Parasite

Flag:	Parasite
File(s):	rules(md).ini
Values:	Boolean values: yes or no, true or false, 1 or 0
Default:	no
Applicable to:	Warheads

Specifies whether or not the firer themselves will physically enter the target on warhead impact, to cause its effects from within. This effect is used on the Terror Drone in conjunction with LimboLaunch=yes ("become the bullet") to give the appearance of the Drone jumping inside a vehicle and dismantling it from the inside.

Parasites are, of course, protected whilst they are inside a target as they cannot be hit by conventional weapons (their 'host' is hit instead). However, Sonic=yes weapons will evict a parasite from its target. Repair Depots and Repair IFVs will instantly eliminate any parasite contained within the vehicle being repaired.

Setting Parasite=yes will make the infested target rock and produce sparks, even if Rocker=no is set (however if you set Rocker=yes then the weapon damage will be dealt with each rock of the target rather than over time).

If the parasite destroys the target then it will emerge, unscathed, however if the target is destroyed by another weapon whilst the parasite is inside then the parasite will be destroyed as well (so it may be in the interest of the target's owner to destroy the target themselves if they cannot get it repaired in time, to avoid the parasite infesting further units).

Units with Parasiteable=no set cannot be targetted by warheads with Parasite=yes set.

Friendly units cannot be attacked by parasites (even using force-fire) unless the warhead also has AffectsAllies=yes set.

Warheads that also have MindControl=yes set will indeed mind-control the target instead of dealing damage, thus giving the appearance of a hijacker. The target will not take damage from the weapon, nor will it rock or produce sparks. Further more, the parasite can never be evicted (not even by Sonic weapons, Repair Depots or Repair IFVs). As a result of this, the parasite will not be recoverable - the parasite will always be destroyed along with the target. As the target is mind-controlled it cannot be re-mind-controlled by another unit (parasite or otherwise), except for permanent mind-control using the Psychic Dominator.

Bugs/Side-Effects/Unexpected Limitations

• If a friendly unit is mind-controlled (e.g. Yuri Clone) and then you infest it with a parasite (e.g. Terror Drone), but then kill the enemy that is mind-controlling your unit, your unit will revert back to your ownership but the parasite will remain inside and continue to damage it.
• If a parasite destroys an airborne unit then the parasite will appear, unscathed, on the ground beneath the destroyed airborne unit.
• There is a graphical glitch with mind-controller parasites, in that the mind-control link is drawn between the target and the position the parasite was at just before it entered the unit. This can be overcome in Ares by using MindControl.Permanent=yes.
• Limbo'd MC-parasites never return from limbo but stay loaded in the game's memory until the game ends. This does not affect the defeat conditions for the game, but memory will be leaked.
• Hardcoded to killInfantryTypes instantly. Even though the infantry had a lot of Strength (Strength=100000,Strength=1000000,Strength=999999999)

• [ADOG]

Primary=GoodTeeth

Secondary=SquidGrab

Attack Dog will attack InfantryTypes with GoodTeeth and will attack VehicleTypes with SquidGrab. Paralyzes and Culling are exempt from ParasitePlus warheads and VehicleTypes will not take any damage (all sides).

If you want the unit to be paralyzed and affected as before, You need to add Paralyzes and Culling to the [ParasiteDog] section.

• This is the result of my test.

[ParasiteDog];Woof woof

Verses=100%,100%,100%,0%,0%,0%,0%,0%,0%,0%,0%

Parasite=yes

InfDeath=1

Rocker=yes

Psychedelic=yes ;Units with ImmuneToPsionics=yes are not affected by this effect. But will be in another status instead. such as paralysis.

Radiation=yes ;If attacking a unit that has ImmuneToRadiation=yes The parasite will disappear.

Poison=yes ;If attacking a unit that has ImmuneToPoison=yes The parasite will disappear.

PsychicDamage=yes ;If attacking a unit that has ImmuneToPsionicWeapons=yesThe parasite will disappear.

AffectsAllies=yes;If you attack InfantryTypes (your side) the parasite will disappear.

See also

• LimboLaunch
• SuppressionThreshold
• MindControl