When do you know you have enough workers in StarCraft 2? Have a number in mind? Trick question! You can never have enough workers in StarCraft 2. Your worker units (the Drone, the SCV, and the Probe) form the backbone of any player’s strategy and build order.
The Importance of Workers
The formula goes like this: build workers. Have your workers harvest minerals and gas. Use those resources to produce buildings, combat units, and more workers. Why more workers? The more you have, the faster you’ll gather resources.
If you select all of the same unit type, such as by double-clicking on a single drone, your main should have at least a full page of workers busily gathering you stuff. If you feel you have too many workers, take an expansion and then transfer some of them over to get you even more resources.
Sometimes a build requires that you cut worker production, usually to allocate those minerals to getting another building up. This is the exception, not the rule. Your workers make up the primary component of your StarCraft 2 macro. Macro means big, as in the big picture of your game.
Using the Magic Words
When you’re trying to get better at your StarCraft 2 macro, the words “build workers” should be constantly on your mind. Lull in combat? Build workers! A few extra minerals? Build workers? Not sure what to do next in the match? Build workers! By constantly building workers, you ensure a very strong economy.
Strong economies win hard matches. Think of it this way: sure, many matches are decided in the first five minutes or so with a lucky push or some cheese tactic. However, many matches go beyond those first few minutes. If in those, you make a commitment to create a ton of workers, you’ll be set for the mid and end game of your match with loads of minerals and gas.
Getting this strategy down pat is the first step in your StarCraft 2 macro training. SC2 is not just about fights, it’s also about how well you can manage your base. In SC2 lingo, this gets called SimCity. Here you can apply some of that real-life learning. What are cities run on? Money. It’s the same in StarCraft 2 macro, except here “money” is obviously replaced by minerals and vespene gas.
Moving On
Remember to build workers and you’ll be well on your way to being a StarCraft 2 macro master. However, there’s considerably more to macro than just this. Move on to other StarCraft 2 macro tips after you’ve mastered this one.
