Arkyid

Arkyid is a tier-4 ground assault unit that attacks with multiple sapping lasers and a pair of artillery-like electric shells. It repairs itself by leeching life from targets it damages and can step over most terrain, making it effective at closing with and sustaining through defensive lines. Arkyid is intended as a heavy unit that specializes in shredding other units and inflicting the Sapped debuff, while its artillery attack can bypass walls and threaten supply lines and buildings from behind cover.

Arkyid's armament consists of three pairs of forward-facing laser mounts and two slower artillery shots. The three laser pairs fire piercing Sap bullets that deal 40 damage per hit, apply Sapped for about 3 seconds, and heal the Arkyid for 85% of damage dealt; the inner pair fires fastest at about 2 × 3.33 shots/sec, the middle pair at 2 × 2.14 shots/sec, and the outer pair at 2 × 1.36 shots/sec. The artillery weapons fire at 2 × 0.66 shots/sec, deal 65 area damage with about an 8.7-tile radius, apply Sapped for about 10 seconds, produce three chained lightning strikes (each 12 damage, 5 tiles length), and travel over blocks to reach targets (effective range ~17.5 tiles, maximum ~22.5 with lightning). Its legs also deal area leg damage of 32 (3.7 tiles) when moving through enemies. Arkyid’s movement speed has been standardized to roughly 4.65 tiles/sec in recent builds and it can drown (has a drown time multiplier of 2).

Because Arkyid heals from damage it deals, sustained low-damage output is ineffective; its self-healing and Sapped effect let it win prolonged fights against many units and even lifesteal through armor. It is especially effective at killing fragile attackers and guardians when used in groups and is the most reliable unit for applying Sapped to air units among comparable attackers.

Practical considerations and strategies:

• Arkyid is vulnerable to fast, high-burst damage combinations that can overcome its healing. High-damage ammo (for example blast/compound) combined with cryofluid freezing will remove it quickly. Low, steady DPS turrets (such as Ripple-style) are largely ineffective because the unit heals from each hit.
• The artillery electric shells bypass walls and explode on impact, which can disable supply conduits and defenses behind walls. Protect supply and power lines with bullet-absorbing blocks (Segment) or Force Projectors to catch stray shells before they sever critical connections.
• Defensive stall tactics work: Tsunami units loaded with water plus cryofluid can slow/immobilize Arkyids and allow turret batteries time to focus it down.
• On offense Arkyids lack the mobility and versatility of some contemporaries (Vela and Quad). Those units better bypass ground defenses and focus the enemy core, while Vela offers better healing reliability and Quad offers greater speed. Use Arkyids where you need durable, unit-killing frontline forces rather than fast core-snipe roles.
• Arkyids reliably counter most standard attackers; however, they do not reliably beat Sei, Toxopid, Omura, or Navanax in one-on-one duels.
• Build behavior: Arkyid is not player-built (build speed was set to 0% in a past update), and an earlier command-cap limit was removed.

Additional notes: the unit is named after the Arkys genus of spiders (triangular spiders). Its body sprite is reused from the Scepter. Recent version history includes several adjustments to range, size, speed, laser firing rates and damage, and the addition of drown behavior.