Starcraft 2 Protoss Basic Structures

Starcraft 2 Protoss Units and Structures --> Protoss Basic Structures (you are here)

The Protoss have the easiest time building among all the races. Their ability to build is unprecedented given that a single Probe can warp in dozens of buildings at once.

Below you will find a list of all the basic Protoss buildings, their function, and associated strategies.

Nexus

Cost: 400 Minerals
Builds: Probe, Mothership

The Nexus is the Protoss main building. It produces workers (Probes) and is where resources are returned to. It also provides Protoss players with 10 supplies.

In Starcraft 2, the Nexus has the Chrono Boost ability (costs 25 energy), which speeds building production by 50% for 20 seconds. The regular and proper use of this ability is one of the things that separates good and bad Protoss players.

Chrono-Boost can be used to rush units or build up your economy quickly early in the game. Depending on your goals, you never want to let your Nexus store up too much energy - you should always be Chrono Boosting.

The Nexus can also train a single Mothership if you end up getting a Fleet Beacon. Note that this is a major resource investment.

Pylon

Cost: 100 minerals

The Pylon is the building that powers the Protoss. It provides 9 supplies to players.

The main feature of the Pylon is that it powers all Protoss buildings. All buildings besides the Nexus must be built in range of a pylon and cease to function if the Pylon is destroyed.

Warp Gates can also warp units into the range of a pylon. A Pylon strategically located by an enemy's base or in an ally's base is an effective way to bring units to the battlefield.

You should always throw down a few Pylons at each of your expansions for this reason. Sneaking a Pylon inside an enemy's base is a very effective tactic as well.

Assimilator

Cost: 75 minerals

The Assimilator is the building that allows Probes to harvest vespene gas.

Gateway

Cost: 150 minerals
Requires: Nexus
Builds: Zealot, Sentry, Stalker, High Templar, Dark Templar

The Gateway is the Protoss building that produces most Protoss ground units. It is also a requirement for technological advancement.

The Gateway can be converted into a Warp Gate after research is completed at the Cybernetics Core. This allows units to be warped in at rapid speed near any Pylon. This is then followed by a short cooldown period.

The Warp Gate is great upgrade to the Gateway. Massing Warp Gates can be used to produce a massive army in a very short period of time.

Upgrading a Gateway to a Warp Gate is free once the technology has been researched and only takes 10 seconds.

While you cannot queue units at the Warp Gate, the cool-down is shorter when using a Warp Gate. As a result, in addition to the cool factor, you can produce units about 20% faster with a Warp Gate.

Forge

Cost: 150 minerals

The Forge is used to upgrade Protoss ground weapons, armor, and ALL shields. Building one of these allows the production of Photon Cannons. In most situations, ground weapons will be your first upgrade.

Photon Cannon

Cost: 150 minerals
Requires: Forge
Researches: Ground Units Weapon Upgrade, Ground Units Armor Upgrade, All Shields Upgrade

The Photon Cannon is a very powerful automated defensive structure. It can attack air and ground units and is a detector.

This structure is effective versus Reapers, rushes, air rushes, and other forms of mineral harassment.

However, remember that cannons don't help when you want to attack! For the cost of 3 cannons, you could expand or build 4 more Zealots!

As result, you only want to build cannons if you know your enemy will harass your minerals or if you have to protect your expansions and you know your enemy doesn't have as high of an income as you do.

Cybernetics Core

Cost: 150 minerals
Requires: Gateway
Researches: Air Unit Weapons Upgrade, Air Unit Armor Upgrade, Hallucination (Sentry ability), Warp Gate (Gateway ability).

This is a key Protoss building. It allows upgrades for the weapons and armor of air units.

More importantly, you can research Warp Gate technology (which was mentioned above). This building also gives you access to advanced buildings.

The most important aspect of the Cybernetics Core is that it allows for the production of Stalkers and Sentries at the Gateway.

You can also research Hallucination here, which is a Sentry ability. I have found very little use for it though as good players use detection, and Force Field and Guardian Shield are such good abilities.

After building a Cybernetics Core, you can progress to the Starcraft 2 Protoss Advanced Structures.