The HotS Zerg Help Me Thread - Page 255

On May 02 2015 08:30 nerg wrote:
My friend plays Protoss and I main Zerg. He challenged me to a game and I haven't really played seriously in months and my ego would rather not lose against this guy.

I'm trying to nail the 9-min Hive build but I'm wondering if attacking at 12:00 leaves me way too vulnerable for early waves.

I have faith in mass hydra+roach vs protoss... but is 9-min hive the best approach to getting a bulky enough army vs toss defense?

On May 01 2015 06:13 Ej_ wrote:



then just 15pool, it won't hurt you

On May 03 2015 03:21 straycat wrote:


So eh... a friend of mine... goes 15 pool all zvzs.... and loses like all the time to 10 pools. What is it he's supposed to do that makes fending off 10 pool so easy with 15 pool? He goes 15p16h17g16Q18OL.

On May 03 2015 06:06 nerg wrote:
Another quick question: what the hell is the best approach to a 6+ Thor ball supported by Valkyries??
I've heard going Broodlord + Ultralisk picks off the Thors but it's literally one of the most vexing strategies for me to counter because I usually dont have the income to tech that hard and get enough troops in response.

Of course, this could all just be failure on my part, but... essentially: what does Zerg do against a pack of Thor with air support?

On May 03 2015 18:41 FlyingBeer wrote:

For the thors, any ground unit other than banelings is going to trade decently against them. For a low tech approach, mass roach is the best choice. If they're being defended by banshees, you need infestors both to fungal the banshees to reveal them and to drop infested terrans to kill them off. I assume that's what you mean by valkyries. So concave in with the roaches first then fungal the banshees after the thors have engaged the roaches. Hydras can also be useful, but it can be hard to get an overseer near which is why you need to fungal. If they get lots of tanks, you will not be able to engage without broodlords or swarm host cost effectively, but tanks move slowly so you can still exploit your mobility to buy time.

On May 06 2015 14:45 smuckers26 wrote:
I know this gets asked often, but I've looked around a lot and I can't really find anything that tells me what the general strategies for every ZvX matchup is. Not talking about build order, but also composition and what my goal should be during certain parts of the game. I quit in WoL as a high masters Zerg and I have very limited knowledge about anything to do with HOTS.

So basically, just wondering what the meta is for every matchup. Should I still be doing fast 3 base in ZvP, for example? Muta/ling/baneling in ZvT? Is Infestor/Broodlord still the best late game composition for ZvP?

On May 06 2015 16:19 EpidemicSC wrote:


Oddly enough, much of what you asked is still the case. Fast 3 base is still standard in ZvP, muta ling bane is still standard in ZvT, and infestor/broodlord is pretty much the go to lategame in ZvP again. Before the recent swarmhost patch, this wouldnt be the case but things have reverted.. Obviously the timings have all changed, but those are things you have to learn from experience.

On May 06 2015 16:32 smuckers26 wrote:


Alright, thanks. I'm also wondering about the role of swarm hosts and vipers currently. When and why do I build them?

On May 06 2015 14:45 smuckers26 wrote:
I know this gets asked often, but I've looked around a lot and I can't really find anything that tells me what the general strategies for every ZvX matchup is. Not talking about build order, but also composition and what my goal should be during certain parts of the game. I quit in WoL as a high masters Zerg and I have very limited knowledge about anything to do with HOTS.

So basically, just wondering what the meta is for every matchup. Should I still be doing fast 3 base in ZvP, for example? Muta/ling/baneling in ZvT? Is Infestor/Broodlord still the best late game composition for ZvP?

On May 06 2015 16:09 Archiatrus wrote:
Regarding vs mech in lower leagues: I found (for me) Ultra/Hydra/Infestor the best option (eg ~8-12 Ultra, ~8 infestor, rest Hydra). Ultra/Hydra in my main control group and the infestors in a second whereas they are burrowed and on follow to one of the Ultras. Before you attack wait a little bit, that you have a bank. Most terrans are passive enough to let you. Then attack move with main control group, switch to infestor, drop infested terrans as fast as possible on any tank you see (rapid fire) until the infestor energy is gone and send them home afterwards. The idea is that the tanks do NOT shot on the Hydras as long as possible. The Ultras and eggs are the punching bags. In most engagements only the infestors will survive but a good part of his army will be gone too, which is better than the usual meat grinder where you get like 1 tank for a maxed army. Overall, using Vipers would be better I guess, but since my controls are horrible (see the beginning: lower leagues) I usually lose them to Vikings before any cloud goes down, or even better: I get descent clouds, but my army is too late and the clouds are already gone again...
http://ggtracker.com/matches/5954118 for anyone who is really interested. Notice the second fight, where I did not wait for my infestors.

On May 07 2015 14:36 BillTheNydusWorm wrote:
Hi, plat Zerg here. Ever since I saw Leenock and Jaedong do the fast ling ultra style against protoss at dreamhack shortly after hots release I have been in love with the build. Even though it got a weak midgame because you only got lings I simply adore the build. However I never manedged to replicate it myself. So are there any one here who made it work willing to share some key things about how to execute the playstyle?
Thanks in advance.