Guest Strategist - Starcraft 2 Terran Strategy Guide

The iEchoic Build – New Strat For Terran vs Terran

June 7th, 2011

Ok, I understand the growing intensity of TvT. So I've been taught a strat that may even be new to most of the community. Ok so the basic idea of Terran is to have a good economy (check Taerix's Macro Mastery Guide) and to keep units producing out of structures constantly (hotkeys will help). There are only so many options for the terran race, but to be successful in TvT you will see that there are only so many options.

To find out your options you need to scout, if you see fast 2 Rax don't just play standard (you're being rushed) so react to your scouts. But with this build there is really only 1 unit that could hurt you… the Thor. But, you can easily react and if used right your opponent won't have a good enough economy to really afford Thors. The build is called the iEchoic build. Follow below as a display the build and when and what to do.

10/11 depot

12/19 barracks

13/19 gas

15/19 orbital command (manage between scv/marine)

16/19 depot

18/27 factory (sooner if you have 100 gas)

18/27 tech lab on barracks

Next….

switch barracks and factory
research blue flame
starport when barracks is done
keep making hellions
2nd starport when 1st is done
tech lab on starport
research cloak
reactor on barracks
drop off 4 hellions and try to do as much damage to the worker line as possible
build vikings out of 2nd starport
banshees out of 1st
harass opponent to death or attack if he suicides army/ takes heavy losses
expand at 35 supply
if opponent is not harassing/attacking tech to battle cruisers before attacking.

So see this build is all about air control, if you lose air control then you lose the battle. The first 4 hellions should do lots of damage, but do not lose them. The main idea is for the banshees to kill any tanks, hellions for the light units, vikings for the air control (can upgrade if opponent is enlarging air force) and the marines help with air/support for the army.

Basic idea was not to engage until you had battlecruisers, but every time I've done this build it has been successful without BC's, because all the harassment usually forces them to go all in and they die. But if your opponent uses thors (with harassment they will probably not) add on a barracks.

This build can only afford really just 1 scan if your on 1 base, so mules are the best thing to make this build work and run fast.

So this is the iEchoic build, enjoy and tell your friends about it , because i believe this build will change the face of TvT.

This strategy brought to you by…

Gage Gibson

5 Ways To Improve Your Game Drastically (Without Even Playing!)

by Guest Strategist

May 28th, 2011

1. Play with a friend!

Starcraft is a LOT of fun. Even more so if you have a buddy to play with, and the more friends, the merrier! This not only increases the fun factor, but also makes you WANT to play more (friendly competition), and may even FORCE you to play more (e.g. if you all have scheduled a certain time to play after work). Having a friend to play with will also allow some low-pressure games where you can try different things out (e.g. different build orders, different strategies, new micro tricks) and you won't feel as pressured as if you were playing a ladder game.

Having a friend also allows for good team games, where you both can agree on strategies beforehand, talk thru the game, and discuss the game after. Talking about the game after will also allow for you to see where your flaws are, so you can improve. If you have no-one to talk to about Starcraft, you might not be as excited to play, and may likely not play as well as if you did. So if you're the lone warrior trying to battle it out online, get one of your friends a copy of the game – games make GREAT birthday gifts, and you'll have someone to train with.

If none of your friends are interested in games, it's almost impossible to NOT find a friend online, or on battle.net – join a forum, a chat-room, or a channel, and you're almost sure to find someone of your skill level who wants to get better too – maybe even from halfway across the globe! Battle.net is also great at putting you up against opponents who are about the same skill level as you are, and it's hard to not make a friend sooner or later. Some of the most raging battles can produce some great friendships, as many pro-gamers will tell you.

2. Have fun!

You'll play much better if you relax and remember that despite the sophistication, it's a GAME after all, so sometime it's good to just play for fun, and not worry about winning or losing. Talk in game, try some ridiculous builds (like high templar only) play some tag-team matches, knockout matches, play with a different race or random, or even try to rush with your workers or float all your buildings over your enemy just to have a laugh. You'll find that you play better and more focused, once you're more relaxed.

Many players are afraid of losing, and will shy away from playing ladder matches, 1v1 or even multiplayer at all, but it's the BEST way to get better – no pain no gain, and even the best players lose matches on a very regular basis – SOMEONE has to lose right? So don't be afraid to just have fun even if you lose – you'll end up with a lot less grey hairs!

You don't even need to be in-game to have fun – be creative - youtube is full of good laughs with people doing things like unit impersonations and impressions. You don't have to be a great player to enjoy the game and have fun, but you'll become a better player doing so.

3. Spectate or download replays

If you just don't feel like you're getting better, spectate a match or two! You'll get to see things from the perspective of both players, and you can observe some of the mistakes that they make. Perhaps you make the same mistakes too and never realized it! It's always different when you're on the outside looking in. Spectating also lets you appreciate other aspects of the game that you'd be too busy to appreciate when you play, like the game's graphics and physics.

You can also download replays and observe how others play. You may well find yourself thinking 'hmmm maybe I can use that build' or 'wow, that's a really interesting way to fight off that cheese tactic'. Replays in starcraft 2 are amazing in that there's so much in game information you can pull up (and they're hot-keyed too!) to see what's being done at what time, how many workers/army a player has, resource count, apm and much more. You can even see where a player clicks and what he sees with player camera control and vision.

Download one now and see what you learn!

4. Read more

You've just lost 4 games in a row to the same strategy. You just can't seem to figure out what you're doing wrong. Well somewhere out there, there's another player who has had the same problem as you, and has probably written all about it, or has invented a perfect counter strategy to it that you can read about online, like at starcraft2terranstrategies.com.

'It's all been done', and it's probably floating around online somewhere, waiting for you to google it. You can learn a lot by just reading more and immersing yourself in the Starcraft environment. You can even put together a compilation of some pro tips that you might have found online and stick it just below your monitor so when you're in game you can glance down and remember things that you would have otherwise forgotten in the heat of the battle (who hasn't at some time or the other become supply blocked?).

5. Watch the pros

These days, it's easy to find replays of the pros, and you can even view matches online, complete with amazing commentaries from pro players, even if the game being broadcast isn't played by pros. Starcraft commentators these days are arguably even better and more informative than most of the sports commentators you'd find on tv, and you can have a lot of laughs listening to some of the good ones.

You'll also hear critique on what is going on (even if you haven't a clue), both the good and the bad, and you can apply some of what you learn to your own game. There is a wealth of pro-level starcraft 2 material all over the net – replays, live streams, youtube, interviews, and much more. Look up your favorite player and watch some of his/her replays. See what they're doing that you aren't, or how they deal with situations that you may have thought were totally hopeless. Many of the pro players spend just as much time looking at replays as playing themselves, so why shouldn't you?

This strategy brought to you by Zan

Zan is an old Starcraft/Brood War player who recently made the switch to Starcraft 2. He is making lots of mistakes but learning quickly from them as he goes along. You can learn about most of his blunders and close calls at Starcraft2TerranStrategies.com. He can be seen trying to fight under the name "klesk" on battlenet, so feel free to take advantage of his general n00bishness if you see him there – you'll get a chance to read about what he's learned from it here!

Categories Terran Strategy
Comments (2)

The Importance of Scouting In All Stages Of The Game

by Guest Strategist

May 25th, 2011

When you effectively scout it lets you know what your opponent is doing, then you can create the required units to effectively counter them.

Early game scouting is of upmost importance because you can see if your opponent is going for heavy gas for teching up or if they are building many barracks or gateways to try and pump out early ground units for a rush. Early game scouting can also be very beneficial in 2v2's. If you see that one of your opponents has made early defenses and his teammate has not you can then pump out ground units with your teammate for an early rush. When you attack the one that doesn't have much defenses with your teammate simultaneously it can be pretty crippling to the opponent. Because his partner doesn't have any troops to send over if he spent to many minerals early on photon cannons. So essentially its a 2v1 attack early in the game and you will cripple your opponent by taking out his partner.

Mid to late game scouting can be of utmost importance as well. If you send out a marine in each base it will let you know if they are trying to expand, in turn you can counter them and keep them contained in there opening base. Whenever you can prevent them from making a new base you are hurting your opponent badly. Because that means you are controlling the map, and eventually he will run out of resources in his opening base and it will be a "gg" if you have been making the right units to counter his.

Whenever you are NOT scouting you are playing the game blinded. If you are just building units you are essentially just hoping that your army will beat his. But if you are scouting you will find out that your opponent might be going all ground and a few banshees that are stealthed will do quite a number on his army. Also by scouting you will find out where your opponents base is weak so you can in turn
attack there.

Strategy brought to you by Claztinian – Rank 14 – Silver League

Claztinian has about 350 League Wins. He's a big Starcraft fan since 2000 & was out of Starcraft 2 for awhile b/c of playing WoW. Now he's trying to get back into it and is always reading strats and trying to get better at the game.

Categories Terran Strategy
Comments (4)

How To Stop Early Game Rushes – Part 3

by Guest Strategist

May 19th, 2011

Read "How To Stop Early Game Rushes – Part 2" Here.

Tech Up or Make More Barracks

Build either another barracks or factory quickly, while you keep pumping marines, and you'll not only fight off the rush, but be able to launch a strong counter attack that will defeat your opponent most of the time. Typically, a player who rushes will choose to NOT tech up, because of the resources and micro involved, and will keep producing the same entry level tier 1 unit to keep up pressure on you.

Teching to hellions or marauders/reapers can spell disaster for him. If you keep getting attacked continuously, you can keep making marines and tech up to an even higher unit like a siege tank or a thor, to which your opponent will respond 'GG' almost instantaneously. Remember that a player who rushes early will have his economy set back in the early game, and you should punish him for it with some higher tech.

Photon Cannon or Bunker Rush

These are annoying and very powerful. However, they can be scouted early, and if detected and countered, can result in a quick win, especially Cannon rushes.

If you scout and see a forge and a pylon, or nothing in your adversary's base, you can be sure that they're somewhere in yours! Scout around your own base, and try to kill the probe or SCV before they can do any more building. If a cannon or bunker is up close to you, it can be a win for them, so make sure and scout early!.

If they DO manage to get a cannon up and it's not threatening to you immediately, you can mass up marines and try to take it out, or if you've killed the probe or SCV, you can leave it till you have a better army to take it out. Don't try to take it out with a single marine unless it's still warping in. If it's warped in, you'll have to wait on reinforcements, or pull SCV's from the line to deal with it before it deals with you!

Proxy Rushes

These are unit producing structures that are close to your base, to reduce the time that the enemy units take walking to your base. You should scout early, and if you see no barracks, pylons or gateways, immediately check all the dark corners of your base and environs. You'll have to deal with it quickly and early. Proxy gateways are particularly deadly, as they may be able to warp in 2-3 zealots before you even realize what's going on! Always remember that SCV's can surround and deal damage while your marines shoot from a safe distance, and once you survive you should attack your opponent quickly while he's still weak.

Marine Rush

This is a little less common, but marines can be a good way for your opponent to harass you and deal damage to your economy unless you're careful. If a scout reveals 2 or more barracks, start either building a bunker or start making more barracks yourself. You'll either have to out-produce him, or get a bunker that's being repaired with some SCV's to hold off the attack. If you don't see any barracks in his base, then he's building it somewhere closer to you. You may or may not be able to find it in time, so plunk down a bunker to be on the safe side. You can always salvage the bunker later if you need the resources.

Planetary Fortress Rush

This is definitely a little harder to predict, as your scout will more than likely see a barracks being built as normal. However, if you're looking at the minimap, you'll have a nice long warning time. Just dance an SCV around where he expects to land, and if he can't land, he can't continue with the attacks, and your marines can deal a LOT of damage to the command center before it either lands or burns down. This is an all-in type strategy, so if you make it through, you'd have won easily.

Spine Crawler Rush

This is the least used rush of all. You don't have to worry about this as a terran, but if your ally is a zerg, it can spell total disaster for him. Scouting early should reveal the plot, and you can have a couple marines deal heavy damage to it as it walks to your ally's base, and while it roots into your ally's creep.

What Else To Watch Out For

This should take care of most of the common rushes, and while there are indeed more, those types of rushes are when you already have an army or economy set up (eg. 10 zergling rush or 1 zealot 1 stalker rush). These are not all-in rushes, and are not included here. These will be dealt with separately. Only all-in type or cheese rushes are covered here, as these typically happen before you can get your army or economy established. These types of 'cheese' rushes happen at even the pro level, so it's good to learn how to prepare for them as a Terran.

This strategy brought to you by Zan

Categories Terran Strategy
Comments (1)

How To Stop Early Game Rushes – Part 2

by Guest Strategist

May 18th, 2011

Read How To Stop Early Game Rushes – Part 1 Here

Keep an eye on the minimap!

The rush may more than likely gather at your gate just before going in, so that they can see what you have at your ramp, and so that all the units can go in at the same time, as opposed to being picked off one at a time as they make the way across the map. Keeping an eye on the map will allow you to spot this, and pull SCV's off the line to repair buildings, themselves, or build another structure to wall off completely.

KEEP BUILDING UNITS!!!!

Sure you may have been caught with your pants down, but by keeping building units you may be able to fight it off, and be strong to launch a counter attack. Remember the enemy still has to build units, AND walk across the map to fight you. Often times, the opponent will forget to build units, as they are busy micro-ing their rush to do as much damage and keep them alive. Pushing out a couple extra units can fight off an early attack and put you in a strong position after.

Increase Walking Distance and Micro Tips

Building a maze of sorts for zealots and zerglings is an old Starcraft/Brood War trick that will allow your marines to get free shots in. Walking slow units like zealots around buildings also results in free shots. If you have 2 marines, let one shoot the zealot while the other marine runs around. You can also the moving marine to shoot n scoot to kill the zealot a lot quicker.

If you don't know about the scoot n shoot technique, here's a quick crash course: move and press stop, and as the attack is finished, move again. The marine will move while waiting for the weapon cooldown, allowing a greater distance to be placed between you and the opponent. Get familiar with it if you want to survive an early rush! The pros use it, why shouldn't you?

Reapers or Marauders

If you scout an early rush, these units can save your hide if you get a tech lab up quick enough. Marauders have a lot more heath, and with some micro will turn the tide for you, and reapers rip thru light units. Just don't get them surrounded, and micro/kite with them. Reapers work especially well as they can jump up and down cliffs, making zealots, zerglings and even marines waste time walking all the way around while you move up and down the cliffs and take pot-shots.

Both marauders and reapers work well on larger maps, as you have the time to get a tech lab before they reach you. They're also great for harassing after the initial rush, as they can kite units well. Research marauder concussive shells and make your opponent pay for rushing you!

Part 3 Coming Soon!

This strategy brought to you by Zan

Categories Terran Strategy
Comments (0)

How To Stop Early Game Rushes – Part 1

by Guest Strategist

May 17th, 2011

Early rushes can come in a few forms and fashions, but they're all based on the same tactic – to distract and set you back as much as possible before you have the chance to build any army or even build a decent economy. Rushes like this typically are entry level tier 1 units, such as zealots, marines or zerglings. Sometimes SCV's, probes and drones may also join in the attack to make the rush a little more effective.

Fighting early game rushes can be frustrating, especially if you aren't prepared to deal with it. However, early rushes can grant you a significant advantage in terms of economy and tech, as these rushes are usually of the 'all in' type or semi all-in type, where your opponent throws as much as he has against you, in the hope that you are set back significantly or quit. Here are some common rushes, how to deal with them and general advice on fighting it off:

Scouting

This is your major defense against ANY early rush. Signs such as 2 or more rax/gateway or early spawning pool are dead giveaways. Other rushes can also be spotted with an early scout, such as canon rushes, bunker rushes, spine crawler rushes and planetary fortress rushes. Proxy rushes can also be easily spotted if you scout early.

No gas usually indicates an early rush. Most early rushes are mineral heavy, and the rushing player will typically not get gas, as they want to mine as much minerals to rush early, and back up the rush with typically the same unit type.

No pylons or barracks in your opponents base usually means there's one near your base, and you need to scout around your base very quickly to catch the rush before your opponent sets up shop in your base. Check all the dark areas in your base and areas nearby your natural or surroundings. Protoss players typically like to proxy a pylon near some of the nearby mineral fields, so be sure to scout there as well. Generally, a scout will reveal an early rush and almost completely nullify its effects.

Zergling rush/early zealots

If you're playing on a small map, or have been scouted early by a zerg player (eg. 3/6 o clock spawning positions) you can almost certainly expect an early rush. If you're playing a 2v2, 3v3 or 4v4 and there's a zerg opponent, a rush is almost inevitable, as the zerg player will try to buy some time for his allies to get their plans in order while you and your allies are busy trying to deal with his zerglings.

A wall off can put a quick stop to this. Build supply depots, barracks engineering bay or any combo of the above to prevent the zerglings from getting in. This will stop the zerglings from getting in and hurting your economy. Don't forget to pull some SCV's off the line to repair your damaged buildings! If you right click on 'repair' you can set them to auto-repair, which means that not only will they repair the buildings, but themselves as well! Especially helpful if you're doing a 2v2, 3v3 or 4v4 and a marine gets sent in to help the rush. Move your damaged SCV to the back, and get him repaired, and keep the SCV's with full health at the front. Zealots are a little tougher, but nothing a wall that's being repaired with some SCV's can't handle!

Part 2 Coming Soon!

This strategy brought to you by Zan

Categories Terran Strategy
Comments (3)

Hellion Harass Into Early Banshee Takedown – Terran vs Zerg

by Guest Strategist

May 13th, 2011

The Terran Build Order:

10 Depot
11 Refinery
13 Barracks
16 OC (build 1 Marine too)
17 Factory
17 Reactor on Barracks (after Marine is finished)
18 Depot (Built after OC is done and first MULE and SCV built from there)
19 Refinery

From here, numbers become fluid.

What to do & when:

@ Factory completion (should be about when reactor finishes), swap on and build 2 Hellions. Use them to hit the enemy mineral lines to slow down his tech.
@ Factory completion, build first Starport.
@ Time when gas permits, build 2nd Starport.
@ First Starport completion, build Tech Lab.
@ Time when gas permits, drop a Tech Lab on your Barracks (to swap onto 2nd Starport)
@ Time when minerals permit, build 2 more Barracks (for a total of 3)

The Strategy

Build 2 Banshees when first possible, harass. Then build another 2 for a total of 4. Meanwhile, you want to have the rest of your army as Marines, and about 4 Hellions. (Less if the enemy went Roaches, maybe 2, just to deal with spawning lings)

Don’t lose your Banshees in your harass. If you see he has grouped Queens, just retreat. But if you see an opening for example that is unguarded, take it. Just don’t lose any.

Once that force is built, move out and attack the enemy (while expanding simultaneously). Chances are you’ll win. Even if you don’t, it’s fine. Sometimes good opponents can decimate this push. Fall back, swap a Barracks onto Reactor, get an Armory and Tech Lab your Factory. Transition into a Banshee/Marine/Thor combination.

Take a third so you can throw down another 3 more Barracks and another Factory for Thors. Just overwhelm him from there. Mass Banshees have insane surgical strike ability with their DPS (take down unguarded expansions before they even know what has hit them), Marine has awesome DPS, same for Thor except it’s a massive meatshield as well and totally voids Muta play.

This Strategy Brought To You By…

Daniel Shi – Rank 4 Gold

Categories TvZ Strategy
Comments (2)

Are You a Struggling Bronze Player?

Want To Get Better At Starcraft 2?

Author Archive for Guest Strategist

The iEchoic Build – New Strat For Terran vs Terran

5 Ways To Improve Your Game Drastically (Without Even Playing!)

1. Play with a friend!

2. Have fun!

3. Spectate or download replays

4. Read more

5. Watch the pros

The Importance of Scouting In All Stages Of The Game

How To Stop Early Game Rushes – Part 3

Tech Up or Make More Barracks

Photon Cannon or Bunker Rush

Proxy Rushes

Marine Rush

Planetary Fortress Rush

Spine Crawler Rush

What Else To Watch Out For

How To Stop Early Game Rushes – Part 2

Keep an eye on the minimap!

KEEP BUILDING UNITS!!!!

Increase Walking Distance and Micro Tips

Reapers or Marauders

How To Stop Early Game Rushes – Part 1

Scouting

Zergling rush/early zealots

Hellion Harass Into Early Banshee Takedown – Terran vs Zerg

Stuck in Bronze?

Strategy Guides

Get Top Starcraft 2 Training Straight From The Pros

Recent Posts

Blogroll