unit-avert

Avert is a light aerial combat unit introduced in early builds of the game. It fills a scouting and harassment role: inexpensive and fast-firing, it can pressure lightly defended structures and help intercept incoming missiles and small enemy flyers. Avert first appears as an adversary from the Intersect faction and is commonly used in hit-and-run strikes rather than prolonged frontline fights.

The unit's primary weapon fires at 1.71 shots/sec (0.58 sec reload) and does not rotate; its projectile is a BasicBulletType with a base damage of 25.5 and an effective range of 11.25 tiles (0.3 sec lifetime, ~37.5 tiles/sec). The projectile splits into two frags on impact, each dealing 15 damage. The weapon applies reduced damage against buildings: the main projectile has a -40% building damage multiplier, and each frag applies -50% building damage. Historic changes include small range and rotation tweaks and the later addition of the building-damage penalties and the two frags.

Playstyle and practical notes:

• Averts are fragile and should not be used to slug it out with heavy turret lines; they excel at scouting and surgical strikes where survivability demands mobility and numbers rather than tankiness.
• To make the most of their short range, micro groups to move close to a specific block and then target that block so Averts ignore other structures and focus fire effectively; this is especially useful to disable rear-line Disperse turrets and reach economy buildings.
• They can contest other air units and assist in intercepting Quell/Disrupt missiles; their firing rate and low cost let them swarm and trade favorably in some skirmishes, though Obviates generally outperform them in pure air duels.
• Averts fare poorly versus units and defenses that neutralize their projectiles or out-range them: Locus and Clerois (which negate their shots), high-area or piercing turrets (for example, Sublimate on any ammo or high-efficiency Afflicts), and many Erekir turrets that outrange them.
• Defending against Avert raids is straightforward with cheap anti-air ground units (Eludes, Stells; Merui cannot target air) or basic turrets—Disperse performs well in singleplayer against default dive behavior. Diffuse can work when protecting resource nodes like graphite mining but has a smaller range advantage. Once higher-tier anti-air options like Sublimate or Afflict are available, surprise Avert attacks cease to be a serious threat.

Given their role and limitations, Averts are best used en masse for harassment and screening rather than as primary combat units; when countered by long-range or projectile-negating defenses, alternate air or ground compositions should be preferred.