Gosu Q&A Final Results Episode 1

David, if you had to save a marine or an scv which would u save ?
LRM)Game: SCV, just so no one could feed me white guilt for being a racist.

If there was a cute medic watching and the scv was her boyfriend would that

affect things?
LRM)Game: It really depends how well I know her boyfriend. But generally, no that would only make it more fun.

Changing the first question slightly, if you could only save a scv with minerals in its hands or a firebat with half health and him slowly dieing of cancer (irridiate), but he could run to medics who would u save?
I cannot answer the dying firebat and scv one, it would be against my morals. Who am I kidding? Gimme dat firebat.

Air Map Imbalance Broad Analysis by Incontrol

When I reflect back on Starcraft and Broodwar I can't help but to think fondly of island maps. Some of the most intriguing and fun games I have played and watched took place on the infamous "island map." Why is that? Is it because they force you to play differently? Is it the challenge? The mystery of not being able to scout as fast as we are on land? Through this article I will discuss several island maps that have made their way through the circuit over the course of Starcraft's life and I will discuss what it was that kept them from being as popular as a Destination, Lost Temple or Python.

Dire Straights

Everyone remembers this map. The 4 island starting positions with smaller islands clustered around the map offering strange mining opportunities and geysers away from mineral lines forcing players to decide between effective mineral mining or gas mining. This map encouraged cerebral play in that the starting island was larger so there was a need to watch the perimeter of the island and conversely punish those that didn't with drops or floating production buildings.

What made it great: As a one versus one map there was exciting potential. Do I prepare for a drop? Do I float a command center for a fast expand? Do I drop them? Where are they? What are they doing? Island maps are unique in that they eliminate the possibility of a 2 gate, bunker rush or 9pool but they replace those risks with a multitude of possibilities that are typically void of "land map" games which makes most people unpracticed in dealing with them. These elevated elements of risk to reward build effectiveness made the map a bit of a wild card which had a polarizing effect. Either you loved that element or you hated it.. the map made people interested.

I remember the evolution of quick goliath drops in TvT here which was also used for TvP. This gave birth to new micro tactics like picking up and dropping off to avoid attacking units or incoming reaver fire. Progresses and experimental play was always abound with island maps and Dire Straights was no different. On some level you have to respect that!

What was the problem?: The elevated randomness of the map, inherent with island maps made them a sticky situation. The element of randomness and being incapable of scouting an opponent quickly is present in all the maps of this RTS on one level or another but certainly this element is made much more apparent given the constraints of the maps geographical features.

In addition to the lack of scouting that island maps feature we come to the age old problem of imbalance. Island maps absolutely favor Terran and Protoss over zerg. This has been inescapable since the dawn of island maps, indeed, Dire Straights. A zerg's strength is in it's ability to strike quick and cheaply gaining absolute return on the investment or washing over their opponent in shear body weight. Island maps dissolve the potential for that threat in the early game which alters the mindset for the match. If a terran or protoss knows absolutely that they are at 0 risk until lair tech from the zerg and at that tech they only need fear 1 of 2 things: Drop or Muta the game becomes simplified for the T/P and this results in a higher probability of correct tech prediction/preparation.

Zerg's over the course of the years evolved basic builds for island maps. 1 hatch muta, 2 hatch muta or 2 hatch hydra drop. Both these builds are crippled by the ventral sacs upgrade which cost an astounding 200/200 resources. Off of 1 gas this upgrade nearly eliminated the possibility of upgrades such as lurker tech or the all important speed/range upgrades for the hydra. Even with all upgrades considered this upgrade had a huge impact on the unit density from either builds. However the true bane of Zerg's existence was not in their starting build but rather the progression of the game. Where protoss/terran are rewarded for extended island play due to static defenses and superior air firepower; zerg is punished. Corsairs make mutalisks obsolete and cannons/reavers/templar force zerg to engage expansions in the worst of circumstances. With corsairs mopping up the supply/drop combo that is the overlord and relatively cheap static defenses like cannons compounding the pain it is easy to imagine a zerg having headaches trying to negotiate a battle with cannons/reavers/templar on a repeated basis when they are losing nearly all their overlords each time. Versus terran the luck is no better. Valks, science vessels, wraiths etc etc.. not to mention the static defenses terran's bolster make these maps all that much more imbalanced for more of the same reasons. Conversely zerg enjoys none of these benefits. Devourers/Guardians are nice but they don't compete in large numbers with what the terran/protoss can intuitively feature and enjoy tremendous success.

Conclusion: This was a great map. Some good times and some bad. But because the map offered no features that inherently advantaged (equalized) the zerg such as extra resources on the home island or something of that nature.. this map was simply to well made for the sons of aiur and earth.

Neo Forbidden Zone:

Many of you don't remember this map. This map makes ME feel old. But alas, let me tell you a story. What if I were to tell you that there was a time when a man went 100-0 on a map? What if I told you he said he'd do it? This man was the infamous Testie. Love him or hate him he pointed to the bleachers and nailed it. Lets talk about why that happened.

The streak, why and how: As an island map this map was different than the previously discussed Dire Straights. This map featured 4 starting islands that were really just raised ground above low ground. This meant that once you were on the low ground you had "access" to all expansions. Again similar problems for the zerg with a small compensation: Being able to slow drop to a nearby natural meant there existed another option for the zerg that was viable. This however did not stop the map from remaining grossly imbalanced in favor of the terran and protoss players.

That is neither here nor there however. Testie did not do the streak as a random player or much less a zerg player. He picked protoss. Protoss enjoys the highest rate of success on this map according to TL's own TLPD sitting at 31-15 for a 67% winrate. Testie was not some divine prophet, he was just a practiced gamer who knew an imbalance when he saw one.

Protoss enjoyed such tremendous success because of the map's island play combined with it's "low ground" feature. This meant a protoss could maximize their tech by going 2 gate robo and using their shuttle to simultaneously be aggressive as well as macro efficient. Being able to offload on the low ground and building their meant they could skimp on shuttles or corsairs and funnel all their money towards the cost-efficient dragoon. From there the game was simple, expansion denial. Dragoons with proper control can devastate tanks in low numbers. Terrans working with 1 gas cannot produce an efficient number of tanks and are left with fewer options than the protoss. This understanding essentially bleed into every match on this map until it became overran with mirrors and basically became unplayable on competitive levels. Testie established his streak with solid PvX play abusing tactics similar to what was just described. From there it is speed shuttles, reavers and massive ground armies on the low ground.

Conclusion: This map did better than most island maps. It was a map that favored the protoss specifically.. but at the same time it again revolutionized play and helped pave the way for new builds, tactics and micro types. This map surely can be remembered as one of the best ever. Still rampant with imbalance issues.. the island map genre new no other complaints. This did however make for some of those legendary games where a T/Z won versus a P and everyone thought that was just fine!

Gorky Island

This island map was featured in a WCG but also offered again a revolution in map making, an expansion behind the main! With literal high ground just above the main this map again changed the way we played this game. Slow drop expansions, floating CC, quick drops to secure opponents mineral line with high ground.. new possibilities and new tactics developed. Utilizing the "low ground" mid map feature Gorky again pushed the envelope and changed the way we regard this game.

The good: Again with the nearby natural we experienced some possibilities for the zerg with slow drop expanding making it more viable for the zerg. This made ZvT more chewable as fast expanding while viable for both, wasn't nearly as devastating as some of these other maps where the natural stretched the zerg thin and made them vulnerable to early aggression. While of course those elements exist here, they are simply mitigated to a certain extent which makes the map indeed more playable.

Gorgeous with it's wintery tileset and fun playstyle this map revolutionized SC once again. Cliff dropping was already a known tactic given maps like LT where controlling the opponents high ground overlooking an expansion was already a mainstream tactic we see this simply featured and made more critical here, to control the opponents expansion is to control the main as well. This gave way to tactics like expanding to another main's "natural" and using that high ground to secure the low ground main for later game play. Map control and playing with that concept at the forefront became again a reemphasized map feature. Planning ahead, thinking ahead, denying the opponents intention to do the same.. these concepts became a tangible reality with this map as each game drew on. This is of course not to say that these considerations weren't made on other maps but it is of my opinion that they were made more critical on Gorky Island.

Conclusion: This map again made another leap for island maps. Advancing and implementing previously used concepts like lowland mid map and developing the base behind your base concept we saw some tremendously exciting games here. Again the problems with static defense strength alienating zerg's and lack of air strength as well as costly drops with overlords also effecting supply while dships for t/p do not. While progressive in it's ingenuity it was again plagued by the imbalance issue.

Looking back, what to think moving forward...

Island maps revolutionized and diversified our experience with this game. Think of them as a necessary evil.. never done "right," but maybe they can't be. Maybe it is the very nature of an island map that makes them problematic for balanced play. What can we learn from the past and move forward to make a better tomorrow? Will island maps be balanced in SC2? What changes need to be made? What considerations can be done? Should they be left out entirely? I am of the mind that this is not the answer.. I think it is possible to make island maps that are both balanced and exciting.

Who knows. Only time will tell!

Shade's: Air Map Imbalances Narrow Analysis by Shade[AoV]

P and T>Z on Island Maps
In Starcraft, island maps have not made it to the professional scene and ladders because Starcraft is too imbalanced to play these. Zerg players get @#%!d on island maps because their unit/tech combos are too expensive. A lair costs 150/150, drop upgrade costs 200/200, speed upgrade costs 150/150, then you need fully upgraded hydralisks which is 100/100 and 150/150. Additionally, zerg cannot expand on island maps as fast as other races because they have to research the necessary upgrades. Finally, zerg cannot tech to more than one thing because they don't have enough gas too. Also, zerg players can very easily lose their overlords on island maps by corsairs and wraiths. After a certain period of time their map control is limited until overlord speed. It should be noted Zerg air units are more mobile than their counterpart Protoss and Terran units.

T>P on Island Maps
Terrans can make turrets on the periphery of their small islands which can make protoss drops really difficult to accomplish. Terran players can prevent drops by using their turrets which are half the cost of cannons.
Terrans have faster and more effective drops.
Terrans can fly buildings for map control, while Protoss must get observers.
Terran can fast expand after 14 scvs while protoss has to wait for a shuttle.
Protoss have to make the two buildings for reavers, a templars archive for hts or dts, and observers for mines or wraiths.
Terrans benefit from having less room, while protoss needs open room for attacks.
Turrets, wraiths, and goliaths make it extremely easy for them to defend against drops especially with goliath range.
Also, protoss players will need their 200/200 speed upgrade for shuttles a lot of times. Dropships are faster than shuttles which are a big advantage. Dropships can fit better units than shuttles. An example is 4 goliaths vs. 2 dragoons. Another example is 4 goliaths > 4 zealots. Another example is 4 vultures > 4 zealots.
Goliaths have better range than dragoons have against air. Their rate of fire and attack makes them better.
Protoss players have to waste alot of much needed gas in the early game stages of an island map.
A Terran player can sometimes make one wraith to stop protoss shuttle drops with attack and move micro.

P>T on Semi-Island Maps and Big Islands
Protoss players benefit the most from large spaces on the islands.
Protoss players normally have to play for the late game on island maps because it takes them longer to tech. In the late game, if protoss can tech arbiters they will own with recalls and statis. Late game mind control can prevent drops from occurring.
Protoss players can send their observers around the map for better map control.
Protoss gateways cost significantly less than factories when you combine the costs of minerals and gas. This contributes to a protoss advantage in PvT on semi-islands because Protoss players have extra gas on a semi-island map.

T< P on Semi-Island Maps
On semi-island maps, like Neo Forbidden Zone, Terran has difficulty holding a second expansion. In most Semi-Island Maps, where the only islands are mains, third expansions are generally far away from the first expansion. Terran has trouble defending three bases from carriers, especially when they are far away from each other. Also, Terran is at a disadvantage because he has to defend so many locations from drops. Terrans do not have a mobile anti air unit. On maps where the fighting is done on the ground, Terrans are forced to get tanks and goliaths incase protoss gets carrier or drops, instead of tanks and vultures. Tanks and Vultures is a far better combo than Tanks and Goliaths when battling ground troops.

Frequently Asked Questions

-What are some things people have tried to do to make island maps balanced?
People have tried to add a second gas expo on the first main island. This would give zerg a slight advantage because they already need the second hatchery for a production building. Another thing map makers have done is to place a full mineral and gas expansion at the main. This does not make anything better for zergs and just turns the map into a BGH style of a map. Map Example: Paradoxx You can also put spider mines and dark templars in the form of sprites next to an expansion to give zerg an advantage. If you place spider mines sprites you can see the spider mines being placed at the start of a game. Zerg have early detection, so they can expand to where the dts and mines are earlier. You can also put a mineral sprite on a geyser to make it so only a Zerg player can take the gas by morphing in an extractor.

-Why do I never see a Terran player go bio on an Island Map in FFA mode?
Goind bio on an island map is daring because any other Terran who goes Mech will absolutely steamroll and rape you. Please note that Factories, Goliaths, and Vultures are all capable of being built on the way to Dropship tech (which will surely be made on island maps.

-Why Island Maps Are Hated?
Island games are despised by many because nothing exciting happens the first several minutes of the game.

-How come in TvP going Terran air units or Protoss air units doesn't work in the early to midgame?
Terran Wraiths easily get chewed up by dragoons since air to air combat is what they excell at. Battle Cruisers are bad against Dragoons because Dragoons do explosive damage and do extra damage to heavy units. Scouts and Carriers, conversely, get chewed up by Goliaths with range and Turrets. However, going Protoss air or Terran air in PvZ and TvZ are viable options.