Yes. A SC br at last, from NotJim! Unfortunately, most of it will be in text. The reason is simple: I am trying to remember a game I played. Again.

You may have noticed the new look. Please tell me if you like it.

Okay okay. Let's go on to the more important stuff. After my friend's zerg took a pounding from a fast reaver drop on LT (droneless drone line in about 6 minutes), I asked if I could play.

I entered the realm of the small games sector. Then I saw a game that sounded interesting, and as it had only been created a few seconds ago, I went in immediately. There were 2 other players, one chose Zerg and the other randomed.

I quickly randomed as well, willing to risk an all-Zerg ffa.

From now on, I will be called NotJim. The guy who randomed is called Raccoon, and the guy who chose Zerg will be called Apear.

Now on to the basics:

The map of choice, as you can see, is Meltdown. I like this map because it is easy to refer to (at least for me) and it is symmetrical (which obviously displeases others). Okay, I am taking an idea from ~CattleBruiser~'s reports: lettering the areas of interest. You will have to refer to this map frequently. For a separate view of this map, right-click here, then click on 'Open in New Window'.

There are 3 mains (duh) on this map (A, B, E), with 3 inter-connecting mineral-only expansions (D, C, G) accessible to both players' chokes. There are also 3 gas-only expansions at J, H and I, which are near the centre, which is at F.

That's all for the preliminaries. Now on to the game!

NotJim, having not played for so long, plays the game of RetardCraft™ instead of StarCraft™ and tried to wall off, at I, as follows:

He researched siege mode as soon the shop was ready, and got a starport later. He was planning a mech/wraith/infantry strategy.

Raccoon warped in three gateways and powered a sizable chunk of zealots, then dragoons as soon the core was ready. From what I saw, he chose zealots/dragoons/templar/corsairs with observer support for a ground-based attack.

Apear did an early expansion strategy, getting a dozen or so token zerglings and an overlord for early defense. He went for early lair and was going for a lurker rush.

Scouting and Attempted Crime

Apear was the first to scout, sending his enormous overlord towards Raccoon's main. I could tell that happened, because of the gay spam that went up the screen.

Raccoon was second to scout, sending out his 10th or so probe. It headed towards I, and started to distract my SCV which was building the depot. Luckily I was not disrupted, for my first marine was ready and hammered at the probe, which then entered the base before getting destroyed by a few SCVs.

Deon had just exited earlier. Having reached E, Apear's main, he had a look before being chased out by hungry zerglings. He then ventured towards the area between A and J, greeting 3 angry zealots patrolling the base. He weaved in and out, gathering valuable information before getting the hell outta there. I asked him if he could stay in the middle for a while. He reluctantly agreed, but poor Deon was surrounded and eaten by those same hungry zerglings.

I vowed revenge.

Just after, Apear sent those zerglings to Raccoon's main via D (his early expansion), needing to regroup. Only one zealot was ready, and a furious micro intensive battle ensued. Apear sent about 3 zerglings to the mineral line, while using the other 3 to distract the zealot. The zerglings in the mineral line pulled off some kills before the second and third zealots were ready. However, the annoyance already had some damaging effect, with about 4 probes lost. Apear had nearly lost all his zerglings, and ran the remains away, losing yet another one.

As said in the build order section, Raccoon was powering zealots for an early rush. He exited his base and headed towards mine. By the time his first 5 or so zealots had arrived, I had just started on my second factory and had finished my machine shop add-on.

The first few zealots weaved around my pathetic 'wall' and went straight for the mineral line. Cursing my stupidity, I nevertheless had placed my 3 marines near my mineral line earlier and used my SCVs for cover. Thinking that my lone depots wouldn't stand a chance, Raccoon switched targets, and hammered away on my barracks and depot. I finished a marine before the barracks lifted off, and sent my 3 other marines and my vulture to the zealous offenders, while building 2 bunkers between B and I. The zealots pounded on the depots, but the marines and the vulture engaged the zealots immediately.

One marine down... two... but meanwhile, the following had happened: both bunkers were done, as were 2 siege tanks, siege mode research, and about 4 marines. The 4 marines hopped in the bunker and hammered away, leaving the zealots with no choice but to retreat. After I sieged up, I saw 3 retreating dragoons in the distance.

The Not so Adventurous MidGame

After the skirmish, I began production on an academy and starport. Deon came back to the middle just for a while, and built a few turrets just inside my tank range. My academy had finished, so 3 marines and a firebat hopped in at I, with 2 siege tanks nearby, getting ready for any frontal attack. Wraiths flew across, guarding the skies.

Apear had finished his lurker tech much earlier, and hatched 4 lurker eggs outside D. Unfortunately for him, a few mixed zealots/dragoons came across, discovered the eggs, and discovered the expansion. To make things worse, I had comsatted there just then, so I was in the knowing.

From what I saw, a few cannons were then built at random places around his base. I did the same, and scattered turrets around mine as well.

Apear then spammed up and down the screen claiming that we hacked and people were conspiring against him. Hehe. Anyway, he made a few more lurkers. From what I saw from regular checks, he used his lurkers for recon and defense. He created a small expansion at H. (Needed the hatchery anyway)

I noticed that my main was already starting to run dry and my stores piling up due to lack of macro, so I decided to expand both at I and G, adding a silo at I and a comsat at G.

Raccoon seemed to expand as well, and a fodder group of wraiths found the Protoss expansion at C. To quote ~CattleBruiser~: "a lone observer (okay, there were a few cannons as well) spells their doom, as the wraiths crumble to corsairs like an origami bird in a trash compactor."

Update

Unless your brain is as thick as TIME's, you'll know that everyone has been mostly consolidating after the early skirmishes. Everyone has 1 main and 2 expansions: Me at I, B and G. Raccoon at A, J, and C. And finally, Apear at D, E and H.

Time for the action!

The first bit of battle starts as I build a firebase outside Raccoon's expansion at C. Noticing this, he prepares to strike hard when necessary, back at my main.

Apear also thinks about harassing me and sends groups of mutalisks at G, which is lightly defended. Noticing this, I send some reinforcements in the form of Science Vessels! Yes, Science Vessels. I don't know why. I also turreted everywhere, regrettably laying out the foundations for the dreaded Terran Turtle™. But it repelled the mutalisks, and if hydras would come, then Irradiate would lay them to rest.

Back to my firebase outside C: I started pushing out to the point where I hammered at Raccoon's cannons. He seemed pretty pissed, and yes, he once again spammed up and down the screen. Just when the last bits of "OH FUCK YOU BITCH" faded away, he immediately sent in a few corsairs, webbed the tanks, and dropped reavers right in front of my troops. They seemed to be only distractions as an enormous wave of Protoss infantry swarmed the area.

I immediately unsieged the tanks and drove them away. The marines engaged the infantry, the firebats stripping the zealots/dragoons/templar of their shields. Vultures swooped in, laying mines. However, the high templar unleashed their psionic energies, and repeatedly blanketed my forces with storm.

When the dust settled (gogo cliché), I had lost all my standing infantry, and only had 5 tanks, a few goliaths and wraiths remaining. Surprisingly, no defensive structures were lost.

Raccoon had lost everything, but rebuilt very easily and the next thing I saw, a full control group of zealots swarmed in (now 2/1/0 compared to my 1/1) and destroyed the tanks easily. However, I unloaded all my bunkers, stimmed, then reloaded. This alone saved me from a complete loss. The zealots exchanged damage with the bunkers, and the skirmish was so closely fought that when the last zealot departed to Aiur, my last marine was at 4hp! But a bunch of dragoons came and smashed him so badly that he then resembled T_Mac's modem.

Just after this ended, Apear sends his 2/2 cracklings towards Raccoon's main via D. They danced, in a line, right into two overlapping storms.

Apear was successful in destroying exactly one photon cannon and two high templar in this battle.

Ring-around the Meltdown

After I had rebuilt all my forces, I decided to attack Apear instead, using my G expansion as an outpost. Around 30 mixed 2/1 infantry, mostly marines (duh) gathered around, as I waited for an appropriate moment to strike.

At this time too, Apear gathered around D, obviously preparing to attack Raccoon. When I scanned, I said "FUCKING GUARDIANS" and promptly pumped goliaths like a madman.

Raccoon completed the circle and gathered around C to hit me bad from behind. I had already prepared for this and turtled a bit around there with tanks, goliaths and ghosts.

Forces count:

This was a very tense moment. The whole game could depend on this...

Attack! What are you waiting for!

I pushed in first to E, engaging the first sunkens with stimmed infantry. Raccoon also hit me just then behind B, the reavers already destroying a goliath. I decided to micro my defenses and used attack-move on my attackers, pausing every now and then to stim my hotkeyed infantry groups.

After the reavers came, a group of corsairs came and webbed the bunkers and most of my tanks. I unsieged my tanks, and mined the area, causing numerous units to die. Ghosts immobilized the corsairs, which died quickly. Goliaths pounded on anything that was teal, destroying dark templar that were revealed via comsat (outside turret detection range). My few remaining tanks sieged up, and blasted the zealots' heads off.

However, the high templar finally came into battle and once again unleashed their psionic energies. Although only a ghost or two was lost, all my tanks were in the red, and SCVs were pulled off the mineral line to help.

Even though the tank's life was extended, and reinforcements were called off the factories, numerous speed-upgraded zealots sliced through my base defenders and some penetrated. But that came at a cost: all his forces died, and several 2-2-1 zealots were hacking away at random targets.

The SCVs. In remembrance to Psyonic's probes, they turned to the zealots, and destroyed them all, losing only 2 to their number. Reinforcements were called from the factories, starports and barracks, fending off the few remaining dragoons attempting to follow up.

I lost all my original units and all defensive structures, but remarkably very little else. Although both of my starports were burning.

Only when I looked back at Apear's main did I realize the damage done. Almost everything was destroyed, and I still had 2 science vessels and a few marines remaining. Apear still had his hive, but only had a spawning pool, a hydralisk den, a greater spire, 2 spore colonies, an evolution chamber and a queen's nest, all in the red.

I kamikazed my remaining marines, and saw two things:

1. a shitload of zerglings

2. 10 drones working.

Unfortunately, I was in no position to follow up as half of my SCVs were decimated in the big battle in my main, and had little defense myself.

All I got from the battle above A is that the guardians flew in a spread formation, reducing the damage from storm, while the hydralisks and lurkers flanked from D and J respectively. The ground troops were taken care of by the dragoons and dark templar, while the guardians were weakened by storm before being finished off by corsairs.

But when I scanned, there were hydralisks still there, and Raccoon lost many probes, nearly all his troops, but no cannons lost, and he still had his tech buildings. T_T contradictions.

Madness takes you over...

Currently I realized that Apear was in the worst position, with only about 15 zerglings and 2 sunkens for defense. Raccoon was faring fairly well despite the severe blow to his economy, and was producing mostly CARRIERS for attack/defense. But I was doing the best, with already having one of nearly all ground units. I immediately struck at Apear's expansion at H with 1 tank, 2 goliaths, 3 marines, 2 firebats, one medic and a vulture. Oh, and 3 wraiths were sent to Raccoon's expansion at J, which were shredded by a few cannons.

About 4 sunkens, and 20 zerglings were waiting for me at the expansion. Crap.

The kamikaze vulture drove right in the zergling group and layed a mine, taking about 4 zerglings with him. The rest of the zerglings, 3/2 now, proceeded to swarm right though the group, and everything died, leaving a stalemate.

Meanwhile, Raccoon switched targets to Apear, and sent in a control group of speed-upgraded zealots to D, and managed to raze both sunkens guarding the expansion before surrounded and dying to mutalisks and zerglings.

At this moment now:

Raccoon: guys, i really need gtg.......

Apear: gettin bored......

NotJim: alright

NotJim: shall we do this

NotJim: in one really big fight

NotJim: ?

Raccoon: agreed

Apear: smae

NotJim: kk

NotJim: gogogogogo

We then shared vision. I didn't bother to look at the bases; that's not really important anyway.

Elimination

NotJim now has a bit of everything: tanks, goliaths, vultures, infantry, wraiths, valkyries, and a science vessel. Regrettably, only one ghost was available as my science facility went down. I didn't have enough gas anyway.

Raccoon has 4 observers and 6 3/0 carriers. Yes, nothing else.

Apear now has 30 3/3 cracklings. Yay. And 4 defilers. YAY.

So the battle started at J, about 25 minutes in the game (me thinks) which ends the game. The carriers make themselves known by waving out interceptors, destroying some of my troops. The defilers cast dark swarm, murdering my ranged troops. However, my wraiths cloak, defensive matrix is cast, and suddenly the carriers aren't so superior anymore.

I pump more firebats to counter the cracklings/swarm. My science vessels still have some energy left and irradiate the cracklings, while the defilers are brought down my focus fire.

The carriers die again, but a few corsairs make an entrance, and proceed to be FUCKING ANNOYING by webbing the whole area. I move away, undeterred, and proceed to eliminate the opponent, switching to D. Raccoon switched to I and B, and Apear focused on the gay teal main at A.

There was surprisingly very little resistance from any side. The Zerg expansion was crushed easily, my gas expansion decimated by reavers, and the cracklings/dark swarm/plague a rampage.

I was also done with the Zerg main, and continued on with the gas expansion...

Raccoon, meanwhile, had leveled my gas expansion and my main completely and found my mineral only expansion at G, founding a resistance force of 6 tanks and a few missile turrets. Raccoon attempted to break my turtle with Corsairs, but my lone ghost locked then down, and were shot down.

Apear had nearly finished off the main at A, and proceeded to the cannoned (aka gayed) up expansion at C.

The really funny thing that happened now was, one drone, and probe and one SCV went to the middle and constructed those gas-absorbing things.

When all our bases were destroyed, we turned to the middle, where there were the only buildings left in the game. My troops, after going back to my expansion and failing to defend it, went back to H to find the extractor puffing away. My troops focused fire on it, and suddenly...

Apear was eliminated.

Yay! Now only one more to go. Unfortunately, Raccoon found my gas, and proceeded to destroy it. I found his, and focused fire on it... and guess what! Both exploded at the same time:

NotJim was eliminated.

Raccoon was eliminated.

You could say I won... but we called it a draw. GG!