StarCraft II: Legacy of the Void is a standalone expansion pack to the military science fiction real-time strategy game StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty, and the third and final part of the StarCraft II trilogy developed by Blizzard Entertainment. The game was released on November 10, 2015.
The expansion includes additional units and multiplayer changes from StarCraft II: Heart of the Swarm, as well as a continuing campaign focusing on the Protoss race. The campaign, which focuses on Artanis as its protagonist, is a sequel to Wings of Liberty and Heart of the Swarm, and concludes the StarCraft II trilogy. Blizzard launched its invite-only beta testing of the game on March 31, 2015. The testing closed on November 2, 2015, a week before the November 10 release date.
The pre-order of the game was announced and made available for purchase on Battle.net and major game retailers on July 15, 2015. Pre-ordering the game granted immediate access to the multiplayer beta and a set of three prologue missions titled Whispers of Oblivion, which were subsequently made available to all players following the Heart of the Swarm 3.0 update on October 6, 2015.
Gameplay
The single-player campaign features an even number of missions similar to Wings of Liberty and Heart of the Swarm and centers around the Protoss character Artanis, hierarch of the Khalai Protoss and the Nerazim (Dark Templar). Legacy of the Void's campaign focuses on the Protoss and concludes the events of the StarCraft II trilogy.
Like the two preceding games, the briefing room allows interactive exploration but this time on board a Protoss Arkship known as the Spear of Adun. Missions are accessed through a Protoss version of Hyperion's "Star Map" known as the Celestial Array. Artanis' goal is to unify the Protoss and stand against Amon, a fallen Xel'Naga who wishes to reshape the universe in his image. Other characters, including Jim Raynor and Sarah Kerrigan, play smaller parts in the story as well. Game writer Chris Metzen has likened the story to that of the film 300, with a small force engaging a much more powerful one in a desperate last stand.
Multiplayer Several multiplayer game mechanics were modified in Legacy of the Void. Most notably, the resource system was changed in order to encourage aggression and territorial control, and to minimize a lack of action at the beginning of multiplayer games. Changes include decreasing resource quantity and increasing the number of workers spawned at the beginning of the game. Specific changes were also made to the abilities and mechanics of each playable race. The game is still being modified and balanced to this day, resulting in some of the changes described being outdated.
Protoss The Protoss no longer have the Photon Overcharge ability. Chrono Boost can apply to multiple structures, and gives a good boost to production for a small amount of time. If used for full duration, it saves 10 seconds on production. The Oracle from Heart of the Swarm now has its Revelation and Envision abilities combined into one. It can now also cast a Stasis Ward, an invisible mine-like structure that, when detonated, traps units in a small radius in stasis, much like the Stasis Field ability from the Arbiter of StarCraft: Brood War. The Warp Prism, the trademark Protoss air transport, now has the ability to pick up units at a longer, safer range, but still must get on point to unload any cargo or deploy its psionic field utilized to warp-in Protoss units. The Carrier now has the ability to launch interceptors at a longer range and safer distance. The Immortal loses its trademark Hardened Shields from HotS and WoL, and instead receives the new "Barrier" ability, which mitigates damage temporarily. As for new units, the Protoss receive the Adept, a Gateway/Warp Gate unit which excels against light-class units like the Terran Marine or Zerg Hydralisk and can use "Psionic Transfer", creating a psionic copy of the unit to which the Adept teleports after a few seconds, favoring hit-and-run tactics. Another new unit is the Disruptor, built from the Robotics Facility and requiring the Robotics Bay. It attacks by discharging a ball of energy which can be player-controlled and directed at the opponent, dealing massive damage. The Disruptor is reminiscent of the Protoss Reaver from Brood War in that precise micromanagement is required to deliver greater damage.
Terran The Terrans remain virtually unaltered of their macro-mechanics inherited from Wings of Liberty, meaning they can still deploy MULEs and Extra Supplies. The Banshee receives a speed upgrade which can be researched at a Tech Lab. The Battlecruiser can now warp instantly to any location, regardless of visibility. The Reaper from Heart of the Swarm gains a grenade-like ability that deals minimal damage, but knocks back and temporarily stuns enemy units. The Widow Mine remains unaltered, except it now has a targeting beam when it fires, which gives further warning to opponents. For new units, the Terrans receive the Cyclone, a Factory-built unit that can lock on and move while firing at air targets only (it can automatically auto-attack ground units), similar to the Protoss Phoenix. Another new Terran unit is the Liberator, which can engage aircraft with its normal area-of-effect attack, but can also transform to deploy a powerful cannon to attack ground targets. The ground attack mode has a range upgrade which can be researched through the Fusion Core.
Zerg The main alteration to Zerg macro-mechanics is the reduction of extra Larvae produced by Queens per Hatchery, from 4 in HotS/WoL to 3 in Legacy of the Void, and additionally the Spawn Larvae ability can now be used multiple times on Hatcheries to queue Larvae production. For units, the Swarm Host, to accommodate for the returning Brood War Lurker, no longer burrows and has its role altered to a "siege assault" unit, able to spawn its Locust while moving and unburrowed. The Corruptor has its Corruption ability removed and replaced with "Caustic Spray", with which it can target ground buildings endlessly until they are destroyed. The Nydus Worm is altered so that it remains invulnerable while being constructed, removing the opponent's capacity of destroying them before completion with workers. For new units, the Zerg receive the Ravager, an evolution from Roaches (akin to Lurkers from Hydralisks and Banelings from Zerglings) and can use a "Corrosive Bile" special ability that acts like "focused artillery", focusing on a specific location and dealing damage to anything it hits, including air units.
Plot
Prologue: Whispers of Oblivion Some time before events of Wings of Liberty, Zeratul searches to unravel the final piece of the Xel'Naga prophecy, which requires him to find the place of Amon's resurrection. To uncover this, Zeratul travels to a Terran installation where he is contacted by Praetor Talis, one of Artanis' commanders. Talis explains that Protoss are captured and experimented upon by the Terrans and requests Zeratul's help. When arriving on the Terran-controlled station, Zeratul encounters Kerrigan and her Swarm, who seek to destroy the facility. Zeratul must race Kerrigan to free the captured Protoss and acquire the location of Amon's resurrection.
After completing his task Zeratul and Talis set off to the planet Atrias, where a Xel'Naga Temple is located. Before Zeratul can enter the temple, he must fight his way through a force of Tal'Darim Protoss, fanatically loyal to Amon. They are led by Highlord Ma'lash, who communes with Amon to receive instructions. Zeratul is successful in defeating the Tal'Darim and enters the temple. Inside he must again fight his way through Tal'Darim forces and destroy a structure known as the "Void Catalyst". This structure appears to allow the Tal'Darim to contact Amon and use its energies to empower them. After the Void Catalyst is destroyed, Zeratul is contacted by what appears to be Tassadar in spirit form, who instructs Zeratul to find the Keystone. Shortly after this, Amon himself attempts to kill Zeratul by collapsing the temple. Talis sacrifices herself and her forces to give Zeratul enough time to escape Amon's wrath. With the last fragment of the prophecy fulfilled, Zeratul sets off to warn Artanis about his findings.
Legacy of the Void Artanis leads the Golden Armada in an invasion of their Zerg-infested homeworld of Aiur, abandoned since the Brood War six years earlier; Zeratul arrives to warn Artanis of Amon's return, but the invasion proceeds regardless. Amon awakens on Aiur and takes control of the majority of the Protoss race through the Khala, the telepathic bond that unites all emotions for the Khalai and Templar factions of the Protoss. Only Zeratul and the Nerazim, the Dark Templar, remain unaffected as a result of their ritualistic cutting of their nerve cords, which has severed their connection to the Khala. Zeratul and the Nerazim scramble to save as many of the Aiur Protoss as they can by severing their nerve cords, while fending off Amon's Zerg broods and possessed Protoss. Artanis succumbs to Amon's control and attacks Zeratul, who tries to cut off Artanis' nerve cords without harming him. In his final strike, Zeratul severs Artanis' nerve cords, releasing him from Amon's mind-control, but suffers a mortal wound. As Zeratul dies from Artanis' strike, he urges the Hierarch to combat Amon by going to the planet Korhal to recover the Xel'Naga Keystone – the artifact previously used to de-infest Sarah Kerrigan and free her from Amon's control. With the Golden Armada now under Amon's control, Artanis activates the last remaining Protoss Arkship, the Spear of Adun, to serve as his command ship while evacuating the Protoss who have escaped Amon's control.
In the meantime, Amon's forces within all three races, along with hybrids and beings from the Void, begin to wage war in order to extinguish all life from the Koprulu Sector. On Korhal, Artanis arrives in the middle of a Terran battle between Dominion forces and the rogue Moebius Foundation, now under the control of Amon. The Protoss intervene by aiding Jim Raynor and Emperor Valerian Mengsk in defending the planet from the Moebius Foundation and its hybrids before retrieving the artifact.
With the Keystone secured, Artanis undertakes numerous missions to rebuild the Protoss forces. On the Dark Templar homeworld of Shakuras, the warpgate connecting the planet to Aiur has been reactivated and Amon's forces overwhelm the planet. Upon arrival, Artanis helps Matriarch Vorazun, Raszagal's daughter, evacuate the rest of the Dark Templar before obliterating the planet to deny Amon control of it. Artanis also travels to the planet Glacius, a research facility involved in developing advanced Protoss weaponry. The Protoss discover and reawaken an experimental Purifier in stasis, only for Artanis to discover Fenix's consciousness in the Purifier's machine body.