What part of "Stay 50 lightyears away" don't you understand?
The Icon is the annexed counterpart to the Stalker.
The tradition of fallen Protoss warriors being reborn into cybernetic exoskeletons inspired even their distant brothers the Dark Templar. As such they created their own versions of Dragoons designated as Stalkers with their own brand of technologies powered by void energies. Such a unit could not be ignored as a potential threat, so development of suitable counterparts were rushed into development.
Due to the limited research and development time, the new exoskeleton has few differences in appearance to their original counterparts. Inverting power sources, these exoskeletons utilize High Templar energies in order to boost plasma shield defense. This change gives Icons increased endurance against enemy attacks without costing movement agility. In terms of offense, they are armed with photon pulse weaponry capable of hitting enemy air and ground units at great distances. While not as powerful as Dragoon Disruptors, these weapons have a shorter cool down allowing it to outperform both the older and replacement exoskeletons in all battle simulations.
One of the Stalker's most intriguing aspects is its Blink technology. The ability to teleport short distances for scouting, assault, and retreat is an asset that the Vaul could not resist assimilating and improving. Placed in the unit's left shoulder shield is an energy optimization component that augments psi-based technology to greater levels. Once upgraded, Icons are able to teleport both short distances they can see and long distances when working in tandem with Pylons and Stasis Orbs. Inside a psionic matrix, the optimization units can tap into the field giving users limitless Blinking potential. Properly used, Icons can continuously harass enemy units while teleporting away at the last minute to avoid heavy damage. Enemy units are then forced to attack Pylons or Warp Prisms before engaging them. This allows Icons to either focus on attacking or retreating while enemy forces are occupied.
Through meticulous examination and experimentation, a way was found to bypass the safeties that prevented users from warping into anything solid. By removing such protocols, Icons use their transporters as a last resort weapon should their regular armament prove insufficient. Telefraging causes users to burst out of targets much like Broodlings. The only flaw to this ability is its original purpose as blinking into solid matter is equally damaging to Icons, so it must be used sparingly.
Special abilities:
- Blink - unit teleports small distances it can see. Has a 10 second cooldown period. If inside a psionic matrix, unit can teleport without limit
- Telefrag (passive) - unit can teleport into a target ground unit destroying it instantly at the cost of 5 HPs
Notes[]
Inspirations:
- Marvel: Nightcrawler
- Twentieth Century Fox: Fantastic Voyage
- EA Partners: Warp