And, btw, protoss units' shields don't need pylons to function; they
just need themselves. Their technology is such that machines can
'harness' psi.

Build a photon cannon and destroy all of the pylons around it, then 

watch

what it does without the psi from the pylon the next time you're 

attacked.

  You missed the point; one person said that protoss shields needed 
pylons to function, and they obviously DON'T. 

Also, to use a video scene as a reference -- near the end of the game a
zealot sees a zergling approaching so he powers up his psi blades, 

  It was Fenix and a hydralisk. Yes, the old coot knows! 

and oops,

they flicker out and die.  That wont happen in the actual gameplay but 

it is

made obvious that Psi is generated in certain areas of Aiur (misspelled 

as

it is) and is imported to the battlefields just like the buildings and 

units

  That's a rather irrational view, isn't it? So, without the presence of 
pylons (let's say in the Tassadar installation raid), zealots and the 
like can't power their shields, and zealots can't power their psi 
blades. Sure....
  Protoss shields (and zealot psi blades) are self-contained on the 
unit; so sure, maybe sometimes it'll flicker out and die (just after the 
warranty expires), but it certainly don't come from any stinkin' pylon. 
  As I said before, the pylon merely serves as a focus of psi energies. 
As they are made from khaydarin crystals, that's why the zerg needed a 
piece before they could properly summon the Overmind to Aiur to wreak 
his control. 

you use.  My take on Templaars is that they take a lot of time 

absorbing psi

power (say, from the psi network) and can channel that into a few 

seconds of

firepower when they need to.

If you insist on saying that psi comes from within that is fine if you 

want

to write something that includes it  -- afterall, psi has to be 

generated

*somewhere*.  I just think it is sticking with the game more if you say 

that

the Protoss get their power from the psi network.

  All pylons do is get the machines running and allow you to bring in 
guys that cost psi resources to warp in. 
  It is explicitly stated that protoss have a telepathic connection of 
sorts to each other, and that's what the Dark Templar cut off when they 
go into exile. If the protoss themselves are not psionic, then there's 
no purpose to doing that. 

"That's my story and I'm sticking to it."--JMS, creator of Babylon 5. 
"If you go to Z'ha'dum, you will die."--Kosh, Babylon 5.
"Understanding is a three-edged sword."--Kosh, Babylon 5. 
"Never show your hand until the end."--me, being profound. 

--Razorclaw X

______________________________________________________
Get Your Private, Free Email at http://www.hotmail.com