Special abilities cannot be used when units are inside the Bunker. Marines and Firebats cannot Stim Pack. Ghosts cannot cast any of their spells. You can, however, Stim Pack Marines and Firebats, then place them inside a Bunker. You must cast it outside the Bunker, then place them inside it.

Bunkers do not do add anything offensively to the units inside them, although they do give Marines inside a very slight increase in range. The primary purpose of Bunkers is to soak up damage from attacks. All damage is applied to the Bunkers rather than the units inside them. Only when the Bunker is destroyed will units inside be open to take damage.

If you want to increase the effectiveness of your Bunkers and place Marines in them, then research U-238 Shells at the Academy to increase the range of fire for the Marines inside. Then upgrade Infantry Weapons at the Engineering Bay to allow the Marines to do more damage.

Bunkers can be repaired. Place multiple SCVs on repairing your Bunkers.

Queue Bunker loading.
Select the Bunker then hold down Shift. While holding down Shift select Load or hot key L and click on each unit you want to load, no matter where they are or how far they are away. Release the Shift button when you have clicked on all the units you want to load. The Units will move to the Bunker and get in on their own. You can also select all units you want to load into the Bunker, then right click on the Bunker which you may find easier in some situations. To load multiple Bunkers, select a group of Marines, hold down Shift, and right-click on the Bunkers you want to load. The Marines will fill up each Bunker in order.

What to place in the Bunkers?
Firebats in Bunkers work great against Zealot and Zergling attacks but less so against other attacks such as Hydralisks and Marines. You may want to rotate the units in your Bunkers depending on what you are being attacked by. If all Zerglings or Zealots, use all Firebats. If they are using a mix of forces, 3 Marines and 1 Firebat is a nice combination, and if you are being attacked by Hydralisks, Marines, or air units solely, use all Marines.

Place Ghosts in Bunkers to protect them while they are building up energy and to hide them. A single Ghost (especially with the Ocular Implants upgrade) can spot for Siege Tanks. When being attacked by mechanical units, you also can pop out of the Bunker, cast Lockdown, then get back into the Bunker again. Ghosts should not be used for defense in Bunkers. They have added range, but their attack is largely useless against most units. Marines and Firebats will do a better job.

Repair Bunkers During Attacks
When the enemy attacks your Bunkers, grab a large group of SCVs and repeatedly right-click on the Bunkers to repair them. By doing this, you can extend the life of the Bunker until the enemy is destroyed or you are finally overcome with superior forces.

You'll discover that by doing this to all your Bunkers, you can survive and win battles you never thought possible. If the enemy decides to attack the SCVs, run with them in circles around your Bunkers, so the Bunkers will finish off the attackers. If they stop following the SCVs, return to repairing the Bunkers again. If the enemy uses Patrol or Attack move, the Bunkers will be prioritized, meaning it will attack them first, so usually you don't have to worry about your SCVs being attacked unless they are specifically targeted by the enemy. Another trick you can do is have some of your SCVs repairing the SCVs repairing the Bunker (Still with me?).

The above picture is an example of the Terrans defeating the 6/8 Zergling rush. On SCV #7, build a Barracks, with SCV #8 build a Depot. As soon as the Supply Depot is done, train Marines while building a Bunker in the SCV mining stream. Then when the enemy attacks you should have 2-4 Marines in your Bunker. Select all your SCVs and repeatedly right click on the Bunker if the Zerglings attack it. If the Zergling come after your SCVs, run them around around the Bunker and let the Marines inside finish the Zerglings off.

Guard Passes
Initially, you can keep enemies from using key passes with a few Bunkers and some Marines. As the enemies start to build mid-range units you will have to add in Siege Tanks. Then, to Detect cloaking units build a Missile Turret. If you notice in this picture this setup is vulnerable to attack from above, but this is a point in the game where the enemy isn't very likely to have that technology. A setup like this will force the enemy to go around it using transports. Remember that this isn't an end-all defense, but a delaying tactic, making it harder to get into your town.

Wall-in Bunkers
Although it is fairly difficult to wall in Bunkers completely, you can make it difficult for the enemy to reach them. In this setup, small units such as Zerglings and Marines would able to reach the Bunker. A few Zealots might be able to attack it also, but most of the sides of the Bunker are covered by buildings. This makes Bunkers much harder to destroy, but keep in mind this makes them difficult to group repair also, and you run the risk of blocking your larger units.

Overlapping Fire
Here is another nice Terran town. Bunkers are built so they cover each other and the SCVs mining, especially with the U-238 Shells upgrade for added Marine attack range. It is important that your Bunkers are able to cover each other.

Use Stim Packed Marines in the Bunker
You cannot Stim Pack Marines while they are in a Bunker, but you can have Stim Packed Marines in a Bunker. What you do is Unload the Marines in the Bunker by pressing the button or hot key U as shown in this picture.

Select the Marines by double clicking on one, or click on a Marine while holding down Control to quickly group select them (as it's the only way the Stim Pack option will be available). You can use click and drag group select if no other units are in the way. Quickly hit T for Stim Pack, then right click on the Bunker. The Marines will enter the Bunker while still having Stim Pack.

Running a few tests you will see how effective this is as opposed to not Stim Packing. Testing an Ultralisk attacking the Bunker with 4 Marines without StimPack, the Ultralisk was destroyed with only 20 hit points left on the Bunker. Using Stim Packed Marines inside the Bunker, the Ultralisk was destroyed with 200 hit points left on the Bunker-- quite an improvement. The same can be done with Firebats if you're fighting a lot of Zerglings and/or Zealots.

Combine that with SCVs repairing the Bunker while it is being attacked and you have a nightmare for the attackers. If you practice this, you can do it very fast. The only problem results when there are other units or buildings around the Bunker so that the Marines don't unload in a nice line. Then the problem is quickly group selecting them without catching any other units in the group to use a StimPack.

The alternative method is to simply leave the four Marines outside the Bunker, then when they are about to be attacked, StimPack, and load them up. Be careful, though, because you might not notice when the Bunker comes under attack, leaving you with four unprotected Marines. If you are watching carefully, you might like this way of doing it better. Try both and use either depending on the situation.

Use High Ground and Ramps Bunkers filled with Marines are placed at the top of this ramp on (4)Brushfire. This takes advantage of high ground, meaning that enemies on the lower ground trying to reach them will only have a 70% chance to hit. This makes transporting around this setup, or air units, the best way for the enemy to attack you at this point. If that fails, sheer numbers will eventually overcome the Bunkers. Later on, Siege Tanks are added to provide more defense. A Missile Turret is built to spot any cloaked units. SCVs can also repair any damaged units. Keep in mind that there is nothing to stop the enemy from using Dropships to bypass this setup, unless you build a LOT of Missile Turrets. This simply discourages direct attacks, and is very effective against less experienced players. Summary The Terrans have the most expensive "ground tower", but it's also the most versatile and in many ways the most powerful. Able to attack both air and ground, fully repairable, and with 350 Hit Points, even a single Bunker isn't to be taken lightly.

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