"The two Terran commanders are captured alive, and subjected to whatever fiendish new experimental torture methods that Kerrigan has devised. Some of which no doubt involve tickling."
-greyhoundbus
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| Fortress Protoss | | | Author: | | | IP: | XXXX | | Date: | 06/29/99 07:06 | | Game Type: | Starcraft | | Labels: | Starcraft(1) | | Report Rating: , # of Ratings: 1, Max: 7, Min: 7
Lifetime Rating for Tanglebones: 5.5000 |  | This battle took place last week, I don't have any screen shots, and I can't even remember the fellas names, but it was a worth battle, so must be told! Check the image at the bottom for map and my account of the many attacks that took place. I know they all involve me, but that is what this game was all about: me, me, me.
Seeking a 2 on 2 I hopped in a public game on Sherwood Forest. After a few minutes of waiting we decided on the dreaded Free For All. Of course, my mind instantly went to how I was going to stop a Carrier charge (a bit premature, but so many FFAs seem to end that way).
The teams:
Me, Random, Protoss, Started at the 8 o'clock position.
Zerg, Random, Started at the 10:30 corner.
Terran, Random, Started at the 6 o'clock.
Ok, so I got the Toss. Would the Carrier rush be mine? Time will solve that riddle. I began with my standard anti-rushish build (Gate, Gate, Forge, Assim). I'd hate to get wiped out before getting to those lovely late game units. Anyways, no contact from the other players so I proceeded straight to High Templar. I've found that with Toss, when in doubt go for Templar. I was in doubt.
Shortly a very slow moving Red Zerg Balloon came floating in from the north. So, we know what's what and who's who. The Terran has still not made an appearance. My probes begin scouting the map and find a fledgling Zerg Expansion #2. Hmm, the hatchery is bleeding... my probe looks about and identifies a large number of Terran shell casings. Without delay the probe uses its vicious mineral extractor to cut into the hatchery, eliciting curses from the zerg. I feel secure with my choke as I begin preparing for an early Mutalisk rush with cannons and goons. The zealots I have standing around march off to the expansion and put an end to it. Zerg Exp #2 is never rebuilt.
Shortly thereafter I begin an expansion south of my base (#1). A few cannons in place, the expansion is soon running up to speed. Strangely enough, a Terran wraith wings overhead before retreating. Expecting an attack I move a healthy force of goons and zealots to the spot. The Terran, however, never openly attacks the expansion.
With mucho resources, and a healthy supply of goons, I decide on a little misdirection. Considering my initial fear of Carriers, I decide to put the fear into my enemies. In addition to observers and Templar, I build three Carriers. Then float them over to the Terran base (Toss attack #2) along with a few corsairs and observers. A vicious attack commences as the Terran has apparently gone all anti-air: his base is a wall of depots surrounded by Goliaths and Wraiths. Egads, the battle is ugly, brutish and short. I escape with my Carriers, just in time for the first of many zerg offensives. After this moment both of my opponents focused on my without end.
First wave arrived just as my Carriers reached my choke. Perhaps a dozen guardians backed by more than a dozen Devourers. Double Egads, he was prepared for Carriers too. Acid balls were flying, Devourers were searching the skies for targets, but met only a hoard of goons. I had about 9 Templar spread around my base at this time and used their most popular ability to good effect. Snap, crackle pop! It was an impressive spray of blood which left the Devourers winging for home.
I had a few moments rest to set up my second expansion to the north. Figuring an attack from the zerg on that location, I put up a large number of cannons and stationed 4 templar there. Again, strangely, no one ever attacked this exp.
The second Zerg attack commenced, followed shortly by the second Terran offsive. Three control groups of Hydras washed into my choke. Crackle pop! Oh the blood. Curses from the Zerg followed.
Me: You gotta love Storm.
Zerg: Damn Storm!
A mini-hoard of M&Ms followed shortly after. More crackle, more pop! I followed up with a dozen zealots to clear out the medics.
At this point I was making all zealots, templar and goons. I would need them.
What do you do against a Terran going all air? Zealots and goons? Oh yea. My upgrades were up to 2/2 at this time, while I failed to see any upgrades from the terran.
My third attack pushed through his empty choke (bad form) and obliterated the massed goliaths. Wraiths searched franticly for observers, but I kept moving them about until the fragile wraiths were no more. The Goons stayed to take a healthy chunk out of his siege tank-less base. The goons moved out immediately back to base.
Then came Zerg attack #3. This one was about two dozen guardians and the same group of devourers accompanied by more hydras and lings. Using a little micro, I used a few goons to drag the guardians away from the ramparts. Then, Crackle Pop! I must have used eight storms finishing off the grouped up guardians. The zealots at my choke wasted all opposition. My goons had run feverishly home in case the storms didn't work out.
Nuclear launch detected! Triple egads! My first expansion to the south had no means of getting rid of the damn red dot of doom. The exp was basically tapped out so I moved all my probes to my second exp and wrote the first one off. Sure enough the EMP wave detonated seconds before the nuke hit, wiping out much of the expansion. Curse you Terran, where's your exp...
By now a fairly steady stream of curses emerged from the Zerg (&*#*! Storm) so I made a few Archon out of my tapped out Templar and made a three shuttle drop on his main (attack #4). It was a waste of resources as he was going heavy zerglings at that time.
With some extra zealots hanging around, I send 12 of my now fully upgraded infantry to recently discovered Terran expansion. Although a number of wraiths started picking away at my troops, the expansion was done for. But where are the rest of his forces? One M&M rush doesn't account for a Main and an Exp worth of res.
I soon found out:
Nuclear launch detected! This time the red dot was in my main (Terran attack #4). I searched feverishly, found the ghost, but couldn't kill him before the nuke fell. Thankfully, no Emp. I started coving that hole in my defenses when the zerg arrived:
Scores of zerglings raced into my choke under cover of Dark Swarm. "You can't hurt my lings" the zerg boasted. Zealots, Archons and Storm know no such limitation...
Crackle, Pop! Slash, blast! Man I wish I had thought to take screen shots... Thus ended the last Zerg offensive.
Nuclear launch detected! Damn, my Nexus again. This time, The EMP missle came streaking in. What a blunder! My Nexus, Cyber Core and some cannons went up in a mushroom cloud. Then came the gaggle of wraiths and BattleCruisers. A vicious battle ensued between what remained of my goons, every templar at my base, and my last remaining carrier. The storms did most of the work, but in the end I had no troops, but he had one Carrier with about 20 Damage points left.
I, however, had plenty of resources and began rebuilding. One templar was flown in from my still untouched expansion #2 and a quick storm finished off the Cruiser.
It was all over but the screaming. The Zerg dropped after running out of minerals. I took some zealots to the second Terran expansion, ending that last hope.
The terran and I played around a bit as I dismantled his main. Good game, I could finally breathe.
Lessons:
1. I have never been able to use storm as effectively as I had wished, but on defense it is an absolutely brutal weapon. I must have fired off several dozen storms throughout the game.
2. In FFA, being monkey in the middle is no fun. I was under constant attack from all sides. My seven gateways were humming non stop, even after the nuke took out my Cy Core.
3. Fully upgraded Toss units devour the Zerg. If I had gone for the Carrier rush I would have lost. Those massed Devourers and hydras would have killed me. Massive goons, templar and zealots were perfect.
4. Guardians are great units, but they just aren't the game ender they were in Vanilla SC. Some Queens to nail my templar followed by a heavy drop from the north would have been more successful than those very expensive flyers.
5. Don't let your enemy's expansions go unpunished. | | Battle Shots! | 
The Attacks. Hope it looks ok at 400 x 400.
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