Tempest Discussion

[Hav0x]

What is the difference between a tempest and a carrier apart from the name gameplay wise?

The Tempest could attack ground only but it had a large shield underneath that absorbed GtA fire.

[Blazur]

You know, giving how absolutely crappy the Carrier is in SC2 I almost wouldn't mind having the tempest in original form.

[DemolitionSquid]

The Tempest could attack ground only but it had a large shield underneath that absorbed GtA fire.

Not quite.

The Tempest could still attack BOTH air and ground, but with melee Interceptors that nullified Dark Swarm when it was still in the game. It only had shields on its underside, but they HALVED all GtA damage. So it was weak to other air units but very strong against ground forces as a siege unit... just like the Carrier. It was a specialized unit meant to deal with units like Marines and Hydralisks, to which both the Phoenix and Void Ray are weak, to provide better Protoss air fleet cohesion. Because it was so specialized it was both cheaper and weaker than the Carrier, but that was OK because it had a more defined role as an anti-light and siege unit.

The biggest issues the community had with the Tempest was the lack of an AtA sheild, which easily could have been given to the unit, and the melee Interceptor "Shurikens" being a "stupid" idea.