So it’s been a
while since I’ve blogged about StarCraft 2, and given the recent patch in
Legacy of the Void (the only version I play nowadays) I think a post is due.
The big change is
that Terran players no longer have Mules. Which is a big deal. But let’s not
forget that Protoss doesn’t have Chronoboost, and Zerg has auto-inject larva,
in a nerf sort of a way because you can only get two instead of four.
On the one hand, I’m
baffled by this turn of the events. Even as we speak, Red Bull is hosting a
tournament for Archon mode. And Archon mode makes a lot of sense, because it
means that a single player doesn’t have to multi-task like he would have
before. You can have one player dedicated to micro on attacks and another on
macro. But then removed the big macro mechanic from all three races. What the
fuck is the other guy in archon mode supposed to do if the one responsibility
he had is now out of the game?
And while we’re
talking about Archon mode, I couldn’t believe my eyes, when Huk beat Taeja.
Okay, let me clarify that it was Taeja and TheSTC vs Huk and MC. But still. You’ll
remember that Taeja is my *favorite* player. He’s used to pwn the game like it
was nobody’s business. I wouldn’t expect him ever to lose to Taeja. Even if
Taeja was playing one handed on Xanax. And yet, Taeja was the first player
eliminated from the tournament, and Huk destroyed him. What gives?
I’ll tell you
what. It was a combination of the removal of Mules, which were a big party of
Taeja’s play, and the addition of Adepts. Which happen to do double damage to
light units now. What a rip off. I always thought that a stalker was about as
good against a marine as any protoss unit should be in the early game. But now
Adepts can two shot marines (if I’m not mistaken). Add in their teleport spirit
ability, and you have a unit that is *insanely* good in the early game. If you
play as Protoss, you can’t *not* make Adepts lickety split. People are
migrating to Toss in droves, just to use Adepts.
What else really
sucks about Adepts is that they completely shut down reapers. Reapers are the
only unit that Terran has in the early game, and suddenly Toss gets a unit that
does double damage against them, and that can teleport. A reaper, which is
supposed to be the fast, nimble early game unit, literally can’t escape from an
Adept. Add to that a standard Mothership Core, which a reaper can’t hit, and
what the fuck is a Terran player supposed to do against the Protoss. Did
Blizzard even test this change before going live on the servers?
I saw this kind of
abuse and thought I could come up with some kind of answer to adepts. But I
couldn’t. Sure, you don’t have to sink
150 minerals into Orbital commands anymore. But as a Terran player, the only
answer I could come up with is to make Planetary Fortresses. I’m serious. It’s
that bad.
My earlier
attempts were to simply make a proxy Barracks and to mass some reapers asap and
attack the protoss before they could get Adepts. Some games it works, mainly because
of the aoe power of their grenades. But as soon as an Adept comes onto the
field, your reapers are *fucked*.
As if that wasn’t
bad enough, Protoss has *options*. If he so desires, once the toss sees that
you’re making a few reapers, he can throw down a Starport and make an oracle or
two, and you’ll have *nothing* to stop it. So in TvP, it’s almost like you’re
damned if you do and you’re damned if you don’t.
Then I played a
few games, rushing for Banshee. I figured, they’re the natural hard counter to
Adepts, so why not start with a little 1-1-1 action and go for cloak. But that
didn’t work out well for me, either. Why? Because photon overcharge on a nexus,
and your banshees can’t really do damage. While the adept counter attack is
still a viable option for the protoss player.
The state of the
game is seriously fucked right now.
The worst part
about it is that the protoss player can get adepts and oracles without too much
trouble. But the defense against adept/oracle player from the terran player’s
point of view is fucking impossible. You’d need Marauders, turrets, bunkers,
and preferable a Viking, too. All of which are really only good for defense. And
even if you do defend perfectly, the toss is left with viable units to
incorporate into his army and keep map control, while you’re probably stuck on
one or two base without really being able to counter attack.
I mean, is there a
unit I’m forgetting? Is there something I haven’t tried? Taeja went for a CC
first, which I think is fucking insane. But it was something he was always able
to get away with. Until LotV at least. It really makes me sad to see my hero, a
man who I *still* think of as the God of the game, to fall so far from grace.
Basically, as a
Terran player, you now have to wall off against toss. You probably need
Planetary fortresses. And you have to do damage with a mine drop, or cloaked banshee.
Thanks to photon overcharge, those are really your only two options.
And here I was,
just a few hours ago, thinking I’d be able to write a nice blog post about how
to counter Adepts. But like all the other Terran players in the world, I find
myself brought to my knees by the unit.
