Creative Zerg Ideas

I thought that a list of the (better) zerg unit/buildings/abilities ideas throughout these forums would be a handy tool for browsers and blizzard designers alike.
The idea is that this topic will list a whole range of ideas that might give Blizzard inspiration! (Like they need it.. ;D)
So summarise any zerg ideas (particularly unit ideas) you thought were good, and join me in creating new ones!

REQUESTS:
*New unit ideas should try to be as creative AND realistic as possible - (You could envision them in the actual game)
*Make unit/abilities descriptions as brief as possible
*Limit criticism (this is not a topic of lengthy discussion, but rather a creative list)



I'll start off:


1 A flying zerg unit that can burrow (Perhaps it can burrow in water?)

2 Zerg units that can 'tunnel' while underground (A millipede/centipede?)

3 Ultralisks that can burrow

4 Defilers that can 'consume' enemy units for energy

5 Zerg 'creep' than can overflow from raised ground to low ground (but not the other way around)

6 Nydus worm that allies can use for quick transport

7 Queens that spawn lava instead of broodlings (the lava can them be mutated into the unit/s you want)

8 A flying zerg unit with a melee attack (That 'slows' or somehow 'ensnares' enemy air units)

9 A zerg building that collects minerals

10 A sunken colony that flings small units like zerglings at enemies (underground, surfing on that long tongue)


Ah..I appologise for that last one

So bring on the creative ideas!

 

Very nice idea's there man! , My idea was that some unit's can morph into one kinda like protosses archon and dark archon warp but they mutate together to make a greater one like 2 or more zergling's into a greater zergling ect and a stealth unit that mutate's over an enemy building and slowy damage's it , the only way to kill it is to shoot the unit and not the building and You can use the same unit to put it on Your building's but it provide's extra shielding and/or regenerate's faster.

 

1 A flying zerg unit that can burrow (Perhaps it can burrow in water?)
Very nice! I always though how BCs would look like when somehow Scourges unburrowed in front of them! lol

2 Zerg units that can 'tunnel' while underground (A millipede/centipede?)
This is a controversial one. But is very creative.

3 Ultralisks that can burrow
Not a good idea, unless you use ijffdrie's idea of burrowing the Ultras by spinning them like a drill, which would also be hilarious.

4 Defilers that can 'consume' enemy units for energy
I tried that suggesting this one before, but perhaps would be too hard to balance. Many chances of being too OP.

5 Zerg 'creep' than can overflow from raised ground to low ground (but not the other way around)
Would ruin the unit's abilities to cross terrain. And overrate the higher grounds.

6 Nydus worm that allies can use for quick transport
I don't know why it wouldn't work, but perhaps Blizzard has a reason to have made Nydus canal only useable by zergs.

7 Queens that spawn lava instead of broodlings (the lava can them be mutated into the unit/s you want)
lava =/= larvae But that aside, it could compensate the drop pods and warping skills that Toss and terran got.

8 A flying zerg unit with a melee attack (That 'slows' or somehow 'ensnares' enemy air units)
Too much alike Devourer.

9 A zerg building that collects minerals
Another controversial one. I rather have one for gas, as gas has a more regular maximum of drones to increase its efficiency. Mineral mining has too many variables to exploit, and I would like it to remain that way.

But assuming there's still an expansion pack to be made in the future, even if they have enough ideas for units tactics as of this moment for SC2, there would still be enough time for expansion ideas. ^_^

EDIT: Fixed!

 

The "flying unit that can burrow" idea is great, I see no reason why it shouldn't, and the animation would be great! And overling, 10 is a joke

 

i was the one of the ultralisk drilling idea, overling


great ideas, especially number 10

 

first of all, welcome to the forums. i'll go through your ideas and give my thoughts on them

1 A flying zerg unit that can burrow (Perhaps it can burrow in water?)
good idea, i don't see why it shouldn't be implemented, the ideal unit would be scourge or a new muta mutation.

2 Zerg units that can 'tunnel' while underground (A millipede/centipede?)
this idea is not new to most people, there has been countless discussions on it, some people insists that would be OP

3 Ultralisks that can burrow
this is similar to number 2, people have suggested this before but the are a lot of disagreements on this

4 Defilers that can 'consume' enemy units for energy
this would so OP it wouldn't be funny, consume was such a good skill that it needed something to offset it to make it balanced, hence you have to sacrifice one of your own units. if you consume a enemy, not only do you one-hit kill the enemy unit, which is a very powerful ability in itself, you also receive the benefits of consume, combining 2 very powerful abilities together and no cost of energy (in fact it actually increase your energy) also consume had no cool down, so with a bit of micro you could consume whole melee army in seconds!

5 Zerg 'creep' than can overflow from raised ground to low ground (but not the other way around)
there has been alot discussions on creep, this is an idea i had suggested before here, there are benefits as well as negatives, the positive is obvious, the negative is the it might gave away a location of your base/secret expansion becuase the creep had overflown to somewhere the opponent could see when they originally couldn't

6 Nydus worm that allies can use for quick transport
at the moment we don't know exactly how nydus worm works, so we'll have to wait for more info before commenting on this one. if it works exactly like hydus canal did then i don't see a problem with it.

7 Queens that spawn lava instead of broodlings (the lava can them be mutated into the unit/s you want)
this is a good idea, broodlings were useless, but i doubt the queen will return with the same abilities, if it returns at all

8 A flying zerg unit with a melee attack (That 'slows' or somehow 'ensnares' enemy air units)
i agree the zergs need a melee flier, a while ago i suggested a zerg terralisk unit that combined melee flier and tunneler in one

9 A zerg building that collects minerals
different mechanics for resource collection for different races is certainly welcome, there has been discussion on it here

10 A sunken colony that flings small units like zerglings at enemies (underground, surfing on that long tongue)
lol

 

erm, wtf, i already read that, can i see into the future?

 

But how about a consume that is required to use the skills, but not recovers energy? This way you could eat enemy units, taking a time to digest (similar to Kodo-beast in WC3), but you won't be able to use the skills unless you do so. One could sacrifice his units for this matter, expending money. However, it could be used as a sort of attack as well, eliminating ground small organic units. The set back would be that the caster doesn't have energy or recovers it over time: it has to eat. And is too frail to be on the front line like a normal unit, acting only as an opportunist. Just throwing in an idea and seeing what happens. ^_^

 

1 A flying zerg unit that can burrow (Perhaps it can burrow in water?)
I really would like this idea

2 Zerg units that can 'tunnel' while underground (A millipede/centipede?)

I would like this too, but people say it would be overpovered

4 Defilers that can 'consume' enemy units for energy

Maybe it should have a loading time. The defiler could spit a web to the enemy and drag the victim to its mouth. And maybe it should only work to small targets. (an ultralisk doesn't fit to defilers mouth.

6 Nydus worm that allies can use for quick transport

Maybe those snobbish protoss (not really) won't go to a beasts mouth.

8 A flying zerg unit with a melee attack (That 'slows' or somehow 'ensnares' enemy air units)
Scourge is enough melee flier to me

 

i would like it if the zergs can regenerate their health a little faster.

 

Well, protoss can regenerate their shields faster when out of battle. I suppose they'll extend the benefit for the zergs, as terrans have medics and Nomads. If they don't get faster regen, at some point the Terran weakness will become a strength.

 

Since zerglings have wings, how about them able to leap? Kind of like Ant Lions in Half-life 2. Hopping over other zerglings or even cliffs. Of course it wouldn't be continuous. Perhaps there would be a cool down and it's autocasted so you don't have a massive group of zerglings jumping at one time.

 

Hopping ant-lions?? Talk about nonsense! lol Ant-lions are supposed to be buried, and trap their preys till they fall on their mouths, nothing really like a lion. For real lions:

http://www.albinoblacksheep.com/flash/kenya

 

Warning: Long Post

ROUND 2:

Thanks for your comments/ideas peoples. Please remember that you can list the good zerg ideas you saw in other topics. Remember the purpose of this topic is to be a kind of contents page to the great ideas out there. (Of course you can add your own! ;D)

Here are some more ideas I thought of (and stole ) :

Overlords
(I got thinking of the name, and how they are supposed to be like commanders of the zerg)

1 Fewer overlords in general, but they are stronger and provide more population (and cost more!)
2 Overlords that can morph into a light tower (perhaps a type of sunken colony?)
3 Overlords as 'healing bays' (You load damaged units into them to make them heal faster)
4 Overlords that slightly improve the HP and attack of nearby units
5 Overlords that can load (pick up) enemy units (Like the transport ships in Total Annihilation)


Banelings
1 Burrowing Banelings (Act like spider mines?) If a unit passes over it, it explodes
2 Banelings that explode when they die. (Note this is different from Infested terran, as there is no explosion if they are killed.
Advantages: Even if the attacking unit destroyed the baneling before it was up close, it might still be damaged by the explosion
Disadvantages: If you had a group of Banelings, one exploding Baneling could trigger the rest! :
3 Banelings that detonate IN Overlords (eg. if the Overlord was destroyed with a baneling inside, it would explode!)

Hydralisk
1 Spit at range, blade slash up close (blades do more damage) -This would mean that if a Hydralisk unburrowed right next to a marine, it would deal more damage

Mutalisk
1 4 missile 'bounces' instead of 3. (1st hit>100%, 2nd hit>75%, 3rd hit>50%, 4th hit>25%)
2 Extra damage vs Buildings?

Guardian/Devourer1 Can morph BACK into a mutalisk (Think of it this way, if the evolution cost time instead of resources, and the mutalisk was slightly more awesome, it could be a strategic 'swapping' option, that keeps players alternating between the 2-3 forms.)

Queen
1 Lays larvae in/on the dead biological body of an enemy. The larvae can then mutate into anything available to you.
(I got this idea by thinking of the mud-wasp)
2 Infest enemy command center or Nexus, but turn it into a Hatchery rather than a Infested Terran factory. (Multiple Queens might be needed for an ability like this)

Ultralisk
1 'Leap' ability that allows it to jump blockades (Maybe this is OP ;D)

Defiler
1 Can plague an area (making the area itself corrosive for a time)
2 Can cast spells from underground (This could be used for any zerg spellcaster)

Creep Colony
1 You choose whether you want it to spread creep or not. (This could mean bases remaining hidden for longer)
2 Can move anywhere within the creep (It's unfortunate that the phase cannons already do this. It makes more sense to me for creep colonies to 'creep' around.)

Sunken Colony
1 Mutates from overlord
2 Sunken colony individual upgrade that makes it permantly burrowed ('sunken' colony)

Other:
1 Spy worm (a burrowed *thing that can't move, and acts simply as a map revealer. Probably an extra, like spidermines)

Hatchery
1 Ring town bell

Ah..yes. Again, the last one was not serious...although...'summon spawn', sounds better


That's me exhausted for now!

 

Overlords

1 Fewer overlords in general, but they are stronger and provide more population (and cost more!)
Has to be checked. However, appearing in higher numbers is somewhat of a defensive strategy for the overlords. Fewer OLs would turn useless the fact that they cost no food.

2 Overlords that can morph into a light tower (perhaps a type of sunken colony?)
No.

3 Overlords as 'healing bays' (You load damaged units into them to make them heal faster)
Perhaps.

4 Overlords that slightly improve the HP and attack of nearby units
No.

5 Overlords that can load (pick up) enemy units (Like the transport ships in Total Annihilation)
No.


Banelings
All the baneling's ideas sound too OP. Perhaps waiting for a new unit is available before trying something new would be best. I mean, we don't even know if that happens already, right?

Hydralisk
1 Spit at range, blade slash up close (blades do more damage) -This would mean that if a Hydralisk unburrowed right next to a marine, it would deal more damage
I have thought about it, and personally I think we need to see how it would work in-game.

Mutalisk
1 4 missile 'bounces' instead of 3. (1st hit>100%, 2nd hit>75%, 3rd hit>50%, 4th hit>25%)
Possible.

2 Extra damage vs Buildings?
Buildings usually have less armor anyway.

Guardian/Devourer1 Can morph BACK into a mutalisk (Think of it this way, if the evolution cost time instead of resources, and the mutalisk was slightly more awesome, it could be a strategic 'swapping' option, that keeps players alternating between the 2-3 forms.)
No idea.

Queen
1 Lays larvae in/on the dead biological body of an enemy. The larvae can then mutate into anything available to you.
(I got this idea by thinking of the mud-wasp)
Possible.

2 Infest enemy command center or Nexus, but turn it into a Hatchery rather than a Infested Terran factory. (Multiple Queens might be needed for an ability like this)
In terms of lore, it doesn't work. Larvae are not infested terrans. And I don't know if there's life inside a Nexus, or if it's just a structure.

Ultralisk
1 'Leap' ability that allows it to jump blockades (Maybe this is OP ;D)
Yeah, maybe.

Defiler
1 Can plague an area (making the area itself corrosive for a time)
I like it better than old Plague. Making a corrosive area could force enemy units into a trap. On the other hand, thinking of a trap they could walk into it without there being any trap. Promising.

2 Can cast spells from underground (This could be used for any zerg spellcaster)
Could be OP, but a nice idea nevertheless.

Creep Colony
1 You choose whether you want it to spread creep or not. (This could mean bases remaining hidden for longer)
2 Can move anywhere within the creep (It's unfortunate that the phase cannons already do this. It makes more sense to me for creep colonies to 'creep' around.)
Creep colonies' locations should be well chosen, creep manipulation would be far too complex. And even tho phase cannons move, Pylons don't. Creep should remain the Zerg limitation of growth.

Sunken Colony
1 Mutates from overlord
2 Sunken colony individual upgrade that makes it permantly burrowed ('sunken' colony)

Don't want this many burrowed zergs. Or do I? All I know is that Overlords shouldn't change into one.

Other:
1 Spy worm (a burrowed *thing that can't move, and acts simply as a map revealer. Probably an extra, like spidermines)
Queen's parasite ability already does this in a better manner.

 

My ideas:

Overlord:
Adrenaline Scent ability: Improves sightly your zerg units attack speed (not stackable, means that is the same bringing 3 overlords for this ability together that bringing one)
Chemical Toxines: When an overlord dies, it explodes in a small (or no-so-small) area dealing some damage (up to determine if only air damage or both). I think it can be very strategically

Queen: Breed Tormentors ability: Kind of replacement of scourge and Spawn Broodling. The queen can cast it to kill an enemy, leaving larvas that mutate (automatically) into a tormentor egg. Queens can collect these eggs, and once inside "her", they spawn into tormentors (with some time to hatch), giving a hangar counter (should have a max cap of 8 or something). Then into air combat, queens can sacrifice themselves to free tormentors that suicides towards enemy ships (like carriers that has suicidal interceptors, lol). Useful to cast ensnare+free tormentors, I think. This ability should increment queen's cost

Ultralisk: This abilities (replacement for the old ones):
Stigian Leg Muscles: Jump cliffs. Enhance Ultra speed. Can cross towards small units.
Spiked Caparace: +2 to Ultra's armor. Any enemy unit close to an Ultra receive some damage.
Enhanced Sinapsis: -1 to Ultra control (supply) needed. Increment Ultra's cost

Defiler: This abilities:
Confusing Toxines: Creates a cloud in an area that any unit (including yours) inside the cloud will act randomly, including attacking allies. 2 charges per defiler

Scorpion Aspect: Mutate into a scorpion. A scorpion is a melee attacker to ground and ranged attacker to air (spits from tail)

That is it...

 

I was talking about the ant lions in Half-Life 2. They do burrow, but they also have wings so they jump around.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SJD1llxxxac

here they are. They DO remind me of the new zerglings a bit.

 

Overlords

Fewer overlords in general, but they are stronger and provide more population (and cost more!)
No. Maybe there should be upgrades that make them to be stronger and provide more population.

Banelings

Banelings that explode when they die. (Note this is different from Infested terran, as there is no explosion if they are killed.
The banelings would die too easily.

Mutalisk
Extra damage vs Buildings?
No. Its weapon is a small creature, and I don't think it likes to bite metal.

Queen
1 Lays larvae in/on the dead biological body of an enemy. The larvae can then mutate into anything available to you.
Maybe it should lay that larva to a living creature and then the larva should wait for the victim to die and then you would get a normal larva to its place.

Defiler
Can plague an area (making the area itself corrosive for a time)
I like this

 

We can actually see a ultralisk unborrow for the trailer of Starcraft ghost

 

The Ultralisk doesn't Unburrow in that trailer, it just charges in with the other Zerg.

First off, Overlords should remain fairly constant. Keep in mind that they don't supply food for the Zerg, but they provide control, like a lesser Cerebrate, which is a lesser Overmind.

Ultralisk should also remain fairly constant. I can't imagine them Burrowing or jumping cliffs. They are just way to big and heavy. What I want to see with the Ultralisk is the ability to pass over small, friendly units, and I also would prefer it has a huge armor or health bonus as opposed to a huge attack bonus. Possibly, the Ultralisk could have a Thorns-like ability, so the more damage is being done to it, then either the faster it attacks, or the more damage it does. After all, if 20 Marines are all shooting at the one Ultralisk, I think that Ultra is going to go extremely aggro extremely fast!

I don't think that the Queen should lay/spawn larvae, because the larvae need to stay on Creep to survive, and there will not always be Creep where you're fighting. My thoughts for the Queen:
I would prefer a variation of Broodling where instead of just making crappy, small, useless, ugly, pointless, smelly, gunned-down-in-0.25seconds Broodling, they should make 2 or 3 Zerglings. Maybe even a new melee unit, similar to the Zergling but is able to dish out a lot of damage quickly, so that even if you Broodling a unit in the middle of an army, it'll be able to at least rip through half a Marine before biting the dust.
Another possibility is to combine Broodling and Parasite. This would also mean that it's able to get another brand new ability. Could it be possible for when the unit is Broodling'd then 3 very fast, very small and fairly well armored (but low health) Parasites are spawned and the immediately run for the 3 closest units, allowing you to see through their eyes. Whatever happens, I would hope to see the Queen or a Queen-like unit return for StarCraft2

Also, Mutalisks should be designed to take out units, not buildings.