Last year, I was invited to the Blizzard Entertainment Studios for a press coverage event of the Terran Single Player campaign. In that opportunity, I played through the first six missions. Tychus Findlay arrived to Mar Sara early in the single player and found Jim Raynor at the Joe Ray’s Bar. Raynor was drinking, and in serious budget issues. Tychus came down like a blessing when he offered Jim Raynor a lucrative gig working for his patron as a mercenary.
The entire single player missions is about fulfilling these missions for the mysterious Moebius organization which pays pretty well for the extraction of Xel’Naga artifacts and relics. The gig isn’t simple, however, because both the Zerg and the Protoss are either seeking the same or protecting them.
The all-new StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty single player gameplay video shows three never-seen-before missions which detail how James Raynor and the Raynor’s Raiders battle their way through nigh impossible odds to acquire Xel’Naga artifacts and relics as part of their mercenary missions.
WELCOME TO THE JUNGLE
Gabriel Tosh has asked Raynor to collect Terrazine gas. The terrazine is guarded by a group of Protoss called the Tal’darim who believe it is sacred, a gift from their gods, the Xel’naga.
New unit available: Goliath
Mission involved sending an SCV to collect the gas from containers (which the Tal’darim had previously placed it in). The SCV must be protected while it collects the container, as the Tal’darim will try to destroy it (their main units: Stalkers, Scouts, and occasionally Void Rays, Zealots, and Sentries). They will also try send their own probes to terrazine locations to seal off those locations from being collected.
After the mission, Matt Horner receives a mysterious communication from an unknown source accusing Tosh of being a threat to Raynor and explaining that Terrazine was used to create augmented Ghost abilities and create an elite group known as Spectres. Tosh does not deny this, but claims the message was obviously sent by Mengsk to pit them against each other. Raynor agrees to let the matter sit for now due to the mysterious nature of the message, but he is still not sure he can trust Tosh.
The first map in this video is a mission provided by Gabriel Tosh (the rastafarian-like dreadlock-haired dude) from the pages of StarCraft: Ghost Academy and the upcoming StarCraft: Ghost Spectres (Nov 1, 2010).
Gabriel Tosh provides the coordinates of 13 Terrazine Tanks via the mini-map. Those wondering, the Terrazine gas was a main theme in the postponed StarCraft: Ghost FPS game. The Terrazine gas has psionic properties with unpredictable effects. It is harvested by SCVs, the same way it’s done with Vespene gas.
The mission is to gather seven Terrazine canisters from the Tal’darim Protoss Altars, and to prevent the Protoss from sealing the altars.
The Tal’darim tribe was first revealed in Christie Golden’s StarCraft: The Dark Templar Trilogy (Pocket Books) — survivors left behind in Aiur by those who fled into Shakuras through the Warp Gate. These survivors were protected from the Zerg by their new patron: Ulrezaj.
During my interview with Chris Metzen, last year, he didn’t confirm or deny whether these Tal’darim in planet Monlith and other planets also serve Ulrezaj. We will have to find out later on.
In this mission, you control Goliaths, Hellions, Marines, and a Medic. Your job is to bring an SCV to the Protoss Shrine and to gather the Terrazine Canister, then escort the SCV safely to the Command Center.
Only problem is that the Protoss are also sealing altars. You get a report onscreen letting you know how many of these 13 altars are sealed. The adjutant informs you in the mini-map which altar is in progress to be sealed. You must attack that altar to prevent them from doing so.
