Hey guys do you even bother with keyboard shortcuts in RTS games? hell i think its a bit pointless its alot quicker to click on the stuff

what do you think?

Sometimes. Mostly the "next idle (insert unit type here)" shortcut and the "group into a unit" numeric shortcut.

Yes. Mostly for unit groups and location bookmark shortcuts.

But when i play mp with other friends.... the kb shortcuts for construction etc are used all the time for added speed...

Nope! I have given up trying to beat my friend Pieter at Command and Conquer 3, so there is no use for it anymore. XD

Only to group units into "squads". Other then that I never really use it.

Actually when I am in a decent fight then I do go and group buildings to buttons so that I can quickly build things. But thats It

Nope! I have given up trying to beat my friend Pieter at Command and Conquer 3, so there is no use for it anymore. XD

bahahhahahahhaha good training tip...play the computer on hardest level and then watch the replay...take notes of build order it helped me @ command and conquer generals.

If you want to be decent at most RTS, you *have* to use shortcuts. No two ways about it.

If you want to be decent at most RTS, you *have* to use shortcuts. No two ways about it.

QFT

All experienced RTS players use keyboard shortcuts.
In one game it saves SO much time.

QFT

All experienced RTS players use keyboard shortcuts.
In one game it saves SO much time.

yeah i know it can take a while to remember all the shortcuts though. except if you havea aphotgraphics memory

Then remap them to something more memorable. Something like...
home - main structure
page up/down - vehicles/infantry
end - endgame weapons
insert - upgrade building (to "insert" upgrades onto your troops)

Redefining keys is rather handy, especially when different games use different keys. Even if you get basic building to building shortcuts and forget about the unit build keys youre still going to save a fair amount of time in that alone.

Then remap them to something more memorable. Something like...
home - main structure
page up/down - vehicles/infantry
end - endgame weapons
insert - upgrade building (to "insert" upgrades onto your troops)

Redefining keys is rather handy, especially when different games use different keys. Even if you get basic building to building shortcuts and forget about the unit build keys youre still going to save a fair amount of time in that alone.

good thinking number 99 might try that

In general (single player), not really.

When it comes to competitive online play though, it is a MUST. I'd even venture to say that the vast majority of online gamers who complain (whine) that they get pwned all the time are people who can't be bothered to learn to use them. Relying solely on what the general UI provides and simply clicking on everything you want to do is a sure fire way to get yourself slaughtered.

Anyone who has played Supreme Commander competitively knows that in order to maximize your time, you need to use shortcuts. It's not hard, and game UI's and hotkey commands are light years better now than even 4 years ago.

Haven't really played an RTS since Age Of Empires 2, but I know a guy that plays them competitively and he uses shortcuts like there is no tomorrow.

I only use them for like building buildings and grouping units into squads. Other than that, I have excellent reflexes and such so that I can actually click fast enough to do it. I need to use my mind's memory space for other things...

I have never really tried using shortcuts all that much. Maybe that's why I stink at C&C3...

Depends on what RTS's. When i play ladder games in WC3 I use keyboard shorcuts constantly because its very much about how quick you are to rush at a certain level of the game.

i'm way too stupid to remember them all. So my answer is no.

i'm way too stupid to remember them all. So my answer is no.

bahhhaha same. but im going to try and remember some btw welcome to the forums xD

For competetive play, shortcuts are pretty much a must-use, like PacmanPolarBear stated.

Some games like Age of Empires III can give you a bit of leeway, but other games like Warcraft III are dictated from the first second about who is building what faster.

I agree with Animathias...if you ever played starcraft competitively online, you would HAVE to use keyboard shortcuts. You guys say it's too hard to memorize them, but all you realyl have to do is practice building your prefered units and upgrades against the computer...

I memorized all the important Starcraft hotkeys within about 2-4 games.