Emperor Pan I
Respected Member
These are my thoughts on the beta so far as of Patch 8. I don't have a beta key, so most of this is based on empirical evidence from playing against the computer in single player. In addition, little nuggets of wisdom I've picked up from observations through livestreams and replays.So I've really thrown in a lot of my personal preference mixed in with actual viable strategy.
Starcraft II betas been here for like 2 months. Starcraft II is balanced, if not boringly so. For the most part the game is so similar to Starcraft that it is no wonder the game is balanced as it stands. There are new units, but the core units from past games are so prevailant it is a bit sad. I'm not going to list all the units and say what I think, but I'm going to pick out what I really like, and really hate. I'm also not going to talk about old units unless they're really changed. Plus I'm going to assume you've seen StarCraft II wikia and know what the units are and what they do. If not stop reading and look up the damn units. If you're lost on unit's abilities and functions, don't complain to me for your lack of knowledge.
Terran: I'm a Terran player. They're about as mobile as the other races now, which invalidates the Siege tank for the most part. Most players rely on the Barracks as of this writing, although good players are still moving the reliance back to the factory. In the end they are well rounded, where each unit is useful in some situation, which is why the are currently the best race.
Reapers: I love the reaper. I do. I really wish it had more of a purpose than just killing workers, and I really wish it didn't really kill your army potential early on. investing in more than a few reapers at a time destroys your army and leaves you way to vulnerable. The cliff hoping is useful, although 85% of the time unnecessary. It's secondary attack on buildings is about as useful as tits on a bull, since if you are in the enemy base you're gonna be killing workers, not damaging a few buildings. They are way to specific in their use, and that saddens me. In my own bias way, I'd love to see them nerfed a bit so they don't need a tech lab and be compensated by using a reactor.
Marauders: They're boring. They got nerfed or whatever last patch. I still don't understand how they can slow down mechanical units. It's dumb, I hate this stupid unit. Moving on before I pop a blood vessel ranting on how stupid this unit is.
Hellions: I also love the Hellion. They aren't the vultures, and don't possess the same role as the Vulture. however they're just so damn good as a replacement. The funny thing is, on paper they aren't good, and to anyone who doesn't know what they are doing they're also bad. However they're the perfect zerg killer. They really weren't portrayed right in the battlereport they were in because they aren't useful versus Protoss. Zerg on the other hand they're almost so vital. Seriously, mashing the vulture and Firebat together? how much more win can you get?
Thor: Basically a big Goliath. Like this unit, but needs to be shrunk a bit. Otherwise it is a straightforward mech, and not much else to talk about. A lot of Korean players are using them really well against Zerg in rushes, and that makes me happy.
Terran Starport: Terran's have the best air in the game. They have the perfect mix of Dedicated AtG and AtA in the Banshee/Viking respectively. They have the caster air, and the all purpose capital ship. Ever situation is covered properly with Terran's air, where everything is complemented. They have every aspect perfectly covered like no other race does.
Orbital Command: This is about as vital a building as you can get. There is a perfect mix of options that require the skill and understanding of the game to pick what you need when. MULEs will boost your economy, as they harvest on the same patch an SCV is on and return 30 minerals per trip. Scans are so very vital for scouting and cloak/burrow detection, and the actual time/minerals saved with a supply drop (50 energy to save 100 minerals + buildtime) make the OC the strongest Macro option in the game.
Overall the Terrans have the most well rounded army in the game that makes me really happy. I was terran in SC, and I'm sticking with them 100% through the beta.
Zerg:
Zerglings: Love em. With Banelings, Zerglings have become an actual viable option. Actually, since Tanks were nerfed so hardcore, they have become so much better when combined with other units against Terran. Getting speed upgrade changes the in-game models to have wings, and that gives me an erection every time I see it. Banelings is such a good unit versus Terran and Zerg. They really are able to clear the battlefield of bio units. Marines and zerglins completely melt away. Overall, I love the Zergling in this game almost opposite to how I hate the next unit.
Roaches: I think I'm going to dedicate another article on the roach and why it is ruining Starcraft II at the moment. Otherwise it is boring and lame, and about as bad as the Maurader. I like my health, so I'm not going to keep talking about it before my blood pressures spikes to high.
The Queen: So each race got an awesome Macro mechanic, and while Zerg is broken in high level play, the Queen is so fitting of the name. Remember in SC where the Queen was useless? Well the Queen is about as important in this game as having drones are. Inject Larva pops out 7 or something larva at one hatchery, and with the proper timing on 3-4 expansions, you can literally throw units at the enemy and have another 150 control army out in a few seconds. It really does lend itself so much to what the Zerg are as a race, and for that kudos to finding a way to make zerg a disgustingly awesome race.
Infestor: meh, defilers were better.
Corruptors: Bad
. From a design standpoint, I wouldn't get the logic in having a AtA unit that isn't the scourge. Really corruptors are way to high on the tech tree, and don't offer as much of a return on the investment in terms of overall usefulness. Protoss has a similar unit in that pure anti-air air units are never a good idea. Mutalisks are 100% better and make this unit look like a void where you lose all your money.
That is unless you can afford broodlords. Broodlords are really my favorite Zerg unit overall. When I heard about them It really sounded like a retarded unit, but fieldtesting them is like getting a blowjob. They really are the best AtG unit I have ever really played. With the exception of maybe Thors, whose AA range is like launching ICBM across continents, the Broodlord makes any ground unit hoping to attack inconsequential. The broodlings they attack with not only do actual damage on contact, but survive for a few seconds to attack. what is important about this is a few broodlords shooting a few volleys of broodlings will block any ground unit from getting in range. So essentially, you create a barrier where the brood lord can't be attacked by ground, and that is why it is so good at what it does. It is to high up the tech tree for me to determine if they are broken, but otherwise they are so fun to use.
Ultralisks: I barely see them, but they are definitely scary to see. I feel like they were upgraded to be better at their role from SC, but everything else was upgraded to make that role unimportant. Otherwise they look beautiful.
Mobility: Zerg have two transport mechanics, overlord drops and Nydus worms. Overlord transport costs way to much to be usefull at all, so it is almost never an option. Nydus worms can be built anywhere, and that is about as kick-ass as you can get. If you were sitting on the sidelines and complained that Zerg need a Reaper/Stalker cliff jumper, then you're an idiot. Nydus worms are way too good at their job.
Zerg need a bit of fine tuning, but otherwise work well. Unskilled players rely on Roaches, and anyone with an ounce of skill makes Roaches pointless to get. The Queen needs a slight nerf on the inject larva, as the other races literally can't keep up in macro once a Korean player gets a hold of it and it becomes largely unfair.
Random thought: I still don't understand how the Mutalisk losses the ability to become guardians, yet corruptors now become brood lords? Broodlords seem to be an evolution of Guardians, so how do they now come from different units? That makes my brain hurt.
Protoss:
Sentry: Okay, I normally don't say this much, but this is one of the few caster units I absolutely love in SCII. I usually dislike casters, but Sentry's are the unit that made me eat those words. The forcefield really is a game changer, being able to make walls and chokes, push out units, and dictate where and when you want your opponent to attack. It will probably take years for Koreans to even reach the maximum possible potential forcefield will provide. Otherwise, their shield is a cool little "turn on and get a bonus aura" spell. Hallucination is about as pointless as it was in SC, and completely worthless.
Warpgate: Meh. The protoss ground unit is pretty much made up of the same units from SCI. Zealots, high and dark templars weren't changed. Feedback on the HT is actually really usefull in the right hands, but otherwise a boring building. the warp in mechanic is really good, although when pushing an advance without a proxy pylon becomes a detrement. So there is a lot of strategy there. Stalkers do the job of a "not as good" dragoon. Blink has a lot of untapped potential I have yet to see really explored. Otherwise, a boring collection of units.
Immortals: I love immortals, mostly for their hardened shield. they just look and feel so cool. However they are part of the problem of what is wrong with SCII which I will get into another day.
Colossus: Awesome unit, although for their size feel a bit too fragile. Their attack really clears the board, and letting anyone get too many is a lesson in getting owned. Really, the range upgrade makes them so incredibly powerful against such a large collection of units I can forgive it for looking like so many other units in other RTS games. Being tall enough to be hit by AA isn't as big of a deal people think it is in a well rounded Toss army. Walking up cliffs have actually been used to great effect compared to say reapers and Stalkers. All in all, a fun and unique unit, and I love playing around with them.
Starport: Meh. The Pheonix is useless in every respect, and the Carrier is about as boring and overpwoered as they were in SC. The voidray is really good at what it does, but most players just use them as base snipes and that is frustrating. Protoss air really feels lacking in a proper air casting unit. And I know what some people are thinking, but the next unit doesn't count.
Mothership: Everytime I run through Protoss units I gloss over this unit, because it is so forgetable. Really, for a unit that replaces the arbiter it does a piss poor job of doing anything competently. Lets run through the Arbiter checklist: cloaks things around it? check. Mass recall? check. Unit invalidation? Check. With the exception of the black hole spell thing, which is basically the arbiters crystal spell with a different animation, there is no damn difference, yet they only allow one to be built. Total horse****.
Nexus: The Protoss macro allows a brief increase in any buildings research/build time. This is so very important as a macro mechanic that it is probably never used properly by unskilled players. It can boost your economy (used on a nexus building probes), boost your army numbers (boost warp gates/robo facilities) or boost unit's strengths (boost buildings upgrading). Not as cool as the Zerg/Terran Macro mechanic, but just as vital.
Protoss are such a kick in the nuts for me. On the one hand I love about half the units for being unique and cool, and on the other hand they're the one race that has the most returning units that are boring as hell. Warp in mechanic is really cool, and proxy pylons/warp prisons add so much to the race. They need to be fine tuned, and I feel like that requires shifting around unit roles, mostly in the star gate. We'll have to see in the future.
Comparison: Terrans are the most well rounded and fleshed out. Zerg live up to their name and are the massed unit race that is almost as good as Terrans in all their roles. Protoss only really has cool units from the Robotics facility, which is where all my units come from when I play as them. Otherwise dealing with air as Protoss is a nightmare, and needs to desperately be fixed in the future.
In the end Starcraft II is fun, if my only experience is against a computer. There is clearly a wealth of strategic depth, and despite automated functions, there is still so much to do every second of the game. When Blizzard gets around to fixing the Roach/Marauder/Immortal problem, SCII will be a RTS game on the level of SCI. I'm sitting around waiting for a beta key, and when I do I will be posting videos on youtube, and writing much much more.
I'm posting this here so I have a place I can send people to read it.
So msg me what you think.
Starcraft II betas been here for like 2 months. Starcraft II is balanced, if not boringly so. For the most part the game is so similar to Starcraft that it is no wonder the game is balanced as it stands. There are new units, but the core units from past games are so prevailant it is a bit sad. I'm not going to list all the units and say what I think, but I'm going to pick out what I really like, and really hate. I'm also not going to talk about old units unless they're really changed. Plus I'm going to assume you've seen StarCraft II wikia and know what the units are and what they do. If not stop reading and look up the damn units. If you're lost on unit's abilities and functions, don't complain to me for your lack of knowledge.
Terran: I'm a Terran player. They're about as mobile as the other races now, which invalidates the Siege tank for the most part. Most players rely on the Barracks as of this writing, although good players are still moving the reliance back to the factory. In the end they are well rounded, where each unit is useful in some situation, which is why the are currently the best race.
Reapers: I love the reaper. I do. I really wish it had more of a purpose than just killing workers, and I really wish it didn't really kill your army potential early on. investing in more than a few reapers at a time destroys your army and leaves you way to vulnerable. The cliff hoping is useful, although 85% of the time unnecessary. It's secondary attack on buildings is about as useful as tits on a bull, since if you are in the enemy base you're gonna be killing workers, not damaging a few buildings. They are way to specific in their use, and that saddens me. In my own bias way, I'd love to see them nerfed a bit so they don't need a tech lab and be compensated by using a reactor.
Marauders: They're boring. They got nerfed or whatever last patch. I still don't understand how they can slow down mechanical units. It's dumb, I hate this stupid unit. Moving on before I pop a blood vessel ranting on how stupid this unit is.
Hellions: I also love the Hellion. They aren't the vultures, and don't possess the same role as the Vulture. however they're just so damn good as a replacement. The funny thing is, on paper they aren't good, and to anyone who doesn't know what they are doing they're also bad. However they're the perfect zerg killer. They really weren't portrayed right in the battlereport they were in because they aren't useful versus Protoss. Zerg on the other hand they're almost so vital. Seriously, mashing the vulture and Firebat together? how much more win can you get?
Thor: Basically a big Goliath. Like this unit, but needs to be shrunk a bit. Otherwise it is a straightforward mech, and not much else to talk about. A lot of Korean players are using them really well against Zerg in rushes, and that makes me happy.
Terran Starport: Terran's have the best air in the game. They have the perfect mix of Dedicated AtG and AtA in the Banshee/Viking respectively. They have the caster air, and the all purpose capital ship. Ever situation is covered properly with Terran's air, where everything is complemented. They have every aspect perfectly covered like no other race does.
Orbital Command: This is about as vital a building as you can get. There is a perfect mix of options that require the skill and understanding of the game to pick what you need when. MULEs will boost your economy, as they harvest on the same patch an SCV is on and return 30 minerals per trip. Scans are so very vital for scouting and cloak/burrow detection, and the actual time/minerals saved with a supply drop (50 energy to save 100 minerals + buildtime) make the OC the strongest Macro option in the game.
Overall the Terrans have the most well rounded army in the game that makes me really happy. I was terran in SC, and I'm sticking with them 100% through the beta.
Zerg:
Zerglings: Love em. With Banelings, Zerglings have become an actual viable option. Actually, since Tanks were nerfed so hardcore, they have become so much better when combined with other units against Terran. Getting speed upgrade changes the in-game models to have wings, and that gives me an erection every time I see it. Banelings is such a good unit versus Terran and Zerg. They really are able to clear the battlefield of bio units. Marines and zerglins completely melt away. Overall, I love the Zergling in this game almost opposite to how I hate the next unit.
Roaches: I think I'm going to dedicate another article on the roach and why it is ruining Starcraft II at the moment. Otherwise it is boring and lame, and about as bad as the Maurader. I like my health, so I'm not going to keep talking about it before my blood pressures spikes to high.
The Queen: So each race got an awesome Macro mechanic, and while Zerg is broken in high level play, the Queen is so fitting of the name. Remember in SC where the Queen was useless? Well the Queen is about as important in this game as having drones are. Inject Larva pops out 7 or something larva at one hatchery, and with the proper timing on 3-4 expansions, you can literally throw units at the enemy and have another 150 control army out in a few seconds. It really does lend itself so much to what the Zerg are as a race, and for that kudos to finding a way to make zerg a disgustingly awesome race.
Infestor: meh, defilers were better.
Corruptors: Bad
. From a design standpoint, I wouldn't get the logic in having a AtA unit that isn't the scourge. Really corruptors are way to high on the tech tree, and don't offer as much of a return on the investment in terms of overall usefulness. Protoss has a similar unit in that pure anti-air air units are never a good idea. Mutalisks are 100% better and make this unit look like a void where you lose all your money. That is unless you can afford broodlords. Broodlords are really my favorite Zerg unit overall. When I heard about them It really sounded like a retarded unit, but fieldtesting them is like getting a blowjob. They really are the best AtG unit I have ever really played. With the exception of maybe Thors, whose AA range is like launching ICBM across continents, the Broodlord makes any ground unit hoping to attack inconsequential. The broodlings they attack with not only do actual damage on contact, but survive for a few seconds to attack. what is important about this is a few broodlords shooting a few volleys of broodlings will block any ground unit from getting in range. So essentially, you create a barrier where the brood lord can't be attacked by ground, and that is why it is so good at what it does. It is to high up the tech tree for me to determine if they are broken, but otherwise they are so fun to use.
Ultralisks: I barely see them, but they are definitely scary to see. I feel like they were upgraded to be better at their role from SC, but everything else was upgraded to make that role unimportant. Otherwise they look beautiful.
Mobility: Zerg have two transport mechanics, overlord drops and Nydus worms. Overlord transport costs way to much to be usefull at all, so it is almost never an option. Nydus worms can be built anywhere, and that is about as kick-ass as you can get. If you were sitting on the sidelines and complained that Zerg need a Reaper/Stalker cliff jumper, then you're an idiot. Nydus worms are way too good at their job.
Zerg need a bit of fine tuning, but otherwise work well. Unskilled players rely on Roaches, and anyone with an ounce of skill makes Roaches pointless to get. The Queen needs a slight nerf on the inject larva, as the other races literally can't keep up in macro once a Korean player gets a hold of it and it becomes largely unfair.
Random thought: I still don't understand how the Mutalisk losses the ability to become guardians, yet corruptors now become brood lords? Broodlords seem to be an evolution of Guardians, so how do they now come from different units? That makes my brain hurt.
Protoss:
Sentry: Okay, I normally don't say this much, but this is one of the few caster units I absolutely love in SCII. I usually dislike casters, but Sentry's are the unit that made me eat those words. The forcefield really is a game changer, being able to make walls and chokes, push out units, and dictate where and when you want your opponent to attack. It will probably take years for Koreans to even reach the maximum possible potential forcefield will provide. Otherwise, their shield is a cool little "turn on and get a bonus aura" spell. Hallucination is about as pointless as it was in SC, and completely worthless.
Warpgate: Meh. The protoss ground unit is pretty much made up of the same units from SCI. Zealots, high and dark templars weren't changed. Feedback on the HT is actually really usefull in the right hands, but otherwise a boring building. the warp in mechanic is really good, although when pushing an advance without a proxy pylon becomes a detrement. So there is a lot of strategy there. Stalkers do the job of a "not as good" dragoon. Blink has a lot of untapped potential I have yet to see really explored. Otherwise, a boring collection of units.
Immortals: I love immortals, mostly for their hardened shield. they just look and feel so cool. However they are part of the problem of what is wrong with SCII which I will get into another day.
Colossus: Awesome unit, although for their size feel a bit too fragile. Their attack really clears the board, and letting anyone get too many is a lesson in getting owned. Really, the range upgrade makes them so incredibly powerful against such a large collection of units I can forgive it for looking like so many other units in other RTS games. Being tall enough to be hit by AA isn't as big of a deal people think it is in a well rounded Toss army. Walking up cliffs have actually been used to great effect compared to say reapers and Stalkers. All in all, a fun and unique unit, and I love playing around with them.
Starport: Meh. The Pheonix is useless in every respect, and the Carrier is about as boring and overpwoered as they were in SC. The voidray is really good at what it does, but most players just use them as base snipes and that is frustrating. Protoss air really feels lacking in a proper air casting unit. And I know what some people are thinking, but the next unit doesn't count.
Mothership: Everytime I run through Protoss units I gloss over this unit, because it is so forgetable. Really, for a unit that replaces the arbiter it does a piss poor job of doing anything competently. Lets run through the Arbiter checklist: cloaks things around it? check. Mass recall? check. Unit invalidation? Check. With the exception of the black hole spell thing, which is basically the arbiters crystal spell with a different animation, there is no damn difference, yet they only allow one to be built. Total horse****.
Nexus: The Protoss macro allows a brief increase in any buildings research/build time. This is so very important as a macro mechanic that it is probably never used properly by unskilled players. It can boost your economy (used on a nexus building probes), boost your army numbers (boost warp gates/robo facilities) or boost unit's strengths (boost buildings upgrading). Not as cool as the Zerg/Terran Macro mechanic, but just as vital.
Protoss are such a kick in the nuts for me. On the one hand I love about half the units for being unique and cool, and on the other hand they're the one race that has the most returning units that are boring as hell. Warp in mechanic is really cool, and proxy pylons/warp prisons add so much to the race. They need to be fine tuned, and I feel like that requires shifting around unit roles, mostly in the star gate. We'll have to see in the future.
Comparison: Terrans are the most well rounded and fleshed out. Zerg live up to their name and are the massed unit race that is almost as good as Terrans in all their roles. Protoss only really has cool units from the Robotics facility, which is where all my units come from when I play as them. Otherwise dealing with air as Protoss is a nightmare, and needs to desperately be fixed in the future.
In the end Starcraft II is fun, if my only experience is against a computer. There is clearly a wealth of strategic depth, and despite automated functions, there is still so much to do every second of the game. When Blizzard gets around to fixing the Roach/Marauder/Immortal problem, SCII will be a RTS game on the level of SCI. I'm sitting around waiting for a beta key, and when I do I will be posting videos on youtube, and writing much much more.
I'm posting this here so I have a place I can send people to read it.
So msg me what you think.
