Match 9: He's Doin To Is - 3-Way Terran OP?
Well, it's that time again, folks. Rusty Russellson here to bring you coverage of the ninth match of the Russell Cup Invitational Season 2, recently released by tournament organizer(s) for public view.
Fans are describing the match as Epic, Random, and Full of Win after the intense tussle (excuse the language) between the Alpha Squadron Boys (aka Team Edward) and the alphabetical anomaly Hambotrglon left their battleground (whatever the map was) shattered, irradiated and devoid of any usable resources in true Russell Cup fashion.
From the spectators' viewpoint in a remote outpost behind the Alpha Squadron Boys' camp, fans were privy to a rare level of insight as Brewdwarf and Gamblor broadcast their strategy in allied chat. From their transmissions, it appeared the match would be a quick all-in as both agreed to simultaneously attempt a Russell Cup classic: the Planetary Fortress Rush. This team-oriented twist on an old strategy astounded fans, who could only sit and wonder how opponents would fend off not one (1) planetary fortress, but two (2) at the same time!
The entity known as Hambotrglon is not one to take lightly, and Jimbotron and Hamburglar would show everyone How It Is Done as they demonstrated true mastery of the game's Core principles.
Jimbotron properly scouts Brewdwarf's proxy attempt and shuts it down before the Alpha Squadron Boy(s) can dig in and fortify the position, setting up an effective "no cheese zone".
Yet unbeknownst to the Alpha Squadron Boys (likely due to scouting some describe as "just sloppy"), Jimbotron had also been preparing a surprise planetary fortress rush of his own. Shocking!
"he's doin to is" -Brewdwarf spots Jimbotron's surprise planetary fortress rush just as it enters his base!
The unexpected triple planetary fortress opening spoke volumes about the current Terran metagame and the supposed legitimacy of non-planetary openings and non-planetary fortress-centered play in general. With the match's release to the general public, many are expecting Planetary Fortress rush openings to become the new standard in many, if not all Starcraft II (2) circles. The lack of comparable structures in the Protoss or Zerg arsenal has raised questions and complaints from many non-Terran players and has given rise to the popular new expression "Terran OP", which supposedly stands as a warning for "Terran Opening Planetary".
"Heck yeah, Terran are the strongest race. Whenever I play on Battle.net now everyone is always shouting 'Terran OP, Terran OP', and of course yeah every Terran now goes OP even if Zerg and Protoss call us on it. It's kind of almost overpowered compared to other non-OP Terran openings." -A fan voices his thoughts on the recent Terran Opening Planetary expression used in lesser-known Starcraft II circles.
A successful landing of Jimbotron's command center would have been a devastating blow to Team Edward, whom many felt lacked the forces to prevent a grounded command center from converting to the mighty Planetary Fortress in time. Luckily, the attempt proved unsuccessful as available real estate was already occupied by local land baron Gamblor.
Unable to establish a foothold inside Team Edward's base, Hambotrglon demonstrates mastery of yet another core principle: Control the center. With control of such an unassailable position, Jimbotron and Hamburglar were in firm control of the attack.
Not one to be deterred, Brewdwarf continued to send SCVs through roundabout side ramps and dangerous gulleys in an attempt to surprise Hambotrglon with a Planetary Fortress Behind Enemy Lines. Constructing the Command Centers would prove to be a challenge and despite Brewdwarf's attempts to conceal his unfinished buildings, Hamburglar always seemed to have an overlord in just the right place. And where there is an overlord, there is usually a pack of acid-spewing roaches not far away.
After a series of failed attempts, Brewdwarf would eventually be successful in constructing a Command Center - the stage was set - but landing it proved to be difficult. Hamburglar's Zerg had eyes everywhere and was ready at every turn with his army of roaches.
No! Denied again! Hamburglar is ready at every turn.
Repair! Fans were on the edge of their seat as Mobile Utility Lunar Excavators fought to keep the only command center allowed to land in one piece.
The planetary fortress rush proved successful in the short run, racking up a few kills and causing disarray before it crumbled beneath Hamburglar's glaive wurm assault. Brewdwarf and Gamblor's M.U.L.E.s are no match for the airborne threat.
With thrust and parry, counter-thrust and cheese threats deflected with the grace of an otter in spring, the dangerous dance of death changed beat like a sad egg waking from a lazy wave. Battle lines were drawn in the space platform, and what looked like a quick all-in match turned into a war of attrition in what Gamblor called "¡an old fashioned Mehjikan standoff, senor!".
Jimbotron's tanks shell away at the dividing line of Planetary Fortroxen as Gamblor continues the slow Planetary Fortress crawl across the Omega Sector space platform.
Farther down the line, Hamburglar peels away the defender, leaving Gamblor's yet-unhatched Planetaries exposed for precious moments.
The daring vañguard takes the high ground.
The massive amount of Planetary Fortrii would deter Hamburglar's roaches for the time being, but the cost of maintaining such a powerful stationary defense would be felt acutely as Jimbotron's siege tanks shelled away from a safe distance. While Team Edward spent resources repairing their defenses and fortifying their position, Hamburglar hatched a new plan.
"CAW! CAW!" Hamburglar's forces take out an exposed Plantery Fortress before Brewdwarf's very eyes.
"CAWCAW!" Hamburglar's mutalisks fly under the radar, evading Gamblor's outdated NORAD defense system in a daring mineral line raid. When asked why he hadn't updated to Edmund Duke's NORAD II defense platform, Gamblor said he tried to, but it crashed.
Expecting siege tanks, and possibly knowing he could not match wits with siege commander Jimbotron, Gamblor forgoes tanks entirely and opts for nuclear strikes on the fortified positions.
Tanks play Dodge the Nukes to varying degrees of success as destruction rains down in the heart of Jimbotronville.
Somewhat ironically, Gamblor's gambit would backfire, and as the unsuspecting commander painted a tiny red dot on his target, he was also painting a large red one on his back. And, according to expert testimony, if there's one thing that Mutalisk swarms hate, it's red dots.
"I'm a doctor, and I endorse this product
and/or statement."
-a doctor.
The combination of red dots and possibly psionic waves emitted by the ghosts shone like a fortuitous beacon to the mighty Zerg air force. Hamburglar's birds of war wasted no time tearing into the main base!
The horror! Doom comes in the form of heart-shaped broodling confetti. Gamblor's Ghostly Ghost krew meets its end.
Sensing the imminent danger to his own forces, Brewdwarf sends in a massive amount of vikings - yes, vikings - into the fray. Despite being the absolute worst unit in the Terran arsenal according to many, many sources as well as hundreds of thousands of game data gathered since the game's release, Brewdwarf proves that numbers and intense resource stockpiling do count as his slow-moving paper vikings explode again and again, wave after wave, until finally the Zerg swarm in Gamblor's base dies of old age or boredom, giving the vikings free reign to harass overlords and attack unprotected buildings.
Many are speculating whether Blizzard intended to pay homage to their early games by designing such a terrible unit intended to be lost.
As resources become scarce, viking harassment becomes Brewdwarf's strategy of choice.
Finally, what was left of Hambotrglon's combined forces made a decisive push in a mighty wave of death and bitches. The overwhelming swarm pushed back Brewdwarf's Thoroxiin to the safety of a nearby planetary fortress where the stationary defense provided an advantage. After 50+ minutes of gameplay and amassing thousands of every resource, Brewdwarf had finally managed to amass something resembling an army. Still, with so many forces on Hambotrglon's side and nearly unlimited use of transfuse, many wondered just who would come out victorious if and when the two armies went Toe to Toe.
It would not come to pass, however. During a standstill in the fighting, as both armies stared each other down, the faulty Blizzard Artificial "Intelligence" split roughly half of Hambotrglon's forces off and sacrificed them against stationary defenses during a time where Hamburglar's attention was called elsewhere. Fans and/or spectators were outraged at this technicality, this "glitch" having such a huge impact on the outcome of the game. Needless to say, fans were disappoint.
When asked to comment,
Blizzard officials had this to say:
With such a large swing in the Balance of Power, the scales of justice weighed heavily in Team Edward's favor, and it was a simple matter for Brewdwarf to use Intense Micro to mop up the remainder of the Hambotrglon forces in one Fell Swoop before moving in for the kill.
Team Edward takes game 9! LAN event spectacular a Great Success!
PF wars! Gamblor takes on Jimbotron's Planetary Fortress Forto-e-Forto in an all-out slugfest.
Oh no! Jimbotron's Planetary Fortress wall-off prevents a quick response to Brewdwarf's viking harassment.
Reports also indicate that Gamblor's Planetary Fortress crawl was interrupted and cut short by the launching of a massive amount of nuclear warheads, though exact reports on the source of the attacks is unknown.
Many wonder whether this might have been the outcome if Hamburglar's queens had triumphed over Team Edward's army and infested the Planetary Fortresses.
