Text by: Procyonlotor
Our role here is not to judge but describe our experience. We will note, however, that the Protoss airforce never truly fulfilled its purpose.
THE PROTOSS IN WINGS OF LIBERTY
Consider:
The Phoenix is described as an air superiority fighter, though experience tells us it is in fact the opposite. Its uses have been narrowed down to PvP, where its Graviton Beam can lift critical enemy units, and as a Queen disabler in PvZ. In PvT, Marines control the skies. Besides obvious advantages in terms of scouting and light harassment, the Phoenix doesn’t bring much to the table, being easily destroyed even by the unit it is supposed to dominate: the Mutalisk.
Looking at the Void Ray’s design we can only deplore its role as capital ship killer. Not only do capital ships usually never make it to the field, massive units vulnerable to Void Rays are usually well protected and more easily dispensed with in other ways. The Void Rays of the beta, with their inflated damage, longer range and speed upgrade, were too powerful, but the Void Rays of Wings of Liberty are too weak. There is no role they can cover that another unit can’t do better, and now they are used in very few builds, usually as harassment in PvZ and in all in builds in PvT.
The Carrier is the most problematic of the three: we know what the Phoenix and Void Ray ought to do, but they can’t do it. The Carrier on the other hand is a more mysterious quantity. In two years of StarCraft 2 no one has quite understood how Carriers ought to be used or when they ought to be built. Strategies involving Carriers generally rely on them being built in secret, amassing an overwhelming amount of ships so as to surprise and destroy an opponent. It’s generally accepted that they are easily countered, and that few Carriers don’t amount to much, though MC’s recent 4 Carrier build versus Kas may have given us a glimpse of the unit’s potential.
People have pointed to the Colossus as the source of all the Carrier’s ills, saying that, due to its prevalence, people usually already have the counters in place for a transition. But the Colossus thrives in spite of Vikings or Corrupters. We can point out, correctly, that a Colossus will spawn either of those two flyers, yet Protoss has always managed to win. There is no reason the Carrier should fail where the Colossus has succeeded. I suspect the answer lies in the units’ relationship with the Protoss ground army and with their power of interdiction. A group of Colossi naturally supports a ground army, warding off any approach that isn’t dedicated to engaging the force. Carriers are less intimidating. They can annihilate a ground army less convincingly, making the main Protoss force vulnerable. Once this has been dealt with, the Carriers, like the Colossus, are easily dispatched.
THE NEW UNITS
Mothership Core
Cost: 100 minerals, 100 gas, 30 seconds
Abilities:
ENERGIZE
Cost: 100 energy
Recharges the energy of target unit or structure to maximum.
PURIFY
Cost: 75 energy
Powers up the Mothership Core, allowing it to gain a powerful weapon that deals 25 damage for 45 seconds.
MASS RECALL
Cost: 150 energy
Recalls all units owned by the player in the target area to the caster.
UPGRADE TO MOTHERSHIP
Cost: 300 minerals, 300 gas, 8 food, 100 seconds
Upgrades into the Mothership. Can use Vortex and Recall. Cloaks nearby units and structures.
The Mothership Core will solve Protoss’s early game problems while enhancing their macro, defensive, and offensive capabilities. In the past it was necessary for Protoss to rely on Forge Fast Expansions to keep up with the Zerg economy and stay safe at the same time. The Purifier ability will eliminate the need for a forge, enabling faster warpgate timings and greater early game aggression than before. It’s interesting that Protoss were already experimenting with Forge-less fast expansions. This is likely to enhance these strategies.
The Purifier has at least one other great advantage: it will discourage PvP one base aggression, further stabilizing the match up.
The Energize ability can be used on units or buildings, making Nexus, Sentries, High Templar and Oracles obvious targets. Using a pair of Oracles it is easy to cycle them in and out of harassment roles, creating long periods of drought for the enemy economy. The Nexus will be able to cast more chronoboost more often, and your Sentries and High Templar will be ready to go literally straight out of the gate. In a critical situation Energize will trump Khaydarin Amulet, instantly creating as many four psionic storms ready to be deployed.
Finally, the Core can upgrade to a fully fledged Mothership, making what used to be a necessary sidestep into a natural transition. The quick construction time of both the Core and the Mothership means replacing both of them will be relatively quick, albeit expensive.
The Mothership Core will change Protoss play the most. While we can’t be certain Oracles or Tempests will always be present in their play, we cannot imagine a Core-less opening in Heart of the Swarm.
Oracle
Cost: 150 minerals, 200 gas, 3 food, 60 seconds
Abilities:
PREORDAIN
Cost: 50 energy
Causes an enemy structure to grand vision for 120 seconds and display what it's constructing when selected.
REVELATION
Cost: 50 energy
Reveals enemy units within target area. Units revealed cannot cloak and will remain visible while burrowed for 120 seconds.
ENTOMB
Cost: 100 energy
Creates Mineral Shields over Mineral Fields within target area. Shields prevent minerals from being harvested for 45 seconds or unitl destroyed.
BOSONIC CORE (Fleet Beacon upgrade)
Cost: 150 minerals, 150 gas, 100 seconds
Increases the starting energy of the Oracles by 25
The oracle is a necessary unit for the Stargate. Robotics builds all include a critical unit: the observer, further de-incentivizing Stargate builds. Now we have a unit providing detection, albeit in a different form, while fulfilling a number of other functions.
Preordain has two obvious advantages: 1) providing scouting information 2) designating areas to be bombarded by the Tempest. For Tempest based play this is invaluable, as a single cast will enable 2 minutes of uninterrupted sieging. The importance of scouting information is self-evident.
Revelation is a mix of the Terran scan and the parasite from Brood War. It can be cast in a medium-sized area, revealing all units and adding a debuff which makes them visible for 20 seconds. Stargate play will be the best counter to Banshees and Dark Templar, and, apparently, to Swarm Hosts as well. Widow Mines will fall to this strategy as well, though I expect the Brood War style minesweeping with an Observer will be more popular and more effective.
Entomb is a curious spell, in that it somehow accomplishes the same thing as Void Ray/Phoenix harassment: slowing down the enemy economy. With smart and constant use of Oracles we’ve been able to shut down mining in one or more bases for 20 seconds at a time, returning at regular intervals. We’ve caused players to waste resources building static defenses, waste APM targeting down the mineral shields, and generally aggravate them into making mistakes. The power of Entomb to slow down an economy won’t be understood until it is properly tested on the highest level of play. Expect many gateway timings supported by Oracle harass.
Tempest
Cost: 300 minerals, 300 gas, 6 food, 75 seconds
Abilities:
GRAVITY SLING (Fleet Beacon upgrade)
Cost: 150 minerals, 150 gas, 100 seconds
Tempests gain +12 range.
The unit that took the Carrier away. We’ve tried to use the Tempest as often as possible, but it’s been difficult to ascertain how useful it actually is. Its massive range cannot be underestimated, but its damage is underwhelming. Unless you are attacking a mineral line from far away, you can’t expect to do much damage with just one or two. You need an entire fleet of them to make an enemy hesitate to approach.
The proper timing, strategy and unit synergy useful to or with the Tempest are yet to be discovered, but they will be known soon enough.
It’s worth mentioning the cost of these units. The Oracle will tax for 150/200 and the Tempest will be 300/300. Protoss units are notably gas intensive. This trend has not changed, but it is likely to mean players will have to allocate their gas with even more discernment than before.
