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Defense structures

2026-04-25T02:14:41Z

Wood: /* Cover */

{{Rewrite|reason=Everything past early-game should to be updated to 1.6, e.g., barricades no longer prevent enemies from using cover}}
{{Image wanted|reason=Most images are from Beta 18, where deadfall/spike traps could be placed adjacent to each other.}}
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{{for|strategies against threats|Defense tactics}}

Raids are frequent and numerous as enemies don't journey towards your base from their bases; they are instead generated into your colony by the [[storyteller]]. Players will need to fight the enemy AI for each type of hostile, but the approach may differ according to gameplay preferences, either face to face for a more combative experience or behind killboxes for a less threatening measure, or both combined.

== Map features ==
Before laying blueprints, first inspect the [[map]] for natural features that can work as defenses, such as [[water]] or a [[mountain]].

=== Water ===
Water and marsh tiles can be used as moats, which will considerably slow down incoming [[Raiders]], giving you some time to shoot and soften the clash before engaging in melee [[combat]]. You can build [[cover]], like [[barricade]]s just in front of the body of water.

If large bodies of water are available, such as rivers or [[lake]]s,{{OdysseyIcon}} then [[bridge]]s can be used to manipulate raider AI by encouraging them to path through the faster bridge.

[[File:Moats.png|500px|thumb|center|Marsh used as moats to slow enemy advance, with little islands full of spike traps.]]

=== Mountains ===
In mountainous and hilly maps, it is possible to build defenses by enclosing the area between two hills. In an actual mountain map, it is often best to mine into the mountain and live inside, but this may be too time-consuming in the early game.

=== Map borders ===
Pay attention when expanding towards the edges of the [[map]], as there's a boundary which your [[colonists]] can not build beyond that is only visible when the [[Structure]] tab is selected.

== Early-game defense ==
At the very beginning, your [[security]] choices include [[spike trap]]s, [[cover]] (including [[barricade]]s, [[sandbag]]s, and [[stone chunk]]s),

=== Stone chunks ===
At the very beginning of the game, colonists will often haul [[stone chunk]]s away to build structures or to clear up a [[growing zone]]. As colonists move stone chunks around, you might as well create a [[dumping stockpile zone]] for chunks on the outside of your base, covering its width and expanding it further. This is time-consuming, so only a small, 1-wide line of chunks is enough for the early game.

[[File:Stone chunks at the outer side to prevent fire spree in tropical forest.png|500px|thumb|center|Stone chunks at the outer side to slow wildfires in tropical forest.]]

=== Walls ===
[[Wall]]s alone can fend off early game raids if a colonist's [[Construction]] skill is high enough to repair the wall faster than the raider can break it. A walled room will also completely defend against [[manhunter]] and carnivore attacks, who will not attack if every colonist remains indoors.

Otherwise, walls are nearly essential for luring raiders into the area you want to fight them in. Standard raiders will always try to take the quickest, unobstructed path towards a colonist if such a path exists. This means that ''standard raiders will not try and break walls unless they are unable to reach a target''. This is the key towards most defensive structures, and can be used to construct trap hallways, chokepoints for melee fighters, strategic cover placements, and so on.

'''Material:''' [[Wood]] is cheap and quick to build, but weak and flammable. [[Stone]] is ideal, being cheap, durable, and nonflammable, but time-consuming. [[Steel]] walls are flammable in RimWorld. [[Plasteel]] and [[uranium]] are the strongest walls but are expensive, and should generally be reserved in specific spots.

=== Cover ===
[[Cover]] is vital for firefights as it can block projectiles, reducing the amount of [[damage]] received by your colonists. This is an essential defense as long as colonists or turrets are directly engaging.
* [[Wall]]s provide 75% cover, but pawns need to "lean out" whenever firing, causing the wall to not provide its full cover. In addition, walls block line of fire.
* [[Barricade]]s and [[sandbag]]s provide 55% cover and do not block line of fire.
* [[Stone chunk]]s only provide 50% cover, which is great in the early game, but should be replaced by 55% cover when possible.

The best arrangement of cover is a mix of walls and barricades/sandbags, as a pawn can benefit from barricades whenever they lean out from a wall. The exact ratio will depend on what angles the colonist needs to fire at, as wall tiles will limit how far a colonist can turn. Creating a U shape of cover, or a square around the colonists will ensure that they can engage enemies from multiple angles.
<gallery widths="400px" heights="400px" class="center" mode="nolines">
File:Cover_fire_wall.png|Example of advanced cover, mixing walls and barricades.
File:Sandbag_advanced_cover.png|400px|thumb|right|Example of advanced cover using sandbags only. Allows full range of fire, but less cover overall.
</gallery>

=== Spike traps ===
{{See also|Spike trap}}

The only initially available defense that deals damage. Spike traps are single use and require careful placement. It is best to place spike traps where raiders will naturally walk through, or can be lured into, such as:
* Corners of your base, where enemies will likely make turns.
* Narrow areas even outside your base that receive frequent traffic.
* Chokepoints. If there is only one entrance to a room or the entire colony, raiders will have no option but to walk through it.

If it doesn't seem obvious to you at first, one way to find out is by carefully studying raids pathing from the map borders as they close in towards your base. Watch where they go through and starting laying blueprints but forbidding them (as you are currently being attacked).

When building spike traps, you must also leave free areas so that your colonists and friendlies can pass harmlessly, or they may accidentally step on a spike trap while exiting or trying to rearm them. As such, putting them in a 1-wide corridor is not a good idea.

<gallery widths="400px" heights="400px" class="center" mode="nolines">
File:Trap_choke_14.jpg|'''Trap and fence tunnel'''
File:Defense structures deadfall trap.png|'''Traps in potential enemy cover spots (map border)'''
</gallery>

Instead, a good way to use traps is as shown above: build a 2-wide corridor as the only entrance to the base, with a spike trap, then a [[fence]] next to it. Raiders cannot open the colony's doors and do not see traps, meaning they will walk over the "faster" lane with the traps on it. Colonists will walk through the fences or use the doors.

'''Materials:''' [[Wood]] spike traps are practical for most biomes in the early game. It is flammable, so it is ideal but not close to required to place them in stony or floored areas, or [[roof]] over the area so grass won't grow. [[Stone]] traps are more damaging and nonflammable but take a long time to build. [[Steel]] is faster than stone and more damaging still in case traps are urgently needed or steel is abundant.

=== Bait furniture ===
Attackers will destroy [[furniture]] if there is no unobstructed path to a colonist, and will sometimes even stop to destroy furniture if it is between them and the nearest colonist. They may smash items or set flammable things on fire (particularly crop fields).

Cheap wooden furniture such as a [[stool]] or [[table]] can be used as bait to lure enemies into a position where they can be more easily killed. It can also distract them by drawing a few attackers away from your base, which can help prevent your defenders from getting overwhelmed.

<gallery widths="400px" heights="400px" class="center" mode="nolines">
File:Distraction_tables_2.jpg|'''A raider lured into a dangerous position in the middle of a moat.'''
File:Distraction_tables_3.jpg|'''A mechanoid detoured far away from the base to smash a wooden stool.'''
</gallery>

As a small added bonus, if your outdoor bait furniture consists of a table and stool, colonists completing work tasks far from your base may stop to eat there. This may help avoid the "Ate without table" negative [[thought]].

{{clear}}

== Mid-game defense ==

=== Perimeter wall===
An additional perimeter wall surrounding all the structures and growing areas of your colony is a great defense once the colony has the time to build it. It protects from fire and either concentrate raiders into a specific area (if an entrance is open), or delay raiders and cause them to split up (if no entrance is open).

Keeping an entrance open allows the wall to act as a chokepoint - raiders will funnel through that entrance, allowing strategic placement of cover, traps, turrets, and so on. Alternatively, keeping the entrances closed will cause each raider to choose random tiles to attack, causing them to be split up and delayed. If the entrance is closed, colonists can take pot shots by entering through one doorway, firing at the split up enemies, then retreating and attacking at another direction.

Having [[door]]s placed every 15-25 tiles or so will allow colonists to fire potshots and to venture outside if needed, e.g., to haul items or to deal with [[breacher]] raids. This can be expanded (both in height/width and number of layers) whenever needed. An "airlock" with two+ doors, separated by at least 1 tile, will keep raiders and manhunters out.

==== Multi-layer walls ====
Multiple layers of wall will make it more resistant to attacks, especially against standard, non-breacher/sapper, raiders.

When making a multi-layer wall, it is often best to ''not'' have a gap in-between layers, due to how the raider AI works. If standard AI enemies have no path to a colonist and decides not to attack furniture, they will choose a ''random'' section of accessible wall and attack it, recalculating after destruction. If the walls have a gap in-between, after the first layer is broken, it is much more likely for an enemy to randomly pick the inner wall to target next, as the entirety of the inner wall is accessible. With no gap, the enemy will be unable to access most of the inner layer, meaning they will be much more likely to destroy another outer layer wall.

Having a gap between each layer of walls will make it possible to repair the outermost layer without going outside, and will make the wall somewhat better against explosions, so if not planning to completely close off the wall for combat tactics, having a gap may be better.

=== Chokepoints ===
A chokepoint is an opening in a wall or room that raiders will have to funnel through, due to there only being one open entrance. Building a colony-wide perimeter wall with one open entrance will form an effective chokepoint. From there, it is possible to concentrate firepower there, having colonists, turrets, and traps all in one place. Once the colony has enough firepower or resources, a [[killbox]] can be built at the end of the chokepoint.

* When building a hallway, turns can be used break line of sight. This will prevent long-range raiders from making potshots, although the turn itself can be used as [[cover]]. As of 1.6, placing [[barricade]]s at the turn will not prevent enemies from using walls as cover.
** Turns are a great way to support melee fighters. When building hallways - both in a chokepoint and internally within your base - you may want to build turns so that melee fighters can approach without being shot it.

So long as raiders have a clear path to a colonist, no matter how long or winding it is, they will pass through a chokepoint if it is the only path. This can be used to slow raiders down, giving the colony more time to react.

==== Slowing tunnel ====
[[File:Slowing_tunnel.png|300px|thumb|right|Short slowing tunnel in front of a wall, with alternated sandbags for maximum slowing efficiency and a twist to break line of sight.]]

A simple and cheap tactic to slow down enemies through a chokepoint is by placing [[fence]]s, [[sandbag]]s, [[barricade]]s, or debris in a narrow hallway, alternating them with empty space. Fences/sandbags/etc. should not be placed adjacent to each other, as otherwise they will simply vault over multiple bags at once, reducing their slowing efficiency.

=== Cover removal ===
While proper cover formations (see the [[#Cover|Cover section]] above) already give colonists an advantage over raiders in terms of cover, removing all sources of cover near your base is still very useful when dealing with ranged enemies as they will then have nowhere to hide. If the base is surrounded by an all-encompassing wall, only areas near the combat zone need to be cleared.

*Haul all stone chunks towards a dump behind your defensive lines so enemies can't use them. A [[sniper rifle]] has a [[range]] of 45 tiles, though most raiders can't shoot that far, so removing chunks around 30 tiles away from your defenses can deprive many enemies of suitable cover.
*Remove the flora near combat zones, either by cutting or burning it. To prevent it from regrowing, it is possible to place [[roof]]s (supported by a single [[column]] or [[wall]]), which will also slow down raiders due to the lack of [[light]], and the roof's support can be destroyed to cause roof collapses.
*Watch out for your crop fields, as colonists tend to move and lay out chunks in straight lines when planting on [[Growing zone]] tiles, suitable for raiders to take cover behind.

<gallery widths="400px" heights="400px" class="center" mode="nolines">
Cover removal or baiting.png|Watch where enemies choose to hide and once the battle is over plan for the future.
Wildfire clearing.png|Intentional burning of a tropical rainforest to reduce any cover that raiders might use.
</gallery>
{{clear}}

==== Cover baiting ====
[[File:Flanking_example.png|400px|thumb|right|Early-game example of cover baiting. Notice the stone chunks laid strategically so that shooters can lean out of doors to flank enemies hiding behind them. Enemies that reposition themselves to defend against one angle will be exposed to another, leaving nowhere safe to hide.]]

Once there's no suitable cover nearby, ranged attackers will scramble to find any objects usable as cover. You can exploit this by placing any form of low cover to attract them to a place where they can be dealt with more easily. [[Stool]]s work well, though they wear out quite fast under constant fire.

If the cover is hard to remove (such as plants and trees constantly regrowing in plant-rich biomes), you can manipulate stone chunks in ways that give them a disadvantage. For example, putting gaps between each chunk exposes the enemy behind to fire directed diagonally, or continuous lines allow missed shots to hit nearby covering enemies. If your defense line is big enough, you can bait enemies into taking cover in such a way that leaves them flanked (see picture).

You can put traps behind the bait cover, which makes it slightly easier to trigger, though still less effective than chokepoints (see above).
{{clear}}

=== Pillboxes / Bunkers ===
[[File:Makeshift_pillbox.png|320px|thumb|right|Map ruins converted into a pillbox.]]

A simple early game construct, effective until mid-game. Simply build a room in any shape (or convert them from ruins) and then deconstruct a few sections of wall facing the enemy to make some holes and replace with sandbags -- these will be firing holes for your shooters, where they can use the walls and sandbags for covers.

Bunkers should be built out of stone, as they are durable and are non-flammable. Roof over the enclosure to protect defenders from the rain, and floor can help improve beauty while protecting from fires.

'''Pros:''' Cheap and simple, can be placed throughout multiple locations, can be upgraded.

'''Cons:''' Generally not used with chokepoints (as regular cover is suitable for them), meaning risk of getting encircled or run down by melee attackers. If not placed well, the bunker’s utility will be greatly decreased, and not all map types suit bunkers. Enemies can use bunkers.

Pillboxes can be incorporated into perimeter walls, but make sure that there is no direct entry from there, such as by building a durable door.

=== Secondary cover ===
Besides your main line of cover, you may also build additional cover for various purposes:
#For [[Defense tactics#shield distraction|shield distraction]], building cover for your shield tanks helps them to last longer with their shields.
#Putting lines of sandbags perpendicular to your main cover line allows them to be used to flank enemies. Make sure that they are put a great distance away so enemies can't use it to their advantage.

=== Burning floors ===
You can build flammable floors to set on fire, burning enemies. Once the floors are burnt, they leave behind burnt floors that apply a {{Bad|{{%|{{Q|Burned floor|Move Speed Factor}}}}}} movement factor, and will persist until removed.

=== Roof trap ===
This clever trap is simple to set up and hard-hitting when triggered. It can be considered a giant single-use spike trap.

All you need to do is to erect 1 [[wall]] or [[column]] made of a low-HP material, optimally wood, then build a roof over it. When raiders walk near the wall, destroy it from a distance with long-range guns or by igniting an [[IED trap]]. After the wall is destroyed, the roof will fall, crushing the raiders on the head, neck or torso and dealing up to 20 damage (though armor will negate part of it). It is possible to damaging the wall before combat to make it easier to destroy, while removing the [[home area]] so colonists won't automatically repair it.

This is more of a clever use of game mechanics than an actual trap, so raiders won't detect it, nor will they treat it as one.

'''Pros:''' Large radius, cheap, penetrates shields, no risk of friendly activation. Slows down raiders.

'''Cons:''' Hard to trigger, requires space, low damage.

As a bonus, roofs can be used as firebreaks as they will prevent the growth of grass.

<gallery widths="300px" heights="300px" class="center" mode="nolines">
File:Roof_trap.png|Roof trap before triggering.
File:Roof_trap_triggered.png|Roof trap after triggering, having injured some raiders (some through shields) and left a large pile of rubble.
File:Roof_trap_auto.png|More refined roof trap design with stools to lure the enemy into using them as cover, along with an IED trap to automatically trigger the trap. Significantly more expensive.
</gallery>

=== Damage minimization ===
These are ways to minimize damage done to your base.

[[File:Walled_geothermal_generator.png|200px|thumb|right|Walled geothermal generator. The extra space allows heat to escape without being trapped inside. Note that the entire setup is unroofed.]]

==== Firebreaks ====

2-tile wide strips of concrete, metal or stone tiles are capable of stopping the spread of fires. This can prevent many fires from reaching your base and burning it down. This is more important for plant-rich biomes with large amounts of flammable material.

You can build one surrounding your base, and divide the map into sections in order to control fires. You can also use them to separate crop fields such that a fire won't consume all your crops.

Keep in mind that building such amounts of floors usually requires huge amounts of building materials - if you have stone on hand it is better to build a perimeter wall out of stone instead, with the added advantage of fortifying defenses.

==== Grazing animals ====

Setting lots of grazing animals around the outside of the base helps clear away grass, slowing or stopping the spread of fires towards your base. They may also distract raiders during raids, but at quite a cost.

==== Walling structures ====

You should build an additional wall around your important structures, such as generators, power conduits or cash crops, even if you do have a perimeter wall in place. This causes raiders to prioritize other targets over these, averting destruction.

For geothermal generators, remember to have some exposed roof areas so the heat from the generator can vent out instead of being trapped inside.

==== Power network ====
[[Hidden conduit]]s are totally immune to damage and cannot cause a [[short circuit]], meaning the entire power grid can be secured by building using hidden conduits alone. Even one regular [[power conduit]] can cause short circuits, draining [[batteries]] and potentially disconnecting the base's power grid.

=== Panic room ===
[[File:Panic_room_example.png|400px|thumb|right|Example of a panic room built inside a mountain.]]

You can dig out a panic room deep into the mountains or build one out of very thick walls. This provides a good escape if you know that you can't defeat an incoming group of raiders, or you are losing and need retreat, provided you manage to get to the room in time. 
*If you dig one out of the mountains, you gain immunity against mortar shells and some innate temperature control. You will need to make many layers of doors (at least 6) as the raiders will focus down the doors.
*If you build one using thick walls you have more flexibility in its positioning, and you don't need that many layers of wall - 4 layers are OK, since raiders will divert their attention to the walls as well instead of focusing down the doors.

You don't need to make the panic room big enough to accommodate the whole colony, as the point of a panic room is to preserve colonists in a dire situation so you can rebuild later on. Choose the colonists most important to you when it's time to escape to these rooms.

Panic rooms also need the following:
*Enough food to last 1-2 days at full capacity
*Medicine for the wounded, for injury is likely during the retreat
*Joy objects (otherwise colonists may face a huge -20 mood penalty)

If you want, you can put beds and tables to make sure your colonists don't feel too bad while cooped up inside. You can also choose to put building materials to seal up the entrance with cheaper and more durable walls. Putting resources inside also helps with rebuilding, though they take up space.

While inside the room, if you're down on your last door or layer of wall, assign your best builder to hold the door by repairing it, and make sure the others don't go out. Disabling firefighting for covering colonists or restricting them to the panic room can help stop them from leaving. If the doors are unable to hold, use the breach as a chokepoint instead, and take as many enemies down with you.

Consider building multiple panic rooms so your colonists have another panic room within reach if a raid blocks off access to one. You can also choose to build another exit so you can flee to another room should the original be overrun.

{{clear}}

== Mid-late game defense ==

=== Turrets ===
Turrets are automated defenses which shoot at enemies in range but require materials to reload. There are three main varieties: the [[mini-turret]], [[autocannon turret]], and [[uranium slug turret]]. There are also two unconventional turrets, including [[rocketswarm launcher]]s and [[foam turret]]s.

Turrets should not be relied solely upon for defense. A perimeter wall of turrets will not remain viable for too long, as the turrets will quickly get overwhelmed while not all the turrets are actively helping combat. While turrets are more effective in [[killbox]]es, certain raid strategies like [[drop pod]], [[breacher]], and [[sapper]] will ignore the killbox, so preparing defenses and gearing colonists is important. In addition, a [[solar flare]] will shut down all turrets.

While protecting the outside starting area, you may want to rapidly pause the game during raids and give orders to repair damaged turrets.

Remember that turrets may explode when critically damaged, so get your colonists to run from them.

[[File:Turret_range_comparison.png|1200px|thumb|left|Visualization of effective turret range of all three turrets, from uranium slug turret (top), to autocannon turret (middle), to mini-turret (bottom). 
Green is '''80 - 100% of peak accuracy''', blue is '''50 - 80% of peak accuracy''', red is '''below 50% of peak accuracy''' and grey is '''outside range'''. Gold tiles are spaced every 5 tiles.]]

{{clear}}

==== [[Mini-turret]] ====
Mini-turrets fire light bullets at enemies within its range.

With its low firepower it is not a good idea to extensively rely on them, especially in mid-late game. However they do provide decent additional fire to lay on the enemy when combined with gunners, and also serve as a distraction from your more valuable colonists.

'''Pros'''
*Can be uninstalled and re-deployed wherever needed, making their placement slightly less of an issue
*No exclusion zone allows them to fire at touch range
*1x1 size makes it harder to hit and more compact

'''Cons'''
*Inaccurate at long-range

Building turrets out of [[plasteel]] brings their health to 335 (up from 120), making them substantially more durable and slightly less flammable.

==== [[Autocannon turret]] ====
Autocannons deal moderate damage and are long-ranged, but have an exclusion zone making them less effective against close enemies in the frontline.

They are somewhat costly to build and maintain. Despite its long maximum range, it is mainly effective at short-medium ranges due to its accuracy.

'''Pros'''
*Shots deal decent damage
*Somewhat high fire rate
'''Cons'''
*Inaccurate at long-range
*Somewhat high cost per shot

==== [[Uranium slug turret]] ====
A long-range turret that fires a high powered uranium slug.

It is more accurate than the other turrets at long distances and has much longer range, but is more expensive to maintain and performs poorly at close range.

'''Pros'''
*High damage shots
*Extremely high armor penetration, able to negate most all armor on an enemy
*Accurate at long ranges
'''Cons'''
*High cost per shot
*Not good at close ranges

==== [[Rocketswarm launcher]] ====
Rocketswarm launchers must be manually controlled, and fire one barrage of rockets before needing to be reloaded.

'''Pros'''
* Wide AOE.
* Cheaper than autocannons, and reloads using [[chemfuel]] instead of metal.

'''Cons'''
* Requires a colonist to aim it.
* Rockets will destroy structures, meaning the base needs to be designed with rockets in mind.
* Not very effective unless enemies are clumped up. Having enemies clumped up is bad for other types of defenses.

==== Weaknesses ====
Turrets are most vulnerable to the following things:

*Explosives deal immense damage to turrets. All forms of regular explosives wielded by raiders are capable of 1-hitting a steel mini-turret and leaving a plasteel one at less than half health.
*EMP stuns the turrets. Enemy EMP is very uncommon, but friendly fire can disable turrets.
*[[Smokepop pack]]s prevent turrets from locking onto targets within or behind smoke. An enemy equipped with it can create a safe zone from turret harm.
**This is a great issue in killboxes, where turret firepower is often concentrated, as an enemy that activates the belt will essentially be able to nullify a large portion of your defensive firepower.

Turrets can be ignited, and are unable to put themselves out. Given enough time, flames can debilitate the turret.

For the mini-turret, long-ranged gunners can shoot from outside their range without retaliation from the turret. This includes [[lancer]]s with their [[Charge lance]], making them less than ideal for fighting off [[Mechanoid]] incursions.

==== Turret placement ====
* Placing turrets in a [[#Chokepoint|chokepoint]] and/or [[killbox]] is effective, allowing all the turrets to be concentrated into one area instead of having them be spread out. Placing more than 1 line will allow the colonists to fall back in case raiders advance too far.
* Turrets can benefit from [[cover]], so placing [[barricade]]s or [[sandbag]]s in front of the turret will improve its performance.
* Since melee enemies will try to attack turrets, placing traps in front of them is a great way to protect the turret further.
* Turrets will explode, so place turrets at least 3 tiles apart from each other to avoid a chain reaction.

==== On-demand turret deployment ====

For mini-turrets, instead of placing static turrets around the perimeter, you can instead keep them uninstalled and placed in the center of your base. Once raiders come, have a builder install them facing the battlefield, behind your cover. This helps to save power and also allows you to utilize turrets more efficiently as you can keep more turrets engaged on the enemy rather than just sitting there due to lack of contact with the enemy.

This tactic is less effective against melee charges who will swarm your defenders before you have enough time to react.

==== Turret power switch ====
Turrets should be turned off whenever not in use. Turrets can be turned on/off quickly by installing a [[power switch]] that connects all your turrets to the main power grid.

Alternatively, it is possible to build a single unconnected [[hidden conduit]] near the turrets. By using the reconnect gizmo, the turrets will switch from the unconnected "grid" to the main grid, taking no time in the process.

=== Mortars===
A [[mortar]] attack can be effective at forcing [[siege]]s to start attacking directly, culling raiders as they prepare, and dealing with [[crashed ship part]]s and [[mech cluster]]s{{RoyaltyIcon}}. However, mortars are fairly inaccurate, so multiple mortars are often needed to be effective, and their long travel time means hitting moving raiders is difficult. Skilled colonists are more accurate with mortars, but unskilled colonists can still provide supportive fire and they can be effective with large-radius shells like [[EMP shell]]s and [[smoke shell]]s.

Always remember to manually unassign colonists from mortars, or they'll continue standing there until they eventually collapse from exhaustion, starvation, or have a mental break.

An important point to remember is that while your colonists are better at dealing with single or spread-out enemies, mortars are designed for heavily grouped enemies. If you diffuse your enemies, the mortars will not be able to hit the enemies easily.

Don't aim mortars anywhere too close to your colonists otherwise you risk friendly fire.

==== Mortar pits ====
[[File:Mortar_Pit.png|320px|thumb|right|8-mortar battery. Note the separation between the mortars, and walls to block explosions.]]

Mortars cannot be fired through a roof, but they can still be placed indoors for security and colonist happiness. Note that mortars will explode if damaged enough, which, while rare, can happen due to enemy mortar shells. Separating each mortar, as well as the mortar shells, with high HP walls will prevent a chain reaction from destroying the entire mortar pit. Building mortars with [[plasteel]], [[uranium]], or [[bioferrite]]{{AnomalyIcon}} will give mortars high enough HP to survive multiple explosions.

Mortars can't fire at anything within 30 tiles of it, so you will need to place the mortars deep inside your base for maximum coverage.

Keep in mind that your landing mortar shells will blow up anything nearby, including pawns and things of yours that raiders don't commonly target

==== Quantity ====
The number of mortars needed depends on how they will be used:
* For provoking [[siege]]s, one mortar firing [[incendiary shell]]s is often enough so long as fire is allowed to spread. It is also possible to get away with using one mortar firing [[high-explosive shell]]s with a great shooter.
* For stunning mechanoids with [[EMP shell]]s, multiple mortars are needed, especially against [[mech cluster]]s{{RoyaltyIcon}} with [[mech high-shield]]s (which require 1 EMP + multiple regular mortars at minimum).
* For damaging general raids with high-explosive shells, even more mortars are required.

==== Shells ====
There are different shells available to be loaded into the mortar.

*[[High-explosive shell]]s are the go-to ammo for dealing damage to enemies and buildings.
*[[Incendiary shell]]s deal weak damage against pawns, but they can cause an enemy siege's own mortar shells to explode, causing the siege to start attacking directly.
*[[EMP shell]]s stun mechs and break shields, making them useful but highly situational. They have a large blast radius, meaning that their inaccuracy is less of a problem compared to the others. Their ability to break [[mech high-shield]]s {{RoyaltyIcon}} is particularly useful.
*[[Smoke shell]]s will block turrets from locking on and reduce enemy fire, but a [[smoke launcher]] or [[smokepop pack]] are typically better for this role.
*[[Firefoam shell]]s can be used to extinguish fires outside your base, but is useless against any inside, due to the mortar's blind spot.
*[[Deadlife shell]]s{{AnomalyIcon}} revive nearby corpses as [[shambler]]s. More useful as an [[IED deadlife trap|IED trap]] than as a shell, as it is unlikely that corpses will pile up in the area raiders arrive in.

=== Traps ===
As you unlock research, and obtain more manpower and resources, you can lay more traps to debilitate incoming raiders.

==== Understanding AI ====
Raiders cannot use the colony's doors, cannot see traps, and will traverse through the quickest unobstructed path to a colonist. Colonists can step on traps if walking over their tile, but can see traps and will take slower routes or doors to avoid them.

Building [[door]]s and [[fence]]s to give colonists a quicker path, as with a [[#Spike traps|spike trap tunnel]], will allow colonists to travel while funneling enemies into a single chokepoint.

==== [[IED trap]]s ====
Early on, you may want to focus on armed colonist defense with turrets, but as the raiders grow in number, it becomes more efficient to use a bit of metal to kill several at once than to invest a lot of metal in a turret that costs nothing to fire, but will explode rapidly due to large raider groups.

IED traps are extremely effective when used correctly, however in open areas they are mostly useless as the raiders are highly unlikely to step on any of the traps, and even if they do they're usually not tightly packed enough for the trap to cause serious damage. Thus, it is better if you combine traps with funneling to force the raiders together.

1 IED trap can trigger other IED traps in its explosion radius. This may or may not be desirable depending on the situation; you can easily set off a chain reaction to destroy a whole incoming raider horde, but also use up much more resources. They also damage nearby structures, such as walls or spike traps, so don't put too many close to each other.
* Rather than setting more IED traps near existing ones, you can just place the [[Mortar shell]]s themselves, or even some [[Chemfuel]] on the ground for the same effect as a molotov cocktail blast. However, unless you can restrict them to placing just 1 of each it's more expensive to do so.
** Chemfuel has 50 HP, ''just'' within the damage threshold of an IED trap, but the shells have 70, so you will need to pre-damage them or leave them on the ground to deteriorate first if you want to use this tactic.

IED traps have a delay before exploding, allowing some raiders to escape. Raiders will attempt to run from an exploding trap, though the fuse is short enough to catch some of them.

'''Pros'''
*High area damage
*Raiders usually less protected against explosives

'''Cons'''
*High resource cost
*Single-use, non-rearmable
*Requires research
*Does not instantly trigger

==== [[IED incendiary trap]]s ====

A variant of the IED trap that sets enemies on fire. It's a more situational pick compared to the regular trap, due to its incendiary nature.

'''Pros'''
*Distracts enemies while they are on fire
*Penetrates shields

'''Cons'''
*Low damage
*Not effective against [[Mechanoid]]s

Its use requires strong support to be effective. With that, it is a good defensive choice against heavily armored or shielded enemies, with the flames providing good distraction while your colonists shoot them down.

It synergizes great with brawlers, which will prevent the enemy from attempting to extinguish the flames while fighting.

==== [[IED EMP trap]]s ====

A variant of the IED trap that creates an EMP pulse. It's a more situational pick compared to the regular trap, due to its EMP explosion.

'''Pros'''
*Instantly downs shields
*Stuns mechanoids for a long time
*Large blast radius

'''Cons'''
*'''No physical damage'''

Its use requires strong support to be effective as it can't deal any damage. It is excellent against mechanoids or shielded enemies, however.

==== Mountain trap ====
An extreme version of the roof trap using overhead mountains instead of constructed roofs.

To use it, you mine out a whole mountain except a pillar in the center. Then you damage that pillar until it has just a sliver of health left (25 or less for easy activation with a single [[sniper rifle]] shot). Mining out all the rocks at once will result in your colonists getting crushed by the trap.

It is triggered the same way as the regular roof trap, and has the same effect radius except victims are instantly killed and buried.
The collapsed rocks spawned after this trap is triggered can be useful or harmful depending on the situation.

Rearming it is a lengthy process as you will have to mine out lots of rocks. This does provide a decent way to train miners though.

Pros
*'''Instantly kills any enemy'''
*Leaves no corpses

Cons
*Takes much longer and is more dangerous to re-arm
**You have to mine out everything then support the mountain roof with a low-HP wall; compare with regular roof trap which simply requires building the wall and the roofs
**Colonists risk death if you aren't careful
*No loot or capturable downed raiders
*Overhead mountains may not be easily available

In mountainous areas where overhead mountains are abundant, this trap can absolutely destroy any incoming raids, especially when combined with funneling.

=== Reactive firefoam poppers ===

You should have some uninstalled firefoam poppers on hand. When a fire starts and you need to extinguish or control it, you can reinstall them near the fire, and trigger them.

Firefoam on the ground slows movement speed of pawns by about 25%. As it covers a wide area, this can be slightly useful as area denial to slow down charging melee attackers, though it prevents the use of fire against them.

=== Firefoam roof array ===

Due to the slight slowing effect of firefoam, you can deploy a large amount of it to slow down enemies crossing by. However, since rain washes it away, you need to erect a roof to prevent that from happening. You also need to clear home area so colonists leave the firefoam alone.

This has the added effect of creating an excellent firebreak against wildfires, as well as creating a [[#Roof trap|roof trap]] that can damage enemies.

Initial deployment of the firefoam is very expensive without the use of chokepoints so it isn't recommended for open base designs.

== Killboxes ==
[[File:Killzone.png|500px|thumb|right|An example of a killbox. [[Fence]]s spaced 1-tile apart slow enemies down. Barricades near the entrance prevent enemies from standing on the corner. Traps and fences allow colonists to pass unimpeded, but enemies will walk through the traps. Doors can be closed in case of [[manhunter]]s.]]

Killboxes are heavily trapped, armed areas where enemies are funneled into so they can be destroyed easily.

They almost always consist of a funnel which directs raiders into it, like a wall with a single opening, which opens into a zone where your colonists and turrets are located. 
Raiders will then trickle in, allowing colonists or turrets to concentrate fire on them, or traps to destroy them while they try to move in to attack. In the killzone, enemies lack cover and are within close range, while your colonists have plenty of cover to fight from.

This is an extremely effective way to defeat most raids, as the enemies will often be overwhelmed by the sheer firepower raining on them. It also allows effective use of traps, as funneling enemies greatly increases the chance one's going to trigger them. A well-built killbox can easily neutralize the threat of many raids, which may make the game less fun for some players.

Note that killboxes aren't a catch-all solution to enemy threats, and you still need tactics to handle drop pod raiders or sappers.

=== Building ===
The entryways should lead to a large 'box' where the killing begins (hence 'killbox'). The box should be surrounded by cover sources (preferably walls plus sandbags) where your colonists fire on the enemy. For increased firepower you may build turrets as well, away from your colonists' firing line and separated from each other by walls, in case they explode.

It's always best to double-wall the "receiving" end of your killboxes as the sheer firepower raining on your enemies will inevitably destroy some of your own walls by accident, allowing raiders to flood in from another direction, bypassing traps and overwhelming your defenders. This is especially true if you use explosives such as frag grenades or IED traps to kill incoming enemies.

{{clear}}

=== Entryways ===

Any entryways of the killbox should not be straight, otherwise raiders will simply fire using the entryway as cover. Instead, you should have a turn to break line of sight, prompting the raiders to enter an area where you can get them easily. For better effect, put a grave or other similar object that raiders can't stand on. The entryway should be single wide to allow the use of [[Defense tactics#Melee blocking|melee blocking]] if necessary.

The below shows the results of different killbox entryways.
<gallery widths="300px" heights="300px" class="center" mode="nolines">
File:Killbox_right.png|Right design of a killbox entryway. Raiders are prompted to move into the killbox, sometimes so close that they prefer to melee attack instead of shoot.
File:Killbox_wrong.png|Wrong design of a killbox entryway. Raiders are bunching up in the entryway, using its walls as cover.
</gallery>

Entryways should be long, but not too long, corridors with [[sandbag]]s or [[barricade]]s every second tile to slow enemies. Do not place a continuous line of sandbags or barricades, as pawns only slow down when they are climbing on and off the two (similar to real life, as you can just run on the barricade after you climb on it). In between the spaces, spike traps can be placed to soften up the raiders (with doors adjacent to the sandbags so your colonists can replace them). At the end of the corridor, place a T-Shaped sandbag line (do not alternate with empty tiles like before), as pawns cannot stand on the sandbags and therefore are incapable of using the corridor exit walls as cover. [[IED trap]]s can be used, but should be used sparingly lest they blow up all the walls of the corridor.

Don't make your entryway excessively long, otherwise raiders will think it's not worth it going such a distance and will decide to go for something else instead. Manhunters however will still chase colonists down a long corridor or over extreme distances, so you can have some dedicated anti-manhunter killboxes with extra-long corridors for this purpose.

If your entryway is long then you may need to build doors to allow friendlies to enter without setting off your own traps or having to go through all the obstacles. This door obviously needs to be fortified against enemy attacks.

<gallery widths="300px" heights="300px" class="center" mode="nolines">
File:Slowing_tunnel_long.png|Entryway with alternating sandbags to slow raiders and doors to provide access. Slows raiders but not colonists.

</gallery>

{{clear}}

=== Equipment ===
Different equipment is necessary in different situations.

==== Short-range killboxes ====
Colonists defending in a short-range killbox will be shooting at a large number of targets no more than a few tiles away. Thus, defenders should use close ranged high damage weaponry for firing at raiders.

* [[Chain shotgun]]s inflict extreme pain at killbox range, surpassing the DPS of every other weapon at short range or less.
* [[Minigun]]s are excellent at attacking the bunched-up raiders inside a killbox, but require large amounts of resources to craft ({{Required Resources|Minigun}}).
* [[Charge rifle]]s and [[heavy SMG]]s are second-tier picks, being able to dish out hurt against closely grouped targets at close-mid ranges.
* Long range weapons are not optimal due to low DPS. Instead, use them to pick off survivors outside the killbox.
* Grenades are good if you can time them right. Throw them near the entrance where each explosion can hit a tight group of raiders, especially if they're slowed down with obstacles, but take care not to demolish your own walls.
*Have melee colonists stand nearby as raiders who enter your killbox may decide to melee charge you instead.

==== Long-range killboxes ====
Colonists defending in long-range killboxes will be shooting at bunched up raiders. Thus, defenders should use mid-range, fast firing, and decently accurate weapons to inflict as much damage as possible. Note: It is possible to modify a killbox in a pattern that leverages both long and short range weapons. This can be accomplished by creating a passage that has a 45 degree angle "open to the field" while keeping the main 90 degree passage open to short range fire only.

* [[Charge rifle]]s are the best weapon{{Check Tag|Arguable}} for this purpose, shooting 3 semi-accurate high damage charge shots. It also has a decent 26 tile range and an excellent 35 percent armor penetration, essential for killing targets late game, when your killbox is more developed.
* [[Heavy SMG]]s are excellent alternatives to charge rifles. Significantly cheaper but similarly skill friendly and with a solid DPS.
* [[Assault rifle]]s are basically charge rifles with lower damage and armor penetration, but making it up for its longer range and higher accuracy. Higher skilled pawns are required to make use of their range however.
* [[Minigun]]s, [[Chain shotgun]]s, and perhaps [[LMG]]s are second options, excelling at crowd control, especially against tribals.
* Explosive weapons are not advised, as raiders will be moving around the killbox frequently, and grenades have a delay between the grenade hitting the ground and the explosion of the grenade.

=== Turrets ===
You can put turrets in a killbox. They help to provide additional firepower alongside your colonists.

You may also choose to fully arm your killbox with turrets, with enough to single-handedly take out raids especially in tandem with traps. Doing this allows you to defeat raids automatically without the need to divert colonists from other jobs, but eats up power when active and resources to maintain, and is vulnerable to solar flares, EMP grenadiers or smoke, so you will need backup.

Turrets should preferably have their own cover. They should also be connected to a separate grid which can be shut off to deactivate them all, to save power when not active.

Mini-turrets and autocannons are the best choices for killboxes, being able to dish out hurt at killbox ranges. Place mini-turrets close up to the enemy, while place autocannons slightly farther away to keep enemies out of its minimum range.

Alternatively, if you can keep the enemy in one spot, a specially designed killbox can allow uranium slug turrets to function well. Uranium slug turrets are most accurate at 40 tiles or above, achieving a maximum of ~61% accuracy against human enemies, so you will need to place them that far from the entrance, and distract enemies so they do not go closer. Slug turrets are good against tankier pawns, as a uranium slug can easily rip through [[Centipede]] and [[Power armor]].

It is better to 'Hold fire' until the enemies have actually entered the killbox, for all the turrets will focus fire on the first enemy to try and go through the entrance, which is very much overkill.

=== Blocking ===
As [[Defense tactics#Melee blocking|melee blocking]] is more effective than even a killbox used normally against melee only attacks, it's best to have somewhere that you can do this.

Melee blocking can be done at killbox entrances, as long as it is one-tile wide and has sufficient empty space in front. Both the entrance to the killing area and the entrance to the covered area where colonists fire onto enemies will work:
*Doing it in the killing area allows you to spare the turrets from immediate destruction, and they may add firepower.
*Doing it in the covered area entrance allows you to sustain fewer injuries by having the turrets take the damage first.

=== Explosive weapons ===

Enemies carrying explosive weapons can be very damaging towards your killbox and the defenders inside.

[[Centipede]]s with [[inferno cannon]]s can counter killboxes as the fire makes your colonists lose control and run out of cover, and the flames can destroy turrets easily. Having some [[firefoam popper]]s inside your box helps a lot with extinguishing fires and preventing future fires.

Another counter for killboxes are raiders with the [[triple rocket launcher]] and [[doomsday rocket launcher]]. If they manage to shoot inside your box the damage can be massive, and it is hard to distract them in a killbox. You can concentrate fire from your colonists on them, or keep [[psychic shock lance]]s and [[psychic insanity lance]]s near and use them if you see that they will not die fast enough.

=== Fire killbox ===

Besides killing enemies with conventional weapons, roasting them with fire is also an effective choice. You need to lure them inside, light up flammable objects to heat up the killbox, and evacuate colonists so they don't get roasted as well.

Fire killboxes are slightly more complicated to operate than a regular one, where you can simply wait inside and fire; you will need to direct colonists, while others light up fires and then make a break for it. 
You can shut off the killbox by either leaving doors open to let enemies in, which you then shut off by disabling "keep open", then directing a colonist through them, or by building walls.

They need to be at least walled to prevent enemies from breaking out, and also to insulate it from the outside so that temperatures rise faster. Stone walls are optimal as they are non-flammable.

== Killhall ==
{{rewrite|section=1|reason=Largely similar to killboxes, should be merged with that section}}
Another possibility is to build a long corridor with traps, that can also be used shoot enemies from cover: a "killhall".

It acts as an active and passive defense:
* If used actively, it allows to kill enemies will little to no harm done to colonists, and with little damage to repair after the attack.
* If used passively, it'll lure enemies into [[spike trap]]s. Only very large or tough groups of enemies may go through (by springing all the traps), or possibly enemies with the "[[nimble]]" trait (that will avoid all of them).

If the first part has many obstacles (e.g. [[stone chunk]]s, [[barricade]]s or [[sandbags]]), and another branch of the corridor is empty and ended with a flimsy door (e.g. a wooden [[door]], or better: an [[animal flap]]), fleeing enemies will try to escape by this seemingly faster exit, but they will fall into another group of spike traps, eliminating the rest of the raid.

A drawback is that last part of the corridor has to be quite long to work properly, i.e. a bit more than the [[Property:Range|range]] of the weapons used (e.g. 30 tiles for [[assault rifle]]s and [[charge lance]]s, 45 for [[sniper rifle]]s).
This is not an issue if it is placed under a mountain, the best location being at the corner of the map.

=== Attack of a killhall ===
An attack will proceed as follows:
# Enemies will be lured into the hall, thinking it is an unobstructed way into the base.
# They are slowed by obstacles, leaving time for colonists to take position inside doors, hidden behind wall corners, waiting for them.
# Enemies are shot one by one by colonists, they are slowed by stone chunks and cannot rush in for a melee attack before they get shot. Enemies who shoot behind their friends others can sometimes hit them by mistake.
# Once half of them are dead, they decide to flee, but instead of going back by the way they used to enter, that looks cluttered by chunks, they try to break the doors on the side of the corridor.
# They are still shot at by colonists, but once they broke a door, it seems that there is only a flimsy animal flap between them and liberty.
# Unfortunately, what seems to be an exit path is littered with spike traps and they get killed one by one by them.
# If some of them still manage not to get killed by the traps, they get shot like clay pigeons in the exit corridor.
# It is now time for the colonists to strip the dead enemies of their possessions and store their corpses for later use...

If colonists decide not to attack the invaders, half of them will be killed by the traps on the entrance way, the other half on the exit way.
If the attackers are manhunting animals or [[mechanoid]]s, they will not try to escape and will all be shot or being trapped.

=== Example of a practical implementation ===

[[File:Killhall.png|500px|center]]

# Entrance and "escape exit".
#* The entrance has a door "held open" and "forbidden", so enemies can enter, but not friendlies.
#* The "escape exit" has an [[animal flap]] (can be substituted by a wooden [[door]]), leading fleeing enemies to think that they can break it to escape quicker.
# "Slowing down" corridor, filled with [[stone chunk]]s spaced one tile apart that will slow down enemies, give time to prepare and make this path look like a slower way to escape.
# "Shooting range" corridor, where enemies will be shot at from distance and will be forced to advance one behind another. It is also filled with stone chunks to slow them while they're being shot at (as chunks may be moved or destroyed during the attack, 1×1 [[stockpile zone]]s allowing only stone chunks should be placed, enabling their quick rearrangement).
#* Above, the "escape exit" corridor, filled with spike traps (doors allow replacing traps without having to walk on them).
#* Below, the "entrance to the base", also filled with traps.
# Part of the hall where colonists will shoot, taking cover with the wall corners. If the enemy has weapons with more range than colonists, they can hide behind the doors and pop out when the enemy is close enough.
# "Entrance to the base" (or at the part that enemies are planning to reach), with wall corners at the end to use as shooting positions (in case some enemies reach this part).
# Human corpses walk-in fridge, to put the bodies after the battle and keep them away from the view of colonists, avoiding the "[[Mood#Observed corpse|observed corpse]]" debuff.
#* It should be quite large, as enemy raids grow in size, and butchering humans should not be done every day, to avoid a permanent [[Mood#I butchered humanlike|I]]\[[Mood#We butchered humanlike|we butchered humanlike]] debuff (see the possible [[Human resources#Mitigation strategies|mitigation strategies]]). It can also hold the [[human leather]] stock, as it takes much space once butchering is done.
#* This can also be a place where corpses are burned, if it is preferred to butchering.
# Human [[kibble]] factory, where [[human meat]] can be processed into kibble (that extends hugely its conservation time, can be sold, or fed to any animal).
# Repair stock, that holds the necessary materials to quickly repair the walls and the spike traps after an attack.
# Hospital for prisoners, to quickly save them if they survive.

Points 6 to 9 are optional, but are great improvements if used.

==== Additional notes ====
* Walls of the parts 3 and 4 should be tough and fireproof. Best would be [[plasteel]], then [[uranium]]; [[granite blocks]] may also be used but will break down faster, and flammable materials are to avoid at all costs.
* Flooring should be put in place to keep the mood of the colonists high when they are in the area.
* Walls and flooring of the parts 2 and 5 doesn't matter, as colonists will very rarely go there, and there shouldn't be much fighting in these parts anyway.
* Spike traps should be made out of [[steel]], as it has the best price-quality ratio for this device (nevertheless, steel is flammable in RimWorld, but here, traps are protected behind the walls and doors).
* Accurate weapons should be preferred for colonists: the narrow corridor will be damaged unnecessarily if explosives are used, or weapons like [[shotgun]]s or [[minigun]]s (not to speak of their reduced range).
* The hall should like an unobstructed path to enter the colony (i.e. no closed door between the outside and the inside of it), but the doors leading to it that will be used by colonists should be strong enough to deter attackers from trying to break them.
* The number of stone chunks in the way is also important: if there are not enough of them, fleeing enemies will just escape by the way they attacked and will not be led into the spike traps on the supposedly quicker escape route.

== Situational ==

=== Crashed ships ===

It is vital to know Mechanoids' behavior:

* Any attack to the ship will trigger its guardians, and they have a long aggro range of around 40 tiles from their spawn point. The larger the map, the easier it can be to deal with them, as long as the ship crashes away from your base. This means that as long as they are far from your base, Mechanoids will still NOT chase you yet.
* When the ship's health falls below 50%, Mechanoids will stop guarding and will instead proceed to attack your base as a normal raid.

You can trigger a ship's guardians from a long distance either by bombarding with mortars or hit-and-run with sniper rifles.

Currently, the best approach is to deal with the Scythers first, followed by their ranged units. There are a variety of alternatives, but the nature remains the same; hinder the melee range closing-in of their shock troops.

==== Preparation ====

Though these ships are "time bombs", instead of immediate action, you can spend a few days building preparations before engaging them.
* Placing a spike trap right in front of your sandbag may be helpful if the need to retreat arises, as mechanoids will very likely want to use the shortcut.
* Always make sure you have a safe path between your walls and your base, so that there's safe cover between your "ins" and "outs"; battles can take a long time if short on numbers.

Building IED traps can also be a good way to hurt the mechanoids, especially if there is a long distance between your colonists and the ship part. High-explosive traps deal hefty damage to incoming scythers and lancers, while EMP traps stun them, making them vulnerable to attack. 
If possible, a properly placed antigrain IED trap can obliterate most of the mechanoids, leaving a few heavily damaged centipedes to fight at most.

You may also want to keep a few firefoam poppers nearby. Trigger some of them before combat to prevent fires, and leave a few more to rapidly extinguish a group of burning colonists at once.

After you have finished preparing, you can use EMP shells to stun the mechanoids. Proper firing will make them helpless hunks of metal, once you get used to this technique, you can even preemptively fire EMP shells and then trigger the guardians, so as soon as they pop out, they instantly get hit by EMP shells. The number of manned mortars will factor in, as the chance to miss for each shell is quite large.

==== Cover ====

Use the "fire wall" cover approach detailed above, with melee units stationed behind each sandbag to hold off the scythers while your gunners lay fire on other mechanoids.

Ideally, the cover should be placed a distance from the ship, giving you time to soften incoming scythers with concentrated fire.

<gallery widths="400px" heights="400px" class="center" mode="nolines">
File:CSP v1 new tactics 101-00.png|Zoom out
File:CSP v1 new tactics 101-01.png|Zoom in
</gallery>

However, if you already have all the necessary utilities against mechs: EMP grenades and a good killbox, you may just wall the ship part off, (be aware that mechs will wake up if you build things up close to 2 cells to a sleeping mech, it's 5x5 square radius around any mechanoid) add one-two doors, you may want to add 2 walls deep mini corridor, so random fire from mechs won't hit the door, and a single barricade next to the door, draft your pawns to the entrance, force one to open it, while the door is opened (it must be made of wood) the other pawns will shoot the ship, mechs shouldn't have enough time to aim, the door will close pretty quick (do NOT hold it open), use "Heavy smgs" or other high dps and fast shooting guns, you can also equip frag grenades, a single colonist with grenades is enough, one is throwing it at the ship, while the other one keeps opening the door. As soon as you destroyed the ship just run, the mechs will be smashing the walls and head for your killbox.
<gallery widths="400px" heights="320px" class="center" mode="nolines">
File:Mechshipkillbox001.jpg
</gallery>

=== 'The Purifier' ===

This is a powerful way to burn a massive [[infestation]] to a crisp. Provided that the infestation have no direct access to map edges and unroofed areas.

To start, build a medium-sized room (approx. 5x5) with triple-thick stone walls, next to the infestation. Fill it with [[Straw matting]]s, and flammable objects such as wooden [[barricade]]s, it has good hp which means it will burn for longer and has high flammability, so it will catch fire quickly. Another alternative is to use combustible junk, like tainted clothing or unneeded corpses.

After that, dig a 1-wide tunnel towards the infestation at night when the insects are sleeping. Finally, toss a Molotov into the room.

Once the temperatures reach ({{Temperature|250}}), insects will begin to burn. They will attempt to dig out by rushing towards the purifier, but be set alight by the burning [[Straw matting]], making them unable to dig. Temperatures can rapidly reach {{Temperature|500}} or above, boiling both the insects and the hives. Even those that don't get set alight will eventually succumb to heatstroke.

Although using this method will not yield you valuable [[insect jelly]].
{{Nav|guides|wide}}
{{nav|security|wide}}
[[Category:Guides]]

File:Killbox01.jpg

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Wood: File uploaded with MsUpload

File uploaded with MsUpload

File:Mechshipkillbox001.jpg

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Wood: an improvised killbox area around psychic ship, a single pawn with frag grenades is enough to destroy it in solo, however a backup group of shooters is always better. One pawn opens the door, while the rest are shooting/throwing grenades at the ship, mech

== Summary ==
an improvised killbox area around psychic ship, a single pawn with frag grenades is enough to destroy it in solo, however a backup group of shooters is always better. One pawn opens the door, while the rest are shooting/throwing grenades at the ship, mechs wouldn't have much time to fire back because the wooden door will close pretty quick (do NOT hold it open), the mini corridor with a barricade next to the door is enough for basic protection, 2-3 walls thick mini corridor is for the straight line of fire for your colonists, (they can only see the ship, no mechs by sides), it also prevents wandering mechs from both sides to casually shoot your colonists. When the ship is destroyed the mechanoids will start smashing your walls, you will have time to go back to your primary killbox.

p.s. if the corridor/tunnel is longer than 4 blocks the grenades will clip/stick to the walls, you do not want this.
* If you try to build in this red square the mechs will wake up, it's 5x5 square radius with a sleeping mech at the center, avoid building in this zone.

Defense structures

2026-04-22T07:43:45Z

Wood: /* Cover */

{{Rewrite|reason=Everything past early-game should to be updated to 1.6, e.g., barricades no longer prevent enemies from using cover}}
{{Image wanted|reason=Most images are from Beta 18, where deadfall/spike traps could be placed adjacent to each other.}}
{{TOCright}}

{{for|strategies against threats|Defense tactics}}

Raids are frequent and numerous as enemies don't journey towards your base from their bases; they are instead generated into your colony by the [[storyteller]]. Players will need to fight the enemy AI for each type of hostile, but the approach may differ according to gameplay preferences, either face to face for a more combative experience or behind killboxes for a less threatening measure, or both combined.

== Map features ==
Before laying blueprints, first inspect the [[map]] for natural features that can work as defenses, such as [[water]] or a [[mountain]].

=== Water ===
Water and marsh tiles can be used as moats, which will considerably slow down incoming [[Raiders]], giving you some time to shoot and soften the clash before engaging in melee [[combat]]. You can build [[cover]], like [[barricade]]s just in front of the body of water.

If large bodies of water are available, such as rivers or [[lake]]s,{{OdysseyIcon}} then [[bridge]]s can be used to manipulate raider AI by encouraging them to path through the faster bridge.

[[File:Moats.png|500px|thumb|center|Marsh used as moats to slow enemy advance, with little islands full of spike traps.]]

=== Mountains ===
In mountainous and hilly maps, it is possible to build defenses by enclosing the area between two hills. In an actual mountain map, it is often best to mine into the mountain and live inside, but this may be too time-consuming in the early game.

=== Map borders ===
Pay attention when expanding towards the edges of the [[map]], as there's a boundary which your [[colonists]] can not build beyond that is only visible when the [[Structure]] tab is selected.

== Early-game defense ==
At the very beginning, your [[security]] choices include [[spike trap]]s, [[cover]] (including [[barricade]]s, [[sandbag]]s, and [[stone chunk]]s),

=== Stone chunks ===
At the very beginning of the game, colonists will often haul [[stone chunk]]s away to build structures or to clear up a [[growing zone]]. As colonists move stone chunks around, you might as well create a [[dumping stockpile zone]] for chunks on the outside of your base, covering its width and expanding it further. This is time-consuming, so only a small, 1-wide line of chunks is enough for the early game.

[[File:Stone chunks at the outer side to prevent fire spree in tropical forest.png|500px|thumb|center|Stone chunks at the outer side to slow wildfires in tropical forest.]]

=== Walls ===
[[Wall]]s alone can fend off early game raids if a colonist's [[Construction]] skill is high enough to repair the wall faster than the raider can break it. A walled room will also completely defend against [[manhunter]] and carnivore attacks, who will not attack if every colonist remains indoors.

Otherwise, walls are nearly essential for luring raiders into the area you want to fight them in. Standard raiders will always try to take the quickest, unobstructed path towards a colonist if such a path exists. This means that ''standard raiders will not try and break walls unless they are unable to reach a target''. This is the key towards most defensive structures, and can be used to construct trap hallways, chokepoints for melee fighters, strategic cover placements, and so on.

'''Material:''' [[Wood]] is cheap and quick to build, but weak and flammable. [[Stone]] is ideal, being cheap, durable, and nonflammable, but time-consuming. [[Steel]] walls are flammable in RimWorld. [[Plasteel]] and [[uranium]] are the strongest walls but are expensive, and should generally be reserved in specific spots.

=== Cover ===
[[Cover]] is vital for firefights as it can block projectiles, reducing the amount of [[damage]] received by your colonists. This is an essential defense as long as colonists or turrets are directly engaging.
* [[Wall]]s provide 75% cover, but pawns need to "lean out" whenever firing, causing the wall to not provide its full cover. In addition, walls block line of fire.
* [[Barricade]]s and [[sandbag]]s provide 55% cover and do not block line of fire.
* [[Stone chunk]]s only provide 50% cover, which is great in the early game, but should be replaced by 55% cover when possible.

The best arrangement of cover is a mix of walls and barricades/sandbags, as a pawn can benefit from barricades whenever they lean out from a wall. The exact ratio will depend on what angles the colonist needs to fire at, as wall tiles will limit how far a colonist can turn. Creating a U shape of cover, or a square around the colonists will ensure that they can engage enemies from multiple angles.
<gallery widths="400px" heights="400px" class="center" mode="nolines">
File:Cover_fire_wall.png|Example of advanced cover, mixing walls and barricades.
File:Sandbag_advanced_cover.png|400px|thumb|right|Example of advanced cover using sandbags only. Allows full range of fire, but less cover overall.
</gallery>

=== Spike traps ===
{{See also|Spike trap}}

The only initially available defense that deals damage. Spike traps are single use and require careful placement. It is best to place spike traps where raiders will naturally walk through, or can be lured into, such as:
* Corners of your base, where enemies will likely make turns.
* Narrow areas even outside your base that receive frequent traffic.
* Chokepoints. If there is only one entrance to a room or the entire colony, raiders will have no option but to walk through it.

If it doesn't seem obvious to you at first, one way to find out is by carefully studying raids pathing from the map borders as they close in towards your base. Watch where they go through and starting laying blueprints but forbidding them (as you are currently being attacked).

When building spike traps, you must also leave free areas so that your colonists and friendlies can pass harmlessly, or they may accidentally step on a spike trap while exiting or trying to rearm them. As such, putting them in a 1-wide corridor is not a good idea.

<gallery widths="400px" heights="400px" class="center" mode="nolines">
File:Trap_choke_14.jpg|'''Trap and fence tunnel'''
File:Defense structures deadfall trap.png|'''Traps in potential enemy cover spots (map border)'''
</gallery>

Instead, a good way to use traps is as shown above: build a 2-wide corridor as the only entrance to the base, with a spike trap, then a [[fence]] next to it. Raiders cannot open the colony's doors and do not see traps, meaning they will walk over the "faster" lane with the traps on it. Colonists will walk through the fences or use the doors.

'''Materials:''' [[Wood]] spike traps are practical for most biomes in the early game. It is flammable, so it is ideal but not close to required to place them in stony or floored areas, or [[roof]] over the area so grass won't grow. [[Stone]] traps are more damaging and nonflammable but take a long time to build. [[Steel]] is faster than stone and more damaging still in case traps are urgently needed or steel is abundant.

=== Bait furniture ===
Attackers will destroy [[furniture]] if there is no unobstructed path to a colonist, and will sometimes even stop to destroy furniture if it is between them and the nearest colonist. They may smash items or set flammable things on fire (particularly crop fields).

Cheap wooden furniture such as a [[stool]] or [[table]] can be used as bait to lure enemies into a position where they can be more easily killed. It can also distract them by drawing a few attackers away from your base, which can help prevent your defenders from getting overwhelmed.

<gallery widths="400px" heights="400px" class="center" mode="nolines">
File:Distraction_tables_2.jpg|'''A raider lured into a dangerous position in the middle of a moat.'''
File:Distraction_tables_3.jpg|'''A mechanoid detoured far away from the base to smash a wooden stool.'''
</gallery>

As a small added bonus, if your outdoor bait furniture consists of a table and stool, colonists completing work tasks far from your base may stop to eat there. This may help avoid the "Ate without table" negative [[thought]].

{{clear}}

== Mid-game defense ==

=== Perimeter wall===
An additional perimeter wall surrounding all the structures and growing areas of your colony is a great defense once the colony has the time to build it. It protects from fire and either concentrate raiders into a specific area (if an entrance is open), or delay raiders and cause them to split up (if no entrance is open).

Keeping an entrance open allows the wall to act as a chokepoint - raiders will funnel through that entrance, allowing strategic placement of cover, traps, turrets, and so on. Alternatively, keeping the entrances closed will cause each raider to choose random tiles to attack, causing them to be split up and delayed. If the entrance is closed, colonists can take pot shots by entering through one doorway, firing at the split up enemies, then retreating and attacking at another direction.

Having [[door]]s placed every 15-25 tiles or so will allow colonists to fire potshots and to venture outside if needed, e.g., to haul items or to deal with [[breacher]] raids. This can be expanded (both in height/width and number of layers) whenever needed. An "airlock" with two+ doors, separated by at least 1 tile, will keep raiders and manhunters out.

==== Multi-layer walls ====
Multiple layers of wall will make it more resistant to attacks, especially against standard, non-breacher/sapper, raiders.

When making a multi-layer wall, it is often best to ''not'' have a gap in-between layers, due to how the raider AI works. If standard AI enemies have no path to a colonist and decides not to attack furniture, they will choose a ''random'' section of accessible wall and attack it, recalculating after destruction. If the walls have a gap in-between, after the first layer is broken, it is much more likely for an enemy to randomly pick the inner wall to target next, as the entirety of the inner wall is accessible. With no gap, the enemy will be unable to access most of the inner layer, meaning they will be much more likely to destroy another outer layer wall.

Having a gap between each layer of walls will make it possible to repair the outermost layer without going outside, and will make the wall somewhat better against explosions, so if not planning to completely close off the wall for combat tactics, having a gap may be better.

=== Chokepoints ===
A chokepoint is an opening in a wall or room that raiders will have to funnel through, due to there only being one open entrance. Building a colony-wide perimeter wall with one open entrance will form an effective chokepoint. From there, it is possible to concentrate firepower there, having colonists, turrets, and traps all in one place. Once the colony has enough firepower or resources, a [[killbox]] can be built at the end of the chokepoint.

* When building a hallway, turns can be used break line of sight. This will prevent long-range raiders from making potshots, although the turn itself can be used as [[cover]]. As of 1.6, placing [[barricade]]s at the turn will not prevent enemies from using walls as cover.
** Turns are a great way to support melee fighters. When building hallways - both in a chokepoint and internally within your base - you may want to build turns so that melee fighters can approach without being shot it.

So long as raiders have a clear path to a colonist, no matter how long or winding it is, they will pass through a chokepoint if it is the only path. This can be used to slow raiders down, giving the colony more time to react.

==== Slowing tunnel ====
[[File:Slowing_tunnel.png|300px|thumb|right|Short slowing tunnel in front of a wall, with alternated sandbags for maximum slowing efficiency and a twist to break line of sight.]]

A simple and cheap tactic to slow down enemies through a chokepoint is by placing [[fence]]s, [[sandbag]]s, [[barricade]]s, or debris in a narrow hallway, alternating them with empty space. Fences/sandbags/etc. should not be placed adjacent to each other, as otherwise they will simply vault over multiple bags at once, reducing their slowing efficiency.

=== Cover removal ===
While proper cover formations (see the [[#Cover|Cover section]] above) already give colonists an advantage over raiders in terms of cover, removing all sources of cover near your base is still very useful when dealing with ranged enemies as they will then have nowhere to hide. If the base is surrounded by an all-encompassing wall, only areas near the combat zone need to be cleared.

*Haul all stone chunks towards a dump behind your defensive lines so enemies can't use them. A [[sniper rifle]] has a [[range]] of 45 tiles, though most raiders can't shoot that far, so removing chunks around 30 tiles away from your defenses can deprive many enemies of suitable cover.
*Remove the flora near combat zones, either by cutting or burning it. To prevent it from regrowing, it is possible to place [[roof]]s (supported by a single [[column]] or [[wall]]), which will also slow down raiders due to the lack of [[light]], and the roof's support can be destroyed to cause roof collapses.
*Watch out for your crop fields, as colonists tend to move and lay out chunks in straight lines when planting on [[Growing zone]] tiles, suitable for raiders to take cover behind.

<gallery widths="400px" heights="400px" class="center" mode="nolines">
Cover removal or baiting.png|Watch where enemies choose to hide and once the battle is over plan for the future.
Wildfire clearing.png|Intentional burning of a tropical rainforest to reduce any cover that raiders might use.
</gallery>
{{clear}}

==== Cover baiting ====
[[File:Flanking_example.png|400px|thumb|right|Early-game example of cover baiting. Notice the stone chunks laid strategically so that shooters can lean out of doors to flank enemies hiding behind them. Enemies that reposition themselves to defend against one angle will be exposed to another, leaving nowhere safe to hide.]]

Once there's no suitable cover nearby, ranged attackers will scramble to find any objects usable as cover. You can exploit this by placing any form of low cover to attract them to a place where they can be dealt with more easily. [[Stool]]s work well, though they wear out quite fast under constant fire.

If the cover is hard to remove (such as plants and trees constantly regrowing in plant-rich biomes), you can manipulate stone chunks in ways that give them a disadvantage. For example, putting gaps between each chunk exposes the enemy behind to fire directed diagonally, or continuous lines allow missed shots to hit nearby covering enemies. If your defense line is big enough, you can bait enemies into taking cover in such a way that leaves them flanked (see picture).

You can put traps behind the bait cover, which makes it slightly easier to trigger, though still less effective than chokepoints (see above).
{{clear}}

=== Pillboxes / Bunkers ===
[[File:Makeshift_pillbox.png|320px|thumb|right|Map ruins converted into a pillbox.]]

A simple early game construct, effective until mid-game. Simply build a room in any shape (or convert them from ruins) and then deconstruct a few sections of wall facing the enemy to make some holes and replace with sandbags -- these will be firing holes for your shooters, where they can use the walls and sandbags for covers.

Bunkers should be built out of stone, as they are durable and are non-flammable. Roof over the enclosure to protect defenders from the rain, and floor can help improve beauty while protecting from fires.

'''Pros:''' Cheap and simple, can be placed throughout multiple locations, can be upgraded.

'''Cons:''' Generally not used with chokepoints (as regular cover is suitable for them), meaning risk of getting encircled or run down by melee attackers. If not placed well, the bunker’s utility will be greatly decreased, and not all map types suit bunkers. Enemies can use bunkers.

Pillboxes can be incorporated into perimeter walls, but make sure that there is no direct entry from there, such as by building a durable door.

=== Secondary cover ===
Besides your main line of cover, you may also build additional cover for various purposes:
#For [[Defense tactics#shield distraction|shield distraction]], building cover for your shield tanks helps them to last longer with their shields.
#Putting lines of sandbags perpendicular to your main cover line allows them to be used to flank enemies. Make sure that they are put a great distance away so enemies can't use it to their advantage.

=== Burning floors ===
You can build flammable floors to set on fire, burning enemies. Once the floors are burnt, they leave behind burnt floors that apply a {{Bad|{{%|{{Q|Burned floor|Move Speed Factor}}}}}} movement factor, and will persist until removed.

=== Roof trap ===
This clever trap is simple to set up and hard-hitting when triggered. It can be considered a giant single-use spike trap.

All you need to do is to erect 1 [[wall]] or [[column]] made of a low-HP material, optimally wood, then build a roof over it. When raiders walk near the wall, destroy it from a distance with long-range guns or by igniting an [[IED trap]]. After the wall is destroyed, the roof will fall, crushing the raiders on the head, neck or torso and dealing up to 20 damage (though armor will negate part of it). It is possible to damaging the wall before combat to make it easier to destroy, while removing the [[home area]] so colonists won't automatically repair it.

This is more of a clever use of game mechanics than an actual trap, so raiders won't detect it, nor will they treat it as one.

'''Pros:''' Large radius, cheap, penetrates shields, no risk of friendly activation. Slows down raiders.

'''Cons:''' Hard to trigger, requires space, low damage.

As a bonus, roofs can be used as firebreaks as they will prevent the growth of grass.

<gallery widths="300px" heights="300px" class="center" mode="nolines">
File:Roof_trap.png|Roof trap before triggering.
File:Roof_trap_triggered.png|Roof trap after triggering, having injured some raiders (some through shields) and left a large pile of rubble.
File:Roof_trap_auto.png|More refined roof trap design with stools to lure the enemy into using them as cover, along with an IED trap to automatically trigger the trap. Significantly more expensive.
</gallery>

=== Damage minimization ===
These are ways to minimize damage done to your base.

[[File:Walled_geothermal_generator.png|200px|thumb|right|Walled geothermal generator. The extra space allows heat to escape without being trapped inside. Note that the entire setup is unroofed.]]

==== Firebreaks ====

2-tile wide strips of concrete, metal or stone tiles are capable of stopping the spread of fires. This can prevent many fires from reaching your base and burning it down. This is more important for plant-rich biomes with large amounts of flammable material.

You can build one surrounding your base, and divide the map into sections in order to control fires. You can also use them to separate crop fields such that a fire won't consume all your crops.

Keep in mind that building such amounts of floors usually requires huge amounts of building materials - if you have stone on hand it is better to build a perimeter wall out of stone instead, with the added advantage of fortifying defenses.

==== Grazing animals ====

Setting lots of grazing animals around the outside of the base helps clear away grass, slowing or stopping the spread of fires towards your base. They may also distract raiders during raids, but at quite a cost.

==== Walling structures ====

You should build an additional wall around your important structures, such as generators, power conduits or cash crops, even if you do have a perimeter wall in place. This causes raiders to prioritize other targets over these, averting destruction.

For geothermal generators, remember to have some exposed roof areas so the heat from the generator can vent out instead of being trapped inside.

==== Power network ====
[[Hidden conduit]]s are totally immune to damage and cannot cause a [[short circuit]], meaning the entire power grid can be secured by building using hidden conduits alone. Even one regular [[power conduit]] can cause short circuits, draining [[batteries]] and potentially disconnecting the base's power grid.

=== Panic room ===
[[File:Panic_room_example.png|400px|thumb|right|Example of a panic room built inside a mountain.]]

You can dig out a panic room deep into the mountains or build one out of very thick walls. This provides a good escape if you know that you can't defeat an incoming group of raiders, or you are losing and need retreat, provided you manage to get to the room in time. 
*If you dig one out of the mountains, you gain immunity against mortar shells and some innate temperature control. You will need to make many layers of doors (at least 6) as the raiders will focus down the doors.
*If you build one using thick walls you have more flexibility in its positioning, and you don't need that many layers of wall - 4 layers are OK, since raiders will divert their attention to the walls as well instead of focusing down the doors.

You don't need to make the panic room big enough to accommodate the whole colony, as the point of a panic room is to preserve colonists in a dire situation so you can rebuild later on. Choose the colonists most important to you when it's time to escape to these rooms.

Panic rooms also need the following:
*Enough food to last 1-2 days at full capacity
*Medicine for the wounded, for injury is likely during the retreat
*Joy objects (otherwise colonists may face a huge -20 mood penalty)

If you want, you can put beds and tables to make sure your colonists don't feel too bad while cooped up inside. You can also choose to put building materials to seal up the entrance with cheaper and more durable walls. Putting resources inside also helps with rebuilding, though they take up space.

While inside the room, if you're down on your last door or layer of wall, assign your best builder to hold the door by repairing it, and make sure the others don't go out. Disabling firefighting for covering colonists or restricting them to the panic room can help stop them from leaving. If the doors are unable to hold, use the breach as a chokepoint instead, and take as many enemies down with you.

Consider building multiple panic rooms so your colonists have another panic room within reach if a raid blocks off access to one. You can also choose to build another exit so you can flee to another room should the original be overrun.

{{clear}}

== Mid-late game defense ==

=== Turrets ===
Turrets are automated defenses which shoot at enemies in range but require materials to reload. There are three main varieties: the [[mini-turret]], [[autocannon turret]], and [[uranium slug turret]]. There are also two unconventional turrets, including [[rocketswarm launcher]]s and [[foam turret]]s.

Turrets should not be relied solely upon for defense. A perimeter wall of turrets will not remain viable for too long, as the turrets will quickly get overwhelmed while not all the turrets are actively helping combat. While turrets are more effective in [[killbox]]es, certain raid strategies like [[drop pod]], [[breacher]], and [[sapper]] will ignore the killbox, so preparing defenses and gearing colonists is important. In addition, a [[solar flare]] will shut down all turrets.

While protecting the outside starting area, you may want to rapidly pause the game during raids and give orders to repair damaged turrets.

Remember that turrets may explode when critically damaged, so get your colonists to run from them.

[[File:Turret_range_comparison.png|1200px|thumb|left|Visualization of effective turret range of all three turrets, from uranium slug turret (top), to autocannon turret (middle), to mini-turret (bottom). 
Green is '''80 - 100% of peak accuracy''', blue is '''50 - 80% of peak accuracy''', red is '''below 50% of peak accuracy''' and grey is '''outside range'''. Gold tiles are spaced every 5 tiles.]]

{{clear}}

==== [[Mini-turret]] ====
Mini-turrets fire light bullets at enemies within its range.

With its low firepower it is not a good idea to extensively rely on them, especially in mid-late game. However they do provide decent additional fire to lay on the enemy when combined with gunners, and also serve as a distraction from your more valuable colonists.

'''Pros'''
*Can be uninstalled and re-deployed wherever needed, making their placement slightly less of an issue
*No exclusion zone allows them to fire at touch range
*1x1 size makes it harder to hit and more compact

'''Cons'''
*Inaccurate at long-range

Building turrets out of [[plasteel]] brings their health to 335 (up from 120), making them substantially more durable and slightly less flammable.

==== [[Autocannon turret]] ====
Autocannons deal moderate damage and are long-ranged, but have an exclusion zone making them less effective against close enemies in the frontline.

They are somewhat costly to build and maintain. Despite its long maximum range, it is mainly effective at short-medium ranges due to its accuracy.

'''Pros'''
*Shots deal decent damage
*Somewhat high fire rate
'''Cons'''
*Inaccurate at long-range
*Somewhat high cost per shot

==== [[Uranium slug turret]] ====
A long-range turret that fires a high powered uranium slug.

It is more accurate than the other turrets at long distances and has much longer range, but is more expensive to maintain and performs poorly at close range.

'''Pros'''
*High damage shots
*Extremely high armor penetration, able to negate most all armor on an enemy
*Accurate at long ranges
'''Cons'''
*High cost per shot
*Not good at close ranges

==== [[Rocketswarm launcher]] ====
Rocketswarm launchers must be manually controlled, and fire one barrage of rockets before needing to be reloaded.

'''Pros'''
* Wide AOE.
* Cheaper than autocannons, and reloads using [[chemfuel]] instead of metal.

'''Cons'''
* Requires a colonist to aim it.
* Rockets will destroy structures, meaning the base needs to be designed with rockets in mind.
* Not very effective unless enemies are clumped up. Having enemies clumped up is bad for other types of defenses.

==== Weaknesses ====
Turrets are most vulnerable to the following things:

*Explosives deal immense damage to turrets. All forms of regular explosives wielded by raiders are capable of 1-hitting a steel mini-turret and leaving a plasteel one at less than half health.
*EMP stuns the turrets. Enemy EMP is very uncommon, but friendly fire can disable turrets.
*[[Smokepop pack]]s prevent turrets from locking onto targets within or behind smoke. An enemy equipped with it can create a safe zone from turret harm.
**This is a great issue in killboxes, where turret firepower is often concentrated, as an enemy that activates the belt will essentially be able to nullify a large portion of your defensive firepower.

Turrets can be ignited, and are unable to put themselves out. Given enough time, flames can debilitate the turret.

For the mini-turret, long-ranged gunners can shoot from outside their range without retaliation from the turret. This includes [[lancer]]s with their [[Charge lance]], making them less than ideal for fighting off [[Mechanoid]] incursions.

==== Turret placement ====
* Placing turrets in a [[#Chokepoint|chokepoint]] and/or [[killbox]] is effective, allowing all the turrets to be concentrated into one area instead of having them be spread out. Placing more than 1 line will allow the colonists to fall back in case raiders advance too far.
* Turrets can benefit from [[cover]], so placing [[barricade]]s or [[sandbag]]s in front of the turret will improve its performance.
* Since melee enemies will try to attack turrets, placing traps in front of them is a great way to protect the turret further.
* Turrets will explode, so place turrets at least 3 tiles apart from each other to avoid a chain reaction.

==== On-demand turret deployment ====

For mini-turrets, instead of placing static turrets around the perimeter, you can instead keep them uninstalled and placed in the center of your base. Once raiders come, have a builder install them facing the battlefield, behind your cover. This helps to save power and also allows you to utilize turrets more efficiently as you can keep more turrets engaged on the enemy rather than just sitting there due to lack of contact with the enemy.

This tactic is less effective against melee charges who will swarm your defenders before you have enough time to react.

==== Turret power switch ====
Turrets should be turned off whenever not in use. Turrets can be turned on/off quickly by installing a [[power switch]] that connects all your turrets to the main power grid.

Alternatively, it is possible to build a single unconnected [[hidden conduit]] near the turrets. By using the reconnect gizmo, the turrets will switch from the unconnected "grid" to the main grid, taking no time in the process.

=== Mortars===
A [[mortar]] attack can be effective at forcing [[siege]]s to start attacking directly, culling raiders as they prepare, and dealing with [[crashed ship part]]s and [[mech cluster]]s{{RoyaltyIcon}}. However, mortars are fairly inaccurate, so multiple mortars are often needed to be effective, and their long travel time means hitting moving raiders is difficult. Skilled colonists are more accurate with mortars, but unskilled colonists can still provide supportive fire and they can be effective with large-radius shells like [[EMP shell]]s and [[smoke shell]]s.

Always remember to manually unassign colonists from mortars, or they'll continue standing there until they eventually collapse from exhaustion, starvation, or have a mental break.

An important point to remember is that while your colonists are better at dealing with single or spread-out enemies, mortars are designed for heavily grouped enemies. If you diffuse your enemies, the mortars will not be able to hit the enemies easily.

Don't aim mortars anywhere too close to your colonists otherwise you risk friendly fire.

==== Mortar pits ====
[[File:Mortar_Pit.png|320px|thumb|right|8-mortar battery. Note the separation between the mortars, and walls to block explosions.]]

Mortars cannot be fired through a roof, but they can still be placed indoors for security and colonist happiness. Note that mortars will explode if damaged enough, which, while rare, can happen due to enemy mortar shells. Separating each mortar, as well as the mortar shells, with high HP walls will prevent a chain reaction from destroying the entire mortar pit. Building mortars with [[plasteel]], [[uranium]], or [[bioferrite]]{{AnomalyIcon}} will give mortars high enough HP to survive multiple explosions.

Mortars can't fire at anything within 30 tiles of it, so you will need to place the mortars deep inside your base for maximum coverage.

Keep in mind that your landing mortar shells will blow up anything nearby, including pawns and things of yours that raiders don't commonly target

==== Quantity ====
The number of mortars needed depends on how they will be used:
* For provoking [[siege]]s, one mortar firing [[incendiary shell]]s is often enough so long as fire is allowed to spread. It is also possible to get away with using one mortar firing [[high-explosive shell]]s with a great shooter.
* For stunning mechanoids with [[EMP shell]]s, multiple mortars are needed, especially against [[mech cluster]]s{{RoyaltyIcon}} with [[mech high-shield]]s (which require 1 EMP + multiple regular mortars at minimum).
* For damaging general raids with high-explosive shells, even more mortars are required.

==== Shells ====
There are different shells available to be loaded into the mortar.

*[[High-explosive shell]]s are the go-to ammo for dealing damage to enemies and buildings.
*[[Incendiary shell]]s deal weak damage against pawns, but they can cause an enemy siege's own mortar shells to explode, causing the siege to start attacking directly.
*[[EMP shell]]s stun mechs and break shields, making them useful but highly situational. They have a large blast radius, meaning that their inaccuracy is less of a problem compared to the others. Their ability to break [[mech high-shield]]s {{RoyaltyIcon}} is particularly useful.
*[[Smoke shell]]s will block turrets from locking on and reduce enemy fire, but a [[smoke launcher]] or [[smokepop pack]] are typically better for this role.
*[[Firefoam shell]]s can be used to extinguish fires outside your base, but is useless against any inside, due to the mortar's blind spot.
*[[Deadlife shell]]s{{AnomalyIcon}} revive nearby corpses as [[shambler]]s. More useful as an [[IED deadlife trap|IED trap]] than as a shell, as it is unlikely that corpses will pile up in the area raiders arrive in.

=== Traps ===
As you unlock research, and obtain more manpower and resources, you can lay more traps to debilitate incoming raiders.

==== Understanding AI ====
Raiders cannot use the colony's doors, cannot see traps, and will traverse through the quickest unobstructed path to a colonist. Colonists can step on traps if walking over their tile, but can see traps and will take slower routes or doors to avoid them.

Building [[door]]s and [[fence]]s to give colonists a quicker path, as with a [[#Spike traps|spike trap tunnel]], will allow colonists to travel while funneling enemies into a single chokepoint.

==== [[IED trap]]s ====
Early on, you may want to focus on armed colonist defense with turrets, but as the raiders grow in number, it becomes more efficient to use a bit of metal to kill several at once than to invest a lot of metal in a turret that costs nothing to fire, but will explode rapidly due to large raider groups.

IED traps are extremely effective when used correctly, however in open areas they are mostly useless as the raiders are highly unlikely to step on any of the traps, and even if they do they're usually not tightly packed enough for the trap to cause serious damage. Thus, it is better if you combine traps with funneling to force the raiders together.

1 IED trap can trigger other IED traps in its explosion radius. This may or may not be desirable depending on the situation; you can easily set off a chain reaction to destroy a whole incoming raider horde, but also use up much more resources. They also damage nearby structures, such as walls or spike traps, so don't put too many close to each other.
* Rather than setting more IED traps near existing ones, you can just place the [[Mortar shell]]s themselves, or even some [[Chemfuel]] on the ground for the same effect as a molotov cocktail blast. However, unless you can restrict them to placing just 1 of each it's more expensive to do so.
** Chemfuel has 50 HP, ''just'' within the damage threshold of an IED trap, but the shells have 70, so you will need to pre-damage them or leave them on the ground to deteriorate first if you want to use this tactic.

IED traps have a delay before exploding, allowing some raiders to escape. Raiders will attempt to run from an exploding trap, though the fuse is short enough to catch some of them.

'''Pros'''
*High area damage
*Raiders usually less protected against explosives

'''Cons'''
*High resource cost
*Single-use, non-rearmable
*Requires research
*Does not instantly trigger

==== [[IED incendiary trap]]s ====

A variant of the IED trap that sets enemies on fire. It's a more situational pick compared to the regular trap, due to its incendiary nature.

'''Pros'''
*Distracts enemies while they are on fire
*Penetrates shields

'''Cons'''
*Low damage
*Not effective against [[Mechanoid]]s

Its use requires strong support to be effective. With that, it is a good defensive choice against heavily armored or shielded enemies, with the flames providing good distraction while your colonists shoot them down.

It synergizes great with brawlers, which will prevent the enemy from attempting to extinguish the flames while fighting.

==== [[IED EMP trap]]s ====

A variant of the IED trap that creates an EMP pulse. It's a more situational pick compared to the regular trap, due to its EMP explosion.

'''Pros'''
*Instantly downs shields
*Stuns mechanoids for a long time
*Large blast radius

'''Cons'''
*'''No physical damage'''

Its use requires strong support to be effective as it can't deal any damage. It is excellent against mechanoids or shielded enemies, however.

==== Mountain trap ====
An extreme version of the roof trap using overhead mountains instead of constructed roofs.

To use it, you mine out a whole mountain except a pillar in the center. Then you damage that pillar until it has just a sliver of health left (25 or less for easy activation with a single [[sniper rifle]] shot). Mining out all the rocks at once will result in your colonists getting crushed by the trap.

It is triggered the same way as the regular roof trap, and has the same effect radius except victims are instantly killed and buried.
The collapsed rocks spawned after this trap is triggered can be useful or harmful depending on the situation.

Rearming it is a lengthy process as you will have to mine out lots of rocks. This does provide a decent way to train miners though.

Pros
*'''Instantly kills any enemy'''
*Leaves no corpses

Cons
*Takes much longer and is more dangerous to re-arm
**You have to mine out everything then support the mountain roof with a low-HP wall; compare with regular roof trap which simply requires building the wall and the roofs
**Colonists risk death if you aren't careful
*No loot or capturable downed raiders
*Overhead mountains may not be easily available

In mountainous areas where overhead mountains are abundant, this trap can absolutely destroy any incoming raids, especially when combined with funneling.

=== Reactive firefoam poppers ===

You should have some uninstalled firefoam poppers on hand. When a fire starts and you need to extinguish or control it, you can reinstall them near the fire, and trigger them.

Firefoam on the ground slows movement speed of pawns by about 25%. As it covers a wide area, this can be slightly useful as area denial to slow down charging melee attackers, though it prevents the use of fire against them.

=== Firefoam roof array ===

Due to the slight slowing effect of firefoam, you can deploy a large amount of it to slow down enemies crossing by. However, since rain washes it away, you need to erect a roof to prevent that from happening. You also need to clear home area so colonists leave the firefoam alone.

This has the added effect of creating an excellent firebreak against wildfires, as well as creating a [[#Roof trap|roof trap]] that can damage enemies.

Initial deployment of the firefoam is very expensive without the use of chokepoints so it isn't recommended for open base designs.

== Killboxes ==
[[File:Killzone.png|500px|thumb|right|An example of a killbox. [[Fence]]s spaced 1-tile apart slow enemies down. Barricades near the entrance prevent enemies from standing on the corner. Traps and fences allow colonists to pass unimpeded, but enemies will walk through the traps. Doors can be closed in case of [[manhunter]]s.]]

Killboxes are heavily trapped, armed areas where enemies are funneled into so they can be destroyed easily.

They almost always consist of a funnel which directs raiders into it, like a wall with a single opening, which opens into a zone where your colonists and turrets are located. 
Raiders will then trickle in, allowing colonists or turrets to concentrate fire on them, or traps to destroy them while they try to move in to attack. In the killzone, enemies lack cover and are within close range, while your colonists have plenty of cover to fight from.

This is an extremely effective way to defeat most raids, as the enemies will often be overwhelmed by the sheer firepower raining on them. It also allows effective use of traps, as funneling enemies greatly increases the chance one's going to trigger them. A well-built killbox can easily neutralize the threat of many raids, which may make the game less fun for some players.

Note that killboxes aren't a catch-all solution to enemy threats, and you still need tactics to handle drop pod raiders or sappers.

=== Building ===
The entryways should lead to a large 'box' where the killing begins (hence 'killbox'). The box should be surrounded by cover sources (preferably walls plus sandbags) where your colonists fire on the enemy. For increased firepower you may build turrets as well, away from your colonists' firing line and separated from each other by walls, in case they explode.

It's always best to double-wall the "receiving" end of your killboxes as the sheer firepower raining on your enemies will inevitably destroy some of your own walls by accident, allowing raiders to flood in from another direction, bypassing traps and overwhelming your defenders. This is especially true if you use explosives such as frag grenades or IED traps to kill incoming enemies.

{{clear}}

=== Entryways ===

Any entryways of the killbox should not be straight, otherwise raiders will simply fire using the entryway as cover. Instead, you should have a turn to break line of sight, prompting the raiders to enter an area where you can get them easily. For better effect, put a grave or other similar object that raiders can't stand on. The entryway should be single wide to allow the use of [[Defense tactics#Melee blocking|melee blocking]] if necessary.

The below shows the results of different killbox entryways.
<gallery widths="300px" heights="300px" class="center" mode="nolines">
File:Killbox_right.png|Right design of a killbox entryway. Raiders are prompted to move into the killbox, sometimes so close that they prefer to melee attack instead of shoot.
File:Killbox_wrong.png|Wrong design of a killbox entryway. Raiders are bunching up in the entryway, using its walls as cover.
</gallery>

Entryways should be long, but not too long, corridors with [[sandbag]]s or [[barricade]]s every second tile to slow enemies. Do not place a continuous line of sandbags or barricades, as pawns only slow down when they are climbing on and off the two (similar to real life, as you can just run on the barricade after you climb on it). In between the spaces, spike traps can be placed to soften up the raiders (with doors adjacent to the sandbags so your colonists can replace them). At the end of the corridor, place a T-Shaped sandbag line (do not alternate with empty tiles like before), as pawns cannot stand on the sandbags and therefore are incapable of using the corridor exit walls as cover. [[IED trap]]s can be used, but should be used sparingly lest they blow up all the walls of the corridor.

Don't make your entryway excessively long, otherwise raiders will think it's not worth it going such a distance and will decide to go for something else instead. Manhunters however will still chase colonists down a long corridor or over extreme distances, so you can have some dedicated anti-manhunter killboxes with extra-long corridors for this purpose.

If your entryway is long then you may need to build doors to allow friendlies to enter without setting off your own traps or having to go through all the obstacles. This door obviously needs to be fortified against enemy attacks.

<gallery widths="300px" heights="300px" class="center" mode="nolines">
File:Slowing_tunnel_long.png|Entryway with alternating sandbags to slow raiders and doors to provide access. Slows raiders but not colonists.

</gallery>

{{clear}}

=== Equipment ===
Different equipment is necessary in different situations.

==== Short-range killboxes ====
Colonists defending in a short-range killbox will be shooting at a large number of targets no more than a few tiles away. Thus, defenders should use close ranged high damage weaponry for firing at raiders.

* [[Chain shotgun]]s inflict extreme pain at killbox range, surpassing the DPS of every other weapon at short range or less.
* [[Minigun]]s are excellent at attacking the bunched-up raiders inside a killbox, but require large amounts of resources to craft ({{Required Resources|Minigun}}).
* [[Charge rifle]]s and [[heavy SMG]]s are second-tier picks, being able to dish out hurt against closely grouped targets at close-mid ranges.
* Long range weapons are not optimal due to low DPS. Instead, use them to pick off survivors outside the killbox.
* Grenades are good if you can time them right. Throw them near the entrance where each explosion can hit a tight group of raiders, especially if they're slowed down with obstacles, but take care not to demolish your own walls.
*Have melee colonists stand nearby as raiders who enter your killbox may decide to melee charge you instead.

==== Long-range killboxes ====
Colonists defending in long-range killboxes will be shooting at bunched up raiders. Thus, defenders should use mid-range, fast firing, and decently accurate weapons to inflict as much damage as possible. Note: It is possible to modify a killbox in a pattern that leverages both long and short range weapons. This can be accomplished by creating a passage that has a 45 degree angle "open to the field" while keeping the main 90 degree passage open to short range fire only.

* [[Charge rifle]]s are the best weapon{{Check Tag|Arguable}} for this purpose, shooting 3 semi-accurate high damage charge shots. It also has a decent 26 tile range and an excellent 35 percent armor penetration, essential for killing targets late game, when your killbox is more developed.
* [[Heavy SMG]]s are excellent alternatives to charge rifles. Significantly cheaper but similarly skill friendly and with a solid DPS.
* [[Assault rifle]]s are basically charge rifles with lower damage and armor penetration, but making it up for its longer range and higher accuracy. Higher skilled pawns are required to make use of their range however.
* [[Minigun]]s, [[Chain shotgun]]s, and perhaps [[LMG]]s are second options, excelling at crowd control, especially against tribals.
* Explosive weapons are not advised, as raiders will be moving around the killbox frequently, and grenades have a delay between the grenade hitting the ground and the explosion of the grenade.

=== Turrets ===
You can put turrets in a killbox. They help to provide additional firepower alongside your colonists.

You may also choose to fully arm your killbox with turrets, with enough to single-handedly take out raids especially in tandem with traps. Doing this allows you to defeat raids automatically without the need to divert colonists from other jobs, but eats up power when active and resources to maintain, and is vulnerable to solar flares, EMP grenadiers or smoke, so you will need backup.

Turrets should preferably have their own cover. They should also be connected to a separate grid which can be shut off to deactivate them all, to save power when not active.

Mini-turrets and autocannons are the best choices for killboxes, being able to dish out hurt at killbox ranges. Place mini-turrets close up to the enemy, while place autocannons slightly farther away to keep enemies out of its minimum range.

Alternatively, if you can keep the enemy in one spot, a specially designed killbox can allow uranium slug turrets to function well. Uranium slug turrets are most accurate at 40 tiles or above, achieving a maximum of ~61% accuracy against human enemies, so you will need to place them that far from the entrance, and distract enemies so they do not go closer. Slug turrets are good against tankier pawns, as a uranium slug can easily rip through [[Centipede]] and [[Power armor]].

It is better to 'Hold fire' until the enemies have actually entered the killbox, for all the turrets will focus fire on the first enemy to try and go through the entrance, which is very much overkill.

=== Blocking ===
As [[Defense tactics#Melee blocking|melee blocking]] is more effective than even a killbox used normally against melee only attacks, it's best to have somewhere that you can do this.

Melee blocking can be done at killbox entrances, as long as it is one-tile wide and has sufficient empty space in front. Both the entrance to the killing area and the entrance to the covered area where colonists fire onto enemies will work:
*Doing it in the killing area allows you to spare the turrets from immediate destruction, and they may add firepower.
*Doing it in the covered area entrance allows you to sustain fewer injuries by having the turrets take the damage first.

=== Explosive weapons ===

Enemies carrying explosive weapons can be very damaging towards your killbox and the defenders inside.

[[Centipede]]s with [[inferno cannon]]s can counter killboxes as the fire makes your colonists lose control and run out of cover, and the flames can destroy turrets easily. Having some [[firefoam popper]]s inside your box helps a lot with extinguishing fires and preventing future fires.

Another counter for killboxes are raiders with the [[triple rocket launcher]] and [[doomsday rocket launcher]]. If they manage to shoot inside your box the damage can be massive, and it is hard to distract them in a killbox. You can concentrate fire from your colonists on them, or keep [[psychic shock lance]]s and [[psychic insanity lance]]s near and use them if you see that they will not die fast enough.

=== Fire killbox ===

Besides killing enemies with conventional weapons, roasting them with fire is also an effective choice. You need to lure them inside, light up flammable objects to heat up the killbox, and evacuate colonists so they don't get roasted as well.

Fire killboxes are slightly more complicated to operate than a regular one, where you can simply wait inside and fire; you will need to direct colonists, while others light up fires and then make a break for it. 
You can shut off the killbox by either leaving doors open to let enemies in, which you then shut off by disabling "keep open", then directing a colonist through them, or by building walls.

They need to be at least walled to prevent enemies from breaking out, and also to insulate it from the outside so that temperatures rise faster. Stone walls are optimal as they are non-flammable.

== Killhall ==
{{rewrite|section=1|reason=Largely similar to killboxes, should be merged with that section}}
Another possibility is to build a long corridor with traps, that can also be used shoot enemies from cover: a "killhall".

It acts as an active and passive defense:
* If used actively, it allows to kill enemies will little to no harm done to colonists, and with little damage to repair after the attack.
* If used passively, it'll lure enemies into [[spike trap]]s. Only very large or tough groups of enemies may go through (by springing all the traps), or possibly enemies with the "[[nimble]]" trait (that will avoid all of them).

If the first part has many obstacles (e.g. [[stone chunk]]s, [[barricade]]s or [[sandbags]]), and another branch of the corridor is empty and ended with a flimsy door (e.g. a wooden [[door]], or better: an [[animal flap]]), fleeing enemies will try to escape by this seemingly faster exit, but they will fall into another group of spike traps, eliminating the rest of the raid.

A drawback is that last part of the corridor has to be quite long to work properly, i.e. a bit more than the [[Property:Range|range]] of the weapons used (e.g. 30 tiles for [[assault rifle]]s and [[charge lance]]s, 45 for [[sniper rifle]]s).
This is not an issue if it is placed under a mountain, the best location being at the corner of the map.

=== Attack of a killhall ===
An attack will proceed as follows:
# Enemies will be lured into the hall, thinking it is an unobstructed way into the base.
# They are slowed by obstacles, leaving time for colonists to take position inside doors, hidden behind wall corners, waiting for them.
# Enemies are shot one by one by colonists, they are slowed by stone chunks and cannot rush in for a melee attack before they get shot. Enemies who shoot behind their friends others can sometimes hit them by mistake.
# Once half of them are dead, they decide to flee, but instead of going back by the way they used to enter, that looks cluttered by chunks, they try to break the doors on the side of the corridor.
# They are still shot at by colonists, but once they broke a door, it seems that there is only a flimsy animal flap between them and liberty.
# Unfortunately, what seems to be an exit path is littered with spike traps and they get killed one by one by them.
# If some of them still manage not to get killed by the traps, they get shot like clay pigeons in the exit corridor.
# It is now time for the colonists to strip the dead enemies of their possessions and store their corpses for later use...

If colonists decide not to attack the invaders, half of them will be killed by the traps on the entrance way, the other half on the exit way.
If the attackers are manhunting animals or [[mechanoid]]s, they will not try to escape and will all be shot or being trapped.

=== Example of a practical implementation ===

[[File:Killhall.png|500px|center]]

# Entrance and "escape exit".
#* The entrance has a door "held open" and "forbidden", so enemies can enter, but not friendlies.
#* The "escape exit" has an [[animal flap]] (can be substituted by a wooden [[door]]), leading fleeing enemies to think that they can break it to escape quicker.
# "Slowing down" corridor, filled with [[stone chunk]]s spaced one tile apart that will slow down enemies, give time to prepare and make this path look like a slower way to escape.
# "Shooting range" corridor, where enemies will be shot at from distance and will be forced to advance one behind another. It is also filled with stone chunks to slow them while they're being shot at (as chunks may be moved or destroyed during the attack, 1×1 [[stockpile zone]]s allowing only stone chunks should be placed, enabling their quick rearrangement).
#* Above, the "escape exit" corridor, filled with spike traps (doors allow replacing traps without having to walk on them).
#* Below, the "entrance to the base", also filled with traps.
# Part of the hall where colonists will shoot, taking cover with the wall corners. If the enemy has weapons with more range than colonists, they can hide behind the doors and pop out when the enemy is close enough.
# "Entrance to the base" (or at the part that enemies are planning to reach), with wall corners at the end to use as shooting positions (in case some enemies reach this part).
# Human corpses walk-in fridge, to put the bodies after the battle and keep them away from the view of colonists, avoiding the "[[Mood#Observed corpse|observed corpse]]" debuff.
#* It should be quite large, as enemy raids grow in size, and butchering humans should not be done every day, to avoid a permanent [[Mood#I butchered humanlike|I]]\[[Mood#We butchered humanlike|we butchered humanlike]] debuff (see the possible [[Human resources#Mitigation strategies|mitigation strategies]]). It can also hold the [[human leather]] stock, as it takes much space once butchering is done.
#* This can also be a place where corpses are burned, if it is preferred to butchering.
# Human [[kibble]] factory, where [[human meat]] can be processed into kibble (that extends hugely its conservation time, can be sold, or fed to any animal).
# Repair stock, that holds the necessary materials to quickly repair the walls and the spike traps after an attack.
# Hospital for prisoners, to quickly save them if they survive.

Points 6 to 9 are optional, but are great improvements if used.

==== Additional notes ====
* Walls of the parts 3 and 4 should be tough and fireproof. Best would be [[plasteel]], then [[uranium]]; [[granite blocks]] may also be used but will break down faster, and flammable materials are to avoid at all costs.
* Flooring should be put in place to keep the mood of the colonists high when they are in the area.
* Walls and flooring of the parts 2 and 5 doesn't matter, as colonists will very rarely go there, and there shouldn't be much fighting in these parts anyway.
* Spike traps should be made out of [[steel]], as it has the best price-quality ratio for this device (nevertheless, steel is flammable in RimWorld, but here, traps are protected behind the walls and doors).
* Accurate weapons should be preferred for colonists: the narrow corridor will be damaged unnecessarily if explosives are used, or weapons like [[shotgun]]s or [[minigun]]s (not to speak of their reduced range).
* The hall should like an unobstructed path to enter the colony (i.e. no closed door between the outside and the inside of it), but the doors leading to it that will be used by colonists should be strong enough to deter attackers from trying to break them.
* The number of stone chunks in the way is also important: if there are not enough of them, fleeing enemies will just escape by the way they attacked and will not be led into the spike traps on the supposedly quicker escape route.

== Situational ==

=== Crashed ships ===

It is vital to know Mechanoids' behavior:

* Any attack to the ship will trigger its guardians, and they have a long aggro range of around 40 tiles from their spawn point. The larger the map, the easier it can be to deal with them, as long as the ship crashes away from your base. This means that as long as they are far from your base, Mechanoids will still NOT chase you yet.
* When the ship's health falls below 50%, Mechanoids will stop guarding and will instead proceed to attack your base as a normal raid.

You can trigger a ship's guardians from a long distance either by bombarding with mortars or hit-and-run with sniper rifles.

Currently, the best approach is to deal with the Scythers first, followed by their ranged units. There are a variety of alternatives, but the nature remains the same; hinder the melee range closing-in of their shock troops.

==== Preparation ====

Though these ships are "time bombs", instead of immediate action, you can spend a few days building preparations before engaging them.
* Placing a spike trap right in front of your sandbag may be helpful if the need to retreat arises, as mechanoids will very likely want to use the shortcut.
* Always make sure you have a safe path between your walls and your base, so that there's safe cover between your "ins" and "outs"; battles can take a long time if short on numbers.

Building IED traps can also be a good way to hurt the mechanoids, especially if there is a long distance between your colonists and the ship part. High-explosive traps deal hefty damage to incoming scythers and lancers, while EMP traps stun them, making them vulnerable to attack. 
If possible, a properly placed antigrain IED trap can obliterate most of the mechanoids, leaving a few heavily damaged centipedes to fight at most.

You may also want to keep a few firefoam poppers nearby. Trigger some of them before combat to prevent fires, and leave a few more to rapidly extinguish a group of burning colonists at once.

After you have finished preparing, you can use EMP shells to stun the mechanoids. Proper firing will make them helpless hunks of metal, once you get used to this technique, you can even preemptively fire EMP shells and then trigger the guardians, so as soon as they pop out, they instantly get hit by EMP shells. The number of manned mortars will factor in, as the chance to miss for each shell is quite large.

==== Cover ====

Use the "fire wall" cover approach detailed above, with melee units stationed behind each sandbag to hold off the scythers while your gunners lay fire on other mechanoids.

Ideally, the cover should be placed a distance from the ship, giving you time to soften incoming scythers with concentrated fire.

<gallery widths="400px" heights="400px" class="center" mode="nolines">
File:CSP v1 new tactics 101-00.png|Zoom out
File:CSP v1 new tactics 101-01.png|Zoom in
</gallery>

However, if you already have all the necessary utilities against mechs: EMP grenades and a good killbox, you may just wall the ship part off, (be aware that mechs will wake up if you build things up close to 2 cells to a sleeping mech, it's 5x5 square radius around any mechanoid) add one-two doors, you may want to add 2 walls deep mini corridor, so random fire from mechs won't hit the door, and a single barricade next to the door, draft your pawns to the entrance, force one to open it, while the door is opened (it must be made of wood) the other pawns will shoot the ship, mechs shouldn't have enough time to aim, the door will close pretty quick (do NOT hold it open), use "Heavy smgs" or other high dps and fast shooting guns, you can also equip frag grenades, a single colonist with grenades is enough, one is throwing it at the ship, while the other one keeps opening the door. As soon as you destroyed the ship just run, the mechs will be smashing the walls and head for your killbox.

p.s. Admins, i don't have image permission yet, i've got 3 killboxes to show including one against mechanoids.

=== 'The Purifier' ===

This is a powerful way to burn a massive [[infestation]] to a crisp. Provided that the infestation have no direct access to map edges and unroofed areas.

To start, build a medium-sized room (approx. 5x5) with triple-thick stone walls, next to the infestation. Fill it with [[Straw matting]]s, and flammable objects such as wooden [[barricade]]s, it has good hp which means it will burn for longer and has high flammability, so it will catch fire quickly. Another alternative is to use combustible junk, like tainted clothing or unneeded corpses.

After that, dig a 1-wide tunnel towards the infestation at night when the insects are sleeping. Finally, toss a Molotov into the room.

Once the temperatures reach ({{Temperature|250}}), insects will begin to burn. They will attempt to dig out by rushing towards the purifier, but be set alight by the burning [[Straw matting]], making them unable to dig. Temperatures can rapidly reach {{Temperature|500}} or above, boiling both the insects and the hives. Even those that don't get set alight will eventually succumb to heatstroke.

Although using this method will not yield you valuable [[insect jelly]].
{{Nav|guides|wide}}
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[[Category:Guides]]

Defense tactics

2026-04-25T00:27:52Z

Wood: /* Behavior */

{{rewrite|reason=This guide is outdated on some sections, lacking new content on others, focuses too much on specific scenarios without really giving general advice. It's also too long. It should be helpful, easy to understand and navigate for newer players. See Discussion for a detailed commentary}}
{{Image wanted|reason=New images are needed for mechanoids added in Biotech}}
{{TOCright}}

{{for|defensive constructions against threats|Defense structures}}

Getting attacked, whether by tribals, pirates, hordes of angry animals or by something more alien is a common event in the rimworlds. Defense against these attacks is one of the keys to having a successful colony.

This page details different tactics for defense and visualizations of them, applicable to most stages of the game.

= Core battle tactics =

No matter what sort of defenses you use, these battle tactics may be useful.

== Melee ==
Melee in RimWorld serves two main functions:
* Enemies that are engaged in melee combat will not fire their ranged weapons or move, allowing melee to take out ranged threats (who are usually feeble melee combatants) or fend off enemy melee fighters.
* Enemies cannot move beyond a [[draft]]ed colonist, allowing melee pawns in a chokepoint to block the advance of enemies.

In addition to colonists, [[animal]]s, [[friendly mechanoids]],{{BiotechIcon}} and especially [[ghoul]]s{{AnomalyIcon}} can make great melee fighters.

=== Melee blocking ===
Melee blocking is when melee fighters are placed in front of a chokepoint, preventing melee enemies from attacking. Instead of engaging melee enemies on the frontline, 'retreat behind your walls, and open doors to use as chokepoints''. Leave up to three melee brawlers standing right behind (not in) the chokepoint, as the pictures below, so that the enemy must stand on the doorway and be forced in a 1v3 situation.

<gallery widths="400px" heights="400px" class="center" mode="nolines">
File:Melee_test_eleplants_normal.png|10 manhunter elephants vs 3 armored brawlers and 4 armored gunners; all colonists are downed while all elephants remain standing.
File:Melee_test_eleplants_block.png|Same situation but with melee blocking; only 1 colonist downed, and all elephants defeated.
Bodyblock_choke.png|thumb|right|You shall not pass.
</gallery>

Overall, this is a horrifically effective way of dealing with most melee threats. Ranged fighters in the back can provide supporting fire, and replacement melee pawns can be rotated in once the frontline is damaged.

[[Animal]]s (except [[pen animal]]s) can be used to melee block by creating an [[allowed area]] that is only one tile large immediately in front of the chokepoint/door, and do not need to be trained in Attack to do so. This often results in substantial injury or death to animals, of course, so ensure the animals used are expendable (ie. not bonded or otherwise critical to the colony), and don't use explosive animals like [[Boomalope]]s or [[Boomrat]]s.

=== Ambush ===
Any corner of a hallway or corner outside a room can be used to "ambush" enemy ranged attackers, allowing melee fighters to approach much more easily. Simply place melee fighters behind a corner, and once enemies approach, rush the melee fighters in. This reduces the distance melee fighters need to travel.

Any other means of breaking line of sight, such as [[door]]s placed within the colony, can also be used in order to perform an ambush. Outdoor structures and hills may be used too.

<gallery widths="400px" heights="400px" class="center" mode="nolines">
File:Melee ambush.png|Attacking a ranged opponent using a corner of a hallway.
</gallery>

=== Melee rush ===
This involves charging melee fighters in, either a small group or a large mass, to take out a ranged threat, such as a sniper sitting in [[cover]] beyond your ranged colonist's reach. With large enough numbers and protection, they can overwhelm a group of enemy ranged fighters.
* [[Shield belt]]s and good armor are usually necessary for your colonists to close the gap between you and the enemy.
* Movement abilities, such as [[jump pack]]s,{{RoyaltyIcon}} the [[skip]] [[psycast]],{{RoyaltyIcon}} and the [[longjump legs]] [[gene]],{{BiotechIcon}} are a great way to approach enemies. Increasing movement speed with [[bionic leg]]s, [[go-juice]], etc. can also be helpful.

If you aren't afraid of friendly fire, it can be combined with a firing squad from a distance for devastating effects. The brawlers cause chaos within the raiding party while the firing squad lays fire to destroy them, utilizing the fact that the raiders are trying to cope with your brawlers.

Note that enemy melee rushes are not to be countered by your own melee rush; [[#Melee blocking|melee blocking]] is a much more effective tactic.

=== Peeling ===
If a vulnerable gunner is or will be under attack by melee attackers, you can 'peel' them away using your brawlers. Have them engage the melee attackers, who will then focus on your brawlers, allowing your gunner to get to relative safety.

Trained animals automatically peel for their assigned masters, if 'Release animals' is Off. The animals will attack any hostiles coming close rather than straying off to attack distant targets. Setting 'Release animals' to On right when another colonist in distress near the trainer causes the animals to swarm the attacker, peeling them off.

Peeling is a relatively high-risk activity, as you are trying to put a pawn at risk in return for allowing a pawn at greater risk to escape. Peeling pawns should be expendable or decently armored.

=== Ranged pawn self-defense ===
Guns can be used in melee combat, in two ways:

* Gun barrels can deal damage in melee. While they aren't as good as dedicated melee weapons, they will hurt, and possibly beat a low-quality melee weapon. This allows shooters to have a fighting chance against melee enemies. A gunner is likely to take out a damaged pawn or small animals on their own. Also, fighting in melee with a [[sniper rifle]] may be better than trying to fire the sniper at touch range.

* Unlike raiders, colonists can shoot their ranged weapons ''even when being attacked in melee'' (so long as the target is not in melee range). When attacked in melee, colonists will focus on melee combat by default, but can be told to fire by targeting another distant enemy. This is likely to be more effective for beating the overall raid than melee combat.

In addition, [[body part weapon]]s like [[power claw]]s and [[knee spike]]s{{RoyaltyIcon}} can be installed to give ranged fighters a better melee weapon for when they have to engage in melee.

<gallery widths="400px" heights="400px" class="center" mode="nolines">
File:Firing in melee.png|Colonists can use their ranged weapons even when being attacked in melee (so long as their target is not attacking in melee).
</gallery>

=== Ranged support ===
For maximum pain against melee enemies, use high-DPS guns for your backline, combined with quality melee for your frontline to deal sustained damage in between barrages.
*The [[chain shotgun]] or [[heavy SMG]] are the weapons of choice in close-quarters due to their unparalleled close-range DPS.
*[[Charge rifle]]s are comparable to [[chain shotgun]]s and [[heavy SMG]]s at short distances, while also able to fight effectively at long-range combat, so they are a great option if they can be afforded.
* Grenades may also be used and can be incredibly effective at stacked melee groups trying to enter through a chokepoint, but should be ground-targeted rather than freely targeted by the pawn, to avoid grenading your own melee blockers.
:Grenades can land anywhere within 1 tile of the targeted tile, so place your ground target 1 tile further away to avoid accidentally grenading your own forces or blowing up the walls that are enabling you to melee block. Like [[minigun]]s, this will often shred the walls of your chokepoint, so building extra layers of walls at the chokepoint can be helpful.
*[[Minigun]]s, while effective at shredding the tightly packed enemies behind the chokepoint, are generally not recommended due to the collateral damage to the walls. If you do choose to use them, aim at the middle of the crowd so you can hit as many enemies as possible, while also reducing the damage done to the walls.

Stray bullets will harm your tanks if the shooter is standing more then five squares behind them; that means it is not a good idea to use long-range fire when charging.

Combined with measures to force enemies into close range, these weapons may be effective against ranged enemies as well, but beware as enemies can still fire until you start beating them up.

== Stationary ranged combat ==
{{See also|Defense structures}}

=== Spacing out ===
Each colonist should ideally stand '''at least 1 tile away from other colonists''', thus reducing the chance of enemy bullets hitting somebody else after missing the original target, which deals a lot of damage to static grouped up defenders. Explosives will also hit fewer people this way, though there are better countermeasures than simply spacing defenders apart.

Alternatively, placing all colonists within 5 tiles of each other will prevent friendly fire entirely, making it appropriate if there are no ranged or explosive attackers.

=== Friendly fire management ===
Friendly fire is a serious issue when facing close-range attackers, especially manhunter packs. If they manage to run past your barrage of gunfire to engage your ranged soldiers, they may receive more injuries from friendly fire in the ensuing chaos than the attackers themselves. You need to be careful when directing your troops so you don't hit your own forces by accident.

Pawns can fire over the shoulders of friendlies up to 2 tiles (i.e. 1-tile space in between) away, meaning that you can have a 3-wide row of soldiers without friendly fire, although this may not be recommended.

# When the enemy breaks the ranks, only let the soldiers closest to melee attackers fire at them.
#*Manually re-target the others to fire at another direction, repositioning them if needed.
# Disable 'Fire at will' when the enemies are closing in so they won't switch targets, potentially causing friendly fire.
# Have only 1 line of shooters so stray bullets, including bullets fired horizontally at melee attackers, will less likely hit someone.

== Dealing with rockets ==
Rocket launchers are painful to deal with, due to the huge area damage and long range. Raiders with rocket launchers are often seen in the backline preparing their rockets, while their allies lay down fire at the front. In the mid-late game, they are one of the biggest threats from the enemy.

* Single pawns can split off from the group and charge, or pre-placed at the front of a defensive fortification, to act as distractions. They can get distracted quite easily, wasting them on animals or lone colonists. [[Animal]]s, [[turret]]s, [[friendly mechanoids]]{{BiotechIcon}} and [[ghoul]]s{{AnomalyIcon}} are all great options, as they are expendable or cheap to revive. An expendable colonist (ideally wearing a [[shield belt]] for protection) can also do the trick. In a pinch, sacrificing regular colonists may be needed; if a rocket user is already targeting a pawn and there's no way to stop it, having that pawn split off and take the hit may result in less damage.
* [[Psychic insanity lance]]s and [[psychic shock lance]]s are the most straightforward way of dealing with a rocket launcher.
* [[Psycast]]s{{RoyaltyIcon}} are effective. [[Berserk]] can be used like a psychic insanity lance, [[berserk pulse]] can be used on a nearby group of enemies to cause the rocket launcher to incur friendly fire, and [[skipshield]] can block projectiles entirely (the rocket will explode on contact, so place the shield well in front of the colonists, don't place it on top of them).

Enemies may take friendly fire, the chance being maximized by having the rocket travel over as many enemies as possible through aligning your distractors. Each rocket traveling over a pawn has up to 40% chance to impact, setting it off early.

If you see that an enemy rocketeer has locked onto a brawler, you can also choose to charge the enemy with that brawler. It will either cause the enemy to deal immense friendly fire, or allow you to take out the rocketeer outright.

== Rescue ==
When a colonist is downed or severely injured, it's ideal - if not always possible - to drag them out of the fight immediately. Don't leave them there otherwise they risk dying from stray bullets or blood loss. You don't really need to send them directly to hospital; just drop them off somewhere outside of active combat.

Colonists lying outside cover are riskier to rescue. Choose the right time to pull them out, ensuring that there are no melee enemy nearby that could tie up the rescuer, and use your best-protected colonists. Don't allow anyone near at other times as they may draw fire. Consider drugging your rescue team with [[go-juice]] if the pawn you are rescuing is under heavy fire, as this will both increase the rescuer's speed and improve their pain resistance, making them less likely to be downed. Using a [[jump pack]] {{RoyaltyIcon}} to rapidly jump in and pull them out of combat, with the i-frames incurred during jumping, makes this significantly faster and safer for both rescuer and rescuee. [[Locust armor]] {{RoyaltyIcon}} can be substituted at the cost of armor, but ideally should be paired with a [[shield belt]] to make up it. At high qualities, for the short duration of exposure, a shield belt can be superior as it prevents all damage, including that which would slow the pawn or reduce medical skills.

Non-combatants, such as those incapable of violence, are ideal to serve as rescue members by standing near a fight to pull out downed colonists. Non-combatant doctors should wear a [[shield belt]] and carry quality medicine at all times, so they can be drafted during combat and quickly tend to wounded colonist on the field. Non-combatants should be equipped similarly to above, though with no ranged weapons they have fewer restrictions on wearing a shield belt to prevent damage, and their value proposition improves.

If a colonist cannot reach the hospital in time, typically ~2 hours from death or less, have the doctor patch colonists up a little such that they can reach the hospital without bleeding out, then carry them there. You will have a higher infection chance this way, but it's better than the colonist bleeding to death while on their way to the hospital. The remaining injuries can then be treated in the cleaner environment. Alternatively, an untuned [[biosculpter pod]]{{IdeologyIcon}} can be kept nearby and the injured pawn loaded into it. This can save pawns moments from death, that a doctor could not treat fast enough to save. The cost of the pods can be considerable however, and they must be de-tuned or deconstructed and reconstructed after each event.

== Mobile warfare ==

=== Door potshots ===
This strategy relies on a few quirks with standard raider AI:
* Enemies cannot open doors, and will not explicitly focus on doors. Even if a colonist is seen walking out, enemies are not persistent, especially if a multiple-door "airlock" is used.
* If enemies do ''not'' have a clear, unobstructed path to a colonist, they will start bashing at furniture and walls randomly, splitting up to do so.

On a smaller scale, this strategy can be used by building a large room with doors at each side. Enemies will split up, then shots can be fired, then any exposed colonists can retreat from opposing attacks by having the door close behind them. On a larger scale, build a multi-layer [[defense structures#Perimeter wall|perimeter wall]] with no open entrances but many doorways, with each door being in an "airlock" formation with 2+ doors separated each with a gap between.

=== Flanking and surrounding ===
To flank enemies, have some defenders approach enemies from the sides or the back instead of concentrating fire on the front. To surround them, attack from all sides.

Enemy ranged units often stay in the same spot and only have cover from one direction, making them vulnerable to either tactic. Flanking enemy ranged units can distract them and cause them to lose their cover advantage. While this makes you lose the advantage of high-quality cover, it is balanced out by the enemy's loss of cover.

* '''Wide arc flanking:''' Instead of huddling together in a straight line, have colonists take cover in different locations in a wide arc. This allows colonists to shoot at different angles, as well as protecting from explosives and friendly fire. This can be employed against sieges and other open operations where static cover is not available.

* '''Close-quarters flanking:''' This strategy takes advantage of terrain or existing walls scattered on the map. Send a small detachment of shooters/brawlers behind structures before the enemy moves in. Ideally these structures should be near your main combat line, forming an "L" shape to prevent the enemy from surrounding your detachment. Shotguns and melee are great weapons.
: Take a few shots as the enemy moves pass, and if they attack, retreat behind cover to direct them to the main force. Any enemy that follow will be isolated and can be eliminated. Don't forget to manage your main force in the meantime. After the enemy force has passed, emerge from cover to attack them from behind. This strategy avoids melee friendly fire, by having melee fighters engage from behind, and better enables shotguns

<gallery>
Close-quarter flanking1.png|Initial position of the flanking maneuver, the detachment is hidden from the enemy
Close-quarter flanking2.png|Colonists take shots at the enemy from cover
Close-quarter flanking3.png|When attacked, the detachment retreats behind the wall
Close-quarter flanking4.png|After the enemy has engaged with the main force, attack them from behind
Close-quarter flanking5.png|The enemy is fleeing
</gallery>

==== Moving in ====
While moving in you need to make sure you stay far enough away from enemies. Directly right-clicking on the destination will nearly always result in a path that crosses with the enemy. This can be overcome by '''shift-clicking to form a path for the pawn to follow''', making sure to keep sufficient distance.

Shield belts, drawing enemy fire from a different direction, or simply using walls and terrain to block projectiles are all good ways to move in.

=== Firing at cover ===
While cover works best against attacks coming straight, it's usually better to fire straight at the target instead of from an angle. If you fire straight at it, only 1 unit of cover will be effective, but if you shoot at a diagonal angle, 2 units of cover will be effective, both being capable of blocking shots, in total contributing to higher cover effectiveness.

However, if you can get to the point where you're almost firing horizontally at the raiders, then cover becomes nearly ineffective at protecting the raider, allowing many more shots to connect. This often requires you get out of your own cover, so it's not recommended unless you can find suitable cover nearby.

This also works for your pawns: in [[killbox]], it's better to place cover at angle to increase it's effectiveness, while raiders can't benefit from angle due to lack of cover. "[[Cover|Wall + Sandbag]]" combination will have higher than 75% effectiveness at ''just right'' angle (≈83-96.75%).

'''The below shows the difference firing angle makes on the hit chance of a pawn hiding behind cover.''' Cover values are from Alpha 16, but the mechanics remains unchanged.

<gallery widths="400px" heights="400px" class="center" mode="nolines">
File:Fire_cover_straight.png|Firing straight at a raider in cover; 1 stone chunk blocks 40%.
File:Fire_cover_angled1.png|Firing at an angle; 2 stone chunks block 48% total.
</gallery>
<gallery widths="300px" heights="300px" class="center" mode="nolines">
File:Fire_cover_angled2.png|Firing at a greater angle; 2 stone chunks block 37% total.
File:Fire_cover_angled3.png|Firing almost horizontally; 1 granite chunk blocks 8% only.
</gallery>

=== Tanking ===
This tactic simply requires you put your shielded colonists before your static gunners to partially soak up gunfire. This is best when you have insufficient cover, or additional cover to block more bullets for your frontline tanks.

As with any tactic involving meat shields, this poses a great risk to colonists' lives. If the colonists' shields are downed and they are not well-armored, you will have to get them to retreat behind cover until their shields come back online, otherwise your colonist will be exposed to ruthless gunfire.

Beware of high damage-per-hit weapons which can instantly down shields.

=== Hit and run ===
Against slow or static targets you can employ this to weaken them. You will need several fast-moving long-ranged colonists, possibly with [[charge lance]]s or [[bolt-action rifle]]s. Have them move within range to fire, quickly exiting range once the enemy returns fire. Repeat until conditions are no longer safe to conduct this attack, such as enemies entering full aggression and charging.

Effective against siege camps, preparing raiders, and crashed ship parts, for they tend to stay put at their location until they are aggravated into attacking.

=== Kiting ===
This tactic is effective when all or the most dangerous enemies are slow [[moving]].

Ideally, you have fast colonists - 120%+ [[Moving]] - running near moving enemies, drawing their attention. Constantly outrun the enemy while staying within their attention range. If not, the enemy will engage other targets instead. This way, kiters can distract a group of enemies by leading them around the map. Other colonists can fire at the kited enemies. And if the kiting colonist is fast enough, they can take a few potshots (once they are far enough).

As long as your colonist safely outruns hostiles, you're fine. However, if the enemy catches up, your colonist will be slowed and on his own. Even with a regular speed colonist, kiting can be beneficial, as it gives valuable time for your ranged colonists to shoot.

====Equipment====
A fast, long-range weapon is safest - e.g. the [[assault rifle]] or [[bolt-action rifle]]. A fast moderate-range weapon (e.g. [[machine pistol]]) may be used against melee enemies, but is riskier. Slow weapons such as sniper rifles are not recommended, as the need to stand still for extended periods puts soldiers in grave danger.

Kiting colonists should be lightly armored while still maintaining a fast speed.

<gallery widths="400px" heights="400px" class="left" mode="nolines">
File:Kiting_1.png|'''Kiting #1 - when enemies are as fast as the majority of your colonists. Optimal scenario shown - all raiders are lured to 1 colonist. Ideally you have >1 colonist faster than the enemy. ''' Black circle is the ideal kiting route, when your kiter is fast enough. Red lines can be used if the kiter is too slow to run a full circle. Enemies might catch up, but you've gained valuable time for colonists to shoot
File:Kiting_2.png|'''Kiting #2 - when all colonists can outrun and outrange the enemy. Retreat just before you get into enemy range.
</gallery>

== Additional tactics ==

=== Baiting ===

Faster, more well-protected colonists can be used to lead enemies into traps or ambushes. This is for situations when you have defenses concentrated in one direction, but the enemy comes from another.

[[File:Bait tables 2.jpg|300px|thumb|right|Setting the bait furniture on fire only hastened this raider's demise.]]

Cheap furniture also makes good bait. Raiders will smash any player-built furniture left out in the open, such as tables or wooden stools. This can be helpful to split them up or lure them into range of your defenders' weapons.

=== Luring in ===
Enemies can be lured closer to your base by keeping your colonists out of sight, then swarming out to attack once they draw closer to your base. Afterwards they will switch to engage your defenders.

This can be used to negate the range advantage of enemies. It also works well with melee blocking to lure enemies into trying to jam themselves into your chokepoints, rather than beating up your base.

=== Animals ===
The animals on the map, tamed or not, can be used to your advantage.

==== Tamed animal release ====
With your handlers, you can amass a huge army of animals to charge the enemy. Simply find a good combat-capable animal, tame it, and train it to learn Release.

There are many animals that are good for this purpose. Main tactics are take quality vs take quantity.
* Large animals like [[Thrumbo]]s, [[elephant]]s or [[rhinoceros|rhino]]s have good DPS and their large health scale means that damage is less likely to kill them before they can get patched up by your doctors. However they are harder to tame and very hard to keep a big amount. Replenish losses for a long time (especially Thrumbos). Due to smaller amounts, in case of big raid, they can block only few gunners and will sooner be downed by others.
* [[Warg]]s and [[bear]]s offer a good balance of DPS, breedability and feasible number to keep (can eat bodies of raiders). Better block large number of gunners.
* [[Husky|Huskies]] significantly less DPS than the others, but are easy to breed, feed, and provide hauling. Can block big raids.
* Dryads don't need food, training, breed and can self-heal. Colony only need to maintain trees. Clawers are the best choice for meat attack, while barkskins for tanking. Use separately: clawers are faster than barkskins, and barkskins will not perform their main duty.

Tamed animals also cause pirates to fire near their allies in a bid to get them off their allies, potentially causing friendly fire.

==== Strategic zoning ====
Raiders take their sweet time to exterminate any trace of your tamed animals on the map. This can be exploited to your advantage, as long as you're willing to have a few animals valiantly sacrifice themselves.

*'''Distraction''': If you let your animals run all over the place, raiders may be tied up trying to wipe out the animals. This can give your colonists time to prepare, such as entering defensive positions or running to your mortars to fire a few rounds, as well as scatter the raiders making them easier to deal with. Raiders wielding rocket launchers also tend to waste them on your animals, leaving your colonists and structures mostly unharmed. However if they see better targets they will come at them instead.
*'''Direct offense''': Besides distraction, animals may also engage raiders, harming or killing them.
*'''Manipulation''': Animals can be moved around without the need of training Release, simply by changing the allowed zone of your animals. A short time later, the animals will move towards the zone and stay there. When animals are sleeping you can put animal sleeping spots beneath them and then remove them to wake them up. ''Changing'' the animal's zone also immediately forces it to move, at high speed, if they are not in the area of the new zone. This can also be used to update an existing zone's area by changing the animal to a different zone (which they aren't in the area of) and then back to the original zone again. Untrained animals will flee from threats, but will fight back to defend themselves if they are damaged by a hostile.
**'''Aggressive zoning''': Zone animals in a place where you are expecting an encounter with enemies. Enemies will notice the animals and will start attacking, making them fight back and injure or even down the attackers. This method works for any animal, even those that cannot be trained. Remember to undo the zoning otherwise the animals may starve. [[Boomrat]]s are especially useful by causing explosions, setting raiders on fire and delaying their assault.

**'''Animal chokepoint''': Zone the animals in a chokepoint, creating a dense cluster.
***This is vulnerable to AoE weaponry so increase the area of the zone to make it that animals don't get too tightly together, if the enemy has explosives.

==== Aggravating animals ====
If you have any easily enraged wild animals ([[emu]]s, [[thrumbo]]s, etc) standing near the enemy, you can shoot them to anger them and make them charge at the enemy.

You can also opt to enrage an animal then have a fast colonist (>130% Moving) lead it towards the enemy. Some enemies will stop and engage the animal, potentially causing it to switch targets. For quite the obvious reasons it's best to equip a shield belt on the kiting colonist if he isn't the one enraging the animal.

For this, larger animals are best due to their high health and damage. A thrumbo can be considered a godsend in a raid; just send 1 straight into the raider hordes, and let 'er rip. 
Smaller animals are faster and hard to hit, making them decent distraction and causing a hefty amount of friendly fire among the enemy as well.

Remember, if you can down the animal easily with colonists, so can the raiders.

Similarly to this, casting [[manhunter pulse]]{{RoyaltyIcon}} on a flock of wild (or tamed but not trained) animals can wreak havoc on raiders, just make sure that your own pawns are too far away to be targeted. It may make sense to have some fenced-in pastures at the edge of the map for this very purpose.

=== Meat shield ===
The animals surrounding a handler can be used as a convenient meat shield as they take bullets, arrows and other projectiles (but not explosions) for their master. Provided they don't stray too far, they won't receive friendly fire as the shooters simply fire over them. All you need is to train Obedience, instead of Release.

Slaves with shield belts are also a good sponge for bullets. New meat shields can be obtained from survived and enslaved raiders.

=== Base scattering ===

This is a '''last-ditch tactic to defeat human enemies''' if you are significantly outnumbered.

Instead of engaging them right away, let enemies scatter around the base first. After they scatter widely apart, divide and conquer, using large groups of soldiers to overcome them with ease, while others are busy demolishing other parts of your base.

Remember to patch up the base after the damage done. Coolers are especially tricky as they serve as weak points and are expensive.

=== Outside help ===
If the [[AI Storytellers|storyteller]] is feeling somewhat merciful, outside help may come to save the day, such as friendly [[caravan]]s, military aid from allied factions, or another raid group hostile to the first one. Don't count on this however, as these rarely happen on their own, and most of the time you still need to fend off the raiders yourself.

It is possible to call for military aid at will via the [[comms console]], if allied to an outlander or [[empire]]{{RoyaltyIcon}} faction. The raiders that are sent will only be worth 150-400 [[raid points]], so they are unlikely to handle mid-game or late-game raids on their own, but they can serve as distractions and potentially give a winning advantage at lower difficulties or in the earlier stages of the game.

It's possible to activate [[quest]]s to provoke outside help, e.g., accepting a refugee quest that spawns a manhunter pack (without a delay) when a raid approaches, or accepting an [[empire]]{{RoyaltyIcon}} quest so the noble is used as a sacrifice..

==== Common enemy ====
If mechanoids, manhunters or another enemy faction show up, raiders may stop to engage them. This causes losses to both groups of enemies, making it easier to pick off the stragglers. Being concurrently raided by two different enemies at once is more common during the ship reactor start-up phase, making it slightly easier to survive the onslaught.

If there are unopened [[ancient shrine]]s you can open them, which may contain artifacts, mechanoids, confused spacers, all useful against raiders, or none of the above.

Using the [[psychic animal pulser]] or the Manhunter Pulse psychic ability is essentially invoking this tactic, but you need to be very careful when using it.

=== Environmental hazards ===
Very rarely, when unable to put up a proper fight, you can count on Mother Nature to play for your side. Invaders will come to you without proper protection against the weather. You will be able to fend off the attack without confrontation.

Choosing to play on an extremely hot or cold map, such as in a [[sea ice]] biome near the poles, seals the fate of all human raiders foolhardy enough to come. However, once passing 300 raid points, only [[mechanoids]] will spawn in extreme temperatures.

<gallery widths="450px" heights="450px" class="center" mode="nolines">
File:Siege flee from Toxic fallout and hypothermia.png|'''Siege flees from Toxic fallout and hypothermia.'''
File:Siege flee from Toxic fallout and hypothermia 2.png|'''Free prisoners in bulk.'''
</gallery>

= Humanoid assaults =
== Raiders ==
"Raiders" come in a wide variety of sub-types, and with a surprising variety of tactics. But they all need to be explained the error of their ways...

=== Behavior ===

[[Raider]]s will attack randomly chosen constructed objects, colonists and colony [[animals]]. They will not attack natural rock walls (except for sappers), non-hostile wild animals or unpowered [[turrets]]. They will attack [[prisoner]]s if they are captured from their enemy factions.

They usually set fire to crops in [[growing zone]]s, [[power]] generators, [[power conduit]]s, and other [[production]] buildings. They will melee attack furniture, doors and walls. They will also use thrown explosives on structures, and some use [[EMP grenades]] to stun your turrets.

Raiders will prioritize firing on [[colonists]] or [[turrets]] that are actively engaging in the fight, but will otherwise attack random objects.

If human raiders are unable to defeat your colony in time, they may give up. Normal raiders will give up between {{ticks|26000}} to {{ticks|38000}} after the raid begins, while sappers will give up between {{ticks|33000}} to {{ticks|38000}} after they begin the attack.

=== Preparation ===
Human raiders will sometimes start by standing around in a group where they spawned and will continue this until they lose a certain amount of raiders or they hit a certain preparation time limit, at which point they begin the assault. When a colonist is close to the raiders they will attack the colonist.

=== Equipment ===
Raiders spawn with randomized equipment determined by their "pawn kind". While the budget for "purchasing" each individual of the different pawn kind is determined by the [[storyteller]] and the current [[raid points]] value, the equipment itself is decided by the weapon and clothing budgets and type restrictions of the pawn kind. More information on the pawn kinds can be seen in the Pawns sections on each [[faction]]s' page.

==== Apparel ====
[[Raiders|Pirates]] can range from only wearing a tattered pair of [[pants]] to [[flak vest]]s to full sets of [[marine armor]]. [[Raider#Mercenaries|Mercenary slashers]] will always come in [[shield belt]]s and only they do so.

[[Tribals]] always come in [[tribalwear]], with some in [[war mask]]s or [[veil]]s. Some later game come with [[plate armor]] as well.

In cold environments, both will come in wearing [[parka]]s or [[tuque]]s, protecting them from temperatures of around -40 to -50°C, sometimes up to -110°C if they wear wool parkas. They don't usually come in wearing [[duster]]s or [[cowboy hat]]s in hot areas, making them vulnerable to the heat.

They tend to wear leather, [[cloth]] or [[synthread]] clothes, which don't provide good protection, and less commonly the more protective [[devilstrand]] or [[hyperweave]].

While mid-late game pirates usually come with normal quality flak and marine armor providing around 100% sharp armor, with quality apparel you can push yours to have more than 130%, even without masterworks or legendaries, giving you the upper hand.

==== Weapons ====
For most factions, skills are assigned at random, meaning that raiders are not always given weapon appropriate for their skills; skilled shooters can be randomly equipped with melee weapons and melee pawns equipped with guns. So if you have your colonists equip weapons according to their skills, you already have an advantage over many enemies. Unlike the other factions, the [[Empire]]{{RoyaltyIcon}} will ''ensure'' that its soldiers have skills appropriate for their issued weapons.

[[Tribals]] usually come equipped with primitive weapons of random quality, either melee weapons or ranged weapons limited to bows and [[pila]]. Melee weapons are not to be underestimated however, as blunt armor is often lacking and both [[longsword]]s and [[spear]]s are relatively common and have respectable {{AP}}.

[[Pirates]] and [[outlanders]] can spawn with most weapons in the game, up to and including dangerous [[doomsday rocket launcher]]s.

However, some classes of raider always come with the same weapon or same category of weapon. For example, [[Raider#Mercenary_sniper|mercenary snipers]] always use [[sniper rifle]]s, [[Raider#Mercenary_grenadiers|grenadiers]] always wield either [[frag grenades]] or [[molotov cocktails]], and tribal archers of all types always use [[neolithic]] ranged weaponry.

==== Drugs ====

Pirates or Outlanders may utilize some form of combat-enhancing drug, namely [[go-juice]], [[yayo]] and [[luciferium]]. They will usually start off addicted to them, and will carry some in their inventory which is dropped upon death. They may also use multiple drugs, disregarding the risk of overdose.

These can reduce the amount of the pain received, making the raider last longer in battle before going down. Increased movement speed also allow raiders to get into position earlier, and brawlers to harass your defenders more easily.

*[[Go-juice]] is an excellent combat drug that makes the raider much more efficient in battle. It eliminates 90% of pain, gives a 30% movement speed buff, and a 10% consciousness buff for more accuracy. The raider is almost guaranteed to fight until death, or the rarer case of incapacitation through a shattered spine, severe brain damage or removal of both legs.
**It's almost always more worth it to use body part-destroying weapons such as the [[Sniper rifle]] to kill them, as Go-juice does not reduce the actual damage they take.
*[[Yayo]] grants a 15% buff to speed and eliminates half of pain received. Enemies under the effect of yayo are more durable against damage not concentrated on a vital body part
**It will take more hits to down them, and more likely the raider dies first due to lethal damage, but is still possible.
*[[Luciferium]] grants a wide range of buffs to the user, from increased organ function, to slight movement speed and consciousness buffs, to reduced pain.
**It's more troublesome to capture addicted raiders since you'll need to regularly feed them luciferium to sustain their lives, which is very expensive and hard to come by -- it's usually more worthwhile to just strip and finish them on the spot.
**Although it is possible to farm this drug by addicting raiders to it and release them, the next time they come they will bring some with them.

=== Sieges ===

During a [[Raider#Siege|siege]], raiders go to a location outside your base, receive materials via drop pod and will proceed to build a simple mortar camp. The mortar camp will generally have 2 mortars and sandbags as cover. The sandbags need not cover the mortars, nor will they necessarily face your base.

<gallery widths="450px" heights="450px" class="center" mode="nolines">
File:Siege_base_construct.png|Siege camp under construction.
File:Siege_base_finished.png|Finished siege camp. Note that sieges always come with 2 mortars.
</gallery>

When faced with a siege, there are a few strategies you can use.

In most cases it's better to attack the siege camp as the raiders will continuously siege the colony even if you're in hiding, and most likely you will eventually need to face off against the raiders yourself.

==== Camp assault ====

If you assault their camp, one possibility is sniping the raiders, prompting them to assault your colony directly instead of continuing their siege once you down several of them. Defeating them early enough will result in most of their items remaining intact, which you can take for yourself. 
Another alternative is to snipe the mortars, hoping an explosion will take out many raiders, but keep in mind that for those you will need to either send someone dangerously close to enemy fire, or draw all attention to one side to allow flankers to snipe and detonate them.

Unlike most defensive situations, this time they will have the advantage of good cover on their side. You will have to find suitable cover, such as stone chunks, which you can fire from.

Sniping [[mortar]]s under construction, when they have much lower health, is effective at wasting the enemy's resources.

They are vulnerable to flanking if they haven't finished their sandbags or left a side uncovered. However, once all cover is completed, flanking is less of an effective solution.

==== Early interception ====

The best time to attack them is when they've just started building their camp. At this time their resources would have arrived.

Attacking them at this time forces them to use stone chunks just like you do, instead of having the superior sandbags on their side. Their mortars won't be ready as well.

'''Attack only when their resources have arrived''', otherwise they will flee and not send any resources, which you could've stolen had you attacked later.

==== Hit-and-run ====

An effective tactic to lure sieging raiders out is to conduct hit-and-run attacks against them. Taking down someone usually causes them to give up on sieges and directly attack, making them lose their cover advantage.

==== Countering with mortars ====

If you have your own mortars, you can use them to fire back at the raiders. The raiders will stay put to defend the camp, making them easy targets for mortar strikes. It's best to wait for the raiders to arrive at their siege encampment location so leading the target isn't required.

[[High-explosive shell]]s deal heavy damage to tight groups of raiders if they hit, ignoring all cover but solid walls in the process. A tight volley can devastate mortar camps, forcing them to either attack or flee outright. Waiting for their supplies to be dropped gives you the possibility of causing their own mortar shells to explode on them causing significant additional damage.

[[Incendiary shell]]s are an effective way of distracting sieges as the raiders will be preoccupied with extinguishing the resultant flames. 2 mortars are usually enough to keep them from doing any activity other than firefighting, unless it is raining or there are no flammables nearby. This deals little damage to them, however.

[[EMP shell]]s can stun the mortars, preventing them from firing. It is perhaps better used as a support weapon while your defenders assault the camps, to reduce the damage done to your base.

==== Sneak attack ====

If you don't have the strength to attack directly, you can wait for them to sleep at night, then use the opportunity to set your colonists into position for a sneak attack.

Once someone receives an injury, everybody will wake up, so be sure to have everything in place.

# Get within range and throw a coordinated barrage of [[frag grenades]] at the enemy, blowing the defenseless raiders to bits.
# Go very close (no more than 3 tiles) then unload your guns on the exposed raiders. Nearly every bullet will connect, dealing heavy amounts of damage upfront.
# 1 well-aimed [[doomsday rocket launcher]] can end the siege easily. While also effective at day, it is much safer to approach at night, and the raiders will also be more tightly packed.
# Send brawlers straight in, beating up dangerous enemies like rocketeers first.
# Steal their supplies and wait for them to send more. Free food and mortar shells!
# Scatter chemfuel canisters around the camp, pick up shells and survival meals. Retreat. Load one incendiary round into your mortar. Do one shoot, enjoy the popcorn.
# Burn the enemy with fire, a task made much easier while they are off-guard. This will eventually force them out to attack after suffering from heavy losses.
#* Lighting the mortars on fire allows them to be destroyed with ease.
#* Surround the camp with fire. Upon waking up, they will put forward their futile efforts in controlling the raging sea of fire around them, eventually giving up and attacking.

==== Deep tunneling ====

Mortars cannot hit anything that is under an overhead mountain. This makes deep mining a effective defensive strategy against heavy bombardment. If you don't build your base into a mountain, you may at least consider digging out at least one panic room for non-combatants to hide within from the shells while others head out for the assault.

==== Firefoam shell jamming ====

[[File:Firefoam shell jamming.png|500px|thumb|right|Enemy mortar filled with a firefoam shell, demonstrated by reddit user u/xenoxaos.]]

An interesting way to nullify the threat of a mortar attack is to launch a transport pod filled with firefoam shells to a location closer to the mortars than the shells they brought with them. When the shells arrive, the enemy will load them shells into the mortar instead. This means that the damage to your base will be much reduced, as firefoam shells do little damage beyond damaging roofs.

===Summon Fleshbeasts===
The [[Psychic_rituals#Draw_fleshbeasts|Draw Fleshbeasts]] psychic ritual can be an effective way of dealing with sieges. The ritual only takes 2 hours to complete, costs a trivial amount of [[Bioferrite]], and the resulting fleshbeasts generally pop out directly on top of hostiles on the map. Surviving Fleshbeasts are preferable to mop up compared to the damage caused by explosive shells landing in your hospital or storage rooms.

{{clear}}

=== Shielded melee charges ===

[[File:Melee_charge_edge.png|240px|thumb|right|Full melee charge at the edge of the map, with everyone shielded and equipped with melee weapons.]]

Pirates, Outlanders or Imperials can come with all-melee charges, with most enemies wearing [[shield belt]]s. This can prove a threat to ranged-reliant defenses as they charge towards the colonists directly with their shield belts blocking large amounts of damage. 
While they are vulnerable when their shields are down, many can still reach your colonists and engage them in melee combat.

==== Melee blocking ====

The '''[[#Melee blocking|Melee blocking]]''' tactic is especially useful here; for better effectiveness, open multiple chokepoints to spread out enemies and keep them busy trying to squeeze in, otherwise they will get bored and wander off to attack other things.

Shields don't stand a chance against concentrated fire poured down a narrow entrance. Using [[Grenades|EMP Grenades]] or [[EMP launcher|EMP Launchers]] can entirely disable the enemy shields, making mowing them down much easier, but ensure you don't accidentally short out the shields of your own melee blockers. It's best to order the grenadier or launcher wielder to attack a specific ground point rather than letting them freely select their target, as they may try to grenade a target right next to your own melee blockers. Both grenades and launchers can deviate by up to 1 tile in any direction from the targeted square, so take that into account when selecting your aiming point.

{{clear}}

=== Sniper party ===

Raiders can come using only sniper rifles, giving them a very long range but low overall damage.

The danger comes in that if you engage them conventionally, you may need to exit your quality cover, removing your cover advantage.

Sniping them back is not recommended unless you have a surplus of skilled snipers and cover.

==== Luring in ====

Instead of engaging them on the frontline, you can keep everyone out of sight, then rush out only once they get close to your base, negating their range advantage.

==== Killbox ====

A well-designed killbox can entirely negate any advantage that sniper parties field. Critical to that is ensuring that line of sight is entirely blocked for incoming attackers until they are in range of your own forces, preventing them from being able to take cover once inside the killbox, and using sandbags to force them to walk (slowly) while already under concentrated fire without being able to return fire.

=== Heavy explosives assault ===

Enemies may come in mainly equipped with area damage weapons, such as rocket launchers, grenades and miniguns. This can cause serious damage to your base, your colonists, and the raiders themselves.

The main danger, as always, is from the rockets. The ideal method is to [[#Distracting rockets|distract]] them from the main defending force, not only reducing damage taken by friendly forces, but also increasing friendly fire the enemy takes. The fact that so many of the raiders have rocket launchers means that friendly fire can be so serious that the raiders will decide to retreat to cut losses by friendly fire alone.

Due to the wide use of explosives, cover is less useful; you would benefit more from flexibility in positioning rather than protection from cover. Space out your defenders, preferably far from your base structures, while giving them enough space to move around to evade attacks.

==== Distraction ====

If you have many tamed animals, you can zone them near the raiders, who will be distracted to fire at the animals with rockets. Enemies are much more likely to receive friendly fire when firing towards your animals right next to them.

==== Grenadiers ====

Besides rocketeers, many of the enemies will also be grenadiers, which are short-ranged and are thus vulnerable to fire from a distance. Once the rockets have been taken care of, you can shoot them down with concentrated fire quite easily. Make sure to dodge the grenades if they do close in.

==== All-in melee charge ====

You can go hardcore and send in all your shielded brawlers to go straight at the enemy rocketeers. Gunners should stay out of range of rockets until all rockets launchers have been used.

This is especially effective when '''they come in to chase a refugee''', leaving you enough time to position your brawlers deep into the enemy. 
At any rate, expect losses this way due to the concentrated explosions.

=== Base flank ===

Besides sending one large attack party, enemies can also split up their forces and attack your base from multiple sides.

To adequately defend against this sort of attack, you may need to split up your own defenders and fight several battles at once, thus increasing the difficulty of managing the battle.

Each of the individual groups will flee on their accord.

==== Divide and conquer ====

If the enemy decides to prepare before attacking, you can afford to send out a larger attack party to eliminate the groups one-by-one.

=== [[Sappers]] ===

Sappers will mine and blast their way through any obstacles, such as natural or constructed walls, though avoiding high-health ore veins. They will also try to circumvent your defenses to attack from another direction. Their goal is to reach one of your bedrooms or barracks, where they will begin to wreak havoc.

In an open base, sappers can usually be treated as a weaker-than-usual bunch of raiders. However, they are a great threat to turret-reliant, mountain or walled bases, including bases with killboxes.

Their grenadiers and miners deal heavy damage to structures; even the toughest [[plasteel]] walls will not stop them for long. They will also persistently try to tunnel into your base, continuing even if their digger is killed or they are under attack.

==== Turret funneling ====

It is possible to funnel sappers with unpowered turrets, since sappers will avoid entering turret radius. Note that this doesn't appear to work to funnel sappers into killboxes.

==== Early interception ====

With enough manpower, you can choose to intercept them while they're tunneling into your base. They tend not to use cover when doing so, so you can catch them by surprise. Once your defenders intercept them, they will turn to engage you.

==== Rocket counterattack ====

The [[doomsday rocket launcher]] is your best bet against sappers, if they aren't a full melee charge. Since they are bunched closely together, a single well-placed rocket can blow up most of the attacking party, causing the rest to flee in panic. If they have rocket launchers, they may drop them on death, so you may actually end up with more rockets than you started with.

If you are the one using the rockets, you have the advantage of being able to fire first. Aim it at a spot where the enemy is likely to be bunched up. If you're quick you can defeat the enemy before they can even fire back at you, ensuring victory.

Rocketeers should be behind your best cover so they can survive long enough to fire. Your other colonists should be closer to the enemy to draw fire, but out of the rocket's path lest it hits your colonists instead.

==== Mountain bases ====

If you're in a mountain base you can draft a few melee pawns to wait at the entrance, as well as a few ranged pawns facing the entrance to fire down the tunnel. When they do break in you will already have prepared to face the raiders and can pour a stream of lead right into their face or cut them into pieces.

In a mountain base, since they take longer to mine through the rock, you may try placing an [[IED trap]] right behind the wall that a sapper is trying to tunnel through, to catch them by surprise with an explosive blast. This is especially effective if it's placed right on the other side of a loose [[stone chunk]] (easily found in tunnels), which will slow down any enemies stepping over it enough that they won't be able to retreat in time.

==== Aftermath ====

Remember to cover up any tunnels or gaps in your defenses as they open up an opportunity for raiders to come straight into your base. You may fortify it and turn it into a booby-trapped chokepoint to catch unsuspecting raiders seeking direct entry.

=== Drop pod attacks ===

Sometimes pirates or mechanoids will come in drop pods. If they land at the edges, they can be treated as a normal raid party, unless you have expanded to the edges, in which they will land inside your base. 
To defend against this, have a second line of defenses inside your base so you can deny the drop-podders easy entry into your base.

The main danger comes in landing right in the center of your base. Capable enemies not using alternative strategies such as sieges or sappers have a 10% chance of doing so.

Once they choose to land there, things will get ugly. By landing in the middle, they bypass most of your conventional defenses, and you can't use your cover advantage against them. They will also break through constructed roofs on their way down, landing right inside rooms and buildings. This can put not only your colonists, but your stockpiles in grave danger, as well, especially if they land near your volatile [[mortar shell]]s or [[chemfuel]] stores, or [[Battery|batteries]].

Fortunately for you, they have a short delay ({{ticks|520}}to be exact) before they open and all hell breaks loose. They also come in smaller numbers than regular raids.

Enemies in drop pods cannot land in tiles beneath an Overhead mountain, so tunneling deep underground can make safe rooms.

==== Strategy ====

Once you see them land, you should immediately decide what strategy will you use: attack immediately or wait and let them break furniture or steal things. In case of immediate attack, draft any nearby armed colonists to the site, whether they are your designated soldiers or not. Let them hold off the attackers for a while before your soldiers arrive to help. You have less than 9 seconds before they open, not enough for a soldier to get halfway across the map to help.

Any non-combatants should immediately be evacuated. They may still stay close to help in rescue efforts, pulling out any downed colonists. Make sure it's safe to rescue them- as in rescuers not walking through the crossfire and back again to get a colonist to the hospital. You may need to forbid doors to prevent them from walking through the firefight into a hospital. Melee is useful against these attacks, for you can immediately start beating up the enemy as soon as they exit the pods. They can also shut down dangerous enemies such as rocketeers.

If you decided to wait, draft your soldiers and put them near (but not close) to the drop area and wait. When raiders face no resistance, they will immediately start breaking furniture, put fire (sometimes turning the room they landed into gas chamber) and later will decide to steal some things (including furniture that can be moved), take it and flee. Let them do it, and when they take items and go, attack. While fleeing, they will not resist, making it much safer to kill all of them and return stolen back to the storage. Works best when raiders landed inside the locked room.

Like other raids, humanoid raiders will attempt to flee after receiving heavy losses; however, if they land inside enclosed areas of your base, they will be trapped, allowing your colonists to down and capture them at leisure; in their panic, they won't try to fight back, until you're well into beating them up.

==== Cover ====

You should use your furniture or wall corners as cover and fire from behind them. You can also have 2 colonists hiding behind each doorway for full cover. Toggle the doors to be held open, otherwise they can't fire. Be careful as enemies will also utilise cover as well; to combat this, attack from multiple angles or use melee fighters.

Spread out colonists so they don't take collateral damage, even if it may mean some will fire out of cover. Keep heavily armored colonists up front and lightly armored colonists at the back.

Colonists with high construction skill can relocate furniture quickly; use this to your advantage by creating cover for yourself and removing it from enemies.

If you have larger bases, you can build indoor defensive positions along crucial corridors, but take care not to let the enemy use them. Stone [[shelf|shelves]] are an option as they are durable, non-flammable and beauty-neutral.

==== Fire management ====

As most furniture is flammable, you will need to extinguish any fires if you want to prevent damage. One option is to reinstall and trigger a firefoam popper inside, which also fireproofs the room, preventing any further fires.

If you prioritize the defeat of the raiders over the loss of your property, and the walls of the room are fireproof, you can simply let fires burn, or even start some more, while you evacuate the room and shut the doors, cooking the raiders alive. Watch out for fire and heat spreading to nearby rooms, and put out fires immediately once the raiders are well done. 
Not effective against mechanoids as they aren't affected by temperature and cannot be set on fire.

==== Equipment ====

High-DPS or melee weapons work best to deal with drop pod attacks. 
Mid-range weapons are also good for clearing out larger rooms. 

Long-ranged weapons are less effective due to their low damage output and the confined nature of indoor spaces rendering their superior range unnecessary.

Explosive, incendiary or area denial weapons are excellent at room-clearing, but are not recommended except in dire situations due to heavy collateral damage.

=== Tribal raids ===

[[File:Tribal_raid.png|300px|thumb|right|Group of tribal fighters.]]

Tribal raiders come with relatively poor equipment, instead relying on sheer numbers for power. Their neolithic weapons can dish out heavy damage despite their low technology level. They are also adept at combat, with many being acquainted to some combat skill or another. 

Different strategies may be required, compared to pirate or outlander raids.

==== Tribal fighters ====

They can take more of a beating compared to other poorly armored enemies as some of the clothing items they wear gives them increased endurance against pain, but when compared with other decently armored enemies they are easier to kill individually as their clothing doesn't provide much protection overall.

Their archers or hunters can fire their bows from a somewhat long distance, sometimes forcing you out of cover to fire your shorter ranged weapons at them. 
Warriors or berserkers don't use shields (unlike their pirate counterpart, the mercenary slasher), making them vulnerable to gunfire.

You should watch out for the pila wielded by heavy archers, as well as berserkers.
*Despite the short range and slow fire rate, pila are incredibly deadly if they land, capable of killing or incapacitating unprotected colonists with a lucky shot to the heart, spine or limbs.
*Berserkers carry excellent melee weapons that dish out incredible amounts of damage once they get close.

==== Weapons ====

You will need sufficient mid-long range firepower to take down tribal archers from a distance, for getting close to them in order to fire your guns is pretty much suicide. Long-ranged weapons beyond 32 tiles can effectively hit archers at maximum range, matching or outranging them.

Close-mid ranged weapons with high stopping power are good for taking down tribespeople that come too close to your defenders, but they alone cannot defeat tribals effectively just by staying in static cover.

Crowd control helps greatly in defeating tribal raids.

*The [[Minigun]] is extremely effective as it can easily mow down the densely packed groups of tribal invaders.
*All explosive weapons are devastating on tribals.
**Rocket launchers deal heavy damage while being reasonably accurate.
**[[High-explosive shell]]s can pulverize a sizable group of tribals at once if they manage to hit.
**Grenades are less effective as you have to risk a colonist or two in order to get in range.
*Incendiary weapons are good at getting pesky archers out of cover for your colonists to hit.

=== Empire raids ===

Added in the new [[Royalty DLC]], the Empire is capable of sending powerful troops to assault your base. Unlike Outlanders, Tribals, or Pirates, one major advantage they have is that their skills are matched with the weapon they use- melee Champions will actually be good at melee, while Troopers, Janissaries or Cataphracts all have excellent ranged performance.

Cataphracts are among the most heavily-armored units in-game, with an outer layer of [[cataphract armor]] and an inner layer from an [[armorskin gland]]. However, their armor also slows them down significantly.

This can, however, be turned to your advantage through the use of [[Psycasts]] introduced in the Royalty DLC. Using Berserk or Berserk Pulse on the most dangerous of the hostile army can cause them to turn their powerful weapons towards murdering (and being murdered by) their allies rather than your colonists. Note that Berserk Pulse can affect pawns immediately on the other side of a wall by casting the ability on a tile adjacent to a wall, allowing the ability to function as a defense against sappers or groups moving through constrained areas (such as a narrow snaking corridor leading to your killbox).

== Caravan ambushes ==

Defensive battles don't always happen at base. Sometimes it may happen far away from it, striking one of your caravans, perhaps loaded with plenty of silver. Or maybe they creep to your traders and demand ransom, which you don't feel like paying. You always need to be prepared for ambushes when you send out caravans.

=== Escort ===

In any cargo-carrying caravan, sending only 1-2 colonists is usually not advised except in very short-distance trips as they will not be able to fend off an ambush. In this case, have combat-capable escort members which can fight and carry items, as well as medics who will patch up your colonists after battles.

If you have lots of attack animals, you can also send just 1 skilled handler with the attack animals. They can swarm any attackers, and you can leave colonists back at base for work. Remember to take into account the animals' food needs; grazing animals work best for this reason.

If you are not carrying much besides a lone colonist, leaving him to go alone is helpful as lone colonists are hard to detect, reducing both the likelihood and the power of ambushes. A single colonist with a pack animal trained to obedience should be able to fend off most attackers.

=== Ambush site ===

The ambush site is small, restricting the space where you can conduct your battle. This renders many tactics obsolete, such as long-ranged sniping or kiting. You will often have to face off the enemy in a direct gunfight or brawl.

Besides this, you can't escape the fight until it's over, leaving no choice but to fight back.

=== Cover and positioning ===

[[File:Ambush_fight.png|600px|thumb|right|Improvised defensive position against ambushes, making the best of what is there. Colonists behind walls will enjoy up to 75% full cover, while pirates will only receive 25% at most from trees and such. Two brawlers are ready to execute a melee sortie, while another is ready to [[#Peeling|peel]] for the gunners. Combined with good equipment, this allows the fight to be won with few injuries even when outnumbered.]]

If you have time, go somewhere where there is cover for you, but not the enemy. This gives you a significant upper hand in defensive battles where the enemy is coming at you. You should be hiding behind walls for cover if possible, as they provide up to 75% cover, but if they are not available, use what is available, e.g. stone chunks or trees. Space out your defenders to reduce the amount of collateral damage the pirates deal.

Melee sorties or rushes work well if you have brawlers, to negate any dangerous ranged threats; [[shield belt]]s help them traverse the short distance to engage.

=== Items ===
You will need to bring some items so you can be prepared for a surprise attack.

==== Weapons ====
You usually don't have weapons to switch in a caravan unless you're bringing more than you need with you, so choosing the right weapons for your escort party is important.

*High-DPS weapons are optimal for dealing with ambushes.
*Long-ranged weapons are good for taking down targets at medium-long range, however their low DPS may offset their range advantage in an ambush.
*[[Minigun]]s are good against tightly-packed raiders hiding behind cover in an ambush. However, their heavy weight and movement speed reduction means you may want to reconsider bringing one.
*Melee weapons can help fight off enemy brawlers, or disrupt enemies behind cover. You should have at least 1 melee fighter in each escort.

==== Medicine ====
You should have some medicine handy so your colonists can patch themselves up after the battle.

[[Medicine]] should be your choice here; you should try to get good treatment to reduce chance of infection, as colonists don't get much rest in a caravan. [[Herbal medicine]] is useful if you have a good doctor on hand.

=== Aftermath ===

You can reform the caravan immediately after the battle is ended; you can bring along any downed colonists, as well as capture downed enemies. The caravan members will tend to themselves shortly afterwards.

Alternatively, you can stay and forage from the ambush map before you leave.

= Manhunters =
Animals, singly or in groups, may randomly turn mad and become hostile due to various reasons.

When mad, they will actively attack humans or mechanoids, and will not attack other structures unless provoked (such as seeing someone walk through a door. Note that this includes colony animals. Manhunters can and will navigate through doors opened by colony animals, and will attack the door for a while if the door closes in front of them). They are not sophisticated in their attacks and are only capable of actively using melee. Some can explode upon death for devastating results.

=== Animal categories ===
Most animals can be part of a manhunter pack. Each kind has its own statistics, and can be roughly grouped as follows:

# In terms of speed:
#*Slow: Animals that run slower than an average colonist. This allows you to kite them in addition to melee blocking.
#*Fast: Animals that are faster than most colonists.
# In terms of other properties:
#*Explosive: Animals that explode on death such as [[boomalope]]s or [[boomrat]]s. They can set your brawlers alight, ruining melee blocking defenses, so for these, you may need alternative tactics. These types, however, can trigger a chain reaction, as the explosion from one animal can kill others, causing further explosions and potentially further deaths.

=== Occurrence ===

Mad animals can strike your colony in several ways.

#Singular mad animals may randomly attack.
#Manhunters packs can arrive in great numbers, afflicted by the deadly disease [[Scaria]].
#Psychic waves drive all animals of a single species insane, directing them at your colonists. They are usually scattered at first, then proceed to converge on your colonists.
#In an unfortunate hunting incident, animals being hunted will turn on you, and may even bring their allies along.

=== Melee blocking ===

As with any full melee attacks, '''[[#Melee blocking|melee blocking]] is an extraordinarily efficient way to defeat manhunter packs'''. This is especially so if the animals are small such that they deal little damage before being killed, one after another.

When psychic waves occur, either lure animals into one spot or set up multiple chokes for attack.

=== Animals vs. Animals ===

One good way to fight off mad animals is with... more animals! Just draft anyone with Release-capable animals assigned, and set them out. Your colonists can watch safely from a distance, or take a potshot or two while watching the animals tear each other apart. Just remember to have someone mop up the bloodstains and haul the corpses of the fallen. As with melee blocking in general, even non-Release-trained animals can be used for defense by confining them to a single tile zone at the exit of your killbox, causing them to both body-block and attack any hostile animals that try to enter through it while your colonists shoot at them.

=== Hit-and-run ===

A slower strategy is to draft a colonist, place it in a door to shoot a maddened animal, move the colonist back to safety and wait until the animal gives up and wanders off, then repeat. Be careful since this will draw the attention of surrounding maddened animals making them attack the door where the colonist came from, so be ready to repair it immediately. 
You can either kill them directly or wait for blood loss to take its toll. Larger animals can be softened this way before you move in for the kill.

This method is best used if you don't have enough firepower to take on them directly, and you have durable enough doors or a good builder to hold against animal attacks.

=== Kiting ===

Being unsophisticated in their tactics, they can be lured easily.

If you have good shooters that are fast (moving >140%), you can easily kite the faster animals. 
The larger animals are usually slower and any colonist that has normal Moving will do fine against them, though it's still better with a faster-than-average colonist.

It is possible to combine this with a long-range firing squad and turrets laying fire from a distance while they are chasing the colonist; be sure that the animals do not lose track of your kiters, otherwise they will switch targets and go for somebody else.

=== Turrets ===

Turrets can distract manhunters for your colonists, giving them more time to shoot while enemies are occupied by the turret. They may explode when destroyed, taking out a sizeable group of animals who won't run away from exploding turrets, switching to another target only after the turret is no more.

=== Waiting it out ===

If you have a perimeter wall or a superstructure base with decent food stocks, you can simply wait it out inside while they relentlessly swarm outside the walls.

Remember not to let anyone outside unless your intent is to kill the animals. Be careful with your tamed animals who may accidentally let the manhunters in by holding doors open for them.

They will actively attack doors if a colonist hides behind them; as a precaution, build it out of a sturdier material such as [[plasteel]] so they don't get destroyed during a manhunter attack. They will give up after a while if the doors are not destroyed. Alternatively, simply have a builder build a wall behind the door, totally preventing manhunters from entering even if they break the door.

=== Scavenging dead animals ===

Manhunter packs are a decent source of [[meat]] for your colony. If there are still maddened animals, wait until the other animals from the pack go to sleep, walk away far enough, or get a fast colonist to try and haul the dead ones away. Note that animals with [[Scaria]] from the manhunter pack events have a high chance of instantly rotting on death and thus being unharvestable for meat or fur/hide.

= Mechanoids =
{{stub|reason=Needs new Mechanoid types and Mechanoid cluster events from Biotech and Royalty}}

Mechanoids come in 4 types: [[Scyther]]s, [[Lancer]]s (1.0), [[Centipede]]s, and [[Pikeman|Pikemen]] (1.1). They have much differing stats and weapons, meaning different tactics may be used. All types are armored to some degree, and are basically immune to fire damage.

In many raids where they come/drop in at the edges, the Scythers will outrun the Centipedes by a great margin, giving some time to deal with them before the centipedes. However, they can and will support one another effectively, if given the chance for them to come together.

Unlike human raiders, they do not flee, meaning that all of them have to be taken out to neutralize the threat. They do not actively use cover, either.

=== General strategy ===

Ranged mechanoids have a long attack range (at least 27 tiles), making them troublesome to deal with. A way to deal with this is to [[#Luring in|lure them into close range]].

They are vulnerable to EMP damage, which can stun them, rendering them hunks of helpless metal. This can open a window of opportunity where you safely engage at close range, or even with melee. After each use of EMP, mechanoids will adapt to it, becoming immune to further stuns for a short while, so you will need to carefully time assaults and disengage when the mechanoids are about to reactivate.

=== Scythers ===

[[{{Q|Scyther|Image}}||100px|right]]

Scythers are deadly with melee, and will charge head first at your defenders. They can easily win in a 1v1 fight unless your fighters are heavily armored and have high DPS.

The optimal method of dispatching them is by [[#Melee blocking|melee blocking]], with the added effect of luring the other mechanoids closer to your base. This must be done quickly otherwise the centipedes will catch up and unleash hell on your colonists who are closely packed together in a melee blocking attack.

EMP weaponry combined with melee blocking is a frighteningly effective and safe way to deal with scyther-only charges. A stunned scyther standing in the chokepoint will block all the other scythers standing behind. To prevent adaptation, only stun the mechanoids within the chokepoint.

If fighting from a distance, high-damage weapons are essential to bursting them down before they reach your colonists. Make sure you always have someone to [[#Peeling|peel]] them off your gunners in case they do survive your barrage.

=== Lancers ===

[[{{Q|Lancer|Image}}||100px|right]]

Lancers are capable of medium-long range supporting fire to pick out single targets. Despite their apparent role, their performance is actually better the closer you are to them, meaning that approaching them isn't a good option.

They are vulnerable in melee combat, so melee rushing supported by close-range firepower can be used to take them down. Their low health makes taking them down relatively quick despite their light armor, though their damage in melee combat should not be underestimated, and concentrated fire from charge lances can make short work of shields.

If fighting from a distance, cover is vital in getting the upper hand. You need to be able to get your other gunners into range while giving them reasonable cover from the high damage shots. Lancers aren't particularly good shooters (equivalent to a level 8 shooter), so you may readily outperform them with sufficient mid-long ranged firepower.

=== Centipedes ===

[[{{Q|Centipede|Image}}||100px|right]]

Centipedes, on the other hand, specialize in crowd control and area denial; the [[Heavy charge blaster]] can annihilate groups of colonists, while the [[Inferno cannon]] sets your colonists ablaze and will burn down your base if you're not careful. They are incredibly durable, sporting thick armor and high health, and can take many hits before being downed.

Spreading colonists apart can mitigate the crowd-control capabilities of centipedes, limiting the number of colonists hit by their weapons.

The Inferno cannon is annoying to deal with and should be your priority target. Keep watch on your colonists at all times and always send them back into cover after they get hit.

Despite their high resistance against sharp damage, shooting them is generally the best option. One good thing is that their large size makes them much easier to hit.

Engaging it in melee is possible, though you have to be careful. While centipedes don't hit hard in melee, if they are carrying the heavy charge blaster, they can deal massive damage to grouped up brawlers, while inferno cannon can cause the brawlers to ignite and run, allowing the previously locked down centipedes to fire. Ideally, all nearby centipedes must either be engaged in melee or disabled to prevent this from happening.

Their slow speed and weaker blunt armor make them excellent targets for high-explosive mortar attacks. Often you can land a couple of blows before they reach firing range, weakening them. This property also allows you to kite them provided they have no lancers or scythers supporting them.

=== Pikemen ===

[[{{Q|Pikeman|Image}}||100px|right]]

Introduced in 1.1, pikemen take over the lancer's role as snipers. Their extreme range is only matched by the [[sniper rifle]].

They have poor damage output, making them less threatening compared to other mechanoids. Their accuracy is also not appropriate for a sniping mech- equivalent to a level 8 shooter, it will more often than not miss at range.

As the description says, engaging pikemen at close range can be a viable way to take them down, once all others have been dealt with. Charging them can be risky due to the long distance pawns need to travel, but shield belts make the charge much safer, especially when you have multiple brawlers charging at once to divert concentrated fire. Swarming them with trained animals is also a viable strategy if you lack multiple skilled melee pawns or need them elsewhere.

=== Termites ===
[[{{Q|Termite|Image}}||100px|right]]

Spawning only in mechanoid breach raids, the [[termite]] is a dedicated anti-structure opponent. The termite's [[thump cannon]] can deal tremendous damage to your structures, and are able to destroy a three tile wide section of any [[wall]] weaker than [[plasteel]] in three shots or less. Against pawns, however, it is significantly less effective with lower damage, {{AP}}, and {{DPS}} than even the lowly [[short bow]].

Since they are so specialized in breaching walls, they cannot deal much damage to your pawns. However, killing them should be prioritized after [[scyther]]s, since they will destroy your pawn's [[cover]], exposing your pawns to danger from the termites much more directly dangerous companions.

=== Crashed ships ===

Mechanoids are also part of crashed ship events. In 1.1 they drop alongside the ship in pods, while in 1.0 or earlier they swarm out when the ship is damaged.

The type and where it lands are both important factors to consider when dealing with them.

Psychic parts will reduce mood and occasionally drive nearby animals mad, while defoliator parts (aka. poison ship parts in 1.0) will kill nearby plants and cause serious losses to pastures or crops. You cannot deconstruct the part, only destroy it.

Since they won't attack until triggered, you have some time to prepare. However, the longer you take, the worse it gets. If the defoliator ship part lands on the opposite side of your base at a map border, it is possible to leave it there, as they will also react to incoming raids and you may as well solve two problems at once. Not the same for the psychic version though.

If they land between your plantations, you will need to place firefoam poppers and trigger them before combat to prevent fires; the foam will persist until it rains, but then if it is rainy, you won't need the poppers. You may also want to keep a few untriggered poppers nearby to rapidly extinguish a group of burning colonists at once.

[[File:Crashed ship part using foam poppers.png|center|500px]]

==== Defense behavior ====

Mechanoids are triggered immediately when the part is damaged, or something is built within a three-tile radius. They may also be triggered by the Firefoam popper explosion.

Upon triggering, scythers will immediately charge to attack, while lancers, centipedes and pikemen may instead sit in place and attempt to shoot interlopers, only moving to get within range.

Afterwards, they will guard the ship part, engaging any hostiles that come close, and chasing them over short distances. They will return to the part if targets stray too far away from the ship.

In 1.0 mechanoids chased targets over long distances and abandoned the ship part when it is at 50% health.

==== Long-range engagement ====

In the current version, it is better to trigger the mechanoids from a distance, rather than fighting way up close. This is necessary such that you can weaken the scythers with concentrated fire before they reach melee engagement range, as well as give you more time to defeat the lancers before the centipedes move within range. Scythers are especially dangerous as they come in swarms and can quickly overwhelm your gunners, as well as overpower your melee brawlers unless you outnumber or outarm them.

You can trigger the mechanoids either by high-explosive mortar fire, or sniping the ship part.
*By attacking with sniper rifles at maximum range you will gain a good enough lead against the mechs to be able to escape safely even without enhancements unless armor is over-encumbering your colonists.
*Mortar volleys can soften the mechanoids, making them easier to defeat by your colonists afterwards. Mortars may also destroy the ship part itself, which both ends the threat and prevents the mechanoids from disengaging from an attack and returning to guard it (though this can be either good or bad depending on the state of your defenses).
*In 1.1 you can also use EMP to stun them before engaging, then retreat before they exit stun, which is 25 seconds after being hit by EMP.

==== Weapons ====

High-DPS weapons are optimal at destroying both the ship part and its defending mechanoids.

Due to the mechanoids spawning very close together, area of effect or crowd control weapons are punishing against them:
*The [[minigun]] is a powerful weapon here:
**It can make short work of the bunched-up mechanoids, then shred the ship part using its unparalleled raw DPS.
**Its already high DPS is further amplified when attacking centipedes as their large size makes it easier to land shots.
**Its long range allows you to attack from a safer distance.
*EMP mortar blasts are able to stun a large number of mechanoids caught in its blast. As the ship part blocks EMP pulses, fire several at once to hit all enemies with a single volley.
*Explosive weapons are useful for dealing damage, but keep in mind that the ship part will block the explosion. They do extra damage to the ship part.

Incendiary weapons are a poor choice for any situation involving mechanoids or crashed ships, given that both are non-flammable.

The [[orbital power beam targeter]] is the ultimate weapon against crashed ships. All you need to do is to aim the beam directly on the ship, and the beam will melt both the ship and its surrounding mechanoids.

==== Construction ====

{{main|Defense structures#Crashed ships}}

Construction is an important part of defeating the mechanoids in a crashed ship. Usually it is best if you can prepare ample cover, such as sandbags or walls, to shoot from.

Keep note that building within a three-tile distance will instantly trigger the mechanoids.

If done properly, [[IED trap]]s can be used to weaken a mechanoid swarm. Don't build too many or you will vaporize the mechanoid corpses, which can be deconstructed for resources.

==== Luring in ====

If you already have ample static defenses, like killboxes, and you want to lure the mechanoids in, you will need to make the mechanoids abandon the ship by destroying it from a long distance.

Previously in 1.0, you can lure the mechanoids simply by triggering at range.

==== Hit-and-run (1.1) ====

Their behavior change in 1.1 makes them vulnerable to hit-and-run tactics. After taking care of the scythers, you are able to chip away at the mechanoids slowly by shooting with sniper rifles at maximum range. If all pikemen are taken out then you are able to safely engage without fear of returning fire.

==== Zoning animals ====

When dealing with a crashed psychic ship part that has been there for some time, do not let any of your tamed animals near it, for the ship part can drive them into manhunter mode. This is additionally harmful as they are capable of opening doors to attack your colonists.

=== Mechanoid breach raids ===
Mechanoid of the breach raids will not ever walk through the kill box as you wanted them to, instead they will blast walls down and head straight for your base. Their path is usually aimed for the colonists' beds and most valuable destructible items such as expensive furniture, workshops, dining/recreational rooms etc. until your colony is completely destroyed or the mechs get killed.

It is recommended to have double outer walls around your base, empty space about 10-15 cells wide and the actual layer of inner defense like "wall, barricade, wall, barricade..." inside, when the mechs break in you can use EMP, melee rush tactic, bait and kite them in this "killzone" area with long ranged guns: Bolf-action riffles or/and Assault riffles. Never fight them in open field, they will outrange you!

It is worth considering the use of a [[Psychic shock lance|psychic shock]] or [[Psychic insanity lance|insanity lance]] to take down the [[termite]] from far away, as there will only be up to two termites per raid. Losing the use of the specialized anti-structure [[thump cannon]] will significantly delay the raid, as they will instead be forced to destroy walls in their path with their more traditional weaponry. This gives you time to prepare a defense behind that section of wall.

Typically this raid strategy will result in the mechanoids clumping up, giving a prime target for [[EMP grenades]] or a [[triple rocket launcher]], hopefully to devastating effect. Note the mechs will not attack colonists unless they come into the range of the mechanoid's gun. The long range of the triple rocket launcher is beneficial here, only putting the wielder in range of the [[pikeman|pikemen's]] needle gun.

= Infestations =

[[Infestation]]s will spawn under Overhead Mountains within 30 tiles of a colony [[structure]]. They can be a serious hazard in mountain bases due to the lack of free space to run away from with too many obstacles on the path, but not so much threat in open area (flat) maps. [[Insectoids]] are lightly armored, exclusively use melee and are slower than colonists. This gives them some protection against close range attacks, but leaves them vulnerable to ranged attacks and kiting tactics.

[[File:Infestation within mountain rooms bugs.png|400px]]

'''If you don't destroy them fast enough, they can reproduce, giving rise to even more hives and insects'''. This is especially true if you happen to have forgotten about a [[hive]], which given time can build itself into a giant mega-hive.

=== Behavior ===

Insects have a hive mindset; they will remain tending to their hive cluster, until they see an intruder, in which case they begin to engage all at once. They may also attack random furniture and structures in your colony.

Keep in mind, if the raiders, friendlies, visitors, caravans or your own colonists heavily or even slightly injured some of the bugs, (i.e. made them bleed, not just kill), the injured insect will happen to die to blood loss or starvation due to immobility, then the entire hive gets angered and will rush toward your colony! However, they appear to have a certain anger-mood-delay about 10-25 seconds, after which they will stop and go back to their nests.

=== Fighting infestations ===

The enclosed nature of mountain bases give colonists little distance to shoot from; thus, you may want some melee fighters to pair up with any ranged colonists.

Individual fighters will quickly get overwhelmed by the insects especially against large [[megaspider]]s, so you shouldn't trickle your defensive forces in; rather, send them all at once to overpower the insects.

=== Melee blocking ===

If there is a single choke point for the insects to get into your base (usually a door leading to a corridor), usage of this tactic allows you to defeat insects efficiently. You may even stand a chance against massive infestations if for some reason fire isn't viable, but don't get cocky. If the infestation is large you will need to bring backup tanks to replace the initial melee blocker if he or she gets downed or heavily injured.

Choke points can arise on their own from insects digging out; simply wait for them to tunnel through and massacre them once they exit.

This tactic is only viable if you have enough soldiers with ''substantial'' armor as insects inflict heavy sharp damage and will obliterate everybody not sufficiently protected.

=== Using fire ===

Fire is an effective way to clear early-mid stage infestations. If they spawn in an enclosed area with a door and plenty of flammables, all you need to do is to toss a molotov or shoot an [[incendiary launcher]] bolt into the room. The room will quickly catch fire, causing the temperature to rise fast, roasting the insects in it along with the hives.

The downside of this approach is that it makes it impossible to farm any insect meat or jelly from the infestation, because it will all burn, and it is usually too hot inside the spawn room to manually extinguish the fires to save the goods (unless there is a way to quickly vent the heat, which is usually not feasible to set up).

If there is a dedicated place in your base for infestations to spawn (see ''baiting'' below), it helps to have a few cheap wooden furniture items in that room, and maybe a few tiles of wooden floor. A great source of additional flammable material are tainted clothing items and desiccated animal bodies. Dusters and parkas have a lot of hitpoints, so they burn longer. These items are easy to get into the burn room simply by creating a stockpile with appropriate settings. A 3x3 stockpile should be more than enough to create enough heat to clear out any infestation. The fire created will usually last several hours, which is more than enough time to kill everything in the spawn room.

Separating the actual spawn room from the burn room with a wooden door makes it very easy for your colonists to start the fire without the insects attacking. The heat will spread into the spawn room regardless (and burn the wooden door).

Having a few flammable structures, such as cheap furniture) in the room is important, because the insects are stupid enough to attack these first when enraged from the fire, wasting time — instead of digging out of this trap.

It is possible to reach the temperature maximum of 2000 degrees celsius this way. Check the temperature in the spawn room before stepping in with any colonists, because they will very quickly collapse from heat stroke and possibly catch fire and die at these ludicrous temperatures.

The insects will rush for the exit of the burn room in a panic when they realize what is happening to them, and will quickly attempt to dig out to escape, so make sure the exit door is made of rock which is durable and nonflammable.

If there aren't any flammables around, you can still shoot the hives with fire weaponry. They will light aflame, along with the fuel puddles created on the ground.

As any items inside the room are likely to catch fire and be destroyed, this tactic is not recommended in a place with many valuables such as warehouses. Also be careful with the heat spreading to nearby rooms.

==== Heat stroke ====
By using a colonist to manually throw molotovs at the ground, either inside the bug room itself or in an adjacent room with an open doorway, you can maintain the temperature of the insect room between 150C and 200C, slowly knocking them unconscious and killing through heatstroke. As long as the temperature does not rise above 200C, the bugs will not get burn injuries, and therefore will not become aggressive. Have your colonist throw the molotovs through an open doorway in order to protect the colonist from the heat. When doing this, take care not to hit anything directly with the molotovs, as the fires created will anger the insects and set flammable objects on fire.

It is important to note when doing this to make sure that all bugs are significantly above the serious heat stroke threshhold (60%) before you move in, otherwise the temperature will start falling when you stop throwing molotovs and they may recover and attack your colonists.

=== Explosives ===

Explosives are useful against large infestations. The [[Triple rocket launcher]] can raze infestations instantly. A single use [[Doomsday rocket launcher]] will deal massive damage over a large area. [[Frag grenades]] are unlimited and work well if you have the courage to send someone to close range. One blast can get several insects. 
Explosive animals ([[boomalope]]s or [[boomrat]]s) are also effective at clearing out infestations. Have them march straight into the hive by zoning them there. When the insects attack, the animals will be injured and explode, setting the insects and hives on fire.

Mortars are useless against the hives themselves as they can't hit anything below an overhead mountain. However they are an option when fighting the insects in open space, with the explosions capable of severely injuring the insects, taking out the smaller ones in 1-2 hits.

=== Late-stage infestations ===

<gallery widths="500px" heights="400px" class="center" mode="nolines">
File:Infestation_ancient_shrine.png
</gallery>

If you've accidentally left a hive or two behind or totally ignored an infestation, after a few seasons you will have a giant hive community sprawling. This is '''extremely''' hard to treat, especially if you're low on colonists.

If you're still on early-midgame, it's generally recommended that you pack up and run. If not, however, you will have to deal with them slowly. You need to lure the insects out, then defeat them to buy time for others to enter and destroy the hives. Kiting is a possibility due to their slower speeds, provided they continue to chase down your colonists.

Explosives are recommended as they deal immense damage to the closely packed hives and insects. This is especially so with the doomsday rocket launcher, which can set entire infestations on fire, destroying the hives and severely weakening the insects.

=== Prevention ===

If you only have a few tiles of Overhead Mountain then it's best that you fill it up with walls to prevent any infestations from happening. If you are in a mountain base, then you will need to do more than that.

==== Baiting ====

You can mine out rooms a distance away from your colony to somehow control insects to nest there, instead of letting them spawn right in the middle of your base. Place some cheap flammable furniture inside to confuse the insects into thinking it's a prospective nesting spot, as well as to light on fire for a quick solution to an infestation problem. You may even use wooden walls or columns, which in a large enough room will cause a roof collapse and crush insects after being destroyed.

A well-lit base discourages insects from nesting, though it can still happen. If you bait insects to spawn elsewhere the chance of an infestation spawning inside is greatly reduced.

If you want the insect trap to automatically kill insects, put an [[IED incendiary trap]] inside the room, next to the flammables. Once an infestation spawns the insects will trigger the trap, lighting the room on fire and broiling the insects.

Alternatively, fill it with spike traps to weaken them before they strike your base, giving you the advantage. Doing this preserves the hives, which can be good if you want to farm insect jelly.

==== Deep freezing ====

An interesting way to completely prevent infestations is to simply set your base temperature below -17°C with coolers, and have everyone in the colony wear [[parka]]s.

This means that the 'Slept in the cold' debuff will be prevalent in the colony, however, so you will need something to offset the mood. It will also incur a work speed penalty on all production facilities due to low temperature, making this strategy not very viable on all but the lowest difficulties (where infestations are not a big threat in any case).

=== Deep drill infestations ===

Deep drills can unearth insect hives, which will result in enraged insects charging up to attack after a while.

When you see this happen, gather up your defense forces to fight the incoming insects. Have them approach your base where you can melee block them while evacuating other colonists so the insects don't go for them first. Nearby pets or other tamed animals will also be attacked; you can either evacuate them beforehand to reduce losses and ensure a successful melee blocking attack, or use them as bait to grab the insects' attention while your colonists lay fire on them.

Note that if you have a deep drill near the walls of a room it is possible for the insects to spawn outside the room.

= Prison breaks =
If you have prisoners (or potential colonists or hats) on hand, always expect them to break out any time. This is more so if you have many of them, each one ready to incite a riot whenever the guards aren't looking.

Escaping prisoners can open any colony door, and will snatch weapons whenever they see one.

=== Strategy ===
You should [[#body block|body block the prisoners]] with armored wardens carrying blunt weapons, or melee attacks with guns. They will fight and down the prisoners while blocking their exit, buying time for reinforcements.

Against already injured yet unarmed prisoners, send 1 brawler per prisoner to minimize the risk of beating them to death. 
For those at full health, 2 unarmed wardens or 1 skilled one can tackle a full-health unarmed prisoner without the wardens being downed in most cases.

Ranged wardens should attack when the prisoners are blocked by melee wardens so they can attack from a distance without much danger, and their weapons won't land in the enemy hands so easily. Don't fire too much at them as you risk permanent damage as well as accidentally killing the prisoner.

=== Weapons ===
You goal here isn't to kill the prisoners, it's to down them so you can recapture them.

*Blunt melee weapons such as the [[mace]] is a good choice for wardens to down escapees. The wounds don't bleed (unless you crush an internal organ or destroy a part entirely), nor will they be infected, giving them higher survival chances overall.
*At a distance, use low-moderate DPS weapons that won't deal too much damage to the prisoners, or to your people when the prisoners pick them up.
*Don't use high damage per hit weapons such as [[sniper rifle]]s or [[longsword]]s, as you risk instantly killing them or destroying an important part.

=== Turrets ===

Mini-turrets can be used as a form of distraction and supplementary firepower against prison breaks. Station them outside the prison doors, and they will fire on the escapees. They deliver decent firepower at short ranges, and leave no usable weapons on destruction. Prisoners also tend to stop to fight the turrets, giving wardens time to reach them.

1-3 are enough for most prisons. Don't put too many otherwise they may kill the prisoners before you can intervene.

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Topic:Zcjlhihfni4ku2pw

2026-04-22T06:26:21Z

Wood (talk | contribs) commented on "How do I upload images?" (I want to add a few new tactics and killboxes for 1.6, i can't even access the gallery. I'm not an Autoconfirmed user?)