ISDF Units

The ISDF have numerous units, but most of them were designed with a specific intention. Scout is fast recon, Tank is fast battle, Mortar bike is fast Assault, Bulldog is Heavy assault, Griffin is Heavy Anti-Air and assault, and the Walker is extremely heavy assault. Unlike the scion units, they were not designed to attack a specific scion unit type, but they are well-rounded nonetheless. The APC and Bomber must also not be overlooked as attacking units. They can often break hardened targets. As a rule of thumb, try to avoid sieging an enemy base with hover-units that are meant for engaging heavier units themselves, and avoid dogfighting with heavy units. The large weapons array available to ISDF allows a lot of creativity in weapons selection.

This is the default ISDF fast-attack unit. Having only a pair of guns and a single missile, the Thunderbolt is not the best choice for heavy attacking, but early in the game, all ISDF has is guns, so you'll have to make do. The Thunderbolt can be upgraded as soon as you get a factory - in the recycler - with a chain gun. The chain gun is much more effective (not to mention efficient) on a scout and is a commonly used tactic. Being light targets with high heat emissions leaves them vulnerable to heat-seeking missiles (making a solar flare a good special to use). Due to their speed and variety, they are useful shock troops, but later on are easily defeated by base defenses. Otherwise, a scout is a cheap unit that is free to modify at any time, and can be quite versatile. They have a much harder time engaging turrets (unless you can fly or use FAF cornering) than scion scouts can, and this scout has a much more difficult time defeating scion scouts early in the game due to their cannon hardpoint.

ISDF Thunderbolt

50 Scrap - 50 with mod

This has similar physics to a Thunderbolt, but can pack a punch as rushable unit. Requiring only a factory, this unit's stock weapon, the TAG cannon is difficult to use and weak, but still useful against scouts (and thats pretty much all). When upgraded to shadowers the missile scout is a fearsome long range scout. The range isnt more than that of a mortar bike, but the ability to hit-and-run with a good speed and turn radius makes it useful to annoy your enemy and get out just in time. A good special to use, in this matter, is the MITS to capture pursuing enemy tanks. When they get stuck, turn around and pelt them to death while they sit still.

ISDF Missile Scout

45 Scrap - 45 with mod

ISDF tanks are rushable, and cheap when stock as well. The default cannon, the AT-Stabber, is weak, but much better than a minigun, and the mortar hardpoint can make it easy to assault turrets. This tank has a wide variety of customizations available due to four different weapon hardpoints. When playing against a scion, try to have both an energy and projectile weapon available. When selecting weapons to use on the tank, decide which situation it is going to be used for. Check out my ISDF Weapons for help on deciding your customization. Remember to consider attack against heavy AND light targets, as well as giving it some long range/ short range weapons. There is no magic formula for a tank, everyone likes different mods of the Sabre, so you just have to experiment with all the weapons to find out the best mod for you. Some common mods I have seen lately are: SP-Stab/Chain/Mortar/M-Curtain or Plasma/Pummel/MDM/MITS. I change my customization every game, so try, try again to see which works best for your pilots.

ISDF Sabre Tank

55 Scrap - 65 with mod

One of the dirtiest fighting machines on the ISDF side. Needing only a mortar, this is an extremely cheap unit to produce and in large numbers they can decimate heavy targets as well as fast moving ones (the AI aims quite well with mortars). They are capable of moving extremely fast and making huge jumps, enabling an uncanny ability to dodge gun tower fire and evade enemy fire, while lobbing mortars at them. Try equipping an MDM on a Mortar bike when attacking other fast-moving targets. Try to hit them with the MDM as you fly around -- the damage is really quite impressive. The only real weakness of a Jackal is its extremely high heat emmission making it fodder for heat-seeking missiles.

ISDF Mortar Bike

45 Scrap - 60 with mod

ISDF's first line of offense. This thing has an assault-cannon hardpoint (which the AI uses as its default weapon). The assault hardpoint weapons increase the range of most cannons by about 50 metres or so, as well as increasing damage to at least double the previous amounts. Indeed, these things are evil, and difficult to deal with while assaulting base defense from afar. The only problem is they cannot track hover units well AT ALL and they cost a lot more if you want to modify them. If you pilot a bulldog, however, you can give it mortars. Dual mortar hardpoints make it difficult to stop this thing with hover units (if you can use them effectively) but nonetheless this tank is still a sitting duck while attacking. Try modding it with a MAG cannon and pilot it yourself. The full charge of the MAG is capable of EXTREME damage.

ISDF Bulldog Tank

70 Scrap - 85 with mod

ISDF's first line of air-defense. Although they do not do it automatically, Griffins can target and fire on flying untis easily (you have to tell them manually to do it). Making the rocket tank a good supplement to gun towers as part of base defense. Shadowers are hard to dodge unless you are a really fast unit, and the Salvo can take down heavy units very very quickly when at close range. A rocket tank is also invaluable in an assault. Give them a Hornet Rocket (FAF related) and use its 250m range to pick off enemy base defense. The Hornet is extremely powerful for a missile and takes down buildings quite fast, as they lock on to buildings quickly and efficiently. Try using a Comet Cruise one day and see how quickly they take down Gun Towers from 300m away.

ISDF Rocket Tank

65 Scrap - 75 with mod

The ISDF's Heaviest and most pumped unit in the game. And it shows in the price. Stocked with exceptional weapons already, the blast and laser combo is intensely strong against all types of units. The blast can take buildings very fast, but even a huge monster like this has ammo dependancies. It is recommended that you bring along Service Trucks while using these as their shots use a lot of ammo. Otherwise, using Blast cannons is not usually the desired customization for many people. Some like to use plasma for long range and chain guns on the gun hardpoint, which is a solid model as well. A walker, however, is most effective for fast decimation and I find that the plasma can't dish out damage as fast as a pair of blasts can. Overall, the armor of this thing is very reliable, but the walker itself is very difficult to maneuver and cannot track fast moving target well. Send these things in guarded, dont let a pesky scout sneak up between your legs.

ISDF Atilla Walker

100 Scrap - 105 with mod

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