Tuesday, September 16, 2008

Game Cover of the Month: Starcraft 2 - Terrans

What do Terrans made of?

The terrans are relative newcomers to the Koprulu sector. They are the descendents of a disastrous colonization expedition launched from Earth centuries ago, its human cargo made up of dissidents and malcontents the government deemed expendable. The survivors of the expedition established three colonies that became the basis for the major power blocs in terran space: the Confederacy, the Kel-Morian Combine, and the Umojan Protectorate. The corrupt Confederacy was overthrown by terrorist and revolutionary Arcturus Mengsk during the chaos of the zerg invasion. Now the Terran Dominion has emerged from the ashes of the old Confederacy as the dominant power, ruled by none other than Emperor Arcturus I.

Terran Units:

Marine
Trains From: Barracks
Armament: 8mm C-14 Impaler Gauss Rifle
Role: General-purpose Infantry
marines are the first line of defense for most terran worlds in the Koprulu sector. In the time of the old Confederacy the vast majority of marines were criminals or rebels who had undergone mandatory neural resocialization. Freed from any previous allegiances or ideologies, these fearless soldiers stood ready to defend Confederate interests with their lives.The intake of "resoc" marines has been scaled back in many places since the fall of the Confederacy.

Reaper
Trains From: Barracks
Armament: P-45 Scythe Gauss Pistols, D-8 Charges
Role: Raider
Reapers are the most hardened terran criminals, taken from the most dangerous and violent prisons. Potential marines who prove too intractable even after resocialization are instead sent to the "Icehouse" in the Torus system, where reapers are trained. Reaper troopers are chemically altered to make them even more aggressive before being subjected to weeks of brutal training in close-quarters combat and the use of their jet packs.

Ghost
Trains From: Barracks
Armament: 25mm C-10 Canister Rifle
Role: Stealth Sniper
Ghosts epitomize the height of terran evolution and physical conditioning. Born with incredible psionic potential, these individuals are recruited and quarantined for government training from childhood.Ghosts channel their psionic energies to augment their natural physical strength and endurance. This process is enhanced by specialized skin-suits worn by ghosts that are laced with a form of psi-sensitive artificial muscle fiber.

Viking
Builds From: Factory
Armament: Twin Gatling Cannon (assault mode), MT50 Lanzer Torpedoes (fighter mode)
Role: Air Combat/Ground Support
The Brood War revealed critical weaknesses in terran anti-air capability. The new Wraith combat fighters and Valkyrie missile frigates proved to be an unwieldy combination against agile zerg airborne organisms.Ground-based anti-air support from goliath assault walkers was too limited in its mobility: all too often airborne attackers would simply move out of the goliath's range and find less well-defended targets to destroy.

Banhsee
Builds From: Starport
Armament: Backlash Cluster Rockets
Role: Tactical Strike Aircraft
Many experiments with dedicated air-to-ground attack have been undertaken by the terrans. Various dead-end approaches were tried and then discarded: ordnance packages for dropships, remote semi-autonomous drones, and airborne artillery platforms, to name but a few.Such continual compromises eventually led to retrofitting variants of the Wraith space superiority fighter with a belly-mounted burst laser to fulfill the role in the short term.

Thor
Built By: SCV
Armament: "Thor's Hammer" Particle Accelerators, 250mm Bombardment Cannon
Role: Ultimate Heavy-assault Mech
The Thor project has been shrouded in mystery since its very beginning. Agents of the Umojan Protectorate were the first to uncover a trail of clues that the Terran Dominion was intent on creating some kind of new terror weapon. The Umojans' curiosity was aroused when they heard rumors that the huge Simonson munitions facility on Korhal IV had been placed under a complete security lockdown by Dominion forces.

Battle Cruiser
Builds From: Starport
Armament: Laser Batteries, Yamato Cannon, Plasma Torpedoes
Role: Capital Ship
These massive, heavily armored combat ships are virtual flying fortresses, built to keep the peace and dominate the space lanes of the Koprulu sector. Outfitted with bristling laser batteries and thick neosteel armor, these imposing vessels are among the most powerful to be found in terran space.Many commanders use battlecruisers as their command vessels during extended campaigns.

Nomad
Builds From: Starport
Armament: None
Role: Battlefield Support/Construction
The TF-620 nomad is an all-around workhorse that combines the functions of light manufacturing center and observation post rolled into one. A common sight among the fringe-world colonies, the nomad is a robust, air-mobile vehicle built to operate independently in all but the harshest climates.Although the nomad shares a number of common traits with its smaller cousin, the SCV, the nomad is a far more specialized and advanced engineering craft.

Siege Tank
Builds From: Factory
Armament: Twin 90mm Cannons (assault mode)
120mm Shock Cannon (siege mode)
Role: Armored Support and Mobile Artillery
The Crucio is the Dominion update of the immensely popular but aging Arclite siege tank. The Arclite was renowned throughout the Confederacy for its devastating firepower and stalwart emplacement/advance tactics. Originally designed to serve as a "final defense" security cannon, the siege tank adopted a two-stage configuration in its final form: a mobile assault mode and a deployed siege mode that brought its massive shock cannon to bear.

Forced to adapt to the harsh existence on the mostly lifeless worlds of the sector, the terrans are masters of survival. With neither the advanced technology of the protoss nor the natural prowess of the zerg to rely on, the terran military forces consist of a varied mix of units. From basic but effective infantry like the marines to heavily armed battlecruisers, terran units rely on solid armor, plentiful firepower, and strength in numbers to hold the line. Terrans excel in defensive situations where their bunkers and siege tanks really shine.

The Official Website: http://starcraft2.com

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