Overlord

"Overlords provide control for your minions. As your forces grow in number, you must hatch more Overlords to control them."

- Daggoth

The overlord is a zerg flyer that provides control for lesser minions.

Overview
Overlords were evolved from the Gargantis proximae, a species of giant space-faring and semi-intelligent creatures. Once assimilated they were used to help cerebrates control and coordinate their broods and scout using their enhanced senses. Through the correct growth stimuli, advanced strains may carry other zerg within hollows in their hides. Despite resembling the Portuguese man-o-war of Earth, they are fairly docile creatures that in addition to their leadership duties, tend to young larvae, act as scouts and transport other zerg across the depths of space by carrying them within their shelled bodies. The importance of their function is underlined by the sheer number of overlords found accompanying zerg forces.

By the Second Great War, overlords were capable of disgorging creep to prepare the way for zerg conquests.

Overlords fly using helium-filled gas sacs combined with a weak telekinetic psi-ability for lift and motive power. They are protected by an exoskeleton, strong enough to resist a lightning strike.

StarCraft
The overlord is a versatile zerg flier that provides control, detection and air transportation once upgraded. It is slower than other transport units even with Pneumatized Carapace.

Development
During StarCraft alpha development, overlords had an attack value of 4.

StarCraft: Ghost
Overlords make an appearance in StarCraft: Ghost. Some have been locked into tanks or subjected to cybernetic surgery. The latter are known as brain spectres.

StarCraft II
In StarCraft II, the overlord provides control but does not provide detection. The overlord may evolve into the overseer which is a detector and spellcaster.

The reason for the changes and the split between the overlord and overseer in terms of detection was that the zerg "were somewhat 'detectorific'" in StarCraft I.

Development
They regained the ability to transport units as of December 2008. Overlords used to have a slime ability, but that has been removed from the latest build.


 * Slime (also known as "Corrupt Minerals")
 * The overlord could drop a non-attacking slime creature, temporarily disabling resource nodes and xel'naga towers. The minerals can be covered as they're being harvested, enabling raids which slow down an enemy's economy. The creature must be killed before the minerals can be accessed.
 * This ability took some time to "cast" and had a small cooldown timer.

Special Overlord Strains

 * Brain spectre
 * Mastermind Overlord
 * Yggdrasill

Images
''Main article: Overlord images