Revealing the Mysterious Mirage Tank

I’m amazed at how many top 800 ranked players misunderstand the MirageTank’s capabilities.  While other high ranked Allies players employ the MirageTank in brilliant ways.  In previous posts I’ve discussed in detail the damage mechanic of the MirageTank’s unique weapon: the spectrum cannon.  In this post I’ll explore other capabilities of the Mirage…

The MirageTank’s secondary ability, the GapGenerator, cloaks nearby friendly units.  The MirageTank itself is visible in this mode.  Activating the Mirage’s secondary ability in your own base can make it very difficult for your opponent to assess how many units you have.  Also placing the Mirage just outside your ArmorFacility with the secondary activated can make it difficult for your opponent to assess what kind of units you are pumping out.

The Mirage Tank changes its appearance to suite its environment when stationary, undamaged AND the GapGenerator is not in use.  When stationary and undamaged The Mirage can look like a pile of rocks, a shrub, a tree, an IceCream Truck and so on.   Putting the MirageTank in HoldFire stance will keep it hidden.  The minute the MirageTank fires its weapon it becomes visible.   A MirageTank disguised as a tree or rocks or whatever is exposed by the presence of a Bear, Dog, or BurstDrone.

You should only see a MirageTank if the GapGenerator is activated or it is damaged. Realistically, when scouting an Allied opponent’s main base you really shouldn’t see any MirageTanks.  Beware the lone Mirage Tank in your opponents base;  its GapGenerator must be on.

You can attack the “environmental artifacts” a MirageTank turns into by force-firing on them.  It is very difficult to figure out if you’re hitting a MirageTank or a tree.  You must listen very carefully for metal clanking sound as you attack.  In the heat of battle, with a dozen units fighting amongst themselves and bullets flying every where making this kind of assessment is next to impossible.   A terror drone can employ his secondary “stasis ray” to render the Mirage motionless, but again in the heat of battle its tough to lock down on a pile of rocks or a tree.  What if you lock down a real tree instead of the MirageTank that is sitting an inch a way and now disguised as a tree?

The Soviet TerrorDrone can not infect a MirageTank that has turned into an environmental artifact.  The TerrorDrone is the achilles heel of many Allies ArmorFacility units.  Used carefully the MirageTank can devour multiple TerrorDrones.  Its Spectrum Cannon 1 shot kills the TerrorDrone.

All of these little details of MirageTank’s visibility mechanic mean one thing.   Properly micromanaged the MirageTank determines when and where any land battle takes place.  With skillful use the MirageTank will almost always get to fire the first shot.

Need to hide your ConYard from a female commando unit or a giant force?  Pack your ConYard into an MCV and roll it under the shroud of a Mirage Tank.

Many of these “tricks” sound obvious when discussed openly online, but in the heat of battle how much time do you have to analyze a tree or some rocks?  How much time can you analyze every lone MirageTank?

The Mirage can add a huge element of deception to your late game strategies.  Scorch your opponent once with a surprise army hidden under the GapGenerator and you’ll have him second guessing himself the remainder of the game.

The Mirage is powerful enough to act as a straight forward Tier3 Tank to win land battles late game.  What a great unit!

The Mirage Tank Versus The Soviets

First let’s take a careful look at a few of the Mirage Tank’s important attributes:
Cost: 1,600     Health: 500     Range:125     Speed: 80
The Mirage Tank devours all Soviet tier 1 and 2 ground units except the Tesla Trooper.  The Mirage needs to worry about the Magnetic Mines of the Flak Trooper and infection by a Terror Drone as any other Allied vehicle must.  The Mirage is a fast vehicle only the Terror Drone, Sickle, Bullfrog and Bear can out run it.  This allows the Mirage Tank to flee just about any dangerous situation if necessary.

Mirage Tank Shots Required to destroy Soviet Surface Units:

 15 Shots Destroys      Apocalypse Tank

03 Shots Destroys      Hammer Tank, Tesla Trooper

02 Shots Destroys      Sickle,Natasha,Bullfrog,V4,StingRay

01 Shots Destroys      Bear,Flak Trooper,Terror Drone,Conscript,Engineer

The Mirage Tank weapon range is only 125 and the Hammer Tank’s regular weapon, Apoc Tank’s regular weapon, V4 Rocket Launcher, and StingRay all outrange the Mirage.  The Hammer Tank Leech Beam and Apocolypse Tank’s Harpoon have more than double the Mirage Tanks weapon range.  In fact, the Mirage Tank does not out range any of its major adversaries.  This can be a problem.  You must really use the Mirage’s superior speed and camouflaging abilities to maximize its offensive potential.

Much more content to be added in here

In conclusion, the Tesla Trooper and Apocalypse Tank pose a big threat to the Mirage Tank and a smart Soviet player will be willing to trade Tesla Troopers 1 for 1 with the Mirage Tank if he is behind on Tech level.  The Mirage Tank simply cannot afford to go head to head with the Apocolypse Tank.  You’ll either have to vastly outnumber the any Soviet Apoc Tanks, run away, or have some good support units and trickery up your sleeve.  In a later article I’ll give over some interesting micro trickery top level players have employed when using the Mirage.

Putting this into action:

Soviets

If you’re Soviet; behind on tech level; facing the Mirage; build Tesla’s and try to trade Tesla Troopers for Mirage Tanks.  Even a 2 for 1 trade is economical.   If you are equal to his tech level a single Apoc can handle 3 or 4 Mirage Tanks.  Harpoon one and start to pull it in.  If several other Mirage Tanks close in release the Harpoon and back off.  With the giant range difference an Apoc Tank can harass a few Mirage’s in this way and never take a hit.

Allies

When controlling the Mirage realize its range is low and you must move in hitting and running keep in mind how many shots your tank can absorb from various Soviet ground units.  The Apoc Tank and Tesla Trooper should be avoided.  Fight the Hammer Tank head on when you know you can move in and get within range and also when the ratio of Hammer Tanks to Mirage Tanks is less than 3.5 to 1.

Allies Mirage Tank Damage

Mirage Tank Damage Mechanic Explored

Vishiano at GameReplays.org does a great job explaining most of the Mirage Tank’s behaviour in his “Damage Type Guide” .  One issue that goes unexplained, however, is the exact nature of the Mirage

Tanks special kind of damage.”Spectrum”, “Reflective”,and “Prism” are a few of the terms I’ve read to describe it’s damage type. Red Alert’s internal game information video labels the Mirage Tank’s primary weapon a “spectrum cannon”.  If other enemy units are “nearby” the enemy unit the Mirage Tank attacks they will receive some damage as well.  The Prima Official Game Guide refers to this as “reflective” damage and provides the following incomprehensible statistics on damage 200 (250 H; 25 reflect; 40 H reflect #1; 20 H reflect #2).  And the range stastics are equally cryptic: 125 (125 reflect; 150 H reflect #1; 75 H reflect #2).  Prima never explains the meaning of the letters.  If the writer for Prima worked for GameReplays.org he’d get fired in two days.  Then he would be flamed into oblivion by the players who frequent the forums and pull apart every detail of game play mechanics.  With no other information sources I decided to research the nature of this “reflective damage”.

The Mirage Tank Sprectrum Cannon DOES NOT Deliver Splash Damage

  The Mirage Tank deals approximately 200 points of “reflective/ prism/ spectrum” damage to its primary target.  It deals approximately 20 points of  ”reflective/ prism/ spectrum” damage to nearby enemy units.  The Mirage Tank never does damage to friendly units due to this reflection mechanic.  Furthermore, it deals reflective damage to a maximum of 5 nearby enemy units.  Thus, “reflective damage” is not true “splash” damage.  The “energy beam” “reflects” off of its intended target and does not “splash” onto an area.  Therefore,  this reflective damage effect is limited.  Firstly,  its only about 20 points of damage.  Secondly,  it damages a maximum of 5 other enemy units.  Altogether this can increase its damage output by 50% if there are 5 nearby enemy units.

This makes the tutorial video somewhat deceptive.  A single Mirage Tank nearly kills a single Hammer Tank with 2 shots, but does require that 3rd shot to finish it.  So we’re treated to a video showing 3 Hammer Tanks dying to 3 Mirage Tanks in just 2 shots.  Each Hammer Tank only received an additional 20 points of damage.  It was just enough  to put it over the edge.

I’ll explore the Mirage Tank in greater depth in a future posting.