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Terran Versus Protoss

iEchoic's 1/1/2 Helion drop into Banshees

10 supply
12 rax
>> make marines nonstop
>> oc when rax finishes
13 refinery

(pop counts skipped from here out to account for scouts dying, other oddities, etc)
Factory
>> Make 3 hellions
Bunker
Supply Depot
Starport
Refinery
>> Make medivac when starport complete
>> medivac should pop out about at the same time that you have 3 hellions - go drop
>> As soon as medivac completes, build tech lab on starport and factory
Starport
>> Swap second starport onto factory's tech lab
>> Use excess minerals to expand and add more barracks
>> Push at 2-4 banshees

Until this point, you should be following the build order strictly. The 1/1/2 with hellion drop is stable and you do not need to branch out until you have two tech-labbed starports.

You are now in what I call the 'triple threat' position. It is called 'triple threat' because it sounds kick-ass and makes the strategy sound like it's prepared for anything. But seriously, this is where your 2port allows you to be versatile.


Key Points

• Bring an scv onto the dropship just incase you need to repair
• You want 3 barracks with tech lab and marauders after your harass
• You want to start building you expansion at the 7 minute mark
• You want to start building your 2 other barracks after your cc to transition into marauders
• When you have accumulated 7-10 marauders, push out with 5-6 banshees marauders maybe some medivacs and maybe a raven if your feeling pro
• Target immortals with your banshees and sentries
• Keep harassing with helions and banshees until you have 7-10 marauders
• You may need to build a bunker while your harassing
• You should be non stop producing marines incase he gets counter pheonix's
• You should have close to 10+ marines by the time you push out
• Make vikings if he counters with voidrays
• DO NOT LOSE ANY BANSHEES!
• Here are some replays of how it should be done
• 
  
• http://www.gamereplays.org/starcraft2/replays.php?game=33&show=download&id=152192
• and
• http://www.gamereplays.org/starcraft2/replays.php?game=33&show=download&id=149696

Strengths: -3 Hellion drop is incredibly powerful. Basically an insta-win if your opponent is not defending, and even if prepared, you will get at least 4-5 probes if you micro well. The hellion drop is incredibly strong even if you know it's coming ahead of time.

- Hellion drop gives great scouting info and allows you to adapt with your 2starports
- 1/1/2 play allows you to account for all protoss openings
- Standard opening prevents protoss from gathering any info about build before initial scout is forced out by marine
- Very efficient use of minerals - rax and factory produce mineral-only units with no addons non-stop.
- Timings are optimized to spend all minerals at all points throughout the build order - high efficiency

Weaknesses: Early high templar feedback, voidrays if you dont transition properly

neat fact: Apm doesn’t mean anything, I play with an average of 35-40 apm in the beginning up to 100-150 when it gets micro intensive

Terran Versus Protoss

+2 armor Thor Build by Thorzain

10 supply

12 barrack

13 refinery

15 orbital

15 marine

16 supply

17 marine

18 factory

19 second refinery

20 marine

22 tech lab on barrack

22 bunker

22 marine

23 supply

- Swap the tech lab on barrack with factory

24 siege tank

28 marine

32 supply

32 marine

33 Command center

36 starport

37 helion

38 marine

39 supply

41 armory

- switch factory tech lab with starport

42 raven

43 tech lab

45 2nd orbital

46 marine

47 thor

53 banshee

58 Ground plate upgrade for thor

- After you land your expansion, build 2 refineries right away and build 3 bunekrs

104 Ground plate upgrade #2 and get blue flame upgrade

117 Third CC

126 35mm strike cannon

- you want 3 factories with 2 tech labs, 1 reactor, and 1 starports with reactors

and reactor when its done on that starport



General Idea of this build
The sturdiness and the power of the +2 armored thor and the ability to use the 35mm cannon at such a large range is hard to stop. Especially if you have a raven denying scouting observers. Having such a large surface area so zealots cannot get the surround and blue flame helions doing double the damage to zealots, its a pretty mean ball of destruction. This build is unique and unseen and the only counter i can think is an abundance of immortals or/and carriers.

Why the +2 armor Upgrades on thors? Thorzain explained:

"It's mostly to be able to fight heavy gateway units compositions, as they deal relatively low damage but shoot fast (zealots have 2 attacks for example). This lets me worry more about the actual "power units" so to say, the units that aren't gateway units. And as long as i can counter them properly (colossus/air = vikings, mass immortals = more Thor heavy) I feel comfortable in the big fight.

Key Points

• Use raven to deny scouting observer
• You want about 6-8 vikings,1 raven
• You want about 4-6 helions
• You want about 6-8 Thors and only attack when you have +2 amor
• Use your 35mm cannon on the collosi
• Put a couple of point defense drones down during the fight
• Bring a couple of scv's after the fight 
• You want to attack around 160-170 supply
• Very unique build

Here is a replay of Thorzain using this strategy perfectly against oGs.MC

Weaknesses: Gateway all in zealot cheese, and a very aggressive 4 warpgate rush, carriers(because thors will automatically target air first when you want them to target ground)

Neat fact: You want to use your mules on close patches because of the limited time the mule has

News:

I'm about 90 points off from being rank 1 in my division and i play to start streaming soon either end of this month or the next month due to internet issues.

Dizon:425 top 250 NA terran player

Also if you have any inquiries or need help directly or need me to review your replay, come to channel TerranSC  in the sc2 chat

Hard counter to spanishiwa's no gas strategy that most zergs are trying on ladder

Due to the popular spanishiwa strat, if you can scout it earlier enough I recommend the 4 Barrack all-in yet, I have yet to lose with this strat and here is the replay of the strategy. Because the zerg player is getting no gas, your marines will dominate anything of the zerg with the correct micro. The power of a marine ball not having to worry about banelings is just unsettling. Zerglings/Drones/Spinecrawlers/Queens are the only things you have to worry about and having 4 barracks constantly pumping out marines into a marine ball will be totally one sided. This strat also works against zergs that dont use spanishiwa, the only hard counter to this strategy is all in fast roaches and all in fast banelings, but you can still out micro and beat those strategies with this one.

This replay is against a Grandmaster, and it works beautifully
http://www.sc2replayed.com/replays/167600-1v1-terran-zerg-xelnaga-caverns

These are other replays of me 4 barracking at high masters punishing people using the Spanishiwa strategy
http://www.sc2replayed.com/replays/167601-1v1-terran-zerg-xelnaga-caverns
http://www.sc2replayed.com/replays/167602-1v1-terran-zerg-xelnaga-caverns
If you can scout out the no extractor it means hes doing the spanishiwa strategy and you can stay in your base longer and get more marines
latest should be 6:00 ingame time tho

BUILD ORDER

STRATEGY 1:

4 barrack push all-in cheese **very tricky, do not attempt if you dont havnt read EVERYTHING**
10 supply

12 barrack

13 barrack

14 orbital

15 barack

- cut scv unless you're certain you wont delay marine production

16 barrack

16 supply

keep pumping out marines ( and some scvs) until 5:30 and push out with marines and 12 scvs

Key notes to this strategy

• Try to keep opponent from knowing you have 4 barracks's
• Grab watch towers with 4-5 marines and hide your other marines
• Have your scvs protect your marine at all costs when attacking
• If you have a chance, stick to a wall
• AGAIN!! have your scv's protect your marines at all costs
• attack and move (kite)
• dont go for the expansion unless there is a spine crawler in your path, then kill that and move into main base
• Quickly look for a banelings nest, if there is BE VERY CAREFUL spread your marines and everything
• If not watch out for drones and marines and queen surround and dont let him get the surround
• rally point your barracks's to his base
• When you want to rally your new units to your old units the old unit has a habit of dying, leaving your new units at the production-facility. You can shift-click the rallypoint to make them have a backup-rallypoint
• This strategy still works in high masters if you do it properly
• ****Grab your 10 scv's and marines and move out at 5:30, you should have approx 31 supply count
• MICRO MICRO MICRO!!
• This is the only strategy you need against zerg to get to masters, I had a 90% win rate with this strategy even in masters. This is a replay on how to do it properly, its a little sloppy but it got the job done (there isnt any kind of micro, but it shows how strong this composition is)
• If he is in your base with a drone for too long, throw up a refinery and take your scv off from building it when it gets too close to finish and cancel it once the drone is out of your base, fooling him into thinking you are teching so he is teching

Why is this strategy good?

Because the power of a marine ball with scv's tanking is unbelievably strong and there it is nearly impossible to stop this timing attack with the right micro!

Weaknesses: If zerg straight up rushes roaches (you can stop it if you see it and turtle into marauders and helions), and if zerg rushes banelings, then it will give this strategy a hard time

Neat Fact: An easy way to check if you have enough workers at a base is to select all workers on minerals. If you see 2 rows (16) that is optimal saturation, 3 rows (24) is maximum saturation

Idra vs TLO - 1 base 7 rax cheese

Amazingly amusing game by TLO

Important Fact: When you want to rally your new units to your old units the old unit has a habit of dying, leaving your new units at the production-facility. You can shift-click the rallypoint to make them have a backup-rallypoint