[FSwolfbomb]

Hey guys, basically I've had a dream. And that dream is to be a SC2 caster. Truth is, I've only been playing for about 2 months. However, before actually getting the game and my B.Net account I was constantly watching a ton of Husky, Day[9], TotalBiscuit, HD, tasteless... etc and I just loved watching the game and learning about it.

So what I want to know now, is how do I actually become a caster? A good one at that.

Your feedback is very much appreciated. Thank You!

Quick Comments

Baldie:

[TargA]

get good at the game and good at speaking..

Quick Comments

JoFritzMD:

this guy is good with words

[Meatex]

ahhhh cast
like any skill it comes with practice and prepare all you want your first attempts will suck horribly.
practice to get better - there is no magic advice that will make you a good caster

[FSwolfbomb]

Thanks for the fast replies
How about stuff that I need?

[Nerpster]

All the best bro.

Improve your linguistic skills, there is nothing more annoying then hearing a caster go ....uh..... erm....... whats that upgrade called..... get to know your basic builds and try to interpret what players are going for. This helps both your casting skills and your game mechanics. Watch a ton of replays too.

[Nerpster]

owh and talk to yourself in your head more

[ToRPandarine]

Originally Posted by wolfbomb

How about stuff that I need?

a system tht will run SCII on medium or higher settings, a streaming program, a recording program and streaming as well as an internet connection tht will allow you to stream at a decent quality...oh, and a mike and prlly headset too.

Quick Comments

neon:

everyone needs a friend called mike.

[FSwolfbomb]

What about applications that I need?

[ToRPandarine]

Originally Posted by wolfbomb

What about applications that I need?

that would be ur streaming program...i guess Xsplit or ProCaster

oh, and ur gonna need a streaming domain...probably Twitch.Tv

[Antel0pe]

You could base yourself off YouTube and use FRAPS to record everything. I think this is easier than streaming.. You can practice and not have to spontaneous about everything.

[UHF]

There are plenty of guides around on this subject. Team Liquid has quite a few over there that would be worth reading.

To cast you're going to need a good amount of game knowledge. Without a deep understanding of SC2, it will be hard to gauge what is happening and why players are doing certain things - especially at a top level. Even if you aren't going to be an analytical caster, it's still a good idea to get this knowledge under your belt. This part of the process of becoming a caster will be the hardest & longest.

Setting up a stream and actually casting is the simplest part and you could be online within the hour if wanted.

[IrisFlaunt]

what league are you in? you want to be currently in gm on eu/us or working as hard you can to get there while casting. if it really was your dream then you wouldn't be posting here and you'd be casting/playing as we speak.

Quick Comments

Dox:

i lol'd

[Mr_Zain]

Firstly, you'll need a decent set-up (most importantly a good internet upload connection although a good computer helps) and some freely available software can get you started. There are a number of threads already available on this forum to help you get your stream as finely tuned as you want but at an elementary level you just want to get something up and running and then go from there.

Secondly, you'll need to start with small events and monitor these forums (and perhaps others) to see what is going on and whether the organiser a) needs a caster, and b), is likely to give you a run. Bigger events will be covered by casters who are already well known and thus can be difficult to get your name down for. Luckily, due to the popularity and success of the game and its community there are events running almost every day and you can even practice your casts by doing VoDs of games already played from their replay. A youtube channel can be set up to display your work and criticisms should be taken with a pinch of salt so that you can improve.

Casting is largely a thankless task for a long time until someone recognises your talent and you start doing bigger events. I wouldn't quit my day job to do it or anything like that but it can be great fun and can really help you improve at the game if you have a careful eye for detail. After you have a bit of experience under your belt much of what is said here regarding game experience and being able to read plays will help you improve substantially. The most important thing though, if you are indeed serious, is that you start casting and see how you go.

Best of luck,

Zain

Quick Comments

	Zepph:	^^^^^^^^^^
	Dox:
	FSwolfbomb:
	Baldie:
	Pox:	A working knowledge of earthquake mode is also a plus.
	Ruski:	Mr_Zain is a baller

[Zepph]

I believe there was a blog or thread about this at sometime upon which Unstable provided some great feedback as did some other members of the community. I actually learned a little bit from there, unfortunately I couldn't find it. If anyone else knows they may be able to link it

My advice:

• Start casting!!!!!!!!
  
  It doesn't matter what or where or if no one hears you but yourself. The most important thing is just to start doing it.
  
  
• Choose your audience.
  
  You can go for streaming or youtube or even both, but one may suit you more than the other depending on how much time you can put into it. One thing I will point out is that it is REALLY hard to make it as a youtube caster like husky, simply because there are so many people out there trying their hand at it as well and at the end of the day, your average youtube VOD surfer will choose the "pro" over the new guy. I suppose the same could be said about streaming, but especially with a community like sc2sea behind you it could be a bit easier to get started. Over all, just remember to stick at it! You'll have to work hard for those views.
  
  
• Find out what kind of caster you are, and what kind you aim to be.
  
  You mentioned you have only been playing for 2 months. At this stage it is probably best for you to work on being a good play-by-play caster before anything else. You want to bring energy and excitement to your cast. Watch your favourite play-by-play casters and see what they do and apply that to your own casting. Later on, you can aim to be a more analytical caster if that's how you want to be. Which leads to my next point...
  
  
• Play the game
  
  When I started casting I was gold league. I knew next to nothing so I just stuck with play-by-play, but as I got more experience I realised I would much rather be on the analytical side like Day9 or Artosis so I began to work towards that. This meant setting some goals for myself like getting masters, which really helped to solidify an understanding of the game mechanics. Obviously master's league is not a requirement of becoming a caster. Many casters are not master's league (e.g. husky, JP) but it helps to have the game knowledge behind you.
  
  Another great thing to improve game knowledge is to pick out a couple of areas where you struggle to have something to say when casting and improve on those. For me it was, and still is learning about protoss builds. I watched a lot of VODS, some Day9 and asked (or perhaps a better word is harrassed..) some of SEA's top protosses for insight into how x build works or y build doesn't. If analytical is your goal, then this kind of thing can really help.
  
  
• Get a co-caster
  
  Solo casting is hard. I think perhaps the best solo caster we have in SEA is System. It's very difficult to be able to talk without bouncing ideas of anyone or going on a rant and boring the people listening. Having someone with you makes it a lot more fun, gives you a break, and also gives you a good starting point for what to say next in case you get stuck. If your heart is set on going solo however, I'd suggest asking someone like System for some tips
  
  
  So you've started casting. What now?
  
  
  
• Expect criticism.
  
  This is the best way to improve. Getting no criticism means people are just too nice (damnit SEA! l2 be mean), so go and look for it. Someone will be bound to tell you what you should work on most.
  
  
• Find your own quirk and exploit it!
  
  A lot of successful casters have something they're known for. Looking at the top-tiers of casters we have of course Tastosis, who are great friends irl so they have great chemistry and balance each other out in analysis and play by play. Because they're such good friends , they have entertainment value when filling time. As a result, many of these terms like "nerd blood", "nerd baller" and phrases like "when you're ahead, get more ahead" were coined by them and are now widely used by everyone else. We also have Husky, who tends to speak very fast and gets really excitable, so that comes through in his work. Also Day9, being an SC2 genius and all-round nice guy makes him a super valuable and popular analytical caster.
  
  tl/dr; If some personal trait you have stands out when you cast, use and abuse it.
  
  
• Cast anything and everything.
  
  
  When you're starting out, no event or game is beneath you. Put your hand up for anything you can get your hands on. Experience is the best way to improve.

I hope that helps (: Good luck in your casting endeavours!

Quick Comments

	Stallion:
	Mr_Zain:	You are amazing =]
	Dox:
	TheGentleman:	This is very solid advice :)
	TAriiChard:
	FSwolfbomb:	This Is Very Solid Stuff. :)
	ToRSpookToR:	repuuuuuuuu
	Baldie:	Spook take your hatred elsewhere.. also big fan Zepph ♥
	MooZfY:	i give you rep rep rep :D
	Flamga:	Zepph being awesome
	ToRPandarine:	:D
	faithHunter:	Very informative to fellow casters alike :D
	iM MaFia:	MVP her already !
	Maynarde:	^
	galabo:
	PinkandWhite:	haha thorough!

[SLCN.Kez]

Copy artosis and ull be the best

Quick Comments

TABottles:

He's my fav

[Mr_Zain]

Speaking of co-casters actually. If you do get your rig set up and need someone, I've co-casted with many people and would be more than happy to help you out and provide some advice on how it all went at the conclusion of the cast. Only if you're interested of course.

=]

[breadfan]

Some awesome advice already, only thing I'd add is to cast at your level f play - that's where your knowledge is suited to. By all means, have a crack at casting some pro matches, but in my opinion you should mix these in every now and then, as maybe a way to track progress over time. Keep seeking feedback from multiple people.

Also, the latest State of the Game (#68) discussed the caster role a lot - how to point out mistakes as mistakes and not just trash the player for being an idiot, all that jazz.

[ToRSpookToR]

bugger zepph sorry that was meant to be "like" not "dislike"

Quick Comments

	Baldie:	Sure mate.. sure
	ToRPandarine:	just tell a mod or admin for thm to change it ^_^
	Zepph:	it's all good friend ^^
	Loach:	Baldie, sif give him neg rep over a mistake.. when in the comment it says he is repping it!

[Baldie]

I am going to provide you with my story which will provide some new points on what Zepph and others stated. For those who live in tl;dr domain, I have bolded the key points.

+ [My Casting Story] +

I took up casting officially a month ago. I too am in Gold league (chobo demotion to Silver recently) and as a result my in game knowledge was quite primitive when I began. I remember my first cast.. terrible. Although I got the job done, it felt really sloppy. So I worked really hard on developing myself.

I watched how Maynarde, Flamga and a few others casted and asked myself the question "what makes me inclined to stay (a while) and listen?". Please note the reason I studied sc2sea local casters and not Day9 etc is because I believe if you cannot satisfy a local market, don't even think about satisfying the broader market.

The common denominator was their personality and the entertainment value they bring to casting. Sure they know what they are on about but that is the least of my concerns. I'd rather watch someone who knew little about the game (but enough to not be annoying) who provided great entertainment than someone who has the most knowledge in the world but is mono-tonal and speaks as if they are on a script.

I also noted their professionalism. Sure casting is fun and you should be relaxed and have a good time but you still need to provide a professional service. Their streams were smooth. I asked Flamga about his stream setup and I noted he had a duel monitor setup. I strongly suggest a second monitor for streaming to significantly enhance the professionalism of your stream.

I also noted their ability to control the map. Another added difficulty to solo casting is capturing everything which is going on in the game while still casting play-by-play and forseeing what is going to happen. I cannot stress the importance of watching the mini-map and not missing anything. Sometimes it's unavoidable but try not to miss anything. I often have heard people be frustrated with casters who miss key drops or baneling runbys into worker lines. Something I continuously work on too!

It is also important to work on your mouse control. Don't be clicking around the map like you are having a seizure. Always use your middle mouse button to move the screen - it ensures smooth movement. A controlled movement will come with time, find a sensitivity that works for you and practice slow but controlled map movement in replays.

After studying streams and coming up with those key points I knew I had a real shot at developing myself at an extremely fast rate. The only thing that was going to hold me back was my lack of knowledge. I rectified this by asking current casters and high tiered players about current match ups and alike Zepph said, why certain things worked and didn't work. I don't think you can ever really stop learning as the game changes so often but it is important to stay as up to date as possible and for that the professional market is your best friend. (GSL etc.)

Your progress as a caster is directly proportionate to the amount of time you invest behind the scenes when you aren't casting. This includes but isn't limited to watching streams, and asking current players and casters questions about anything you are unsure about.

One final thing. At a local level and with many of the live events you may eventually have the opportunity to cast, interacting with your audience significantly aids the entertainment value of your casting. Be that responding to any questions they have or even just acknowledging them for tuning in. If you show respect to those who tune in, they will show respect in return.

All the best and I love the growth in the casting scene at the moment, or at least those who are willing to put their dreams on the line. If you need any support with setting up your stream or any questions don't hesitate to contact me.

Quick Comments

	Cute:
	FSwolfbomb:	Thank's for the input man. The casting story really made me want to cast! :D
	Zepph:	Really good points :) some parts of your story remind me of my own \o/
	ToRSpookToR:	tl;dr <3
	Loach:	Something up with ur repping there Spo0k (fixt

[FSwolfbomb]

Thanks to everyone who's posted up and gave awesome advice on casting. To Mr_Zain and ToRBaldie I'll be contacting you guys soon enough on casting. I wanna be ready for the journey I'm about to take. INTO CASTINGGGGGG!

[Mr_Zain]

Originally Posted by wolfbomb

Thanks to everyone who's posted up and gave awesome advice on casting. To Mr_Zain and ToRBaldie I'll be contacting you guys soon enough on casting. I wanna be ready for the journey I'm about to take. INTO CASTINGGGGGG!

No worries man =] let me know when things are smooth.

[neKo]

If I can add my 2 cents, half of being a good caster is actually playing a fair amount of starcraft 2

and ready for this?
ready?

STUDYING THE PLAYERS YOU ARE CASTING, AND THE MATCH-UP


Bet you didn't expect that one.

but yeah no casters in this region really study up on players and to some extent, a match-up. Most of it is pre-known facts about it.

So go study son.

Quick Comments

	NDG.Stitch:	True, but it's hard to fetch data about anyone in SEA except for Moonglade :)
	FSwolfbomb:	Never expected that one. But I'll give my hand at it.

[Baldie]

Originally Posted by cRneko

If I can add my 2 cents, half of being a good caster is actually playing a fair amount of starcraft 2

and ready for this?
ready?

STUDYING THE PLAYERS YOU ARE CASTING, AND THE MATCH-UP


Bet you didn't expect that one.

but yeah no casters in this region really study up on players and to some extent, a match-up. Most of it is pre-known facts about it.

So go study son.

I definitely agree with this. This is what my focus is on primarily now. I think it is fundamentally important to get those "pre-known facts" down packed before you should even consider analyzing players and how they play match ups though.

Definitely knowing your players and their play styles helps not only in accurately forseeing what is likely to occur but also gives some nice filler information during those less eventful early parts - as well as gives viewers valuable insight into the players who don't know.

I definitely look forward to spending some time studying this and bringing it to casting!

[Baldie]

Originally Posted by wolfbomb

Thanks to everyone who's posted up and gave awesome advice on casting. To Mr_Zain and ToRBaldie I'll be contacting you guys soon enough on casting. I wanna be ready for the journey I'm about to take. INTO CASTINGGGGGG!

No worries mate. Either message me on here or skype me (bradley_baldwin). GLHF mate ♥

[eniram]

I've heard some not so knowledgeable casters who were fun to listen to. If you don't too much about the game yet try not to make any predictions or act like your know what's going on. It can get annoying. Just have fun with it. If you're enjoying what you're doing that will come through in your work and the listener will appreciate that.

[NDG.Stitch]

Wow new casters! YAY!

There's already so much richness in this thread that I feel like I have stuff to learn from here too!

But yeah, here are my short lil' tips to get you started!

1) Find out what you really love with a passion in this game - Surely, I think most, if not all, casters in SC2 have a huge passion for this game. They love it, they speak it, and they live it! When I cast myself, I am really in sync with the game, whether it be the plays that the players are doing or the sight of StarCraft, I feel like I'm completely absorbed into this game. I always believed that if you're not interested or if you don't find interest in something, you will never do it well - so I always think you should know what you like best about what you do!

2) Know the Game - I can speak on this for myself, I don't know the game perfectly - but as always, the audience will expect you to. You've started the game for two months, there's still lots of things to learn and many things to memorize. I feel that once you have those nitty-gritty background knowledge behind your brain, things just get smoother and smoother and you'll feel that the audience is learning from what you say as well - which is always important!

3) Find your Style - I believe that each caster has their style of casting. It's really important to develop your own character, and not be a shadow of another caster. I'm not saying that you can't aim to be an Artosis, but to people that have just heard you the first time, you want to leave them a unique impression of who you are. Do what your heart wants and say it out loud on stream when you're casting, and take the opportunity to express yourself as you shoutcast StarCraft!

4) Be Adaptive - (This mainly applies to casting with a co-caster) From your location, I see that you are from Malaysia (correct me if I'm wrong). As a caster from Hong Kong, I learned that being adaptive to other casters is very important. I cannot speak on behalf of Singapore or Australia, but numerous times I have to adapt to who I cast with. I think it's very important in a multi-regional server to have the ability to adapt to another person's style of casting, because if not, chemistry breaks and all hell comes loose! So I always go by the mindset that I'm there to work with my partner to present something great, not work by myself and do my own thing!

Personally, when I started casting, I had a huge helper. I was able to work with the legendary SEA casters back then haha, and fortunately, I also got a lot of help with HDPhoenix helping me back then when I just started. I was ridiculously lucky even getting to cast a huge tournament like the SEASL #1 qualifiers when I started for 3 months. I think it's always great to find a caster who is more experienced to give you advice and feedback on your casting man.

These aren't a lot of tips, and I tried to not repeat anybody else's points so please forgive me if these tips sound a bit awkward.

Good luck with your endeavors broski!

Quick Comments

	Baldie:
	FSwolfbomb:	Yeah, I'm from Malaysia. And thanks for all the advice. and no thats a ton of advice man.

[Mr_Zain]

After 13 hours of straight casting (APL Qualifiers and Masters Cup #16) I must say it's as much an endurance sport as it is a skill based one so stock up on water and snacks!

Quick Comments

	Baldie:	I want to rep you multiple times for this. I'm still learning the fine art that is endurance casting ♥
	FSwolfbomb:	So true even for LAN parties. :D

[mGGMueX]

Try to play at the highest level you possibly can (i.e. go for masters league) and watch player streams heavily as well as casts, preferably ones where the player explains their logic. Player point-of-view streams are a great way to get insight into players' thought processes and build orders.

[iMSystem]

My number 1 advice would be don't stop, and listen to feedback!

Everything else has been covered, I would have posted a longer write up, if I had time yesterday haha

13hours streaming session with Zain was pretty crazy .

Actually, what I will write is that if you want to get real deep into casting, you need to promote yourself / actually do work outside of casting hours.

Stuff I do outside of casting (Hopefully to give you an idea):
- Promote myself via other websites (TL, CG, Reddit, SC2casts.com, etc)
- Work on elements for the stream. (Overlays, videos, animated gifs, and so on)
- Learn the streaming software inside and out (I have XSplit almost under wraps, and learning Wirecast as we speak)
- After a stream (Usually the next day) cut up the hours long VOD into each individual game so that they can be uploaded onto Youtube for people who missed them.
- Watch other tournament streams for ideas to adopt onto my own. (Stream elements, Observer work, Filling downtime)
- Watch Starcraft 2 (To lean the meta-game of current match-ups)
- Play Starcraft 2

Generally speaking though you don't need to do this at this time, just focus on your casting as a whole and then when you knuckle down on that, then you work on everything else

GLHF!

Quick Comments

	Mayo:
	LGShaft:	Great ideas! Just curious what program you use to edit FLV files that come out of XSplit?

[LGShaft]

GameReplays.org is looking for new casters right now. That's a good way to get your name out there, once you've got some skill at it. Like everyone here said, I'd recommend just doing it XSplit is one of the better programs to use. If you PM me or add me on skype (r4nd0m1os3r) I can work with you and your system to help you configure everything. You're also going to need to play a lot and begin to understand the game. You can skip ahead in that process somewhat by hiring a coach. Depends on your dedication I suppose And finances of course!

[iMSystem]

Originally Posted by vVvShaft

Great ideas! Just curious what program you use to edit FLV files that come out of XSplit?

Not sure what you would have to use for FLV, I know you can do it in Premier Pro with an external plugin, but I can't help you there sorry.

[Flamga]

Originally Posted by System

Not sure what you would have to use for FLV, I know you can do it in Premier Pro with an external plugin, but I can't help you there sorry.

With xsplit, change the file output to MP4, however just look around to see what programs there are and fiddle with them. This way you get a bit of understanding as well. However youtube accepts FLV files as standard so you can just reduce the recording quality on xsplit as another option.

[LGShaft]

Originally Posted by FlashFlamga

With xsplit, change the file output to MP4, however just look around to see what programs there are and fiddle with them. This way you get a bit of understanding as well. However youtube accepts FLV files as standard so you can just reduce the recording quality on xsplit as another option.

How do I do change it to MP4? I'm used to converting stuff with TMPGEnc and stuff, but there's a lot of quality loss in that method

[Flamga]

Originally Posted by vVvShaft

How do I do change it to MP4? I'm used to converting stuff with TMPGEnc and stuff, but there's a lot of quality loss in that method

In your local recording there should be a dropdown box at the bottom of the settings area where you set quality etc, it can record to FLV or MP4. However this may be a premium feature :/

Also depending on how much you reduce the filesize you will lose a fair bit of quality, but this is trial and error.

[Xeen]

Originally Posted by wolfbomb

So what I want to know now, is how do I actually become a caster? A good one at that.

Just act excited and make people like you outside of the game. Being articulate and good at the game are optional.

Alternatively, if you don't want to follow the trend of SC2 casters, be good at the game, be able to explain the game, be clear in your talking (try to avoid strong accents, slurring words, stumbling over words, overuse of phrases, etc). Have background knowledge on the players and leagues so you can give some context to each match. Be interesting.

The easiest way to start is just latch on to someone as a co-caster, and then slowly consume their spotlight, like a lamprey eel.

[FSGauL]

it really depends if you want to be heavily analysis, i always prefer just watching a caster who is funny.. just preference though

examples:
PsyStarcraft