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My favorite color is gold! No, green!
—A dishonest Tyrant driver
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The Tyrant is a heavy tank used by the Scorpion Cell. Armed with toxin weapons reasonably effective against infantry and structures, it can also surprise enemies by moving underground like the Driller.

Official description

The aptly named Tyrant dominates the field in the quick destruction of its enemies by catching them by surprise. Its heavily reinforced front armor, mechanized grinder and powerful engine allow it to travel underground just like the Driller APC. A fixed turret rapidly fires large capsules containing highly explosive toxins and acids over a small area, decimating anything in the Tyrant's way as it advances to conquer in Rashidi's name.

Though their front armor is powerful enough to dig through ground, the overall quality of the Tyrant's cheap armor is rather lacking in comparison to the Allied and Soviet advanced tanks. This led to the Tyrant having poison gas canisters installed that it can deploy in order to hinder pursuers. Though not the most powerful advanced tank, Tyrants are built to outrun their enemies and overwhelm them with sheer numbers.[1]

Overview

TyrantDeploy

A Tyrant leaving behind poison clouds as a result of using its deploy ability

The Tyrant symbolizes Scorpion Cell's approach on how to handle its battles. Using a mixture of speed, unconventional ambush tactics, and toxin weaponry to decimate the opposition, this odd-looking tank specializes in launching unexpected attacks in large numbers, hoping to use these methods before enemy forces can organize an effective response.

One major advantage the Tyrants have over their counterparts is their ability to travel via subterranean methods in order to reach areas that may be inaccessible through regular means (only one other Tier 3 tank has this trait). This makes transporting them with Mandjets redundant under most circumstances, as they can simply tunnel through the earth (even if their destination is across a body of water) akin to a Driller. This ability also helps them evade any unwanted enemy forces and base defenses (as they fare poorly against them unless the advantage of large numbers is on their side), as they can avoid them by traveling right beneath them. This allows the Tyrant to launch very devastating surprise attacks, as they can sneak behind enemy lines, pop up right in the heart of an enemy base, and start melting their vital infrastructures with its toxic pills.

Because durability is something that Scorpion Cell does not place emphasis on, the Tyrant is by far the least durable of all Tier 3 tanks. It will not last in a prolonged battle with the other factions' counterparts, and its toxic pills are rather lacking in firing power against armored targets. While it can fire on the move, it cannot rotate its turret in order to do so, meaning it can only bombard enemies that are in front of it - therefore, it cannot shoot at pursuing forces in the event it may be required for it to make a hasty fallback. Charging these tanks at heavy defense lines or large concentrations of armored forces is not recommended - in fact, the Mantis Tank is better for that role since their cheaper nature makes them more expendable. Though they can avoid most dangers via underground travel, enemy commanders can anticipate their arrival with stealth detection units (provided they are available) and a telltale sound of subterranean movement as they approach their destinations. They cannot surface in areas that are still obscured by the fog of war. Lastly, the vehicle itself is rather expensive for the lackluster quality of its armor and firepower.

The Tyrant's weaknesses can be somewhat negated if a Scorpion Cell proselyte manages to procure a large number of them and knows when to fight-or-flight from his/her battles properly. Be prepared to expect heavy casualties if they are required to engage equal amounts of enemy armor and heavy base defenses.

The Tyrants' operators are also notable for their personalities that emphasize their greedy natures, which usually involve an unhealthy obsession with gold, lands, palaces, and its toxic pills. Whether the Scorpion Cell proselyte deems this as amusing or otherwise is up to their interpretation.

Appearances

Act Two

  • The first Tyrant prototype appears in Lizard Brain. It, along with four other vehicle prototypes, must be escorted to safety from an attack of the European Alliance. The Tyrant prototype can tunnel underground, but isn't armed with its toxic pills.
  • The functional Tyrants are first seen in battle in Obsidian Sands, as part of the enemy Scorpion Cell forces. They can be mass-produced after capturing the enemy Pandora Hub.

Assessment

Pros Cons
  • Most effective against structures.
  • Rapid rate of fire.
  • Great movement speed.
  • Can fire on the move and crush infantry.
  • Can travel underground to bypass natural obstacles or otherwise troublesome defense lines.
  • Excellent for ambush tactics.
  • Cannot be attacked when moving underground.
  • Can deploy poison clouds which harm enemies.
  • Infantry killed by Tyrant release poison clouds.
  • Explodes and releases poison clouds when destroyed.
  • Immune to omnicrush and poison.
  • Can self-repair.
  • Fragile being as a Tier 3 tank.
  • Expensive for a heavy tank lacking in armor in contrast to other vehicles of the same class.
  • Not very effective against heavier vehicles unless attacking in large numbers.
  • Vulnerable to anti-armor weapons and mind control when surfaced.
  • Cannot surface from under water and shroud.
  • Enemy commanders can detect and anticipate underground movements before they surface.
  • Cannot target aircraft.
  • Despite being able to fire on the move, it can only target enemies that are directly in front of it.

Behind the scenes

  • In 3.0 the Tyrant did not have the ability to burrow, but instead it was able to crush smaller vehicles similar to the Battle Tortoise.

See also

References

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