Overview

The Protoss race has been given a huge upgrade in terms of ground and air defenses. Next to their starting building’s ability that speeds up production time by a smidgen, they have the ability to warp in units around any Pylon field, a few unit abilities you can master very early in a match, and even a huge armada of late-game party-crashers in the form of the Colossus and Carriers. The drawback? The majority of Protoss units are expensive and take up a lot of manpower, but it’s nothing a few Pylons cannot solve.

Even if the Protoss are built to be defensive, that doesn’t mean that you can’t have a Zealot/Stalker rush up and running. Plus, they can really take the end-game to their court with their plethora of high-tier units. When playing 2v2, a Protoss player usually play defensively while the other concentrates on sabotaging the opposition.  Still, 20 minutes is a long time in an RTS and you’ll have to set up a solid defense (choke points with Pylons, Warp Gates, and Photon Cannon) before you can get the dough for Colossi and Carriers.

The Same Old Tricks Apply Here: Your probes still warp in buildings and can resume to their task of getting resources. In fact, you can just send one just to warp in buildings in a row to get things done faster.

Faster, Pussycat: Your Nexus’ Chrono Boost power is there for a reason; to speed up production as much as possible. Use it every time you have something getting churned out and if you have enough Nexus mana around, be it a piddly Zealot group or even late in the game if you’re planning on getting an armada of Carriers out.

Gateways, then Cybernetics Cores: Based on the no-holds barred environment of the beta right now, your path to early success seems likely if you just went straight to getting Stalkers out. They can take care of nearby airborne spies and even Roaches/Reapers onslaughts.

Warp Factor Nine: Your Pylons aren’t there just to power up adjacent buildings; they also serve as “fields” for your Warp Gates (via transforming a Gateway and researched from Cyberkinetic Cores). Sure, they can only warp one unit at a time and you can’t make a queue from just one Warp Gate. But seriously, who in their right mind on the multi-player builds just one unit-churning structure?

Sentries; A Pro-Player’s Best Friend: Sentries, if used right, can use their Force Field ability to create barriers and split enemy forces. Let’s say you see an early offensive; if you play your cards right, just lay the fields down and segment them so that your Zealots and Stalkers can pick off the pieces. They also have Guardian Shield, which negates ranged damage to friendly units by 2. Basically, that’s the majority of attacks in the game.

Shiny Prism: Rather than sending a lone probe to create Pylons, why not have a portable unit that can root to the ground to create a pylon field? The Warp Prism can park itself near a secluded spot near an enemy’s base so that you can warp your units around its pylon field. The trick is getting to the Robotics Facility structure, because you can get tempted to the lure of building Carriers instead.

Observers: I know a few people I’ve fought using Observers to do some scouting. If you’re good at multi-tasking, go for it. One is good enough to at least see how your enemies are progressing. At the very least, it’s better than sending your Probes in for a suicide scouting mission.

Mid-Game Air Superiority?: You’ve got Phoenixes and Void Rays to help you cover the air mid-game. They’re not really heavy hitters, considering that the Zerg’s Mutalisks are fast and they can get Hydralisk backup, and the Terran’s air superiority is better in variety and strength. Still, don’t discount them: Phoenixes can prevent an air onslaught and Void Rays work well against anyone who manage to amass a Battleship or two.

Mobility; They Has It: Protoss units can cover more ground, assuming that you get the Cybernetics Core and Forge up-and-running. Getting Blink and Charge for your Stalkers and Zealots are a must mid-game, and the Forge gives you access to your sole turrets of the faction, the Photon Cannon. These are perfect for setting up strategic choke points around your base; just be wary that their rate of fire isn’t so hot, considering that the usual rush suspects have speed and higher rate of fire/attack.

Almost Colossus: Yes, the Colossus can deal splash damage with its sweeping laser attack. Yes, it can also cross through hills. Yes, it’s also bloody expensive, slow, and prime targets. This means that if you’re investing on this beast, you’ll need serious back-up to distract your enemies away from it.

Carrier Swarm Possible? Not in a 1v1 match. While the rewards are great, be prepared to be bombarded by copious amounts of Marines/Zerglings/Zealots and hope you built your Photon Cannons and set your defenses right. Ten minutes is a long time in building all the way to that Fleet Beacon structure.

Mothership Down: Even with the nerfing of the Mothership in the February 26th beta update, it’s still a force to be reckoned with. Provided that you have a really great late-game offensive, just use the Vortex the instant your enemies are coming at you (so they cluster up to a spot and get paralyzed for a few seconds), and your opponent will watch in horror as to wonder how many units you really have dishing out damage as the Mothership cloaks enemies just around it. Of course, you’re only allowed one on the field, but it’s enough to get your opponents to message you “GG” early.