Starcraft 2 Terran Strategy

Okay, so you've started to do your macro drill but... you've notice it's difficult to keep it going! It's hard to keep clicking around the screen and multitask. Here's another secret to pro's APM and also how they can do so much at once! This next aspect is essential to Starcraft 2 Terran strategy. And in terms of your APM in Starcraft, it will drastically increase it.

It's hotkeys.

Probably not the hotkeys that you're thinking about. You see, there are hotkeys that allow you to build units without clicking on them (like pressing 'S' for SCV or pressing 'M' for marine), but there are another kind of hotkey. These hotkeys are most frequently used for 'control groups'.

A lot of players use these to control their units. What you do is select a group of units you want to hotkey. Then, while they're selected, press on ctl+(a number). So you could press ctl+1 and now every time you press one it will bring you to the units that you've hot keyed! Pretty cool huh? But this is more related to micro, what we're talking about right now is macro strategies for Terran.

Okay, so in order to get this to improve your macro I will give you a system that a pro player gave me a long time ago that I still use to this day. Of course, you can edit this system to one that you find more efficient, this is just to get you started. However, from all the systems that I've used I still find this one to bet the best.

So... without further ado... this is how it works:

5 = your beginning command center
6 and up = your barracks
5 and under = your expansions

You start out with one command center and two barracks. Now, the trick is to keep checking your barracks to make sure that they are building! So keep pressing 5,6,7 over and over and checking to see how close your men are to being finished. Preferably, you should build your men at the last possible second in order to have minerals to build other things (like supply depots and/or additional command centers).

So, when you build your second expansion now you have 4,5,6,7,8 to look after. And you're going to constantly be pressing 4s5s6m7m8m9m in order to build SCVs and marines.

Now, this is of course for the macro drill. As you become more advances you will probably group buildings together (i.e. have all your barracks hot keyed into one group, like 6, and all your factories in 7, etc.). You have to, ultimately, find a system that works for you. But, for now to get your timing right and to learn to macro properly you should keep all your barracks separate and all your command centers separate. You'll see, this will make macroing a lot easier once you get the hang of it.

Maybe now you can understand why pros have such high APM. It's because they are constantly pressing all those numbers to check their buildings/unit groups while simultaneously clicking all over with their mouse. When you combine these two things your APM will skyrocket. Furthermore, the better you get at multitasking the better your macro and micro will be able to combine and the more efficient player you will be.

This is also how pros macro and micro at the same time. They can simultaneously attack and keep all their units building. So, while their less experienced adversary is constantly checking his base to build more units or focusing on the battle and not building, the pro is gaining. Someone who does not use hotkeys must sacrifice properly managing their units or properly managing their production.

You no longer have that problem if you master this hotkey technique! I'm not saying it's easy to do both, but with practice it will become natural and you will be a far superior player.

The next important thing after you've learned to macro properly with hotkeys and constant production is micro and strategy.

check out the latest and best Starcraft 2 Terran Strategies!

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Spiritual Growth Through Christian Board Games

Christian board games are not only fun to play, they will help you learn more about the Bible. Parents could take this time to share some Bible insights with their children, especially if they have questions about God.

This is a great way to spend family night; bonding with your loved ones and spending quality time with them. You could be making memories that might be life impacting for your children.

With these Christian board games, teaching could be entertaining and interesting. You can very easily turn this into a teaching moment with your children about who God is and what He's done for us. The games are full of very good moral lessons that we can all learn from.

Lots of children don't like to read; especially if there aren't any pictures to go along with the words. They think it's boring and not worth their time. The pictures in these Bible board games will catch attention right away. Their imagination and visualization will kick in and cause the stories of the Bible seem more real. It will also make the learning process more fun and not boring. Your children won't realize they're being taught something very valuable.

There are lots of different ways a person can strengthen their spiritual growth. Reading the Bible, going to church, attending praise and worship and reading Biblical material are a few of them. It's a fun way to grow spiritually. Not only are you testing your scriptural knowledge, but also strengthening your bond with God.

Christian board games was designed for people who find reading and understanding the Bible difficult and frustrating. We all know how important it is to read God's Word. But it's very discouraging for those who can't. Some would even find it hard to give some time to read it. That's when these games come in handy.

All of a sudden learning the Bible is more enjoyable. It's easier to understand and fun to learn. You will also be able to sharpen your verbal skills, knowledge on Bible trivia, quick mind and creative thinking.

So if reading the Bible is difficult and you are trying to find a way to make it easier, or you just want to play a fun game with your family and friends, try out these Christian board games. You will definitely have an evening full of fun, laughter and lots of nice memories.

Christian board games are not only fun to play, they're also very helpful when it comes to learning the Bible. The quality time you will be spending with your family through these games will help make a lot of nice memories. Your children won't realize they are being taught some very good moral lessons while playing. It will be interesting and entertaining for them and not boring at all. The pictures and interaction will help bring the stories of the Bible to life. These games are fun for people of all ages. As you play the game, you gain more knowledge of the Bible; therefore testing your scriptural knowledge. By getting to know more about the Bible through these games, you are also getting to know more about God. These Christian board games are extremely helpful for people who have a hard time reading the Bible. They make it easier to understand and more fun and enjoyable to learn.

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How To Get a Job As A Video Game Tester

In all of my years of professional experience, probably the one job I get asked most about is my time as a Video Game Tester for SEGA of America. I spent several years with SEGA, and people, especially children, are always fascinated by the opportunity to make good money by doing what they love, namely playing games! Here is some advice for those looking to obtain one of these highly-desired positions.

For those looking to get a foot in the door of the Video Game Industry in any capacity, there is no more tried and truer method than the Video Game Tester position. This job brings you into the fold of the development world where you can see how the games are made, make vital contacts, and get critical game company experience on your resume. I cannot tell you how many people I have worked with who used this entry-level opening to springboard into positions in programming, game production, design, marketing, etc. Plus, there are worse ways to make anywhere from $10-15 dollars an hour (starting pay) than playing games for a living!

First of all, you need to be in a geographically feasible location to get one of these positions. Quite simply, there are not a lot of major cities in the United States that have a hotbed of gaming development. Fortunately, I live in the San Francisco Bay Area where we have numerous development firms and testing opportunities with major players such as SEGA, Electronic Arts, Sony of America, Namco, and more. Seattle, Washington is another prime location as companies such as Microsoft call it home. So if you truly want to get a shot, you'll have to consider relocation.

One of the most compelling arguments against making such a move is that the great majority of companies hire Tester candidates as temporary employees. If you live in a city with a game company that employs testers, you will want to contact the HR Manager to see what firm they use for their temporary staffing needs. They can generally direct you to the people who screen the initial crop of candidates, then present them directly to the company. Due to the seasonal aspect of the industry, there can be times of great need where firms will hire boatloads of people, and slower times, when they have to let a number of people go, when there is not enough work to keep folks busy. As any experienced game contractor knows, your position is never guaranteed. Perm spots are hard to attain, but it can happen. The key is being able to demonstrate your value to the company, and sadly enough, playing the social game can also be a critical factor. As a temporary employee, the uncertain stability of your job is probably the most frustrating aspect of the position. Still in most cases, companies seem to be astute at identifying the must-have talent and keeping them in the fold.

Once you have connected with a recruiting firm and been submitted directly to the gaming company, its time to prepare for the interview. One of the most important things that Test Managers look for in a new hire are effective written communication skills. As the job revolves around finding and documenting bugs, or errors, in the game, the ability to concisely relay that information to the programmers so that can fix them is vital. So expect going in that you will be taking some kind of writing test. An eye for detail is also important. If you are the type of person that notices little things, or things that seem out of place, it definitely helps. Also, remember that while most game companies are very casual in nature, it is important to dress professionally and convey your sincere desire to have an opportunity. As you can imagine, there is a multitude of people who would like to have this type of position, so anything you can do to stand out from the pack helps. One of the nice things about interviewing for game companies is that you generally receive very quick turnaround on feedback, and in some instances can be hired almost immediately.

Working in the Video Game Industry is definitely a unique and enjoyable experience. There are many perks you will not find in normal companies. Do keep in mind though, that while the job is all games, it is not always fun. Like any position, there are monotonous aspects to it. For example, be prepared to test the same game over and over, for up to a few months at a time. That can be challenging. Also, expect going in that you may be assigned mind-numbing tasks from day-to-day such as checking that all weapons or items work as they are supposed, all walls in each level are solid, or even just proofreading game text. Finally, be prepared to work long hours as needed. When crunch time hits, and a game needs to ship, overtime can be required to get the game out the door. Still, overall, there are few positions where you can have as much fun on a day-to-day basis.

For more information about AAU basketball and sport-specific training visit Star Potential Sports Training.

Anthony Lynch is the founder and creator of Star Potential Sports Training ( http://www.starpotentialsports.com/ ). He is also the head coach of the Tri-City Thunder Basketball Program, based in Fremont, CA.

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5 AoE Leveling Tips You Don't Want to Miss

Area of Effect (AoE) Leveling is a leveling style that is very popular leveling style in games like World of Warcraft and Everquest. Unfortunately, Blizzard has increased its efforts to prevent its subscribers from using AoE leveling in World of Warcraft due to the inequality it created in leveling speeds.

There were some spots in game that were overlooked during development phase which players were using to farm experience at a rate far faster than they had designed the game for. Therefore, these places were removed and reworked through the patch system.

With the release of the Cataclysm expansion AoE Leveling was virtually eliminated from the game. It wasn't removed in the sense that it no longer exists, instead, it was removed in the sense that they made it harder to do. The game was changed to make it generally faster to level by completing quests which took away the appeal of AoE Grinding.

However, there are still points in the game where it can be faster to AoE instead of quest. Additionally, farmers generally use this method of leveling in order to kill mobs to skin or for loot while they are leveling up their character.

Here are a few things players should know about AoE leveling that will help them maximize their experience:

Instead of gathering enemies by moving into proximity of them, use a ranged weapon or attack to pull the enemies to an area so they don't reach their maximum tether radius and turn around. A tether radius is the maximum distance an enemy will travel before it turns around and runs back to reset.Use a silence to pull casters toward melee enemies or pull melee enemies to a group of casters to get the most enemies in each pull.Don't try to pull more too many mobs. For larger pulls ensure be a level or two higher than the target enemies.When gathering mobs by proximity, use a mount and any speed enhancing effects available to gather them quickly.Use food buffs and any other buffs available

There is some good news coming up in Mists of Pandaria for AoE levelers. Blizzard has decided to add area looting into the game so players can just loot one corpse and everything will be looted from one click instead of clicking each corpse individually. There has been no mention yet on further adjustments to AoE leveling but one can imagine the zones won't be AoE friendly at all.

If you're wondering where you can AoE Level check out this AoE Grinding Guide at Almost Gaming which includes grinding locations from level 10 to level 85.

Almost Gaming is a free website dedicated to Profession Leveling Guides, Talent Guides, Leveling Guides, and Farming Guides.

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Mahjong Is One of the Oldest Games in the World

MaQue, which refers to sparrow, is the original name given for the mahjong game, a trendy game which originated in China. Most southern Chinese vernaculars still use the name MaQue when referring to the game. Nevertheless, in other parts of this rich country, the game is generally referred to as MaJiang.

Involving four key players, the game entails a lot of meticulous calculations, not to mention a concise level of expertise and a discreet strategy. Depending on the different game versions, each player transacts with thirteen to sixteen tiles at a time. The customary Chinese rules of the game have been modified depending on where the game is being played. Today, the game is being played in many different countries across the world.

Regardless of the rules applicable in the different countries, through the game, a player draws one tile while they castoff another. Winning will depend on the draw, which is taking the redundant tile or picking up a new tile. There have been a lot of mythical stories trying to explain the origin of this very popular game. A well-known story states that the game was invented around 500 BC by Confucius, a famous Chinese philosopher at the time. According to this allegory, the philosopher would travel to the different parts of the country teaching people about the game, thus explaining the dominance of the game.

Confucius taught that the story behind the legend was about an isolated lady in the emperor's palace that used ivory and bamboo to carve the tiles for the game. She would call her three maids once she was done, to come and play the game with her. Later in life, Confucius developed the game. Since he was very fond of birds, as indicated in the myth, the game came to be known as Mahjong, which means a sparrow.

Paradoxically, there is no indication whatsoever of the existence of this game before the nineteenth century. Historians suppose that, the game was founded on "MaDiao", a typical Chinese game, and that forty paper cards were used to play the game. The paper cards were numbered one to ten, in four different suits alongside four other additional flower cards. This can easily be compared to the Mahjong game played presently in different parts of the world. Mahjong is now considered a classic game by all rights, and can easily be found online. Over the years, many different variations have been created, with each having their own sets of rules.

We provide the best info about mahjong game. For further details please visit the provided link.

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Mage Guide - Best Mage Spec for PvE

Since Mages are damage dealers, you can put up quite some damage specialized on any spell line. However, the Fire Mage spec allows you to deal insane amounts of single target and AoE damage, which makes it ideal for PvE. But to squeeze every drop of effectiveness as a Fire Mage, some of the spells in the Fire ability tree must be left out. So, in this short Mage guide I'm going to tell you which talents you should leave out from the Fire tree, and which you should train from the Arcan tree.

Talents to Leave Out from the Fire Talent Tree

Although most of the Fire talents are PvE oriented, focused in boosting your Fire damage single target and AoE spells and reducing the mana cost of your spells, there are a few talents that aren't too helpful for PvE DPS. These are:

Blazing Speed. This improves your movement speed and removes your movement impairing effects when hit by melee or ranged attacks. Needless to say, this is a PvP talent, and it shouldn't be in your DPS Mage spec.

Cauterize. This effects allows you to come back to 40% of your total HP after being hit by an attack that would have normally killed you. However, you will be damaged for 12% of your life for your next 6 seconds. This talent might somewhat help your healers in a raid. But it's best to save those points for something else. This is more of a PvP talent than one for PvE.

Molten Shields. This talent improves your Blazing Shields (a talent that you shouldn't have as a DPS Fire Mage in the first place) and also reduces your Mage Ward spell by 1 second. It is pretty useless for PvE.

Talents to Train from the Arcane Talent Tree

The second part of this short Mage guide refers to the remaining points, 6 to be more specific, after training 35 points in the Fire tree. It's best to train these 6 remaining points in the first Arcane talents. These talents have a direct effect to your DPS effectiveness. The 2 that you should choose are:

Arcane Concentration - grants you a 10% chance to consume no mana on your next spell, after hitting any target with any spell. It's a pretty useful talent for PvE. Saving mana will allow you to cast more spells before hitting Evocation, and therefore to be more effective.

Netherwind Presence - a pretty simple talent, but a PvE-oriented one that increases your global damage by 3%.

I hope this short Mage guide is useful to you.

However, to learn more about Mage specs, click here: Mage Spec.

Also, if you want to play your Mage at maximum, in PvP or PvE and to learn the best keybindings and macros for this class, click here: Mage Guide.

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