StarCraft 2 Campaign: Personal thoughts and opinons

[mr. peasant]

And I was saying that for the reasons I stated, I found Findlay to be quite a sympathetic character.

[Eivind]

Awesome.

[Turalyon]

Interesting read, Eivind.

There are a ton of things here I could comb through and be a complete bastard about but I'll keep it to myself and instead ask these questions:

Are you going to comment on any of the other characters who have speaking roles, how they fit into the narrative and how they come across so far?

Considering WoL is a sequel (a literal follow-on from previous material), do you think Raynor's character is a seamless transition from where we found him at the end of BW to the start of WoL?

Refreshingly, from a writing perspective, Raynor is not a smart tactician, but a very simple minded fellow.

I'm not sure I get this. Are you saying that Raynor comes off as not a smart tactician based on how he's portrayed? The in-universe characters don't seem to think so (why else would Valerian require his help? How do you account for him still being around at all if he isn't a smart tactician?). If the writers are trying to say Raynor's not smart, what is making the in-universe characters think otherwise and why would they follow a dumb leader? I think you need to expand what you meant by that sentence.

[Kimera757]

Raynor's brains vary a bit from one book to another.

In Heaven's Devils, he was really smart and a good tactician. In Liberty's Crusade, he wasn't bright (at least not compared to Michael Liberty) but was a decent tactician and good small unit commander. In Queen of Blades, while not the sharpest tool in the shed, he was able to give advice to Tassadar. (Of course, in Queen of Blades, the protoss didn't have a single dragoon with them, necessitating the alliance. Didn't they think about that before? Good thing mutalisks are stupid enough to engage zealots and Zeratul in melee combat.) In StarCraft I, he didn't really get to lead troops (since a Non Entity General was the player character) and, while fooled by Mengsk, it's not hard to see how it was done. In Brood War, his tactical acumen didn't really matter; him being fooled by Kerrigan was what was important.

And in Wings of Liberty, it seems he's been stabilized, being pretty close to his portrayal in Heaven's Devils (no surprises there) and similar to Liberty's Crusade. He's not the sharpest tool in the shed, but seems a bit smarter than in most previous sources of lore, and he's a good (even great) commander. He came up with some great plans. His experience against both the zerg and with the protoss gives him an advantage when facing both species (Valerian specifically got him to help plan for anti-zerg contingencies, but this never really got mentioned while facing the Tal'darim and only vaguely hinted at when facing Selendis). Seems to me Matt Horner is the go-to guy when facing terrans (the Dominion).

[mr. peasant]

I'm not sure I get this. Are you saying that Raynor comes off as not a smart tactician based on how he's portrayed? The in-universe characters don't seem to think so (why else would Valerian require his help? How do you account for him still being around at all if he isn't a smart tactician?). If the writers are trying to say Raynor's not smart, what is making the in-universe characters think otherwise and why would they follow a dumb leader? I think you need to expand what you meant by that sentence.

I think what's meant is that Raynor is not like Horner and doesn't think in the long term or plan twelve steps ahead. For instance, he's all for toppling Mengsk and the Dominion but he doesn't really seem to have a plan for what will happen to its member planets once that happens. At least, that's my interpretation of it.

[Turalyon]

So it's like saying Raynor is good at micro but crap on macro, right? I got it now.

[Eivind]

I guess you could say that. Looking back, I shouldn't have written "not smart tactician", but perhaps "not an intellectual". Raynor's isn't dumb, he's just not as smart as many around him. He's obviously a great commander, and a couragious one.

And yes, T, I will adress the other characters too. Mengsk is written, and I'm working on Zeratul.

[Turalyon]

I guess you could say that. Looking back, I shouldn't have written "not smart tactician", but perhaps "not an intellectual". Raynor's isn't dumb, he's just not as smart as many around him. He's obviously a great commander, and a couragious one.

And yes, T, I will adress the other characters too. Mengsk is written, and I'm working on Zeratul.

Raynor does strike me as a kind of "in the moment" type of guy.

That being said, you haven't answered my other question about what your thoughts are on the transition of Raynor's character between BW and WoL.

[Louis]

The transition of character in WoL was fine. Jim just had a change of heart, and it could have been done better, but I've seen worse. Liara in ME2 for example. Or a few of the BW problems which Fanatic Templar explained in great detail (I don't share all of FT's opinions... mostly just that everyone in BW should have been more suspicious of Kerrigan)

[Eivind]

Sorry, Turalyon. Some stuff gets lost in the haze!

Considering WoL is a sequel (a literal follow-on from previous material), do you think Raynor's character is a seamless transition from where we found him at the end of BW to the start of WoL?

I guess that depends on how you characterize Raynor in BW and WoL. I'm guessing you're thinking about the death of Fenix, which Raynor swore to avenge, and which he now has supposedly forgotten all about.

Metzen and Kindregan actually answered a question about that, saying that, "Raynor certainly hasn't forgotten about Fenix". They also said that him going back on his promise on Kerrigan was due to the fact that getting her back was not an alternative back then. I'm not saying that, if it was, he wouldn't be mad at her or want to have her killed, but the reason he changes his heart now is because a new opportunity is arisen. I accept that, and I think the transition is pretty good.

You say, "Do you think Raynor's character is a seamless transition from where we found him at the end of BW to the start of WoL?", which is a bit odd to ask, as 4 years have passed. Time is not an all-applying explanation tool for everything, but in this case, it helps to consider it. For Raynor, I think, Kerrigan represents some kind of salvation or redemption for him. Killing Mengsk is about revenge and justification, but it doesn't back anything for Kerrigan. Rescuing Kerrigan does.

I will be writing more about this under "Themes" too, by the way.