Artanis, a young Protoss "Praetor" in the StarCraft universe.

The Protoss are a fictional alien race in Blizzard Entertainment's real-time strategy computer game series StarCraft, and a series of novels based on the game. They are depicted as being technologically advanced and using cybernetics and psionic abilities in battle. In general, their units are more powerful though more expensive than those of the other two Starcraft races. Several notable professional players consistently play as the Protoss, including the top-ranked player as of September 2007 in the Korea e-Sports Association (KeSPA), Kim Taek-Yong. Image File history File links Broom_icon. ... Image File history File links Emblem-important. ... Image File history File links Mergefrom. ... // Khalis and Uraj Crystals Khalis and Uraj are the names of a pair of powerful psionic crystal in the fictional StarCraft universe. ... Image File history File links Protoss_portrait. ... Image File history File links Protoss_portrait. ... Artanis is a young Protoss Praetor in the StarCraft universe. ... “Starcraft” redirects here. ... Blizzard Entertainment, a division of Vivendi Games, is an American computer game developer and publisher headquartered in Irvine, California. ... A real-time strategy (RTS) video game is one that is distinctly not turn-based. ... A computer game is a game composed of a computer-controlled virtual universe that players interact with in order to achieve a defined goal or set of goals. ... “Starcraft” redirects here. ... For other uses, see Cybernetics (disambiguation). ... // Khalis and Uraj Crystals Khalis and Uraj are the names of a pair of powerful psionic crystal in the fictional StarCraft universe. ... Kim Taek-Yong, known by the pseudonym Bisu[Shield] and dubbed Ninja Toss for his creative Dark Templar use, is a relatively new player in the South Korean StarCraft E-sports scene. ...

Gameplay

Like each of the other two races in Starcraft, Protoss is unique in gameplay strategy and units. Protoss uses advanced technology and psionic powers in battle. Generally, Protoss units are powerful in both offence and defense but have a slow production rate and Protoss units have no way to regenerate their health (Protoss shields can be regenerated with shield batteries and recharge automatically, however). “Starcraft” redirects here. ...

Units

Protoss units are literal examples of "quality over quantity". Protoss units have more health and deal more damage than any other race, however they cannot be produced very quickly. Protoss units are "warped" in from the Protoss homeworld Aiur. Illustration of Aiur, homeworld of the mighty Protoss. ...

Because of its high technology, Protoss boasts numerous units with special abilities and powers. For example, Dark Templar are automatically cloaked and have high damage. However, they have low health and cannot attack air units. The High Templar have "Psionic storm", which deals heavy damage over a specific area. A Dark Templar is a member of a group of Protoss in the StarCraft universe. ...

Buildings

Like Zerg, Protoss can only build units in a certain area. Protoss buildings are powered by "Pylons", which is a link to the "Psionic matrix" from Aiur. Without pylons, Protoss buildings are useless. Therefore, good placement of pylons is important because buildings can only be used near a pylon.

Protoss has the advantage of quickly setting up an expansion colony. One single probe can warp in as many buildings at one time, so a colony can be set up very quickly.

Physiology

Protoss are about three meters tall and have two luminous eyes, digitigrade legs, four digits (two digits flanked by two opposable thumbs) on each of their hands and feet, broad chests and shoulders, and narrow waists with slim midsections. Their skin is smooth and becomes rough and cracked with age. Extending back from the crown of the head, Protoss have a bony crest. Otherwise the head of a Protoss may be subtly different varying on which tribe they are descended from. Their eyes are typically blue, yellow, orange or red, with the latter two colors more common (but not exclusive) for Dark Templar. As only one female Protoss is seen, and not in detail, the physical differences (if any) between males and females are unknown, as are the Protoss reproductive systems. Image File history File links Emblem-important. ... A digitigrade is an animal that stands or walks on its digits, or toes. ...

Protoss do not have any visible noses, ears, or mouths. Though it is unknown how their senses of hearing or chemoreception operate, they are widely believed to possess such sensitivities.^{[original research?]} In the Starcraft novel 'Firstborn,' it was revealed that Protoss can indeed hear and smell. It was also revealed that Protoss do not need to eat or drink as humans do, and indeed do not have mouths at all. Instead, their bodies take energy from sunlight and starlight in some manner, possibly absorbing stellar radiation. They can communicate telepathically with one another, even over long distances. A Protoss' average life expectancy is several hundred years, as the Protoss Artanis, who is 262 years old, is considered young; Raszagal, 1045 years old, is considered elderly. The Protoss physical body contains strong psionic energy. Once that body is destroyed, the psionic energy explosively dissipates in a brief pulse, flaring with a pale, blue light. Artanis is a young Protoss Praetor in the StarCraft universe. ... Matriarch Raszagal is leader of the Dark Templar people in the fictional StarCraft universe. ...

Protoss also have long neural strands sprouting from the back of their heads. These strands are what keep Protoss connected to the universal protoss psychic 'network'.^{[original research?]} When the Dark Templar split from the main body of Protoss, they first severed their neural strands to display their rebellion against the High Templar caste and the Khala. It can be observed that the Dark Templar display instead the bound up roots of their strands in many conceptual art pieces and in the end Protoss campaign clip of Brood War.^{[original research?]}

Philosophy

Protoss religion takes its roots from the wars that plagued Aiur following the retreat of the Xel'Naga. United under the teachings of Khas after several generations of warfare, the Protoss began to adhere to Khas's teachings of the "Khala", or Path to Ascension. When Protoss warriors die in battle it is believed that they have reached the "Khala's End." Image File history File links Emblem-important. ...

• Khala ("Path of Ascension")
• Dae'Uhl ("Great Stewardship")

History

The Protoss were originally discovered on their home world of Aiur by the Xel'Naga, a race of alien geneticists who sought to develop a perfect species.^[1] The Xel’Naga liked the Protoss, as they seemed near perfection already, and were especially impressed by their telepathy, called a psionic link. Image File history File links Broom_icon. ...

The Xel'Naga were able to “perfect” the Protoss with little alteration, and observed the Protoss from space as they developed as a species. As they developed civilizations, the Xel'Naga descended onto Aiur in order to more closely study the evolution of the Protoss.

The Xel'Naga were initially revered as gods, as the Protoss looked towards them with respect and a lust for knowledge. However, as the Protoss’ understanding of the universe developed, they began to distrust the Xel’Naga, and force them off of Aiur. When the Xel’Naga left, a massive civil war broke out that lasted for hundreds of years.

The war was finally ended by a Protoss named Khas, who had rediscovered the teachings and technology of the Xel’Naga. Using his discoveries, which he called the Khala, he was able to restore the psionic link with most of the Protoss. With this done, he divided the Protoss into three castes; the Judicator Caste (Politicians), the Templar Caste (Warriors), and the Khalai Caste (Workers and Artisans). This article is an alphabetical list of minor characters in the fictional StarCraft universe, a fictional universe in which several games and books are set, who do not fit into any other category. ...

A few of the Protoss refused to join the Khala. These were exiled from Aiur by the new government, and were later called the Dark Templars.^[1] These Dark Templars traveled the galaxy for hundreds of years with no home world. During their travels, they learned to use cosmic energies to power their psionic powers.^[1] The Rogue Tribes eventually discovered the planet Shakuras during their journeys and remained.

Meanwhile, the Aiur Protoss conquered hundreds of worlds within their corner of the galaxy, spreading civilization to many of the less advanced races that they encountered.^[1] The Protoss would then consider themselves the stewards of the conquered races, allowing them to govern themselves without interference.^[1] They did the same when Terran colonies began to appear on Protoss worlds.

Then the Zerg came. The Protoss suffered disastrous contact with the Zerg, beings seeking to absorb the Protoss into their collective. A long war ensued between them. The Protoss were able to keep the Zerg at bay for a while, but ultimately the Protoss were unable to stop the Zerg from breaking through their defenses. The Overmind itself was able to implant into the crust of Aiur. After many battles, the Zerg managed to conquer half the planet. This article or section contains a plot summary that is overly long or excessively detailed compared to the rest of the article. ...

When the Overmind landed on Aiur, the government apointed a new Executor (the player) to take over command of the Protoss forces. The new Executor was able to stop the advance of the Zerg, though not push them back.

Believing they were winning the war on Aiur, the Protoss government sent the Executor to find to old Executor. He was found with the Dark Templars, who had agreed to help defend Aiur from the Zerg.

The Dark Templars were able to damage the Zerg as no other Protoss could, because the Dark Templars were able to prevent the Zerg leaders from regenerating. During one massive battle, which killed nearly 70% of the Protoss and brought down the Protoss government, the Dark Templars and Aiur Protoss were able to pool their resources to destroy the Zerg Overmind. This left the surviving Zerg without direction, killing anything that moved.

With Zerg running loose across Aiur killing all in sight, the Protoss decided that they had to leave Aiur if they were to have any hope of survival. When they arrived at their new home, Shakuras, it was discovered that the Zerg had followed them to Shakuras, and that they had taken control of the area around a Xel'Naga Temple. The Matriarch of the Dark Templar noted that they would need crystals to boost their psionic powers and defeat the Zerg.

When they had the crystals, they were able to defeat the Zerg at the temple and secure the planet. Then another civil war broke out between the Aiur Protoss and the Dark Templars. During this time, a Terran named Sarah Kerrigan, who had been taken over by the Zerg, began causing trouble for all the Protoss. After the Dark Templars won the civil war, Kerrigan was banished from Shakuras, and work to rebuild the Protoss civilization began. This article is about the StarCraft universe character. ...

Some time later, Kerrigan returned to Shakuras with a Zerg army, and they assaulted the new Protoss capital city of Talematros. During the assault, they managed to capture the Matriarch. Kerrigan claimed that she would return the matriarch when the Protoss had killed a new Zerg Overmind that was growing on the planet Char. The Protoss destroyed the Overmind, but the matriarch had already been taken over by the Zerg, so she had to be killed.

Later, when Kerrigan had gathered her forces above Char, part of the remaining Protoss attempted to stop Kerrigan. However, Kerrigan defeated them, and the remaining Protoss retreated to Shakuras to begin rebuilding their civilization.

Notable Protoss professional players

Professional Starcraft players almost always use a single race. The following are some of the most notable present and past professional players who use Protoss. Image File history File links Emblem-important. ...

• Guillaume Patry (X'Ds~Grrrr...)

Canadian player from Quebec who won two early tournaments, the Spring 1999 AMD Professional Gamers League StarCraft tournament^[2] and August–September 1999's Battle.net StarCraft: Brood War Tournament World Championships^[3][4]. A Zerg player initially, he was widely believed to be the world's best player before 1999 due to his performance on Battle.net. He then moved to Korea and became one of the best players there for some time in 2000; he was able to win an OSL. As the game became more popular, Patry faded away from the scene as other players surpassed his skill. Patry finished 3rd in WCG 2003.

• Kim Dong-Soo (Garimto)

One of only five players to win the OSL twice, Garimto, nicknamed "The Zealot" was notable for succeeding even during Boxer's height of dominance. He also innovated heavily with Protoss build-orders, making frequent use of "hidden" tech buildings and other tricks. Garimto had to quit SC in order to do his Korean military service, but now regularly acts as a commentator for games. In his commentary he is known for criticizing current Protoss players for playing sloppily and hence not achieving the potential of the race. Garimto completed his military service on December 21st, 2006 and has rejoined the e-sports competition as part of KTF.

• Park Jung-Suk ([Oops]Reach) (Protoss)

Reach, nicknamed "MANTOSS" or "Hero Protoss", is the Protoss player who has been most consistent in the long term, beating Boxer in an OSL final near the height of his dominance, and generally placing well in tournaments. As his nickname suggests, he is generally known for his standard/solid/safe style of play, with flawless macro and use of Psi Storm (the latter of which earned him the other nickname "Mudang Protoss", meaning shaman Protoss in Korean, owing to the uncanny accuracy of his Psionic Storm use), although he has been leaning away from this slightly in recent times due to changes in the playing style of the other races. Reach is known for his PvP and PvT skills, with his PvZ being inconsistently brilliant. Park is captain of the KTF progaming team. Reach has been absent from the Starleagues and KeSPA rankings for 18 months but has recently returned to StarCraft pro-gaming tournaments, successfully qualifying for the 2007 Season 1 OSL. As of July 2007 he is ranked 28th in the KeSPA rankings.

• Kang Min (Nal_rA)

The 'Dreaming Protoss' is often considered to be a Protoss version of Boxer due to his highly creative and daring play. He frequently hides his buildings in other parts of the map and is one of the best players to use corsairs and reavers in tandem against Zerg opponents. He won an OSL and MSL in the same season and does exceptionally well in team tournaments, playing for KTF. He has won the Blizzard WorldWide Invitational tournament during early 2006. He has recently recovered from a severe slump; as a result, he has qualified for ShinHan Bank 2 OSL and made it to the Pringles MSL finals by defeating Kingdom, only to lose 3-1 to sAviOr. He also made it to the Semi-Finals of the subsequent Pringles 2 MSL, only to lose again at the hands of sAviOr. Nal_rA is currently ranked 23rd in the 2007 KeSPA rankings.

• Park Yong-Wook (Kingdom)

Considered the best PvP player in history, Kingdom has only won a single OSL but is noted for his fantastic unit control. Nicknamed the 'Devil Toss', he is famous for using his scouting probes to effectively harass enemy workers. He is also known for his frequent use of (and excellent micromanagement with) reavers and carriers. He plays for SK Telecom T1 and was ranked 25th on the April 2006 KeSPA rankings and outside the top 30 in June and July rankings. After Boxer's move to the army, Kingdom is the new captain of the team.

• Kim Taek-Yong (Bisu[Shield])

Bisu, nicknamed "Ninja Toss" for his creative dark templar use, is a relatively new player at the highest level of progaming. He had moderate success in Shinhan OSL 2 where he made it to the sweet 16 playoff round, playing against Goodfriend in a best of 3 for a spot in the elite 8. Although he defeated Goodfriend in Game 1, he lost the next 2 games by a close margin. Subsequently fans criticized his inconsistency in winning big games. Fortunately for Bisu, he resoundingly silenced his critics with his 3-0 win over sAviOr in the March 2007 GOM MSL. Since then Bisu has continued to play extremely well and is currently 1st in the KeSPA rankings. He also recently won the July 2007 GOM MSL 2 by defeating Stork 3-2. Bisu is the first Protoss player to reach the 1st spot in Kespa history.

The AMD Professional Gamers League (PGL), founded in the late 1990s, was the first professional league for computer gaming. ... Park Jung Suk a. ... Kang Min (강민) a. ... Kim Taek-Yong, known by the pseudonym Bisu[Shield] and dubbed Ninja Toss for his creative Dark Templar use, is a relatively new player in the South Korean StarCraft E-sports scene. ...

References

Protoss at StarCraft2.com is the 140th day of the year (141st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st Century. ... is the 140th day of the year (141st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st Century. ... is the 140th day of the year (141st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st Century. ...

External links

• Battle.Net: Protoss
• Protoss Units