| Support Power | Old version(s) | Changelog |
Invulnerability is a support power that is the ability of the Soviet defensive superweapon, the Iron Curtain Device. It covers vehicles and buildings in its area-of-effect by a black-tinted energy shield that renders them completely impervious to any damage and external interference (such as mind control and confusion rays) for a period of time.
Invulnerability does not work on infantry, enemy vehicles and structures, and the M.A.D.M.A.N.. It also lasts shorter than usual if used on Terror Drones. On the other hand, it lasts longer on Qilin Tanks.
For a detailed list of changes from the original game, click here.
Strategy[]
Compared to the original Invulnerability in the vanilla Red Alert 2, the one in Mental Omega has a longer cooldown (6 minutes instead of 5) and, as mentioned above, no longer kills infantry nor affect enemy vehicles and structures. Nonetheless, it remains as a terrifying superweapon, as it counters the myriad of status effects that could hamper advancing Soviet forces (such as confusion, mind control and firepower/armor/speed debuffs).
General tips[]
- Invulnerability's primary use is for Soviet armored divisions to break through heavily fortified defenses without taking casualties. The invulnerable vehicles would take the brunt of incoming fire, while the remaining Soviet army retaliates without fear of their own demise (as long as the opposing commander does not directly order their units to ignore the invulnerable vehicles). As the Force Shield is now exclusive to the European Alliance in standard circumstances, most factions cannot reliably protect their buildings, encouraging Soviet players to target critical structures.
- Invulnerability can also be used to decimate an enemy battalion. Although enemy forces are likely to retreat when doing so, this opens up an opportunity for the Soviets to push back an enemy offensive when it would have failed without Invulnerability.
- The most eligible targets for an Invulnerability activation are monster tanks (main battle tanks are the alternative if monster tanks are not available) due to their reliable damage output.
- Borillos or Armadillos are also great candidates, as they can wreak havoc against structures undisturbed, and even unload infantry (especially Engineers or Crazy Ivans) safely in the middle of the enemy base.
- If the enemy forces are too dangerous, invulnerable Terror Drones will surely soften their ranks before the Soviet forces arrive. However, it should be noted that Invulnerability lasts shorter on Terror Drones (-20%, equals to total of 36 seconds rather than 45).
- Even Demolition Trucks (or Bomb Buggies for the Latin Confederation) can be rendered invulnerable, which guarantees destruction of opposing critical structures (e.g. War Factories and tightly packed power plants).
- Other vehicles should only be targeted if they are worth saving (particularly siege units and MCVs caught in an ambush).
- Invulnerability can also be used in a base defense situation like a Force Shield to protect vital buildings (especially those that grant Tier 3 access, as they are often key targets). However, since its effective radius is smaller than the Force Shield, a Soviet player can often only cause 1 building to become invulnerable (unless the buildings are small enough to fit inside the 3x3 area), so deciding which building to save can be crucial.
- If an attack is surely anticipated, Invulnerability should be activated before the base suddenly loses power; otherwise, its last resort use would be delayed (indefinitely if the Iron Curtain Device is destroyed).
Counters[]
- The danger level of Invulnerability depends on what vehicles and how many of them were affected.
- If the invulnerable units are ordered to attack the player's units, avoid them at all costs.
- Resist damage inflicted by utilizing defensive abilities (e.g. European Alliance's Force Shield for buildings).
- If the invulnerable units are accompanied by other troops, consider focus-firing on the latter first.
- In special circumstances, invulnerable units can be destroyed. However, this can rarely be achieved in normal gameplay.
- Flip it over with either Libra's anti-gravity field or massive firepower (e.g. 40+ Nuwa Cannons).
- Destroy the bridge the invulnerable unit/s is crossing.
- Make it move past a Blast Trench while Blasticade is active.
AI behavior[]
AI-controlled units will ignore units or buildings affected by Invulnerability over the course of its duration and will switch targets instead.
The AI will cast Invulnerability on specific task forces that will be prepared and will regroup near the enemy base when the Iron Curtain is 70% charged, or roughly 2 minutes before the Invulnerability is ready.
All difficulties[]
The following task forces will prioritize targeting production structures before other structures due to their effectiveness versus these targets:
1x Demolition Truck
1x Bomb Buggy
Medium/Hard[]
The following task forces will target production structures before other structures due to their effectiveness versus these targets:
- 3x Borillos
- 2x Armadillos
The AI will deploy Irradiation Beta/Gamma as well.
The following task forces will target anything rather than a specific target:
- 4x Terror Drones (hold fire mode)
- The Terror Drones will switch to their default mode before attacking
- The AI will deploy Irradiation Beta/Gamma as well
The following task forces will target structures first before anything else:
- 1x Centurion Siege Crawler with Yunru and 2 Eradicators
The AI will deploy Irradiation Gamma as well.
Hard[]
The following task forces, comprising of monster tanks, will follow the same procedure, but they will target anything rather than a specific target. Only Hard AI will send out these strike forces:
- 4x Tesla Cruisers
- In addition to the Irradiation Beta support power, Overcharge will also be applied
- 4x Catastrophe Tanks
- 4x Nuwa Cannons
The AI will deploy Irradiation Beta/Gamma as well.
The following task forces will unload its passengers first near a Construction Yard before targeting production structures:
- 1x Borillo with 3 Soviet Engineers
- 1x Armadillo with 3 Soviet Engineers
Appearances[]
Act One[]
- Invulnerability is first usable for the player in Dragonstorm (campaign) / Ravages of War (cooperative).
Act Two[]
- Invulnerability appears in Obsidian Sands as easter egg. If the player destroys the enemy Nuclear Reactor with mind-controlling at least one Eradicator, several radiative human will come out. Killing all of them grants access to one-time Invulnerability to the player.
- In Fatal Impact, three inner Spatha Defense Systems are initially permanently coated with the Invulnerability effect provided by those Iron Curtain Devices in Death's Hand[1][2]. Once Volkov gets enhanced from the Psionic Converter, the inner Spatha Defense Systems will get their iron curtain shield disabled, but will be protected by Invulnerability effect only if Tactical Nukes are launched against them. This forces the player to destroy it through other means.
- In Death's Hand, in addition to the Invulnerability provided by the Iron Curtain Devices, Yuri will apply an Invulnerability effect to the Kremlin with using Volkov he controls as the energy source, once the Kremlin's durability is below 50%. This final Invulnerability effect can only be ended by killing Volkov.
Challenge[]
- In the Ironwall Challenge, aside from Iron Dragons, Qilin Tanks, Armadillos, Nuwa Cannons and Sentinels will generate invulnerability field to protect friendly forces nearby after being destroyed, and the enemy will constantly activate invulnerability field on the front defense line before all old Iron Curtain Devices are destroyed.
See also[]
References[]
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