[G] PvZ 2 Gate FE 10-16

This is a build I have developed over the last few months, and I think that it is a very solid way to open against zerg. The build has adequate preparation for early aggression of all forms, and has very strong timing attacks which can punish greedy zerg players. I hope to cover the basic build order and are the strongest continuations against various builds the zerg can do.

The build focuses around timings at the 10 and 16 minute marks. At 10 minutes you will have +1 and blink completed with 2 zealot, 5 sentry and 6 stalkers. Using this, or a slightly earlier timing without blink, you can force the zerg to cancel their third base, or at least force a ton of units and fight them cost efficiently.

At 16 minutes you will have 3 collossi with range, +3 weapons, and many gateway units. If the zerg player either took a late third or had their third cancelled, and does not have baneling drops, they will die to a push at this timing. Against armies which include baneling drops, or against a zerg who successfully took an early third base, you should take your own third sometime between 12:00 and 16:00 and continue macroing, eventually getting void rays and/or templar to compliment the collossus/gateway army.

Additionally, the early blink allows you to be very aggressive and harass the zerg until infestors are out.

9 pylon (next to nexus is best for defense against 6/7 pool IMO)
13 gate (I scout after gate. Against early hatch I 1 gate expand, cutting the zealot, though you can block the hatchery with a 9 scout if you prefer that style)
14 assimilator
15 pylon (I have found that saving the third chrono boost until you are sure they are not doing an early pool is safest. Some zergs (e.g. lowely, sheth) will make 6-8 lings from an earlyish pool and it is hard to defend without chronoing the stalker)
18 cyber core
22 pylon (build at ramp to make 1 pylon+1 gateway wall, unless you already walled)
26 assimilator
27 gate
31 pylon (on low ground)
34 nexus
35 forge

From the gateway, build zealot->stalker->sentry->sentry, and use 4 chrono boosts on warp gate research. Warp gate research should complete as the 2nd sentry pops out, then warp in 2 sentries after making the forge on 35.

@ Forge completion 2 cannons

@100 gas hallucinate (chrono boost this unless you are out of sentry energy)
@100 gas +1 attack
@100 gas twilight council (upon completion get blink and chrono boost it)
3rd assimilator and continued stalker production as resources permit

When you send your scouting probe, first you should check for early pools so that you can prepare for a 6/7/8 pool or 11/12 pool. After this, you should check for gas timing. If you can keep the probe around to see when they take their extractor, you will know that speed will not finish until 3 minutes after that. Using this, you can send the probe back into their base slightly before that time to make sure everything is normal (taking their expansion, no early roach warren/baneling nest, take a look at their drone count, etc.).

When hallucination finishes, make 2 hallucinated phoenix, and check first for a third base, then their main and natural to see their choice of tech. Here are my responses to a few different choices from the zerg:

Some type of all-in: Laugh at them and let your 2 cannons crush their army. Don't waste force fields, make sure they are placed well. Against lings, don't let them up your ramp, and against roaches, don't let them focus your cannons down.

Against heavy roach aggression, make additional cannons as needed to prevent burrow antics, and make several immortals before adding the robotics bay.

Against nydus/doom drops/random cheesy strategies, use blink micro, add additional gates as necessary. You should be able to see any of this stuff coming with hallucinate.

Early 3rd (i.e. started roughly between 6:00 and 7:00): This is usually defended by just speedlings, though sometimes people with mix banelings if they're doing some highly unorthodox strategy. Against this, chrono +1 and attack ASAP. With good force fields and +1 finishing during your attack, it should be nearly impossible for the zerg to hold their third in this situation.

More Standard 3rd (i.e. started between about 8:00 and 9:00) : Usually this will be defended by roach/ling, though sometimes people try to get away with this 3rd timing while getting fast infestors and using only lings to defend. Begin moving out to attack them at about 9:30 so that +1 and blink will be done by the time you arrive at their 3rd. Use hallucinated phoenix to determine their army size and composition, and go for the kill/cancel if you feel it is possible. Otherwise, take whatever gains you can get and back retreat safely.

In general, if they are defending with roach/ling, you should be able to either force a cancel or kill the hatchery if they started lair tech. Zergs who have not begun a lair, ala losira, will typically have enough roaches to defend.

Delayed 3rd: This is becoming more common, and is seen in builds such as destiny's 2 base infestor into a fast 3rd+4th. Against such fast infestors, do not try to pressure the zerg, as you will lose your whole army and cry.

In any case, you will want to add your robotics facility and 3-4 additional gates as you move out, and in the cases when their third is defended well by roach/ling or mass speedling, take a third as soon as you feel safe.

Don't forget to continue harassing with blink stalkers until they get infestors out!

At this point, you will be in one of three situations (assuming no major screwups, in which case you're on your own):

1) They successfully defended an early 3rd base with roach/ling: Play a long macro game, make sure you have void rays and/or templar by the time they have broodlords out

2) They took a late 3rd or had their 3rd cancelled and do not have baneling drops: Get collossus bay, chrono +2 and +3, steamroll them at 16 minute mark with ranged collossi with +3 attack. Make sure you use force fields and blink well during the fight. In particular, do not let roaches get near your collossi, and use force field to minimize their ability to neural your collossi.

If they're kicking it old school and making lots of corruptors, often it is best to either completely ignore them and just kill their ground army, or to force field the ground army and kill the corruptors ASAP. Doing both half-heartedly usually ends in disaster. Also feel free to make more immortals and less collossi in this case.

3) They took a late 3rd or had their 3rd cancelled and do have baneling drops: Play very defensively and play a long macro game. Alternatively, kill them as in 2) if you have godly blink micro against baneling bombs and you think you can take them.

On some maps, such as typhon peaks, it can be difficult to deny a greedy third base from the zerg. It is also difficult for them to deny a greedy third of yours. Take this into account!

Don't do this build on tal'darim. you will fall behind economically, and your attempts to pressure the zerg early will fail miserably.

This build is particularly strong on maps where zergs have a hard time taking a third base. For example, xel'naga and shattered temple. On such maps it is common for zergs to take an oddly placed third base to avoid having rocks get in their way, so watch out for that.

They kill all your sentries and then you die. Plus, your army will have a lot of zealots, which are also weak against baneling drops.

Also, it's very difficult to stop banelings from blowing up all of your probes while moving out with your whole army in the midgame, so any attack absolutely must kill the zerg. Often your attack will take out their 3rd and/or 4th base, leaving them crippled, but if you then lose your whole army and only have 20 probes because of baneling drops, you are still dead. See the game against lowely for an example of this (except in that game 2 collossi killed like 5 ultras and 30 lings so I won).

It is difficult to scout roach/ling all-ins in time to react, but 2 cannons provides plenty of strength to hold off any such attack. Also, these cannons at home allow you to be aggressive with your army and not worry as much about counterattacks. Often in my replays you will see me adding an additional cannon in my main to prevent ling runbys from being an issue as well. I very much like this thick style of play against zerg.