Graphics, Kulas Ravine, and Unit Roles in Battle Report One

The month of December began with a lack of useful Starcraft 2 news but has developed into an informative month with the recent release of Q/A batch 47 and the first ‘Battle Report’. The Q/A batch highlighted the relatively obscure topics of air unit micro, Zerg cannibalism, and Zerg cliff-climbing while the Battle Report has given the fan community plenty to talk about in regards to the unit pathing, mapping, racial game balance, build orders, user interface, etc. I think the most important developments evolved out of the Battle Report: aesthetics, map layouts, and unit roles.

To begin, the game and the user interface appear polished. The brightly animated units, buildings, and terrain from earlier developmental stages have been replaced with more muted versions. While most of the Protoss buildings have an impressive gold and blue theme, some buildings, such as the Assimilator with its green gaseous glow, have unique color schemes that match their role. Likewise, Protoss units maintain the gold theme with certain units, such as the Probe while carrying minerals, having special effects that emphasize their tasks. In the Terran base, the buildings and units have a ‘gritty’ feel that matches perfectly with the common perception of the Terran race. These unassuming buildings maintain their presence with long shadows and clear player colors. The Terran construction animations are clever and provide contrast to the simple blue glow of the Protoss’ warp construction. Similarly, the detailed yet reserved nature of the tileset emphasizes and provides great contrast to the active units and buildings.

As for the user interface, it obscures only 30% of the wide-angle screen but provides efficient and complete tools for the player. Unit animations embedded in the UI have incredible detail and are a huge improvement from the frankly hideous animations of the original Starcraft and Warcraft 3. There does seem to be a large amount of blank black space at the bottom of the UI but I assume this provides space for unlimited unit selection. Overall, the game and the user interface look great.

The map used in the first Battle Report is called Kulas Ravine and is aptly named because it channels the players to a central crossroads where the majority of the skirmishing must take place. Within this central area, there are two Xel’Naga Watch Towers which allow the controlling player to see more of the map and provide protected high ground for ranged units to rain damage on approaching enemy units. As for minerals, the map provides both protected and exposed expansions - the protected deposits have destroyable rocks blocking both entrances while the exposed locations can be directly attacked. The protected expansions provide an advantage to the Terran player who can fly a Command Center up to the minerals and can, as was shown in the Battle Report, operate for a long time without being detected. Overall I think Kulas Ravine was well designed but I wish the players had utilized the high-yield minerals; an aggressive player could make a forward base at the high-yield minerals and avoid the pressure cooker in the middle of the map between the two Xel’Naga Watch Towers. Such a base would provide massive amounts of minerals and would act as a staging ground for unique assaults as opposed to the generic battles that occurred in the diagonal path between the two home bases. But the map itself is well-designed, balanced, and is constructed in such a way that demands continual interaction between opposing players.

With regards to unit roles, there were a few surprises in the first Battle Report. According to the Starcraft 2 information available prior to the match, it was not expected for a Terran player to be able to win a twenty minute game with Marauders, Hellions, and Banshees. This expectation was demolished with the continual and powerful flow of these units to all fronts of the battle. The Marauders provided slowing, anti-Armor damage while the Hellions utilized their speed and their anti-Light damage to rip apart the Protoss’ expansion probes. Later in the game the invisible Banshee rained hell upon the Protoss ground forces and proved to be a menace for expansions and Colossi alike. Another surprise involved Marines - they weren’t involved at all despite the perception that they are integral to the early Terran fighting force.

On the Protoss side of the battle, the Colossus appeared incredibly weak while the Zealots were simply amazing. Although the Colossus was useful in climbing the cliff to the Terran expansion, it could not deal enough damage on its own and it fell quickly to enemy forces. Perhaps Karune’s assertion is correct that three Colossi are needed to be powerful…or maybe it’s a unit that needs more work. As for the Zealots, their Charge ability was powerful and they could swarm SCVs and Marauders alike to inflict serious damage. The Stalker was also quite useful for the Protoss player but he did not have Blink, the eagerly awaited micro-enticing ability.

In conclusion, the units, buildings, terrain, and user interface visible in the first Battle Report appear to emphasize the most important aspects of the game with style and provide un-convoluted information to the player. The map layout of Kulas Ravine is powerful and promotes player interaction but was not used to its full potential. The unit roles of the units utilized in this match appear to be solidified with the exception of the Colossus which appears ungainly and frankly quite useless (at least when used in such small numbers). I and the rest of Starcraft 2 community eagerly await the next edition of the Battle Report.

http://communitystarcraft.com/blog/graphics-kulas-ravine-and-unit-roles-in-battle-report-one.php