Blizzard Entertainment posted a new StarCraft II: Heart of the Swarm teaser image in Facebook.
Speculation
The shadowy silhouette hints at some sort of arachnid. What comes to mind is a support unit with an AOE web to neutralize large packs of zerglings, marines or zealots. Similar to Ensnare. The spikes in its belly and legs might suggest it burrows. Could this unit somehow be the Lurker replacement with extra utility abilities?
The heavy armor and the cannon-like spider-rear also looks like … a zerg siege-tank? Overkill.
What’s your personal speculation?
I’m as puzzled by this one as I was by the Terran unit. Some kind of Lurker maybe? oO²
Aside from being an awesome underground offensive unit, the Lurker was useless when non underground. For a big unit, it had no defense or offense attack or abilities while unburrowed. Sorta a sitting duck.
If this new unit performs the underground attack like the Lurker, plus has utility or offensive abilities while unburrowed — I think that makes it worth the vespene gas cost.
I’d like a unit that has the lurker underground attack, and a whole other set of special abilities when above ground. That would give players an interesting choice: “do I burrow for more damage or unburrow for strategic use of special abilities?”
Looking at the silouhette, you can see,obviously, the big mantis-like spiked foreleg (which could be like the Lurker’s, as we’ve been discussing), but I also see a sort of opening in the bloated abdomen. Maybe it contains smaller units that can be released at will, or some kind of substance/gas?
Looks like an evolved version of the roach with more defensive capabilities… possibly able to hide under that shell and regen instead of having to burrow…
How a bout a stealth unit, it could be a unit with the ability to burrow like every other unit but maybe the shell on its back could be used for more then a possible attack, and be used a stealth camo? maybe its a unit that can move quickly when un-stealthed and then hides in side of its shell to become a slow moving stealth unit which could be possibly massed to get the jump on others, or could be used in small number to go around behind the enemy’s advancing units, jump out, and then have a slaughter fest with your normal units, lings, lisks etc. it would deppend on the cost if its able to be massed like lings or cost more money and gas making it costly in large numbers