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