Hope everyone had a great weekend! For this batch, I'm pleased to announce the introduction of the Map Maker Series of Q&As, which will be mixed in periodically with our traditional batches of Q&As, to give map makers the 'heads up' on our powerful Map Editor for StarCraft II. I know many of you have great plans for mods and maps for StarCraft II, so I can't wait to tell you more about the program you'll be using.

Answering questions, we have Brett Wood, our StarCraft II Senior Software Engineer, but better known as our 'Superfly Father of ScumEdit Programmer by Day Ninja by Night.'

As always, feel free to give the Devs and I a w00t if your enjoying these Q&As!

---StarCraft II Q&A Batch 18: Map Maker Series---

1) Will doodad placement values increase? (ie, more than 256)

[Brett Wood] We expect the doodad placement value will be on the same order as Warcraft III, which I believe was something like 10,000, so definitely way more than 256.


2) Will the number of available locations/triggers increase? The current limit on locations really cramps some ideas.

[Brett Wood] Any limits on both regions and triggers will be at least in the thousands.


3) Will the new map editor include ALL the triggers in the program unlike Staredit?

[Brett Wood] Yes, even moreso than Warcraft IIIs WorldEdit. Weve been making a point of ensuring that ALL script functionality is also exposed in the Trigger Editor UI.


4) Will max unit limits increase? The current unit limit on maps is quite a crimper, and nobody likes CCMU (cannot create more units).

[Brett Wood] I dont recall the exact unit limit in the original StarCraft, but the StarCraft II limit will likely be a healthy boost over the limit in Warcraft III. The exact value hasnt been nailed down yet and will depend on optimizations near the end of the project (i.e. shortly before release).


5) Will the new map editor include unused units such as the crashed scouts, turrets, eggs, nukes, scarabs, crash command center, etc? Third party programs were needed to use these.

[Brett Wood] All units defined in the data files will be usable in the editor. I believe this was true in Warcraft III as well.

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wei, what are the system requirements for this game?

I hope everyone enjoyed our last batch of Q&As about Map Making, which is just the beginning of a series. This batch, we have a new set of exciting community questions about StarCraft II as well as reasonings to why Devs make the decisions they do. In addition, we also have a mini chat with devs about all the new changes that they are continuing to experiment with.

I also want to wish everyone a safe and happy Halloween!

Chat with Devs: Since the Terran Cobra took over the Protoss Stasis Orbs slowing attack, the Protoss Orb got a few new abilities including the Force Field ability. This will be very interesting for early team games, as you can use a force field on a choke point to keep an opponent's teammate from arriving to help their allies. The Devs are testing out various abilities on different units as you can see, and even the Templar has received its classic Hallucination ability back.

As always, feel free to give the Devs and I a w00t if your enjoying these Q&As!

---StarCraft II Q&A - Batch 19---

1. Will the Protoss be getting any mechanism for healing their units or repairing their buildings?

There are no plans to give the Protoss any healing abilities, especially since their shield regeneration rate when out of combat, is more than twice the rate of the original StarCraft.

2. With the new physics engine, can explosions affect surroundings? (like hurt or push units, destroy doodads, etc ) (sc2blog.com)

Explosions will not be able to push units, but they can destroy doodads. In fact, destroying certain doodads will be vital on certain maps, to get access to expansions or other strategic locations. Furthermore, explosions will not be able to push units because it would affect gameplay and balance negatively, in having units be knocked off cliffs, be stuck in unplanned locations, or ultimately have units disoriented where the player cannot control them.

3. How long does a unit typically take to make from concept to playable unit?

With a finished concept piece, it could take from a few days to a few months, to create it for the game. Much of this time depends on the priority of the unit amongst other development goals, as well as the iterations necessary to perfect the unit. The Zerg Baneling is an example of a unit that took only a few days to complete after the concept, whereas the Protoss Stalker has gone through several iterations, and has taken 4-5 months.

4. Are the units on the official site finalized, or is everything still up for grabs at this point? (gamereplays.org)

We are still heavily in the development phase of StarCraft II, thus none of the units on the website are 100% final. We are also still testing out several new units, abilities, and mechanics, to create the most fluid StarCraft II experience.

5. What do the Protoss eat? (where do they get energy and mass?) (starcraftcz.com)

Protoss gain nutrition from sunlight, or at a pinch, moonlight (which is just reflected sunlight anyway) by absorbing through their skins. They can go for extended periods without absorbing sunlight. What little moisture they need is also absorbed through their skin.


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Originally Posted by Karune
Wow, we're already at our 20th Batch of Community Q&As! I've got to say, the questions from the community are becoming better and better as we move along. Nonetheless, I want to remind everyone to ask your StarCraft II questions on this thread:
http://www.battle.net/forums/thread....&p=1&#post9620

The Devs and I are all reading and we love answering community questions. Every week there are always exciting new changes we want to share with everyone. Granted, many of the changes may not stay in the game very long, but the process of game development is a constant cycle of brainstorm, revision, and much testing, to ultimately make all the gaming components flow together for one awesome overall experience.

Chat with Devs: Terran Ghosts are currently being tested as an effective Tier 1.5 unit, capable of sniping down high profile enemy targets, have an increased attack damage towards light armored units, as well as an upgradable EMP against Protoss and energy using threats. If that isnt enough, these highly advanced Terran soldiers at higher techs can also be equipped with a personal cloak ability, and launch drop pod reinforcements, as well as call down a massive nuclear strike. The StarCraft II Ghost will surely be bringing a whole new meaning to "You call down the thunder and I'll reap the whirlwind." Of course, I should mention, all of this is subject to change.

As always, feel free to give the Devs and I a w00t if your enjoying these Q&As!

---StarCraft II Q&A - Batch 20---

1. Will it be possible to give more fluid and realistic movements to small aircraft with proper banking and turning rather than just abrupt sprite-style direction changes?

We are currently in the process of implementing banking animations for flying units, but playability always comes first. If the animations affect playability negatively, it could get cut.

2. With the Reavers no longer in the game, will the Protoss have any units capable of performing brutal worker raids? (Starcraftlive.net)

The Colossus is an excellent choice for worker raids, since it is able to attack from higher elevations, and can be transported by the Phase Prism. In addition, we are exploring some ideas for the Twilight Archon that would allow him to make devastating attacks on enemy workers.

3. Will there be a escort ship for Battlecrusier because Protoss have like many kinds of capital ships?

With the Predator unit cut, the Viking is now the primary Terran air to air fighter. In addition, the Viking no longer requires an upgrade to transform between a ground and air unit and is also built directly from the Starport rather than the Factory.

4. Will there be units who can trample opponents (such as an Ultralisk)? (gamereplays.org)

Currently, there are no units that trample, but have discussed this idea as a possibility. Nonetheless, we also hit the dilemma of having a trample unit that is able to destroy enemy unit assets far beyond its own cost of the trample unit, with relatively little micro.

5. Will siege tanks be able to shoot at targets in the fog of war picked up by sensor towers, but not yet confirmed by visual sighting?

No. Siege Tanks will only be able to hit targets within visual range. In addition, Siege Tanks firing from the fog of war, such as on an unseen cliff, will not reveal its location from the fog of war to its enemy, thus will not be able to be return fired upon.

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My estimation would be summer 2008..

As Spring will be to rush and Auttum will be to long.. You have to remember SC2 is using kinda old engine concept. So if they take to long for the game it might get trample by the Newwer RTS..

Well but then again.. Koreans doesnt follow the western mindset.. So who knows.. As long Bliizard get every Korean to buy SC2 , They already made a profit.

yay more news and less trolling..

seems like it will take like more than half year before releasing

How do u get to know him is he SC or W3?

Actually, the Colossus to literally vaporize units with less than 50 Hit Points, in a second. Currently, their Twin Thermal Lance beams do 144 damage at a 'Fast' Attack Speed, and devs are also experimenting with possible AoE (Area of Effect) characteristics to the attack. Nonetheless, the Colossus will still be very vulnerable to air units. Though it is also important to note, that Beams are not instant damage, and are still undergoing much QA as well.

Yes the Colossus's beam attack does sweep from unit killed to the next closest unit automatically, while also damaging units between those two points.

Anything with a higher armor rating will of course mitigate some of the Colossus's damage. I just did a test right now, and a single Colossus took approximately 35 seconds to kill a Nexus, and 7 seconds to kill a Phase Cannon, thus buildings are still quite formidable in holding off these robotic beasts.
And on Thor...

The Thor that was seen in the Terran Gameplay Video is in no way balanced. It is unlikely for the Thor to take out a whole Command Center in one artillery barrage.

Of all the original StarCraft units brought back to StarCraft II, the Terran Ghost has undergone some of the most changes. The Terran Ghost wields new abilities such as Snipe and the upgradable EMP burst and cloak ability. Furthermore, the Ghost is also able to call down Drop Pods in addition to their classic Nuclear Launch ability. In addition, the Terran Ghost can be built early game, in a Barracks with a tech lab and a Shadow Ops as a prerequisite building, making it a Tier 1.5 unit.

These changes have brought about much innovation to the gameplay for StarCraft II and we encourage the community to add their feedback to these changes!

Here are the Ghosts stats in the current build of StarCraft II (Not Final):

Mineral Cost: 100
Vespene Gas Cost: 100
Supply Cost: 2

Hit Points: 100
Max Energy: 200 (Starts with 50)
Armor: Light
Weapon Damage: 5 (+30 vs Light)
Range: 10
Weapon Speed: Normal

Ability Costs:
Snipe: 25 Energy (Does 50 damage vs. Biological unit + 100 vs. Light Armor and can be used while cloaked)
EMP: 100 Energy (Depletes energy and shields of enemy units within the area of effect)
Cloak: 25 Energy (initial) and 1 Energy/Second while Cloaked

If you have a StarCraft II fan site and would like to participate, please email me at Karune@blizzard.com.

Battle.net Questions for Fans:

* Do you like the new StarCraft II Ghost?
* Will the new Ghost change your strategy?
* How would you utilize the Ghost?

* Additional Feedback you would like to give?

Each StarCraft II fansite will be featuring different types of questions, so be sure to also visit those sites. All of this feedback will be compiled and sent to the dev team and I.

Please structure feedback as follows:

-----

<question you'd like to answer>
<your answer>

<question you'd like to answer>
<your answer>

-----

Looking forward to some great discussions about the new Terran Ghost unit!

[ post edited by Karune ]

still no release date?
ok
*goes back to sleep*

As a rule of thumb, actual release date = official release date + 2 months

Screenshot 1: Protoss vs Terran battle, including some Firebats, destructible rocks and the new Nomad turret ability.
Screenshot 2: Protoss vs Protoss battle, with High Templar going crazy and the return of the huge green spiky doodad from the announcement gameplay video.
Screenshot 3: a great looking posed shot of a Thor surrounded by some Vikings, Marines and an SCV.

Here's a link to the source. As far as I can tell, it's a Korean gaming news website. I don't know exactly what the article says, since I don't read Korean, but it looks like a generic sort of "here is some new info" article.

Karune has been answering some questions about these screenshots on the Battle.Net forums. HereHere is a link to the thread.