Recently I was priviliged to watch two noted StarCraft players go head to head, TF-Arch vs. DaZeD~CruSha. Arch was fresh off his victory over Shadowlisk, IN-Bob, and Kid-X17 in a Tao-Of-Gaming 1v1 Beta Ladder Tournament. I found Arch in NoHunters, and after a little searching for someone for him to play, we went to channel DaZeD and found DaZeD~CruSha ready for a good game. Arch chooses River Styx, an old pretty much obsolete ladder map, in preparation for his upcoming tournament game against Tillerman. This is going to be a two part battle report because the two players absolutely had to rematch on a "better" map hehe. Arch made it very clear that he didn't want this up on the internet until after his tournament game because of Tillerman knowing his strategy and style ;]. Also, this is an unknown map to many people so here's a link to what the map looks like. http://www.battle.net/images/battle/scc/lp/2/xrs.jpg

Anyway, here's the battle. Arch chooses Protoss and warps in the bottom starting location while Crusha randomed Terran in the top starting location. Arch's build order went like this: pylon, gateway, assimilator, pylon, cybernetics core. CruSha's build order went like this: Supply depot, 3 barracks, supply depot, refinery, academy.

Arch sends a probe out to scout the race of his opponent, and finding that he's Terran decides to mass up his dragoons. Arch couldn't resist the temptation to build an assimilator on CruSha's gas. Not only does he build one, but when CruSha brings his scv's to destroy it, he cancels it, and when they go back, he builds it again hehe. CruSha is the first to attack, sending a few marines down to Arch's main base. Finding 4 dragoons guarding the entrance, he rushes the marines past behind the mineral field.

That attack is thwarted by Arch's dragoons catching up to the marines before they could kill many of the probes, oblivious to why these strange looking orange men were firing stingy stuff at them.

Arch takes the time to expand to his natural, which is located directly to the right of his base. The only way to get to a person's natural is by air, or going through their main base first, as you can see on the map picture. He then builds up his dragoons planning an imminent attack on CruSha's base. While Arch is doing that, CruSha is rallying his forces to the right bridge (the one that would be more likely for Arch to take if he was to attack.)

Unforunately, Arch decides to attack using the high bridge, passing CruSha's forces. CruSha pushes his forces down the lower bridge, while Arch moves his forces up the upper bridge to his enemy's base. Arch, seeing that the only thing keeping his base alive is a single Dark Templar, targets the comsat station, destroying it before CruSha can scan where his army is being destroyed 1 by 1.

Arch had 3 bases to CruSha's battered up one, so CruSha concedes the game, but not before asking for a rematch and saying and I quote, "This map sucks =["After the game the two players talked for a while about the next map to play on, and of course, they chose Lost Temple.

This time, both players chose their races. Arch chooses Protoss again and starts at the 6 o'clock position. CruSha chooses Zerg and spawns at the 3 o'clock position.

Arch started out building a pylon, gateway, pylon, assimilator, cybernetics core, a stargate, and then a citadel of adun. CruSha starts out building a hatchery at the top of his ramp, spawning pool, extractor, upgrades to a Lair, and then builds a hydralisk den.

Arch sends a single corsair in hopes of finding an unprotected base of just zerglings, but is turned away when he runs into a group of hydralisks. CruSha expands to his natural a little before Arch, and defends it with hydralisks, zerglings, and lurkers.

CruSha upgrades overlord speed and dropping ability, and loads up his zerglings, hydralisks, and lurkers in preparation for a drop of Arch's main base. Luckily, Arch sees the overlords loading up with a scouting zealot and moves half of his men back to the middle of his main base preparing for the upcoming drop. CruSha also sends a group of hydralisks to the front of Arch's main in hopes of him having sent all of his men to counter his drop, but he had no such luck. Arch, using very good micro, with a few good storms takes out all of the frontal assault, and also with a few storms, takes out most of CruSha's drop.CruSha did however have a few undetected lurkers in Arch's main destroying a few pylons and important buildings, but after he builds observers he takes care of them with his force of zealots, dragoons, and high templars.

Arch moves on to continue to build up his army and also expands to his mineral only expansion, using a very good defense strategy that would be very hard to break through (as I'm sure CruSha would tell you). And now all of a sudden it seems as if Arch has the advantage.

CruSha