When I signed onto the zone for the first time it was under the name Due to my success and seeing rooms labeled "ladder only" I discovered case's ladder and began to play 1v1 matches with good players. This is where I learned the most important stuff: 20 villies, 13 min bronzes, archer rushes, cav rushes, tool time not as important as bronze time etc. I was lucky in that I was an early fisher when others were just learning of it and that made me competitive. You can not underestimate the importance of fishing boats. I tried to join a team ladder group named I think the most important step in my development was joining up with a regular group of guys to play with. Me and 2 others played together for 2 weeks straight in some unbelievable games and we learned so much, like most importantly how to run and rebuild when rushed. I learned the value of playing with people whos styles you know and of the importance of communication. Many players are taken out of their game mentally by a rush, no matter how good it is. I played games where I was hittite and literally had one peon left and came back to build the largest civ and my cats were necessary to win the game. Never let your enemy take the mental edge, always strike back. Unfortunately this group broke up due to one of them moving to Alaska but I realized I was no longer a rookie, I was now intermediate.