Battle Fortress

"Nothing can stop us!"

- Battle Fortress

The Battle Fortress was an armored troop transport developed by the Allies during the Psychic Dominator Disaster.

Game unit
"CHARGE!!"

- Battle Fortress

Essentially a much heavier version of the M113 APC on steroids, the Battle Fortress was a heavily armored mobile bunker with a machine gun and firing ports for up to five infantry. It was tied with the Kirov Airship for the strongest armor of any unit. The Battle Fortress was so large and heavy that it could easily crush walls and most other vehicles simply by driving over them, including the mighty Apocalypse Tanks. However, due to the Battle Fortress's slow speed, this ability was impractical against a competent enemy commander.

The Battle Fortress was known for its ability to dominate an area by providing mobile heavy fire support, using the immense firepower of the infantry garrisoned within. GIs and Guardian GIs were able to fire their heavier weapons (M60 machine gun and Javelin missile launcher, respectively) while inside the Battle Fortress. The strength of multiple Guardian GIs, combined with the ability of the Battle Fortress to fire on the move, meant that the Battle Fortress could used as a heavy anti-tank and anti-aircraft weapon. A single garrisoned Tanya or Navy SEAL could eliminate all infantry threats to the Battle Fortress.

Many commanders opted to garrison a Battle Fortress with purely Chrono Legionnaires, as this allowed the Legionnaires more protection while also granting the ability to fire while moving. Mixing in other infantry along with the Legionnaires was not effective, as targets being phased out by Legionnaires were invulnerable to attack by other units.

A common criticism of the Battle Fortress was that it was not resistant to one of the most significant threats on the battlefield at the time, the ability of Yuri to mind control units. A poorly-managed Battle Fortress could become mind-controlled very quickly and easily, and after being mind-controlled the infantry inside would follow the mind-controlled Battle Fortress's orders.

In addition, the Battle Fortress was slow and could eventually fall to long range bombardment from the Soviet Siege Chopper. It was also vulnerable to being "lifted" by the Magnetron into water or into mind-control range. Furthermore, Apocalypse Tanks and Tank Destroyers possessed enough firepower to make short work of the Fortress if they were not crushed (though a Battle Fortress with Guardian GIs or Chrono Legionnaries loaded would defeat both with ease). They were also exceptionally vulnerable to massed tanks, even if garrisoned with the proper infantry.

Aftermath
The Battle Fortress was phased out, or rather, erased, after the Soviets meddled with the space time continuum. This, however, paved the way for Assault Destroyer.

Pros

 * Can load up to five infantry, which can fire from inside the vehicle
 * Extremely resilient armor
 * Can crush walls and most other vehicles, even Apocalypse Tanks; It is also the only vehicle that can crush Brutes. The only vehicles that Battle Fortresses cannot crush are MCVs and others Fortresses.
 * Extremely strong anti-tank capability when loaded with Guardian GIs
 * Extremely strong against air targets when loaded with Guardian GIs
 * Extremely strong anti-infantry capabiltiy when loaded with a single Tanya or Navy SEAL
 * Effective against all ground units and structures when loaded with Chrono Legionnaires

Cons

 * Expensive, at $2000 each plus the cost of infantry
 * Slow moving
 * Highly vulnerable to mind-control
 * Although well-armored, each loaded Battle Fortress is immensely expensive, meaning that losing even one is a huge blow
 * Can be easily swarmed by packs of faster Rhino Tanks or Mirage Tanks.
 * Micromanagement intensive: each Battle Fortress must be manually loaded with the correct mix of infantry in order to become effective, while Mirage and Grizzly tanks are always combat ready
 * Can't attack air units unless garrisoned by anti-air infantry

Trivia
In the game files, the Battle Fortress uses the same type of gun as the Soviet War miner and Yuri's Slave Miner.

The Battle Fortress vaguely resembles the German A7V from World War One, which was basically bunker on tracks with a cannon on the front and six machine guns mounted all around the vehicle.