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StarCraft
Koprulu Sector history from the Guild Wars to the End War: the terrans, the Swarm, the protoss, and the xel’naga behind all three. Cited to the games and the novels.
378 entries across 15 topics.
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StarCraft Timeline: every major event from the xel'naga to the One-Day War
The full StarCraft chronology, from the xel'naga uplifting the protoss and the zerg to the peace that followed the End War. Events are grouped into ten eras, oldest first, with Gregorian years wherever the games and novels give one.
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StarCraft Characters: Every Major Character, Terran, Zerg and Protoss
The people who drive the StarCraft story, from Jim Raynor and Sarah Kerrigan to Zeratul, Artanis and Amon. Who each one is, what they do across StarCraft, Brood War and StarCraft II, and how their story ends.
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StarCraft Games in Order: Release Order, Story Order and Novels
Every StarCraft game in order, from the 1998 original to Nova Covert Ops. Release order and story order are the same list, so this guide covers where to start, whether you need the first game before StarCraft II, and which expansions, remasters and novels are optional.
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Every Protoss Unit in StarCraft and StarCraft II, Explained
Every protoss warrior, war machine and starship from StarCraft, Brood War and the three StarCraft II games. Each entry covers who fights in it or builds it, how it fights, what it did in the story and which games it appears in, plus the Nerazim, Tal'darim and Purifier versions from Legacy of the Void.
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StarCraft II Story Explained: the Whole Plot from Wings of Liberty to Nova Covert Ops
The StarCraft II story in order, one campaign at a time. Raynor frees Kerrigan, Kerrigan kills Mengsk, and the protoss and the Swarm finish Amon, with Nova Covert Ops as the coda.
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StarCraft Story Explained: StarCraft and Brood War
The whole story of the original StarCraft and its expansion, campaign by campaign. Mengsk betrays Kerrigan, the Overmind remakes her as the Queen of Blades, Tassadar dies killing it, and in Brood War Kerrigan beats everyone.
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Every Terran Unit in StarCraft and StarCraft II, Explained
Every terran unit from StarCraft, Brood War and the three StarCraft II campaigns, sorted into infantry, vehicles and starships. Each entry covers who built it, what it was for and which games it appears in.
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- 1
C-14 Impaler: the Marine Corps' standard gauss rifle
The C-14 Impaler fires 8 mm armor-piercing spikes at thirty rounds per second, driven by a magnetic accelerator pack that gives the gauss rifle its name. Standard issue for Confederate and Dominion marines, in service by 2478, it still runs on gunpowder and fails when its ammunition gets wet.
- 2
UED Expeditionary Fleet
The UED Expeditionary Fleet was the human strike force the United Earth Directorate sent to seize the Koprulu Sector during the Brood War. Commanded by Admiral Gerard DuGalle, it captured the second Overmind and briefly ruled the sector before being annihilated by the zerg.
- 3
Khala
The Khala was the communal psionic link and guiding philosophy of the Khalai protoss, founded by the mystic Khas to end the Aeon of Strife. It bound its adherents in shared emotion for over a thousand years until Amon corrupted it, forcing the protoss to sever it forever.
- 4
Cerebrate
Cerebrates were the intermediate commanders of the zerg, created by the Overmind to lead individual broods and oversee the Swarm's evolution. Bound to the Overmind for their reincarnation, they vanished from the Swarm after the Brood War, replaced by Sarah Kerrigan's broodmothers.
- 5
Battlecruiser
The battlecruiser was the terran sector's capital ship, a heavily armed and armored warship dating back to the early Confederacy that served as both a general-purpose combatant and a fleet command vessel.
- 6
Infested Terran
Infested terrans were a breed of zerg created when the Swarm infected a human with a hyper-evolutionary virus, consuming the victim's mind and remaking the body. Most became disposable suicide bombers, but the zerg eventually perfected sentient infested terrans who served as consorts, generals, and living weapons.
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Terran
All 185 Terran →
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Terran Dominion
The Terran Dominion was the human empire founded by Arcturus Mengsk on the ruins of the Terran Confederacy, crowned from Korhal and ruled first through oppression and propaganda, then reformed under his son Valerian after the Second Great War.
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Sarah Kerrigan, the Queen of Blades
Sarah Kerrigan was a psychic terran who began as a Confederate ghost, rose to be second-in-command of the Sons of Korhal, and after Arcturus Mengsk abandoned her on Tarsonis was captured and infested by the Zerg Swarm to become the Queen of Blades.
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Jim Raynor
James Eugene Raynor was a farm boy turned Confederate marine, marshal, and rebel who helped bring down the Terran Confederacy and later fought its successor, the Terran Dominion, becoming one of the few terrans to ally long-term with the protoss.
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Arcturus Mengsk
Arcturus Mengsk led the Sons of Korhal to bring down the Terran Confederacy and crowned himself Emperor of the Terran Dominion, ruling through cunning, propaganda, and brute force until his death during the Second Great War.
Protoss
All 106 Protoss →
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Protoss
The protoss are an ancient, psionically gifted humanoid species native to Aiur, uplifted by the xel'naga and bound together by the Khala. Among the three dominant species of the galaxy, they are the most technologically advanced, and the most divided by their own history.
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End War: Amon's crusade on the galaxy
The resurrected xel'naga Amon corrupted the Khala and cost the protoss both Aiur and Shakuras. Kerrigan, remade as a xel'naga, killed him in the Void.
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Aiur
Aiur was the homeworld of the protoss, a verdant world on the galactic fringe engineered by the Xel'Naga and seat of the Protoss Empire. It was overrun by the zerg in 2500 and reclaimed by the Daelaam after the defeat of Amon.
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Artanis
Artanis was the Hierarch of the Daelaam, a renowned warrior who rose from executor during the zerg invasion of Aiur to lead the reunited protoss. He forged the Khalai and Nerazim into one people, reclaimed Aiur, and led the alliance that banished Amon from the Khala.
Characters
All 91 Characters →Long read
Sarah Kerrigan, the Queen of Blades
Sarah Kerrigan was a psychic terran who began as a Confederate ghost, rose to be second-in-command of the Sons of Korhal, and after Arcturus Mengsk abandoned her on Tarsonis was captured and infested by the Zerg Swarm to become the Queen of Blades.
Long read
Jim Raynor
James Eugene Raynor was a farm boy turned Confederate marine, marshal, and rebel who helped bring down the Terran Confederacy and later fought its successor, the Terran Dominion, becoming one of the few terrans to ally long-term with the protoss.
Long read
Arcturus Mengsk
Arcturus Mengsk led the Sons of Korhal to bring down the Terran Confederacy and crowned himself Emperor of the Terran Dominion, ruling through cunning, propaganda, and brute force until his death during the Second Great War.
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Amon
Amon was a malevolent xel'naga who turned against the Infinite Cycle of his kind and sought to end all life and remake it in his image. He created the Overmind and the Zerg Swarm, enslaved the Tal'darim, and was finally destroyed in the Void by an ascended Sarah Kerrigan during the End War.
Technology
All 85 Technology →
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Khala
The Khala was the communal psionic link and guiding philosophy of the Khalai protoss, founded by the mystic Khas to end the Aeon of Strife. It bound its adherents in shared emotion for over a thousand years until Amon corrupted it, forcing the protoss to sever it forever.
Long read
Keystone: the artifact that banished Amon
The Keystone was a xel'naga relic split into five pieces. It partly de-infested Kerrigan at Char, fed Amon's resurrection, then banished him from the Khala.
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Void
The Void was a dark, cold manifestation of space separate from the material universe, the wellspring from which the Nerazim drew their psionic power and the realm in which the minds of the xel'naga endured after the death of their bodies. Its energy was unpredictable and lethal in sufficient quantity.
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Spear of Adun: the ark buried under Aiur
Built in the Golden Age to outlast a calamity, the arkship waited beneath Aiur for centuries. Artanis raised it when Amon seized the Golden Armada.
Zerg
All 69 Zerg →
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Zerg
The zerg are a ravenous collective of biologically advanced aliens who evolve by assimilating the essence of other species in pursuit of genetic perfection. Created by Amon's xel'naga on Zerus and bound to the Overmind, they grew into one of the three dominant powers of the galaxy.
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Sarah Kerrigan, the Queen of Blades
Sarah Kerrigan was a psychic terran who began as a Confederate ghost, rose to be second-in-command of the Sons of Korhal, and after Arcturus Mengsk abandoned her on Tarsonis was captured and infested by the Zerg Swarm to become the Queen of Blades.
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Second Great War: Swarm vs Dominion, 2504
The Second Great War broke out in 2504 and ended on Korhal with Arcturus Mengsk dead at Kerrigan's hand. Deinfesting her mid-war let the xel'naga Amon return.
Long read
End War: Amon's crusade on the galaxy
The resurrected xel'naga Amon corrupted the Khala and cost the protoss both Aiur and Shakuras. Kerrigan, remade as a xel'naga, killed him in the Void.
Factions
All 53 Factions →Long read
Zerg
The zerg are a ravenous collective of biologically advanced aliens who evolve by assimilating the essence of other species in pursuit of genetic perfection. Created by Amon's xel'naga on Zerus and bound to the Overmind, they grew into one of the three dominant powers of the galaxy.
Long read
Terran Dominion
The Terran Dominion was the human empire founded by Arcturus Mengsk on the ruins of the Terran Confederacy, crowned from Korhal and ruled first through oppression and propaganda, then reformed under his son Valerian after the Second Great War.
Long read
Protoss
The protoss are an ancient, psionically gifted humanoid species native to Aiur, uplifted by the xel'naga and bound together by the Khala. Among the three dominant species of the galaxy, they are the most technologically advanced, and the most divided by their own history.
Long read
Terran Confederacy
The Terran Confederacy, also called the Confederacy of Man, was the dominant human government of the Koprulu sector before the Great War, ruled by the Old Families of Tarsonis and brought down by the zerg invasion and the Sons of Korhal rebellion.
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Long read · 9 Oct 2026
How Did Kerrigan Become Human Again in StarCraft 2?
Kerrigan became human again at the end of Wings of Liberty, when Raynor's forces fired an ancient xel'naga artifact on Char and its energy wave stripped away most of her zerg infestation. Here's how it worked, what it left behind and why it didn't last.
Long read · 9 Oct 2026
Is Kerrigan Dead?
No. At the end of StarCraft II, Kerrigan doesn't die: she becomes a xel'naga, destroys Amon and comes back two years later for Raynor in human form. Here is why some players think she died, and what the game actually shows.
Long read · 9 Oct 2026
StarCraft 2 Quiz: Test Your Knowledge of the Story
Twelve questions on the StarCraft II story, from Raynor's artifact hunt in Wings of Liberty to Kerrigan's revenge, the End War and Nova Covert Ops. Every answer comes with a short explanation and a link to the page that covers it.
Long read · 9 Oct 2026
StarCraft Lore Quiz: 15 Questions for Real Fans
Fifteen questions on the StarCraft story, from the fall of Tarsonis and the Queen of Blades to Amon and the End War. Every answer links to a cited explainer if you want the full story.
Long read · 9 Oct 2026
What Happened to Kerrigan After Legacy of the Void?
Kerrigan became a xel'naga, killed Amon, handed the Swarm to Zagara and later came back for Raynor in human form. Here's what Legacy of the Void's ending shows, what it leaves open and where she is in the stories that followed.
Long read · 9 Oct 2026
Which StarCraft Race Are You? Take the Quiz
Ten questions about how you fight, what you value and how you handle a setback, and we'll tell you which power of the Koprulu sector you belong to: terran, zerg, protoss, or the xel'naga and hybrid who shaped them.
Long read · 9 Oct 2026
Why Did Kerrigan Become a Xel'naga?
Kerrigan became a xel'naga because it was the only way to kill Amon. In the Void, the dying xel'naga Ouros told her only one of their kind could defeat him there, and she accepted his essence partly to make up for her past. Here is the reasoning Legacy of the Void gives, and why it had to be her.
Long read · 9 Oct 2026
Why Did Kerrigan Become Zerg in StarCraft?
Kerrigan became zerg because Arcturus Mengsk abandoned her to the Swarm on Tarsonis and the Overmind chose to infest her rather than kill her. Years later, in Heart of the Swarm, she chose to become zerg again. Here's what happened both times and why.
All 15 topics
Locations 48
- Aiur
- Koprulu Sector: where three races met
- Char
- Korhal: the world Mengsk rebuilt from glass
- Tarsonis: the world Mengsk fed to the zerg
Events 31
- Second Great War: Swarm vs Dominion, 2504
- End War: Amon's crusade on the galaxy
- Great War: protoss against zerg over Aiur
- Brood War: Kerrigan's war for the Swarm
- Guild Wars: Confederacy against the Combine
Guides 9
- StarCraft Timeline: every major event from the xel'naga to the One-Day War
- Every Terran Unit in StarCraft and StarCraft II, Explained
- Every Zerg Brood, From the Garm Brood to Kerrigan's Swarm
- Every Protoss Unit in StarCraft and StarCraft II, Explained
- Every Zerg Unit in StarCraft and StarCraft II, Explained
Quizzes 3
All entries A–Z
378 entries
A
31- Aal Cistler
- Abathur: the Swarm's living DNA library
- Adept
- Adjutant
- Adun
- Aeon of Strife
- Agria
- Aiur
- Alan Schezar
- Alarak: the highlord who turned on Amon
- Aldaris: the judicator who saw the truth
- Alexei Stukov: murdered, then infested
- Alpha Squadron
- Amon
- Amon's Forces
- Angus Mengsk
- Annihilators
- Antiga Prime
- Arbiter
- Archon
- Arcturus Mengsk
- Ardo Melnikov
- Argus Stone
- Ariel Hanson
- Arkship: the three protoss vessels built to outlive the species
- Armory: research forge of the terran war machine
- Artanis
- Artificial intelligence: machine minds of the Koprulu sector
- Ascendant: blood-ranked lords of the Tal'darim
- ATLAS
- Augustgrad
B
18- Baneling
- Banshee
- Barracks: mustering hall of terran infantry
- Battle of Adena: the ambush that poisoned the peace
- Battle of Antiga Prime: the uprising that broke the Confederacy
- Battle of Char
- Battle of Korhal
- Battle of Tarsonis
- Battlecruiser
- Behemoth-class battlecruiser
- Bel'Shir
- Bhekar Ro
- Braxis
- Brood Lord
- Brood War: Kerrigan's war for the Swarm
- Broodmother
- Bucephalus
- Bunker: fortified strongpoint of the terrans
C
30- C-14 Impaler: the Marine Corps' standard gauss rifle
- Caleb: the last salvager of the Magpie
- Candore Colony
- Captain (Episode V): field commander of the UED Expeditionary Fleet
- Carolina Davis
- Carrier
- Castanar
- Cerberus Program
- Cerebrate
- Char
- Chau Sara
- Clolarion: Purifier executor of Cybros
- CMC Powered Combat Suit
- Cole Hickson
- Colin Phash
- Colonial Fleet
- Colossus
- Command Center: mobile heart of every terran outpost
- Conclave: the elders who exiled the Nerazim
- Confederate Armed Forces: military arm of the Terran Confederacy
- Confederate Marine Corps: infantry backbone of the Terran Confederacy
- Connor Ward
- Corbin Phash: the senator who defied the Dominion
- Corruptor
- Corsair
- Covert Ops Crew
- Creep
- Cybernetics Core: forge that bound protoss spirits to steel
- Cybros
- Cyclone
D
23- Daelaam
- Daggoth
- Dark Archon
- Dark Templar (Nerazim)
- Dauntless Plateau
- Defenders of Man Insurgency
- Defenders of Man: they staged the attacks
- Defiler
- Dehaka
- Delta Emblock
- Devourer
- Diamondback
- Disruptor
- Dominion Armada: naval arm of the Terran Dominion
- Dominion Armed Forces
- Dominion Marine Corps
- Dominion Royal Guard
- Donny Vermillion
- Dragoon
- Drone
- Dropship
- Dylar IV
- Dylarian Shipyards
E
18- Earth
- Edmund Duke
- Egon Stetmann
- Ehlna
- Elms: mercenary marine and hidden psychic
- Emil Narud
- Emperor's Fall: the UED conquest of Korhal
- End War: Amon's crusade on the galaxy
- Endion
- Engineering Bay: infantry research center of the terran military
- English: the common tongue of terran humanity
- Essence
- Every Protoss Unit in StarCraft and StarCraft II, Explained
- Every Terran Unit in StarCraft and StarCraft II, Explained
- Every Zerg Brood, From the Garm Brood to Kerrigan's Swarm
- Every Zerg Unit in StarCraft and StarCraft II, Explained
- Evolution Chamber: crucible of zerg genetic advancement
- Eye of the Storm
F
6G
19- Gabriel Tosh: the ghost terrazine remade
- Gary: Egon Stetmann's harvesting bot
- Gerard DuGalle
- Ghost
- Ghost Academy
- Ghost Program
- Glacius
- Glassing
- Golden Armada: the fleet Amon turned
- Goliath
- Gorgon-class battlecruiser
- Grand Preserver
- Great Fleet
- Great War: protoss against zerg over Aiur
- Griffin: stealth flagship of the Covert Ops Crew
- Guardian
- Gui Montag: the Confederate firebat named for a Fahrenheit 451 fireman
- Guild Wars: Confederacy against the Combine
- Gystt
H
17- Hank Harnack
- Hatchery: foundational structure of every zerg colony
- Haven
- Heaven's Devils: the famed First Squad of the Guild Wars
- Hellbat
- Hellion
- Hercules
- Hierarchy: the twilight council of the Daelaam
- High Templar
- Hive: apex structure of the Zerg Swarm
- Horace Warfield
- Hostile environment suit
- How Did Kerrigan Become Human Again in StarCraft 2?
- Hybrid
- Hybrid Reaver
- Hydralisk
- Hyperion
I
6J
7K
17- Kaldir
- Karass
- Karax: the phase-smith who armed the Spear
- Kate Lockwell
- Kath Toom
- Kel-Morian Combine: the sector's miners
- Kerrigan's Swarm: the Zerg Swarm under the Queen of Blades
- Keystone: the artifact that banished Amon
- Khala
- Khalai Caste
- Khalai: the protoss who kept the Khala
- Khalani
- Khalis Crystal
- Khaydarin Crystal
- Koprulu Expeditionary Force
- Koprulu Sector: where three races met
- Korhal: the world Mengsk rebuilt from glass
L
9M
23- Ma'lash: the Blade of Amon
- Malcolm Kelerchian
- Mar Sara: where Raynor's revolt began
- Marauder
- Matt Horner
- Max Zander
- Medic
- Medivac
- Meinhoff
- Mengsk's Uprising
- Mercenary: soldiers of fortune of the Koprulu Sector
- Michael Liberty
- Mind control: psionic domination in the Koprulu Sector
- Mira Han
- Mira's Marauders: the mercenary company that rules Dead Man's Rock
- Moebius Corps
- Moebius Foundation: who bred the hybrids
- Mohandar
- Moirai-class battlecruiser: exclusive capital ship of the Dominion Special Forces
- Monlyth
- Moria
- Mothership
- Mutalisk
N
9P
17- Phoenix
- Preserver
- Primal Zerg
- Prisoner: the nameless Nerazim murderess
- Probe: the Protoss Worker Drone of StarCraft
- Project Blackstone: the Dominion's secret xenoscience program
- Project Shadowblade
- Protoss
- Protoss Civil War
- Protoss technology
- Protoss-Zerg Hybrid
- Psi blade
- Psi emitter
- Psionic matrix
- Psionic powers
- Psionics
- Purifiers: protoss minds inside machines
Q
1R
15S
32- Samir Duran
- Sara system
- Sarah Kerrigan, the Queen of Blades
- Science Vessel
- Scourge
- Scout
- SCV
- Second Age
- Second Great War: Swarm vs Dominion, 2504
- Selendis
- Sentry
- Shadows of the Void: Amon's Void-born legions
- Shakuras: the Nerazim world, self-destroyed
- Shel'na Kryhas: those who endure on Aiur
- Siege Tank
- Sigmaris Prime
- Skygeirr Station
- Slayn
- Sons of Korhal: Mengsk's rebel movement
- Spear of Adun: the ark buried under Aiur
- Spectre
- Stalker
- StarCraft 2 Quiz: Test Your Knowledge of the Story
- StarCraft Characters: Every Major Character, Terran, Zerg and Protoss
- StarCraft Games in Order: Release Order, Story Order and Novels
- StarCraft II Story Explained: the Whole Plot from Wings of Liberty to Nova Covert Ops
- StarCraft Lore Quiz: 15 Questions for Real Fans
- StarCraft Story Explained: StarCraft and Brood War
- StarCraft Timeline: every major event from the xel'naga to the One-Day War
- StarCraft: Ghost, the Cancelled Game and Its Story
- Stone
- Swarm Host
T
22- Tal'darim
- Tal'darim: the fanatical protoss sect of Amon
- Talandar
- Taldarin
- Talen Ayers
- Tarsonis: the world Mengsk fed to the zerg
- Tassadar: the templar who slew the Overmind
- Tempest
- Templar Caste
- Terran
- Terran Confederacy
- Terran Dominion
- Terran Marine
- Terran technology
- Terrazine
- The Infinite Cycle
- The Prophecy of Ulaan: the warning that foretold the End War
- The Void
- Thor
- Tychus Findlay: sent to kill Kerrigan
- Typhon XI
- Tyrador
U
12V
11W
12- War Pigs
- Warp gate
- Warp Prism
- What Happened to Kerrigan After Legacy of the Void?
- Which StarCraft Race Are You? Take the Quiz
- Why Did Kerrigan Become a Xel'naga?
- Why Did Kerrigan Become Zerg in StarCraft?
- Why Did Kerrigan Kill Fenix in StarCraft: Brood War?
- Why Did Kerrigan Kill Warfield?
- Why Did Raynor Kill Tychus in StarCraft 2?
- Widow Mine
- Wraith
Z
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