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[D] Widow Mine Fundamentally Flawed - Page 12

Forum Index > SC2 General
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Darneck
Profile Joined September 2010
Sweden1394 Posts
July 31 2012 16:20 GMT
#221
On August 01 2012 01:08 Jakkerr wrote:
I agree that the Widow mine is very flawed.
It dissapears when the unit it's attached to dies, so you can't really setup a trap with them.

They take 10 seconds to explode, for any1 with decent micro it takes max 2 seconds to ctrl + click 4-5 widow mined units out of their army and move them away.

Most people dont like AOE Abilities, Infestors and Colossi are the 2 most hated (and loved at the same time) Starcraft units and until recently the Ghost belonged to that list aswell. High templars were also really strong and still are but they did take a big hit back when Amulet got removed.
Point being, do we really want more AOE in the game?

Ehh, I'm pretty sure people love AOE that forces micro. The reason people don't like infestors would be because fungal holds the units in place and makes it impossible to do anything or micro at all once you are caught and chain fungaled.

The reason why people hate colossi is because they are boring and you can't really do anything with them, there is no micro to reward you if you use them correctly and there's nothing to punish you if you use them incorrectly. You can really only A move and pull back with them.
toopham
Profile Blog Joined December 2005
United States551 Posts
Last Edited: 2012-07-31 16:39:41
July 31 2012 16:22 GMT
#222
Sorry to hear your old threads got closed. As an old member of this community I can tell you the mods are biased towards their "friends". Im pretty sure Idra can make a thread with a one liner and it'll still be fine.



On July 31 2012 03:33 The Final Boss wrote:
The fact that any of these threads have been made is sad. Why are we talking about balance regarding a game that is not even out....



Isn't it better to discuss something not out ? Because then we give Blizzard a chance to FIX IT before it come out and having to do a bunch of patch just to fix it up. This thread is not sad. If you want to discuss then you stay. If not then go look for other threads to read.

Edit: Anyways I should probably discuss about the topic of the thread so I dont derail from it and get a warning from the mods.

I think SC2 is not a game for gamers. It is a game for profit, purely profit. They throw out 100 different units to make it look "cool" and "awesome" and "Wow its a new unit!". But the more units you add the harder or I should say IMPOSSIBLE to balance. Take chess. There's like under 10 different units in Chess but still a classic game with infinite possibilities.
Blizzard is not helping esports. They just want money.
DIE!!!
ArchAngelSC
Profile Joined April 2012
England706 Posts
Last Edited: 2012-07-31 16:31:22
July 31 2012 16:23 GMT
#223
On August 01 2012 01:14 CaptainCrush wrote:
Show nested quote +
On July 31 2012 03:16 Grapefruit wrote:
Okay, so a few days ago I made a thread about Terran in HotS, which was closed pretty much immidiatly. A few days later a new thread was made that only covered one of the topics I used, which is very active right now. I'm not sure how this is fair. Sure, my thread wasn't as facy but it seemed like people were actually starting a discussion rather than premature balance whine.


This is the best intro I have ever seen to get a person to NOT read anything that you have posted below it. This is still a balance whine topic and whats even worse is that it's about a unit that hasnt even been released.

Oh, and why is it that a burrowed baneling is perfectly OK while a widow mine is somehow fundamentally flawed and should be banned at all costs?

If you had actually read the OP instead of wasting your time making a fool of yourself with this post then you'd know.

On August 01 2012 01:22 toopham wrote:
Sorry to hear your old threads got closed. As an old member of this community I can tell you the mods are biased towards their "friends". Im pretty sure Idra can make a thread with a one liner and it'll still be fine.


It says in the rules that you were supposed to read upon registering for this site that people who have been here longer, and people who are more well known (aka, pro players) will get preferential treatment.

If you don't like it you're free to leave ^.^
etofok
Profile Blog Joined March 2012
138 Posts
July 31 2012 16:24 GMT
#224
If Mine detonates when the unit who carried it dies - this is OK. Otherwise a couple of lings will catch them all and die instantly to tank shots.
The king, the priest, the rich man—who lives and who dies? Who will the swordsman obey?
WniO
Profile Blog Joined April 2010
United States2706 Posts
July 31 2012 16:30 GMT
#225
Come on. Its a good find and all, but its too early. There might be some cool timings or strategy that no ones thought of yet, just wait and see.
nihoh
Profile Blog Joined May 2010
Australia978 Posts
July 31 2012 16:36 GMT
#226
They should just make it a Spidermine with 1 second delay and slight splash, built from the factory.
Dont look at the finger or you will miss all that heavenly glory.
GhostFiber
Profile Joined January 2012
Australia88 Posts
July 31 2012 16:37 GMT
#227
Interesting thread, I don't think it's bad to talk about these things before they come out. Might not be that positive but if we are upbeat about everything we end up in situations we cannot reverse, like Blizzard says; once a game ships they don't change mechanics.

Gold Find in Diablo III was discussed on Battle.net forums as a big issue, if it got more attention perhaps it wouldn't have made it into the final version like this widow mine.
VictorJones
Profile Blog Joined December 2010
United States235 Posts
July 31 2012 16:48 GMT
#228
This is dumb.


The unit needs to be tweaked and it will be.. The unit as it exists right now is not what is going to exist at release of the Beta.

It wouldn't surprise me at all if they lowered the detonation time a little and made it so the mine only attached to units that were larger than a certain size (like, they wouldn't attach to zelots because they are too small, but they attach to stalkers and units as large or larger than them). If those two relatively minor changes occurred, would you then be happy? If so, the unit isn't fundamentally flawed. It just needs tweaking.

Also, the thing you said about compositions and builds not mattering is garbage. Placement of units in a build affects which units they are likely to interact with which matters quite a bit to the usefulness of the unit.

Finally, units have been used in incredibly creative ways since the release of sc2. The creativity of the use of the unit is evident when you look at how the units are placed in builds to counter certain compositions at specific moments in the game. Countless different 2 base allins from protoss have utilized combinations of "straightforward" units in intelligent ways to kill zerg players by attacking in ways that take advantage of less good compositions. The defense of these allins is anything but simple. The widow mine will be used in ways that are beyond our scope of understanding at this current moment in time. You think that this is not an issue with your post but I strongly disagree.
toopham
Profile Blog Joined December 2005
United States551 Posts
July 31 2012 16:49 GMT
#229
On August 01 2012 01:23 ArchAngelSC wrote:

Show nested quote +
On August 01 2012 01:22 toopham wrote:
Sorry to hear your old threads got closed. As an old member of this community I can tell you the mods are biased towards their "friends". Im pretty sure Idra can make a thread with a one liner and it'll still be fine.


It says in the rules that you were supposed to read upon registering for this site that people who have been here longer, and people who are more well known (aka, pro players) will get preferential treatment.

If you don't like it you're free to leave ^.^



I did leave for a year., came back because of my love for starcraft. I'm here for the content, not for the mods. so I don't really give a shit about them.
DIE!!!
toopham
Profile Blog Joined December 2005
United States551 Posts
July 31 2012 16:55 GMT
#230
On August 01 2012 01:48 VictorJones wrote:
This is dumb.


The unit needs to be tweaked and it will be.. The unit as it exists right now is not what is going to exist at release of the Beta.

It wouldn't surprise me at all if they lowered the detonation time a little and made it so the mine only attached to units that were larger than a certain size (like, they wouldn't attach to zelots because they are too small, but they attach to stalkers and units as large or larger than them). If those two relatively minor changes occurred, would you then be happy? If so, the unit isn't fundamentally flawed. It just needs tweaking.

Also, the thing you said about compositions and builds not mattering is garbage. Placement of units in a build affects which units they are likely to interact with which matters quite a bit to the usefulness of the unit.

Finally, units have been used in incredibly creative ways since the release of sc2. The creativity of the use of the unit is evident when you look at how the units are placed in builds to counter certain compositions at specific moments in the game. Countless different 2 base allins from protoss have utilized combinations of "straightforward" units in intelligent ways to kill zerg players by attacking in ways that take advantage of less good compositions. The defense of these allins is anything but simple. The widow mine will be used in ways that are beyond our scope of understanding at this current moment in time. You think that this is not an issue with your post but I strongly disagree.



The unit definitely need tweaking. As a starcraft community we discuss about these things. So what you're saying is you fully trust Blizzard to tweak the units to how the community like it. In that case, I say you're dumb. We're here to discuss about it so Blizzard know and then they can decide on a solution of their own. This is not dumb.
DIE!!!
FragRaptor
Profile Joined October 2010
United States184 Posts
July 31 2012 17:01 GMT
#231
The major problem about the widow mine is that it is a unit in itself, whereas the role it is trying to fill(Spider mine) game from a unit that could do additional things beside the spider mine. The spider/widow mine has the possibility to do 0 damage or terrible damage, that is what makes it fun to watch, but 0 damage sucks for spending money and using a factory for it... IMHO, bring back vultures, or put it on the reaper/hellion. That way the idea of the unit is helpful and the threat is there.

IMHO The way blizzard is heading with the game it just seems more and more like BW. I just wonder why people stubbornly say that new units are the way to go while the new units try to be what the old units were but in a "new" way that is flawed deep in the design... Sometimes it isn't that bad...
Do your thing. No matter what.
Serp87
Profile Joined October 2010
Israel57 Posts
July 31 2012 17:38 GMT
#232
widow mine looks like a great defensive tool - you plant them in your mineral line just before you go attack and when the drop come to harass while you away the mines all save the workers.
also you you plant it in the mineral line in your enemy 3rd /4th /5th early and just let it attach to one workers and kill them instantly.
also it could be used like borrow zergling is used now but more deadly .

its not stright up fight unit but a unit that can deal alot of dmg when other big things happen.
Zato-1
Profile Blog Joined March 2009
Chile4253 Posts
July 31 2012 17:49 GMT
#233
I see two major objections you have against the widow mine, and they are:

1. 10 seconds is too long of an arming time. My answer: The bio force in the first video can easily disengage with Stimpack, making the 10 second wait more bearable. Also: 10 seconds is a placeholder value for how long it takes them to detonate. If that's too slow, balance changes will speed it up. This is a numerical issue easily fixed via balance changes.

2. If you kill the unit that the mine is attached to, the mine doesn't explode; this randomness is a bad thing. Well, what about the randomness of baneling land mines? Of whether the enemy army happens to walk over them or just misses them? That's hardly a huge problem. Also: the situations in which the Widow Mine were showed off don't need to be the way players actually use them. They can be used as base defense vs. dropships and banshees and mutalisks as well, in which case the problem of your army "accidentally" killing the unit with the mine ceases to be relevant.

I think you make a pretty weak case about the Widow Mine being fundamentally flawed. This is not to say that it ISN'T fundamentally flawed, it might be; it's just that your reasons for why it's flawed aren't very good.
Go here http://vina.biobiochile.cl/ and input the Konami Code (up up down down left right left right B A)
Grapefruit
Profile Joined November 2010
Germany439 Posts
July 31 2012 18:44 GMT
#234
On August 01 2012 00:59 Gajarell wrote:
OP said this is not about balance and still goes into length about the explosion timer and damage, after that costs get discussed.

That's NOT a design discussion and i personally dont even know why this thread is still open.


Really? If you're serious about that I doubt that you know what the word balance means.

The world balance implies equality of TWO things but I am only talking about ONE. I am not talking about how another race gets something better or worse, just that the Widow Mine itself is not a useful unit.

On August 01 2012 02:38 Serp87 wrote:
widow mine looks like a great defensive tool - you plant them in your mineral line just before you go attack and when the drop come to harass while you away the mines all save the workers.
also you you plant it in the mineral line in your enemy 3rd /4th /5th early and just let it attach to one workers and kill them instantly.
also it could be used like borrow zergling is used now but more deadly .

its not stright up fight unit but a unit that can deal alot of dmg when other big things happen.


A drop will clear your mineral line before the mine explodes.

On August 01 2012 02:49 Zato-1 wrote:
I see two major objections you have against the widow mine, and they are:

1. 10 seconds is too long of an arming time. My answer: The bio force in the first video can easily disengage with Stimpack, making the 10 second wait more bearable. Also: 10 seconds is a placeholder value for how long it takes them to detonate. If that's too slow, balance changes will speed it up. This is a numerical issue easily fixed via balance changes.

2. If you kill the unit that the mine is attached to, the mine doesn't explode; this randomness is a bad thing. Well, what about the randomness of baneling land mines? Of whether the enemy army happens to walk over them or just misses them? That's hardly a huge problem. Also: the situations in which the Widow Mine were showed off don't need to be the way players actually use them. They can be used as base defense vs. dropships and banshees and mutalisks as well, in which case the problem of your army "accidentally" killing the unit with the mine ceases to be relevant.

I think you make a pretty weak case about the Widow Mine being fundamentally flawed. This is not to say that it ISN'T fundamentally flawed, it might be; it's just that your reasons for why it's flawed aren't very good.


I really have NO idea why you think that I complain that 10 seconds is too long of a time for it to explode. No idea, at all. I wasn't even talking about that. I stopped reading after that, but I think that's just fair since you obviously didn't pay much attention to my post either.


Jesus fucking Christ, guys. So much baseless critique. So many people, who disagree but so far not a single reasonable argument that invalidates any of my points. And the tone of many post really give me the feel that I'm some kind of asshole or idiot for trying to do something for the community.
Starcraft 2 is funny, everybody picks the race, which he considers to be the weakest. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
WrexSC2
Profile Joined August 2011
United States51 Posts
July 31 2012 18:46 GMT
#235
On August 01 2012 01:20 Darneck wrote:
Show nested quote +
On August 01 2012 01:08 Jakkerr wrote:
I agree that the Widow mine is very flawed.
It dissapears when the unit it's attached to dies, so you can't really setup a trap with them.

They take 10 seconds to explode, for any1 with decent micro it takes max 2 seconds to ctrl + click 4-5 widow mined units out of their army and move them away.

Most people dont like AOE Abilities, Infestors and Colossi are the 2 most hated (and loved at the same time) Starcraft units and until recently the Ghost belonged to that list aswell. High templars were also really strong and still are but they did take a big hit back when Amulet got removed.
Point being, do we really want more AOE in the game?

Ehh, I'm pretty sure people love AOE that forces micro. The reason people don't like infestors would be because fungal holds the units in place and makes it impossible to do anything or micro at all once you are caught and chain fungaled.

The reason why people hate colossi is because they are boring and you can't really do anything with them, there is no micro to reward you if you use them correctly and there's nothing to punish you if you use them incorrectly. You can really only A move and pull back with them.


After watching that video the widow mine is one of my favorite aspects of hots. As you stated, the forced micro is very appealing to me especially with the BW pros moving over to SC2. I want to watch games where widow mines are rendered nearly useless due to sick micro. I also love the fact that the mine is clearly represented with an ingame visual.

I also agree with your points about most of the other AOEs in the game. I wish fungal growth would immediately hold the first unit and spread to other nearby units on one second intervals... something that forces quick micro but doesn't make the ability completely worthless.
Dagan159
Profile Joined July 2012
United States203 Posts
July 31 2012 18:58 GMT
#236
Just thought of a good use for them, widow mine => your own BC => speed boost into BL' Corr ball. Epic.
The ultimate weapon. nuff said.
Mortal
Profile Blog Joined November 2010
2943 Posts
July 31 2012 18:59 GMT
#237
The unit isn't available yet. Any speculation is just masterbation and a waste of energy. Let it be playable, then argue its utility.
The universe created an audience for itself.
zerK
Profile Joined September 2010
Canada176 Posts
July 31 2012 19:03 GMT
#238
blizzard said they are gonna change espicially the widow mine this is why the HOTS beta isnt out yet...
zerK the Zerg !
Grapefruit
Profile Joined November 2010
Germany439 Posts
July 31 2012 19:14 GMT
#239
On August 01 2012 03:58 Dagan159 wrote:
Just thought of a good use for them, widow mine => your own BC => speed boost into BL' Corr ball. Epic.


Can't target your own units.
Starcraft 2 is funny, everybody picks the race, which he considers to be the weakest. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
willoc
Profile Joined February 2011
Canada1530 Posts
July 31 2012 19:18 GMT
#240
In the Blizz video it looks like the mines avoid the zealots. Maybe they ignore light units and only attach to armored?
Be bold and mighty forces will come to your aid!
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