News Updates

This is a podcast created by the ambassadors from SC2GG who went to the press release last monday. It is their method of answering the public's questions about their visit and everything about the build they got to play. Tons of info and its a good listen. Check it out!

http://www.sc2gg.com/upload/media/sc2ggqandapodcast.mp3

- You can only pass through your own units with workers with mineral locking now. So your enemy can block that.
- High Templar may have a weak attack now the guy wasn't really sure if it was from last year.
- Raven has the point target defense thing and it can block attacks (like the Predator).
- Nukes cost less resources, no supply, and are a lot faster building time now.
- Thors are very effective against Hydralisk.
- One of the guys used Phoenixes to get rid of Ultralisks with Graviton. He said it was relatively easy.
- It is still relatively easy to stack Mutalisks.
- Battlecruiser's defensive matrix is pretty powerful.
- Probe's hot key is 'E'.
- Temporal Rift is very effective for catching enemies that are fleeing or fleeing an enemy's base. It slows enemies and allies also I guess by like 75%. Your units may pass through normally.
- Building Phoenixes basically forces your Zerg opponent to build Hydralisks which you can counter also.
- Banelings not very effective.
- Lurker has a much better targeting system. It will be much harder to dodge with Marines now.
- Some of you know that Overseer have kind of an ability like Dark Swarm (Defiler).
- Obelisk, Mules, and Spawn Larva are things that will be very useful if you constantly check back at them. For people with better APM. Constant use of the Spawn Larva is very useful.
- Nydus Worm is pretty easy with Overlord.
- Overlord Creep recedes slowly like if your Hatchery is killed.
- Most hot keys are on the left side of keyboard like with Probe moved to 'E'.
- Hot keys are may be possible to be editable (may be customizable for Battle.net profile).
- Not sure about voice chat yet.
- Ideas implemented from community (replay rewind was from community).
- Haven't decided about new units in expansions yet (balance reasons).
- 12 hatch not so good anymore
- Warp Gate is micro, Gateway is Macro.
- Protoss are easier to power down with 200 shields and health with the Pylon.
- SemiOldGuy from TeamLiquid kept teching to Medivacs. You just need to build a baracks, a factory then a stargate can build them from the getgo (if you build a fusion reactor on the factory you can lift off and land your stargate there and instantly start producing 2 at a time)
- Every building kinda walls perfectly now.
- Rofl one guy apparently built 5 spawning pools and asked why they weren't spawning any Zerglings rofl.
- They put a pylon in a blocked view zone, and then started warping in units on top on their ramp.
- Psi Storm has amazing effects.
- Psi Storm cannot kill a roach in one go but will be weak enough for mopping.
- No 'Fastest' right now but 'Faster' moved just as fast.
- Widescreen gives you a little bit more playing field to view over normal.
- Pro teams are already starting team planning.
- Pros are nervous that SC1 is going to die.
- Korea not too excited about beta/SC2.
- Korea had the least amount of opt-in requests for SC2 beta.
- Battle.net 2.0 was what the press conference was going to be about, but they found a bug and they didn't want to show people yet.
- Corruptors are a very powerful air unit.
- In case anyone didn't know, Ultralisks are fucking strong.
- The surrounding system works very nicely in certain cases.
- Beta is supposed to include the map editor.
- One Medivac easily supports a dozen Marines.
- Xel'Naga Watchtowers strategically reveals map.
- LAN OPTION MAY BE ON BATTLE.NET or lets you play people on the same IP server.
- Blizzard will be supporting Esports more.
- Salvage may be imbalanced as said by Dustin (Bunker Rush).
The fansite, StarcraftLegacy.com, associated with Tractor Media, has created a fan video (HD animation) based on a story theme of the site's community. The video features a space battle between Tassadar's Flagship, Gantrithor and three Terran battlecruisers as well as footage of Chau Sara. The voice over of Tassadar in the video was voiced by the original actor of Tassadar.

http://i298.photobucket.com/albums/mm269/stebo88_photo/sclegacy.jpg


For more information, click on the link below to visit the homepage and see interviews, development and mission briefings of the video. Make sure to watch it in HD!

http://i298.photobucket.com/albums/mm269/stebo88_photo/scl1.jpg http://i298.photobucket.com/albums/mm269/stebo88_photo/scl2.jpg



Source: Sclegacy.com, HD YouTube
So this week I had many of you ask me questions about the current build of the game. Honestly, most of these questions were either impossible to answer, takes common sense to figure out, was found in the guide, or already been answered. I also didn't want to answer any questions along the lines of "How did you think the races matched up" or "What were your opinions on x", simply because my opinion doesn't matter seeing as how I ain't a large SC1 player, so my input wouldn't be consistent. But anyways, I tried answering mostly gameplay questions, so here they are.

1) Since we know nothing about it currently, how does the Nydus Worm mechanic work?
First you build a Nydus Network, and load the Network with all your ground units. You can then spawn the Worm at any location as long as its on top of creep (including enemy creep). Once the worm emerges, you can either unload or load units.

2) How effective did you find the viking and reaper when playing terran?
I found the Viking extremely effective. Such an amazing unit at destroying resource lines and air units. You can easily dodge ATA units by turning into a ground unit, and on top of that you can go to air to dodge GTG units. The Reaper I only found useful with D8 charges, but it requires an upgrade and is late tech, so I think it needs work.

3) Have there been any changes to the ultralisk, and did you get to play them and test how effective they are?
Unbelievably effective. For fun I massed 15 Archons (I have a screenshot) against my friends 4 Ultralisks. He nearly took out half of my army, and that was without the Cleave ability. They are deadly unless you have high damage output units or disablers like Graviton Beam.

4) What happens when you merge different templars together?
Nothing. You get the same basic Archon no matter what combo of templars you use.

5) Did the two Dark Templar models bother you during gameplay?
Not at all. You dont even notice it in the least bit unless you literally stare at the screen and zoom in. It doesn't affect gameplay at all, I mean seriously, how can you NOT TELL its a DT.

6) Was the prediction that ZvZ is primarily "Roach vs. Roach" combat correct?
Rarely did I see a Roach vs Roach match up. You would see Roaches, but I would see more people tech up to Mutalisks more so.

7) What do you think about Xel'Naga Watch Towers? Do they make that much difference, since we heard Dustin Browder saying that controlling them can be a key to victory in BR3.
I believe they do. Every game I played I would secure at least one tower using a Marine. This extended site can help you determine where the enemy army is heading, or where there expansion will be.

8) What do you think of the new resourcing mechanics? Is it annoying to have to reclick the proton charge for probes and remember to call down new mules etc?
Annoying? You mean you'd rather have the game play for you? No its not annoying, it keeps you on your toes and attempts to increase some macro. But no I find it great, especially the Proton Charge. Its one of those abilities that I would usually try and tech to as fast as possible because the extra income is helpful.

9) How do you think spawn larva compared to the Protoss and Terran macro mechanics?
Some say its "weak" and "uninspired" compared to the other races, but I would have to disagree. The larva are permanent, which is basically like 4 extra drones each time its used, and on top of that its also helpful if you need extra drones to build structures.

10) Are destructible rocks passable by any other means than air or destroying them, example pylon next to them so you can warp in units on the other side?
Yes you would be able to warp in on the other side, but thats about it. Even Colossus and burrowed Infestors are unable to pass under/over destructible rocks.
Recently, the television station G4TV and Joystiq held interviews with two seperate Blizzard employees. G4TV interviewed Dustin Browder, the lead designer of StarCraft II, where he reveals the current state of the game. The following is a summary of the interview:


    - While the AI has been significantly improved (for example, it will no longer charge headlong into a
    superior number of units), it currently does not handle Siege Tanks on cliffs very well
    - Mirror matchups are progressing well so far and have a lot of diversity. The Terran vs. Terran matchup in particular has become a lot more mobile thanks to units such as Vikings, Banshees, Reapers and Thors.
    - Map control plays less of a roll as it did in the original. Blizzard has yet to decide whether they want to go with that direction.
    - In spite of unfavourable changes, Siege Tanks and Lurkers are (suprisingly) effective. The improved pathing, which causes units to clump up more, improves the potential of splash damage.
    - The community will ultimately judge the balanced between macromanagement and micromanagement
    - Blizzard would like to make Nukes viable in regular gameplay. Browder indicated they could serve as an additional source of firepower for a Terran biological build.
    - Medivacs and Warp-In are seeing a lot of use, but Nydus Worms much less so.
    - Blizzard has plans for a Casual League, which would have games run at Normal speed and a mappool that discourages rushing.
    - StarCraft II will include Challenge Modes, which would teach the player various aspects of multiplayer play
    - Blizzard has intentions of including custom/Proleague maps in the mappool
    - Videos, such as the Battle Reports, are ment to promote StarCraft II as a spectator e-Sport (particularly outside Korea)
    -Browder estimated that the StarCraft II beta will last 4-6 months

Source: G4TV

The videogaming website Joystiq, on the other hand, interviewed StarCraft II`s lead producer Chris Sigaty. While the interview was less informative, it still included some new pieces of information. Here is a summary:


    - Mapmakers/modders will have the ability to create their own score screen which works specifically for their map
    - Blizzard brough back the original voice actors of Jim Raynor (Robert Clotworthy) and Arcturus Mengsk (James Hayes?)
    - Unit portraits move their lips (assuming they have them) phonetically with what they are saying, a
    considerable change from previous games

Source: Joystiq
Im a bit late on updating with this, but better late then never! We now have 13 new screenshots, 3 of which are the new racial tech-trees. Alongside the new screenshots, we have an 8 min b-roll video of new Starcraft 2 gameplay, so check it out! And lastly, check out all the new Zerg renders.