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I'm trying to switch to grid hotkeys, i'm tired of having to change the client to the language that i'm used to, and also i find them more "elegant", they make more sense to me that arbitrary positions, and work really really good for random. And if TLO uses them(or that is what people says, i wonder if its true and how many other top players use them if any..), they can't be that bad : P
The point is, BESIDES i'm just quite used to the classic ones, that i found some combinations a bit harsh..for example, i tend to put the nexus at 1, but having probes on Q and chronobost on Z just overload too much my "pinky section".
I put Nexus/CC/Hatch first cause having the attack in T, i find too much easier to ctrlkey units at 6-8 cause that let me use when microing the index for ctrl gruops, middle for T (attack), ring for E(hold), and easily reaching the ZXCVB line of spells with the thumb and the pinky (ZX pinky, CVB thumb). (i would call this 'combat position' )
I like this 'combat position' (although i'm too used to A for attack yet, but i think that is only a matter of time..), the problem is, like i said before, the macro issues, i can't find a really comfortable position for nexus(1-5)-probe(Q)-chrono(Z)..i've been trying, instead of using the pinky, to press 1 with the middle, index for Q(probe) and thumb for Z(chrono), which is useful for macro in general (other buildings in 2-5) this would be the 'macro position', but maybe it's just too different to the 'combat position', being a real problem when you need to macro in the middle of the battle (which is always..x) )
So, grid hotkeys players, how do you do it? have you found any "perfect"(for yours) solution to grid postioning? It could be that grid i just not so comfortable after all? (i still think that could be beneficial in the long run, but it seems that is not that easy to change from classic)
Thanks.
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I've used grid hotkeys since beta phase 1 and have adopted the following setup (I'm a protoss player usually):
1-4 units
5 Nexus (will add subsequent ones to this group)
6 Gateways until warpgate completed
6 Robo/Stargate after warpgate is completed (I can just use Y for warpgates)
This way I can easily hit 1t2t3t. W and E are close to enough to 1-4 that it doesn't slow me down significantly. I keep my left pinky over A most of the time out of typing habit and because I use Ctrl + click to select all units very often.
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I have been using Grid keys since Dawn of War. It's a lot easier to learn hot keys when you switch to a new race, as back then, in DoW, there were tonnes of races. They make sense too as you are just remembering where are the position of the buttons than some keys that dont really make sense to me.
Till now, i still prefer grid keys due to the same reason: You get to learn your hot keys faster. I havent found a decent hand position though, as SC2 have an extra row, like Zerg's Burrow is a bit far for my usual comfort.
My key binding would be:
1-2 - Units
3 - Nexus
4 - Gateway
5 - Robo
6 - Stargate
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I believe you can't use any key above 5 efficient..
1 nexus
2 gateways
3 robo
4+ units
That's how NonY has been binding his.
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1 nexus
2 gateways
3 robo
4+ units
That's how NonY has been binding his.
NonY use that configuration with grid? That's interesting..
i also have founded this thread where someone said something similar..
http://www.teamliquid.net/forum/viewmessage.php?topic_id=135657
so maybe 6-8 is a bit too far for units and 4-6 makes more sense..?
Maybe i should also discard my bad habit of hotkeyng a "construction probe" x)...
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On July 29 2010 15:35 evilK wrote:NonY use that configuration with grid? That's interesting.. i also have founded this thread where someone said something similar.. http://www.teamliquid.net/forum/viewmessage.php?topic_id=135657so maybe 6-8 is a bit too far for units and 4-6 makes more sense..? Maybe i should also discard my bad habit of hotkeyng a "construction probe" x)...
Heh, I feel special 
I experimented with grid hotkeys and that setup further, and to me the location of the spell hotkeys really killed it. The bottom row of keys is awkward to hit, no matter what hotkey placement you figure out. Y as warpgates annoyed me as well, which is why I would put warpgates on a hotkey anyway. IMO Blizzard needs to reorganise the grid if they want to make hotkeys more viable for most of us.
I'm a persona who's still more familiar with keyboard shortcuts and hotkeys more like BW style, so I switched back to standard (ironically switching from Protoss to Terran at the same time). It seems more comfortable now for me, being able to do the good old 1a2a3a, and the hotkeys are still more or less near the left side of the keyboard.
I might fumble around with grid hotkeys again sometime, maybe check if the layout for lefties is any better (maybe it's reversed or something). For the moment however, I'm sticking to default.
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I kinda want dual grid, mirrored hotkeys. Why? so groups 7-0 aren't so out of the way.
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Come on Belegorm, i was almost convinced of stick with the grid, don't tell me now that you ended finding it not confortable xP (it's really that bad the zxcvb row? i seems to me that it should be playable after some time of practising using pinky and/or thumb..)
NonY, come here, and confirme us that you play that configuration and that is the better ever possible one, for god's sake!! 
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I am trying to break myself of the horrible clicking habit...right now I only use very few hotkeys; I only know a few off by heart and I don't use ctrl groups properly. Does anyone have any advice as to how to force myself to do it and get used to it? I also can't seem to find any comfortable configuration when I do try to use them...stretching my pinky to hit ctrl/shift feels awkward and ctrl-# 8-0 are equally so.
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I often find that placing my left hand in my pants gives me a clear advantage over my opponent.
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On July 29 2010 23:24 WaveofShadow wrote:I am trying to break myself of the horrible clicking habit...right now I only use very few hotkeys; I only know a few off by heart and I don't use ctrl groups properly. Does anyone have any advice as to how to force myself to do it and get used to it? I also can't seem to find any comfortable configuration when I do try to use them...stretching my pinky to hit ctrl/shift feels awkward and ctrl-# 8-0 are equally so.
Go in a build order tester or play vs the easiest AI and practice only macroing. Let go of your mouse completely (except for telling your workers where to build buildings of course).
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I would think that many FPS players would be much more comfortable playing with the grid setup vs the standard setup simply because FPS players normally have their hands hovering over WASD all of the time. I'm a bit strange with my keyboard configuration in FPS (custom built layout since Quake Classic) so my hands are always hovering over the LEFT CTRL, ALT, LEFT SHIFT, Z and SPACE.
I find it very easy to hit keys on the bottom row if you keep your hands a bit lower than you normally would with WASD. Pressing the keys along the top row aren't too bad either if your hands aren't abnormally small. Obviously pressing any number keys beyond 5 or 6 would be a stretch and would require you to use your eyes to see the numbers. If I need to do that I usually take my mouse hand off of my house and use both in quick succession. I do that for macro mostly. Units really should be on 1-3 or 1-4 for quick access. I usually bind my production buildings to 5+. It's really nice as Zerg because you only really need to bind your Hatcheries to 5 and that's pretty much it. No need for additional buildings unless you want to keep track of your evo chambers or spires for upgrades. Also, pressing Q + QWE, ASD, or ZXC for units is just so much easier than pressing something like U for Ultralisks. I haven't really played the other races since Zerg is my main but I can't imagine it hindering play too much.
To practice this grid layout I even modified the old Broodwar keybinds to a grid layout (that took quite a long time to pull off...) so that I am at least used to the hand placement for when I can afford to buy SC2. It's amazing how much faster using a grid layout can be when your hand stays within a confined area. There is no need to use half of the keyboard for anything other than typing! It just seems so much more efficient in my opinion.
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Necroing this old thread. Just got the game, didn't play the beta.
Grid seems in theory at least to be the fastest way to play since your hand doesn't have to fly all around the keyboard. Just seems incredibly awkward to have such a frequently used command such as attack on "t". When using the standard hand position of letting your fingers rest on asd keys "e" and "r"would have been alot better.
Using patrol alot I quess could solve it though, from what I understand units also spreads out abit better with patrol instead of attack? Are there any other differences(except having to gett used to clicking behind units you wish to attack instead of infront of to avoid units not engaging)?
Also curious if anyone is playing with a hand position where they are letting their hand rest on sdf instead of asd? sdf placement of the hand seems pretty good with grid, convienient to reach attack move, hold position and patrol +easier access to the far away ctrl keys. Just a BIG hassle to learn but maybe it's worth it, figured since I just got the game it's a good opportunity to learn everything right from the start instead of relearning later. Thoughts?
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Good hand position? Above the keyboard, near the keys you press. It doesnt take much for your hand to move a few centimeters. Some key combinations will be hard if you just try to keep your hand at the same place. Best thing to do is just play with what feels right and be light on your hand.
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1 main army, 2 special units, 3 natural nexus, 4 main nexus, 5 gateways, 6 Robo, 7 stargate/twilight council, 8 forges. always.
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I also use grid hotkeys and found it useful to put little pieces of cardboard between T / Y, G / H and B / N respectively. This way, I can feel blindly where the outermost keys are. I also put cardboard between 4 / 5 because my army is on 1-4 and my production buildings on 5 and up.
I have to mention that I'm used to the WASD claw from FPS games, so the grid hotkeys lie in my "natural" hand position. I rarely use my pinky (only for CTRL or Shift, really) and rather move my hand more. Not ideal, I know, but I'm not gonna participate in any tournaments, so why invest the effort?
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I play random so i decided to switch over to grid, although i learned to play sc2 before grid came out so i was adept at using the standard before that, Anyways the way i go is
1 units
2 alt units usually only queens or supply depots if i made a wall or bunkers
3 production
4 CC/Nexus/Hatch
And i just tab alot i don't need anything else to be hotkeyed really.
I haven't gotten quite as used to using grid though as i would liked not quite there on memory of stuff.
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I use custom grid and have my fingers on Tab Q W with the middle finger resting on Q.
Then I have my 1-2 for units, 3 for all military buildings, and 4 for all Command Centers.
Make buildings:
Q = Basic Building
W = Advanced Buildings
QQ = Make Supply Depot
QW = Make Barrack
QE = Make Refinery
WQ = Make Factory
WW = Make Star Port
Make units:
Q=Marine
W=Marauder
E=Reaper
R=Ghost
Command Center
Q=Make SCV
W=Call down Mule
E=Scan
Unit Abilities for Ghost
Q=Snipe
W=EMP
E=Cloak
R=Decloak
This setup is very ergonomic, you do not have to move your hand, and you can access most stuff by only using your index finger and your middle finger.
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EPT
