Build Orders

TvX

Bronze: Starting Build

Essentially it's single gas rax-reactor expand into 1-1-1 marine/tank/medivac production into 5-1-1 with 2 tech labs and 2 reactors with +1 weapons

• 14 depot
• 16 rax
  • Reactor
  • Marine production
• 16 gas + send SCV across the map
• 19 orbital + reactor
• 19 Command Center
• 20 depot
• 21 factory
  • Tech Lab
  • Siege tank production
• 22 2nd gas
• 23 bunker
• @factory finishing: Starport
  • Viking → use to fly through enemy main base
  • Reactor
  • Medivac production
• 4 Barracks
  • 2 tech labs, 2 reactors
  • Stim, shields, then concussive
  • Mix of marauder and marine production
• Ebay + 3rd/4th gas
  • +1 weapons upgrade

TIP

• When stim, shields, +1 attack are finished and you have 3+ siege tanks and 2+ medivacs, move out and try to kill them

Silver: Build Order optimisation

Factory and Starport pause production after first siege tank/viking into reactor, and resumes after 5th rax.

• 14 depot
• 16 rax
  • Reactor
  • Marine production
• 16 gas + send SCV across the map
• 19 orbital + reactor
• 19 Command Center
• 20 depot
• 21 factory
  • Tech Lab
  • Siege tank
  • Pause until 4rax starts
  • Resume tank production
• 22 2nd gas
• 23 bunker
• @factory finishing: Starport
  • Viking → use to fly through enemy main base
  • Reactor
  • Pause until 4rax starts
  • Resume medivac production
• 4 Barracks
  • 2 tech labs, 2 reactors
  • Stim, shields, then concussive
  • Mix of marauder and marine production
• Ebay + 3rd/4th gas
  • +1 weapons upgrade

Gold: Build Order optimisation

factory builds tech lab/reactor for 2nd/4th rax, then tech lab for itself; starport buils reactor for 3rd rax, then reactor for itself;

• 14 depot
• 16 rax
  • Reactor
  • Marine production
• 16 gas + send SCV across the map
• 19 orbital + reactor
• 19 Command Center
• 20 depot
• 21 factory
  • Tech Lab
  • Siege tank
  • Swap off and build reactor
  • Swap off and build tech lab
  • Tank production
    • Don’t forget to start gary building depots!
• 22 2nd gas
• 23 bunker
• @factory finishing: Starport
  • Viking → use to fly through enemy main base
  • Reactor
  • Swap off and build reactor
  • Medivac production
• Build 4-barracks
  • Build on reactors/techlab, 1 builds its own tech lab
  • Bruce can join gary soon after this
  • Stim + Shields
• Ebay + 3rd/4th gas
  • +1 weapons upgrade

Plat: Reaper first Build Order optimisation

reaper and marine before reactor on rax

• 14 depot
• 16 rax
  • Reaper
  • Marine
  • Reactor
  • Marine production
• 16 gas + send SCV across the map
• 19 orbital + reactor
• 19 Command Center
• 20 depot
• 21 factory
  • Tech Lab
  • Siege tank
  • Swap off and build reactor
  • Swap off and build tech lab
  • Tank production
    • Don’t forget to start gary building depots!
• 22 2nd gas
• 23 bunker
• @factory finishing: Starport
  • Liberator → harass
  • Reactor
  • Swap off and build reactor
  • Medivac production
• Build 4-barracks
  • Build on reactors/techlab, 1 builds its own tech lab
  • Bruce can join gary soon after this
  • Stim + Shields
• Ebay + 3rd/4th gas
  • +1 weapons upgrade

Plat: TvZ

reaper and marine before reactor on rax; factory builds tech lab/reactor for 2nd/4th rax, then reactor for mine production;

• 14 depot

• 16 rax

  • Reaper
  • Marine
  • Reactor
  • Marine production

• 16 gas + send SCV across the map

• 19 orbital + reactor

• 19 Command Center

• 20 depot

• 21 factory

  • Tech Lab
  • Siege tank
  • Swap off and build reactor
  • Swap off and build REACTOR
  • Widow mine production
    • Don’t forget to start gary building depots!

• 22 2nd gas

• 23 bunker

• @factory finishing: Starport

  • Liberator → harass
  • Reactor
  • Swap off and build reactor
  • Medivac production

• Build 4-barracks

  • Build on reactors/techlab, 1 builds its own tech lab
  • Bruce can join gary soon after this
  • Stim + Shields

• Ebay + 3rd/4th gas

  • +1 weapons upgrade

• As you move out with big attack:

  • 3rd CC + 2nd ebay + armoury

• A bit later add 2nd factory with tech lab for drilling claws, and 3 more barracks with 2 tech labs, 1 reactor

• Some of our biggest struggles have been vs Ling-bane players, so it makes sense for us to shift into a more optimized build for TvZ to start off. Our main changes will be:

  • Swapping tank production to widow mine production
    • (still build first tank for safety)

Plat: TvP

bunker after factory(before 2nd gas) changes viking to liberator before reactor

• 14 depot
• 16 rax
  • Reaper
  • Marine
  • Reactor
  • Marine production
• 16 gas + send SCV across the map
• 19 orbital + reactor
• 19 Command Center
• 20 depot
• 21 factory
  • Tech Lab
  • Siege tank
  • Swap off and build reactor
  • Swap off and build tech lab
  • Tank production
    • Don’t forget to start gary building depots!
• 22 bunker
• 23 2nd gas
• @factory finishing: Starport
  • Liberator → harass
  • Reactor
  • Swap off and build reactor
  • Medivac production
• Build 4-barracks
  • Build on reactors/techlab, 1 builds its own tech lab
  • Bruce can join gary soon after this
  • Stim + Shields
• Ebay + 3rd/4th gas
  • +1 weapons upgrade

Plat: TvT

Earlier bunker like in TvP Medivac first -> 8 marine drop harass

• 14 depot
• 16 rax
  • Reaper
  • Marine
  • Reactor
  • Marine production
• 16 gas + send SCV across the map
• 19 orbital + reactor
• 19 Command Center
• 20 depot
• 22 factory
  • Tech Lab
  • Siege tank
  • Swap off and build reactor
  • Swap off and build tech lab
  • Tank production
    • Don’t forget to start gary building depots!
• 22 bunker
• 23 2nd gas
• @factory finishing: Starport
  • Medivac → 8 marine drop harass
  • Reactor
  • Swap off and build reactor
  • Medivac production
• Build 4-barracks
  • Build on reactors/techlab, 1 builds its own tech lab
  • Bruce can join gary soon after this
  • Stim + Shields
• Ebay + 3rd/4th gas
  • +1 weapons upgrade

ZvX

Bronze/Silver: BUILD ORDER

• 14th drone goes to scout, queue’s back to main base minerals

• 17 hatch

• 18 gas

• 17 pool

• 32 3rd hatchery

  • 31 overlord + 3rd queen

• 4:00 → Send overlord in

• @natural saturation → bane nest + 2nd gas

  • BUILD ONE ROUND OF LINGS FOR SAFETY

• Stop droning at: 2-gases + 3 mineral lines (54 drones)

• Lair + 2xevo chamber

  • You can take this a bit before hitting the 3 mineral line saturation whenever you have spare minerals in between macro cycles, but just taking it after the saturation is there is fine

• @Lair complete → 1-1 upgrades + bane speed

• 2 macro hatcheries, double expand

• Mass ling-bane

  • You should have 54 drones and be heading towards 7 hatcheries, 5 bases + 2 macro hatcheries.

• Set attack timing: 1-1 upgrades and bane speed finished +

  • You should have finished droning and produced at least 3 rounds of just ling bane in a row

Plat: BUILD ORDER ADJUSTED FOR CREEP QUEENS:

• 14th drone goes to scout, queue’s back to main base minerals

• 17 hatch

• 18 gas

• 17 pool

• 32 3rd hatchery

  • 31 overlord + 3rd queen

• 4:00 → Send overlord in

• @natural saturation → bane nest + 2nd gas

  • BUILD ONE ROUND OF LINGS FOR SAFETY
  • 4th + 5th queen (Freddie Mercury)

• Stop droning at: 2-gases + 3 mineral lines (54 drones)

• Lair + 2xevo chamber

  • You can take this a bit before hitting the 3 mineral line saturation whenever you have spare minerals in between macro cycles, but just taking it after the saturation is there is fine

• @Lair complete → 1-1 upgrades + bane speed

• 2 macro hatcheries, double expand

• Mass ling-bane

  • You should have 54 drones and be heading towards 7 hatcheries, 5 bases + 2 macro hatcheries.

• Set attack timing: 1-1 upgrades and bane speed finished +

  • You should have finished droning and produced at least 3 rounds of just ling bane in a row

Make sure they have an accessible control group key as you’ll be using it a lot to defend harassment and spread creep. Something like group 4 or 5 suits most players.

Plat: New ZvZ Build - 2 -base roach Walloff

• 17 hatch
• 17 pool
• 2 queens + 4 lings
• 3rd queen immediately
• 28 overlord
• 36 - 2xgases + Spine crawler
  • Re-rally main base to its own minerals to replace drones going on gas
• 3:30 2xevos + Roach warren (you should already be at 16 or close to 16 drones on natural at this point)
  • Put 3rd queen in the wall on hold position immediately so lings can’t get in
• 100 gas - Lair + 3rd gas
• +1 range
• Cut drones @3 gases, 2 mineral lines, 41 drones.
  • Start pumping roaches
• @Lair → Roach speed
• Move out to attack when roach speed and +1 are almost finished with 16+ roaches
  • Take 3rd base as army crosses the map

Hive Tech

If we get stuck in a long enough game we will tech up to Hive for ultras.

• Economy
  • 70 drones
  • 6 gases
  • For perspective we were on 3 mineral lines and 2 gases - 54 drones. 4 more gases = +12 workers. So that’s 66 drones, and a handful more on minerals.
  • When we’re in diamond and higher we’ll probably start making an extra 10 workers with this style, doing it off about 80 drones. For now 70 should be plenty though.
• Infestation pit → Hive → Ultra Cavern → chitinous plating + Add Ultra production to lingbane
• Lower priority, but adrenal glands and 3-3 upgrades unlock at hive tech and could be very useful

Diamond 3: BUILD ORDER ADJUSTED FOR PULLING OFF GAS:

• 14th drone goes to scout, queue’s back to main base minerals

• 17 hatch

• 18 gas

• 17 pool

• @100 gas → Start ling speed and pull off gas

• 32 3rd hatchery

  • 31 overlord + 3rd queen

• 3:30 → back on gas (use first larva inject in main for this)

• 4:00 → Send overlord in

• @natural saturation → bane nest + 2nd gas

  • BUILD ONE ROUND OF LINGS FOR SAFETY
  • 4th + 5th queen (Freddie Mercury)

• Stop droning at: 2-gases + 3 mineral lines (54 drones)

• Lair + 2xevo chamber

  • You can take this a bit before hitting the 3 mineral line saturation whenever you have spare minerals in between macro cycles, but just taking it after the saturation is there is fine

• @Lair complete → 1-1 upgrades + bane speed

• 2 macro hatcheries, double expand

• Mass ling-bane

  • You should have 54 drones and be heading towards 7 hatcheries, 5 bases + 2 macro hatcheries.

• Set attack timing: 1-1 upgrades and bane speed finished +

  • You should have finished droning and produced at least 3 rounds of just ling bane in a row

Diamond 1 :BUILD ORDER ADJUSTED FOR D1+

• 14th drone goes to scout, queue’s back to main base minerals

• 17 hatch

• 18 gas

• 17 pool

• @100 gas → Start ling speed and pull off gas

• 32 3rd hatchery

  • 31 overlord + 3rd queen

• 3:30 → back on gas (use first larva inject in main for this)

• @natural saturation →

  • 4th + 5th queen (Freddie Mercury)

• 4:15 - (8 drones on 3rd base) Bane nest + 2nd gas

• Stop droning at: 2-gases + 3 mineral lines (54 drones)

• Lair + 2xevo chamber

  • You can take this a bit before hitting the 3 mineral line saturation whenever you have spare minerals in between macro cycles, but just taking it after the saturation is there is fine

• @Lair complete → 1-1 upgrades + bane speed

• 2 macro hatcheries, double expand

• Mass ling-bane

  • You should have 54 drones and be heading towards 7 hatcheries, 5 bases + 2 macro hatcheries.

• Set attack timing: 1-1 upgrades and bane speed finished +

  • You should have finished droning and produced at least 3 rounds of just ling bane in a row

Masters 3: ZvZ Build adjustments:

• 17 16 hatch
• 17 pool
• 2 queens + 4 lings
• 3rd queen immediately
• 28 overlord
• 32 - 2xgases + Spine crawler
  • Re-rally main base to its own minerals to replace drones going on gas
• 3:30 2xevos + Roach warren (you should already be at 16 or close to 16 drones on natural at this point)
  • Put 3rd queen in the wall on hold position immediately so lings can’t get in
• 100 gas - Lair + 3rd gas
• 12 drones on natural → 3rd + 4th gas
• +1 range
• Cut drones @3 gases, 2 mineral lines, 41 drones.
  • Start pumping roaches
• MAIN BUILD CHANGES FROM HERE:
• @Lair → Spire, roach speed
• Make 4-5 roaches and use them to secure 3rd base. You might need to cancel if they build a lot of lings
• Go for 8 mutalisks for harassment,
• drone behind it up to 55 drones, 5 gases
• Go all-in on a +2 range mass roach ravager attack

Fancy adjustment (probably won’t use till higher level):

• If they scout the spire before it’s finished, don’t build any mutas, cancel spire after their scout is gone and just mass roach and hit a surprise 2-base roach all-in
• They will be building spores, drones and queens to prepare for the mutas and the roach attack will have a good chance of working

Masters 3: ZvT

• 8 queens every game

• Bane nest and 2nd gas will be delayed until we’re mostly saturated on minerals on our 3rd base. We’ll rely on queens for defence

  • Double evo + Lair
  • 4th and 5th hatchery, macro hatch (basically all the same stuff we normally add)

• When we feel safe - add 3 gases, infestation pit and drone them up, this will jump us from 54 drones to 63

• Pump army from here

• If the game drags on or we win a fight and feel we can fit it in, add 16 workers to get to 80 drones

• Lots more backstabs constantly as the game goes on!

So to summarise you’re by default pausing drones for at least 1 round of army at these points:

• 54 drones, 2 gases
• 63 drones, 5-gases
• 79/80 drones 5-gas - max economy

Masters 3: ZvP

• Leave 1 worker on gas, just pull 2 off

• Vs SG Build Branch:

• Go straight to 6 queens

  • Prioritise them as Freddie Mercury defence/creep queens after their initial injects

• 3:40 spore crawler in the main

• 4:00 back on gas

• The moment we build drones to rally to our 3rd base → add 2 spores in the other bases

• 8 drones on 3rd base → go bane nest + 2nd gas + evo

• Vs Twilight/Robo Branch:

  • 4:00 bane nest + 2nd gas
  • 4:40 spore crawlers for DTs + evo chamber
    • Just one in natural is ok to stop the worst of it if you like being a little greedier
    • One in each base if you prefer being safer
    • ADVANCED BETTER RESPONSE FROM M2+
      • 4:20 1 spore in natural
      • Once you spot DTs/confirm just move it to where it’s needed whilst building 2 more

Lair starts with 100 gas after starting +1 melee

We’ll still try to tech up to hydras off the ling-bane heavy opening, going roaches if needed vs heavy ground aggression before they probe up their 3rd base.

PvX

Bronze/Silver STARTING BUILD

So my beginner opening from my last B2GM is lovely, but rather than being very chargelot focused, we’re going to focus on super high value units with a double robo style as standard, and then focusing

(Initial number = supply count
Indentations = chronology of what that structure DOES. Or what happens immediately after the preceding action)

• 14 pylon
• 16 gate
  • Probe goes to scout after placing this
  • 3x stalkers
• 16/17 gas
• 20 Nexus
• 20 Core
• 21 2nd gas
• 22 pylon
• Core finishes → Stalker + Warpgate + chrono both
• @150 minerals, 100 gas → Robo
  • Observer
  • Immortal
• 33 - 2 gates + pylon
  • Warp in 3 more stalkers once these transform into warpgates
• @15 workers on natural take 3rd/4th gas
• 50-55 - 2nd Robo + Robo Bay
  • 2xcolossus
  • Immortal production + extended thermal lance
• 70 - 2 bases should be full, cut probes (44 total probes)
• Twilight Council + Forge
  • Charge
  • +1
• 5 gates + Templar archives
• Production finished → Warp in zealots from now on
• Make a prism and move out as it pops
• Warp in archons on the front then push

Gold: BUILD

take 3rd/4th gas earlier @12 workers on natural

• 14 pylon
• 16 gate
  • Probe goes to scout after placing this
  • 3x stalkers
• 16/17 gas
• 20 Nexus
• 20 Core
• 21 2nd gas
• 22 pylon
• Core finishes → Stalker + Warpgate + chrono both
• @150 minerals, 100 gas → Robo
  • Observer
  • Immortal
• 33 - 2 gates + pylon
  • Warp in 3 more stalkers once these transform into warpgates
• @12 workers on natural take 3rd/4th gas
• 50-55 - 2nd Robo + Robo Bay
  • 2xcolossus
  • Immortal production + extended thermal lance
• 70 - 2 bases should be full, cut probes (44 total probes)
• Twilight Council + Forge
  • Charge
  • +1
• 5 gates + Templar archives
• Production finished → Warp in zealots from now on
• Make a prism and move out as it pops
• Warp in archons on the front then push

Plat: 3rd nexus

Squeeze in 3rd nexus before first 2 collosus

• 14 pylon
• 16 gate
  • Probe goes to scout after placing this
  • 3x stalkers
• 16/17 gas
• 20 Nexus
• 20 Core
• 21 2nd gas
• 22 pylon
• Core finishes → Stalker + Warpgate + chrono both
• @150 minerals, 100 gas → Robo
  • Observer
  • Immortal
• 33 - 2 gates + pylon
  • Warp in 3 more stalkers once these transform into warpgates
• @12 workers on natural take 3rd/4th gas
• 50-55 - 2nd Robo + Robo Bay
  • 2xcolossus
  • Immortal production + extended thermal lance
• 70 - 2 bases should be full, cut probes (44 total probes)
• Nexus + resume probing
  • Note start this just before your first 2 collosus and thermal lance to squeeze it in at a crisp timing. However if you’re under threat, obviously the colossus will take priority
• Twilight Council + Forge
  • Charge
  • +1
• 5 gates + Templar archives
• Production finished → Warp in zealots from now on
• Make a prism and move out as it pops
• Warp in archons on the front then push

Standard PvP 2-gate opening

• We will start learning the standard 2-gate opening for PvP
• To keep it simple since this is very different to what we’ve learnt so far, we’re going to do a 4-gate all-in.
• Later in diamond once we’re more comfortable with everything we’re learning here we can take the same start and plug it into an expand + tech build to learn a lot more RANGE of PvP

Build

• 16 gate (+ only chrono on probes here)
  • Gate scout with probe
    • After scouting go and hide in enemy 4th base
• 17 gas
• 18 gas
• 19 gate
• 20 core
• 21 2nd pylon at home
• @gates finishing →
  • 2x stalkers + chrono both stalkers
  • 2x stalkers +
  • 2x stalkers + chrono WG
• Proxy pylon
  • Build gate at proxy
• Build 4th gate at home
• 1 more pylon out front natural
• Join up first 6 stalkers with warp in of 4
• Hit attack at ~4:00 with 10 stalkers
  • Keep warping in and try to win

Diamond: PvP

Learning the followup to 2-gate opening:

Build

• 16 gate (+ only chrono on probes here)
  • Gate scout with probe
    • After scouting go and hide in enemy 4th base
• 17 gas
• 18 gas
• 19 gate
• 20 core
• 21 2nd pylon at home
• @gates finishing →
  • 2x stalkers
  • 2x sentries
  • 2x stalkers
• Cut probes ~18 on minerals
• 3rd pylon on lowground
• Nexus + shield battery
• Robo
• 3rd/4th gas + 2nd robo + robo bay

Diamond: PvZ

• Probe + pylon block + double adept harass opening
  • This will scout any all-in coming
  • Do lots of damage/force lots of lings
  • Practice our multi-tasking and micro a bit

Opening

• 13 pylon + go block zerg natural
  • (send a probe to natural after returning its first mineral trip)
  • You need to delay a probe for this
• Resume probes (chrono a bit earlier since pylon finishes earlier, should be right around 00:24)
• 16 gate
  • Adept + Chrono
  • Adept + Chrono (next 2 chronos on probes)
  • Stalker
• 17 gas
• 20 nexus
• 20 core
• 21 2nd gas
• 22 2nd pylon
• Robo
• 2nd gate to complete walloff
• 12/16 workers on natural → Take 3rd/4th gas
• 2nd robo + robo bay
  • Observer
  • 2xImmortal
  • Observer
  • 2x colossus
  • 2x disruptor
  • Immortal production
• 3rd nexus
• Twilight + forge
• 6 gates (use 3-4 to walloff your 3rd base partially)

Diamond: PvP

• Same as Diamond part 3 - need to let this one settle

Build

• 16 gate (+ only chrono on probes here)
  • Gate scout with probe
    • After scouting go and hide in enemy 4th base
• 17 gas
• 18 gas
• 19 gate
• 20 core
• 21 2nd pylon at home
• @gates finishing →
  • 2x stalkers
  • 2x sentries
  • 2x stalkers
• Cut probes ~18 on minerals (26 probes total)
  • 1 scouting, 1 building nexus
• 3rd pylon on lowground
• Nexus + shield battery
• Robo (after starting 5th + 6th gateway units) + pylon
• Resume Probing
• 3rd/4th gas + 2nd robo + robo bay
• 12/16 probes on natural → 3rd/4th gas

Masters: PvT

• 4-stalker prism opening
• 3 chronos on stalkers + 1 on prism
  • Warp in 4th stalker inside their main as you unload, unsiege the prism and try to focus workers/marines (4 stalker shots 1 shots them)
  • Don’t lose the prism, just pull back if they have cyclones/vikings in position and you can’t quickly snipe them
• Robo Bay + 2nd gate
• @13 workers on natural → 3rd/4th gas
• 3rd base + 2nd robo
• Twilight + forge
• 4-base charge archon + robo units (4-gas)

Masters: PvZ

• Astrea’s double robo 2-base push

• 1-gate expand opener

  • Adept
  • Stalker
  • Pause production

• Robo as first tech structure, should be down ~2:20-2:30

  • Observer
  • Prism
  • 2 Disruptors
  • Prism + Prism speed upgrade

• @Robo complete → Robo bay + 2nd gate

  • Pylon + adept (41 supply, should finish just in time to start disruptor)

• 3:40, natural at 15 probes → 3rd gas

• 4:00 4th gas

• Move out with prism to harass with 2 adepts + warp in 2 more adepts so you can drop in main + shade other adepts in natural/3rd base

• 4:30 2nd robo (at this point you’ve queue’d up your last probes, gases saturated etc.

  • Robo production now spread across 2 robos:
  • 2 more disruptors (4 total)
  • 2 colossus (no range)
  • 2 Immortals

• Add pylons + steadily add gates up to 7 gates

• Mass stalker warpins to support your super powerful robo army and go for a big push

  • You can keep 1 prism as a flanking prism if they stay in one big ball you might be able to hit them with a flanking disruptor shot for the win
  • If you’re surrounded/getting flanked it’s also a nice way to damage part of their flank before the fight starts, and maybe cause them to panic and attack before they’re ready

• 2 immortals, 2 collosus, 4 disruptors is the push - go look for a good fight and try to win on 2 base or die trying

• Vs mass ling you can mix in some zealot or adept warp ins (I personally prefer zealots asa I think the zerg feels they need to jump on top of you to kill the big robo units, so even slow zealots will do ok, and they’re super cheap. Mostly stalkers are best though since they have 6 range and mesh well with your robo units

  • Don’t bother with any sentries usually, maybe just 1 for guardian shield if you can spare the gas
  • Technically you could rally disruptors to the front as well, but generally just more warpins and forcing a fight sooner rather than later is better

• Build under PvZ: Book of Filth 2.0

Masters: PvP

• 2-sentry 2-stalker expand
• Blink into 3rd base
• Then double robo + robo bay