"A Server split just as I was about to enter a YRM game and into history..."
-[MrFurious]
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| Vanilla is tough | | | Author: | | | IP: | h225n1flXXXX | | Date: | 06/04/01 01:06 | | Game Type: | Starcraft | | Labels: | none | | Report Rating: , # of Ratings: 1, Max: 5, Min: 5
Lifetime Rating for ^)Vanilla(...: 6.0000 |  | Vanilla is tough
Hi there folks, I'm back! After my previous loss against KingPin..!! I felt a thurst I hadn't felt in a long time, I wanted blood, I wanted to win, I wanted to be loved again.. hey wait a minute..
So anyway, after a few easy wins in games like "1v1 newbies BEST MAP EVER" and a few crushing losses at the hands of more experienced players, I found an opponent at my skill level. His name was Soul~Burner, with a record that was something like 13-5-1. Considering mine is right now 1-5-0, his wasn't that bad.
I joined his public game, but for some reason it didn't start so we agreed to play a private game. I picked protoss and he picked random. The map was as always The Lost Temple. Just like in my last report, this game is played in Original starcraft, vanilla. You may download the replay here.
^)Vanilla(... vs Soul~Burner
Early Game
Since I didn't know his race, I did what I usually do, I assume he's terran or protoss, and go for dragoons. Well, incase he turns out to be zerg I'll get some micro practice :)
After my first pylon on 8 psi I scouted with a probe counter-clockwise, finding him at 12. After seeing that he was terran, I felt secure with my dragoons coming rather early. I was surprised when I saw that he had not walled himself in, but trusted his six or so marines to do the job. My scouting probe didn't see a refinery either.
I built a gateway at 12 psi and an assimilator at 13. Since I knew there would be some early marines I ordered up a zealot as soon as the gateway finnished. The cybernetics core was started at 15 psi.
When my first dragoon finnished I sent it and my zealot towards Soul~Burners base, but they were intercepted in the middle by a handfull of marines and an scv. We both microed the troops, but his marines weren't able to kill any of my units. Instead I managed to kill all but one of his marines.
Two more dragoons finnished (2 gateways) and I sent them north also. But my wounded zealot and dragoon died to another batch of six marines before the reinforcements had arrived, and since I didn't feel confident that I could micro two dragoons without range against six marines, I retreated them.
Mid Game
My next two dragoons finnished and I moved out to face the marines. They too had been reinforced however, and a bunker was being constructed at my choke, just above the minerals in my natural. I had no chance of killing the marines before the bunkar finnished. Crap. I pulled back and awaited more troops. I also built a citadel of adun to get zealot speed and another gateway, plus I had started a weapons upgrade in my forge.
I charged the bunker formation (2 now) with 5 dragoons, killing a few marines and a bunker before retreating. Now as I realized that I could not break the siege immediately, I built a templar archives, because I hadn't seen any turrets at my choke. It finnishes and I click on my gateway. Vanilla. No dark templar. Doh!
So I realized that I'd have to break the containment the old fashioned way, by attacking it head-on with zealots and dragoons. I waited untill I have a few zealots and more dragoons then I charged. I managed to kill a bunker and a few more marines than the last time, but as the last zealot perished and the dragoons pulled back, a bunker still remined. I tried a last attack with three or so zealots and a few dragoons, and it killed the bunker just as two tanks and more marines arrived to the site. Boo.
At this point I decided not to attack for a while. Fine, let him have the choke and dance around the minerals or whatever, I'll just build up my forces. I researched storm, increased my gateway number to four, and focused on making speedy zealots with some templar and a few dragoons. I pumped zealots untill I had 12 or so, with 5 dragoons as backup, and then I charged. I used all my forces, and I had to get rid of that containment or he'd push those tanks up my protoss butt.
Fortunately for me, his tank placement was very poor, his three tanks was sieged in front of the two bunkers, allowing my zealots to kill them very quickly, and as I discovered, marines do very badly against speed zealots with +1 attack, even if you put them in bunkers.
End Game
My main was almost dry now, and I hastily expanded to my natural while sending my army north to contain Soul~Burner. Using a newly built shuttle I expanded to the southern island aswell, since I had some spare cash. I divided my army into three units, hotkeyed ofcourse. The first was positioned in his mineral only, the second near 3's choke point and the third at my mineral only. This way I could flank any tanks coming out of his base (thanks for the tips I got on my last report, it helped.) I also bought some observers so I could monitor his choke for activity.
After a few minutes I saw him move a group of siege tanks, about twelve of them, to his choke and siege them there. I got ready for some action, and soon enough, he unsieged them all under the watchful eye of my observer, and moved them south towards my base. Big mistake. I attacked them from the sides and head-on, crushing them before they even got a chance to siege. I lost almost no units. The rest was clean-up, I attacked his base and overwhelmed him easily.
Game Thoughts
The early containment scared me at first. I threw troops at it and it didn't break. But then I discovered exactly how powerful a protoss can be using only his main base. You really can crush you opponent without that expansion.
His containment, yes. Perhaps he should have attacked me in the beginning instead of containing me, or just have earlier tanks and pushed me. I also wonder why he went all out marines in the beginning (3 barracks) when he knew that I was protoss. He should have mixed in some firebadtz atleast.
Anyway, maybe it was a one sided game, but the way I experienced it, it was close. I was pretty sure he would kill me once I saw those bunkers. Thanks to the people who commented on my last report and gave me some good advise, they helped me alot. Please give me some advise here too, what's the best thing to do when you're contained like this? Maybe I should have invested in reavers and dropped his main, but I was aiming for dark templar... too bad it's vanilla. Again, the replay is here.
Thanks for reading,
^)Vanilla(... |
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