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TvP marine/banshee/raven defensive-style build

Forum Index > StarCraft 2 Strategy
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Azzur
Profile Blog Joined July 2010
Australia6259 Posts
Last Edited: 2010-12-07 18:47:53
December 07 2010 18:46 GMT
#1
The marine/banshee/raven is a well-known build with several variations where most of them aim for a strong attack off 2-bases. The motivation for this TvP build is a multi-purpose, flexible build that allows for a strong endgame army (viking/banshee/BC/marine/raven) without relying on the timing push. This build is mainly reactive and defensive, which may appeal to your playstyle. Banshees are used as harass options in the middlegame and endgame. I believe this build can handle any protoss response which thus makes it useful for laddering. So far, this build has served me well at the 2200 diamond level.

Opening
+ Show Spoiler +
- 10 supply (at choke), 12 rax (near CC), 13 gas, 15 OC, 16 supply
- marines + scvs constantly
- 2nd gas
- factory
- reactor on rax when you have 2-3 marines
- bunker
- starport after factory
- techlab on factory to swap with starport
- bunker
- raven
- cloak
- banshee

Notes:
- The rax-reactor which allows for production of sufficent marines to handle early attacks using 2 bunkers at the choke. 1 bunker is definitely needed but the 2nd can be avoided if your scouting is good.
- The 2nd gas before factory leads to 200 gas right as the starport finishes (sufficient for the raven).
- If the protoss expands, the terran should interrupt the build and immediately throw down a CC in response and then resume as normal.
- The "half-wall" helps negate early pressure while not being vulnerable to a wallin harass (e.g. by stalkers or VRs). This is done by placing the first supply at the choke but the rax near the CC. The supply allows for a quick emergency wallin while having the rax back means that it is not vulnerable to harass.


Midgame
+ Show Spoiler +
- I usually harass at 2 banshees.
- If you feel reasonably safe, expand then build the 2nd starport. If not, build the starport first.
- Add a couple of bunkers at your natural and place your army there.
- Add more starports (4-5).
- Build armory for upgrades.
- Army composition is marine/banshee/raven.
- Harass as much as possible with banshees. If they get phoenixes, build vikings in response and be conservative with your harass. If your airforce is caught by the phoenixes, run your banshees and let your vikings engage (and thus die) to buy time for the banshees to get away.
- If they are phoenix-heavy, don't be afraid to keep your banshees with your main army (i.e don't harass) and instead just try and get expansions.


Endgame
+ Show Spoiler +
- Build a fusion core.
- Army composition is viking/banshee/BC/marine/raven.
- Keep expanding using PFs and add more starports as money allows.
- Position your army in a good location with the ability to defend expansions. Ideally, you want them to engage you while you are in a strong defensive position. Bring some SCVs for auto-repair.
- The protoss has no hard-counter to BCs and they perform reasonably against HTs/stalkers.
- Don't forget to keep upgrading air.


Some protoss responses
+ Show Spoiler +
2-gate robo
- Scout their expansion timing and pop down a CC if they do it early.
- If they play defensively, try and get your expand down first and out-econ them.

4-gate
- Be extremely defensive and don't be afraid to keep your banshees at home for defence.
- When you've held their attack, you can expand instead of trying to press home the win.

1-gate FE
- Interrupt your opening and build a CC straight away. They will probably be on the defensive, so bring your banshees to harass as soon as possible.
- I generally don't try to go for a timing attack.

3-gate 1-star
- Once you see the VRs, make vikings in response and stick on the defensive. I try and expand first before going on the attack.
- I would stick to marines/vikings and not get turrets.

2-star
- The defence for this is simlar to the 3-gate 1-star build (I would also not get turrets).

3-gate (or 4-gate) blink stalkers
- The double bunker should be able to protect you. However, it is likely that you'll need to pull SCVs to defend against this.

Zealot/phoenix
- This build can be difficult to handle and probably soft-counters this build.
- You need to stay on the defensive and pump vikings in response.


Replays
+ Show Spoiler +

http://sc2.replayers.com/replays/view/5212
http://sc2.replayers.com/replays/view/5201
http://sc2.replayers.com/replays/view/5200
http://sc2.replayers.com/replays/view/5199

Black Gun
Profile Blog Joined July 2009
Germany4482 Posts
December 07 2010 18:53 GMT
#2
wont templar with storm and feedback completely roflstomp a banshee/bc/marine/raven army?

but nice OP and nice idea. gonna have a look at the reps now.
"What am I supposed to do against this?" - "Lose!" :-]
darksub
Profile Joined July 2010
Argentina302 Posts
December 07 2010 19:04 GMT
#3
i been loking for transition to end game bc, ill give a try and comment again later
divide et vinces
gnashed_potatoes
Profile Joined December 2010
14 Posts
December 07 2010 19:08 GMT
#4
On December 08 2010 03:53 Black Gun wrote:
wont templar with storm and feedback completely roflstomp a banshee/bc/marine/raven army?


You'd think, but no. I use a build similar to this all the time and HT's really aren't much of a threat because they are such a huge investment and will mean their ground army is lacking as a result. The HT's will waste all their energy on your bio ball but its quite easy to dodge the storms with your banshees. He may feedback your banshees but neither the banshees nor the HT's will have much energy because of cloaking and storm, respectively.
gnashed_potatoes
Profile Joined December 2010
14 Posts
December 07 2010 19:13 GMT
#5
Also, I would add medevacs/marauders rather than battlecruisers. That way you can do multi pronged frontal attacks/drops and not worry about the immobiltiy of the cruisers, especially on a large map.
antz0r
Profile Joined September 2010
Australia168 Posts
December 08 2010 00:04 GMT
#6
I never realised how fun having an airforce was lol. By luck I watched the arman replay last.
I note that you don't upgrade the marines or go rax/techlab for combat shields or stim. Is this so you have more in the bank for BC later on?

Azzur
Profile Blog Joined July 2010
Australia6259 Posts
December 08 2010 03:49 GMT
#7
On December 08 2010 09:04 antz0r wrote:
I never realised how fun having an airforce was lol. By luck I watched the arman replay last.
I note that you don't upgrade the marines or go rax/techlab for combat shields or stim. Is this so you have more in the bank for BC later on?


The lack of combat shields and stim is a playstyle choice. I almost never get stim because I dislike using infantry. Combat shields are a good idea but I never get them since it would require a techlab swap with the reactor (which is troublesome). But it'll be great if you can adapt these into the build!
NadaSound
Profile Joined March 2010
United States227 Posts
December 11 2010 02:27 GMT
#8
Thanks I've been looking for a new approach against the toss. I'll let you konow who it goes.
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