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StarCraft II Q&A - Batch 43

Posted 18th Aug 2008 10:48 PM by Freelancer

It has been a while but no worries: the epic Q&A series is still alive and kicking breaking the silence with edition 43:

Blizzard Quote: (Source)
As mentioned in previous conversations, the development team is working extremely hard on the single player campaign, which we will be talking in more detail about at a later time. In the meantime, questions will be ‘light’ over the next couple of batches, to give the Dev Team ample time to work on their latest design challenges. There are also many preparations being made for both the Games Convention coming up in Leipzig, as well as BlizzCon, to make sure the StarCraft II community definitely gets their feed of info. Nonetheless, in this batch we were able to talk a bit more with Dustin and our balance designer to look into the current Zerg versus Zerg match up towards the end of our Q&A. Enjoy!

As always, feel free to give the Devs and I a w00t if your enjoying these Q&As!

—-StarCraft II Q&A Batch 43—-

1) What happens if a Nullifier targets a Colossus with the Anti-Gravity ability? (garmgarf battle.net)

When Anti-Gravity is used upon a Colossus, the Colossus will still be immobilized and lifted up, which will still allow it to be hit by units that can attack air targets. Colossi will not be able to shoot while under the effect of Anti-Gravity.

2) How many critters will there be available and will they have attack animations? (SatanicLaser battle.net)

There will be critters, but there have not been any detailed discussions yet about their attack animations. On that note, there is a possibility that BlizzCon panels may fill the community in a bit more on what type of critters there will be.

3) Can the Infestor infest any building, or only specific ones, such as Barracks or Gateways, if the Protoss can be infested? (Son_Of_Korhal Battle.net)

This is actually a mechanic they are currently testing quite a bit. It is undecided if the Infestor will be able to infest Protoss or Zerg buildings, as there are gameplay and lore reasons which support many different options. Either way, at the end of the day, the development team will choose an option that will be balanced and fun in terms of gameplay for multiplayer.

4) What units are currently undergoing major art changes? (starcraft2forum.org)

There are several artistic revisions every week, though the two newest units to get some artistic updates are the Nomad and the Stalker. The Terran Nomad is getting a complete artistic redesign from any versions the community has seen thus far. Furthermore, the Protoss Stalker is also being updated to look more similar to the concept art piece as seen here: http://starcraft2.com/art.xml?s=6

5) How do Zerg vs Zerg games play out in SC2? Is it still mostly a battle of mutalisks and zerglings or have the new units changed things around? Ideas (teamliquid.net)

ZvZ (Zerg vesus Zerg)matchup usually opens up in 2 different ways, Zerglings or Roaches. Aggressive players can use Zerglings mobility to take control of the early game, whereas going Roaches is more of a defensive strategy. Zergling vs. Roach relationship is such that for cost, Zerglings wins out in the open, Roaches win at chokes, but in mid/late games when numbers are greater, Roaches can stand up to or even beat Zerglings for cost out in the open. Hydralisks dont have much use in ZvZ early game, as they are more of an anti air unit in StarCraft II.

The tier 2 battle continues with Banelings that can dominate Zerglings, but with micro, Zerglings can actually come out ahead in Zergling vs. Baneling battles. Similarly, Lurkers counter Roaches for cost, but Roaches have the mobility advantage. Mutaliks counter Zerglings/Roaches since these units cant hit air. Whats different in StarCraft II is that Hydralisks counter Mutalisks extremely well, meaning something like Roach/Hydralisk combo can stand up to the classic Zergling/Mutalisk combo. Also, another great way to fight vs. mass Mutalisks is to tech to infestation pit (same tech level as the Spire), and make Corruptors or Infestors. Infestors have the disease ability that is great for fighting vs. units that clump really well such as the Mutalisk, and Corruptors are Zergs anti air air unit.

Due to the fast pace of the ZvZ game, most games dont end up in tier 3, but ultralisks, with their cleave attack, or swarm guardians that use swarms to soak up a lot of ground vs. ground damage are great options if the game does happen to go into tier 3.

Overall, StarCraft II has a variety of options even in a mirror match such as Zerg vs. Zerg. Players can use different unit compositions to counter the classic Zergling/Mutalisk strategy that is a still powerful but not the only option.

—-End of Transmission—-


For this session and all the previous Q&A sessions you can visit our Q&A Archive which currently holds a total of 200+! questions and answers! or if go to the Q&A listing if you prefer viewing the batches 1 by 1.




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Leord
Posted 19, Aug 2008 12:12 AM
(0)
 

Well, ofc there are no official sources, but both from what we know of the development, and after playing it we can put 2+2 together. It isn’t that hard.

Basically they have said they would do SP last, and when we last talked to them they were 30% through. If they are still that active, they should be 50% or so now, and that means they just gonna polish stuff more and then release. A

Reply
 
Freelancer
Posted 19, Aug 2008 12:16 AM
(0)
 

[QUOTE=Leord;5923]Well, ofc there are no official sources, but both from what we know of the development, and after playing it we can put 2+2 together. It isn’t that hard.

Basically they have said they would do SP last, and when we last talked to them they were 30% through. If they are still that active, they should be 50% or so now, and that means they just gonna polish stuff more and then release.

My thoughts exactly. I think they are really closing in on a release early next year! It also depends on the progression of work on Battle.net 2.0 but things are starting to look good!

Reply
 
Freelancer
Posted 19, Aug 2008 12:16 AM
(0)
 

[QUOTE=Leord;5923]Well, ofc there are no official sources, but both from what we know of the development, and after playing it we can put 2+2 together. It isn’t that hard.

Basically they have said they would do SP last, and when we last talked to them they were 30% through. If they are still that active, they should be 50% or so now, and that means they just gonna polish stuff more and then release.

My thoughts exactly. I think they are really closing in on a release early next year! It also depends on the progression of work on Battle.net 2.0 but things are starting to look good!

Reply
 
Troglodyte
Posted 19, Aug 2008 12:44 AM
(0)
 

I hope your estimates are accurate, it’d be great if the game is released early next year instead of 2010.

I’m surprised that the Hydralisk was mentioned as “unnecessary” in ZvZ early game due to a more anti-air role.  I would have thought they’d do quite well against Zerglings in chokes and even better against a Roach invasion, since last I checked the Hydralisk received a bonus against armored units (this might have changed).

Reply
 
Troglodyte
Posted 19, Aug 2008 12:44 AM
(0)
 

I hope your estimates are accurate, it’d be great if the game is released early next year instead of 2010.

I’m surprised that the Hydralisk was mentioned as “unnecessary” in ZvZ early game due to a more anti-air role.  I would have thought they’d do quite well against Zerglings in chokes and even better against a Roach invasion, since last I checked the Hydralisk received a bonus against armored units (this might have changed).

Reply
 
synteny
Posted 19, Aug 2008 01:02 AM
(0)
 

About damn time they released another one…

Anyways, maybe Hydralisks are not as cost effective as Roaches for that job?

Reply
 
synteny
Posted 19, Aug 2008 01:02 AM
(0)
 

About damn time they released another one…

Anyways, maybe Hydralisks are not as cost effective as Roaches for that job?

Reply
 
Page 1 of 1 pages

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