The Basics of Starcraft 2

In order to be a good Starcraft 2 player you need to learn and practice just like with anything else. You can learn by watching videos on YouTube of pros and you can study strategy guides like on this site. To make this simple to learn I made a list of guidelines to follow to really improve your game.

1) Constantly produce workers. You should always have a worker in the making. Produce one after another. If you play as Zerg then produce multiple Drones until you have about 15 mining and then cut it back to just one at a time until you have an expansion. When you keep training them you will build a very strong economy which equals a large army that will be strong against your opponent's.

2) Constantly produce combat units. You should also be investing those resources directly into a good sized army. Have it so you always have a unit in the queve. Think about it. If your opponent has been constantly producing workers while you have slipped then they can attack you at any time and out number you while you have more resources in the bank.

3) Use hot keys. Hot keys make keeping up with production so much easier. Right at the start of the game after you have sent your workers to mine you should hot key your base and set the rally point on a mineral field. If you are Protoss or Terran then you should be setting production buildings like a Barracks or Gateway as they are being built.

The time will come when you have to send your army out. When in battle you will have to control your army well whether it means retreating or firing and pulling back. While this is going on you need to keep up with production back at your base and using the hot keys make it so you do not have to hover your screen over your structures to do so.

4) Scout your enemy frequently. Start by sending out the worker at around 10 or 11 supply. The point of this first scout is not necessarily to see what strategy he is going for but to make sure he is not executing a cheesy play like Dark Templar rushing or a 6 Pool rush. Do not just go in with your worker and let them kill him. Use him to dance around and keep him alive as long as you can. Hold shift and right click around his base so you can hopefully see what structures he is building.

After that you will need to really know what units he is getting. Do not just assume it is a standard 4 Gate build, 3 Rax, or Lings/Roaches. It is not likely you will be able to see with a worker since he will have units out to kill him before he can get a read. Use an ability of your race. To learn the best ways of scouting for your race read this scouting guide.

5) Know the unit counters. Every combat unit in the game does well against one unit but sucks against another. You need to know what every unit is strong against and weak against. For example Protoss Void Rays suck against Terran Marines. But Zerg Roaches are good against Marines while Roaches suck against Void Rays since they cannot attack air units. For a complete list of the strengths and weaknesses of each combat unit check out the Counter List.

6) Get your timing down. This game is all about timing. When to expand and when to attack all depends on what your opponent is doing which is why you need to scout to keep an eye on him. If he is playing defense while you have a good sized army and your main base is saturated then you should start expanding into your natural to gain the economic advantage.

7) Understand the types of strategies. This has to do with timing. There are different types of strategies you can go for such as teching, rushing, and playing defense also known as "turtling". This is kind of like rock-paper-scizzors because each type of strategy beats one but loses to the other.

Early Teching - This is risky because while you are pouring your resources into an extra gas and more advanced buildings your opponent can rush you with a good sized army of basic units and you will not have a big enough army to defend.

For example lets say you are Protoss facing a Terran player that is training Marines and Marauders with the 3 Rax build. You decide to build 2 Gateways and a Robotics Facility to tech straight to Colossi because you know they do very well against Marines and Marauders. But if they rush you before you get the first Colossus out and catch you off guard then they can easily win the game.

Rushing - Rushing works best if your opponent is trying to tech to more advanced units or is expanding early. But it sucks if your opponent has been using their resources to build a good sized army and they are playing defense.

A good example would be if you were playing a Zerg player as Protoss. If they were expanding early then rushing them with Zealots would be solid if they did not get any defense like Queens, Spine Crawlers or Zerglings.

Playing Defense - When an opponent tries to rush you with some kind of cheesy play you will want to have units out fast to defend. Using your resources on advanced structures is really the last thing you want to do.

A good example is when a Zerg player tries to 6 Pool Rush a Terran player but the Terran player walls off their base and trains Marines to shoot the Zerglings from behind the wall to counter the rush.

8) Be aggressive. Put pressure on your opponent so that there is more of a chance he will make a mistake. It is best to fight the battles over at your enemy's base so that if they are not prepared you can do extra damage to their buildings and even take out some of their workers to delay their economy. By sending over your army to harass them you will also be scouting and see what their next move is going to be.

9) Gain map control. This has to do with being aggressive since you want to cover as much ground as you can. Ideally you want to expand as much as you can without your opponent expanding. Map control is especially important for Zerg because of their style. They have their own turf known as creep that not only gives them vision but it makes their units fight better. In every game you play you should be trying to surround your opponent and wear them down until they give up.

10) Know your race. I know it is pretty obvious but you should know about every upgrade, ability, and structure so you can figure out how to surprise your opponent with different strategies. Also make sure to understand the other races. As the saying goes you should know your enemy in order to take them out.

Just remember that every game you start you should be thinking that you are the better player and play with confidence. It is all about making your opponent work harder to win. Do this by surprising him and harassing his units. Beat down his units and structures one bit at a time until you know you can finish them off.

Need some Starcraft 2 help? Get the first Starcraft 2 strategy guide made by real pro players.

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