So I've been playing SC2 for a while now, and to be honest, I'm terrible at 1v1. I know enough of the build orders and general mechanics to hold my own, but when it comes to laddering, I just get nervous, and then I start messing up. Team games I'm fine with, since I have the mentality that if I mess up a bit, I have team-mates that can make up for it, but in 1v1s, I don't have that cushion. Even when playing customs with friends I have some problems, and just mess up with timing and macro.

My question to you TL is, did you have this issue, and how did you overcome it? Is it a matter of just laddering to the point that you just don't feel nervous anymore? Or do you have some sort of ritual before/after a game to calm yourself?

As always, your faithful servant

Ruyguy

Canada988 Posts

July 05 2011 09:47 GMT

I'm masters and still get nervous queuing up for 1v1...So do my friends who play this game too! I don't know why, whether it be the fear of losing? If I have gotten worse than I was before? I haven't figured it out yet.

Handfoot

United States62 Posts

July 05 2011 09:50 GMT

I stopped playing 1v1 almost completely because I hate the redundancy of redoing my builds after a win/loss, and just losing in general.

Schnullerbacke13

Germany1199 Posts

July 05 2011 09:50 GMT

i nearby always mess up my build a little when laddering. Pool is at 2'50 instead 2'40 etc. . That's nervousity and ofc you usually get distracted much more compared to KI or Yabot

TehForce

1072 Posts

July 05 2011 09:51 GMT

Because ladder doesn't mean anything i dont get nervous at it. tourney play is where it is at

blabber

United States4448 Posts

July 05 2011 09:53 GMT

just keep practicing until doing simple things like making a spawning pool on time becomes second nature. Like, you shouldn't even have to think about it. You should be able to talk on the phone or do simple math problems while doing it.

jjhchsc2

Korea (South)2393 Posts

July 05 2011 09:53 GMT

Just keep playing and you will get used to it.
You will gather confidence as you play/win on the ladder often.

eltese

Sweden369 Posts

July 05 2011 09:53 GMT

I get nervous. Not just at starcraft either if Im about to play a duel in QuakeLive I can get nervous to =) For some reason though Im not as nervous in tourneys ^^

Anyways its just playing alot. Even though I get nervous I really dont mess up my bo's because of nerves but you know.. Im not pro so I miss alot of stuff ;P

PandaCore

Germany553 Posts

July 05 2011 09:55 GMT

I used to be very nervous when I first started with SC2, since it's the first RTS that I play against other people. It took a few weeks and a change of mindset for it to completely disappear. I used to get pretty angry at losses too, smashing my keyboard and so on... but now I just shrug it off and queue the next match.

Now I mostly feel at ease when clicking that Find Match button.

I think it's partly affected by routine, but mostly it's your expectation of the game and what you want to achieve and how serious you are about it. Also the course of the day so far factors in a lot.

Doodsmack

United States7224 Posts

July 05 2011 09:55 GMT

#10

Interesting question. At the masters level the same thing happens to me. I think it is pretty common, and I think it is a fear of losing. Usually after the first game, I get more comfortable and if I lose it makes me want to win to make up for it. I think you've got to get a bit of competitiveness in you.

Tsuycc

Canada269 Posts

July 05 2011 09:55 GMT

#11

On July 05 2011 18:51 TehForce wrote:
Because ladder doesn't mean anything i dont get nervous at it. tourney play is where it is at

This

usually when there is something on the line, the adrenaline kicks in, my heart is pumping and the nerves kick in... one time in a tournament (online, so it wasnt that big of a deal) and yet, my hands were shaking before every match.

tokicheese

Canada739 Posts

July 05 2011 09:56 GMT

#12

It depends on how I played in my last session. If I lost tons of games I am nervous but if I was winning I am fairly calm. I feel like I NEED to get to where I was before I lost the games so more pressure on myself even though ladder is meaningless.

Zapdos_Smithh

Canada2620 Posts

July 05 2011 09:57 GMT

#13

There's a billion threads on ladder fear/nerves. Simply put:

-the more you ladder the less nervous/scared you are in general
-ladder fear occurs when you take your rank too seriously/care too much about it
-usually those who are less experienced tend to be more afraid to ladder
-ladder fear does happen at higher levels but usually only applies for the first game of the day and isn't that drastic compared to the ladder fear of lower levels

How to get rid of it? Play lots of ladder games and think of laddering as practice. Get used to the idea that losing = good because you can learn lessons from losing. Ignore your ladder rank/your positioning in your division because that will only impede you, play for the goal of simply playing a game and practicing.

Hope that helps.

nEAnS

Canada161 Posts

July 05 2011 09:58 GMT

#14

Play,play, and play some more. Yes losing games and rating sucks when it happens, but you will never improve if you don't lose. Just remember; being ranked number 1 grandmaster doesn't necessarily mean that you're the best player in the world. Ladder rating shouldn't really matter if you play with the mentality that you're playing for fun and to learn.

So yes be nervous! But don't stop queueing cuz you might learn a thing or two.

Pred8oar

Germany281 Posts

July 05 2011 10:00 GMT

#15

I play masters myself and there are times when i am really afraid of laddering, sometimes i stop it completely for weeks and just watch streams and play customs with friends. After the first game i get a flow and things get better. Music or some friends laddering at the same time and us sitting in a skype call together help me out though.

zeOllie

Australia486 Posts

July 05 2011 10:04 GMT

#16

When I first started I was so nervous, but once I got ingame I just played.

Now I usually don't get nervous cause I know people in my div are easy to beat (silver) but when I'm casted in a tourny I do get quite nervous.

For me, it all goes away while I'm playing. Looking at the build-order by alt-tabbing helps.

Masayume

Netherlands208 Posts

July 05 2011 10:36 GMT

#17

There is a thread about this, you should definitely check it out.

http://www.teamliquid.net/forum/viewmessage.php?topic_id=227381

At the end you can find a Q&A section where you can find specific answers too.

GL & HF!

KillerPlague

United States1386 Posts

July 05 2011 10:38 GMT

#18

i'm guessing you didn't use the search function. to answer your questions yes it happens to even the best of us.

Zorgaz

Sweden2951 Posts

July 05 2011 10:43 GMT

#19

Since i lost to a drop hacker, It has kinda stopped me from laddering. But really you shouldn't be nervous about it. A little nervous is okay though since it makes your brain sharper.

alepov

Netherlands1132 Posts

July 05 2011 10:44 GMT

#20

On July 05 2011 18:53 eltese wrote:
I get nervous. Not just at starcraft either if Im about to play a duel in QuakeLive I can get nervous to =) For some reason though Im not as nervous in tourneys ^^

Anyways its just playing alot. Even though I get nervous I really dont mess up my bo's because of nerves but you know.. Im not pro so I miss alot of stuff ;P

Yeah same here.

Anyway, don't wanna sound harsh or anything, but just man up and play :D you get used to it.