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Poll: Hardest race to play at each level of SC2? - Page 14

Forum Index > SC2 General
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ZiegFeld
Profile Joined April 2011
351 Posts
October 02 2011 21:35 GMT
#261
Being a GM Terran last season, I'd have to say Terran.

As a Terran, the ball is ALWAYS in your court, and it's up to you to execute plays in order to win. The longer the game drags on where the Zerg or Protoss can up their tech, the more likely Terran is to lose.
Klyberess
Profile Joined October 2010
Sweden345 Posts
October 02 2011 21:37 GMT
#262
ZZTP
EmpireHappy <3 STHack <3 ByunPrime
emc
Profile Joined September 2010
United States3088 Posts
Last Edited: 2011-10-02 21:42:16
October 02 2011 21:38 GMT
#263
the only results you can get are biased results. I tried to be as non biased as possible and simply vote on what I felt was actually true.

Bronze to Platinum is Zerg
Diamond to Master is Terran
GM is Protoss

But if you look at tip top GSL level I think it might be different. Terran is very hard because they need to have a ton of multi-tasking and need to study their opponents because terran armies are extremely fragile and hard to replace. However, the best terrans are the best players in the world because of the versatility of terran. Zerg on the other hand has an extremely tough time in the early game and in the late late late game against terrans who have mech/ghost, it seems to me like zerg only has timing attacks against terran but has every strategy available to them in ZvP. Protoss is susceptible to a lot of all-ins but if they can get upgrades and survive then they can win. So at GSL level, I think all races might be equally hard to play.
SKYFISH_
Profile Joined April 2011
Bulgaria990 Posts
October 02 2011 21:44 GMT
#264
I dont see how people who main ONE race can give unbiased opinions?

The actual fuck, honestly?

I play both Terran and Protoss and P is a lot easier to handle - both Protoss macro and micro are easier and demand less multitasking.

only BS and phoenix openers are as demanding as the usual T midgame
In Soviet Terranistan you rush the Zerg
Catchafire2000
Profile Joined August 2010
United States227 Posts
October 02 2011 21:50 GMT
#265
On October 03 2011 06:35 ZiegFeld wrote:
Being a GM Terran last season, I'd have to say Terran.

As a Terran, the ball is ALWAYS in your court, and it's up to you to execute plays in order to win. The longer the game drags on where the Zerg or Protoss can up their tech, the more likely Terran is to lose.


So being the dictator of the game makes it harder for you??? Gee, wish I had that problem. While i'm sure you are a good player to be in GM, have you tried ALL the races?
jabooty
MonkSEA
Profile Blog Joined April 2011
Australia1227 Posts
October 02 2011 21:52 GMT
#266
On October 03 2011 06:44 SKYFISH_ wrote:
I dont see how people who main ONE race can give unbiased opinions?

The actual fuck, honestly?

I play both Terran and Protoss and P is a lot easier to handle - both Protoss macro and micro are easier and demand less multitasking.

only BS and phoenix openers are as demanding as the usual T midgame


It's quite simple to give an unbiased opinion when you main one race as if you play all 3 you would choose the one you struggle with, and that might not be the one that is harder to play, it might just be the one that you just don't know how to play.

I think it's Z-Z-T-P as many other people. Zergs a no brainer for the B-Plat. Terran is so difficult to play around diamond/low masters because many people only know 1-2 builds, not unleashing the full potential of Terran which is their versatility. As for Protoss, once you're good enough as a Protoss there is just this ceiling. No matter how much Special tactics you can do, your expensive, hard to replenish units get 'countered' too easily and then you're left with a gateway army which is useless past the mid game. I'm liking the recent PvZ though. A lot of Warp Prism harass which Protoss never did before giving them the edge. My favorite Warp Prism use is taking out tech buildings while taking out another base with your army. Killing 8 Zealots is actually a big task because of their DPS and beefyness, they will take out a mineral line or a tech building if the Protoss micros.
http://www.youtube.com/user/sirmonkeh Zerg Live Casts and Commentary!
Sbrubbles
Profile Joined October 2010
Brazil5776 Posts
October 02 2011 21:52 GMT
#267
Hmm, I was like "damnit, another stupid poll that makes no sense", but the results are kinda interesting to gauge the perceptions of the community.
Bora Pain minha porra!
Belial88
Profile Blog Joined November 2010
United States5217 Posts
Last Edited: 2011-10-02 21:55:46
October 02 2011 21:55 GMT
#268
- I'd say Up to Diamond, Zerg is hardest since the difference between Diamond and Masters Zerg is usually knowing how to scout and react to scouting denial and various 1-2 base silly stuff or all-ins. But really, any race can be easy at Diamond, and I'd say most Masters+ players could get to diamond easily with any of the 3 races.

Masters+ I would say is definately Terran, although of course there can be games this or that way (ie mech ZvT very easy to play, 111 can be easier to do than defend, terran can do a lot of easy cheesy all-ins, etc).

Protoss is always the easiest.

- Masters Zerg
How to build a $500 i7-3770K Ultimate Computer:http://www.teamliquid.net/blogs/viewblog.php?topic_id=392709 ******** 100% Safe Razorless Delid Method! http://www.overclock.net/t/1376206/how-to-delid-your-ivy-bridge-cpu-with-out-a-razor-blade/0_100
Nabes
Profile Joined November 2010
Canada1800 Posts
October 02 2011 21:56 GMT
#269
I've played all 3 races enough to say that terran and zerg are the hardest to play. As zerg you gotta babysit your creep tumors and injects while knowing when to drone etc, and as terran, the macro part i find hard. I find myself going back to protoss all the time just for the ease of playing the race. building your entire base off 1 probe is so easy, especially late game when you have 4+ bases, just shift que a bunch of gate ways and pylons. I know protoss is in a huge rut at top play, but no matter what the micro and macro will always be easy.
Soliduok
Profile Joined August 2010
Canada222 Posts
October 02 2011 22:02 GMT
#270
I am a masters zerg player and a diamond terran/protoss.

I voted zerg as the hardest up to masters because thats my experience. I also voted for zerg at the GM/Pro level just because I want some zerg love ^^

For all the people voting for protoss as the hardest race, you have to be joking. Protoss is the absolute easiest race macro and micro from my experience. Just because protoss is losing at the top levels doesn't mean they are the hardest race to play, maybe it's just a shitty race at that level. Maybe people just aren't using them properly, I don't know, but it is insane to say they are the hardest to play.

I think terran is the most difficult race to play mechanically speaking. I struggle to keep up with production, proper hotkey setups, harrasing while building what I need etc. I think zerg is the hardest race to play because you just have to know exactly what to do at all times to properly respond to what your opponent is doing. For this reason I feel zerg is the most difficult to play.
Techno
Profile Joined June 2010
1900 Posts
October 02 2011 22:06 GMT
#271
On October 02 2011 17:07 iamke55 wrote:
Results seem spot on. I'll never understand how anyone below diamond plays Zerg, as it just takes too much higher level thinking for people who have trouble avoid supply blocks. At the diamond and master level, Terran needs a lot of micro to overcome Zerg and Protoss' AOE unit compositions that can 1a for the win. At the pro level, Protoss players need to make extremely subtle reads on scouting information, never take their eyes off the minimap and react instantly to any dots that appear on it, and defend vs pressure using the minimum number of units possible to maintain the tech lead needed to win.

+1 for this. I couldn't have it better.
Hell, its awesome to LOSE to nukes!
Zeke50100
Profile Blog Joined February 2010
United States2220 Posts
October 02 2011 22:09 GMT
#272
It really depends on what one's strong points are. For example, I find Zerg incredibly easy to play, but can't for the life of me get a grip on playing as Terran, much less Protoss. They're completely different races, so it's completely fine that you can have more of an affinity for a certain race over the others in terms of ease. You can't exactly say one race is by far the easiest or hardest no matter what your skills are. I find keeping up with injections is pretty easy to do, whereas having multiple types of buildings with Terran is impossibly difficult - that being the case, Terran would be the more difficult race for me. It differs with each person, though.
Ripper41
Profile Joined July 2011
284 Posts
October 02 2011 22:09 GMT
#273
I don't know why, but a good number of people have got it into their heads that protoss doesn't require much micro. I don't know if they just suck or just haven't really played protoss but its really annoying to read. Kind of depressing how stupid some people can be... they just come on here stating their opinion, and I waste about a thousand brain cells reading it. I guess that kinda makes me stupid too.
Raambo11
Profile Joined April 2011
United States828 Posts
October 02 2011 22:14 GMT
#274
I can basically assure you the only reason that Terran is ranked the easiest to play at the higher levels, is because people see so many Terran doing well in GSL. That is the only reason, however it is utterly not indicative of how hard or easy the race is to play.

The reason Terran is doing so well at the higher levels is precisely because of the opposite reason, it is the hardest race to play but does exceptionally well in the hands of an extremely skilled user. Protoss does not do well at the high levels similarly because it is easier to play, and the overall skillcap is lower. A Terran like MVP will be pulling twice the APM of his Protoss opponent, because there are that many more things to do as Terran to win, however since he has the APM to do all those things he will beat the Protoss. It would be interesting to see MVP play protoss, but just from a guess I think he would be substantially less awe inspiring, mainly because a good chunk of his APM would go to waste.

Where Terran is far weaker in my opinion is near the platinum level where most players have basic macro down, but little else. Here Protoss can dominate because it is much less micro intensive in most matchups, and relies on basic easy macro with 1 main building (the gateway).

Ideally to balance the game, all races need a similar cap in skill, and learning curves that are more in line with each other.
Suneandreassen
Profile Joined March 2011
Denmark1 Post
October 02 2011 22:15 GMT
#275
[QUOTE]On October 02 2011 17:17 decaf wrote:
This is what NesTea has to say about it

It was fun to hear what NesTea had to say about it, but I will still point out that the video what posted in april, so it's half a year ago, and patch 1.3 had just gone online at the time. Lots of things has changed and I think it has lost a bit of it's relavence.
Techno
Profile Joined June 2010
1900 Posts
October 02 2011 22:16 GMT
#276
On October 03 2011 07:02 Soliduok wrote:
I am a masters zerg player and a diamond terran/protoss.

I voted zerg as the hardest up to masters because thats my experience. I also voted for zerg at the GM/Pro level just because I want some zerg love ^^

For all the people voting for protoss as the hardest race, you have to be joking. Protoss is the absolute easiest race macro and micro from my experience. Just because protoss is losing at the top levels doesn't mean they are the hardest race to play, maybe it's just a shitty race at that level. Maybe people just aren't using them properly, I don't know, but it is insane to say they are the hardest to play.

I think terran is the most difficult race to play mechanically speaking. I struggle to keep up with production, proper hotkey setups, harrasing while building what I need etc. I think zerg is the hardest race to play because you just have to know exactly what to do at all times to properly respond to what your opponent is doing. For this reason I feel zerg is the most difficult to play.

So does that mean that once you know how to play each scenario out, Terran is harder?
Hell, its awesome to LOSE to nukes!
Ghad
Profile Blog Joined April 2010
Norway2551 Posts
October 02 2011 22:17 GMT
#277
Has to say that i agree that zerg is the most difficult at my level of play. I was winning a lot more with terran after just a few days of practise, but couldnt stay away from the swarm in the end. A glutton for punishment i guess.
forgottendreams: One underage girl, two drunk guys, one gogo dancer and starcraft 2. Apparently just another day in Europe.
FrostedMiniWheats
Profile Joined August 2010
United States30730 Posts
October 02 2011 22:18 GMT
#278
Well...I can't really make the call about how difficult terran/protoss are in the higher leagues as I don't have the time to offrace with them as much as I'd like to reach this level, so take what you will with a grain of salt.

Considering the current balance, I would consider Protoss to be significantly underpowered. So factoring in balance, I'd say protoss is probably the hardest to play right now at the higher levels. A few months ago, when times were brighter for toss I recall quite a few people saying saying toss was the: "loldeathball -> A-move race", or how mindlessly easy, yet strong the 4-gate was. Not so much these days. I wonder what the inevitable poll 4-6 months from now will look like.

I think it's almost universally agreed that zerg is harder in the lower levels. Naturally, when you're a noobie in any game you aren't really comfortable yet. You tend to play scared and are unable to interpret what is going on. Translated to SC2 this would probably mean: building too many units for defense instead of workers, ineffective scouting and not understanding what might be coming your way, scared to expand when needed, relying heavily on cheese, etc. All of these things you're going to have a much harder time getting away with as zerg. Basically, if I were trying to get a friend into sc2, I would absolutely not advise learning the fundamentals with zerg. By design, the race just holds your hand much less and requires you to get out of your comfort zone.

NesTea | Mvp | MC | Leenock | Losira | Gumiho | DRG | Taeja | Jinro | Stephano | Thorzain | Sen | Idra |Polt | Bomber | Symbol | Squirtle | Fantasy | Jaedong | Maru | sOs | Seed | ByuN | ByuL | Neeb| Scarlett | Rogue | IM forever
Raambo11
Profile Joined April 2011
United States828 Posts
October 02 2011 22:20 GMT
#279
On October 03 2011 07:18 FrostedMiniWheats wrote:
Well...I can't really make the call about how difficult terran/protoss are in the higher leagues as I don't have the time to offrace with them as much as I'd like to reach this level, so take what you will with a grain of salt.

Considering the current balance, I would consider Protoss to be significantly underpowered. So factoring in balance, I'd say protoss is probably the hardest to play right now at the higher levels. A few months ago, when times were brighter for toss I recall quite a few people saying saying toss was the: "loldeathball -> A-move race", or how mindlessly easy, yet strong the 4-gate was. Not so much these days. I wonder what the inevitable poll 4-6 months from now will look like.

I think it's almost universally agreed that zerg is harder in the lower levels. Naturally, when you're a noobie in any game you aren't really comfortable yet. You tend to play scared and are unable to interpret what is going on. Translated to SC2 this would probably mean: building too many units for defense instead of workers, ineffective scouting and not understanding what might be coming your way, scared to expand when needed, relying heavily on cheese, etc. All of these things you're going to have a much harder time getting away with as zerg. Basically, if I were trying to get a friend into sc2, I would absolutely not advise learning the fundamentals with zerg. By design, the race just holds your hand much less and requires you to get out of your comfort zone.




This is exactly the wrong perception most people have. Protoss was considered the a move race before, and nothing has changed since then really as far as Protoss macro and micro requirements. The only thing that has changed is the skill of the top Terran and Zerg players, since their race allows for a higher skillcap, while the Protoss race does not, hence why top players were considered A movers.
InvXXVII
Profile Joined March 2011
Canada242 Posts
October 02 2011 22:37 GMT
#280
On October 03 2011 07:02 Soliduok wrote:
I am a masters zerg player and a diamond terran/protoss.

I voted zerg as the hardest up to masters because thats my experience. I also voted for zerg at the GM/Pro level just because I want some zerg love ^^

For all the people voting for protoss as the hardest race, you have to be joking. Protoss is the absolute easiest race macro and micro from my experience. Just because protoss is losing at the top levels doesn't mean they are the hardest race to play, maybe it's just a shitty race at that level. Maybe people just aren't using them properly, I don't know, but it is insane to say they are the hardest to play.

I think terran is the most difficult race to play mechanically speaking. I struggle to keep up with production, proper hotkey setups, harrasing while building what I need etc. I think zerg is the hardest race to play because you just have to know exactly what to do at all times to properly respond to what your opponent is doing. For this reason I feel zerg is the most difficult to play.


When talking about GM/Master protoss, I think that most of us are not concerned with marco/micro at all. At that level, it should be a given that macro/micro mechanics are mastered.

What's difficult at that level is the metagame. I think that the main problem for protoss is the lack of a good harass unit (when I say "good", I mean it in a relative sense). Protoss cannot pick their opponents apart with drops or muta harass. Protoss either does a timing attack (that usually results in an auto loss if the attack fails) or turtle until they get a deathball (i.e. play very defensive).
A good loser is still a loser.
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