Light/heavy T1

[Lesten]

So here's my question:

How much power should one reasonably spend before going T2? Let's assume that the game has been fairly even in terms of bleed and power bashes.

Then let's also consider:
* The difference between 1v1, 2v2 and 3v3.
* The difference between factions. Which races/commanders are more T1-heavy?
* If you're behind in power – do you go for a lighter T1 in order to not be out-teched?
* If you're ahead in power – what do you do?
* To what extent do you replace T1 units, even if it costs you power?
* How many generators do you usually buy? (In 1v1, 2v2, 3v3.)

I can mention that I usually spend between 80 and 130 power, playing as Eldar in 2v2s and 3v3s. Ideally purchasing 3-5 gens. But judging from replays I'm often somewhat slow to T2.

[Codex]

Going for a heavy or light T1 is basically a playstyle thing. For reference I tend to spend around 150 to 175 power in T1. Invariably I get to T2 late but I have learned to play around that.

"* The difference between 1v1, 2v2 and 3v3."

- Minor, although I think that the more players per team the more freedom to fast tech, so don't be surprised by earlier tech timings from the opponent. This is due to the fact that they can lean on their teammates, and they can get away with smaller armies due to fewer points per player.

"* The difference between factions. Which races/commanders are more T1-heavy?"- Imo, again, a playstyle thing. All races have some capacity to fast tech, but it necessitates a style which is much more map skirmish/pressure orientated to divert enemy attention away from your generator farm/resources. If you don't apply pressure to him then he will be free to march on your generators and easiest gen bash ever, or you will end up having to turtle so hard on your generators that you will never get any map control.

Suppression team(s) are also cost efficient ways to turtle and survive till a fast T2 is achieved, but again you need some ability to be mobile and apply pressure to them when opportunities arise.

"* If you're behind in power – do you go for a lighter T1 in order to not be out-teched?"-

It depends. If you desperately need to get to T2 quickly because you know there will be a Deff Dredd rampaging at your gens very soon, you're going to have to get to T2 asap to really stop that in its tracks (unless you're Toil and you build 4 vengeance round devs); in that case it is imperative to tech fast.

Otherwise, again it's up to playstyle. Some players will prefer to turtle and get to T2 at a disadvantage but still in the game. Other players like myself will prefer to go heavy on T1 and try to bash gens and get some compensation. That said, it still depends: sometimes I will decide it's better to tech faster rather than going heavy T1.

A common theme of going heavy T1 while being disadvantaged is often you will be having to fight T2 units or upgrades with a T1 composition, which is fairly common for me and understandable while going heavy T1 while at a disadvantage. Key skills here are being able to split the play and isolate the vehicle, like kiting a walker while going for his infantry. The plan is simply to stall enough to equalise the tech advantage.

Going back to point number 1 though, the more teammate support you can expect (i.e. small 3v3 maps), the less self-reliant you have to be, and as such a tech disadvantaged is less pronounced, if your teammate's composition covers your weaknesses. So you can justify going heavier T1 in the same way as being able to go lighter T1.

"* If you're ahead in power – what do you do?"-

As a rule of thumb, you want to use your advantage to create a bigger advantage. My style is to use it to invest in a larger army, to kill his army, take his map, kill his gens and strangle the game. In T2 I'll pick up a vehicle and smash home.

An alternative is turtling with the tech advantage, getting to T2 and getting a fast vehicle. Both choices are viable, but when fast teching you need to make sure you have sufficient army to serve your purposes during teching, as you may lose enough time and pressure that he may have equalised despite a tech advantage.

"* To what extent do you replace T1 units, even if it costs you power?"-

I think it's better to think of the units as giving you roles: if the role is required and there is no better candidate for it, then go ahead and replace it, so long as it won't be a burden. For example, 99% of the time I will replace scouts instantly as the utility and map control they give is indispensable. Most of the cases that I don't it's my second scout, and even then I usually replace it in 1v1.

Another example would be Raptors. Raptors give you assault capability, anti-ranged and a durable melee unit. If I lose Raptors, I may replace it, but an alternative would be Bloodletters. Then you would consider if bloodletters are superior in that situation: do you have sufficient heretics to worship them consistently? Does the opponent have any ways to drain their energy and render bloodletters very vulnerable? Yes Bloodletters are a viable alternative but they're not always better simply because they're a tier up.

Basically, ask yourself what that unit gives you, and whether you still need that role. If yes, and there's a higher tier alternative which is better in this situation, take that instead. If not, then skip it and take something which will help more.

"* How many generators do you usually buy? (In 1v1, 2v2, 3v3.)"

I hate to sound like a broken record, but it really depends. In general, I find that I need only 3 gens max as Chaos as they get quite req heavy. Sometimes I get away with 2. As Eldar I often can benefit from 4 or 5, and SM I cap out at 4. These values are only for 1v1 though; in team games you're generally scrambling for as much power as you can get because often there are fewer than 1 power node per player. EDIT: but really it depends on the power needs of your composition. If you're planning on picking up plague marines for example, you're going to need fewer gens than if you want to rush out that Chaos Dread.

[Lesten]

Thanks for the reply, Codex
So the short answer is: it depends?

[Torpid]

The answer to everything is "it depends" in economics. Although not necessarily the same exact thing, game theory of economics does indeed apply to video games, at least the multiplayer aspect of them.

Yes, everything depends, which is why nobody else posted in this thread I assume, haha

[Dark Riku]

Yes, everything depends, which is why nobody else posted in this thread I assume, haha

Indeed. I kinda wanted to reply but it depends on so many things.
I'm very happy Codex replied ^^

[Codex]

Yep, it basically depends. I wall'd o' txt'd to explain the concepts, but anything is valid so long as you play consistently. Find your own playstyle; that will always be more effective than trying to copy Tex or Noisy or Riku (although that will most definitely be effective)

[Ace of Swords]

Yes, everything depends, which is why nobody else posted in this thread I assume, haha

Indeed. I kinda wanted to reply but it depends on so many things.
I'm very happy Codex replied ^^

Second riku & torpid, this is something just too subjective to both yourself, the opponent and the circumnstances of the match, In my opinion it's something you need to learn by yourself.

[Raffa]

Yes, everything depends, which is why nobody else posted in this thread I assume, haha

Indeed. I kinda wanted to reply but it depends on so many things.
I'm very happy Codex replied ^^

Second riku & torpid, this is something just too subjective to both yourself, the opponent and the circumnstances of the match, In my opinion it's something you need to learn by yourself.

I third riku, torpid and ace :p

DOW2 in itself is a game of two skills: judgement and execution. Light/heavy T1 is so dependent on the situation that it is just something you have to learn to judge.

It's like asking when to retreat. Do you retreat as soon as you see a threatening squad in a dangerous position? Do you stay in that second longer to try and turn the fight? Do you retreat earlier if you see one of your tac models taking loads of fire while the others are taking little? All these could be correct, and so could hundreds more. Whichever one is correct for the situation you're in depends on so many variables. It's a judgement call.

This question is one of the many that you learn to answer better as you become more experienced. When you're better at making judgements to questions like this than your opponent, you automatically have a huge advantage before the game starts.

Put more simply, it's like all those essays you do/did at Uni - there's no right or wrong answer, it's how you do it that matters.