Part 3: Protoss Build Order and Defensive Tactics

During a normal build up, never consider upgrading shields until you have a second town. Do consider upgrading attack damage if you are fighting many Zerglings, since it will take only two attacks instead of three per Zealot to kill them if they don't upgrade their armor. Think about upgrading armor strength if you are using several Templars for offense, this will keep them alive longer or at least give them enough time to merge. After you expand and have lots of gas to spare, consider upgrading weapons, shields, and armor if you haven't already. I normally don't upgrade those much until I have a third gas mine.

From the start build normally. Peons are the important aspect. Make them before anything. Then make a Pylon, Gateway, Pylon, and another Gateway. Make probes, Zealots, and pylons as needed until you can afford (or time has passed a bit) a gas Assimilator. Then get your Cyber Core, and depending on the enemy, build up from there. You should have a good number of Zealots and a few Dragoons by that time. Don't forget shield batteries if you need to defend.

Some of these strategies break the normal rules of building up. Follow the build up rules when applicable though.

NOTE: Protoss units and buildings have shields. Shields take full damage from all attacks. This makes Vultures and some other units very good for taking down shields on anything quickly.

Shield batteries are needed for most defenses. Shield batteries heal two shield points for every energy point they contain. Make the batteries early if possible so they will be full of energy when needed.

Use Dragoons and maybe Cannons or Reavers to beat the Vulture rush. Have shield batteries to heal.

Beware being blocked in by Siege Tanks/bunkers/spider mines. It can be hard to break early on in a game. Try using Reavers and Zealots/Dragoons if they have lots of anti-air, which they should. Or go for a Zealot drop to slow them down. Your best bet is to not ever let them set it up by being more aggressive early on, or by catching the tanks in progress when they are very weak. Build an early cannon to spot early spider mines blocking you in if you have to. Remember you can use peons or Dragoons (at a distance) to kill spotted spider mines that are out of range of your cannons. If the spider mines come later, go for Observers to spot them, then disarm them with the Reaver for safety reasons since they'll likely have Siege tanks waiting for a Dragoon to poke his nose out. Use Shuttles and Zealot drop-offs to kill his peons if you are stuck in your base.

Quick expansion for gas and quick to Archons against other Protoss is a fairly strong strategy, but quite risky if their scouting is good. With a great number of Archons and Zealots, you can break through their defenses well and take them out. This is best used on a big map where your expansion may go unseen. Just defend a bit early or fake a Zealot rush to keep them occupied.

To beat the Zergling rush plus Muta rush on land, you need very good scouting. You have to first counter their Zergling rush with Zealots and probably by moving your peons away from their Zergling attack. Try to block off your entrance with zealots if you can. Scout deep into their base with a Zealot to check for Hydras. If they aren't making Hydras at the normal time and are upgrading to Lair, expect a Muta rush. Immediately switch to Dragoons and start making shield batteries all around your town. You need about four shield batteries. When the Mutas come use the shield batteries to heal. You can also get one or maybe two Archons which are nice deterrents. Do not make a mistake and build many Dragoons if they go for Hydras. You will be in trouble. Use your early Zealots to attack them once you counter any large amount of Zerglings well. Leave most of your Dragoons at home to defend. Go in suicide style to take out their peons, spire, or something of the sort.

To beat Hydra rush, make lots of Zealots with two or three gateways. Get a Reaver or two quickly, and use the Zealots and Reavers together. As always, try to get a shuttle for the Reavers. Counter attack when you get ahead.

To beat the Mutalisk rush on island maps, you need to quickly go for Scouts, Dragoons, and shield batteries. Build one gateway at first and two Protoss Stargates. Use Dragoons as backup for the initial rush. Get their speed upgrade as soon as possible. You have to be extremely careful with hit and run tactics, healing the Scouts often with the shield batteries. Attack their Overlords, bases, and anything where you see an opening. This strategy was devoloped by EnoYls, a good pal and a great player. Remember, Scouts can fly as fast as Scourge if they are going top speed and have the speed upgrade. Try coming at small numbers of Scourge full speed with one scout, then quickly running away to your group of Scouts/Dragoons to kill the Scourge that follows. Scouts, if they don't attack, will continue to fly at full speed despite any turns, so your one Scout should be safe if you know exactly where they Scourge are via sight upgrade or Observer. The worst thing about this strategy is if they go for a quick Hydra drop they will probably catch you off guard, since Dragoons and Scouts are terrible against hydras. However, one way to estimate is to see how many Overlords are spying on your island. They should be all around the fringes if they are going for the Mutalisk and Scourge attack. If you see no Overlords after the initial pass over by one Overlord, expect a Hydra drop.

To beat Scourge, lure them to your ground to air attackers or into a Psi Storm. Remember that scouts kill them best if the scouts are not moving or attacking anything and the Scourge come to them.

For The Lost Temple and maps with similar starts, a good early defense for the Protoss can be done with a few zealots, two shield batteries, and two cannons. Build one Gateway and then a Forge. Get a pylon near your entrance and build two shield batteries with two cannons behind the batteries. Have six to eight Zealots blocking the entrance. Use the shield batteries to heal your Zealots. Nothing is going to have an easy time getting through that in the early game until Siege Tanks come into play. Beware of Mutalisk rushes though. With this strategy you can quickly go for Scouts which are fairly good against other Protoss if they aren't expecting it. This strategy can also be applied to FFA and allied games.

FFA on Hunters map versus Zerg/Protoss: A nice strategy to use once you get ahead is to tower up the middle like mad with cannon towers supported by Scouts, Zealots, and Templars. You can get the resources from the whole middle and once you get Carriers/Reavers you will dominate. Don't attempt this until late game however.

To defend an expansion or even main base, get one Carrier (2 is better but not that necessary) and 5 shield batteries made next to one another. When they try to attack, keep healing with the shield batteries and let your interceptors attack the whole while. If done correctly, you will be basically invulnerable to most units… even Scourge are greatly weakened.

If you can get shield batteries near an enemy, this is a very powerful attack strategy also when used with several Carriers. Close to the enemy shield batteries are good for attacking with any unit, so build them nearby if at all possible!

In late game, don't be afraid to build tons of cannons. When you are rich, eight cannons per expansion will slow down an attack long enough for you to get your peons out and fighters in.

In late game, have a couple of Reavers and/or Templars at each expansion. They, combined with towers, will be able to put big damage on would-be attackers.

Archons are great defense against any air unit in the late game. Don't forget you'll also need scouts, Psi Storm, or Carriers if there is a plateau or water right next to your buildings.

Build cannons later in the game, and build them closer in from the edges of your land at your town. This will make attackers come in deeper so you can storm them.