Starcraft Buildings – Warp Gate

Warp Gate

The Warp Gate is a unit producing structure for the Protoss, capable of warping in ground units. Warp Gates provide an ability unique to the Protoss: the rapid creation of units at any location on the map covered by the Psionic Matrix, so long as the location is not obscured by the fog of war. This allows for quick, on-demand deployment of troops at key strategic locations. Warp Gates are created by transforming a Gateway after Warp Gate Research has been completed at the Cybernetics Core. By default, this transformation is set to auto-cast.

All units created at the Gateway can also be warped in by a Warp Gate. If a Cybernetics Core is controlled by the player, Stalkers, Sentries and Adepts can be warped in from the Warp Gate. Once the player warps in a Templar Archives, High Templar become available, and after a Dark Shrine is acquired, the Dark Templar can be warped in. If none of these additional buildings are available, then the Warp Gate is only capable of producing the Zealot.

Any unit created by the Warp Gate has a typical warp-in time of 11.4 seconds (16 seconds at Normal speed). The warp-in process can be sped up to only 3.6 seconds (5 seconds at Normal speed) if the unit is in the Psionic Matrix of a Pylon which is close to a Nexus or a Warp Gate (a Gateway has no effect). This acceleration can disappear/appear mid warp-in, if the condition cited before disappear/appear (for example, a Pylon is destroyed/warped in, or a Gateway becomes a Warp Gate, or a Warp Gate becomes a Gateway).

As the warp-in starts, the Warp Gate enters a variable cooldown period. During this cooldown, the Warp Gate cannot produce any units. The length of the cooldown varies, based on the type of unit warped in, as seen in the table below. If the Psionic Matrix is destroyed during the warp-in period, the resource cost of the unit is fully refunded and the Warp Gate cooldown is reset to zero. This is the only way to interrupt a warp-in; the warp-in will not be interrupted if the Warp Gate that started it is destroyed or unpowered. The order of Warp Gate use is determined by the proximity of the Warp Gate to the warp-in location; this can be used to find and Chrono Boost Warp Gates with longer cooldowns.

PROTOSS – THE WARRIORS OF AIUR

HONOR. WISDOM. TRADITION.

In stark contrast to the adaptable Terrans and the ferocious Zerg, stand the rigid, tradition-minded Protoss. With their psionic abilities and advanced technology, the Protoss have long considered themselves the most powerful species in the galaxy. This people’s greatest asset is the tenets of their primary religion – the Khala – whose tight framework demands dogmatic adherence.

Protoss Buildings

Another outstanding technical achievement of the Protoss is to teleport their buildings over long distances from their home planet Aiur to the most remote parts of the galaxy. This is done by converting the buildings into energy and dematerializing them within the psifields built on the outposts.