EPTI want to remark that this strat is NOT GIMMICKY nor tricky, for me it is standard play and has its deviations like every standard Strategy.
Problems of Muta/Ling/Baneling
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Muta/Ling/Baneling is super good against terran, it gives you mobility, map control, some agressiveness and good way to counter his units.
I only see 3 problems with it, attacking heavy defended zones is a suicide (PFs and 5+ siege tanks are untouchable), keeping in upgrades with the terran its almost imposible as you are getting a ton of mutas that are super gas heavy and a million banelings; and the last one is that the hive tech arrives super late.
In some maps, this problems arent that important for some reasons, xel naga caverns and blistering sands, even if the terran takes the gold expo with a PF he has a wide area to cover so you can make a lot of counter attacks of heavy harrash with a lot of mutas. Metalopolis and Shakuras dont have super sweet expansions that are in the center of the map so if the terran takes a third normally the zerg has 5 expoes and outproduce him.
But the problem comes when you are in maps like Jungle Basin, where the terran has a Center expansion that its super near his main, and his natural isnt as exposed, and even if you destroy the rocks he can put siege tanks on the other side covering his main and his expo at the same time. Another map like this is Delta Quadrant, or Xel Naga if the terrans is good enough to wall off one of the entrances to his expo.
In these maps, you end up with a 200/200 army and you can't attack, and you have to rely on drops, muta and terran going out of position, because if you hold back he is going to split the map and you are screwed. Not to mention that you will be further behind in upgrades (as you cant research muta carpace and armor plus melee attack and ground armor, so late game his units will be better than yours).
I want to say that I didn't say in any moment that I don't like muta ling bane because it's hard to control and requires a lot of patience and good undestanding of the situation as every non cheesy strategy in this game is going to require that. So if you are looking for an easier strategy mine is not.
I only see 3 problems with it, attacking heavy defended zones is a suicide (PFs and 5+ siege tanks are untouchable), keeping in upgrades with the terran its almost imposible as you are getting a ton of mutas that are super gas heavy and a million banelings; and the last one is that the hive tech arrives super late.
In some maps, this problems arent that important for some reasons, xel naga caverns and blistering sands, even if the terran takes the gold expo with a PF he has a wide area to cover so you can make a lot of counter attacks of heavy harrash with a lot of mutas. Metalopolis and Shakuras dont have super sweet expansions that are in the center of the map so if the terran takes a third normally the zerg has 5 expoes and outproduce him.
But the problem comes when you are in maps like Jungle Basin, where the terran has a Center expansion that its super near his main, and his natural isnt as exposed, and even if you destroy the rocks he can put siege tanks on the other side covering his main and his expo at the same time. Another map like this is Delta Quadrant, or Xel Naga if the terrans is good enough to wall off one of the entrances to his expo.
In these maps, you end up with a 200/200 army and you can't attack, and you have to rely on drops, muta and terran going out of position, because if you hold back he is going to split the map and you are screwed. Not to mention that you will be further behind in upgrades (as you cant research muta carpace and armor plus melee attack and ground armor, so late game his units will be better than yours).
I want to say that I didn't say in any moment that I don't like muta ling bane because it's hard to control and requires a lot of patience and good undestanding of the situation as every non cheesy strategy in this game is going to require that. So if you are looking for an easier strategy mine is not.
The Opening:
You could open with speedlings or roaches, because THE BUILD DOESNT CHANGE AT ALL UNTILL SPIRE TIME, but i prefer roaches because i think that opening slings gives a timing window before spire is done that a good terran can take advantage of if he goes blue-hellion marine.
15 Hatch (send drone to scout)
15 Pool
17 Over
Versus 2 rax play:
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Save larvae after ovie, and make a queen 8 lings and a spine crawler ASAP, go speed and then make a banelings nest if you dont see an expo, and go ling bane till mutas are out, then just go to the 1 rax play mid game section.
If he doesnt come all in then make some drones and do the same that posted in "vs 1 rax"
Versus 1 rax:
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Early Game:
Make 2 lings, 2 queens, and then a gas and a roach warren, keep making drones and as soon as the warren finishes make between 4-6 roaches depending on the map. Use some of them to be agressive but in some maps you will need to leave 3 or so behind like in xel naga caverns or 2 in jungle basin.
Make a ton of drones and your second gas more or less at 40 pop (when you have made 4 roaches or so). At 100 gas go lair, and use the next 100 gas for ling speed.
When lair is 50% done make 3rd and 4th gas, and when your ling speed is 20% done or so (right when the larvae pop) make a ton of lings (a lot of pushes come at this time and this many lings allow you to defend them as well as take rocks in the map, towers and harrash before muta pop)
At 100% lair, make your spire and start saving gas for muta, make 9 muta and expand to a 3rd.
NOTE: The way you reach this point isnt important, the one I just described is what IdrA does in G1 vs Jinro in GSL4 ro8, as long as you have your spire done at 9.30 more or less and a good amount of drones it is fine as in most standard strategies.
Mid Game:
After making your 9 muta (do NOT make +1 air attack), make an infestation pit. While harrashing with muta make sure you research +25 energy for infestors (right when the building finishes, this upgrade is as important as luker aspect in BW for this strategy) and then make 2 evo chambers to start +1 carpace and +1 melee. If you see a mech play with your mutas, make mostly roach and take your 4 base somewhere far away from your other bases, if you see marine tank, then make a ton of lings and make that hatchery in your natural or main to use the extrae larvae for the lings. Whatever you do make the hive after you have started your upgrades.
At 30/80 of your energy upgrade make 4/5 infestors if he goes mech and 8 if he goes bio, the gas should be more or less the same as you are making roaches against mech and lings vs bio, dont forget roach speed if he is meching, and borrow could be useful but not necessary.
The most important push you will have to defend is this one coming once you have your infestors, You need to delay/crush it using your infestors right at the exit of his base, as i see this push the crucial part of the game i will split it in two parts depending of what you are facing.
Vs Tank marine:
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Your army should have, 8 infestors, a ton of speedlings, and the rest of your muta roach if you didnt lose them (for god sake, dont sacrifice the muta, they are super good defending drops and helping killing the medivacs). All your units should be at the exit of his base except your muta (that are poking around his base trying to catch drops and harrasing) , when he comes out he has 2 options, leapfrogging his siege tanks to avoid fungaling his marines, or coming with his marines first. If he goes unsieged and the marines are exposed use fungal on them (you can kill a ton of marines like this) but dont lose a single infestor, its better to save the infestor than to lose a fungal. If he leapfrogs his tanks he will take a while and take advantage that fungaled siege tanks cannot siege so use any oportunity you have to fungal the marines and some tanks, or if you researched borrow throw 1 infested by some units to force friendly fire (as most of his tanks will be sieged. As in every game theart him with counter attacks if the maps allows it but keep 3 infestors at the front in case he decides not to come back to delay his units.
If you did well enough you should have make enough time at least to get your +2+2 upgrades and the adrenal glands, and most of the times (unless you were behind for some reason) you will have your broods in time to defend your expo.
If you did well enough you should have make enough time at least to get your +2+2 upgrades and the adrenal glands, and most of the times (unless you were behind for some reason) you will have your broods in time to defend your expo.
Mech:
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The mech push will come much much later, and it is slow as hell, poke with your roaches and use fungal to delay it, and even infested terrans if you engage surrounding his army, as they cant run from them they are pretty nice as an emergency option. You will have broods out 100% of the times and kill his army with easy, in some maps you can lose maybe an expo but as you expanded twice it isnt a big deal. I recommend making a ton of lings once you have reached lair as you will need the gas for the upgrades and broods and they will be 2-2 and with adrenal, but of course if you engage before broodlords use roaches first to soak up the damage.
Late Game:
When you reach hive, make the greater spire and broodlords as soon as posible, also research adrenal glands and 2-2 upgrades, make your corruptors at 50/100 of the GS and make some broods asap.
Good terrans will scan your GS and make some vikings (normally 4) use your infestors to fungal them + infested + muta + corruptor, if the games goes on and he makes a ton of vikings switch to ultra as you already have the upgrades, i recommend starting the 3-3 upgrades and the ultralisk cavern at the same time.
Good things:
- Faster Upgrades
- Faster Hive, more agression once broodlords are out
- Already have infestor to use at hive tech with ultra and broods
Bad things:
- Less mobility
- Weak vs timing attacks im not seeing??
- Weak against ghost?? I havent found anyone yet making ghost but i think i can see that with my muta and maybe then make baneling nest as he will be short on tanks...
Replays:
I make a lot of mistakes in some of the replays, this is because I have been experimenting with the build and only found the correct timings recently, so maybe you will see a late ling speed, or a late 4th base, but you can make an idea of the timings and how the strategy works...
Deathfate 1 vs Mech
Deathfate 2 - Marine Tank
Deathfate 3 - Mech
Deathfate 4 - Marine Hellion
Deathfate 5 - Marine Marauder
Deathfate 6 - Marine Marauder
Deathfate 7 - Marine Tank
EDIT: For all the people asking why no banelings i will answer this. In the games I have been playing i didnt feel like i need them, ofc you can make banelings but that will delay the hive(maybe in some maps this variant is better), the whole purpose of the build is to hit the damn 3rd PF with broodlords(you cant attack a PF unless you are going to blow it up with banes) and nullifying his marines and vikings with the infestors.
