Black Hand (Tiberium Wars)

"The Black Hand has arrived!"

- Black hand rolling out of the Hand of Nod

The Black Hand were elite soldiers from the Brotherhood of Nod's Black Hand. They served as the Brotherhood's shock troops during the Third Tiberium War and the conflicts that led to it.

Background
The Black Hand was originally founded as a form of religious police tasked with enforcing adherence to the teachings of Kane. However, the cult later grew to become a powerful and influential religious group that operated mostly in secret. This changed after the Second Tiberium War, when Kane disappeared. A high-ranking member of the Black Hand, Anton Slavik, rose to power within the Brotherhood and revealed himself as a Black Hand prelate.

Many within the Black Hand chafed at the cult's new public profile, including a popular preacher named Marcion, who would come to be the leader of the anti-Slavik faction. This conflict quickly spun out of control, leaving Slavik dead at the hands of an assassin and Marcion and his followers retreating to self-imposed exile in the Australian outback.

Within a year of his break from Nod, Marcion had organised his followers into a disciplined theocratic army - the "new" Black Hand. Within this new army, a group of well-trained and loyal soldiers, clad in black heavy armour and armed with flamethrowers, came to be Marcion's right hand. These soldiers were feared even within the ranks of Marcion’s forces, and they were often attached to infantry formations to keep order and retain the message of the Word.

After Marcion was captured by LEGION, his forces, including the Black Hand heavy infantry, rejoined the Brotherhood. These elite soldiers became the spearhead for Nod's forces, and distinguished themselves because of their superior training, extreme loyalty, and incredible toughness. Black hand troopers also wore capes like confessors do.

In-game unit
Their flamethrowers are good against infantry and structures, but do little damage against most vehicles such as heavy tanks, so the best method of countering them is to use any vehicle with anti-infantry capacity. Furthermore, they are capable of instantly clearing garrisoned buildings. Their flamethrowers are quite effective against light vehicles if under prolonged fire though. With the Purifying Flame upgrade, however, light vehicles and even tanks are at grave risk.

As a note, their flamethrowers deal splash damage - any structure or unit caught in the cone of flame will take also take damage.

Effective weapons against them include most anti-infantry weapons although their heavy armour allows them to survive at least a few head-on enemy attacks. sniper teams, commandos, and Shadow teams are good counters.

Black Hand squads deployed by the Black Hand subfaction are trained as veterans, and can be upgraded with the purifying flame upgrade to increase their damage. Ironically, they are rendered largely redundant by the Black Disciple unique upgrade, which adds a Black Hand member to confessor cabals and militant rocket squads, meaning Black Hand commanders have little need to train separate Black Hand squads.

Changelog

 * Tiberium Wars patch 1.05:
 * resistance to cannon-type damage increased by 45%
 * speed increased by 22%
 * hit points increased by 66%
 * attack power increased by 150%
 * added garrison-clearing effects

When created

 * The Black Hand is in control!
 * The Black Hand has arrived!

When selected

 * We have orders.
 * We are the chosen!
 * The Black Hand awaits.
 * They will fear us!
 * There is work to be done.
 * One vision, one purpose!

When moving

 * Take the area!
 * We're in control here!
 * This way!
 * We've been called!
 * Forward!

When garrisoning a structure

 * It is ours to take!
 * Inside!
 * We must have it!

When ordered to attack

 * Enemies of Kane!
 * Pursue them!
 * They stand in our way!
 * They oppose Kane!

When attacking

 * Kill them!
 * They must die!
 * Eliminate them!
 * Attack!
 * Burn them alive!

When ordered to clear a garrison

 * Clear them out!
 * Expel them!
 * They cannot hide from the Black Hand!
 * Walls will not protect them!
 * They think they are safe in there..

In combat

 * We're not finished here!
 * Let none escape!
 * Exterminate the weak!
 * Spare no one!
 * They reek of fear!
 * Clear a path!

When retreating

 * Regroup!
 * We'll be back!

When suppressed

 * Down!
 * To the ground!
 * Find cover!

Trivia
The black hand is one of the few infantry units that wore capes. The other being confessors in rivals and the other confessors in Kane’s wrath.