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BOs: The Importance of Build Orders

Forum Index > Brood War Strategy
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ShadowMaster
Profile Joined September 2004
United States238 Posts
Last Edited: 2004-10-29 06:38:51
October 29 2004 06:36 GMT
#1
This old post is unavailable due to an encoding issue. Please contact an admin if you would like this post restored for historical reasons.
Orome
Profile Blog Joined June 2004
Switzerland11984 Posts
October 29 2004 06:47 GMT
#2
I've been telling people to do what you summarized in 2 for years... GJ, I totally agree.
On a purely personal note, I'd like to show Yellow the beauty of infinitely repeating Starcraft 2 bunkers. -Boxer
MPXMX
Profile Joined December 2002
Canada4309 Posts
October 29 2004 09:37 GMT
#3
I think this year's WCG has shown how important build orders are. I'm sure the vast majority of the top 32 practiced their builds for the specific maps countless times. It can be seen as their macro and timing were exceptional at all times, nothing like what they display in online tourneys. And it's obviously wrong to say that they never try their best online, WCG is simply something they specifically practiced a lot for, something they had hopes for

The importance of build order depends on how much you can scout, however the higher the skill level is the further into the "psi" players are able to follow build orders. (and they do). I think players of the highest tier have build orders worked out until 10 minutes or so into the game, slightly situational of course. If your macro is excellent and you know exactly what you are aiming for every step of the way and how to adapt to what you find out about your opponent's intentions, just a build order is essential to the game in a competitive environments.

Recall oov's comment about the restarted game (vs nada?) ; he said they knew each other's build orders but did them again anyway because they practiced them so much. But, for a simple player, it is too time consuming to learn a build order that well when he doesn't even have a firm grasp of game theory. The build order beyond the opening is just another of the things that separates average players from good ones
RuGbUg
Profile Joined June 2003
United States2347 Posts
October 29 2004 09:53 GMT
#4
pvz is very dependent on your build order and how you play it.

and yes in the same way toss can control the zerg's build order very strongly
anguish: its like that time i asked my bestfriend who happened to be black if his dick was bigger than mine anguish: he got angry anguish: and told me i was racist and gay
ShadowMaster
Profile Joined September 2004
United States238 Posts
October 29 2004 11:56 GMT
#5
On October 29 2004 18:37 MPXMX wrote:
I think this year's WCG has shown how important build orders are. I'm sure the vast majority of the top 32 practiced their builds for the specific maps countless times. It can be seen as their macro and timing were exceptional at all times, nothing like what they display in online tourneys. And it's obviously wrong to say that they never try their best online, WCG is simply something they specifically practiced a lot for, something they had hopes for

The importance of build order depends on how much you can scout, however the higher the skill level is the further into the "psi" players are able to follow build orders. (and they do). I think players of the highest tier have build orders worked out until 10 minutes or so into the game, slightly situational of course. If your macro is excellent and you know exactly what you are aiming for every step of the way and how to adapt to what you find out about your opponent's intentions, just a build order is essential to the game in a competitive environments.

Recall oov's comment about the restarted game (vs nada?) ; he said they knew each other's build orders but did them again anyway because they practiced them so much. But, for a simple player, it is too time consuming to learn a build order that well when he doesn't even have a firm grasp of game theory. The build order beyond the opening is just another of the things that separates average players from good ones


Thanks for an excellent post. I wonder if you're right about them knowing the BOs that deep; personally, I think that sounds a little extreme. The game isn't old enough for that yet.
Nal_Testie
Profile Joined April 2004
Canada1257 Posts
October 29 2004 12:04 GMT
#6
A bunch of little things amount to one big thing.
Everything matters.
Everything.
The fact that we have flamethrowers means at some point someone said to himself - Gee I sure would like to set those people on fire over there but im just not close enough to get the job done, if only I had something that would throw the flame on them
AznSkillz88
Profile Joined July 2003
52 Posts
October 29 2004 12:04 GMT
#7
well they have to train and practice for hours to prepare for a certain matchup on a certain map. and they train for a lot of hours before their actual game so i think that they would know the timing. they would only have to know how to react to what their opponent does. and this game is pretty old compared to other games
Blue(o.O)Berry
IA-Taiyoushin
Profile Joined October 2004
United States33 Posts
October 29 2004 12:25 GMT
#8
On October 29 2004 21:04 Nal_Testie wrote:
A bunch of little things amount to one big thing.
Everything matters.
Everything.


so true. in ZvZ, most of the time the winner is the one who makes the least mistakes during the game.
AMD_STorM
Profile Joined July 2004
China50 Posts
October 29 2004 12:27 GMT
#9
can show some pics?
I love Sinky, I love STAR, I love Boxer
RuGbUg
Profile Joined June 2003
United States2347 Posts
October 29 2004 13:40 GMT
#10
On October 29 2004 21:04 Nal_Testie wrote:
A bunch of little things amount to one big thing.
Everything matters.
Everything.
just because you think you're badass doesn't mean you gotta start getting all chuck norris on us. do you think it matters if i jammed d-d-d-d-d for my very first drone?
anguish: its like that time i asked my bestfriend who happened to be black if his dick was bigger than mine anguish: he got angry anguish: and told me i was racist and gay
NeverTheEndlessWiz
Profile Joined November 2003
Singapore827 Posts
October 29 2004 13:50 GMT
#11
to me (as a terran player), a build order is fixed with minor changes to suit the game
e.g
TvZ 2 rax academy ->fact -> port -> ebay
if lurker add fact addon, 4 tanks and 1 dropship
if muta add sc fac, 2 vessels and irradiate

its like you make the same buildings (base) but make diff units out of them (specific)
Retired Brood War player / WCG SG Top 8 for 2002, 2003, 2004, retired, then made minor comeback to Top 8 at 2008. 2009 = bleh xD
pheered.user
Profile Joined March 2003
United States2603 Posts
October 29 2004 14:46 GMT
#12
On October 29 2004 22:40 RuGbUg wrote:
Show nested quote +
On October 29 2004 21:04 Nal_Testie wrote:
A bunch of little things amount to one big thing.
Everything matters.
Everything.
just because you think you're badass doesn't mean you gotta start getting all chuck norris on us. do you think it matters if i jammed d-d-d-d-d for my very first drone?


i was thinking the same thing but chuck norris kicks my idea in the ass :O
Looking for Skilled players to join an Active, Involved clan. PM Me for Details.
PtL)ZerG
Profile Joined October 2004
64 Posts
October 29 2004 15:25 GMT
#13
cooooool !
Just one Of those PatheicGamers
ToKoreaWithLove
Profile Blog Joined September 2002
Norway10161 Posts
October 29 2004 16:08 GMT
#14
Impressive post Shadow. However, I think zerg/terran is a lot more controllable than classic play has led us to belive. Just take a look at all July vs oov games, esp the ones from the bo5 in last OSL. July refused to play defensively and oov suddenly realized his whole knowledge of tvz was reduced to nothing when facing a totally different opponent.

And to answer your post. I've been playing this game a long time, and its prequel as well. I don't think memorizing build orders is worth anything in general play. You can pretty much feel when you should build stuff anyway. For example, if I see a VOD with a cool strat I can pretty much duplicate the strat later after trying it a game or 3.

What is more important is a game plan. Knowing what you want to do, how you want to kill that pesky opponent, what grades to get for later use.

ModeratorFather of bunnies
RuGbUg
Profile Joined June 2003
United States2347 Posts
October 29 2004 16:31 GMT
#15
i was gonna argue some more just for arguments sake but TKWL is so hot
anguish: its like that time i asked my bestfriend who happened to be black if his dick was bigger than mine anguish: he got angry anguish: and told me i was racist and gay
j-man
Profile Joined August 2004
United States153 Posts
October 29 2004 17:42 GMT
#16
i think the most important aspect of knowing build orders is being able to relate them to strategies or intended strategies. For example in a TvP you see the toss put down 2 gates, cycore w/range and a healthy supply of pylons you expect that he wants to mass up some units before moving on to higher tech or expanding. Or probably the easiest example, if you scout a zerg with 1 hatch a very early -soon to be completed pool and 3 larva sitting around, you can damn well expect to find lings on your doorstep in the near future. Likewise you need to know what builds work best to support the strategies that you are going for.

In that regard i think it is much more important to know the strategies and effects of different build orders than simply knowing what to build and when to build it.

Fignuts!
zero89
Profile Joined September 2004
United States295 Posts
October 30 2004 01:23 GMT
#17
hmm im a newbie at sc
can anyone explain me what is "opening"?
Cause everything is nothing, and emptiness is in everything. Cause reality is really just a fuct up dream...
Yarertz
Profile Joined February 2003
Djibouti1891 Posts
October 30 2004 02:12 GMT
#18
OMG you dont know what is opening?;/
StarCraft : 26.IX.2001 - 8.XII.2004 (1167 days) R.I.P [`]
ShadowMaster
Profile Joined September 2004
United States238 Posts
October 30 2004 02:52 GMT
#19
On October 30 2004 10:23 zero89 wrote:
hmm im a newbie at sc
can anyone explain me what is "opening"?


In general, I define the opening as that phase of the game before both players have expansions.
IntoTheWow
Profile Blog Joined May 2004
is awesome32273 Posts
October 30 2004 02:57 GMT
#20
It would be your starting building choice and how soon or late you choose to do them.

example:

You can make Barracks as a terran at 10 supply or go fast expo at 14 supply and a barrack later on.

It depends in the choice your opponent had. And thats the main importance of scouting.
Moderator<:3-/-<
Elvin_vn
Profile Blog Joined March 2004
Vietnam2038 Posts
October 30 2004 04:07 GMT
#21
I started to post something, then I realized that the B.O or whatever really depends on each matchup, on the maps, on player's skill level and so on. Everything I tried to say is too general.
do not agrue with idiots, they will pull you down to their level and beat you with their experiences
Unorthodox
Profile Joined October 2004
63 Posts
October 30 2004 04:12 GMT
#22
I consider the "opening" to be everything before you scout your opponent. Once you scout your opponent, you should then make any adjustments necessary in order to counter their opening. Of course, in certain matchups you generally have to wait a while before you can determine your opponent's strategy (so your opening lasts a bit longer, but you can still make some adjustments based on what you've seen). As for build orders, I don't personally use them (which is partly a result of me being a random player) and I believe that it is more important to have a solid understanding of the game so that you can adapt to an aggressive strategy in an efficient manner. By "aggressive strategy" I mean any style of play that focuses on any aspect of the game more than usual (attacking, teching, expanding, powering, upgrading, etc). The importance of build orders also depends a lot on the matchup, and how conservative your opponent plays.

Anyhow, nice post Shadow .


Splinter
Profile Joined July 2003
United States188 Posts
October 30 2004 05:37 GMT
#23
Zerg build orders usually don't go much past what support your build your first hatch and pool at. After that what you do usually depends on what your opponent is doing.

Protoss and Terran build orders can go deeper because they can assure their safety longer by walling in or holding rines/zeals on the ramp.
zero89
Profile Joined September 2004
United States295 Posts
October 30 2004 08:05 GMT
#24
when will Yellow vs Boxer game played?
Cause everything is nothing, and emptiness is in everything. Cause reality is really just a fuct up dream...
RuGbUg
Profile Joined June 2003
United States2347 Posts
October 30 2004 09:35 GMT
#25
On October 30 2004 14:37 Splinter wrote:
Zerg build orders usually don't go much past what support your build your first hatch and pool at. After that what you do usually depends on what your opponent is doing.

Protoss and Terran build orders can go deeper because they can assure their safety longer by walling in or holding rines/zeals on the ramp.
or, that it doesn't matter what happens because all zerg build orders branch off of a lair for the most part.
anguish: its like that time i asked my bestfriend who happened to be black if his dick was bigger than mine anguish: he got angry anguish: and told me i was racist and gay
froZen_wYnd
Profile Joined October 2004
Canada270 Posts
October 30 2004 11:15 GMT
#26
nice insights
lol if i were to write the whole thing, it'd be like pages and pages ;D gj
Cambium
Profile Blog Joined June 2004
United States16368 Posts
October 30 2004 11:28 GMT
#27
Excellent post Shadow.
When you want something, all the universe conspires in helping you to achieve it.
AMD_STorM
Profile Joined July 2004
China50 Posts
October 30 2004 12:04 GMT
#28
pvz is very dependent on your build order and how you play it.

and yes in the same way toss can control the zerg's build order very strongly
I love Sinky, I love STAR, I love Boxer
karelen
Profile Joined October 2003
Sweden2407 Posts
October 30 2004 13:07 GMT
#29
build orders analysed in a fashion similar to chess openings. very nice work shadow
zzzzzz
RuGbUg
Profile Joined June 2003
United States2347 Posts
October 30 2004 13:28 GMT
#30
On October 30 2004 21:04 AMD_STorM wrote:
pvz is very dependent on your build order and how you play it.

and yes in the same way toss can control the zerg's build order very strongly
i.. what?
anguish: its like that time i asked my bestfriend who happened to be black if his dick was bigger than mine anguish: he got angry anguish: and told me i was racist and gay
suxN
Profile Blog Joined March 2004
Finland1167 Posts
October 30 2004 15:45 GMT
#31
i think opening is time before you make forces, for terran example: TvP, opening is until you have made a tank or vultures or dropship or whatever.
I dont want to be totally out :3
Splinter
Profile Joined July 2003
United States188 Posts
October 30 2004 17:24 GMT
#32
After thinking about it more, I believe the reason Zerg don't really have build orders is because once the pool is finished the Zerg has to decide whether larva should be used for lings or drones, and that depends on what is going on in the game. Drone count influences when certain tech choices will be made. For instance, if you are getting bunker rushed with a lot of early pressure ZvT, you aren't going to be able to lair as early as you would against a Terran tech build.
ShadowMaster
Profile Joined September 2004
United States238 Posts
November 01 2004 12:25 GMT
#33
Although I know what you are saying about Protoss being able to influence the Zerg BO a lot, I think that ultimately it is all still up to the Zerg. True, Protoss can rush and force Zergling production, etc, but that is really only if Zerg allows it by doing an early expansion or creating a similar weakness. If the Zerg doesn't want the Protoss to rush him, he can play any number of one-base strategies including 9-pools.
It is because of this "Zerg factor" that I was examining the Reaver + Corsair/Goon strategy, in which Protoss very aggressively tries to change the pace of the game and struggles to have the controlling hand. In many cases the very act of fighting for the control, which Zerg normally gets naturally against Protoss, will take the Zerg out of his game. But then, this is a different way of playing Protoss and may not be better or worse; only more novel and unexpected.
indecision
Profile Blog Joined November 2004
Germany818 Posts
November 07 2004 20:37 GMT
#34
I think that the BO doesnt go further than to determine whether you go Bio or Metal at the beginning. After that you'll be forced to adjust anyways.
jotabeans
Profile Joined September 2004
United States28 Posts
November 17 2004 07:23 GMT
#35
yeah i definitely agree

you have to have some sort of mold to follow, but you need to UNDERSTAND why the pros in the replays you are watching make minor tweaks to their build order in certain situations
lol
LegendaryDreams
Profile Blog Joined November 2004
Canada1350 Posts
November 17 2004 07:38 GMT
#36
Very nice post ShadowMaster, props to you. ~
call me moxie
homoerectus_
Profile Joined September 2003
149 Posts
November 17 2004 09:00 GMT
#37
On October 30 2004 01:08 ToKoreaWithLove wrote:
Impressive post Shadow. However, I think zerg/terran is a lot more controllable than classic play has led us to belive. Just take a look at all July vs oov games, esp the ones from the bo5 in last OSL. July refused to play defensively and oov suddenly realized his whole knowledge of tvz was reduced to nothing when facing a totally different opponent.


This reminds me of Fischer v Spassky, Game 6, Reykjavik, 1972 World Championship Match.
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