The Dark Horsemen are ready and it is almost time for them to face each other on the battlefields of Brood War, all under the watchful eye of their mentor Geoff ‘iNcontrol’ Robinson and with commentary by some of our greatest Starcraft voices.

There can be only One, and on the 27th of February 2010 the battle commences.

Below You will see what many of the participating players have to say about the tournament, their chances of winning, the Starcraft 2 Beta and this weekend’s Teamliquid Starleague finals.

Join the discussion, cheer for Your favourite and give Your own answers to the questions – and don’t forget to watch the VODs of the Dark Horse Tournament finals when they are released. GG!

You are playing in the Dark Hourse Tournament,
which is a tourney for those who are taking part of iNcontrol’s Coaching for Cash programme.
In what ways have you improved your Starcraft skills during this training?

I know a lot of the top foreign players personally, but wanted to tryout Incontrol’s program. He is constantly in contact, making scheduling very easy. He has a great understanding of the game and understanding your style. He can incorporate your current habits into new habits that help to improve your game.

/ kenny

I was one of the first students for iNControl, and got help my LZGamer and G5 as well during the session. I was preparing my PvZ for the CSL, unknowingly I was going to play against NonY in a TvP. haha. It was a very close 7 minute game! I almost got my expansion up! haha

But when I got the training with iNControl, I learned a few general micro techniques that I never thought existed. I was able to practice what I have learned greatly.

I practiced a ton on ICCUP in the beginning of the season, where I was one of the first 15 Americans to hit the yellow ranks (all with a winning record!) in the first day or two of the season. I was playing against A/B rank players consistently and that greatly increased my skill as well.

/ CaucasianAsian

My vs Protoss matchup has become astronomically better. I’ve also learned better scouting patterns. Lately it seems that I’m capable of beating protoss players ranked much higher than myself. In general he helped to boost my game sense and confidence.

/ iSiN

hmmm… <3 incontrol

/ Response

I’ve come to understand the game better at a strategic level. Also, my mechanics have improved a great deal.

/ nOi

iNcontroL helped me a lot with what I should be doing and my mindset at all stages of the game, especially what to do in the midgame with MnM forces in TvZ. I felt a lot more comfortable with controlling the map and playing against a mid-lategame zerg on even ground.

/ Pokebunny

Incontrol helped me understand the mid to late game much better. More specifically I learned about expanding with tempo which is expanding when resources are still abundant rather than waiting until resources are dried up to expand.

I feel like i have a better idea of where I’m actually going in my games as I have a stronger grasp of the later game.

/ qxc

The Starcraft 2 Beta is now released, and eventhough few of us have been able to play it yet,
every SC player in the world have watched the streams and videos.
What do you think of the game so far and do you have any plans/hopes of going pro with Starcraft 2?

I am one of the lucky ones who has access to the StarCraft 2 Beta through a cousin of mine, and I’m having a ton of fun. The game is amazing, although the lack of chatrooms is awful.

My short-term goal is in fact to become a top player at the game - I feel like I am in a good position with a solid team which I am planning to take to SC2, and planning to get sponsored and do well ASAP. Basically, I plan to be strong right out of the gate

/ Pokebunny

i think the game looks good, but talking about the game all I see is ppl 1a2a3a not tactical moves or FE, DT rush, no micro, but this is just beta i think they will fix it.

/ Re-Play-

I thoroughly hate the graphics, on low or on ultra, 3d rts disgusts me. However, the game is fun enough that I can get past that fact and still enjoy watching the streams, and I REALLY love occasionally playing whenever my friend allows me to. I have serious doubts however, that it can replace bw as an esport.

/ TheAntZ

I am 100% confident I will be going pro in sc2. (I’ve heard confidence is important with these sorts of things)

/ Response

I actually got into the beta and I’ve been one of the people streaming. Even though my account is unverified and I can’t play sound I still have over 500 viewer hours since I started streaming the beta.

The first couple of days in the beta Zerg felt amazingly strong but as protoss and terrans refine their builds it seems as though zerg feels weaker every game I play. The units don’t seem to be very flexible and the only splash damage we have are banelings which move ridiculously slow.

The Infester is lack luster as the new defiler. Maybe I just need to find some replays to compare my play to. I’m considering switching to protoss. However if I didn’t have commitments with school I’d absolutely consider going pro in Starcraft 2.

/ iSiN

The game I believe is a little TOO noob-friendly in my opinion, as macro techniques have gone down drastically (selecting multiple buildings as hotkeys/auto-mining) and a lot of the repetitive actions that keep SC a high paced game have been reduced significantly.

I think the game will not succeed for very long as a competitive e-sport, mostly because it’s so damn hard to figure out what unit is attacking what unit, and the graphics are too "grandeur". It feels like the movie Transformers 2.

Where the graphics are amazing, but you have no idea what the hell is going on. I don’t have any ambition to become a pro gamer in starcraft 2, but if it happens it happens.

/ CaucasianAsian

I have SC2 Beta, and I love it. The game is so fun and has a ton of potential (even more than I expected). Definitely a totally new game! I don’t plan on being competitive in this game, but sure hope to commentate a lot of great games. Only time will tell!

/ kenny

The Pokerstrategy.com Teamliquid Starleague is almost concluded, with the finals being played this weekend.
Who will claim the first prize, NonY or Mondragon, and will Iefnaij defeat Sen?

I really hope Mondragon wins (because ret fell out of it). However, Nony has been showing, for the most part, immaculate preparation, and I don’t know if Mondragon will be able to keep up with him. Then again, I haven’t seen Mondragon ZvP in a long time, and the last time I did it was sick so we’ll see.
As for the 3rd place, I think Sen will win. I like JF, and he was my pick to win TSL1 even before any matches started. However, seeing Sen’s games and the way in which he dismantled Draco, I think Sen is too strong right now for an inactive JF. Sen’s style looked awesome in those games, one of the few times in foreigner starcraft where I have truly thought that.

/ ketomai

I’ll probably throw up if Nony doesn’t win, me and him go way back in broodwar, but also because Mondragon has won tournaments for years and years, it doesn’t seem fair for him to win this as well:-P

/ Response

I want NonY to win and I think that he can win. The only thing is you can’t really count Mondragon out of anything. Both are very strong players, and I’m hoping some great games will come from them.

/ nOi

i think NonY will win cause he has a good chance agains Mondragon cause he is good at PvZ, and Sen will own Iefnaij

/ Re-Play-

Im fairly certain it will be
NonY > Mondragon
Sen > JF
but my Liquibet stats are horrible so dont take my word on that happening

/ TheAntZ

I think NonY will have a solid 4-1 or 4-2 in the finals. I don’t see him losing too many games to Mondragon, he is just too mechanically solid and he is a very smart player. I like both players about equally, so I am just hoping for a fun final.

I think Sen will win 3rd - JFs PvZ is untested in TSL and he has been fairly inactive, so probably hasn’t been practicing it that much, while Sen’s ZvP is in tip-top shape and has always been his best matchup.

/ Pokebunny

The zerg in me wants to root for mondragon but the patriotism out weighs that feeling Nony will win in 7. I think JF will have no problem beating Sen as long as he uses his reavers T.T

/ iSiN

NonY is definitely a strong player, and I would not be surprised to see him win. However Mondragon has been around for ever. Ever since the days ToT was a BGH team, Mondragon was surpassing everyone and was THE foreigner to beat.

I believe Sen is the huge favorite here. Even though JF is a great player, and he won TSL last season, Sen is just like Mondragon. He has been around forever, and he has been smashing players ever since he has been able to log onto Battle.net for the first time.

So I believe Nony/Mondragon is a coinflip, and Sen will get 3rd, and JF will claim 4th.

/ CaucasianAsian

Nony all the way. I’ve always loved his style, and I think when he sets his mind on something, he does it. He’s proved that to us countless times As far JF vs Sen, JF all the way.

/ kenny

Why and how will YOU win the Dark Horse Tournament?

I wont, i am almost certainly the weakest player in the tournament. I am here to provide whoever faces me in the first round a by ^__^

/ TheAntZ

I won’t, haha

/ kenny

Well, I don’t think I’m a favorite to win the tournament. I haven’t been playing much recently. To be honest, I’m playing a lot more poker than usual to hopefully pay for a nice vacation this somewhere for a month or two.

But I don’t believe I’m that much of an under-dog. If I make it to the round of 4 I’ll be very content with myself. PvZ is probably my worst matchup, but if I can run good (unlike ret! lol!) and avoid zergs I think I can make it pretty far

/ CaucasianAsian

I will win this tournament by cheesing my way through 5 pool every game! I’m kidding of course, It’s clear to me that my chances are quite slim since I’ve mostly been playing Starcraft 2.

My goal is to win my first round then from there on play it by ear. I’m probably the Darkest Horse in this race but I’ll run as fast as I can.

/ iSiN

I hope to win the darkhorse tournament through superior understanding of the game and strong mechanics. I’m extremely active and spend a lot of time thinking about the game. Check out my games played between my various accounts (qxc, val-qxc, frd-qxc, g2g.qxc, qxc(od), saf.qxc).
I’ve been working really hard the last year and think it’s about time I won something.

/ qxc

I have been training a lot lately. I also don’t think that I will win. If I get lucky with the brackets and my opponents mess up, I could go far. I will not say that I am going to win.

Good Luck to everyone in the tournament, looking forward to playing : )

/ nOi

 

I feel that I am one of the more active and higher level players, aside from response. Even after almost exclusively playing SC2 the past week, I still feel like I am in better shape than ever. I am very confident against any opponent but Response or a cheesy protoss.
Dear other iNcontroL students,
you are screwed.
Love,
Pokebunny

The Dark Horse Tournament is well under way, featuring gamers who all intend to make a name if not also a progaming career for themselves in the future with Starcraft 2. With the SC2 Beta recently being launched, that future is already here, and I dare to bet that the best Dark Horses will be champions in the times to come.

With the final qualifiers yet to be played, here are all the remaining participants. Disciples of Geoff ‘iNcontrol’ Robinson and ardent students of Starcraft – write in the comments below who is Your favourite and the better player.

bliss[aov]

TheAntZ

[TDR]Xnoss

qxc

noone..

smi.magics

caucasianAsian

iSin

auhsoj

response[x.1]

nrg.response

dabears

ketomai

noi

Technique

mg.pokebunny

kenny

bliss[aov]

re-play-

infinity21

This post will attempt to clarify certain aspects of common Starcraft language that is anything but self-explanatory and confusing for newcomers to understand. You may have heard about ‘4-5 Pools’, ‘9 Pools’, ‘Over-Pools’, ‘12 Pools’ and ‘12 Hatch’ – here it will all be explained.

Essentially, it all comes down to when and in which order to build Your Spawning Pool and second Hatchery – that is the Zerg player’s early game. Over the years, set theories have been developed in order to perform optimally against certain threats and to achieve predetermined goals. A 9 Pool opening strategy will give benefits and disadvantages that greatly differ from, say, a 12 Hatch strategy.

The numbers referred to in the name of these build orders refer to the supply count, or ‘food’, by which you perform a certain action. A ‘9 Pool’ means that You build the Spawning Pool when the supply is at 9 – i.e. with Your ninth drone, since that’s the only unit beside Overlords You have at stage in the game. Conversely, a ‘12 Hatch’ dictates that You construct the second Hatchery when You have reached 12 supply.

The basic idea is very simple: Spawning Pool first means that You get a strong early army, but not with the fast economic increase generated by getting Your new Hatchery first. There are trade-offs, pros and cons, hybrids of the two and many variations. See below for the most common ‘core opening’ Zerg build orders:

4-5 Pool:

These build orders are designed to give You 6 (non-upgraded) Zerglings incredibly fast so that You can bring a very early rush to the opponent – either securing You an immediate win or a sure loss. Because, if the rush fails, You will have sacrificed all ways of competing economically with the enemy, and You have very little chance of winning. Hence, this is what’s called an ‘all-in’ strategy – it’s do or die.

Detailed build order instructions, courtesy of Liquipedia:

5 Pool vs Protoss

5 Pool vs Terran

9 Pool & 9 Pool Speed

This strategy can, depending on Your strategic choice, be adapted to use speed upgraded Zerglings (requiring 100 gas that You otherwise would not get that early) or normal ones. It is a build order that enables early aggression, as opposed to getting an early economic lead, but it is not an ‘all-in’ move – You are still able to transition into a longer and economically stable game. With a 9 Pool You can with your early Zerglings fend off scouting units and early rushes from the enemy.

In essence, this tactic with its variations are designed to apply pressure to the opponent and thereby giving You the opportunity to expand. It is also a strong choice in warding off early aggression from the enemy – meaning that You are either able to pin him or her back while You build Your economy or that You can face any incoming threats with force. ‘Aggressive yet safe’ is the common description.

However, though the basics are the same, the way You perform and utilize any type of opening strategy depends on the race of the opponent. Against a Protoss who Fast Expands, a 9 Pool build can be most effective: potentially overrunning the expansion (unlikely against beyond average players) but at the very least force the Protoss player to put up defenses, i.e. fast Cannons and blocking Probes. That decreases the economic benefit that the Fast Expansion is supposed to generate, which early in the game can give the Zerg player a vast advantage.

A Terran player has different defensive capabilities to a Protoss, and is more or less open to harassment (attacks that are not meant to end the game, but to delay and make life difficult) until the point where he or she reaches Academy tech. Then the Marines and Medics will be able to push Zerg back and comfortably seize their own Natural Expansion. An aggressive 9 Pool strategy can be used in order to deal enough early damage before this happens to leave the Terran at a disadvantage, given the pressure that can be applied by lots of quick Zerglings before the Academy is ready.

Zerg vs Zerg is an entirely different matter indeed, and will be dealt with in a post of its own.

Based on the 9 Pool opening, You as a Zerg player have a lot of strategic options to transition into. It is a very unlimited build order, geared towards enabling any type of of more advanced strategy that the Zerg has in its arsenal. Depending on the game and Your opponent’s choices, You are well equipped to respond with any type of unit and army composition.

Turning to the best in the industry, the staff at Liquipedia provide all the details we need to properly execute all the variations of the 9 Pool – with suggested follow-up strategies:

9 Pool vs Protoss

9 Pool vs Terran

9 Pool SPEED vs Protoss

Overpool

This is the Overlord-then-Spawning Pool variant of the standard 9 Pool build order. As the name implies, it means that You build Your first Overlord (not counting the one that’s included when the game starts) before the Spawning Pool. In essence, this is used as a more economic (and hence less aggressive) opening build order – as You get Zerglings later but slightly more minerals.

This method is generally seen as more defensive than the standard 9 Pool, the first Zerglings are there to prevent early incoming attacks or non-standard rushes (so called ‘cheese’) – but it can be adapted in a number of ways to deal active damage. Depending on the timing of the fast expanding Protoss, You can use this build to quickly acquire 100 gas (the amount necessary for the Zergling Speed upgrade) and with 12 Zerglings overrun the defenses at the expansion.

That only works if You have sufficient scouting information and can judge the timing correctly, and it means that You devote the economic advantage (for which the strategy is designed) of the Overpool build order to an early attack with upgraded Zerglings. Starcraft is a game with very thin margins, and a match can be won or lost in two seconds. Key decisions and gut instincts combined are crucial.

Exact Overpool build order – economic and aggressive, at Liquipedia:

Overpool vs Protoss

12 Pool

Halfway in between the aggressive-yet-safe 9 Pool openings and the economically stable 12 Hatch strategies, we have the 12 Pool. Here, You construct an Overlord early (optimally at 9 supply), then additional Drones and then a Spawning Pool when You reach 12 supply. The second Hatchery will then follow once You have acquired 300 minerals – which will be sooner or later depending on if You choose to construct an Extractor to get early gas or not.

So what is this good for? Generally, the 12 Pool is said to be neither bad or good against anything – it is an average solution, neither overly aggressive or good for Your economy. However, there are situations where You will need Zerglings no earlier than 12 supply but no later either – in such cases, both 9 Pool and 12 Hatch openings are likely to lose You the game. The 12 Pool has its place.

Build Order, via Liquipedia:

12 Pool vs Protoss

12 Pool vs Terran

12 Hatch

Unlike the previously mentioned 9 Pool strategies, the 12 Hatch build order is designed with pure economics in mind. To clearify, the earlier You get a second Hatchery the sooner and faster Your intake of resources will increase. However, only building Hatcheries will leave You exposed to enemy attacks. The 9 Pool and Overpool strategies will give You early attacking units to use aggressively and defensively, but does in turn delay the construction of Your second Hatchery.

When performing a 12 Hatch build order, You construct the Hatchery before the Spawning Pool. That way You will be able to stay on even terms with a Protoss who performs the standard Fast Expansion strategy, and similary to a Terran that expands according to normal timing. If You manage to defend against early enemy aggression that attempts to exploit the weaknesses of this economic build order, You as a Zerg player are very well suited to transition into any type of late game strategy.

That is, of course, the theory. Only against players below Your own skill level will You be able to sneak by with a purely economic build order without getting severely pressured. The key is to get away with planting the Hatchery before the Spawning Pool (i.e. not being able to construct Zerglings until relatively late) without succumbing to early aggression. There are ways to achieve that.

You want to place Your second Hatchery at Your Natural Expansion (a feature that all professional Starcraft maps have, the game is built around that mechanic) and preferably place all Your defenses there to protect both Your bases. Before You have Zerglings, You will have to use Drones to fight incoming Protoss Zealots and Probes, and likewise against a Terran that rushes You with Marines and SCVs (who are likely to build offensive Bunkers at Your ‘front door’).

Constructing static defence, Sunken Colonies, may often be a necessity. This hurts Your economy, since You are sacrifing a Drone for each building, but if it keeps You alive until You can utilise the economic advantage then it is still a success. The key is never build more than what You have to – which You will be able to determine by knowledge of the opponent’s timing and Your own scouting information. Overlords placed on the right spots across the maps will tell You what iss coming, and enable You to prepare.

A 12 Hatch strategy puts You on the defensive in the early game, but gives You a stronger economic boost into the mid- and late game than the 9 Pool build orders. If You know Your opponent, the map and Your own preferred play style – You can choose the best opening for the occasion. Variation is essential, keep them guessing, but so is experimentation – these are good guidelines, but when You reach a certain level of skill it’s the deviations from the norm that win games.

How to 12 Hatch vs Protoss (Liquipedia):

How to 12 Hatch vs Terran

The differences between the openings depending on the opposing race are small, it’s the mode of later transition that varies greatly – and of which You need to have a clear plan. That will be dealt with further in coming articles – in this one the purpose has been to clearify what the differing Zerg opening strategies are called and what they are designed to do.

More strategic reading at Polygon reVue:

SK Terran – Playing Terran vs Zerg the Bionic Way

The Bisu Build – Putting the Protoss Fear into Zerg

This post is a reflection upon the current state of things in culture around Starcraft: Brood War, and where it may go in the future. The landscape is changing, but how can we be part of this process?

Starting with South Korea, a country that in terms of recognising eSports for its full capacity lies at least ten years ahead of the rest of world. There, Starcraft is the vehicle of a multi-million dollar industry that supplies fans and viewers with a never ceasing flood of progaming entertainment. Players, or – as I would like to call them – athletes, are afforded with the option of becoming sportsmen (sadly, the opportunities for e-sportswomen are still very limited), above and beyond being geeks.

I do not want to romanticise to much about the situation in the ‘Holy Land’ – Jaedong and Flash may be the Tiger Woods and David Beckham of Starcraft (though thankfully without their respective scandals), but it’s not a glamorous or easy life, even for them. A few Starcraft stars have made serious money out of their talent, but most Korean progamers live in and breathe the game exclusively for years without ever reaching sufficient celebrity status to taste the gaming equivalent of the Hollywood dream.

That is made evident by how the non-Korean Starcraft players who have gone there in recent years have been coping. Tyler ‘NonY’ Wasieleski went there in 2008 and stayed there for only a few months – gaining a lot skill on the way but for various reasons not able to fully capture the progaming dream. Click here to watch my recent interview with him, where he talks about his time in Korea and the Starcraft scene at large.

As of right now, 3rd of February 2010, Jos ‘ret’ De Kroon has only been back in the Netherlands for a couple of days after returning from Korea. Cultural differences have been quoted as the main reasons for why his time at the eSTRO progaming house was brief, and so he has like NonY returned to the foreign world of Starcraft with increased skill and stories of having been somewhat lost in cultural translation.

The one example who speaks for the possibility of coming to Korea as a foreigner and both managing the transition as well as getting better at Starcraft is Greg ‘Idra’ Fields. This American Terran player has lived and played in Korea for the better part of a year now, currently living in the house of the CJ team. He is still a B-teamer, meaning that he is a practice partner for the A-class stars and does not play televised games. However, he is working towards that goal and his rise in skill has been proven time and again by his utter dominance in the current Pokerstrategy.com TSL – the biggest foreign Starcraft tournament the world has ever seen.

My point is this: there are two worlds of Starcraft, marked by their collective difference in Starcraft skill and eSport institutions. Foreigners, with a few exceptions, hit rocks together trying to make fire while the Koreans are walking around with zippos - so to speak. However, that is essentially a technical question. The real difference is that of culture and the understanding of it. There is only so much one can do about that, and a subculture centered around a computer game is limited in what it can do to overcome such obstacles.

Instead, we need to build an international basis for a better future. eSports is big, and it will be bigger. The cultural and institutional differences that set the Korean world apart from the rest can be made into advantages – if we get a clean slate. Starcraft 2, which I until proven otherwise expect to become the title that ushers in the future, will generate opportunities that we – the existing global Starcraft community – can build on.

We will have the chance to take the expertise built up during the past twelve years and create a scene that is inclusive towards newcomers whilst also fiercely competitive at the top. Easy to fall in love with, impossible to master. I am not only talking about the game itself, but the culture around it. Currently, the Starcraft community is fairly closed, it is hard to get into both as a player and an unknowing newcomer. That must change with The Sequel.

Foreigners, that is all of us who are not living in Korea, know a lot of things. This part of the larger community are experts in organising online tournaments and grassroot enthusiasm for the game itself. It has done so for years with little to no money, and only very recently has the Teamliquid Starleagues offered serious cash as prizes. We also possess a huge base of fans, that’s You and me, who follow all the events through Youtube, VODs and hard-to-navigate forums. There is an army of commentators out there who give hundreds of hours of their time to increase the entertainment value of what is coming out of Korea. The passion for Starcraft is obvious, and relentless.

In the Holy Land, the Koreans know everything about how to build the marketing structure and commercial fan base necessary for making a game into a viable economic sport. There, You can make a living out of being a Starcraft genius, and that expertise is unrivalled in the world. From there come the best progamers. Regardless of what Blizzard and other powerhouses may believe, they need the Koreans to build eSports into a mainstream business without losing its soul or their own investment.

Of course, no one will easilylay down all of their own petty interests and start holding hands around the progaming camp fire – cultural differences and business concerns are huge obstacles in the way of fruitful collaboration. However, examples made by individuals can go a long way, and if one of us can provide a small solution to a bigger problem that is paving the way for greater things.

It’s already happening – the TSL deserves yet another mentioning, the Brent&Kenny Show received well over a 100,000 views when they hosted their own foreign pro-tournament in late 2009, and recently the dormant mapmaking community has beek woken by HuskyStarcraft’s Map Making Contest. We have iCCup – the undisputedly best online ladder system for a range of games including Starcraft, which is based in Russia and used by all players worldwide, Koreans or otherwise.

The grassroots are boiling, and that is the heat that keeps the machine running, and improving. Soon, within weeks, a tournament hosted and run by this very site will be announced to the community, with the intention of creating a new addition to the existing range of events. I do believe that somewhere among all these initiaves lie the passion, drive and know-how to form the force that brings eSport to the masses without downgrading it in the process.

The State of the Starcraft Nation is as promising as it is perilous. We need to think ahead while enjoying the game, we ought to work together to maximise the potential of what we are currently doing so that we are in the best possible shape to embrace the change that’s heading our way. We are at a threshold, which I find very exciting, because it demands the best of us. Starcraft – 1&2 – could lead the way for a new way of mass entertainment, and contributing to that would truly rock, don’t You think?

Once again, PolygonreVue.com has had the pleasure of speaking to HuskyStarcraft – Commentator Extraordinaire & Hwaseung OZ jacket owner. However, this is not an ordinary interview, this is a Special Announcement.

Husky has a lot of things going on these days, that in one way or another brings Starcraft entertainment to the community. All of that – Teamliquid’s Commentator Contest, the TL Arena and his planned charity fund raising – we talk about in the interview, but there is more.

Husky’s Map Design Contest is something that I personally find very interesting, and promising for the future. The foreign Starcraft community contains incredible amounts of untapped talent – something that current TSL is a testiment of – but also in other areas, such as map creation.

Find out all about this project and the coming tournament that will only feature these new and customised battlefields – that will be nothing like the ordinary 1on1 maps you see from Korea, but nevertheless will offer lots of competitive challenges. It’s all inte interview below, enjoy:

Husky’s Map Design Contest at Teamliquid.net

What do you think of these projects - too much or just what the community needs? Fire away in the comments!

First and foremost, what is commonly referred to as the ‘Bisu Build’ is a method by which You, the Protoss player, makes life a real pain for Your Zerg opponent. By doing so You get an early lead, enabling You to secure all the resources and advantages necessary to win later while the Zerg player is combusting with despair. It’s not a strategy by which You win right away. That’s the basic idea.

For detailed build orders, video tutorials and a strategy podcast - follow the links. Read below to find out more about what the ‘Bisu Build’ actually is and how it works.

So how is it achieved, where does it come from and why does Bisu – the only progamer in the world who would look at home in a boyband – get all the credit? Let me start with the last bit.

In what now seems like a very distant past, one fearsome Zerg ruled the entire realm of Starcraft. His name was IPXZerg but is better known as sAviOr – though he was truly more akin to an ultimate tyrant, being unstoppable in his might. He is one of very few progamers to have been called a bonjwa – unrivaled dominator of the scene. No one could stop him, least of all anyone playing Protoss. That is, until Bisu unveiled his hidden dagger.

Technically speaking, what has become known as the Bisu Build should be attributed to the player Daezang, but it was the young Bisu who used this strategy to take down the mighty sAviOr and made himself known as ‘The Revolutionist’, and one of the best Protoss players to have ever lived. In the videos below, You may watch how it all went down back in early 2007.

The Bisu Build is all about harassing a Zerg player’s economy to the point where he or she cannot possibly catch up with the Protoss, leading to a win for the latter in the later stages of the game. It’s not designed to destroy the opponent right away.

In short, the Bisu Build dictates that the Protoss makes an early expansion that contains gas (i.e. not a mineral-only expansion because this strategy is costly in Vespene gas) and fortifies it with Photon Cannons. You then quickly construct a Starport and build Corsairs by which You scout and hunt the Zerg’s Overlords – as well as defend against Mutalisks. You then get a swift Templar Archives and deploys Dark Templars – which can successfully take out Drones in the Overlord-less Zerg bases.

Combining Corsairs with Dark Templars is of course nothing revolutionary in itself, people figured that one out the first day the Brood War expansion set was released. However, Zerg players found ways of dealing with that – it was only through the systematic thought and exact details of the Bisu Build that an ultimate window of opportunity could be opened and used to achieve victory.

Returning to the fall of sAviOr, his style of play was based on massive and fast early expansion – he used to take an overwhelming amount of bases early on and then overpower the Protoss opponents. The Bisu Build was designed to specifically counter that strategy, since the extreme mobility of a Corsair armada is all the more lethal if the Zerg spreads out his or her bases. With the Overlords out of the way, the Dark Templars could freely roam, forcing sAviOr to spend all his resources on defense – which only put Bisu further ahead in the game.

Nowadays, professional Starcraft has continued to evolve and Zerg players seldom use the strategies that were sAviOr’s rise and fall alike. They have dealt with the original Bisu Build in new ways; expanding less and getting early Scourge, for example. However, the Corsair-Dark Templar combination is an incredibly powerful one, and every aspiring Protoss player out there ought to know it, because it’s the purest form of the strategy.

As always, for exact details and instructions, we turn to Liquipedia. Listed below You find the best and most current variations on the theme, including many deviations from the actual Bisu Build, such as the Corsair-Reaver strategy. It’s important to remember, however, that an exact build order is only a helpful aid in winning games – what You really need is an understanding of the idea behind Your overall strategy.

The idea behind the Bisu Build is early harassment of the Zerg economy as well as containment through intimidation. You make him or her fear You, staying behind heavy defences in the base, not daring to move out while You seize the entire battlefield. The details may change over time, but that idea never goes out of style. Sounds fun, right?

Build orders:

From Liquipedia:
Fast Expansion - the basic building block for the Bisu Build, which hence can only be performed on maps with suitable natural expansions

The Bisu Build - the recommended way to pin back a Zerg player in the base while You get Dark Templars and win with style

Variations:
Sair/Reaver - i.e. a Corsair armada with Reavers in Drop Ships, a strategy that is designed to quickly destroy Zerg expansions. It requires a lot of speed and multitasking ability from You as a Protoss player, but its a hardcore way of winning

Archon-Zealot Push - a quite different approach, based on the same initial Fast Expansion strategy, where You get quick Archons and upgraded Zealots to fight the Zerg with force early in the game. The purpose is to crack a Zerg that deploys a large number of low tech units early on with the intention of overrunning the Protoss defenses before the late game tech kicks in, ‘Sauron style’. The Archon-Zealot push is one big hammer in the face of such a strategy

DAY[9]’s podcast

A New Look at Build Orders - presents the appropriate way to think about build orders to allow for flexibility and understanding. Length: 34:18
Here Sean ‘Day[9]‘ Plott talks not about specific builds or strategies - but how to see the bigger picture behind every game, and use that to win

Video Tutorials

Bisu vs Savior
From the GomTV MSL Season 1 2006-07 - with strategic analysis and commentary by Starcraft scholar Sean ‘Day[9]‘ Plott and Protoss progamer Tyler ‘NonY’ Wasieleski. All explained in voice and video

Fast Expand/Bisu Build explained
In this video with strategic commentary by scTeamRune, a non-progamer performs the Bisu Build on the map Blue Storm. For a slower, more steady and accessible walkthrough of this strategy - this is the video to watch:

The Terran army can more than any other race in Starcraft be said to be divided in two: the Biological or Bionic side (Marines, Medics, Firebats and Ghosts) and Mech (Vultures, Siege Tanks and Goliaths). The air units seldom have more than a supporting role, especially when a Terran faces a Zerg. In this tutorial I will present a range of solutions of beating Zerg players by going about it the Bionic Way,

This post contains video tutorials, written build orders, and a strategy podcast – all aimed to show You as a player how the concept behind Bionic Terran works. The theory is based on the excellent content that can be found on Liquipedia, the most comprehensive database on Starcraft knowledge on the Internet, and this post provides additional information and resources on top of that.

There is more to the Bionic Way than just memorising when to build what in which order, it’s based around the ideas of mobility and strategic aggression. At the core of it all lies the basic strategy known as ‘SK Terran’.

In the very beginning of this new millennium, the Korean progamer SoulKey was the first to formalise and put together a potent strategy for how to fight Zerg players with strictly Bionic units, using no Mechanical units whatsoever. Since then the game has evolved considerably and the actual details of the build orders players use have changed a lot, but whenever a Terran player deploys a strategy that is based around Medics&Marines and Science Vessels against a Zerg, it is called ‘SK Terran’ after the now longtime retired Soulkey.

At the essence, it’s all about getting a more or less early advantage by negating the Zerg player the option to harass Your Terran economy with Mutalisks (which, if You do it right, is what Marines & Medics are best at) and Lurkers, and then pinning him or her back in the base due to Your superior mobility. A fast expansion to boost Your economy is necessary in the beginning, and then You’re good to go. Easy enough, right?

The details and specifics of how to deploy this strategy are listed below in the build orders. What You need to think of when playing Terran the Bionic Way is that You got to work hard to make it work. Your units are brittle and easily die to Lurker Spines unless You babysit them properly, and Your Science Vessel are under constant threat from Scourge. So why do this instead of a more kevlar-coated Mech strategy?

Because it’s fun, and because it really hurts the Zerg. The Terran Bionic army is the most mobile ground army in the game of Starcraft, and it melts all opposition like butter as long as you got the right units at the right place. With this strategy, You get to be extremely aggressive, because You absolutely have to.

However, only in a perfect world do we get to use perfect strategies. More often than not, it’s the deviations from the plan that truly win the day, and so is the case with Terran Bionic. You can mix in Mech if You want, in fact – most people do.

Tanks are truly, truly great – they can combat Lurkers even when they are protected by the Dark Swarm of the Defiler and can break down defensive barriers of Sunken Colonies in no time. Goliaths and even Wraiths are spectacular against a Zerg that uses Guardians, massive amounts of Mutalisks or Drop strategies. Vultures take care of Drones with ease and their Spider Mines lay waste to Lurkers, Zerglings and Ultralisks. So how do you blend Bionic with Mech?

The video tutorials below will show this in detail, but the formula is simple: You sacrifice some of Your precious Bionic mobility for the destructive capabilites of Mech. This slows You down a bit and You cannot be as aggressive as early. On the other hand, it’s also less taxing for You as a player when it comes to speed – a purely Bionic army takes the most actions per minute (APM) to control in the game. Korean progamers do their best with 400 APM and even they sometimes make mistakes. Throw in some Mech and it might be easier for You to control, as well as giving You many other advantages.

Other voices than mine are best suited to teach You exactly what ways there to win against Zerg with a Bionic army, and the best resources are listed right here. In my opinion, however, the most crucial thing is to first understand the core concepts behind this strategy – and those are mobility and aggression. If that sounds like a fun way to play Starcraft, read on:

Build orders:

SK Terran and what I call the Bionic Way (usually referred to as ‘Bio Builds’) are conceptual strategies, not detailed build orders. As a Starcraft player, it is absolutely necessary to have a set idea about how you are going to win a watch, and then you use a detailed set of instructions, i.e. build orders, to achieve that.

The two most common, standard and arguably best ways of implementing the Bionic Way right now are what’s called ‘1 Barracks Fast Expand’ and ‘2 Barracks Fast Expand’ – these two, and highly different, build orders provide good openings in terms of both economy and strategic options. Depending on the situation You can then stick to or deviate from the basic concept behind SK Terran. Provided by Liquipedia, here are the build orders:

1 Barracks Fast Expand vs Zerg or ‘1 Rax FE’ - the most popular opening strategy, good for the economy and against early Mutalisk Harassment

2 Barracks Fast Expand, ‘2 Rax FE’ - the older fast expansion build order, strong against early Hydralisks but slower in generating economy - yet still solid

DAY[9]’s podcast

TvZ Midgame on Heartbreak Ridge: Fantasy’s Play examines how to develop a good plan starting with the midgame. Fantasy’s play on Heartbreak Ridge is used as an extended example. Length: 19:38
This podcast does not explain how to best perform a tradition SK Terran strategy, Sean ‘Day[9]‘ Plott instead talks about how to best deviate from a set guidelines and adapt to circumstances. Most helpful indeed

Video Tutorials

Jos ‘ret’ De Kroon teaches Terran:

In this First Person Video, Jos ‘ret’ De Kroon shows us how to use a common Bio-Mechanical strategy (a Marine&Medic-driven army with Science Vessels and supportive Tanks) against Zerg. ret is actually a Zerg player himself and currently (January 2010) he’s living in Korea and training to become a progamer, but here he’s playing Terran against the famous German player Mondragon.

This video is on top of the list not because the match is perfect or standard, but because ret goes through his decision making in a most explanatory and enlightening way. He makes it easy to for a viewer to understand why he made both successful actions and dire mistakes. Taking place on the immensely popular map Destination, this is truly a must-watch for all Terran players.

The Emperor’s disciple, iloveOov, shows us how it’s done:

On the other side of the spectrum, we have this game from 2004 between the two Korean progaming legends JulyZerg and iloveOov, who was one among if not the most deadly Terran player of all time before his semi-retirement in late 2007. In this game, which is recommended by Liquipedia, Oov goes hardcore SK Terran – not a single Mechanical units ever touches the ground in this match.

This is Starcraft at a level that’s beyond most of us: incredibly fast and completely unforgiving. Still, this is how it’s done, quite simply. Watch it and get inspired, as well as blown away.

Artosis’ Terran Bionic Tutorial:

In this instructional video, strategy master and Starcraft celebrity Dan ‘Artosis’ Stemkoski talks us through how to play Bionic Terran, based upon a first person video of him playing a Zerg opponent on the map Blue Storm. It is a most useful resource for understanding the pros and cons behind the strategy, and the deviations from it. Also, it’s a fun game that really shows why Marines&Medics are some of the best entertainers in the game of Starcraft.

Case studies from January 2010 in modern Terran Bio-Mech vs Zerg

Flash vs Calm:

From the OSL Round of 4 in the 09-10 season, we get to see how it’s done by the book today by the very Ultimate Weapon himself - Flash. This match is truly a recipe for how to play standard and modern Terran vs a Mutalisk-heavy Zerg - basing the army on Bionic units first and supplementing with Tanks and Goliaths as needed. The English commentary by well known Starcraft caster Husky is both hilarious and informative.

Flash vs Jaedong

In this match from the MSL final in early 2010, the two greatest Starcraft players of their generation face once again to decide who is the superior. This is not the final game, but it is the best one - according to Dan ‘Artosis’ Stemkoski it’s potentially even the best Terran vs Zerg game ever played on TV. In short, Flash shows us how it’s done. Get amazed:

Tyler ‘NonY’ Wasieleski is fighting for more than $10,000 dollars in the ongoing Pokerstrategy.com Teamliquid Starleague – he is out to prove to the whole world that he is still a true Samurai of Starcraft. However, he is not that worried, as he tells us in this interview.

NonY talks about his plans for a career in progaming with Starcraft 2, his time and experience in Korea as well as his view on the much debated MSL Controversy between Jaedong and Flash. He lets us know why he lost his first clash with the Terran terminator that is Idra – and why that won’t happen again.

Apart from his predictions about the upcoming matches in Round of 16 of the TSL, he lets us know who he thinks he will face in the Grand Final of the tournament. Finally, he answers the challenge from Gosi]Terran who may have performed well online recently but who is apparently very misinformed about how NonY got his Courage win in Korea. I sense a grudge match coming up…

Watch the entire Pokerstrategy.com Teamliquid Starleague here

NOTE: Due to some technical problems, the sound of this recording was slightly distorted - steps have been taken to make sure it does not happen again, my apologies

It is with great pleasure and excitement that I, Sebastian Sjoberg, am announcing that this site is now directly working together with Geoff ‘iNcontrol’ Robinson. Polygonrevue.com is hosting the iNcontrol Coaching for Cash programme, providing training in all the arts of Starcraft.

In order to make the coaching services provided by iNcontrol more available and accessible to a great variety of gamers, they have now been given a home of their own here at this domain – You will find the link just below the header to the left. This way, by providing an additional platform beyond the forums of community sites, we hope that You will find it easier to approach the idea and see if it’s something that would suit You.

Starcraft is a most competitive and challenging game, that is currently more vibrant than ever in terms of professional play. Soon, Starcraft 2 will come and change the scene – possibly bringing in a whole new era of eSports – and the first generation of pro SC2 players will be those who start preparing now.

The skills of multitasking, micro- and macro management and general thinking that one can learn in Brood War will be indispensable in The Sequel. That’s one good reason to why training now might be a very good idea for the future.

On the other hand, most Starcraft players – myself very much included – do not play the game with the intention of competing at the top level, for must of us it is foremost a fun activity. However, improving in skill is rewarding regardless of ambition, and most of iNcontrol’s clients so far have been average players who wanted to come to grips with common problems. If You want to become a better player, iNcontrol’s training can make that happen quickly and with greater ease.

Click here to read my recent interview with Geoff ‘iNcontrol’ Robinson where he explains the idea behind his coaching programme and why You can gain a lot from his services

For a more personal interview with iNcontrol in audio, click here

To check out the details of his offer as well as customer testimonials, click the banner below:

The Starcraft universe is, just like the ordinary one, expanding continously. After eleven years the vast community around this game is not only alive and kicking, but spawning new sites still. This week, Polygon reVue presents a new and quite different resource - ZergOverflow.com. There are many questions to ask for a person who wants to learn more about Starcraft and its dynamic scene, and this site aims to answer them all.

From the head admin himself, here’s what ZergOverflow.com is all about:

PR.com: How would you describe ZergOverFlow.com, and what is the purpose behind it?

ZergOverflow: ZergOverflow.com is a question and answering platform helping users getting answers for questions in a specified scene, in our case: Starcraft!

PR.com: The name of the site might imply that questions are restricted to topics dealing with the Zerg race, is that the case? Does it focus primarily on Starcraft: Brood War or Starcraft 2?

ZergOverflow: I have a tendency of ridiculous naming on things include websites I could easily call it ask-starcraft.com and save myself from explaining why zerg overflows…. but no, the name of the site does not imply that it only covers zerg related questions: ZergOverflow.com essentially allows users to ask ANYTHING that is related or indirectly related to Starcraft.

PR.com: How did the name came about?

ZergOverflow: Inspired by StackOverflow.com (the original StackExchange website) and my support of zerg race and JulyZerg, a favorite zerg player in Korean ProLeague scene. The name ‘zerg overflowed’ came about when I saw JulyZerg’s 2008 OSL Final versus Best [spoiler] where he pulled a a drones drill breaks through Best’s wall off, which was stunning to watch [/spoiler]. Of course, the name wasn’t referring to anything until I developed this website in the end of 2009.

PR.com: Your site has taken its Questions & Answers-algorithm from StackExchange.com, which is dedicated to questions around programming. In layman’s terms, what is it that it does so well?

ZergOverflow: The existing web that we know today provides enormous amount of knowledge and social capacity. However when it comes to answering a question, you are always on the seek searching for answers and the correct ones amongst them. Q&A Platform is explicitly designed to answer what an user is asking, minimise research needs and unnecessary comments (although sometime it helps to further explain the answer). It does exactly what user is here for: answer questions.

PR.com: The database of straight forward facts, questions and answers are growing every day and it is clear that many people have a lot that they to learn when it comes to Starcraft. What are your longterm plans for ZergOverflow.com, and what’s the next immediate step.

ZergOverflow.com will be trying hard performing what it does the best and that is answering questions. The buzz word ‘usability’ is an ingredient of ZergOverflow’s success as we now begin to think that it is an art to prompt someone to ask. That’s why we will be focusing hard on making ZergOverflow “easy to ask question” and “easy to find answers”

PR.com: There is already a very comprehensive and rich database for Starcraft knowledge, the Liquipedia. ZergOverflow.com works very differently from that site, but what are the main features that make it complimentary to the established type of fact resource?

ZergOverflow: The fact that ZergOverflow.com isn’t a discussion forum (nor are we keen to move towards that directly), we remain a specialist in Q&A, this means ZergOverflow easily compliments with knowledge base like Wikia, Liquipedia or news forums like GosuGamer, Starfeeder. There are some technical aspects (which I won’t go into details ) that will make Q&A information on ZergOverflow database integrable towards affiliate sites and utilise these data as their FAQ or Help search, making these sections of their websites dynamic and self-update.

Feeling overflowed, or do You have more questions to ask? Is a site like ZergOverflow.com useful in the Starcraft community - what do You think?