Combat Vehicles

Combat Vehicles are machines that can be constructed by engineering (once the appropriate research has been completed) that can be deployed in place of soldiers on the battlefield.

All robotic units:

• are immune to stun, gas and morale effects
• are vulnerable to EMP damage
• always begin missions with fully loaded weapons (but cannot reload)
• do not require weapon manufacturing (engineering can upgrade their weapons, which is a one-time topic that permanently upgrades their weapons).
• have a limit on how many can be deployed on a ship (1 for the Phantom, 2 for the Dragonfly and 3 for the Pegasus).

They are a versatile alternative to soldiers that fulfill the roles of frontlines, demolitionists or utility supports, depending on the choice of equipment and weapons.

Vehicle Types

MARS Combat Platforms

MARS Combat Platform

MARS Combat Platforms can be constructed in Engineering once the Combat Vehicles research project has been completed. They cost $250,000 to produce and have an upkeep cost of $5,000. Once constructed they can be used in place of regular soldiers. MARS Combat Platforms use their own loadout separate from human soldiers. Their armor is upgraded automatically. MARS Combat Platforms have the following stats:

• 100 Health
• 80 Time Units
• 50 Accuracy
• 100 Strength
• 25 Reflexes
• 100 Bravery

Sentry Guns

Sentry Guns can be constructed in Engineering once the Combat Vehicles research project has been completed. They are usable during base defense, and act as cheap fodder units that carry respectable firepower. Each one costs $40000 and has an upkeep cost of $2000. If a sentry gun is destroyed, it can be rebuilt at half of the cost. They are always equipped with the latest machine gun available. Sentry guns have the following stats:

• 80 Health
• 40 Time Units
• 50 Accuracy
• 100 Strength
• 75 Reflexes
• 100 Bravery

ARES Support Platform

ARES Support Platforms can be constructed upon completion of the Antigravity Emitter research project ^{[verify] may have other prerequisites} and are generally upgrade versions of the MARS. They share the same construction cost and upkeep as the MARS, but also requires 20 Alenium and 20 Alloys each to construct. They have the following stats:

• 100 Health
• 90 Time Units
• 55 Accuracy
• 50 Strength
• 40 Reflexes
• 100 Bravery

ARES uniquely have jetpack capabilities, giving them the same mobility as soldiers for flying over terrain. They additionally have more armor points (see below) for the same tier of armor compared to MARS, giving them an edge in durability.

Vehicle Weapons

The following weapons can only be used by the MARS and ARES combat platforms.

Weapon	Damage	Destruction (armor per hit)	Range (tiles)	Hit Bonus (per tile)	Capacity (shots)	Fire Modes	Type	Required research
Cannon	70 Kinetic	-10	30	1%	20	Normal Shot (100% Acc, 44% TU) Aimed Shot (130% Acc, 54% TU)	Primary
Rocket Launcher Turret	36 Kinetic	-10	25	1%	6	Normal Shot (120% Acc, 50% TU) Salvo Fire X3 (120% Acc, 60% TU)	Primary
Ballistic Autorifle	34 Kinetic	-2	20	1.25%	100	Snap Shot (45% Acc, 24% TU) Normal Shot (80% Acc, 36% TU) Aimed Shot (120% Acc, 48% TU) Burst Shot X3 (40% Acc, 50% TU)	Secondary
Smoke Launcher	None	0	12	12%	4	Normal Shot (45% Acc, 20% TU) Aimed Shot (80% Acc, 28% TU)	Secondary
Laser Cannon	95 Thermal	-10	30	1%	20	Normal Shot (100% Acc, 44% TU) Aimed Shot (130% Acc, 54% TU)	Primary	Heavy Lasers
Laser Autorifle	40 Thermal	-8	20	1.25%	100	Snap Shot (45% Acc, 24% TU) Normal Shot (80% Acc, 36% TU) Aimed Shot (120% Acc, 48% TU) Burst Shot X3 (40% Acc, 50% TU)	Secondary	Heavy Lasers
Alenium Rocket Turret	52 Thermal	-15	25	1%	6	Normal Shot (120% Acc, 50% TU) Salvo Fire X3 (120% Acc, 60% TU)	Primary	Alenium Explosives
Gauss Cannon	120 Kinetic	-10	30	1%	20	Normal Shot (100% Acc, 44% TU) Aimed Shot (130% Acc, 54% TU)	Primary	Heavy Gauss Weaponry
Gauss Autorifle	60 kinetic	-4	20	1.25%	100	Snap Shot (45% Acc, 24% TU) Normal Shot (80% Acc, 36% TU) Aimed Shot (120% Acc, 48% TU) Burst Shot X3 (40% Acc, 50% TU)	Secondary	Heavy Gauss Weaponry
Plasma Rocket Turret	80 Thermal	-20	25	1%	6	Normal Shot (120% Acc, 50% TU) Salvo Fire X3 (120% Acc, 60% TU)	Primary	Fusion Rockets

Vehicle Armors

These are armors available for the MARS and ARES to use in combat. Armor Penetration Reduction is a property of the armor that reduces the amount of shredding that armor will receive when taking damage. The research topic specified in this table shows the topic that reveals the upgrade project in Engineering. After this upgrade project, all vehicles will begin to use the upgraded armor at no cost.

It is worth mentioning that the ARES is more effective with armor - the same armor on the ARES will have a higher rating relative to the other two.

Armor	MARS/Sentry Armor (value if Heavy)	ARES Armor (value if Heavy)	Armor Penetration Reduction	Required Research
Steel Plating	15 (25)[verify]	20 (30)	0	None; available at start
Alloy Plating	25 (40)[verify]	30 (45)	5	UFO Hull Plating[verify]
Ceramite Plating	35 (55)[verify]	40 (60)	10	Advanced Alloys[verify]
Shielded Plating	45 (70)	50 (75)	20	[needs information]