Amongst all the maps available on the ladder, Antiga Shipyard is by far the most popular with Terrans. It has even become a favorite in the GSL. What makes this map special is the fact that Terrans can generally turtle on three bases, and easily take a fourth while denying a fourth for any opponent. The distances between bases, means that as the game progresses, drops at expansions become easier to pull off and harder to deal with, so much so that they can turn the game around. In this map guide we will discuss certain strategies, on how to deal with different races on this map.

TvT:

Antiga Shipyard has only one Xel’Naga tower, positioned in the center of the map, that reveals 2 mid gold bases, and several attack paths. A general rule is to always try to have control of Xel’Naga towers. However, in TvT on Antiga Shipyard, the single most important factor in winning a game is the control of this tower.

Controlling the tower gives you two advantages over your opponent:

- When sieged next to the tower, your tanks can hit any opposing unit without you having to provide vision for them. Well-positioned siege tanks on the plateau can stop an enemy from leaving his base, while letting you expand and fortify your position freely.

- For an enemy to counter this, he would have to spend a great deal of scans on that central location. These scans could have been mules. Mules that he’s not getting but you are, propelling you even further ahead.

As mentioned before Antiga is a great map for turtling, so Mech compositions should be very easy to pull off as long as you maintain a certain amount of map control with the tower, and not allow any run-by or drops.

I have played a great deal of TvT games on this map, and I do have a few tips for people struggling in this matchup. No matter what composition you do, always, always set up a few turrets in your main base and your third. 5-6 turrets is more than enough to stop any drop harassment. Location is key though, so pay attention to how you set up turrets.

When Meching, it’s also a great idea to set up turrets next to your tanks when you push even on the plateau. You often find yourself with a surplus of minerals as a mech player, so don’t be stingy on the turrets. Getting the range upgrade is also crucial. An upgraded turret can knock down a medivac full of units on its own, barely giving it time to unload 2 units. Marines in your main can be very annoying, but without their medivacs to heal them, hellions or even scvs can deal with them, especially since they cannot overstim.

TvP:

The bread and butter build in TvP on Antiga Shipyard is the 1 rax FE, and protoss know it, therefore we have seen an increase in the popularity of the 1 or 2 base all-ins on this map. The structure of the main base, makes it vulnerable to the many all-ins that protosses can do, so be very prepared for this likeleyhood. A general tip would be to always be scouting the first 10 mins of the game, and always be on your toes.

Here's a list of some all-ins you might encounter and how to deal with them:

VoidRay All-in: This is a particularly nasty all-in, but if scouted in time or dealt with appropriately can put the protoss player way behind. First rule is to always scout the quadrant that's adjacent to your main, that would be a usual hiding place for the stargate. Second of all, placing supply depots on the edges of your base, especially the part blocked by the smoke could alert you to the all-in as usually protoss use the vision gained by the void ray to warp in zealots and stalkers. If scouted in time, it is recommended to put all workers on the mineral line and forget about gas. Make a few supply depots behind your mineral line as you will certainly lose some, start building on 2 or 3 barracks and pump out nothing but marines. If possible research stim.

Blink Stalker All-in: This All-in can be done on one or two bases, and is facilitated a lot by the structure of the main base. Generally a protoss would position an observer over your main and use blink stalkers to harrass you and even take you down. The distraction caused by the blink stalkers is often used to send in a few zealots or stalkers to the natural to wreak havoc to the economy. My personal experience has taught me that in order to defend this well, the terran should first of all leave 4 marines in the bunker in the natural with 5-6 scvs left on it with auto-repair. In the main base it is best if you let the Protoss have his way with a few barracks or depots, and buy yourself enough time to muster marauders or marines, then use them with the scvs to drive the protoss out. Don't forget to scan for the observer and if possible throw down a bunker in your main base after the protoss leaves for extra defense.

Gates/Robo All-ins: These all-ins usually include a lot of sentries, coupled with either zealots or stalkers, or immortals. The attacks usually hit between the 7-10 minute mark, and if you're doing your scouting well you should anticipate it by throwing down 3 bunkers at the front. A genera rule is to always have one bunker at the front of your natural and a few supply depots to funnel the zealots and give you more time to react to the attack.

These are the most common all-ins you might find on this map, and if you've succesfully defended them, then you can easily sweep away the protoss as he would be miles behind you in tech and economy. The most important thing though, is that you should never ever panic. Sure all-ins are frustrating, especially when it's a protoss doing it, but take some time to play custom games with a protoss friend, and let him do those all-ins on you. Practice makes perfect, and All-ins become increasingly easy to deal with.

TvZ:

This matchup was once considered insanely overpowered in the Terran's favor, until Zerg players figured out that if they can't have a 4th, they can just as well expand all over the map and throw down 10 spines at each expansion, turning the tide in their favor. Hellion expand builds were very popular with terrans, until the recent queen buff. Terrans decided to switch it up, and so far I've seen two really dominant builds on this map:

Cloacked banshee: The most important thing to note in this build, is that the zerg should at no point in time know what you're doing. This is a very risky build, that could kill off a zerg entirely. If scouted though you're way behind and you should start praying for a miracle. There is no need to have your marines defending your natural. A few would do, but the rest should be spread in groups of twos all over your base. Make sure to clear the way for the banshee, preferably with 2-3 hellions, and the game is yours

Two base marine hellion tank: This strategy is very vulnerable to early roach agression, as your initial factory is used to pump out hellions (preferably blue flame hellions), so it is best if you bunker up. If you see a baneling roach all-in incoming, blue flames+ bunkers and some good micro will downright win you the game. In any case, your attack should hit by the 10 minute mark, so work on your timings in some custom games. It's a very devastating attack that can secure you enough time to get a third up and deal with the infestor or muta tech.

No matter what strategy you use, remember to use the terrain for your advantage in this map. The most notable part of this map is the elevated step on the corner of each base. If used properly, it can alow you to inflict much damage without taking some on your own.

As you can see here, a siege tank position on the step can reach into the heart of the Zerg's base. This is where your micro is really tested. Hellions with marines, just marines, tanks, reapers... Don't hesitate to use this. Often times I see Terran players sieging a Zerg's base without caring much for this side of it, even though marines can easily dash in and out of the fog. The least that will happen is that you will be able to pick off an overlord as most Zergs position one there to have vision of this area.

I really hope you enjoyed this guide. It's not a detailed guide, as that would take up a lot of space, but it does give a brief introduction of this map. I will keep posting new map guides as I write them, but if you have any maps in mind, do not hesitate to tweet me @RibalAbiRaad, and make sure to follow Team Dignitas' twitter for more updates and info on the current news.