Posted this in another thread, but bringing over. Disclaimer: I am not great nor awesome, but this how I've gone from Copper to Gold.
For Terran:
Immediately put all SCVs (peons) you have mining minerals, start a new SCV (s) in your command center and rally point to an unused mineral pile. Continue to build SCVs until you pop the 9/11 supplied SCV while another is building and send it to your choke to build a supply depot. Hotkey this SCV and SHIFT-Right click to another start position to have it auto scout when it finishes. Continue to build SCVs
The supply Depot should finish just as you hit 11/11 supply with an SCV trying to build, so it will start. When you have 120 minerals (right around here) grab an SCV off the minerals to build a Barracks at your choke (full block, or 1 supply depot left for wall completion).
Build more SCVs until you are at either 13 or 14 supply. Either build another Supply Depot (at the wall) if you fear an early rush, want to prevent scouting, etc. or a Refinery. Continue to build SCVs and whichever of those you didn't start at the 13/14 level do so at 15/16. When the refinery finishes put 2-3 SCVs on it (the hints say 3 total needed, I prefer 4 but I haven't actually run the numbers on efficiency)
When the barracks finishes start a marine and do NOT build more SCVs than the one currently building. Once that SCV is complete, start the upgrade to an Orbital base.
Your SCV scout should have been to 2 or 3 of the start spots for a 4 start map or be totally all up in the enemy's base on a 2 start map. You should know your opponent's race, early build order and whether they are fast expanding. Zerg will likely have killed this with early lings (is fine, and you should be able to see a Roach Warren go up if they are slow), Terran will have a marine chasing you (if you are by the peon line you get longer scout cuz hte marine has to travel) and if htey are Toss you Shift rally your SCV in circles and laugh at the Zealots until the warp stalkers are out.
While the Orbital base is building you should be building the second refinery building, a second barracks, putting a tech lab on your first barracks and building another supply depot.
Once the orbital base is done, pump SCVs until you have full coverage (30 SCVs, I almost always peter out around 24 cuz I get distracted but I'm working on it) of 2.5 SCVs per mineral and 3 SCVs for the gas. Whenever you have 50 energy, drop a mining drone and have it start on minerals. DO NOT USE THE ENERGY SCANNING UNLESS IT WILL WIN YOU THE GAME. The drone mineral income is way better.
You should have 3 barracks (2 with tech labs, 1 with reactor core) for most games, and tech up to Starport (Barracks, Factory, Starport) relatively quickly for your Dropship/medivac. The two with tech labs should pump maurders and ghosts (light marines if you are gas short) and the core should pump marines. Research the Concussive Shells ASAP, Stim Packs secondary, and the marine range/health upgrade teritary.
For Protoss - You want early ghosts (Barracks, Ghost Academy) which are gas heavy but negate the shields with their EMP. You want at least 2 early on with 6-9 Maurders and 5-8 marines. Always have 2-3 ghosts handy in your army and 2-4 medivacs for healing. EMP and then focus fire down Immortals & Colassi to hurt the toss in their gas units.
For Zerg - Don't need ghosts here, other than for nuking/sniping but I honestly don't have that down. You just need to pump maurders/marines/medivacs with Viking/Banshee support. If they are heavy roaching, go heavy maurders. Heavy Hyrdas go for more marines and maybe some tanks/hellions. Heavy Mutas do get beat by straight marines, but hard to pump that many if you are caught flat footed. Vikings/Marines/Medivac work well, and Thor is probably good though I never get that far. Terran need to keep early pressure on to prevent an early expansion.
For Terran - Again, your Marine/Maurder/Medivac is a mainstay, but you'll need tanks and vikings and ravens as well. I personally hate mirror matches.
In general you need to expand relatively early but not as early as Zerg to get your gas production up. Remember to build extra barracks when you expand. At least 5 barracks (3 with tech lab, 2 with core) for single expo if you are pumping heavy infrantry and two starports. Ensure that you pull some SCVs from your main to your expo and put all new mining drones in the expo for maximum uptime with building more SCVs at both locations for later expansion.
General rules of thumb:
Group your unit production buildings by type so that you hit one hotkey and can queue up 3 units in different barracks to pop all at the same time.
Always queue up units just before a major attack.
Micro/baby your Medivacs and get them out if the army is dead so you can repair them.
Use Reapers/Banshees for harassment of expansions and scouting.
Always scout early, scout often and have map awareness. Know when your opponent is expanding and either stop him, kill it after investment is sunk or use the distraction to pwn their base.
The Zel'Naga towers that grant huge extra map sight are awesome. Control them.
Attack only if you have the bigger (resource) army or know that your opponent doesn't have the counter (no cloak detection for Banshees, no Anti-Air for Vikings, etc.)
Don't move your army during an attack. They don't shoot while moving so they are just dying. Exception, specific microing of a unit back to draw enemy fire/let an expensive unit live.
I'm sure there is more and there are way better people than I out there. Good luck.
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