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Starcraft - teaching tips?

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13 Apr 2008 08:37 #4940 by benny lava
You guys were a big help with Arkham Horror a couple of weeks ago, so I'm back again. Looks like we'll be busting out Starcraft for the 1st time at our next AT game night.

Got any good first-play/teaching tips for n00bs?

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13 Apr 2008 10:12 #4941 by Aarontu
I'd suggest you play through a turn as an example to show them how the order thingies work. They're probably the hardest thing for new players to wrap their head around.

Also, try to get people to attack each other; if they don't the game will end in a spectacularly anticlimactic fashion when the game reaches phase III and the player who has been sitting on his special victory condition the entire game finally wins.

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13 Apr 2008 21:33 #4951 by KingPut
Solo a couple of turns and some combat so you feel comfortable with the rules of the game. Then start with a 2-4 player game, don't jump into a 5 - 6 player game.

New players get all excited about the bits when they first see StarCraft. So it's best not give them any toys to with at first or they won't pay attention to they rules until your about 20 minutes into the game.

1. Pre-bag the starting units for each player along with the combat and R&D cards. It's useful to down load a couple of player aids or copy the back page of the directions.

2. Start by explaining the board and objective of the game and victory conditions.

3. Then given everyone there player mat and starting units only.

4. Explain combat units are plastic, flying units are on stands and other units are cardboard.

5. Draw planets and build the map. Note I've been give out 3 systems and letting people pick the best 2 out 3.

6. Explain the 3 orders (build, R&D, mobilize)

7. Explain each order in some detail - Build 1st explain bases, workers, modules, etc

8. R&D 2nd

9. Mobilize 3rd

10. Event Cards

11. Combat – Basic combat cards, how support works, how assist works, air vs. ground, cloaking, detection, splash damage, retreating

12. Give out the rest of the bits

13. Start the game (help out people through turn 1 and during the 1st combat)

14. Good luck, have fun

The biggest learning curve about StarCraft is how to use the advanced units and cool stuff you can R&D. The first time playing just slug it out get the feel for the game.

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14 Apr 2008 13:29 #4975 by grimnir
Some added tips to consider:

Print out copies of UniversalHead's 3-page player handout. It's very helpful for running the game and is a good reminder for the players about the turn and step sequence, special orders, and modules.

Try it with 3 players a few times at first. With 3 it is playable in an evening.

Leave the Protoss out of the initial games as they are a bit tougher to get used to since the unit costs are higher and the strategy is more R&D focused.

Provide pre-game tips about planet and z-axis placement rather than let a lopsided setup spoil the game. For example, show how z-axis routes can be used defensively or offensively.

Give players an idea of what kind of cards are in the event deck (e.g., z-axis movement, additional units, cheaper builds).

Take a single faction and run through a couple of turns for everyone to see. Show how a mobilize order is placed on top of a build order on an adjacent planet in order to move there and then build a base. Make use of each type of order and then cap it off with a battle.

Stress that the player aid card from the box includes a list of all of the factions' special victory conditions.

Print out and read the FAQ from FFG.

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14 Apr 2008 14:59 #4981 by KingPut
Good points Grimnir. I agree with leaving the Protoss out the first game. Set up 2 Zerg + 1 human or 2 human and 1 Zerg. There will be more combat, less R&D.

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21 Apr 2008 03:45 - 21 Apr 2008 03:54 #5192 by Gary Sax
Well boys, I'm now in the fold. I just got this game on trade for a wargame I was done with... I'll see if these tips help me out. I'll probably be trying to get this game on the table with some friends.
Last edit: 21 Apr 2008 03:54 by Gary Sax.

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21 Apr 2008 06:31 - 21 Apr 2008 06:36 #5193 by Citadel
I played Starcraft for the first time this weekend. It was great. The friend who owned it had "read the rules but forgotten them" so I had to read the rulebook and then explain the rules. The rulebook is extremely wordy and repetitive. It took about 2 hours to read but the rules are fairly straight forward and took about 15-20 minutes to explain. If you have played pretty much any multiplayer wargame before it will be mostly intuitive. The bits that aren't intuitive and need drilling into players are:

- When you place a mobilize action, you place it on the planet you are attacking or moving to NOT the planet you are moving from. You can only attack one area per moblize action but can move any number of times.

- When you build, you place one worker on each resource required by what you are building.

- There is an order to the build phase: workers/units/transports, then buildings/modules, then new bases. This stops you building a base, upgrading your building capabilities and then building great new units.

- There are restrictions on the number of units you can build per build phase (2 at the start) as well as limits on the number of units each area of a planet can hold.

- The combat happens in one round of placing one combat card (with or without a reinforcement card) per skirmish. The number of skirmishes is determined by the side with the fewest units. The attacker chooses which units will face which other units in the front line. The assist rule complicates this a bit. Any left over units support as decided by their controller. The combat itself works kind of like Magic: the Gathering.

- When you attack, you can go two units over the unit limit in the area you attack but must retreat after the battle to get down to the limit.
Last edit: 21 Apr 2008 06:36 by Citadel.

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23 Apr 2008 11:30 #5289 by Thaadd
I was generally teaching it having preset the board - get things relatively balanced, no poor planets - and after explaining each of the orders, giving a quick run down of how the overall turn phases go (order placing) I stacked orders such that each person would do a built, research and combat. I would not explain combat until it happened.

After each player when through that first stack of 4 orders, and the first regroup phase happened, I would end the demo (in a house setting, then have everyone start the planet select point).

It gives people a chance to make mistakes - I would generally deliberately put a build order before the mobilize order to show what you need to build, how transports work, and how you can take an event card that is not a total screw you thing. Its actually a pretty fun game to teach.

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29 Apr 2008 14:08 #5505 by Gary Sax
God fucking damn, I just got the game and box is absurdly large.

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29 Apr 2008 14:25 #5507 by Ken B.
Gary Sax wrote:

God fucking damn, I just got the game and box is absurdly large.



First FFG Coffin, Gary?

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29 Apr 2008 15:01 #5511 by Gary Sax
Roger that. Glad I got rid of Asia Engulfed for this.

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29 Apr 2008 15:10 #5512 by Ken B.
Starcraft's definitely on my list to pick up at some point this year. It looks awesome. I've read the rulebook and some of the stuff going on looks really cool.

It's awesome to watch folks who have never seen a big-box FFG game get a glimpse at one for the first time...their eyes just boggle. Even regular gamers are not immune to this effect.

It's funny because DOOM could have benefitted from being a big box game...I mean, I figured out how to get everything back in there (sans insert) and even worked a plastic storage thing in for the tokens...but it is a TIGHT fit.

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30 Apr 2008 12:58 #5583 by Gary Sax
A ton of my flyers were broken. I glued some of them back but a lot of the bases were broken as well so I just f-it and e-mail FFG. Thaadd is hooking me up with new pieces for the broken units. Thanks Thaadd!

Trying to put together a game for next week. Going to be hard to explain some of the mechanisms to them.

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30 Apr 2008 13:31 #5589 by Thaadd
I could have sent them out in today's post, but you forgot to give me your address. One can not email plastic!

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30 Apr 2008 23:31 #5617 by Gary Sax
Thaadd wrote:

I could have sent them out in today's post, but you forgot to give me your address. One can not email plastic!


Thank you Thaadd. :)

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