Infestor

"True to their name, infestors spreads the Swarm's influence wherever they go. Organisms that are injected with an infestor's neural parasite become the zerg's mindless soldiers."

- Unit description

The infestor is a zerg unit which appears in StarCraft II.

Overview
Evolved from the borbu matriarch, and in use by the zerg by 2503, infestors are one of the more insidious new additions to the Swarm.

Infestors possess multiple mouths, and are carried by sturdy legs that secrete a corrosive substance that softens the soil and allows them to burrow in the blink of an eye. Unlike most zerg strains, infestors have the ability to move while burrowed, and can do so at an astonishing speed. Writhing sensory tentacles that extend from the infestor's jaw serve as a secondary, albeit more powerful, set of eyes and ears by means of thousands of microscopic growths that function as biological transceivers. Further Dominion research on the subject has been slow and fruitless.

Within the Leviathan infestors, the defensive structures of the base creature are more pronounced. The primal zerg utilize infestors as well, but they are often the targets of larger creatures in their own pack. These infestors have evolved thickened plating along their back to protect themselves.

Offensive Abilities
"Even if you survive, you will never live it down."

- A Dominion marine on the infestor's neural parasite ability

Infestors are used to support hydralisks and roaches on the battlefield. They are used to plant virophages.

Infestors are known to ingest infested marines to use as terror weapons on the battlefield, carrying them to a combat zone. The marines are stored in thick flesh cavities until the infestor regurgitates them to face their former compatriots, or anything else that might pose a threat to the Swarm. These infested marines can pop right out from the ground if the infestor is burrowed. Infestors are also capable of harboring larva and spewing them at enemies.

Perhaps the infestor’s most dangerous feature is the neural parasite, a symbiotic creature living within infestors that, when spat, attaches to an enemy and controls its mind for a short period of time. This is inserted through a parasitic stinger, a flexible appendage that is capable of boring through both natural and organic plating. The parasite then is then inserted directly into the target's central nervous system. The amorphous, multi-mouthed parasite cannot survive for long within a foreign body, but whatever horrific deeds the host carries out while under the influence of the Swarm will leave everlasting scars. Seeing the immense potential of this parasite, the Queen of Blades carried out incubation of new strains capable of living longer outside of their host.

Hardened plates of assimilated mold and fungus offer infestors protection from enemy fire and would-be predators. Upon developing the fungal growth mutation, this armor can also function as a weapon, as the infestor can turn the inner layer of its carapace into a viscous fluid that breaks down matter in seconds and immobilizes anything it comes in contact with. The fluid is sprayed over an area, and any enemy it touches suffers both damage and immobilization. The growth reveals both cloaked and burrowed enemies.

Game Unit
Infestors are strong against s, s, and immortals, but are weak against s, s, and.

The infestor is a ground support unit which is capable of moving while burrowed. The infestor does not have a standard attack. The infestor's abilities are largely geared towards enemy harassment, since it can spawn infested terrans even while burrowed; if snuck behind enemy lines, one can cause havoc among workers. It can also temporarily take control of a single enemy unit with its Neural Parasite ability.

When an infestor moves, it leaves behind a trail of slime. When burrowed, visible cracks on the surface can be seen by its controlling player.

Upon death, an infestor's abdomen will swell and the explode. When killed with fire, it will flail it's front legs and then roll onto its side.

Versus

 * Upgrades and Abilities

Heart of the Swarm
Infestors are introduced in the mission "Infested," where they are required to implant virophages to infest nearby infested civilians.

In the campaign, the infestors' neural parasite is permanent and doesn't need to be channeled, and the infestor has the consume ability from the viper. They cannot create infested terrans; these are instead generated through plot-based mechanics (the virophage).

Infestors in Amon's Fall only got infested Terran, fungal growth and consumption and no Neural parasite.


 * Upgrades and Abilities

Development


Blizzard devised a new infestor model over the course of development. StarCraft II beta files label(ed) this old incarnation as a swarm host.

In the Heart of the Swarm, infestors gain the ability to use Parasitic Domination, controlling non-heroic units permanently. Infesters also gain more damage on their Fungal Growth ability and are able to Consume other target's health for energy.

The infestor fungal growth ability no longer hit air units, and units hit on creep will be slowed instead of rooted, but will not be able to move off the creep. Its overall radius was increased.

In Legacy of the Void infestors gained the Aggressive Mutation ability. This grants a flat damage bonus to allied units, making it especially effective when used on s and other cheap units with a low cooldown. This ability was removed in the final version of the game. In patch 3.8, infestors gained the ability to use neural parasite and fungal growth while burrowed.

Special Infestor Strains

 * Choker