Starcraft 2 Newbie Guide: Fight The Cheese

Cheese Editor's note: I've been playing the Starcraft 2 beta for about a month now, and although I've cemented my position in the gold league, I still have a few lessons to learn. Luckily, Rich has prepared a list of anti-cheese strategies which should help any noob under attack. My advice: pump out Mutalisks like your life depended on it. -Omar

Cheese [cheez] – noun:

The curd of milk separated from the whey and prepared in many ways as a food.
Informal. Early Starcraft tactics that involve the abandonment of resource efficiency in the pursuit of an effective surprise attack.

Starcraft 2's multiplayer brings out the best and worst in people. If you’ve played the beta (or any other Blizzard real-time strategy game), the predictability of decade-old veterans might shock you. Considering the space between the launch of Starcraft 2 and its predecessor, it would be safe to assume that things have changed. Unfortunately, competitors still employ the same annoying tactics.

If you're new to the scene and plan to dive into Starcraft 2 this July, keep one thing in mind: People are jerks.

Yes, I made a sweeping generalization that seems uncalled for, but facts are facts. You'll feel much better if you keep my adage in the back of your mind. In fact, you’ll probably anticipate cheap, cheesy moves that only exist to anger you. Allow me to quickly break down the most important things for those of you without a beta key.

Strategic harassment
If you played Warcraft 3: Reign of Chaos, you already know what I’m talking about. Early-game harassment is back in a big way. As a noob to the scene, I learned first hand. The Terran army received sweet units, called Reapers (pictured right), whose primary purpose is to kill your workers and drive you completely insane.

See those radical jetpacks? They allow Reapers to quickly leap into your base and back out again. Be ready for it.

Zerg will rush you
Don’t take it personally -- it’s just what they do. Be ready for a rush of Zerglings or Roaches if you're facing a Zerg opponent.

Don't panic when your foe enters your base with a handful of early units. Just turn your workers against the enemy. That’s right. In the early game your workers can go toe-to-toe reasonably well with a small batch of Zerglings. Try to kite the 'lings as much as possible, especially if you have ranged units available. If they surround your workers, they're toast.

Tower rush improved -- now with cannons and bunkers!
An enemy worker lurks in your base. Naturally, you think he’s just scouting. You’re wrong. Remember what I told you: People are jerks. That worker will start building fortifications as soon as you stop working. Once those buildings are up, you'll be pinned faster than Tiger Woods can apologize. If you see any workers, you’re in good shape. If you didn’t, be prepared for a frustrating fight.

Should your opponent play Protoss, aim for the pylons. Terran rivals will use Space Construction Vehicles to build bunkers -- take 'em all down. Fighting Zerg? Well, let’s just say they have a spiffy underground network now. When you see creep in your base, brace yourself.

Air units will destroy your main building
Whether you have a nexus, hatchery, or command center, be ready for cheese. Use scout units to survey the map and keep an eye on your opponent, because the moment you lapse, you'll be knee-deep in air units -- the Protoss Void Rays (my personal favorite) are particularly adept at base destruction. Players will often cheese their way to an aerial armada if you give them enough idle time, so don't.

Get familiar
Before you do anything, be sure to poke around with the computer. Currently, the beta’s A.I. has one difficulty setting: very easy. This mode should give you more than enough elbow room to try out build orders, learn about tech trees, and read tool tips.

I hope my harrowing and painful experiences have helped those of you who are new to the franchise. If you hunger for more information, be sure to peruse the Starcraft 2 forums for tips, tricks, and more detailed strategies.

I'm off to construct additional pylons.

Tags: StarCraft, Warcraft 3: Reign of Chaos, Starcraft 2: Wings of Liberty

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Mike Minotti

May 12, 2010

I really, really suck at Starcraft 2. Maybe this will help.

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Jason Wilson

It's going to help me...I didn't realize I could play vs. the A.I.

Edgar Mena

I tried my best at getting a Planetary Fortess Rush with the Terrans, but they're usually on their second base by then. :(

There's these PC rental spots in Los Angeles that are running SC2 Betas. Check them out if you're in the area: http://www.c-ring.com/home.html

Rick Knight

Whoa! Front page! Thanks Bitmob community and staffers.

I'm glad I could help guys. It's tough jumping into something blind and powering through it without at least a basic primer on expectations.

Michael Bellmore

May 13, 2010

Don't forget that any Terran player should use their initial supply depots and barracks to wall off the entry ramp to their base. Otherwise, you'll lose fast if playing a competent player.

Rob Savillo

Excellent advice. I'd add that rushes can come from any faction, and a Zealot rush can prove even more difficult to defend against than a Zergling rush.

And a combination of two tactics you've identified exists -- the Terran Banshee rush, which is when a Terran player techs to Banshees (high-damage, air-to-ground attack unit) quickly and sends them directly to your base. Even one can eliminate your economy if you don't have any anti-air!

Rushes can be funny at times. For Zerg, it's about 12 Zerglings that start a rush before Roaches are out. For Terrans, 5 - 8 Marines, before the Reapers. But for the Protoss, 3 Zealots could do it. I was killed by 3 Z-guys once. Oh, the shame...

Man, you rush too late! If you're rushing with Zerg, it should be the first six 'lings that are out. For Protoss and Terran, one or two Zealots or Marines.

In most instances, a rush won't win you the game, but it will disrupt the opponent's economy, which should be your goal anyway. That's why you need to get out there as fast as possible with whatever you have. If you're scouting properly, you should be able to do this before the other player has any units at all.

Craig Ostrin

A good thing to remember about proxy cannon/gate/barracks/etc (or "tower rush," as you call it), is that while they're building all this stuff outside your base, theirs is usually undefended.

Often with Protoss, if they're just building cannons at your base, you can destroy the Probe and make a beeline for their base.

May 15, 2010

@Rob, Yeah, my RTS playing needs work. I prefer to turtle and build through the tech tree. The Starcraft defences (bunkers, cannons, etc) are handy in tier 1 and 2, but late in the game, they're just annoying speed bumps to be blasted away.