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Chameleon 2.0.1
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Chameleon is an alternative hotkey layout to TheCore. It has all of the benefits of TheCore with the exception of the advantages that come from having the thumb on shift. This means that you can be on the conventional side of the keyboard, and can play on a laptop. No key removal or keyboard tilt required.
Chameleon is a one-size-fits-all layout. So there’s only one file to download, and it works equally well for all races. Chameleon works well with both ASDF and WASD homekeys so whether you’re a touch typer or a FPS player, you’ll be able to use your old muscle memory. Chameleon does not use any 3rd party programs, is tournament legal, and does not break any of the ToS for Starcraft 2. Remember that you do not have to make changes manually. Download and install instructions are at the bottom of this post.
Reference Spreadsheet
Guiding Principles:
Why use a Custom Layout?
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Economy of Motion
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Avoid Reaching
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Avoid Repetitive Finger Strokes
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Match the Most Frequently Used Keystrokes to the Most Ergonomically Efficient Keystrokes
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Use Reason (Not Tradition) to Determine the Best Setup
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TL:DR This is my first go at an optimized custom hotkey layout, to check out my most recent (and best) work, check out TheCore. To try out Chameleon, Download this file:
Chameleon - Advanced Hotkey Layout
put it here if you are a Windows user:
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put it here if you are a Apple user:
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In game, go to menu>hotkeys>Selected Profile and Chameleon should be in the drop down menu.
GLHF,
JaK
Chameleon is a one-size-fits-all layout. So there’s only one file to download, and it works equally well for all races. Chameleon works well with both ASDF and WASD homekeys so whether you’re a touch typer or a FPS player, you’ll be able to use your old muscle memory. Chameleon does not use any 3rd party programs, is tournament legal, and does not break any of the ToS for Starcraft 2. Remember that you do not have to make changes manually. Download and install instructions are at the bottom of this post.
Reference Spreadsheet
Guiding Principles:
Why use a Custom Layout?
+ Show Spoiler +
The individual advantages gained by these principles will seem insignificant; however, as Starcraft is a game of twitch reactions and timing windows as small as seconds, the many milliseconds you gain by each of these changes will allow you, with practice, to execute more commands in less time. This is an investment, if you go on the ladder without first getting used to this setup, you will lose games, but when you have memorized this new setup you will be better than before.
Economy of Motion
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The less you have to move, the faster you can execute commands. When playing guitar quickly it is a very important aspect to lift your fingers only as far above the string as you need to. This allows for the sweeping arpeggios and lightning fast scales played by the fastest guitarists on earth:
The same goes for Starcraft.
The same goes for Starcraft.
Avoid Reaching
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One of the most glaring examples of reaching in the standard hotkey setup is the Patrol hotkey as P. Firstly, most of us don’t have that key memorized in the fingers enough to snipe it without looking down at the keyboard, which can cost you. Secondly, even if you do, that’s time wasted moving your entire hand across the keyboard. Time that could have been spent making units, workers, buildings, catching a drop, micro-ing a battle, ANYTHING!
Avoid Repetitive Finger Strokes
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While this may seem the opposite to the above principle, it is instead a special exception. The closest key to the B key is certainly the B key… So why is it faster to press BA than it is to press BB? (try it if you don’t believe me) The answer to this is the same reason that it is faster to use a mouse and a keyboard instead of just a mouse, (but obviously on a smaller level because it involves using 2 fingers instead of 2 hands). When a piano player is required to hit the same key repetitively at a very fast rate, the player will use two fingers alternating back and forth, or in extreme situations, (like Billy Joel's Prelude/Angry Young Man):
the player will use two hands. Same thing for shooting with alternating fingers while playing paintball, the 1-2 punch… the list goes on…
the player will use two hands. Same thing for shooting with alternating fingers while playing paintball, the 1-2 punch… the list goes on…
Match the Most Frequently Used Keystrokes to the Most Ergonomically Efficient Keystrokes
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Let’s face it, how many times have you found a use for the M key for Move? How many times have you found a use for the P key as Patrol? If you’re like me, I find more uses for the Patrol hotkey, so why put it further away? The simple answer is that there is no reason you should have the Patrol Hotkey further away than the Move Hotkey.
Use Reason (Not Tradition) to Determine the Best Setup
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Again, this is an investment, traditions not based in reason hold back progress. In this case, the traditional hotkey setup is holding you back from faster reactions and more capacity for actions when they are needed. It is littered with keys on the far side of the keyboard, repetitive keystrokes, and less comfortable combinations for more frequently used commands. Just because Guardian Shield begins with a G doesn’t mean it’s the best hotkey for the job. Just because Psionic Storm has a T as the second letter in the second word doesn’t mean it’s the best hotkey for the job, detach yourself from this mental block and you will become faster.
TL:DR This is my first go at an optimized custom hotkey layout, to check out my most recent (and best) work, check out TheCore. To try out Chameleon, Download this file:
Chameleon - Advanced Hotkey Layout
put it here if you are a Windows user:
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Documents>My Documents>Starcraft II>Accounts>(Your account number)>Hotkeys(if there is no folder, create a new folder and name it Hotkeys)
put it here if you are a Apple user:
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Macintosh HD >Users >(Your user profile) >Library >Application Support >Blizzard >Star Craft II >Accounts >(Your account number)>Hotkeys(if there is no folder, create a new folder and name it Hotkeys)
In game, go to menu>hotkeys>Selected Profile and Chameleon should be in the drop down menu.
GLHF,
JaK
Projects I'm Involved in:
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www.youtube.com/JaKaTaKtv
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