Mammoth Armored Reclamation Vehicle

"The Earth will be ours again."

- MARV

The Mammoth Armored Reclamation Vehicle (MARV) is GDI's epic unit in Kane's Wrath.

Background
The Mammoth Armored Reclamation Vehicle, or MARV, was crafted by GDI engineers to complement ZOCOM's Red Zone anti-Tiberium operations. Significant advances in Tiberium harvesting and refinement have allowed GDI to house a full Tiberium processing plant within the enormous, armored behemoth. Using a frontally-mounted scanning and collection system, the MARV can gather, process, and convert terrestrial Tiberium to usable resources in a matter of minutes.

Potential threats, originating from Nod-based operations or any number of separatist splinter or mutant factions, forced GDI to add significant armaments to the MARV before Red Zone deployment. In addition to the massive size and high-durability armor afforded to the MARV, a tri-barreled sonic cannon was added to provide offensive power to the MARV design. Firing a large area-of-effect sonic shell, the MARV’s massive cannon is equally as effective against unexpected uprisings as it is at breaking down massive Tiberium deposits for reclamation. In addition, four garrison slots can accommodate a variety of GDI infantry, allowing the MARV to meet any potential threat on the battlefield.

History
Nod first encountered the MARV during the Third Tiberium War, when ZOCOM first began Tiberium abatement in the African Red Zone. Several scout patrols in the area was destroyed by a MARV, one of which managed to transmit a video warning before its destruction. Since Nod was in danger of losing their foothold in the Red Zone, Alexa Kovacs ordered LEGION to locate and capture the Reclamator hub where the MARV was maintained.

An analysis of MARV wreckage and data from the Reclamator hub allowed the Brotherhood to complete its own epic unit, the Redeemer, during the battle. Designs for the Redeemer and its production facility, the Redeemer engineering facility, were transferred to LEGION for immediate field testing. Ultimately, three MARVs were destroyed during the ferocious battle.

In-game
The MARV produces much less credits per Tiberium patch than a regular Harvester: 115 credits per green Tiberium patch, and 230 per blue Tiberium patch, compared to 350 for green Tiberium and 700 for blue Tiberium. However, the MARV does not need to offload at a Tiberium refinery; it instantly converts into credits any Tiberium patch it moves over as long as one has enough storage. It is also extremely slow, due to its heavy armor, but even with all those downsides, it is very handy to help turn the tide of battle, put the finishing touches on an assault, or to act as a meatshield to absorb damage for the rest of your army. MARVs do splash damage.

Like the Nod Redeemer and the Scrin Eradicator Hexapod, the MARV must be built from its own specialized construction building - the Reclamator Hub, and only one MARV may be built at a time.

Four infantry squads may be permanently garrisoned inside which adds weapons or abilities to the vehicle. The first infantry unit creates the front-left turret, the second creates the front-right, the third creates the back-left, and the last creates the back-right.

Among the epic units, the MARV has the heaviest armour, the slowest speed, and has the most number of garrison points, and so has unparalleled firepower on land (Redeemer = 2, Eradicator = 3).

In a one-on-one fight, ignoring garrisons and veterancy, the MARV loses to any other Epic unit, but garrisoning it stands a higher chance, and if garrisoned by four Zone Troopers/Raiders, MARV is the strongest land unit, beating no matter how garrisoned Redeemer or Hexapod is in combat. The number of garrisons and variety of options also makes it the most flexible. It is the only Epic unit that can fire while on the move, giving it a significant tactical advantage. It is also the only Epic unit to feature directional armor (that is, it's frontal armor is stronger than the armor elsewhere on its body, with the rear being the weakest point); this, coupled with the use of the "reverse move" command, can help a careful commander save a MARV that may have waded into a conflict it cannot handle, although it can also be exploited by a wily opponent. The main sonic weapon deals heavy splash damage, making the MARV slightly more effective against groups of clustered infantry than the other epic units. The MARV is capable of crushing any other non-epic unit, meaning that it can literally drive over huge amounts of enemy forces and crush them, as long as it's not destroyed while moving to them.

The MARV may be used to hamper an opponent's economy by quickly depleting Tiberium fields convenient to the enemy.

Clues found in the MARV's concept art and in-game model imply the vehicle's cannons were originally supposed to rotate after each shot so that only the uppermost barrel was the one firing, however this graphical feature is not present in the final game.

Changelog

 * Kane's Wrath patch 1.01: Tiberium harvesting now returns 33% of the harvested value

When created

 * Global defense initiated!
 * MARV assembly complete!
 * Systems online!
 * Power engaged!
 * MARV online!

When selected

 * Systems engaged!
 * MARV!
 * Peerless!
 * Size matters!
 * Ready to roll!
 * Emitters charged!
 * Ready to deploy!

When moving

 * En route!
 * Revising deployment vector!
 * Make some room!
 * On my way!
 * Adjusting position!
 * I'll clear the way!
 * Reclamation in progress!

When ordered to harvest

 * Reclamation ops commencing!
 * Take back the planet!
 * The Earth will be ours again!
 * Tiberium abatement commencing!
 * Reclamation in progress!

When ordered to attack

 * Crush them!
 * Bringing in the big guns!
 * Combat vector engaged!
 * Watch my six!

When attacking

 * Emitter array engaged!
 * Heavy firepower!
 * Deploying armaments!
 * Assault initiated!
 * Assault vector alpha!
 * Enemy sighted!
 * Overwhelming!
 * Full power!
 * Take 'em out!

When retreating

 * What?!
 * This way!
 * Refactoring objective.
 * Retreating!
 * Pulling back!

Trivia

 * Even though its full name is given as "Mammoth Armored Reclamation Vehicle" in the Intelligence Database and the unit spotlight, the pre-mission cutscene and mission briefing for MARV Rising give the full name "Mammoth Armed Reclamation Vehicle".
 * According to pre-release information, the MARV was able to harvest Tiberium at full value. However, this was nerfed to 33% of the full value in patch 1.01.