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| Starcraft Wars | | | Author: | | | IP: | XXXX | | Date: | 12/12/99 12:12 | | Game Type: | Starcraft | | Labels: | none | | Report Rating: , # of Ratings: 3, Max: 9, Min: 8
Lifetime Rating for Dausuul: 8.3333 |   | PREFACE
I didn’t get any pictures for this BR, so if you’re one of those people who hates all-text BRs, don’t bother reading any further. The game was a 1-on-1 on Lost Temple. I picked Zerg, as I usually do, and my opponent picked Protoss. I started at the 3:00 position.
This is my first battle report, so bear with me.
STARCRAFT WARS
Warp travel is always painful for a Cerebrate. If it weren’t for the Queen, I doubt many of us would attempt it. But Kerrigan’s will, as always, overrules our own preferences.
It is strange, serving this former human. It is very different from the way it was with the Overmind. The Overmind manifested the collective will of the whole of the Swarm. It was not my master, but my greater self. I did not think of disobeying it; for how can one disobey oneself?
Kerrigan, though . . . Kerrigan is alien. She was made to be a slave to us, like the many other races that make up the Swarm. Yet, somehow, she has become our ruler instead. I cannot understand how a mere human can take the place of the Overmind. It is strange, very strange . . .
My senses begin to clear, and I banish these deep thoughts. I am a Cerebrate, and my task is to command my Brood. Whether I do so for the Overmind or for the Queen of Blades is immaterial. I must be ready.
“Cerebrate Dausuul.” Kerrigan’s voice in my mind.
“Yes, my Queen?”
“As you may be aware, there is a temple on Aiur, a temple told of in Protoss legend. It is thought that this temple holds the key to the mastery of Aiur. You are to secure this temple and hold it for me.”
I am disturbed. “My Queen, I thought Szerrath was in charge of the Lost Temple.”
There is a growl of irritation. “Szerrath got himself killed by a Terran assault force under Captain Heartcutter,” Kerrigan informs me. “You are to take his place. Don’t fail me, Cerebrate. Remember that I’m not the Overmind. If you die, you stay dead.”
I can’t say I like this assignment, but what can I do? “As you wish, my Queen,” I reply.
“The usual landing force is in place,” Kerrigan says. “The few surviving scouts from Szerroth’s Brood have reported a Protoss expedition approaching. Deal with them appropriately.”
“Yes, my Queen.” Kerrigan’s mental presence vanishes, and I prepare for the coming combat.
The usual landing force consists of four drones, a single Overlord, and a fifth drone which immediately mutates into a hatchery. I have complained to Kerrigan about the inadequacy of this, but she always brushes me off. She says that a clever Cerebrate should be able to make do. I think it would be a good deal easier to make do if one had a couple of hundred mutalisks with guardian and devourer support, but it’s not for me to say. At least I’m familiar with the territory here. The layout of the Lost Temple is well known to all Cerebrates.
The first thing to do, naturally, is start producing drones. Some Cerebrates prefer to go straight for zergling production when entering battle, but I dislike that tactic. Although it can achieve a quick victory if one’s opponent is not prepared, it stunts the growth of the hive cluster, and it costs more than it gains in the long run.
Once nine drones are bred, I can feel the lone Overlord straining to control them all. I send one drone to become a spawning pool and start another Overlord. Shortly thereafter I put up another hatchery. My primary hive cluster is on a plateau with only one way down, and I put my second hatchery at the top of this path, planning to create a few sunken colonies to hold the high ground.
While cheap and easy to produce, zerglings are of limited use against the Protoss. I will need more powerful warriors, and for that, I need vespene, that strange organic substance found on so many planets. There is a geyser near my hive cluster, and I send a drone to form an extractor there.
Meanwhile, my spawning pool has finished. I direct the pool’s genetic flow into several larvae, which promptly cocoon themselves. As soon as they hatch, I assign one zergling to scout out the other major resource nodes in the area. The Protoss will have set up their base at one of them.
The Terrans, I have heard, have a strange name for their early scouts. They refer to them as “deons.” What this means I have never quite understood. However, it has a peculiar charm, and I have developed the habit of calling my scouts “zeons.” Other Cerebrates are irritated by this, but Kerrigan finds it amusing.
The zeon arrives at the northernmost node and finds three zealots guarding the approach. They dispatch the little creature in short order. The Protoss commander is obviously wary of infiltration. However, the presence of zealots could also indicate an early ground assault.
I reinforce the approach to my cluster with several sunken colonies. The drones have been bringing in vespene from the new extractor, and I am now able to build a hydralisk den and transform my hatchery into a lair. Soon, perhaps, I will have a proper hive.
Once the den is completed, I breed a few hydralisks and prepare to move out. The stronger breeds require a large, healthy hive cluster to produce in quantity, and that can seldom be done with only one resource node. There is another node right in front of my plateau. It’s the logical place to expand to. I take the hydralisks and a number of zerglings down the path and run right into four zealots, supported by dragoons.
I hate being confined to a single node. I withdraw my forces back to the plateau, and take some pleasure in watching the zealots follow. The sunken colonies lash out, and the zealots retreat. The hydralisks hiss with glee.
I must break out, and soon. I can’t afford to be pinned down here while the Protoss take control of the Temple. I start to breed more hydralisks. A solid hydralisk force ought to be able to break the siege.
As I consider my next move, I hear a mental screech from one of my Overlords. The only thing that annoys me more than that sound is the sound of Kerrigan telling me I’m on mineral management duty. I snarl at the thing to shut up and give me a report. Its dim mind links to mine, and I see a small Protoss air-to-air vessel, one of those fighter craft the Dark Templar use. Corsairs, they call them. It’s alone, blasting at the Overlord with small energy flares. The Overlord is gibbering with pain and trying to float away.
I inform the Overlord caustically that one corsair isn’t going to inflict any serious damage, and if it doesn’t stay where it is it’ll have a lot more than Protoss to cry about. It whines at me, but does as it’s told. Several hydralisks slither up to deal with the problem. They fill the thing full of spines, and it plummets out of the sky, making a terrible mess on my creep.
One thing I have learned about Protoss is that corsairs generally mean carriers. I’m equipped to deal with carriers, though; hydralisks are quite good at that. I keep building.
I have some eighteen hydralisks by now, along with my little pack of zerglings. It’s time to try and break out. I advance my forces down to ground level, and find . . . nothing. No zealots. No dragoons. He’s retreated.
I am suspicious, but I’m not going to complain. I start a hatchery at the expansion node and send some drones down to harvest the minerals there. They can use the hatchery at the top of my approach ramp until the new one is done. I also send two more zeons to scout out the rest of the area. The Protoss will surely have expanded by now, and I need to know where. If I can kill their expansion efforts, I can starve them out.
More shrieks of pain, but this time they’re from my hydralisks. It takes a lot to make a hydralisk complain. I look at them and see a column of lightning flaring into the sky.
Psionic storms. I hate Protoss.
I rush the hydralisks forward. Luckily, my attention was already on that area, so I escape the storm with only a few casualties. The serpentine hunters catch up with a single high templar trying to run away. They rip him apart and take him back to the base to be devoured. Hydralisks have the most disgusting eating habits. No other breed will eat a Protoss; they taste awful. The only thing I’ve ever encountered that comes close is a small, flightless Terran bird that makes horrid noises every sunrise. I think they call them “chikkins.” Terrans have such colourful names for things.
The Protoss commander hits me with a few more storms, but each time I am able to get my forces out of the way with minimal losses, and each time I find one high templar fleeing for his life. The hydralisks eat well tonight. I have two evolution chambers by now, working to refine my warriors’ armour and weaponry.
My hive cluster is growing nicely, and it’s time to expand again. The zeons I sent out earlier found nothing, and I burrowed them at the two major unclaimed nodes. Since those nodes are still empty, I start a hatchery at the southern one. I’ve also got a queen’s nest, and my lair has become a full hive.
Things seem to be going well, but I am worried about my lack of reconaissance. There’s only so much zeons can do. I make a spire at my primary cluster, and spawn a few mutalisks. I send one of them out to scour the area. I must know where those Protoss expansions are!
The mutalisk flies to every node I know of in the Temple region, but it doesn’t find so much as a pylon. Interesting. The Protoss commander must have trained on the rich worlds the Terrans call Big Game Hunters (more picturesque Terran names). He’s used to having limitless resources, and doesn’t understand the need to expand. Since the Protoss would never tolerate such a weakness in one of their upper-echelon commanders, he’s probably a novice with limited tactical skills. Feeling very relieved, I set about making some more mutalisks, preparing to launch a raid on his main base.
A telepathic voice resonates in my mind. It’s not Kerrigan, though. With surprise, I realize that the mental voice is that of the Protoss commander!
“I don’t like these big games, man,” he says. I refuse to dignify this with a response. This is not a game. This is war, and he’s going to learn what that means quite soon. Besides, I will not be insulted by being compared to some miserable Terran male.
I hit his base and find two carriers there, along with several stargates. The carriers make no effort to fight back as the mutalisks overwhelm them. They must not have had time to build any interceptors. Glaive wurms tear through their shields, and moments later the carriers hit the ground in a blast of white fire.
Just about then, another psionic storm erupts. I pull my mutalisks out. Two of them fail to escape the storm, but two mutalisks for two carriers is more than acceptable. The raid was a success.
Encouraged by this, I put up a nydus canal to link my central hive to the southern plateau, and launch a heavier assault. Twenty-four hydralisks move on his base, with Overlords to watch for Dark Templar, and a queen to ensnare enemy troops. They are met by photon cannons, two reavers, some zealots, and some dragoons. Reavers are dangerous. I order the queen to ensnare them and concentrate on trying to take them out. I succeed, but before I can move into his base the last of my hydralisks falls to the rest of his troops. I withdraw my Overlords and my queen.
Despite this failure, I am fairly confident right now. I have more mutalisks spawning. My original spire has become a greater spire, and I have another spire to help my air forces evolve more quickly. Just for amusement’s sake, I put up an ultralisk cavern at the southern plateau, and begin a fourth base at the plateau’s foot. My foe still has shown no signs of expanding. What could go wrong?
THE PROTOSS STRIKE BACK
I find out shortly. Carriers could go wrong. Templar could go wrong. Dragoons and zealots and reavers and observers could go wrong, all at once, aimed straight for my primary cluster. They slam into my first expansion, sweeping my defenses away. The nydus canal saves me here, allowing me to bring reinforcements back from the south plateau. With those additional troops, I manage to halt the invaders short of my central hive. However, they have me under siege, and it won’t be long before the Protoss reinforces his troops and pushes forward again.
I try to break the siege with hydralisk and mutalisk sorties. Neither works. He has a large group of high templar with him. Their psionic storms devastate my troops, and reavers and carriers get what the templar don’t.
Very well, you skinny mouthless mind-bender. Two can play at that game. I gather some dozen and a half mutalisks and counterattack, blasting into his base. I go for the pylons supporting his stargates, hoping to shut them down long enough to regain the advantage. I succeed in cutting the power to two of them, but his carriers return before I can finish the job. My mutalisks are slain, and I’m down to two harvesting hatcheries--my central hive exhausted its resources long ago. To make matters worse, the Protoss have finally expanded. A scouting mutalisk reports a fully operational nexus at the base of the western plateau.
I start a new hatchery at the island in the southeast. Not long after that, his troops regroup and begin to advance again. Desperately, I throw my remaining warriors in his path, but to no avail. My hydralisks die, and my mutalisks and Overlords flee as the Protoss begin the destruction of my primary cluster.
The zeon at the western plateau notices a nexus warping in. I send the mutalisks that survived to put a stop to it. They finish off the nexus, but it seems a rather pitiful victory compared to the devastation still being wrought upon my central hive.
The last hive structure explodes in a shower of blood. I am down to eighteen half-dead mutalisks, and I have no way to make more. My spires are gone. My hive is gone, my queen’s nest is gone, my hydralisk den is gone. Even my spawning pool has been destroyed.
I have only one weapon remaining.
I have the ultralisk cavern at the southern plateau.
THE RETURN OF THE ULTRALISKS
I order one of my drones to begin a new spawning pool, and begin to breed ultralisks. At least I still have plenty of resources, and my drones are bringing in more at a steady pace. I make more drones to ensure that production goes as fast as possible.
An Overlord relays yet another warning from the zeon in the west. The Protoss have started another nexus there. Once more, I take my mutalisks to put the thing out of my misery, but this time the enemy commander is being cautious, and I retreat before a dragoon garrison. I keep ultralisks breeding as fast as I can. Vespene is the main limiting factor here, so I put four drones on each extractor.
Once I have nine ultralisks, I gather them near the entrance to his main base. I bring up the mutalisks as well for air support, and launch a two-pronged attack. If this fails, I will most likely perish.
The mutalisks are soon driven off by his defenders. The ultralisks, however . . . ah, the ultralisks. I must admit that I have a soft spot for the creatures. They’re large, clumsy, and stupid, but they’re always so cheerful as they romp around the creep, and they take such simple pleasure in tearing things apart with their giant blades. I can’t help but like something that enjoys its work so much.
The high templar come out to do battle. I laugh at them as their lightning glances off the ultralisks’ armoured hides. Photon cannons and dragoons go down like matchsticks, and the ultralisks pound their way up into his main base before his carrier fleet can make it back.
It quickly becomes clear that his base is going to die well before the ultralisks do. The Protoss stop moving suddenly. Their cowardly commander has fled to avoid having to surrender to me.
“Well done, Cerebrate,” Kerrigan says. “Cerebrate Targhun will handle things from here. You will prepare to re-enter the warp. I have need of you for mineral management duty.”
I really hate my Queen sometimes.
LESSONS LEARNED
1. I’m not a very good SC player, as I’m sure you’ve noticed. I should have done a hydralisk drop back near the beginning. That would have screwed him up but good. I should also have started a spawning pool, spire, den, and lair at 6:00 as soon as I saw that my main was about to fall, and I should have made ultralisks much earlier, or else broodlinged his templar.
2. Don’t put all your key buildings in one base. That ultralisk cavern at 6:00 saved my life.
3. Nydus canals are good.
4. Psi-storm > hydralisks.
5. Psi-storm > mutalisks.
6. Ultralisks > psi-storm.
7. This guy did better than I did in all but two areas: expanding and upgrading. As far as I know, he never upgraded his troops that entire game, and his expansions were way late. I think that if he had either expanded earlier or upgraded, I would have been crushed.
8. Kerrigan is the Queen Bitch of the Universe.
9. Disconnectors suck. |
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