The winning formula.

This is a winning formula for a weekday: 4hrs work + 4hrs Starcatft + 3hrs GSL/Food
Honestly i have had such a cool time hanging out at my lecturers house for the last three days. If you read my last post you will have seen the pics of the place, just green fields and horses all around. The best thing of all is that the Internet connection here seems to have sorted itself out so finally could get battle.net and GOMtv to work! :)
In amongst all this lovely chilling out and getting back on the Starcraft horse i also managed to finish my final major project for the Media degree i am doing. Well hang on that's wrong: the degree i have now officially finished! Woop Woop!!! Anyway i wont bore you all with any more context, lets get down to the game.

Six games on the ladder all in all. Three won and three lost. Not a bad ratio but i am not happy with myself at all! Completely failed to pull of the build orders i am trying to learn and that's what lost me the games. Two of the wins came down to just doing that 3Rax semi-all-in build order that is doing the rounds, the other two wins were pure luck. In these games i went for variations of the 1/1/1 and just got lucky. I didn't scout effectively but neither did my opponent so it came down to games like: I go fast siege tank, they go roach, I win... Boring and not games that i feel good about. Maybe I'm being hard on myself but you've got to be if you want to get better at something.
Ratings to this Protoss player i came up against by the way. Can't remember his tag off the top of my head and stupidly i didn't save the reply, which is something i need to get in the habit of! He was the only person i played today who held off the 3Rax semi-all-in and went for a crazy counter. So the game went like this:
I get to the point of pushing with the 3Rax build and go for it with about 7 SCVs set on attack command at the tip of my army. Rax are rallied and all looks good. I get to his base and see he has an expansion up, a cannon to defend and not many units on the map. But whats that tucked behind his mineral line at the expo??? A forge!
Now this guy knows his micro far better than me so i do some silly miss-clicking and lose my army. I manage to take out the expo but stupidly leave the forge. At this point i just didn't think what seeing that forge could mean for his unit composition later game.
I'm back at home with a pretty undefended expo up and hiding behind my wall like a scared rabbit in the headlights. Here it comes, his push: Just a few zealots so nothing to worry about, one or two stalkers but something seems off. Then i notice units are dieing all over the place! DTs!!! S**T!!!
Then the High Templars come, storms are going off and bang goes my defense! GG :(

After this OK but bitter feeling day session on the ladder i got to watch the MarineKing games from the GSL Super Tournament. Wicked stuff, there is so much to learn from watching him about how to exploit the strengths of Terran > I love that guys and just check out the last game in this match -->
MarineKing vs Revival
Got to be one of the best win celebrations in the history of Starcaft!

Ratings to everyone on Twitter... Would love to see more posts like this!
And also a big shout out to BitCrusher Records for the amazing free music. I urge everyone to check them out and donate a little cash if you like what you find!

Anyway. Good to see all you pretty people. see you on the ladder :)
Peace out peeps
JC

I'm back baby.... What do you mean GOMtv Super Tournament...? !!!

Hello there, it has been a long time now hasn't it!
How are you all?
Are you all still there?

Well i have had the least Starcraft 2 orientated two weeks since i first bought the game. As of Thursday i will have officially graduated from my degree course in Media Production and will finally have time to dedicate to improving SC2 skills, developing this blog and forging a place for myself in the Media Production and Services world.
Currently i am hiding out at a friends house in the New Forest and will be for a few more days while i finish up all of my work. There is barely an Internet connection to speak of and if i am honest i am loving the peace and quite. Just take a look how rural we are talking:

The only little bit of Starcraft intake i have had has been watching the amazing Like a Boss ForceSC2Strategy video that went up on his channel a few days ago. Honestly it made me wish i could freeze time and just ladder against some bronze level zergs for days on end. I have always loved scouting a fast roach opening and countering with a single siege tank with some repairing SCVs. Now i can go one step further and micro the hell out of those ugly little s**ts! :) Things like that just make me happy!
Amazed to craw out from under my rock and see that the GOMtv Super Tournament has started so that gives me a good few hours of top level play to drawl over.
So yeah... That's been be... I hope to see you all very soon on the ladder and get working on this sorry state of affairs:

The blog will be far more active i promise you and i should soon have worked out where it is going. May even send out a little eSurvey to see what people like and dislike about SC2 blogs in general. Before long there will be a proper domain, properly hosted and fully collaborative JC_Closet_Geek blog running!
So for now i wish you well.
Peace out peeps
JC

BO to counter OP girls

Hey all, no time to play today but weirdly i seem to be getting my fair fix of other Starcraft 2 orientated stuff at university anyway. I somehow have managed to bend my work around my interest in SC2, I'm a media student and have landed an opportunity to produce some materials for eSports University Team League as part of a marketing communications assignment. You may have seen the draft of the poster i put up a few days ago and i have since mocked up this leaflet designed to introduce noobs at uni to SC2:

I found making this really good fun, a great way to get myself more interested in doing coursework. If i keep up this efficiency with getting through the ever decreasing pile of assignments i will have a week to spend laddering while my classmates are stuck catching up on work. So stay in school kids ;) lol.
Oh yes and i can't not share this with you... Maybe the funniest and geekiest thing i have seen in my entire life: Ever considered what build orders are viable when up against a favoured female opponent?



















Anyway, i am staying at my lecturers house tonight and need to be up at the crack of dawn to start working on this DVD that has just reached the post-production stage.
BTW just want to plug force strategy gaming, i have loved his youtube channel ever since i started playing Starcraft online and he has just announced his new upload schedule. If you don't know of his channel and website then where have you been!?
Peace out peeps
JC

Racist Cheese

It is a sad day for me today... :(
I've been loving my productivity over the past two days. So far i have managed to get a load of coursework done, planning some work stuff and getting a good few hours a day in on the ladder. I'm perfecting the new early Marine/Marauder/SCV stimpack build. Works a treat. But now i have to disappear off to bloody University!!!
Now i know that loads of you reading this will be reaching for the nose plugs to block out the smell of stinky cheese but wait...! I love macro styles, i always played macro up until now. I just think it is important to have a few fast aggression builds in your back pocket in case you need them. Doesn't that sound like a good idea. Admittedly i have been constantly doing this build in my last 12 games, of which i won 11, but that is just so i can get it locked down against non-AI opponents. And climb the ladder a little too ;) .
I still think that Terran are the least cheese prone race of all. For me it's their amazing mech and tactical versatility that are their great assets. Like i say: my usual play style is the 1/1/1 with fast expand type of builds. Although i need to learn a few other specific openings around this theme. However i am noticing that cheesing does become a little addictive when you start winning games, it's no wonder people play Zerg right ;). Only playing, i know i have knocked Protoss before in these postings but it's all just a bit of harmless racism. LOL
Anyway, unfortunately i have to spend another hour in the hospital today getting my shoulder looked at.
Plus i will be at uni solidly for the next few days so doubt very much if i will find the time to play any SC2, but i shall try and keep this blog updated anyway.
Peace Out Peeps

Cheese and Magic

I don't know how but i have actually managed to get some good time in on the ladder over the weekend! I wish i could spend another few hours playing but i have to get on with coursework at some point. I sense that now i have won a few games my addiction will flare up once more.
So i took it under advice the other day to get back on the build orders. I have set a target of learning three BOs solidly before i start experimenting again. Today's lesson was how to pull off a 3-Rax semi-ll-in build that Force Strategy Gaming put up on his youtube channel last week. Up until now i have been focusing on macro orientated approaches to games but i thought it would be a good idea to get some early pressure under my belt too. So far today i have played 7 games on the ladder and won 6 of them! That's a pretty good sign i think!
Now i know that i have gone on in previous posts about how much i hate cheese, and i know that a 3-Rax could be considered cheese but it's a valid BO as long as it doesn't become the only thing that i do. I really want to master the 1/1/1 with fast expand build next as that has been great in previous games. The supplementing early defence for a massive economy push after about 10/12mins is SICK!

Other than that i have been out and about with mates in central London and getting electrocuted at the hospital for about an hour or so... Don't ask! Started selling off stuff on eBay so i can afford a new PC too. So far i have put up a few bits of audio equipment that should net about £300-£400 between them and now i am thinking about selling off my Magic The Gathering cards... :

It feels a bit sad to let these go but I really don't have much interest in getting back into deck building. MTG is possibly the greatest card game there is and is second only to SC2 for strategy games but it just costs way too much money and takes up far too much time. I think I'm going to invest the money in the new PC and keep some back so i can carry on playing sealed MTG tournaments - basically where you buy 6 booster packs and get 20 mins to build a deck for the tournament. Much more skill intensive than spending days and hundreds of pounds building a deck because it gives you a far broader game sense. If anyone who reads this wants to get into MTG or if they want to buy a load of cards cheap to bulk up their collection just email me. I'm thinking of selling off the cards in £25 or £50 lumps of random cards and maybe getting rid of the better rares on eBay.

Anyway, hope this finds you all well. Again big shout out to @Resivirus , @TehKrizz and @Day9tv
Peace out peeps
JC

Cool things, some won games and build orders, build orders build orders!!!

Finally after weeks of having to focus completely on coursework for my degree i managed to steal a few hours to get a hand full of games of Starcraft 2 in. I took it under advice from a guy on twitter names #Resivirus that i should start to focus more on getting a few solid build orders in my pocket before worrying too much about general game play understanding. With that in mind i have played five games today and only lost one, all against opponents that come up on the start screen as favoured. That makes me happy inside :)
The grey, rainy lining to this otherwise silver cloud is that my bonus pool still stands at a dismal 200+ points even after these last games. And by the way who on earth decided to call that points system a bonus pool in the first place!? What on earth is 'bonus' about it? A bonus kick in the teeth when you win a match and see that half your points go to reducing the pool! I am not happy about that at all!
So yeah, i have reverted back to getting two variations of the 1/1/1 build locked down and one 3Rax early pressure build. When i get some more time i really want to re-learn a 1/1/1 with fast expand build that ForceSC2Strategy has on his YouTube channel. When I'm trying to get a build order pulled off to the best of my ability i often miss expansion timings and rely on just being able to role my opponent over in the first 10 minutes. The game that i did lose today was just down to allowing my opponent to stay one base up for far too long.
My lucky mascot also arrived a few days ago and he has been watching over me while i played today. Look at him, isn't he handsome ! :

Still so happy that i managed to pick up this Raynor Noobz for a very reasonable £50 on ebay.

In other news i have been working on this poster for ukstarcraft.net over the week. I managed to bend an assignment for my degree around producing some material for UKstarcraft's UK University Team League. What do you think for a rough draft of their poster? :

As you can tell this was just thrown together to get a rough idea and my Photoshop skills are pretty limited. However the league itself is a wicked idea and I'm glad to see that there are people out there looking to expand the UK Starcraft 2 community scene.

I'm going to head off now, i have been doing coursework all day and i want to go and chill out with my girlfriend and watch some films. Somehow we ended up watching an old Kojack film yesterday and it was just something special, it felt like i was being forcibly herded through the action by a midget with a Trombone! Hopefully we will watch something a bit more quality today.

Sorry i have been so quiet for the last week or so people. I will aim to rectify that as soon as time allows it.

Peace out peeps, keep owning
JC

Starcraft at work... HAHAHA

So today I have been doing coursework since about 9am right up until I had to leave for work at about 3pm... It can be a pain in the ass being me!!! But have no fear, I will try and keep putting the odd little post up on here whenever I can find a spare 10mins or so.
I'm filming and editing most of next week and only have a total of three more weeks to get all my final work in for my degree. So just a heads up that this blog may be quieter than usual for that period. However that's not to say that Starcraft is not finding any time in busy schedual as this pic will prove :

I know it's a bit hard to see but I am doing the sound and lights for an orchestra performance in Westminster and the laptop in the center is playing the TSL matches from yesterday :) LOL
Only on match 3 right now and I'm rooting for ThorZaIN.
Anyway, I'm just going to end this post by thanking everyone who has read this blog. I'm at 400 readers and still counting!
When i finish my degree I will be setting this up as a registered domain and creating a propper website so that you can all comment without having to sign into Google first.
Peace to you all, keep laddering and DEATH TO ALL PROTOSS! sorry a bit of resentment with them right now ;)

JC

THE key to winning

Gotta love ebay!
For so long i have been watching videos of some of the Korean and North American players, every now and then when you get a shot of the desk you see their little mascot figures or good luck keepsake. So the obvious conclusion that one would draw from this is that to become a great player you must have a good luck charm with you when playing. Logical 'ey :)
Now thanks to the power of ebay i have managed to pick my very own mascot up...
Take a look:

Its a Raynor Noobz figure, sealed in the box for just under £50!!! These were around at the 2009 BlizzCon - or so i hear.
I've been looking at all the different designs for a while and luckily stumbled across this one on auction at just the right time! Cannot wait until it arrives next week :)
Right, now off to do some laddering before bed
Peace out peeps
JC

Where the hell did that come from!???

Wow my head hurts!!! Honestly i have a headache after the last 6 hours!!!
One hell of a good evenings gaming though, played a load of games.
Once again, as in my last post, a big shout out to all my buddies on battle.net for some amazing 1v1 obs action. Also so glad that my mate has got into the game, though it does scare me that he seems to be getting better pretty quickly! I don't want to lose my place as the better player :(
I'm a bit torn right now between going back on the ladder or just chilling out and cracking on with Breaking Bad season two... My head does hurt and i can see that i will not be playing at my best. I'll only end up losing a load of ladder matches and getting angry! Still trying not to get wrapped up in league placements again, it's an easy trap to fall into. I really don't have as much time as i would like to play so my bonus pool seems to remain sitting above the one hundred mark, annoying! BattleNet seems to be constantly paring me up with favored players though so hopefully if i just keep plugging away to stay in the game when the time does come to really apply myself i should be able jump right out of Bronze!!! Woop Woop!
Oh by the way, i just have to say this... I lost a game against a Protoss to mass Carriers today!!! How often does that happen. So there i am harassing away with 6 Banshees in three groups of two when i see he has dropped down three Stargates. I respond with a load of vikings and as many Marines as i can muster thinking I'm about to see void rays, bare in mind i have three Starports and four rax at this point off two bases. Set up shop at my wall and wait... Still waiting... I'm thinking "these void rays are taking ages"... And then there they are - 9 Carriers!!! Oh My God!!! I lose all my vikings and all my ground army and have to tip my hat to the guy. That was a wicked, non-orthodox response to being under fire from a Banshee, Viking, Marine army. I love it when you see something different pop up in the ladder. So often you just see the race during the start-up screen and know roughly what you will see right through to the end game.
Won't someone please Mothership my ass, how i would laugh!!!
Anyway, two posts in one day again... I'm getting better at this :)
Don't forget to email me on JC.closetgeek@gmail.com
Twitter @JC_Closet_Geek
or FB just search my email and ill pop right up...
Guess what my picture is - A prize for the right answer!

Peace peeps

JC

The coolest overlord every! Reminds me of my dad!

He guys,
Just thought i would share this cool pic with you... It put a big old smile on my face :)

This little gem came from Blizzards facebook page, they had a little comp for user submitted comics.
Its well worth a look if you like your SC2 or WoW:
http://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/media/set/?set=a.10150118995309858.287957.152083869857
Catcha later peeps

OOhhh btw: I now have a facebook page with only one friend :(
Please add me and help me not look like a loser! THANX
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100002378074479

When stuff starts falling into place

Well that's better... You know that moment where you have been playing on and off for a few days, getting your ass kicked up and down the ladder? The suddenly you play a game and just actually remember how to do it? God i love those moments!
Remember i mentioned getting schooled by a schoolboy a few posts ago? Well i played him and his mates in a winner stays on 1v1 party this evening and... well i got beaten quite a bit but i had one of those games where it all falls into place. Where you stay calm and everything comes naturally. All i wan to do now is play but unfortunately with the end of my degree looming i really cannot afford to spend my evenings glued to the laptop.
This is just one of those reasons why i would so like to see us get a more centralised scene going in the UK. Playing against buddies is so much fun and it's when you are completely at ease with each game that you really start to learn stuff and improve. I dream of a day when i can log onto a UK Starcraft 2 community site and just start sharing my experience, practicing with and talking with other players from my area. Maybe even there would start to be some physical tournaments and LAN parties pop up around the place. Then i could wander along on a Saturday morning and spend a whole day socialising with other British players!!! But it's only a dream and that makes me sad :(
I just realised that the guys i have been talking about will most likely be reading this so i feel the need to say that when i use the term 'schoolkids' i do so in affectionate manner. I mean no offence. It's great that Starcraft and online gaming as a whole provides a place where we are not judged on the same grounds as we are in the rest of life.

In other news:
I bought a book the other day called 'The AnandTech Guide to PC Gaming Hardware'. I am hoping to learn a bit about how to build my own gaming PC. I have always been a mac person, seeing as i am a filmmaker i still swear by them for that but lets face it - they are no good for gaming. So I'm going to set myself a budget of £800 and see what i can make out of it.
The sad truth is that i have no idea how a PC works, or a Mac for that matter. But i will relish the opportunity to learn a new skill :)

Anyway, thanks for reading this. Please do drop me an email at jc.closetgeek@gmail.com or add me on twitter ( @JC_Closet_Geek )
Peace be with you my learned friend.
JC

Amazing GSL matches and a 'why not' moment!

Wow two posts in one day! Whats going on???
After my little call to arms earlier this is going to be a far more reflective post, though i do have a bit to say following on from the issues i raised earlier.
So finally i got around to watching sCfOu Vs NesTea in the GSL semi-finals today and oh my god was it amazing! If you haven't seen it why the hell not?!? The final match came down to such a close base trade and i love the way that Zerg and Terran balance out in the mid-to-late game. The general concept behind each race makes for one hell of an action packed time!
Now to get down to business. Since i started getting into Starcraft 2 i have noticed something: the US, Korea and some European countries seem to have really thriving communities online and the UK just appears to be lacking that aspect of what makes Starcraft such a cool game to play. Thankfully i realised that a large proportion of the coursework that i have been asked to do for my degree can be shoe-horned into fitting around this blog. So i have come up with a nice little dream... Why not create an awesome resource like teamliquid.net but make it just for the UK and Ireland? Somewhere where players can get together and share their experience of playing the game. It also would give a central space to find out about upcoming tournaments, LAN parties and social events around the country. Does nobody else fell like navigating yourself through the UK community can be like trying to herd cats???
I'm going to leave you all with that thought and let you mull it over.
Work has been one massive stress so i am in need of a quiet chill in front of Breaking Bad season 2. I know that if i try and ladder in this frame of mind i will end up throwing the laptop out the window the second i get rushed, which in Bronze happens quite a bit ;) .
Peace out peeps

JC

UK SC2 community rise up and conquer!!!

Good morning all!

This is a call to arms, or a cry for help – I forget which!

If you are one of the 200 odd that read or have read this blog then you know who I am and you probably know that on top of being a proud nerd/geek and SC2 fan I am also a final year media student. I have been asked to produce marketing material for a product as part of my course and I am bending the assignment around this blog and the UK Starcraft2 community in general.

In order to pull this off I need some help doing some research so I wanted to pick your lovely pink, soft, squishy blobs:

Who are the major players community wise in the UK?

Where are the major (if any) dedicated UK SC2 community pages?

What are the biggest and most popular SC2 events in the UK?

Also anything else you think may be of use. I’m not asking you to take much time out just throw me some links or suggestions you know off the top of your head.

Send anything to my alternative email: James.creationmedia@gmail.com

As well as asking this of you I will be contacting Blizzards to see if they have press packs and the like but I promise your help will be massively appreciated and I will return the favor one day.

Thanks for reading and getting in touch

Peace

JC

One day I'm going to own this game!

I'm feeling really frustrated with Starcraft today! Just got owned four games out of five by Protoss opponents. The only game i won was down to a little cloaked ghost action on the mineral line, a nice strat that I'll definitely be trying again. The things is that i just don't seem to be getting any better, in fact I'm getting worse every time i play. So annoying.
I am really hoping that it's just the fact that that i have loads going on and am pretty stressed that is having a detrimental effect on me. Either that or i am just rubbish at the game... No that's not true... I mean yeah I'm 16 in Bronze but then considering how little time i spend dedicated to SC2 that really isn't too bad. Besides I'm into this game because of how demanding it is, i cannot expect to just jump to silver after spending a maximum of 5 hours a week playing!
I truly cannot wait until my degree course finishes in 6 weeks or so, then i can just chill out and start having fun again.

In fact i am gunna stop moaning now. I know that i can improve when i want to. I know that i can lose just as many games and still have a positive outlook, it IS just because I'm having a stressful day. Gotta remember that!

What positives can i focus on? Well i know that when i am playing well my macro is coming on in leaps and bounds. If i win i do it during the mid-to-late game and that shows that i can outplay even match-up opponents on the ladder purely down to multitasking. Hell yes i lose to cheese a lot but then holding off cheese and still being able to maintain an economy and game plan is a serious skill, how can i expect to win those situations every time. I know that if i keep plugging away at it then i could get OK at Starcraft 2, those people that cheese every game will soon disappear if i make it into silver or gold. I don't envy their game play, if i was so inclined i could learn a bunker rush style cheese well enough to just cheddar my way through more matches than I'm winning now. The thing is that that will not teach me anything or improve my game play.
I was talking about just this subject yesterday with a mate who plays Zerg. We both play Magic The Gathering too and were saying how it's funny that you get the same type of players in both MTG and SC2. If you play MTG then you know the type of players i am talking about: The people who play ultra defensive decks and seem to have like one win condition, other than that they just either mill you or wait for you to get so pissed off you throw the game. I know this one guy who plays MTG and he had this fog/mill deck that he refined and would play at every tournament. It worked perfectly, he seemed to always win. The problem was that he knew how to play that deck and that style only, if someone found a counter and sideboarded their deck accordingly he just fell apart. On top of it all i played him a few times in booster draft tournaments and he was pants!
My attitude is maturing in both games, even though i haven't played Magic in ages because of a lack of time. Instead of being totally obsessed with learning how to win i am slowly learning how to actually play the damn game. Fine i will lose loads of games but i will learn from every loss and one day i will be able to mature as a player. That's the reason that when it comes to MTG i am selling off my cards. When i get back into playing i plan to just play booster draft or sealed games. It takes a more complete understanding of the game dynamics, it's way more skillful!

Wow that was a rant and a half, glad i got that out!
Anyway, i have just got Breaking Bad season two so I'm going to update my other blog then chill out in front of the TV. Hopefully I'll get a chance to lose to you one day, and learn something in the process :)
Peace out peeps!
JC

btw add me on twitter and battle.net, user names in previous posts.

GOMTV.net rocks, and i got schooled by a bloody schoolkid!

The may GOMTV GSL casts are rocking my world today. I watched a load of the most recent games with my parents lodger who is just starting out at SC2 too. He plays Zerg and I play Terran, a natural rivalry ensues... This is the closest i have gotten to understanding what people get out of watching football!
Anyway, i spent a few games on the ladder too today and it seems i lose any new skills i pick up faster than i can learn them! I have gone from shaky openings but good stable mid-to-late game play to solid openings and then falling apart at the mid-game!!! How does this happen! I know i need practice but it's so hard to find the time when your trying to juggle university, work, social life and Starcraft. I cannot wait until i have finished my degree and have more time to spend having fun! Only another 6 weeks to go.
I'm really grateful that i have put in the time to find a few people online to play against. As well as playing a few ladder games i got completely schooled by one of my battle.net buddies. The fact that I'm 23 and he is 15 made it hurt a little more but then hey, all are equal in Starcraft 2 ;)
I need a bath badly, i smell like death. So i'm gunna keep it short and sweet but thanks for reading. Don't forget to add me on battle.net, my character name and code are in comments on previous posts. Oh yeah and for god's sake, if you have read this far the PLEASE leave a comment or start following the blog. At the very least just stick a link on facebook or twitter, help this grow. I don't profess to be any good but surely having fun and sharing that fun is what gaming is all about???
Peace out people

Getting better slowly! Build orders, build orders, build orders!

Today has been possibly one of the most Starcraft 2 orientated days since I started playing. I think I have probable spent more hours in a single day playing than I have been today but this was the first day that I have woken up and made a decision that I am going to allow myself to put everything else aside and just have fun gaming. It felt pretty liberating really. I think a lot of how I am feeling at the moment is down to the fact that I am day by day piecing together my social life. It has a ripple affect on my general state of mind. But enough about that, I seem to constantly tell you guys more about my life than you want to know about or probably even care about. Maybe I should start writing the waffly sections in italics so you can just skip straight to the nerd talk.

One of the things I identified the other day was that I have fallen away from build orders, it’s not a bad thing but I just realised that I need a base set of plans and strats to build up from. SO I started the day watching some of the latest matches on GOMTV.net to get inspired, and I did inspire me. One match in particular between Anyproprime and Virus really got my geeky juices flowing. I have long been a fan of the good old Marine, seeing as it is by far and above the best unit in the game. Normally I tend to go for 4rax builds off one base with fast stimpack, combat shields and engineering bay upgrades. The problem I have always faced with this is that I am not yet skilled enough to follow that style through. If an initial push fails I can’t keep up with the micro management of the units, building supply depots, expanding and continuing to add more raxs. Virus did something really cool that I have decided to try and master so I have it in my arsenal, he went one rax fast expand with no gas then dropped a bunch of raxs once he was on two bases. The amount of marines that began to flood off the two bases was seriously baller! Throw in upgrades and begin to tech to siege tank etc and there is some serious trouble brewing for the opponent!

As well as trying to steal that build order I have gone back to the basic staple of Terran: the MMM – fast Marauder build. Works great even though the nerf on stimpack timing has caused it to lose some of its clean flow in application. I’m sure I’ll work it out with time. Oh yeah and ForceStrategy’s 1/1/1 with fast expand build is pretty dangerous if done correctly too.

Basically I am trying to wake up to the need not just focus on getting some units out to throw at an opponent but also set up for the mid and late game.

Over all today I have done ok; probably won about the same amount of games as I lost. A good few of the games I lost were down to silly mistakes so they can be easily learnt from. Considering that the last evening I spent on the ladder I lost maybe 13 games out of 15 today has been a major improvement.

So I’m going to leave it there.

Please do leave a comment or get in touch on battle.net – my character name and code are in some of the previous posts. It would be nice to know what people think of this blog. Though it started out as something I have been asked to do for coursework I am really enjoying the process and it would be great to get guidance from you guys as to what you like/dislike about it.

Battle hard people but above all do it with a smile J

Life is all a bit much right now, lets escape into SC2

I cant even remember clearly when my last post was, up until today I hadn’t even played a game of StarCraft for over a week. As usual coursework is getting in the way of any gaming opportunities and now on top of it all I’m virtually homeless. Personal life is in bits and I’m living between my parents, girlfriends and classmates houses!!! So yeah, trying to get a game in here or there is almost impossible. Thank god for work is all I have to say, luckily I’m getting paid to sit at a desk and do bugger all so finally had a few games this afternoon. Needless to say I won a single game out of probably around 15, fastest lose was 3:30 min!!!

Really trying to stop myself getting stressed about the fact I’ve been losing. In past posts I’ve talked about how my attitude to gaming has matured since I started playing SC online. I guess I’m just pretty stressed out generally at the moment so my head is jumping on any opportunity to tell me I’m rubbish, LOL!

But I am glad that I have been playing, and I’m even happier that I am writing this blog. Because of this blog I have started thinking about gaming in a different way entirely. I now have a handful of friends on battle.net who I chat to or play against whenever I get the chance. I also regularly take a step back and think about my approach to the game in general. Watching a lot of Day9 has been a good tool, it allows me to look at the game play in a different light. The last thing of his that I watched of his was a newbie Tuesday video about stealing build orders. Up until watching it I either stuck rigidly to build orders or ignored them completely, finding a happy medium where I can roughly follow an order while mostly focussing on the unit composition and expand objectives is my major goal at the moment. Once I get back into playing that is.

In a slightly lighter, more amusing note I’m moving in with my girlfriend at some point in the coming months. At the moment I’m trying to persuade her to chip some money into a new desktop for our flat, of course I’m looking at a UK Cyberpower gaming PC but she doesn’t need to know that until it turns up. Having been a Mac user for most of my life I am beginning to see he advantages of a PC. Of course for my work (video editing) a Mac is the only way to go but having a sick, high-powered desktop is appealing to me.

Anyway, I’ve given you an idea of where my life and gaming is at right now. I promise to try and get back on regularly updating this blog once again. Having people reading my posts has been a major encouragement so please do forward a link to anyone you think may enjoy the read. The thing that I love above all about gaming and StarCraft in particular is the community aspect of it. People coming together over a common interest is one of the greatest things in life. I’m really hoping that when my university course is over I will be able to find the time to get more intimate with you all ;) lol

So peace and love people.

Btw do add me on battle.net if your looking for an easy win, I love the learning experience! my ID is nukedem 458

JC

Friends and fun

Hey all :)
I have had the most intensive Starcraft session since i started playing. for the last 36 hours i have been playing custom games with my parents lodger and against new friends online. Last night me and Lazlo (lodger) sat up in my room playing game after game against each other. He is pretty fresh to SC2 and still getting his head around the basics of playing Zerg. Today i have been playing 1v1 obs matches against some new battlenet buddies, losing every game i may add, and following up with another game or two against Lazlo.
I'm going to keep this short because my head is all over the place right now but i just wanted to say that getting a network of other SC2 together has really begun to add motivation to my gaming. Even though i kind of regret not spending any time on the ladder today i have well enjoyed having a laugh with other players.
Anyway, i hope this finds you all well.
Peace

Refining gameplay over time

So i have had a pretty good day today. Done a fair amount of coursework, enough to allow me to get a few hours in on Starcraft before bed anyway... I count that as the mark of a good day ;)
Over lunch i watched a Day9TV newbie Tuesday vlog for Zerg about incorporating infestors into games. Although i am a Terran through and through i took some important stuff away from it. Mostly it showed me another way to approach gameplay. Early on when i started playing i was ouber-focused on build orders. I remember playing my placement matches and pretty much doing a 1/1/1 build every time. Those MMM balls tore the place apart but after a wile when i started playing in Bronze for real i started to get countered or loose my way as the game moved into the mid-game. Since then i have learned a few build orders off by heart and still do come to rely on them as openings from time to time. However i now have a bit more of an inherent understanding of the game. The Day9 vlog was interesting because it elaborated on something i have been trying to do in my gameplay anyway, that is incorporating new units that i rarely use into games and playing around with my own variations on openings. I got stuck on a marine heavy build i had been working on a few weeks back which revolved around getting an expand off one rax then throwing up a bunch more raxs and a few factories plus two engineering bays + armory. The main aim was to get a nice ball of 1/1 or 2/1 marines out with a few tanks at 1/0 and medivacs to support as early as possible. I think i had one day where i spent a good five hours just laddering this strat until i had a nice win streak of 6 games.
I just like how my approach to games has changed, even my whole attitude to SC2 has changed. I no longer get pissed off if i lose a few games, when i do i see it as a chance to have some fun in the chat with whoever is kicking my ass. I go into each game with an eye to expand my knowledge.
The funny thing is that since taking on this new approach i have started moving up the ladder bit by bit. I mean I'm still in Bronze but even that doesn't bother me, it's just where i am at the moment.
Anyway, just though i would share this with you guys.
By the way i have noticed that a good number of people have been reading this but nobody comments on it. Please leave comments; let me know what you like or dislike about this blog. Also if you don't already then add me on twitter (@JC_closet_geek) and send me a msg there. Hopefully over time these posts will become more interesting and developed.
Peace and upgrades people :)

University is killing my gaming

Wow this is becoming frustrating!!! Between university work and other life stuff trying to find the time to actually get some games in in frustrating!
I shouldn't beat myself up about it though, that kinda defeats the point now doesn't it! LOL
A few days back i added a blog posting to teamliquid.net looking for some online friends based in the UK. I'm trying to build up a bit of a network to keep me motivated and to carry on learning. It has always surprised me that i have never come across another British guy in my usual ladder play.
Also i went through about four matches the other day playing against people who seem to be pretty damn rude. Don't get me wrong; there is a lot to say for people who take their gaming seriously but surely even they can manage a 'gl hf' or a 'gg'. It just seams to me that playing a game like StarCraft online is about so much more than just winning or advancing on the ladder.
When I'm playing it's as much about having a laugh with people than it is anything else. I love loosing to a bunch of Banelings and being able to throw down a "HOLY S**T" on the in-game chat.

Anyway, I'm hoping that over the next few weeks i can find some time to get a few games in here and there, though i promise not to get annoyed at myself if i can't.
Also i want to say a big thanks to Mortician (morti625), he so far has been the only person to reply to my posting on teamliquid.net and I promise him the next time i am online i will add the hell out of him.

Peace gamers :)

ladder, MTG and ThorZaIN!

Finally managed to get back in the game.
For the first time in a few weeks i've been able to spend some time on the ladder. Also one of my housemates has just started playing online as Zerg, it reminded me of something i have heard Day9 talk about a lot... Having friends that play really does help keep you motivated.
So i have managed to climb a few places on the ladder since last season; now bouncing around the top 20 of bronze. I swear i'll make silver one day :) !
On a sadder not i am dangerously close to selling off all my Magic The Gathering cards! I'm so poor at the moment, coming to the last few months at uni and truly don't have much time to work at the moment. I'm thinking that i have maybe a few hundred worth of cards which is cash i really need right now but selling my cards feels like a really depressing thought!

Watching the TSL VOD thread on teamliquid.net today and I'm loving ThorZaIN's play style! As a terran myself i find his open build orders really refreshing! Would love to see him go up against Jinro sometime, that would be a killer match!

Btw if anyone is reading this in the uk, or at all, and they have a battlenet account then make sure to let me know. I'm really keen on getting some friends from the UK to play against! After Lazlo (housemate) has started playing i've been reminded just how much i enjoy chatting about strategy... Any takers?

Peace!

It's all about the third!

A wise little birdy told me today, via his vlog, that the key to effective mid game play is to always have that third base in mind...
Well, he lied! It's the start of the new season, ladder rankings have been reset and I've been playing all morning. Needless to say i have only managed to get a third up in two matches! In all seriousness though it's great advice. I have always fallen down on my mid-game play and looking for the path to the third gave me a lot more drive and focus beyond the early game.
All in all it's been a good days gaming; i finished last season ranked 31st in Bronze and am now sitting at 9th.
I don't know if i mentioned this in my last blog (first) but i am currently in my final year at university studying media. The heat is on, loads of coursework to do. I began the day with a real drive to get loads of work done and somewhere along the way that faltered. Still, i have managed to render and convert about 3 hours of interviews ready to get them transcribed. Now all i need is some bloody money to pay the transcribers!!!
Right... Anyway....
One quick episode of 'Monkey Dust' then back to some laddering :)

Peace and lentils

Life, StarCraft2 and an identity crisis!

So since the release of StarCraft2 i've become a man possessed! Half my life seems to be spent desperately trying to find the time to elbow in a few ladder matches here and there. Not that i can see myself getting out of Bronze anytime too soon. But you know what... That's not what it's about.
I'd be a happy man if i remain in Bronze league till i die or stop playing, whichever comes first. I don't play because i want to be the best. Don't get me wrong, if i got the opportunity to play competitively i would, but the enjoyment comes from just playing. Well that and one other thing...
This is who i am! I love this game! I'm a geek, I'm a f**king proud geek at that.
Ever since i was a kid in primary school i was a geek. I was the kid who would sit in the corner of the playground and read Douglas Adams, battle mates with those little Digimon pocket keychain things and later on get fully into Pokemon CCG. Even during the first few years of secondary school I continued my obsessions, by that point i had discovered Magic The Gathering... Man that was a serious, serious obsession with me! I had a group of friends from a few years above me that i would play practice with every lunch break and every weekend. Whenever the local comic book store put on a tournament i was there... Those were the days!
Something happened that changed all that... At some point i discovered that i wasn't 'cool', whatever that meant! I had a real conflict of self, i became torn between being socially accepted amongst my peers and following my true interests and passions. I chose the path of least resistance and abandoned Magic, Pokemon, reading and everything else that was deemed 'uncool' or 'geeky'.

But there is a happy ending my friend...

About two years ago something snapped. I had had problems with drugs and drink and found myself moving city and changing up my whole life. I gave up all the bad s**t i had been doing and started life a fresh. A funny thing happened, one of the first reoccurring things that kept popping into my head was this though about Magic. At the time i thought it was a bloody random thing but hey, why not. I was living in sheltered accommodation, on benefits with nothing else to do so why not follow this thought.
Within about 2 seconds of entering the comic store i felt this rush, like adrenalin. Man! I remember this! It wasn't some passing flight of fancy when i was a kid, i loved this world. This is a major part of what makes me me and you know what, i like me!
I still play Magic now, though i no longer collect. Instead i opt to play booster drafts and sealed tournaments. Man i love that game, but it has a love rival now...
Thanks to Blizzards and their inordinately long delay time on the release of Starcraft 2 i was so excited!
I had always loved the original Starcraft and the Brood War expansion and i knew i needed this game in my life!

So i've been playing SC2 online under the name 'nukedem' for about four months now. I watch all the GOMtv coverage of matches, read teamliquid.net on a weekly basis and (much to the dismay of my girlfriend) watch so many casts and vlogs about Starcraft.

So anyway, i've taken up enough of your time. You really should be laddering rather than reading this. Hell, i should be laddering rather than writing this!

By the way... A massive big up to Day9 for the daily100 video that inspired me to start writing this blog.
I aim to keep updating with anything Starcraft, magic or just generally geek related. I hope you have fun following. Please comment, even abuse is invited...

"And the GEEK shall inherit the earth"