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[LP] Speedling Expand
September 19th, 2010 18:05 GMT
![[image loading]](http://www.teamliquid.net/staff/Imperator/Liquipedia/LP1LP2Banner.jpg) Liquipedia Weekly #5Fighting the imbalance, or at least trying to...
It's about time we took another look at the main reason why Liquipedia was established - the strategies! This week we're going to take a look at the Speedling Expand build that originated from Sheth's ZvP guide from the beta. There are a number of important things you can take from this article, particularly what a "bronze proof" build is, how you can convert guides on the forums into articles on Liquipedia and how articles can be translated.
 Speedling Expand
Before we even get to the article itself, you will notice that this build is what we like to call "Bronze Proof". You can see this by the little bronze colored tick next to the build in the Zerg strategies list.
What this means is that the build is safe to use at any level. It is very easy to execute, but at the same time viable at every level. These are the perfect type of builds to mass game with on the ladder. They will lead on to create more midgame scenarios where your mechanics and decision making can be trained. These strategies may not pay off immediately, as in your record is probably going to get a lot worse in the short term, but as you develop your skills in the long run you will be better off.
If you see a build which you think is "Bronze Proof" you can make it so simply by inserting the following code into the article:
{{Bronze Proof}}
Occasionally you may come across an article that has been translated. If so, you will see a list of available languages at the top of the page. Since our editors generally only edit pages in English, we can't guarantee that the translated versions are up to date or accurate - but we can say that they are a useful starting point if you can't understand English that well and happen to speak, in this case, Japanese.
I can only take a guess at what that says!
If you want to contribute to the wiki by translating what has been written, we're more than happy to have you do that! If you need help getting started, or help at any point during the editing - feel free to PM a Liquipedia staff member for help!
As with all Liquipedia articles, this one begins with an overview. It lets you know the basic premises of the build and the basic theory behind it. Of course, all the juicy details will come later - but this should give you a fairly good indication about whether this is a build you want to incorporate into your game or not.
Now we come to the bit you wanted - the build! Since this build is really a flexible opening system, rather than a set in stone build, Liquipedia can only offer a basic build order for this opening in contrast to the Korean Warpgate article we featured earlier. The speedling expand opening easily adapts into any midgame play style the Zerg wants to employ (be it Nydus, Muta/Ling or Hydra/Roach) and thus is yet another reason why this has been pegged as a Bronze Proof build.
After the build comes some explanation - in the image above I've cut out a bit of the article where it explains how to play against 1 gate Protoss. There are also details for some of the other common Protoss openings like forge expand and 2 Gate pressure. The notes written here are arguably more important than the build itself since this build is design to be as flexible as possible. That means a lot of your play will be dictated by your opponent - if he is playing a safe macro game, great, so are you, if he's playing a pressure oriented build you will have to keep to the dictated speedling : zealot ratio until you're experienced enough to be able to judge the situation by yourself.
It's very difficult to articulate and write down everything that goes on in reading your opponent and adapting the build based on what he's doing, so as always experience is crucial in dictating how you should play out the game. With that said, the advice outlined in the article should serve as an excellent starting point for a less experienced player. But remember, there is no substitute for mass gaming and experience!
This article isn't perfect, it could be improved by having a more comprehensive transition section. As in, a more detailed section outlining how the build evolves into each of the major midgame options. For instance, a few paragraphs outlining how this build can be adapted into a Muta/Ling midgame would enhance the article significantly. If you feel like you can add this detail, then go for it!. The beauty of the mediawiki format is that anyone can edit it, so please don't be afraid to!
That's it for the Speedling Expand build! As you could probably tell, this build was adapted from a forum post on TL. You too can do the same! Seen a guide that you've used/liked/experienced/written? Then add it to Liquipedia! That way the collective knowledge of the SC2 community grows, and the forum post isn't forgotten about once it's bumped off the first page. It immortalises the guide inside the wiki and many generations of gamers will give it a read.
- Liquipedia staff
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PM a Liquipedia Staff Member: Aesop, Pholon, Imperator, Mystlord, Steeeeve, TheFallofTroy, Slugbreath, Julmust
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Just copyed some builds on my notebook. Keep up the good work!
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Bronze proof. LOL
Poor Bronze leaguers.
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Nice preview of wiki potential.
Great article! gj team 
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"bronze-proof" sounds elitist but I think the bronze-proof builds should be very useful even to good players for off-racing. gogo liquipedia!
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Much love for the japanese translator!
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This is going to do wonders for my Zerg play. Ive only been playing 'toss ever since the early beta, but have been trying to get back to the swarm I knew and loved from SC:BW.
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I usually stay 1 base until i have 20-30 speedlings and attack (use baneling bust if necessary) and expand then. I have the timing laid out so i can start my lair and set up the expo as soon as the attack is done, and if it miserably fails, I don't expo quite yet.
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Always wondered what "Bronze Proof" meant, and now I know! Good strat, I'll have to give it a try when I offrace.
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Estonia4505 Posts
On September 20 2010 03:21 spancho wrote:
This is going to do wonders for my Zerg play. Ive only been playing 'toss ever since the early beta, but have been trying to get back to the swarm I knew and loved from SC:BW.
Won't happen unless you play BW. The swarm feels like a caricature of its former self.
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nice idea with the bronze proof thing! Keep it up liquid!
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Bronze proof lol. I love this build, I have been using a variation of it against Terran or Protoss for a while now.
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love the liquipedia for sc2 
it helped A LOT!!!
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Aotearoa39261 Posts
mmm those articles should be merged methinks!
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They are sightly different I do 14 gas speed because well it's my build haha
http://www.teamliquid.net/forum/viewmessage.php?topic_id=113449#3
I have change it a bit in terms of units and responses but i haven't been playing competitively so what works now could very well be the earlier 13 gas 13 pool, i used to abuse the zerglings running though unit walls so much with that opening.
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I have actually been doing a slightly modified opening of this build since I really started maining Zerg. My build is as follows:
9 over
12 pool
12 gas
16 queen
18 overlord
19 ling (gas trick, fast ling is for killing scout)
@100 gas speed, take drones off gas and expand
Versus protoss that is scouted to be 2 gate rushing, or terran that _is not_ walling (properly), I continue mining gas and build baneling nest @50, take units off gas at 100 (four banelings), and expand.
This build once I really mastered it took me from 1100pt random to 1400pt zerg. This build is roughly the same economically as Sheths (due to 2 extra drones before starting to make lings/save for expo, but 1 less before saving for pool), but it also gets speed out slightly earlier rather than more lings out (this is to deal with very early reaper/reaper speed).
Also, a note of 12 pool over 13. 12 pool is still larvae efficient, inotherwords, the hatchery never stops "larae production", even though you reach 2 larvae while waiting for minerals for pool. This gets your queen out faster, which is insanely helpful against crazy proxy 6/1gate play i've been seeing on 2 player maps lately. The only draw back is having 2 lings instead of 4, although the 2 come out (1 drones worth of time) earlier. 12 pool is also superior against Random players, as 13 pool against 6pool becomes a matter of micro, whereas 12 pool simply wins (due to lings and queen).
Also, about the baneling addition. If you do the gas trick to build a zergling on 19 and _leave_ the gas geyser, you can get to 150 gas very quickly. Then just move all 6 drones back to minerals and expand behind the bust. This strategy is not only not _all in_ (i've had it fail 100% and have gone on to win many many times), it only sets you 2 or 3 drones behind where you would have had you skipped banelings. It also gives Zerg pressure on Terran early game (!!!), which IMO, is worth any amount of minerals.
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13pool isn't bronze proof just saying. So much 6 pool there.
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On September 20 2010 05:24 dogabutila wrote:
13pool isn't bronze proof just saying. So much 6 pool there.
13 pool is bronze proof. It is some very tricky micro but i have beaten 6 pool rushes with this (and 14 pool). one cool trick is to keep on sending all your drones on 1 mineral patch to confuse the zergling AI so he cant effectively pick off drones with his lings.
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On September 20 2010 05:53 kmillz wrote:Show nested quote +On September 20 2010 05:24 dogabutila wrote:
13pool isn't bronze proof just saying. So much 6 pool there. 13 pool is bronze proof. It is some very tricky micro but i have beaten 6 pool rushes with this (and 14 pool). one cool trick is to keep on sending all your drones on 1 mineral patch to confuse the zergling AI so he cant effectively pick off drones with his lings.
a bronze leauger wouldnt do that
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You can beat 6 pool with a 15pool so 13 should be pretty simple.
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its only problem is that it isnt a very good build against most of the stuff going on on the ladder (5 rax reaper, canon contain)
On September 20 2010 06:16 kNyTTyM wrote:
You can beat 6 pool with a 15pool so 13 should be pretty simple.
No, not really, it's close with 14 pool, 15 pool you re alraedy dead. If he's very far away then yes, but why woudl you 6 pool on Desert Oasis?
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On September 20 2010 05:53 kmillz wrote:Show nested quote +On September 20 2010 05:24 dogabutila wrote:
13pool isn't bronze proof just saying. So much 6 pool there. 13 pool is bronze proof. It is some very tricky micro but i have beaten 6 pool rushes with this (and 14 pool). one cool trick is to keep on sending all your drones on 1 mineral patch to confuse the zergling AI so he cant effectively pick off drones with his lings.
Since when do bronze leaguers micro?? did you miss the thread where the guy wins 1000s of games rushing with his first 6 workers?
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Keep up the good work Liquipedia team :D
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I posted in the discussion section on the Liquipedia page, but I figure I may as well post here as well. This BO doesn't say anything about dealing with 4gate, and that's what I'm most afraid of whenever I play against protoss. It's hard enough to defend on one base, and almost feels like an auto-lose if I've fast expanded. I really feel the article should address this.
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You don't even need good micro to hold a 6 pool with a 13 pool (especially a bronze leaguer's 6 pool), just build your spawning pool right in front of one of your gas lines and then build a spine crawler right in that gas line (front of the crawler is guarded by the pool and one side by the hatch) and then fight near it/send drones there in emergency. Pull a few drones to kill any offensive crawlers he starts, they are only a problem if he gets 2+ up, otherwise your ling production will just overwhelm.
13 pool is a build order win against 6 pool I'd say.
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Agree with the above 13pool vs 6pool comments. 6pool is just an awful build in anything but zvp.
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Thx, but idk, 13 pool/gas is too hard on eco, I think 15 gas 15 pool or just 15 hatch 14 pool 13 gas works much better
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On September 20 2010 10:47 Tazza wrote:
Thx, but idk, 13 pool/gas is too hard on eco, I think 15 gas 15 pool or just 15 hatch 14 pool 13 gas works much better
It's why i like 14 gas 14 pool better you get similar timings but a better off econ in the end. i think 15 pool play lends it self to a 1 base zerg imo
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On September 20 2010 06:39 Mastermind wrote:Show nested quote +On September 20 2010 05:53 kmillz wrote:On September 20 2010 05:24 dogabutila wrote:
13pool isn't bronze proof just saying. So much 6 pool there. 13 pool is bronze proof. It is some very tricky micro but i have beaten 6 pool rushes with this (and 14 pool). one cool trick is to keep on sending all your drones on 1 mineral patch to confuse the zergling AI so he cant effectively pick off drones with his lings. Since when do bronze leaguers micro?? did you miss the thread where the guy wins 1000s of games rushing with his first 6 workers?
Yes lmao where is this thread?
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Just waiting for when someone adds bronze proof to 5rax reaper build :O
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Hey all, new to TL. Question;
Why take the drones off the gas?
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On September 20 2010 14:47 Mykal wrote:
Hey all, new to TL. Question;
Why take the drones off the gas?
Because you want more minerals and dont need more gas at that point in the game. Obviously your going to put them back on later but having 3 more workers on minerals will increase your mineral income, which is what you really need at that point.
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On September 20 2010 05:18 erulabs wrote:
I have actually been doing a slightly modified opening of this build since I really started maining Zerg. My build is as follows:
9 over
12 pool
12 gas
16 queen
18 overlord
19 ling (gas trick, fast ling is for killing scout)
@100 gas speed, take drones off gas and expand
Versus protoss that is scouted to be 2 gate rushing, or terran that _is not_ walling (properly), I continue mining gas and build baneling nest @50, take units off gas at 100 (four banelings), and expand.
This build once I really mastered it took me from 1100pt random to 1400pt zerg. This build is roughly the same economically as Sheths (due to 2 extra drones before starting to make lings/save for expo, but 1 less before saving for pool), but it also gets speed out slightly earlier rather than more lings out (this is to deal with very early reaper/reaper speed).
Also, a note of 12 pool over 13. 12 pool is still larvae efficient, inotherwords, the hatchery never stops "larae production", even though you reach 2 larvae while waiting for minerals for pool. This gets your queen out faster, which is insanely helpful against crazy proxy 6/1gate play i've been seeing on 2 player maps lately. The only draw back is having 2 lings instead of 4, although the 2 come out (1 drones worth of time) earlier. 12 pool is also superior against Random players, as 13 pool against 6pool becomes a matter of micro, whereas 12 pool simply wins (due to lings and queen).
Also, about the baneling addition. If you do the gas trick to build a zergling on 19 and _leave_ the gas geyser, you can get to 150 gas very quickly. Then just move all 6 drones back to minerals and expand behind the bust. This strategy is not only not _all in_ (i've had it fail 100% and have gone on to win many many times), it only sets you 2 or 3 drones behind where you would have had you skipped banelings. It also gives Zerg pressure on Terran early game (!!!), which IMO, is worth any amount of minerals.
sounds very interesting! Have you tested doing a double extractor trick to do the 12 pool? how does that compare to your build?
Do the banelings come out in time to deal with a 2 gating protoss (I assmuse you mean a normal 12-13 gate, not double 10 gate)?
It seems your build exchanges a minimal economical disadvantage to be a lot safer vs cheese and early pressure, sounds like it might help me reduce all those stupid losses vs cheese.
You should write an article about it! That's what the liquipedia is there for!
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Netherlands6142 Posts
On September 20 2010 07:57 Chronocide wrote:
I posted in the discussion section on the Liquipedia page, but I figure I may as well post here as well. This BO doesn't say anything about dealing with 4gate, and that's what I'm most afraid of whenever I play against protoss. It's hard enough to defend on one base, and almost feels like an auto-lose if I've fast expanded. I really feel the article should address this.
Obviously we left this part out in purpose to try and lure you guys into contributing ;o
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@mathemagician1986: Thanks! Yeah, it works with double gas trick to 12 too, but I find that is to fast and cuts to much on droning past the 2nd overlord, although, for an "all in" kind of bust it might be better.
The baneling nest does come out _after_ a proxy 2 gate hits, but you'll be fine against it without banelings. Once you hold it off (speed will have just finished), banelings ensure a win back at his base.
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On September 20 2010 05:24 dogabutila wrote:
13pool isn't bronze proof just saying. So much 6 pool there.
I think it is about vs. P not Z.
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hmm interesting strat. i think im going to try that out now haha
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This reminds me of the BO Sen used.
11 Overlord
14 Gas
13 Pool
16 Queen + Speed
18 Overlord
After that, you can get some lings to scout and either more lings/drones depending on what you scouted w/ your 1st Drone. You also get Lair immediately after the Queen is finished. I really how the timing unfolds (you get exactly 100 gas as soon as Pool is built and exactly 100 gas after the Queen is done) so this is what I've been using.
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This is a nice build, + you should always scout for cheese.
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You cannot defend a 4 Warp Gate push with only Speedlings, not when he has enough sentries and does't screw up forcefields completely (and let's face it, that's hard to do).
Sooner or later you need to add Roaches / Hydras.
Against a good player Hydras will always be too late unless you have a lot Spinecrawler, which then again deny your eco advantage.
I've developed my own BO against 4 pools which works quite nice. Still, if I just mess up slightly a good Warp Gate push will punish me with defeat :>
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If I were to come up with the absolute worst name for a type of build safe to use on all levels, "bronze proof" would be it. Totally unintuitive and backwards. Good choice.
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This is actually a really great strat, regardless of skill level or games played
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On September 20 2010 05:24 dogabutila wrote:
13pool isn't bronze proof just saying. So much 6 pool there.
there's more 6pool in plat+ as people expect a macro/micro heavy match instead of proxy's rushes. out of 20 matches i've played against zerg in 1 day i got 6 pooled 15 times.
diamond 1200+- ^^
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God all the discussion about it not being "bronze proof" is retarded
Bronze Proof does *not* mean you cannot lose in bronze with it, it means it can be executed with a Bronze level player's mechanics. A bronze player might well still lose to a 6-pool, that isn't the issue.
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The build I came up with and use regularly is similar to what erulabs has written here. Through trial and error I foudn it to be most effective for me early game and have used it for baneling bust or just ling dominance for quite some time. I have achieved as high as dimaond rank 2 with it and usually sit around diamond rank 12. My only issue with it is I got use to winning early and forgot when to expand properly. Reading through erulabs build and seeing how similar it is to what I am already running except he has a howto expand in his and taking drones off gas. I will incorporate that into my game and see how much it improves it.
On September 20 2010 05:18 erulabs wrote:
I have actually been doing a slightly modified opening of this build since I really started maining Zerg. My build is as follows:
9 over
12 pool
12 gas
16 queen
18 overlord
19 ling (gas trick, fast ling is for killing scout)
@100 gas speed, take drones off gas and expand
Versus protoss that is scouted to be 2 gate rushing, or terran that _is not_ walling (properly), I continue mining gas and build baneling nest @50, take units off gas at 100 (four banelings), and expand.
This build once I really mastered it took me from 1100pt random to 1400pt zerg. This build is roughly the same economically as Sheths (due to 2 extra drones before starting to make lings/save for expo, but 1 less before saving for pool), but it also gets speed out slightly earlier rather than more lings out (this is to deal with very early reaper/reaper speed).
Also, a note of 12 pool over 13. 12 pool is still larvae efficient, inotherwords, the hatchery never stops "larae production", even though you reach 2 larvae while waiting for minerals for pool. This gets your queen out faster, which is insanely helpful against crazy proxy 6/1gate play i've been seeing on 2 player maps lately. The only draw back is having 2 lings instead of 4, although the 2 come out (1 drones worth of time) earlier. 12 pool is also superior against Random players, as 13 pool against 6pool becomes a matter of micro, whereas 12 pool simply wins (due to lings and queen).
Also, about the baneling addition. If you do the gas trick to build a zergling on 19 and _leave_ the gas geyser, you can get to 150 gas very quickly. Then just move all 6 drones back to minerals and expand behind the bust. This strategy is not only not _all in_ (i've had it fail 100% and have gone on to win many many times), it only sets you 2 or 3 drones behind where you would have had you skipped banelings. It also gives Zerg pressure on Terran early game (!!!), which IMO, is worth any amount of minerals.
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Well considering this is a ZvP build, you probably wont see 6-pool from your opponent
How does this build order hold up vs very fast zealot pushes or fast void rays? By biggest problem with fast expanding before you have lings up is its so easy for your opponent to apply a ton of pressure to you with just a few units, without really paying on his own econ. Being forced to spend larvae on lings instead of drones is bad :p
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On September 20 2010 17:31 Pholon wrote:Show nested quote +On September 20 2010 07:57 Chronocide wrote:
I posted in the discussion section on the Liquipedia page, but I figure I may as well post here as well. This BO doesn't say anything about dealing with 4gate, and that's what I'm most afraid of whenever I play against protoss. It's hard enough to defend on one base, and almost feels like an auto-lose if I've fast expanded. I really feel the article should address this. Obviously we left this part out in purpose to try and lure you guys into contributing ;o
haha I understand. If I knew the answer I would totally add it 
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I tried this build to practice a few times, but it has a glaring weakness in that there's no drone scout. I thought it was implicit, and found that taking the scout off ruins your zerglings and queen timing. There are far too many early things that can happen to wait for zerglings for scouting. By that time, the opponent is already walled in his base. It is also begging to be void rayed.
Also, what do I even spend those extra minerals on after I've expanded. If I make any drones at all, I end up with a huge mineral surplus, but if I make zerglings I can do nothing with them except for break rocks. If I leave my drones on gas for at least another 100, at least I'll be able to bring up my lair without delay.
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It says 15 overlord, 16 queen
but you dont make anything inbetween
it should be
15 overlord
15 queen
17 ling
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