Seraphim T1 Combat Scout

Seraphim T1 Combat Scout:  Selen
Light, fast mobile reconnaissance unit. When stationary, deploys cloaking and stealth fields.[ e ]
Build costs	-80  -20 80
Max health	35
Speed	4 (Land)
Veterancy	2  (+1/s)
Intel (radius)	Stealth: Self Vision: 24 Radar: 35
Weapon: Phasic Autogun Direct Fire - Projectile
Damage per second	12
Projectile damage	4
Rate of fire	3 Projectiles/s
Range	16

The Seraphim T1 Combat Scout, nicknamed the Selen, is a Seraphim unit. It is a utility unit. The Selen has both stealth and cloaking capabilities when it stands completely still, rendering it immune to detection except from Omni sensor arrays. It can be used to set traps if used properly and if the enemy is the same tech as its opponent. The stealth and cloaking require no energy whatsoever, but just remember that these abilities disappear the moment the selen moves or attacks, until it stands completely still again.

It is important to remember that, despite its effective weapons, the Selen is a scout, not a light assault bot. At least three selens are required to take out any light assault bot, at about 1.5x the cost--selens are not effective for preventing rush attacks. They are best reserved for sneak/surprise attacks and traps, which they excel at.

Sneaky tip

If set to "Hold Fire" and parked directly on top of a mass extraction point, a Selen will block an enemy engineer from building a mass extractor there. This makes it even more important to send selens with the rest of your attack force...any opportunity you can take to block off a strategic build point, such as a mass deposit, divert your selens to block off that point before an engineer can build an extractor there. Note: If the enemy engineer performs an "attack move" across the mass extraction point, it will reclaim the invisible Selen and then will be able to build a Mass extractor if queued to do so.

Combat scout

In games of LAB Wars, the Selen is both a hindrance and a blessing. With its stealth and cloak, you could set up a hidden army outside of your enemy's ACU's omni range and destroy any expansions bases they attempt to make. However, the only way you will be able to defeat an opposing army is to outnumber it and hope there is no enemy ACU among them, unless you bring your own ACU along. Also, they cannot be loaded onto a transport to make a ghetto gunship.

In normal games, build selens to cut off mass extractors or prevent the construction of expansions. Use them like an undetectable scout until they are close to an ACU or omni, and always move them further along while your opponent is too busy to notice so you can gain more intelligence.

Rush attack

The Seraphim Selen doubles as both a scout and a light assault bot. As such, it does not perform extremely well as either. As a scout, it has a short radar-range than the average scout, and it is also slower. As a light assault bot, it does not fare well in combat against other light assault bots, nor can it be used in a ghetto gunship. But, it has the advantage that no other faction in the game has in terms of rushing--it can cloak and stealth when it is not moving.

Putting these advantages and disadvantages together, the Seraphim require a different strategy for games where you have to rush your opponent--especially ranked games. Here's the thing to keep in mind when you're planning rush attacks: Selens are very good at rushing. They are not good at preventing rush attacks, and if they run into another rush attack, they are toast. With that being said, this page is not meant to tell you how to rush with the Seraphim (especially since your enemies might be reading this page), but it is meant to give you some hints and some things to think about when planning your next game.

• As a rule of thumb, it takes three Selens to take out a light assault bot without intense micro-management--and this is by sending them all at once, not one at a time. Selens do have their own built-in radar and have a longer range than other light assault bots, but if you only let them "sit there" doing nothing, it takes more resources for you to prevent a rush attack with selens then it costs the other player to send out his rush attack--only by diverting your focus from more important things can you hope to prevent a rush attack using two Selens for every light assault bot. Plus, you must consider that if you send only 1 (or 2) at a time against even one light assault bot, you may have to spend more than 3 Selens to finish the bot off. On the other hand, a medium tank can take on two light assault bots for a cheaper total cost. If your goal is to prevent a rush attack, you should generally avoid sending Selens without a medium tank, or any other escort

• Because selens are cloaked and stealthed when not moving, they are very effective for setting traps and for delaying the enemies expansion (and, of course, just standing still and gathering intelligence information). Rather than searching for stray engineers, you can order your selens to cease fire (so they don't begin firing at the wrong time and reveal themselves in the process) until an engineer comes by, and then tell them to fire at the engineer. Also, you can order your selen to cease fire and keep it on strategic points, such as mass deposits, hydrocarbon deposits, and anywhere the enemy hopes to expand. An engineer will not be able to build on this area. In this case, you will have successfully delayed your opponent from expanding because the engineer cannot continue with the build orders received, with the Selen in the way.

The Selen.