agree, I like losing games to static defense." He sent me a bunch of messages in his native tongue after that. I doubt any were friendly.
After the game he sent me a message congratulating me on the good game. Not in the best of moods for making friends after dropping promptly to D- and doing so by losing my best match up, I replied poorly: "I agree, I like losing games to static defense." He sent me a bunch of messages in his native tongue after that. I doubt any were friendly.
Game 5 + Show Spoiler +
was another zvz, this time vs a D ranked korean named Aschoup. He spawned at 1 and I spawned at 3. After accomplishing a very clean split, I was disgusted to realize that I hadn't built a drone yet. So, I turned my build order into a 5 pool and hoped for the best. But the hope wasn't realized. Although I spotted his overlord crossing mine and sent my lings in the correct direction, carefully dodging where I thought his overlords were, he had a sunken and lings morphing when I arrived in his base. He musta went 9 pool 8 colony or some shit... ESP koreans, I'm tellin' ya ^^. Anyway, I tried to make the best of it, but I did basically no damage and typed out. Game Duration 03:54.
Having lost 5 games in a row-- the last two being in my best matchup-- I was D- with 763 points and in a very depressed mood.
Having lost 5 games in a row-- the last two being in my best matchup-- I was D- with 763 points and in a very depressed mood.
Game 6 + Show Spoiler +
was vs a D Protoss named Mentholse. I spawned at 1 and opened with 5 pool, and this time it was deliberate and angry. He spawned at 6 and opened with an FE. Having scouted my 5 pool directly, he tried to harrass my drones with his probe with limited success (he didn't kill any drones, but a few of my drones did have to briefly halt their important work of mining to deal with it) while he went with what must've been forge -> gateway -> cannon at his choke.
When my lings arrived at his choke, the gateway and cannon were warping in and most of his probes were surrounding the cannon. I killed as many probes as I needed to in order to expose the cannon (all but 3), then I attacked the cannon, which was just finishing its warp in. With 1 ling left, but reinforcements on their way, the cannon exploded. Then, as I attacked the remaining probe defenders, a zealot popped out of the gateway. "Oof" was my initial reaction-- until I took a second look.
Comically, and very fortunately for me, the zealot had popped trapped between his gateway and Longinus's terrain. I promptly commanded all my lings to kill the pylon powering the gateway, and Mentholse left the game without typing out. Game duration 03:33.
+162 points, back up to D, and I get to be immortalized on his profile as his worst loss! Wee!
When my lings arrived at his choke, the gateway and cannon were warping in and most of his probes were surrounding the cannon. I killed as many probes as I needed to in order to expose the cannon (all but 3), then I attacked the cannon, which was just finishing its warp in. With 1 ling left, but reinforcements on their way, the cannon exploded. Then, as I attacked the remaining probe defenders, a zealot popped out of the gateway. "Oof" was my initial reaction-- until I took a second look.
Comically, and very fortunately for me, the zealot had popped trapped between his gateway and Longinus's terrain. I promptly commanded all my lings to kill the pylon powering the gateway, and Mentholse left the game without typing out. Game duration 03:33.
+162 points, back up to D, and I get to be immortalized on his profile as his worst loss! Wee!
I'm not a great player, so I'm not entirely surprised by this first day's results, but I am disappointed in myself. Everyone of these fairly short games were full of micro and macro errors on my part. And I'm not super proud of my win, seeing as it was cheese and I still might've lost had my opponent's zealot not popped trapped.