#starcraft 2 refinery

[fitjourneydaily]

Enhancing Efficiency in StarCraft II with Chronoboost: A Guide for Protoss Players

In the fast-paced and strategic world of StarCraft II, the Protoss race possesses a unique ability called Chronoboost. This ability allows players to temporarily increase the production speed of their units and buildings, providing a significant advantage on the battlefield. In this comprehensive guide, we will explore various aspects of Chronoboost, including its application in the popular Day9 Chronoboost strategy, as well as its benefits when used with Chronobooster WoW, and how it can be utilized to empower allied buildings. Let's dive in and discover how to leverage Chronoboost to its fullest potential! 1. Understanding Chronoboost: Chronoboost is an intrinsic ability of the Protoss race that allows players to accelerate the production of their units and structures. By using Chrono Energy, a resource available to each Protoss player, players can activate Chronoboost on a targeted building, significantly reducing the time it takes for units or upgrades to be completed. Understanding how Chronoboost works and when to use it is crucial for Protoss players seeking to gain an edge over their opponents. 2. The Day9 Chronoboost Strategy: The Day9 Chronoboost strategy, popularized by the well-known StarCraft II player and commentator Sean "Day9" Plott, emphasizes the efficient allocation of Chronoboost throughout the game. The strategy suggests prioritizing the use of Chronoboost on key structures such as the Nexus, Gateways, and Robo Facilities to enhance unit production and research speed. By carefully managing Chronoboost allocation, players can optimize their economy and military potential, gaining a significant advantage. 3. Unleashing the Power of Chronobooster WoW: For World of Warcraft players who are also avid StarCraft II enthusiasts, Chronobooster WoW offers a unique experience by seamlessly integrating the Chronoboost ability. Not only does Chronobooster WoW enhance the speed of leveling and quests, but it also provides the option to use Chronoboost on allied Protoss units and buildings, elevating gameplay to a whole new level. This powerful feature encourages teamwork and coordination among players, allowing for faster progression and efficient resource management. 4. Applying Chronoboost to Empower Allied Buildings: In team-based StarCraft II matches, Protoss players can use Chronoboost to not only enhance their own structures but to also empower allied buildings. This expansion of Chronoboost utility opens up new strategies and opportunities for collaborative gameplay. Allocating Chronoboost to allied structures such as Refineries, Barracks, or Factories can greatly assist teammates in producing additional units or upgrades swiftly, balancing the team's overall strength and accelerating victories. Conclusion: Chronoboost is a game-changing ability for Protoss players, providing a means to increase production and gain a competitive edge. Understanding the intricacies of Chronoboost and utilizing it effectively can enhance your strategical prowess and maximize efficiency in StarCraft II. From the renowned Day9 Chronoboost strategy to the fascinating integration in Chronobooster WoW, there are various ways to harness this power for success. Additionally, extending its utility to empower allied buildings adds a collaborative aspect to gameplay, fostering teamwork and optimizing team performance. Embrace the potential of Chronoboost and watch your StarCraft II prowess soar! Enhance your gaming experience with Chronoboost – learn how to use it in Protoss and other games like SC2 and WoW. For more strategies and tips, visit our website. Visit the Chronoboost Product Page. Read the full article

[paulgribov]

Here is a high poly model of a terran refinery. This model is in advanced state but much more detail work is coming. My high poly models of this kind have any practical value- they are just an attempt to make my own 3d dream of already existing in game buildings. A command center model is also on the way but it,s too eary to show it.

[antagonistchanremade]

starcraft explanation post PART TWO

so i went over some general concepts last time, now i’ll go over the specific Tech Trees.

Terrans

you start with Command Centers and SCVs.

SCVs can build things, but not all at once; there’s an order to things. building one building will unlock other buildings.

(also something i forgot to mention in-depth last post: many Terran buildings can build Add-Ons. in starcraft 1, each building had unique Add-Ons, but in starcraft 2, there’s just two universal Add-Ons, the Tech Lab and the Reactor. the Tech Lab unlocks certain units and researches certain upgrades, while the Reactor allows you to build two units at once. you can’t have both Add-Ons at the same time, but any structure that can build Add-Ons can also Lift Off, and they’ll leave their Add-Ons behind.)

the Command Center unlocks Refineries and Supply Depots. the Supply Depot unlocks Barracks’ and Engineering Bays. the Barracks unlocks Bunkers, Factories, Academies (starcraft 1 only), and Ghost Academies (starcraft 2 only; also Academies and Ghost Academies are unrelated). in starcraft 2 it also unlocks the ability for your Command Center to upgrade into an Orbital Command. the Barracks also builds Marines, Reapers in starcraft 2, Firebats and Medics in starcraft 1 if you have an Academy, Ghosts in starcraft 1 if you have a Covert Ops or in starcraft 2 if you have a Ghost Academy and Tech Lab, and Marauders in starcraft 2 if you have a Tech Lab. Barracks can also Lift Off in both games.

the Engineering Bay unlocks Missile Turrets, and in starcraft 2, the ability for your Command Center to upgrade into a Planetary Fortress. the Engineering Bay also researches upgrades for your Infantry units (the units built from a Barracks); there are three levels of upgrades, and while you can get the first level of upgrades immediately, you can’t get the second or third until you get a Science Facility in starcraft 1 or an Armory in starcraft 2. Engineering Bays could Lift Off in starcraft 1, but not starcraft 2.

the Academy researched more specialized upgrades for your Infantry units, similar to the kinds of upgrades an Add-On would research, and like an Add-On, also unlocks certain units in one certain building. the Academy also was an Add-On when starcraft 1 was in beta. it’s not really a surprise that in starcraft 2 they nixed the Academy and just gave Barracks’ the ability to make Add-Ons since the Academy was basically just a really expensive Add-On that wasn’t an Add-On.

the Factory unlocks Starports and Armories, and in starcraft 1 its unique Add-On was the Machine Shop. the Factory also builds... nothing consistently actually. it builds Vultures in starcraft 1; Hellions, Hellbats, and Widow Mines in starcraft 2; Siege Tanks in starcraft 1 if you have a Machine Shop or in starcraft 2 if you have a Tech Lab; Goliaths in starcraft 1 if you have a Machine Shop and an Armory; Cyclones in starcraft 2 if you have a Tech Lab; and Thors in starcraft 2 if you have a Tech Lab and an Armory. Factories can Lift Off in starcraft 1 and starcraft 2.

the Armory is where you research upgrades for your Vehicles (units built from the Factory) and Ships (units built from the Starport), and as mentioned, also unlocks the higher-tier upgrades for the Engineering Bay in starcraft 2. in starcraft 2, it also has no limits on its own upgrades, but in starcraft 1, like the Engineering Bay, its higher-tier upgrades are limited by the Science Facility.

the Starport unlocks Science Facilities in starcraft 1 and Fusion Cores in starcraft 2, and in starcraft 1 its unique Add-On was the Control Tower. the Starport also builds Wraiths in starcraft 1; Dropships in starcraft 1 if you have a Control Tower; Science Vessels in starcraft 1 if you have a Science Facility and Control Tower; Battlecruisers in starcraft 1 if you have a Control Tower and Physics Lab or in starcraft 2 if you have a Tech Lab and a Fusion Core; Valkyries in starcraft 1 if you have a Control Tower; Vikings, Medivacs, and Liberators in starcraft 2; and Ravens and Banshees in starcraft 2 if you have a Tech Lab. Starports can Lift Off in starcraft 1 and starcraft 2.

the Fusion Core just exists to unlock Battlecruisers and research a few Ship upgrades.

the Science Facility unlocks a shit ton of stuff in starcraft 1. as previously mentioned, it unlocked the higher-tier upgrades, and it directly unlocked Science Vessels (and researched upgrades for Science Vessels). but it also had two Add-Ons- the Physics Lab (which unlocked and researched upgrades for Battlecruisers) and the Cover Ops (which unlocked and researched upgrades for Ghosts). yeah. Science Facilities could Lift Off.

Zerg

you start with Hatcheries, Drones, and Larvae.

Larvae can initially morph into Drones and Overlords.

Drones, like SCVs, need to unlock buildings and units gradually. it can initially mutate into Hatcheries, Extractors, Spawning Pools, Evolution Chambers, and, in starcraft 1, Creep Colonies.

the Spawning Pool unlocks the ability for Larvae to morph into Zerglings; the ability for Hatcheries/Lairs/Hives to birth Queens in starcraft 2; the ability for Hatcheries to mutate into Lairs; Hydralisk Dens and Sunken Colonies in starcraft 1; and Roach Warrens, Baneling Nests, and Spine Crawlers in starcraft 2. it also researches upgrades for Zerglings.

The Evolution Chamber unlocks Spore Colonies in starcraft 1 and Spore Crawlers in starcraft 2. it’s also your main research building for your ground forces.

the Roach Warren unlocks the ability for Larvae to morph into Roaches and Roaches to evolve into Ravagers in starcraft 2 and researches upgrades for Roaches. the Baneling Nest unlocks the ability for Zerglings to morph into Banelings in starcraft 2 and researches upgrades for Banelings. the Hydralisk Den unlocks the ability for Larvae to morph into Hydralisks and, in starcraft 2, the ability for Drones to mutate into Lurker Dens, and researches upgrades for Hydralisks (including the ability to mutate into Lurkers in starcraft 1). the Lurker Den unlocks the ability for Hydralisks to morph into Lurkers in starcraft 2 and researches upgrades for Lurkers.

the Lair unlocks Spires; Queens’ Nests in starcraft 1; and Hydralisk Dens, Infestation Pits, Nydus Networks, and the ability for Overlords to evolve into Overseers in starcraft 2. (note that this means Hydralisk Dens were put higher on the tech tree in starcraft 2 than in starcraft 1).

the Spire unlocks the ability for Larvae to morph into Mutalisks and, in starcraft 2, Corruptors. it also researches upgrades for your air units.

the Queen’s Nest unlocked the ability for Larvae to morph into Queens and Lairs to evolve into Hives in starcraft 1, and researched upgrades for Queens. and you could use Queens to get Infested Command Centers in starcraft 1.

Infested Command Centers could build Infested Terrans in starcraft 1, which were very powerful suicide units back then. the Nydus Network is just a sort of fast-travel system that you can use to basically shuffle your Zerg forces around the map.

the Infestation Pit unlocks the ability for Larvae to morph into Infestors and Swarm Hosts and Lairs to evolve into Hives in starcraft 2. since SC1 Queens and Infestors both play the role of infestation specialists, it’s safe to say that the Infestation Pit basically replaced the Queen’s Nest. it also researches upgrades for Infestors.

the Hive unlocks the Ultralisk Cavern and the ability for Spires to evolve into Greater Spires; Nydus Canals and Defiler Mounds in starcraft 1; and Vipers in starcraft 2.

the Nydus Canal was the Nydus Network but worse. the Ultralisk Cavern unlocks the ability for Larvae to morph into Ultralisks and researches upgrades for Ultralisks. the Defiler Mound unlocked the ability for Larvae to morph into Defilers and researched upgrades for Defilers.

Greater Spires unlocked the ability for Mutalisks to evolve into Guardians and Devourers in starcraft 1, and unlocks the ability for Corruptors to evolve into Brood Lords in starcraft 2.

Protoss

you start with Nexii and Probes.

you know the drill; you need to unlock things gradually.

the Nexus unlocks the Gateway and the Forge. the Gateway unlocks the Cybernetics Core and, in starcraft 1, the Shield Battery. the Gateway also builds Zealots; Dragoons in starcraft 1 if you have a Cybernetics Core; Stalkers, Adepts, and Sentries in starcraft 2 if you have a Cybernetics Core; High Templar (which can combine into Archons) if you have a Templar Archives; and Dark Templar (which can combine into Archons in starcraft 2 and Dark Archons in starcraft 1) in starcraft 1 if you have a Templar Archives or in starcraft 2 if you have a Dark Shrine.

the Forge unlocks the Photon Cannon, and researches upgrades for your ground forces and shields.

the Cybernetics Core unlocks the Robotics Facility and Stargate; the Shield Battery and Twilight Council in starcraft 2; the ability for Gateways to transform into Warp Gates; and the Citadel of Adun in starcraft 1. it also researches upgrades for your air forces, as well as, in starcraft 1, Dragoons.

Warp Gates are Gateways except they build units differently, and you can place these units in any Power Field.

the Citadel of Adun unlocked the Templar Archives in starcraft 1 and researched 1 (one) Zealot upgrade. it’s honestly kinda funny how superfluous yet necessary the Citadel of Adun was.

the Twilight Council is basically the Citadel of Adun But Better (But Also Less Interesting-Looking). it unlocks the Templar Archives and Dark Shrine and researches a number of Gateway unit upgrades.

the Templar Archives unlocks High Templar and, in starcraft 1, Dark Templar, as mentioned. they also research upgrades for High Templar and, in starcraft 1, Dark Archons. the Dark Shrine unlocks Dark Templar in starcraft 2 and also researches upgrades for Dark Templar.

the Robotics Facility unlocks the Robotics Bay (technically Robotics Support Bay in starcraft 1 but the RB and RSB are the same building just with a word removed) and, in starcraft 1, the Observatory. it also builds Robotic units, and like the Factory, it’s not at all consistent. it builds the Shuttle in starcraft 1; the Observer in starcraft 1 if you have an Observatory or in starcraft 2 just... like, for free; the Reaver in starcraft 1 if you have the Robotics Bay; the Warp Prism and Immortal in starcraft 2; and the Collosus and Disruptor in starcraft 2 if you have the Robotics Bay.

the Robotics (Support) Bay unlocks those units, as mentioned, and also researches upgrades for Robotic units. the Observatory unlocked Observers in starcraft 1, as mentioned, and also researched upgrades for Observers.

the Stargate unlocks the Fleet Beacon. it also builds non-robotic air units. once again, nothing consistently; it builds the Scout and Corsair in starcraft 1; the Phoenix, Oracle, and Void Ray in starcraft 2; the Carrier if you have a Fleet Beacon; the Arbiter in starcraft 1 if you have an Arbiter Tribunal; and the Tempest in starcraft 2 if you have a Fleet Beacon.

the Fleet Beacon unlocks a bunch of Stargate units; the Arbiter Tribunal in starcraft 1; and the ability for the Nexus to warp in a mighty Mothership in starcraft 2 (only one Mothership per player can be active at a time). it also researches upgrades for various non-robotic air units.

finally, the Arbiter Tribunal unlocked Arbiters in starcraft 1, as mentioned, and researched upgrades for Arbiters.

[wowitscow]

i love the starcraft 2 Terran designs like they look like you could pick them up then throw them and crush them like cardboard boxes but they'd spring back into shape when i let go of them. like i look at the tank and think yes that looks like à scary mobile artillery unit but i also want to bite it like a piece of refrigerated chocolate. i want to sit on one of the un-upgraded command centers like a silly little stool and watch the SCVs run about like little ants. I want to stack cardboard tubes on top of the ghost academies. i want to stretch the marauders like marshmallows and i want to just watch the banshees fly around in circles and squish bunkers under my feet like crunching leaves. I want to pop the supply depots like bubble wrap and slice the barracks as if it was a perfectly square watermelon.

also shoutout to the refineries factories vikings thirors battle cruisers and medivacs they r just all so cool i uagh

[enhybridchemblog]

Starcraft 2 Elite Guide - The Best Research Choices for Beating Starcraft 2 On Brutal Part 2

Many people have been asking me about the single player campaign and what choices I made for the Zerg and Protoss research when attempting to beat the game on brutal. First off i must say that taking on Brutal mode in Starcraft 2 is no easy task to say the least. I'm going to show you what is in my opinion the best research path to take when attempting to conquer brutal difficulty.

Protoss Research:

Tier 1: The choice is between Ultra-Capacitors which grants 5% increased attack speed when upgrading weapons (And applies to the Armory as well as the Engineering Bay) and Vanadium Plating which grants 5% health in addition to armor upgrades (also applies to the Armory and Engineering Bay). As I stated before the best defense is a good offense and i found that going with the Ultra-Capacitors proved to be more beneficial. The health upgrade does seem nice but once you've upgraded the Stabilizer Medpacks for the Medics and the Advanced Healing AI for the Medivacs I didn't see the point in additional HP.

Winner: Ultra-Capacitors

Tier 2: The second choice is between Orbital Depots which allows you to instantly drop Supply Depots and Micro-Filtering which allows you to harvest vespene gas 25% quicker and also applies to the Automated Refineries. While the Orbital Depots seem quick and efficient the only serious use I could see is to make a quick wall off with it. Now I would assume that since you've made it this far you've become accustomed to building Supply Depots as needed and additionally many of the more difficult missions actually max out your supply right off the bat rendering this upgrade near worthless. The Micro-Filtering however I found to be the better choice simply because it allows you to pump out the big guns and get upgrades quicker in the missions.

Winner: Micro-Filtering

Tier 3: The third choice is between micro reactor the Automated Refinery which allows Refineries to no longer require SCV's to harvest gas and the Command Center Reactor which allows you to train 2 SCV's at once. I've seen people go with both choices but i feel that the Automated Refinery takes the cake. I don't see the point in training 2 SCV's at once when you could have the Automated Refinery and be able to build 6 less SCV's per base. Granted you'd be able to increase your economy at a faster rate but isn't that what M.U.L.E's are for once you've upgraded the Orbital Command.

Winner: Automated Refinery

Tier 4: The fourth choice is between the Raven and the Science Vessel. Now I've seen the power of Ravens versus Zerg and they can be absolutely devastating but I don't believe that this can even come close to competing with the Science Vessel. The abilities of the Science Vessel greatly outweigh those of the Raven. Being able to heal your Ships and Vehicles as well as gaining access to Irradiate (which is more or less the Terran Version of Fungal Growth) is far greater than being able to throw down Auto-Turrets and Seeker Missiles. The Science Vessel is the serious no brainer choice.

Winner: Science Vessel

Tier 5: The final choice is between Tech Reactor which combines the Tech Lab and Reactor in one simple add-on and Orbital Strike which allows Barracks Units to drop pod down at the Barracks rally point. When it comes to the Orbital Strike there's one key word you have to pay attention to and that's Barracks units. If this had applied to Factories and Starports as well I would understand taking it but being able to simply drop 2 Marines or Marauders or Medics at the rally point becomes worthless at this stage of the game when you're most likely building the majority of your strike force from the Starport. The Tech Reactor simplifies everything and allows you to pump out everything you can build quickly and efficiently.

see more: http://en.hybrid-chem.com

[fslgames-blog1]

Breaking down categories of action in strategy games

New Post has been published on https://gamedevnexus.000webhostapp.com/2019/02/breaking-down-categories-of-action-in-strategy-games

Breaking down categories of action in strategy games

The following blog post, unless otherwise noted, was written by a member of Gamasutra’s community. The thoughts and opinions expressed are those of the writer and not Gamasutra or its parent company.

In this article, I’m going to seek to elucidate a theory of how players’ actions operate in the context of strategy games – mostly, in a competitive setting, though I think it also applies to single player or co-op as well. Specifically, I’m looking at how games’ rules direct player action into one of 4 interrelated categories of action, which I’m calling “Preparatory” actions, “Anticipatory” actions, “Direct” actions, and “Reactionary” actions.

‘ll take a look at each category separately, using examples across a range of games, and then talk about how these relate to one another, and where I feel existing game design could do a better job of providing a more rewarding experience.

Preparatory Actions

Resource harvesting and building production structures are examples of Preparatory actions. You’re gearing up for the ‘real’ fight later on

Most strategy game design leads players to focus intensely on the first category of action. Preparatory Actions are exactly what they sound like. They’re the player preparing for something to happen.

Building up your economy (training workers, building Refineries) or manufacturing base (building production structures), researching tech/upgrades, and building out your army are preparatory actions. For these, benefits are often not immediate and may take minutes of careful management to build up to a payoff or better game position.

You’re building up towards being able push out your army, or to fend off the enemy’s big attack. You’re preparing to pull out your deathball, your super-unit or superweapon. You’re spending time and mental energy towards the goal of making something happen. These are incremental actions, with a long payoff; few of them reach their peak performance within a small time period.

Supreme Commander has a bevy of intricate Preparatory interactions, such as building adjacency bonuses

These are the actions that players really seem to tend to enjoy on average. Games like Age of Empires, StarCraft 2, and Supreme Commander have intricate and comprehensive systems of Preparatory actions that provide a high degree of control of economic outcomes.

In general, players tend want to build an intricate base that’s laid out just so, or maximize their build order to get those Banshees out in as few seconds as possible.

Overly focusing on preparatory actions, however, is bad for a competitive game. Just ask Grey Goo (or Forged Battalion). Grey Goo’s gameplay is really loaded towards a gradual ramp up to a large army. Once you’re in the middle of a battle, you don’t… really… have a lot of tools to react to your opponent’s actions, or manipulate the battle in meaningful ways beyond backing off and trying not to lose too much of your army.

Winning a Grey Goo match comes down, more often than not, to your ability to maintain and expand an income to support army replenishment. Income and manufacturing reign supreme, to the game’s detriment.

I hate to derail this entirely to dump on Grey Goo, but a lot of this comes down to: slow average unit move speeds, and production and harvesting operations (refineries mostly) being highly defensible, combined with a low-impact counter system, means that harassment is difficult to pull off and it’s difficult to counter a large army with a smaller one. The game provides very little wiggle room or ability to pull out any sort of “oh crap!” measure to reverse your fortunes, and a small number of units don’t have a lot of room to make a big impact.

Contrast this with StarCraft 2, where a single uncontained Infestor or Oracle can mulch an entire base’s worth of income, or in WarCraft 3, where a Blood Mage or Archmage can whittle an army with a lucky hit, or a Demon Hunter or Blademaster can take out an enemy hero leaving their army vulnerable and unsupported – and these are the easy, low hanging fruit interactions to describe.

And, speaking of battle…

Direct Actions

Pew Pew! Direct actions are when you make something happen in a game, whether it’s taking territory, moving your army to initiate combat, or doing a rush/surprise attack.

Next, we have Direct actions. I’m skipping Anticipatory for now. I’ll do that one last because it’s the trickiest to tackle. Direct Actions are, well, doing stuff.

Direct Actions are proactive, aggressive actions you take in the game. Scouting your opponent, trying to cut off their supply line, sniping their workers to slow their economy, or doing a push with your army are primarily examples of actions that fall into this category. Even moving your army to a tactically advantageous position or to cut off your opponent from part of the map would count as ‘direct’ actions.

For instance, if in Age of Empires you scout your opponent sending an attack force in your direction, you might want to manipulate your forces to be ready for their likely attack point (an anticipatory action). You might also want to change from a more economic focus/boom economy towards maximizing your army, beginning a chain of preparatory actions to deal with your enemy’s evident aggression that would overwhelm you if you don’t have a large enough army to deal with it.

Sending a counterattack force to hinder their economy while they’re attempting to destroy your infrastructure would be an example Direct action.

Direct actions are, by and large, what the Preparatory actions are preparing for. Fast teching to a halftrack in Company of Heroes 2 to catch your opponent off-guard without a counter, getting those Dark Templar out (StarCraft 2) and into your enemy’s base before they get detection. These are the direct actions you’re taking to swing the course of the game.

Like the name says, these actions are often pretty transitory. In many cases, being the output of a Preparatory action, these are more of a result than a product in themselves. The kinetic result translated from the potential energy generated from preparatory actions.

Direct actions are the second half of what most RTS focus on (the first half being Preparatory actions, of course). Build a bunch of horsemen – preparation, send them to harass enemy villagers – direct action. Turtle up to get a nuclear missle – preparation; slam that missle into the enemy base – direct action.

Reactionary Actions

MOBAs, especially Heroes of the Storm, tend to have comparatively few preparatory actions and focus player attention on Anticipatory and Reactionary action types.

Reactionary actions are the ones players take *during* or *in response* to other actions, particularly in combat situations.

Retreating your army from a losing engagement

using skill shots or abilities to change the course of the combat

offmap/support powers

Most combat-oriented unit ‘micro’

Are almost always reactionary in nature.

The line between Direct actions and Reactionary actions blurs a bit at times, and I feel it’s mostly one of intent. Remember, we’re talking about how players are interacting with the game here. So, where a Direct action is sending your army out to attack your opponent’s base (with maybe a surprise sneak attack at enemy production lined up) the Reactionary actions that follow consist of the Psionic Storms, Stalker Blinks, Yamato cannons, Marine micro, grenade tosses, etc that you’re performing to ensure the success of your intended course of action.

Reactionary actions are typically loosely related to Preparatory actions: you might need to have constructed a structure or researched an upgrade to enable the Reactionary action (such as with support powers in Command and Conquer 3), or it might be tied to a unit you’ve had to train (such as Psionic Storm in StarCraft or Anti-Tank grenades in Company of Heroes).

These actions are the ones you take in the moment to impact the outcome of an engagement or interaction. Making the best use of the tools you’ve acquired in the Preparatory phase to ensure a better outcome for youself than your opponent. Micro. Active abilities. Skill-shots.

Hopefully, I’ve been able to demonstrate that so far, the majority of interactions RTS, each in its way, inherits from the Preparatory actions of building your economy. We’re going to come back to that in a bit. But first, Anticipatory actions.

Anticipatory Actions

Universe at War and the Command and Conquer games feature design that supports some fantastic Anticipatory actions

I saved Anticipatory actions for last since they’re not really generally a formalized piece of the puzzle in strategy games. These are actions you perform as a last-minute adjustment right before an engagement begins.

Scanner sweep to find burrowed Banelings/creep tumors prior to attempting to move your army into position to attack the enemy

Splitting your army into 2 groups to surround an incoming enemy force

Engaging an ability that reduces your unit/army’s ability to react quickly in exchange for increased defenses (e.g. a Sentry’s shield bubble)

Performing a unit configuration action (putting a different troop in a Multigunner IFV in RA3). Sometimes these are Reactionary (like changing a Viking from air to ground mode) but sometimes they don’t provide full benefits unless you’ve done them before combat begins in earnest.

You almost always can’t perform the anticipatory action without having prepared (e.g. constructed a unit), but it’s not quite the same order of thing, to me. If I were to extablish a relationship between the 4 types of action, it would be:

Preparatory actions precipitate Direct actions. Direct actions precipitate Anticipatory actions. Anticipatory actions preceed Reactions.

Since a lot of this is contextual, a single ability or unit action might be Anticipatory, Reactionary, or Direct depending on context, though I would argue in most cases, the specific design of these abilities almost always makes them most suitable when occurring in a specific category.

Universe at War had some great Anticipatory actions in its faction dynamics.

Novus applying a new faction-wide Patch. This isn’t something that’s directly going to swing combat in your favor – there’s no instant impact in a localized area. But, it might help you retreat, or apply that code debuff during combat to change the outcome over the course of the battle. It’s an action anticipating eventual reactions down the line.

Masari switching to Light/Dark matter mode to change their army behavior. Unless you have a certain research option unlocked, dark mode takes some time to bring its main benefit (its shield) online. And units take some time to adapt to their new mode, with air units slowly sinking to the ground once Dark Matter mode is activated. Not something you want to do in the heat of the moment, unless you’ve prepared for it ahead of time.

Hierarchy swapping Hardpoints on a Walker. Hardpoints can alter the outcome of a battle, but are vulnerable when warping in. Changing from production to combat orientation takes some time.

I would consider positioning a set-up weapon in a Company of Heroes game to be an anticipatory-type action in most cases

These actions are often too slow, or their effects are too gradual to be reactionary and are more individually impactful than the overlapping pile of your preparatory actions, so you end up with this weird space where, right before combat begins in earnest, you’re fine-tuning things to work to your advantage that otherwise might not work (or work as well) in the context of a battle.

This is kind of akin to Company of Heroes 2, where mines/barbed wire are Preparatory, since they take time to place and are useless if a unit is spotted while placing them.

But, say, positioning your tanks and weapons crews? That’s more of an anticipatory thing. You can KIND of do it offensively, if you approach an enemy just right and have units to screen the crews while they’re vulnerable. But if you’re too static with it, you’re gonna get hit with some missiles or mortar shells or some such nasty area damage Reaction to what you’re trying to do.

Why does this matter? – Proportionality

Much of your success in Tooth and Tail comes down almost purely to a careful balance between income and production of armed forces. Once you’re behind economically it’s almost impossible to come back.

Proportionality: Forming a relationship with other parts or quantities; being in proportion.

Getting these elements into various balance configuration is the product (or results in) of different types of design choices when crafting strategy games.

Clearly, a game like Grey Goo or Forged Battallion, which are heavily skewed towards a dominant buildup phase, where resources are king, is a poor solution. Games designed this way suffer. Or, more specifically, the players of games designed this way don’t have a great experience.

I’ve written before about “equilibrium“, and allowing players multiple semi-independent avenues down which they can succeed – and must demonstrate mastery in which to succeed.

For me, this is more than an idle mental excersise. I want to understand how people approach game rules in order to create interesting and deep interactions in the games I make. When working on my StarCraft 2 custom mod, and duing my brief tenure assisting Dream Harvest games with the NeuroSlicers game, I kept running into situations where I wanted to be able to provide the players with different types of option and action to handle different types of threat.

When playing a strategy game, I feel deeply unsatisfied if simple economics and preparations are enough to score me wins in battle. It’s frustrating when quickly pumping out a bigger army is the surest way to guarantee a victory in most cases, and where the outcome of the first encounter with the enemy is highly deterministic of the outcome of the final encounter (the slippery slope, if you will).

I don’t want to experience that, and I don’t want my players to experience that. Weighting one type of action too heavily with the game’s design leads to the slogfests of Grey Goo, and another type too heavily leads to the unsatisfying one-battle snoozefests of Sudden Strike 4. The games that have resonated most with players over time, the timeless classics, give you lots of ways to succeed, and lots of opportunities to perform well in various categories of activity.

I know I’m something of an American Primitive of game design, constantly creating my own terminology for things that have may already have a formalized recognition elsewhere. I’m trying to define, for myself, how and why some games work mechanically, and others don’t. For me, this is a big piece of why. Having the right balance of preparatory actions with a long payoff, a variety of approaches that lead to interesting direct actions, that are themselves able to be anticipated for and reacted to in the moment, with different skillsets and mindsets driving success for each of these action types, with each type of action being somewhat independent in success and initiaton from the other types, leads to the most interesting game to play. Too much or too little opportunity to succeed along these actions spoils the recipe, as well as too much or too little weight being afforded to skill along one of these avenues.

Thanks for reading.

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[illidanstr]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k7hCqZttUlY#t=7m

oh my god this is amazing 

this is such a clear demonstration of gamesense in starcraft 

it’s not just maru’s ability to determine that stats is sneaking a hidden third base off the fact stats is getting his refineries at his second base later than they should be, but the way he punishes it murderously.  there is no mercy

holy shit that is beautiful   

1.  he instantly guesses what stats is doing and commits to his read.  he doesn’t even think.  it’s immediate.  he starts two extra barracks and sends out a scout to the most likely hiding spots for the hidden third base to verify 

2.  he places the barracks where the observer will miss them when it comes in so stats does not see what is coming

3.  he walks seven or so marines across the map toward the third base.  why the fuck would he do that they’re sitting ducks?  because he knows stats will not move out on the map because stats has a small army, cannot be caught in the open or will die 

4.  he starts a bunker near stats’s third.  he comes in with his army in dropships to stats’s 2nd base.  he knows stats will teleport his entire army to defend the third base and kill the bunker and marines.  he hits the 2nd base ASAP because he knows it will be undefended when he comes in.  stats does.  and then stats teleports back to save his 2nd base.  but maru knows this is coming and he is already positioning to take a dive with his army to kill the highly expensive colossus when stats’ units materialize.  and then he packs up and leaves because he knows that he can finish it off with a seeker missile and get his entire army away without even really taking damage from this.  

every single step is perfectly planned and executed.  stats loses both of his colossus for absolutely nothing when he could not afford to lose one and still be in the game.  it’s fucking beautiful.

oh, and just to be a dick, he manages to save four marines at stats’ third and runs them back in to murder the probes as soon as stats recalls out

why is the late gas such a good tell?  because unless you are going mass zealot like bisu you need gas for anything you do as protoss.  you want as much of it as possible as soon as possible.  so there is not a valid reason to get the gas later than you possibly could unless you have to because you spent the money on a secret base.  

[waynekelton]

The Best RTS Games on Android & iOS

When it comes to the RTS, the mobile marketplace has big shoes to fill. From Age of Empires to Command & Conquer, the frantic blend of actions-per-minute with grand strategy, the macro- and micro-management required to play this genre at peak performance has inspired many a gamer.

What are the best RTS games on iOS & Android?

Company of Heroes

Bad North

Dungeon Warfare 2

Rebel Inc.

Element RTS

Kingdom Rush: Vengeance

Auralux: Constellations

Dominations

Iron Marines

Subterfuge

Rymdkapsel

Tropical Stormfront

Without further ado here are the best RTS games for android, iPhone & iPad to play in 2020:

Company of Heroes

Publisher: Feral Interactive Platforms: iPad Only Price: $14.99

I know when we first started creating these lists I said I didn't want to duplicate games across different articles if I could help it - but Company of Heroes is a good enough experience that it deserves to be in two places at once. Created by the geniuses at Feral Interactive, this is a smart adaptation of the iconic WW2 RTS to iPads. A touch interface is always going to be inferior to mouse when being adapted from the latter to the former, but Feral have done a pretty admirable job.

It's worth noting that, at the time of writing, the CoH port only includes the single-player campaign and 4v4 skirmish content from the vanilla game. The two expansions and multiplayer support are (hopefully) coming further down the line.

Bad North

Developer: Raw Fury Platforms: iOS Universal, Android Price: $4.99

We knew Bad North would be perfect for mobile when we first heard about it back in 2018... it got waylaid some-what, beaching on PC first before finally setting sail for mobile a few months ago - it was definitely worth the wait. The PC version went through a lot of updates and changes, culminating in the free 'Jotunn Edition' update that elevated the game to a more 'definitive' state.

That version is what landed on mobile, and we really enjoyed it. As a 'micro' strategy game it personifies minimalist, simple design. Some of you might find it too simple at least but for those who aren't bothered by the very meagre, but raw tactical options, you'll find a game that's challenging and quite rewarding. It's got rogue-like elements where you can unlock improvements for later runs, and then you must command and nurture your army from island to island as you fight off waves of blood-thirsty vikings. New enemy types will warrant a change in tactics, provided you survive.

Dungeon Warfare 2

Developer: Jin Man Kim Platforms: iOS Universal, Android Price: $4.99

We've been waiting for Dungeon Warfare 2 for what seems like a while now - it was on our list of 2018's most anticipated games for sure, but sadly missed its window and slipped into 2019. Still, as Richard can attest in this review, it was well worth the wait. The tower-defence genre has always been prone to to lazy or bland design, but in Dungeon Warfare everything is turned up to 11.

With over thirty distinct traps, this Dungeon Keeper-esque experience offers you a lot of variety and complexity with which to achieve what are still fairly basic TD goals. This game isn't completely unique in its theme, but nowhere else is it treated with so much passion - a must for TD strategy fans. 

Rebel Inc.

Developer: Ndemic Creations Platforms: iOS Universal, Android Price: $1.99

Plague Inc. this is not, but Rebel Inc. still shares in its predecessor's excellent design pedigree. As the newly appointed administrator of a region that's just suffered a major war, your job is to try and help the population rebuild was also keeping local insurgents in check. It's full of tough choices and challenging tactical game-play as you struggle to pin down enemy insurgents and prevent them from doing too much harm.

Dealing with the concept of reconstruction is no easy feat, and the subject matter could be considered slightly controversial given the recent events that have inspired it, but Ndemic have treated the topic with as much care and attention as they can, even consulting with real-world experts on the subject. Rebel Inc. is a challenging and tense game, but just as rewarding, making this one of the year's best real-time strategy/simulations.

Element RTS

Developer: Flightless Platforms: iOS Universal Price: $4.99

One of the top RTS releases of 2018 to date, Element is a PC port that fits right at home on mobile. It's unique and streamlined design makes it a very accessible strategy game - you've got to balance the production of resources with the construction of units to either defend your base or attack your foes. The matches are short, and the AI is a pretty decent challenge, so you won't want to for entertainment.

It's just shy of being a 'must-buy' - the inclusion of a multiplayer mode would probably cement it as one of the best RTS games in mobile history, but we'd settle for an Android version. According to the devs, the game's been able to run on android devices for a while now, and they're just putting on the finishing touches before they announce a formal release date.

Kingdom Rush: Vengeance

Developer: Ironside S.A. Platforms:  iOS Universal, Android Price: $4.99

The latest entry in the acclaimed Kingdom Rush tower defence series has caused no small amount of controversy, which is likely to continue with it's inclusion in this list. It all depends how much you're bothered by the game's slightly-too-persistent micro-transactions. The only blemish on what is otherwise a stellar real-time strategy experience, these IAPs are completely optional and unnecessary, they're just a tad pushy.

If you're like Dick, who was a bit more forgiving in his review, then you'll find another excellent tower defence game, and one with plenty of humour and content to last you a decent amount of time - each level can take up to thirty minutes to complete. The way Vengeance handles towers as well is also fairly unique, requiring a bit more thought and planning. All in alll, unless you really want to take a stand against micro-transactions, there's a great game here waiting for you to discover and enjoy. Read our review for more.

Auralux: Constellations

Developer: War Drum Studios Platforms:  iOS, Android Price: Free (IAPs)

Auralux is generally brilliant and wickedly simple. Glowing orbs skip across the void of space to do battle over planets, which in turn spawn more orbs for the controlling player. Gestures are dead simple, tapping to select and dragging to assign. There is only one type of ‘unit’ and one objective: take over the entire map. From these givens, Auralux has some intense, hair-pulling and nail-biting levels where the odds are almost ludicrously stacked against the little player that could.

The ‘constellations’ in the title are simply clustered series of levels, each with a gimmick mechanic which must be understood and utilized to power through said levels. The game shows its age a bit, but it also demonstrates how a simple idea with excellent execution can stand the test of time. Another bonus is the variable speed setting, which makes the action go from hyper to sedate, depending on playstyle. Local multiplayer is a nice plus, but the game’s primary draw is solo play.

Dominations

Developer: Nexon M Platforms:  iOS, Android Price: Free (IAPs)

Dominations deserves to be loved and known for the quality of play it provides and its relatively tasteful monetization, but unfortunately the quickest way to worm its way into your heart and home screen are comparisons, so let’s get those over with. It’s Civilization meets Clash of Clans, with empires spanning the Iron Age to Space Age, wonders to build, raids to conduct, and all the usual trappings.

So, yes, there is a certain likeness to established powerhouses, but the devil is in the details, and Dominations gets those spot-on. Playing it to a satisfying endgame without shelling out serious dinero will take patience, but Dominations’ emulation of all of recorded human history and conflict is pretty satisfying to stretch out and play in pieces. Of course, human history never before ran on a timer...

Iron Marines

Developer: Ironhide Studios Platforms:  iOS, Android Price: $4.99

The Iron Marines are a space-trotting, world-saving team of elite squads tasked with putting out fires and defeating hostiles wherever needed. The elevator pitch for the game would be Starcraft...but not? There is a home-base which usually has to be fortified and defended, additional refineries to secure more resources, and just a handful of units. 

From these simple, intuitive elements, the game ekes out a good sense of micromanagement and delectable real-time tension. Its enemies have unusual abilities and synergies, and its difficulty is no joke, especially on the higher levels. Yet the game also retains Ironclad Studios sense of long-term planning and strategy present in its tower defense titles. Read our Iron Marines review for more!

Subterfuge

Developer: SnappyTouch Platforms:  iOS, Android Price: Free (IAPs)

Subterfuge is exactly as advertised: a subtle, long-term game of expedient alliances and stone-cold betrayals, filled with the irrefutable logic of hard numbers and the soft uncertainty of fog of war. A turn just means giving subs and bases a command which will take hours to fulfil, so while it is real-time like warfare is real-time, in Subterfuge the theatre of war sees its stage advance slowly.

Its scale is just grand enough to be deeply satisfying but be warned that it does take some time investment to get a game fired up. The leaders provide asymmetrical player powers, but even these super-units can be captured and bartered. Barring these modifies and special cases,  the bases and subs are more or less identical. The game is simply a question of position, resources and force, but these factors are always shifting because of the partial information and precarious alliances.

Rymdkapsel

Developer: Grapefrukt Games Platforms:  iOS, Android Price: $3.99

Rymdkapsel is about space-base-building and defense, mostly, but also includes some spatial puzzling a la Tetris and ‘exploration’. Its minimalism is more than just stylistic, going instead to the core of every action, options and goal. Perhaps the most satisfying bit is the constant packing problem for expanding the base.

New buildings can be any type and go any spot the player chooses, but also must have predefined dimensions. (all four unit polyominoes) A tightly knit base might come across as more defensible but reaching and researching the far-flung monoliths gives permanent global passive bonuses. The game is a logistics and timing puzzle with a really keen sense of efficiency and management for all its stripped-down design.

Tropical Stormfront

Developer: Noble Master Games Platforms: iOS, Android Price: $3.99

Island-hopping Tropical Stormfront pits the United Democratic Alliance against Order, Discipline and Obedience in a faux-historical struggle across the archipelago. The graphics are deliberately dated and the unit mixture, contrary to every other item on the list, is realistic and accurate. Missions scenarios range from the typical conquest to capture the flag and survival mode.

It’s like a real-time Advance Wars with pretty much no hand-holding, just sink-or-swim gameplay. The touch controls mean a bigger screen is practically a must, for while missing a swipe or tap in another genre would be merely inconvenient, in a game like this it is quite the setback. Still, Tropical Stormfront is a smartly realized real-time-strategy game with staying power.

More Excellent RTS Games on iOS and Android

We want to keep this list lean, so as new comes come into the lime-lite other games will get rotated out. We don't want to forget about them though, so we've added this hall of fame section so we can remember them forever.

Anomaly 2

Mushroom Wars 2

Plague Inc.

Teen Titans GO! Figure

Autumn Dynasty

Eufloria

Cosmic Frontline AR

Front Armies

Dereliction

A Few Minutes of Glory

What would your list of the best RTS games on mobile look like? Let us know!

The Best RTS Games on Android & iOS published first on https://touchgen.tumblr.com/

[emeraldthoughtsblog]

Starcraft 2 Commander Idea: Tosh

This was a bit of a toss up between making him like Raynor or Nova. So, I went with making Tosh similar to Nova but gave him a bit of a twist. I’ll say this commander is not beginner friendly. -Wolf E.

Tosh, Dominion Specter

Tosh:

Spectral Operations: Tosh is permanently cloaked.

Psionic Prowess: Tosh can use Mind Blast, Psi Shield, and Consumption.

Call Nuke: Tosh can call down a nuclear missile from the Shadow Ops.

Units: Reaper x4, Medic x2, Specter x2, Diamondback x2, Predator x3, Widow Mine x4, Raven x1, Banshee x2, Wraith x2, Missile Turret, Psi Disruptor

Hero Unit: Tosh (240/90 Sec)

Structures:

Command Center, Barracks, Factory, Star Port, Shadow Ops, Engineering Bay, Armory, Missile Turret, Tech Lab, Jorium Synthesizer, Terrazine Synthesizer, Psi Disruptor

Upgrades:

LV1: Spectral Operations: Tosh has a 100 supply maximum, but his units and structures have increased life, deal additional damage, and are resistant to stun effects. Trained units require Jorium and Terrazine and are deployed instantly onto the field. SCV’s can build Jorium and Terrazine Synthesizers.

LV2: Auto Refineries: Refineries collect Vespene without the aid of SCV’s

LV3: Assault Mode: Tosh becomes a high damage melee unit. Can use Psionic Projection, Psi Shield, and Consumption

LV4: Barracks Upgrade Cache: Reapers can heal outside of combat, Medics can cloak themselves and their heal target.

LV5: New Unit, Psi Disruptor: Defensive structure that can slow enemy units and drain energy from casters

LV6: Factory Upgrade Cache: Allows Predators to jump cliffs, Widow Mines can deep tunnel, Diamondbacks can stun air units.

LV7: Psi Disruptor Upgrade Cache: Psi Disruptors can restore leached energy to ally units, Psi disruptors deal damage to units in a small area around it.

LV8: Project Shadow Blade: Jorium and Terrazine manufacturing increased 50%

LV9: Shadow Ops Upgrade Cache: Tosh Life regeneration increased. Specters can use Psionic Lash

LV10: Starport Upgrade Cache: Wraiths can attack while moving, Banshee’s can send out a hologram to fight alongside them.

LV11: Advanced Manufacturing: The Shadow Ops can automatically create nukes and store up to 5 at a time.

LV12: Raven Upgrade Cache: Ravens can heal mechanical units, Ravens can stun targets and disable stealth.

LV13: Auto Synthesizers: Jorium and Terrazine Synthesizers no longer need the aid of SCV’s

LV14: Tosh Upgrade Cache: Mind Blast/Psionic Projection damage and duration increased, Consumption deals less damage and regens more energy, Tosh can autocast nukes.

LV15: Universal Stealth Drive: Unlocks Infantry and Vehicle Stealth Drive upgrades at the Engineering Bay and Armory.

[wilderrosenberg0-blog]

Starcraft two Elite Guidebook - The Greatest Investigation Selections for Beating Starcraft 2 On Brutal Part two

A lot of folks have been asking me about the one player campaign and what options I created for the Zerg and Protoss research when making an attempt to defeat the recreation on brutal. Initial off i have to say that getting on Brutal manner in Starcraft two is no simple process to say the least. I am heading to show you what is in my opinion the greatest analysis path to just take when making an attempt to conquer brutal trouble. Protoss Research: Tier one: The selection is amongst Ultra-Capacitors which grants five% elevated assault velocity when upgrading weapons (And applies to the Armory as nicely as the Engineering Bay) and Vanadium Plating which grants five% overall health in addition to armor upgrades (also applies to the Armory and Engineering Bay). As I stated prior to the greatest defense is a very good offense and i identified that going with the Ultra-Capacitors proved to be much more beneficial. brutal age hack apk The overall health upgrade does look wonderful but once you've got upgraded the Stabilizer Medpacks for the Medics and the Sophisticated Healing AI for the Medivacs I did not see the level in extra HP. Winner: Extremely-Capacitors Tier two: The 2nd option is amongst Orbital Depots which enables you to immediately fall Source Depots and Micro-Filtering which makes it possible for you to harvest vespene fuel 25% faster and also applies to the Automatic Refineries. While the Orbital Depots seem swift and efficient the only severe use I could see is to make a fast wall off with it. Now I would believe that since you've made it this significantly you've become accustomed to building Offer Depots as needed and in addition many of the a lot more hard missions truly max out your source right off the bat rendering this upgrade around worthless. The Micro-Filtering even so I located to be the much better decision merely due to the fact it makes it possible for you to pump out the massive guns and get updates faster in the missions. Winner: Micro-Filtering Tier 3: The third option is between the Automatic Refinery which allows Refineries to no longer require SCV's to harvest gas and the Command Center Reactor which enables you to prepare 2 SCV's at as soon as. I have noticed folks go with each alternatives but i really feel that the Automated Refinery normally takes the cake. I will not see the stage in education 2 SCV's at once when you could have the Automatic Refinery and be in a position to create six much less SCV's for every base. Granted you would be capable to increase your economy at a more rapidly price but is not that what M.U.L.E's are for after you've upgraded the Orbital Command. Winner: Automated Refinery Tier 4: The fourth selection is amongst the Raven and the Science Vessel. Now I've observed the energy of Ravens vs . Zerg and they can be totally devastating but I do not feel that this can even appear shut to competing with the Science Vessel. The skills of the Science Vessel drastically outweigh those of the Raven. Being ready to mend your Ships and Autos as nicely as getting accessibility to Irradiate (which is more or significantly less the Terran Version of Fungal Progress) is far better than getting in a position to toss down Vehicle-Turrets and Seeker Missiles. The Science Vessel is the significant no brainer choice. Winner: Science Vessel Tier five: The final decision is among Tech Reactor which brings together the Tech Lab and Reactor in 1 straightforward include-on and Orbital Strike which enables Barracks Models to fall pod down at the Barracks rally stage. When it comes to the Orbital Strike you will find one particular key word you have to shell out attention to and that's Barracks models. If this experienced utilized to Factories and Starports as effectively I would recognize having it but getting capable to basically fall 2 Marines or Marauders or Medics at the rally position becomes worthless at this stage of the match when you are most probably constructing the greater part of your strike pressure from the Starport. The Tech Reactor simplifies every little thing and permits you to pump out everything you can create rapidly and effectively. Winner: Tech Reactor

[fitjourneydaily]

Enhancing Efficiency in StarCraft II with Chronoboost: A Guide for Protoss Players

In the fast-paced and strategic world of StarCraft II, the Protoss race possesses a unique ability called Chronoboost. This ability allows players to temporarily increase the production speed of their units and buildings, providing a significant advantage on the battlefield. In this comprehensive guide, we will explore various aspects of Chronoboost, including its application in the popular Day9 Chronoboost strategy, as well as its benefits when used with Chronobooster WoW, and how it can be utilized to empower allied buildings. Let's dive in and discover how to leverage Chronoboost to its fullest potential! 1. Understanding Chronoboost: Chronoboost is an intrinsic ability of the Protoss race that allows players to accelerate the production of their units and structures. By using Chrono Energy, a resource available to each Protoss player, players can activate Chronoboost on a targeted building, significantly reducing the time it takes for units or upgrades to be completed. Understanding how Chronoboost works and when to use it is crucial for Protoss players seeking to gain an edge over their opponents. 2. The Day9 Chronoboost Strategy: The Day9 Chronoboost strategy, popularized by the well-known StarCraft II player and commentator Sean "Day9" Plott, emphasizes the efficient allocation of Chronoboost throughout the game. The strategy suggests prioritizing the use of Chronoboost on key structures such as the Nexus, Gateways, and Robo Facilities to enhance unit production and research speed. By carefully managing Chronoboost allocation, players can optimize their economy and military potential, gaining a significant advantage. 3. Unleashing the Power of Chronobooster WoW: For World of Warcraft players who are also avid StarCraft II enthusiasts, Chronobooster WoW offers a unique experience by seamlessly integrating the Chronoboost ability. Not only does Chronobooster WoW enhance the speed of leveling and quests, but it also provides the option to use Chronoboost on allied Protoss units and buildings, elevating gameplay to a whole new level. This powerful feature encourages teamwork and coordination among players, allowing for faster progression and efficient resource management. 4. Applying Chronoboost to Empower Allied Buildings: In team-based StarCraft II matches, Protoss players can use Chronoboost to not only enhance their own structures but to also empower allied buildings. This expansion of Chronoboost utility opens up new strategies and opportunities for collaborative gameplay. Allocating Chronoboost to allied structures such as Refineries, Barracks, or Factories can greatly assist teammates in producing additional units or upgrades swiftly, balancing the team's overall strength and accelerating victories. Conclusion: Chronoboost is a game-changing ability for Protoss players, providing a means to increase production and gain a competitive edge. Understanding the intricacies of Chronoboost and utilizing it effectively can enhance your strategical prowess and maximize efficiency in StarCraft II. From the renowned Day9 Chronoboost strategy to the fascinating integration in Chronobooster WoW, there are various ways to harness this power for success. Additionally, extending its utility to empower allied buildings adds a collaborative aspect to gameplay, fostering teamwork and optimizing team performance. Embrace the potential of Chronoboost and watch your StarCraft II prowess soar! Enhance your gaming experience with Chronoboost – learn how to use it in Protoss and other games like SC2 and WoW. For more strategies and tips, visit our website. Visit the Chronoboost Product Page. Read the full article

[paulgribov]

Here is a medium update on previous model. This is not a rendered image. It,s raw model with some effects like shadows and more turned on. In the end all will be rendered, however I still made any progress in case of materials an textures.

[antagonistchanremade]

nnnn just took my meds and feel like Explaining Some Shit so i’m gonna explain starcraft gameplay in a deeper way than i usually do

in starcraft 1, the gameplay in multiplayer and singleplayer was largely identical, at least in terms of what you could do and how. singleplayer was a more curated experience (unlike multiplayer which was just “you have a town hall and five workers, everyone else has a town hall and five workers, eliminate all of your opponents”), and the one major difference was that in singleplayer you’d sometimes be unable to build certain units and sometimes have access to powerful Hero units, but other than those three things, singleplayer and multiplayer were pretty much identical. in starcraft 2, that is very much not the case. there are plenty of units that are only available in single player, and even a handful of units that are only available in multiplayer (this is particularly true for the Zerg). plenty of the units that are available in both work differently depending on the version. and in the singleplayer campaign you have a shit ton of options for heavily customizing your army.

anyways, some basic ideas:

the town hall is the central building of your base. it builds workers and is the building your workers will return collected resources to. in multiplayer, you start off with a town hall and a handful of workers.

speaking of them, workers are the backbone unit of your base. they construct buildings and gather resources.

supply is an essential resource, but not one that workers gather. you have to actually provide the supply yourself. each race approaches supply in a very unique way, except for starcraft 1 terrans.

each race also has some kind of troop transport that also is approached in a unique way, except for starcraft 1 terrans and protoss.

the two main resources you’ll be gathering are Minerals and Vespene Gas. Minerals can be mined directly from mineral patches, while Vespene comes from Vespene Geysers that you have to build some sort of extraction building on top of before you can mine them. the Zerg and Protoss generally have weird rules regarding their building placement, but this vespene structure is one of the few buildings that ignores those rules. the Terrans have Refineries, the Zerg have Extractors, and the Protoss have Assimilators, and they are all largely identical.

every race also has defensive structures, but each race has its own approach to them.

so. Terrans.

Terrans are generally the pretty basic race. they don’t have any of the weird esoteric rules that the Protoss and Zerg are restricted by (but also none of their passive bonuses), and they go for a balance between the two polar opposites that are the Protoss and Zerg. also, when a Terran structure’s health is low enough, it will catch fire and start to damage itself until it’s repaired.

the Terran Town Hall is the Command Center. it can lift off and relocate, an ability it shares with a number of other Terran buildings. in starcraft 1, it can also build one of two Add-On buildings attached to its side: the ComSat Station (which has the ability to scan the map to reveal things you can’t otherwise see) and the Nuclear Silo (which can build nuclear missiles). in starcraft 1 it also has a weakness- if it’s at low enough health and a Zerg Queen is nearby, the Queen can transform it into an Infested Command Center, which gives it to the player who owned that Queen and gives it the ability to build Infested Terrans, which are incredibly powerful suicide bombers. in starcraft 2, the add-ons and infestibility were both removed. instead, it can load five SCVs inside itself and upgrade itself into either an Orbital Command or a Planetary Fortress. Orbital Commands lose the ability to load SCVs, but gain the ComSat Station’s old ability, the ability to make a Supply Depot better, and the ability to summon MULEs, which are kinda a secondary Terran worker; they can’t build things, and they only last for 90 seconds before crumbling to pieces, but they gather minerals more efficiently than SCVs do. Planetary Fortresses, meanwhile, lose the ability to lift off, but get a giant gun mounted on the top.

the Terran Worker is the SCV (Space Construction Vehicle), which is one of the few units (and the only unit in starcraft 1) that is both Biological and Mechanical, which fits the whole “the Terrans are the balance between Zerg and Protoss” since the Zerg worker is Biological and the Protoss worker is Mechanical. it also fits that whole balance thing because it needs to Build buildings. while the building is under construction, the SCV is occupied, but once the construction is finished, the SCV is free to perform other tasks, which is the obvious thing to do. SCVs also have an additional ability that has no real counterpart in the Zerg and Protoss Workers- the ability to spend minerals (and sometimes vespene gas) to repair damaged mechanical units. in starcraft 1, multiplayer starcraft 2, and even large swaths of singleplayer starcraft 2, this is the only way to restore the health of mechanical units.

Terran Supply is just called Supply, and you get it from Supply Depots. in starcraft 1, Supply Depots just kinda sit around, but in starcraft 2, Supply Depots got the ability to burrow themselves underground to stay out of the way, or even function as doors into your base.

the Terran Troop Transport in starcraft 1 is the Dropship. but in starcraft 2, they upgraded it to the Medivac Dropship, which also has the ability to heal biological units (for no resource cost, unlike repairing!). in the starcraft 2 campaign, there’s ALSO the Hercules Dropship, which is massive and has tons of space and deploys troops quickly and if it dies the troops inside don’t die with it unlike other Troop Transports.

(keep in mind, this means that their unique approach to Supply and their unique approach to Troop Transport are completely unrelated to each other- which is not true for the other two races)

the main Terran Defensive Structures are the Bunker and Missile Turret. the Bunker has no attack of its own, but Terran Infantry units can load up inside, and they actually get increased range when inside, in addition to the basic increased survivability from hanging out inside. the Missile Turret meanwhile is just a ground-to-air gun and a Detector that can see invisible and buried things.

then Zerg.

the Zerg are the really weird race, even compared to the Protoss, and they generally adopt the strategy of Quantity Over Quality. Zerg units are generally less powerful than their Terran or Protoss counterparts, but you can make lots of them really quickly. Zerg structures must generally be built on this strange purple substance called Creep; the only exceptions are the aforementioned Extractor and their Town Hall, the Hatchery, which is what generates Creep in the first place. and unlike Protoss and Terrans, who have a mix of biological and mechanical units, the Zerg are all exclusively biological (at least in starcraft 1 and multiplayer starcraft 2, and period they are all at least partially biological). Zerg units and structures also regenerate health over time.

speaking of the Hatchery, the Hatchery! the Hatchery is probably the most unique Town Hall. it doesn’t exactly build Drones directly, but rather, Hatcheries automatically generate Zerg Larvae over time for no cost, and Larvae can mutate into any Zerg creature, including Drones. this also means the Zerg are unique in that their Town Hall is also where every single unit is produced. since the Hatchery is also the main production structure and you’re generally gonna want a lot of them, Hatcheries are cheaper than Command Centers and Nexii, being only 300 minerals instead of 400. Hatcheries can also research certain upgrades, and they can mutate into Lairs and then again into Hives to unlock new items on the Zerg tech tree. and in starcraft 2, they can directly build Queens.

and as i mentioned, Drones are the Zerg worker. they mutate into Zerg structures- as in, you have to sacrifice the Drone. once you mutate a Drone into a structure, it’s gone forever. aside from that, there isn’t much to mention about the Drone.

When it comes to both Supply and Troop Transports, the Zerg are again the really fucking weird ones. The Terrans and Protoss use buildings to generate their Supply, but Zerg Supply, called Control, is generated by a unit, Overlords. And Overlords... are also the Troop Transports. in starcraft 1, Overlords were also Detectors that could see invisible or buried things, but in starcraft 2 they decided that was kinda overpowered so they made it so that Overlords could instead mutate into Overseers, which can’t function as Troop Transports but can do a number of other things, most notably Detect and spawn Changelings that have no attack but make very good spies. unfortunately Overseers and the Overlord’s troop transportation abilities both failed to really appear in the starcraft 2 campaign, at least under your control (enemy Zerg get plenty of Overseers). and the Overlord’s troop transportation is also a bit overshadowed by the Nydus Network, which is its own thing.

and then of course, Hatcheries can only generate so much creep. you need to spread the Creep somehow. in starcraft 1, this was accomplished via structures called Creep Colonies. Creep Colonies were a bit expensive, but you really did need that extra space, and in addition, Creep Colonies could also mutate into the Zerg Defensive Structures, Sunken Colonies and Spore Colonies. Sunken Colonies would send a spike into the ground that would pop back up to impale nearby ground enemies. Spore Colonies were basically the same thing as Missile Turrets- ground-to-air guns and Detectors. starcraft 2 replaced Creep Colonies with Creep Tumors. Creep Tumors are spawned by Queens, and cost no money unlike Creep Colonies, and can even multiply themselves, and are considered invisible/buried so they’re harder to see; but they also have way less health and can’t mutate into the defensive colonies. and of course, Creep Colonies and Creep Tumors share the weakness that even they need to be built on creep, so there’s only so far you can spread at once without straight-up building a whole new Hatchery.

so in starcraft 2, the defensive colonies were replaced by the defensive crawlers, Spine Crawlers and Spore Crawlers. they were just buildings you made directly from Drones, and they’re a bit weaker than the Colonies were, but they’re also a bit cheaper (more in line with what Bunkers and Missile Turrets cost), and have the ability to reposition themselves, hence the name “Crawlers”- they physically extract themselves from the ground and walk to their new placement.

and finally the Protoss.

the Protoss go for more of a quality over quantity strategy. their units tend to be more expensive, but also more powerful than their Terran or Zerg alternatives. Protoss structures must generally be built within Power Fields; the only exceptions are the aforementioned Assimilators; the Protoss Town Hall, the Nexus; and the Protoss Supply structure, the Pylon. Protoss have no way of healing from damage directly, but some of their health is instead Shields, which regenerate over time (and shields regenerate faster than Zerg health). this does mean that there’s a bit of a buffer where small amounts of damage don’t really matter.

the Protoss Town Hall is the Nexus. in starcraft 1, it was the boring Town Hall; literally all it did was build Probes and that was it. in starcraft 2, they juiced it up a bit; now it also builds the ultimate Protoss unit, the Mothership, and it has a few extra side abilities like the ability to speed up buildings (including itself) for a short time and the ability to teleport your entire army to itself.

the Protoss Worker is the Probe. it gets to Warp In buildings. with Warping In, the Probe just needs to start the process, and then it can move on to other tasks while the building finishes constructing itself. so, Warping In is better than Building, and Building is better than Mutating.

the Protoss get their Supply, called Psi, from Pylons, and Pylons are also responsible for generating Power Fields in the first place. unlike Creep, which has to be spread slowly, you can build a Pylon basically anywhere, so it’s a lot less restrictive, though Creep does have its own benefits.

the Protoss Troop Transport in starcraft 1 was called the Shuttle, and it basically didn’t do anything special, but in starcraft 2 it was replaced with the Warp Prism, and the Warp Prism can transform between Transport Mode, where it’s a standard troop transport, and Phasing Mode, where it loses the ability to move... but generates a Power Field. this means it can temporarily substitute for a broken Pylon, but more importantly, it can generate a Power Field out far beyond the base, which is especially important in starcraft 2 because now the Protoss can warp units into any Power Field (which they could not do in starcraft 1).

(so, with the Terrans, the Supply source and the Troop Transport do interesting but entirely separate things; with the Zerg, the Supply source and the Troop Transport are one and the same; and with the Protoss, the Supply source and the Troop Transport do the same interesting thing).

finally, there’s the Protoss Defensive Structures, the Photon Cannon and the Shield Battery. the Photon Cannon is basically a Missile Turret/Spore Crawler, except it’s more expensive and can actually fire at ground units this time. but it’s also kinda weak. the Shield Battery... in starcraft 1, it was a kinda useful tool that could instantly recharge the shields of a large group of nearby units, but in starcraft 2... it initially wasn’t actually there, but when Legacy of the Void brought it back for the campaign and then Patch 4.0 said “actually, fuck it, let’s bring it back for multiplayer, too”, the Shield Battery was improved so it would automatically recharge shields of nearby units and defensive structures (like other Shield Batteries, or Photon Cannons). especially useful given how frail Photon Cannons tend to be.

[waynekelton]

The Best RTS Games on Android & iOS

When it comes to the RTS, the mobile marketplace has big shoes to fill. From Age of Empires to Command & Conquer, the frantic blend of actions-per-minute with grand strategy, the macro- and micro-management required to play this genre at peak performance has inspired many a gamer.

What are the best RTS games on iOS & Android?

Bad North

Dungeon Warfare 2

Rebel Inc.

Element RTS

Kingdom Rush: Vengeance

Auralux: Constellations

Dominations

Iron Marines

Subterfuge

Rymdkapsel

Tropical Stormfront

Without further ado here are the best RTS games for android, iPhone & iPad to play in 2019:

Bad North

Developer: Raw Fury Platforms: iOS Universal, Android Price: $4.99

We knew Bad North would be perfect for mobile when we first heard about it back in 2018... it got waylaid some-what, beaching on PC first before finally setting sail for mobile a few months ago - it was definitely worth the wait. The PC version went through a lot of updates and changes, culminating in the free 'Jotunn Edition' update that elevated the game to a more 'definitive' state.

That version is what landed on mobile, and we really enjoyed it. As a 'micro' strategy game it personifies minimalist, simple design. Some of you might find it too simple at least but for those who aren't bothered by the very meagre, but raw tactical options, you'll find a game that's challenging and quite rewarding. It's got rogue-like elements where you can unlock improvements for later runs, and then you must command and nurture your army from island to island as you fight off waves of blood-thirsty vikings. New enemy types will warrant a change in tactics, provided you survive.

Dungeon Warfare 2

Developer: Jin Man Kim Platforms: iOS Universal, Android Price: $4.99

We've been waiting for Dungeon Warfare 2 for what seems like a while now - it was on our list of 2018's most anticipated games for sure, but sadly missed its window and slipped into 2019. Still, as Richard can attest in this review, it was well worth the wait. The tower-defence genre has always been prone to to lazy or bland design, but in Dungeon Warfare everything is turned up to 11.

With over thirty distinct traps, this Dungeon Keeper-esque experience offers you a lot of variety and complexity with which to achieve what are still fairly basic TD goals. This game isn't completely unique in its theme, but nowhere else is it treated with so much passion - a must for TD strategy fans. 

Rebel Inc.

Developer: Ndemic Creations Platforms: iOS Universal, Android Price: $1.99

Plague Inc. this is not, but Rebel Inc. still shares in its predecessor's excellent design pedigree. As the newly appointed administrator of a region that's just suffered a major war, your job is to try and help the population rebuild was also keeping local insurgents in check. It's full of tough choices and challenging tactical game-play as you struggle to pin down enemy insurgents and prevent them from doing too much harm.

Dealing with the concept of reconstruction is no easy feat, and the subject matter could be considered slightly controversial given the recent events that have inspired it, but Ndemic have treated the topic with as much care and attention as they can, even consulting with real-world experts on the subject. Rebel Inc. is a challenging and tense game, but just as rewarding, making this one of the year's best real-time strategy/simulations.

Element RTS

Developer: Flightless Platforms: iOS Universal Price: $4.99

One of the top RTS releases of 2018 to date, Element is a PC port that fits right at home on mobile. It's unique and streamlined design makes it a very accessible strategy game - you've got to balance the production of resources with the construction of units to either defend your base or attack your foes. The matches are short, and the AI is a pretty decent challenge, so you won't want to for entertainment.

It's just shy of being a 'must-buy' - the inclusion of a multiplayer mode would probably cement it as one of the best RTS games in mobile history, but we'd settle for an Android version. According to the devs, the game's been able to run on android devices for a while now, and they're just putting on the finishing touches before they announce a formal release date.

Kingdom Rush: Vengeance

Developer: Ironside S.A. Platforms:  iOS Universal, Android Price: $4.99

The latest entry in the acclaimed Kingdom Rush tower defence series has caused no small amount of controversy, which is likely to continue with it's inclusion in this list. It all depends how much you're bothered by the game's slightly-too-persistent micro-transactions. The only blemish on what is otherwise a stellar real-time strategy experience, these IAPs are completely optional and unnecessary, they're just a tad pushy.

If you're like Dick, who was a bit more forgiving in his review, then you'll find another excellent tower defence game, and one with plenty of humour and content to last you a decent amount of time - each level can take up to thirty minutes to complete. The way Vengeance handles towers as well is also fairly unique, requiring a bit more thought and planning. All in alll, unless you really want to take a stand against micro-transactions, there's a great game here waiting for you to discover and enjoy. Read our review for more.

Auralux: Constellations

Developer: War Drum Studios Platforms:  iOS, Android Price: Free (IAPs)

Auralux is generally brilliant and wickedly simple. Glowing orbs skip across the void of space to do battle over planets, which in turn spawn more orbs for the controlling player. Gestures are dead simple, tapping to select and dragging to assign. There is only one type of ‘unit’ and one objective: take over the entire map. From these givens, Auralux has some intense, hair-pulling and nail-biting levels where the odds are almost ludicrously stacked against the little player that could.

The ‘constellations’ in the title are simply clustered series of levels, each with a gimmick mechanic which must be understood and utilized to power through said levels. The game shows its age a bit, but it also demonstrates how a simple idea with excellent execution can stand the test of time. Another bonus is the variable speed setting, which makes the action go from hyper to sedate, depending on playstyle. Local multiplayer is a nice plus, but the game’s primary draw is solo play.

Dominations

Developer: Nexon M Platforms:  iOS, Android Price: Free (IAPs)

Dominations deserves to be loved and known for the quality of play it provides and its relatively tasteful monetization, but unfortunately the quickest way to worm its way into your heart and home screen are comparisons, so let’s get those over with. It’s Civilization meets Clash of Clans, with empires spanning the Iron Age to Space Age, wonders to build, raids to conduct, and all the usual trappings.

So, yes, there is a certain likeness to established powerhouses, but the devil is in the details, and Dominations gets those spot-on. Playing it to a satisfying endgame without shelling out serious dinero will take patience, but Dominations’ emulation of all of recorded human history and conflict is pretty satisfying to stretch out and play in pieces. Of course, human history never before ran on a timer...

Iron Marines

Developer: Ironhide Studios Platforms:  iOS, Android Price: $4.99

The Iron Marines are a space-trotting, world-saving team of elite squads tasked with putting out fires and defeating hostiles wherever needed. The elevator pitch for the game would be Starcraft...but not? There is a home-base which usually has to be fortified and defended, additional refineries to secure more resources, and just a handful of units. 

From these simple, intuitive elements, the game ekes out a good sense of micromanagement and delectable real-time tension. Its enemies have unusual abilities and synergies, and its difficulty is no joke, especially on the higher levels. Yet the game also retains Ironclad Studios sense of long-term planning and strategy present in its tower defense titles. Read our Iron Marines review for more!

Subterfuge

Developer: SnappyTouch Platforms:  iOS, Android Price: Free (IAPs)

Subterfuge is exactly as advertised: a subtle, long-term game of expedient alliances and stone-cold betrayals, filled with the irrefutable logic of hard numbers and the soft uncertainty of fog of war. A turn just means giving subs and bases a command which will take hours to fulfil, so while it is real-time like warfare is real-time, in Subterfuge the theatre of war sees its stage advance slowly.

Its scale is just grand enough to be deeply satisfying but be warned that it does take some time investment to get a game fired up. The leaders provide asymmetrical player powers, but even these super-units can be captured and bartered. Barring these modifies and special cases,  the bases and subs are more or less identical. The game is simply a question of position, resources and force, but these factors are always shifting because of the partial information and precarious alliances.

Rymdkapsel

Developer: Grapefrukt Games Platforms:  iOS, Android Price: $3.99

Rymdkapsel is about space-base-building and defense, mostly, but also includes some spatial puzzling a la Tetris and ‘exploration’. Its minimalism is more than just stylistic, going instead to the core of every action, options and goal. Perhaps the most satisfying bit is the constant packing problem for expanding the base.

New buildings can be any type and go any spot the player chooses, but also must have predefined dimensions. (all four unit polyominoes) A tightly knit base might come across as more defensible but reaching and researching the far-flung monoliths gives permanent global passive bonuses. The game is a logistics and timing puzzle with a really keen sense of efficiency and management for all its stripped-down design.

Tropical Stormfront

Developer: Noble Master Games Platforms: iOS, Android Price: $3.99

Island-hopping Tropical Stormfront pits the United Democratic Alliance against Order, Discipline and Obedience in a faux-historical struggle across the archipelago. The graphics are deliberately dated and the unit mixture, contrary to every other item on the list, is realistic and accurate. Missions scenarios range from the typical conquest to capture the flag and survival mode.

It’s like a real-time Advance Wars with pretty much no hand-holding, just sink-or-swim gameplay. The touch controls mean a bigger screen is practically a must, for while missing a swipe or tap in another genre would be merely inconvenient, in a game like this it is quite the setback. Still, Tropical Stormfront is a smartly realized real-time-strategy game with staying power.

More Excellent RTS Games on iOS and Android

We want to keep this list lean, so as new comes come into the lime-lite other games will get rotated out. We don't want to forget about them though, so we've added this hall of fame section so we can remember them forever.

Anomaly 2

Mushroom Wars 2

Plague Inc.

Teen Titans GO! Figure

Autumn Dynasty

Eufloria

Cosmic Frontline AR

Front Armies

Dereliction

A Few Minutes of Glory

What would your list of the best RTS games on mobile look like? Let us know!

The Best RTS Games on Android & iOS published first on https://touchgen.tumblr.com/

[waynekelton]

The Best RTS Games on Android & iOS

When it comes to the RTS, the mobile marketplace has big shoes to fill. From Age of Empires to Command & Conquer (how about that Rivals, eh?), the frantic blend of actions-per-minute with grand strategy, the macro- and micro-management required to play this genre at peak performance has inspired many a gamer.

The internet is great, but we don’t always have access to it. Here are some of the best strategy games you can play while offline.

Recent Releases & Community Suggestions

Not everything that releases makes it into our top lists for one reason or another. Here's around up of some other RTS releases that we've reviewed you might want to check out in your own time:

Eufloria

Cosmic Frontline AR

Front Armies

Dereliction

A Few Minutes of Glory

Without further ado Here are the best RTS games for android, iPhone & iPad to play in 2019.

Dungeon Warfare 2 (Review)

Developer: Jin Man Kim Platforms: iOS Universal, Android Price: $4.99

We've been waiting for Dungeon Warfare 2 for what seems like a while now - it was on our list of 2018's most anticipated games for sure, but sadly missed its window and slipped into 2019. Still, as Richard can attest in this review, it was well worth the wait. The tower-defence genre has always been prone to to lazy or bland design, but in Dungeon Warfare everything is turned up to 11.

With over thirty distinct traps, this Dungeon Keeper-esque experience offers you a lot of variety and complexity with which to achieve what are still fairly basic TD goals. This game isn't completely unique in its theme, but nowhere else is it treated with so much passion - a must for TD strategy fans. 

Rebel Inc. (Review)

Developer: Ndemic Creations Platforms: iOS Universal, Android Price: $1.99

Plague Inc. this is not, but Rebel Inc. still shares in its predecessor's excellent design pedigree. As the newly appointed administrator of a region that's just suffered a major war, your job is to try and help the population rebuild was also keeping local insurgents in check. It's full of tough choices and challenging tactical game-play as you struggle to pin down enemy insurgents and prevent them from doing too much harm.

Dealing with the concept of reconstruction is no easy feat, and the subject matter could be considered slightly controversial given the recent events that have inspired it, but Ndemic have treated the topic with as much care and attention as they can, even consulting with real-world experts on the subject. Rebel Inc. is a challenging and tense game, but just as rewarding, making this one of the year's best real-time strategy/simulations.

Element RTS (Review)

Developer: Flightless Platforms: iOS Universal Price: $4.99

One of the top RTS releases of 2018 to date, Element is a PC port that fits right at home on mobile. It's unique and streamlined design makes it a very accessible strategy game - you've got to balance the production of resources with the construction of units to either defend your base or attack your foes. The matches are short, and the AI is a pretty decent challenge, so you won't want to for entertainment.

It's just shy of being a 'must-buy' - the inclusion of a multiplayer mode would probably cement it as one of the best RTS games in mobile history, but we'd settle for an Android version. According to the devs, the game's been able to run on android devices for a while now, and they're just putting on the finishing touches before they announce a formal release date.

Kingdom Rush: Vengeance (Review)

Developer: Ironside S.A. Platforms:  iOS Universal, Android Price: $4.99

The latest entry in the acclaimed Kingdom Rush tower defence series has caused no small amount of controversy, which is likely to continue with it's inclusion in this list. It all depends how much you're bothered by the game's slightly-too-persistent micro-transactions. The only blemish on what is otherwise a stellar real-time strategy experience, these IAPs are completely optional and unnecessary, they're just a tad pushy.

If you're like Dick, who was a bit more forgiving in his review, then you'll find another excellent tower defence game, and one with plenty of humour and content to last you a decent amount of time - each level can take up to thirty minutes to complete. The way Vengeance handles towers as well is also fairly unique, requiring a bit more thought and planning. All in alll, unless you really want to take a stand against micro-transactions, there's a great game here waiting for you to discover and enjoy.

Auralux: Constellations (Review)

Developer: War Drum Studios Platforms:  iOS, Android Price: Free (IAPs)

Auralux is generally brilliant and wickedly simple. Glowing orbs skip across the void of space to do battle over planets, which in turn spawn more orbs for the controlling player. Gestures are dead simple, tapping to select and dragging to assign. There is only one type of ‘unit’ and one objective: take over the entire map. From these givens, Auralux has some intense, hair-pulling and nail-biting levels where the odds are almost ludicrously stacked against the little player that could.

The ‘constellations’ in the title are simply clustered series of levels, each with a gimmick mechanic which must be understood and utilized to power through said levels. The game shows its age a bit, but it also demonstrates how a simple idea with excellent execution can stand the test of time. Another bonus is the variable speed setting, which makes the action go from hyper to sedate, depending on playstyle. Local multiplayer is a nice plus, but the game’s primary draw is solo play.

Dominations

Developer: Nexon M Platforms:  iOS, Android Price: Free (IAPs)

Dominations deserves to be loved and known for the quality of play it provides and its relatively tasteful monetization, but unfortunately the quickest way to worm its way into your heart and home screen are comparisons, so let’s get those over with. It’s Civilization meets Clash of Clans, with empires spanning the Iron Age to Space Age, wonders to build, raids to conduct, and all the usual trappings.

So, yes, there is a certain likeness to established powerhouses, but the devil is in the details, and Dominations gets those spot-on. Playing it to a satisfying endgame without shelling out serious dinero will take patience, but Dominations’ emulation of all of recorded human history and conflict is pretty satisfying to stretch out and play in pieces. Of course, human history never before ran on a timer...

Iron Marines (Review)

Developer: Ironhide Studios Platforms:  iOS, Android Price: $4.99

The Iron Marines are a space-trotting, world-saving team of elite squads tasked with putting out fires and defeating hostiles wherever needed. The elevator pitch for the game would be Starcraft...in space. There is a home-base which usually has to be fortified and defended, additional refineries to secure more resources, and just a handful of units. 

From these simple, intuitive elements, the game ekes out a good sense of micromanagement and delectable real-time tension. Its enemies have unusual abilities and synergies, and its difficulty is no joke, especially on the higher levels. Yet the game also retains Ironclad Studios sense of long-term planning and strategy present in its tower defense titles. Its next update will introduce a brand-new world, the icy Borealis, on September 27th, but this is just an extra check in its favor.

Subterfuge

Developer: SnappyTouch Platforms:  iOS, Android Price: Free (IAPs)

Subterfuge is exactly as advertised: a subtle, long-term game of expedient alliances and stone-cold betrayals, filled with the irrefutable logic of hard numbers and the soft uncertainty of fog of war. A turn just means giving subs and bases a command which will take hours to fulfil, so while it is real-time like warfare is real-time, in Subterfuge the theatre of war sees its stage advance slowly.

Its scale is just grand enough to be deeply satisfying but be warned that it does take some time investment to get a game fired up. The leaders provide asymmetrical player powers, but even these super-units can be captured and bartered. Barring these modifies and special cases,  the bases and subs are more or less identical. The game is simply a question of position, resources and force, but these factors are always shifting because of the partial information and precarious alliances.

Rymdkapsel (Review)

Developer: Grapefrukt Games Platforms:  iOS, Android Price: $3.99

Rymdkapsel is about space-base-building and defense, mostly, but also includes some spatial puzzling a la Tetris and ‘exploration’. Its minimalism is more than just stylistic, going instead to the core of every action, options and goal. Perhaps the most satisfying bit is the constant packing problem for expanding the base.

New buildings can be any type and go any spot the player chooses, but also must have predefined dimensions. (all four unit polyominoes) A tightly knit base might come across as more defensible but reaching and researching the far-flung monoliths gives permanent global passive bonuses. The game is a logistics and timing puzzle with a really keen sense of efficiency and management for all its stripped-down design.

Tropical Stormfront

Developer: Noble Master Games Platforms: iOS, Android Price: $3.99

Island-hopping Tropical Stormfront pits the United Democratic Alliance against Order, Discipline and Obedience in a faux-historical struggle across the archipelago. The graphics are deliberately dated and the unit mixture, contrary to every other item on the list, is realistic and accurate. Missions scenarios range from the typical conquest to capture the flag and survival mode.

It’s like a real-time Advance Wars with pretty much no hand-holding, just sink-or-swim gameplay. The touch controls mean a bigger screen is practically a must, for while missing a swipe or tap in another genre would be merely inconvenient, in a game like this it is quite the setback. Still, Tropical Stormfront is a smartly realized real-time-strategy game with staying power.

Hall of Fame

We want to keep this list lean, so as new comes come into the lime-lite other games will get rotated out. We don't want to forget about them though, so we've added this hall of fame section so we can remember them forever.

Anomaly 2

Mushroom Wars 2

Plague Inc.

Teen Titans GO! Figure

Autumn Dynasty

What would your list of the best RTS games on mobile look like? Let us know!

The Best RTS Games on Android & iOS published first on https://touchgen.tumblr.com/

[waynekelton]

The Best RTS Games on Android, iPad & iPhone 2019

When it comes to the RTS, the mobile marketplace has big shoes to fill. From Age of Empires to Command & Conquer (how about that Rivals, eh?), the frantic blend of actions-per-minute with grand strategy, the macro- and micro-management required to play this genre at peak performance has inspired many a gamer.

The internet is great, but we don’t always have access to it. Here are some of the best strategy games you can play while offline.

Recent Releases

Not everything that releases makes it into our top lists for one reason or another. Here's around up of some other RTS releases that we've reviewed you might want to check out in your own time:

Cosmic Frontline AR

Front Armies

Dereliction

A Few Minutes of Glory

Without further ado Here are the best RTS games for android, iPhone & iPad to play in 2019.

Dungeon Warfare 2 (Review)

Developer: Jin Man Kim Platforms: iOS Universal, Android Price: $4.99

We've been waiting for Dungeon Warfare 2 for what seems like a while now - it was on our list of 2018's most anticipated games for sure, but sadly missed its window and slipped into 2019. Still, as Richard can attest in this review, it was well worth the wait. The tower-defence genre has always been prone to to lazy or bland design, but in Dungeon Warfare everything is turned up to 11.

With over thirty distinct traps, this Dungeon Keeper-esque experience offers you a lot of variety and complexity with which to achieve what are still fairly basic TD goals. This game isn't completely unique in its theme, but nowhere else is it treated with so much passion - a must for TD strategy fans. 

Rebel Inc. (Review)

Developer: Ndemic Creations Platforms: iOS Universal, Android Price: $1.99

Plague Inc. this is not, but Rebel Inc. still shares in its predecessor's excellent design pedigree. As the newly appointed administrator of a region that's just suffered a major war, your job is to try and help the population rebuild was also keeping local insurgents in check. It's full of tough choices and challenging tactical game-play as you struggle to pin down enemy insurgents and prevent them from doing too much harm.

Dealing with the concept of reconstruction is no easy feat, and the subject matter could be considered slightly controversial given the recent events that have inspired it, but Ndemic have treated the topic with as much care and attention as they can, even consulting with real-world experts on the subject. Rebel Inc. is a challenging and tense game, but just as rewarding, making this one of the year's best real-time strategy/simulations.

Element RTS (Review)

Developer: Flightless Platforms: iOS Universal Price: $4.99

One of the top RTS releases of 2018 to date, Element is a PC port that fits right at home on mobile. It's unique and streamlined design makes it a very accessible strategy game - you've got to balance the production of resources with the construction of units to either defend your base or attack your foes. The matches are short, and the AI is a pretty decent challenge, so you won't want to for entertainment.

It's just shy of being a 'must-buy' - the inclusion of a multiplayer mode would probably cement it as one of the best RTS games in mobile history, but we'd settle for an Android version. According to the devs, the game's been able to run on android devices for a while now, and they're just putting on the finishing touches before they announce a formal release date.

Kingdom Rush: Vengeance (Review)

Developer: Ironside S.A. Platforms:  iOS Universal, Android Price: $4.99

The latest entry in the acclaimed Kingdom Rush tower defence series has caused no small amount of controversy, which is likely to continue with it's inclusion in this list. It all depends how much you're bothered by the game's slightly-too-persistent micro-transactions. The only blemish on what is otherwise a stellar real-time strategy experience, these IAPs are completely optional and unnecessary, they're just a tad pushy.

If you're like Dick, who was a bit more forgiving in his review, then you'll find another excellent tower defence game, and one with plenty of humour and content to last you a decent amount of time - each level can take up to thirty minutes to complete. The way Vengeance handles towers as well is also fairly unique, requiring a bit more thought and planning. All in alll, unless you really want to take a stand against micro-transactions, there's a great game here waiting for you to discover and enjoy.

Auralux: Constellations (Review)

Developer: War Drum Studios Platforms:  iOS, Android Price: Free (IAPs)

Auralux is generally brilliant and wickedly simple. Glowing orbs skip across the void of space to do battle over planets, which in turn spawn more orbs for the controlling player. Gestures are dead simple, tapping to select and dragging to assign. There is only one type of ‘unit’ and one objective: take over the entire map. From these givens, Auralux has some intense, hair-pulling and nail-biting levels where the odds are almost ludicrously stacked against the little player that could.

The ‘constellations’ in the title are simply clustered series of levels, each with a gimmick mechanic which must be understood and utilized to power through said levels. The game shows its age a bit, but it also demonstrates how a simple idea with excellent execution can stand the test of time. Another bonus is the variable speed setting, which makes the action go from hyper to sedate, depending on playstyle. Local multiplayer is a nice plus, but the game’s primary draw is solo play.

Dominations

Developer: Nexon M Platforms:  iOS, Android Price: Free (IAPs)

Dominations deserves to be loved and known for the quality of play it provides and its relatively tasteful monetization, but unfortunately the quickest way to worm its way into your heart and home screen are comparisons, so let’s get those over with. It’s Civilization meets Clash of Clans, with empires spanning the Iron Age to Space Age, wonders to build, raids to conduct, and all the usual trappings.

So, yes, there is a certain likeness to established powerhouses, but the devil is in the details, and Dominations gets those spot-on. Playing it to a satisfying endgame without shelling out serious dinero will take patience, but Dominations’ emulation of all of recorded human history and conflict is pretty satisfying to stretch out and play in pieces. Of course, human history never before ran on a timer...

Iron Marines (Review)

Developer: Ironhide Studios Platforms:  iOS, Android Price: $4.99

The Iron Marines are a space-trotting, world-saving team of elite squads tasked with putting out fires and defeating hostiles wherever needed. The elevator pitch for the game would be Starcraft...in space. There is a home-base which usually has to be fortified and defended, additional refineries to secure more resources, and just a handful of units. 

From these simple, intuitive elements, the game ekes out a good sense of micromanagement and delectable real-time tension. Its enemies have unusual abilities and synergies, and its difficulty is no joke, especially on the higher levels. Yet the game also retains Ironclad Studios sense of long-term planning and strategy present in its tower defense titles. Its next update will introduce a brand-new world, the icy Borealis, on September 27th, but this is just an extra check in its favor.

Subterfuge

Developer: SnappyTouch Platforms:  iOS, Android Price: Free (IAPs)

Subterfuge is exactly as advertised: a subtle, long-term game of expedient alliances and stone-cold betrayals, filled with the irrefutable logic of hard numbers and the soft uncertainty of fog of war. A turn just means giving subs and bases a command which will take hours to fulfil, so while it is real-time like warfare is real-time, in Subterfuge the theatre of war sees its stage advance slowly.

Its scale is just grand enough to be deeply satisfying but be warned that it does take some time investment to get a game fired up. The leaders provide asymmetrical player powers, but even these super-units can be captured and bartered. Barring these modifies and special cases,  the bases and subs are more or less identical. The game is simply a question of position, resources and force, but these factors are always shifting because of the partial information and precarious alliances.

Rymdkapsel (Review)

Developer: Grapefrukt Games Platforms:  iOS, Android Price: $3.99

Rymdkapsel is about space-base-building and defense, mostly, but also includes some spatial puzzling a la Tetris and ‘exploration’. Its minimalism is more than just stylistic, going instead to the core of every action, options and goal. Perhaps the most satisfying bit is the constant packing problem for expanding the base.

New buildings can be any type and go any spot the player chooses, but also must have predefined dimensions. (all four unit polyominoes) A tightly knit base might come across as more defensible but reaching and researching the far-flung monoliths gives permanent global passive bonuses. The game is a logistics and timing puzzle with a really keen sense of efficiency and management for all its stripped-down design.

Tropical Stormfront

Developer: Noble Master Games Platforms: iOS, Android Price: $3.99

Island-hopping Tropical Stormfront pits the United Democratic Alliance against Order, Discipline and Obedience in a faux-historical struggle across the archipelago. The graphics are deliberately dated and the unit mixture, contrary to every other item on the list, is realistic and accurate. Missions scenarios range from the typical conquest to capture the flag and survival mode.

It’s like a real-time Advance Wars with pretty much no hand-holding, just sink-or-swim gameplay. The touch controls mean a bigger screen is practically a must, for while missing a swipe or tap in another genre would be merely inconvenient, in a game like this it is quite the setback. Still, Tropical Stormfront is a smartly realized real-time-strategy game with staying power.

Hall of Fame

We want to keep this list lean, so as new comes come into the lime-lite other games will get rotated out. We don't want to forget about them though, so we've added this hall of fame section so we can remember them forever.

Anomaly 2

Mushroom Wars 2

Plague Inc.

Teen Titans GO! Figure

Autumn Dynasty

What would your list of the best RTS games on mobile look like? Let us know!

The Best RTS Games on Android, iPad & iPhone 2019 published first on https://touchgen.tumblr.com/