Meatmas Drones

Winter Wasteland introduced a new set of enemies, the **Drones**, each one based on an Encryption Node from Take and Hold. Each drone has a specific attack style and weakness, with each one being more difficult than the last. The drones fight alongside Junkbots, though it's possible for the Junkbots to be targeted in friendly-fire.

## Static Drones

Appear past Scom Tower 1. They are sound-reactive drones that will chase any sounds they hear, including gunshots from either the player or Junkbots, as well as explosions and reloading sounds (the loudness of the sound effects the range that the drone can hear the sound, ie it will hear gunshots from much farther away than reloads or mag drops). They will chase the source of the sound for a few meters before briefly pausing; if they get close enough to the source, they explode, which can potentially kill the player in a single blast. If you can hear the drone beeping, you are likely within its explosion radius. Their only weak point are the very small red triangles in the center, which will cause the drone to explode when hit. Drones can also be distracted by throwing objects like magazines, or explosions from grenades.

## Hardened Drones

Appear past Scom Tower 2. They are also sound-reactive, but they will open up and fire several laser shots at the source of the sound. Hardened drones tend to be hidden behind choke points and are totally invulnerable while they're in their passive state. To destroy a Hardened drone, you need to quickly fire at its core while it is open. Hardened drones are most likely to kill the player by shooting them from behind, as they tend to be place around corners where the player will simply walk past them. Listen for drone clicking noises to know if one is close by.

## Swarm Drones

Appear past Scom Tower 3. They fire missiles at you from a high vantage point. Unlike the previous drones, Swarm Drones target you if you're in their line of sight, not by sound. Like the other drones they can be destroyed by shooting the red weak spot, which also destroys all of the missiles, or you can simply break their line of sight (such as with using smoke grenades). Taking cover may not be effective as the missiles can fly in from a high angle.

## Recursive Drones

Appear past Scom Tower 6. They have multiple red prisms extending out from the core. Shoot the center of the red prisms when they flash to destroy the prism; destroy them all to kill the drone. Hitting the drone anywhere else will cause a prism to return. Note that the drone will only be vulnerable while it is shooting lasers. It is recommended that you use a high-caliber round to shoot the prisms.

## Stealth Drones

Appear past Scom Tower 6. They are near-invisible but will shimmer periodically and play sounds when nearby. Stealth drones will approach you if close enough and explode (though they don't do as much damage as the static drones). They can also teleport. To kill stealth drones, they have to collide with something while in chase mode.

## Agile Drones

Appear past Scom Tower 7; they are visible as far away as Tower 1, but the player will be outside their patrol range. They are airborne enemies with golden scanning beams to detect the player's presence. If it detects you, it will fire lasers rapidly on your position. Duck behind cover until the fire stops. They can be locked on with the Stinger MANPADS, which can be found in a weapon crate north of Scom Tower 7. Whatever weapon you use, they will evade your attacks if you hit it anywhere other than the back. This can be avoided by firing the Stinger from an angle, then having the drone lock onto you so that it remains stationary. Otherwise use a long-range weapon to hit it from behind, or use a machinegun to keep firing on the drone until you can land a hit on its back.

## Regenerative Drone

Appears towards the final area. To begin fighting the Regenerative drone, you need to unlock Bunker 24, and then press the button to decloak the Regenerative Drone. To fight the Regenerative drone, you need to kill the other drones that are connected to it so that the regenerative drone is open to attack, which will be similar to fighting a Recursive drone.

## Gallery

Static DroneHardened DroneSwarm DroneRecursive DroneStealth DroneAgile DroneRegenerative Drone