Today during Blizzard's TwitchCon presentation, James Waugh, Director of Story Development & Lead Writer of Legacy of the Void, and Matt Morris, Legacy of the Void Lead Campaign Designer, revealed the full version of the animated short, StarCraft Reclamation teased at the WCS Season 3 Premier League Finals in Kraków, Poland on September 13. You can watch the reveal here.
The feature acts as a prequel to the beautiful Legacy of the Void opening cinematic that was also released at the WCS Season 3 finals a few weeks ago. Reclamation takes place on the eve of the Protoss' Golden Armada attempt to retake Aiur from the Zerg. In it, Artanis, Tassadar's protege and the Protoss Hierarch, contemplates his decision to invade Aiur and the typical burdens of leadership.
Artanis and Kaldaris
The short opens with Artanis contemplating the future in solitude. When Artanis' old friend, Khaldaris, the one-eyed Protoss Zealot featured in the intro cinematic, comes looking for him, Artanis shares his uncertainty of their current course. Lamenting the diminished number of Protoss that remain, he questions the wisdom of spending more lives to retake a relic of his race's past.
Aiur - Before the Fall
He muses whether the lost home world represents an ideal that is no longer practical or even desirable. Artanis recalls of the Aeon of Strife, the Dark Templar's choice to reject the Khala, and the Conclave's subsequent attempt to exterminate the rogue faction - members of their own species. He believes that Aiur's version of purity was the foundation of the Protoss' destruction. So enamored with their own infallibility, Aiur became a monument to the hubris that inevitably lead to their defeat at the hands of the Zerg.
Kaldaris
When challenged by his old friend, Kaldaris, the one-eyed Protoss Zealot featured in the intro cinematic, Kaldaris reminds him that there has been light throughout the darkness. He points out that Khas, the Protoss who introduced the Khala to the Protoss - thus ending the Aeon of Strife, forged order from the chaos. Kaldalis believes that retaking Aiur represents a new beginning for a united Protoss. He argues, that remaking Aiur as it could have been - how it could be - is worth dying for. He believes in it so much that he has volunteered to lead the vanguard and one of the first to step back on Aiur's sacred soil. He expects to perish in the attempt and in doing so provide a future for his people. Kaldaris epitomizes the ideal Protoss warrior and he is ultimately successful in convincing Artanis that Aiur is worth fighting for - it is worth dying for.
The short is elegantly animated, well scripted, and exquisitely voiced. It hits most of the major notes that many fans were hoping for, and ties-in wonderfully with the Protoss ethos. It is a compelling intro to all of the themes and Protoss characteristics that Blizzard has been saying they want to include in Legacy of the Void. If the material we have seen so far is any indication of Legacy of the Void's campaign story and dialogue, it could very well be the best of the trilogy - by far. Our only complaints regarding Reclamation revolve around missing references to Fenix, Tassadar, and Adun. Those warriors represent the very best of the Protoss, and all three, directly or indirectly, were major influences on Artanis. It would have been nice to have seen them included in Artanis' recollection. He has lost much and their deeds are as much a reflection of the Protoss as they are of who Artanis has become. However, Reclamation does do all of the right things and it is a wonderful tool to hype Legacy of the Void. As Blizzard continues to explore new ways to effectively continue the StarCraft story, short vignettes like this are, in our opinion, an excellent option - more, please.
As Blizzard's James Waugh, Director of Story Development & Lead Writer for StarCraft II, recently announced at TwitchCon, there are five new StarCraft lore short stories currently in production. Today, Blizzard announced the release schedule for all five stories.
Blizzard has been slowly producing lore focused StarCraft short stories by various authors for several years now. The heaviest concentration of new material has consistently been released to build up hype leading up to the game launches and relevantly, these newest stories will all be published before Legacy of the Void drops on November 10, 2015. These Protoss-centric stories will likely endeavor to illustrate specific moments in their history, flesh out their culture and motivations in more detail, and act as a bridge between the previous games and what is to come in LotV. The last story, The Exit, by Danny McAleese was published on July 1, 2014.
Hopefully, these novellas will breathe some fresh air into the StarCraft lore and provide some great contextual clues for what is to come in Legacy of the Void. Check back after each short story's release for a brief summary and our review.
A few months ago Blizzard announced the StarCraft Field Manual, a standalone reference book focused on the lore of the various units, races, and notable characters in the StarCraft universe. Published by Insight Editions, the book has been designed as a standard issue field guide for Terran Marines. Battle worn, the primer includes "handwritten" annotations from its previous owner that provide practical and humorous commentary on the manual's content.
The book includes details on both old and new units, general overviews of the races, as well as a wealth of original illustrations and charts. The StarCraft Field Manual follows the blueprint first utilized by Blizzard in the 2011 Diablo: Book of Cain and the 2013 Diablo: Book of Tyreal. Similar in design, the source books are all are written in-universe and expand on the game's world from a particular point of view.
Blizzard Entertainment’s StarCraft saga has captivated millions of players worldwide since its initial release in 1998. A genre-defining military strategy and sci-fi adventure, gamers are drawn to StarCraft’s iconic central characters, Sarah Kerrigan and Jim Raynor, and its thrilling storyline chronicling the battle between the scrappy Terrans, mystifying Protoss, and terrifying Zerg swarm.
Published in anticipation of the latest expansion, Legacy of the Void, StarCraft Field Manual draws on more than a decade’s worth of lore to create an all-encompassing collector’s item for fans, filling in every detail of the game’s extensive tech, races, and units.
A visually distinctive, in-world overview of the entire StarCraft franchise, this unique book unveils new details about the wide range of combat forces and technology employed by each of the three primary races within the game universe. A definitive field-guide, original illustrations pair with an engaging narrative that showcases all of the vital statistics, origins, lore, and other interesting facts that have emerged in each expansion.
Lore fans have been waiting years for additional, definitive, detailed lore. This product promises to be enrich our understanding of the StarCraft universe and provide an impressive amount of content for fans to draw on.
One extremely cool and interesting detail about the field manual is that Robear, a StarCraft Legacy community member, actually designed and drew the unit scale charts included in the finished field manual. What started as one fan's passion project is actually being published in a canon StarCraft lore compendium. If you're interested in learning more, you can check out the nearly four year evolution of the project here. Robear has our congratulations and our sincerest gratitude for his devotion to the StarCraft lore and community.
The hardcover StarCraft Field Manual will retail for $39.99 and will be available November 17, 2015 - one week after Legacy of the Void launches. However, a special edition of the book will be included in the physical Legacy of the Void Collector's Edition.
James Waugh, Blizzard's Director of Story Development & Lead Writer for StarCraft II, will be signing copies of the StarCraft Field Manual at the 2015 New York Comic Con (October 8-11, 2015). If you have the opportunity to attend the signing, we highly recommend it. We've had the pleasure of discussing StarCraft with Mr. Waugh several times and it is clear he has true passion for the lore.
