"One drunk Ukrainian can do anything!"-
Raging~Kozak
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| My first steps on the ladder | | | Author: | | | IP: | XXXX | | Date: | 09/19/99 07:09 | | Game Type: | Starcraft | | Labels: | none | | Report Rating: , # of Ratings: 2, Max: 8, Min: 6
Lifetime Rating for AQD3: 7.6184 |   | INTRODUCTION
I have decided to take up playing ladder. I'm going to write battle
reports about most of my ladder games and submit them here so people can enjoy the stories and give criticism on my tactics.
I scanned the list of ladder games and found one that said "Ladder newbies only!!". After a quick check of my 10-8-2 normal record and blank ladder record, I was pretty sure this guy would let me play him. In fact, when he I entered the game he said "Finally!! Someone who is really a newbie!!". I guess we'll see about that. My opponent's name was -=LN=- and he had a ladder record of 6-2-1, with a score of 1071.
The map was of course: Lost Temple
THE BEGINNING
I chose protoss and began in the bottom position. My opponent also chose protoss and warped in at the right position. I went with a conservative build order to start:
8: pylon
12: 2 gateways
14: pylon
15: zealot
17: zealot (right after the 15 zealot)
Anything after that depends on scouting, but I've found this build to be very good for a few reasons. First, you only take a single probe away from mining when you make 2 gateways at once. Also, the second pylon warps in just as the gateways finish, allowing the immediate production of two zealots. But the very best part is you can continually make probes without ever stopping for a pylon or to make zealots.
So I do this build, sending my gateway making probe on a scouting mission. I'd normally scout on the first pylon making probe against a random opponent, but with a chosen race opponent I like to let them pick thier path before I scout them. I find my buddy LN in the right start. He has two gateways up, two pylons, and is starting a forge. I order my probe to attack one of his and direct my attention home.
My course of action is clear to me. We will match each other in zealot production, and with his cannons no advantage can come in massing troops and attacking. Likewise, I can take a zealot charge from him if I keep on my zealot production, even without cannons. But he already commited minerals to a forge, so I can safely make a core and exploit tech. Since he has cannons, I should go with corsairs for disruption web or reavers for a drop. I chose the reaver tech tree as I think it has much more application in an early game. It would also counter dark templar if he chose to go that route.
To keep him honest after my decision I send my first two zealots to his base. I hope to catch him off guard if tries to tech too, or at least kill some zealots to keep him defensive. I am met at his ramp by three zealots and two cannons just warping in. As the first photon blast leaves a nasty red mark on my first zealot's forehead I order my advance force to retreat to his choke. I'm pretty happy with this encounter. He has wasted 300 minerals on cannons, and that means I'm safe with my plan. My next two zealots join their brethren on his front porch, talking about the good old days on Auir and swapping issues of Fanatic's quarterly.
MID GAME
My plan is somewhat delayed by an unfortunate mistake. I have made a forge and switched to dragoon production at this point, but I forgot a pylon. I have two dragoons sitting idly by and sucking up my psi while I can't build a reaver due to lack of a pylon. I content myself with hastily slapping down a pylon while getting the dragoon range and +1 ground weapons upgrades. I also send one of my zealots to my opponent's natural to see when he expands there and spread the other three around the entrance.
My reaver is finished and climbs into the shuttle with a dragoon. At this time the zealot I sent to watch his natural is treated about the same way Rodney King was treated by the LAPD by a force of six zealots. My zealots at his choke brace themselves for a little delaying action, but he doesn't send anything at them. I pick a path that brings my shuttle near the entrance of the top position, then swing around the top of his position. The shields of my shuttle get a little crisped by a cannon blast from a cannon placed just left of his gas. I hope he hasn't put any more cannons near his minerals...
It turned out he hadn't. I found the sweet spot just above his line of minerals and let my reaver and dragoon out to frolic. He loses six probes in the first blast. I see about twelve probes take off for parts unknown, and he sends in six zealots to deal with my reaver incursion. Yes folks, that's right, the reaver's natural counter. Zealots. These things tear the hell out of reavers. If there isn't a nearby shuttle. And the reaver is out of scarabs. I start doing a little dance. The zealots run over to my reaver. I pick it and the goon up and drop it to the south of the mineral line. The zealots and probes eat two scabards. I pick up and move to the top of the minerals. Two more scabards get eaten.... To make a long story short, this continued until he lost all the probes left mining and a total of eight zealots. I wasn't going to keep micro managing my shuttle when there wasn't any probes left, so I moved it carefully down the edge of the map to avoid his front door cannons and set it above my zealots at his choke.
Now while I had been doing the shuttle dance I left out one part. Every time I picked up the reaver and good I quickly went back to my base and ordered up another two goons and a reaver or shuttle if I needed to. By the time I was done I had ten goons, two reavers, and a shuttle. I sent a probe to the left start position and a zealot from my enemies choke to patrol the top and it's natural, while the bulk of my forces were ordered to his choke. The left was clear and I promptly made a nexus and pylon there in preperation for another base. The zealot assigned to the top wasn't quite as happy a camper. He ran into a full fledged base. My opponent must have expanded early and sent his twelve probes there when I dropped him. Three cannons bombarded my hapless scout, while I looked at his robotics support bay and robotics facility. I apparently convinced him of the power of reavers....
END GAME
Well, I still had a momentary advantage. He had lost appreciable troops in his "chase the reaver with zealots" game. I should have superior numbers, and my tech was older than his, which meant more tech troops. I ordered the goons and zealots at his choke to move north. They ran into two of his zealots on the way, but I kept them moving, luring his zealots into a trap of goon fire at the top of the northern plateau. My new shuttle with two reavers arrived there also. The dual reavers dispatched two zealots with ease, getting only a scratch or two on thier shields in return. I then ordered the destruction of the cannons that made up the bulk of the defense. As I ordered my goons forward to attack a single reaver popped out of the robotics facility. A shuttle snatched it away before my goons could dispatch it. My forces began the systematic destruction of the base and I turned my attention elsewhere, pausing only to pick up my reavers with the shuttle. Scarabs cost minerals you know =p.
I knew the game was in hand. He had lost far too much to recover at this point. I had a fully functioning main and an expansion while he had lost his expansion with the bulk of his tech. He knew this too and made one desperate gamble to even up the fight. That shuttle with it's lone reaver started on it's mission of veangeance. It flew over my expansion in the left, giving me a momentary scare as I had only one dragoon from the gateway there to protect six probes. But the one goon was enough to keep him moving. He came in over the top of my main in the bottom and dropped his reaver within range of mine. We traded scarabs, but the cooldown his reaver had from exiting the shuttle proved fatal. And with that, my opponent conceded the game.
I would ask that you comment on the tactics that I and my opponent used during this match so I can improve my game. Thank you. The record of my ladder game is here
AQD3
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