Assault destroyer

"Assault Destroyer proud to serve!"
 * Assault Destroyer

The destroyers were medium sized marine vessels of the Allied Forces in the Great World War II and the Great World War III and formed the backbone of the Allied navy. They were designed to be endurant yet maneuverable and versatile against many kinds of targets. In RA3 the Assault Destroyer can now stand up to the Apocalypse Tank.

GWWII
The Arleigh Burke class guided missile destroyers were medium sized marine vessels of the Allied Forces in the Great World War II and formed the backbone of the Allied navy. Relatively fast by naval standards, they were also fairly resiliant. Additionally, they were capable of engaging any sort of target, thanks to their weaponry. Destroyers were outfitted with multiple Stinger rocket launchers on their bows, which launched medium-range heat-seeking warheads capable of damaging aircraft, structures, or vehicles. While not as long ranged or effective against surface targets as the Cruiser's batteries, the missile's versatility and accuracy made them capable of limited bombardment. Destroyers were also equipped with sonar equipment and depth charges to attack submarines. The launchers on the Destroyer could launch more depth charges than the Gunboats, allowing them to severely damage enemy subs rapidly.

GWWIII
"Battlestations!"
 * Overheard from both a regular Destroyer and a Assault Destroyer

The Destroyer was substantially redesigned prior to the Great World War III, limiting its role somewhat. Instead of depth charge launchers mounted on the ship, these new Destroyers sported a helipad for launching the Osprey, a VTOL aircraft armed with torpedos designed to hit submarines and Giant Squids. Replacing the stinger launchers, the Destroyers had deck guns, capable of taking out minor ground targets and other surface ships. However, without the missiles, it lost it's anti-aircraft capabilities making it reliant on an Aegis Cruiser escort to defend it from airborne threats.

The use of Osprey VTOLs as a means of anti-submarine warfare could also be considered a weakness compared to the earlier class of Destroyers. Against enemy Sea Scorpion-class ships, Ospreys were helpless and easily destroyed; which meant that Destroyers were only reliable against submarines or squids when no AA was present.

WWIII:Assault Destroyer
"Today I love the Assault Destroyer more than my own mother, and I wouldn't be here if not for her."
 * Mirage Tank Commander

Replacing the Battle Fortress and the Tank Destroyer, a new class of destroyer by Gerhardt-Giraud Shipworks, the Assault Destroyer is one of the most powerful direct combat elements in the Allied Navy. Fully amphibious, it is capable of traversing land and sea with equal speed and mobility; and its armour(which rivals even Aircraft Carriers) and firepower vastly surpasses any tank currently fielded by the Allies.

While extremely slow and cumbersome on land like a slow heavy tank, the Assault Destroyer is capable of simply driving over lesser units, and its sheer power rivals even that of the Soviet Apocalypse tanks and Imperial King Onis.

Allied planners have noted its survivability; and have chosen the Assault Destroyer as a mount for Black Hole Armour. This is a powerful defensive system that causes all incoming enemy fire to hit the destroyer, whose own durability is increased while the armour is active. This safeguards less durable units from enemy attacks. Black Hole Armour does not work against Tesla and laser attacks, however.

It's highly accurate and powerful Reugart-GX cannon can even strike at submerged Akulas. While not strictly as powerful as the Apocalypse Tank in terms of firepower, the Destroyer is at least as durable, if not more so, and is considerably more versatile, with it's amphibious capabilities. It is interesting to compare the Akula and the Destroyer and debate continues to this day over whether they are evenly-matched.

It has been alleged that the Allies stole the technology for the Black Hole Armour from the Soviets, using their research in to the military applications of magnetism.

It is important to note that the Destroyer, like the new Apocalypse Tank, is defenceless against aircraft and so requires support when the air threat is high. Also, the Assault Destroyer may ONLY be produced at the Naval Yard, which under certain circumstances could be a liability. The Assault Destroyer, like many other units in the Allied arsenal, is a weapon that will not win the war for you, but you cannot win the war without it. It is the only heavy Allied land unit in the game and the only true anti-submarine defence for the Allies.

Also of note is that the Assault Destroyer is big enough to crush smaller tanks and walls, but not ships.

Deployment History/General Usage
"It will take more than that to stop us!"
 * Assault Destroyer

In the Soviet Campaign the Assault Destroyer was inferior to the Akula in terms of ship killers.

In the Imperial Campaign the ships are inferior to the Naginata Cruiser much due to the Naginatas special ability.

The first use of the Assault Destroyer was during the liberation of Gibraltar, where a combined Soviet and Allied offensive successfully liberated afew of them along with some Akula submarines. They saw extensive service thereafter.

They were useful for the assault on Tokyo and the North Sea Floating Fortress which its abilities proven useful to the Allies.

"Feed em some charges!"
 * Assault Destroyer

The Assault Destroyer is an effective unit against enemy vehicles and ships. It suffers the burden of having to fill in the gap of "heavy tank" in the Allied arsenal, the same role that the Apocalypse Tank and the King Oni fill in their respective empires, but due to its inferior fire power, it is not quite as effective. It is immensly valuable as a defensive unit due to its ability to detect and fire at submerged units and its black hole armor. Black Hole Armor is often used to protect other units: though it sacrifices its main gun to use the armor, it retains its ability to crush lesser tanks and other vehicles. A common tactic is to deploy the Assault Destroyer en masse and use its black hole armor to protect damage dealing vehicles, such as Mirage tanks, Athena Cannons, Air Craft carriers, etc. One must always remember, however, that the black hole armor is ineffective against Tesla, Spectrum, and Wave Force technology.

In naval warfare, the Assault Destroyer is inferior to both the Akula Submarine and the Naginata Cruiser. The only advantage it has over the afore mentioned vehicles is its ability to climb up on shore to avoid their attacks all together, which is generally an uncommon scenario.

Behind the scenes
"Send them to hell!"

- Assault Destroyer ordered to fire

It is similar to and almost as powerful as the old GWWII era Cruiser, due to the fact that both ships had strong firepower and were heavily armored - only it has only one powerful accurate anti-armor cannon, while the Cruiser has several cannons, though they are somewhat less accurate, but with much greater attack range. It is also capable of destroying submarines, whereas the Cruiser was almost helpless against them.

In many senses, the Assault Destroyer is an improvement on the old Destroyer of Red Alert 2. It is now capable of attacking submarines without having to rely on an onboard airplane, which all too often was shot down before it could attack, has heavier armour and firepower and can travel on land too.