unit-antumbra

Antumbra is a heavy Tier 4 airborne assault unit that functions as a durable, mid‑range gunship with mixed missile and cannon armament. It was originally introduced as the Lich and later renamed Antumbra; across updates it has received health and weapon adjustments, AI changes to maintain a fixed distance from targets, and missile behavior tweaks that add the Blasted status. Antumbra appears in late‑game content where powerful, well‑armored air units are feasible and is intended to smash bases and high‑value structures while carrying a large load of items.

The unit mounts two pairs of homing missile launchers (firing in two sets at different rates) and two large bullet cannons. The homing missiles deal 18 damage and apply an area blast of roughly 37 area damage around the impact (about 2.5 tiles) and inflict the Blasted debuff on units; the missiles are homing and were reworked to fire at a steady pace rather than in bursts. The large cannons fire heavy bullets that deal 55 damage and provide sustained single‑target punch. Antumbra’s speed is moderate (reported as 6 tiles/second) and its health has been raised and tuned across versions (notably up to around 7200 in recent builds). It also has the largest item capacity among Tier 4 units at 180 items, letting it transport sizable payloads during assaults.

In combat Antumbra behaves as a stand‑off attacker: its AI keeps it at a set distance from targets and it will prioritize high‑value structures such as reactors. Because its weapons combine direct large‑bullet damage with area homing missiles, it is less susceptible to being fully negated by Force Projectors or pure area‑damage defenses compared with some other air units. This makes it particularly effective against bases with many shields or against clusters of ground defenses that rely on pure area suppression.

Practical notes and strategies:

• Antumbra is vulnerable to very high single‑target or concentrated anti‑air fire. Units like Fuse, Cyclone, Swarmer, and Foreshadow (especially when using upgraded ammo such as Surge Alloy or thorium/graphite salvos) are noted counters because they can output the high damage needed to kill it before it devastates a base.
• Because it keeps a fixed distance, it can avoid detection or the effective range of some ground turrets unless those turrets are pulled in with Parallax fields. Sectors with weak anti‑air tiers are prime targets for Antumbra raids.
• Shield Projectors (even with Pooled Cryofluid) cannot reliably outheal the sustained damage Antumbra deals, though shields will absorb many projectiles before failing.
• If you field Antumbra offensively, it trades off speed and utility compared to light air units like the Quad; use Antumbra where durability and raw punch against shielded or reactor‑heavy targets matters more than scouting or rapid response.
• Its mixed armament means pairing it with forces that can exploit openings created by its missiles or protect it from anti‑air focus is effective; consider combining with fast anti‑air allies or using it in groups to overwhelm defenses.

The unit’s name references the astronomical term antumbra (a shadow region), reflecting its role as a heavy, ominous presence on the battlefield.