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1 - When a ranged infantry unit like a Marine or Hydralisk is attacked by a melee unit, or simply engages another unit at point-blank range, do they enter hand-to-hand combat?
No, the ranged units do not have an alternate melee attack. However in one of the Battle Reports you will notice a Hydralisk destroying a buildings with its claws. According to Dustin Browder, this is simply an alternate killing animation when attacking at close range. So to answer your question, there is not an alternate melee attack but there may be an alternate animation for it.

2 - Are there any other methods to stopping or preventing a nuke other then killing the Ghost or silo before it hits?
Sadly no. The nuke is supposed to install fear in a player and get that thinking of "Oh no, where is that nuke going to hit and where is that Ghost located?". If you give the player more options of disabling a nuke, it takes away that fear and de-specializes the Ghost in some way.

3 - When you play against the computer rather than a human player, does the computer know your location and base immediately?
No it does not. The AI in Starcraft 2 is far more advanced and superior to that of its counter-part, SC1 and WC3. According to Dustin Browder, the computer player does not even know your race and must scout with a unit before determining the race and the location.

4 - Did the new doodads, towers, rocks, and tall grass really effect the way the game was played?
Why yes it does. In some of the maps you had 3 entrances but 2 were blocked off be destructible rocks. If you did not watch those chokes or build up defenses, your enemies will slip by and attack your mineral line directly. This happened to me on a few occasions until I got use to the fact that there are multiple attack points this time around.

The same idea applies to watch towers and tall grass. The watch towers are extremely useful in determining which direction an enemies army is heading and if you are even able to withstand the attack. And all it takes is a single Zergling or Marine to use it.

The tall grass personally was my favorite, especially as Zerg. Since most players would use the tall grass to hide their units and ambush, you can do the same by burrowing your units behind or within the grass, and then waiting for the enemy units to try and do the same.

5 - Will every mission in the campaign involve the Terran in some way? Or will it be diversified with maybe a Zeratul Protoss level or a Kerrigan Zerg level.
The campaign will consist of only 30ish Terran related missions. However there will be one mission that acts as a "Protoss mini-campaign". What this means is that the Protoss mission will be related to the Protoss Campaign elements, in the manner of how Terran use credits and technology, the Protoss will use their equivalent. What that equivalent is, I cannot say. And for you Zerg fans, there will be no Zerg playtime within the campaign (at this time).

6 - Are almost all games decided in the early round?
If your a good player, then yes, lol. If you can constantly harass and pressure your enemy, you can beat them in under 15 minutes. However, if your noobs and just turtle and tech, well then the game could go on for a good 30+ minutes.

7 - How do high yield minerals compare to regular minerals and should they be a priority?
They aren't a high priority and a must have on every map. Additionally, they aren't that useful in early game since they are blocked off by destructible rocks. However, once you get to mid/late game they can be a extremely great source of income and can be used to mass units that only require minerals. Vespene in late game is still hard to obtain and is sparce.

8 - Is it true that in order to install the game on your PC, you need to have a Battle.net account first?
Yes this is true. To install the game you must have a Battle.net account and must connect to the internet upon installation.

1 - How does the Medivac + Marines (and also Marauder) combo relate to Medics + Marines in overall effectiveness?
As a whole its much more effective. For one thing it can heal from range, secondly it can pick up units that are about to die (similar to how you burrow a Zerg unit to avoid death) and lastly it is airborne. Another note on the ranged healing, you can maneuver your Medivac to the back or sides of your squads to avoid the most damage but still be able to heal the frontlines. Also if you ever need to make a quick escape, simply load up all your units and take off. This works extremely well against melee only units like Roaches and Zealots.

One note however, if your Medivac dies with units inside, the units also die.

2 - Do hunter seeker missiles have an indicator to what unit it was following?
First off, the ability is now simply called "Seeker Missile". But yes, it has a red laser that paints itself on its target (similar to the a sniper rifles laser scope or the Ghost gun animation). It helps to determine which of your units has been targeted. However, you have about 10 seconds to get the unit out of the larger group, which can be quite difficult.

3 - What do you think about Thor's 250mm Strike Cannons? How exactly does it work? And does it still stun the enemy?
Its a wonderful ability for taking out stationary defenses or large units. To make it work, you would cast the ability on a target, the Thor would transform and mount in place (like the old animation) and start dealing 500 damage over 6 seconds (about 85 damage a second). It will destroy all stationary defenses, but its range is only about 6, so you are still able to be attacked by Photon Cannons for example. Now does it stun a unit? I am not sure as I only ever used it on structures.

4 - If you got to try out the MULE mechanic, how useful was it? Were you able to remember to continuously spawn them?
I enjoy using the Mule. A good strategy is to get the Orbital Command as soon as possible (seeing as how its only minerals) and start pumping out Mules. The extra income in the early game is great for double pumping Marines and Hellions. Now I didn't remember to cast it repeatedly but whenever I returned to my base and notice my Command has about 150 energy, I would spawn 3 of them instantaneously (unless I needed to save for scanner sweep).

5 - Did you get the Medivacs early enough for them to be as effective as the medics in SC1?
Yes its pretty easy to get the Medivacs quickly. You won't however get them for the first match ups of Marines vs Zealots, but that's why we have Marauders to tank it until Medivacs arrive. Medivacs can also be double pumped with a Reactor, so for me I would always build two right off the bat to support my infantry.

6 - Last we heard the Raven had Hunter Seeker Missiles, Auto-Turrets and Point Defense Drones. Are those the current powers of the Raven? Also how does the Point Defense Drone work?
Yes those 3 abilities are the current Raven arsenal. The Point Defense Drone would have to be my favorite ability on the Raven. When summoned, its a little flying aerial drone (immobile) that shoots down enemy missiles with a red laser (only destroys actual projectiles, so Marines attack would not be affected). Each time it shoots down a missile it takes away about 5 energy and once its energy is depleted it self destructs.

You can see an example of the model and what its animation looks like by viewing the old targeting drone screenshot. I remember one game where I was playing Stebo and he had an army of Stalkers, Photon Cannons, Zealots, etc. I pushed his base and cast 2 of these drones and was not damaged (except by Zealots). To say the least, I stomped his army.

7 - Terran seemed destined for bio-builds and air-builds in SC2. Did you try Factory based Terran builds? Did they seem viable in competitive multi-player? Did Factories see much use at all?
Factory units always had there place. I would ALWAYS go Hellions as fast I could, simply because your enemy would still have low tier units like Lings, Zealots and Marines and you can micro them amazingly to dish out damage without getting hurt by melee units. I remember once game where I had a squad of about 10 Hellions and would move + fire on the enemy roaches and take them out one by one.

I used Thors to tank when I pushed an enemies defense or base. They are useful for destroying any strong unit or turret while the rest of your army pushes in. Tanks can hold their own as long as you have a few M&M watching the ground to protect them.

8 - It's still unclear how Medivacs heal. In the guide it says that heal is a ranged ability, while elsewhere I've heard that the Medivac needs to pick up units to heal them. Which is it?
Its a ranged heal, probably around 5 or 6. It shoots down a green beam that heals a unit extremely fast and can alternate between units quickly. Units that are transported are not healed within, they must be outside the Medivac to be healed.

One special note is that Thors are transportable. The Thor transforms into a little square shape and attaches itself to the underneath of the Medivac. It also takes up 1 slot instead of 2 or 4, however you can only transport one at a time.

9 - For Battlecruisers, must each ability be researched, or only the weapons refit upgrade, in order to produce cruisers with the different special abilities? Can you have a few of each type of Battlecruiser, or only one type?
To be able to specialize the BC with 1 of the 3 abilities, you must first research the Weapons Refit upgrade. Once upgraded you can pick your specialization, however its a permanent upgrade, so you cant switch it later on. Each BC is upgraded individually so you can have an army of BC all with different abilities.

10 - How are the Terrans doing in terms of defense? Does the ability to burrow your supply depots make a difference?
Burrowing depots are the best thing to ever happen to the Terran. In early early game, its standard for a Terran player to build 2 supply depots and a Barracks (or Bunker) at their ramp, to block off that choke. That immediately stops Zerg and Protoss players from even harassing since they cant get past those structures without getting killed by the Marines on the other side. This gives the Terran player a chance to get Factory or Starport units relatively quick, without having to worry about a harassment (just be sure to watch for transports and the destructible rocks paths). Once the enemy has died, simply lower your depots and walk through to push forward, pure win.


1 - Did having two different buildings for Dark Templar and High Templar affect the strategy in a negative way?
Not at all. Personally, I don't think you need both available at your disposal, especially for multiplayer; either you want the Dark Templar or the High Templar for use. In the end, both buildings are cheap so it's not an overall issue.

2 - How does the Phoenix fare as an aerial superiority unit? Do you see it gaining more use than the Scout in SC1?
The Phoenix feels more efficient than the Scout, yet a little more vulnerable. However, supplying the battle field with a few Phoenix's will get the job done for most aerial battles. On top of that, its Graviton Beam is amazingly effective for taking out key enemy units. Once the enemy is lifted (it is targeted as an air unit), your other Phoenix's can focus fire it.

3 - Does the Immortals hardened shield ability stop working once their shields are depleted, or until the death of the unit?
It works until the Immortal's shield is depleted to zero. To clear up some confusion, hardened shields is not the Immortals regular shields, they act separately. Hardened shields is just the name of the ability, and all it does is lower damage to 10 if its higher. So you would have to remove the Immortals regular shields, and then its health to kill it.

4 - With the Colossus being considered both in the air and on the ground, does it become a corrupted turret if killed by a Corruptor?
Yes a Colossus can be corrupted of killed by a Corruptor. I believe in one of the SC2 exhibition matches this same exact scenario occurred and the Colossus was corrupted into a stationary turret.

5 - Are the Disruptors force fields limited to a specific size or can they adapt to fit in smaller gaps?
From my experience, the Force Fields can adapt to choke points or any type of complex terrain. They however can not be larger in size compared to the usual state.

6 - What is the phase shift ability on the High Templar? Is it an ability like the old Stasis Field?
No its not like stasis field, its more like banish from WC3. Once cast, the target unit starts glowing blow and gradually fades in and out. While fading it can not be targeted.

7 - In your opinion, was detection too easy to get for Protoss? Observers are very cheap and are produced from one of the main Protoss buildings.
I felt the Observer was too low of a tier, which is made from the Robotics Facility. The Observer requires no building to unlock it like it does in SC1, so you can get it relatively fast, which might be a bit overpowered compared to the other races.

8 - How did Archons feel compared to SC1, are they still the all powerful ground unit for Protoss or did the Immortal take that roll away from them?
The Archon still has the same vibe from SC1. It still is a big bad ball of psionic energy ready to kickass for any type of battle. Both units are pretty situational. The Immortal seems more like a tank that would assault defenses and high damage units, where as the Archon would tank squads of units and air units with its mighty splash damage.

1 - Spore cloud was said to be removed and replaced with an ability that increases damage done to a unit. Is this true?
Yes spore cloud was removed. Although I never actually used the ability, it did affect the damage dealt according to the tooltip.

2 - When you morph an Overlord into an Overseer, do they turn into a cocoon (like when morphing a Guardian or Devourer in SC1), or do they just act like an upgrade?
Cocoon, it looks pretty cool. The Overseer looks different from Overlord, and because of this the cocoon is shaped like an Overseer. Additionally, the same goes for the Brood Lord. It also has a cocoon that has its own specific shape.

3 - When Protoss players mass Stalkers, is there a good counter to them around the same Zerg tier or does the Zerg player have to go deep into T3 to counter T1-2 units again?
It's hard to say at this point. I'm sure there are a few ways to deal with that. I'm sure you will succeed by using mixed unit combos, such as: Zerglings, Banelings and Roaches OR Zerglings, Roaches and Hydras. It's always good to have lots of Zerglings with support of ranged units, it makes blink micro a little harder for your opponent. It all depends on upgrades too, you probably want to be a step ahead of your opponent.

4 - Does the Brood Lords attack spawn Broodlings on every attack or when the target unit dies?
Yes, it automatically spawns 2 Broodlings with each shot, even if the target is a structure. So even if the enemy unit doesn't die, it can be swarmed by 6 Broodlings after 3 shots. It is EXTREMELY deadly if you somehow have 5+ Brood Lords.

5 - How effective is the Queens spawn larva in terms of economy?
They are the most important thing for a Zerg. Queens are a must have at all bases and expansions (at least 1). You want to use the ability every +/-40 seconds (however long it takes larva to come out of the sacks so you can spawn more from that hatchery) OR every time you have 25 energy if you have more than 1 hatch per base. But then you might want to get another queen.

Your queen will almost always have 25 energy by the time you're ready to spawn new larva, unless you use energy for something else (creep tumor for example). Larva is permanent so it's not a bad idea to let it stack up if you don't have the money to build anything at the moment. It is also extremely helpful because it can replace drones that have been used in structures.

The current "MBS" implementation on other races, also applies to larva.

6 - Since Roaches heal only when burrowed, are they much less useful?
To be honest, it's probably something we'll be able to say for sure when beta comes out. Reason is if you're using roaches together with other units... and you burrow your roaches to regenerate, chances are your other units will get destroyed and roaches alone won't able to handle the enemies forces. Basically you have to get your ROACH MICRO to the point where it benefits you, otherwise it will be a disaster. I think it's best used for Hit-and-Run tactics...

Also it might useful when you're just Massing roaches... that way you could kinda use it like stalkers' "blink". Burrow one group of roaches, let them heal while other take heat, then burrow the others and unburrow the first group and so on. The reason it would probably work better than blink (once you master it), is cause when you keep switching units around, their health restores all the way. Stalkers only have rechargeable shields... which means you have to do a lot more blinking.
BUT there's also a downside to burrow regenerate... DETECTORS! Which I think is exactly why roaches can move under ground now. Burrow, flank your opponent while you're healing and other roaches take heat and BAM you got yourself a surround. But yeah. It's a tough question. If you have no clue what you're doing, fast regeneration while burrowed will be useful only outside of combat... you probably won't use it too much in the actual battle.

7 - Does Overlord's transport ability make Nydus Worm unnecessary (especially in middle game)?
Nydus Worm is a very valuable thing to have. Not necessarily as an offensive instrument, but also defensive. It's much easier to protect your expansions if you have worm network going to all of them. I mean if you want to transport a couple of units to an island to establish an expo - be my guest. But if you need heavy reinforcements to one of your distant expo's, you're not going to take your time to load your entire army into overlords... (I mean you'll probably have them spread out all over the place anyway...) So I think that both will have their uses. Worm is for moving LOTS of units instantly (especially if you already have a worm summoned) and overlords are for random unit transports.

8 - Do spore colonies have detection while uprooted and moving, or only when rooted into the ground?
I know both the spine and spore crawlers can move on and off creep but they can only be rooted on creep and can only attack when rooted... because of this, detection only works while they are rooter into the ground.

9 - What is the current state of the Nydus Worm/Canal/Network? As I understood, there were some changes made to them. Are they still in the game and how does it currently work?
Yes its still in the game. You have a load/unload button on your worms which means once your units are in the network you can choose where they exit by selecting the appropriate worm or network and clicking the unload button. If you want to unload specific units from the group you have in the network, I'm sure it works the same as the "Fly-By" drops in SC/BW. You just click on the unit portrait and it will spit that unit out. At this time, the worm requires creep below it to spawn. Additionally, the worm is produced at the network and can be placed anywhere on the creep (no more Overseer).

10 - How is Zerg tier 2 shaping up? How do Banelings fit into midgame strategy now with their nerf? What situation would a Baneling be more useful than the Zergling it was morphed from?
I found banelings pretty useful... Not like destroying-everything-in-their-path useful but they changed the shape of the game for me a few times. Light units don't stand a chance against them (unless they're massed ranged units... aka MARINES) and on top of that it causes the enemy to back up or retreat if they notice Banelings. They work best in flank/surround maneuvers or if set as traps... same ol' Zerg burrow trap. Lure them in (past or on top of burrowed Banelings) and then do as you please... detonate them and obliterate their current squad.

quote walnuts

WHAT!?!?

NO DIABLO 3!?!?!

quote Hell Fire

No question about that. Out of every announced game coming out, I would be most annoyed with SC2 not being released here.

Do we have a reason for Diablo 3?