Dear's DT/Immortal Drop (vs. Protoss)
From Liquipedia StarCraft 2 Wiki
Dear's DT/Immortal Drop
Strategy Information
Creator(s):
Matchups:
PvP
Type:
Macro Opening
Converted Form:
Introduction[edit]
In this build, the Protoss player aims to utilise a relatively standard Dark Templar opening[1] with a slight twist; they makes very few Gateway units and avoid making additional Gateways for as long as possible. The combination of these two things allows them to not only get an incredibly fast Dark Shrine, but also a very reasonably timed Robotics Facility and Nexus.
Build Order[edit]
Dear's DT/Immortal Drop |
---|
|
Execution[edit]
Early Game Scouting/Adjustments[edit]
Dear's only two units made out of his single Gateway are a Stalker and a Sentry. The Stalker's main purpose is to poke around your natural and third base to check for proxy Pylons or scouting Probes whilst the MSC scouts the cliff areas around the main base. When the Sentry pops out, Dear uses a combination of Force Fields and good micro to hold off any early pokes. In both example games (see below), Trap uses a 3 Stalker rush to try and put pressure on Dear, but Dear is able to deflect these pressure attempts with ease.
Dear's follow-up scout after placing a proxy Pylon is trying to look for three things, with the combination of these 3 things allowing Dear how to react and respond to his opponent properly.
- The presence of a Nexus at the natural.
- The presence of units at home vs. aggressively placed units.
- The structures present in the opponent's base.
If you scouts an expansion from your opponent, or units that are placed defensively, then you should start an early Nexus and use Immortals to defend it whilst harassing with the initial Dark Templar. However, if you scout aggression, you should throw down 2 additional Gateways to help defend before expanding after the opponent's pressure is over.
If the opponent commits to heavy aggression or to an all-in, you can use Photon Overcharge to deflect the attack for long enough that the Dark Shrine will complete; once the Dark Shrine completes, Dark Templar can be used to either counter-attack or to help defend as the opponent is unlikely to have detection if they've committed to such early aggression. Dear seems to prefer warping in an aggressive Dark Templar first before Chrono Boosting his Gateway and warping in the second Dark Templar at home for defensive purposes; this is likely because an aggressive opponent is unlikely to be able to defend the aggressive Dark Templar warp in, and it will likely deal massive economic damage as a result.
Mid-Game Immortal Drops[edit]
It's important to note that Dear immediately starts Chrono Boosting Immortals as soon as the Robotics Facility completes (unless he needs an Observer for detection). This not only helps with defending late tech-based all-ins, but also with setting up his heavily-favored Immortal drop mid-game. The Immortal drops are an important part of the mid-game strategy because they punish openings that are not Stalker-heavy. In order to deal with Immortal drops well, your opponent has to warp in several units they may not have wanted to spend money on, whilst constantly re-positioning in order to avoid taking heavy losses. Meanwhile, you're free to macro up however you please as the opponent isn't in a position to take an aggressive stance against you. This will allow you to catch up versus an opponent who expanded faster or a player who is ahead in tech.
The build pretty much continues in this order as you transition into a Immortal/Archon/Chargelot composition, although it is hard to give specific timings due to the many different ways in which early-game PvP can develop:
Non-Specific Immortal Drop Timings |
---|
|
Variations[edit]
Dear has also shown an aggressive variant of this build where he goes for a counter-attack using an Archon, 2 Immortals, and a Warp Prism. This timing is pretty solid and works best against an aggressive player who over commits. It's also possible to go into a Colossus transition instead of Immortal/Archon/Chargelot when using this build; you don't have to commit to the Immortal/Archon/Chargelot style in order to use this opening.
Replays and VODs[edit]
Dear | Dear vs. Trap, 2013 WCS Korea Code S Season 3 Ro8, Game One | ||
Trap | |||
Date: | |||
Patch: | VOD |
---|
Dear | Dear vs. Trap, 2013 WCS Korea Code S Season 3 Ro8, Game Three | ||
Trap | |||
Date: | |||
Patch: | VOD |
---|