Mechanoid creation

For the enemy structure that creates mechanoids in the Royalty DLC, see Mech assembler.

With the release of the Biotech DLC, mechanoids may be built, gestated, and controlled by a colony - specifically, by a mechanitor.

Summary

Mechanitors are required to build, gestate, and control your own mechanoids. The amount depends on the mechanoid itself and the mechanitor's own bandwidth.

All mechanoids are immune to fire, toxicity, and temperature extremes, despite having a Comfortable Temperature. They are vulnerable to EMP attacks, being stunned by them. Mechanoids do not need to eat, sleep, and have no mood. However, they require power, and cause pollution in the process.

Player mechanoids will use 10% power per day when active: labor mechs doing work, or being awake at all for combat mechs. They can be commanded to enter dormant self-charging, which stops power drain, and recharges at an extremely slow rate (+1% power / day). They can instead be recharged at a mech recharger or large mech recharger, which quickly recharges them (+50% power / day), but creates pollution in the form of toxic wastepacks. The amount of waste is directly correlated to their bandwidth. This leads to a theoretical uptime of 83% - 5 days active, 1 day charging - but this decreases if mechs are idle.

Mechanoids can be repaired at the cost of their power, the rate dependent on which mech it is. This will restore otherwise permanent injuries. If killed, mechanoids can be ressurected at the cost of some size-dependent steel and gestation time, so long as some part of their corpse is intact

Mechs considered "light" use a regular mech recharger and mech gestator. Mechs considered "medium" or heavier use the large mech recharger and large mech gestator.

Behavior

Mechs are autonomous. They are assigned control groups, and the group recieves orders (Work, Escort, Recharge, Dormant). So long as the mechanitor is alive and has enough bandwidth, mechs will remain obedient and working. Mechs cannot be directly controlled or ordered unless drafted. However, they will respect zones (and won't stay outside of one). Mechs will continue to work if the mechanitor leaves their current map, but orders can't be changed.

When drafted, mechanoids act like any other drafted pawn, so are limited to combat actions and are under player control. However, mechanoids can only move and be given commands if their new position is within a 25 tile radius of their mechanitor. They will still defend themselves and continue any previous command, though. The mechanitor must not be downed or in a mental break in order to give orders.

If the mechanitor dies or runs out of bandwidth, mechanoids will go into the Uncontrolled state. They will not be uncontrolled if the mechanitor is downed, in a caravan, etc. After 60,000 ticks (16.67 mins) uncontrolled, there is a chance for a mech to go fferal with MTB of 10 in-game days, with a cascade radius of 25 tiles.^[Verify]

Mechanoids assigned to work tasks have an effective Skill of 10, though most have a 50% Global Work Speed, and some of them work even slower.

Acquisition

Mechanitors are required in all steps of the process. Research must be done with a valid mechaniator in the colony, and only the mechanitor may initiate any of the mech creation processes. First, creating your own mechs requires the Basic Mechtech research, which in turn requires the Electricity research to be completed first.

Mechanitors must have enough bandwidth for the mechanoid in question. The larger and more complex the mechanoid is, the more bandwidth is required.
All mechanoids require a subcore to create, along with other materials like steel. Simple mechs use a basic subcore (from a subcore encoder, while more complex ones require a standard subscore (from a subcore softscanner) or high subcore (from a subcore ripscanner). The ripscanner in particular requires killing a human pawn to create.
After being "built" for a tiny amount of a mechanitor's work, mechs must gestate at a mech gestator or large mech gestator. Gestation types are measured in cycles; each cycle is 1.8 game days by default, and larger mechs require more cycles. A mech gestation processor can be installed into a mechanitor to increase the speed. When cycling is done, the mechanitor must take the mech out.

More complex mechanoids require more research. Mechanoid research in particular requires killing one of three mechanoid commanders - the Diabolus, War queen, and Apocriton, in order of progression - and studying their specific item before it is possible.

Hostile mechanoids cannot be tamed or converted in any way, even if once part of your colony. However, you can create every mechanoid in the game, except for the Termite and Apocriton.

Controllable Mechanoids

Light

Militor - Combat mechanoid, armed with a low-power mini-shotgun. Cheap to gestate and maintain.
Lifter - Mechanoid designed for hauling.
Constructoid - Mechanoid designed for construction.
Fabricor - Mechanoid designed for crafting and tailoring.
Agrihand - Mechanoid designed for plant work.
Cleansweeper - Mechanoid designed for cleaning.
Paramedic - Mechanoid designed for rescue and tending, with the ability to jump and a firefoam pack.

Medium

Scorcher - Combat mechanoid designed to burn enemies
Scyther - Fast melee combat mechanoid
Pikeman - High range, low damage combat mechanoid
Lancer - Fast, medium ranged combat mechanoid with the high damage charge lance
Tesseron - Combat mechanoid with sweeping beam graser attack.
Legionary - Combat mechanoid with bullet shield and needle gun.

Heavy

Tunneler - Mechanoid designed for fast mining; comes with a shield, smoke pack, and melee attack
Centipede - Crowd control mechanoid with increidble bulk; 3 possible weapons
Centurion - Built-in shield bubble generator, point-defense bulb turret capable of firing while the mechanoid is moving.

Commander

Diabolus - Ultra-powerful, but slow hellsphere cannon. Small turret and close-range flame burst otherwise.
War queen - Built-in mech gestator, creating a mass of war urchins.
War urchin - Small mechanoids created by a war queen, they have a finite power supply and can't be recharged.

Mechanoids

Mechanoids | Core: Centipede (Blaster, Burner, Gunner) • Lancer • Pikeman • Scyther • Termite
Combat: Centurion • Legionary • Militor • Scorcher • Tesseron
Command: Apocriton • Diabolus • War queen (War urchin )
Labor: Agrihand • Cleansweeper • Constructoid • Fabricor • Lifter • Paramedic • Tunneler
Cluster | Buildings: Condition causer • Count-down activator • Mech assembler • Mech capsule • Mech drop beacon • Mech high-shield • Mech low-shield • Mech node • Proximity activator • Unstable power cell
Turrets: Auto charge turret • Auto inferno turret • Auto mortar • Mini-slugger turret
Creation | Pawn: Mechanitor
Buildings: Mech gestator • Large mech gestator • Mechband antenna • Mechband dish