Starcraft 2 Terran Macro CC Build and Strategy

Starcraft 2 Strategy Guide --> Starcraft 2 Terran Build Orders --> Macro CC (you are here)

The "macro Command Center" build (often shortened to macro CC) is one of the most powerful yet underutilized build orders available to Terran players in Starcraft 2.

In recent months, it has become wildly popular in the top levels of play, but has not yet filtered down and become a mainstream build. I suspect that this is the case because it is not a very intuitive build and is unlikely many players will stumble upon this through experimentation.

Regardless, despite its non-existance in the bottom 4 leagues, it is incredibly effective. Below, you will find a strategy overview and a sample build order that you can reproduce for yourself. I will start with the strategy overview before covering the specific build order just because the build is very unorthodox and requires a bit of explaining.

The Macro CC: Strategy Overview

The Terran Orbital Command is truly the defining aspect of the Terran race. Simply by summoning a supply-free MULE, players are able to earn an extra 270 minerals over 90 seconds without any additional supply or resource cost.

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Given that a single Orbital Command costs a grand total of 550 minerals, as soon as two MULEs complete their life-cycle, this initial investment is essentially repaid. In other words, an Orbital Command pays for itself and starts generating a profit in just 3 minutes, and that is not even including the income the extra SCVs it can produce.

The end result is that Terran players can "expand" inside their own base. Simply by investing in one (or more) extra Orbital Commands, players can summon MULEs to their expansions around the map to increase their income.

With the numbers in front of you, and knowing that an Orbital Command starts generating a profit in just a few minutes, it makes a lot of sense to build extra Command Centers. That is where the Macro CC build comes in.

Here is the recommended build order:

9/11 - Supply Depot (at base entrance)
12/19 - Barracks (at base entrance)
13/19 - Refinery #1
15-16/19 Orbital Command (depending if you want a Marine - I recommend it to chase off Overlords)
16/19 Tech Lab on Barracks
16/19 Supply Depot #2 (completing wall-off to main base)
18/27 Reaper (as soon as tech Lab finishes - this is for scouting - particularly for fast air or other aggressive openers)
20/27 Command Center #1
22/27 Factory as soon as Tech Lab finishes; place Factory where Barracks was (so it is attached to Tech Lab)
25/27 Command Center #2 (CC #1 and #2 will be building at the same time)
25/27 Refinery #2

..from here, work on getting out Siege Mode and a few Siege Tanks and Marines out of your single Barracks ASAP. Once you have 2 Tanks out with Siege Mode on the high ground, you can safely grab your natural expansion out of the first orbital command.

Naturally, both Command Centers will be converted into Orbital Commands. However, the second additional Command Center will stay in your base for awhile, simply dropping MULEs at your natural expansion and producing SCVs to allow you to saturate the mineral line faster.

That same Orbital Command can either be lifted off to take a third base once you have the economy, or you can keep it in your base for the entire game, using it as a MULE dump (you might want to do this if you want a Planetary Fortress at your third base - depends on the map and opponent).

Best Maps and Races for Use On

Ideally, you use this one a big map. This will make it hard for the opponent to all-in you. Both 2 and 4 player maps work as long as their is sufficient distance between bases.

However, it can still work even on "dangerous" maps like Blistering Sands. Since taking a third base is so hard on that map, it can be quite effective to keep your third CC inside your main, so you have less fronts to protect. The trick is good scouting to make sure you do not get overwhelmed.

With that said, this build works best against Zerg players in my opinion, is okay versus Protoss, and is fairly weak versus Terran players. Zerg players cannot easily break in to your base unless they are going for a Baneling bust right out the gates. It is hard for a Zerg player to be somewhat economical and get enough Banelings out before you get tanks, making Zerg a good choice to use this on.

It is hard to use this build versus Protoss players, simply because a carefully controlled Void Ray will be able to pick apart any sort of "walling off" at the entrance to your base. You can use this build, but be sure to get out some more Marines and Marauders for defense.

Against Terran players I do not like this build at all, simply because a 1/1/1 opening can easily wipe the floor with someone who tries to go for a Macro CC early in the game. They will have a few Tanks and Vikings with Siege Mode done before you and there is just no coming back from that if you are not prepared.

Strategy - Making the Macro CC Work and Transitions

Once you safely secure your natural expansion with a few Siege Tanks on the high ground, you cannot possibly be behind in a game as you will be in a great economic position. The trick is just living long enough to grab the expansion.

You need to scout the opponent to check for any sort of air rush (for any race) or an all-in build (4-Gate, Baneling Bust, etc) and build appropriate defense.

If you survive the rush, the rest is easy. Just throw down a ton of Barracks and a Starport if you want to go for MMM, or more factories if you want to do something else. You can really produce any sort of unit composition you want; the build listed here is designed to get your economy rolling as fast as possible while still being somewhat safe from pressure.

Give it a test run, and I am sure you will find it works a lot better in games then it looks on paper. Even if you do not adopt this exact build order, always remember that having an Orbital Command in your base can be a great way to increase your income via MULEs if you are in a position where you cannot expand.

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