How do you work on not floating minerals?

dstryr

United States69 Posts

March 31 2011 00:19 GMT

I'm looking for specific strategies and methods you have/use. Does this all become second nature after sometime?

I macro fine up to a certain point, but sometime between my 2nd and 3rd base / microing army / engaging I manage to stockpile like 2-3k and don't know how to spend it. I've heard just building SOMETHING is good, but right now I just end up panicking and throwing down a ton of barracks / cmd center. Struggling :\

FreezerJumps

Canada653 Posts

March 31 2011 00:21 GMT

Good thing you made a thread about this. I have the same problems and I've spent HOURS using the search function and haven't found anything. That thing is so useless!

LesPhoques

Canada782 Posts

March 31 2011 00:23 GMT

Upgrades
Teching

NikonTC

United Kingdom418 Posts

March 31 2011 00:23 GMT

if i'm moving out for a big fight that i know is going to use a lot of my concentration up, i try and throw down more production facilities as i move out, so that when i inevitably float minerals when im microing, i then have increased production to spend it quicker.

of course the best strategy is just to practice and get better mechanics :p

SiN]

United States540 Posts

March 31 2011 00:23 GMT

There's no real trick to it. It just comes with practice. You'll get faster and faster as you play.

Mouth

United States122 Posts

March 31 2011 00:24 GMT

simple answer build stuff. Im bad with the same thing so I follow day9's advice. When your practicing one thing focus on it every game no matter what. So don't bother with micro focus on macroing even if you lose games because you didn't micro, and eventually you'll be good enough at macro then you can focus on micro in battles.

mskaa

Denmark155 Posts

March 31 2011 00:24 GMT

Well really once your macro gets up to speed you shouldnt really start floating minerals unless your maxed out. Its a good idea to know how many unit producing structures you can afford of of 3base and make you get that amount, maybe even a few more.
Also its worth noticing that if you miss a overlord/depo/pylon, your money sky rockets once you are on 2/3 bases so that should never happen

Seraph.yongweihua

Canada224 Posts

March 31 2011 00:25 GMT

Throw up more production facilities. You never know when you need to quickly replace a lost army, or counter their units. Make sure you have sufficient production facilities for any counter units you might need to make.

dstryr

United States69 Posts

March 31 2011 00:26 GMT

On March 31 2011 09:21 FreezerJumps wrote:
Good thing you made a thread about this. I have the same problems and I've spent HOURS using the search function and haven't found anything. That thing is so useless!

Sarcasm detected. I have read threads and searched before. I'm asking for specific mental strategies you might use to shift your attention. Thanks for the useful comment.

Aequos

Canada606 Posts

March 31 2011 00:26 GMT

#10

Usually the way I try to keep spending my minerals is look through my replays at specific times my income spikes (pre battle, after taking a third, etc). Then I look at if I could have spent this money at the time (through better unit management and such).

If I couldn't, I change my build to involve more warpgates/tech buildings at that point (like, throwing down 4 gateways instead of 3 when I expand).

If I could, I go to a mirror and angrily scold myself for failing to macro until I feel bad, then remember this tragic experience the next game I play.

JackhammerIV

United Kingdom221 Posts

March 31 2011 00:27 GMT

#11

Well do you spend time during the battle making units?? The problem usually comes from not finding certain times when attacking to decide "I don't need to look at this." then jumping back to the main and making the production facilities you need/want, doing your upgrades, more bases, etc. Basically everything/anything you want.

If during battles you're making things out of all production facilities but it's still going up then maybe consider making extra production facilities just for this problem. It's nice to have perfect macro but it's really hard. Like even watching the pros play. If it's really intense they micro like mad and their macro slips.

Sometimes it's just unavoidable though. Try to minimise it as much as possible but you'd need to be really fast and good to be able to keep resources low while microing and expanding, scouting, etc. As protoss one thing i do is i engage just after warping in a round of units. Then about halfway into the engagement when it's sort of looking ok i can spend the time to warp in more units.

Postman

United States269 Posts

March 31 2011 00:27 GMT

#12

Have a plan, and follow through. Spending the money is mechanics, the important thing is knowing what you want to spend it on.

If you're going marine/tank/viking and you see money piling up after your third kicks in then maybe that's time to get another factory, a few more rax, and then an armory + engi to blast out upgrades. Don't be afraid to queue an extra unit if you have to (though it's not ideal), it's better to queue then to have no units and tons of resources.

For example, as a protoss, if I'm going collossus ball then I usually will just make 3 more gates, and start chronoboosting upgrades out of double forge/twilight council when I take my third.

oGm`REM

United States870 Posts

March 31 2011 00:27 GMT

#13

Try to not ever get supply blocked, take expansions (if you're ahead), upgrades, more production facilities, and constant unit production. Big thing is; try to not ever get supply blocked.

Baarn

United States2702 Posts

March 31 2011 00:27 GMT

#14

Get all upgrades possible at that point while throwing down enough buildings to get them all rolling at the same time. You'll see that you spend everything much faster while maximizing your army.

dstryr

United States69 Posts

March 31 2011 00:28 GMT

#15

On March 31 2011 09:23 NikonTC wrote:
if i'm moving out for a big fight that i know is going to use a lot of my concentration up, i try and throw down more production facilities as i move out, so that when i inevitably float minerals when im microing, i then have increased production to spend it quicker.

of course the best strategy is just to practice and get better mechanics :p

Thanks I'll try that, I usually end up throwing down the structures after and it takes a while to get them running obv

asdfjh

Canada230 Posts

March 31 2011 00:30 GMT

#16

First off, why are you floating? You said it's when you're multi base so is it because you're not producing out of your structures or is it because you just don't have enough buildings?
And aside from just learning to macro better, you can just have a few more structures than you need. Or build expensive units when your money gets high: e.g. you make tanks from your factory but as soon as you start slipping you make a thor instead to bring your money down.

Antisocialmunky

United States5912 Posts

March 31 2011 00:33 GMT

#17

Replays would be helpful.

wrestlingfool08

United States139 Posts

March 31 2011 00:39 GMT

#18

Macro while you micro (build units even when you're in the middle of a battle) and look at replays to figure out where in your build you start floating mins. Next game you play make sure you have more production buildings. Yea...really not much more to say...

Roe

Canada6002 Posts

March 31 2011 00:42 GMT

#19

I sometimes find this, and when I do, it's like a mental kick, or automatic tendency to just press 6s7s8s - and spam units-any will usually do.
Another way to consider it is think of ways you can try to notice when you're not noticing your macro.

Stoffelhase

Germany162 Posts

March 31 2011 01:02 GMT

#20

depending on your skill you need more unitproducing structures i think.. i.e. protoss can support aroung 4 structures per base.. on one base its kinda easy to handle, but on 3 running bases pro can handle to keep their money low with roughly 12 structures that constantly eat money (producing or teching).. midskillers now might need maybe 14 to 16 structures, because they are simply not good enough not having any non-producing downtimes.

in bronze: better 4gate colossi on 1 base with no mins, than 2gate colossi with overmins..

Nerski

United States1095 Posts

March 31 2011 01:04 GMT

#21

I see this usually happen with myself as a zerg player when in the early game I'm not pressured very hard and can drone much much much faster then usual. My general solution is simple...expand a crud ton faster then I normally would, and put down more proxy hatches to be able to support the extra mineral income...there is absolutely nothing wrong with being able to max out faster because your opponent is playing defensively.

The reality is this...until your maxed and even when your maxed, putting 5k minerals in the bank isn't going to do any good to you if you lose with it sitting their. So if you are banking that much because your not being forced to spend it a ton...find ways to use it up, take expands you don't think you'll be able to easily defend just because you can....it'll only make your opponents job harder in the long run.

ki11z0ne

United States427 Posts

March 31 2011 01:06 GMT

#22

i have the same problem but some games i fix it other bla! build more buildings and tec

enigmatik

United States86 Posts

March 31 2011 01:07 GMT

#23

I know what your problem is as I just recently got past this myself, you aren't adding enough production facilities in time. For a few games try to notice when your minerals are piling up after you start producing a round of units in all of your current facilities are up. If you notice that you are still floating ~300-400 minerals at the time and you can't start any upgrades then you need to add more production facilities. Try turtling a few games just to get used to these timings so you can get the hang of adding on more buildings before you start trying to micro armies in the midst of it all.

jinorazi

Korea (South)4948 Posts

March 31 2011 01:22 GMT

#24

it is more difficult for terrans to cope with this but my recommendations would be:
double upgrade buildings, 1-2 more production buildings than usual.
build depos/turrets throughout map. expand, build CC in base for extra mules, etc.

compared to say protoss, i'd make 2 or more extra gateways, 8 instead of 6 on two base just to make units in bursts instead of consistently.

zergs should bank money depending on circumstances.

the major flaw is adding production buildings too late. when you expand, when CC is half way done, add 3 more barracks for example.

TheOnlyOne

Germany155 Posts

March 31 2011 01:28 GMT

#25

A pretty "good" idea is to just play a game "full" of Macro.

Just Macro and micro pretty much nothing.

Ofcourse this will cost you games if your game plan just works around Micro, but just playing the Macro game and ignoring Micro improves your feeling for Macro.

At some point you can do your Macro no matter what, especially if you have good timings that connect to each other (like Barracks is done right when your Marines are done, and they are all produced all together, not 1 Marine in 2 second ticks from every barrack ; ofcourse its "somehow" better, but doing it in waves of production is million times easier to do, especially in multitasking situations).

Tatari

United States1179 Posts

March 31 2011 01:33 GMT

#26

Throw down more production buildings, get some research done, grab a few upgrades, throw down some static d's... probes n' pylons (or whatever race you are), donate some to charity, spend some on booze and hookers, buy a mansion, buy more hookers...

Just keep macroing.

Logarythm

United States264 Posts

March 31 2011 01:34 GMT

#27

Something Day9 says a lot is to just make more unit producing structures, at any point in the game. IE, Protoss making 13 Gateways when they're maxed, so they can reproduce an army faster (Or warp prism 13 Zealots into your mineral line >.>)

bMn30

United States113 Posts

March 31 2011 01:40 GMT

#28

It is very important to know how many production facilities you can support given your economy. When you know this you can mindlessly spam out units.

darmousseh

United States3437 Posts

March 31 2011 01:45 GMT

#29

Understand how many structures you can support off of one base for protoss and terran. For zerg, it's about whether or not you are going mass ling. With mass ling, you will need a production hatch, otherwise just keep making units and spawning larvae.

This is a great little tool that will tell you how many structures you can produce out of on any numbers of bases.
http://sc2calc.org/unit_production/protoss.php

Mwentworth56

146 Posts

March 31 2011 01:49 GMT

#30

Try adding more unit producing structures ealier im just now really learning to do this really and it really stepped up my game. keep up your unit producing even donig fighting/harrassing (mostly this part comes with pratice). Build more expansions, get ugrades. There is always ALOT of things to spend your money on. took me a little to relize just how much more money you think you need there is always so much to buy!

Sfydjklm

United States9218 Posts

March 31 2011 01:55 GMT

#31

unless you're goody and can get away with 5-qing your production facilities there is simply no trick. The thing is the income in SC2 is not linear(for Z and T at least P seems a bit more streamlined). You have to know your timing because as the income comes at spikes you have to be already prepared to spend it. You have to throw up production facilities before u have actual minerals to afford em.
So if your game is not refined in other aspects i would simply watch your own reps, notice when the minerals spike up, preferably by certain tells of your build order and not time, and next game you have start building production buildings slightly before that happens.

HEROwithNOlegacy

United States850 Posts

March 31 2011 01:59 GMT

#32

When I was first starting to play Starcraft II back on release I was trying to figure out a way that would improve my mechanics quickly, so what I did was I took a piece of yellow play dough and put it on the top right of my monitor where my minerals and supply etc were located, and what this did was it forced me to look there all the time to check my money and supply so I wouldn't miss an overlord etc. I found this to work with my mini map too, I don't know why but the play dough was so distracting and obnoxious to see in the corner of my eye that I after I took it off after a week of playing I was constantly checking my mini map and minerals and supply count. I started doing that back when I was in bronze league and I have now been in Master league since release and play zerg and it really was a cool trick I used to help improve my mechanics at the time.

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