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July 27, 2010
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StarCraft 2 has finally arrived. So with some help from the team at Blizzard, here are 10 tips that can help you become a better player. These are only the start, though -- for more in-depth strategies and techniques to up your game, be sure to check out the StarCraft 2 Walkthrough and Strategy SuperGuide on MyCheats, which we'll be updating regularly over the next few weeks.
(Originally published on 1Up.com)
Later, when you have established an expansion base (and you will), then you should transfer half of your current workforce to the new base and then start building new workers and begin to gather resources from each base.
Most StarCraft players don't spend their resources fast enough. Ever lost a match with 1,000+ minerals left? Imagine if you had a few more squads of marines on the battlefield -- the outcome of the match could have been much different.
If you are gathering resources faster than you can spend them, you should consider building more unit-producing structures like Barracks, Factories, Stargates, or Gateways. If you're Zerg, put down more Hatcheries for Larvae. You can also spend this extra mineral dough on armor and weapon upgrades.
There are two different move commands: move and attack-move. You can move a unit or group by right-clicking the mouse on an area on the map or battlefield. The big difference is that if you have a unit move to a location with attack-move, it will stop and destroy any enemies on the way before it continues on its original path. If you just move a unit to a location, it will continue to walk through Zerglings or other enemy forces, paying them no mind, and likely getting killed as a result. Unless you are commanding your forces to retreat, you should always use the attack-move command ('A' then left-click).
Simple things like capturing Xel'Naga watchtowers can improve your line of sight, and all it takes is one ground unit to capture it. You should also be utilizing the high ground to fire down on enemies. There are also destructible barriers located in various areas on the maps, which tend to block a shortcut or a back-entrance to an enemy base that your opponent may not have planned for -- any group of units that can fire on the ground can destroy these barriers in time.
Speaking of units, the Terran Reaper, Protoss Colossus, and the Protoss Stalker (after you purchase the "Blink" upgrade) can traverse up and down cliffs. The sooner you are able to get a unit behind enemy lines to start destroying their worker units, the sooner you will be able to cripple your opponent's economy and unit building ability.
The big game changers for StarCraft 2 over its predecessor are the economy boosting mechanics. Each race has their own unique ways to temporarily boost their economy, allowing a short influx of money at the cost of energy (which recharges over time).
If you play as Protoss, your Nexus can cast "Chrono Boost" on any structure that produces units or researches technology. This Chrono Boost accelerates said structure's efficiency, making it crank out units or unlock tech faster. Cast this on the Nexus to produce probes faster, or on gateways to pump out units, or have it help you build up tech.
It's a little different for Terrans in that after you build a Barracks, you can upgrade the Command Center to have the Orbital Command ability that allows you to call down a "MULE" unit. These units can harvest minerals at an accelerated rate for a short period of time before breaking down.
Lastly, the Zerg queens can "spawn larvae" that can be cast upon Hatcheries. In 40 seconds, that Hatchery will spawn an extra four larvae increasing the ability for Zerg to field huge armies in a short period of time.
