Please keep in mind that this is a general terran unit strategy guide, it is based on pure unit statistics. So you must adapt depending on the situation in-game. For example, if I say that Phoenixes are the best unit counter against Mutalisks, don’t go for them if you haven’t even started building a Stargate as your opponent shows up with 6 mutalisks, you won’t have time for that, produce stalkers, sentries and/or photon cannons instead and then build a stargate if you manage to hold off the first mutalisk batch.

My point is, adapt this information to your game depending on the situation, you can’t always produce the best unit counter in time, so sometimes you’ll have to go for 2nd, 3rd or 4th best. With that said, let’s get started with this guide!

Table of Contents

1. How to Counter Zerglings
2. How to Counter Queens
3. How to Counter Hydralisks
4. How to Counter Banelings
5. How to Counter Roaches
6. How to Counter Infestors
7. How to Counter Mutalisks
8. How to Counter Corruptors
9. How to Counter Ultralisks
10. How to Counter Brood Lords

Best Protoss Counters vs Zerglings

Early game: You will always be at a disadvantage against Zerglings if you fight them in an open field. Always try to fight them in a narrow chokepoint, such as the ramp to your base, or in between buildings in your opponents base.

1. High Tem– Psionic Storm takes care of a bunch of Zerglings in only 2 seconds, before your opponent even gets the time to move them away. Of course, never send templars alone, have a wall of Zealots in front tanking the Zerglings.

2. Colossus – They kill zerglings really quickly and efficiently. However, just like with High Templars, you need a wall of Zealot tanking them while your Colossus burns them alive.

3. Archon – They do exactly 35 damage per attack against biological units, which is exactly enough to kill Zerglings in one shot. Plus, they do splash damage. Pair them with a few Zealots for maximum efficiency.

4. Zealots – It’s like Zealots were made to tank and to kill Zerglings. Just make sure you fight them in a narrow passage, such as your base chokepoint, and you’re golden. Tip: With a single weapon upgrade, your Zealots will kill Zerglings with only 2 rounds of attacks, instead of 3.

5. Photon Cannon – Cannons only need 2 shots to kill a Zergling. It’s a great way to deal against early Zergling rushes while you’re teching up. Place them at your chokepoint and place 3 or 4 zealots in front and they won’t be able to go through.

Best Protoss Counters vs Queen

1. Phoenix – They are the perfect Queen killers. Queens are generally found near their hatcheries, alone. Go in there with a few Phoenixes, graviton beam and kill them without taking a single damage. 4+ Phoenixes is best, because with 4 Phoenix, you’ll need only one use of Graviton Beam to kill the Queen before Graviton Beam wears off.

2. Archons – They kill them very quickly, and it’s difficult for Queens to kite Archons around a hatchery, like they do with Zealots.

3. Dark Templar  – They kill Queens in 4 attacks only. Of course, if your opponent upgraded his Overlords to detect cloaked units, this won’t be a viable strategy, but if they haven’t, this is a quick, free kill.

4. High Templar – Feedback kills a Queen in one shot if she’s got 175+ energy left. It’s always fun to watch 😉 Of course, it doesn’t happen very often, but if you see an opportunity, don’t forget that Feedback is perfect against Queens.

Note: In any case, no Zerg opponent will ever mass produce Queens, so you shouldn’t build the above units specifically to counter 1 or 2 Queens. However, it’s still good to know what units work best against them. Producing 4 Phoenixes is almost never a waste of resources, as they’re quite useful against many zerg units, and they can go Overlord hunting.

Best Protoss Counters vs Hydralisks

1. Sentry – Guardian Shield is a must against mass hydralisks. Example: A hydralisk needs to shoot 14 times to kill a zealot without Guardian Shield. 17 Times with Guardian Shields. On a large scale battle, that makes a huge difference. You should always bring 2 Sentries at least when you’re up against mass hydras, this will keep your units alive much longer. Plus, you can also distrub them by placing a few force fields in the middle of them, force them to move and reposition.

2. High Templar – Psionic Storm is great against Hydras, they like to stand and shoot, Psi Storm should disturb that and hurt them plenty.

3. Zealot – You’ll always need a bunch of Zealots at the front to take the damage for the rest of your units, and they deal pretty good damage to hydralisk as well. Protected by Guardian Shields and backed-up by Psi Storms, they’ll win the battle for sure.

4. Dark Templar – They do 45 damage a pop, so they only need 2 attacks to kill a Hydralisk. Of course, this only works if your enemy doesn’t have anything to detect their perma cloak.

Best Protoss Counters vs Banelings

1. Archon – It’s like Archons were made for Banelings. They only take 15 damage from them (no armor type), and they do exactly 35 damage per attack, just enough to kill 1 baneling per attack. It will take a truckload of banelings to kill a single archon. A very good deal.

2. High Templar – Just like with Zerglings, Psionic Storm obliterates them in 2 seconds. Plus, High Templars also take 15 damage only per Baneling (no armor type). It will actually take 6 banelings to kill a single High Templar, despite their known frailty.

3. Immortal – Those can survive an army of banelings, they only take 10 damage per baneling explosion as long as their shields are up, and then 15 damage only.

Tip: If you see a bunch of banelings rolling towards your army, put your zealots behind, and place your Archons or Immortals in front, let them soak the damage from Banelings. It’s a great trade-off.

Best Protoss Counters vs Roaches

1. Immortal – By far the best unit in the game to deal with roaches. It’s almost funny how overpowered they are against roaches, killing them in 3 shots, while taking a ridiculous 10 damage per attack.

2. Observer – The worst thing that can happen is to let a roach burrow and regenerate. Produce an observer quickly to prevent that.

3. High Templar – Roaches got a lot of HP, and Psionic Storm takes out a lot of HP very quickly. See the connection?

Best Protoss Counters vs Infestors

1. High Templar – Feedback those things immediately. There’s a high chance you’ll instantly kill them before they get to cast anything.

2. Immortal – They kill them in 3 hits, enough said.

3. Observer– They like to burrow and crawl under the earth. Detect them and kill them before they get to cast anything.

Best Protoss Counters vs Mutalisks

1. Phoenix – With their +10 dmg bonus vs light units, Phoenixes do 20 damage per round of attack against Mutas. A great counter.

2. Stalkers – Because you won’t always have the time and the gas to build enough Phoenixes. Stalkers do fairly well against Mutalisks, especially with the blink upgrade.

3. Archon – They’re actually better than the above two units, they really own Mutalisks, especially when they are stacked. However, their lack of mobility and range is a problem against a good player with good Muta micro. Hence the spot #3 on this list.

Best Protoss Counters vs Corruptors

1. Stalker – They benefit from their bonus vs armored units, and they can’t be hit by Corruptors, since those can only hit air targets.

2. Void Ray – They do reall well against corruptors. However, if you have a lot of Void Rays, don’t make them all focus the same target, it’s overkill and it doesn’t exploit the full capacity of your Void Rays’ beams. Put 2 Void Rays per corruptor. Trust me, this micro pays off big time. If for example you have 4 Void Rays and you’re up against 6 Corruptors, put 2 Void Rays on a corruptor and your 2 other Void Rays on another corruptor, rinse and repeat.

3. Archon – They easily kill Corruptors, but once again, lack of mobility and range makes it hard to catch those corruptors if your opponent knows what he’s doing.

Best Protoss Counters vs Ultralisks

1. Immortal – The perfect counter. They take 10 dmg max while dealing about 50 per attack. A great counter against Ultralisks.

2. Void ray – They do significant, long range damage to ground units and can’t be harmed by Ultralisks. If you see your opponent teching for Ultralisk, make sure to bring a few extra Void Rays into the fray.

3. Mothership – Vortex the rest of your opponent’s army while you deal with his Ultralisks, or vice versa. Use it properly and it’s a GG.

4. Stalkers – With their damage bonus vs Armored, their long range and blink, they can really drive an Ultralisk crazy, as long as you micro them well. Don’t forget to spread them out to avoid the splash cleave damage.

5. Carrier – They fly and they hurt ground units.

Tip: Always spread out your ground infantry units as much as possible when going up against an Ultralisk to minimize the effect of its Splash Cleave.

Best Protoss Counters vs Brood Lords

1. Void Ray – Best possible counter against armored air units with a lot of HP. This is where Prismatic Beam really shines.

2. Carrier – Huge range and high damage. Great against Brood Lords.

3. Phoenix – Not as good as the Void Ray for this job, but still great anti-air.

Source: starcraft-replay

Please keep in mind that this is a general terran unit strategy guide, it is based on pure unit statistics and my own experience. So you must adapt depending on the situation in-game. For example, if I say that Vikings are the best unit counter against the Colossus, don’t go teching for Vikings if you haven’t even started building a Starport as your opponent shows up with a couple of Colossi, you won’t have time for that, produce marauders and siege tanks instead.

My point is, adapt this information to your game depending on the situation, you can’t always produce the best unit counter in time, so sometimes you’ll have to go for 2nd or 3rd best.

With that said, let’s get started with this guide!

Table of Contents

1. How to Counter Zealots
2. How to Counter Stalkers
3. How to Counter Sentries
4. How to Counter Immortals
5. How to Counter Phoenixes
6. How to Counter Void Rays
7. How to Counter Observers
8. How to Counter Warp Prisms
9. How to Counter High Templars
10. How to Counter Dark Templars
11. How to Counter Archons
12. How to Counter Carriers
13. How to Counter Motherships
14. How to Counter the Colossus

Best Terran Counters vs Zealots

1. Hellion – Easily the best early counter against Zealots. They do 14 damage (in an area) to light units. With the Infernal Pre-Lighter upgrade, this goes up to 24 damage per attack, and then they really dominate Zealots. Not to mention, with their incredible mobility and good micro, they can kite zealots (hit and run). This only works as long as Zealots don’t research the charge ability though.

2. Reaper – With their bonus vs light units, Reapers deal 18 damage per attack vs Zealots from range. With proper micro, they can shoot and run, or hide on a cliff nearby if possible. Definitely a great counter vs Zealots.

3. Walling – Early zealot rushes are easily stopped by terran players. All you have to do is to wall off your base’s choke point with buildings quickly (Barrack + Supply depot is enough), produce a few marines and put them behind your structures. This should hold off any early Zealot rush attempt and give you time to tech for Hellions or Reapers.

Best Terran Counters vs Stalkers

1. Marauder – Marauders do 20 damage per attack against armored units, which is 6 damage better than what Stalkers do to  them in response. Equal range, but Marauders concussive missiles snare Stalkers, which makes it harder to micro them. They are also cheaper and quicker to produce.

2. Marine – 3 Marines = 150 Minerals   1 Stalker = 125 Minerals 50 Gas.    3 Marines = 135 HP(3×45) and 18 Damage (3×6) Attack Speed: Fast  1 Stalker = 160 HP and 8 Damage, Attack Speed: Normal. Marines attack about twice as fast as Stalkers, so effectively they’ll do 36 damage everytime the stalker does 8 damage… The math speaks for itself. Mass marines will always beat mass stalkers.

3. Siege Tank – Superior range, firepower and HP.

Best Terran Counters vs Sentries

1. Ghost – One EMP Round and the sentry is going to be as weak as a single marine, despite costing so much gas. EMP Round will destroy the Sentries’ shield, and also drain its energy down to zero. A perfect counter.

2. Hellion – Sentries are generally hiding behind a wall of zealots and other units, providing support with Guardian Shield. Hellion can quickly go around the front line and make a quick work of sentries, especially with their bonus vs light units.

3. Reaper – Not as good as Hellions for this, but still pretty decent with their 18 damage vs light units.

4. Banshee – In big fights, Banshee will easily fly over the front line and deal with sentries swiftly before they get a chance to turn the tide of battle with Guardian Shield and Force Field.

Best Terran Counters vs Immortals

1. Ghost – Once again, EMP Round turns Immortals into a very vulnerable and expensive unit. It effectively removes all their shields and thus deactivates their Hardened Shield, making them vulnerable to heavy attacks from Siege Tanks or Marauders.

2. Marines – Marines deal less than 10 damage per attack, thus ignoring the Hardened Shield ability. And they attack fast, about twice as fast as Immortals. Plus they are light units, so Immortals don’t benefit from their huge bonus against them. It will take 3 shots for an immortal to kill a single marine, which is a really bad deal for your opponent.

3. Reapers – About the same deal as marines, just not as good.

4. Banshees – If your opponent is going Immortal + Zealots and neglecting anti-air, this will teach him a lesson. I learned the hard way when I played protoss.

Best Terran Counters vs Phoenixes

1. Thor – They outrange Phoenixes severely and are also immune to their graviton beam. Easily the best counter.

2. Vikings – Don’t believe the in-game unit information, it’s outdated. Vikings are great against Phoenixes. They do twice as much damage and have a much bigger range. Plus they cannot be affected by Graviton Beam, since they fly.

3. Missile Turret – Your opponent is harassing your SCVs with a bunch of Phoenixes? A couple of turrets will quickly solve this.

4. Battlecruisers – Not the cheapest option, but definitely effective. Phoenixes are especially good against light units, whilst the Battlecruiser is arguably the most heavily armored unit in the game…

Best Terran Counters vs Void Rays

1. Vikings – With their +4 damage bonus vs armored units, Vikings do 24 damage per attack against Void Rays. They also outrange them and are much cheaper to produce. Oh, and they’re faster.

2. Marines – Void Rays are great against big armored units which have a lot of HP, because it allows their Prismatic Beam to use its full potential. Marines are the total opposite of “big unit with a lot of HP”, making them a great counter vs Void Rays.

3. Missile Turrets – With their +7 damage bonus vs armored and their really fast attack speed, Missile Turrets do 28 damage per round of attack against Void Rays, and they do that at a very quick pace. However, Void Rays also kill buildings very quickly, so you will need more than one turret to make this strategy efficient. 2 or 3 Turrets placed side by side for maximum efficiency. But honestly, Vikings and Marines are a better deal, so only make turrets if you have spare minerals and want to have defenses at your base while your forces are on the move.

Best Terran Counters vs Observers

1. Missile Turrets – If a game reaches the mid-way point, you can be sure that a competent protoss opponent will be scouting you heavily with these.  Start placing Missile Turrets strategically in your bases to prevent this.

2. Raven – A mobile detector. Pair it with a few vikings and sweep the area around your bases for a few easy observer kills.

3. Orbital Command – If you got some spare energy, scan your base from time to time, you can bet you’ll find an observer there every now and then.

Best Terran Counters vs Warp Prisms

1. Viking – Vikings kill these transporters quickly and they also chase them with ease.

2. Missile Turret – Your opponent likes to do some Immortal drops on your economy? Place 2 turrets carefully around your minerals, problem solved.

Best Terran Counters vs High Templars

1. Ghost – By far the best counter. EMP Round first to drain all their energy and shields, preventing them from using Feedback on your ghost. Followed by two normal attacks by your ghost (20 damage per attack vs bio units) and you’ll have a dead High Templar.

2. Hellion – With their high mobility, they can dodge most of the Psionic Storms your opponent will cast. And they’ll also make quick work of them with their nice bonus vs light units. Plus, they have just enough HP to survive a full Psionic Storm.

Best Terran Counters vs Dark Templars

1. Raven – Mobile detection. Enough said.

2. Ghost – EMP Round reveals them for a short period of time, and also removes their entire shields. With only 40 HP left, they should be quickly dealt with before they become cloaked again. A great counter if you don’t have a Raven.

3. Orbital Command– Dark Templars aren’t very resilient, one quick scan and they should die fast before the scan effect wears off.

4. Missile Turret – Detection.

Best Terran Counters vs Archons

1. Ghost – EMP Round once again. You should produce about 4 ghosts and EMP round until you’ve burned through the whole shields. If you do this quickly at the beginning of a fight, Archons will not even get time to do any damage to your troops.

2. Thor – Not biological, and they deal 90 damage per round of attack against ground units. Better, use their 250mm Strike Cannon ability to stun and kill the Archon before he gets to do anything.

3. Siege Tank – Not biological, so no bonus for the Archon. Plus, they’ve got a lot of HP, and Siege Tanks deal heavy damage. Makes sense if you don’t have ghosts or Thors available yet.

Best Terran Counters vs Carriers

1. Viking – Easily the best counter against this very annoying unit. With their 28 damage per round of attack vs armored units and their superior speed, their are the best choice, by far.

2. Thor – Thanks to their huge range and their decent damage vs air units, Thor is the second best. But still leagues below the Viking.

3. Marines – They’re not great vs carriers, but in the worst case scenario, it’s better than nothing, and it’s still the 3rd best choice.

Best Terran Counters vs Motherships

1. Viking – Easily the best counter against the Mothership as well. With their 28 damage per round of attack vs armored units and their superior speed, their are the best choice, by far.

2. Ghost – EMP Round this quickly before they get to cast Vortex. Keep casting EMP Round until their huge shields are down, half the job done.

3. Thor – Thanks to their huge range and their decent damage vs air units, Thor is the second best. But still leagues below the Viking.

4. Marines – Once again, not great against this huge flying vessel, but if your factory and starports are on full production and you’ve got spare minerals, it’s still better than nothing.

Best Terran Counters vs the Colossus

1. Viking – Tired of seeing this unit at the top? Can’t be helped. Vikings not only deal a spanking 28 damage vs Colossus, but they also can’t be hit back by them. Not to mention, they don’t have to go through the swarm of zealots, stalkers and co. that you generally find in front of a Colossus.

2. Banshee – Not as good as Vikigns, but they also do pretty decent damage (24) vs Colossus, and they can’t be hit back by them as well.

3. Siege Tanks – Superior range and big damage is exactly what you need vs Colossus. In Siege Mode, tanks severely outgun a Colossus.

4. Marauders – +10 damage vs armored, bringing the damage per attack to 20. Make sure to spread your Marauders well so that they don’t all get caught by the Colossus’ beams at the same time.

Source: starcraft-replay