FAQ

Should I use the pysc2 or python-sc2 library?

If you plan on making scripted hardcoded bots, python-sc2 is simpler in its syntax.

If you want to make a machine learning/deep learning bot, pysc2 is probably the better choice since it uses the UI and feature layers (spatial interfaces).

How do I do <something>?

Feel free to take a look at the protoss/terran/zerg examples.

Why should I use self.do_actions instead of self.do?

Gathering your actions in a list and then doing all actions at once is just one call while you have to do a call for every self.doaction. That makes self.do_actions much faster.

What do I have access to in the on_step() function?

You have access to:

• all the basic BotAI class properties and functions listed here and here through self.<property_name> which contain basic functions that handle macromanagement,

• all the game state variables through self.state.<variable_name> which contain data that can change each step,

• all the game info variables through self._game_info.<variable_name> which contain static map and player related data,

• all the game data variables through self._game_data.<variable_name> which contain static unit/ability/buff related data,

• your units self.units and visible enemy units self.known_enemy_units which is a list-like object and contain units of type Unit. Both have properties and functions available.

Why does my bot behave differently in realtime=True vs realtime=False?

realtime=False will wait for your bot step to finish before confirming the next game loop.

realtime=True on the other hand will not wait and will strictly continue. So your bot will only have a fixed amount of time to complete its step before the next game loop is called, regardless if your bot step is finished or not. That means calculating placement locations using self.find_placement() or self.expand_now() may result in a delayed action.

This is all nice and good but where do I find better bot examples?

Bots that have been put on the Bot ladder can be found here:

• Bot by Hannessa
• Bot by BuRny
• Bot by Matuiss2 - Tweakimp - Thommath
• Bot by Tweakimp
• a collection of ladder bots (not restricted to python-sc2) https://github.com/m1ndgames/sc2ai-ladderbot-collection

Also the source code of bots from the ladder are sometimes publicly available.

I think I am ready to put my bot on the ladder, how do I do that?

• Make a copy of the repo https://github.com/Hannessa/python-sc2-ladderbot
• Replace the example bot with your bot
• In run.py edit the following lines to match your bot's filename, name and race:

from example_bot import ExampleBot
bot = Bot(Race.Random, ExampleBot())

• Add the sc2 folder from python-sc2 as a subfolder to make your bot immune to python-sc2 updates that may break your bot
• Run the run.py to see if it works locally
• Update the zipped folder to http://sc2ai.net/ (after making an account)

The pip version seems to be outdated, how do I install the version from github?

The command to install from github is

pip install pipenv
pip install --upgrade git+https://github.com/Dentosal/python-sc2.git

or alternatively

python3.6 -m pip install pipenv
python3.6 -m pip install --upgrade git+https://github.com/Dentosal/python-sc2.git