Most useful topics and threads for improvement and answering your questions

[Paul676]

If you are here, then you've come to the right place to learn how to play Tetris better. Here is a topic-based list of all the most useful threads on HD to learn from.

If necessary, I have stated which readership the topic is appealing to. This doesn't mean that someone who thinks they are a different level to the one stated won't find the topic useful to read, of course.

1. Starting out
2. Intermediate
3. Full-on

However, an advanced player will still gain a lot from the 'Starting out' pages, since they build up to a very high level indeed. However for a beginner, the 'Full-on' pages will not provide a succinct guide to what you want to improve on, but rather they are collections of Harddrop users' ideas on a matter, and sometimes they can be quite mathematical in nature. If I have not specified, they are useful for everyone - the ones which I think are extremely useful for everyone, I've stated so.

I have listed them by theme - here is the list:


For improvement:


For people wanting to improve their stacking (and downstacking):

Intermediate: Caffeine's guide to upstacking

Intermediate: Caffeine's guide to downstacking

Intermediate to full-on: Blitz's thread on parity: what is it and how to use it effectively

Starting out: General stacking and downstacking - my reply to this thread

Starting out: Stacking flat and even

Starting out: Ryan Heise's website on stacking flat and even

Sprint/40 Lines advice


For everyone: Sprint Guide


The mental side of the game:


Advice by Blink

What state of mind to be in when playing


Multiplayer Strategies:


General Advice and Tactics


Guides that cover all bases:

Starting out to intermediate: A very comprehensive guide to t-spin style multiplayer, such as Tetris Friends and Tetris Battle Arena, as well as NullpoMino's TOJ mode, and Tetris Online Poland

For everyone: Rosti's guide to Multiplayer Tetris

For everyone: Piper's guide for beginner players on Cultris - applicable for all games

Multiplayer tips by Blink: The Checklist to Victory


Midgame play:


T-Spins:

Starting out to intermediate: Simple T-Spin Double Guide

Intermediate: Creating the base for T-Spin Doubles

Intermediate: Full T-spin guide, teaching how to do T-spin doubles, T-spin triples, T-spin singles, minis and EZs.

Nullpomino (not Nullpomino League Mode), intermediate to advanced: A guide on 180 t-spins

Downstacking:

Really useful for everyone: The Downstacker's Guide to the Galaxy

Tactics and timing:

Intermediate: Timing and watching your opponent

Intermediate to full-on: Advanced tactics on use of back to back and what to do when you're at the bottom of the field

Full-on except from the conclusion, which is intermediate: General efficiency and decision-making - the conclusion of the OP is the most important part

Allspins:

Intermediate: How to spin the right way with any piece - Chopin's Twist Guide

Intermediate to full-on: Two visual guides to SRS rotation: 1. and 2.

Full-on: Interesting fumens from our members on t-spin and primarily allspin setups; some useful, but all interesting


Openings:


General Openings:[/i]

A comprehensive and general guide to openings

T-spin Openings:

For anyone: Opening Setups List

Full-on: 1st bag T-spin Doubles, especially air T-spin Doubles and T-spin Doubles --> Perfect Clear variations

Intermediate to full on: T-Spin Triples, their stacking, their setups and their use

Perfect Clear Openings:

Intermediate: Perfect clears - general setup forms

Intermediate to full-on: Perfect clears - specific fumen diagrams on the later pages

Combo Openings and countering them:

Intermediate: The 4-wide guide

Intermediate to full-on: 4 wides - lots of interesting fumens

Intermediate: How to counter combos

Finesse; how to move pieces efficiently to their places, a.k.a. optimisation of keypresses:

Starting out to Intermediate: Best ways to learn the 2nd rotation button - good after you get past the inane first few posts

Intermediate to full-on: An accessible guide to starting to use full finesse

Intermediate to full-on: The facts

Intermediate to full-on: Finding good finesse for you and your game:

Where to place the gap in your stack:

Full-on: For optimisation of keypresses in 40 Lines

Intermediate: For strategy in multiplayer

Control Schemes and Keyboards- which buttons do people use for Tetris, and what keyboards do they use?:

Starting out to intermediate: Harddrop Members' Control Schemes

Good and bad keyboards for Tetris

Maximising Tetris Friends Marathon Score

Intermediate to full-on: Ravendarksky's Marathon Guide

Maximising Ultra score :

Intermediate: ST Stacking Guide

Tetris the Grand Master:

Starting out at TGM, a good guide: Tetris Concept TGM Guide

Slightly more high-level TGM guide but still suitable for players starting out: A Japanese TGM guide translated into English

More in-depth tips on TGM can be found in the forums at Tetris Concept

Memoryless Play and NES Tetris:

Tips on memoryless play

Tips on NES Tetris

The resurgence of NES Tetris, and video links, chronicled by member Sisu

Tetris Patterns and Secret Grade:

Tips on Secret Grade

Invisible and semi-invisible play:

Invisible play

Semi-invisible play such as that of Tetris Friends Survival

Live and video lessons from some of our established members for specific help to your game:

Video lesson series by Xeal

Video lesson series focusing on ST stacking by Alexsweden



For Answering Questions:[/u][/i]


How to set up NullpoMino?
NullpoMino Guide

How to use Fumen?
Fumen Guide

The 'rulebook' of Multiplayer Tetris - what sends what:
The Rulebook

The glossary - if someone uses a term you don't know:
The HD Wiki Glossary

Finally: If you see a thread which you think is useful, please post here and I'll add it if I think it's good!

[Rosti_LFC]

For anyone starting out on TGM I'd definitely add this:
http://www.tetrisconcept.net/wiki/TGM_Guide

It's not nearly as high-level as the one translated from JP that Kitaru hosts, but it's written with a pretty nice casual style and is very newbie-friendly.

[Barneey]

Thanks for doing this Paul!
There are a lot of hidden gems in these forums, glad to see you made them easier available!

[coolmaninsano]

Kitaru did not translate the guide, villadelfia did.

[Paul676]

cheers

[joeybeans]

Cool  

[Anonymous]

a cool story bro indeed!

[Alexsweden]

A bit of selfpromoting - my channel covers a lot on ST stacking. I have several guides on stuff from simpel openings, how to stack in the different areas of the matrix and also just ST gameplay which can be very helpfull to see. Have a video for example where I pretty much go 200lines of ST stacking which shows very stable ST to mimic.

I think It would fit under "Free lessons with some of our established members for specific help to your game:"

I also accept FB friends to play and help and I have been in touch with tons of people (OK only helped about 20 the rest was just playing 2-3 games and say hi) and I make videos on demand - have done several videos after Ive had comments on how to do different things and I watch TB replays and give pretty in depth comments and advice

I mainly focus on TB now and the people I help are from TB and then converted to nullpo

http://www.youtube.com/user/AlexTelon?feature=mhee


Edit: haha forgot - very nice work with this! - have found a few really good threads thanks to you (just have to read them now )

[hebokumiko]

I gonna help me to get a fast player

[dragoncity]

the answer of the fast tetris player is Gunman Loveanya Which Ranks to 64 in TB

[gmashaktetris]

How to get a marvelous T-spin Double


To perform a T-Spin, you must first create a T-Tetrimino-shaped hole in the Matrix (called a T-Slot) with one extra block hanging over one side of it. There are many ways to set up this situation; the best way to practice setting them up is to play Marathon mode very slowlyâ€"that way you won’t run out of time.


As the T-Tetrimino falls, turn it so that it is upright and so the cross of the T faces away from the overhanging block above the T-Slot. As the Tetrimino comes to rest inside the T-Slot, turn it toward the open space under the block.

[Paul676]

Edited for greater ease of use and ease of finding what you want, especially in the order of multiplayer threads listed on here. Also added a dash of colour.

[dhuang413]

This is really helpful! Thanks!

[PurpleCoin]

My 40 lines tips thread should be on here. It helped me achieve a sub 2 minute run.

[Paul676]

Belzebub's 40 lines guide and the general stacking threads encompass all the material in the 40 lines tips thread. Unless there's genuinely new material which will go in, I won't put it on.

On another note, if the parity thread develops, I will probably put it on.