| Point Defenses | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tech 1 Point Defense |     | |||
| Tech 2 Point Defense |     | |||
| Tech 3 Heavy Point Defense |   | |||
 UEF T2 Point Defense: Triad | |
 | |
| Build costs |  -3600 -540 450 |
|---|---|
| Max health |  2250 |
Veterancy  |
 12 (+2/s) |
| Intel (radius) | Vision: 28 |
Weapon: Gauss Cannon Direct Fire - Projectile |
|
| Damage per second | 126 |
| Projectile damage | 70 |
| Damage radius | 2 |
| Salvo size | 3 Projectiles |
| Reload time | 1.7 seconds |
| Range | 50 |
 Cybran T2 Point Defense: Cerberus | |
 | |
| Build costs | -3400 -480 400 |
|---|---|
| Max health | 2000 |
Veterancy  |
12 (+2/s) |
| Intel (radius) | Vision: 28 |
Weapon: Particle Cannon Direct Fire - Beam |
|
| Damage per second | 81 |
| Beam damage | 18 (0.3s DoT) |
| Salvo size | 3 Beams |
| Rate of fire | 1.5 salvos/s |
| Range | 50 |
 Aeon T2 Point Defense: Oblivion | |
 | |
| Build costs | -3648 -528 480 |
|---|---|
| Max health | 2000 |
Veterancy  |
12 (+2/s) |
| Intel (radius) | Vision: 28 |
Weapon: Oblivion Cannon Direct Fire - Projectile |
|
| Damage per second | 150 |
| Projectile damage | 600 |
| Damage radius | 2 |
| Reload time | 4 seconds |
| Range | 50 |
 Seraphim T2 Point Defense: Uttaushala | |
 | |
| Build costs | -3648 -528 480 |
|---|---|
| Max health | 2100 |
Veterancy  |
12 (+2/s) |
| Intel (radius) | Vision: 28 |
Weapon: Ultrachromatic Beam Generator Direct Fire - Beam |
|
| Damage per second | 100 |
| Beam damage | 400 (0.8s DoT) |
| Reload time | 4 seconds |
| Range | 50 |
Each race has its own Tech 2 Point defense. They are strong immobile direct fire units that will engage units (land and surface-naval) within a large area. A T2 PD is a significant improvement over T1 PD, its little brother. The T2 edition boasts nearly twice the range, covering nearly four times the area, as well as generally some area effect damage at the price of only a modest increase in resource cost.
Tactics[]
The firing range is one of its key advantages. It is quite large compared to its vision, so most players will try to ensure there is radar coverage nearby for optimal efficiency (even a scout or T1 radar will suffice). It will outrange all T2 units except Mobile Missile Launchers (MML), allowing the structure to be placed safely away from enemy units and block these land units from assaulting it directly without heavy losses. That being said, walls are still key to ensuring that enemy units do not simply bypass the PD outside of its range.
Most T2 PD will often one-shot most T1 units, notably including the T1 mobile light artillery which outranges T1 PD. Along with the larger fire area, it is therefore a common strategy in competitive multiplayer to obtain an early T2 ACU Engineering suite in order to produce these structures in a forward location to gain map control. This engineering upgrade additionally allows production of T1PD in a mere 5 seconds. However, this can be quite a mass drain if the player does not already cover much of the map in mass extractors.
To construct a "Firebase" defensive location, place a couple of T2 point defenses, backed up by a shield, a couple of tactical missile defenses, some AA and a T1 Radar Installation. This combination of structures makes for a versatile defensive location that will stop most forces in its path, which can come in handy when you find yourself pushed back early in the game and need to hold a strategic choke point (e.g. in Fields of Isis). Bear in mind that T2 PD is outranged by T3 mobile heavy artillery however.
If the enemy has constructed some, MML units and TML structures are the main means of engaging enemy T2 PD, although bombers can be situationally useful against them too if the enemy has neglected AA. Note that if the enemy has T2 PD, they must have T2 engineers in general, which can make TML. So be cautious of enemy TML snipes at this point and retreat the ACU to a safe area (ie, behind blocking terrain or outside of range), or construct TMD as soon as possible.
Factional Differences[]
The Aeon T2 Point Defense has a very high single shot damage with a low rate of fire. This means that it has the same DPS as the Aeon T1 Point Defense, making it the T2 point defense with the highest DPS, although it does have a far greater range. This makes it ideal for killing larger targets, and a very poor choice for killing large amounts of smaller ones. The Aeon Point Defense has a blast radius.
The Seraphim T2 Point Defense mirrors the Aeon one in almost every way. It has more health, but no damage radius, but also does 33.3% less damage than the aeon one does, making it a lot less effective at battling more heavily armored units. As it's a beam, it does damage over time - causing it to act quite differently to a projectile - meaning that if it kills a unit before the Damage over Time (DoT) ends, it can move onto another one.
The UEF T2 Point Defense has a lower DPS than the T1 Point Defense (and so, lower than the Aeon and Seraphim T2 PDs), again with a longer range than the T1 PD, typically making it more effective. It fires a salvo of three shots, and has a damage radius - making it good at handling large numbers of units, unlike the Aeon, and generally better than the Seraphim T2 PDs. It has marginally more health than other T2 PDs.
The Cybran T2 Point Defense has a very low DPS for a T2 PD, but again, using a beam, with all of the pros and cons of it (continuous targeting, but with terrain getting in the way more easily). Typically, it is good for the early and mid game, but does not do enough damage to counter late-game units.