Unit | Quotes | Gallery | Changelog |
“ | They will remember! | ” |
—A Mastodon pilot while charging the railgun |
The Mastodon is the monster tank of the Last Bastion.
Official description[]
It is said that the Mastodon was the very first tank designed for the Foehn Revolt, shortly after it was formed. However, various photos exist taken by recon planes and spy sat cameras that confirm the presence of a very similar design in the Chinese bases, during the Russian invasion on their soil.
The Mastodon is quite likely the largest and the heaviest battle tank ever seen on the battlefield, which is not only noticeable by looking at its hull, but the turret as well. The turret itself takes a third of the tank's weight, and for a good reason: it is packed to the brim with top technology. Its main weapon is a massive plasma railgun, which after finding an enemy, needs to charge up for several seconds before unleashing its full power. The railgun's primary purpose is to eliminate the enemy tanks at great ranges, while the Mastodon draws most of their firepower on itself, allowing the others to fullfil their purpose effectively.
Hidden in the Mastodon's turret are also containers with emergency nanomachines, which will be released to repair the tank if it takes too much damage. Just like those of the Bison, these nanomachines are the most effective when the Mastodon is not moving. With the use of Nanocharge, the Mastodon will also be able to use those nanomachines to repair nearby vehicles in times of need.[1]
Overview[]
The Mastodon is the final answer to Last Bastion's strategy of withstanding against everything their enemies can send at them. It is the heaviest ground-based non-epic unit in the game, being able to withstand tremendous amounts of punishment while dishing out even more in retaliation with its gigantic plasma railgun that deals devastating damage against vehicles. Its massive pool of hit points, heavy armor, and the ability to perform rapid self-repairs like the Bison Tank while stationary makes this super heavy tank extremely formidable as a defensive unit against all but the most overwhelming vehicular offenses. With assistance from the Nanocharge support power, it can repair itself at an even faster rate while replenishing the vitality of fellow Foehn units that are in close proximity of this behemoth.
Despite it being a massive tank that knows no equal in size and armor, it is by far no means invincible and has many glaring weaknesses that can be exploited by a crafty enemy commander. For starters, the tank is very slow and should it ever come into a confrontation, withdrawing will likely not be a viable option. The plasma railgun, while dealing unfathomable damage against armored targets, takes some time to charge up before firing - during this process, the enemy can identify what the Mastodon is trying to fire at, meaning they can quickly either order their units to fall back outside of the mammoth tank's range or even charge straight at it, as the Mastodon has a minimum range of 3, although its large size, bigger than the Centurion Siege Crawler, allows it to crush vehicles when necessary.
Last Bastion commanders facing against Epsilon proselytes should be especially wary of the fact that Mastodons are very inviting targets for psychic mind control and hijacking. While the Mastodon can (usually) safely destroy Masterminds if deployed correctly, their primary weapons are not effective against infantry and structures - this means an Epsilon Adept or Elite can easily approach one and seize control of it.
Supplement them with Gharials for protection against anti-tank and mind-control infantry, as the Mastodon can and will fall against them if met with overwhelming numbers.
While their armor will hold out against most air strikes, they cannot do anything to respond to aerial threats. Use units such as Buzzards and Giantsbanes to protect them if resistance from the skies is to be expected.
All in all, the Mastodon is an unstoppable wall of armor that requires some careful thinking to use effectively. It is best suited for defensive work against assaults that are composed of heavy armor, as it is not exactly the most mobile unit in the game and its weapon does mediocre damage against anything that isn't a vehicle.
Weapon stages[]
The Mastodon uses a weapon cycle even though it only has a single offensive weapon. It always starts at the lock-on stage once it switches targets.
- Stage 1: Lasts until 90 frames (6 in-game seconds). In other words, this is the lock-on stage where an aiming reticule will be present on the Mastodon's target as the plasma railgun is charged.
- Stage 2: Lasts until 100 frames (6.7 in-game seconds). By the time Stage 1 ends, the Mastodon will fire its plasma railgun once then proceed to lock-on at Stage 3.
- Stage 3: Once it has reached 120 frames (8 in-game seconds), the cycle will repeat back to Stage 1.
AI behavior[]
All difficulties[]
- 2x targeting vehicles, accompanied by 3 Bison Tanks
Medium/Hard[]
- 1x guarding Shrike Nests or Railgun Towers, accompanied by 1 Gharial
- 2x targeting vehicles, accompanied by 1 Raccoon
- 4x targeting vehicles
- This task force may be accompanied by 2 Condors
Hard[]
- 2x targeting anything, accompanied by 2 Gharials
- If available, Chronoboost and Shadow Ring may be applied on this task force
Appearances[]
In the campaign Mastodons appear as prototypes bearing the Soviet unit color scheme. Their weapon as prototypes is a large-caliber gun similar to the Nuwa Cannon's nuclear cannon with similar damage and effects, but like its full-fledged version requires a short time to lock on and charge up its weapon before firing.
Act Two[]
- Four Mastodon prototypes bearing the Chinese unit color scheme briefly appear in Thread of Dread on the Foehn base at the start of the mission. They are not equipped with the plasma railguns as the technology has not been invented yet.
- Two Mastodon prototypes briefly appear in Machinehead at the start of the mission, escorting Yunru and the Centurion Siege Crawler.
Origins[]
- Mastodon prototypes appear as a part of the attacking force in Vanishing Point. Two more can be summoned via reinforcements.
- A pair of Mastodon prototypes are available to the main defending force in The Remnant, but are not buildable.
Assessment[]
Pros | Cons |
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Trivia[]
- Mastodons are an extinct species of elephants who lived in North and Central America until the Ice Age, which closely resembles modern elephants though not closely related to them.
- The Mastodon resembles the Mammoth Tank from the first Red Alert and the Railgun tank from the cancelled Command & Conquer (2013).
- In the game files, the Mastodon is referred to as "Prometheus".
- Prior to the release of version 3.3, a voiceline of the Mastodon is teased as early as 2014, as a "secret message".[2]
- The Mastodon, particularly its prototype version, seems to be inspired by the T-100 Ogre tank from EndWar. Fittingly enough, one of the callsigns for the T-100 is "Mastodon".
See also[]
Other Foehn monster tanks:
External links[]
- An official video that presents a sneak peek of the Mastodon.
- Official showcase of the Mastodon prior to official release of version 3.3, along with other units