Terran Jackal

I would be willing to bet that the Jackal looks like/is the Cobra.

 

That was what I thought when I heard they had railguns. The Jackal sounds like it'll be good against lightly armored targets and less powerful than the Cobra against heavily armored targets.

 

Yea the Jackal IS an updated Cobra. A vulture-like unit that fires two rail guns...thats exactly what the Cobra was, except this unit (The Jackal) sounds like an anti infantry unit, whereas the Cobra sounds it like it was a counter to heavy units.

 

i hope the jackal is as speedy as the vulture, it was nice to run by defenses without losing too many guys, and now because of the linear damage, the jackal is even better at killing workers and early melee units, with the exception of the zealot.

 

no i think it would look different.
i head that alot of people didnt like the design of the cobra. maybe it will look like a "hovering" vulture with no wheels and have the guns above, near the cockpit.
=]

 

were any pictures released of the cobra before it was cut.
everybody seems to know what it looks like except me

 

^
ahh hey watch the terran playthrough faction. they show the cobra near the end killing a thor =]

 

The Cobra

[img width=500 height=501]http://www.blizzplanet.com/content/starcraft2/images/terran-units/cobra.jpg[/img]

 

I absolutely loath this unit. So far, it has just added to the already extremely cramped Anti-Ground side of the Terran army, not to mention, it led to the removal of the Banshee's (my favorite Terran unit so far) area of effect attack.
Terran already have the Reaper for an extremely maneuverable ground unit. It can offer some light support fire, take out weaker units effectively and detonate any light structures. Reapers are the perfect ground raiders. Terran also have the Marauder for some Ground-to-Ground area of effect damage. It also gets a bonus against vehicles and a snare against biological units. Marauders provide great support fire. They're exceptional against vehicles and keep the enemy at a distance. Vikings, although being able to hit air, have a damage bonus against infantry. They're great for Anti-Infantry support fire. The Siege Tank has now been buffed, giving it a greater Anti-Ground attack when in Tank Mode, not to mention getting a damage bonus against armored targets in both Tank and Siege Mode. The Tank provides backup Anti-Ground firepower in Tank Mode and is a potent Anti-Armor artillery in Siege Mode. The Banshee was an exclusive Air-to-Ground attacker. With Cloak and a powerful ground attack, it was great for raids as well as air support. It was powerful against both clustered targets and large targets. The Thor, although still debatable, has the Bombardment ability which is able to obliterate anything quickly from a distance. Its normal attack hasn't been confirmed yet.
In summary. Terran had the following; Reapers for raiding and flanking, Marauders for Anti-Armored and kiting, Vikings for Anti-Infantry, Siege Tank for backup Anti-Armored, Banshees for raiding and air support and Thor for Anti-Base.
Now, not only have they introduced yet another Ground-to-Ground unit, but it has a penetrating, Anti-Infantry type attack that has replaced the Banshees area of effect attack. The Banshee will now definitely not be as effective as it used to be, ruining the Terran's Air-to-Ground support. The Terran already had plenty of Ground-to-Ground fighters, and now they've got yet another, which ruins the Air-to-Ground fighter's attack. Terran had the whole field covered when it came to Anti-Ground so why add another unit that messes other things up? The Banshee is now basically a cheap Battlecruiser without an air attack. It was so much more before, where they demonstrated how effective they were against clumped units. What makes them so special now? It was my favorite Terran unit, but there isn't really anything to like about them any more.
After the Marauder was announced, I thought that it was OK, but pushing the Anti-Ground a bit. They already had plenty, but the Marauder did still have some mechanics that were unique to it, being the snare effect, but otherwise it was pretty much covered by the Siege Tank. Anyway, I thought that it was alright, and that the remaining Factory unit would be designed for Ground-to-Air and the remaining StarPort unit would be designed for Air-to-Air. That way those two units would offer the Anti-Air support that the Terran really need.
Now that the Factory unit has been made into another Ground-to-Ground unit, it puts a heck of a lot of pressure on them to get the new StarPort unit correct. It would have to be the absolute ultimate Air-to-Air fighter if Terran's Anti-Air is going to come close to being as effective as their Anti-Ground.
I do have faith that the Terran will end up being a well rounded team, but it's not going to happen this way. They need to start by fixing up the problems with Terran's overly cramped Anti-Ground support first. Many units overlap, and the ones that don't overlap are suffering for it.
I don't mean to flame, but as you can see, Terran already had a functional Anti-Ground force. I realize that some things might need to be tweaked for it to be properly balanced, but introducing new units with new mechanics is just adding to the list of things to be balanced.
/rant

EDIT: It just occurred to me that the Banshee might still have its multiple attacks, except now each missile will hit a different target. They'd still be attacking several units at once, but wouldn't have an area of effect attack. If this is how the Banshee has been changed, then I guess it cancels out a lot of my rant about the Banshee, but I'm still opposed to yet another Ground-to-Ground unit with a highly dependable attacking mechanic.

 

I hope it will get a speed upgrade like the vulture!

 

I'm loving the Jackal's firing.

I can't wait!

 

this will help the terran alot this new unit will be good surrport for marines and meds cause lets face it the only reason you got vultures was lay a mine defense at your choke points but with this while your marines and nedics are fighting another group the jackles will flank the enemy and kill them utterly

 

aye this really develops more micro into the game.

 

Karune about the jackal:
[size=12pt]

EDIT: create a poll!
How do you find the jackal or sth

 

You guys are all about the polls nowadays!

By the way Proxy, I posted a link to my post containing that information on the first page of this thread.

 

I will make a poll when we see it in action.

I am wondering now tho, will this mean the Lurker will be cut.

 

I loved how the Cobra's railgun ripped Marines open in a bloody mess, similar to the railgun in the Quake series. I like the concept behind the Jackal, although I wish they'd use another name.. 'Manticore' or something.

 

He mentioned that it does not work like the lurker, so the mechanics are not purely the same. Perhaps his metionings are also a hint that the lurker is in?

 

Possibly, but I'd say it is similar if not better (depending on damage) to the Lurker's attack since the Jackal can move and it hits instantly. Also they might not want two units with a similar attack.

 

ItzaHexGor brings up some good points about Terran anti-ground. Still, I'd like to see the Jackal in action before discounting it.