Poly

The Poly is a Tier 2 drone unit that specializes in automated rebuilding and limited combat support. It was introduced as a builder/repair drone and has since gained both a small healing weapon and a repair field, making it a flexible maintenance unit that also contributes modestly to fights. Polys are primarily used to repair and reconstruct damaged or destroyed blocks and to assist with routine base maintenance; they are produced by upgrading a Mono through an Additive Reconstructor and can themselves be upgraded into the Mega.

Polys behave like mobile repair bots rather than pure combat units. Their primary defensive/offensive contribution is a homing missile weapon that deals 12 damage, fires 2 shots per second, has 15° inaccuracy, and heals for 5.5% on hit (the missile is homing). They also project a repair field that passively restores nearby allied structures. Unique interactions include the ability for their missiles to be reflected by Phase and Shielded Walls; when reflected onto the reflecting wall’s team, the incoming missile heals the wall and can restore its health. Polys do not fire laser projectiles and therefore can be affected differently by defenses that interact with projectile types.

Polys are the only Tier 2 unit without armor. They have adequate health for sustained maintenance tasks but relatively low DPS, and they do not prioritize fleeing while actively repairing or rebuilding, which can make them vulnerable to area or piercing damage. When spawned on the Crux team with the global "AI Building" setting turned off, Poly units use a different AI that keeps them at range when attacking, behaving similarly to a Zenith.

Practical usage and tactics:

• Group Synergy: Individual Polys are weak, but flocks become powerful; many Polys together rapidly hunt down and repair damaged blocks, rebuild large swaths of structures, and significantly reduce downtime for long-build-time blocks such as reconstructors, Spectres, and reactors.
• Base Defense Support: Polys excel at keeping walls and turrets patched during engagements. Positioning them behind front-line defenses or letting a swarm roam repair will increase base survivability.
• Micro and Retreat: Because their weapon both damages and heals, damaged Polys can be pulled back and healed without Repair Points. Use hit-and-run or pull-back micro to avoid losing drones to splash or piercing attacks.
• Vulnerabilities: Polys are vulnerable to Scatters and similar fast DPS units; they can be targeted and destroyed while clustered or while busy repairing. They also do not inherently flee from threats while engaged in repairs, so they can be caught by enemy area-of-effect fire.
• Campaign presence: Polys are uncommon in campaign spawns and are first encountered on Naval Fortress; they are generally easy to defeat when encountered as enemies.

Notable mechanics and legacy: Polys originated as the Phantom Builder Drone and have been renamed and reskinned over updates. They gained the repair field and healing missile, and their production and upgrade paths have changed historically. Under player control and with the "Double-tap/click to mine" option enabled, Polys can mine Sand.