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"Behold, there is a temple, not far from here, that lies upon ground most hallowed. Though I have born witness to the passing of countless millennia, the temple which you must assault is older by far. For it was constructed by my creators, the Xel'Naga, and it marks the site where the Xel'Naga first set foot upon Aiur."

- The Overmind(src)

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A xel'naga temple on Shakuras

A xel'naga temple is a xel'naga structure, found on various worlds. Some temples have special functions. The one such renowned was created by the xel'naga on the world of Shakuras;[1] it was used by the protoss to destroy the zerg which had infested the world,[2] and destroy the planet after it was infested with the hybrid and zerg under Amon.[3] The largest of these temples was Ulnar, which housed the slumbering xel'naga ready to ascend the chosen races to continue the Infinite Cycle and served as a gateway into the Void.[4]

The term "temple" is a misnomer, as there is nothing to suggest any form of worship took place in them. However, the name has stuck.

After the Battle of Bhekar Ro, a number of temples have begun unearthing themselves, drawing the attention of terran archaeologists and archeological patrons such as Jake Ramsey and Valerian Mengsk[5] and groups such as the Moebius Foundation.[6] Temples such as Ulnar played a key role in the End War.[4]

Known Temples[]

Temples of Alamar[]

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This article or section contains information about StarCraft: Ghost, which has been declared non-canon. Elements may be taken as 'flavor lore' however.
The content may be significantly out of date. Please do not add speculation to this article, and remember to cite a published source for details.
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This following section contains information from concept art that may not be canonical.
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Temples of Alamar

The temples of Alamar emit unstable electrical energy.[7][8] The temples were surrounded by jungles which could only grow around them.[9][10]

Temple of Atrias[]

Main article: Temple of Erris

The Temple of Erris was located on Atrias, and served as a Tal'darim base.[11] It was destroyed by Amon in an effort to eliminate Dark Prelate Zeratul.[12]

Temples of Aiur[]

Aiur is home to numerous xel'naga temples.

First Temple[]

The first protoss temple on the xel'naga-engineered world of Aiur was built on the spot where the xel'naga first set foot on Aiur.[13]

It was destroyed by the zerg so the Overmind could manifest itself physically on Aiur.[14]

Velari Temples[]

The Velari Templar School houses a number of temples, including an "inner" temple, and a "lower" temple hidden within ever-shifting catacombs. The lower temple housed the Kassia crystal, a potent xel'naga artifact.[15]

Ziggurat[]

Ziggurat SC1 Map1

The Ziggurat

Main article: Ziggurat (map)

"I can't believe my eyes. I finally found what I had been looking for all this time on Aiur. After evading the Terran blockade and quarantine of Aiur, dodging countless Zerg patrols both on the ground and in the air, and starving for the last two weeks, I've finally seen my dream take shape before my very eyes. I've found the Ziggurat, and it's more beautiful than I can imagine. I can die now a happy man."

- Final Transmission of Dr. Frederick Thompson, Xenoarchaelogist(src)

The Ziggurat is a protoss temple on Aiur discovered by the terran xenoarchaeologist Dr. Frederick Thompson.[16]

Enslavers Temple[]

An important temple on Aiur maintained a protoss base. If it was destroyed, the energy backlash would destroy the protoss structure.[17]

Plot branch : The Alpha Squadron commander does not rescue Mojo

In the unused branch of StarCraft: Enslavers, the Terran Dominion invaded Aiur, despite being warned off by Aldaris, in order to destroy the Schezar's Scavengers. Believing Alan Schezar's ability to control cerebrates to be based on technology plundered from a temple, the Dominion forces destroyed the temple nearest to the Scavengers' base. Doing so created an energy backlash which destroyed the structures in the protoss base.[17]

Plot branch ends here

Temple of Aridas[]

The following section contains information from StarCraft: Retribution.

The xel'naga hid the powerful Argus stone in a temple in the city of Taledon on the world of Aridas. The planet was eventually settled by terrans. Protoss Crusaders under the command of Judicator Kizrath traveled to the planet seeking the stone. Upon finding the temple, they destroyed it in order to retrieve the stone.[18]

Temple of Artika[]

XelNagaTemple SC-FL1 Comic1

The Artikan temple

A xel'naga temple is located on Artika. A battle between the zerg, protoss and Dominion Marine Corps was fought here after the Brood War. The protoss won but with heavy losses, causing some to question whether the victory was worth it.[19]

Temple of Bhekar Rho[]

The terran-colonized world of Bhekar Ro is home to another xel'naga temple. It was unearthed due to a powerful windstorm and activated when a terran approached too closely. The temple absorbed him.

The temple was surrounded by khaydarin crystals and appeared to be organic, possessing curves and angles giving it "the appearance of a cathedral built by overambitious insects." Shapes and runes are located on the outer shell. Studies on the temple were limited due to a battle which erupted among the terrans, protoss and zerg; all three races sent members within the temple in an attempt to learn its secrets (and prevent the other races from gaining any information from it). The terrans dropped a nuke on it, but the temple absorbed the energy and reached its full potential, absorbing the nearby zerg and protoss but discarding all of its terran victims (who emerged alive). The top of the temple was blasted open by an energy creature which had absorbed the genetics of both zerg and protoss. The temple released its excess energy, greatly enhancing crops nearby.[20]

The remaining structure was "pulverized" and all of its secrets were lost. Little data was taken due to the bloody battle that took place around and within it.[5]

Temples of Braken[]

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A map of the temples on Braken

The temples of Braken were destroyed during the Great War. It is associated with prophecies which claim that "he who harnesses this world will someday wield great a power, sanctified by the ancient ones".[21]

Temple of Monlyth[]

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The Burial Grounds

A temple on Monlyth was used by the xel'naga for burial.[22]

Temple of Nemaka[]

The temple of Nemaka, a formerly life-bearing world whose air was driven off by a massive meteorite collision,[5] has been described as "wild".[23] It was discovered about eleven years before the Brood War but was only briefly recorded by bored marines. At that time, the temple was "alive" with a green glow. It was surrounded by dozens, possibly hundreds of khaydarin crystals.[5]

In 2503[24] the temple was investigated by Jake Ramsey, an archaeologist hired by Valerian Mengsk. By this time, the temple was dead, at least on the outside, and something had cracked open the top from the inside (Ramsey believed this was the same type of energy creature seen on Bhekar Ro). Ramsey entered the temple using one of dozens of oval-shaped holes and eventually used the Golden Mean formula to enter its heart. There he found the near-dead Zamara, a protoss mystic,[5] who planted her memories (and many others) into his head using the powers of the temple itself.[25] Ramsey fell ill and the planet was abandoned by the terrans.[5]

Temple of Ketill IV[]

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The interior of Amon's temple

Emil Narud built Skygeirr Station on top of Amon's temple, situated on Ketill IV. The temple housed five smaller ones, which amplified Narud's powers. Alexei Stukov deactivated them, allowing Sarah Kerrigan to overcome Narud and momentarily incapacitate him.[26] Entering Amon's temple, the two did battle, with Kerrigan emerging victorious.[27]

Temple of Pegasus[]

The temple on Pegasus, described as "wild", went undiscovered by the terrans despite a 2501 expedition. Zamara, a protoss preserver, was aware of it and directed Zeratul to it in 2503. The temple's energy creature emerged when the prelate arrived and both travelled to a gathering of energy creatures in space. Zeratul entered the wormhole created by the creatures.[23]

Temple of Xil[]

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The entrance to the temple on Xil.

Xil housed a xel'naga temple holding a piece of the Keystone. It was defended by the Tal'darim. Its doors were hard to breach, requiring a powerful Drakken laser drill to do it. The artifact was taken by Raynor's Raiders for the Moebius Foundation, after breaking the doors using the laser drill.[28]

Temple of Shakuras[]

Ulnar[]

Main article: Ulnar

Voidshade Temple[]

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This article or section contains information derived from Co-op Missions, and should not be considered part of the official StarCraft storyline.
Xel'nagaTemple SC2-LotV Game2

The temple

During the End War, Amon's forces captured a xel'naga temple and used void slivers to channel Void energy into the temple, allowing him to summon a voidshade hybrid. This operation was discovered by the Nerazim scout Lyrak, who sent allied commanders to stop this summoning.[29]

Notes[]

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Close-up view of the temple's apex with a ring of "bugs."

In the older, pre-release version of StarCraft, the temple was a protoss structure which created archons. The building was removed from the tech tree when the method of creating archons (merging two high templar) was changed.[30]

Statues of "bugs" can be seen in the Shakuras temple (during the ending video of Episode IV). While the zerg are "bugs", these bugs didn't resemble any known zerg breeds.[2]

In the unused branch of StarCraft: Enslavers, the Terran Dominion invaded Aiur, despite being warned off by Aldaris, in order to destroy the Schezar's Scavengers. Believing Alan Schezar's ability to control cerebrates to be based on technology plundered from a temple, the Dominion forces destroyed the temple nearest to the Scavengers' base. Doing so created an energy backlash which destroyed the structures in the protoss base.[17]

References[]

  1. Blizzard Entertainment. StarCraft: Brood War. Vivendi Games. Mission: Legacy of the Xel'Naga (in English). 1998.
  2. 2.0 2.1 Blizzard Entertainment. StarCraft: Brood War. Vivendi Games. Cinematic: Fury of the Xel'Naga (in English). 1998.
  3. Blizzard Entertainment. StarCraft II: Legacy of the Void. (Activision Blizzard). PC. Mission: Last Stand. (in English). November 10, 2015
  4. 4.0 4.1 Blizzard Entertainment.StarCraft II: Legacy of the Void. (Activision Blizzard). PC. Mission: Temple of Unification. (in English). November 10, 2015
  5. 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 Golden, Christie (May 22, 2007). StarCraft: The Dark Templar Saga #1: Firstborn. Simon & Schuster (Pocket Star). ISBN 978-0-7434-7125-1.
  6. Elder, Josh (w), Ramanda Kamarga (p). "Voice in the Darkness." In StarCraft: Frontline: Volume 4 (paperback binding), pp. 72-113. Tokyopop, October 1, 2009. ISBN 978-1427-81698-6.
  7. Johnnie Estill. Temple Activation on Alamar. CGPortfolio - Johnnie H. Estill II. Accessed 2009-04-18.
  8. Johnnie Estill. Ancient Protoss Temple Has Been Activated 1.0. CGPortfolio - Johnnie H. Estill II. Accessed 2009-04-18.
  9. Johnnie Estill. Ancient Zel Naga Temples. CGPortfolio - Johnnie H. Estill II. Accessed 2009-04-18.
  10. Johnnie Estill. Blizzard Entertainment-StarCraft: Ghost Concept Art by Johnnie Estill (Planet Alamar Zel Naga Temples). Digitalenvi.com. The art of Johnnie H. Estill II. Accessed 2009-04-18.
  11. Blizzard Entertainment. StarCraft II: Legacy of the Void. (Activision Blizzard). PC. Mission: Whispers of Oblivion, Ghosts in the Fog (in English). 2015-07-15.
  12. Blizzard Entertainment. StarCraft II: Legacy of the Void. (Activision Blizzard). PC. Mission: Whispers of Oblivion, Evil Awoken (in English). 2015-07-15.
  13. Overmind: "Behold, there is a temple, not far from here, that lies upon ground most hallowed. Though I have born witness to the passing of countless millennia, the temple which you must assault is older by far. For it was constructed by my creators, the Xel'Naga, and it marks the site where the Xel'Naga first set foot upon Aiur." StarCraft. Vivendi Games. Level/area: Full Circle (in English). 1998.
  14. Blizzard Entertainment. StarCraft. Vivendi Games. Mission: Full Circle (in English). 1998.
  15. Zapotek, Ren (w), Noel Rodriguez (p, i), Mel Joy San Juan (i). "Twilight Archon." In StarCraft: Frontline: Volume 3 (paperback binding), pp. 132-177. Tokyopop, July 14, 2009. ISBN 978-1427-80832-5.
  16. 2000-08-26. Ziggurat. StarCraft Compendium Map Archives. Accessed 2007-06-30.
  17. 17.0 17.1 17.2 StarCraft. Vivendi Games. Mission: Enslavers bonus campaign, mission 3A: "Assault on Aiur" (in English). 1998.
  18. StarCraft: Retribution. WizardWorks Software. Protoss campaign: “The Legacy of Kharadun”, mission 8: “Taledon” (in English). 1999.
  19. Elder, Josh and Ramanda Kamarga. "Why We Fight." In StarCraft: Frontline: Volume 1, pp. 6–47. Tokyopop, August 1, 2008. ISBN 1427-80721-3.
  20. Mesta, Gabriel (July 1, 2001). StarCraft: Shadow of the Xel'Naga. Simon & Schuster (Pocket Star). ISBN 978-0671-04149-6.
  21. 1998-09-04. Legacy. StarCraft Compendium Map Archives.
  22. Blizzard Entertainment. StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty. (Activision Blizzard). Map: Burial Grounds (in English). July 27, 2010
  23. 23.0 23.1 Golden, Christie (June 30, 2009). StarCraft: The Dark Templar Saga #3: Twilight. Simon & Schuster (Pocket Star). ISBN 978-0-7434-7129-9.
  24. April 6, 2010. "Timeline". StarCraft II: Heaven's Devils. Simon & Schuster (Pocket Star). pp. 311 - 323. ISBN 978-1416-55084-6.
  25. Golden, Christie (November 27, 2007). StarCraft: The Dark Templar Saga #2: Shadow Hunters. Simon & Schuster (Pocket Star). ISBN 978-0-7434-7126-8.
  26. Blizzard Entertainment. StarCraft II: Heart of the Swarm. (Activision Blizzard). PC. Mission: Heart of the Swarm, Phantoms of the Void (in English). 2013-03-12.
  27. Blizzard Entertainment. StarCraft II: Heart of the Swarm. (Activision Blizzard). PC. Cinematic: Shifting Perspectives (in English). 2013-03-12.
  28. Blizzard Entertainment. StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty. (Activision Blizzard). PC. Mission: Wings of Liberty, The Dig (in English). 2010-07-27.
  29. 2017-04-27, Patch 3.13.0 Preview: Scythe of Amon. StarCraft.com, accessed on 2017-04-27
  30. Lord of Ascension. 2007-09-28. StarCraft Evolution. StarCraft Legacy. Accessed 2007-12-02.
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This page uses content from the English Wikipedia. The original content was at Psionic technology (StarCraft)#Xel'Naga temples

The list of authors can be seen in the page history of Psionic technology (StarCraft)#Xel'Naga temples.

Wikipedia content was licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License prior to June 15, 2009 is. Wikipedia content from June 15, 2009, and StarCraft Wiki content, is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike License 3.0 (Unported).
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