Dark templar (StarCraft II)

The dark templar appears in StarCraft II. It retains its permanent cloaking.

Overview
In order to make the Dark Templar different in appearance from zealots, Samwise Didier gave dark templar different weapons (a bladed staff weapon) and armor covered with zerg bones. Two types of dark templar are featured – one model, the Zer'atai, has a scythe, another, the Lenassa, has a warp blade. Dark templar with two blades were suggested, but not implemented by beta.

Blizzard Entertainment held a poll on which model the community favors – Zer'atai, Lenassa, or a random selection of both. The random selection of both won and Blizzard has followed the results.

Game Unit
The only difference in the two types of dark templar is their appearance, otherwise the two move and attack just as quickly as the other. Due to their increased gas cost from StarCraft and the long time spent to warp in a dark shrine, dark templars are a more costly investment than before.

Strategies
Their high base damage allows dark templar to instantly kill the worker units of all three races with one attack. In groups of three or four, dark templar can make short work of a supply line that isn't properly defended. A terran SCV with an armor upgrade can survive, but a single weapons upgrade to the dark templar raises their attack enough to offset the SCV's armor. With the addition of the warp prism and warp in, players can create dark templar directly at the enemy base without risking transporting them and losing them should the warp prism be destroyed. The dark templar's cloak will not activate until they finish warping in, allowing the enemy to see them and attack them while they are being created.