Force Projector

Force Projector is a defensive building that generates a hexagonal force field around itself to protect nearby allied buildings and units by absorbing incoming damage. It consumes large amounts of power and can optionally use coolant to prevent overheating; supplying Phase Fabric increases the shield's radius. The projector completely neutralizes many piercing projectiles and certain area weapons, but it can be overwhelmed if it sustains too much single-target damage and will eventually overheat and break if not cooled or if damage exceeds its capacity.

Force Projector differs from the Segment in how it handles incoming fire: Force Projectors are vulnerable to high single-shot damage (they are overwhelmed by high-damage hits), whereas Segments are vulnerable to sustained rapid fire. Force Projectors fully negate damage from weapons such as Horizon and Quad area bombs (these weapons apply reduced single-target damage to shields rather than full area damage). From Build 147 onward, Force Projectors also absorb crash damage from collisions but take double damage from those impacts.

Not all attacks are absorbed by force fields. Explosions from crawler and unit missiles, piercing and sapping lasers, and railgun projectiles (for example from Omura and Locus) bypass force shields and directly damage the shielded structures. Some effects (Aegires energy field zaps and Foreshadow bolts) do not damage shield health but also are not absorbed by the field. Any projectile that is already touching a block when the shield becomes relevant can hit that block before the force field blocks it. Certain artillery bullets that travel over blocks do not physically collide with buildings or units but still apply a hidden single-target damage value to the shield; these values vary by projectile (for example, Arkyid artillery: 12; Hail/Ripple/Minke range around 20–25 depending on ammo; Merui 40; Titan 350, with shielded building hits at 105).

Because Force Projectors use substantial power (their power draw has been increased in past updates), it is efficient to control them with Logic Processor routines to turn them off when not needed and redirect Phase Fabric or power elsewhere. The shield's visual decals change color to match the projector's team, like cores and containers, providing a clear visual cue of which side controls the field.