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Cerebrates

Forum Index > StarCraft 2 HotS
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OSM.OneManArmy
Profile Joined April 2011
United States509 Posts
June 06 2011 23:26 GMT
#1
In the original starcraft, as we all know cerebrates were used by the overmind to control broods.

Even in brood war when kerrigan came to power, the player acted as a cerebrate used on kerrigan's behalf.

In wings of liberty, we don't see kerrigan use any of the cerebrates. Nor in heart of the swarm. While there probably is a legitimate explanation of it, i just feel so empty with the campaign...

One of the biggest elements of the original was using a dark templar to destroy a cerebrate, and it really makes me sad that in Sc2 this element has completely disappeared. My question to all of you TLers, is do all of you also miss the cerebrates?
Admin of High School Starleague // hsstarleague.com // https://www.facebook.com/HSStarleague // UCI Dota2 President https://www.facebook.com/groups/ucidota/
TheToast
Profile Blog Joined August 2010
United States4808 Posts
Last Edited: 2011-06-06 23:49:54
June 06 2011 23:46 GMT
#2
The Cerebrates are all dead, they had a symbiotic relationship with the Overmind and couldn't survive after Kerrigan killed the second Overmind in BW, Chris Metzen has confirmed this. Asking if we miss them is entirely irrelevant. That's like asking if we missed Captain Kurk in Star Trek: Next Gen.

I will be the first person to say the WoL campaign plot did not remotely live up to the plot in SC and SC: BW, but that whole idea would actually make for a comprehensive discussion thread, where as this thread topic does not.
I like the way the walls go out. Gives you an open feeling. Firefly's a good design. People don't appreciate the substance of things. Objects in space. People miss out on what's solid.
Probe1
Profile Blog Joined August 2010
United States17920 Posts
Last Edited: 2011-06-07 00:11:15
June 07 2011 00:10 GMT
#3
Is it bad that I was already forming my retort to what TheToast wrote when I read his quote, instantly recognizing the line from the final episode of Firefly and decided I no longer wanted to argue with him for the sheer level of his awesomeness?



(Look, theres so little new content in Single Player forum.. I don't mind someone actually making a new thread. And for the record I didn't know Chris Metzen said so, I was assuming there were still cerebrates as "I have freed you from the overmind" et cetera beginning of brood war implied that you were all good and fine without the overmind.)
우정호 KT_VIOLET 1988 - 2012 While we are postponing, life speeds by
TheToast
Profile Blog Joined August 2010
United States4808 Posts
Last Edited: 2011-06-07 01:17:51
June 07 2011 01:15 GMT
#4
On June 07 2011 09:10 Probe1 wrote:
Is it bad that I was already forming my retort to what TheToast wrote when I read his quote, instantly recognizing the line from the final episode of Firefly and decided I no longer wanted to argue with him for the sheer level of his awesomeness?



(Look, theres so little new content in Single Player forum.. I don't mind someone actually making a new thread. And for the record I didn't know Chris Metzen said so, I was assuming there were still cerebrates as "I have freed you from the overmind" et cetera beginning of brood war implied that you were all good and fine without the overmind.)


Yes Chris Metzen has confirmed the Cerebrates are all dead, on several occasions. Metzen stated the following during a lore panel at the 2007 BlizzCon:

"since Brood War there’s only one mind controlling the Zerg (as far as anyone knows). After Brood War she whacked out all the (remaining) cerebrates, so as far as anyone knows she is in sole control of the swarm. But that sure is an interesting theme *wink wink*”"Source

In 2009 he further extended and further clarified the status of the cerebrates with the following:

"Metzen - Daggoth is dead, along with the rest of the cerebrates. Kerrigan is the sole power behind the Swarm now. It’s possible that Daggoth could not sustain himself without the Overmind and other cerebrates to power him. We’ve suggested before that the Overmind and its cerebrates were symbiotically linked. The cerebrates were not designed to exist without their creator. That’s a partial reason behind the cerebrates’ merging into a new, singular Overmind during the early events of Brood War. Source

The Cerebrate originally played by the gamer in SC was killed by Tassadar, source while the Cerebrate played by the gamer in BW also died (same source as first Metzen quote, SC2 Wiki article here). The Cerebrates are all dead and they are not coming back, unless Chris Metzen decides to ignore established Lore (again) and make up some crazy crap because he is out of ideas (again).

I have no issue with new threads in single player, but it we are going to have a discussion it should be intelligent or substantive. I think the OP would have been much better off framing a good discussion about the direction of the lore concerning the zerg race (which is of course filled with holes and ridiculous re-writes of established events) which I would love to see more discussion of, rather than making a whole thread to ask if we miss the cerebrates...

(and don't question my lore knowlege! )


I like the way the walls go out. Gives you an open feeling. Firefly's a good design. People don't appreciate the substance of things. Objects in space. People miss out on what's solid.
Doc Daneeka
Profile Joined March 2010
United States577 Posts
June 07 2011 02:57 GMT
#5
frame the discussion yourselves, sheesh, it's no one's responsibility to write a master's thesis to get you started.

it was my understanding that many of the cerebrates merged to form the new overmind that was killed, with many of the remaining being killed by kerrigan because of their ties to the overmind. and yeah i'd heard that chris metzen quote before. it seems like the queens were eventually designed by kerrigan to somewhat fill the role left empty by the cerebrates, but based them more on herself and the way she leads the zerg (in person and fighting the enemy herself, with a strong personality and sense of independence.) hence why a queen is our adviser in multiplayer. i really wish they had introduced the concept of the queen in WoL, besides that one random boss fight that came with no explanation. i guess we'll probably get some more background on them in HotS.
payed off security
da_head
Profile Blog Joined November 2008
Canada3350 Posts
June 07 2011 04:35 GMT
#6
the cerebrates are not dependent on the overmind because kerrigan was controlling/supporting you in bw (as the cerebrate), so that explaniation isn't sufficient.
When they see MC Probe, all the ladies disrobe.
zhurai
Profile Blog Joined September 2010
United States5660 Posts
June 07 2011 04:39 GMT
#7
On June 07 2011 13:35 da_head wrote:
the cerebrates are not dependent on the overmind because kerrigan was controlling/supporting you in bw (as the cerebrate), so that explaniation isn't sufficient.



On June 07 2011 10:15 TheToast wrote:

The Cerebrate originally played by the gamer in SC was killed by Tassadar, source while the Cerebrate played by the gamer in BW also died (same source as first Metzen quote, SC2 Wiki article here). The Cerebrates are all dead and they are not coming back, unless Chris Metzen decides to ignore established Lore (again) and make up some crazy crap because he is out of ideas (again).




The BW Cerebrate's Dead.
Twitter: @zhurai | Site: http://zhurai.com
Selendis
Profile Blog Joined October 2010
Australia509 Posts
June 07 2011 09:12 GMT
#8
I miss the Cerebrates .

Kerrigan is an Awesome general and all but she is just ONE woman.

The cerebrates were huge living brains dedicated soley to commanding the broods. They were the Zerg commanders but unlike commanders of ther races, they were literally bred for the duty. They were built for it. Designed for it.

We saw the genius of the cerebrates in the original, where as the newest and most cunning cerebrate of the swarm you win countless battles agaisnt grim odds. In the protoss campaign we also see how the zerg master stategy outwits that of the conclave, resulting in the fall of Fenix.

And in Brood War we see one zerg cerebrate outwit the UED, Protoss and the Dominion fleets in one bloody and unfair battle.

It's probably a good thing for the terrans and protoss that there are no more cerebrates/overmind because if there was then they would not stand a chance agaisnt zerg.

That said I sorely miss the Overmind and his cerebrates...
Probes are sooo OP
MindRush
Profile Joined April 2010
Romania916 Posts
June 07 2011 09:33 GMT
#9
HotS campaign is focused on Queens. Kerrigan has to regain her control of the swarm from other queens. So I guess new lore, new times, new ideas which kind of blend in with the zerg nature.
Zergs are very adaptable, able to mutate and transform, why not able to change the way they are controlled? By a Queen instead of a cerebrate.
"Two things are infinite: the universe and human stupidity; and I'm not sure about the universe." - Albert Einstein
NeonFox
Profile Joined January 2011
2373 Posts
June 07 2011 11:09 GMT
#10
On June 07 2011 18:33 MindRush wrote:
HotS campaign is focused on Queens. Kerrigan has to regain her control of the swarm from other queens. So I guess new lore, new times, new ideas which kind of blend in with the zerg nature.
Zergs are very adaptable, able to mutate and transform, why not able to change the way they are controlled? By a Queen instead of a cerebrate.


That's how I see it as well, Kerrigan made queens after herself, to replace the cerebrates wich where created by the overmind.
Ruscour
Profile Blog Joined April 2011
5233 Posts
June 07 2011 12:02 GMT
#11
From a personal standpoint, I would much rather play as myself than as someone else (eg, I'd rather play Dragon Age where I can create my own character rather than The Witcher where I'm Geralt whether I like it or not). The Zerg campaign in SC1 did this, allowing me to play as a cerebrate, and I much prefer that over the thought of being Kerrigan. I do miss it, and thanks to people pointing out that the cerebrates are now gone :-(
erikzbi
Profile Joined May 2011
China43 Posts
June 07 2011 12:05 GMT
#12
well, people, think about it: can a queen replace a cerebrate?

A cerebrate is a psyonic being which has high psyonic energy, sufficient to control broods. But a queen... only a unit. can it control all those broods? besides, if a queen replaces a cerebrate, and a queen has relative less health compared to cerebrates, wont the protoss and terran just snipe the queen? they cant snipe a cerebrate, right?
zasta
Profile Joined April 2011
United Kingdom99 Posts
June 07 2011 13:37 GMT
#13
From an evolutionary standpoint, surely a cerebrate could be recreated from the merger of several overlords / queens / combination of other zerg creatures we never meet on the battlefield like those being introduced in the HotS. A new hive mind would grow even if you destroyed all the old ones, because otherwise the entire race is doomed to die whenever Kerrigan does. I feel that a continuously mutating, evolving race like the Zerg would be up to the task
Gahlo
Profile Joined February 2010
United States35173 Posts
Last Edited: 2011-06-07 14:35:49
June 07 2011 14:28 GMT
#14
On June 07 2011 21:05 erikzbi wrote:
well, people, think about it: can a queen replace a cerebrate?

A cerebrate is a psyonic being which has high psyonic energy, sufficient to control broods. But a queen... only a unit. can it control all those broods? besides, if a queen replaces a cerebrate, and a queen has relative less health compared to cerebrates, wont the protoss and terran just snipe the queen? they cant snipe a cerebrate, right?


Why not? The queens area "rumored" to have some of Kerrigan's DNA in them. Since zerg examine the beings around them for what they can absorb into their collective arsenal they would be easily be able to tell that. The queens are the genetically stamped mouth pieces of Kerrigan and psionic in their own right as well. The cerebrates trick to endurance it out of the bag, they are now sitting ducks with a sign saying "void blade me" all over them.

+ Show Spoiler +
http://us.battle.net/sc2/en/game/heart-of-the-swarm-preview/story Za’gara - A very intelligent type of queen known as a Brood Mother, Za'gara seeks to take over the Swarm in the absence of the Queen of Blades.
Telenil
Profile Joined September 2010
France484 Posts
June 07 2011 15:33 GMT
#15
Heart of the Swarm spoilers inside.
+ Show Spoiler +
There is a new type of queens called "Brood Mothers" that were designed by kerrigan to replace the Cerebrates.
The Cerebrates were technically a part of the Overmind, so I'm not surprised Kerrigan would hunt them down (except for the one we play, but it is about the same thing as Artanis refering to us as Executor when he is now said to have been the Executor).
And I assume she created the Brood Mothers for the exact same reason the Overmind created the Cerebrates and the Overlords: because it is difficult for one entity to control a very large number of zerg.
Mass Recall: Brood War campaigns on SC2: http://www.teamliquid.net/forum/viewmessage.php?topic_id=303166
RaLakedaimon
Profile Joined August 2010
United States1564 Posts
June 07 2011 15:43 GMT
#16
I think having cerebrates would be cooler than queens in HotS campaign, mainly because it was something you grew up with in SC/BW and would kind of bring some nostalgia to those who have played since the first game came out. But then again they may find a way to make the queens in the game feel more baller than in multiplayer where there almost like a golden egg your trying to hold on to all game and not ever lose one lol.
TORTOISE
Profile Joined December 2010
United States515 Posts
June 07 2011 16:28 GMT
#17
I miss my cute, cudly Cerebrates. =[ Damn you Blizzard! Damn you straight to hell!
◕ ‿‿ ◕ ๑•́ ₃ •̀๑ ( ͡ ° ͜ ʖ ͡°)
dukethegold
Profile Blog Joined August 2009
Canada5645 Posts
Last Edited: 2011-06-07 17:54:25
June 07 2011 17:49 GMT
#18
Found it weird that the Overmind required numerous cerebrates to assert full control over the swarm while Kerrigan needed only herself. Back in BW, she had the player cerebrate and Duran.

There is also this Brood Queen from HOTS that serves as a mini-cerebrate of sorts.


On June 08 2011 00:33 Telenil wrote:
Heart of the Swarm spoilers inside.
+ Show Spoiler +
There is a new type of queens called "Brood Mothers" that were designed by kerrigan to replace the Cerebrates.
The Cerebrates were technically a part of the Overmind, so I'm not surprised Kerrigan would hunt them down (except for the one we play, but it is about the same thing as Artanis refering to us as Executor when he is now said to have been the Executor).
And I assume she created the Brood Mothers for the exact same reason the Overmind created the Cerebrates and the Overlords: because it is difficult for one entity to control a very large number of zerg.



Artanis was not the executor of BW, he was the executor in the original starcraft.

Was the cerebrate from the original the same cerebrate from BW?

The UED commander from BW that we played as is presumably a flowing corpse somewhere in the galaxy. Or inside a pile of muta crap.

The fate of the commander from the original who defected along with Raynor is also unknown.
Gahlo
Profile Joined February 2010
United States35173 Posts
June 07 2011 18:09 GMT
#19
On June 08 2011 02:49 dukethegold wrote:
The fate of the commander from the original who defected along with Raynor is also unknown.


An interesting theory I have heard on that is that the commander is Horner.
Bhaalgorn
Profile Joined August 2010
Slovenia214 Posts
June 09 2011 18:45 GMT
#20
On June 08 2011 03:09 Gahlo wrote:
Show nested quote +
On June 08 2011 02:49 dukethegold wrote:
The fate of the commander from the original who defected along with Raynor is also unknown.


An interesting theory I have heard on that is that the commander is Horner.


Minor spoilers to the book Liberty's Crusade:

+ Show Spoiler +
The book Liberty's Crusade portrays Danny Liberty to be the commander in the terran campaign from the original Starcraft. At least most of it, it's been a while but I distinctly remember the author saying that Danny Liberty alongside Raynor ordered to burn the infested command center on Mar Sara.


In the end Liberty is still alive and trying to spread the truth about Mengsk and his orders to lure the Zerg to Tarsonis to do his dirty work for him.


From what I know both zerg cerabrates from the original and BW are dead,the executor from the original is Artanis and the executor from BW is Selendis. The commander from the original is Danny Liberty and probably the commander from BW is some UED guy. I am not 100% certain though.



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