StarCraft TMG – Protoss Starter Set Founders Edition

As there are three factions in StarCraft, and the third one, the Protoss, was still missing from our first unboxing. Similar to how the story of StarCraft itself kicked off as a conflict between Terrans and Zerg, the Protoss aren't part of the Two Player Starter Set. Instead, they get their own standalone box - The Protoss Starter Set Founders Edition.

This isn't a stand-alone game in the sense of including everything you need from scratch, it's more of an addition to the Two Player Starter Set. It covers the Protoss force (miniatures, cards, and cardboard) and the dice to play with, but no terrain or playmat, those still come from the Two Player box.

The Protoss Starter Set Founders Edition was ~95 EUR within the Gamefound campaign, and the RRP now after release is 109 EUR, the same as the regular Protoss Starter Set. We covered the Terrans and Zerg in the first unboxing, and we'll cover the Protoss in this one.

What Is StarCraft, Anyway?

Quick recap for anyone landing on Part 2 first: StarCraft is Blizzard's genre-defining real-time strategy series, built around three wildly asymmetric factions, Terran, Zerg, and Protoss, that somehow still stay balanced against each other. Archon Studio's tabletop adaptation translates that into 32mm-scale skirmish combat. For the full rundown on the setting and the Gamefound launch, see Part 1.

The Three Factions

• Terran: Humanity's expeditionary forces, built around flexible infantry and vehicles. Marines, Medics, and Marauders form the backbone, adaptable rather than flashy, closest to a "generalist" faction that can lean into whatever a given matchup calls for.
• Zerg: An overwhelming biological swarm led by heroes like Kerrigan. Cheap, expendable units in huge numbers, Zerglings and Roaches, designed to win through weight of attacks rather than individual unit quality. If Terran is the generalist, Zerg is the faction that answers "how do I deal with that" by simply having more bodies than the enemy has bullets.
• Protoss: The polar opposite of the Zerg on the quantity-versus-quality spectrum. Where a Zerg player counts miniatures, a Protoss player counts abilities. You'll field far fewer models overall (compare the Two Player Set's 49 Terran and Zerg miniatures combined to what you get in this box), but each one hits harder, survives longer, and does more on the table.

That last point is worth unpacking, since it's the main reason the Protoss box plays so differently from the other two. Every Protoss unit carries a shield on top of its normal wounds, an extra defensive buffer that has to be worn down before real damage starts. As of the current rules there's no way to restore a destroyed shield mid-game, so shields work less like regenerating armor and more like a one-time cushion. Combined with generally higher stat lines, this is what makes Protoss units feel "beefy" next to a Terran Marine or a Zergling.

What's in the Box?

The Protoss Starter Set is decently filled. It doesn't carry the same punch as the Two Player Starter Set, but it's only half the price, and this feels more like the Terrans and Zerg in the first unboxing in scope.

In detail the Protoss boxed set covers the following items:

6x Zealot miniatures
4x Adept miniatures
1x Adept Shade Miniature
2x Sentry miniatures
2x Force Field miniatures
1x Artanis miniature
1x Pylon miniature
11x 40mm Bases
2x 50mm Bases
3x 80mm Bases
24x Cards
1x Rules Reference
1x Assembly Manual
1x Ruler
20x D6 Dice
30x Tokens

Just like the Two Player Starter Set, this doesn't come with a rulebook, just a rules reference sheet. You can download the rules for StarCraft TMG for free from their website. What you do get are multiple card decks (unit, tactical, faction, mission, and deployment cards) and a full set of dice.

One thing worth calling out specifically: the two Force Field miniatures aren't just scatter terrain, they're physical stand-ins for the Sentry's Force Field ability, a temporary wall that blocks movement through a given area. It's a nice touch that you get a proper marker for that instead of having to improvise one, and it's a good early sign of how much this box leans into ability-driven, positional play rather than just adding more bodies to the table.

Just like with the Terrans and Zerg, the assembly instructions for the Protoss are easy to understand, with a good overview of all the sprues and model parts included. As mentioned in Part 1, the layout and design closely follow recent Games Workshop starter set instructions.

Archon Studio's multipart plastic kits come with build options here too, and the instructions give proper guidance on which options are available for each pose.

Same base and magnet setup as the Two Player Set, beveled, textured round bases with a magnet mount built in from the start; That is great feature, yet I would recommend adding more magnets or at least using larger ones for the larger bases.

The Protoss also get their own printed cardboard sheet of tokens and markers, same set of types as the other two factions (Mission Markers, Activation Markers, Faction Indicators, First Player Markers, Buff/Debuff Markers, and the L-shaped Zone of Influence Markers).

Protoss

This Starter Set only covers the 1,000 Mineral Force of the Protoss, no terrain. It includes 17 miniatures across five different golden sprues, along with four clear sprues in blue for effects and special parts on the miniatures.

Artanis and Pylon (RRP 45 EUR)

6x Zealot (2 boxes, RRP 35 EUR each = 70 EUR)

4x Adept and 1x Adept Shade (RRP 35 EUR)

2x Sentry and 2x Force Field (RRP 29 EUR)

Conclusion

The Founders Edition of the Protoss set covers content with an RRP of 179 EUR, for a release price of 109 EUR (or roughly 95 EUR if you got in during the Gamefound preorder). That's a solid discount, and picking it up from a third-party retailer can shave off a bit more.

I already covered the launch hiccups in the Two Player Starter Set unboxing, no need to repeat them here. What is worth flagging specifically for the Protoss line: the Founders Edition configuration, Artanis and Pylon included, is still available through regular retail at that same 109 EUR. But there's also a second, separate Protoss Starter Set now arriving in retail at the exact same price and the exact same discount structure, just swapping Artanis and Pylon for a Stalker instead. So the idea that being a Founder buys you an exclusive deal doesn't fully hold up: retail buyers get essentially the same value proposition, just with a different hero unit in the box, not identical contents, but the same discount depth.

If you weren't able to grab the Founders Edition and specifically want Artanis, keep an eye out for that exact configuration rather than assuming the new Stalker-based set is a straight substitute. And if third-party vendors discount either version by 15 to 20%, which I've already seen happening, that can end up being an even better deal than what Founders backers originally got.

Regardless of whether you opt for a Founders Edition army set or the standard retail product. 1,000 Mineralian points, a total value of 180 EUR (RRP) for 109 EUR is a decent deal, and since we’ve drawn – and must draw – a comparison with Warhammer, a Combat Patrol Box with a similar amount of miniatures, at 135 EUR, is priced even higher, whilst the StarCraft army sets certainly hold their own.

Product value is solid across this range. When you're working with a beloved IP like this, Blizzard is clearly making sure the licensee delivers a proper product, and Archon Studio has. Casting quality is very convincing, especially the clear plastics, which are clean with no stress marks or impurities. Mold lines are minimal; just be cautious cleaning up the clear parts, since they're more prone to scratches (and you probably don't want to paint over them anyway). The Protoss, with their number of power weapons and cloak fields, are probably the faction that benefits the most from this design choice. Just handle them with care, since excess glue can cause smudges or fogging, and make sure to mask the transparent parts when priming.

StarCraft TMG is a game by Blizzard Entertainment and Archon Studio.

The reviewed product item was bought from Radaddel.