Crush the rush in StarCraft II

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Now that StarCraft II has been out for a bit, you may think about venturing into multiplayer. Our experience is that no one likes being rushed and having their game of StarCraft II ended in minutes, but if you're new to the game, it can be difficult to avoid. Enter our handy guide with strategies guaranteed¹ to help you fend off that first wave of attackers.

¹Not in any way guaranteed

Protoss

1. The Photon Cannon.

Photon Cannons are Protoss' best defensive structure. They can take down Zerglings in two hits, and have enough health to hold off an early rush of just about anything. Their biggest weakness is their need for Pylons — the Protoss building that distributes power to all others. These Pylons will be enemies' main objective, so redundancy is a good thing. A good combination with Pylons is Zealots, especially if you haven't blocked up entances to your base yet. Place the Zealots in front of your photon cannons, where they can take and dish out some early damage before retreating them back behind into your base, allowing your cannons to deal with the rest.

2. High Templars

If you're thinking your opponent is going for a large rush, a bit later in the game, another good counter unit the protoss has in it's grasp is the High Templar. If you really min/max your resources you can get one out mid game, and using his psychic storm ability, the high templar can set up large fields of AoE damage — devistating against Zerglings, Marines or Roaches. However, similar to Photon Cannons, you've got to protect them with a frontline of zealots or they'll get toasted.

Zerg

1. The pre-rush rush

Unfortunately for the Zerg, early game defense isn't their strongest point. One option is an earlier game rush to try to cut off early resources, allowing you to continue to grow while they rebuild. Constant harassment with Zerglings and Roaches helps with this strategy, but requires heavy amount of micromanagement.

2. The Scout-and-Counter

Another option revolves around scouting your opponent early and often, and building an army tailored to his rush's weaknesses. Once again, this strategy takes a lot of micromanagement and you'll need to spend time learning how to counter every unit, but in the end you'll have an unstoppable gameplan.

Terran

1. Build a Wall

Every Terran base needs supply depots, and at least one barracks, so you may as well put them to extra use. Build them on top of the ramp leading into your base, blocking off early access to your vital Command Center and SCVs. Plus, in StarCraft II Supply Depots can be lowered into the ground allowing your units to pass over them freely.

2. Marines

A wall is great against ground units, but against a Void Ray or Mutalisk rush it's no use. Here's where Marines come in handy. A large group of Marines can take down air units quickly, without taking massive losses. Keep 'em in bunkers for extra defense!

We want to know your best anti-rushing strategies too! Drop them in the comments!