Hey ive only played protoss and i really like protoss but im new. At what number of probes should i scout? and with the scout wut i like to do is throw down a pylon near my base and rush the super fast gateways and get 5 but how many do i need and when should i expand. May be nooby question but hey i need to learn! o and how many workes per base should i have and when to get gas?
To get the basic questions out of the way..... 3 workers per resource node=perfect. As far as scouting, It depends how much you like to read into certain things. For example, if seeing that early gas build of an enemy is all you really need to create an appropriate counter, I would recommend throwing down a pylon and having that very same worker scout since probes are quick and extremely resilient. Terran tend to wall off their bases as well, so going in there early is a great way to harass that lone SCV and kill it, or just block his wall, all sorts of things. Of course, if you feel like you really need to see more to be prepared, rushing an observer is an option. truth be told, scouting after that initial very early stage and before the mid game is actually quite difficult for every race.
General rule of thumb, the info you find from sparing a probe scout early in the game is essintial, it will allow you to see what your opponent is doing, thus allow you to create the appropriate counters. For example if you notice your opponint getting gas early they will prolly be either rushing a tier 2 tech or just straight teching. You can also hang out in the prox and c if they are preping for a rush. If you keep that scout alive you can use him to expand as well. Make sure you micro him to move back and forth from your base and scout to see whats going on around the map. Hope this helps.
As far as harvesters go: mineral node = 2 harvesters, vespene gas = 3. you can build probes past 2 per mineral node if you like but it's not optimal. a lot of players will build beyond 2 per mineral node then pull off the excess ones when an expansion goes down. When to get gas depends on your build. Standard tech is getting your first Pylon and Gateway, and then getting an Assimilator as you can afford it. If you were performing a quick zealot rush though, you might get 2 Gateways first. it really depends. Scouting depends on map and enemy's race. As has been said Terran players try to wall up early so you need to get your Probe in there fast.. especially at a big map. On a small map you might need to scout earlier too to see if the enemy is going for a cheesy rush. For example, on big maps I might not worried about scouting a Zerg enemy super early as I know I'll be able to 12 gate, cyb core when thats done, and get a stalker and a few sentries out and plug the ramp to my base before they could pull off a Zergling rush. If they do try something as ridiculous as a 6 pool on a very large map, I'll have enough probes to easily wipe out 6 Zerglings with ease. 5 Gateways is unnecessary off of 1 base. 4 is plenty. Get an expansion before you build more than 4 gateways. You won't even need 4 gateways if you get a robotics facility or 2 - really depends who you are playing and what they are doing. If you are unsure of when to expand, it really depends on how the game is going and the map you are on. On a big map with a close natural (metropolis?) you can usually pull off an earlier expansion versus a map where the expansions are far apart. while you are getting used to it, just follow this order: - build up an for an early push with zealot/stalker/sentry - hit the enemy, if the enemy is walled in, back off Expand during this time. If your enemy is walled in and not willing to engage your army, you should be safe to expand. If your enemy is zerg and can't be walled in, you will want to secure your expansion with an offensive push and actually attack him. Back off if needed.
