Name: Disruptor
Side: GDI
COST: $2000
Tier: 3
ERA: Tiberian Sun
Base Asset: Tiberian Aftermath
An incredible anti-structure heavy tank with some noticeable flaws.
Gameplay
The Disruptor is GDI's main tier 3 vehicle-based building destroyer. It has a lot of health, 7,500 (same as the Tripod), which means that only the Mammoth tank has more health in terms of ground vehicles. It also has heavy armour, which means that weapons that do 'CANNON' damage are best used if you want to destroy it.
The Disruptor's weapon does 'GRENADE' damage, which means that it is best used against structures and infantry.
Let's go through the positives of the Disruptor in list form:
- Lots of health.
- Weapon does heavy, constant damage to structures.
- Massive anti-infantry damage with wide splash, means it can quickly decimate squads.
- Weapon damages along the entire length of the beam. This means you can damage multiple targets at once!
- Weapon greatly reduces the speed of any vehicles that it catches.
- Does constant damage to light vehicles, quickly destroying them.
- Can target through obstacles (e.g. structures). This means that you can use an obstacle as cover to avoid damage while you deal damage!
Let's expand on that list. (3) The Disruptor really does not have to worry about most infantry squads.
This is not to say that you should not build infantry to attack a Disruptor. Rocket class squads for example, can be made in such numbers that a Disruptor user will have to decide whether they want to kill the rocket squads or destroy whatever their main objective was (e.g. a key structure).
Infantry are dealt with easily!
(4) This is really important and is what makes the difference from a good Disruptor user, and a great Disruptor user. When it is possible you should try and target objects (mostly structures because they cannot move!) in such a way that you damage as many of the enemies units and structures at once, as is possible. Of course you must strike a balance while doing this to make sure that you are not going for too much.
It should be noted that you only get experience for enemies and structures destroyed at the end point of your beam, not rest of it!
(5) The Disruptor weapon will slow enemy vehicles down to 25% of their speed! This can be useful at preventing enemy vehicles from escaping. For example a Disruptor can target an enemy harvester, and because the beam has slowed the harvester down, your other units that are targeting the harvester can easily finish the job without the harvester getting away. It also means that faster lightly armoured vehicles that should easily be able to outmanoeuvre your Disruptor, are dead if the beam catches and slows them down (6).
(7) This is another vital factoid that makes the difference between you mastering how to get the best from your Disruptor. At the simplest level, it means you being able to take a key structure out regardless of whatever obstacles might be in the way.
This Nod turret is unable to respond because its firing path is blocked!
At a more advanced level, it might involve you using your Disruptors to clear garrisoned buildings while using other structures to block the path of the garrisoned units weapon.
It could mean you using an enemies structure as cover while you destroy their static base defence that requires line-of-sight to attack (Nod Turret & Scrin Photon cannon). Or just simply using enemy structures as cover while you destroy key buildings in their base, the longer your Disruptors survive, the more destruction they can dish out.
At the beginning flaws were mentioned, it is time to list them:
- The vehicle is very slow (slow has a Mammoth tank).
- The turret turns very slowly.
- If a friendly unit or structure is caught in the beam it will take damage, just like an enemy would!
- If a friendly vehicle is caught at the end point of the beam, they will get slowed down just like an enemy vehicle!
Lets us expand on some of these.
(1,2) In terms of the speed, if you're are used to handling the Mammoth tank this should not really be a problem. It is in the GDI 'slow-but-heavily armoured' tradition. As for the turret turn speed, if you come up against a fast vehicle that is being well microed, it would be possible for it to completely avoid damage by circling your Disruptor.
(3) This is by far the biggest deal. Your disruptor does exactly the same damage to friendly units and structures as it does to enemies!
Now suddenly the great benefit of having damage taken from the length of the beam, is a real problem when it comes to using the Disruptor in mixed groups. I say mixed groups, because the Disruptor's beam weapon has no effect on other Disruptor's, friend or foe (including no ability to slow another Disruptor down).
This really comes to the fore when lightly armoured vehicles, such as the Humvee or the HMRLS, are in the vicinity of Disruptors. Friendly fire from the Disruptor will quickly kill these light vehicles.
It basically means that you really have to think about what you mix your Disruptors with. If you have very good micro, you could manoeuvre light vehicles out of the way during enemy engagements. In the end the simplest thing to do is to use the Disruptors in their own group, slightly away from your main attack force. Or put them in a mixed group with Mammoth tanks (Mammoths have little to worry about from the beam and they can recover lost health using their self-repair).
Steam roll of doom! The Mammoths still have their rockets to deal with any aerial threat
It is up to you, but I recommend not using Disruptor's inside your base for defensive purposes. They will quickly wipe out your own structures in an effort to get at enemy vehicles.
Of course if you correctly use stances you can avoid a lot of these issues.
Use 'Hold-fire' stance for example in the above situation, or when Disruptor's are being healed by a Battle-base that is engaging enemy units (of course using a formation move along with the 'Hold-Ground' stance can avoid some problems as well).
Generally speaking since I prefer having my Disruptor's on 'Aggressive-Stance' when at an enemy base (they do so much damage to structures I prefer that they are always targeting something, if I want a key structure destroyed I will manually target it) I either use them in their own group or with Mammoths.
In terms of usage, it is all about offence. I prefer splitting the Disruptors apart from the main force. Attack one target with your main force (e.g. enemy harvesters) and have your Disruptors in 'Aggressive-Stance' attacking general structures, focusing on key structures when necessary (eg tech center). This forces your opponent to make a choice, split forces and try and deal with both groups, or deal with the Disruptors (after all you win by destroying all structures, regardless of vehicle remaining).
If your opponent chases after your Disruptors then don't forget to micro them in between structures (using the structures for cover) has discussed earlier. This is similar to the Nod tactic of having a main force attacking while a small group of flame tanks attack structures on an opponents flank or blind side.
The health and attack power of the Disruptor is such, that you can even have a group of 5 (or more) set on 'Aggressive-Stance' and set them on a move command through the length of an enemies base, while you occupy them with a diversion attack. You will be surprised how difficult it is to stop those Disruptors, especially if they do not have their full force to command (of course this is only if you have more credits then you know what to do with!).
Crystal crush upgrade
This global upgrade greatly increases the damage done to targets that have some kind of association to tiberium (eg harvesters and refineries). Damage to these targets increases 4 fold!
Still it is clear that this is not an essential upgrade. The Disruptor is still very good without the upgrade, and if you had not already guessed, it will also affect any of your units or structures that have a tiberium association as well!
If you do use the upgrade, if you can sneak a Disruptor along the edge of a map and then into an opponents expansion field outpost, you will destroy their refineries extremely quickly with just one Disruptor (you can also destroy the harvesters but not as quickly).
No mistaking the Crystal crush beam!
Another consideration is how dependent your opposition side is on tiberium.
For example if your opponent is Nod and they upgrade to 'Blue tiberium mix', any vehicle or structure that benefits from that upgrade will now take much more damage from your 'Crystal-crush' upgraded Disruptor!
Also the Scrin Corrupter and any unit or structure that has the shard upgrade will take additional damage if you upgrade your Disruptors. So as you can see it is a 'tactical' upgrade, but there's lots for you to consider as it can be very useful.
Countering the Disruptor
For GDI obviously Orcas are the way to go. Not so obvious, but if it is a fairly large group (3 or more) then consider using an Orca bomber. It will do large damage to an entire group. If you cannot use air vehicles, than the Mammoth is the preferred tank (especially Sonic grenade upgraded). As long as you maintain micro control so you keep out of the Disruptor's weapon range, HMRLS groups will deal with them as well. At the lowest tier, build enough medium tanks to match the cost equivalent of Disruptors that you are facing. You will win with minimal loses.
For Nod from the air Banshees are the preferred unit to deal with Disruptors (one Banshee has enough ammo to kill a Disruptor that is at full health!).
Nod Artillery's large splash damage can wear the slow and cumbersome Disruptor's health down.
If it is a lone Disruptor, a Stealth tank can take it out without getting hit (try to get the first volley into the rear and then manoeuvre away from the turning turret and finish the vehicle off). At the lowest tier level you will have to again try and match the cost of Disruptors that you are facing with light tanks (you can buy 5 light tanks for every 2 Disruptors). Try to make sure that you are spread out so that a single Disruptor is not damaging multiple light tanks.
For the Scrin a few Storm riders or more expensively a PAC will do the trick without fuss. The Tripod will quickly deal with them, especially if it has tiberium ammo (provided that the Disruptor is not upgraded). If you're going to use the Devourer, then use the superior range to keep away from the Disruptor beam, you would not win one-on-one in an outright fight due the amount of health the Disruptor has. You do not want to have to rely on Seeker tanks as the Disruptor has no trouble defeating them. If you match the cost of the Disruptors you're facing you should win. And the win will be easier if it is possible to split your Seeker swarm and attack from two sides.
In all cases if they reach your base, then in addition to other measures, start building multiple barrack class structures (well outside of the range of the Disruptor's of course!) and pumping out tier 1 anti-vehicle squads. They cannot be ignored by the Disruptors, and they will buy you time by providing a distraction, as well as doing damage.
It is time to disrupt the enemy!
Release 6:
- Fixed Crystal crush beam damage VS vehicles that are associated with tiberium. I did not account for the fact that the Disruptor already did double damage to vehicles, so when I calculated the damage for the upgraded beam I ended up only having it do half the intended damage to tiberium associated vehicles.
- Crystal crush beam no longer does extra damage to the Scrin Tripod or Devourer. Now that the damage has been fixed, it would pretty much mean that the Scrin had no options in terms of ground based attacks against an upgraded Disruptor, unless this change was made. If the Conversion reserve upgrade is purchased however, then the above vehicles will take extra damage.
- The Disruptor can now clear garrisons along the entire length of the beam!
- New Heroic weapon: Auto cannon. This heroic weapon adds an auto cannon that is primarily anti-infantry, although the only interesting news for a Disruptor user is that fact the auto cannon can target aerial units, thereby removing one of the Disruptor's major vulnerabilities.
Release 8:
- Crystal crush upgrade now cost $2000, and takes 60s to research (was $3000, and 90s). More reasonable for an upgrade that only effected a single unit.
- Removed the heroic Disrupter's gun. It caused endless issues and was not even that good!
Edited by Madin, 12 May 2017 - 10:01 PM.
