New Protoss Shield Mechanic

Well this is somehow old, but I searched for it with no results, so here it is!

Have fun

 

Yeah, I think most of us have talked about it before. Not sure if it had a dedicated thread or not, but yeah. And I think we also saw it in a gameplay video, where a Colossus or something appeared to near-instantly regenerate its shields.

This'll be spectacular for the Archon though. It'll basically be able to go into each consecutive battle at full health.

 

That's true. But the shields didn't really last that long against the zerg in BlizzCon 2008.

 

"It is measured by an X number of seconds in which a unit has not attacked [...]"
That's just weak. Regeneration should have nothing to do with that, only when the unit was attacked. I'm glad I'm more of a Terran supporter now.

The shields have so much potential in them and Blizzard just wastes them as a special Zerg regeneration.

 

Dude, read the next two words. It depends on when the unit was attacked as well.

Also what do you mean by 'wastes them as a special Zerg regeneration'?

 

I've read the next two words, hence the '[...]'. I don't know what you're trying to say with that. I'm saying regeneration should have nothing to do with when the unit has last attacked, only when it was last attacked...

And I mean that literally. Shield batteries is what made shields very distinct from the average Zerg or energy regeneration. It's as if Blizzard drew up the race concepts as one that needs to regenerate all the time and to full hp, one that doesn't regenerate at all, and one that regenerates but not full hp. Oh how elaborate.

 

Oh right, my bad. I was thinking you meant in addition, not exclusively. But yeah, I don't reckon that attacking shouldn't alter it. Just to give an example scenario, a bunch of Mutalisks are attacking a bunch of Phoenixes, but were getting their arses kicked so started to flee. Now, should the Phoenixes, while they're are chasing down the Mutalisks, be able to be regenerating the vast majority of the damage they lost? Or, in another example, if there's a massive melee, in which there are a lot of, say, Archons, and during this time all the units that are attacking an Archon are killed off, should that Archon be able to potentially regenerate the entirety of its health during this break? I certainly don't think so. Attacking should definitely have an effect on shield regeneration.

And I still don't understand what you meant by Blizzard wasting shields as a special Zerg regeneration. They're completely different and if you're just taking it as being different means of regeneration, well that's all it can, and is supposed to be. Regardless, they're very different. Zerg's regeneration and health is just plastic. They have Roaches, which can regenerate more quickly, and maybe a way of healing buildings, though I'm not sure if that's still in it, and that's it. Protoss don't have plastic health or regeneration, they've got things like Immortals and Archons, and ways it can be countered like EMP and plagues. The Protoss' distinction did not come exclusively from Shield Batteries, and basically, the Shield Batteries have just been incorporated out of combat and into the specific units now.

 

By incorporating the shield battery into the units it's obviously made a lot weaker for the sake of balance. It also makes the mechanics very dull because it's automatic just like the Zerg regeneration, only in a different fashion.

In SC the shield battery was something very unique not just because of the separate building but because of the mechanics - there was no other example of being able to heal masses of units instantly. Now the shield battery has been cut because it was deemed useless. By who, might I ask. Because it's one thing that pros never used them but on the other hand when has anyone seen nukes, valkyries, scouts, devourers, etc. in a pro match? Not more often than shield batteries I don't think. True, most of the above mentioned units do not return in SC2 but there are clear equivalents in it, so the roles themselves were not deemed useless. So what makes the shield battery so useless as not to return in any form in SC2? Its absence reduces the number of possible strategies and makes the Protoss Zerg with a twist in the hp department.

 

The Shield batt wasnt only at pro, medium, or noob matches.
Devourers were just sad, but scouts, valks and nukes I've seen. Not really frequently, but I've seen em.

The "equivalents" you talk about are ussually upgraded versions of these units, Blizzard want us to use as many units as we can, otherwise they would've waste a unit slot.
Of course that will depend on the strategy, but the avove units rarely fit on any of em. (maybe some tank/valk strat wouldnt be so awful )

Anyways, Shield Batt was NEVER, and I repeat NEVER used. I've only seen it in Ums maps.

Of course this mechanic has to be balanced, cause if an archon recovers 340 shields in 10 seconds.. well.. But I actually thik it makes sense, in a way you need energy to attack (I think all toss attacks are based of some bluewish thingy). And maybe if you'r recharging your shields you wont have that of a quick reaction, so they also need to not be attacked.

I wonder if this shield mechanic would apply for everything or just units, cause buildings might really benefit from this.

 

I've only seen a handful of pro matches but I've seen shield batteries and scouts, and never devourers or valkyries. And I'm sure there are other units that weren't used that I'm missing right now.

edit: Well of course, the obvious: the ghost. The single most useless unit in competitive play, within reason.

 

lol i think ghost gets more used than devourers XD
But yeah, I do get your point.

 

I like the shield battery...

i would prefer the shield battery maybe mobile over rapid automatic regeneration, it seems more original and as kuvasz separates them from the other races more. If the shield battery was mobile it would be used more often maybe with the (former?) protoss ability to transfer energy between spellcasters.

 

Just because the Protoss' shield regeneration is automatic, it doesn't mean it they're wasted as a special Zerg mechanic. In StarCraft1 they regenerated automatically anyway, and it was only that the Shield Battery could make it faster, and I agree that it was very rarely used. But seriously, how does this one, unused, building's removal instantly make the Protoss' shield mechanics very dull? Especially when it's basically still been incorporated, making Protoss regeneration more different to what it was and how it was used in StarCraft1, and when other units like the Immortal have been introduced, as well as still having things like the Archon and EMP returning from StarCraft1. There's no Zerg equivalent of anything like that.

Also, you're forgetting about Medics and SCV's. There are other very definite and much more effective methods of being able to heal masses of units. The thing that makes it useless is most likely that it's just so static. You're seldom fighting in an idealistic location to make use of it. Even if you're defending, and your opponent did not have EMP, it just runs out far too quickly and is hardly worth the cost or effort. If it didn't run out as quickly and was worth definitely it, then the Protoss would basically be overwhelming when defending, because not only would the Protoss have the strongest individual units at its disposal, but they could constantly be healed. Then if they did have EMP, then everything would just go down the drain. Basically, when defending it's far too iffy. If it's not worth it, then it won't be looked at. If it is, then it can be exploited. When attacking, it's perfectly useless, because it's stuck back in your base. So the only time it would really seem workable would be when recovering between fights, which is where their current shield regeneration comes into play.

 

I agree wtih you ItzaHexGor. Because the shield battery was stuck at your base. That's not very helpful in a attack. Plus it uses a ton of energy to heal one unit. Now the protoss shields have been upgraded. Which is helpful seeing how they have no hp reg. So the new shield system has alightly been balanced, and is very helpful. Bring in a moblie shield battery forces rebalancement, and it would be a target just like the plyon. The balancement would force the release date back. Do you really what the release date to go back, and have it, or use the new better system, and have it earlier?

 

On top of that, if there was a mobile Shield Battery, it would be just like the Terran Medivac.

 

SCVs and medics are nowhere near the batteries' efficiency. You can get 2 SCVs or 2 medics for the cost of a battery and they need to be micromanaged, can die easier, heal slower, and use up resources (not to mention having to tech to medics). Terran and Protoss healing can't be compared at all, especially not efficiency-wise where the battery clearly has an advantage.

The fact the battery was rarely used has little to do with it being static. Nukes are quite mobile and they are never used. Hell, ghosts are never used either. So why cut the battery but keep the damned ghost? This is what annoys me. And also the fact that Protoss were never reckless and were all about keeping their elders and more experienced members alive, and then 4 years later they don't care about any form of repair is ridiculous.

 

@kuvasz: In SC the shield battery was something very unique not just because of the separate building but because of the mechanics - there was no other example of being able to heal masses of units instantly. Now the shield battery has been cut because it was deemed useless. By who, might I ask. Because it's one thing that pros never used them but on the other hand when has anyone seen nukes, valkyries, scouts, devourers, etc. in a pro match? Not more often than shield batteries I don't think.

@ Me: Shield batteries weren't exciting for a lot of people. It's probably because you couldn't take them from your base, and to use them, you had to pull units out of combat, even if only for a little bit. Blizzard even beefed them up in Brood War, to little effect. (Moon wells were a lot stronger in Warcraft III, and could even be autocast, but apparently weren't that popular either. They had to be beefed up in the Frozen Throne.)

With the exception of the nuke, those other units were kind of boring. (The devourer could have been interesting, but it was just too expensive and weak. It could have used a bigger splash area.)

 

I haven't seen Valkyries, but I remember Boxer's EPIC nuke rushes with EMP.

Ghost USED to be popular, specifically for Lockdown and Nuke. Lockdown OWNS Battlecruisers and Carriers, and that ONE Dropship/Shuttle which was just used to outmicro your ENTIRE army.

The shield should be because that the unit needs its power to recharge its shields rather than attacking.

 

moonwells were the supply of moon elves.. you HAD to build lots and lots of em :O

 

True. The auto-cast meant that if your units ran home after a battle they tended to get used anyway. However, they were pretty useless out in the field. (Contrast to, say, medics, which were always where you wanted them.)