User manual GAMES PC STARCRAFT

[. . . ] Box 18979 Entertainment Blizzard ¢ Irvine, CA 92623 1 Copyright © 1998 by Blizzard Entertainment The use of this software product is subject to the terms of the enclosed End User License Agreement. You must accept the End User License Agreement before you can use this product. The Campaign Editor contained in this product is provided strictly for your personal use. The use of the Campaign Editor is subject to additional license restrictions contained inside the product and may not be commercially exploited. Starcraft, Diablo and Battle. net are trademarks and Blizzard Entertainment and Warcraft are registered trademarks of Davidson and Associates, Inc. [. . . ] The inherent essence and sentience of the Protoss developed far too rapidly, leading to bitter strife and division between them and their creators. The Xel'Naga deemed that the purity of form they sought to create had been sullied by a conflict of essence and thus decreed that the Protoss were, in fact, a failed creation. The Xel'Naga abandoned their children and launched themselves into the void. The Xel'Naga were more successful with their second venture than they could have imagined. They laboured to advance the evolution of the most insignificant life form on Zerus, a race of miniature insectoids known as the Zerg. Through Xel'Naga protogenetic manipulations, the Zerg survived the torrential firestorms of their world and thrived. Although extremely small, wormlike, and possessing no ability to manipulate their physical surroundings, the Zerg adapted to survive. They developed the ability to burrow into the flesh of the less vulnerable species indigenous to Zerus. Feeding off the nutrients contained within the spinal fluids of their hosts, the Zerg learned to parasitically merge with their host creatures. Once they became capable of controlling the metabolic and anatomical processes of their hosts, the Zerg used their new bodies to manipulate their surroundings. As the Zerg incorporated more and more host creatures into their fold, they began to assimilate their various genetic strains and processes. Zerg chemistry began to mutate and adapt according to the volume of new genetic material being processed. However, as diverse as the range of host creatures became, there was always the undeviating drive to consume only the most evolutionarily advanced species encountered. The Zerg were innately selective as to which species they consumed, ensuring that at every stage of their development they were at the top of the proverbial food chain. Any race that the Zerg came across that was deemed 51 The Birth of the Zerg Travelling thousands of light years into the burning core of the galaxy, the Xel'Naga eventually settled upon the volatile ash-world of Zerus. The Xel'Naga planned to continue their Grand Experiment of evolution, only this time they dismissed their tenets of physical form and focused chiefly on the pursuit of a distinct purity of essence. Residing in their massive ships high above the fires of Zerus, the Xel'Naga began once again to challenge the wiles of fate. Blizzard Entertainment unworthy of assimilation was eradicated to further purify the strains. The Xel'Naga soon made an alarming discovery. The original races assimilated by the Zerg were hardly recognisable after only a few generations of their inception. Somehow the Zerg had developed the ability to supercharge and steer the latent evolutionary processes within their host creatures. The host creatures fell prey to the effects of gradual physical mutations that caused all of the various strains to grow armour piercing spines, razor-sharp limbs, and ultra dense carapaces. Over a surprisingly short amount of time, the strains grew to resemble a terrifyingly ravenous and unified race. `defend the Hive', `scout for potential strains', `produce more warriors', or `eradicate all life forms'. The Cerebrates were then empowered to build their own Hive clusters and carry out their intended agendas. [. . . ] You may permanently transfer all of your rights under this License Agreement, provided the recipient agrees to the terms of this License Agreement and you agree to remove the Program and any New Materials from your computer or portable computer. This License Agreement is effective until terminated. You may terminate the License Agreement at any time by destroying the Program and any New Materials. Blizzard may, at its discretion, terminate this License Agreement in the event that you fail to comply with the terms and conditions contained herein. [. . . ]