Expanding

*This article is about Zerg Hex v2.9.*

Expanding can be difficult for the Terran, but it is also the most important thing a Terran must do. This Article is purely for Tipps and Tricks on how to go about it.

### Expanding; the normal way

During the very early game (0:00-6:00), it is very difficult for the Terran to Expand and Secure what he has gained.

Simply because the Technology to do so is missing. However, an important fact to note is that theoretically the Terran has enough Energy and Marine Guns to kill all units coming at him from his own subbase. Even if the first spawners are upgraded and the early 3 spawners are put on him. Though that is in theory. Microing is a thing, and the Zerg can do quite a few dirty tricks to throw a Terran off. So, even though in theory it should be possible to take and hold all 3 gas geysers from the get-go, that is quite a tall order. That said, 2 Gas geysers are perfectly do-able.

I use the top Marine to catch lings going around the side, the middle Marine to fill the gaps above or below as needed and the bottom 2 Marines to do the majority of the killing.

Also I add a Wall in front of my Refineries. Unless explicitly ordered to, a Zerg unit will attack the Wall before the Refinery, since it is closer. This adds an unreliable HP buff to the Refinery. Cheap, but effective.

This basic line-up can be used from any base and with any "2nd" Refinery selection.

### Expanding; the dirty way

If you are too lazy to go through the micro-battle mentioned above, or that geyser behind your base just hurts your OCD because you don't have it, then you can choose to destroy the Rocks from the get-go. Of course, there's no reason to ignore those juicy Refineries outside your base, just because you can't protect them. Send out an SCV secretly for good measure.

Make 4 more SCVs instantly and position them behind your Gate. Repairing is free and that many SCVs repair faster than the Zerg units can destroy your Gates. Now simply order all Marines to Destroy the Rocks.

Depending on how brave you are, you can now Build Refineries on your 2nd and 3rd outside Gas geysers with that SCV you sent out. If the Zerg fails to notice, then you didn't even lose any income despite not leaving base.

## Securing

### Construction Yard

One of the things that makes Expanding so difficult, is keeping what you already have. For Example you have your second Refinery, but feel like pushing for the 3rd will stretch your forces too thin and you will lose the second again. The Construction Yard is the solution to this problem! Early in the game, the Zerg units do not have the necessary Attack to overcome the Construction Yards Aura, in short, non-surrounded Walls are indestructible without the Zerg investing in Technology. Using this fact, you can fortify one side of your base and then send all of your forces towards the 3rd Gas without any worries. Though it is worth mentioning that a Gate can be destroyed if attacked for long enough without any sort of Healing.

### Armory

Now that you have secured your second gas and have just taken your 3rd, the time has come to attack the Zerg. But how do you attack without losing all of your hard earned Expansion? The most obvious solution is a Gate. but a Wall that size in front of your armory for such a slim chance is quite expensive. Moreover you cannot rally your Battery back and forth, quickly draining your Marine attack force and sending it home before any real damage is done. A much more aggressive approach would be to wall off that out-of-the-way approach, buying you time to respond in-case any stragglers make it past your marines, and leaving train Marine on Auto-cast. This means that there will always be marines around your armory, even when you attack, keeping your base safe, whilst enabling an easy attack.

### Things to look out for

.There are certain things a Zerg can do to shut these strategies down.

* Creep; Look out for Creep where it shouldn't be and deal with it quickly. If you don't, then Hydralisks might make an appearance. they make quick work of any defences if freely able to approach
* Hydralisk YOLOs; a pair of Hydralisks can leave the Creep and suicide, just to shut down an armory, however small such a move may seem, sometimes that becomes a crucial, game deciding moment. Target-Fire them, also spam Shock Trooper abilities (High Energy shot for Hydras and EMP for killing the little ones)
* Strikeling massing; a well timed strikeling mass can overrun your armory if the main army is too far, but there hasn't been enough time to make marines yet. Watch out for missing Strikelings and if you aren't bringing him, leave the Shock Trooper near the armory. EMP is amazing, but even a standard attack will kill 4 or 5.
* Early Primals or Ultralisks; If either of these appear before the Terran has a significant number of Veteran Marines then the only way to survive is either power fielding like a madman, or building Sentry Guns.