Protoss
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Strategy provided by: Starcraft Millennium
This is meant to be a guide to help you execute a successful reaver drop, and survive while doing it. A good reaver drop can do severe economical damage to your enemy, and put you at a major advantage very early in the game. A reaver drop will not win the game for you, it is only a means to buy yourself time. While your enemy recovers, rebuilding peons and troops, and undoubtedly spending some resource on preventing another reaver drop, you can be expanding, or building a strike force to finish him off.
The first thing you’ll need is an effective build order to get reavers early while still protecting yourself. The following is a build order similar to what I’ve seen Rain and Eon~McNasty, among others, use against Terran opponents. I’ve had success with it against Zerg and Protoss as well.
From here things become more dynamic. While your reaver is building you may begin to see some early enemy troops show up. You should have 3 – 4 dragoons by this time. While you are defending, don’t forget to continue building probes, pylons, dragoons, and most importantly, your shuttle. Also build another Gateway when the funds are available.
A marine or two is no problem. If zealots are knocking on your door, you should b able to kill them off with some micromanagement. Dance your dragoons by moving the dragoon that is being attacked behind the others. They will get free shots at the zealots who are giving chase. If it’s zerglings, I like to use a trick I learned from FatBoySr. Bring 4 probes to your choke point, and place them so that they block the choke. Place your dragoons right behind them. Select the dragoons and the probes together, and press ‘H’ to hold position. Even though probes don’t have hold position in their commands, this will cause them to hold position, and give your dragoons free shots at the zerglings.
During your defense, your reaver should finish building, and help eliminate any threat. As soon as your shuttle is finished, load up a dragoon and your reaver, and begin building another reaver to help defend your main base. At this point you need to have in your mind the type of force you’ll use to launch a strike at your weakened opponent. While your shuttle is en route, begin building that force. Your reaver drop will take a lot of micro, so make sure to hotkey your unit producing structures so that you can keep troops building while you’re away.
As you arrive at your enemy’s base with your shuttle, try to find a spot along the edge near the minerals that you can drop into. Remember that reavers have quite a bit of range, so you don’t have to be right next to the minerals. Keep a little distance. Also, don’t drop behind the mineral line, because scarabs roll along the ground, and can’t go over the top of the mineral patches. When you unload your shuttle, do NOT use the ‘unload all’ command. I can’t stress that enough. It is nearly impossible to pull off a reaver drop using the ‘unload all’ command.
What you should do is select your shuttle, and right click on the ground a little bit in from the edge of the base. As the shuttle moves over the spot you want to unload, use your mouse to click on the pictures of the troops inside the shuttle. Click the dragoon FIRST, and the reaver second. This way the dragoon will draw any fire, and the reaver will be able to get off a scarab. If there’s no resistance, leave your reaver on the ground and let it fire at will at the probes. If your reaver is in danger, wait until it fires its first scarab, and then load it back into the shuttle. The moment you load the reaver into the shuttle, the enemy troops will focus on your dragoon, so pop the reaver right back out of the shuttle, and ideally, it will destroy the troops that are swarming your dragoon. You may have to repeat this over and over again to kill the enemy resistance. This is called popping your reaver.
Hopefully your enemy has now been set back some, and you have an economic and troop advantage. I hope you remembered to keep building troops while you were gone! Otherwise you aren’t getting much from your reaver drop. You may be able to reaver drop your opponent a second time from another part of the base, but don’t continue to reaver drop over and over again. Your opponent will probably catch on and be prepared for it. Reaver dropping well will take some practice. Good luck and happy killing. =)
Strategy provided by: Starcraft Millennium
Some of you guys are probably scratching your heads at this point. “Raptor doing Protoss strategies? Is he out of his mind?” Well as a matter of fact, I’ve decided to expand my horizon... Doing strategies purely for the Zerg doesn’t help those of you who like to play with other races. Besides, as this article will show you, the Protoss have some deadly strategies which can be executed without much difficulty.
The first of these is perhaps my favorite Protoss strategy: The Dark Templar Rush. While some may argue that the following build order is not a rush, I highly disagree. It is a build order which wastes no time and gets Dark Templar extremely fast. I’d like to think it is the fastest Dark Templar Rush build order but I can’t say for sure. This rush is higly effective on Terran but I do NOT advize it against the Zerg or Protoss.
You should attack when you have 3 or 4 Dark Templars. Be sure to spread them out so that if the Terran does happen to have a Comsat Station, one scan will only be able to detect one of your DT’s. Remember that Comsat runs out and so it isn’t a real threat as long as you keep your DT’s moving. If a Terran does have Missile Turrets, you’re most likely going to have to scrap the rush. However, DT’s are always great for containing Terran forces, and until they get Science Vessels, you should be able to lock them inside their base.
Another thing you may have noticed about this build order is that you’ve got a nice amount of excess money! You can spend however you want. Some people like to build a Forge and make some Photon Cannons somewhere between steps 10 and 15. Others like to have a few Zealots as an early defense in case the Terran tries to scout. My advice is to get a few Dragoons, not only for Defense, but also to assist your attack. When the Terran tries to lift off, you can shoot him from the skies and complete your victory.
PART TWO...
Well now, the Protoss are suppossed to have the most powerful units of the game, but how do we use them correctly? The units I would like to examine are the Dark Templar, the High Templar, the Dark Archon, the Corsair, and the Arbiter. These things are incredible if you use them right.
Dark Templars are excellent in that they are cloaked, but they also have another great feature; they do a ton of damage in a single swipe. However, you should realize that they also have less hitpoints than a Zealot, and when it comes to taking heavy fire, they won’t last as long. This is where my first Protoss unit combo comes in. Not many people use the Protoss Dark Archon, and many wonder “What the heck do you use it for anyway?” I think we can all agree that mind control isn’t the best use for it (unless you can mindcontrol a transport with 2 reavers inside). I believe Blizzard intended the Dark Archon to be used along with the Dark Templar for a specific reason; that reason is Maelstorm. With this spell, you can render an enemy Terran infantry or Zerg swarms immobile. Once that is done, immediately send in your squad of Dark Templars, and the oppossing force will be wasted. What about when there is an enemy Science Vessel cruising around? Well that’s when you use Feedback. With such micromanagement, you could render Terran attack forces obsolete.
I think the most useful Protoss unit is the High Templar. It makes up the heart and soul of any Protoss squad, whether on the defensive or offensive. I played a tough match with the notorious Fatboysr on River Styx, and although I slammed swarm after swarm at his base, he was able to hold out quite long, even without minerals (and hence no reinforcements). Of course eventually I resorted to the devilish idea of Guaridans, but I must admit Fatboysr truly utilized the High Templar to its best. High Templars are great against Hydras and Marines, since psionic storm will easily wipe out the clustered units. Unlike Reavers however, psionic storm isn’t good for targeting units up at close range. Speed-upgraded Zerglings will often just charge right through and you’ll never have a good target unless they stop and do something stupid, like party underneath a Dark Swarm (also known as Bullseye to the Protoss). But what about the other spell? When do you use Hallucination? And on what units???
Using Hallucination correctly is an art of its own. Never target units that have things come out of them (like Reavers or Carriers) because when it doesn’t attack, the enemy might become suspicious. Good units to Hallucinate are Archons, Shuttles, and Arbiters. Hallucinate Archons when you want to get all those Zerglings clustered around a decoy so you can fry them with psionic storm. Hallucinating Arbiters and Shuttles is a great idea when you need to land your troops in a heavily defended enemy base.
What more is there to cover? Ah yes, the Protoss prime of the airforce, the Corsair and the Arbiter. Believe it or not, these units are also a great unit combo. Arbiters are great for their cloaking abililty, and yet they also have an arsenal of useful spells too. Corsairs are by far the greatest anti-air unit in my opinion. They only have a bit of trouble when they face Devourers but otherwise they usually fare quite well. What do you do when there are so many enemy air units and your Corsair can’t handle them? Well, the Arbiter should just cast Stasis, and freeze half of the group so the Corsairs can get the job done easier. Always beware of Scourge (aka anti-arbiter units) and put your Arbiter in the center of your Corsair squad. Now that I’ve covered air combat, we’ll get into a more dastardly use for Arbiters; that is landing troops using recall. The first thing you should do is get your Corsairs to cast disruption web on any threat. Then quickly move in your Arbiter, and recall a ton of troops (Reavers, Zealots, Dragoons, Archons, and High Templar are great choices). Usually a well placed recall will devestate your enemy so much that he’ll just surrender.
Mechanics of the Dark Templar Drop
Strategy provided by: Starcraft Millennium
Dark Templar, (Hereafter known as DTs) are undoubtedly one of the most important assets that the Protoss of Brood War possess. Permanently cloaked, and wielding Warp Blades capable of up to 49 damage points, DTs are a must in any Protoss Fleet; however, this does not mean they can’t be used by themselves. In the following text, I will explore the mechanics of using DTs in drops.
First off, it is important to discuss the units and buildings that will reveal the DT when dropping, and the basic build order to obtaining the means to drop DTs.
Zerg: Overlord; Spore Colony; Plague; and Ensnare. (The last two will very likely not be used against you in a drop, much less, even researched)
Protoss: Photon Cannon; Observer; Psionic Storm. (Psi storm may or may not pose a threat to your DTs)
Terran: Missile Turret; ComSat Station (Scanner Sweep); Spider Mines; Science Vessel.
(* Remember that any one of these many detectors may spell disaster for your DTs)
Basic Build:
(The 7 stands for oyur 7th probe, the 8 for your 8th, etc.)
This Build will get you what you need to drop four DTs and and one shuttle. You may want to consider a forge, and a few cannons for a basic defense. Obviously, you’ll put three probes on the assimilator, warp in pylons as needed beyond the initial two, and produce the DTs and shuttle as soon as resources permit. Also, an Observatory and a few Observers may help in scouting your drop zone. (This build is completely changeable to meet your needs, so feel free to add or extract whatever you deem necessary)
Now that you have what is needed to drop, how do you go about dropping, and making it as effective as possible? If you invested in Observers, you probably already know where to drop, or if not, you may know the map well enough to know where the optimal landing zone is. In any event, keep in mind to avoid cannons, turrets and spore colonies, as they pose a threat to both your shuttle and your DTs.
When Dropping Terran: Drop away from turrets and fly your shuttle away from danger. Creep forward with one of your DTs to check for evidence of detection and enemy units. When safe, attack any and all turrets, and destroy the ComSat station. Take out SCVs as quickly as possible, then proceed to the Command Center. Be careful if you notice a factory, because there is a chance that spider mines may be present. Odds are there aren’t any science vessels and wraiths around, but if there are, do as much damage as possible, and switch to dragoons to come back in a few minutes, remembering that time is of the essence.
When Dropping Protoss: This may be one of the easier drops, however, this becomes untrue when more than two cannons are in the immediate area of the Nexus. Find optimal landing zone, drop, clear shuttle of the area, and let the destruction begin. Destroy probes and nexus as first priority (next to any cannons in the area). Psi storm may pose a problem here, as it only needs to be cast above the building your DTs are attacking and they’ll be damaged or even killed. It is definitely a possibility that they will have this ability by the time you drop, but do what damage you can and come back quickly with dragoons.
When Dropping Zerg: Obviously, dropping on the Zerg poses a problem for the average DT drop, as Zerg literally possess detection from the second the game begins. Overlords are easy to come by, and although slow, are more dangerous in revealing your DTs than a stationary turret. Plus, Overlords have immunity from a DTs attack. However, Overlords are not in the least bit immune to the effects of a Corsair. Alter your build order slightly to allow production of four to six Corsairs. With the DTs destroying the Zerg’s base, and the Corsairs attacking/killing detection, doom is practically spelled out for any Zerg. Unfortunately, Spore Colonies may be present, and they could mean the end for your DTs. In any event, this drop is considerably more difficult in terms of micromanagement, but if pulled off correctly, considerably more deadly. The chance of Plague or Ensnare being used against your DTs are rare, so don’t worry about it.
In conclusion, DTs are very powerful beings, and deserve to use their skills during any game of Brood War. Micromanagement is a requirement for a DT drop to be effective, however, with the right timing and a little luck, you can overpower your opponent by using the DT’s combination of stealth and power.
Strategy provided by: Starcraft Millennium
To some Protoss players this match-up seems a bit
"imbalanced"... while let me tell you: Protoss vs Terran is generally the
easiest match-up for a Protoss player. Although you may encounter yourself stuck
up on your ramp with 20 SiegeTanks knocking at door. I hope this guide will help
you to never encounter this situation and make you a better player overall.
First things first. Basically, I'm going to go with a list of counters, and
common Terran builds. This should be an interesting introduction and maybe
won't make you bored? ;)
COUNTERS:
* See below
| Terran Unit | Protoss Counter |
| Siege Tank | Speed Zealot |
| Vulture | Dragoon |
| Goliath | Dragoon* |
| Marines | Dark / High Templar |
*Zealot/Templar can be used depending on micro abilities.
Listed above are the main units used in Protoss vs Terran. And this is
where the Guide begins.
The most common Protoss mistakes include:
Reaver Drop By: SW-Monkey(Wd)
You build up to 15 probes for minerals and 3 for gas,
with the necessary pylons. Put up a gateway and pop-out 6 zealots. Build your cybernetic core quick (and some dragoons if you can. A dragoon can kill a mutalisk one-to-one) and then your robotics facility and your robotic support.
Start scouting for your enemies with some probes. While your robotics support is
being build, create a shuttle. You will use it later to transport your reavers.
Now upgrade your reaver capacity (and maybe power if you have the money) and
produce one or even better two reavers. Fill them up with scarabs and put them
inside the shuttle. Use the shuttle to drop the reavers as close as you can to
your enemy's production center (his probes and his main structure) and hit it
hard. Keep both your reavers and your shuttle on hot-keys so you can access them
quick. Use the "R" key to build more scarabs while firing them. Reavers are very
powerful and you should use them through out the game, with some air cover, of
course! A reaver can kill up to 6 marines/hydras in a single shot so it's worth
it! Two shots can kill a tank! If your enemy's base is fully protected by tanks,
drop one reaver next a tank, where your enemy can't hit it in siege mode, and
the other reaver next to another tank. The tanks will fire at each other (splash
damage) and with some luck your reaver will remain alive. Easy frag! After
destroying one or maybe two enemies with this tactic, switch quickly to scouts
and templars and start building dragoons for anti-air protection. You can
recharge your reavers shield and use them later with air cover. Again, try this
with the computer first, to get some experience with this!
Effectiveness level: 8.6
Cannon Gateway Rush
By:
PTC)RAN-Legend
When scouting their base, a good way to make it a
quick game, is to build 2 Pylons in their base, hidden if possible, and then 2
Gateways. Start pumping out Zealots ASAP. If they find your Gateway Rush, no
problem, just run your Probe around, avoiding it from being destroyed. If they
are going to block their choke, build a pylon to stop their blocking, then start
your Gateways.
If you want, you can build a Forge in your main base, and set up a couple of
Cannons in their base also. This is for added pleasure.
Effectiveness level: 6.7
Dark Templars
By:
PTC)RAN-Legend
One
Terran fault, is the slower speed to getting detection. The proper build order
to rushing in DT's will enable you to quickly disable a Terran opponent.
There are 3 elements you must be aware of when doing this. The Scanner Sweep,
Turrets, and Vulture Mines. Destroy Factory Machine Shops, Turrets, and
Scanners. This will let you win the game. Try to lure the scanner sweep, by
attacking one building once, and running away, until they have used up all of
their energy for the scanner. With Turrets, be away of building Turrets, and
pre-built Turrets. If the player has Tanks in Siege Mode, they can attack their
own units, in order for the splash damage to kill you. So taking out Siege Tank
is key also.
When To Do This - Usually a player whom goes 4 Barracks at the start of the
game, will be slow to building detection. This leaves them vulnerable to Dark
Templars.
*Note: Either Drop, or Run Through the Choke.
Effectiveness level: 8.7
Have a strategy? Send it in here.
