How to get better in upcoming SC2

[Rigby]

Hi guys ,

first of all i'm an average RTS player with about an APM of 70-120 reason beeing i'm old and not so fast like many youngsters who play the game. Nevertheless i still manage to beat players with much higher APM and better rankings .

I have a background in proffesional sports and playing a RTS game is not much difference then playing say Tennis 1 vs 1 . You learn your'e technic and how to place yourself strategically , but then the deciding factor to win the match between to equal players is their phsychological advantage.

Sometimes even a players who's worser will win against a better player if his mindset is right.

I just recently started playing wc3 again just to get into the groove for sc2 and started playing alot of games . Thats when i realized that most of the times after say like 3 games i started to loose more games . I was getting angry because i lost and started even to loose some more .

Anyways that experience i would like to share with you guys and not to make the same mistakes , maybe some of you have allready experienced it .

Here are some tips from me , how to avaoid it and maybe get better and have more fun in winning more games. I'm leaving APM as a tip out here , because its an obvious to get faster .

1.) Make 2 accounts .... one for practice and fooling around and one for serious play. If you in a good clan or have friends you might only need one because you don't have to play ladder . Start warming up with a couple of games before you go laddering . In any sport players warm up before they play their matches , that shouldnt be different in an e-sports game.

2.) Dont play ladder when you tired or emotional(angry) . Most of the times you loose and you get even more angry . Alot of players then start playing more games because they just lost and loose even more . End of the day their win ratio is going down and they want to make new accounts to get better stats. If you dont feel well just play some friendly games or play an UMS but save yourself the stress when you not fully concentrated.

3.) When you decide to play ladder , play only 1-3 games and concentrate , dont make the mistake to play 20 games in a row and expect to win them all. You can only concentrate for like max 1 hour , after that your'e mind gets tiered and you will make stupid mistakes . Take a break between matches to refocus on your'e next ladder game. If you loose a game dont jump right into the next one , rather save your'e replay and watch it to learn from your'e mistakes .

4.) If you loose , its not a shame to ask your'e opponent what you did wrong in his opinion , and where you can improve your'e game.

5.) Dont try to get angry when you loose a game . This one isnt easy because i know from myself i can get very emotional .

6.) Learn to know your'e playground .... meaning your'e maps . Go into a practice match against a comp or friend and play with revealed map . Get acustomized with each map .

7.) Learn to know your'e buildorders , and counters for the different match ups.

8.) In practice matches play the other races even if you not good with them . Learn how each race plays and feels . But in competitive play stick to your'e favorite race. Learn the counters other races have to your'e own race.

9.) Learn your'e hotkeys it will make your'e gameplay faster.

10.) When the game starts or just even before make up a gameplan and stick to it . e.g i'm planning to go zealots with stalkers , stick to it . Obviously depending on late game you might have to improvise and change up tactics. What i'm here talking about is the same like in any other sport . Your'e coach tells you to play defensive or more offensive or he might give you a tactic to attack from a specific side. This is no difference in playing sc2 . The only difference is that you are your'e own coach and you should make your'e own tactic for each upcoming match. Unless you play in korea of course where you will have a coach who will tell you what strategy and tactic to play.

11.) Dont be afraid of your'e opponent , dont be scared to harass a higher ranked player . Dont let yourself intimidate just because he is a welknown player . I know this is not easy . I remember the first time i played on battlenet my hands started shaking and then when i was about to win i could hardly hold my mouse . Try to stay cool even when you beeing rushed . Dont try to overeact , stay cool and concentrate.

12.) Forgot to mention one important maybe the most important in any competetive sport is ANTICIPATION . Yes anticipation , the ability to predict whats going to happen next . What will be next move of my opponent . Trying to get into the mindset of your'e opponent , trying to predict what he will do if you do that. This ability comes often with experience and confidence . Myself because i'm a slower player ( APM wise ) i need to outsmart faster opponents . Thats where then players like ilooveov (hope i spelled his name right) started to have succes in sc1 because he didnt had better micro or technic but what he had is anticipation . Reading his opponent and out macro him , because he would know ahead what units to built at what time . Next time you watch a pro players replay , try to put yourself in this situation and try to predict whats going to happen next . Thats just to parctice .


Well thats pretty much sums it up , i believe there is still so much more to add to become better in sc2 besides having high APM . I believe even a average skilled player if he prepeares himself right is able to beat better players then himself. And with success and more wins there comes confidence in your'e own game and fun . When you having fun i realized you start enjoying the game even more and start becoming more creative, hence new strategies envolve because you more confident.

I welcome any addition others may have to share with us . Maybe some other members have secret tactics and they want to share with us .

Thanks for reading

Cheers Rigby

[ArcherofAiur]

I just recently started playing wc3 again just to get into the groove for sc2 and started playing alot of games .

If you want to prepare for SC2 you really should play SC1.

[Rigby]

If you want to prepare for SC2 you really should play SC1.

I do play both , sc only against comp because i cant be bothered to get onto ICCUP and trying to look for games. And sc battlenet is dead . The UI from wc3 and the MBS is more similar to sc2 then sc to sc2 . Yes if you talking macro then sc1 is better. Why i'm playing wc3 is just to keep my fingers moving on the keyboard to get used to use hotkeys and the strategical thinking .

What i wanted to get across with this article was my thoughts on any RTS game , and compare it to sports how proffesionals prepare and lesser skilled players beat much better players with the right mindset and preperation .

[Flatus]

Thanks for sharing

Emotions can really affect a lot, and player himself wont even notice it. I myself, when I'm angry, I feel like I'm inside a really tight box, cant think anything else than that anger. Same thing when I'm too happy about winning, cant think anything else.

But when I'm cool, relaxed and just focusing on the game, I can pull off some awesome stunts :3 So keeping yourself cool and relaxed is important, in my opinion.

[ArcherofAiur]

I do play both , sc only against comp because i cant be bothered to get onto ICCUP and trying to look for games. And sc battlenet is dead . The UI from wc3 and the MBS is more similar to sc2 then sc to sc2 .

There are allot of important differences in the UI. For instance the current build of SC2 MBS only gives you one unit per keystroke as opposed to WC3 where it orders one from all the buildings.


As far as micro goes your probably still better off with SC1 micro. Playing WC3 isnt going to help you with drops, muta harass, rushes (early pool or 2 gate etc..), siege tank and lurker management, etc...

[ch_bing]

Play the game to the ticks of a metronome, set the tempo to remind you of the economy boosters and you're golden.

Practice makes perfect, it does away with investing emotions into the game and lets one play the game unhindered. Don't let the suck element get the best of you, learn how to appreciate the losses and learn from them. Always seek opponents who are better than you, complacency thwarts reaching one's potential.

I even bored myself with this.

[ArcherofAiur]

Play the game to the ticks of a metronome, set the tempo to remind you of the economy boosters and you're golden.

Another good one is practice maps. Some of them like the marine lurker micro are actually allot of fun.

[Rigby]

There are allot of important differences in the UI. For instance the current build of SC2 MBS only gives you one unit per keystroke as opposed to WC3 where it orders one from all the buildings.


As far as micro goes your probably still better off with SC1 micro. Playing WC3 isnt going to help you with drops, muta harass, rushes (early pool or 2 gate etc..), siege tank and lurker management, etc...

ArcherofAiur i dont doubt your'e points about the game differences . What i'm talking about is how to prepare for an RTS game like sc2 pshychologicaly. If i want to learn the technical aspects of the game i go and play sc1 . If you have read the arcticle i wasnt talking how to muta harras or doing a reaver drop . Thats technical things and the ability of players to pull it of .

No matter how fast or good technic you have ,if you are not concentrated or calm and have the nerves and the mindset to pull it of you wont succed.

For example you have like thousands of excellent players in korea with each of them beeing on par in technical department with the top 20 in sc1 . But what makes these top 20 better and more succesfull players then the other 1000 . Its their mindset and how they perform under pressure . This phsychological advantage is what makes the difference. It's in their blood each situation each move they do is automated , that what keeps them cool in difficult situations to pull of maneuvers and counter their opponents.

Yes obviously you will need to practice your'e opening moves , same like a chess player practices his opening moves against different opponents and strategies.

What i'm trying is just to give younger or nervous, even new upcoming sc2 players some advice (not gameplay wise) how to ladder better and how to prepare themselfs to win more games even against technical better players . And that just with better preparation and being mentaly stronger .

Peace Rigby

[Santrega]

Yeah.. I agree with Rigby..

The situations in sc2 will not be like the situations in sc1, even drops will be different.. It's a better idea playing wc3 for practice quickly using spells and getting used to the new UI. Yes you'll have to hit the keys more in Sc2, but thats not a difficult thing to learn, the harder part is getting used to how MBS will effect your hotkeys and practicing using those hotkeys.

Most situations are going to need playing of sc2 to get better at, as neither wc3 nor sc will be sufficient to improve anything.

Sc clearly is the place to go to learn to micro large armies at one time, and learning macro, however, wc3 is the place to go to practice using abilities and trying to develop an actual hotkey set up that can work in sc2.

Both games will help in their own way, but in the end, playing sc2 will ultimately be the way you improve in sc2. I think Rigby has done a fine job giving some general advice on how to improve and get better when sc2 is finally out.

[sandwich_bird]

Mindset is important but imo it's clearly not the thing that will make you good at starcraft. You said in 1000, 20 will be the top because of their mindsets. But, for those 1000 to be the best in 10000000 or more players there is something else that will decide how better they are. To be those 1000 you need dedication, the capacity of using the internet to your advantage, the ability to practice correctly and pure luck.

1.Dedication because you won't achieve this task without putting enough time for it. This means daily practice sessions and such. The most obvious thing of all. Time management also goes along with this.

2.Using the internet because most of the time, all the information you will need will surface on the internet. There're hundreds of players who give out freely their strategies on site like tl.net, gg.net or even YouTube. You must be able to find this information and of course apply it. The first time you play online, you will lose. Asking for help is ok but most of the time, you can find more structured answers to your problem in your gameplay by looking on the internet.

3. Practicing correctly is another key component to success because no matter how much time you put into something, if this time is not used the right way, you won't achieve your objectives. When you practice, don't just go out and play a few random games with a few random people, this usually won't help you much imo. What you need to do is play each different match up once and the analyze your game. What are you strong points and what are your weak points? Once you have found them, do not waste time on your strong points, go practice the shit out of your weak points. Not fast enough? Spam games against AI and try to play faster each time. Messing up your build? Know your build by heart even when you're not in front of your keyboard and then apply this knowledge. Can't micro with a particular unit? Make an ums or find one to practice the unit. Making a practice ums is really easy and if you have trouble finding how to do it, just use your internet skill to find the info you need.

4.Finaly there is always a luck factor in everything. There's really nothing you can do about this. Sometime you will lose w/e you do. But, use the above advice wisely and know that usually luck favor the most prepared (or w/e how that saying goes).

These are my 4 guidelines when I play competitively in something. Whether this is starcraft, sport, school or anything. Really obvious stuff. I'd say the most important though is number 2. Everything is on the internet nowdays. Don't lose time, use it.