Typical opening

A guide about how to start a game and what your opening moves would typically be.

Location selection phase

In this phase you are shown a green box around a part of the map. You can click somewhere in here to choose in which area your commander will appear. Once all players choose a location(or time runs out), a 3 second countdown will start and your commander will appear.

Picking a good spot

Some maps won't give you much of a choice, but on those that do there are a few general guidelines:

• Pick a location closest to center of map.
  • This allows you to control the map better.
• The spot you pick should have a mex cluster of 3 or 4 mexes.
  • If you start somewhere without a mex cluster you are just putting yourself very behind.

Picking a defensible spot is not very important - your opponent has the same options available as you and isn't going to be able to abuse this. A few LLTs can fix anything, and good radar coverage and unit positioning can deal with anything.

Your first buildings

Before the game starts, you are allowed to queue up to 30 buildings (using shift) that your commander will start to work on when it appears. The general way most people open is:

1. Choose a factory a place it somewhere close to your starting mexes.
   • You want your commander to move around as little as possible for this initial phase - time spent moving is time not spent building.
2. Queue up all your surrounding mexes.
3. Build 3 solar extractors or 5-6 windmills.
   • This should give you enough energy match the metal you will get from the mexes you just took and next few mexes you will take as you start to expand.
4. Build a radar tower. Preferably in an elevated location.
   • Helps you protect against raids.
5. Build 1 or 2 defensive towers, usually an LLT or MT.
6. Finally, place your commander, and wait for the game to start.

After the game has started

Your first units

The firs thing your commander should have done is plopped a factory. It is now sitting idle.

1. Queue up a scout unit. This would be a flea, dart, glaive, dirtbag...etc
2. Set its rally point to somewhere near where you think your opponents base will be.
   • The point of doing this is to see if your opponent is up to something funny or cheesy.
   • The main thing you want to do is check what factory your opponent has.
3. Build a constructor.
4. Queue up 4-5 raiders and another constructor.