TheDougler Profile Joined April 2010 Canada 8173 Posts #1

Hey guys. So I started typing this up because I'm bringing a noob or two along with me to barcraft here, and then I thought hell I might as well share it with everyone! So feel free to print this out, or edit it as you like or just enjoy reading it for shits and giggles. To be honest, it's not actually complete, I was gonna do a breakdown of a bunch of the players I'm looking forward to, but now another friend of mine wants to 2v2 so here goes:







Hey there!



If you're reading this then one of a few things have happened:



A. Your friends have dragged you into an unforgettable experience of epicness.

B. The voices in your head have finally got the better of you and in ten seconds this little article will transform into a magic butterfly with tennis rackets for wings which it will then beat you with.

C. You've stumbled down to your local watering hole and rather than staring in bewilderment at something you don't entirely understand you've been told to check this out.

D. You're already a citizen of e-sports and are glancing over this to remember that you too were a noob once upon a time.



In any of those cases --except for B... If that's the case that most accurately describes your situation then I'm a little worried for you, but also frankly a little jealous-- it is my privilege to present to you:



Hey guys. So I started typing this up because I'm bringing a noob or two along with me to barcraft here, and then I thought hell I might as well share it with everyone! So feel free to print this out, or edit it as you like or just enjoy reading it for shits and giggles. To be honest, it's not actually complete, I was gonna do a breakdown of a bunch of the players I'm looking forward to, but now another friend of mine wants to 2v2 so here goes:Hey there!If you're reading this then one of a few things have happened:A. Your friends have dragged you into an unforgettable experience of epicness.B. The voices in your head have finally got the better of you and in ten seconds this little article will transform into a magic butterfly with tennis rackets for wings which it will then beat you with.C. You've stumbled down to your local watering hole and rather than staring in bewilderment at something you don't entirely understand you've been told to check this out.D. You're already a citizen of e-sports and are glancing over this to remember that you too were a noob once upon a time.In any of those cases --except for B... If that's the case that most accurately describes your situation then I'm a little worried for you, but also frankly a little jealous-- it is my privilege to present to you: The Uninformed's Guide to Barcraft



Greetings you confused bar patron, you probably have many thoughts running through your head right now and I'm gonna do my best to answer them. Lets start with the obvious one:



Greetings you confused bar patron, you probably have many thoughts running through your head right now and I'm gonna do my best to answer them. Lets start with the obvious one: 1. What the hell is going on here.





What you are seeing (or soon shall be seeing) is STARCRAFT... at a BAR! BARCRAFT!!!



What you are seeing (or soon shall be seeing) is STARCRAFT... at a BAR! BARCRAFT!!! 2. I care why?



Show some Canadian pride goddamnit!

We have not one, not two, but THREE canadians seeded in the championship bracket from terrific performances at MLGs earlier this year, one of them, Chris Loranger AKA HuK is the defending champion, and could win the whole damn thing. Oh Canada!



Show some Canadian pride goddamnit!We have not one, not two, but THREE canadians seeded in the championship bracket from terrific performances at MLGs earlier this year, one of them, Chris Loranger AKA HuK is the defending champion, and could win the whole damn thing. Oh Canada! 3. But... I'm American.



Oh... well that's awkward. Get the hell out then we don't take kindly to your kind around here.



Kidding! A rude Canadian, come on now. You guys have one of the most widely known names in e-sports --3.A e-what!? ... I'm getting to that-- Greg "IdrA" Fields is also seeded in the one of the best possible brackets for this tournament and he is the living embodyment of the the world's perspective of Americans!



Oh... well that's awkward. Get the hell out then we don't take kindly to your kind around here.Kidding! A rude Canadian, come on now. You guys have one of the most widely known names in e-sports --3.A e-what!? ... I'm getting to that-- Greg "IdrA" Fields is also seeded in the one of the best possible brackets for this tournament and he is the living embodyment of the the world's perspective of Americans! 4. You calling me a nerd eh? We don't take kindly to yo--



Wait wait wait. Before you come charging up here with your torch and pitchforks let me clarify, I'm not saying you're all nerds. IdrA is an outspoken, lovem or hatem guy who can get the job done. He also feels entitled to lead the world in it's struggle to stay relevant.



Wait wait wait. Before you come charging up here with your torch and pitchforks let me clarify, I'm not saying you're all nerds. IdrA is an outspoken, lovem or hatem guy who can get the job done. He also feels entitled to lead the world in it's struggle to stay relevant. 5. Ok... that sounds alright, but what on earth do you mean by that? Also, what was that about "e-sports" and are you saying this is gonna be a walkover for our well seeded Canadian and American players.



Wow, one at a time guys calm down! Ok where to begin... well, you see here's the thing. Starcraft grew into what it is today in Korea, and IdrA has consistently been one of but an elite few "foreigners" (people from outside of Korea) who can compete. But no, this is not gonna be a walkover. In fact, last MLG (won by HuK) was the first time a "foreigner" beat a korean in the finals of an MLG. Hell, it was the first time that a foreigner beat a korean in the finals of a major tournament on North American soil. But it wasn't the first time a foreigner beat a korean in the finals of a tournament. HuK achieved that feat several months ago in the summer at a major european tournament, and IdrA did the same a week before MLG at a tournament in China. Right now, we are at the start of what appears to be a major turning point. A French player Stephano also won two tournaments filled with Koreans in the past month and a bit.



Wow, one at a time guys calm down! Ok where to begin... well, you see here's the thing. Starcraft grew into what it is today in Korea, and IdrA has consistently been one of but an elite few "foreigners" (people from outside of Korea) who can compete. But no, this is not gonna be a walkover. In fact, last MLG (won by HuK) was the first time a "foreigner" beat a korean in the finals of an MLG. Hell, it was the first time that a foreigner beat a korean in the finals of a major tournament on North American soil. But it wasn't the first time a foreigner beat a korean in the finals of a tournament. HuK achieved that feat several months ago in the summer at a major european tournament, and IdrA did the same a week before MLG at a tournament in China. Right now, we are at the start of what appears to be a major turning point. A French player Stephano also won two tournaments filled with Koreans in the past month and a bit. 5... So you're calling this a sport?



Better! It's an e-sport! Listen, these are competitors and they are doing things far outside any of our abilities. They are performing hundreds of actions every minute, and if they slip up, if they're looking the wrong way at the wrong time, they can lose the game. This is an e-sport. A competition where the players are in one location but the player pool is global, and it's fucking bad ass. There are crazy timing attacks, long wars of attrition, a fifty thousand dollar prize for first place, double rainb---



Better! It's an e-sport! Listen, these are competitors and they are doing things far outside any of our abilities. They are performing hundreds of actions every minute, and if they slip up, if they're looking the wrong way at the wrong time, they can lose the game. This is an e-sport. A competition where the players are in one location but the player pool is global, and it's fucking bad ass. There are crazy timing attacks, long wars of attrition, a fifty thousand dollar prize for first place, double rainb--- 6. FIFTY THOUSAND DOLLARS?



Fifty thousand dollars my friend. We don't want no scrubs. These are the best of the best (minus a few notable europeans) competing for one of the largest prize purses in Starcraft history.



Fifty thousand dollars my friend. We don't want no scrubs. These are the best of the best (minus a few notable europeans) competing for one of the largest prize purses in Starcraft history. 7... Alright, I dig. Wow that's kind of exciting. So I know who the good guys are now, that HuK guy sounds totally gosu. Who are the bad guys?



Well now lets not be racist here, unless we're bashing terrans because they're totally OP. GomTvT am I right!?



Well now lets not be racist here, unless we're bashing terrans because they're totally OP. GomTvT am I right!? Uh...



Nevermind that. As I was saying, there are plenty of awesome Koreans to root for as well. But if you're asking who the favorites are to fly over here sponsered by their teams so that they can crush threw the competition and take all the money, then the answer is watch out for IMNestea and IMMVP. Both from team Incredible Miracle, they are (in most people's opinion) the two best players in the world. Nestea has been a little shaky lately, but he's still practically invincable. One of the great things about starcraft is it's actually six different games, which are the different race matchups. Nestea for example, is not going to lose to a zerg this tournament. Every once every blue moon Nestea does lose a ZvZ (zerg vs zerg), and there are some truly great zergs in this tournament. But Nestea is better at beating those zergs than any other zerg in the world. He also has fantastic ZvP when his nerves don't get the better of him, and he ain't no slouch at ZvT either, although if he loses a match, it'll most likely be a ZvT. MVP, a terran player on the other hand, is absurdly strong in all his matchups, and even though he is in the open bracket, and has to play at least three times as many games as his rival MMA, he is the favorite to win the whole thing.



Nevermind that. As I was saying, there are plenty of awesome Koreans to root for as well. But if you're asking who the favorites are to fly over here sponsered by their teams so that they can crush threw the competition and take all the money, then the answer is watch out for IMNestea and IMMVP. Both from team Incredible Miracle, they are (in most people's opinion) the two best players in the world. Nestea has been a little shaky lately, but he's still practically invincable. One of the great things about starcraft is it's actually six different games, which are the different race matchups. Nestea for example, is not going to lose to a zerg this tournament. Every once every blue moon Nestea does lose a ZvZ (zerg vs zerg), and there are some truly great zergs in this tournament. But Nestea is better at beating those zergs than any other zerg in the world. He also has fantastic ZvP when his nerves don't get the better of him, and he ain't no slouch at ZvT either, although if he loses a match, it'll most likely be a ZvT. MVP, a terran player on the other hand, is absurdly strong in all his matchups, and even though he is in the open bracket, and has to play at least three times as many games as his rival MMA, he is the favorite to win the whole thing. 7. Wow you're not very good at this whole "guide" thing eh? You lost me at "Zerg".



I did? And yet you've still read this far? Nice. Alright, for the complete noobs out there let me break it down super quick. If you've played starcraft before you can glance over this. There's three "races" that people use to destroy the other person. Zerg, Protoss, and Terran. And... you know what, lets let the one true source of all starcraft knowledge do this for me. Taken word for word from a better person than, or group of people than me who posted it on Liquipedia:



I did? And yet you've still read this far? Nice. Alright, for the complete noobs out there let me break it down super quick. If you've played starcraft before you can glance over this. There's three "races" that people use to destroy the other person. Zerg, Protoss, and Terran. And... you know what, lets let the one true source of all starcraft knowledge do this for me. Taken word for word from a better person than, or group of people than me who posted it on Liquipedia:

Game Mechanics



Players are required to strategically and quickly manage their Economy, Technology and Army in order to defeat their opponent. The basis of playing is, on the one hand, to harvest resources and on the other hand using said resources to purchase buildings, upgrades and units.



In this most basic understanding of the game we distinguish two tasks for the player: Macro and Micro. As the name indicates, Micro refers to more local, specialized events, while Macro concerns the overall flow of the game and the economical side. It is important for every Starcraft player to have a balance of these two.



Micro (or micromanagement in full) encompasses managing your army. Moving, attacking, retreating with the ultimate goal of overpowering your opponent. Micro is the ability to control your units individually, in order to make up for pathing or otherwise imperfect AI. For example, splitting Marines in order to suffer fewer loss from a Baneling attack, or being able to perform multiple kills with Mutalisks is considered "Micro". The general theory of micro is to keep as many units alive as possible. For example it is better to have four half-dead Stalkers after a battle, rather than to have two Stalkers at full health and two dead ones.



Macro encompasses managing your economy and technology: making sure you have an income (by harvesting resources) and spending said income (by purchasing buildings, upgrades and units). Macro is your ability to produce units, and keep all of your production buildings busy. Generally, the player with the better macro will have the larger army. The other element of macro is your ability to expand at the appropriate times to keep your production of units flowing. A good macro player is able to keep increasing his or her production capability while having the resources to support it.







Bam. So there's three races which people choose from to win through micro and macro.



Bam. So there's three races which people choose from to win through micro and macro. 8. Wow... sounds like there's a lot to learn



There is! So why not grab a drink, and let your buddies or fellow bar patrons tell you what's going on!



There is! So why not grab a drink, and let your buddies or fellow bar patrons tell you what's going on! I root for Euro Zergs, NA Protoss* and Korean Terrans. (Any North American who has beat a Korean Pro as Protoss counts as NA Toss)