ZERG F→A · Brood War

ZvP — 2-base 5-hatch Hydra

Nagnar's beginner build — a separate page, not a replacement for the main 3-hatch Spire build. ← Back to the main ZvP build

Stay on 2 bases, get 5 hatcheries and Hydra/Lurker out, then take your 3rd behind them. No early Spire, no Muta micro — just macro.

Build order

1:32 = clock time · 9 = supply · @ = trigger · grey = milestone · click a step or [ ] to track
  1. 0:549Overlord
  2. 1:149Spawning Pool — the Overpool
  3. 2:012nd baseHatchery at natural
  4. 2:10LingsZerglings ×4 (8–12 vs Gate FE / 2 Gate, then resume droning)
  5. 2:4513Hatchery (3) — simcity at natural
  6. 3:00GasExtractor (main) — vs Forge FE; later vs Gate FE / 2 Gate, lings first
  7. 3:402ndOverlord (2nd)
  8. 4:00Ling speedMetabolic Boost (~3:50–4:57)
  9. 4:154th hatchHatchery (4)
  10. 4:553rdOverlord (3rd)
  11. 5:05DenHydralisk Den — simcity at natural
  12. 5:35@100 gasLair
  13. 5:40Nat gas2nd Extractor at natural
  14. 5:55Hydra speedMuscular Augments — the ~6:00 macro moment, order flexes
  15. 6:00HydrasHydralisks
  16. 6:055th hatchHatchery (5)
  17. 6:45EvoEvolution Chamber
  18. 6:50LurkersLurker Aspect
  19. 7:25Missile +1Zerg Missile Attacks +1
  20. 7:35Overlord speedPneumatized Carapace
  21. 8:00Hydra rangeGrooved Spines
  22. 8:503rd gas3rd base + 3rd gas — 6th Hatchery at the 3rd; transfer 12 drones (6 from main, 6 from natural)
  23. 10:20ScourgeSpire — Scourge / Muta switch only, NOT the mid-game plan
  24. 12:45Queen's NestQueen's Nest → Hive (Queen's Nest ~12:45, Hive ~13:30; OK to delay if behind)
  25. 15:00HiveDefiler Mound + Adrenal Glands — 4th base, 7th Hatchery, 3 Evos toward 3-3-3

Timings are medians across 10 Nagnar replays (Apocalypse, Polypoid, Vermeer SE, Retro). The 5:55 / 6:00 / 6:05 steps are one ~6:00 macro moment — their order flexes game to game, so the timer staggers them by 5 seconds to speak each one. All 25 steps are voiced — the five beginner clips arrived 2026-10-28 and were wired in the same day.

Why this build

  • 2 bases are easier to defend than 3, especially vs Gateway FE and sairless play. You cannot practice your fundamentals when you are dying.
  • Lurkers instead of Mutas: lurkers are easier to control and defend with. Mutas need expert micro in either role.
  • Zerg macro is limited by larva more than by minerals or gas — 5 hatcheries on 2 bases gives nearly the larva of a 3-base opening, and the game converges with a 3-base opening once the 3rd is taken and drones transfer.
  • It scales: fine for complete beginners, still works at A rank. No rush to learn a Muta opening.

The one rule

  • Do not skip steps. If Lair and Hydra speed are done but you don't have the 5th Hatchery yet, build the 5th Hatchery FIRST — do not get Lurker Aspect.
  • Past ~4:00 the build banks gas and is mineral-constrained, so exact tech timings matter less than spending larva and not getting supply blocked. Make the next building or tech only with excess resources after spending all larva.
  • Never idle 3 larva on a hatchery, and never cancel eggs — cancelled eggs return the resources but not the larva.

Taking your 3rd — checklist

  • Move out with 4 Lurkers + Overlord speed + Hydras once you have: 5 hatcheries, ~45–50 drones (~2.5 per patch, 6 on gas), Hydra speed, Hydra range, Lurker Aspect, +1 range upgrading, Overlord speed, 4 Lurkers, 12+ Hydras.
  • Drone path: stop ~38 drones → ~24 Hydras → resume droning to 45–50.
  • Do not attack into cannon + Psi Storm until you have Defilers + Lurkers + upgraded lings. A soft contain to delay their 3rd is fine; a hard contain is an all-in and is not recommended.
  • Once Protoss has Storm, leave the simcity and fight on the map.

Scouting — sairless check ~4:00–4:15

  • Forge idle + natural gas = Corsair play.
  • Forge spinning (+1 started ~3:50–4:15) + no natural gas = sairless.
  • Stargate openings start +1 later (~4:30) and take natural gas ~4:00.
  • Scout the Forge with lings outside his natural; scout gas with an Overlord sent ahead of time. 2 Hydras defend the first Corsair.

vs 2 Gate

  • This build is one of the best choices vs 2 Gate: a larva economy for lings plus a single defensive choke at your natural.
  • Always a Sunken at the natural as soon as the hatchery finishes vs any 2 Gate — no need to read which 2 Gate it is.
  • The 3rd Hatchery in the natural doubles as a wall (funnels Zealots) and as larvae. 4 lings per Zealot; never fight all lings vs all Zealots — take the map with lings and use the counterattack threat.
  • Exception: vs 2 Gate 1 Base Tech into Reaver — 4-hatch Hydra, stop droning ~1.5 per patch, all Hydras, speed then range instead of Lair/Lurker.

After the 3rd

  • Spire is for Scourge (drop defense) and Muta switches: 10–11 Mutas to snipe High Templar while dodging Storms, repeated as needed. It costs Lurkers — only worth it if it kills enough Templar.
  • Take the 4th base as soon as possible (7th Hatchery as soon as you have the spare 300 minerals) — the extra larva helps hold the midgame Zealot + Dragoon + High Templar push.
  • Build 2 more Evolution Chambers (3 total) for melee and carapace toward 3-3-3. Delay Queen's Nest if behind or struggling to hold the push — Hive tech makes holding harder.
  • Hive plan: Adrenal Glands, Defiler Mound, Consume, Plague. Zerg needs Plague to fight a Protoss who secures a 3rd gas. Once you have Dark Swarm, Plague and upgraded lings, switch from mainly Hydra/Lurker to mainly Lurker + ling, and don't attack the Protoss army until it is plagued.

How this differs from the main ZvP

  • No early Spire/Mutas. Spire is ~10:20 here (Scourge/Muta switch only) vs 5:08 Spire / 6:00 Mutas ×5 in the main build.
  • Army first: Den ~5:05 and Hydras ~6:00, about a minute earlier than the main build's Den 6:30 / Hydras 7:00 — and Lair comes after the Den here (5:35, for Lurker + Hive) instead of before it (3:55, for Spire).
  • Same opening: Overpool, natural ~2:01, 3rd ~2:45, gas ~3:00, ling speed ~4:00. The builds diverge at the Den/Lair decision, not the opening.
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