Desolator (Red Alert 2)

The Desolator is a heavy Soviet anti-surface elite infantry unit in Command & Conquer: Red Alert 2 and Yuri's Revenge, and is only available to Iraq as a country-specific unit.
== Official description ==
==Background==
In the Allied campaign, they were only encountered in the occupied St. Louis during Operation: Free Gateway, where they demonstrated their abilities on captive civilians. A few of them were also deployed during Operation: Fallout.
In the Soviet campaign of Red Alert 2, they became available during Operation: Desecration.
In the Soviet campaign of Yuri's Revenge, they became available during Operation: Romanov on the Run. They were also the only infantry unit apart from Cosmonauts capable of surviving on the Moon during To the Moon.
===Aftermath===
In the altered timeline, during The Uprising, a different Desolator design was more machine than man. Now with the ability to corrode armour, a small group could take on any threat on the battlefield.
==Game unit==
The Desolator was a fearsome unit that served as Iraqi commanders' anti-infantry trooper. Unlike those that could be said to be its Allied and Yuri counterparts, which could be said to place greater emphasis on tactical range, the Desolator's skill lies in indiscriminate destruction, and will quite literally ruin the entire battlefield in the name of victory.
Desolators were armed with a powerful Rad-cannon which shot beams of radiation at its targets. This beam was highly effective against infantry, often killing most in one strike and leaving heavier ones surviving by a thread. 
They were also capable of "deploying", whereupon they would plunge their Rad-cannon into the ground and instantly irradiate a large portion of the ground around them. This radiation field dealt damage to both enemies and allies, and was capable of near-instantly obliterating all surface-operating infantry and could melt tanks to nothing with prolonged exposure. Their projected radiation also permeated bodies of water, and could damage ships and force submarines to briefly surface. Organic creatures, such as Allied dolphins (whom the game appears to consider as an infantry of sorts), were unlikely to survive such an attack unless evacuated from the area.
Due to this ability, in addition to the inherently dangerous nature of the weapon they wielded, all Desolators were immune to any type of radiation damage. This meant that opposing Desolators could not actually hurt each other, and that they were the infantry most likely to survive a nuclear blast and its subsequent fallout. Curiously, a veteran Desolator could survive a nuclear strike.
Desolators, however, were not perfect. Their main attack dealt unsatisfactory damage to most vehicles, and were highly unlikely to actually destroy any unless trained in a large group, attacked for extended periods of time, or if the target had extremely weak armor (such as the Allied Prism Tank). They flat-out were incapable of damaging structures, relegating them to a support role in attacks on enemy bases.
Additionally, their ground radiation ability damaged all units that operated within the field created by it, regardless of allegiance. Friendly infantry could accidentally be melted down to nothing in an instant with an accidental deployment. The field also fades with time, though it persists for a reasonable length and the Desolator automatically renews the field as long as he is still deployed. Some units were also completely immune to the effects of radiation; all miner-type units and a few others, like the Allied Robot Tank (Yuri's Revenge only) could pick off the immobilized Desolator with impunity (as Desolators are unable to move while deployed, and could not damage the offender in any way due to their aforementioned immunity to radiation). Their immobility while deployed meant that long-ranged antipersonnel specialists (i.e. British Snipers) could take them down without exposing themselves to the deadly radiation. Heavier vehicular units were also capable of temporarily ignoring the radiation, eliminate the Desolator, and retreat before it sustained too much damage.
Upgrading Desolators was sometimes a difficult endeavor; the Desolator could only earn promotions from kills directly caused by his Rad-cannon, and any kills by the radiation field he created were indirect and therefore did not count.
Like many other infantry units deployed in the conflict, Desolators could not damage aerial units. Their radiation field did not help this weakness, and the immobility conferred by the ability sometimes made them easier targets for less accurate aerial units.
=== Tactics ===
Desolators are often a useful tool to keep within a Soviet base, despite the relative danger of doing so.
Due to the respectably large area that they irradiate and their massive damage to infantry, they make effective counters to paratroopers. When deployed underneath where a squad of paratroopers is set to land, they can instantly eliminate each and every one of them before they have a chance to fire a single shot.
They also make an excellent deterrent against infantry-based rushes, include those involving the Allied Nighthawk transport. Their ground irradiation ability can kill any approaching or unloading infantry, and can often heavily damage the transport in question in the process. Situations involving transports and efficient anti-infantry units such as Allied Navy SEALs often requires finer timing, however; the SEALs are capable of killing the Desolator in one hit, and as such the Desolator should irradiate the zone before the SEALs are unloaded so as to immediately terminate any threat.
Curiously, the damage of multiple overlapping radiation fields stack. This mechanic can be "abused" by groups of Desolators deployed nearby each other and be used to melt down enemies with even greater efficiency. Do note, however, that this still does not make them much of a match for heavier units unless taken to impractical levels.
Desolators can be combined with captured Allied IFV's to make "poor man's demolition trucks" - essentially becoming a smaller version of the Libyan demolition truck's blast damage and radius, but which will result in radioactive fallout, damaging infantry that passes within (only in Yuri's Revenge; in Red Alert 2, he has an upgraded rad-cannon). The combination may still have other values as Desolator can still shoot on their primary mode only, even affecting IFV promotion tally from the kills. However destruction of IFV will still instantly kill any infantry inside, Desolator included. Allied commanders are normally wary to have their air support pick off slow moving Desolators before they can reach the heart of massed Allied infantry formations, but incredibly fast IFVs can quickly deliver a radioactive blast to their center.
Desolators can also be used to cripple Yuri's economy, as slaves are very vulnerable to radiation, and it takes time to have the irradiated ground returning to normal even after the Desolator is no longer operating on it. The radiation field is also large enough for the Desolator to avoid taking damage from the Slave Miner's machine gun while doing this.
===AI behavior===
Desolators controlled by the AI have the following attack patterns:
====All difficulties====
* 2x defending a Soviet battle lab
** Desolators controlled by the AI will never be ordered to deploy
==Changelog==
*Red Alert 2 patch 1.004: the Desolator will no longer continue to shoot the ground over and over and keep building up radiation.
==Quotes==
===When selected===
*Desolator ready.
*(heavy breathing)
*Ready for meltdown.
*Reactor ready!
*Mercury rising.
===When moving===
*Find a hot spot!
*Scorched earth!
*Spread the doom!
*There goes the neighborhood!
*It will be a silent spring.
===When ordered to attack===
*Tagged for extinction!
*Make it glow!
*Let's heat them up!
*Here comes the sun!
*The end is near!
*Let's make an oasis of death!
==Trivia==
* In Yuri's Revenge version 1.000, they can enter an Infantry Fighting Vehicle to make a "poor man's Demolition Truck". In vanilla Red Alert 2 and Yuri's Revenge version 1.001, the Desolator IFV fires the regular rad cannon instead.
* Originally, the unit was called Gamma Legion and used a shoulder-mounted Gamma cannon.
* While Desolators can be seen paradropping in the campaign, they do not have an appropriate frame, so they use a standing one.
** The Desolator was the only one of two infantry types authorized for the Soviets' extraterrestrial operations, such as their assault on Yuri's lunar headquarters.
*Along with the Chrono Legionnaire, they are the only infantrymen to appear on their respective faction's post-game statistics screen (Yuri's background is that of the Gatling cannons protecting his Alcatraz Island Psychic Dominator).
==Gallery==
Earlydesolator.jpg|Early concept art
RA2_Devastator_Concept_Mid.jpg|Concept art by TJ Frame
RA2_Desolator_concept_late.jpg|Final concept art
Desolator.jpg|Render in Soviet victory screen
RA2_Desolator_Render.png|Render
File:Desolator_animation.gif|SHP sprite
RA2_Desolator_Manual_Render.gif|Manual/website render
===Cameos===
English and German versions share the same cameos. 
Alpha cameo:
==See also==
* Sniper, Allied counterpart
* Virus, Yuri counterpart
==References==
Category:Red Alert 2 infantry