Ballista

Ballista is described as “A mechanized energy ballista. Heavy, close-range artillery. Deals high damage with a quick discharge to a specific location. Very low mobility.” Its price is 400 minerals and 40 supply in demo build 23882143. The description gives a close-range artillery role and low mobility, but the archived configuration has no linked combat prefab. That leaves its weapon, protection and movement unverified. A price and a role are useful for identifying the unit; they cannot establish an effective firing distance or a safe firing position. Read the artillery pages as comparisons rather than importing another machine’s damage.

Earlier comparisons used combined health capacities of 1 050 for Host Corrupter and 2 750 for Big collector, with armour values of 33 and 15. Those are other machines, not evidence for Ballista. In build 23882143, its supply price is 40, while Arc Spear costs 600 minerals. These comparisons establish different costs and different evidence, not a strength ranking. Ballista’s description explains its intended role; the missing combat link does not explain whether the design changed or why the demo archive lacks that link.

The wording “close-range artillery” asks the player to think about getting an artillery piece into position. Low mobility makes an escort and an exit route sensible questions to investigate, but neither an obligatory escort nor an inability to retreat is established here. The configuration cannot supply a measured weapon range or firing cycle. Before treating Ballista as a siege solution, compare the described job with artillery whose attack and deployment settings are linked, then keep the missing Ballista measurements explicit.

The mistake is to turn missing combat data into an indestructible unit or a guaranteed counter. The known price is 400 minerals and 40 supply; the description identifies low mobility, but no linked protection or weapon lets us calculate a fight. The earlier reading dated 31 August 2026 was an archive review, not a battlefield measurement. Use the artillery comparisons to understand the proposed role, and leave pursuit distance, survival and counter damage unresolved until a playable test or a linked source supports them.