First Look: Starcraft Tabletop Miniatures Game – The Zerg

By Aaron Kamakawiwoole

Hey Reader!

The Starcraft Tabletop Miniatures Game is now available for preorder! Last time we looked at the Terran Army, and today we’re shifting to the Zerg: the quintessential “Bug Race” commonly found in the sci-fi descendants of Robert Heinlein. And wow did Archon Studios go all-out on these!

I.  Zerg Units

The Zerg start with access to four units: Zerglings (the smallest fighters in a brood, but they come in large numbers), Roaches (heavily armored, bile-spewing bugs that are dangerous at short ranges, but still built to skirmish instead of charge the enemy), Hydralisks (a true “glass cannon” Zerg with a fantastic ranged attack but limited survivability), and Queens (durable supporting creatures that will keep the brood operating effectively while still contribute reasonably to the damage total).

The Zerg are a unique army in the game primarily because of how they operate: their larva can be mutated into any creature, meaning that each one has to have a clear reason for taking them. This leads to units falling into weird extremes, and that is well-encapsulated with the models that Archon Studios has created so far.

If you like “Horde Armies,” Zerglings backed up by Queens to keep them running swiftly at the enemy can be devastating, not because the Zerglings are very strong, but because there are 12-18 of them in a unit, making it nigh impossible to physically remove them all before they close distance with you. If you want an “Elite Army” Roaches and Hydralisks with a Queen or two in support can live for a very long time while bloodying up enemy formations, making it easier to hold objectives. And down the line, having brute force assault units, powerful “spellcasters,” and literally explosive units will arrive as well, so there really is something for everyone here!

Your Zerglings are the definition of “chaff units”: individually they’re very fragile and they can only suffer 1 Wound before being removed and so far they’re the only unit in the game with only 1 Wound. But with each of them getting 2 Attacks in close combat, and hitting on a 4+, if you can get them to connect in force, they are nigh unstoppable as they shred through man and machine alike.

Roaches are an anomaly in Starcraft: they’re an armored unit, but instead of being good against other armored units they excel at clearing lightly armored units. So they fight asymmetrically: if you send them toward enemy marines, zealots, ghosts (elite snipers with the ability to turn invisible – pretty much the pinnacle of Terran biological units), or zerglings, they’ll melt them with their hydriotic bile. So while some people prefer to leave them at home, I’m a “Roach Rush” guy myself, and I always bring a few of these when I run Zerg (to great effect).

Queens are the lifeblood of a brood: they spread the creep (the viscous, vine-like, webbing that allows for faster movement for Zerg forces), transfuse wounded Zerg with healing energy, and provide reasonable firepower for being a low-tech unit. The result is an absolutely monstrous creature that, while not per se an auto-include in an army (especially at lower points when you might want more punch for 150-170pts), but at the very least she’s terrifying as a model and covers a lot of gaps for your force.

And finally, Hydralisks are another asymmetric build for the Zerg. While most armies rely on armored units like Goliaths, Thors, Stalkers, Dragoons, Cyclones, or other fliers to take down enemy fliers, the Hydralisk is a very squishy (yet high-impact) ranged attacker, suffering its share of wounds but dishing out more in return. Sporting a smaller health pool and lower Armor Save than other Elite choices for other armies, the Hydralisk offers solid, reliable firepower on a budget, punching above its weight against other armies so long as you can keep them safe.

II.  Zerg Hero: Sarah Kerrigan, “The Queen of Blades”

So of course, what hero would Archon start us off with to lead the Zerg? The Queen of Blades and leader of The Swarm herself, Sarah Kerrigan (in her Starcraft 2 appearance, which it has to be said probably looks better than the Starcraft 1 headshot):

Accompanying her is a massive Nydus (or “Omega”) Worm, allowing you to deploy your troops at almost any point on the battlefield (so long as it’s on the ground floor of the map, and beyond 10″ of an enemy), giving Kerrigan both incredible raw damage potential on her own, while also maximizing the benefits of your Zerglings, Roaches, etc. through effective deployment. And the details are incredible.

III.  What Is Coming?

So with a well-rounded start to your forces, what’s coming down the line for Zerg? 2026 is going to be an exciting year:

There’s a wide variety of mutations creeping out of Archon Studios this year! Not only will we be getting the Ravager (a long range siege bug with reasonable durability) and the Mutalisk (everyone’s favorite flying annoyance), we will also see the old Defiler from Starcraft 1 and Infested Marines (so Terran warriors with guns, but corrupted to serve the Swarm), so modeling for the Zerg is going to be WILD this year!

You’ll also find unit reviews on the YouTube channel below; if you’re interested in seeing unit walkthroughs here (once my models arrive), let me know!

Until next time,

Centaur

YT: @CentaurGaming (Starcraft and more)

YT: @ZurnCentral (Bolt Action)