Whaturmuva
Eating the souls of children
Chapter I - Build Orders
There are MANY different kinds of build orders you can use as human, from double rax with MK for footmen trap, to powerbuilding an altar for a 4 peasant early expansion. Each one has its one use and it is really a matter of preference in which one you use, not superiority. Anyway, here are a few of the many build orders you can use.
Build Order #1 - Basic Hero first build
5 Peasants at start - 4 on gold 1 builds altar
First peasant out of hall builds barracks - players like Nit2 place the rax at the top of their main ramp
1 gold peasant builds farm 3 on gold 0 on lumber
#2 peasant out of hall on lumber 3 on gold 1 on lumber
#3 peasant out of hall on gold 4 on gold 1 on lumber
as lumber peasant returns with second load of wood use him to build a farm 4 on gold 0 on lumber
peasants #4 and #5 out of hall on lumber as first farm, altar, and rax finish each goes on lumber 4 on gold 6 on lumber
when barracks is finished que 2 footmen
From this point you can decide to do one of two things -
#1 - Tech to tier 2 after 2 footmen and start creeping, beginning with gnolls at entrance to temple and going around (different depending on map)
#2 - make 4 more peasants as gold allows and fast expand at your natural using militia, 2 footmen, and water elemental.
Build Order #2 - Barracks first for MK support
5 Peasants at start - 4 on gold 1 builds barracks - most players also start an altar then take peasant off to build barracks, this will make peasants work faster on gold if placed correctly
#1 peasant out of hall on lumber 4 on gold 1 on lumber
#2 peasant out of hall builds altar 4 on gold 1 on lumber
#3 peasant out of hall builds farm, lumber peasant returns load for total of 40 lumber and builds farm as well 4 on gold 0 on lumber
#4 peasant out of hall on lumber 4 on gold 1 on lumber
use peasant that is building barracks to scout once barracks is finished, first footmen out of barracks will scout in the opposite direction. Build a third farm with the peasant building the second farm once his job is completed, send all other peasants back to lumber when their work is done 4 on gold 3 on lumber 1 building farm 1 scouting (try not to lose this one)
once the third farm is completed you will have enough resources to either build a second barracks or tech to tier 2, this choice is yours.
Many players chose Mountain King as their first hero because you will have 4 footmen when he arrives, this makes it easier to creep due to the fact that the MK has no summon spell.
Also against Night Elf players you can chose to build a lumber mill instead of teching to tier 2 or building a barracks, then you can send MK/footmen/3 militia to their main to build guard towers.
On certain maps players may use this build and get Arch Mage as first hero. The extra footmen will help them take on more powerful creeps earlier in the game. Example - the natural expo or shops on Duskwood.
Build Order #3 - Fast Hero
Replay of this Build Order - Creep Option
Replay of this Build Order - Expand Option
5 Peasants at start - 2 on gold 2 builds altar 1 builds farm
#1 peasant out of hall on gold
#2 peasant out of hall on lumber at this time take a peasant out of gold and have him whack your farm 8 or 9 times, this way farm and altar finish at exact same time. As altar and farm finish send 2 peasants on lumber and 1 on gold 4 on gold 3 on lumber.
At this point you have 73-75 lumber, watch the two peasants that finished the altar carefully and send them back once they have the 5-7 lumber needed to build a barracks
#3 peasant out of hall builds barracks.
Lumber peasant builds farm when resources are available 4 on gold 2 on lumber
If you wish to creep instead of early expand, use the #4 peasant out of main to help build barracks, finish with 4 peasants on gold and 6 on lumber and begin creeping.
If you wish to early expand, use only 1 peasant to build barracks and make 4 extra peasants in your main. Once your Arch Mage is completed turn 4 peasants into militia and use them to clear your expansion.
I love using this build to early expand because you can expand AND you start creeping the normal creeps only a little later then you normally would.
These are not all the build orders out there, there are millions of variations, but I feel these are the most basic and the most viable of them all. I didn't come up with any of these build orders so don't credit me.
Chapter II - Building Placement / Scouting
Scouting and building placement are important aspects of the game no matter WHAT race your playing, but here I will give certain tips to both of the above categories.
The use of farms - Many players build farms far away from their main/expo so that they can see enemy units ahead of time, or catch them when they are taking on a creep group. People have started referring to this as farm scouting, I dislike the term, but I haven't really thought of anything better myself. This is quite easy to do and VERY useful. I start with my second farm. Using build order #3, as I return the 2 peasants early for enough lumber to build a barracks, I send one walking down my main ramp, this way once I get 20 lumber I can build a farm EXTREMELY far away from my main ramp, that way I can see whatever is coming from that direction ahead of time.
So, why does farm scouting work you ask? Well if a player stopped to destroy each farm he passed he would only serve in slowing himself down. This allows you to react faster to what his next move might be. If you noticed him destroying a farm by the ogre camp, you could immediately move in that direction to try to catch him while he's taking down the creep group. It is difficult for a player to take on a creep group AND you at the same time, this may for him to TP out possibly leaving unfinished creeps behind or a great item. If a player DOES destroy one of your farms immediately start to build a new on in your main once he begins to attack it. Since Human units are weak in comparison to the units of the other races, you need to win by getting an advantage over your opponent, and farm scouting is one way to do this.
Where to place your buildings - Building placement is important to winning, most of this is learned from experience. You don't want to cramp your buildings in too close because this could trap your army if the need to TP arises. You also want to choke off certain parts of your town to hinder your enemy.
There are MANY different kinds of build orders you can use as human, from double rax with MK for footmen trap, to powerbuilding an altar for a 4 peasant early expansion. Each one has its one use and it is really a matter of preference in which one you use, not superiority. Anyway, here are a few of the many build orders you can use.
Build Order #1 - Basic Hero first build
5 Peasants at start - 4 on gold 1 builds altar
First peasant out of hall builds barracks - players like Nit2 place the rax at the top of their main ramp
1 gold peasant builds farm 3 on gold 0 on lumber
#2 peasant out of hall on lumber 3 on gold 1 on lumber
#3 peasant out of hall on gold 4 on gold 1 on lumber
as lumber peasant returns with second load of wood use him to build a farm 4 on gold 0 on lumber
peasants #4 and #5 out of hall on lumber as first farm, altar, and rax finish each goes on lumber 4 on gold 6 on lumber
when barracks is finished que 2 footmen
From this point you can decide to do one of two things -
#1 - Tech to tier 2 after 2 footmen and start creeping, beginning with gnolls at entrance to temple and going around (different depending on map)
#2 - make 4 more peasants as gold allows and fast expand at your natural using militia, 2 footmen, and water elemental.
Build Order #2 - Barracks first for MK support
5 Peasants at start - 4 on gold 1 builds barracks - most players also start an altar then take peasant off to build barracks, this will make peasants work faster on gold if placed correctly
#1 peasant out of hall on lumber 4 on gold 1 on lumber
#2 peasant out of hall builds altar 4 on gold 1 on lumber
#3 peasant out of hall builds farm, lumber peasant returns load for total of 40 lumber and builds farm as well 4 on gold 0 on lumber
#4 peasant out of hall on lumber 4 on gold 1 on lumber
use peasant that is building barracks to scout once barracks is finished, first footmen out of barracks will scout in the opposite direction. Build a third farm with the peasant building the second farm once his job is completed, send all other peasants back to lumber when their work is done 4 on gold 3 on lumber 1 building farm 1 scouting (try not to lose this one)
once the third farm is completed you will have enough resources to either build a second barracks or tech to tier 2, this choice is yours.
Many players chose Mountain King as their first hero because you will have 4 footmen when he arrives, this makes it easier to creep due to the fact that the MK has no summon spell.
Also against Night Elf players you can chose to build a lumber mill instead of teching to tier 2 or building a barracks, then you can send MK/footmen/3 militia to their main to build guard towers.
On certain maps players may use this build and get Arch Mage as first hero. The extra footmen will help them take on more powerful creeps earlier in the game. Example - the natural expo or shops on Duskwood.
Build Order #3 - Fast Hero
Replay of this Build Order - Creep Option
Replay of this Build Order - Expand Option
5 Peasants at start - 2 on gold 2 builds altar 1 builds farm
#1 peasant out of hall on gold
#2 peasant out of hall on lumber at this time take a peasant out of gold and have him whack your farm 8 or 9 times, this way farm and altar finish at exact same time. As altar and farm finish send 2 peasants on lumber and 1 on gold 4 on gold 3 on lumber.
At this point you have 73-75 lumber, watch the two peasants that finished the altar carefully and send them back once they have the 5-7 lumber needed to build a barracks
#3 peasant out of hall builds barracks.
Lumber peasant builds farm when resources are available 4 on gold 2 on lumber
If you wish to creep instead of early expand, use the #4 peasant out of main to help build barracks, finish with 4 peasants on gold and 6 on lumber and begin creeping.
If you wish to early expand, use only 1 peasant to build barracks and make 4 extra peasants in your main. Once your Arch Mage is completed turn 4 peasants into militia and use them to clear your expansion.
I love using this build to early expand because you can expand AND you start creeping the normal creeps only a little later then you normally would.
These are not all the build orders out there, there are millions of variations, but I feel these are the most basic and the most viable of them all. I didn't come up with any of these build orders so don't credit me.
Chapter II - Building Placement / Scouting
Scouting and building placement are important aspects of the game no matter WHAT race your playing, but here I will give certain tips to both of the above categories.
The use of farms - Many players build farms far away from their main/expo so that they can see enemy units ahead of time, or catch them when they are taking on a creep group. People have started referring to this as farm scouting, I dislike the term, but I haven't really thought of anything better myself. This is quite easy to do and VERY useful. I start with my second farm. Using build order #3, as I return the 2 peasants early for enough lumber to build a barracks, I send one walking down my main ramp, this way once I get 20 lumber I can build a farm EXTREMELY far away from my main ramp, that way I can see whatever is coming from that direction ahead of time.
So, why does farm scouting work you ask? Well if a player stopped to destroy each farm he passed he would only serve in slowing himself down. This allows you to react faster to what his next move might be. If you noticed him destroying a farm by the ogre camp, you could immediately move in that direction to try to catch him while he's taking down the creep group. It is difficult for a player to take on a creep group AND you at the same time, this may for him to TP out possibly leaving unfinished creeps behind or a great item. If a player DOES destroy one of your farms immediately start to build a new on in your main once he begins to attack it. Since Human units are weak in comparison to the units of the other races, you need to win by getting an advantage over your opponent, and farm scouting is one way to do this.
Where to place your buildings - Building placement is important to winning, most of this is learned from experience. You don't want to cramp your buildings in too close because this could trap your army if the need to TP arises. You also want to choke off certain parts of your town to hinder your enemy.