NOTE: I'm using my own nicknames for these troop types, based on observations about their attacks and how sturdy or not they are. I may update these with "official" names if devs provide those at some point.

Weapon: Accurate but slow-firing, single-shot rifle. Although very little threat, don't ignore large groups of this troop type, or they will chip away your at your HP meter fast than you may expect.

Durability: Use your Chain Gun or Burst Gun to waste these quickly. They are generally not worth wasting missiles or exotic weaponry on, unless you're encountering a large group.


Weapon: Powerful energy beam rifle that damages you heavily if you're caught in it.

[b[Durability:[/b] As with Rocket Troop below, this jumbo-sized troop can absorb more gunfire than his smaller fellow troops. If you haven't otherwise damaged him, you might 3 Cluster Rocket shots to finish him off. Plasma weaponry can eliminate these larger troops faster.

Weapon: Single-shot launcher that fires a guided rocket once every couple of seconds.

Durability: This jumbo-sized troop can withstand more gunfire than his smaller brethren. You may also need 2-3 Cluster Rocket hits to eliminate this troop, depending on if you softened him up with some gunfire first or not. Plasma weapons can eliminate these larger troops faster.

Weapon: Long-barrel rifle that sprays 6 pink-color bullets, initially in a narrow stream, and that -- if it doesn't hit a target early -- spreads out into a wider cone that you may find difficult to avoid.

Durability: Not very durable, so you can splat this troop quickly with your Chain Gun or Burst Gun weapons.

If you encounter a group of them, you may want to waste them quickly with Cluster Rockets just so you don't have to deal with their pesky pink projectiles en masse.

Weapon:
This potent troop blasts a stream of 12 bullets -- either in a straight line at your helicopter or in a wide radius that's difficult to avoid.

Weapon: The Green Spinner Turret has four bullet-spinning barrels and tries to outwit you by constantly spinning and changing what 4 directions the bullets are spewing. Its bullets have tremendous range, and you often will be avoiding the bullets when you don't even see the turret on your monitor screen yet.

Recommended Tactics:
Either Rocket variant and Energy Beam will eliminate this turret type quickly, along with the Burst Gun if upgraded to armor-piercing. You don't want to waste too much time on these because then the turret barrel directions change, and you'll start taking damage. This turret is also a big distraction if you're dealing with other enemy units as well, so the quicker you eliminate it, the better.

NOTE: I've asked devs at forum if there's any difference between the green and red color Spinner Turrets, I can't tell from watching them in various gameplay videos.
Weapon: Fires salvos of 3-rockets at a time, fairly quickly. Retracts back into the ground when you've left the area.

Recommended Tactics

• The helicopter's energy beam weapon, which is devastating to armored enemies, can eliminate these launchers very quickly.
  
  
• Missiles are also very effective, but may need 2-3 strikes to finish them off.
  
  
• Even the fully upgraded gatling gun will need a few seconds, and you'll need to maneuever.
  
  
• If you've equipped the Aztech-Spirit Flares (works like chaff countermeasures), deploy it to ward off the missile salvos, if you're unable to eliminate this launcher quickly.

Weapon: Twin guns from this tank's revolving turret fire a steady stream of anti-aircraft projectiles at you.


Weapon: Double barrels appear to launch volleys of anti-aircraft missiles, judging from the flaming contrails left behind in their wake.

Description: These drones use a lengthy laser targeting beam to target you and the beam indicates the route it will take to rush towards you. Although the laser targeting beam will *not* damage you, you should take it as a warning that the ball drone is about to attack you.

These drones are submersible, so they may rise up quickly from the water as you fly over it.

Dev Insight

Originally posted by "megacoptergame  (developer)":

Recon drones create a 'disturbance' that enemies are attracted to in a large radius.

It also increases the reptoid threat level meter on seek and destroy missions each 'attack' (flash). There's a hint about this in the first mission they appear in as well.

Weapon (in this case, more of a debuff)
Recon Drones (sporting a large radar dish) cast a square red crosshair upon your your helicopter. According to the devs, this causes enemies from even offscreen to become alerted to your presenece, and rush towards you.

Note that the drones themselves have no weapons, and can't hurt you directly unless you crash into them.

Recommended Tactics[/b1]

• Use your main ship weapon gun/cannon in air-to-air firing mode to eliminate these drones.
  
• 
  
• In a pinch, you can also use your missiles in air-to-air mode. The guided cluster missiles might be most effective on multiple drones, used this way.

Weapon: This armed, constantly swerving jitterbug of a helicopter dogfighter is very hard to target, sporting dual small-caliber machine guns (I think).

Recommended Tactics:

• Guided Cluster Rockets are effective but you may need 2-3 hits to bring one down.
  
• If you can spare the Energy Beam weapon ammo, "dragging" the beam across the Black Color Helicopter will bring it down quickly.
  
• Chain Gun or Burst Gun are fine against it, but getting a manual "bead" on these constantly swerving enemy helicopters is challenging. To some extent you're trying to anticipate which direction the helicopter will swerve, so your gunfire hits it there. However, their movement patterns seem very unpredictable.

Weapons: Caterpillar Squadron zaps you with an electrical attack if you get too close. Otherwise, it seems like its main weapon is essentially to ram into you.
Recommended Tactics

• Cluster Rockets can destroy Caterpillar Squadron in one or two shots if you're able to lead the target a bit and not miss them with your rockets.
  
• Plasma Orb can devastate Caterpillar Squadron, but you have to hold fire button down long enough for a full charge, and it's difficult to line up the slow orb with the fast-moving Caterpillar.
  
• I find weapons like the Guns, regular Rockets and Energy Beam challenging to ever line up with this fast-moving enemy.

Description: Fearsome beast! With powerful twin-guns, this fast, highly maneuverable, heavily armored helicopter is one of the toughest in the game imho,. Extremely difficult to ever get behind for a shot at its tail, much less will you ever shake it off your own helicopter's tail.
Weapon: Sports two large-barrel weapons that fire salvos of about 8 powerful, large plasma projectiles.

Recommended Tactics

• After experimenting, what worked best for me was the Plasma Shot (even if it's not billed as anti-armor, it's high rate-of-fire works well for short strafing runs at the Gunship) in combination with the Az-Tech *Dodge* ability, which helps you quickly get out of the Gunship's attack volleys.
  
  
• Burst Gun with the anti-armor upgrade.
  
• Energy Beam, if you're able to sort of "intersect" the beam with the Gunship, which isn't easy.
  
• I found regular Rockets too difficult to use against an enemy this maneuverable, and the Cluster Rockets just don't have enough punch against its armor.