Starcraft 2 Strategy Guide

Hello Fellow Starcraft 2 player,                    

I put together this website as a resource for anyone who plays Starcraft 2 and is looking for a solid Starcraft 2 strategy guide that will allow them to rank up in multiplayer matches.

I was a Diamond level player in beta and am currently ranked in Diamond now that Starcraft has been released. On this site, I have shared with you some of my best strategies so that you can start winning more games.

New Starcraft 2 Strategies

I will add a new Starcraft 2 strategy for every 25 Facebook likes this site gets. New articles for the 400th Like were added on October 24th, 2011. The next article after that will be at 425 Likes, so if you want more great content, be sure to share this page!

Antiga Shipyard Map Strategy - Builds and strategies for the last of the Season 3 ladder maps. Added October 24th, 2011.

Abyssal Caverns Map Strategy - Solid openers and strategies for all race match-ups on this 1.3 Ladder map. Added October 4th, 2011.

Searing Crater Map Strategy - As one of the new "rush" maps, the strategies and openers you use on this map will have to be a lot more conservative (or aggressive, depending on your style). Added September, 17, 2011.

Starcraft 2 Map Strategies - A new and needed section for the site that I plan to build out over the coming months. Here, you will discover how you can change your strategies and builds based on the map you are playing on. I will be adding specific articles ladder maps to this guide over the next few months. Added July 12th, 2011.

The Macro CC Build - It has been awhile since I have added any Terran strategies, but this build order was worth the wait. While this build has been gaining popularity in the upper echelons of Starcraft 2, it is practically non-existant in the lower-level leagues. It is an incredible build to use in TvZ and something players of all leagues can use now before it gets too popular to surprise the opponent! Added July 7th, 2011.

The Starcraft 2 Archon - Strategy Changes for 1.3.3 - With the recent changes to the Archon, this unit has now become quite viable in PvZ and PvT match-ups. Find out how you can use this unit to counter popular Zerg and Terran builds. Added June 7th, 2011.

I have been silently adding subpages to sections like the campaign guide and replay section. Since it is hard to dig through all the pages for updates, I will begin posting all recent articles on the home-page so you will know exactly where to find all the updates to this site.

Navigation Changes to Starcraft 2 Strategy Guide

Over the past few months, I have been regularly adding a few new strategy articles each week to the site. However, the navigation bar on this site has been getting over-crowded. As a result, I have removed some of the least-popular pages from the side-bar and added them into their parent categories.

For example, the Starcraft 2 Terran Air Units page (a sub-page) is no longer on the navigation bar, but you can find it by clicking on the Starcraft 2 Terran Units and Structures page (the "parent" category). From there, you can find a link to this specific article and all of the other Terran unit articles.

To start, I have only removed the units and structures sub-pages from the navigation bar. Based on feedback, I may remove more of the least-popular pages over time from the navigation bar and place them on their parent pages.

This is for two reasons. Firstly, it will reduce the clutter of the navigation bar and help people find the article they are looking for. Secondly, I will now be able to add more articles to this site and place them in their parent categories without them being "hidden" from view, as readers will be used to clicking on the parent categories to find articles.

While it may take some time to get used to (I know I hate it when my favorite sites change their layouts) - it is for the best as it will allow me to post more content for everyone to read without it getting lost in the fold.

About Starcraft 2 Guide

This site has been split into quite a few sections which are regularly updated (be sure to check back regularly for Starcraft 2 strategy guide updates!):

• A section on the best Starcraft 2 guides, where I review and compare the most popular guides on the market.

• 3 sections (one for each race) on Units and Structures. In these sections I discuss each unit and building, what it does, and what its strengths and weaknesses are.

• 3 sections (one for each race) for covering some of the most popular and effective Starcraft 2 strategies. I recommend not only reading over the strategy sections for the race you like to play, but also check out the strategies that you find yourself losing against. In this Starcraft 2 strategy guide, I list both the strengths and weaknesses of popular strategies so you not only know how to perform them but how to counter them as well!

• A section on counters, discussing which units you should build to counter other units in the game.  

• A section on 2v2 strategy (this section will get tons of updates), so that you can dominate in multiplayer play as well as 1v1!

If you are new to Starcraft 2, enjoy playing the game, and want to be competitive and win more games in online play, there are some core concepts you should take the time to learn. Many of the pages on the left provide specific game strategies and counters, but regardless of the match-up, there are a few principles you should master if you want to be a great Starcraft 2 player:

• Scouting in Starcraft 2

• Economy Management

• Race Match-ups

• Starcraft 2 Actions Per Minute (Beginner's Tips)

• Starcraft 2 APM (Intermediate and Advanced Strategies)

• Tricks and Manipulation (advanced technique)

If you haven't played Starcraft 2 yet or are unfamiliar with the Starcraft series, here is a brief overview of Starcraft 2 (also known as SC2):

Starcraft 2 is the highly anticipated sequel to popular computer game, Starcraft. The original Starcraft (which came out in 1998) is one of the best selling computer games of all time, with over 11 million copies sold.

The original Starcraft was so popular that many people ended up playing Starcraft for a living. The same holds true for Starcraft 2. One of the top SC2 Players has put together a Starcraft 2 strategy guide, the Shokz Guide, which I strongly recommend you check out which you can get by clicking here.

Anyway, back on track..

Back in 1998, not nearly as many people had computers with internet access that could handle online gaming, so the success of the original Starcraft was incredible. With many more people playing video games online, SC2 is set to be a blockbuster, with most analysts predicting between 6 and 7.5 million sales by the end of 2010. !

This game was released on July 27th, and players can pick it up at any major retailer or even download it online. Starcraft 2 has become the most popular RTS (Real Time Strategy) game of all time by selling over 1.5 million copies during its first week of release!

Onto the Starcraft 2 Strategy Guide:

SC2 is a real-time strategy game. Players gather resources, build buildings, and amass units in order to win battles against each other. There is a single-player version as well which players can play the game set to a storyline.

The real draw for most players is the online play, and that will be the focus of this website. However, if you are more interested in single-player mode you can use the same strategies on this site and apply them to the single player mode in order to easily beat all the missions.

In SC2, there are three playable races:

1. Zerg
2. Protoss
3. Terran

Players can pick a race before the game starts or alternatively choose to be a random race. Each race has its own unique units, buildings, playstyle. Players fight each other with the goal of destroying the opponent(s) forces. Within each race, each unit has its own strengths and weaknesses which makes SC2 a lot like a big game rock paper scissors (Unit A beats Unit B, Unit B beats Unit C, and Unit C beats Unit A)!

Note: You can read about these counters in the Starcraft 2 Counters List section!

In addition to units having advantages over others, some units are classified as support units and can't actually fight. For example, the Medivac is a Terran unit that can restore the HP (i.e. health - units die when HP reaches zero) of friendly units and transport ground units in the air. The Medivac can't actually attack though, it can only support (hence the name) other combat units.

That's one of the areas where this Starcraft 2 Strategy Guide will come in handy; there are a lot of different variables and strategies you can use given all the different units and races. I will give a lot of great strategies and secrets for winning plus review some of the top guides put together by the pros (there are people who play Starcraft for a living!), so you will get the inside scoop on how to win games from the best players in the world.

Anyway, back to the Starcraft 2 Strategy guide...

In SC2, players can now play in a variety of ranked brackets, such as:

-1v1 (you versus another player)

-2v2 (random - i.e. matched up with a random partner also in the game queue)

-2v2 (arranged - i.e. playing with your friends)

-FFA (every person for themselves)

..and more. The great thing about this new system is that you can play ranked multiplayer (2v2, 3v3, etc) games even when your friends are not online.

Note that sometimes when you pick up a random partner, the enemy team might be arranged. It can be kind of tough when this match-up happens, but it is still winnable with the right Starcraft 2 strategy guide!

You are assigned to specific brackets based on your skill levels (bronze, silver, gold, platinum, or diamond, diamond being the highest) so that your opponents are always about your skill level. After reading and implementing the strategies on this Starcraft 2 strategy guide, you should be able to leap-frog into a higher, more competitive division!

The higher level divisions are more fun because you are much more likely to have a good partner and good competition. In the lower divisions, players use cheap and gimmicky tactics (fast rushes, cannon rushes, etc) to win games.

In the Diamond League, you end up with a lot of great games and good players and I find I have a lot more fun playing at that level. You get better as your competition gets better, so its important to start ranking up and getting into the Diamond league as fast as you can!

Are you still struggling to get into the Diamond League?

If you answer the above question with a yes, then I urge you to pick up the Shokz Starcraft 2 Mastery Guide.

This routinely updated advanced guide contains strategies for ALL the races, an advanced 1v1 guide, a 2v2 guide with powerful strategies for Terran, Zerg, and Protoss players that will have your opponents begging for mercy. Click here to get it now!