History Characters / IntoTheBreach

In each timeline, Jessica Kern maintains an adoptive family of 20. In one of those timelines, Camila Vera was one of her daughters. Working as a scout in areas where R.S.T. tested terraforming weapons, she developed an innate sense of danger, able to detect when a quake or a sinkhole was about to appear. This elevated awareness transitioned well into mech combat against the Vek, letting her outmaneuver their webs and operate in low-visibility conditions. Her upbringing as a daughter of Kern, as well as an employee of R.S.T. gave her a no-nonsense personality, treating the Vek invasion as a war.

* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: CEO Kern openly doubts you're from the future and strongly criticizes you for any failed objectives. She still helps you without prior promises, and later proves key to defeating the Vek even if you haven't saved her island that playthrough, praising you (albeit grudgingly) if you impress her. [[AllThereInTheManual In Camila's backstory]], it's even mentioned that she adopted ''twenty'' kids in one timeline.

* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: CEO Kern openly doubts you're from the future and strongly criticizes you for any failed objectives. She still helps you without prior promises, and later proves key to defeating the Vek even if you haven't saved her island that playthrough, praising you (albeit grudgingly) if you impress her.
** She won't make light of deaths, including your pilots -- she'll berate them while they're alive, but swear to avenge them if they die. Part of the reason she's so hard on you is because the stakes are humanity's very survival -- ''you'' might be able to time travel away, but the rest of them can't.
** [[AllThereInTheManual Further evidence]] of these tendencies can be read in Camila Vera's backstory -- she apparently adopted ''twenty'' kids.

[[folder:Bombermechs]]
!!Bombermechs
''With a small army of remote explosives and flexible weapons, the tactical options are endless.''

'''Mechs:''' [[SpiderTank Pierce Mech]] (Brute), [[SpiderTank Bombling Mech]] (Ranged), [[SpiderTank Exchange Mech]] (Science)

* ACommanderIsYou: A toolbox faction, offering little in the way of an overarching gameplan and more a series of versatile weapons that require synergy to come together outside their specific niches. For instance, Bombling Mechs Walking Bombs deal low damage and can cause a lot of collateral harm on tighter maps, but they are also instrumental in allowing Pierce Mech to apply its cannon on open maps and allows you to tailor Exchange Mech’s teleports to go where you want them.
* ActionBomb: The Bombling Mech can produce an unlimited amount of these.
* ArmorPiercingAttack: The Pierce Mech’s AP gun, as its name suggests, pierces straight through the first thing it hits (be it building, enemy, ally or terrain) to deal damage to whatever is on the other side.
* DifficultButAwesome: Each mech can be quite awkward to use on their own. The Pierce Mech and Exchange Mech each require quite specific enemy positioning, whereas the Bombling mech lacks the damage and positioning tools typical of other ranged mechs. However, comboing them all together can result in some devistatingly effective turns with each covering for the others weaknesses.
* ThrowDownTheBomblet: The Bombling Mech has shades of this, especially after it’s upgraded to throw out two Walking Bombs a turn (or four with Silica).
* SwapTeleportation: The role of the Exchange Mech. Unlike the Swap Mech of the Flame Behemoths, the exchange mech swaps the places of other things, and cannot teleport itself.
* TeleporterAccident: The Exchange Mech can be upgraded to hurt any hostile entities that it teleports. Inverted in that you can make it heal your allies as well.

[[folder:Arachnophiles]]
!!Arachnophiles
''Research has shown that the remains of defeated Vek can be used to power smaller, but no less deadly Mechs.''

'''Mechs:''' [[TankGoodness Bulk Mech]] (Brute), [[SpiderTank Arachnoid Mech]] (Ranged), [[FutureCopter Slide Mech]] (Science)

* MookMaker: A rare heroic example. The Arachnoid Mech's weapon can make friendly spider robots when killing Vek.
* PinballProjectile: The Bulk Mech's Ricochet Rocket will bounce off its target at a 90-degree angle.
* SpiderTank: Of all the Mechs with spider legs in ''Into The Breach'', the Arachnoid Mech deserves special mention for looking like a [[FourLeggedInsect (6-legged)]] spider, making smaller spider tanks, and [[MeaningfulName being called the Arachnoid Mech]].

[[folder:Mist Eaters]]
!!Mist Eaters
''Airborne particles provide the material necessary for nano-bots to repair these Mechs.''

'''Mechs:''' [[CoolPlane Thruster Mech]] (Brute), [[SpiderTank Smog Mech]] (Ranged), Control Mech (Science)

* GeoEffects: The Smog Mech allows the Mist Eaters to absorb smoke to heal themselves.
* WeaponizedExhaust: The Thruster Mech's Reverse Thrusters damage the target and launch the Mech backwards.

[[folder:Secret Squad (Spoilers)]]
!!The Secret Squad
''Humanity's last hope are a blend of Machine and Vek created to defend Earth.''

Each of the three has the same special ability and the same class (Cyborg):

'''Special Ability: "Vek"''' Normal Pilots cannot be equipped. Loses 25 XP when the unit is disabled. In addition, cyborg units must spend one additional reactor core to equip any weapons other than their default loadouts.

'''"Mechs":''' Kxlatl ([[ToughBeetles Techno-Beetle]]), Taaxetizl ([[WickedWasps Techno-Hornet]]), and Xakran ([[ScarabPower Techno-Scarab]])

* AreaOfEffect: When upgraded, Taaxetizl and Xakran's attacks have the ability to target multiple tiles in a row. Since Xakran's lobbed explosive goo also pushes, this gives it one of the largest push radiuses in the game when fully upgraded, outdone only by the Hermes Engines, a rush attack which doesn't deal damage.
* BigCreepyCrawlies: Like all Vek.
* BraggingRightsReward: Technically they are playable, but the only way to unlock them requires fulfilling basically every achievement in the game, with all the runs that entails.
* ACommanderIsYou: Another Generalist Faction to cap things off. All three units can both damage and push enemies, and Techno-Hornet and Techno-Scarab can be upgraded to hit multiple squares for heavy damage. They don't have quite as much staying power as the Rift Walkers, but deal more damage when upgraded.
%%** Can quickly whittle down enemies through combined attacks, and deal heavy damage to multiple squares when upgraded completely.
* {{Cyborg}}: Vek with mech parts implanted to bring them under human control.
* FragileSpeedster: Taaxetizl has a base speed of 4 and 2 HP. When fully upgraded, he can attack up to 3 tiles in a line for 3 damage.
* {{Kaiju}}: Like all Vek.
* MagikarpPower:
** They don't deal much damage when first starting out, but get them to full level and they can deal 3 damage to multiple squares per round, plus any bump damage they rack up along the way.
** Their shared "pilot" ability means that they have less to fear from being disabled than a human pilot. 25 XP is still a fair amount, but especially as you get closer to the maximum of 75, it's considerably less of a concern than losing a pilot and having to start over from square one, or worse, falling back on an artificial pilot.
* MechanicallyUnusualClass: Vek are effectively their own pilots, gaining XP and abilities over time. They require an additional reactor core to enable any weapon other than the ones they start with. If a Vek is disabled, it loses 25 XP but still returns in the next battle.
* MonsterAllies: Tamed Vek, fighting to save humanity instead of destroy it.
* TheQuietOne: None of them exactly have much in the way of dialogue.
* RammingAlwaysWorks: Kxlatl, as one of the Vek's stag beetles, has a charge attack. Ramming Speed is weaker than Charge Mech's charge, but doesn't damage Kxlatl, and can be upgraded to leave smoke behind your starting tile.
* SecretCharacter: Only unlockable after all other squads are unlocked and all achievements are completed. Most other squads cost between 3 and 6 coins, earned by unlocking achievements; the Secret Squad costs ''25''.
* SquishyWizard: Xakran is a ranged unit with only 2 base HP, who focuses on [=AoE=] damage and pushing enemies.
* StrongAndSkilled: When fully upgraded, they can deal 3 damage to multiple tiles per round while retaining an extensive ability to push enemies.
* SuperNotDrowningSkills: Despite being grounded Vek, Kxlatl and Xakran don't die if they enter the water unlike [[SuperDrowningSkills their enemy counterparts]].
* TokenHeroicOrc: The only heroic Vek in the entire game. Justified, as their cyborg implants bring them under human control.
* TheUnpronounceable: Their names are vaguely Aztec-sounding consonant mashups. That they have names at all begs a few questions as to what degree the Time Travelers have been able to communicate with the Secret Squad.
* WeakButSkilled: They start out only being able to deal 1 damage each, but have good map coverage and control effects. Graduate to StrongAndSkilled if you can fully upgrade their starting weapons.

!Corporate Islands

[[folder:Corporations]]
!!Corporations
!!!In General
->''"These corporate islands are the Vek's breeding ground. Wipe them out here, we save the world."''
-->'''-- Ralph Karlsson'''

Four corporations safeguard and govern the last survivors of humanity against the seemingly unstoppable forces of the Vek. The following tropes apply to all four corporations:

* BenevolentBoss: All of them care about their people and have put profit aside in favor of doing whatever must be done to win the war against the Vek.
* EscortMission: Protecting the trains on each island, the various Old Earth war machines on Archive, and the attacking robots on Pinnacle. Frequently a OneHitPointWonder. The train has 2 HP, but is disabled after the first hit, turning it into a ProtectionMission instead.
* HonestCorporateExecutive: The [=CEOs=] all seem well-intentioned and genuinely heroic. They're the last enclaves of humanity, and while they operate on corporate lines, their bottom line is saving the world and preserve what little is left, not concern about any future profit.
** R.S.T. CEO Jessica Kern used to be an absolutely ruthless businesswoman, and not above employing corporate espionage to stay ahead -- see Abe Isamu's backstory for details -- but the war with the Vek has changed her priorities, as well as making her methods seem that much more reasonable when used against the Vek.
* MissionControl: Each CEO serves as [[VoiceWithAnInternetConnection this]] for their island. Jessica Kern is also this during the endgame attack on the Volcanic Hive.
* OneNationUnderCopyright: A benevolent example, a fairly superficial distinction between forms of government, under the circumstances. All other governments have passed away with the rest of Old Earth. The islands each bear the name of their patron corporation, and are ruled by their [=CEOs=].
* ProtectionMission: A common side objective is to protect the various special grid buildings, most of which are [[OneHitPointWonder One Hit-Point Wonders]], though the various functional buildings will usually have 2.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Archive, Inc.]]
!!Archive, Inc.
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/archive.jpg]]
->''"I can't believe it, the rocket launched! Er, well, I mean, I was SURE it would, but Old Earth relics can be, um, unreliable sometimes."''
-->'''-- Archive, Inc. CEO Dewey Alms'''

Archive, Inc. rules over an island designed to look like Earth as it once was, temperate and scenic. They also maintain a number of examples of Old Earth technology.
----

* DifficultButAwesome: Each mech can be quite awkward to use on their own. The Pierce Mech and Exchange Mech each require quite specific enemy positioning, whereas the Bombling mech lacks the damage and positioning tools of other ranged mechs. However, comboing them all together can result in some devistatingly effective turns with each covering for the others weaknesses.

%%[[quoteright:130:TBD]]

%%[[quoteright:130:TBD]]

%%[[quoteright:130:TBD]]

%%[[quoteright:130:TBD]]

!!!Introduced in ''Advanced Edition'':

[[folder:Kai Miller]]
!!Kai Miller
%%[[quoteright:130:TBD]]
->''"A reason for living is also an excellent reason for dying."''

'''Origin:''' Unknown\\
'''Special Ability:''' Arrogant Boost (+1 damage if at full health, -1 Move if not)
::
Kai is no stranger to time travel; when talking with her fellow pilots, she makes references to events and actions from past timelines. This experience has only served to make her distant from the battlefield, causing her to respond to her comrades' successes with apathy, arrogance, and sarcasm.

* DeadpanSnarker: She has a sarcastic quip for just about every situation.
* MadLibsCatchphrase: She uses the word "Repetition" in a very repetitive way. "Repetition is X." "Repetition is Y."
* NonconformistDyedHair: Her purple mohawk is a match for her personality being quite different from anyone else's. While some of the other pilots have been at this a while (like Ralph Karlsson) or are a bit arrogant (like Henry Kwan or Archimedes), none of them are quite so ''cold'' about it.
* SeenItAll: Many of her comments imply that she's fought in so many timelines that it has drained any enthusiasm she once possessed.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Rosie Rivets]]
!!Rosie Rivets
%%[[quoteright:130:TBD]]
->''"The pan is hot, and this sausage is jumping in!"''

'''Origin:''' Archive \\
'''Special Ability:''' Reassuring Hand (after moving, repairs adjacent mechs)

A cheerful spirit, Rosie used to be a mechanic for Archive's old bomber planes before the Vek attacked. Now in her role as a pilot, she always looks on the bright side of life, complimenting her teammates' successes and encouraging them to prevail through their failures.

* ShoutOut: Her name is similar to [[UsefulNotes/HomeFrontUSA Rosie the Riveter's]].
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Morgan Lejeune]]
!!Morgan Lejeune
%%[[quoteright:130:TBD]]
->''"Hope that isn't another me in the Pod. I don't think I could handle myself."''

'''Origin:''' Detritus\\
'''Special Ability:''' Field Research (after killing a Vek, deals +1 damage on the next attack)

An ex-disposal unit worker, Morgan is a scientist eager to study the Vek by observing them in combat and collecting samples of their corpses. He wears a gas mask over his face for unknown reasons, though he occasionally makes reference to an accident involving A.C.I.D.

* BunnyEarsLawyer: While a competent scientist, he has some very odd quirks, such as riding the Detritus conveyor belts after-hours for fun.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Adam]]
!!Adam
%%[[quoteright:130:TBD]]
->''"As Father Time's chosen one, I shall save this timeline!"''

'''Origin:''' Unknown\\
'''Special Ability:''' Chosen One (after Resetting Turn, gains Shield and +2 Move)

Little is known about Adam other than that he is a prideful pilot with little regard for his teammates or the citizens he is meant to save. Between his boasts, however, are references to him being the "chosen one", picked by "Father Time" to save humanity from the Vek. As delusional as these claims are, the strange boons he receives after a localised breach occurs bring a grain of truth to his story.

* TheChosenOne: Adam thinks himself to be "Father Time's" chosen one, destined to defeat the Vek and save humanity.
* {{Cloudcuckoolander}}: He is obsessed with spouting his status as the "chosen one", and how "Father Time" gives him gifts to succeed.
* ItsAllAboutMe: Adam cares little for the accomplishments of other pilots, using all of his time to boast about how great he is.
* MeaningfulName: Adam is named after the first man created by God, and believes himself to be a scion of "Father Time".
* SealedGoodInACan: Implied. Whenever Adam is frozen, he will occasionally say that he has suffered far worse imprisonment before.

[[folder:Secret Pilots (Spoilers)]]
!!Secret Pilots
!!!In General
The following tropes apply to all three secret pilots:

* TheCameo: All three are members of alien races from Subset Games' previous title, ''VideoGame/{{FTL}}''.
* GuideDangIt: To unlock them, you must [[spoiler:find one of their beacons, usually buried underneath a mountain or visibly glowing under a patch of ice. The following turn, an escape pod will fall -- just like a time pod, you much protect that pod until the end of the level. And if you uncover the beacon but don't pick it up, or pick it up just before ending the level so that the pod doesn't have time to fall, it doesn't count.]]
* HumanoidAliens: To a greater or lesser degree.
* SecretCharacter: Only hinted at by the presence of the "Distant Friends" achievement.
* StarfishLanguage: Each of the aliens use a different language, with Kazaaak speaking in clicks, Ariadne using grinding and Mafan speaking in dots, asterisks and lines.

!!Kazaaakpleth
[[quoteright:130:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/itb_kazaaakpleth.png]]

'''Special Ability:''' Mantis (a 2-damage melee attack (which also pushes) which replaces Repair)

The Mantis are a race of space-faring warlike mantids, taking great pleasure in hunting down alien prey. Even among the vicious Mantis race, however, Kazaaakpleth is feared for his willingness to hunt his own kind. While he claims it's just for the bounty money, and for the greater good, he secretly covets the experience of killing his own kind. After a fight that ended poorly, he fled towards Earth, detecting a beacon from the corporate islands. When he landed, he found himself in paradise: a world teeming with hostile insects, alongside the tools to let him slaughter them. He's happy to help humanity deal with their Vek problem, though he would take the opportunity to leave Earth if he could.

* AbsurdlySharpClaws: So sharp they somehow grant a melee attack to a mech hundreds of times his size.
* AttackAttackAttack: Gives up the ability to repair his mech in favor of his claw attack. Seemingly a small difference, but it can have a major impact on how he plays.
* BigCreepyCrawlies: Roughly human-sized.
* BloodKnight: Enjoys the thrill of the hunt and is particularly fond of killing other Mantis.
* BountyHunter: His profession before touching down on Earth.
* GlassCannon: His lack of repair ability reduces the amount of damage he can take, alongside making him more vulnerable to status effects. However, the attack he gains in compensation hits hard.
* HunterOfHisOwnKind: He's explained to be one of the few mantises who hunt their own kind. While he says it's for a noble cause, he secretly just enjoys the act. Since there are no other Mantis about, however, he makes do with killing Vek, since they're roughly the same.
* InsectoidAliens: From a species of alien mantids.
* IntelligentGerbil: The Mantis are simply very large, intelligent preying mantis aliens.
* MechanicallyUnusualClass: Replaces the ability to repair his mech, which every other mech has, with a melee attack that deals 2 points of damage and pushes the target -- sacrificing defensive versatility for additional offense. This can be very useful for artillery or science mechs that don't fare well in close combat. (Or in the case of most science mechs, don't have any offensive capability whatsoever.)
* SlayingMantis: Kazaaakpleth is a human-sized mantis who is highly adept at combat, trading in the ability to heal for an extra attack.
* ThirdPersonPerson: Although his speech is untranslated, some of his vocal barks include his own name, mostly after killing a Vek.

!!Ariadne
[[quoteright:130:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/itb_ariadne.png]]

'''Special Ability:''' Rockman (+3 HP and immune to fire)

The Rockmen are a race of humanoids made of rock. Their space-borne society is highly dogmatic and religious, with criminals being cast out into uninhabited space. Ariadne was a member of the Rockmen who was arranged to be married to a chieftain before she broke the law and fled in a spaceship, following a beacon to Earth. The new society she finds herself in makes her uncomfortable, however, and so she looks towards time travel technology as a way to erase her crimes and enable her to return home.

* ArrangedMarriage: Was escaping one of these when she picked up the beacon that led her to Earth.
* ContinuityNod: Her backstory refers to a sidequest in ''FTL'' where you are given the option to escort her to her groom or save her from her marriage at the last minute.
* ImmuneToFire: Like all rockmen, she's immune to fire, as is her mech.
* MadeOfIron: Made of living rock, actually, but the result's the same. She grants +3 HP to any mech she pilots, on top of any piloting or mech reactor boosts. This means she can max out at 10 HP with the right mech (11 with the Networked Armor passive) , in a game where most units start with 2 or 3 HP.
* RockMonster: From a race of alien rockpeople.
* RunawayBride: She ended up on Earth while on the run from an unwanted marriage to a Basilisk chief.
* SiliconBasedLife: Rockmen, being primarily made up of stone.

!!Mafan
[[quoteright:130:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/itb_mafan.png]]

'''Special Ability:''' Zoltan (+1 Reactor Core; reduces Mech HP to 1, but gains a shield every turn)

The Zoltan are a species of wise, tactful, energy beings. Mafan is a member of the species who picked up a beacon from Earth and travelled there. It believes that the temporal loop caused by the war against the Vek to be a method of enlightenment, reliving and reflecting on the same events over and over again.

* AscendToAHigherPlaneOfExistence: The Zoltan as a species believe they're on the verge of this. Mafan believes the Breach itself may be a path toward this ascension.
* EnergyBeing: From a race of energy beings.
* ForceField: He can extend a force field around his mech, granting him a free shield at the start of each round.
* MechanicallyUnusualClass: Having only 1 HP, but gaining a free shield at the start of each round, means you have to play Mafan quite differently from any other character -- he can take any amount of damage, but only once per turn, which means you need to be on guard for any potential chain reactions.
* NoSell: Gains a free shield at the start of each turn. Since shields negate any amount of damage, this can make him remarkably durable, despite his lack of HP. He's also immune to fire and freezing while the shield is up, making him very strong in the Ice Mech (which normally freezes itself with its weapon).
* OneHitPointWonder: Reduces the HP of any mech he pilots to 1, regardless of what it was before.
* PowerGlows: Has a unique green shield bubble, as opposed to the transparent blue shield of most other characters.

%%->''"Quote goes here."''

%%'''Origin:''' \\

One of the new pilots in Advanced Edition.

* MeaningfulName: To [[UsefulNotes/HomeFrontUSA Rosie the Riveter]].

Little is known about Adam other than that he is a prideful pilot with little regard for his teammates or the citizens he is meant to save. Between his boasts, however, are references to him being the "chosen one", picked by "Father Time" to save humanity from the Vek. As delusional as these claims are, the strange boons he receives after a localised breach takes place brings a grain of truth to his story.

%%* TropeName:

Kai is no stranger to time travel; when talking with her fellow pilots, she makes references to events and actions from past timelines. This experience has only served to make her distant from the battlefield, causing her to respond to her comrades' successes with apathy and arrogance.

%%->''"Quote goes here."''

'''Special Ability:''' Chosen One (After Resetting Turn, gains Shield and +2 Move)

One of the new pilots in Advanced Edition.

'''Special Ability:''' Reassuring Hand (After moving, repairs adjacent mechs)

'''Special Ability:''' Field Research (After killing his first Vek per mission, +1 damage until end of mission)

A quirky Detritus scientist.

'''Origin:''' Unknown

The Mantis are a race of space-faring warlike mantids, taking great pleasure in hunting down alien prey. Even among the vicious Mantis race, however, Kazaaakpleth is feared for his willingness to hunt his own kind. While he claims it's just for the bounty money, and to take down evil-doers, he secretly covets the experience of killing another insect. After a fight that ended poorly, he fled towards Earth, detecting a beacon from the corporate islands. When he landed, he found himself in paradise: a world teeming with hostile insects, alongside the tools to let him slaughter them. He's happy to help humanity deal with their Vek problem, though he would take the opportunity to leave Earth if he could.

%%'''Origin:''' \\

A young woman with an arrogant and somewhat pessimistic attitude.

%%'''Origin:''' \\

* AirborneMook: Hornets and Psions are flying enemies, allowing them to move over any terrain tile. This also means you can't off them by pushing them into water, lava, A.C.I.D., or chasms, unlike most other non-leader Vek. Advanced Edition adds Mosquitoes and Moths to the list.

* AreaOfEffect: Crabs, Centipedes, and Blobbers all have ranged/projectile attacks which also hit adjacent squares. Diggers and Scorpion Leaders can hit all adjacent squares in melee. Burrowers will attack the square in front of them as well as those to the left/right side of it. In the Advanced Edition, Gastropod Leaders ignite all adjacent tiles when attacking.
* AsteroidsMonster: Each time a Large or Medium Goo is killed, it splits into two smaller goos.

* BlobMonster: The Goo ([[AsteroidsMonster Large, Medium, and Small]]), one of the potential Vek leaders. Rather than merely dealing a set amount of damage to a building, each goo can move straight into its square, destroying it completely.
* BossBattle: The final level of each island has a Vek leader appear and head straight for the island's Corporate HQ. Bosses vary from heavily upgraded versions of regular Vek, to a city-sized BlobMonster and a rogue Pinnacle robot which has somehow gained control over the Vek.

* CowardlyMooks: Burrowers will immediately cancel their attack and retreat back into the ground if they take any damage, preventing them from further harm. They only pop back up on the following turn.

* DegradedBoss: During the Final Battle, one Leader Vek appears in the second phase of the mission, with another appears in the first on Hard. Both are optional targets, and will be [[OneHitKill One-Hit Killed]] by hazards.
* DevelopersForesight: Normally, remaining Vek will retreat into the ground when the player completes the level. However, if the level ends with [[AirborneMook Hornets or Psions]] above a tile that would be lethal for grounded Vek to stand on, they will instead fly upwards offscreen.
* DishingOutDirt: Diggers are pillbug-like Vek which start each turn by creating a ring of boulders to protect them, then attacking all adjacent squares. This makes them that much more difficult to root out when they sidle up against a grid building.

** Each island will have one kind of Psion and, after the first island, one or two special mid-tier Vek which can appear in both varieties, and are more dangerous even in their basic forms than standard Vek. These include beetles, centipedes, diggers, spiders, burrowers, and the projectile-launching crabs and blobbers.
** Tyrant Psions are only found in the final area of the game, the Volcanic Lair. Their ability is definitely a threat, as they cause 1 damage to all player-allied units at the end of a turn.
* FlunkyBoss: All boss fights have the usual stream of Vek incoming, but the Spider Leader takes it further by being able to spawn 2-3 spider eggs at a go.

** Basic Leapers combine this with GlassCannon. They have only [[OneHitPointWonder 1 HP]], but their hop is basically the equivalent of the Flying trait while they're moving, allowing them to ignore blocking terrain. They also hit for 3 damage in a game where no mech's base HP is higher than 3.

* GiantSquid: The battle sprite for the blobber seems to suggest they're some sort of nautilus-like creature.

* InASingleBound: Vek Leapers and Spiders move by jumping, letting them cross obstacles, but leaving them vulnerable to water and pits.

* {{Kaiju}}: The Vek are enormous insects. The biggest of them have the Massive trait, which means they're as big as your mechs -- the size of skyscrapers.

* MightyGlacier: Centipedes only move 2 squares per round, to make up for their powerful acid spit. If you've ever seen a centipede move in real life, you're probably grateful for the inaccuracy.
* MookCommander: All Psions except Tyrant Psions provide a StatusBuff to all other Vek, as long as they're on the battlefield.

** Spiders do nothing but launch sticky eggs which eventually hatch into (relatively) tiny spiderlings.

** The 1 HP blobs fired by blobbers can take out all adjacent squares and potentially end a run in one fell swoop if not destroyed.
* PaletteSwap: Alpha Vek are [[PurpleIsPowerful purple]]; Vek Leaders are pink; and the Volatile Vek from some missions is yellow. A.C.I.D variants are green, and each flavor of Psion's nodules are a different color.
* ProjectileWebbing: Several breeds of Vek spray their targets with immobilizing webs at close range, including creatures whose normal-sized counterparts do not produce silk at all, like Vek [[ScaryScorpions scorpions]] and the [[SlayingMantis mantis-like leapers]]. Vek spiders, meanwhile, launch blobs of webbing across the map, which not only hatch into spiderlings after one round, but also web up all adjacent enemies until they do.

* RequiredSecondaryPowers: Averted. Centipedes are not immune to the own A.C.I.D. vomit they spew out, and Beetle Leaders are not immune to their trails of fire.

* ScarabPower: Scarabs are relatively weak Vek who toss globs of unidentified matter across the map and are easily avoided simply by moving the scarab or targeted unit out of the way.
* ScaryScorpions: Scorpions are somewhat slow, and don't do much damage. However, if they target one of your mechs, they freeze it in place with webbing, preventing it from moving unless the webbing is broken, often taking away one mech's ability to protect grid buildings that turn.

* ShootTheMedicFirst: Psions tend to be a priority enemy as they have low health and no attack, but buff all the other Vek on the screen making them harder or more dangerous to defeat.
* SlayingMantis: Leapers are giant in size and able to kill most units in a single hit. As an added bonus, somebody gave them the ability to shoot webs. Have fun.
* SpiderSwarm: Spiders as a unit do nothing but launch eggs, which web all adjacent targets before hatching into independent spiderlings after one round. Add to that the Spider Leader launching two (sometimes ''three'') eggs per round and starting with two eggs already on the map and you have a recipe for this trope.
* StatusBuff: The various Psions can only move around the map and cannot take any actions, but other than the Tyrant Psion they provide various passive bonuses to other Vek: Soldier Psions provide 1 bonus HP, Blood Psions let all other Vek regenerate 1 HP per round, Shell Psions grants other Vek the [[NoSell Armored]] trait, and Blast Psions make [[ActionBomb Vek explode violently upon death]]. The [[KingMook Psion Abomination]] provides the bonuses of the Soldier, Blood and Blast Psions.

* SupportPartyMember: Almost all Psions have no combat capability whatsoever, but their mere presence will give a StatusBuff to all Vek on the battlefield. The one exception is the Psion Tyrant, whose support ability deals 1 damage to all mechs at the end of a turn.
* TheSwarm: Their numbers are seemingly limitless.

* WeaponizedOffspring: Spiderlings hatch after one round and attack independently. They don't do much damage individually -- the problem is the way they scatter themselves around the map if you don't keep them under control and finish off the mama spider.

* ZergRush: Zigzagged on higher difficulties. While Vek wil still stumble into mines, they're smart enough to avoid placing themselves in clusters or lines if they can avoid it. Ranged units will stay near the bottom of the map when they can help it, with melee units blocking chokepoints even if it means not attacking. They're still unable to prevent themselves from attacking each other if moved out of position, but the positions they do take up will make that more difficult than it might otherwise be.

* AcePilot: Each pilot is capable of severely enhancing their Mech's performance, letting them go toe-to-toe with the overwhelming Vek numbers.
* GadgeteerGenius: Bethany, Harold, and Lily, most prominently, but all of the pilots do have to maintain and repair their own Mechs, and the level up skills could be interpreted as them tinkering with them to make them run that much better, as well as shoring up the Grid during downtime.

* YouWillNotEvadeMe[=/=]GrapplingHookPistol: Gastropods' attacks yank their targets to them. If their target is a piece of solid terrain like a mountain or building, they will instead yank themselves to their target.

* AcidAttack: Centipedes attack with acid vomit that splashes acid onto adjacent tiles upon hitting.

* AirborneMook: Hornets and Psions are flying enemies, allowing them to move over any terrain tile. This also means you can't off them by pushing them into water, lava, A.C.I.D. Tiles or chasms, unlike most other non-leader Vek.

* AreaOfEffect: Crabs, Centipedes, and Blobbers all have ranged/projectile attacks which also hit adjacent squares. Diggers and Scorpion Leaders can hit all adjacent squares in melee. Burrowers will attack the square in front of them as well as those to the left/right side of it.

* AttackOfTheFiftyFootWhatever: Regular Vek are already big enough to take chunks out of buildings, but the Vek Leaders gain the Massive trait, meaning they're even larger, with more HP and -- significantly -- the ability to walk through water without drowning.

[[folder:Secret Squad (Spoilers)]]
!!The Secret Squad
''Humanity's last hope are a blend of Machine and Vek created to defend Earth.''

Each of the three has the same special ability and the same class (Cyborg):

'''Special Ability: "Vek"''' Normal Pilots cannot be equipped. Loses 25 XP when the unit is disabled. In addition, cyborg units must spend one additional reactor core to equip any weapons other than their default loadouts.

'''"Mechs":''' Kxlatl ([[ToughBeetles Techno-Beetle]]), Taaxetizl ([[WickedWasps Techno-Hornet]]), and Xakran ([[ScarabPower Techno-Scarab]])

* AreaOfEffect: When upgraded, Taaxetizl and Xakran's attacks have the ability to target multiple tiles in a row. Since Xakran's lobbed explosive goo also pushes, this gives it one of the largest push radiuses in the game when fully upgraded, outdone only by the Hermes Engines, a rush attack which doesn't deal damage.
* BigCreepyCrawlies: Like all Vek.
* BraggingRightsReward: Technically they are playable, but the only way to unlock them requires fulfilling basically every achievement in the game, with all the runs that entails.
* ACommanderIsYou: Another Generalist Faction to cap things off. All three units can both damage and push enemies, and Techno-Hornet and Techno-Scarab can be upgraded to hit multiple squares for heavy damage. They don't have quite as much staying power as the Rift Walkers, but deal more damage when upgraded.
%%** Can quickly whittle down enemies through combined attacks, and deal heavy damage to multiple squares when upgraded completely.
* {{Cyborg}}: Vek with mech parts implanted to bring them under human control.
* FragileSpeedster: Taaxetizl has a base speed of 4 and 2 HP. When fully upgraded, he can attack up to 3 tiles in a line for 3 damage.
* {{Kaiju}}: Like all Vek.
* MagikarpPower:
** They don't deal much damage when first starting out, but get them to full level and they can deal 3 damage to multiple squares per round, plus any bump damage they rack up along the way.
** Their shared "pilot" ability means that they have less to fear from being disabled than a human pilot. 25 XP is still a fair amount, but especially as you get closer to the maximum of 75, it's considerably less of a concern than losing a pilot and having to start over from square one, or worse, falling back on an artificial pilot.
* MechanicallyUnusualClass: Vek are effectively their own pilots, gaining XP and abilities over time. They require an additional reactor core to enable any weapon other than the ones they start with. If a Vek is disabled, it loses 25 XP but still returns in the next battle.
* MonsterAllies: Tamed Vek, fighting to save humanity instead of destroy it.
* TheQuietOne: None of them exactly have much in the way of dialogue.
* RammingAlwaysWorks: Kxlatl, as one of the Vek's stag beetles, has a charge attack. Ramming Speed is weaker than Charge Mech's charge, but doesn't damage Kxlatl, and can be upgraded to leave smoke behind your starting tile.
* SecretCharacter: Only unlockable after all other squads are unlocked and all achievements are completed. Most other squads cost between 3 and 6 coins, earned by unlocking achievements; the Secret Squad costs ''25''.
* SquishyWizard: Xakran is a ranged unit with only 2 base HP, who focuses on [=AoE=] damage and pushing enemies.
* StrongAndSkilled: When fully upgraded, they can deal 3 damage to multiple tiles per round while retaining an extensive ability to push enemies.
* SuperNotDrowningSkills: Despite being grounded Vek, Kxlatl and Xakran don't die if they enter the water unlike [[SuperDrowningSkills their enemy counterparts]].
* TokenHeroicOrc: The only heroic Vek in the entire game. Justified, as their cyborg implants bring them under human control.
* TheUnpronounceable: Their names are vaguely Aztec-sounding consonant mashups. That they have names at all begs a few questions as to what degree the Time Travelers have been able to communicate with the Secret Squad.
* WeakButSkilled: They start out only being able to deal 1 damage each, but have good map coverage and control effects. Graduate to StrongAndSkilled if you can fully upgrade their starting weapons.

!Corporate Islands

[[folder:Corporations]]
!!Corporations
!!!In General
->''"These corporate islands are the Vek's breeding ground. Wipe them out here, we save the world."''
-->'''-- Ralph Karlsson'''

Four corporations safeguard and govern the last survivors of humanity against the seemingly unstoppable forces of the Vek. The following tropes apply to all four corporations:

* BenevolentBoss: All of them care about their people and have put profit aside in favor of doing whatever must be done to win the war against the Vek.
* EscortMission: Protecting the trains on each island, the various Old Earth war machines on Archive, and the attacking robots on Pinnacle. Frequently a OneHitPointWonder. The train has 2 HP, but is disabled after the first hit, turning it into a ProtectionMission instead.
* HonestCorporateExecutive: The [=CEOs=] all seem well-intentioned and genuinely heroic. They're the last enclaves of humanity, and while they operate on corporate lines, their bottom line is saving the world and preserve what little is left, not concern about any future profit.
** R.S.T. CEO Jessica Kern used to be an absolutely ruthless businesswoman, and not above employing corporate espionage to stay ahead -- see Abe Isamu's backstory for details -- but the war with the Vek has changed her priorities, as well as making her methods seem that much more reasonable when used against the Vek.
* MissionControl: Each CEO serves as [[VoiceWithAnInternetConnection this]] for their island. Jessica Kern is also this during the endgame attack on the Volcanic Hive.
* OneNationUnderCopyright: A benevolent example, a fairly superficial distinction between forms of government, under the circumstances. All other governments have passed away with the rest of Old Earth. The islands each bear the name of their patron corporation, and are ruled by their [=CEOs=].
* ProtectionMission: A common side objective is to protect the various special grid buildings, most of which are [[OneHitPointWonder One Hit-Point Wonders]], though the various functional buildings will usually have 2.

[[folder:Archive, Inc.]]
!!Archive, Inc.
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/archive.jpg]]
->''"I can't believe it, the rocket launched! Er, well, I mean, I was SURE it would, but Old Earth relics can be, um, unreliable sometimes."''
-->'''-- Archive, Inc. CEO Dewey Alms'''

Archive, Inc. rules over an island designed to look like Earth as it once was, temperate and scenic. They also maintain a number of examples of Old Earth technology.

* {{Arcadia}}: {{Downplayed}}, but Archive's lack of advanced technology, green forests, and unspoiled waters stand out compared to the other islands, basically because Archive's island is apparently like a national park where parts are intentionally left undeveloped.
* AwesomeAnachronisticApparel: By the standards of the futuristic setting, the fact that Dewey Alms wears a 20th century suit and works in a wood-paneled office full of dead-tree books certainly stands out.
* BornInTheWrongCentury: CEO Dewey Alms calls himself a relic, but doesn't look ''that'' old. Still, he certainly can't be faulted for being a [[AscendedFan fan]] of what Archive does, given the state of the rest of the world.
* BreakOutTheMuseumPiece: In different missions Archive fields antique fighter jets, old tanks, and missile artillery to support the player. It's all surprisingly effective.
* BunnyEarsLawyer: A whole corporation built on preserving history seems a bit strange, compared to the the primary industries of the other islands. All you can really say is that Archive seems like a pleasant, possibly even somewhat dull place to live and work. When you reach the other islands, you can see what an achievement that is.
* CoolTrain: An old diesel locomotive. Well, Dewey thinks it's cool, alright? And he calls it [[ICallItVera Horace]].
* FamilyBusiness: Dewey frequently mentions his grandfather when speaking of his duty to history and Old Earth.
* FanOfThePast: It's the future and unbelievable technologies might exist, but Archive does everything they can to turn their island into a living museum of the past. Given that the whole of humanity has been reduced to living under constant attack by the Vek, it's hard to blame them.
* GiantWallOfWateryDoom: The Tidal Wave hazard turns any tile it hits into water, including reducing ''mountains'' to rubble. Luckily Archive's buildings are built to take it.
* GreenHillZone: Archive, Inc. is a museum island that recreates Earth as it was before the oceans rose. It's full of forests and grassland, as opposed to the desert, tundra, and industrial wasteland of the other islands. On your first run, it's the first island you visit.
* LandMineGoesClick: Overlaps with IncrediblyObviousBomb -- the mines are gigantic and highly visible even if they didn't also feature flashing red lights. The Vek still don't seem to notice them, however, nor do they seem to be able to avoid the blast zone when Archive launches a satellite.
* LethalJokeCharacter: Their ancient tech is unreliable and none of them are really trained in how to use it -- their air strikes are a menace, and everyone seems to know it. Yet they're also seemingly the safest island, and for every danger they pose to the unwary Mech pilot, double that for the Vek. It's remarkable how much help those old bombers, tanks, and artillery pieces can be.
* MakingASplash: Has more water, fresh and salt, than any other island. Bursting dams and incoming tidal waves can make a mess of earthbound Vek.
* RagnarokProofing: While they can't stand up to direct Vek attack, Archive's buildings have stood for centuries and can take hits from tidal waves that submerge whole mountains.
* YeGoodeOldeDays: A whole island dedicated to preserving their memory.

[[folder:R.S.T. Corporation]]
!!R.S.T. Corporation
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/20180302222529_1.jpg]]
->''"My advisors insist that we're losing the fight. They also insist I trust you. And since those cowards rarely insist I do anything, I'm giving you a chance to prove yourselves."''
-->'''-- R.S.T. CEO Jessica Kern'''

R.S.T. rules a desert island ravaged by their use of terraforming techologies against the Vek. Their island is constantly at risk from extreme storm conditions.

* BigGood: CEO Jessica Kern is the MissionControl for the [[FinalBoss Volcano Hive assault]], and R.S.T. provides the [[MacGuffin Renfield bomb]] needed to stand a chance of destroying the Volcanic Hive.
* BottomlessPits: A combination of the constant terraforming and the Vek's tunneling has opened a great many of these across the island. The Cataclysm mission hazard involves half the map falling into an enormous sinkhole, a product of runaway terraforming, at a rate of one row per round.
* CatchPhrase: Any time a grid building is destroyed, or an objective is failed:
-->'''Kern:''' ...Careless.
* DeadlyDustStorm: R.S.T.'s desert tiles turn into smoke/dust clouds when attacked. Hindering giant Mechs and Vek as much as they do, one can only imagine what they'd do at a human-sized scale.
* DishingOutDirt: Their specialty is terraforming, which they can do on the fly: leveling mountains, filling in chasms, and turning any terrain into barren desert over the course of a single round.
* GoingDownWithTheShip: When the grid goes offline...
-->'''Kern:''' It is over. Escape if you can... I will die here, with my people.
* GoodIsNotNice: Jessica Kern is an unyielding, suspicious, hypercritical MoralPragmatist and PerpetualFrowner, but she's willing to do anything to stop the Vek, and won't run or shirk her responsibilities to the very last.
* HostileTerraforming: Able and willing to turn what few patches of greenery remain on their island into desert and demolish entire mountain ranges if it means [[IDidWhatIHadToDo one less foothold for the Vek.]]
* HostileWeather: Lightning strikes will kill any unit they hit.
* IDidWhatIHadToDo: The corporation as a whole has a reputation for this, with CEO Kern and Abe Isamu being prominent cases.
* IronLady: The supremely self-assured Kern is the oldest CEO: tough, sharp-tongued, and generally dismissive of the player from the time they arrive.
* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: CEO Kern openly doubts you're from the future and strongly criticizes you for any failed objectives. She still helps you without prior promises, and later proves key to defeating the Vek even if you haven't saved her island that playthrough, praising you (albeit grudgingly) if you impress her.
** She won't make light of deaths, including your pilots -- she'll berate them while they're alive, but swear to avenge them if they die. Part of the reason she's so hard on you is because the stakes are humanity's very survival -- ''you'' might be able to time travel away, but the rest of them can't.
** [[AllThereInTheManual Further evidence]] of these tendencies can be read in Camila Vera's backstory -- she apparently adopted ''twenty'' kids.
* NoPlansNoPrototypeNoBackup: Averted. If the Renfield Bomb is destroyed in the last mission, Kern reveals that R.S.T. did the smart thing and built a large supply of backups, though it adds more turns to the countdown due to needing more time to arm the new bombs.
* ProtectionMission: In addition to the usual types, R.S.T. has an Earth Mover, which will fill in a large BottomlessPit over the course of a mission, and a Terraformer, which is used to destroy the surviving greenery on R.S.T. as well as killing any surviving Vek.
** You may also need to protect two prototype Renfield Bombs, a CallForward to the final mission, where you'll need to protect the real thing until it detonates, blowing the Vek's Volcanic Hive sky-high. The protoypes have only 1 HP each -- the real bomb has 4.
* ShiftingSandLand: The island is mostly sand, bare rock, huge dunes, plunging canyons, and mountains.
* ShockAndAwe: Not only does their island have unusually powerful lightning storms stirred up by their constant terraforming, but the mechs in R.S.T. squads are also usually armed with lightning weapons.
* {{Terraforming}}: The corporation's business is the wholesale re-landscaping of what little remaining land mass exists on Earth.

[[folder:Pinnacle Robotics]]
!!Pinnacle Robotics
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/pinnacle.jpg]]
->''"I hope you can respect both forms of life on this island, organic and mechanical."''
-->'''-- Pinnacle CEO Zenith'''

Pinnacle Robotics fights both against the Vek and rogue robots of their own design on an icy island. Their CEO is Zenith, herself an advanced artificial intelligence.

* AllLovingHero: Believes that humans and sentient machines are equally important, and that the Vek are a threat to all life.
* AndroidsArePeopleToo: Zenith hopes you accept this, and several Pinnacle objectives are about sparing and/or defending sentient machines who've gone rogue. Most humans from Pinnacle feel the same way, and the generic pilot from Pinnacle is an AI.
-->'''Zenith:''' These machines are not currently themselves. Look past their malfunctioning aggression, and see them as living beings.
* ArtificialIntelligence: Zenith isn't just the CEO of Pinnacle, she's also a product, being an AI herself.
* AIIsACrapshoot: Many rogue war robots are loose on Pinnacle's island. One possible boss for their island is also a rogue robot that's managed to control some of the Vek. Pinnacle CEO Zenith comments that if they could figure out how it did it they could finish the war tomorrow. Averted in the case of Zenith, who's an AI herself, but no less determined to save humanity, and other life, from the Vek.
* BarrierWarrior: Shield technology was developed here first, before it spread to the rest of the islands. Both Zenith Guard and the Frozen Titans make use of it, as does the Bot Leader.
* FreezeRay: Some Pinnacle missions have you assisted by Pinnacle tanks with freeze cannons.
* GlassCannon: All Sentient Weapons have immensely powerful attacks, but they only have one hitpoint ([[ContractualBossImmunity except for the Bot Leader]]).
* GrewBeyondTheirProgramming:
-->'''Zenith:''' My creator did not seek to teach me 'vengeance'... but she did not have to see the horror of the Vek.
* {{Hologram}}: Zenith's avatar is a light blue hologram.
* HologramProjectionImperfection: Zenith's holographic avatar lacks a lower half and is even more pixelated than the rest of the art style, represented by monochrome hatching rather than multiple shades of blue.
* HostileWeather: The Ice Storm hazard freezes all units and structures in a 3x3 grid.
* InnocentlyInsensitive: Zenith mostly avoids falling into the smugness of fellow AI Archimedes, but she does occasionally say things which might seem a little... condescending. She presumably means it kindly:
-->'''Zenith:''' ''[a pilot levels up]'' Humans gain knowledge more slowly than machines, but it is worthy of celebration when you do!
* NorthIsColdSouthIsHot: Subverted. Pinnacle is north of the searing desert of R.S.T., but south of the temperate Archive. All four islands are stated to have artificial climates.
* LandMineGoesClick: Much the same as Archive's mines, except Pinnacles are being actively laid by malfunctioning robot mine layers and freeze the target rather than destroying them.
* OneHitPointWonder: Pinnacle's various berserk robots. This can be a problem when your mission is to try and protect them.
* PrescienceByAnalysis: Zenith again:
-->'''Zenith:''' Excellent news: my prognosticator sub-process has dramatically increased the odds of our survival based on your victory.
* SlippySlideyIceWorld: Snowy plains, frozen rivers, and buildings and enemies encased in ice. Zenith mentions the low temperatures are a deliberate choice so as to improve the synthetic residents' processing efficiency.
* ThemeNaming: The company's name is Pinnacle, and the CEO's name is Zenith. Zenith also lends her name to the Zenith Guard Mech squad.
* TurnedAgainstTheirMasters: The robots on Pinnacle have gone berserk, some blindly pursuing their programmed functions, some mindlessly attacking -- although given their armament, one might amount to the same thing as the other.
* WeatherControlMachine: Zenith mentions that they keep the weather cold to help with hardware overheating problems.
* WhatMeasureIsANonHuman: CEO Zenith is an AI herself, but assures you that she cares for her mechanical and organic employees equally. She will sometimes request you to capture rogue robots instead of killing them, and considers killing them unethical.

[[folder:Detritus Disposal]]
!!Detritus Disposal
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/detritus.png]]
->''"If not for the Vek at our door, Officer, I'd offer you a job -- Detritus' benefits plan is unmatched."''
-->'''-- Detritus CEO Vikram Singh'''

Detritus Disposal is a waste processing and recycling corporation, and as a result, their island is ash-grey and covered in rivers of corrosive acid.
-----
* BeamSpam: The Zenith Guard squad is said to use their beam technology, and that squad has both a TractorBeam unit as well as a ridiculously powerful damage beam unit (balanced by its equally ridiculous potential for friendly fire).
* BenevolentBoss: CEO Vikram Singh is seemingly very hands-on when it comes to the safety and happiness of Detritus personnel, based on his dialogue.
* ByTheBookCop: Safety and efficiency are Vikram Singh's watchwords, a trait he seems to pass along [[AFatherToHisMen to his employees]]. Fortunately he also knows when to bend the rules:
-->'''Singh:''' While teleporting biomatter is prohibited by the Corporate Accords, I can make an exception for you -- and the Vek.
* DarkIsNotEvil: They have the gloomiest island and specialize in use of A.C.I.D and poison in their mechs. Their CEO is also a BenevolentBoss and it treats his workers like family.
* DeathNotification: When civilian buildings are destroyed in Detritus, Vikram says he'll inform the family himself. Generic Detritus pilots will actually say the same thing on other islands.
* DownInTheDumps: Their island to a tee.
* EverythingIsAnIPodInTheFuture: Vikram's office has this aesthetic, right down to his laptop being a very clear faux [[IPhony MacBook]]. The rest of the island...[[{{Mordor}} not so much]].
* AFatherToHisMen: The generic Detritus pilots mention Vikram in random dialogue quite a bit, and some of their comments echo things he says to you. Funnily enough, Singh seems to be the youngest CEO, with frequent mention of his predecessor in dev comments.
* HollywoodAcid: Called "A.C.I.D", puddles of it cause units that stop their movement in it to take additional damage. Just as green, flowing, and glowing as you'd expect. It's apparently comprised of nanites.
* InconvenientlyPlacedConveyorBelt: A feature/hazard of some Detritus maps, marked by handy arrows and activating automatically on the environment phase.
* {{Mordor}}: You could make a case for R.S.T. as well, but Detritus has the color palette of [[Film/TheLordOfTheRingsTheReturnOfTheKing Minas Morgul]] and is the last island you unlock. Subverted, however, in that Detritus is apparently a great company to work for, and produces considerable loyalty in its employees.
* ProtectionMission: A helpful case with the Disposal Unit, which has 2 HP and launches volleys of A.C.I.D. which can reduce mountain ranges to rubble, along with killing off any Vek who happen to get in the way.
* RammingAlwaysWorks: Zenith Guard features a (presumably) Detritus tank that initially can only attack by ramming, but does a fair amount of damage to its target (and a bit to itself).
* {{Slogan}}:
-->'''Singh:''' To quote our corporate motto, 'Detritus is at your disposal'.
* SwapTeleportation: Teleport pads on Detritus's company island will swap two targets occupying connected pads, which are indicated by having the same color. Teleported targets also maintain orientation.
* TeleporterAccident: Mostly averted -- objects on opposite pads will swap places, no {{Telefrag}}ging here -- but as Archimedes mentions offhandedly:
-->'''Archimedes:''' These last-gen teleporters have been known to cause occasional [[Film/TheFly DNA damage]].

* ACommanderIsYou: A toolbox faction, offering little in the way of an overarching gameplan and more a series of versatile weapons that require synergy to come together outside their specific niches. For instance, Bombling Mechs Walking Bombs deal low damage and can cause a lot of collateral damage on tighter maps, but they are also instrumental in allowing Pierce Mech to apply its cannon on open maps and allows you to tailor Exchange Mech’s teleports to go where you want them.

* ArmorPiercingAttack: The Pierce Mech’s gun, as its name suggests, pierces straight through the first thing it hits (be it building, enemy, ally or terrain) to deal damage to whatever is on the other side.

%%->''"Quote goes here."''

A young woman with an arrogant attitude.

* NonconformistDyedHair: Her purple mowhawk is a match for her personality being quite different from anyone else's. While some of the other pilots have been at this a while (like Ralph Karlsson) or are a bit arrogant (like Henry Kwan or Archimedes), none of them are quite so ''cold'' about it.

* TropeName:

%%->''"Quote goes here."''

%%'''Origin:''' \\

One of the new pilots in Advanced Edition.

%%* TropeName:

[[folder:Secret Pilots (Spoilers)]]
!!Secret Pilots
!!!In General
The following tropes apply to all three secret pilots:

* TheCameo: All three are members of alien races from Subset Games' previous title, ''VideoGame/{{FTL}}''.
* GuideDangIt: To unlock them, you must [[spoiler:find one of their beacons, usually buried underneath a mountain or visibly glowing under a patch of ice. The following turn, an escape pod will fall -- just like a time pod, you much protect that pod until the end of the level. And if you uncover the beacon but don't pick it up, or pick it up just before ending the level so that the pod doesn't have time to fall, it doesn't count.]]
* HumanoidAliens: To a greater or lesser degree.
* SecretCharacter: Only hinted at by the presence of the "Distant Friends" achievement.
* StarfishLanguage: Each of the aliens use a different language, with Kazaaak speaking in clicks, Ariadne using grinding and Mafan speaking in dots, asterisks and lines.

!!Kazaaakpleth
[[quoteright:130:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/itb_kazaaakpleth.png]]

'''Special Ability:''' Mantis (a 2-damage melee attack (which also pushes) which replaces Repair)

The Mantis are a race of space-faring warlike mantids, taking great pleasure in hunting down alien prey. Even among the vicious Mantis race, however, Kazaaakpleth is feared for his willingness to hunt his own kind. While he claims it's just for the bounty money, and to take down evil-doers, he secretly covets the experience of killing another insect. After a fight that ended poorly, he fled towards Earth, detecting a beacon from the corporate islands. When he landed, he found himself in paradise: a world teeming with hostile insects, alongside the tools to let him slaughter them. He's happy to help humanity deal with their Vek problem, though he would take the opportunity to leave Earth if he could.

* AbsurdlySharpClaws: So sharp they somehow grant a melee attack to a mech hundreds of times his size.
* AttackAttackAttack: Gives up the ability to repair his mech in favor of his claw attack. Seemingly a small difference, but it can have a major impact on how he plays.
* BigCreepyCrawlies: Roughly human-sized.
* BloodKnight: Enjoys the thrill of the hunt and is particularly fond of killing other Mantis.
* BountyHunter: His profession before touching down on Earth.
* GlassCannon: His lack of repair ability reduces the amount of damage he can take, alongside making him more vulnerable to status effects. However, the attack he gains in compensation hits hard.
* HunterOfHisOwnKind: He's explained to be one of the few mantises who hunt their own kind. While he says it's for a noble cause, he secretly just enjoys the act. Since there are no other Mantis about, however, he makes do with killing Vek, since they're roughly the same.
* InsectoidAliens: From a species of alien mantids.
* IntelligentGerbil: The Mantis are simply very large, intelligent preying mantis aliens.
* MechanicallyUnusualClass: Replaces the ability to repair his mech, which every other mech has, with a melee attack that deals 2 points of damage and pushes the target -- sacrificing defensive versatility for additional offense. This can be very useful for artillery or science mechs that don't fare well in close combat. (Or in the case of most science mechs, don't have any offensive capability whatsoever.)
* SlayingMantis: Kazaaakpleth is a human-sized mantis who is highly adept at combat, trading in the ability to heal for an extra attack.
* ThirdPersonPerson: Although his speech is untranslated, some of his vocal barks include his own name, mostly after killing a Vek.

!!Ariadne
[[quoteright:130:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/itb_ariadne.png]]

'''Special Ability:''' Rockman (+3 HP and immune to fire)

The Rockmen are a race of humanoids made of rock. Their space-borne society is highly dogmatic and religious, with criminals being cast out into uninhabited space. Ariadne was a member of the Rockmen who was arranged to be married to a chieftain before she broke the law and fled in a spaceship, following a beacon to Earth. The new society she finds herself in makes her uncomfortable, however, and so she looks towards time travel technology as a way to erase her crimes and enable her to return home.

* ArrangedMarriage: Was escaping one of these when she picked up the beacon that led her to Earth.
* ContinuityNod: Her backstory refers to a sidequest in ''FTL'' where you are given the option to escort her to her groom or save her from her marriage at the last minute.
* ImmuneToFire: Like all rockmen, she's immune to fire, as is her mech.
* MadeOfIron: Made of living rock, actually, but the result's the same. She grants +3 HP to any mech she pilots, on top of any piloting or mech reactor boosts. This means she can max out at 10 HP with the right mech (11 with the Networked Armor passive) , in a game where most units start with 2 or 3 HP.
* RockMonster: From a race of alien rockpeople.
* RunawayBride: She ended up on Earth while on the run from an unwanted marriage to a Basilisk chief.
* SiliconBasedLife: Rockmen, being primarily made up of stone.

!!Mafan
[[quoteright:130:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/itb_mafan.png]]

'''Special Ability:''' Zoltan (+1 Reactor Core; reduces Mech HP to 1, but gains a shield every turn)

The Zoltan are a species of wise, tactful, energy beings. Mafan is a member of the species who picked up a beacon from Earth and travelled there. It believes that the temporal loop caused by the war against the Vek to be a method of enlightenment, reliving and reflecting on the same events over and over again.

* AscendToAHigherPlaneOfExistence: The Zoltan as a species believe they're on the verge of this. Mafan believes the Breach itself may be a path toward this ascension.
* EnergyBeing: From a race of energy beings.
* ForceField: He can extend a force field around his mech, granting him a free shield at the start of each round.
* MechanicallyUnusualClass: Having only 1 HP, but gaining a free shield at the start of each round, means you have to play Mafan quite differently from any other character -- he can take any amount of damage, but only once per turn, which means you need to be on guard for any potential chain reactions.
* NoSell: Gains a free shield at the start of each turn. Since shields negate any amount of damage, this can make him remarkably durable, despite his lack of HP. He's also immune to fire and freezing while the shield is up, making him very strong in the Ice Mech (which normally freezes itself with its weapon).
* OneHitPointWonder: Reduces the HP of any mech he pilots to 1, regardless of what it was before.
* PowerGlows: Has a unique green shield bubble, as opposed to the transparent blue shield of most other characters.

!Mech Squads

[[folder:Squads]]
!!Squads

->''"Hang in there, little Artillery Mech, I'll fix you all up when we get back to the Carrier..."''
-->'''-- Lily Reed'''

The following tropes apply to multiple squads:

* ActionBomb: The Self-Destruct weapon kills the user and all Vek adjacent to them.
* AreaOfEffect: Various Ranged-class mortar attacks, which affect squares in various directions around the target zone. A few Mechs have [=AoE=] effects which center on themselves and affect adjacent squares.
* CastFromHitpoints: Ramming Engines (default on the Charge Mech), Hydraulic Legs (default on the Leap Mech), Unstable Cannon (default on the Unstable Mech), Vortex Fist, and Burning Mortar all do damage to the user.
* {{Cephalothorax}}: Most Primes are roughly humanoid, but with a large glowing eye in their chest or abdomen rather than a distinct head region.
* ChickenWalker: The Primes for Zenith Guard and the Hazardous Mechs have backwards knee joints.
* CloseRangeCombatant: Prime weapons tend to work best up close. The map-crossing Burst Beam loses a point of damage for each tile it travels.
* ACommanderIsYou: Not that you can play as the Vek, but humanity as a whole are the Elitist Faction to the Vek's Spammer Faction, with a triplet of mechs facing off against the swarms of Vek.
* CoolPlane: Only one proper plane Mech, the Rusting Hulks' Jet Mech.
* CyberCyclops: All the Primes other than Laser Mech, plus the Swap Mech have a single, highlighted eye. The Pulse Mech and Charge Mech have {{One Way Visor}}s instead.
* FragileSpeedster: Flying mechs have much greater maneuverability even when they don't have higher speed, but none of them has more than 2 starting HP.
* FriendlyFireproof: Many [=AoE=] weapons can be upgraded to negate the damage they would deal to structures and/or allies.
* GlassCannon: Ranged Mechs tend to fall under this. Many of them start with only 2 HP, and ranged weapons are frequently expensive to upgrade, so you might find you have better things to spend your power on than HP. The best armor is to keep out of range, of course.
* HoverTank: The Ice Mech is both a hover tank and a spider tank. The Nano tech is mostly just three A.C.I.D. reservoir tanks in the back and a huge nozzle in the front.
* HumongousMecha: The giant fighting robots, tanks, and jets built to take on the similarly giant insectoid Vek are all referred to as mechs, but only the Prime mechs are roughly humanoid.
* JackOfAllStats: Prime Mechs are generally designed to perform best at close range -- the more targets the better. They have a good mix of damage, durability, movement, and light control abilities.
** Straight-ahead projectile weapons can cross the whole map, only stopping when they hit something, but they actually work just as well up close.
* LongRangeFighter: Ranged Mechs, naturally. Lobbed artillery projectiles can arc over buildings, but require the mech to maintain a distance of at least one square between them and their target, however, meaning they can't fight back if cornered or webbed.
* PaletteSwap: Before starting a run, you have the option of switching the colors of your mechs to the paint job of any other squad you've unlocked.
* SpiderTank: Ranged Mechs, as well as the Pulse and Gravity Mechs, are all 4-legged walkers.
* SquishyWizard: Most Science-class Mechs are weak on both defense and offense, but have unique abilities to manipulate the battlefield.
* StoneWall: Brutes and Primes tend to focus on durability if they're not set up for damage.
* SupportPartyMember: Various Mechs which can't deal damage by themselves, along with whichever mech in a squad gets to hold onto the squad's passive ability, if any.
** More specifically, Science-Class mechs. They are focused more on manipulating the positioning of units, such as shoving vek away from buildings or breaking your other mechs free from webbing, or providing passive effects and debuffs on vek.
* TankGoodness: Some of your building-sized Brute Mechs are just giant tanks, with equally giant cannons to go with it. You can even unlock the ability to launch mini tanks as support units off of some mechs.
* UtilityPartyMember: Science-Class Mechs fill this role. Their weapons are unable to damage enemies, but they usually compensate with adeptness in another area, such as flight, or a passive effect that aids the squad's strategy.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Rift Walkers]]
!!Rift Walkers
''These were the very first Mechs to fight against the Vek. They are efficient and reliable.''

The first and only squad unlocked at the start of a new game profile.

'''Mechs:''' [[HumongousMecha Combat Mech]] (Prime), [[TankGoodness Cannon Mech]] (Brute), [[SpiderTank Artillery Mech]] (Ranged)

* BoringButPractical: No gimmicks -- just a solid squad.
* ACommanderIsYou: The Generalist Faction, with a straightforward mix of abilities and no real weaknesses. In particular, all three Mechs can both deal damage and push enemies, which doesn't sound like much, but adds up to some round-by-round versatility that more specialized Mechs don't have.
* DashAttack: An upgraded Titan Fist allows the Combat Mech to dash across the map before punching their target.
* KineticWeaponsAreJustBetter: Whether they're tank and artillery shells or giant robot fists.
* LightningBruiser: The [[DashAttack Dash]] upgrade turns the Combat Mech into this.
* MegatonPunch: The Titan Fist could just as easily be called this, as one of the few 4 damage attacks in the game (when fully upgraded) which also knocks its target into the next tile back.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Rusting Hulks]]
!!Rusting Hulks:
''R.S.T. weather manipulators allow these Mechs to take advantage of smoke storms everywhere.''

'''Mechs:''' [[CoolPlane Jet Mech]] (Brute), [[SpiderTank Rocket Mech]] (Ranged), [[SpiderTank Pulse Mech]] (Science)

* ACommanderIsYou: A combination of Guerilla and Ranger Factions. Speed, smoke, and the Pulse Mech's ability to push all adjacent units all work to prevent enemies from ever landing an attack.
* ConfusionFu: The squad relies on smoke attacks and pushing enemies out of position while wearing them down from round to round. There's a reason the "Perfect Battle" achievement, awarded for finishing a battle without taking any Mech and Building damage, is on the Rusting Hulks' short list.
* CoolPlane: A building-sized jet, with the highest base speed in the game, which can mount the various Brute-class tank cannons.
* CripplingOverspecialization: As a defensive squad, they start light on direct offense and can have a hard time taking down enemies with a large amount of HP. Since smoke prevents mechs from attacking or repairing as well, this can leave them without a place to attack and no way to save themselves on the off chance they get cornered.
* DamageOverTime: The squad's Storm Generator means that Vek in smoke tiles not only have their attacks canceled, but they also take lightning damage round after round.
* DeathFromAbove: A combination of Jet Mech's bombing runs and Rocket Mech's air strikes.
* FragileSpeedster: The Jet Mech has a base speed of 4, as fast as any Mech in the game, plus Aerial Bombs which allow it to leapfrog over other units, escaping webs and canceling attacks. Its HP starts at only 2.
* GeoEffects: Smoke tiles prevent units from acting, and in the the Rusting Hulks' case, also deal DamageOverTime.
* HitAndRunTactics: Jet Mech's specialty, and, by default, its only means of attack.
* MechanicallyUnusualClass: A fragile, speedy Brute, a durable, frontline Science-class Mech, and a Ranged with a useful close range effect. This makes for some interesting permutations with their standard class weapons.
* OneWayVisor: Pulse Mech has a [[Franchise/{{Metroid}} Samus]]-esque green visor.
* ShockAndAwe: Rocket Mech's Storm Generator passive deals electrical damage to enemies caught in your smoke clouds.
* SmokeBombs: Aerial Bombs deal damage as well, but their main function is to kick up thick clouds of electrified smoke. Rocket Mech's rocket leaves a carpet of smoke behind the mech, enough to do a NASA shuttle launch proud.
* StoneWall: The only base squad without a Prime, the Hulks have the next best thing: the Pulse Mech. Its starting weapon, Repulse, doesn't deal any damage by itself, but it knocks back all adjacent enemies. Its first upgrade grants the Pulse Mech a shield, making the Mech very effective at guarding chokepoints. When fully upgraded, it shields friendly adjacent units and buildings as well, severely hampering the Vek's ability to damage anything if they can even manage to get a shot in through all the smoke.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Zenith Guard]]
!!Zenith Guard
''Detritus' Beam technology and Pinnacle's Shield technology create a powerful combination.''

'''Mechs:''' [[ChickenWalker Laser Mech]] (Prime), [[TankGoodness Charge Mech]] (Brute), [[SpheroidDropShip Defense Mech]] (Science)

* BarrierWarrior: The Defense Mech's Shield Projector allows it to lob shield bubbles across the map, protecting buildings and allies, up to a 5-tile cross when fully upgraded.
* ChickenWalker: Laser Mech closely resembles [[VideoGame/MetalGearSolid Metal Gear REX]].
* ACommanderIsYou: The Brute Faction, with the single biggest gun in the game and a tank that specializes in crashing straight into things.
* EnergyWeapon: Just the one, but it's more than enough.
* FriendlyFireproof: Burst Beam can be upgraded to ignore allies, but not buildings.
* LightningBruiser: As long as there's a straight line between you and your target. Zenith Guard can run into trouble on uneven terrain, when the enemy or the grid is scattered.
* OneWayVisor: Charge Mech has a bright red one.
* ShoutOut: In addition to the Laser Mech's resemblance to Metal Gear REX, there's these two achievements:
** [[Franchise/MortalKombat "Get Over Here!"]][[note]]Requires the Defense Mech's Attraction Pulse, [[JokingMode even though Blitzkrieg's Hook Mech is black and yellow and has a grappling hook.]][[/note]] (Kill an enemy by pulling it into yourself.)
** [[Film/BladeRunner "Glittering C-Beam."]] (Kill 4 enemies with a single laser.)
* SplashDamage: The Burst Beam starts out with 3 or 4 points of damage but loses a point of damage for every tile it travels through.
* SupportPartyMember: The Defense Mech starts with both slots filled, and like many Science Mechs, has no actual damage capability -- other than pulling its target directly into its fragile 2 HP pod.
* TractorBeam: Defense Mech again. A projectile weapon which pulls enemy targets 1 tile. Handy for pulling Vek into [[SuperDrowningSkills water]].
* WaveMotionGun: Laser Mech's namesake Burst Beam. It crosses the map in a straight line until it hits a structure, passing through units without stopping. It deals massive damage up close but tails off for each tile it passes through.
* WaveMotionTuningFork: The Laser Mech's side-mounted main gun is a huge two-pronged beam weapon.

[[folder:Blitzkrieg]]
!!Blitzkrieg
''R.S.T. designed this squad around the mass destruction capabilities of harnessed lightning.''

'''Mechs:''' [[HumongousMecha Lightning Mech]] (Prime), [[TankGoodness Hook Mech]] (Brute), [[SpiderTank Boulder Mech]] (Ranged)

* ChainLightning: The core mechanic of the squad is the Electric Whip, which deals damage to an initial target, then chains to each adjacent target, and so on and so on. It can be upgraded to deal more damage and chain through buildings (without damaging them). Used effectively, it can devastate Vek ranks, cleaning out any or all weaker Vek in a single turn.
* ACommanderIsYou: The Unit Specialist Faction. You can use Boulder Mech to deal damage, but where this squad really shines is setting up massive chains to take full advantage of Electric Whip's ability to hit multiple targets.
* CripplingOverspecialization: Even more than most squads, Blitzkrieg is built around their Prime mech's gimmick. Their relative lack of single-target damage also needs to be overcome.
** Chain lightning can be... problematic when it comes to defense missions, since Electric Whip will damage anything that has HP.
** Grappling Hook pulls enemies into range, but with no way of dealing direct damage itself.
** Rock Accelerator's persistent boulder has a great many uses, but makes Boulder Mech even more dependent on positioning than other Ranged Mechs.
* FriendlyFireproof: Electric Whip can be upgraded to chain through buildings while dealing no damage to them.
* GratuitousForeignLanguage: Blitzkrieg is German for "Lightning War", the Nazis' military doctrine of breaking through enemy defenses using a fast attack by a concentrated force of armored, mechanized forces as the tip of the spear. Sound familiar? It's also the name of one of Blitzkrieg Squad's achievements, awarded for beating the first two Corporate Islands in under 30 minutes.
* LightningLash: The Lightning Mech has electrified whips at the end of its arms.
* RockBeatsLaser: The Boulder Mech launches rocks, which deal more damage than many conventional weapons, have a unique ability to push targets on either side of it but not in front of it, and if they don't hit anything, leave a 1 HP boulder which can block attacks and emerging Vek -- as well as creating another target for Electric Whip to chain through.
* ShockAndAwe: The squad specialises in using ChainLightning to eliminate swarms of enemies in a single swoop.
* SpiderTank: Boulder Mech, looking a little like a [[VideoGame/{{Starcraft}} Protoss dragoon]].
* YouWillNotEvadeMe: Hook Mech comes equipped with a Grappling Hook which it can use to pull enemies adjacent to itself. What makes this particularly useful is that Hook Mech is Armored, so it can sit in the middle of Lightning Mech's chains while shrugging off a portion of that damage.

[[folder:Steel Judoka]]
!!Steel Judoka
''These Mechs specialize in positional manipulation to turn the Vek against each other.''

'''Mechs:''' [[HumongousMecha Judo Mech]] (Prime), [[SpiderTank Siege Mech]] (Ranged), [[SpiderTank Gravity Mech]] (Science)

* ACommanderIsYou: A Unit Specialist/Gimmick Faction, requiring a good grasp of the various enemy units, since the Mechs' abilities are primarily defensive in nature and highly positional when it comes to both the Vek and the Mechs themselves. The squad relies on ForcedFriendlyFire between the Vek to deal most of their damage for them.
* BarefistedMonk: Judo Mech is the HumongousMecha equivalent of this.
* CripplingOverspecialization: You really need to be able to line up the Vek with each other. If you can't funnel them together, you're going to have some trouble dealing enough damage to take them down.
* ForcedFriendlyFire: Explicitly a part of the intended strategy for the squad, per the in-game description.
* FriendlyFireProof: The Siege Mech's Cluster Artillery deals no damage to the targeted tile, damaging and pushing all adjacent tiles. It can be upgraded to make grid buildings completely immune. In addition, as usual, Armored works just as well against Mech weapons as it does against the Vek.
* GrappleMove: [[UsefulNotes/{{Judo}} Judo Mech]] is [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin a mech that does Judo]]. It manages this through the use of its starting weapon, Vice Fist, which tosses a Vek to the square behind the Judo Mech, dealing a single point of damage when it lands.
* GravityMaster: Gravity Mech, as the name implies, uses this as its starting weapon, the Grav Well. It's a tad underwhelming, between the name and the Mech's downright ominous appearance: a bubble that can be launched across the map, but only tugs the target a single square and can't be upgraded. Fittingly for a gravity-themed unit, and moreso than most launcher characters, the Gravity Mech can benefit from being near the center of most maps.
* LightningBruiser: No {{Mighty Glacier}}s here. Judo Mech is tied with Jet Mech for the highest base speed in the game. It can't necessarily deal much damage itself with its base weapon, but there's nothing stopping you from upgrading it -- or giving it the various other Prime weapons, provided you can get your hands on them.
* LongRangeFighter: The only squad with two launcher mechs. As such, neither the Siege Mech nor the Gravity Mech can attack adjacent squares. Averted with [[CloseRangeCombatant Judo Mech]], of course.
* MadeOfIron: Judo Mech starts with the Armored trait, making an entirely valid strategy out of tossing a Vek over your shoulder and then simply letting it hit you, since you can completely negate the damage of any basic Vek.
* OppositesAttract: Siege Mech pushes the Vek out, but Gravity Mech keeps pulling them back in.
* {{Pheromones}}: The Gravity Mech's Vek Hormones passive incites Vek aggression, causing them to deal increased damage to other Vek, although still they won't target each other without a push in the right direction.
* RecursiveAmmo: Siege Mech's Cluster Artillery. It deals no damage to the tile it lands on, but the bomblets damage and push all adjacent squares.
* StoneWall: The Judoka's ''raison d'etre'', as the most purely defensive squad. True to trope, they don't have much in the way of direct damage.

[[folder:Flame Behemoths]]
!!Flame Behemoths
''Invincible to flames, these Mechs aim to burn any threat to ashes.''

'''Mechs:''' [[HumongousMecha Flame Mech]] (Prime), [[SpiderTank Meteor Mech]] (Ranged), Swap Mech (Science)

* ACommanderIsYou: The Technical Faction. In another game, the fire-based team might be the most aggressive and straightforward, but in a game where your primary objective is defending buildings, the Flame Behemoths tend to reward careful play, steadily whittling down units with DamageOverTime, funneling enemies along paths that haven't been set on fire. Since Vek will also avoid being set on fire if they can, the squad is also very effective at area denial.
* BattleAmongstTheFlames: Most battles involving these will end up with lots of the tiles on fire. The Flame Behemoths are immune to the flames thanks to Flame Shielding, the Vek are not.
* CripplingOverspecialization: They're slow to set up and lacking in direct and single-target damage, to the point where they can seem fairly underwhelming until you get a handle on how to play them.
* DamageOverTime: They rely on it more heavily than any other faction, since the squad's only direct damage ability only deals damage to targets that are already on fire. Once they build up momentum, however, most Vek will be set on fire as soon as they emerge, meaning most minor Vek can be ignored the turn after they appear.
* DifficultButAwesome: Watching a whole map full of Vek wither away from burning damage and blocking emerging Vek without even having to lay a finger on them. Those are good rounds.
* ElementalRockPaperScissors: Fire attacks will automatically break ice tiles, dropping the Vek above [[SuperDrowningSkills straight into the water]].
* FirebreathingWeapon: The Flame Mech's Flamethrower fires a video game-style gout of flame.
* FlamethrowerBackfire: Averted, but the Meteor Mech's Vulcan Artillery can be upgraded to set fire to the tile directly behind it, giving it a melee attack of sorts.
* FriendlyFireproof: Fortunately grid buildings don't take damage from fire, which means the Behemoths can shoot straight through them without fear of collateral damage. Sadly this is not the case for some of the other friendly units you're meant to be defending during missions.
* GeoEffects: Tiles set on fire remain on fire for the rest of the match, unless hit with another Geo Effect, like ice or A.C.I.D. Control of this is the Flame Behemoths' primary advantage.
* ImmuneToFire: The Flame Behemoths come with Flame Shielding to protect them from the fire that they liberally make use of.
* KillItWithFire: Their specialty. Something of a subversion, however, as rather than putting down single targets relatively quickly, the Flame Behemoths focus on a slow burn that takes down multiple targets in later rounds.
* LongRangeFighter: All three units start with what are technically ranged weapons, even if the range on Flame Mech and Swap Mech is very short. The upgrades for both their base weapons simply extend their range by 1 tile per upgrade. It adds up.
* RequiredSecondaryPowers: Flame Shielding gives the whole squad immunity to fire, meaning they can walk over burning tiles with impunity.
* SwapTeleportation: Swap Mech's Teleporter allows it to trade places with a single unit. Despite its relatively short range, it's one of the more versatile position-affecting weapons, and pays dividends when more powerful Vek start showing up in larger numbers.
* VideoGameFlamethrowersSuck: It's one of the trickier weapons to use well, requiring an additional step before it can deal direct damage. If you're patient, however, once the whole map is burning, you'll be spoiled for choice when it comes to targets.

[[folder:Frozen Titans]]
!!Frozen Titans
''These Titans rely on the Cryo Launcher, a powerful weapon that takes an experienced Pilot to master.''

'''Mechs:''' [[HumongousMecha Aegis Mech]] (Prime), [[TankGoodness Mirror Mech]] (Brute), [[HoverTank Ice Mech]] (Science)

* BarrierWarrior: The Aegis Mech gains the ability to shield itself every time it attacks when upgraded, but the real standout is Ice Mech's ability to freeze itself and any other unit, structure, or water/A.C.I.D. tile each round.
* ACommanderIsYou: The Technical/Gimmick Faction, each mech having a weapon with a slightly unusual mechanic. They specialize in locking down enemies and preventing damage through timely deployment of shields and barriers.
* CripplingOverspecialization: The Titans are all about keeping tight control of the map and have the versaility to do it, but they also have to juggle a lot of variables at once. If they lose control and start getting overwhelmed, they're not great at getting that control back.
** As the in-game description mentions, the Cryo-Launcher is extremely versatile, protecting units or structures, locking down Vek, blocking emergence points without taking damage, etc. -- but prioritizing your targets and getting the right order of operations down will make or break the squad.
** The Mirror Mech's double guns double the damage you can do per round and are relatively cheap to upgrade, but do present a fair-sized risk of collateral damage. If you can't hit Vek with both shots, this can be blocked by the other mechs in the squad or by freezing buildings.
** While it's great when you can make use of all three, the Aegis Mech often has to choose between its solid damage output, Spartan Shield's unique ability to flip enemy attack direction, and its durability.
** The Titans are very good at preventing Vek reaching the surface at all, but rely on their defensive abilities too much and you can start to lag behind in terms of experience. Frozen Vek can't attack, but also aren't worth any XP.
* ElementalRockPaperScissors: Cryo-Launcher can be used to put out fires and freeze water tiles, but freezing is negated by lava tiles. Since Ice Mech is a Flying mech, this can be used to your advantage in the Volcanic Hive, freezing your targets while remaining mobile yourself.
* GeoEffects: Water and A.C.I.D. tiles can be made walkable. Frozen units block all non-flying units, including allies.
* GlacierWaif: The Ice Mech has only 2 HP, but is one of the most durable mechs in the game, thanks to its default loadout of the Cryo-Launcher, which freezes both the mech's target and the mech itself, encasing both in solid ice. This might sound like a liability, but in practice can be used as a powerful makeshift shield, guarding both the Ice Mech and a building, or taking an enemy out of the fight entirely, since Vek can't break out of the ice without another Vek attacking them.
** Doubly the case if the Ice Mech in question is piloted by [[{{Pun}} Bethany Jones]], since her shield means she can fire the Cryo-Launcher without freezing herself.
* AHeadAtEachEnd: The Mirror Mech's Janus Cannon is basically two huge cannons facing in opposite directions mounted on a set of treads. It can, and indeed, ''must'' fire both guns at once whenever it attacks.
* HubcapHovercraft: The Ice Mech has SpiderTank legs like all Ranged mechs, which it folds up around its body at all times, since it also starts with the [[HoverTank Flying]] trait.
* AnIcePerson: An ice-themed squad, as the name suggests, with a pale blue color scheme and a glass/mirror theme. The Cryo-Launcher can freeze units and structures, which acts as a shield but prevents actions and can only be removed by damage or repairing.
* Instant180DegreeTurn: The Aegis Mech's Spartan Shield has the unique ability to reverse the direction of Vek attacks.
* LightningBruiser: Like its fellow defensive Prime Judo Mech, Aegis Mech has a base speed of 4. It tends to be used for running from one threat to another rather than charging toward the front lines, however.
* LuckilyMyShieldWillProtectMe: The Aegis Mech's enormous metal shield is visible in its sprite.
* MightyGlacier: Generally averted for the individual mechs, but the squad as a whole is better at taking out single targets and guarding chokepoints than they are at taking out large numbers of enemies at once. Their strategy tends to be slow and steady.
** Ice Mech can completely neutralize a powerful Vek one turn, but may need to spend a turn frozen or repairing if they aren't able to line themselves up with an attacking Vek or Mirror Mech's blowback.
* MoreDakka: The Mirror Mech's double guns can deal heavy damage and are relatively cheap to upgrade.
* NoSell: Masters of this, between Aegis Mech's ability to flip enemy attacks and Ice Mech's ability to encase targets in ice, locking enemies down and protecting friendlies from damage.
* ShieldBash: The Aegis Mech's Spartan Shield weapon deals a solid 2 points of damage and flips the target's attack direction, an ability unique to it. When upgraded, it also provides a single-use energy shield.
* StoneWall: The last of the three defensive squads, focusing on avoiding enemy damage altogether, freezing dangerous targets and blocking surfacing Vek. They have reasonably good damage output as well, but can be stretched thin if too many enemies end up on the field at once.
* ThemeNaming: The squad is armed with a [[UsefulNotes/AncientGreece Spartan]] Shield, the [[ReligiousAndMythologicalThemeNaming Janus]] Cannon, and their signature [[GratuitousGreek Cryo]]-Launcher.

[[folder:Hazardous Mechs]]
!!Hazardous Mechs
''These Mechs have spectacular damage output but rely on nanobots feeding off dead Vek to say alive.''

'''Mechs:''' [[ChickenWalker Leap Mech]] (Prime), [[TankGoodness Unstable Mech]] (Brute), [[HoverTank Nano Mech]] (Science)

* AttackAttackAttack: Because attacking will hurt you, but actually finishing enemies off will also heal you.
* ACommanderIsYou: The Ranger Faction, with their considerable advantages in speed and range, and -- technically -- Technical, since they rely heavily on A.C.I.D. as a debuff, with the added wrinkle of healing from every kill. In practice, they tend to be fairly straightforward, tactically: a high-damage, high-speed, high-risk high-reward squad, which tends to swing quickly from victory to the edge of defeat and back again.
* CastFromHitPoints: Several of their weapons will deal damage to themselves, in exchange for high damage to enemies.
* CripplingOverspecialization: That moment when you realize that you can set up a killzone where you can take out half a dozen Vek with a single use of Hydraulic Legs -- but it's going to get your Unstable Mech killed during the Vek's action phase to position them just right.
* DamageIncreasingDebuff: A.C.I.D. doubles all weapon damage dealt to the target. The Hazardous Mechs are not immune to this effect themselves, and this includes the damage their weapons deal to themselves when they attack. Each unit killed while inflicted with A.C.I.D. leaves an A.C.I.D. spill on the tile where they dropped, quickly covering the map in green puddles.
* DeathOrGloryAttack: The intended strategy for the squad is an ongoing series of these. It's entirely possible for an attack to take the Mech to 0 HP, simultaneously kill multiple Vek, and bring you back up to full health all in the same action. This can be deeply cathartic.
** The squad also generally doesn't have the health to block many emerging Vek, but this can actually work out in their favor if they can use the Vek's numbers to set up Vek traffic jams and kill them by bumping them into each other from all sides.
* FragileSpeedster: Both the fastest and most fragile squad in the game, with two units with base speed 4, two units that damage themselves when they attack, and a map that will typically be covered in [[DamageIncreasingDebuff A.C.I.D.]] before the end of the mission.
* HollywoodAcid: Detritus's own patented A.C.I.D., although it's actually said to be composed of nanites -- still green and able to eat through just about anything, though. [[NotTheIntendedUse It's supposed to be used for disposing of waste material.]]
* InASingleBound: At first it looks like the Hazardous Mechs don't have a ranged launcher Mech -- which is fine, two straight-ahead projectile attacks still isn't bad -- but then you realize Leap Mech is both the launcher ''and'' the projectile, pushing and damaging all adjacent squares at its impact point while being able to reach almost any square on the map.
* LifeDrain: Viscera Nanobots, a starting weapon on the Nano Mech, heals Mechs whenever they deal a killing blow.
* {{Nanomachines}}: The squad makes substantial use of these, both to damage enemies and to repair themselves. Both are supplied by the aptly named [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin Nano Mech]].
* RegeneratingHealth: Of the restore-health-upon-making-a-kill variety. The Nano Mech's Viscera Nanobots passive causes the Hazardous Mechs to regain health upon a direct kill -- this includes Vek that are pushed into each other or are drowned or pushed into pits, but not Vek that take damage from burning or blocking emerging Vek.
* SelfDestructiveCharge: Leap Mech and Unstable Mech (per the name) have attacks so powerful that they risk shaking the Mechs to pieces every time they use them.

[[folder:Bombermechs]]
!!Bombermechs
''With a small army of remote explosives and flexible weapons, the tactical options are endless.''

'''Mechs:''' [[SpiderTank Pierce Mech]] (Brute), [[SpiderTank Bombling Mech]] (Ranged), [[SpiderTank Exchange Mech]] (Science)

* ACommanderIsYou: A toolbox faction, offering little in the way of an overarching gameplan and more a series of versatile weapons that require synergy to come together outside their specific niches. For instance, Bombling Mechs Walking Bombs deal low damage and can cause a lot of collateral damage on tighter maps, but they are also instrumental in allowing Pierce Mech to apply its cannon on open maps and allows you to tailor Exchange Mech’s teleports to go where you want them.
* ActionBomb: The Bombling Mech can produce an unlimited amount of these.
* ArmorPiercingAttack: The Pierce Mech’s gun, as its name suggests, pierces straight through the first thing it hits (be it building, enemy, ally or terrain) to deal damage to whatever is on the other side.
* ThrowDownTheBomblet: The Bombling Mech has shades of this, especially after it’s upgraded to throw out two Walking Bombs a turn (or four with Silica).
* SwapTeleportation: The role of the Exchange Mech. Unlike the Swap Mech of the Flame Behemoths, the exchange mech swaps the places of other things, and cannot teleport itself.
* TeleporterAccident: The Exchange Mech can be upgraded to hurt any hostile entities that it teleports. Inverted in that you can make it heal your allies as well.

[[folder:Secret Squad (Spoilers)]]
!!The Secret Squad
''Humanity's last hope are a blend of Machine and Vek created to defend Earth.''

Each of the three has the same special ability and the same class (Cyborg):

'''Special Ability: "Vek"''' Normal Pilots cannot be equipped. Loses 25 XP when the unit is disabled. In addition, cyborg units must spend one additional reactor core to equip any weapons other than their default loadouts.

'''"Mechs":''' Kxlatl ([[ToughBeetles Techno-Beetle]]), Taaxetizl ([[WickedWasps Techno-Hornet]]), and Xakran ([[ScarabPower Techno-Scarab]])

* AreaOfEffect: When upgraded, Taaxetizl and Xakran's attacks have the ability to target multiple tiles in a row. Since Xakran's lobbed explosive goo also pushes, this gives it one of the largest push radiuses in the game when fully upgraded, outdone only by the Hermes Engines, a rush attack which doesn't deal damage.
* BigCreepyCrawlies: Like all Vek.
* BraggingRightsReward: Technically they are playable, but the only way to unlock them requires fulfilling basically every achievement in the game, with all the runs that entails.
* ACommanderIsYou: Another Generalist Faction to cap things off. All three units can both damage and push enemies, and Techno-Hornet and Techno-Scarab can be upgraded to hit multiple squares for heavy damage. They don't have quite as much staying power as the Rift Walkers, but deal more damage when upgraded.
%%** Can quickly whittle down enemies through combined attacks, and deal heavy damage to multiple squares when upgraded completely.
* {{Cyborg}}: Vek with mech parts implanted to bring them under human control.
* FragileSpeedster: Taaxetizl has a base speed of 4 and 2 HP. When fully upgraded, he can attack up to 3 tiles in a line for 3 damage.
* {{Kaiju}}: Like all Vek.
* MagikarpPower:
** They don't deal much damage when first starting out, but get them to full level and they can deal 3 damage to multiple squares per round, plus any bump damage they rack up along the way.
** Their shared "pilot" ability means that they have less to fear from being disabled than a human pilot. 25 XP is still a fair amount, but especially as you get closer to the maximum of 75, it's considerably less of a concern than losing a pilot and having to start over from square one, or worse, falling back on an artificial pilot.
* MechanicallyUnusualClass: Vek are effectively their own pilots, gaining XP and abilities over time. They require an additional reactor core to enable any weapon other than the ones they start with. If a Vek is disabled, it loses 25 XP but still returns in the next battle.
* MonsterAllies: Tamed Vek, fighting to save humanity instead of destroy it.
* TheQuietOne: None of them exactly have much in the way of dialogue.
* RammingAlwaysWorks: Kxlatl, as one of the Vek's stag beetles, has a charge attack. Ramming Speed is weaker than Charge Mech's charge, but doesn't damage Kxlatl, and can be upgraded to leave smoke behind your starting tile.
* SecretCharacter: Only unlockable after all other squads are unlocked and all achievements are completed. Most other squads cost between 3 and 6 coins, earned by unlocking achievements; the Secret Squad costs ''25''.
* SquishyWizard: Xakran is a ranged unit with only 2 base HP, who focuses on [=AoE=] damage and pushing enemies.
* StrongAndSkilled: When fully upgraded, they can deal 3 damage to multiple tiles per round while retaining an extensive ability to push enemies.
* SuperNotDrowningSkills: Despite being grounded Vek, Kxlatl and Xakran don't die if they enter the water unlike [[SuperDrowningSkills their enemy counterparts]].
* TokenHeroicOrc: The only heroic Vek in the entire game. Justified, as their cyborg implants bring them under human control.
* TheUnpronounceable: Their names are vaguely Aztec-sounding consonant mashups. That they have names at all begs a few questions as to what degree the Time Travelers have been able to communicate with the Secret Squad.
* WeakButSkilled: They start out only being able to deal 1 damage each, but have good map coverage and control effects. Graduate to StrongAndSkilled if you can fully upgrade their starting weapons.

!Corporate Islands

[[folder:Corporations]]
!!Corporations
!!!In General
->''"These corporate islands are the Vek's breeding ground. Wipe them out here, we save the world."''
-->'''-- Ralph Karlsson'''

Four corporations safeguard and govern the last survivors of humanity against the seemingly unstoppable forces of the Vek. The following tropes apply to all four corporations:

* BenevolentBoss: All of them care about their people and have put profit aside in favor of doing whatever must be done to win the war against the Vek.
* EscortMission: Protecting the trains on each island, the various Old Earth war machines on Archive, and the attacking robots on Pinnacle. Frequently a OneHitPointWonder. The train has 2 HP, but is disabled after the first hit, turning it into a ProtectionMission instead.
* HonestCorporateExecutive: The [=CEOs=] all seem well-intentioned and genuinely heroic. They're the last enclaves of humanity, and while they operate on corporate lines, their bottom line is saving the world and preserve what little is left, not concern about any future profit.
** R.S.T. CEO Jessica Kern used to be an absolutely ruthless businesswoman, and not above employing corporate espionage to stay ahead -- see Abe Isamu's backstory for details -- but the war with the Vek has changed her priorities, as well as making her methods seem that much more reasonable when used against the Vek.
* MissionControl: Each CEO serves as [[VoiceWithAnInternetConnection this]] for their island. Jessica Kern is also this during the endgame attack on the Volcanic Hive.
* OneNationUnderCopyright: A benevolent example, a fairly superficial distinction between forms of government, under the circumstances. All other governments have passed away with the rest of Old Earth. The islands each bear the name of their patron corporation, and are ruled by their [=CEOs=].
* ProtectionMission: A common side objective is to protect the various special grid buildings, most of which are [[OneHitPointWonder One Hit-Point Wonders]], though the various functional buildings will usually have 2.

[[folder:Archive, Inc.]]
!!Archive, Inc.
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/archive.jpg]]
->''"I can't believe it, the rocket launched! Er, well, I mean, I was SURE it would, but Old Earth relics can be, um, unreliable sometimes."''
-->'''-- Archive, Inc. CEO Dewey Alms'''

Archive, Inc. rules over an island designed to look like Earth as it once was, temperate and scenic. They also maintain a number of examples of Old Earth technology.

* {{Arcadia}}: {{Downplayed}}, but Archive's lack of advanced technology, green forests, and unspoiled waters stand out compared to the other islands, basically because Archive's island is apparently like a national park where parts are intentionally left undeveloped.
* AwesomeAnachronisticApparel: By the standards of the futuristic setting, the fact that Dewey Alms wears a 20th century suit and works in a wood-paneled office full of dead-tree books certainly stands out.
* BornInTheWrongCentury: CEO Dewey Alms calls himself a relic, but doesn't look ''that'' old. Still, he certainly can't be faulted for being a [[AscendedFan fan]] of what Archive does, given the state of the rest of the world.
* BreakOutTheMuseumPiece: In different missions Archive fields antique fighter jets, old tanks, and missile artillery to support the player. It's all surprisingly effective.
* BunnyEarsLawyer: A whole corporation built on preserving history seems a bit strange, compared to the the primary industries of the other islands. All you can really say is that Archive seems like a pleasant, possibly even somewhat dull place to live and work. When you reach the other islands, you can see what an achievement that is.
* CoolTrain: An old diesel locomotive. Well, Dewey thinks it's cool, alright? And he calls it [[ICallItVera Horace]].
* FamilyBusiness: Dewey frequently mentions his grandfather when speaking of his duty to history and Old Earth.
* FanOfThePast: It's the future and unbelievable technologies might exist, but Archive does everything they can to turn their island into a living museum of the past. Given that the whole of humanity has been reduced to living under constant attack by the Vek, it's hard to blame them.
* GiantWallOfWateryDoom: The Tidal Wave hazard turns any tile it hits into water, including reducing ''mountains'' to rubble. Luckily Archive's buildings are built to take it.
* GreenHillZone: Archive, Inc. is a museum island that recreates Earth as it was before the oceans rose. It's full of forests and grassland, as opposed to the desert, tundra, and industrial wasteland of the other islands. On your first run, it's the first island you visit.
* LandMineGoesClick: Overlaps with IncrediblyObviousBomb -- the mines are gigantic and highly visible even if they didn't also feature flashing red lights. The Vek still don't seem to notice them, however, nor do they seem to be able to avoid the blast zone when Archive launches a satellite.
* LethalJokeCharacter: Their ancient tech is unreliable and none of them are really trained in how to use it -- their air strikes are a menace, and everyone seems to know it. Yet they're also seemingly the safest island, and for every danger they pose to the unwary Mech pilot, double that for the Vek. It's remarkable how much help those old bombers, tanks, and artillery pieces can be.
* MakingASplash: Has more water, fresh and salt, than any other island. Bursting dams and incoming tidal waves can make a mess of earthbound Vek.
* RagnarokProofing: While they can't stand up to direct Vek attack, Archive's buildings have stood for centuries and can take hits from tidal waves that submerge whole mountains.
* YeGoodeOldeDays: A whole island dedicated to preserving their memory.

[[folder:R.S.T. Corporation]]
!!R.S.T. Corporation
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/20180302222529_1.jpg]]
->''"My advisors insist that we're losing the fight. They also insist I trust you. And since those cowards rarely insist I do anything, I'm giving you a chance to prove yourselves."''
-->'''-- R.S.T. CEO Jessica Kern'''

R.S.T. rules a desert island ravaged by their use of terraforming techologies against the Vek. Their island is constantly at risk from extreme storm conditions.

* BigGood: CEO Jessica Kern is the MissionControl for the [[FinalBoss Volcano Hive assault]], and R.S.T. provides the [[MacGuffin Renfield bomb]] needed to stand a chance of destroying the Volcanic Hive.
* BottomlessPits: A combination of the constant terraforming and the Vek's tunneling has opened a great many of these across the island. The Cataclysm mission hazard involves half the map falling into an enormous sinkhole, a product of runaway terraforming, at a rate of one row per round.
* CatchPhrase: Any time a grid building is destroyed, or an objective is failed:
-->'''Kern:''' ...Careless.
* DeadlyDustStorm: R.S.T.'s desert tiles turn into smoke/dust clouds when attacked. Hindering giant Mechs and Vek as much as they do, one can only imagine what they'd do at a human-sized scale.
* DishingOutDirt: Their specialty is terraforming, which they can do on the fly: leveling mountains, filling in chasms, and turning any terrain into barren desert over the course of a single round.
* GoingDownWithTheShip: When the grid goes offline...
-->'''Kern:''' It is over. Escape if you can... I will die here, with my people.
* GoodIsNotNice: Jessica Kern is an unyielding, suspicious, hypercritical MoralPragmatist and PerpetualFrowner, but she's willing to do anything to stop the Vek, and won't run or shirk her responsibilities to the very last.
* HostileTerraforming: Able and willing to turn what few patches of greenery remain on their island into desert and demolish entire mountain ranges if it means [[IDidWhatIHadToDo one less foothold for the Vek.]]
* HostileWeather: Lightning strikes will kill any unit they hit.
* IDidWhatIHadToDo: The corporation as a whole has a reputation for this, with CEO Kern and Abe Isamu being prominent cases.
* IronLady: The supremely self-assured Kern is the oldest CEO: tough, sharp-tongued, and generally dismissive of the player from the time they arrive.
* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: CEO Kern openly doubts you're from the future and strongly criticizes you for any failed objectives. She still helps you without prior promises, and later proves key to defeating the Vek even if you haven't saved her island that playthrough, praising you (albeit grudgingly) if you impress her.
** She won't make light of deaths, including your pilots -- she'll berate them while they're alive, but swear to avenge them if they die. Part of the reason she's so hard on you is because the stakes are humanity's very survival -- ''you'' might be able to time travel away, but the rest of them can't.
** [[AllThereInTheManual Further evidence]] of these tendencies can be read in Camila Vera's backstory -- she apparently adopted ''twenty'' kids.
* NoPlansNoPrototypeNoBackup: Averted. If the Renfield Bomb is destroyed in the last mission, Kern reveals that R.S.T. did the smart thing and built a large supply of backups, though it adds more turns to the countdown due to needing more time to arm the new bombs.
* ProtectionMission: In addition to the usual types, R.S.T. has an Earth Mover, which will fill in a large BottomlessPit over the course of a mission, and a Terraformer, which is used to destroy the surviving greenery on R.S.T. as well as killing any surviving Vek.
** You may also need to protect two prototype Renfield Bombs, a CallForward to the final mission, where you'll need to protect the real thing until it detonates, blowing the Vek's Volcanic Hive sky-high. The protoypes have only 1 HP each -- the real bomb has 4.
* ShiftingSandLand: The island is mostly sand, bare rock, huge dunes, plunging canyons, and mountains.
* ShockAndAwe: Not only does their island have unusually powerful lightning storms stirred up by their constant terraforming, but the mechs in R.S.T. squads are also usually armed with lightning weapons.
* {{Terraforming}}: The corporation's business is the wholesale re-landscaping of what little remaining land mass exists on Earth.

[[folder:Pinnacle Robotics]]
!!Pinnacle Robotics
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/pinnacle.jpg]]
->''"I hope you can respect both forms of life on this island, organic and mechanical."''
-->'''-- Pinnacle CEO Zenith'''

Pinnacle Robotics fights both against the Vek and rogue robots of their own design on an icy island. Their CEO is Zenith, herself an advanced artificial intelligence.

* AllLovingHero: Believes that humans and sentient machines are equally important, and that the Vek are a threat to all life.
* AndroidsArePeopleToo: Zenith hopes you accept this, and several Pinnacle objectives are about sparing and/or defending sentient machines who've gone rogue. Most humans from Pinnacle feel the same way, and the generic pilot from Pinnacle is an AI.
-->'''Zenith:''' These machines are not currently themselves. Look past their malfunctioning aggression, and see them as living beings.
* ArtificialIntelligence: Zenith isn't just the CEO of Pinnacle, she's also a product, being an AI herself.
* AIIsACrapshoot: Many rogue war robots are loose on Pinnacle's island. One possible boss for their island is also a rogue robot that's managed to control some of the Vek. Pinnacle CEO Zenith comments that if they could figure out how it did it they could finish the war tomorrow. Averted in the case of Zenith, who's an AI herself, but no less determined to save humanity, and other life, from the Vek.
* BarrierWarrior: Shield technology was developed here first, before it spread to the rest of the islands. Both Zenith Guard and the Frozen Titans make use of it, as does the Bot Leader.
* FreezeRay: Some Pinnacle missions have you assisted by Pinnacle tanks with freeze cannons.
* GlassCannon: All Sentient Weapons have immensely powerful attacks, but they only have one hitpoint ([[ContractualBossImmunity except for the Bot Leader]]).
* GrewBeyondTheirProgramming:
-->'''Zenith:''' My creator did not seek to teach me 'vengeance'... but she did not have to see the horror of the Vek.
* {{Hologram}}: Zenith's avatar is a light blue hologram.
* HologramProjectionImperfection: Zenith's holographic avatar lacks a lower half and is even more pixelated than the rest of the art style, represented by monochrome hatching rather than multiple shades of blue.
* HostileWeather: The Ice Storm hazard freezes all units and structures in a 3x3 grid.
* InnocentlyInsensitive: Zenith mostly avoids falling into the smugness of fellow AI Archimedes, but she does occasionally say things which might seem a little... condescending. She presumably means it kindly:
-->'''Zenith:''' ''[a pilot levels up]'' Humans gain knowledge more slowly than machines, but it is worthy of celebration when you do!
* NorthIsColdSouthIsHot: Subverted. Pinnacle is north of the searing desert of R.S.T., but south of the temperate Archive. All four islands are stated to have artificial climates.
* LandMineGoesClick: Much the same as Archive's mines, except Pinnacles are being actively laid by malfunctioning robot mine layers and freeze the target rather than destroying them.
* OneHitPointWonder: Pinnacle's various berserk robots. This can be a problem when your mission is to try and protect them.
* PrescienceByAnalysis: Zenith again:
-->'''Zenith:''' Excellent news: my prognosticator sub-process has dramatically increased the odds of our survival based on your victory.
* SlippySlideyIceWorld: Snowy plains, frozen rivers, and buildings and enemies encased in ice. Zenith mentions the low temperatures are a deliberate choice so as to improve the synthetic residents' processing efficiency.
* ThemeNaming: The company's name is Pinnacle, and the CEO's name is Zenith. Zenith also lends her name to the Zenith Guard Mech squad.
* TurnedAgainstTheirMasters: The robots on Pinnacle have gone berserk, some blindly pursuing their programmed functions, some mindlessly attacking -- although given their armament, one might amount to the same thing as the other.
* WeatherControlMachine: Zenith mentions that they keep the weather cold to help with hardware overheating problems.
* WhatMeasureIsANonHuman: CEO Zenith is an AI herself, but assures you that she cares for her mechanical and organic employees equally. She will sometimes request you to capture rogue robots instead of killing them, and considers killing them unethical.

[[folder:Detritus Disposal]]
!!Detritus Disposal
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/detritus.png]]
->''"If not for the Vek at our door, Officer, I'd offer you a job -- Detritus' benefits plan is unmatched."''
-->'''-- Detritus CEO Vikram Singh'''

Detritus Disposal is a waste processing and recycling corporation, and as a result, their island is ash-grey and covered in rivers of corrosive acid.
-----
* BeamSpam: The Zenith Guard squad is said to use their beam technology, and that squad has both a TractorBeam unit as well as a ridiculously powerful damage beam unit (balanced by its equally ridiculous potential for friendly fire).
* BenevolentBoss: CEO Vikram Singh is seemingly very hands-on when it comes to the safety and happiness of Detritus personnel, based on his dialogue.
* ByTheBookCop: Safety and efficiency are Vikram Singh's watchwords, a trait he seems to pass along [[AFatherToHisMen to his employees]]. Fortunately he also knows when to bend the rules:
-->'''Singh:''' While teleporting biomatter is prohibited by the Corporate Accords, I can make an exception for you -- and the Vek.
* DarkIsNotEvil: They have the gloomiest island and specialize in use of A.C.I.D and poison in their mechs. Their CEO is also a BenevolentBoss and it treats his workers like family.
* DeathNotification: When civilian buildings are destroyed in Detritus, Vikram says he'll inform the family himself. Generic Detritus pilots will actually say the same thing on other islands.
* DownInTheDumps: Their island to a tee.
* EverythingIsAnIPodInTheFuture: Vikram's office has this aesthetic, right down to his laptop being a very clear faux [[IPhony MacBook]]. The rest of the island...[[{{Mordor}} not so much]].
* AFatherToHisMen: The generic Detritus pilots mention Vikram in random dialogue quite a bit, and some of their comments echo things he says to you. Funnily enough, Singh seems to be the youngest CEO, with frequent mention of his predecessor in dev comments.
* HollywoodAcid: Called "A.C.I.D", puddles of it cause units that stop their movement in it to take additional damage. Just as green, flowing, and glowing as you'd expect. It's apparently comprised of nanites.
* InconvenientlyPlacedConveyorBelt: A feature/hazard of some Detritus maps, marked by handy arrows and activating automatically on the environment phase.
* {{Mordor}}: You could make a case for R.S.T. as well, but Detritus has the color palette of [[Film/TheLordOfTheRingsTheReturnOfTheKing Minas Morgul]] and is the last island you unlock. Subverted, however, in that Detritus is apparently a great company to work for, and produces considerable loyalty in its employees.
* ProtectionMission: A helpful case with the Disposal Unit, which has 2 HP and launches volleys of A.C.I.D. which can reduce mountain ranges to rubble, along with killing off any Vek who happen to get in the way.
* RammingAlwaysWorks: Zenith Guard features a (presumably) Detritus tank that initially can only attack by ramming, but does a fair amount of damage to its target (and a bit to itself).
* {{Slogan}}:
-->'''Singh:''' To quote our corporate motto, 'Detritus is at your disposal'.
* SwapTeleportation: Teleport pads on Detritus's company island will swap two targets occupying connected pads, which are indicated by having the same color. Teleported targets also maintain orientation.
* TeleporterAccident: Mostly averted -- objects on opposite pads will swap places, no {{Telefrag}}ging here -- but as Archimedes mentions offhandedly:
-->'''Archimedes:''' These last-gen teleporters have been known to cause occasional [[Film/TheFly DNA damage]].

* ArmorPiercing Attack: The Pierce Mech’s gun, as its name suggests, pierces straight through the first thing it hits (be it building, enemy, ally or terrain) to deal damage to whatever is on the other side.

* Armor-Piercing Attack: The Pierce Mech’s gun, as its name suggests, pierces straight through the first thing it hits (be it building, enemy, ally or terrain) to deal damage to whatever is on the other side.

* GradualGrinder: Of the DeathOfAThousandCuts variety. The squad is best at dealing light damage to multiple targets across the map.

* GradualGrinder: A [=DoT=]-heavy team with a lack of direct damage capability, but one whose slow burn can kill multiple Vek per round by the later turns of the match.

* StarfishLanguage: Each of the aliens use a different language, with Kazaaak speaking in clicks, Ariadne using grinding and Mafan speaking in colons and slashes.

* SlayingMantis: The Mantis in general, natch. Kazaaakpleth is even an unusually vicious representative of his people.

* AbsurdlySharpClaws: Leapers get the most damaging attacks in the game, their claws able to kill even strong early-game mechs in a single blow.

* AmbiguousSituation: The origins of the Vek are never revealed, leaving it ambiguous as to whether they're mutated Earth insects, InsectoidAliens, {{Ultraterrestrial}}s, or something else.

* BugWar: Humanity is locked in a war for its very survival with the enormous insect-like Vek.

* DegradedBoss: In the Volcanic Lair, the second map will have one Leader-class Vek, with another spawning on the first map on Hard mode. It's purely optional to kill them, however.
* DelayedReaction: A key part of the strategy in dealing with the Vek: they telegraph their attacks at the start of the round, and are seemingly unable to change course even as their circumstances change: they'll attack whatever's in front of them, even if they're pushed or teleported or if another Vek moves into their path.

** To a lesser extent, each island will have one kind of Psion and one or two special mid-tier Vek which can appear in both varieties, and are more dangerous even in their basic forms than standard Vek. These include beetles, centipedes, diggers, spiders, burrowers, and the projectile-launching crabs and blobbers.

* EscortMission: An odd case with the Volatile Vek, which is still hostile, but if it's killed will render an entire area uninhabitable. Fortunately it has a robust 4 HP and only deals 1 point of damage. Unfortunately it can be a nuisance by webbing up your mechs.

* LethalLavaLand: The Volcanic Hive, their final refuge and largest lair, has spots of lava dotted around it, setting alight any units that don't immediately drown in it.

* RammingAlwaysWorks: Beetles resemble stag beetles, and attack by charging across the map and crashing into things. The Beetle Leader leaves a trail of [[BurningRubber burning tiles]] in its wake. One of the easiest ways to deal with basic and Alpha beetles is to [[BullfightBoss bait them into charging into water tiles]], which kills them instantly, but like all Vek leaders, the Beetle Leader is big enough to avoid drowning. It can still push other Vek to their deaths, of course.

* FeaturelessProtagonist: The player takes on the role of the ill-defined "commander" the pilots take their orders from, but by design will come to identify more with the pilots your squad picks up.

** [[MadeOfIron +2 Mech HP]]
** [[ImprobablePilotingSkills +1 Mech Movement Speed]]
** [[SkillScoresAndPerks +1 Mech Power Reactor]]
** [[StatusBuff +3% Grid Defense]]

* SkillScoresAndPerks: Reactor cores serve as perk points, being required to activate mech weapons and their upgrades. They're part of the game's loot system, and can be found in time pods, chosen as rewards for completing all optional objectives on an island, or purchased using Reputation after saving an island.

* NoSell: Like all rockmen, she's immune to fire, as is her mech.

* CastFromHitPoints: Many Brute weapons deal damage to the mech in exchange for hitting that much harder.

* ChickenWalker: The Primes for Zenith Guard and the Hazardous Mechs.

* ACommanderIsYou: Not that you can play as the Vek, but humanity as a whole are the Elitist Faction to the Vek's Spammer Faction, by necessity.

* CyberCyclops: All the Primes other than Laser Mech, plus Swap Mech as well. The Pulse Mech and Charge Mech have {{One Way Visor}}s instead.
* DeflectorShields: Supplied by Pinnacle and granted by various Mech abilities, able to absorb a single hit before shutting down.

* SpiderTank: The various mortar-lobbing Ranged mechs.

* TankGoodness: Every Brute-class Mech bar one, which is a CoolPlane instead.

* DeflectorShields: The Defense Mech's Shield Projector allows it to lob shield bubbles across the map, protecting buildings and allies, up to a 5-tile cross when fully upgraded.

* RammingAlwaysWorks: The Charge Mech's Ramming Engines allow it to cross the whole map in one go, slamming into its target, pushing it, and damaging them both.

* LightningLash: Lightning Mech has electrified whips at the end of its arms.

* ShockAndAwe: Right in the name of the squad and the squad's Prime. R.S.T. is fond of this, as the Rusting Hulks also show.

* DeflectorShields: The Aegis Mech, per the name, starts out with a physical, metal shield, and gains the ability to throw up one of Pinnacle's energy shields each time it attacks.

* InASingleBound: At first it looks like the [=HMs=] don't have a ranged launcher Mech -- which is fine, two straight-ahead projectile attacks still isn't bad -- but then you realize Leap Mech is both the launcher ''and'' the projectile, pushing and damaging all adjacent squares at its impact point while being able to reach almost any square on the map.

* GreenHillZone: The first island you're required to save, and full of verdant parkland as opposed to the desert, tundra, and industrial wasteland of the other islands.

* AIIsACrapshoot: Many rogue war robots are loose on Pinnacle's island. [[spoiler: One possible boss for their island is also a rogue robot that's managed to control some of the Vek. Pinnacle CEO Zenith comments that if they could figure out how it did it they could finish the war tomorrow.]] Averted in the case of Zenith, who's an AI herself, but no less determined to save humanity, and other life, from the Vek.
* DeflectorShields: Shield technology was developed here first (Bethany Jones was one of the project leads), before it spread to the rest of the islands. Both Zenith Guard and the Frozen Titans make use of it, as does (unfortunately) the Bot Leader boss.
* FreezeRay: Some of their squad's weapons are ice-based and in some missions you may be assisted by Pinnacle tanks with freeze beams.

** This is also implied to have happened in the backstory, with the end result being that Sentient robots were given equal rights as humans.

* OneHitKill: Actively [[DefiedTrope defies]] being on the receiving end of this. Since his shield regenerates each turn, two consecutive attacks within the same turn are ''always'' required for his mech to be destroyed.