Paradox/Order of the Talon

Specialties
Each specialty is part of the Talon tech tree and unlocks new units and protocols. Unlike other tech-trees, Talon players are able and expected to upgrade down all the trees in time, but prioritization is important.

Each specialty is built from a separate tab in the Master Crawler.

Crusaders : The sword arm of the Talon war machine, the Crusaders use plates of the valued Talon Steel, giving them large amounts of health and armed with devastating, if short ranged, weaponry. The Crusaders are used when subtlety is out the window with slow, tough, and devastating frontal assault.

A Crusader Mini-Crawler is armed with massive slabs of Talon Steel and will draw fire away from others. When fully upgraded, the Crusader specialty transforms the Mini-Crawler in the the Shield of Faith Ultimate Weapon.

Crusaders are made up of the Templar Order, whose destruction was faked in order to fold them into the Talon.

Inquisition : The bow arm of the Order, the Inquisitors strike suddenly and unexpectedly from the shadows or from afar, purging the enemy with flame and steel. Among the tools at their disposal are damage-dealing, stealth and disguise, flanking, long range, if slightly weaker, firepower and assassination.

A Inquisition Mini-Crawler is armed with an increasing array of deadly weapons. When fully upgraded, the Inquisition specialty transforms the Mini-Crawler into the Firestorm Generator Ultimate Weapon.

The Inquisitors of the Talon is made up of the members of the Priests of Judas, a controversial sect with roots back to pre-Constantine gnostic sects. They seek death on the battlefield, to die as unrepentant sinners in order to battle the forces of darkness beyond death.

Evangelicals : The shield of the Talon soldier, the Evangelicals use subtler means to sway the battle. They heal and inspire their fellows, poison and dishearten their enemies, harass enemy resource-gatherers, destroy stubborn defenses, and turn your foes against themselves with hypnotism.

An Evangelical Mini-Crawler radiates a healing aura. When fully upgraded, the Evangelical specialty transforms the Mini-Crawler into the Ambiaric Cannon.

The evangelical forces of the Talon are made up of the Soldiers of Ignatius, a militant break-off of the Jesuits which took up arms against the suppression of Catholics in China and was disowned by the Church.

Amphibiousness
All Talon vehicles are amphibious. When on territory they were not designed for, they move slower, have lower defences, and cannot attack, but they can cross that terrain.

Experience
With every rank a Talon unit gains, it gains some form of function upgrade similar to heroic upgrades for other factions. This can be new weapons, extra health bonuses, armor type changes, or even brand new features that change or expand the unit's role.

Whenever a combat unit ranks up, it immediately gives experience relative to it's worth to all non-combat units nearby. Additionally, Inquisitor units that rank up apply this bonus to nearby Crusader units. This encourages the player to keep his forces tight-nit; the Tanks will rank up if they enable to DPS to score kills, and the support will rank up by doing their jobs around the combat units.

Characters
Maria Theresa:

Gurmit Shen:

Mohamad:

Ulrich Konrad:

Shanti Myrtu:

Units and Structures
"For once in my life, I have decided to speak out. At my last moments as well, which makes this sense of dread and shame only slightly more sour with humor for me. I must speak, for I have failed my brethren within the Scorpion Legion: I cannot fight any longer. My pursuers are eternally patient, and they have not left off my scent once, even with my expertise in the shadows. My pursuers are not of this earth, for they are...no, IT is something else. How else can they work together and fit together so perfectly? How else can they fight and move in unison like clockwork, the flames and the metal and the drugs and their eyes, oh, their eyes...I can handle men. I can handle men because men are mortal, men tire, men fail. I cannot handle machines."


 * - Note found on the wall of Police Chief Melinda Partridge's office, written shortly before the chief committed suicide via service pistol.

Crawlers
The Talon's entire army is built from the Master Crawler, a giant machine and literal moving castle that serve as a self contained base.

Defences
All turrets are built as small, mobile devices. Once deployed, they cannot undeploy, and they do not gain experience.

Generic Units
These units are available immediately from the Master Crawler.