Hi there,
looking for constructive thread,
so I don’t want to claim anywhere they are too strong (I would never dare on my level anyways),
just wondering how I am supposed to handle:
- Swarm Hosts in general…
- when they use a Nydus worm anywhere nearby me on the map that I can’t forsee, basically doing alot of free damage for very few apm,
- them destroying widow mines by using an overseer (unexpected)
So how can I handle them on an even level? With few apm and evening the costs (that I lose vs their spend money on swarm hosts but not losing anything in the attack).
Looking forward - very curious…
Post on battle.net about how bs sh nydus is and how it should be nerfed
Really, you want vikings actively hunting overlords and overseers.
You want hellbats tanking the shots since they can protect your expensive units
Speed banshees are your best friend and are basically the most effective active counter
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Depends on your economy. If it is good, try slow transition into bcs, that once helped me a lot. Be patient - every time he releases locusts, just lift your base and run with your scvs until the free units expire. Then return back to mining - I know, it is annoying, but if you are patient enough and get several bcs, the zerg will not be able to deal with them because a lot of their supply is taken by the swarmhosts.
Do not build planetaries or walls at your bases, it is pointless, he will destroy it for free. Make orbitals - it is good if you can just lift up and return to mining, furthermore, you will have more mules available.
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There is a video by maru on jin air channel where he talks about avoiding playing mech because of swarm host
But since this is not the highest level, you can still pull it off
Hellbats deal with locust pretty well
I know the Banshee, but ontop of mech its too much apm for me.
I also don’t find them to effective, since they are just reaction again, and the enemy can just…
- LOAD OUT OF NYDUS anywhere (almost)
- SPAWN LOCUSTS IMMEDIATELLY
- ENTER NYDUS (almost) immediatelly again.
so im not a friend.
- then the Locusts fly and banshees can only attack once they land. If he doesn’t plant the Nydus in your face, the Banshees will just destroy the Nydus that did its job.
So you need a wall vs other units that are not Locusts, but I know it’s free damage vs locusts, hmm.##
Going to BC I feel the zerg can just overrun you doing so, similiar on both sides when the Zerg is going to Broodlords (not that it was used now, but you all know that I think).
Thanks for the tipps so far. Anything helps 
and im not good anyways.
You should watch reynor VS gumiho on falcon paladins channel
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I concur. If anyone is the mech person, it’s gumiho.
Build sensor towers to keep check on the proxy nydus locations and a viking to wade away overlords… then speed banshee into bcs… expanding with the planitary upgrades when possible to support the economy for the bc’s
Didn’t I ask for mech, not mass BC. I won’t play sc2 going for mass air. Well I meant mech = ground mainly, usually I thought you have to mention air somewhere if you mean air mech.
You wont win without some air support since sh is designed to break all-ground mech
Fair enough, sounds awesome. thanks.
Yea but you’ve been countered and this is a solution, you can maintain your overall mech composition but you need to get rid of the swarm host issue, once they see you building air they will most likely stop producing them… you don’t have to go hard with the air and you can continue with (and now keep) your mech army
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I think the main thing is to be mobile.
–> Don’t build PF but orbitals (lift)
–> Hellions/Hellbats kill locusts pretty quick (+ splash damage like tank shots or widow mines; widow mines - with drill claws upgrade - are better vs. locusts immo because of detection limitations for zerg but tanks first are better since tanks also kill nydus worms)
–> Think about counter-attacking with hellions and lifting your buildings instead of trying to fight the locusts
(an auto-turret here and there makes the locusts land too early and thus waste time / dps).
So for example hellion banshee with fast 3rd CC kinda counters 2-base swarm hosts if you go for the base trade and rebuild with bunker/tank in 1-2 locations.
http : / / sc2replaystats . com / replay/11649454
Good luck
2 Likes
yeah thats how I see it. you just need enough to zone out or keep the swarm hosts at bay. At some point they will slowly die or think to counter your air units. Sure its more micro and pulls away from your max ground army supply, but if you suspect swarm hosts you should keep enough supply around to counter it. Its an adjustment and reactionary, but with some time you can tweak your build to handle swarm hosts. I don’t play mech so I refer to the comments about Hellbats, lifting orbital, avoid PF.
I’ve seen guys lose games against air simply because they thought well, I’ll just build more hydralisk. And this is master league players that thought I was crazy to build a couple muta to deal with it simply because its not the current meta or the expensive of a spire plus 3 or 4 muta to deal with a couple banshee’s that had over 30 kills each wasn’t worth the money. Yet complain that they lost.
If you can’t handle to adjust to what your opponent is doing when your build isn’t working on the fly, perhaps revisiting that replay should help you devise your own solution. The above tips are pretty sound.
One of the recent PvZs of ShowTime had a nydus worm in it and ShowTime let it finnish to trap the swarmhosts because he damaged the nydus to 10%-ish hp and when the swarm hosts went out, he destroyed it.
So for terran it could be a medivac with 4 marauders in it to damage the nydus to like 10% and when the swarm hosts are out, the zerg has to decide wether to waste some or all of the locusts to fend of the marauders (which can be lifted / saved) or go on with the attack.
It will take some time to get another nydus up so the zerg has to think about launching a few locusts one after the other to secure the retreat nydus to save the (costly!) swarm hosts.
So even if the locusts attack and destroy stuff, the zerg might loose all of the swarm hosts and thus map presence.
so for mech it would be like 2 cyclones in a medivac or 2 hellbats (maybe easier to stop the damage / get the nydus down to 10% hp and not kill it too early)
PF’s and walls are not totally bad. It depends. Siege tanks are both a counter to locusts and a magnet the locusts will find irresistible. I put barracks along the front of PF and tanks. The locusts might destroy a building that cost me 150 minerals, or they might derp around the side, derping through my workers so they can get close to the unit shooting them. On maps like Triton I go for double PF with extra tanks for a central castle.
I agree that a viking or liberator to chase away overlords is a very good idea. But most the the time the zerg is already planning on a transition from swarm host to corruptor, brood lord. So heavy air power will not work.
Don’t worry how to destroy his army, worry how to destroy his base. If he overcommits to swarm hosts (which he has to to deal with extra fortified PF’s) he is vulnerable to pokes. Marines flank right, Marauders flank left, Hellions hey diddle diddle right down the middle. How can he protect all his workers?
As a gold mech player I find hellions to be the best unit. He probably surprised me and disrupted my gas income. Whenever he attacks my army I want to run past a planetary fortress, or just get away. And the hellion on wheels is the only unit I’ve seen do a good job at evading locusts and then chasing down the swarm hosts while they are powerless.
I personally mass vikings when they are focusing my base, if they are using nydus, I put sensors around where I can control the map. The main goal is to snipe the nydus, if you fail, have vikings prepared.
Lots of hell bats.
If you’re battle mech, it’s relatively easy. If tank based mech, not so much.