Let's Learn Starcraft: From Zero to Hero
Schedule
• Tuesday @ 5PM PST | Countdown:
• Thursday @ 5PM PST | Countdown:
How to Watch
• Livestream on Twitch
• VODs on YouTube Playlist
Show information
Starting on September 7th, Day[9] is airing a new show called Let's Learn Starcraft. The purpose is to help bring someone from "zero to hero," from someone who knows little to nothing about StarCraft to someone who can enjoy the game as a regular player and watcher of competitive SC:R.
The show will cover a wide range of topics, from strategy to mechanics to simply covering great games of the past. The first episode will be an in-depth analysis of Stork vs Fantasy, a PvT game from the 2008 Incruit OSL grand finals. This should get new players excited to see where the game can take you if you put some time into it.
Day[9] made a more detailed post on r/Starcraft, outlining the plans for the show going forward. You can read that below:
+ Show Spoiler [Post from Day9] +
Ahoy /r/Starcraft!
As many of you know, I am over the moon happy that StarCraft: Remastered has released. I grew up playing StarCraft as basically the only thing I did, and now I’m once again BGHing and 1v1ing away! Loads of people are revisiting StarCraft (or even trying for the first time) and, as many reddit posts have noted, the gameplay of the original StarCraft can be a bit daunting.
So, for the next several months, I’m going to be doing a twice weekly show called Let’s Learn Starcraft! The purpose is to help bring someone from “zero to hero,” from someone who knows little to nothing about StarCraft to someone who can enjoy the game as a regular player and watcher of competitive SC:R.
StarCraft is a true challenge, but once you’ve learned enough, the simple act of playing StarCraft feels so good whether you win or lose. I sincerely hope this series can help showcase the joy and beauty of StarCraft
How to Watch
Topics and format
There are three categories of topics that will be covered and shows may be broken into smaller chunks. For example: Zerg Micro Tuesday with four 20-25 minute videos that each focus on a different core zerg unit micro - Mutalisk, Ling/Lurker, Hydralisk, and Defiler
Strategy
How to think about strategy in StarCraft, common builds / compositions in each matchup etc.
Mechanics
How to properly macro / micro / manage your base / manage different unit compositions etc.
Awesome Matches
Let’s watch amazing games of StarCraft (some old, some new!) to see the glory of competitive Brood War! Huge thanks to OGN for providing these replays.
Any Questions?
Are there any topics you want me to cover? Any question you’d like to ask? Feel free to dump it in this thread. I’ll be back in an hour because I need to drop a friend off at the airport woo!
As many of you know, I am over the moon happy that StarCraft: Remastered has released. I grew up playing StarCraft as basically the only thing I did, and now I’m once again BGHing and 1v1ing away! Loads of people are revisiting StarCraft (or even trying for the first time) and, as many reddit posts have noted, the gameplay of the original StarCraft can be a bit daunting.
So, for the next several months, I’m going to be doing a twice weekly show called Let’s Learn Starcraft! The purpose is to help bring someone from “zero to hero,” from someone who knows little to nothing about StarCraft to someone who can enjoy the game as a regular player and watcher of competitive SC:R.
StarCraft is a true challenge, but once you’ve learned enough, the simple act of playing StarCraft feels so good whether you win or lose. I sincerely hope this series can help showcase the joy and beauty of StarCraft
How to Watch
Topics and format
There are three categories of topics that will be covered and shows may be broken into smaller chunks. For example: Zerg Micro Tuesday with four 20-25 minute videos that each focus on a different core zerg unit micro - Mutalisk, Ling/Lurker, Hydralisk, and Defiler
Strategy
How to think about strategy in StarCraft, common builds / compositions in each matchup etc.
- What is strategy and how does it tie into execution / mechanics
- How to practice
- A thorough review of each matchup - common units, strategies, openings, cheeses, and counter cheeses
- How to construct a strategy and adjust it over time
- How to identify weaknesses and strengths in an opening build order
- How to change plans during crisis management
- How to scout and what signals to look for
- A review of tactics
- How tactical considerations can affect game-wide strategies
Mechanics
How to properly macro / micro / manage your base / manage different unit compositions etc.
- Small scale unit control (micro)
- Mid and large scale unit control
- Worker scouting and management
- Base management
- Hotkey setups and tricks
- Mouse and keyboard control
- Macro
- Building placement tricks
Awesome Matches
Let’s watch amazing games of StarCraft (some old, some new!) to see the glory of competitive Brood War! Huge thanks to OGN for providing these replays.
- Stork vs Fantasy PvT Incruit OSL 2008 Finals
- Jaedong vs Yellow[ArnC] ZvZ Bacchus OSL 2009 Finals
- Iloveoov vs Reach PvT Ever OSL 2004 Semifinals
- Movie vs Shine Ever PvZ OSL 2009 Semifinals
- Flash vs Fantasy TvT Tving Semifinals
- Flash vs Shine TvZ Tving Quarterfinals
- Jangbi vs Mini PvP Tving Quarterfinals
- And moar!
Any Questions?
Are there any topics you want me to cover? Any question you’d like to ask? Feel free to dump it in this thread. I’ll be back in an hour because I need to drop a friend off at the airport woo!
Quote Day[9]:
StarCraft is a true challenge, but once you’ve learned enough, the simple act of playing StarCraft feels so good whether you win or lose. I sincerely hope this series can help showcase the joy and beauty of StarCraft
.
Preamble: Introduction to Brood War
This video is an unofficial primer for the show Let's Learn Starcraft. In it, Day[9] highlights what may be the most important aspect for you to understand as you begin to learn Brood War: The mechanical difficulty is not a barrier you must overcome so that you may then begin to play the game -- it is the game.
How you deal with that difficulty - how you choose to allocate your APM to do certain things in the game - becomes a big part of Starcraft strategy. Day[9] gives a few examples, and explains how different approaches lead to different styles of play.
- Also read: Mechanics Guide on Liquipedia
Episode 0: Why Starcraft is Awesome
In this first episode of Let's Learn Starcraft, Day[9] talks about what's coming up in the show, shows off some build order examples and counter-examples to give people an idea of the multiple ways you can counter what your opponent is doing. This was to prepare everyone for episode 1 - released the same day - which was a fairly deep but newbie-friendly analysis of the Stork vs Fantasy 2008 Incruit Grand Finals.
As new episodes come out, I will post them in a playlist below, adding topics to each one so that it will be easier to find the ones you're looking for. I hope you all tune in to his streams for future episodes!
[Back to top]
+ Show Spoiler [Old announcement post] +
In case you've missed it, Sean "Day[9]" Plott has talked about his hype for Starcraft: Remastered on his stream lately, and since it's Day[9] talking about Starcraft it's pretty damn good.
First off, he made a rant about what Brood War is and why it's so beautiful. He talked about how the mechanics of Starcraft is what defines the game, that the control limitations are not obstacles to overcome so that you can then play StarCraft, but that these limitations is exactly what StarCraft is. Here's his rant on Brood War if you want to hear it.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EP9F-AZezCU
Earlier in the same gaming session he talked briefly about his plans for video content surrounding SC: Remastered. It was a sporadic talk since he was playing Hearthstone at the time, but he gets into his general ideas for upcoming content.
SC:R content talk begins at 55:45 (the video should start there when you press play), and continues on and off until his main rant [the one above] begins at 1:10:52.
Out of all the things SC:R is bringing back, Day[9] talking about StarCraft again is one of my favorites. Sean, your content has always been great, and you have always gotten people interested who wouldn't ordinarily understand why Starcraft is so good. You are the man, and I hope you have a lot of fun this summer. <3
UPDATE:
Day[9] made a post on r/Starcraft about his upcoming show. Check it out!