Enlightened (Kane's Wrath)

"Enlightenment acquired!"

- Enlightened

Nod's secret cyborg research program successfully created two cyborg units, the Awakened and the Enlightened. Whilst the Awakened became the basic infantry of the Marked of Kane, the Enlightened became elite support cyborgs, armed with more powerful particle beam weapons.

Background
Although their "ancestors", the Cyborgs, and their "brothers", the Awakened still possessed a considerable sign of their human past, the Enlightened's only human characteristic were the bone exoskeleton and the bones kept beneath it. The first Enlightened were developed under the ground of the Siberian steppes, in a secret Nod lab, where Kane's wish for a cyborg army was developed. After LEGION rescued the lab and activated them, the Marked of Kane used them as their heavy infantry. In order to develop them, they use the technology contained in the Secret Shrine.

Each Enlightened is armed with a particle beam cannon mounted on their left arms, with an EMP cannon supplementing their primary weapon. These units can use their EMPs to disrupt enemy vehicles or structures for a short time. They're better at destroying vehicles with the help of their EMP cannon than their Awakened cyborg brethren, as particle beams do a lot more damage to armour than the machine guns wielded by the Awakened. Also, their armour is extremely resilient, more so than the one the Awakened are clad in. As such, the Enlightened cannot be crushed by vehicles.

Several upgrades can further enhance the Enlightened. When upgraded to supercharged particle beams, the weapon fires a double-charged ionic Tiberium beam that can deal more damage. Additional bipedal servomotors can be added to the cyborg, increasing its speed enough to chase down tanks.

Deployment
First reports of the Enlightened in action were when they razed a GDI base in Russia, having been activated by LEGION along with the Awakened. They were subsequently used to help reclaim the Tacitus from a heavily fortified GDI base in the Rocky Mountains.

In-game unit
The Enlightened are equivalent to GDI's Zone Troopers and Zone Raiders, and the Scrin's Shock Trooper, at the same price per squad and used in similar roles. They are excellent against vehicles and structures, while only the Zone Raider and Ravager are good against infantry. The Enlightened are faster, however, especially with the cybernetic legs upgrade, matching the Ravager's speed.

Although they are not as powerful as Zone Troopers and Shock Troopers, they compensate with their EMP grenades which can disable vehicles and buildings for around 20 seconds. Unlike Zone Troopers, Zone Raiders, and Shock Troopers, the Enlightened cannot bypass difficult terrain; they lack an equivalent to Blink Packs or Jump Jets.

A few squads of Enlightened can easily halt and destroy an armour column, unless they are supported by aircraft or organic anti-infantry, as mechanical anti-infantry units are vulnerable to the Enlightened's anti-vehicular firepower. They are also quite lethal against structures and anti-armour defenses. When upgraded with the bipedal servomotors they become one of the most lethal anti-armour units in the game, combining heavy firepower with some of the highest speeds infantry can attain in the entire game.

Enlightened can also be upgraded with Supercharged Particle Beams, increasing their firepower against any type of ground unit. They become noticeably better at fighting enemy infantry, however they still will generally lose in terms of cost efficiency to organic anti-infantry units.

However, the Enlightened do suffer from several disadvantages. They are costly to deploy: At 1200 credits they cost nearly as much as GDI's Zone Troopers. Their small squad size of 3 troops renders them vulnerable to Sniper teams. They also lack anti-air capability, and are vulnerable to various anti-infantry weaponry. Like the Awakened, they are also vulnerable to Tiberium. Finally, due to their ground-only capabilities, they are easy prey for Venoms or Hammerheads. It is also impossible for them to garrison inside a Redeemer.

Enlightened work well when garrisoned inside Reckoners, the Reckoner protects their small squad from losses, enabling them to more safely bring their full firepower to bear, and giving them the protection needed to largely offset their weakness to being attacked by organic infantry. Setting up a Reckoner with Enlightened inside of it near or or inside of an opponent's base can be very effective, as they have both the range, firerate, and firepower to make quick and efficient work of buildings and vehicles, and the protection necessary to continue doing it much longer than they normally could.

EMP glitch
The EMP special ability has oftentimes been proven as prone to malfunction, likely due to a coding error. This has been fixed in community patches 1.02+ and 1.03.

Changelog

 * Kane's Wrath patch 1.01: EMP cannon of the Awakened/Enlightened tuned for significantly faster responsiveness, squads will no longer perform a funky backwards walk-dance when attempting to get into EMP range
 * Kane's Wrath patch 1.02: hit points increased from 600 to 650

When created

 * Enlightenment acquired.
 * The Enlightened rise.

When selected

 * Awaiting order.
 * We see the light.
 * Our souls are Kane's.
 * We are the fist.
 * Superior design.
 * We bear the mark.
 * Loyalty is all.
 * Kane's will made flesh!
 * Kane is the light!

When moving

 * Updating vector.
 * Refactoring objectives.
 * It is Kane's will!
 * New coordinates acquired.
 * Updating.
 * New destination confirmed.
 * Enlightenment on route.
 * Advance and conquer!
 * We need no rest.
 * Processing order.

When garrisoning a structure

 * Claim it for Nod!
 * Occupying structure.
 * Analyzing floor plans.
 * It shall bear the mark!

When ordered to attack

 * Combat mode engaged!
 * We shall crush all!
 * All will take the mark!
 * We shall cleanse this land!

When attacking

 * All shall fall!
 * Neutralizing threat!
 * Eliminating hostiles!
 * Primary weapons engaged!
 * Target locked!
 * Weapons locked on!
 * The flesh is weak!
 * They shall perish!
 * Death is life!
 * Die!
 * Exterminate!

When ordered to fire an EMP blast

 * Enlighten 'em!
 * EMP engaged!
 * Targeting area!
 * Show them the light!
 * Into darkness!
 * The power is ours!

In combat

 * Combat mechanics engaged!
 * For the glory of Kane!
 * The weak fall before us!
 * They falter!
 * They flesh is but ashes!
 * We are the fury!

When retreating

 * From the ashes.
 * Redirecting.
 * If it is Kane's will.

When suppressed

 * Down!
 * To the ground!
 * Take cover!

Trivia

 * They bear a striking resemblance to a type of Decepticon guards from Transformers: Fall of Cybertron.
 * Unlike the Awakened, they seem to have retained a very small shard of their human personality, as their voices sound more human and their quotes indicate so.