Dark Voice

I did it. I achieved the Dark Voice. I now have the coolest icon there is, pretty much.

One of the best things about having the Dark Voice is that it appears to remove your level number from the lower left hand corner of your portrait. Not all of the time, but some of the time. It feels almost like a small bug in the game that may well be intentional. Because, let’s face it, the Dark Voice portrait looks a lot cooler without your level taking away from it. And so few people have the Dark Voice, who would report that bug??

Now that I’ve gone back to playing as random, it’s taking some getting used to. Okay, Protoss was just like riding a bicycle. I could still pop off a five gate without even thinking. My PvP Stargate phoenix play is still there. It’s essentially the same micro as a mutalisk flock, and I know I’ll never forget how to control my mutas.

I did have to learn a new build for my zerg play. This time, I added Hyun’s three hatch to my arsenal. Let me tell you, I haven’t regretted it for a minute. Having been a 15 hatch kind of zerg player for a very long time, I feel like I’ve finally expanded my understanding of zerg, simply by learning this build.

For the first time, as I play Zerg, I feel like I’m now on time with the pros. At the time they get a big group of roaches, I can make a big group of roaches. When their mutas pop, my mutas are popping. It’s a great feeling. The big difference I had to understand was that you can use your first queen for a creep tumor, since you’re building so many hatcheries.

That exposes a universal truth of StarCraft, and strategy in general. You’re much more effective if you keep your options open, if you keep one of each type of unit, than if you only make one thing. Having one creep tumor is very valuable. Just like having one spine and one spore is so much stronger than having none.

I’ve also had a lot of fun playing a new Protoss build from imbabuilds. This one is the three stalker expand. I love it because the quick three stalkers and mothership core can be extremely powerful. I’ve won games with just those four units! It works against other Protoss, but also against Terran. It allows me to get a safe expand, and to go for my favorite Stargate play, all while ‘rushing’ my opponent with a formidable early force. Tends to be less effective against zerg, though.

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Did anyone else watch that match of Taeja against Soo? I couldn’t believe it, which is why Taeja is my favorite player. He sure has a magic about him. He goes for a two rax on Overgrowth. Soo counters blindly, with a 14 pool. Yet somehow, Taeja comes up ahead. It’s incredible. I’ve been in that position so many times before, and I always die in situations like that. I always fall behind. But Taeja, almost supernaturally, manages to get the W. And against a player like Soo, who really looks like a bad guy in a movie. I can’t wait to see you play at Blizzcon, Taeja, make me proud!