Gamers, the weird species that we are, come in many different forms. There are the “jock gamers” who refuse to admit they’re gamers (SSF4 players), the “cool gamers” who spend time not playing clubbing and thinking they’re awesome (Halo players), the quiet and intense types with no expression and a twitch in their eye (Quake Live players), the basement-dwelling nerds (WoW players), and the elitist gamers who think every other game is for chobo losers (RTS players).
But there is one thing which unites us all, one little thing we all have in common: we love to blow s**t up. Yes, even us elitist SC2 players with our memorized build orders and high-level strategy, put up with all that nonsense in order to amass an inexorable deathball of awesome that’ll make that 10-year old Terran in Sweden cry himself to sleep.
This insatiable thirst for destruction can often result in tunnel-vision in Starcraft 2; being so focused on money, women and making an army large enough to make a Spartan wet his loincloth that we forget the finer aspects of strategy.
So set down your clubs and your bazookas, wear something suave and follow me, I’ll show you how to win like you have a Masters in Crushing Face.
The Overlord
The Overlord has been underloved, overlooked and underused by the vast majority of players. Unable to deal damage or mine resources or pickup women, the Overlord has been regarded by many as nothing more than a floating supply depot.
While at the highest levels of the game, Overlords are used the way they should be, even very competent players often neglect to make use of them, and lose games that otherwise could have been won.
Vital statistics
Cost: 100 minerals
Abilities: Generate creep (requires Lair), Transport (requires upgrade)
Build time: 25 seconds
Speed: 0.4687 (+1.4062 with upgrade)
Hit points: 200
Sight: 11
Armour type: Armoured, Biological, 0 (+1 per upgrade level)
How to use it
The Overlord is often a lazy, social unit, found sitting in the corner of a base in a clump with 20 of his buddies. Many Zerg users see it as an annoying necessity, a kind of floating supply depot, but easier to kill. But this unit is absolutely key in Zerg strategy, and its value should not be overlooked. Knowledge is Zerg’s greatest weapon, and as the most reactionary race in the game, constant scouting, vision and overall knowledge of the current situation is absolutely crucial. These tools allow Zerg to pull ahead in macro management, which is ultimately what will win a Zerg player the game. Sound important? It is. Let’s have a look at the matchups.
vs Zerg
The mirror-matchup for Zerg can be an insane game of rock-paper-scissors. It is absolutely crucial to know what your opponent is doing, as it is very easy to be caught off guard and instantly lose. Your first priority should be an Overlord outside your opponent’s base and one outside your own. This is to spot for when he may be moving out for an attack, or morphing Banelings or amassing an army outside your base. After that, you want a staggered line of Overlords along the attack path to your opponent. This allows you to drop creep when you hit Lair, and gives you full vision of incoming attacks. After your Lair completes, immediately morph an Overseer and fly around your opponent’s base to scout the tech path. This will be an early enough timing to prepare counters. Whenever the Overseer has 75 energy, fly it back in (from a different direction each time) and Contaminate your opponent’s Hatchery. This will stop the Queen from being able to inject, and SEVERELY hinder his macro management. If he has more than one base, use multiple Overseers to Contaminate. Doing this efficiently will win you the game.
vs Terran
Proper Overlord spread and placement is absolutely crucial in this matchup. When the game begins, send your Overlord somewhere it can hover safely near the Terran’s base, out of sight. Rally the 1st overlord you build to your natural expansion, as this will give you vision of any bunker shenanigans which may be going on while your expansion is building. At around the 5 minute mark on the in-game timer, sacrifice the Overlord hovering near the perimeter by sending it into the Terran base. This should let you know exactly what’s going on and what you need to prepare for. After your Lair completes, Overlord speed is an essential upgrade and one which you should get quickly. Send an Overlord to each of Terran’s nearby potential expansions, and drop creep. This will not only let you know when the Terran is trying to expand, but also will block the expansion from going down. You want to also spread your Overlords around near the perimeter of your base. This is spot for Medivac drops in your base. Be diligent about checking your minimap, and with good Overlord spread you can completely shut down Terran drops. In the late game, research Overlord transport and drop in the Terran’s base whenever he tries to move out to attack you. 4-5 Overlords with Roaches and Zerglings can wreak havoc in a Terran base; do not underestimate the power of counter-attacking. This is especially effective at buying time to better prepare for a Terran attack.
vs Protoss
As Protoss can only kill your Overlord with a stalker, you can send your first Overlord straight to your opponent’s base entrance. When their Cybernetics core is close to finishing, hightail it out of there, but stay close, you’ll need to sacrifice that Overlord later. Again, the 1st Overlord you build needs to be rallied to your natural, to spot ramp blocks or cannons at your natural. From here, scouting plays out similar to Terran. You want to sacrifice your overlord at 4:45 on the in-game clock; that will be the optimal time to spot your enemy’s tech path. Remember to get Overlord speed promptly, and have your Overlords drop creep at every expansion. Overseers can be used to Contaminate crucial buildings such as the Robotics Facility, which can really delay critical units such as the Colossus. As the least mobile of all the races, Overlord drops in your opponent’s base can be excellent in the late game.
Dropping Banelings in your opponent’s worker line is hilarious, awesome, and fun (for you)
What to do against overlords
There is an enormous amount of value to having a small force entirely dedicated to sniping overlords. This will not only wreck Zerg’s supply temporarily, but also deny the map control and vision that makes Zerg so dangerous. Vision of the map allows Zerg to play a very greedy style, only making army when they see a threat is on the way. Without this vision, Zerg is forced to prepare for an attack long before it comes, which hurts their macro. In the mirror-matchup, if you can keep your overlords alive while taking out your opponents, you will be at an enormous advantage.
Conclusion
More than a floating supply depot and a great hugger, the Overlord is a key element to higher level strategy everyone should be incorporating into their standard game.
A helpful tutorial going over some of the ins and outs of effective overlord scouting
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