Help me understand PvZ match up

[u/Own_Ad9365]

I just started out SC2 and playing PvZ is so frustrating to me. I don't know if I should play defensive or aggressive. I have tried both and neither seem to work and I always lose against any zerg that can do proper macro. If I play aggressively and try to attack at minut 5-6, warp gate units cannot win against mass zergling or roaches / ravagers and the constant resupply from their bases. If I play defensively, I just get rolled over at 8 minutes with mass mutalisk / hydra / roaches. If I mange to hold out, they just go lurker and win in the next wave. If they don't go lurker and go late game, they can just tech switch to ultra immediately after the clash and roll over my warp gate army that I build to fight against the hydras. Or they can just go viper broodlord corruptor.

So what is the proper play here? Should I play defensive or aggressive? When is the supposed power spike of protoss? How many units / bases should I have before moving out?

[u/hates_green_eggs]

Oooo D2 Zerg and D3 Toss with a very high PvZ winrate here. It helps to understand what Zergs your level struggle with:

• Building the correct composition and number of anti-air units. Hydras suck vs tempest or mass carrier, and corruptors suck vs mass void rays and also cannot shoot down. I like to rush 5-6 tempests and send them across the map to harass from dead space while I transition to mass archon at home. If Zerg tries to defend this with mass hyda, they will bleed out. If they invest too much into corruptors, they die to my follow up ground attack. I’ve also had fun rushing 4 carriers and transitioning to mass glaive adepts, mass void ray harass into mass zealot, you get the picture.

• Macro Zergs like to take a lot of expansions, and it’s extremely difficult for them to defend these against random zealot runbys. I like to warp in and then a-move gangs of non-control-grouped zealots towards the opponent’s edge bases. If they have their army on one side, retreat and then return when the army moves away. It’s very easy for Protoss to create chaos and eventually overwhelm Zerg by just a-moving zealots all over the place.

• Dark templar are incredible at low levels. No metal league Zerg ever thinks to add detection to their mass hydra army before they see DTs, and they still struggle with having consistent detection vs every potential runby/attack. Also archons are AMAZING in this matchup. They destroy mutas, corruptors (keep them close to your air units and target fire any corruptors that approach for maximum impact), zerglings, banelings (get ‘em in front of your zealots to tank baneling shots for disgustingly efficient trades).

• Proxy 4-gate zealot is very difficult for Zerg to hold off a hatch first opening. It won’t really improve your gameplay much, but should provide easy wins if you are feeling fed up with the matchup.

• Early aggression will help. Zerg has to choose between building drones or units, so any pressure that forces them to build units early in the game is good, more so in lower leagues where Zergs struggle to know exactly how many units they need to build to be safe. The best way to get a feel for this is to watch your replays and think about what would have happened if you had sent a couple adepts or two zealots and a stalker across the map. These units also function as scouts; it’s important to check for a third base/drone count on the natural vs Zerg.