I've noticed all the chat about rushing lately. It's disgusting me to see people say that one strat is unbeatable, and another is easy to counter. In AoC this was true, but in SWGB things have changed due to some kick ass units available in tech level 1.
Although these new units complicate our ideas of counter rushing, below are some thoughts on how to stop a rush in its tracks. Keep in mind that I will not post a build order that will allow you to have some all powerful economy to beat the rush. Also there is no “correct” way to stop a rush, and no unwavering order will beat every rush every time. Your ability to adapt makes you the player you are- not what rushes you can and cannot do. If you want build orders AoC is still being played.
For all counter rushes though, basic training is a key component. That extra armor and HP makes an enormous difference in whether your workers live or die to the invading army. Neglecting this technology can cost you your workers which in turn cost resources, and that can cost the game.
Trooper Recruit Rush.
This will happen quickly and can put you behind before you know it! You will notice that the first key to stopping any rush is to not be caught with your pants down so to speak.
Being with scouting: Once you've spotted the resources around you and taken note of the resources in your enemies' base, the scout should be covering all angles to your base coming from the enemy. More often than not, a trooper recruit rush requires a forward barracks and power core to reinforce the numbers of the army. Trooper Recruits are far too slow to reach your base in time from the enemy's. If he is sending recruits one by one from home, he should in effect be sending lambs to the slaughter.
If you can catch the forward builder in the process of building a power core or even a second barracks your first impulse should be to take some workers (with basic training!!!!!) to try to disrupt the building, and if you can to wall in the troop center. If you can do this you may be able to delay the rush long enough for you to build a troop center and a power core of your own to begin creating the army to stop his. If this is the case then the logical strategy would be to turn the game into an old school “Skirm War” such as in AoC (note troopers cost the same as skirms hence the name)
If you don't notice the rush, then he has caught you with your pants and down and thus has an advantage. However all is not lost. If you don't have your basic training by now get it!!! The +1 pierce armor makes quite the difference. You need to get an army as quickly as you can because the trickle of the initial attack will quickly turn into a stream of invading recruits. The Initial Attack (IA) should only surprise you if he hits you at about 8 or 9 minutes, and if he hits at that time he is only likely to have 4-5 trooper recruits so you are faced with a decision. If they come for your carbon workers (or any other large groups) uses strength in their numbers and attack the recruits with workers, if you have a civ that can repair villagers (workers) with other villagers then use it to your advantage. If they go for your nova miners or some random hunters your best bet is to run those workers in duress to your town center and hope its fire can weaken or take out a few recruits. After the initial attack you can just try to take control of a few hills so that you maintain an elevation bonus and begin booming. Key things to keep in mind are: (a) keep your villagers working as much as you can (b) use villagers to give you a number advantage every time you attack. Villagers are fairly strong in TL1. Once you hit tl2 (if its before him) you can upgrade to troopers and overrun his puny recruits. Add some towers to defend key spots such as ore and use then to retreat into to strengthen troops.
However if the battle wages into the next age remember you are in a weakened state. This is not a wise time to build jedi to counter troopers. They are too expensive in a game that is undoubtedly to close to sacrifice those resources. You should build another troop center and consider building a few mounted troopers to burn down his forward power core. The whole idea in tech level 2 fighting is to get an early advantage either in military size and strength or an economic advantage by depriving them of the resources they need. If one approach is no working adapt your plan to the other.
Summary:
keep your cool, don’t panic
make sure you have basic training
get a troop center up ASAP
use recruits and your own villagers to hold off – get to TL2 as soon as feasible
(top)
Mounted Rush.
If you uncover a nursery during your scouting this should send a red alert to you that Mounties may be on the way. If you find one on a map where nerfs are not in an abundance, it's a dead give away that at some point you will be seeing mounted troopers so better prepare for it.
To do this you should build a power core and a troop center as well as try to tl2 quickly. It is in your favor to have troopers fighting against the mounty trooper juggernauts as opposed to weak (and more importantly SLOW) trooper recruits. You should also be aware that a forward troop center is not needed to MT rush. They are extremely quick, so running from one base to another is not a particularly crippling thing. So don't think if there is no forward building from the enemy you are safe.
Workers cannot defeat mounted troopers and you'll just be sending them to their death to attempt to kill mounted troopers. If you are being MT rushed and did not suspect it, do not fret just build up a group of troopers and you should be able to fend off the attacks using their power overlapped with Command Centre (CC) or tower fire.
Do not got tech level 3! If you do, you will lose.
Trooper Rush.
The easiest way to stop a trooper rush is by out-massing the other guy with Troopers of your own. This of course means having troops before the mass of TL2 troopers hit your town. Again this is nostalgic of AoC Skirm Wars.
Towers are also effective at stopping the trooper rush as they have enormous advantage on them. By sending 2 guys on ore early (during the upgrade to tl2) you can throw a tower on your Ore/Nova mines, 2 on your carbon. The towers on your carbon should try to also cover your farms so the enemy troops can not just harass your food.
I find myself throwing up 3 towers andunted troopers and begins towering me I am in trouble. You do not typically get an army if you're using a tower defense since you want to get tl3 as quickly as possible. You will find tower rushes are ineffective against any player who has had some experience in the game.
Tower Rush.
You begin stopping this rush prior to the start of the game as well. Naboo and Trade Fed are suited for tower rushing, as Naboo later have the greatest buildings, but it seems the Fed are far better. Not only can their workers repair each other from defensive Tower fire, but they don't have to stop and build houses which mean they can get can get on Ore quicker, giving them larger quantities.
Be scouting for early ore mining being done by Trade Federation civs who are enemies. If he is mining at 9 minutes, then he is either tower rushing, or using defensive tower strategies to get a faster tl3. Either way you should begin looking around your wood and the perimeter of your farms (if you have any) for idle villagers waiting for that magical moment when he tl2 and starts building those towers.
If you catch it early enough you can build a defensive tower that forces him to try to start building his line elsewhere at some insignificant spot in your base. If you do not, then you will have to give up land but should still build a tower of your own and get on ore, so that he has to change directions to continue towering and you can possibly build towers of your own and kill his workers. Once his workers are dead then focus on booming and hitting tl3, towers do not but scratch pummels and covered by fighters, a tower rusher will not be able to protect his forward. However in tech level 3 he will have a definite stone advantage so expect his base to be towered with both anti air and regular turrets. A tower rush makes for a long game do not be drawn into a fight underneath his towers without proper siege!!
If you really wanted you could also forget booming and begin mounted trooper rushing, but its extremely risky. Blue can do this but he has been playing long enough to understand and adapt his play. You must be able to do the same.
The ideas and process contained within this post are nothing more than guidelines if I were to be put in the various given situations. You can follow other plans and may succeed but you'll still need to understand what I say to always be successful. take the time to watch these game and share you ideas on how you turn rushes to your advantage
I would like to add a small point, Walls, with turrets, and then waiting mounties. That ensures anything other than air does not break through, and as the need for military is not great, [a few mounties] you can afford to keep other entrances to your base, or your own attack, re-enforced. Costly in ore, but a spaceport will help. In a base with many entrances. It will help. :jawa
I've found in some cases walls are more hassle then they're worth. It's fun to build up a big, walled in base, but logistically, I find it's better to keep things small and close together, with an army to defend the base instead of turrets and walls. Walls cost a lot, and require repair, and only add to the area that requires defense. Turrets do little damage against larger armies.
But then, I still like building walls, and am continuing my search for a way to wall in my base without it being more of a hassle than it's worth.
Some walling can be useful early on, but once you start booming, it really is more trouble than it's worth. You should never aim to build a wall all the way around your base and rely on it to keep the enemy out. It just discourages you from spreading out and your econ will suffer later in the game (isn't that right Vostok ;))
Making walls out of prefabs and other buildings is a useful trick. You have to build them anyway sooner or later, so it doesn't cost much extra in resources (if you're TF you will have to use walls). Even then, you shouldn't be trying to wall in your whole base. Just block enemy access to certain areas, and channel their attacks so they're easier to fight off. Force them to run the gauntlet of fire from your CC and turret.
Above all, you should block in your turrets and power cores on 3 sides. This makes it extremely difficult for mounties to burn them down. It's nearly always a good idea to put a turret on your carbon workers, and well placed house walls can help keep enemy troopers away from them, or force them to attack close to the turret.
I find that a well placed fortress makes a great wall. If you place two fortress's close together, that makes an even better wall.
I use towers in stead of a wall
It is a good defend
Then put some soldats in it and it is even better :atat:
Towers are great and inexpensive and often much more effective than a fortress, I concur. If (ore not being a problem of course) I can, I like to have at least 2 fortresses supported with as many air turrets and laser turrets as I can get. Then protect them with a shield generator. Looks good on paper, but you can't always get'r done of course in real life.