Post by IchiGeki589 on Aug 27, 2005 22:36:32 GMT -5
Zealot: The heart and soul of the Protoss military are the fierce Zealots who have sworn their lives to the defense of Aiur. Through the path of the Khala, they learn to hone their innate battle rage to a fine edge. The power suits worn by Zealots enhance and channel their already formidable Psionic abilities, allowing them to form a protective shield around themselves and project massive energy blades from their forearms. Even a handful of these dedicated warriors can easily control an entire colony of other, lesser species, as they are capable of tearing through armored structures and vehicles alike.
The Zealot is the backbone warrior of the Protoss ground forces. While Terrans use a carefully controlled combination of ground troops and the Zerg must spend time and resources to research Hydralisks, Zealots are available to the Protoss almost immediately. With upgrades to Weapons, Armor, and Shields (as well as the key additional "Leg Enhancements" upgrade from the Citadel of Adun) Zealots are an integral part of your army throughout the entire game. The speed of the Zealots, their ability to absorb an immense pounding and excellent damage potential allows these warriors to bust through nearly any defense in significant numbers.
When attacked from the skies without proper air support, Zealots should retreat to Shield Batteries and Anti-Air defenses such as Photon Cannons or High Templar. If these units are unavailable, or you are in the middle of an attack against an enemy outpost, continue with the attack even if under fire from the enemy. In this instance, Zealots are effective suicide units, taking as much as they can in the way of buildings and high end units with them before they die.
A key Zealot weakness is their inability to engage airborne units. Terran players can use Wraiths and Battlecruisers to attack Zealots on the ground without fear of reprisal. Zerg players often defend their Hives with Hydralisks and Lurkers while building up a group of Mutalisks or Guardians to quickly take care of enemy Zealots. Protoss players can use a few Scouts to chase away Zealots; later employing Carriers to devastating effect. Dark Templar are also extremely effective against Zealots if the enemy Protoss player does not have Observers stationed nearby.
The other key weakness of the Zealot is their inability to attack at range. The Zealot must come in contact with an enemy before any damage can be inflicted. Troops such as Marines, Vultures, Siege Tanks, Dragoons, Reavers, Hydralisks or Lurkers can often do incredible damage to Zealots if not entirely destroying them before they can close to counter attack.
Dragoon: Veteran Protoss warriors who have been crippled or mortally wounded in combat can volunteer to continue their service to the Conclave by being transplanted into Dragoon exoskeletons. Within a short time, the fallen warriors learn to control the movements of the large, mechanical walker as naturally as if they were within their former bodies. Dragoons provide essential supporting fire for the Zealot legions by launching bolts of anti-particles sheathed in a psychically charged field. These disintegration bolts are effective against both air and ground targets.
As one of the few Protoss ground units with the ability to strike both land and air targets, the Dragoon is an essential element for a well-balanced Protoss force. When used in conjunction with Zealots, Dragoons are very effective, scoring uncontested hits against enemy forces that are tied up in hand-to-hand combat. If the enemy targets the Dragoons for attack, the Zealots can get "free" hits at close range. Dragoons also provide vital support for Zealots during any aerial attack. If the Dragoons are unable to destroy the airborne attackers, consider using them as decoys to provide time for your Zealots to either make a quick escape or to make a run for enemy ground targets within range.
Protoss players should make a habit of using a mixed force of Zealots and Dragoons when building basic ground forces. It is also important to keep the Dragoons behind the front line of Zealots in any confrontation to attain the best possible use of firepower.
Dragoons can inflict 20 points of ranged explosive damage to both ground and air targets. This type and amount of damage makes the Dragoon a key unit for countering Large enemy unit types such as Battlecruisers, Scouts, Wraiths, Siege Tanks, Carriers, and Ultralisks.
Dragoons also prove to be extremely useful in "island" warfare, particularly as mobile anti-air defense in the early game. This is especially important for stopping the dreaded "Reaver Drop", either by destroying the incoming Shuttles or by destroying the dropped Reaver itself. In either case, the Dragoons should be kept in a spread out formation to decrease the chance of multiple Dragoons being lost to the Reaver's considerable splash damage. Combined with additional defensive Photon Cannons, the Dragoons can help make any isolated Protoss colony extremely difficult to overrun.
The key weakness of the Dragoon is the long cooldown time between attacks, especially when changing targets. Dragoons also face great difficulty if they run into small units of any kind as their weaponry only does half damage against targets such as Zerglings or Marines. They can also be vulnerable if forced into narrow areas with their large cybernetic shells, as they cannot efficiently group their fire.
The most important upgrade for the Dragoon is their Singularity Charge. The increased range of the Dragoon's weaponry that this upgrade grants allows them to concentrate their firepower much more effectively against approaching targets.
High Templar: The High Templar are seasoned, veteran warriors of the Protoss armies that have walked far down the path of Khala. Those who choose to accept the mantle of the High Templar set aside the frenzied rage of the Zealot, and instead use their highly potent Psionic abilities to bolster the warriors of Aiur. The sight of enemy forces being torn apart by a Psionic Storm or wasting their firepower on projected Hallucinations is proof enough of the battlefield superiority that the High Templar can give to the Protoss.
Although High Templar are powerless when it comes to physical attacks, their special abilities -- as well as their potential to sacrifice themselves to form mighty Archons -- make them a threat that cannot be ignored.
Dark Templar: Banished from Aiur for refusing to submit to the Khala, the Dark Templar have wandered throughout the far reaches of space for generations. These mighty warriors, drawing secret powers from the cold void of the cosmos, are able to bend light around themselves, which renders them virtually invisible. Armed with modified Psi-Blade technology, the Dark Templar relentlessly strive to protect their race and the ancient secrets of their tribes.
The permanent cloaking ability of all Dark Templar make them particularly useful for any ground assault or defense, particularly against the Terrans, who have limited detection abilities during the early stages of a game. The Terrans have two ways to detect Dark Templar in the early game: Missile Turrets and the ComSat Station add-on for the Command Center. Missile Turrets provide static cloak detection that is useful for defending a Terran base from attacks, but building Missile Turrets requires the Terran to use a build order that incorporates the Engineering Bay. If attacked by Dark Templar without having constructed an Engineering Bay, Terrans players will find it difficult to erect Missile Turrets for detection purposes while being attacked. Providing adequate and redundant detection coverage from every angle of attack can also require multiple turrets, and every expenditure of minerals in the early game is crucial. Terrans cannot necessarily rely on just one Turret for detection, as two Dark Templar can raze a Turret quickly. The ComSat Station can be used for both offensive and defensive needs, but the ComSat is a temporary solution for the needs of cloak detection. A Protoss player can use one Dark Templar to evoke a ComSat response, then disengage from combat. This kind of attack repeated several times can leave the ComSat's energy depleted and the Terran player in an unfortunate bind. Later in the match, the Terran player can purchase Science Vessels for mobile detection, but they require very high advancement within the Terran tech tree and are expensive in terms of required Vespene gas.
When facing other Protoss players Photon Cannons can be used for static defensive cloak detection, but to maintain detection abilities while on the attack, Observers must be purchased. Even a few Dark Templars can completely disrupt an opposing attack force if it has neglected to bring an Observer along. The feared Templar can also use their Psionic Storms to destroy Dark Templar, even without the benefit of cloak detection.
Against the Zerg, you should take a more cautious route when using Dark Templar. The Zerg almost always have an abundance of mobile detection in the form of Overlords, which are required for controlling their units and are available from the beginning of every match. The Zerg can also have Sunken Colonies very early in the game and, coupled with detection ability of the Overlord, these defenses will deter most any Dark Templar invasion. However, this shouldn't stop you from making any Dark Templar against the Zerg. Just be sure to bring along support to quickly eradicate the Zerg means of detection. If the Zerg player is in a habit of spreading out a web of Overlords to cover every avenue of attack, he can be more easily punished by the mighty Protoss air fleets.
The modified Dark Templar Psi-Blade technology is almost as deadly as their ability to remain permanently cloaked. Their awesome weapons deal heavy damage against any ground unit and with a sizeable group of Dark Templar, you can easily decimate enemy forces and structures. Be sure to gain every attack advantage by getting the Ground Weapon Upgrades at the Forge for the +3 to attack power for each level that it grants. A single, fully upgraded Dark Templar can deal a massive 49 points of damage with each stroke.
A few disadvantages, however, keep the Dark Templar from being the ultimate unit. The first is their inability to attack aerial units. As with Zealots, Dark Templar should be accompanied by Dragoons, Scouts, Corsairs or Carriers in the latter game to make sure the Dark Templar are not mercilessly picked off by enemy airborne units.
The biggest drawback for the Dark Templar is the cooldown time between their attacks. Even though the damage potential per swing of their Psi-blade is very high, each swing can only happen so fast. As a result, Dark Templar are vulnerable to attacks against mass enemy forces, particularly hordes of Zerglings with the Speed and Adrenal Gland Upgrades, or terran Marines with the Stim Pack upgrade.
Scout:We regard the swift one-man Scout as a tool for exploration and light combat, but against the inferior technology of other species it is a formidable combat unit on its own. Scouts are armed with both air-to-air Missiles and ground-attack guns, making them effective against all targets. Recent developments in enhanced sensor systems and high-power engines have further increased its effectiveness.
The Scout is one of the most versatile and powerful tools available to the Protoss but it comes at a price. Protoss Scouts are expensive and require a long time to produce. They are very powerful in large groups, especially when combined with Shield Battery use. Gravitic Thrusters, researched at the Fleet Beacon, allow Scouts to travel at a much faster rate. To build a sizeable force of Scouts, 2 or more Stargates should be built to compensate for the long build time it takes to produce a Scout.
Scouts can inflict 8 points of normal damage (upgradeable to +3, +1 for each upgrade) to ground targets and their air attack, in the form of Missiles is 28 points of Explosive damage (upgradeable to +6, +2 per upgrade). Needless to say, with that kind of firepower, Scouts can cause devastating damage to any aerial force.
The Scout is easily the most powerful air unit for its price and as mentioned before, coupled with Shield Battery use, you can protect the investment of your Scout production. Although Shield Batteries are useful for any Protoss Unit, Scouts can take the best advantage of them with their speed and the fact that they can fly over any terrain. By recharging your Scouts' shields between attacks, you can lengthen the life span of the Scout by a considerable margin, and if you continue to produce Scouts while maintaining your existing ones, your Scout force will grow at a much faster rate. To best use the Battery/Scout combination, keep your Shield Batteries relatively close to battle sites and protected from ground attack. If you can afford to keep a cluster of Photon Cannons near the Shield Batteries, then all the better for a returning group of damaged Scouts.
While Scouts are able to attack ground units, they are not always the best option (unless the enemy has no anti-air attack units) due to their long cooldown times between ground attacks. They are, however, excellent as support units for Zealots, Dark Templar or Reavers (all of which lack the ability to attack aerial units).
When facing a Terran opponent, be sure to keep your Scouts escorted by one or more Observers, in the case that they may encounter cloaked Wraiths. Without the detection abilities of the Observers, your Scouts will have no defense against that kind of confrontation. For the easiest method of keeping Observers with your Scouts, just select an Observer and right-click on one of the Scouts. This will "link" the Observer to the targeted Scout and will tail the Scout without needing any additional commands. Note that giving the Observer a command afterwards will effectively break its link with the Scout and you will either have to re-link the Observer or make sure it's selected with the group of Scouts when they're being moved around.
Against the Zerg, Scouts should be wary of outnumbering groups of Mutalisks or Devourers. If your opponent is tending to use large groups of Mutalisks, your best option is to keep your Scouts accompanied by Corsairs, Dragoons or High Templar with Psionic Storm. If possible, keep your Scouts from packing too tightly together against Mutalisks to minimize the effectiveness of their "ricochet" attack. Against Devourers, try and destroy them as quickly as possible before they attach too many acid spores (which increases the Scout cooldown). Also with the Devourers, try and separate your Scouts to to avoid the splash effect from the Devourer attack. During land invasions, Scouts can be extremely useful for taking out Sunken Colonies to give your ground units more leeway in their attack. And if you have time to spare, use your Scouts to hunt down stray Overlords to both prevent the Zerg from seeing your movements as well as diminishing their supply.
Carrier: The massive Carriers serve as both command centers and devastating weapons of war. Heavily armored and shielded, the Carrier mounts no weaponry but instead manufactures and launches flights of robotic Interceptors at vital enemy targets. The computer-controlled Interceptors are capable of quickly tearing apart even the largest of vessels with their relentless strafing runs.
The Carrier is a powerful and terrifying unit when seen in numbers. While the Carrier itself has no attack ability, the Interceptors it deploys can be anything from annoying to downright deadly. A group of Carriers are the ultimate Siege Weapon, utilizing Interceptors to lay waste to anything in the air or ground. Interceptors fly out and attack on their own, but you can give them targets to destroy by commanding the Carrier to attack (right clicking or using the hot key A on the target) or by issuing an Attack-Move (using the hot key A and selecting an area rather than a target to move to). Most of the time, you will want to use the Attack-Move command when using Carriers and saving the right click (direct unit targeting) command for the most dangerous or threatening units. While the direct unit targeting will kill the selected target much more quickly, there is a certain amount of delay when the Interceptors leave and enter the Carrier and that slight pause in between attacks leaves the Carrier vulnerable. If Carriers are group selected and given that kind of command, the pause can come at the same time for all the Carriers leaving a much larger window for your opponent to use against you. The Attack-Move will generally leave the Interceptor attack patterns randomized with virtually no delay in attacks.
The Carrier can carry up to 4 Interceptors to begin with, and when given the Capacity upgrade, they can carry up to a maximum of 8 Interceptors. Interceptors are not built with the Carrier and must be produced by the Carrier (use the hot key I for Interceptor production) and can be queued up for 5 Interceptors at a time. Each Interceptor requires 25 Minerals for production and if one happens to be destroyed in battle, the Carrier can produce more (up to the limit of 8) as long as there are enough resources. Other than production, Interceptors do not require any maintenance on your part. Every time they return to the Carrier after an attack sortie, they are automatically repaired and their shields are recharged. If you do happen to notice that your Interceptors are damaged, the only way to force the Interceptors back into the Carrier is to have the Carrier retreat (which forces ALL of its Interceptors to return). However, be wary of retreating if the majority of your Interceptors are healthy or if a strategic target is nearly dead, since the window of vulnerability swings wide open when the Interceptors begin returning to the Carrier bays.
For the best effectiveness, the Carriers should always be at their Interceptor limit. As mentioned before, Interceptors can be destroyed in the heat of the battle, and if they aren't replaced the Carrier becomes that much less useful. A Carrier with no Interceptors is a complete waste of resources and supply units and can easily be destroyed by enemy air-to-air/anti-air units.
When using Carriers to attack, try and keep them above high ground, water, space, ice, etc. where the Carriers are out of ground unit attack ranges. The Carrier attack range (the maximum distance the Interceptors can fly from the Carrier) of 8 is better than most units and as long as the Interceptors can reach a given target/enemy presence, there's no need to put the Carrier in any jeopardy. If your opponent has and uses air units to attack/defend be sure to target them first to give your Carriers the best possibility of retreating from a bad situation. The downside, however, is that if an enemy comes into your Carrier's attack range, your Carrier will automatically acquire the target and begin moving towards it. If you become careless with your Carrier control, you enemy can easily lure idle Carriers into traps and ambushes without any damage or loss while you lose a potentially powerful weapon. If you do have to leave your Carriers at a certain location (perhaps to intercept enemy expansion attempts or sneak attacks), be sure to use the Hold Position command (hot key H with Carriers selected) to prevent your Carriers from wandering.
In addition to their great attack range, Carriers also have a long sight range (11 units). This can be both helpful and problematic depending on the situation. Obviously for attacks, the long sight range will allow you to attack the enemy before they can see you and overall will help you destroy your enemy at best and cause confusion at least.
The Carrier also has the ability to "stack" when in groups. This can also be an advantage or a disadvantage depending on the situation. Stacked Carriers in large groups have a concentrated field of attacking Interceptors and can make it near impossible for your enemy to select any units caught beneath them or even select the Carriers themselves. This can be a great advantage during a siege and should be used in most cases. However, if you opponent has units with special abilities or area-effect attacks, stacked Carriers can be heavily damaged in a very short amount of time. Examples include High Templar casting Psionic Storm, Defilers casting Plague, Queens casting Ensnare, Science Vessels casting EMP Shockwave, etc. Large groups of Corsairs, Archons, Mutalisks, Devourers, etc. with their area-effect damage attacks are also deadly. If your opponent shows any signs of utilizing those counters, be very cautious with your Carrier attacks, and let them spread out if possible.
As recommended with the Scouts, you will always want to keep at least one Observer with your Carriers (although the more the merrier) since they have no detection abilities of their own. This will prevent Cloaked Wraiths or Arbiter cloaked Protoss units from making easy targets out of your Carriers. Again, you should use the Observer "link" tactic (select an Observer and right-click on one of the Carriers) to have an Observer follow your Carriers wherever they go without further management (unless you issue another command to the Observer).
Like any other unit in StarCraft, Carriers function best when supported by other units (for a more balanced force). Dragoons and Scouts always make excellent support units, but if you're lacking in resources, you may wish to resort to Zealots and Corsairs to defend against both air and ground targets.
One thing to remember when using Carriers is that when they are destroyed, all of the Interceptors associated with that Carrier self destruct along with it. Once those Interceptors are destroyed, depending on the Carrier fleet size, you can lose a significant advantage in battle. Therefore, be sure to keep your Carriers' shields full with Shield Batteries and never hesitate to retreat if the Carrier begins taking heavy damage. If the damage is severe, the best method of retreat is to use the Arbiter Recall ability on your Carrier fleet. This will instantly teleport your fleet to the Arbiter's position and hopefully out of harm's way.
The Zealot is the backbone warrior of the Protoss ground forces. While Terrans use a carefully controlled combination of ground troops and the Zerg must spend time and resources to research Hydralisks, Zealots are available to the Protoss almost immediately. With upgrades to Weapons, Armor, and Shields (as well as the key additional "Leg Enhancements" upgrade from the Citadel of Adun) Zealots are an integral part of your army throughout the entire game. The speed of the Zealots, their ability to absorb an immense pounding and excellent damage potential allows these warriors to bust through nearly any defense in significant numbers.
When attacked from the skies without proper air support, Zealots should retreat to Shield Batteries and Anti-Air defenses such as Photon Cannons or High Templar. If these units are unavailable, or you are in the middle of an attack against an enemy outpost, continue with the attack even if under fire from the enemy. In this instance, Zealots are effective suicide units, taking as much as they can in the way of buildings and high end units with them before they die.
A key Zealot weakness is their inability to engage airborne units. Terran players can use Wraiths and Battlecruisers to attack Zealots on the ground without fear of reprisal. Zerg players often defend their Hives with Hydralisks and Lurkers while building up a group of Mutalisks or Guardians to quickly take care of enemy Zealots. Protoss players can use a few Scouts to chase away Zealots; later employing Carriers to devastating effect. Dark Templar are also extremely effective against Zealots if the enemy Protoss player does not have Observers stationed nearby.
The other key weakness of the Zealot is their inability to attack at range. The Zealot must come in contact with an enemy before any damage can be inflicted. Troops such as Marines, Vultures, Siege Tanks, Dragoons, Reavers, Hydralisks or Lurkers can often do incredible damage to Zealots if not entirely destroying them before they can close to counter attack.
Dragoon: Veteran Protoss warriors who have been crippled or mortally wounded in combat can volunteer to continue their service to the Conclave by being transplanted into Dragoon exoskeletons. Within a short time, the fallen warriors learn to control the movements of the large, mechanical walker as naturally as if they were within their former bodies. Dragoons provide essential supporting fire for the Zealot legions by launching bolts of anti-particles sheathed in a psychically charged field. These disintegration bolts are effective against both air and ground targets.
As one of the few Protoss ground units with the ability to strike both land and air targets, the Dragoon is an essential element for a well-balanced Protoss force. When used in conjunction with Zealots, Dragoons are very effective, scoring uncontested hits against enemy forces that are tied up in hand-to-hand combat. If the enemy targets the Dragoons for attack, the Zealots can get "free" hits at close range. Dragoons also provide vital support for Zealots during any aerial attack. If the Dragoons are unable to destroy the airborne attackers, consider using them as decoys to provide time for your Zealots to either make a quick escape or to make a run for enemy ground targets within range.
Protoss players should make a habit of using a mixed force of Zealots and Dragoons when building basic ground forces. It is also important to keep the Dragoons behind the front line of Zealots in any confrontation to attain the best possible use of firepower.
Dragoons can inflict 20 points of ranged explosive damage to both ground and air targets. This type and amount of damage makes the Dragoon a key unit for countering Large enemy unit types such as Battlecruisers, Scouts, Wraiths, Siege Tanks, Carriers, and Ultralisks.
Dragoons also prove to be extremely useful in "island" warfare, particularly as mobile anti-air defense in the early game. This is especially important for stopping the dreaded "Reaver Drop", either by destroying the incoming Shuttles or by destroying the dropped Reaver itself. In either case, the Dragoons should be kept in a spread out formation to decrease the chance of multiple Dragoons being lost to the Reaver's considerable splash damage. Combined with additional defensive Photon Cannons, the Dragoons can help make any isolated Protoss colony extremely difficult to overrun.
The key weakness of the Dragoon is the long cooldown time between attacks, especially when changing targets. Dragoons also face great difficulty if they run into small units of any kind as their weaponry only does half damage against targets such as Zerglings or Marines. They can also be vulnerable if forced into narrow areas with their large cybernetic shells, as they cannot efficiently group their fire.
The most important upgrade for the Dragoon is their Singularity Charge. The increased range of the Dragoon's weaponry that this upgrade grants allows them to concentrate their firepower much more effectively against approaching targets.
High Templar: The High Templar are seasoned, veteran warriors of the Protoss armies that have walked far down the path of Khala. Those who choose to accept the mantle of the High Templar set aside the frenzied rage of the Zealot, and instead use their highly potent Psionic abilities to bolster the warriors of Aiur. The sight of enemy forces being torn apart by a Psionic Storm or wasting their firepower on projected Hallucinations is proof enough of the battlefield superiority that the High Templar can give to the Protoss.
Although High Templar are powerless when it comes to physical attacks, their special abilities -- as well as their potential to sacrifice themselves to form mighty Archons -- make them a threat that cannot be ignored.
Dark Templar: Banished from Aiur for refusing to submit to the Khala, the Dark Templar have wandered throughout the far reaches of space for generations. These mighty warriors, drawing secret powers from the cold void of the cosmos, are able to bend light around themselves, which renders them virtually invisible. Armed with modified Psi-Blade technology, the Dark Templar relentlessly strive to protect their race and the ancient secrets of their tribes.
The permanent cloaking ability of all Dark Templar make them particularly useful for any ground assault or defense, particularly against the Terrans, who have limited detection abilities during the early stages of a game. The Terrans have two ways to detect Dark Templar in the early game: Missile Turrets and the ComSat Station add-on for the Command Center. Missile Turrets provide static cloak detection that is useful for defending a Terran base from attacks, but building Missile Turrets requires the Terran to use a build order that incorporates the Engineering Bay. If attacked by Dark Templar without having constructed an Engineering Bay, Terrans players will find it difficult to erect Missile Turrets for detection purposes while being attacked. Providing adequate and redundant detection coverage from every angle of attack can also require multiple turrets, and every expenditure of minerals in the early game is crucial. Terrans cannot necessarily rely on just one Turret for detection, as two Dark Templar can raze a Turret quickly. The ComSat Station can be used for both offensive and defensive needs, but the ComSat is a temporary solution for the needs of cloak detection. A Protoss player can use one Dark Templar to evoke a ComSat response, then disengage from combat. This kind of attack repeated several times can leave the ComSat's energy depleted and the Terran player in an unfortunate bind. Later in the match, the Terran player can purchase Science Vessels for mobile detection, but they require very high advancement within the Terran tech tree and are expensive in terms of required Vespene gas.
When facing other Protoss players Photon Cannons can be used for static defensive cloak detection, but to maintain detection abilities while on the attack, Observers must be purchased. Even a few Dark Templars can completely disrupt an opposing attack force if it has neglected to bring an Observer along. The feared Templar can also use their Psionic Storms to destroy Dark Templar, even without the benefit of cloak detection.
Against the Zerg, you should take a more cautious route when using Dark Templar. The Zerg almost always have an abundance of mobile detection in the form of Overlords, which are required for controlling their units and are available from the beginning of every match. The Zerg can also have Sunken Colonies very early in the game and, coupled with detection ability of the Overlord, these defenses will deter most any Dark Templar invasion. However, this shouldn't stop you from making any Dark Templar against the Zerg. Just be sure to bring along support to quickly eradicate the Zerg means of detection. If the Zerg player is in a habit of spreading out a web of Overlords to cover every avenue of attack, he can be more easily punished by the mighty Protoss air fleets.
The modified Dark Templar Psi-Blade technology is almost as deadly as their ability to remain permanently cloaked. Their awesome weapons deal heavy damage against any ground unit and with a sizeable group of Dark Templar, you can easily decimate enemy forces and structures. Be sure to gain every attack advantage by getting the Ground Weapon Upgrades at the Forge for the +3 to attack power for each level that it grants. A single, fully upgraded Dark Templar can deal a massive 49 points of damage with each stroke.
A few disadvantages, however, keep the Dark Templar from being the ultimate unit. The first is their inability to attack aerial units. As with Zealots, Dark Templar should be accompanied by Dragoons, Scouts, Corsairs or Carriers in the latter game to make sure the Dark Templar are not mercilessly picked off by enemy airborne units.
The biggest drawback for the Dark Templar is the cooldown time between their attacks. Even though the damage potential per swing of their Psi-blade is very high, each swing can only happen so fast. As a result, Dark Templar are vulnerable to attacks against mass enemy forces, particularly hordes of Zerglings with the Speed and Adrenal Gland Upgrades, or terran Marines with the Stim Pack upgrade.
Scout:We regard the swift one-man Scout as a tool for exploration and light combat, but against the inferior technology of other species it is a formidable combat unit on its own. Scouts are armed with both air-to-air Missiles and ground-attack guns, making them effective against all targets. Recent developments in enhanced sensor systems and high-power engines have further increased its effectiveness.
The Scout is one of the most versatile and powerful tools available to the Protoss but it comes at a price. Protoss Scouts are expensive and require a long time to produce. They are very powerful in large groups, especially when combined with Shield Battery use. Gravitic Thrusters, researched at the Fleet Beacon, allow Scouts to travel at a much faster rate. To build a sizeable force of Scouts, 2 or more Stargates should be built to compensate for the long build time it takes to produce a Scout.
Scouts can inflict 8 points of normal damage (upgradeable to +3, +1 for each upgrade) to ground targets and their air attack, in the form of Missiles is 28 points of Explosive damage (upgradeable to +6, +2 per upgrade). Needless to say, with that kind of firepower, Scouts can cause devastating damage to any aerial force.
The Scout is easily the most powerful air unit for its price and as mentioned before, coupled with Shield Battery use, you can protect the investment of your Scout production. Although Shield Batteries are useful for any Protoss Unit, Scouts can take the best advantage of them with their speed and the fact that they can fly over any terrain. By recharging your Scouts' shields between attacks, you can lengthen the life span of the Scout by a considerable margin, and if you continue to produce Scouts while maintaining your existing ones, your Scout force will grow at a much faster rate. To best use the Battery/Scout combination, keep your Shield Batteries relatively close to battle sites and protected from ground attack. If you can afford to keep a cluster of Photon Cannons near the Shield Batteries, then all the better for a returning group of damaged Scouts.
While Scouts are able to attack ground units, they are not always the best option (unless the enemy has no anti-air attack units) due to their long cooldown times between ground attacks. They are, however, excellent as support units for Zealots, Dark Templar or Reavers (all of which lack the ability to attack aerial units).
When facing a Terran opponent, be sure to keep your Scouts escorted by one or more Observers, in the case that they may encounter cloaked Wraiths. Without the detection abilities of the Observers, your Scouts will have no defense against that kind of confrontation. For the easiest method of keeping Observers with your Scouts, just select an Observer and right-click on one of the Scouts. This will "link" the Observer to the targeted Scout and will tail the Scout without needing any additional commands. Note that giving the Observer a command afterwards will effectively break its link with the Scout and you will either have to re-link the Observer or make sure it's selected with the group of Scouts when they're being moved around.
Against the Zerg, Scouts should be wary of outnumbering groups of Mutalisks or Devourers. If your opponent is tending to use large groups of Mutalisks, your best option is to keep your Scouts accompanied by Corsairs, Dragoons or High Templar with Psionic Storm. If possible, keep your Scouts from packing too tightly together against Mutalisks to minimize the effectiveness of their "ricochet" attack. Against Devourers, try and destroy them as quickly as possible before they attach too many acid spores (which increases the Scout cooldown). Also with the Devourers, try and separate your Scouts to to avoid the splash effect from the Devourer attack. During land invasions, Scouts can be extremely useful for taking out Sunken Colonies to give your ground units more leeway in their attack. And if you have time to spare, use your Scouts to hunt down stray Overlords to both prevent the Zerg from seeing your movements as well as diminishing their supply.
Carrier: The massive Carriers serve as both command centers and devastating weapons of war. Heavily armored and shielded, the Carrier mounts no weaponry but instead manufactures and launches flights of robotic Interceptors at vital enemy targets. The computer-controlled Interceptors are capable of quickly tearing apart even the largest of vessels with their relentless strafing runs.
The Carrier is a powerful and terrifying unit when seen in numbers. While the Carrier itself has no attack ability, the Interceptors it deploys can be anything from annoying to downright deadly. A group of Carriers are the ultimate Siege Weapon, utilizing Interceptors to lay waste to anything in the air or ground. Interceptors fly out and attack on their own, but you can give them targets to destroy by commanding the Carrier to attack (right clicking or using the hot key A on the target) or by issuing an Attack-Move (using the hot key A and selecting an area rather than a target to move to). Most of the time, you will want to use the Attack-Move command when using Carriers and saving the right click (direct unit targeting) command for the most dangerous or threatening units. While the direct unit targeting will kill the selected target much more quickly, there is a certain amount of delay when the Interceptors leave and enter the Carrier and that slight pause in between attacks leaves the Carrier vulnerable. If Carriers are group selected and given that kind of command, the pause can come at the same time for all the Carriers leaving a much larger window for your opponent to use against you. The Attack-Move will generally leave the Interceptor attack patterns randomized with virtually no delay in attacks.
The Carrier can carry up to 4 Interceptors to begin with, and when given the Capacity upgrade, they can carry up to a maximum of 8 Interceptors. Interceptors are not built with the Carrier and must be produced by the Carrier (use the hot key I for Interceptor production) and can be queued up for 5 Interceptors at a time. Each Interceptor requires 25 Minerals for production and if one happens to be destroyed in battle, the Carrier can produce more (up to the limit of 8) as long as there are enough resources. Other than production, Interceptors do not require any maintenance on your part. Every time they return to the Carrier after an attack sortie, they are automatically repaired and their shields are recharged. If you do happen to notice that your Interceptors are damaged, the only way to force the Interceptors back into the Carrier is to have the Carrier retreat (which forces ALL of its Interceptors to return). However, be wary of retreating if the majority of your Interceptors are healthy or if a strategic target is nearly dead, since the window of vulnerability swings wide open when the Interceptors begin returning to the Carrier bays.
For the best effectiveness, the Carriers should always be at their Interceptor limit. As mentioned before, Interceptors can be destroyed in the heat of the battle, and if they aren't replaced the Carrier becomes that much less useful. A Carrier with no Interceptors is a complete waste of resources and supply units and can easily be destroyed by enemy air-to-air/anti-air units.
When using Carriers to attack, try and keep them above high ground, water, space, ice, etc. where the Carriers are out of ground unit attack ranges. The Carrier attack range (the maximum distance the Interceptors can fly from the Carrier) of 8 is better than most units and as long as the Interceptors can reach a given target/enemy presence, there's no need to put the Carrier in any jeopardy. If your opponent has and uses air units to attack/defend be sure to target them first to give your Carriers the best possibility of retreating from a bad situation. The downside, however, is that if an enemy comes into your Carrier's attack range, your Carrier will automatically acquire the target and begin moving towards it. If you become careless with your Carrier control, you enemy can easily lure idle Carriers into traps and ambushes without any damage or loss while you lose a potentially powerful weapon. If you do have to leave your Carriers at a certain location (perhaps to intercept enemy expansion attempts or sneak attacks), be sure to use the Hold Position command (hot key H with Carriers selected) to prevent your Carriers from wandering.
In addition to their great attack range, Carriers also have a long sight range (11 units). This can be both helpful and problematic depending on the situation. Obviously for attacks, the long sight range will allow you to attack the enemy before they can see you and overall will help you destroy your enemy at best and cause confusion at least.
The Carrier also has the ability to "stack" when in groups. This can also be an advantage or a disadvantage depending on the situation. Stacked Carriers in large groups have a concentrated field of attacking Interceptors and can make it near impossible for your enemy to select any units caught beneath them or even select the Carriers themselves. This can be a great advantage during a siege and should be used in most cases. However, if you opponent has units with special abilities or area-effect attacks, stacked Carriers can be heavily damaged in a very short amount of time. Examples include High Templar casting Psionic Storm, Defilers casting Plague, Queens casting Ensnare, Science Vessels casting EMP Shockwave, etc. Large groups of Corsairs, Archons, Mutalisks, Devourers, etc. with their area-effect damage attacks are also deadly. If your opponent shows any signs of utilizing those counters, be very cautious with your Carrier attacks, and let them spread out if possible.
As recommended with the Scouts, you will always want to keep at least one Observer with your Carriers (although the more the merrier) since they have no detection abilities of their own. This will prevent Cloaked Wraiths or Arbiter cloaked Protoss units from making easy targets out of your Carriers. Again, you should use the Observer "link" tactic (select an Observer and right-click on one of the Carriers) to have an Observer follow your Carriers wherever they go without further management (unless you issue another command to the Observer).
Like any other unit in StarCraft, Carriers function best when supported by other units (for a more balanced force). Dragoons and Scouts always make excellent support units, but if you're lacking in resources, you may wish to resort to Zealots and Corsairs to defend against both air and ground targets.
One thing to remember when using Carriers is that when they are destroyed, all of the Interceptors associated with that Carrier self destruct along with it. Once those Interceptors are destroyed, depending on the Carrier fleet size, you can lose a significant advantage in battle. Therefore, be sure to keep your Carriers' shields full with Shield Batteries and never hesitate to retreat if the Carrier begins taking heavy damage. If the damage is severe, the best method of retreat is to use the Arbiter Recall ability on your Carrier fleet. This will instantly teleport your fleet to the Arbiter's position and hopefully out of harm's way.
