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I noticed there are no apm guide threads...

Forum Index > Brood War Strategy
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1 2 3 4 Next All
DeepGreen
Profile Blog Joined March 2008
United States175 Posts
September 12 2008 05:32 GMT
#1
...and I was wondering if this would be useful to anyone.

I've broken through specific apm walls at 70, 90, 100, 110 and 135. Literally, I got stuck at each of those points. I imagine my struggle to increase my apm is probably a giant exaggeration of the standard player -- how many players have had this many walls this close together?

But I have learned quite a few different ways to increase APM (more specific than the misguided directive, "MASS GAME GO GO GO"), and if it sounds like this would be helpful -- specifically with respect to newer/intermediate players -- I'd be happy to take the time to write a guide.
So I told him your car was like that when I got here and as for your grandmother she shouldnt have mouthed off like that
VIB
Profile Blog Joined November 2007
Brazil3567 Posts
September 12 2008 05:39 GMT
#2
Yea, some "how do I increase my apm" topics rise from time to time. I suppose a guide stickied in the front page would be quite helpful.

This could help your research or w/e:
http://www.teamliquid.net/forum/viewmessage.php?topic_id=78210
Great people talk about ideas. Average people talk about things. Small people talk about other people.
MeriaDoKk
Profile Blog Joined July 2007
Chile1726 Posts
Last Edited: 2008-09-12 05:40:00
September 12 2008 05:39 GMT
#3
Well i watched a lot of FPVODS and try to understand what players did, also I had some notes on the side of my screen such as "MASS, SCOUT, EXPAND" etc.
Play a lot and your APM will increase by itself .




OVER 1000!!!!!!
MaRiNe23
Profile Blog Joined December 2006
United States747 Posts
September 12 2008 06:03 GMT
#4
(Day[9]'s quality post)
http://www.teamliquid.net/forum/viewmessage.php?topic_id=40115&currentpage=5

You're Welcome.
We have competitive ladder, strong community, progaming in Korea going strong, perfectly balanced game..why do we need sc2? #1 ANTI-SC2 fan
Realpenguin
Profile Joined December 2006
8253 Posts
September 12 2008 06:29 GMT
#5
hold down hotkeys

Just kidding. You could always try BlueIris' method:
http://www.teamliquid.net/forum/viewmessage.php?topic_id=56230
You'll start off spamming like a maniac, but it will eventually turn to "real APM"
<Wolfpox> i remember when MVP beat that one guy, and everyone was like 'whoa' except that penguin dude.
red.venom
Profile Joined October 2002
United States4651 Posts
September 12 2008 07:01 GMT
#6
u just freakin get better and your apm rises until it reaches a natural point
Broom
CommanderFluffy
Profile Joined June 2008
Taiwan1059 Posts
September 12 2008 07:35 GMT
#7
trap apm trainer
Pain is temporary, but glory is forever.
EGMachine
Profile Blog Joined February 2006
United States1643 Posts
Last Edited: 2008-09-12 07:58:14
September 12 2008 07:54 GMT
#8
tbh a certain type of speed must be accomplished, its not nessicarily apm but game speed that has to be changed in order to increase skill. When I first started I had this idea about apm that if i somehow just clicked more shit i would be better, not at all. Clicking hotkeys really fast like 121231412412312312312313123 dosent do anything. I still find myself switching through hotkeys as a habit. In order to really gain speed you kind of have to catch yourself in a position that your doing something and really force yourself to do a bunch of things really fast. Say I send my army to attack my opponents army in the middle of the map, at the same time i must go to all of my hatcheries and build units as fast as i can. It wont feel right to leave your army in the middle not looking at it for a few seconds while you go to all hatcheries but it is nessicary and very hard to do at first " you will really have to muscle yourself through the feeling of wanting to just watch/control army" this is multitasking. Finding gaps in the game in order to control your macro, and to do it as fast as humanly possible.

do this enough and your power level will be over 9000











[image loading]
I'm like, the coolest
Pafnucy
Profile Joined October 2002
Poland1124 Posts
September 12 2008 07:59 GMT
#9
On September 12 2008 16:01 red.venom wrote:
u just freakin get better and your apm rises until it reaches a natural point


This would be my opinion few years ago, but not in these times. When both players fast expand and money starts kicking in there is a huge demand for mouse speed to at least maintain "good spending". Mechanics became more demanding, its not 2 rax acad pressure, dropship play while massing army off one min line like in 2002. People get bombarded by 2000 minerals that are more of a problem than opponent in far corner of the map ;-)
Member of the "Fuck Yeah, Canata !" committee :-) to join copy/paste this
XtaC_hiryu
Profile Joined November 2004
Philippines125 Posts
September 12 2008 08:04 GMT
#10
You can buy APM...
and download RAM :D

Use hotkeys more!!! Those UMS maps may help too..
potato and cheese ftw!
arb
Profile Blog Joined April 2008
Noobville17922 Posts
September 12 2008 10:53 GMT
#11
On September 12 2008 16:01 red.venom wrote:
u just freakin get better and your apm rises until it reaches a natural point


Just dont worry about fucking APM jesus christ,it'll raise when you get better -_-
Artillery spawned from the forges of Hell
CharlieMurphy
Profile Blog Joined March 2006
United States22895 Posts
Last Edited: 2008-09-12 11:58:55
September 12 2008 11:55 GMT
#12
When people say you must mass game in order to accomplish X goal, they don't mean that just the act of playing tons of games is gonna make you better.

Active gaming is what does it. By this I mean that actually playing and trying to do everything the very best and fastest you can will slowly etch into your brain until things become natural or subconscious moves. Once you are at the point where you can take 0.3 seconds to look at any situation and do the best thing and then move to the next etc. That is when your apm is increasing as well as many other things.

You will eventually build a sort of rhythm to your build/scouting. Once you have this rhythm and it is uninterrupted your apm soars because there is no waiting around for anything and your always doing the next thing you should be doing.

Its kind of hard to explain but I was looking at some old reps with BW chart and my original APMs were like 70-110 and they slowly increased to about 140-150, then BWchart came out and I started to actively play and try and increase my apm to about 200+~. This naturally made me a better/faster player as I had all the other strategic skills and timings down.

Apm is basically the last skill you learn in BW.


offtopic,
My friend occasionally watches me play and always makes fun of me for 'randomly clicking' in the start of the game and talks shit. After about 3 minutes he doesn't say anything anymore. Its setting pace.
..and then I would, ya know, check em'. (Aka SpoR)
DeepGreen
Profile Blog Joined March 2008
United States175 Posts
September 12 2008 12:55 GMT
#13
Yeah, I think there are a lot of misconceptions about how you increase apm. Some have much more dexterous fingers than others.
So I told him your car was like that when I got here and as for your grandmother she shouldnt have mouthed off like that
0xDEADBEEF
Profile Joined September 2007
Germany1235 Posts
September 12 2008 14:32 GMT
#14
The longer the game lasts, the more APM you need.
But spamming is of course useless unless you want to . If I do 1-2-1-2-1-2-1-2 all the time in a game I have something like 250+ too but it's totally useless.

Just play a game that takes longer than 15 minutes, and then you'll know whether you can. If you notice that you're overwhelmed by the tasks, that you're neglecting things, that your reaction time sucks, that your minerals pile up, then you need more APM. If you don't encounter that case, then you have enough APM - for that particular game at least.
-orb-
Profile Blog Joined September 2007
United States5770 Posts
September 12 2008 15:40 GMT
#15
BlueIris's post is really good.

As for having apm walls close together, don't worry about it. APM increases slowly.

I started playing starcraft seriously to get better (rather than just fucking around with UMS and shit) about 13 months ago. When I started I had about 60 apm. Now I have about 200. It took a full year, so it's not some fast process where overnight you're gonna have pro apm.
'life of lively to live to life of full life thx to shield battery'
how sad that sc2 has no shield battery :(
Ota Solgryn
Profile Blog Joined January 2008
Denmark2011 Posts
September 12 2008 15:48 GMT
#16
DeepGreen, I for one, want your guide!
ihasaKAROT: "Wish people would stop wasting their lives on finding flaws in others"
Divinek
Profile Blog Joined November 2006
Canada4045 Posts
September 12 2008 15:57 GMT
#17
Why would you need a guide? Play more, try to do more, you get faster.
Never attribute to malice that which can be adequately explained by stupidity.
Oh goodness me, FOX tv where do you get your sight? Can't you keep track, the puck is black. That's why the ice is white.
Oystein
Profile Blog Joined December 2004
Norway1602 Posts
September 12 2008 15:59 GMT
#18
On September 12 2008 16:54 Machine[USA] wrote:
tbh a certain type of speed must be accomplished, its not nessicarily apm but game speed that has to be changed in order to increase skill.


This is the truth. The most important thing is being able to do stuff faster than you used to do it, and learning when to watch battles and micro or when to just 1a2a3a and go home to macro before you start microing and generally being able to just do stuff faster and determine faster what you should do in different spots.

In the end this will usually turn into higher apm.
But training apm just for the sake of being fast I have never understood, atleast not at a low level. Sure if you have hit sort of a ceiling of your skill, learning to be faster just to be able to do more of the stuff you think about makes sense. But if your brain can`t keep up with your hands it gets sort of useless, being able to make a million units in 2sec but then forget to add supply or other mistakes that you forget cuz your to busy spamming as fast as possible makes no sense.

imo the best way to get faster is what many others say, just play the game and keep on trying to do stuff better and faster all the time and your speed will come.
God Hates a Coward
GeneralStan
Profile Blog Joined August 2007
United States4789 Posts
September 12 2008 16:13 GMT
#19
On September 12 2008 15:03 MaRiNe23 wrote:
(Day[9]'s quality post)
http://www.teamliquid.net/forum/viewmessage.php?topic_id=40115&currentpage=5

You're Welcome.


Very nice!
¯\_(ツ)_/¯
dream-_-
Profile Blog Joined April 2006
United States1857 Posts
September 12 2008 17:19 GMT
#20
why does this keep coming up.

step 1 - get an apm meter

step 2 - set it UNLOGICLY HIGH

step 3 - spam the hell out of your computer/mouse (BUT MAKE SURE YOU ARE WORKING ON PRECISION WITH YOUR MOUSE OR YOUR WASTING TIME, Imo days advice of little boxes is bad advice, you need to work on precision with the mouse more than spamming. practice clicking on EVERYthing. click minerals, click units, buildings, his units, whatever the fuck you want. if you want to practice making boxes do it by selecting groups and re assigning hotkeys to get used to doing this. also at the start I do little boxes to practice selecting all my workers.)

step 4 - loose many games

Did this when I came back, my apm was at 150. For a week I just practiced apm and now I reach around 290 with a eapm of around 170. (when I was practicing I had apm of around 380-400, with a vapm of around 130).
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