Cannon

### Pros

High guaranteed damage, with a sizeable splash radius. Good accuracy. Moderate firing cost among heavy weapons. High HP.

### Cons

Projectile travels in an arc, making it difficult to aim. Causes a devastating explosion upon being destroyed. Projectile can be intercepted by the Firebeam.

The **Cannon** is a heavy artillery weapon unlocked by the Munitions Plant.

### Overview

An iconic and well-rounded weapon, the Cannon is an artillery emplacement lobbing artillery shells at the opponent. The projectiles fired by the weapon are characterized by their high penetrative force and heavy splash damage. While there are more damaging weapons available, the Cannon stands out with its versatility, a good cost to damage ratio, and its ability to deal nearly guaranteed damage.

The projectile fired by the Cannon cannot be intercepted by anti-air, and unlike the Plasma Laser for example, the damage from the Cannon cannot be easily mitigated, short of sophisticated defense measures, such as return to sender Portals, Armourdillo's Energy Shields, or Firebeams to burn the shell out.

A Cannon shot will deal 700 direct damage as well as an additional 40 splash damage within a rather large radius of 230 units. This makes one cannon shell able to destroy either 4 wood bracing (150hp) or 1 Armour/Armoured Door (400hp), leaving a second layer of Armour at a quarter of its hitpoints if present.

The exceptionally high penetrative power of the Cannon shells makes it difficult to protect the devices inside the fort from taking splash damage, unless covered with solid defense.

The shell fired by a Cannon travel along a parabolic trajectory, as the projectile is affected by gravity, similar to the 20mm Cannon. The accuracy - while decent - is affected by the not insignificant deviation of the shots.

In an emergency, a Cannon shot can be used to knock some threatening projectiles out of the air, such as incoming Howitzer shells, as the rounds fired by the weapon will collide with destructible projectiles and explode.

The Cannon is very durable. At 300 HP, it stands at the average among heavy weapons, and requires 3 Sniper shots to be destroyed. Despite its large HP, caution must be taken with the placement of a Cannon, as when destroyed it will cause a violent explosion, dealing heavy damage to everything nearby.

### Strategies

The Cannon is perhaps the most straightforward weapon in the game to employ. It is one of the few weapons in the game capable of dealing nearly guaranteed damage to the opponent, as unlike the vast majority of other weapons, the attacks with the Cannon are nearly impossible to deflect or fully neutralize. As such, making an effective use of the weapon typically doesn't involve anything more sophisticated than just pummeling the opponent with a constant volley of Cannon fire.

One of the greatest strengths of the Cannon is the significant pressure it puts on the opponent's economy. The explosion from the Cannon shells deals heavy damage to everything around the spot it hits, forcing the opponent to spend resources on covering the high repair costs after every impact.

Consequentially, while using the Cannon, it is important to keep the fire rate at a maximum - an ample supply of power from an adequate number of Wind Turbines or Smokestacks is crucial. Assuming the weapon is fired immediately upon reload, the Cannon uses 115 energy per second; this means either 3 maximum efficiency Wind Turbines or two max efficiency Smokestacks are required to maintain the energy upkeep to fire.

Expensive targets - such as Energy Shields protecting the Wind Turbines, weapon Doors, or economy buildings - must be prioritized to maximize the heavy repair costs. Done well, a continuous Cannon barrage can bleed the opponent out of resources and render them unable to retaliate. For this reason, the Cannon favors the commanders with a playstyle that supports a battle of attrition, either by boosting their own economy advantage, or aggravating the opponent's losses.

Cannons pair well with the Howitzer, in a similar fashion to the Plasma/Firebeam combo. The latter deals massive area damage to the structure it hits, allowing a devastating follow-up with the Cannon, often ending the game in one fell swoop when executed correctly.

When faced with an opponent who is using a Howitzer, it is worth considering to keep at least one Cannon off cooldown and ready to fire at all times, as should the anti-air defense fail, the incoming Howitzer shell can be easily shot down with a Cannon shot.

### Counters

While Cannons shine with their versatility, their use relies heavily on having the opponent outgunned. In the later stages of the game, a single Cannon is unlikely to swing the match, short of a doorsnipe, or a critical hit on a vulnerable spot. As long as the opponent has an upper hand in arms and economy, an assault from cannons can be managed.

In particular, heavy woodspam in front of the base can absorb the damage from the cannon shells quite effectively, preventing it from reaching the vulnerable innards of the base.

Return to sender Portals offer an impenetrable defense against cannons when placed around vulnerable spots, although one should be wary of their high energy consumption, as well as vulnerability to EMP rockets and Swarm Missiles.

A Firebeam is capable of burning Cannon shots out in midair. A skillful use of the weapon can block incoming Cannon shots reliably.

### Notes

* Before Tons of Guns DLC was introduced, the Cannon was unlocked by the Factory, as the Munitions Plant was not present. The weapon also had the same white-and-blue stripe like the Plasma Laser, matching the color of the technology building. This behavior can be restored by disabling Tons of Guns, and is still present in the Black Gold campaign, as it lacks the additions from the DLC and mostly retains the state of the game at the release.
* Cannons, along with 20mm Cannons, are a typical choice for Accelerators, due to their high penetration, splash, and capability to break Energy Shields. By stacking many cannon shells in an accelerator, an enemy fort can be easily destroyed in one barrage.