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Did it actually have physical body before Auir?
And if not, then why did it need one to assimulate the protoss?
Why did the overmind need the temple to assimulate the protoss?
What were the Khaydarin crystals for and why did they need to be crystals from Aiur?
Did it need Khaydarin crystals whenever it wanted to assimulate other races?
If it didn't then why were the protoss an exception?
Were the crystals and temple like magic or something?
What about the Broodwar overmind?
did that thing also need the crystals and a temple to be manifest?
If it didn't need the crystals and the temple, then why did the other overmind need them?
If it didn't need the crystals and the temple, then what were they needed for?
How many overminds have lived and died?
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It has been a while since I have played through BW, so someone may be able to provide more/better information, but here are my thoughts:
1. I do think think it is ever stated explicitly, but I would think that it would have always had a physical form. Nothing about the Zerg indicates that they have the ability to manifest as an etherial consciousness; even the most powerful psyonic Zerg beings (the Overmind, Kerrigan and the Cerebrates) have a physical body. Before manifesting on Aiur, I would think it was just a giant brain floating through space or something similar. The Hive tentacles it has on Aiur were spawned when it landed (you can see them spawing in the cutscene).
2. Regardless of my answer to 1, it is possible that a large physical form with those large tentacles helps the overmind broadcast its psyonic energies. Perhaps it roots its self into the planets surface and is able to interact with the planet its self? These are just guesses, however, not based on any evidence.
3. I can't remember if the reason for the Temple and the Khaydarin Crystals were explained in the campaign, but my guess would be that the Zerg need to tap in to the power of the Xel'Naga to assimulate the Protoss, since the Protoss were created by the Xel'Naga. As we see in SCII, when you combine Zerg and Protoss DNA you create immensely powerful creatures, but it requires much effort.
4. See answer to 3.
5. See 3, but I will elaborate more: Clearly the Zerg to not need the Khaydarin crystals to assimilate other races, since it was able to infest Kerrigan, Duran, and many poor Terran marines with out them. We also know that the Zerg has been assimilating species for countless years just fine, so if they needed the Khaydarin crystals the whole time, one would think they would have some on hand.
6. See 3.
7. Kinda? As we have seen many times throughout SC1, BW and SCII, anything created by the Xel'Naga hold immense power. It is certainly far beyond our grasp to understand how it works, but it does not seem like "Magic" per say, rather an extension of the technology the Protoss use. Dominion scientists were able to figure out how to use the Xel'Naga artifact found in WoL after all, which leads me to believe that the artifact behaves in a logical fashion understandable by physicists.
8. I would think that the Broodwar overmind would behave in the same way as the original overmind, though perhaps with less psyonic power.
9. See 8.
10. See 8.
11. See 8.
12. That is actually a very interesting question. The first overmind certainly thought of its self as an unending being, something that always is, always has been and always will be. It is unknown, however, if the Overmind has, in fact, always been the same creature. It is possible that the consciousness that is the Overmind has passed between multiple hosts, keeping the same memories the whole time.
I hope this was helpful. It certainly gave me some interesting things to think about!
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These are all really good questions. I was so young when I played BW the first time around I never really questioned any of the storyline.
To date, Blizzard has never really explained why the first Overmind needed to get to Aiur so badly. It's obvious from the new Overmind on Char that Kerrigan destroyed that the Overmind didn't need the Khaydarin crystals to become manifest. But, Blizzard also doesn't explain why this is necessary -- it seemed like the Swarm was doing just fine when the Overmind didn't physically exist.
The first Overmind was doing the bidding of the Dark Voice, as is apparent from Zeratul's missions. The second Overmind may not have been -- they might have just been fighting for survival and didn't want to/couldn't join Kerrigan. Daggoth hated Kerrigan. The first Overmind was preoccupied with the assimilation of the Protoss (and Blizzard never really adequately explains why the Protoss can't be assimilated by the Swarm -- i.e., when combined they're "hybrids," not "infested" -- and need Terran/other science experiments to do it).
I'm hoping that HotS and LotV explain some more of the relationship between Zerg, Protoss and the Xel'Naga crystals. HotS at least might explain how/why the first Overmind created Kerrigan outside of the Dark Voice's knowledge to use as a weapon against it.
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Before I got my SC2 Beta key I actually replayed the entire SC Campaign about 400 times. I love the story and I just want to settle two of the Questions.
1) Did it actually have physical body before Auir?
Yes, It most certainly did. As we see in all the mission briefings it was that eye thing. Maybe that was just to give it more realism and instead of just having a voice giving you orders. However you can not deny the fact that the Overmind came to Aiur as a "Meteor" (and yes when i was 8 and first saw that I had no idea it was the overmind I thought it was jsut some meteor meant for dramatic effect haha) This large creature could have easily been on any planet, any moon, rock or space station. In the book that comes with the original SC back in 98 it says that the Xel Naga created the overmind as a Being - Not just a sentient voice to control the Swarm. With all this in mind it is obvious to conclude that once the Overmind was created it always had a physical Form.
3) Why did the overmind need the temple to assimulate the protoss?
This question is a bit different though.The Overmind states in the campaign that it wants to be manifest where its creators temple was. It is not to assimilate the protoss but more for symbolics/Energies. The overmind states this temple was erected at the very spot that the Xel Naga first touched down on Auir. This was holy ground. From the novels we also know that no matter where to Xel Naga went they created powerful energies. These energies were simply a catalyst for the Overmind to assimilate such a powerfully psionic race. (Before the Protoss the overmind controlled very primitive races. this is why kerrigan was so important. her psionic abilities were simply a test. The Big O was interested in Terrans ONLY for their "Latent Psionic Abilities" which the overmind could gentically extract and over very fast generations speed up the process. Creating warriors to help against the protoss as the Overmind attempted to Assimilate them.) The Crystal that must be placed at the ruins of the temple was a portal or doorway for the Overmind to actually harness the energies left by the Xel Naga at the temples location, And could have also simply been a homing beacon for the "Meteor Overmind" to pin point its location. (The Psi Emitters are proof that Zerg can locate and zero in on powerful psionic energies very easily) So to conclude... The temple itself was of little importance and was simply just a place holder to mark the Xel Naga landing on Auir (and In my opinion a slap in the face to the Protoss since the ground was Sacred)
I hope this clears those questions up. I love the Story of Starcraft and if anyone has different or conflicting Information just send me a PM. I am very interested in others opinions of SC Lore!
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I would like to answer the xel naga temple question.
Remember the protoss campaign in brood war? You basically had to run around fetching those two crystals and then artanis and zeratul used them to power up the xel naga temple on shakuras to kill all the zerg on shakuras.
There was a xel naga temple which looked exactly the same, in the original SC on Auir.
Which presumably could have been used by the protoss to eradicate the zerg invasion on their homeworld (although they would need the help of a dark templar to do this).
The Overmind knew this and destroyed the temple to make sure that the protoss wouldn't be able to use the superweapon against them.
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On October 12 2010 05:30 Ghidrah wrote:
Before I got my SC2 Beta key I actually replayed the entire SC Campaign about 400 times. I love the story and I just want to settle two of the Questions.
WOW!!! that's some fanatic devotion there!!
wowowow ii'm speechless
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Did it actually have physical body before Auir?
I don't think so.
And if not, then why did it need one to assimulate the protoss?
I don't think this has ever been explicitly stated.
Why did the overmind need the temple to assimulate the protoss?
The only reason it needed the temple was because that was the only place on Aiur that it could manifest its physical form. It needed a massive amount of energy to be sustained so that was the only place it could go.
What were the Khaydarin crystals for and why did they need to be crystals from Aiur?
The Khaydarin crystals were crystals that the Xel'Naga discovered had extraordinary powers that they learned to harness. Some were left on Aiur by the Xel'Naga when they left.
Did it need Khaydarin crystals whenever it wanted to assimulate other races?
No, but it sure helps. They give races created by the Xel'Naga immense power.
If it didn't then why were the protoss an exception?
Because the Protoss were also created by the Xel'Naga, thus much more powerful than any other race it sought to assimilate.
Were the crystals and temple like magic or something?
They were very powerful, bordering on magic.
What about the Broodwar overmind?
??
did that thing also need the crystals and a temple to be manifest?
Yes, as I said earlier.
If it didn't need the crystals and the temple, then why did the other overmind need them?
See above.
If it didn't need the crystals and the temple, then what were they needed for?
See above.
How many overminds have lived and died?
1
Hope that clears things up.
EDIT: Formatting.
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Did it actually have physical body before Auir?
Yes, he wasn't a collection of mind power, he was the mind power.
Why did the overmind need the temple to assimulate the protoss?
Basically he knew that his best chance to take down the protoss was taking the temple. It was a way to improve his power by using the energy.
What were the Khaydarin crystals for and why did they need to be crystals from Aiur?
Just their origin, not neccessarily from Auir.
Did it need Khaydarin crystals whenever it wanted to assimulate other races?
If it didn't then why were the protoss an exception?
Protoss are united by the Khala, which is a bond that must be broken for them to be assimilated, which is why they need special technology. Also shows why it would be easier to infest a dark templar because they are not bound to the Khala. (which basically unites all their minds)
Were the crystals and temple like magic or something?
kinda
What about the Broodwar overmind?
They were all worried the broodwar overmind would have similar desires and powers. However he was clearly bitch slapped around. I attribute that to his relatively short existence, a lack of experience made that quite a bit easier.
did that thing also need the crystals and a temple to be manifest?
No, just need to break the Khala by any means neccessary.
If it didn't need the crystals and the temple, then why did the other overmind need them?
Because it made his goals easier.
How many overminds have lived and died?
2
edit:
What i see people missing is the Khala. That is very, very important to the protoss. It is what protects them, and it's the nature of the Khala that makes dark templar so reprehensible to the Judicators. I wish I could link the original back story about the protoss from the manual with sc1. It outlines a lot of that pretty well.
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The overmind was this amazing, fearsome, awesome entity that bent his will toward the destruction of everything (and the perfection of his species).
Now the overmind is a martyr, dying doing what he could to protect the universe.
...FUUUUUUUUU
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On October 12 2010 12:31 mierin wrote:
Now the overmind is a martyr, dying doing what he could to protect the universe.
...FUUUUUUUUU
That's not how I read it.
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^ What? Did you play the SC2 campaign all the way through?
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I read it as the overmind protecting it's own. It didn't trust the dark thing with red eyes to let the zerg continue existing once the overmind had built up its perfect army. Prove me wrong.
It kind of was a martyr to the zerg, but people have been reading the overminds courage as nobility for some reason.
I'm half expecting that blizzard aren't going to give us a conclusive explanation for the overminds motives. They left a lot to interpretation with the Aiur invasion as this topic demonstrates, so I don't see why blizz would just remove all of the mystery of the overmind now.
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In BW, the Overmind detached itself from Charr and moved itself to Auir. If you watch the cinematic, it's shown fairly clearly?
Who would it do that? Perhaps overconfidence; or perhaps its physical presence at Auir allowed it to control the Zergs better. Or perhaps it simply felt that it belonged to Auir more than the desolate planet of Charr.
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On October 12 2010 10:28 evanthebouncy! wrote:Show nested quote +On October 12 2010 05:30 Ghidrah wrote:
Before I got my SC2 Beta key I actually replayed the entire SC Campaign about 400 times. I love the story and I just want to settle two of the Questions.
WOW!!! that's some fanatic devotion there!! wowowow ii'm speechless
I think he was exaggerating, at least i hope o_O
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Up to this date I still thought that the zerg were created by the terran. Guess I missed something.
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Canada11475 Posts
That was Arcturas Mengk's explanation/ propaganda to Jim Raynor, the other campaigns make it pretty clear that this wasn't the case, but that the Terrans were purposefully attracting the Zerg to wipe out their enemies.
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Arcturus seemed pretty convinced. What do you think it'd look like to Mengsk to see Zerg been experimented on in confederate command centres? Remember, the Confederates utterly wiped out the planet Korhal with nukes to put down a rebellion, so it's nota stretch to imagine that they were creating the zerg. And it's kind of hard to lie about shit like the nuking of Korhal.
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Hey... are we sure... the Xel'Naga... are actually... Xel'Naga??!...What if they are ancient terrans??
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Canada11475 Posts
@ Billy
I'll give you that, maybe Mengsk was convinced that this was the case. But the exposition points in the Zerg and Protoss campaign seemed to suggest that Mengsk was wrong. Although, they too could be delusional.
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EPT
