The SCII Campaign: Starting Race?

[gamer102]

Every campaign had a starting race to begin the start of the game. Starcraft started with terran, Starcraft: Brood War started with protoss, do you think this game will start with zerg campaign?

[ForTheSwarm]

The second will be Protoss, because it's the only race that hasn't been played second!

[NoobOfLore]

I'm gonna vote Zerg, It seems Kerrigan has built an empire, and that's where it left us off last game. First game started with Terran, because we're all human, and BW started with Protoss, which was the one we finished Vanilla with, And the story seems pretty straightforward, that we played as Zerg, and there don't seem to be any new developments for the other races(except for Raynor :p), so it seems like the Zerg should be starting, with Protoss second, and a spectacular finish by the Terran.*
Of course, it's possible that all the races will be interchangeable. throughout the campaign, so it won't be so clearly cut into chapters.

(*Hopefully with lots of Nuke-splosions)

[apostolos]

I think it will start with terran since the dev team created the terran story first.(at blizzcon)


(*Hopefully with lots of Nuke-splosions)Blizzard makes explosive critters in all its games so don't worry!

[ChimTheGrim21]

I think its most likely Protoss since they started on them first, but I voted Terran because they are the easiest to identify with for new players.

[DarkMirror]

I agree. It'll be Terrans. If its Protoss, they would be spoiling all the stuff about what Zeratul did and shit. Zerg, we find out what Kerrigan has been planning right from the start. Gotta be Terran.

[Ktan]

I believe, IIRC, during the Terran Campaign demo, that was being billed as the first campaign, but I'm not entirely sure.

That, and everything about SC II changes every picosecond so *shrug*

[masterofhobbiton]

It did seem from that demo like it was just going to be following Raynor around until suddenly war breaks out again, but I voted for zerg anyway. :)

[fenix6593]

Terran there the cool guys!

[ForTheSwarm]

They're the only "guys".

[Tralfagar]

My thinking:

SC went Terran-Zerg-Toss
BW went Toss-Terran-Zerg
I'm seeing a pattern here...
SC2: Zerg-Toss-Terran

This way, the Terrans come out as the winners and get the last word.

[NoobOfLore]

That was my thinking...but then I saw the excellent reasons other people posted for other races.

[ForTheSwarm]

Or it could be another stand-off and Blizzard will make us wait for SC3. :mad:

[IrishDutchman]

I think they'll start with Terran. There are gonna be a lot of newcomers to the SC universe, and Terran has the most traditional base management. No rubbish with warping, larvae and other stuff.

[ChimTheGrim21]

I think they'll start with Terran. There are gonna be a lot of newcomers to the SC universe, and Terran has the most traditional base management. No rubbish with warping, larvae and other stuff.

My thoughts as well. I love the word rubbish by the way. Don't hear it much here. hahahaa

[Eivind]

I think it's gonna be the same as in Vanilla.

Terran: has to start, y'know, for the newbies.
Zerg: Kerrigan got to close the game last time, and I doubt they'll go for another eradication-campaign like the one in BW.
Protoss: surely the hybrids and Xel'Naga is a worthy finish?

Zerg and Protoss might exchange, if Protoss do the initial steps towards Xel'Naga and zerg finishing them.

That's my two cents.

[Starcraft78cwal]

Zerg could start, because they haven't started yet in the StarCraft games, but then again Terran are the best race for newbies, and there ought to be a lot of newcomers to the StarCraft franchise now so they might start off as Terran.

Then again, they might want to END with Terran, as a big spectacular finish. Only time will tell, eh?

[Eivind]

What if you play the races in a certain order, then after that, maybe them in a different order, so instead of 1-2-3, you have 1-2-3-4-5-6. I dunno, something like that. Just throwing out the suggestion that it might not be as episodic as in the original. I dunno how they would do that, though.

[Vezer]

Who says there's going to be 3 different campaigns? As NoobOfLore said, it could all be inter-mingled.

[Tralfagar]

Who says there's going to be 3 different campaigns? As NoobOfLore said, it could all be inter-mingled.

And on that note, I have to wonder just how they're going to do that. After each mission, you're zoomed to a map showing the current status in the sector, and you get to decide which of 2 or 3 different missions you want to go on? Similar to CnC: Red Alert, but with more flip-flopping on the sides?

[ForTheSwarm]

Or there could be 1 super campaign with all the races' missions mingled in there.

[NoobOfLore]

Yet another possiblity, But if that's the way we want to think about it, what is the starting race for the first mission going to be?

[Starcraft78cwal]

If they did do that, the starting race would probably Terran because it's newbie friendly, but I doubt they'd mold all the campaigns into one super-campaign. Three separate campaigns are more orderly. :D

[masterofhobbiton]

Then there's the other end of the spectrum: What if there're four campaigns? We don't know how the storyline goes yet, what if it's, say, a Raynor's Raiders campaign, a Dark Templar campaign, a kerrigan campaign, and a UED campaign? Or 5? Or 6? Now that would be cool.

[ForTheSwarm]

And we would have to wait just that much longer for SC2. :P

[masterofhobbiton]

If there're the same number of missions, 6 campaigns wouldn't take longer to make then 1 super campaign.

[NoobOfLore]

Then we would have to hop around the storyline, and it seems to make more sense to use less campaigns and have more continuity than to make as many campaigns as possible.

[Ling666]

I vote terran. They're more identifiable with most gamers (for obvious reasons), as others have mentioned they are easier to use, and that way what the zerg and protoss have been doing can be revealed as time goes on instead of everything getting told at once. The terran really haven't been doing anything important, whereas Zeratul is off exploring and the zerg haven't been seen much for a while.

I really liked the way Blizzard had the storyline all work out even though the player used mainly one race at a time, but some other methods could work just as well or better. But for the love of all that is good, don't bring in the mission choosing theme from Red Alert C&C.

[Eivind]

I really liked the way Blizzard had the storyline all work out even though the player used mainly one race at a time, but some other methods could work just as well or better.

Though it was certainly understandable, it was kinda annoying how we left a certain race just as they were at their strongest.

Example: in Vanilla, just after the Overmind takes over Aiur, we have to play as Protoss (who is on the verge of destruction and are bickering amongst each other). And when the UED got the Overmind in BW (zerg and terran!!), we had to play as Zerg, who just finished their missions at the same time as they became the most powerful entity in the galaxy. Man, I want to be the one with the über-large base against that little spot on the map that we usually play with. Oh well, I guess there's no fun unless you're the underdog.

Figures.

[WhatIsStarcraft]

Ohhh, I voted terran, but now I really don't know!! You guys are good at giving good argumetns, so be proud of that. I like people who say good stuff, instead of just half-eaten, already out stuff.

And because of your talents guys, I really can't think of who will start off, but that should just be taken as compliments, so don't worry. Keep on writing ans saying good arguments, and you will succed in life, but thats another story for another thread.

[NoobOfLore]

Eivind, I totally agree, but I think that you would have to be playing against some wicked good AI for that to be any fun at all. You have a sprawling base with masses of expos and multiple idle buildings and units. It wouldn't even be hard to play anymore, So I think that being behind is better.
I still remember the Terran mission where you have to hold off the Zerg for...how many minutes? anyway, it's situations like that that make the game fun.
WhatIsStarcraft...Instead of making a post saying that, many of us give Karma to the succeeding party.
It's the little T symbol below the avatar of the poster.

[ForTheSwarm]

I't's actually repuatation points, not karma. Anyways, the holding off the Zerg mission wasn't actually that hard. All you had to do was make and repair bunkers. You could even attack the Zerg and beat them.

[pytum]

i think, the zerg will start sc2 because i think they will follow this secuence

1st 2nd 3rd
SC T Z P
SC Bw P T Z
SC 2 Z ? ? (maybe 2nd protoss and 3rd terran)
or
SC 2 P T Z
why zerg at first? because ,IMO, after the omega mission, we will see what kerrigan did after that battle or maybe the protoss after the those bonus missions where zeratul discovered the hybrids... just a thought

although we know that sc2`s story is 4 years after sc bw but i dont know if sc2 will start after those years or the first mission of sc2 is during bw and after that mission the four years pass...

[Nephi]

I'd like to think Terran will finish, The way I could see it going down is this.

A tutorial mode in which each races main units and structures are outlined before you play them. You have the option to complete the tutorial mode before jumping in (and hopefully starting with the zerg). I think the tutorial was worked in well in the last SC but they was really no tutorial needed for the other races because they all basically have the "same" build, I think a quick explanation could eliviate the idea that we need to start as the terrans so we can "catch on" better.

Also the fact that the terran campaign was finished or supposedly worked on first gives me hope because as I understand it lots of companies decide on ending sequences first and build everything else up to that. I'm hoping that is the case.

[Starcraft78cwal]

I still remember the Terran mission where you have to hold off the Zerg for...how many minutes? anyway, it's situations like that that make the game fun.

30 minutes. ^_^ That was a very fun mission, and plus you had the option of just wiping out the Zerg base and going to relax 'till the timer ran out. :D

[Ling666]

Though it was certainly understandable, it was kinda annoying how we left a certain race just as they were at their strongest.
Not only that. We destroyed all of the stuff we had been working towards in the last part of the campaign. I hate that feeling.

[NoobOfLore]

That map where you survive for 30 minutes...Even if you can win easily, It makes it no less satisfying to see swarms of zerglings and Hydralisks mowed down by your impressive bunker blockade.
Anyway, It seems to me like the Zerg should start off, since we don't want to give away a whole lot right away, and we ended Zerg last campaign.

[Tralfagar]

Ah yes, I remember that mission. It took me a fair bit of time to beat, I'll admit, but I more enjoyed mission 9(I think); the first experience you have against the Protoss, and you can't let any of the Zerg buildings be destroyed, with the finale being the Zerg coming through your base and you still get a victory:D

[NoobOfLore]

I'm afraid that you are thinking of the wrong mission...The one of which I speak is the one where Mengsk brings in ll the Dropships to remove you from the infested planet...Coz' it was Mengsk, right?

[Tralfagar]

Ohhh that pain in the buttocks mission. Yeah, it was fun to watch that base go up in flames as well.

[Vezer]

That mission is so easy, it's kinda painfull. That's the one where Terran Kerri gets left on the planet.

[masterofhobbiton]

It's fun to cheat just before the end to watch the infinite zerg swarms; I cheated my way through much of the campaign the very first time I played *embaressment.*

[Eivind]

Eivind, I totally agree, but I think that you would have to be playing against some wicked good AI for that to be any fun at all. You have a sprawling base with masses of expos and multiple idle buildings and units. It wouldn't even be hard to play anymore, So I think that being behind is better.
I still remember the Terran mission where you have to hold off the Zerg for...how many minutes? anyway, it's situations like that that make the game fun.
WhatIsStarcraft...Instead of making a post saying that, many of us give Karma to the succeeding party.
It's the little T symbol below the avatar of the poster.

Well, I was kinda half-joking. Obviously there's no fun in having more units and a larger base than the enemy, though it would be fun to have just one mission where you go all Mengsk and scream "suck on this!!111!" to the screen.

And that 30-minute survival mission. Please have one of those in SC2! I totally lost that map the first time. Probably because I didn't make SCVs. Yeah, I'm better now.

On another note: if there's one race we shouldn't start with, it's Protoss. Wouldn't want to start hunting for Xel'Naga and hybrids in the beginning of the game.

[WhatIsStarcraft]

We must also remember that the dev team must think of new players. There will probably be a ton of new people coming to play Starcraft 2, not just us old Starcraft veterans. ;)

Also, when we take that into account, the dev team must make a campaign that starts off simply, that introduces the new players to the Starcraft franchise. Maybe a small intro, video, or a text, like the ones seen in Starcraft Vanilla, and Brood War will help out a lot.

[NoobOfLore]

Quite honestly, The Protoss seem the easiest to manage at first, But the Terran are a great intro race, so you might want to start with them. Their gameplay style is the most instinctive and easy to understand.
But lore/continuity-wise, I think the best to start with is Zerg.

[DarkMirror]

Because it totally ruins the suspense of what she has been doing for 4 years?

[NoobOfLore]

As clever a response that was, It's debateable that the zerg have just been evolving and plotting, as opposed to the assumption that they have developed some kind of absurd super-plot to destroy the universe. The terran haven't been doing anything. Maybe somebody is preparing to use apocalypse nukes on another planet. The protoss just seem like a bad choice. Don't feel like reciting the reasons for them. Besides, things happen even when you're NOT playing as that race. When you played zerg, you didn't know kerrigan was going for betrayal until she chose to reveal the plan to her cerebrates.
My point is, things happen or may not happen whether or not you can see, and things happen when you're not the acting race, and you sometimes don't know what is going to happen even when you ARE that race.

[DarkMirror]

...I also think that the only reason want it be Zerg is because they haven't been the first race yet, but thats just garbage for a reason.

[RavenCrusade]

Looking at the whole Raynor's ship (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ucC00l85nEY)thing; sounds to me like a Terran intro. :/

[Eivind]

I wonder how the briefing rooms (or substitutes) are going to be for the zerg or protoss. Will be exciting.

I agree with RavenCrusade: Raynor's ship looks like a good starting place. Besides, if we're playing as Zeratul later in the game, I'm pretty sure Raynor will show up there too, which means that we might not end the game with protoss, but with protoss and terran.

[Nephi]

i've kinda changed my mind i think Terran intro, with protoss ending, and an expansion pack with zerg starting and terran ending

[Starcraft78cwal]

Terran, while the best choice for newbies, are probably going to end the game because, well, they're the good guys. ^_^ Anyways, they could start the game with Zerg, but have a Terran tutorial.

[Eivind]

Who says there's gonna be a happy ending? Brood War certainly didn't have one.

[NoobOfLore]

And now here's a second starcraft. Doesn't mean there's not going to be a triumphant ending.
Just thinking about that for some reason reminded me of how the UED Made the war sound like it was protecting earth directly, and how it was all patriotic and crap. Kinda funny, really.

[WhatIsStarcraft]

Terran, while the best choice for newbies, are probably going to end the game because, well, they're the good guys. ^_^ Anyways, they could start the game with Zerg, but have a Terran tutorial.

At least Warcraft 3 had an orc tutorial, while they started as human. This is actually a great idea, at least for me, because it made me want to go thorugh the campaign to get to the orcs which is my favorite race, especially if you look at it from a lore, and history perspective.

[gamer102]

Yeah, I think that the terran will be first, and then protoss second, and then ending with the zerg, again. The expansion (I have no doubt there will be one) will start with the zerg, and end with the protoss. (Becaus eI love toss, Toss R Leet)

[WhatIsStarcraft]

Yeah, the Protoss will finish with something grand, as they did in Starcraft Vanilla.

[TitanWing]

I'm once again expecting a Terran start. Followed by Protoss then Zerg.

The expansion (yes, I'm 99% sure there will be one) will start with Protoss -> Zerg -> Terran.

[neobowman]

Hey! Titanwing's back! Anyway, I think that they might have a special tutorial on the basics with a small little plot. Maybe one of Mengsk's officers putting down a small rebellion in a jungle planet or something. Something that you can finish in one mission and will show you the basics. Then you can start REALLY playing with Zerg and then Protoss and finally, Terran.

[DarkMirror]

I doubt thats how it would work.

[TitanWing]

Hey! Titanwing's back!
Yeah, I'll be stopping by every once in a while. :) WB and SC.org are still the best places I know to keep up on SC2 news.

[WhatIsStarcraft]

When I look on the poll, it seems like people think terran are going to start everything. Next comes zerg, which a lot of people think will start. Before Protogod deletes this post, which I really hope he doesn't, I will tell you guys that I believe some of us should try to interview someone in the starcraft 2 development team.

I know this sounds like a far fetched idea, but maybe some of us might pul it off. If someone lives near where Blizzard have their HQ, in Irvine LA, I think, or was that EA? Anyways, there should be an interview, or another batch explaining more about starting race in starcraft 2. This is just something I think, now I don't know how you will react, or especially Protogod! :o

[West]

I wonder how the campaign will work for the Toss and Zerg, because when they showed the Terran Campaign it was like cinematic-type or something, and you played as Raynor on a battleship and could walk around the ship, choose your battles, look at a space map, and choose to buy different units that you could then build during the battles.

[WhatIsStarcraft]

That is something many people wonder. Because Blizzard hasn't showed us the zerg and protoss campaigns, we don't know. We just don't know.

Anyways, now that a third of the campaign is done, maybe they will show off the zerg and protoss campaigns soon.

Off topic: Wow, West, I didn't know that you were a Spore fan!! Well, now I know, mate!

[LDawgg]

a Spore fan!! Well, now I know, mate!


SPORE FTW!!!

Anywho Terrans will start 'cause
1)already have shwn their campaign
2)easiest first race to use

[WhatIsStarcraft]

They also are familiar, but this has been said before. Much has already been said before, and I think that a good number of people here agree that terrans will start off. I hope so, and another 19 that have voted, also agrees with me.

Now, to say something very boring and iritating, but sadly true: We will just have to wait until the game comes out. My prognosis for the game's release date, is that it will most probably come out in about 6 months. Me and my dad has discussed the release date of Starcraft 2 for a long time, but now that Diablo 3 has been announced, and will prolly come out in two years.

See, if I know Blizzard, which I do, they will release WoWWotLK, first, and then Starcraft 2 second, and then Diablo 3, because they don't want to release two games at once, which is smart for marketing, and also for making money :D

[HazzaDaShiz]

Yeah, from what I saw of the campaign preview, everything was set up for Terran to introduce the story.
I'm thinking Terran -> Protoss -> Zerg.
Hope so, at least.

[TheRighteous]

I'm think Zerg will start off. Giving Kerrigan more oppourtunities to truly show everyone what she is capable of. Even more so than she already has, if that even seems possible.

[DarkMirror]

Yeah yeah, ruin the whole surprise. The entire campaign demo they showed made it pretty clear to me that Terrans are starting off.

[WarInSerbia]

I'm thinking Terran -> Protoss -> Zerg.
Nope,the zerg will loose in the end :(
I'm thinking more of Terran->Zerg->Protoss

[TheRighteous]

Yeah yeah, ruin the whole surprise. The entire campaign demo they showed made it pretty clear to me that Terrans are starting off.There were further statements made that seem to quite clearly indicate that Terran will not be starting off. However, from what I saw, I'm thinking that it's going to be Zerg-Terran-Protoss. Zeratul's urgent message to Raynor seems like a great thing to come right before the Protoss campaign. Also, since Kerrigan already did so much, we get to let her do even more by having 2 adjacent campaigns. End of Broodwar and start of Starcraft 2.

[DarkMirror]

I heard no statements saying Terran would not be starting off. They are the simplest, most basic race, and would start off the game the same reason they started off vanilla, to get the players to understand how to play.

EDIT: Kerrigan can get just as much plot, if not more, by not starting the campaign. Those you play as in the campaign must be the underdog, the ones leading the ragged edge. Theres no challenge if your the protoss defending the temple from the small swarm cluster at the bottom of the map.

She needs to be a massive force to be reckoned with, right from the start. Maybe in the second, or third part of the campaign, she'll be weakened, or maybe you never even play on her side and take over a surviving cerebrate and rage against her. Who knows.

I can be fairly certain though, the Terrans will start us off.

[Escade]

Example: Terran.

"Oh hey, this is kinda easy, sorta like the other RTSs."

Protoss.

"Uhm... huh? Warping... what?"

Zerg.

"Holy crap, this is retarded. Larva? Mutation? WTF?"

[Starcraft78cwal]

Yeah, Terran most likely will start off because of ease of use, but who says the story will end with Starcraft II? They'll probably (they better, or else) make expansions and more sequels, so the Zerg don't have to be defeated in Starcraft II.

Also, who says that the campaign will follow the same style as the first Starcraft? It could be completely different for all we know.

[gamer102]

Yeah, Terran most likely will start off because of ease of use, but who says the story will end with Starcraft II? They'll probably (they better, or else) make expansions and more sequels, so the Zerg don't have to be defeated in Starcraft II.

Also, who says that the campaign will follow the same style as the first Starcraft? It could be completely different for all we know.

They could add in a boot camp for the terran race, but then start off with the protoss, or, since this is the second game... blizzard would assume that all players know how to play the first game, and pass that on here, so no tutorials, or limited ones.

Second part: True, they might have made it so that it switches from race to race before a complete races campaign is over, it will probably be only a few times.

[DarkMirror]

...Assume everyone knew how to play? Thats a horrible assumption. Its fine for Broodwar, as its an expansion, but SC2 is a totally new game, attracting tons of new players.

[WhatIsStarcraft]

Yeah, and they also aim to get new players as well, and not just the old veterans.

[Eivind]

WarCraft III had a tutorial too.

[masterofhobbiton]

Now that you bring that up, they should do it the way they did WC3. For those who haven't played, there were a few Orc missions that brought you up to speed on how the game worked before the actual first campaign, in which you played as humans. So it was like there were 4 campaigns, like if they had put in the campaigns from the SC demo download. They could do it again, like have 3 terran tutorial missions and then a protoss campaign.

[DarkMirror]

I don't see why anyone thinks that they would make the beginning campaign anything but Terran. SC1 had a tutorial mission too, if you remember. It was Terran. And then you played more Terran.

It might have worked in WC3, where most of the races operated on fairly similar mechanics (or at least the Orcs and Humans did), but SC races are very different mechanic wise.

[Eivind]

Now that you bring that up, they should do it the way they did WC3. For those who haven't played, there were a few Orc missions that brought you up to speed on how the game worked before the actual first campaign, in which you played as humans. So it was like there were 4 campaigns, like if they had put in the campaigns from the SC demo download. They could do it again, like have 3 terran tutorial missions and then a protoss campaign.

What if we just start with 3 tutorials, but except for 3 terran, there's 1 for each race? Then they can start with whatever they want afterwards.

[Yoda]

No-one has brought this up before, but Raynor stated in one of the Brood-war campaigns ("True Colours") that he would kill Kerrigan. Given the way movies often turn out (e.g. if someone claims something like that in such a manner, it usually happens), this will probably end up occuring. Which would mean that the Terrans end up finishing (or the Protoss if Raynor is working for them). (I'm just raising this as a possibility).

[DarkMirror]

Or, alternativly, he comes in in one of the other campaigns with either A.) A few units helping you, or B.) As a hero/cinimatic, where he kills you.

I sincerly doubt that he would still be running around getting money as a merc after the other two campaigns had happened, too.

[NoobOfLore]

I do think that Kerrigan dying should be a finisher, and may occur during the Terran campaign.
The final mission might be a kind of cinematic Zerg mission, where Raynor has entered the base, and is going to kill Kerrigan, and you try to escape as Kerrigan.
However, that is rather unlikely, and I expect multiple comments as of to how this comment is Crack-Induced, and how it's impossible to "invade" a Hive.

[WhatIsStarcraft]

I can't believe that people are still debating over which race will start first. Anyways, I really suggest that people just realise that they will not find out before the game get released. Seriously, do something else in the mean time, and before you know, the game is out, and you find out which race begins.

[NoobOfLore]

Just because we CAN find out later, doesn't mean we shouldn't speculate about it at all.
Maybe we should just go ahead and close the entire SC2 and D3 sections until the games come out, since we can find out anything we might possibly enjoy debating beforehand...later.

[WhatIsStarcraft]

No, but we could ask the dev teams for some info about the games. Speculation and especially debate should be allowed, and good debate leads to ideas for teh game, that the dev team may not thought of.

[NoobOfLore]

Ok...You realize you're contradicting yourself and myself at the same time.

Either way, I agree with WhatIsStarcraft(At least his second post).
New Ideas are rarely detrimental in themselves.
Who else thinks Kerrigan is gonna die in the final campaign?

[HazzaDaShiz]

The way I see things, I feel as though this is the logical order of events:
1. Terran start out to familiarise people with the campaign.
2. Zerg take up the reigns to lay down the fact that Kerrigan has returned.
3. Protoss have to clean up after everyone and Raynor is working with them.

Then again, it could finish with Zerg, providing Blizzard wanted to expand the story in an assumed expansion.

[Kawagata]

Terran should be first if done logic wise since it familliarizes the game for players.
Zerg should be first if done pattern wise.

Starcraft Terran Zerg Toss
BW Toss Terran Zerg
Starcraft 2 Zerg Toss Terran
Starcraft 3? Terran Zerg Toss
ETC
Pattern wise, it's just a shift.

[SilverCrusader]

I know, <3 Titanwing.

Anyway I'm expecting the exposition to be Terran, followed by Protoss and Zerg in w/e order.

[Jaxander]

Judging by the between-mission video I've seen for Terran, I'd put my money down on them being the first campaign. Raynor is a vengeful alcoholic who is struggling to make ends meet in the Koprulu Sector. Plus, as has been stated countless times before, Terran are the relateable race, so it's only obvious to begin a new game with them to get players, even hardcore veteran Starcraft players, to understand the new system and units.

After the Terran, I'm pretty certain that it would be the Zerg, much like the original Starcraft. The Terran are the exposition, and set up the plot so that they are fighting the Dominion as their main enemy. Last mission(s) of the Terran campaign, and we see and fight some Zerg. They've returned, afterall. Campaign 2 has the rise of the prime antagonists, and putting out protagonists in situations that look increasingly grim.

And campaign 3, the Protoss. Obivously the masters of not only ancient ruins and artifacts but advanced technology. Zeratul, in the Terran between-mission video on youtube, spoke of some Xel'Naga Artifacts. I think the Terran campaign will see one of these Artifacts, the Zerg Campaign will see one if not more of them, and the Protoss campaign will see the collection of all of them. Assuming that these artifacts are part of the central story. Again, the Toss come through as the arbiters, the ones who are charged with the task of making certain that the Zerg are annihilated before the swarm can spread too much. Such is what they've done for generations in the story before the original Starcraft, only makes sense for them to (end?) it that way.

Of course I could be way wrong too. As WhatIsStarcraft said, we won't know until it releases.

[Eivind]

I agree with Jaxander. The terran will most likely start, and I think zerg should be second because they ended the game last time, and protoss is a good ending race.

That being said, there's always the expansion, so I doubt the story ends in SC2. Or maybe the exp is a new story.

[DarkMirror]

One problem with what you said, Jax. The Protoss only encountered the Zerg shortly before the events of SC. They scared them shitless.

Not a big problem, just a minor detail you missed.

[WhatIsStarcraft]

Ok...You realize you're contradicting yourself and myself at the same time.

Either way, I agree with WhatIsStarcraft(At least his second post).
New Ideas are rarely detrimental in themselves.
Who else thinks Kerrigan is gonna die in the final campaign?

1 out of 10, I manage to contradict myself in a discussion.

I too believe that Kerrigan is gonna die, but who will control the Swarm? I don't think the Xel'Naga is comepletely out of the picture here, and especially not the hybrids, so I will have to guess that everyone must fight for survival if the hybrids come to life, and the Xel'Naga return. If they return...

[Yoda]

That's a good point - since none of the races are ever going to be completely eradicated, if Kerrigan ends up dying there'll have to a replacement for the next Zerg campaign....

From storytelling purposes, this seems difficult. None of the cerebrates are really viable as inspirational characters, and infesting one of the Terrans has already been used.

[WhatIsStarcraft]

Yeah, I have to agree. Infesting Raynor, for example, would be so cheesy that I would not play the rest of the campaign.

On a side note: There are almost 100 replies on this thread!

[DarkMirror]

You mean at least 100.

[NoobOfLore]

Or do you mean OVER NINE-THOUSAND!!!

About kerrigan's replacement...
Perhaps a renegade protoss with uber-powers? He has the telepathic ability to control the swarm, or maybe the overmind reincarnate.
If it's the protoss, It's no joke about him being super-powerful. HE would have to have Psionic Hurricane instead of psi storm.

[neobowman]

How bout the hybrids. Perhaps the experiment to create a whole new race might fail in the campaign but maybe one of them will take over the swarm if Kerrigan dies. I highly doubt that the hybrids will not rise to power in one of the campaigns so I think the order of the campaigns will be this.
Zerg-Kerrigan's powerhold will be evidently diminishing so you as a queen has to help defend some of her hive clusters. Storyline progresses and in the last few missions, the hybrids are introduced.
Terran-Raynor's trying to scavange up money for his crew and collect the artifacts to sell. Assuming the campaign is 10 missions, after around the third or fourth mission, Zeretul appears and explains the situation. Next mission, you have to stop Duran from doing something. Storyline continues and the hybrids are at their peak. You might have a little interference from Kerrigan.
Protoss-Duran is forcing Kerrigan's rule back while also threatening to attack the Terrans and Protoss. Hybrids are close to awakening but Kerrigan's forces are occupying Duran. Protoss attack Kerrigan while she is busy and Raynor kills her. Final battle, Terrans and Protoss attack Duran's forces and almost suceed in winning. Last second, the Xel Naga reemerge with the hybrids. Cliffhanger.
That's how I think it will go.

[RavenCrusade]

I really do hope that the hybrids do not "rise to power". I mean, as powerful as they could potentially be, how do we know that there are more than a handful of them?

Perhaps they are all dead, and Duran is waiting for an oppertunity to recommence his experiments? Maybe Duran has given up the hybrids, and if or when Kerrigan dies, he will take over the swarm?

Just.. throwing ideas out there.

[DarkMirror]

So... yeah. This ignores some key points.

1. They showed the Terran stuff first. This early into development, combined with the fact that the most recent update about the campaign saying that they are only about a third way done, strongly suggests that Terrans start off the campaign.

2. Remember the new non linear mission system? There are no longer just ten missions. There are tons of ways to get from start to end in the campaign. Not to mention side plots. So... yeah. Just felt I should mention that.

3. And again, it would be so damn anticlimatic to say "The Zerg have not been seen in four years" and then start the campaign with them. They need to scare the living dayligts out of the other two races when they come back, and how best to reveal that than playing the other two first hand as they are scared shitless?

4. Its no fun playing the big guy. With the Zerg, they have only a few ways to make sure you play a small guy, due to the "Been building forces for four years" thing. My guesses are that you either take command of a survivng cerebrate and fight against everyone, including the Zerg, or you take control of Kerrigan after either the first or second campaign, after something big has happened.

[Galiant]

in SC vanilla was Terran
in SC BW was Protoss
in SC2 will be the Zerg although I want the Terrans to go first.

[DarkMirror]

And thats why I think 90% of people voted Zerg. They want a pattern.

Guess what? There wont be one.

[Eivind]

Let's try and look at it from the facts (or what we can assume are facts).

I think the order will be the same as the original Vanilla. Why?

* As many have pointed out, Terran seems most likely to start for several reasons. They're the best beginner-race for people trying out the franchise for the first time. Blizzard has already showed parts of the campaign, which reveals a very important plot point. Hardly the stuff of endings.

* Zerg will not end because they got to end last time. This I'm more unsure about, but I find it hard to believe that the story is gonna end with Zerg twice. It can be made possible if someone else than Kerrigan is in charge (more Duran than any of the cerebrates as he is a better character). Of course, there will be new characters.


* Of course, some might cry out that Protoss got to the end the game in the original vanilla, but I think they'll be the last race for two reasons
1. The Zerg ending came between Vanilla and SC2.
2. There will probably be an expansion, which, if I were to just randomly guess, would end on Terran.

Thoughts? Am I too far out?

[Bad]

I think Terran are the first ones!

[Ktan]

Any reasons?

[Jaxander]

Haha! Nope. That's why he's 'bad.' :)

[WhatIsStarcraft]

Is that you on the avatar, Jax??

/agree with Jaxander

[Yoda]

There couldn't be a complete sense of continuity, because people still need to understand the Starcraft 2 storyline even if they never played the original Starcraft.

Ugh, I don't really like the sound of this diversion from the normal linear-campaign mode. But we'll probably still start with the Terrans.

[WhatIsStarcraft]

I think the Starcraft 2 campaign will be different, but not too much, from the original campaign in Starcraft and Brood War.

What I mean with this, is that it is going to be non-linear, but it won't be so much different from the first campaign that no one will recognise it, and that no one would know where to start. Maybe there are tips just like in starcraft about the units and building and other mechanics, the will be tips about where to start.

Ok, did anyone understand this?

[Eivind]

I like the non-linear idea. I like it very much actually. I mean, why does it have to be linear?

It certainly opens a lot of discussions.

[WhatIsStarcraft]

Apparently not everyone did.

I didn't say I was for either of these two systems, I was just stating that I think the non-linear system in Starcraft 2 would not be too much different from Starcraft Vanilla because you would have to start from somewhere, and maybe the start is predefined. I don't know, I am just making assumptions.

[RavenCrusade]

WhatIsSC, I think Eivind was addressing the post before yours.

As for your actual post, if you define "linear campaign" as a campaign that starts and ends in certain spots, then of course it's going to be "linear". However, that is not how people are using it here. I believe they are using it to mean:
Start -> Mission 1 -> Mission 2 -> Mission 3 -> End.
The Starcraft II campaign is somewhat linear, in the sense that I don't think you can go:
Start -> Mission 3 -> Mission 1 -> Mission 2 -> End,
but you have side-missions that you can do at any time in between missions.

Of course, I could be completely wrong about this, but I believe that you'll be able to do a main set of missions and a set of side missions; main set in order, side set in any order.

[DarkMirror]

Also, it's more like a... reverse tree than a line with side branches.

Think a trunk at the beginning and end, and then roots and branches in the middle. You can foillow a buynch of them from start to finish, but some of them dont go anywhere.

Its not just sideplots, it's different ways of getting to the end.

[RavenCrusade]

Really? I didn't hear that. Hey DM, can you link to an article or somesuch where I can read more about that?

[DarkMirror]

I beleive it was mainly explained in the demo video for the campiagn. I don't exactly keeps links to all the videos, so I guess you'll have to find it yourself.

Although, they also went over it in the newest gameplay demos, because people were asking about the campaign and the starmap feature.

[WhatIsStarcraft]

Hmm, are there any new interview or preview videos that have come out after the "recent" zerg videos?

[gamer102]

I'd like to be able to switch back to another race in a campaign, but still be linear, like this example.

If the terran start first, but blizzard also wants the protoss story started early, it would go like this.

Terran Mission -> Terran Mission -> Terran Mission (Mission 3) -> Protoss Side Mission -> Terran Mission (Mission 4) -> Terran Mission

[DarkMirror]

That could work, yes. I imagine there may well be something like that. Maybe something a bit more like in Broodwar, where you might start with a few important buildings or units from one of the other races, and the breifing would focus primarily on talking with the other race.

[Dragonboyjgh]

I rather hope either chooseable, where you play as a different side of the same mission. or b. probably zerg, as its the only one they haven't started with.

[DarkMirror]

THERE WONT BE A PATTERN. Honestly, the only reason most of you are saying Zerg is because it would complete a pattern. Guess what? It wont. It'll be terran, then Zerg, then Toss in all likelyhood, with a few crossover missions where you get help from another race. Thats how It'll work. Trust me.

This is really getting annoying and stupid.

[SolidSamurai]

How're you so sure, DM? Hoooooow are you so sure?

[DarkMirror]

Common sense?

[PrisonLove]

well common sense to me dictates that no matter what the start race is, protoss will come after terran. i say this because in the campaign video zeratul comes to warm jim raynor about the xel'naga, so it makes sense that the protoss campaign will be after the terran.

however i guess you may be able to say that the protoss campaign comes before if you play as them and then the xel'naga drop by, leading zeratul to tell raynor. regardless i say that these two border one another, so the zerg is either the first or last campaign.

i dont know, it makes sense to me.

[gamer102]

THERE WONT BE A PATTERN. Honestly, the only reason most of you are saying Zerg is because it would complete a pattern. Guess what? It wont. It'll be terran, then Zerg, then Toss in all likelyhood, with a few crossover missions where you get help from another race. Thats how It'll work. Trust me.

This is really getting annoying and stupid.
True, I mean, they are the ideal race here, they are humans. I do not know whether this adds anything whatsoever, but the "It's about time" trailer was with terrans.

[TychusFindlay]

I think they'll do Terran first because they are the best place to start story-wise for those who are new.

[RavenCrusade]

Not to mention the trailer, the campaign interface, and most things they've released have been for Terrans. As much as I'd like it to be a perfect pattern (perfectionism); it won't be.

It wouldn't make any sense to have the Zerg first. They're "evil" and thus, need to be introduced in another campaign before you play as them. Plus, if the Zerg have been hiding/evolving, it makes much more sense/more theatric to be playing Terran and have Zerg appear in a mission than vice versa.

[Jaxander]

Well, it's two months later, but they've released that the races will be played in single player campaigns from the core game as well as two expansions, with Terran being SC2, Zerg being exp1 and toss being exp2.

Making the order Terran, Zerg, Toss.

Making me right.

Then again, I was arguing for them all in one game, so I guess I'm simultaneously right and wrong.

Humbug.

[WhatIsStarcraft]

Haha, well, it sucks for all who fought so dearly for the idea that it would be Zerg, Terran Protoss, or something like that.

[Eivind]

I think the order will be the same as the original Vanilla.

Yay, I was right too. :D

[SgtHK]

The order of which race you play can be seen in the box art or splash screen. In the SC Vanilla...
http://www.blizzplanet.com/content/starcraft/starcraft-box-art.jpg
The first race you play is at the right (Terran), the second is at the left (Zerg), and the last is at the middle (Protoss).

In SC Brood War, this pattern still holds true.
http://www.nassaulibrary.org/centreblog/starcraft_broodwar_logo.jpg
The first is at the right (Protoss), the second at the left (Terran) and the last at the middle (Zerg).

I'm thinking it would still be the same in SC2, unless Blizzard is gonna make a different trend.

[WhatIsStarcraft]

Wow wow wow, not a new trend?!!

[PrisonLove]

i highly doubt that they organized the box art that way on purpose.

[SgtHK]

i highly doubt that they organized the box art that way on purpose.
My above post says otherwise

[WhatIsStarcraft]

Support SgtHk on this one, it seem viable, and lol, you used the loading screen, that was good :)

[PrisonLove]

its called coincidence? like i said, i highly doubt that blizzard would put even the littlest thought into something like that. your post doesn't prove that it was intentional.

[3Vee]

Well, putting Kerrigan front-and-center was probably intentional, and may even have had something to do with the campaign conclusion. But I'm pretty sure the other two are coincidental, and even if it was done "on purpose", it was not highly thought out, it just seemed like a good idea.

But whatever.

[WhatIsStarcraft]

Probably accidental, but still, we have notcied it.

[RavenCrusade]

Probably, when they made the box, they wanted the last and final plot to take the spotlight. First box it was Protoss (the plot), then it was the zerg (the Kerrigan plot). It seems less like a mistake and more like a little thing they added for no perticular reason.

I feel it will be the Terrans in the middle (and the other races to the side, if included at all)for the next boxart, due to the Terran Campaign being the only one coming out in that box.

[Jaxander]

Anyone considering the symbolic connotations? Think of which direction each of the heroes are facing on the Brood War box. Anyone who has studied movement in art (especially film) knows that when something moves from left to right, it is considered natural, or right. However, when something moves from right to left, it is considered unnatural, and people have a tendency to dislike it or feel uncomfortable about it, even it is only on a level beneath their conscious thinking.

Now lets take that idea and apply it to the BW box, and also take into account what we know about the stories of each of the depicted heroes. We'll start with Artanis, because he's the easiest.

Artanis is pictured left-center, and facing towards the right side of the box. Artanis is young and idealistic. He is wise beyond his years, and is following in the footsteps of the late Tassadar. Artanis strives to become the hero who unites the templar and the dark templar, to secure his place in Protoss history and to be known as a hero himself. Artanis has a very just, a very selfless role in the game. He is considered the prime protagonist, the stereotypical hero in this epic. He is positioned right and faces right, a position which mirrors his ideals and his role, and giving him the illusion, or the symolism, of progression.

Now we have Gerard Dugalle. He is positioned left and faces left. What do we know about Gerard? He's good at heart, but he makes bad decisions. He's a follower of Machiavelli in that he believes "The Ends Justify the Means." He is willing to step on his allies to acheive his goal, but that goal, those intentions are always best. He is a hero, but a more tragic hero. A darker hero than Artanis. He is placed left and faces left, an accurate position considering his role in the game. A hero, but not all the time, Dugalle's progress can be put in question some of the time, much unlike Artanis's.

And finally, Kerrigan, whose placement is obvious, to say the least. The main antagonist of the game, although sometimes coming through as an ally to serve her own ends, she is placed front and center, facing directly forward, indicating no alliance to either side, and showing her as the focal point for the entire game. She is the true one to worry about, the one whose story will be strongest, whose struggle will be the most profound.

I highly doubt a company whose as detail oriented as Blizzard would organize their game boxes - the first thing that gamers see of the finished product, before the ever even own the game - I highly doubt they would leave all of that to mere coincidence. I am certain it was orchestrated for the above reasons. Again, take an advanced art class, or better yet, a film class, and you'll hear the same things from your professor.

[WhatIsStarcraft]

Interesting. Well, this almost proves that Blizzard really did think about the box art too, which stands out.

[SgtHK]

Anyone considering the symbolic connotations? Think of which direction each of the heroes are facing on the Brood War box. Anyone who has studied movement in art (especially film) knows that when something moves from left to right, it is considered natural, or right. However, when something moves from right to left, it is considered unnatural, and people have a tendency to dislike it or feel uncomfortable about it, even it is only on a level beneath their conscious thinking.

Now lets take that idea and apply it to the BW box, and also take into account what we know about the stories of each of the depicted heroes. We'll start with Artanis, because he's the easiest.

Artanis is pictured left-center, and facing towards the right side of the box. Artanis is young and idealistic. He is wise beyond his years, and is following in the footsteps of the late Tassadar. Artanis strives to become the hero who unites the templar and the dark templar, to secure his place in Protoss history and to be known as a hero himself. Artanis has a very just, a very selfless role in the game. He is considered the prime protagonist, the stereotypical hero in this epic. He is positioned right and faces right, a position which mirrors his ideals and his role, and giving him the illusion, or the symolism, of progression.

Now we have Gerard Dugalle. He is positioned left and faces left. What do we know about Gerard? He's good at heart, but he makes bad decisions. He's a follower of Machiavelli in that he believes "The Ends Justify the Means." He is willing to step on his allies to acheive his goal, but that goal, those intentions are always best. He is a hero, but a more tragic hero. A darker hero than Artanis. He is placed left and faces left, an accurate position considering his role in the game. A hero, but not all the time, Dugalle's progress can be put in question some of the time, much unlike Artanis's.

And finally, Kerrigan, whose placement is obvious, to say the least. The main antagonist of the game, although sometimes coming through as an ally to serve her own ends, she is placed front and center, facing directly forward, indicating no alliance to either side, and showing her as the focal point for the entire game. She is the true one to worry about, the one whose story will be strongest, whose struggle will be the most profound.

I highly doubt a company whose as detail oriented as Blizzard would organize their game boxes - the first thing that gamers see of the finished product, before the ever even own the game - I highly doubt they would leave all of that to mere coincidence. I am certain it was orchestrated for the above reasons. Again, take an advanced art class, or better yet, a film class, and you'll hear the same things from your professor.
Well this certainly recieves a +1 rep from me. It's much much better than the "coincidence" theory.

Artanis is pictured left-center
EDIT: Btw, I think you meant that Artanis is pictured "right-center" :)

[Jaxander]

Haha. Thanks, Sarge. Yeah, after taking so many film and art classes, that's how I see things now. :D

EDIT: Yeah, I meant Right-center. Thanks.

[Eivind]

Interesting theory, Jaxander. It made me think of, how in movies, the eye automatically focuses on movement. Take a film like Citizen Kane, for example. There is no specific focus point in that movie because of the deep focus-technique used (which means that all parts of the screen is in focus). Tthere is a scene where one character move while another one stands still and vica versa, and the audience will automatically focus on the moving person, who sort of get the "upper hand" in the arguement.

Well, look at me babbling.

[gamer102]

Well, I guess terran is first because of the trilogy-based campaign that they have revealed.

[WhatIsStarcraft]

How can we even discuss this matter anymore now? Blizzard have said in which order they will make the game.

[SgtHK]

Well Jaxander did point out an extremely fitting explanation, based on his study of filmmaking, about the way the SC:BW splash screen is the way it is. I'm sure the usefulness of this thread has not been compromised.

[WhatIsStarcraft]

Well yeah, but besides of that, there really is nothing else to talk about here, but still, I want the conversation to continue.

[Darkslayer633]

IMO threads can evolve in such a way that the usefulness of the original thought is no longer useful, but that the usefulness of the current thought in the thread is no doubt useful. Thus this thread can still have use baring there is some useful form of conversation going on in here, otherwise it'll just go inactive and fade off either way, no point in complaining.