StarCraft storyline

The StarCraft storyline is the history covering the fictional universe of StarCraft. StarCraft is a real-time strategy computer game released by Blizzard Entertainment in 1998.

As with many such games, StarCraft came with a series of pre-set combat missions for gamers to play against the computer. These series typically start with introductory missions and become ever more challenging battles. These campaigns are set in a time and place in a fictional universe, and events in one battle lead to the next in the campaign. Unlike some previous Blizzard Entertainment games, StarCraft campaigns aren't alternative histories that vary with which side the player chooses, but are sequential parts of a single larger timeline. Also, the background for StarCraft is far more detailed and complex than others, including the personal stories of tragic and heroic main characters, and was created with the help of professional science fiction authors and artists to give it a full cinematic depth. The campaigns in StarCraft are called "episodes" and are numbered, similar to the Star Wars movies.

Besides the events in the game missions themselves, video clips and text stories and descriptions supplied with the game flesh out the background of the universe. Blizzard has authorized some independent novels, covering events beyond the StarCraft games.

StarCraft fans have supplied additional battles and historical commentary, but these aren't considered canon, and aren't covered here.

StarCraft features three races: the renegade human Terrans, the noble psionic Protoss, and the horrific bug-like Zerg. The storyline covers the fortunes of these three races and their leaders, fighting for dominance in a remote region of the galaxy. Typically, the player's race makes gains during an episode, but never completely conquers the other races.

Background
Full details are in StarCraft Prequel

The year is AD 2499. The Terrans have spread far beyond Earth. In this region at the edge of the galaxy, beyond any contact from the civilized systems, the dregs of Terran society struggle against the elements on a few harsh worlds. The ruthless Terran Confederacy strives to tighten its rule over the scattered colonies.

Seemingly from nowhere, a swarm of unknown creatures descend and attack &mdash; the Zerg. The Protoss arrive and wipe out all life on the planet Chau Sara, including the Terrans, in an effort to halt the Zerg infestation.

The Starcraft Demo shows the first Terran contact with the Zerg, where they are called "xenomorphs" and a player is helped by the "Cerberus" attack squad. Later the player eliminates the xenomorph threat in the area with the assistance of Edmund Duke (in a siege tank, rather than his battleship, the Norad II.)

Episode I
This is the Terran campaign of the original StarCraft game.

Full details are in StarCraft Episode I

The player starts as a new official of the Terran Confederacy, charged with protecting local colonies, but finds out that the Confederacy forces won't aid them. The player and Marshall Jim Raynor, on their own initiative, fight the Xenomorphs known as Zerg. This leads to a break with the Confederacy and the joining of forces with the rebel underground, the Sons of Korhal led by Arcturus Mengsk. During the battles, Mengsk's second-in-command, Sarah Kerrigan, a telepath and former covert agent, becomes friends with Raynor. It's then discovered that the Confederacy is secretly using Psionic devices called "Psi Emitters" to lure the Zerg to attack disloyal colonies. The desperate rebels use the same methods to lure the Zerg to attack the Confederacy. Another alien race known as the Protoss are seeking to purge the Zerg from the infested worlds; they wipe out all life on infested worlds, on order from the Protoss Council. This impedes Arcturus's plans of using the Zerg to destroy the Confederacy. The rebels eventually succeed, but only by perverting all the causes they originally fought for, as Mengsk abandons Kerrigan to the Zerg to gain his victory. Raynor and his followers then split with the Sons of Korhal and fight their way through Mengsk's defenses. Mengsk then forms the Terran Dominion, the new government of the surviving Terran colonies, and declares himself Emperor.

Episode II
This is the Zerg campaign of the original StarCraft game.

Full details are in StarCraft Episode II.

The Zerg were the second "perfect creation" of the ancient race known as the Xel'Naga, who previously created the Protoss. The Zerg are "perfect of essence"; they are a race that continually assimilates new species into the hive mind, controlled by the Overmind, in effect the collective sentience of the Zerg. After turning on their creators, the Zerg began a journey across the galaxy, assimilating and destroying all other species in their path. Eventually, the Overmind learned of the Protoss, and became determined to assimilate this most powerful race, first creation of the Xel'Naga, as its final victory. However, despite extensive searching the location of Aiur, the Protoss homeworld, is hidden from the Overmind. The Zerg also have trouble with the immense psionic prowess of the Protoss. In their quest to discover the Protoss homeworld they stumble across the Terran, a race unconscious of its own immense psionic potential.

The player takes over the role of a newly hatched Zerg Cerebrate, the immortal motive force behind an otherwise subsentient Zerg Brood. The player must first protect and transport a unique new Zerg; an infested form of Sarah Kerrigan. This new Zerg/Terran hybrid is instrumental in unlocking the secrets of Protoss assimilation. The player must fight off Terran forces that are telepathically called by Kerrigan, and a new form of Protoss attack that can permanently kill Zerg Cerebrates. However, when the Cerebrate Zasz was killed by this attack, the Overmind discovered the location of the Protoss homeworld, Aiur, and the Zerg battled their way there. Here, the Overmind was made manifest as the Protoss reeled in defeat.

Episode III
This is the Protoss campaign of the original StarCraft game.

Full details are in StarCraft Episode III.

The player takes the role of the new Executor tasked to replace Tassadar as military commander, who was in charge of the Protoss fleet "sterilizing" Zerg-infested Terran worlds in Episode I. Tassadar has abandoned this mission of endless slaughter as fruitless, and, during Episode II, sought out the outlaw Protoss Dark Templar, and learned ways to use their dark telepathic powers to defeat the Zerg Cerebrates. Tassadar was saved from Kerrigan's forces by the Executor (the player's character,) and wins him over to help him in his quest instead of being arrested. With the help of the few Protoss still loyal to Tassadar, and the renegade Terrans under Jim Raynor, Tassadar finds Zeratul and the Dark Templar and returned to Auir and a Protoss civil war starts. To stop the war, Tassadar agrees to submit unable to see his bretheren kill each other. He is put on trial but was saved by Raynor and Fenix. Then the combined Protoss and renegade Terrans fight their way to the massive Overmind. After a long, devastating battle, Tassadar drives his ship, charged with Dark Templar energies, into the Overmind, destroying it along with himself.

Episode IV
This is the Protoss campaign of the StarCraft: Brood War game.

Full details are in StarCraft Episode IV.

Following Tassadar's sacrifice, the Zerg on the Protoss homeworld are in disarray, but still overwhelmingly numerous. Protoss refugees retreat to the homeworld of the Dark Templar, Shakuras, despite protests from Aldaris, the leader of the Conclave. The Zerg follow them to Shakuras. The Protoss and Dark Templar reluctantly join forces with Sarah Kerrigan's Zerg forces, after she explains she's now free of the Overmind's control, but that a new Overmind is growing on Char. Kerrigan asks for their help to kill it before it reaches maturity and takes control of Kerrigan's mind again. However, the Protoss ask for a favor in return. Two ancient crystals, fused with the powers of the dark and light templar, must be recovered to defeat the Zerg on Shakuras. The two crystals are discovered and the Overmind is crippled (but oddly not killed). During the battles, a massive Terran fleet from the distant United Earth Directorate intervenes, and Aldaris, troubled by their relations with the "traitorous" Dark Templar, apparently splits off and declares war on Artanis and the Dark Templar. It was discovered later that this was a result of Kerrigan's manipulations. After the Conclave Leader has been defeated they go regain the Xel'Naga Temple to place two Crystals. The two crystals, infused with the power of the two templars, are then joined in a Xel'Naga temple on Shakuras. The two energies mix and wipe out all Zerg on the planet, thus saving the Protoss.

Episode V
This is the Terran campaign of the StarCraft Brood War game.

Full details are in StarCraft Episode V.

The player joins the United Earth Directorate (UED) Expeditionary Fleet, assigned to subdue the Terran worlds in this sector, but their high-handed actions quickly make enemies of all the various Zerg and Protoss factions as well. Their first enemy to fall is Mengsk's Dominion, and later they gain telepathic control of the local Zerg. Kerrigan convinces Raynor to rescue Mengsk. Though divided by a Zerg infested human spy, the UED succeeds in capturing and enslaving the new Overmind and control of Zerg swarms.

Episode VI
This is the Zerg campaign of the StarCraft Brood War game.

Full details are in StarCraft Episode VI.

The player takes the role of a cerebrate under the control of Kerrigan. With the Zerg growing under the control the massive UED fleet, Kerrigan is severely threatened. By painting herself as a victim and arguing that the combined UED and Zerg forces are the greater enemy, Kerrigan gains the reluctant assistance of the scattered Terran, Protoss and Dark Templar forces. As the UED is beaten back, however, she turns on each of her "allies" one by one. The Overmind is killed, and Kerrigan gains control of all the Zerg.

A [Dark Origin|bonus mission] reveals more of a hidden plot behind the scenes of the story. This mission is unlocked when the ninth mission is beaten well before the time limit.

After being left alive by Kerrigan, Zeratul travels to Shakuras with the remaining survivors from Char in search of Artanis and remnants of the scattered Protoss fleet. Upon traveling to Shakuras, a nearby moon is giving off Protoss signals, despite the fact that the Protoss never settled here. Believing it to be Artanis, Zeratul travels to the moon's surface to search for Artanis.

The search left the Dark Templar numb as he discovered what the Protoss energy source was. Zeratul stumbled upon a secret project of combining Zerg and Protoss genes. When Zeratul approached the cell containing the Zerg/Protoss hybrid creature, the voice of Samir Duran is heard.

He explains he is not Kerrigan's servant and that he serves a greater power. He also tells Zeratul that destroying the cell will not hinder the project, as there are other cells in different locations. He won't be able to find them all before it's too late.

It is possible that this is hinting at a probable sequel. Whether or not Blizzard's next game, StarCraft: Ghost, will reveal more about this plot is yet to be seen. Many speculate that the long-extinct Xel'Naga will return and become the new threat in the story.

Three bonus missions follow.

StarCraft: Ghost
Full details are in StarCraft: Ghost.

The story takes place four years after the Brood War campaign. Emperor Arcturus Mengsk has rebuilt much of the Terran Dominion and built up a new military, despite having to face the Zerg.

Mengsk and his new advisor, General Horace Warfield, has begun a secret project codenamed Shadow Blade. The program uses terrazine gas to alter the genetic makeup of Terran Ghosts. These Ghosts are transformed into Spectres - shadowy superhuman beings bent on executing the will of their true master.

This title has been recently cancelled by Blizzard.

Interviews

 * StarCraft: Queen of Blades pocketbook - Interview with Aaron Rosenberg
 * StarCraft Ghost Nova pocketbook - Interview with Keith R.A. Decandido