StarCraft Wiki
Register
Advertisement
StarCraft Wiki
Shakurus SC1 Art2
You may be looking for:
"As Zagara, you’ll experience with profound clarity why the Zerg are referred to as the Swarm. You’ll multiply your economy at breakneck speeds, and spawn units in relentless waves to assault your opponents. Zagara herself will be present on the battlefield, hosting a repertoire of abilities to lend aid to your efforts. Zagara can call down sacs that rain damage and more Zerg creatures, or spawn potent Hunter Killers to take down priority targets. Zagara can even increase the combat prowess of all friendly units by sending them into a frenzy."

- Commander blurb(src)

Zagara is a playable commander in the Co-op Missions mode of StarCraft II. She is a controllable unit within missions, able to use spawning abilities to call down sacs or summon hunter killers. She can also boost combat effectiveness of all friendly units.[1]
She is not as powerful a hero as Kerrigan, but instead specializes in overrunning her enemies with swarms of disposable units, particularly banelings.[2]

Overview[]

Info[]

  • Recommended for experienced players
  • Control Zagara on the mission with spawning abilities
  • Breed a relentless swarm of Zerg to tear apart your enemies

Mastery[]

Power Set 1
Zagara and Queen Regeneration: +1% – +30%
Zagara Attack Damage: +1 – +30
Power Set 2
Intensified Frenzy: +1.5% – +45%
Zergling Evasion: +1.5% – +45%
Power Set 3
Roach Damage and Life: +2% – +60% (up to 26 Damage and 232 Life on Roach and 80 damage on drop-pod)
Baneling Damage: +1 – +30

Prestiges[]

Level 1 – Scourge Queen
Advantage: Max Supply increased by 50, Zerglings and Scourges spawn one extra unit per egg, Baneling Nests periodically spawn an additional 4 free Banelings and Scourge Nests periodically spawn 4 free Scourge.
Disadvantage: Zagara does not appear as a hero unit.
Level 2 – Mother of Constructs
Advantage: Aberrations and Corruptors cost 25% less, gain 50% increased health, and have greatly increased health regeneration.
Disadvantage: Baneling Nest does not spawn free Banelings.
Level 3 – Apex Predator
Advantage: Zagara gains 100% increased health and energy regeneration, 33% reduced cooldowns, and access to the Deep Tunnel ability.
Disadvantage: Mass Frenzy only affects Zagara and her summoned units, combat units cost 25% more.

Game Unit[]

Zagara is a deceptively fragile hero unit. Her slow attack rate makes her easily overwhelmed, but her splash damage upgrade helps significantly. Her abilities all spawn units to aid her in combat, and the player should use her Baneling Barrage and Spawn Hunter Killer abilities liberally for this purpose. Against most enemies either or both of these abilities allows Zagara to handle herself well, and she is perfectly effective for sustained engagements due to their low cooldowns and energy costs.

Zagara's major weakness is superior enemy numbers that can overwhelm her Hunter Killers. Alone, Zagara is easily dispatched, and she must rely on her forces, temporary or permanent, to support her. Unlike Kerrigan, Zagara is best used in conjunction with her army, as she has many abilities that can support and augment them.

Zagara takes 4 minutes to spawn at her base. If Zagara is killed, she will respawn 60 seconds later at her player's primary hatchery/lair/hive.

Abilities[]

BanelingMorph SC2 Icon1
Baneling Barrage

Launches 4 banelings towards the target point. The banelings explode on contact with any unit or structure, otherwise they explode when they reach the target point. Deals 40 damage (+40 vs Structure) per baneling.

Broodmother: Increases the number of banelings from 4 to 6.

Usage
Hotkey Q
Cost 50 Energy
25 (with Broodmother) Energy
Cooldown 10seconds
7 (with Apex Predator) seconds
Notes

Mastery: +1 attack damage per Baneling Damage mastery point. Up to a maximum 70 damage (+40 vs Structure) per baneling.

Campaign Acquisition
Unlock Initially available.
Notes

Those banelings don't get upgraded to Splitters at level 14.

ve
ZagaraHunterKillerIcon
Spawn Hunter Killers

Spawn 4 hunter killers with timed life at target point.

Broodmother: Increases the number of Hunter Killers from 4 to 6.

Usage
Hotkey W
Cost 60 Energy
30 (with Broodmother) Energy
Duration 20 seconds
Cooldown 30seconds
20 (with Apex Predator) seconds
Campaign Acquisition
Unlock Initially available.
ve
SC2 Zagara AC - MassFrenzy
Mass Frenzy

All friendly units on the map gain 25% attack and 25% movement speed for 15 seconds.

Apex Predator: Mass Frenzy affects only Zagara, Hunter Killers and Infested Drop Roaches.

Usage
Cost 25 Energy
Duration 15seconds
Mastery: +0.3seconds per Intensified Frenzy mastery point. Up to a maximum 24 seconds
Cooldown 90seconds
60 (with Apex Predator) seconds
Campaign Acquisition
Unlock Initially available.
ve
SC2 Zagara AC - InfestedDrop
Infested Drop

Calls down 10 drop-pods onto the target area, dealing 50 damage with each drop-pod and spawning a total of 10 Roaches that last 30 seconds. Does not require vision.

Darken the Skies: Increases the number of spawned roaches from 10 to 20.

Usage
Hotkey D
Duration 30 seconds
Cooldown 180 (Initial cooldown=600)seconds
120 (Initial cooldown=600) (with Apex Predator) seconds
Notes

Mastery: +1 damage on every drop-pod per Roach Damage and Life mastery point. Up to a maximum 80 damage per drop-pod.

Campaign Acquisition
Unlock Reach Zagara level 2.
ve
DeepTunnel SC2 Icon1
Deep Tunnel

Zagara can burrow to any location on the map. Does not require vision.

Usage
Hotkey D
Cost 2 seconds
Cooldown 20 seconds
Campaign Acquisition
Unlock Apex Predator prestige
ve
SC2ZergBurrow
Burrow

Buries the unit underground. Burrowed unit are unable to move or attack, but they cannot be seen without detection.

Usage
Hotkey R
Cost 2 (burrow)seconds
1 (unburrow) seconds
Campaign Acquisition
Unlock Initially available.
ve

Upgrades[]

Researched[]

SC2 KerrHeroicFortitude Icon
Heroic Fortitude

Increases Zagara's maximum HP by 200 and life regeneration by 100%.

Usage
Passive
Campaign Acquisition
Unlock Initially available.
Acquisition
Purchased from Evolution chamber
Hotkey F
Cost 100 Minerals 100 Vespene gas 60seconds
ve
SC2 HotSGroovedSpines Icon
Medusa Blades

Zagara's attacks deal area damage, splashing to enemy units near her primary target.

Usage
Passive
Campaign Acquisition
Unlock Reach Zagara Level 9
Acquisition
Purchased from Evolution chamber
Hotkey D
Cost 150 Minerals 150 Vespene gas 90seconds
Required Lair/Hive
ve

Talents[]

SC2 Zagara AC - Broodmother
Broodmother

Reduces the energy cost of Baneling Barrage and Spawn Hunter-Killers by 50%.

Increases the number of units spawned by Baneling Barrage and Spawn Hunter Killers by 50%.

Campaign Acquisition
Unlock Reach Zagara Level 15.
ve

Army Composition[]

Units and Structures[]

Zagara has access to the following units and structures:

Icon Unit Details Production (considering reduced costs) Damage
Zergling Zagara

2. Zergling Upgraded Leviathan Brood

Zergling Fast melee unit. Can morph into a Baneling.
Can attack ground units.

(Evolves to Swarmling strain at level 12. Spawns in groups of three. Morphs almost instantly.)

46 Minerals 1 Control
for 2 zerglings.

44 Minerals 1.5 Control
for 3 swarmlings.

Vs Air: N/A
Vs Ground: 7 DPS
2. Queen Leviathan Brood Queen Defensive unit. Can use Spawn Larva, Spawn Creep Tumor and Transfusion. Moves much faster on creep.
Can attack ground and air units.

(Queen's Inject Larva spawns 8 total larva at level 3)

150 Minerals 1 Control Vs Air: 9.00 DPS at 0/0
Vs Ground: 8.00 DPS
Vs Armored Ground: 12.00 DPS
Baneling Zagara

Baneling Splitter Zagara

Baneling Suicide unit. Deals damage over a small area upon death.
Can attack ground units.

(Evolves to Splitter strain at level 14. Splits into smaller units as it dies.)

Zerglings cost/2 +22 Minerals +14 ZergVespene SC2 Game1 =
45 Minerals 14 Vespene gas 0.5 Control
Swarmlings cost/3 +22 Minerals +14 ZergVespene SC2 Game1 =
36~37 Minerals 14 Vespene gas 0.5 Control
No Mastery:
Vs Units: 40 damage
Vs Structures: 80 damage

With Mastery and upgrade:
Vs Units: 110 damage
Vs Structures: 190 damage

Aberration Zagara Aberration Aberrations are durable units that deal heavy damage.

Can attack ground units.

180 Minerals 68 Vespene gas 3 Control 16 DPS
Vs Armoured: 33 DPS
Scourge Zagara Scourge Flying suicide unit. Scourge hatch in pairs from a single Larva.

Can attack air units.

23 Minerals 68 Vespene gas 1 Control
for 2 scourges.
Vs Air: 110 damage
2. Corruptor Leviathan Brood Corruptor Anti-air flyer.

Can attack air units.

135 Minerals 90 Vespene gas 2 Control Vs Air: 14 DPS
Vs Armored: 28 DPS
2. Overseer Leviathan Brood Overseer Advanced aerial observer. Maintains the unit cap set by the Overlord Overlord cost (100 Minerals Provides 8 Control) +45 Minerals +44 ZergVespene SC2 Game1 =
145 Minerals 44 Vespene gas Provides 8 Control
Vs Air: N/A
Vs Ground: N/A
Spine Crawler Zagara Spine crawler Anti-ground mobile creep-bound defensive structure.

Can attack ground units.

Drones cost (75 Minerals 1 Control)/2 +100 Minerals -0.5 ZergSupply SC2 Icon1 =
137~138 Minerals 

13.51 DPS
Vs Armored: 16.22 DPS

Spore Crawler Zagara Spore crawler Anti-air mobile creep-bound defensive structure.

Can attack air units.

Drones cost (75 Minerals 1 Control)/2 +75 Minerals -0.5 ZergSupply SC2 Icon1 =
112~113 Minerals 
Vs Air: 17.44 DPS
Bile Launcher Bile launcher Defensive structure which bombards target locations with bile, damaging ground and air units in the area.
Can attack ground and air units.

(Unlocks at level 5)

Drones cost (75 Minerals 1 Control)/2 +100 Minerals +100 ZergVespene SC2 Game1 -0.5 ZergSupply SC2 Icon1 =
137~138 Minerals 100 Vespene gas 
Vs Air: 75 damage
Vs Ground: 75 damage

Talent Progression[]

Zagara acquires the following talents as she levels up.

SC2 Zagara AC - RelentlessSwarmer
Relentless Swarmer

Zagara has a 100 control maximum, but her combat units cost less resources and morph faster.

  • Drones morph in pairs and requires 0.5 control each.
  • Larvae spawns 60% faster.
  • Queens supply cost reduced from 2 to 1.
Campaign Acquisition
Unlock Initially available.
ve
SC2 Zagara AC - InfestedDrop
Infested Drop

Calls down 10 drop-pods onto the target area, dealing 50 damage with each drop-pod and spawning a total of 10 Roaches that last 30 seconds. Does not require vision.

Darken the Skies: Increases the number of spawned roaches from 10 to 20.

Usage
Hotkey D
Duration 30 seconds
Cooldown 180 (Initial cooldown=600)seconds
120 (Initial cooldown=600) (with Apex Predator) seconds
Notes

Mastery: +1 damage on every drop-pod per Roach Damage and Life mastery point. Up to a maximum 80 damage per drop-pod.

Campaign Acquisition
Unlock Reach Zagara level 2.
ve
SC2 Zagara AC - InjectLarva
Inject Larva

Queen's Inject Larva spawns 8 extra larva instead of 4.

Campaign Acquisition
Unlock Reach Zagara Level 3
ve
SC2 Zagara AC - ScourgeUpgrades
Scourge Upgrade Cache

Unlocks Scourge upgrades on the scourge nest.
Scourge deal 50% of their attack damage in a small area on death.
• Reduces the amount of vespene gas required to morph 2 Scourges by Vespene gas 50.

Campaign Acquisition
Unlock Reach Zagara Level 4.
ve
SC2 Zagara AC - BileLauncher
New Unit: Bile Launcher

Allows drones to mutate into bile launchers, defensive structures that deal area damage to ground and air targets.

Campaign Acquisition
Unlock Reach Zagara Level 5.
ve
SC2 Zagara AC - ZerglingUpgrades
Zergling Upgrade Cache

Unlocks zergling upgrades on the spawning pool.
Zerglings gain +10 maximum life.
Zergling attacks reduce their target's armor to 0 for 10 seconds.

Campaign Acquisition
Unlock Reach Zagara Level 6.
ve
SC2 Zagara AC - BirthingChamber
Baneling Nest: Birthing Chamber

Allows the baneling nest to periodically spawn banelings. Does not occur if control is maxed.

Scourge Queen: Also allows the scourge nest to periodically spawn scourges.

Campaign Acquisition
Unlock Reach Zagara Level 7.
ve
SC2 Rupture Icon
Incubate Banelings and Scourges
Campaign Acquisition
Unlock Reach Zagara Level 8.
ve
SC2 Zagara AC - EvolutionChamberUpgrades
Evolution Chamber Upgrade Cache

Unlocks additional upgrades for Zagara and aberrations on the evolution chamber.
Zagara's attacks deal area damage, splashing to enemy units near her primary target.
Aberrations grant +2 armor to units positioned beneath them.

Campaign Acquisition
Unlock Reach Zagara Level 9.
ve
SC2 Zagara AC - DarkentheSkies
Darken the Skies

Infested Drop spawns an additional roach with each drop pod, for a total of 20 roaches.

Campaign Acquisition
Unlock Reach Zagara Level 10.
ve
SC2 Zagara AC - BanelingNestUpgrades
Baneling Nest Upgrade Cache

Unlocks additional baneling upgrades on the baneling nest.
• Increases the baneling's base attack damage against the primary target by 100%. Splash damage remains the same.
Baneling blast radius increased by 50%.

Campaign Acquisition
Unlock Reach Zagara Level 11.
ve
SC2 Zagara AC - Swarmling
Zergling Evolution: Swarmling

Evolves Zagara's zerglings into the swarmling strain.

Fast melee units. Spawns in groups of three. Morphs almost instantly. Can morph into a baneling.

Can attack ground units.

Usage
Notes

Replace default skin Icon Zerg Zergling to swarmling strain IconZagaraZergling

Campaign Acquisition
Unlock Reach Zagara Level 12.
ve
SC2 Zagara AC - BileLauncherUpgrades
Bile Launcher Upgrade Cache

Unlocks bile launcher upgrades on the spawning pool.
• Increases the range of the bile launcher's bombardment by 7, for a total of 20.
• Reduces the cooldown of the bile launcher's bombardment by 50%.

Campaign Acquisition
Unlock Reach Zagara Level 13.
ve
SC2 Zagara AC - Splitter
Baneling Evolution: Splitter

Upgrades Zagara's banelings into splitters.

Suicide unit. Deals damage over a small area upon death. Splits into smaller units as it dies.

Can attack ground units.

Usage
Notes

Replace default skin Icon Zerg Baneling to splitter strain IconZagaraBaneling

Campaign Acquisition
Unlock Reach Zagara Level 14.
ve
SC2 Zagara AC - Broodmother
Broodmother

Reduces the energy cost of Baneling Barrage and Spawn Hunter-Killers by 50%.

Increases the number of units spawned by Baneling Barrage and Spawn Hunter Killers by 50%.

Campaign Acquisition
Unlock Reach Zagara Level 15.
ve

Strategies[]

Zagara's army consists primarily of mass-produced Zerglings with Aberration auxiliaries. She is able to conveniently throw large numbers of Banelings at the enemy. The innate ability to produce two Drones at a time greatly decreases the time it takes to set up a base. Zagara may solo a lot of early waves; thus allowing you to spend more resources on upgrades. Zagara struggles against hybrid dominators and hybrid behemoths, both which possess powerful AOE abilities and cleaving attacks; all of which eviscerates her forces in seconds.

Mastery Strategies[]

Power Set 1: Zagara and Queen Regeneration

  • Zagara and Queen Regeneration (+1% – 30%)
    Zagara relies on her spells in the early game, so Life and Energy Regeneration is certainly the optimal choice here. Top level Zagara players will generally keep Zagara's energy close to 0 for most of the game - If this doesn't match your experiences, you can practice utilizing all of Zagara's energy. Additionally, Zagara has some issues with her personal survivability, especially before she gets her Heroic Fortitude upgrade, so the life regeneration aspect of the first mastery choice is welcomed as well. On the other hand, only the main attack of Zagara benefits from the increased Attack Damage - the split attacks of her Medusa Blades does not receive any benefit. Coupled with her slow attack speed, most of the damage dealt by Zagara comes from her spells and not her normal attacks, making this mastery a weaker choice - use it only if you don't expect to be able to micromanage Zagara's abilities. In addition, this applies to her queens as well, and is useful for Scourge Queen prestige as well, allowing more larva to be produced.

Power Set 2:

  • Zergling Evasion (+1.5% - +45%)
  • Intensified Frenzy (+1.5% - +45%)
    In general, whenever Zagara is on the battlefield, Intensified Frenzy affects both her allies and her own movement/attack speeds. Both are more prestige specific: Zergling Evasion applies at all times, but Intensified Frenzy is seen as a stronger choice for those who have Zagara on the field without her Frenzy being limited with prestige.

Power Set 3: Baneling Attack Damage

  • Baneling Attack Damage (+1 – 30)
    Roaches are limited to whenever Zagara can call down roaches with her ability, which has the longest cooldown of all her skills. Banelings on the other hand are available all the time, affecting both Zagara's ability and regular units, and are best used for exploding heavily entrenched areas or for defense, supplementing the upgrades from the baneling nest perfectly.

Prestige Strategies[]

Scourge Queen changes Zagara's gameplay in a way that, at first glance, is easy to get used to. In practice, the lack of Zagara herself can be jarring. Without Zagara's Mass Frenzy, hunter killers, or infested drop, the player must face the enemy without hero support, and if waves of banelings and scourge cannot carry the day, Zagara's army will struggle. She will particularly have problems on maps that need early aggressive, since her units will be unupgraded and have low numbers, and thus be ineffective. In exchange the multitudes of free banelings and free scourge that will be spawned, coupled with her increased supply cost, allow Zagara to create massive waves of suiciders to rush down enemies. This prestige relies on Zagara having time between attacks to replenish her forces, making her collectively a burst damage commander. The free banelings and scourge and increased supply cap also mean that Zagara has more resources and supply to put towards aberrations and corruptors, and the player should do this to help give Zagara better staying power to mop up what is left of the enemy after her suicidal units descend upon them.

Mother of Constructs makes Zagara's aberrations and corrupters much more powerful; they can deal heavy damage, especially against armored units, are more durable, and are more economical. However, she loses her free banelings from the baneling nest, and the player will have to either bring Zagara along or create their own banelings to deal with enemy formations that require splash damage. Aberrations and corrupters are not powerful enough to form an army on their own, so the player should still bring some banelings and scourge to soften up enemies and focus down priority targets, and use zerglings to provide DPS with aberrations covering them. The player should also make good use of Mass Frenzy to maximize their army's damage output, and use corrupters to cast Corruption on enemies to more quickly bring them down. This prestige overall gives Zagara more staying power on the battlefield but requires more investment from her economically. The player should have more hatcheries than normal to replenish their army quickly, since they will not be receiving units for free.

Apex Predator makes Zagara the focus of her army composition, able to spam her abilities to swarm enemies with summoned units and use Deep Tunnel to teleport around the map. The nerf to Mass Frenzy and increased army supply means the player will have to rely more on Zagara herself to fight, since it will be more difficult to produce a large army and they will have inferior DPS. Because of the prestige's innate energy bonus, the player should consider reallocating Zagara's first mastery to increase her attack power, since there is no point to having her energy regenerate faster than it can be used, and she will be seeing frontline combat without support more often and the damage bonus can help her survivability. Zagara can use her summoning abilities much more often to support her; banelings and roaches will deal with ground enemies and hunter killers help with aerial targets. Zagara will also have access to Infested Drop more often and can use it for most major pushes, and usage of Mass Frenzy is critical to boosting their potential. As with any hero unit, Zagara may still be overwhelmed by large numbers of powerful enemies, so keep an army on-hand as resources allow to support her. Roaches and hunter killers will provide superior damage output over zerglings, aberrations, and corrupters, so suicidal units may be preferable to weaken the enemy forces, allowing Zagara to handle what is left herself.

They're Everywhere![]

Zagara is capable of raising an entire army in a matter of seconds and very cheaply due to her discount on offensive units and their fast mutate times. The catch is she only has a maximum supply of 100; a huge problem that forces Zagara to spam units more frequently than any other hero. Because of this, her army will need to be replaced several times and Zagara's casualty ratings will be exceptionally high upon ending the game, second only to Stukov. Take advantage of this trait by forming an entire army that is both damaging and completely expendable. Even with exceptionally careful micromanagement Zagara's army will need to be replaced at least once, as such multiple queens or hatcheries are absolutely essential to keeping Zagara in the game.

Another thing to bear in mind is the specialized nature of Zagara's forces: they are capable of attacking only one type of target. Her ground forces, bar Zagara and her hunter killers, can only target ground units and her air units can only target air units. Keeping this in mind is needed, as her fragile army can be destroyed rapidly if the enemy manages to overwhelm one set of specialists. Use micro and the ability to replenish Zagara's forces to compensate for this.

Come To Mama[]

Compared to other Zerg hero units, Zagara is very different from Kerrigan and Dehaka. She is quite fragile even with full upgrades, and she takes longer to revive. Her abilities are based on spawning expendable forces over and over again. Zagara's banelings can be used to destroy towers or weaken enemy forces, especially waves of weaker forces such as infested or zerglings. Her hunter killers are critical to master; they are her only anti-air support for much of the early game, and spawning them before an attack provides extra firepower for the player's offense.

Her final abilities, Infested Drop and Mass Frenzy, are very powerful. While her banelings and hunter killers are key support, her final abilities can easily be the difference between the defeat of Zagara's army or victory. Her Infested Drop deals damage directly to enemy units, so it is best used to as a bombardment to distract the main enemy force, followed by a Zagara rushing the enemy with her army and using Frenzy to empower her troops. Frenzy also aids the allied player, this allows Zagara to drastically enhance the damage output of both armies and overwhelm enemy bases.

Try Not To Let Them Splash You[]

Zagara has terrible ground-based anti-air capabilities; she relies on her hunter killer summons and corruptors until her hive-tier scourge upgrades are researched. Focus on getting a strong economy that can support Zagara's resource guzzling playstyle. Once her resources are steady, a player can upgrade zerglings and banelings and should constantly mutate more of both for this strategy. Use Zagara's banelings and scourge to wipe out the majority of enemy defenders, then allow your ally to send in their more durable forces and clean up what's left while Zagara replenishes her forces—repeat as needed to decimate enemies swiftly. This type of aggressive playstyle makes Zagara well-suited for offensive missions as a supporting combatant with the ability to swiftly demolish enemy forces. However, Zagara will be left relying on her ally to finish off the enemy, and the player is left relying on Zagara and her summoning abilities while her army is being rebuilt.

The Fury Of The Swarm[]

Zagara relies very heavily on her zerglings, more so than any other Zerg character. Her swarmlings allow her to produce waves of expendable units and morph banelings at an incredible rate. However such a kamikaze offense may not work on maps where Zagara is the primary aggressor. As such, players may wish to use a more conventional approach to building their forces.

Zerglings will provide the fastest units in Zagara's army, and fully upgraded a rush of zerglings is effective with ally support. However, players will struggle mightily against hybrid and sentry fortifications if they rely on zerglings alone. Instead, a player should take advantage of the banelings provided by the Birthing Chamber ability. Using the free banelings as a damaging ally to the zerglings to provide Zagara with some much needed firepower. Corrupters or scourge provide the anti-air once mixed with Zagara and her hunter killers. If possible, try to clear a way for banelings since they can be blocked by allied units such as zerglings.

The strong backbone of the army will be the aberration. These units, in spite of their higher supply cost, are anti-armor specialists that allow Zagara to assault hybrid even when her banelings are expended. The Protective Cover upgrade is extremely useful. The extra armor the upgrade provides other units allows the aberrations to not only function as shields, but increase the longevity of zerglings and allow banelings to reach their targets.

Due to their fragile nature, this army will rely on Zagara herself for support. Her roaches, hunter killers, banelings, and Mass Frenzy will be needed in order for victory to be achieved.

This army, like the kamikaze offense, will need to take advantage of a strong economy and the ability to quickly replenish forces. The player will need to swiftly alternate between micro with Zagara and spawning more zerglings, aberrations, and corrupters from their main base.

The Brood Is Under Attack[]

Zagara, contrary to first impressions, is decent on the defense. Her standard spore and spine crawlers are familiar to players, and her Bile Launchers allow her to constantly bombard an area with heavy damage. They work best with crawlers in front of them as it will hold enemy units in place while the bile launchers deal heavy damage.

Where Zagara truly shines is in terms of army-supported defense. Zagara herself can be a powerful aid to towers, her spawn baneling and her hunter killers can allow her to provide anti-ground and anti-air firepower instantly. In addition to this, the rapid spawning of her zerglings can allow Zagara to send a wall of cheap units to slow down the enemy, and Infested Drop can be used to call down reinforcements directly on top of enemy forces to buy an ally more time to build defenses.

Synergies[]

Protoss Commanders[]

Note that all protoss commanders can use their Nexus' Chrono Boost on Zagaras's baneling nest to increase the frequency of free banelings.

Artanis is an excellent teammate for Zagara. Shield Overcharge and Guardian Shell alleviates the fragility of Zagara's numerically superior offensive units. Zagara's swarmlings and aberrations in turn will cover ground units and melee combat, letting the Artanis player devote more resources to more powerful, higher-tier reavers, archons, and tempests. Be warned, however. Banelings and Scourge do not benefit from Guardian Shell, so they can be intercepted by area of effect attacks before they can deal significant damage, even as the rest of Zagara's army continues to fight under the fire of things like enemy High Templar, Infestors, and Disruptors.

Karax offers negligible synergy to Zagara on paper, since her units already all mutate quickly. His Unity Barrier can give her swarmlings and banelings a little more toughness, but beyond that he isn't hugely beneficial to her (although his Chrono Wave can speed up her research, and his heavy defenses can compensate for her poorer static defenses). However, their playstyles are great at covering each other's weaknesses. Zagara can help Karax in dealing with enemy capital ships, which Karax is normally weak against without his Orbital Strikes, and her explosive early-game power covers for Karax's lack thereof and allows him to freely ramp up his army. On defensive missions, Karax easily shores up Zagara's relatively weak defense line with his powerful calldowns and cannons, freeing Zagara's army to hunt down outlying objectives.

Vorazun can use her black hole in combination with Zagara's banelings to heavily damage a large number of units. Her time stop is also devastating since Zagara's units are generally high damage but low life. Zagara has no cloaked units and does not benefit at all from Vorazun's cloak bonuses, though.

Alarak is an effective teammate for Zagara. Zagara provides a very large expandable melee army for Alarak's "Empower Me" ability. Supplicants shielded by aberrations are surprisingly effective tanks due to their defensive buffs. Alarak can use Destruction Wave to knock enemies into the range of Zagara's mostly short-ranged army. Ascendants are good to focus down powerful enemy units Zagara's army may have trouble with.

Fenix is a powerful teammate for Zagara, as both cover for each other's weaknesses. Fenix's heroes in the early game allow Zagara to transition into her powerful mid game, and her support abilities also benefit Fenix's forces. Frenzy can add heavy damage to scouts, colossi and immortals, while hunter killers, scourges and corruptors can compensate for Fenix's lack of reliable anti-air in the mid game. Fenix meanwhile can be mobile with recall and his suit changes being global teleports, and can provide needed burst damage with his solarite dragoon's arsenal overcharge.

Zeratul : Zeratul is an excellent teammate for Zagara. Zeratul has an army of very expensive, hard to replace units, and Zagara has an unending tide of disposable units. Use Zeratul's Xel'naga enforcers to cover up for Zagara's lack of consistent anti-air and use the void suppression crystal to make sure Zagara's banelings are able to get a strong connection on the enemy.

Terran Commanders[]

Raynor is a questionable choice of teammate for Zagara, gaining a lot of benefit from Mass Frenzy, but not providing her very much useful utility. Scanner Sweeps can keep Zagara from needing to make overseers, but medics are not helpful for Zagara's suicidal strategy (except for her corruptors and aberrations). Both can rapidly reproduce armies, allowing for constant aggression, but both are also vulnerable to splash damage and spells.

Swann is another good choice for teammates. Swarmlings can occupy enemy ground forces while Swann's goliaths and thors decimate air units and siege tanks provide ranged support. Swann's drones are extremely useful for Zagara, due to her late game army requiring heavy use of gas.

Nova doesn't have great synergy with Zagara, as the two combined field small armies and Zagara doesn't help in keeping Nova's troops alive. However, Zagara's army can attack a position earlier, giving Nova a chance to plan ahead and target-firing down detectors and dangerous enemies. Both are strong at destroying bases, and Zagara can constantly apply pressure with her rapidly-respawning armies while Nova recovers if she suffers a big loss.

Han and Horner and Zagara cover a lot of the same roles, but their ability to buff their expendable armies is a massive boon to one another. Hellion's aerosol stim makes Zagara mass zerglings even more of a threat, while Zagara's frenzy can make Han's massed mercenary units push even harder. The downside however is that both have armies designed to be lost and rebuilt, so there's a chance if a push isn't done hard enough that both will be exposed for a time. However, Han and Horner can make up for this with powerful, persistent Horner air units in the late game, as well as devastating calldowns to help finalize any objective. Banelings from baneling nest can produce resources upon explosion.

Tychus and Zagara have a complete opposite design philosophy behind their teams. One focuses on few units with survivability, the other focuses on easily replaced units produced en masse. Neither has abilities that are particularly helpful for the other, especially with some of Zagara's best units being cheap, easily disposed of, and deliberately bred to die (especially Banelings). Tychus's army can help protect Zagara long enough to get her necessary structures, but once the swarm begins overrunning the field, it's possible the Zerg will get to the target first and leave only the scraps for Tychus.

Mengsk : No report yet.

Zerg Commanders[]

Kerrigan has mutalisks and ultralisks that are generally superior to corruptors and aberrations, so there is little Zagara can offer her that Kerrigan cannot do better herself. Kerrigan's Malignant Creep, however, is very handy for Zagara, and Zagara's queens can provide more larva to Kerrigan's hatcheries than her own queens can.

While Zagara's forces are weaker than Kerrigan's, they are useful for support if managed properly. Aberrations, as in the campaign, have complementary skills with ultralisks. Likewise, corruptors can use their special ability to soften enemy targets for mutalisks or brood lords to slaughter. But, by the late mid-game to the endgame, Kerrigan will have little to no need of Zagara's help due to her forces simply being stronger than Zagara's, though a wave of Banelings or Scourges deals far more burst damage than Kerrigan can muster, making them great for blowing apart tough defenses in conjunction with Immobilization Wave.

Abathur has some synergy, arguably the most out of the zerg characters, with Zagara. This is in spite of them being polar opposites in terms of how they use their units. Zagara's rapid start and cheap units can shield Abathur's weakness in the early game, and Abathur's juggernaut units can screen for Zagara's cheap but fragile army. Abathur also has multiple air unit options, which can alleviate Zagara's primary weakness in the late game. The difficulty of this pairing is that the commanders need to use them carefully. Zagara's fast army can outrun Abathur and get crushed if the commander isn't careful. Likewise, Abathur need to be careful that he doesn't take Zagara's army for granted and be taken off guard when the expendable forces are destroyed.

Stukov and Zagara fill many of the same roles, albeit with slightly different approaches and strengths in said roles. Zagara has a fast and sacrificial army that controls the early game, while Stukov has a massive sacrificial army that controls the late-game. Without practice, their armies and roles simply overlap. Furthermore, Stukov massive numbers can block Banelings from reaching their targets, causing Zagara to waste resources, and both commanders are extremely vulnerable to abilities like Psi Storm. However, with practice both commanders can quite work well together. Zagara's early start and mid-game strength allow Stukov to focus on building up to his powerful late-game. Stukov's call down units easily serve as meat shields or extra firepower for Zagara's fragile army, and Zagara's Mass Frenzy can make Stukov's infested army extremely lethal in a push. Effectively, the key to utilizing them well is for each commander to stick to managing the phase of the game their character does best in and acknowledging that the commanders have overlapping roles. Zagara will control the board and take up most of the aggressive maneuvers for roughly half to two thirds of the game with Stukov supporting her, while Stukov will dominate the late game with Zagara supporting him. Both commanders need to be wary of completely expending their forces, however, as they will be left with only Zagara's call downs and Stukov's bunkers for defense.

Dehaka and Zagara have moderate synergy. Zagara relies on heavy masses of disposable units that she can buff, while Dehaka's heavy frontline covers a lot of the same role. As such, Dehakas with Zagara should go for lighter units that benefit from her zerglings tying up enemy waves like hydralisks or guardians. Frenzy is a massive boon to Dehaka, as all of his units and calldowns benefit from it and can clear out attack waves with it, while Dehaka himself can also cover for Zagara as she deals her damage.

Stetmann : Stetmann has somewhat decent synergy with Zagara. Stetmann can use Juiced-Up payload to help cover for Zagara's lack of early game anti-air. Stetmann's stetzones are a nice help to Zagara's zerglings and helps accelerate them to supersonic speeds if on creep as well.

Quotations[]

See: Zagara Commander Quotations

Achievements[]

Gameplay[]

CoopZagara SC2-LotV AchieveIcon1 Queen of Destruction
Points

10 Achievement SC2 Game1

Criteria

Kill 500 units in a single mission when playing as Zagara on Hard difficulty.

Edit
CoopZagara SC2-LotV AchieveIcon2 Mass Frenzy
Points

10 Achievement SC2 Game1

Criteria

Your ally deals 10,000 damage while Zagara's Mass Frenzy is activated.

Edit
CoopZagara SC2-LotV AchieveIcon3 Roach Rampage
Points

10 Achievement SC2 Game1

Criteria

Kill 100 enemy units using Zagara's Infested Drop in a single mission on Hard difficulty.

Edit
CoopZagara SC2-LotV AchieveIcon4 Big Bangs
Points

10 Achievement SC2 Game1

Criteria

Kill 5,000 units with Zagara's banelings.

Edit
CoopZagara SC2-LotV AchieveIconMaster Broodmother of the Swarm
Points

20 Achievement SC2 Game1

Criteria

Complete all the Commander Zagara achievements

Rewards
ZagaraCoop SC2 Portrait1 Zagara portrait
Edit

Levels[]

Co-opExplore SC2AchiveImage Just Swarming Up
Points

10 Achievement SC2 Game1

Criteria

Reach level 5 with Sarah Kerrigan or Queen Zagara in Co-op Missions.

Rewards
Coop5Zerg DecalSC2 Coop Award: Level 5 decal
Edit
CoopLevel SC2-LotV AchieveIconZagara1 Zagara: Level 5
Points

10 Achievement SC2 Game1

Criteria

Reach level 5 with Zagara.

Edit
CoopLevel SC2-LotV AchieveIconZagara2 Zagara: Level 10
Points

10 Achievement SC2 Game1

Criteria

Reach level 10 with Zagara.

Edit
CoopLevel SC2-LotV AchieveIconZagara3 Zagara: Level 15
Points

10 Achievement SC2 Game1

Criteria

Reach level 15 with Zagara.

Edit

Development[]

Data exists in the Galaxy Map Editor for a devouring maw ability for Zagara in Co-op Missions, similar to her Heroes of the Storm appearance. Cut quotes indicate Zagara was to have an ability similar to Kerrigan's Assimilation Aura, which would allow her to collect resources from enemy essence. She could also strengthen her creep to empower her allies, as well as having access to nydus worms.[3]

External Links[]

References[]

  • Blizzard Entertainment. Co-op Missions. (Activision Blizzard). PC. Zagara (in English). 2018.
  1. 2015-09-25, Co-op Missions: Additional Commanders Revealed. news.blizzard.com, accessed on 2021-10-26.
  2. 2015-10-30, Legacy of the Void Features: Co-op Missions. news.blizzard.com, accessed on 2021-10-26.
  3. Blizzard Entertainment. StarCraft II: Legacy of the Void Map Editor. (Activision Blizzard) (in English). November 10, 2015


Advertisement