Urchin

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The Urchin is a static torpedo launcher.

Urchin (turrettorp)
Torpedo Launcher (Anti-Sub)
turrettorp.png
Stats
Cost 120
Hit Points 1020
Vision Radius (elmo) 653
Sonar (elmo) 653
Weapons
Torpedo Launcher
Damage 190
Reload Time (s) 3.2
Damage per Second 59
Range (elmo) 550
Area of Effect (elmo) 32
Projectile Speed (elmo/s) 320
Homing (deg/s) 121

Description

This Torpedo Launcher provides defense against both surface and submerged vessels. It also includes a short range sonar for helping detect nearby submerged enemies.

Tactics and Strategy[edit]

Urchins have on sea a role similar to that of lotuses on land, that is to say, they're useful for perimeter defense and providing a minimal level of protection to your sea factories, energy buildings, mexes, and other units and defenses. They can also be used to guard beaches against amphibious invasions, and for closing water chokepoints against light enemy units.

Due to their low health and firepower, a group of urchins easily folds if the enemy makes a strong push with assault units. They're also quickly and efficiently defeated by anything that outranges them. As such, building large groups of urchins in one location is not advisable.

Urchins can be placed outside water and yet fire into water, so long as they're very close to it. This makes them harder for many waterborne units to kill, specially amphibious robots.

Contrary to most land defenses, as the weapon of Urchin only works in water, they cannot fire back against aerial units at all, being utterly defenseless against them. Areas protected by urchins will require a separate turret for AA defense, if the enemy is using air.

The same is true of any unit that attacks Urchin from land, and as such care must be taken when building them near land that the enemy controls.