DT Rush (vs. Protoss)

Dark Templar Rush

Dark Templar!

Matchups:	PvP
Type:	Opening
Creator:	Unknown
Popularized By:	Unknown

Overview

This build strategy aims to get Dark Templar, Cannons, and Psi Storm to be able to defend a quick expansion for strong mid game macro. DT builds are considered "mix-it-up" strategies which are used to keep the Protoss from being predictable. Dt builds have clear advantages and disadvantages.

Advantages

1. Quick DT, so chance to win quick if your opponent doesn't have Detection. Going for DT is the hard counter to 4 Gate Goon, so it is good to throw it in at least once in awhile so you are not too predictable.
2. Quick expansion, so strong macro mid game and many storms (8 by 10 minutes)

Disadvantages

1. Against other DT builds it can be tricky. Your opponent might be able to break your cannon defense at your natural early on, get a DT past and it may be a race to elimination. If he DT drops, you need to have enough cannons/units at your main base for defense.
2. Against quick Reaver harass, this build can be difficult. You expanded early so you have two spots to defend and few goons.
3. Possibly vulnerable vs. Goon/Obs attack before storm/cannon are completed.
4. Even if you have strong macro and lots of storms mid game, your enemy can still have more units with a typical goon build, so you need to make those storms count.

Summary

Overall a lot of tricky timings to consider, and vulnerabilities. You don't have Observers for scouting to see what your opponent is doing so more guessing is involved. Cannon timing is one major issue: When to build them, how many, and their location. Ideally you want to get away with the least cannons necessary. Another concern is to build one DT or more? Using more than 1 DT can help to harass and block your ramp, but they will also delay your storm/other units/cannons.

1. This build has the same opening concerns as with any other build. Against 2 Gate Zealot you don't usually want to go Zealot->Core, so get another Gateway instead of core and make Zealots until safe. You can still follow up with DT -> expo -> cannons/storm. This article assumes a 1 Gate tech build and DT as soon as possible.
2. To complicate matters, whether you have a ramp and how your opponent plays can matter. On a ramped map your defense is better so you can usually get away with less units (typically 4-5 units) before DT. On a non-ramped map however, you often need to build more units to fight off a two gate build. Put another way, on a ramped map you can usually hold off a two gate goon with 1 gate until DT pop out, but you'll want two gates to hold off a two gate build on a non-ramped map. The good thing is that you can usually scout when your opponent is going for a more dangerous many goon BO - you will see something like 2nd gate and range started before his first goon pops out.

Build Orders

Many units BO:

• 8 - Pylon
• 10 - Gateway -> scout
• 12 - Assimilator
• 13 - Zealot
• 16 - Pylon
• 18 - Cybernetics Core
• 19 - Zealot
• 22 - Pylon
• 23 - Dragoon
• 26 - Citadel
• 27 - Dragoon
• 29 - Gateway + Pylon + Archives
• 2 Zealots
• Pylon
• 2 Dark Templars
• Forge
• Pylon - at natural
• Nexus & cannons

Timing

5:00 4z/2g (6units) 5:30 4z/2g/2dt, 1 Cannon done potentially as quick as ~6:10.

Notes

• The above BO assumes you do not lose any units along the way, including scouting probe.
• So, for the many units BO above I am assuming you are going against an aggressive tech build like PJ did vs Bisu in the replay section bellow. If you are not going against such an aggressive build you don't have do the above BO, so more options open.

1) you are not as pressed for units so you can build probes more consistently 2) you do not have to build 2nd gate & as many units as quickly 3) you should build forge quicker for cannon. This makes sense since if they are teching but not doing an aggressive unit build this means they could have dt pretty quick as well.

• The reason you get forge/cannons is for defense and in case they go dt. Don't make unnecessary forge/cannons though if you don't need them. This is a judgment you have to make in game based on your scouting. Typical amount of cannons is ~4. Can go for less if you are sure of what they are doing, can go for more if you think an attack is coming.
• Probe production should be pretty much constant until ~50 unless you need to pause for safety reasons, e.g, to build more than 3-4cannons early on.
• Neat thing is that robo and citadel look the same warping yet people tend to assume its robo because why would you show citadel, a thing most people try to hide. So make it look like robo and place it near your ramp or near gate. Or you might prefer to build build citadel after you have killed their scout. But generally I think if I have to delay dt because of their scout, may as well just do something else. If you have to wait for goon to kill scout with a zcorez build that will add at least 15seconds on to dt timing, which is not insignificant. That is why some players like to start core first when going dt, because it allows for a quicker goon to chase away scout. You can also consider proxy pylon for dt tech and a gateway.
• if it is dt vs dt war and they have a dt blocking ramp, and you have at least 3 dt sometimes you can morph 2dts into a DA near their dt in order to push it and then get a dt inside.

Transition

After you have enough cannons at front/storm/hts/expo... typically make goon/zealot consistently from two gate. Then you have to decide about which order you will get things in. 1)I would suggest +1 next since it takes a long time to complete, and you probably want it done by the time you move out 10-11min. 2)you will have 2gates, and I suggest 6 total for macro on 2base usually. So add 4gates next. 3) Range just after adding gates. 4)Then robo so you have 1-2ob just in time to move out. 5)leg upgrade last ~9:00.

This is a macro oriented followup meant to maximize army for when you move out. All of these factors are interchangeable, and subject to adaptation. For instance, if you have to deal with reaver harass you may want range before more gateways. You could mix it up and try stuff like quick robo for storm drops.

Variations in play style

1) If they scout your citadel you could skip dt and go 3gate speedzealot with forge. If they go dt or reaver though, you are most likely going to go down hard. But vs typical goon-ob to expo you might have a successful attack. 2) No-forge variants. Consider Pusan vs. PJ at othello. Pusan goes 1gate dt to expo without any detection. After expansion he masses up goons quick. Going dt without forge usually strenghtens your build as long as they don't go dt as well, then all you have left is to try and block ramp with dt, so hopefully you made more than 1.[1]

• see example games for more variations and adaption

Countered By

• 1 Gate into Robotics Facility into Observer.

Counter To

Anything with no quick detection such as:

• 2Gate goon to expansion.

Notable Maps

Strong

• Loki

• Blue Storm

• Peaks of Baekdu

Notable Games

Replays

Testie vs Bisu:

• Testie waits until scout is gone to build citadel. See how it's a good idea to make more cannons up front if your opponent attacking, but no need to go overboard with 10 like this game.

Pusan vs yoon:

• See how yoon builds his pylon to see if his opponent's tech is Citadel or Robo. Also, Pusan's fast storm drop fails.

Testie vs Draco:

• Testie makes a lot of DTs before High Templars, so late storm. As usual for Testie when going DT he makes mass cannons.

Bisu vs PJ

• Bisu sees the Core and a quick 2nd gate for PJ, and PJ does not have a scout on Bisu. This is a pretty good position to decide to go DT in because you know his detection will most likely be too late. So Bisu goes early 2nd gate and makes units consistently, then DTs, then Forge. After harass Bisu is clearly ahead, so he just goes goon after expo.

VODs

Free vs. best

• Some variation here. Free build is very good. He does a tech variation where he gets another gate for two dts rather than a forge for quicker cannon. He gets tons of probe kills, then morphs hts into archon to help deal with reaver. Then he simply goes goon and attacks.

Resources

• oG)Stormtoss's decent DT guide - Talks more about reactions

• DT Abuse Guide (take his analysis with a grain of salt):