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History The history of the Zerg in the StarCraft universe began when the ancestral Zerg species was discovered on the irradiated, unstable, mostly unatmosphered planet of Zerus, in the center of the Milky Way Galaxy, by the mysterious and ancient Xel'Naga civilization after they had abandoned the Protoss on Aiur, giving up on them as a failure. The ancestral Zerg organisms were small and weak larva-like creatures, but they contained the purity of essence sought by the Xel'Naga, being capable of surviving and thriving in a staggering variety of environmental conditions. With the help of Xel'Naga proto-genetic manipulations, the Zerg survived the torrential firestorms of their world and thrived. As the Xel'Naga pushed their evolutionary advance, they eventually began to develop the ability to burrow into the spinal columns of some less vulnerable creatures on Zerus, parasitically merging with their nervous systems. These new bodies would then be used to manipulate their surroundings. The Zerg began to assimilate the genetic strains and processes of these host animals. However, as the Zerg had an undeviating drive to consume only the most advanced species they encountered, they eradicated lesser, weaker species. The Xel'Naga were surprised to find how quickly the Zerg could steer the evolution of their host creatures. They developed armor-piercing spines, razor-sharp limbs, and ultra-dense carapaces within only a few generations. Wary of the chaotic infighting that had enveloped the Protoss, the Xel'Naga created the Overmind, an enormous brain-like entity, to bring order to the Zerg. At first it was only a semi-sentient entity created from the instincts and collective sentience of the Zerg, but it quickly evolved. The Overmind did not directly communicate orders to its minions. As new species were added to the Swarm, it began to relay orders through Cerebrates, giant versions of the Zerg larvae. Direct orders were relayed through Queens and Overlords. Expansion
The Determinant The Zerg did not know the exact location of Aiur, homeworld of the Protoss, but they were able to travel towards it, adding new species (such as the Mutalisk and Zergling) to the Swarm from various planetary genepools along the way. However, the Zerg Overmind despaired; how could it defeat the Protoss with their powerful psionic abilities, when its own were so limited? In the shadow of the Protoss lay the Koprulu Sector, a patch of space inhabited by the Terrans. This species had been discovered by Zerg deep space probes. Normally the Zerg would not be interested in such a weak species, but they exhibited a powerful psionic potential. Their probes discovered Terrans living on over a dozen worlds. The Zerg slowly made their way towards the Terran worlds. The journey lasted for sixty years, but eventually the massive, extended Zerg Swarm reached the outskirts of the Koprulu Sector. According to StarCraft: Uprising, the Zerg infested a number of Fringe Worlds upon their arrival. The Overmind subtly infested the surface of the Terran Confederacy colony of Mar Sara with Hive Spores, then sent its minions down to the surface to infest the Terrans. The Terrans were defeated and largely enslaved or killed. The Zerg were surprised at the Terran response, and were defeated by a sudden attack by the Protoss, led by Executor Tassadar. The Overmind told its minions not to fight back, in order to observe Protoss attacking for the first time. The attack sterilized all life on the surface of Mar Sara, effectively ending the Zerg infestation. The Terrans did not warn their compatriots on other worlds, enabling the Zerg to infest Mar Sara virtually unopposed. It is at this point that the StarCraft game begins. Plot advancement in StarCraft: Brood War The Zerg were originally controlled by the Zerg Overmind, who was destroyed by the Protoss Tassadar (at the cost of his own life) at the end of StarCraft Episode III. By Episode IV, it was revealed that the Zerg had formed a new, young Overmind on Char, the adopted Zerg homeworld, but it was captured by the United Earth Directorate in Episode V. In Episode VI, the final act to date, Infested Kerrigan, the self-claimed Queen of Blades, a former Terran Ghost telepath soldier who had been infested (transformed) into a Zerg/Terran Hybrid, had the second Overmind killed and claimed leadership over the entire Zerg Swarm. With the Terran Dominion decimated, the expeditionary fleet of the United Earth Directorate destroyed, and the Protoss homeworld Aiur conquered by the Zerg with the survivors fleeing to Shakuras, the Zerg currently stand as masters of the StarCraft universe. Zerg Control All Zerg are directly subject to the will of the Overmind; it is a biological impossibility for them to oppose its directives. Only Cerebrates (smaller brains), and possibly Overlords and Queens, have sentience, and control individual armies (called Broods), using Overlords as lieutenants to directly control the warriors and workers. The lesser Zerg minions are wholly dependent upon the Cerebrates and the Overlords for order. Should a Cerebrate die, its brood may run amok; the animalistic natures of individual Zerg emerge. In the context of a multiplayer match, when an Overlord dies, a Zerg player loses control points, and must create more overlords to replace the loss. Without these control points, additional Zerg units cannot be built. Even Zerg buildings are living organisms, and aren't built but grown. They act as organs in the body of the Zerg Hive Cluster. Zerg's broods are mostly named after Norse mythological monsters (Jormungand, Garm, Surtur, etc.). List of notable Zerg See also | ||||||||||||
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