MANAGING ZERG DEFENSES
Author: Daktakpaklak

The new Sunken Colonies are formidable defenesive structures.  Although their damage type is only explosive (ie: a reduction for small units), they still deal out the punishment.  Lurkers are incredible defenders, in that their splash damage can really dispatch an enemy ground force quickly.  Hydralisk are excellent against air units, and Spore Colonies are excellent heavily-armored dectors.  Despite requiring creep, the Sunken and Spore Colonies are the most heavily armored defense structures in StarCraft, packing a walloping 400 HP while costing 175 minerals (including Done).

Burrowed units on defense are very effective. They make it more difficult for an enemy to assess the strength of your defenses.  Unfortunately, burrowed defenders require altertness on your part; if the enemy attacks and you don't unburrow your defenses, it could spell trouble.  An excellent defence setup involves a combination of Zergling and Hydralisk, unburrowed, out a bit from the edge of a line of three or four Sunken Colonies. A short distance out from the Creep, in the direction the attack is expected, burrow another group of units, and more units out a bit further still.  When rushed, allow the invasionary force to approach your unburrowed units.  The enemy's units will attack, but as they're blocked by your defensive units they should be far enough away so as to not be able to target the Sunken Colonies, while still being hit by the Subterranian Tentacles.  Seal off any escape attempt by unburrowing your outer forces and hitting the enemy from behind.  They'll be crushed in moments. They beauty of th    is defensive tactic is that some attacking players, when a victim of this, will panic when they see the force coming from behind them.  They'll get their units to turn away from the base to face the onslaught, which is a loss of precous seconds for them.  Also, by swarming in this manner, the effectiveness of the Zergling is maximized due to the close quarters.

This setup requires a slight tweak when facing Terrans.  Burrow your outer forces a bit further than normal.  Most Terran players will attack with a combination of Marines/Firebats, Medics, Wraiths, and Siege Tanks.  Due to the extreme range of the tanks, your opponent will put them in Siege Mode a short distance from your base as soon as his faster infantry and Wraiths have engaged your defenses at the creep line.  Hopefully, they'll be in Siege Mode right above your outer line of burrowed units.  Pop them up, and slaughter the tanks!  If the Terran player is dumb, he'll take the tanks out of Siege Mode, by which time they should all be toast without having fired a single shot.  If the tank fires at the units that are swarming it, he'll end up hitting himself anyway (the Siege Tank does splash damage).  An effective counter to this defense for the Terran player: prior to attacking the actual base, set up your tanks in Siege Mode while ComSatting the edge of the Creep.  If any burrowed units are around, the t    anks will take care of them. Also, a Science Vessel with the ability to Irradiate does well against masses of units, although Irradiating burrowed units takes away from its ranged effect. Just the same, Irradiate is a great way to take out lurkers and swarms of defenders.

If heavy defenses are required, heavy use of Sunken Colonies in combination with Lurkers and other troops make for impenitrable defenses.  Try lining your Colonies side by side in a wall.  Station Hydralisks behind them and Zergling out in front. The idea is to prolong the life of your Hydralisks and Sunken Colonies. Just be careful to spot any long range units or casters; use the burrowed tactic mentioned above to kill them before they come in range.

Be careful with Defilers on defense.  Although Plague and Dark Swarm work well during attacks on other bases, avoid using them as a defensive measure. Careless deployment could result in the Plaguing of your own units and buildings.  Remember that the swarm's protection will affect ALL units underneath.  Don't Dark Swarm your defenses, only to be over-run by melee units and discover your attackers are safe under the swarm!

To defend against air units, enlist a combination of Hydralisks, Spore Colonies, and Scourge. Have the Scourge patrol back and forth across your base.  They are usually able to auto-acquire enemy transports full of troops and destroy them along with their living cargo before any units are unloaded.  Spore Colonies and Hydralisks should be able to handle the rest.

If your enemy is Protoss, the Corsair's Disruption web can be a real pain. Be sure to have some Scourge along with a good mix of Guardians and Devourers on hand to take out any attackers while the web is in effect.  Using Dark Swarm on friendly buildings/units affected by the Web is a good way to be sure they are safe from ranged attackers; melee units cannot attack under the Web, so your units will be safe from everything but Reavers and Siege Tanks.

One other note: units burrowed along the edges of your Creep will allow you to quickly dispatch any Ghosts that attempt nuclear strikes, saving you from the devastating Nuclear Missile.