Tank Robot

Tank Robot
Basic Information
Health:	Varies Lowest: 10000 Mannhunt: Wave 6D, 6E, and 6F Highest: 60000 Caliginous Caper: Sub-wave 8G/Broken Parts: Wave 6D
Speed:	25%

“

We don't know what this thing is, but it's big as hell, looks unstoppable, and it probably runs on human blood. We're just guessing that last part, because it's usually covered in it. — Day 1 of the Mann vs. Machine update

”

Tank Robots (referred just as Tank) are large and extremely durable bomb-carrying machines that arrive with the robots in Mann vs. Machine modes (MVM). While they possess no offensive abilities and thus have no direct way of harming the player other than possibly crushing players against objects, they can withstand an absurd amount of damage before they are destroyed, far more so than any robot, maybe with the exception of boss robots. The Administrator announces the entrance, progress, and destruction of each Tank.

After entering the map, Tanks slowly travel along a set path to the bomb hatch before deploying their bomb and ending the round. This path is unique to each map and may differ from the path of other robots in the wave if any. They have their own bomb, independent of the one carried by the other robots, and in waves with Tank(s) and bomb-carrying robots, both the Tank(s) and the robots must be destroyed to complete the wave.

Tanks are immune to all effects outside of damage and critical hits; they can only be stopped via destruction. They cannot have their movement interrupted or slowed; standing in front of one will simply push the player away with no damage, while players that cannot be pushed away due to walls or props are crushed to death, and buildings in the way are destroyed. They cannot be burned by Fire or soaked by Jarate or Mad Milk, they cannot be sapped or marked for death, they do not give health to players buffed by the Concheror, and they have no heads to shoot or backs to stab. Finally, they resist 75% of Minigun damage, severely reducing a Heavy's damage output against it.

Tanks have a health meter below the "robots remaining" display on the HUD, and as they are damaged, they will acquire bullet holes, cracks, and loose parts, like the covering on their treads. The final Tank of a mission has distinctive white stripes; this does not correlate to any of its properties.

Health

Each Tank in a wave has a given amount of health based on its intended difficulty and the length of the path it must travel.

Health	Mission	Wave
10,000	Mannhunt	6C (x5)
12,000	Mannslaughter	3B
13,300	Cave-in	4 (x3)
14,000	Mean Machines	5A-1 (x2)
15,000	Disintegration	5
16,000	Quarry	6
17,500	Cave-in	2B
18,000	Disintegration	2D
	Machine Massacre	4, 7A
	Mech Mutilation	1C
20,000	Doe's Drill	3, 8B
	Mann-euvers	2
	Benign Infiltration	4 (x2)
	Doe's Doom	7 (x2)
	Mannhunt	3
	Village Vanguard	4 (x2), 7 (x4)
	Disintegration	4A, 5B
	Ctrl+Alt+Destruction	7B
	CPU Slaughter	6C, 6E
	Machine Massacre	7D
	Mech Mutilation	3D
	Cataclysm	4A, 7A
	Mannslaughter	5C, 5E
21,000	Quarry	1
22,000	Desperation	4
22,500	Mann-euvers	7 (x2)
24,000	Doe's Doom	2A-1
25,000	Day of Wreckening	2, 6B
	Cave-in	6B-1, 6B-2
	Mannhunt	5B
	Village Vanguard	2B
	Disk Deletion	6, 8A-1, 8A-2
	Data Demolition	3D, 4A
	Ctrl+Alt+Destruction	5
	Hamlet Hostility	7A (x2)
26,000	Mean Machines	3A-1
28,000	Crash Course	3
30,000	Crash Course	5
	Benign Infiltration	6B
	Data Demolition	6B, 6D
	Ctrl+Alt+Destruction	2A
	CPU Slaughter	6A
	Broken Parts	3D
	Hamlet Hostility	7A
	Bavarian Botbash	6C, 7A
32,000	Data Demolition	6A
33,000	Crash Course	6B
35,000	Quarry	5
	Caliginous Caper	4
	Ctrl+Alt+Destruction	7D
	CPU Slaughter	4
	Broken Parts	6B
	Bone Shaker	2
	Hamlet Hostility	3D, 5A
	Bavarian Botbash	2B, 4C
	Desperation	7A
	Cataclysm	3A
40,000	Caliginous Caper	5
	Broken Parts	2A
	Bone Shaker	4A, 7
42,000	Caliginous Caper	7
45,000	Broken Parts	2A
	Desperation	7C-2
	Cataclysm	7F
46,000	Bone Shaker	7F
60,000	Caliginous Caper	8G
	Broken Parts	6D

Elimination

When a Tank is the only robot in the wave (excluding support-class robots like Snipers), it should be focused on by all players until it is destroyed. Kritzkrieg Medics and Canteens are extremely effective when paired with sustained high-damage classes like Pyros and Soldiers, or when used with Demomen using Grenade Launchers and Stickybomb Launchers. Wrangled Sentry Guns also deal massive damage to Tanks, but may have to be relocated once the Tank passes out of their range or if they are in the Tank's path. Also, the hitbox of the Tank is very large, making weapons with "bullet spread", such as the Frontier Justice, effective even at medium-long range.

If a Tank arrives with other robots, especially Giant robots, consider killing the robots first, as Tanks do not deal damage and can usually be dealt with after the regular robots if they have not traveled more than halfway. On many missions, it is very beneficial to designate one or two players as "Tank-killers," usually Phlogistinator Pyros, Scottish Resistance Demomen, Cleaner's Carbine and Bushwacka Snipers, or Beggar's Bazooka Soldiers, to follow the Tank while the rest of the team contains the bomb. The Tank's resistance to Minigun damage encourages team balance by severely punishing teams that rely on an excessive number of Heavies. Sniper is excellent at quickly dealing with tanks, when equipped with the Cleaner's Carbine, and the Bushwacka. This allows the Sniper to quickly charge up 'CRIKEY', and then attack with the Bushwacka for guaranteed crits. The Righteous Bison's penetration also affects the tank.

After arriving at the bomb hatch, the Tank will take a while to deploy its bomb, so the team still has time to destroy it.

Operation in other game modes

If a server has sv_cheats enabled, a tank can be spawned by typing "ent_create tank_boss" into the console

The tank behaves oddly when spawned in on non-MVM maps. On Payload maps the tank will first try to go directly to the starting point of the cart although it will not be able to go through any walls in the way. Once it reaches the starting point it will follow the route the cart takes. The tank will destroy itself if it hits the cart. If the tank somehow reaches the last point without touching the cart the tank will also explode but the game will act as if the BLU team has pushed the cart to the end and the BLU team wins.

On Payload Race maps the tank will randomly teleport around the outside of the map and cannot be seen outside of spectator mode.

On all other modes the tank will go towards non-spawn room doors and attempt to go through them where they will then deploy their bomb (even though the administrator will play one of her voice lines the round won't be won by either side).

On non-Payload/Payload Race maps without any non-spawn room doors the tank will simply stay in the same place.

On all maps the tank spawns with a lower amount of health than in any mission in MVM; and, as it is considered part of the BLU team, only members of the RED team can damage it.

Related achievements

Mann vs. Machievements

Balls-E Destroy the tank during the final seconds of the bomb being deployed. Clockwork Carnage Destroy two tanks within 5 seconds of each other.

Clockwork Conqueror Destroy a tank within 20 seconds of its arrival. Palace-Aid Kill a tank before it crashes through the barrier in Rottenburg.

Update history

August 15, 2012 Patch (Mann vs. Machine)

• The Tank was added to the game.

August 17, 2012 Patch

• Fixed a crash related to server plug-ins spawning a Tank before the game is ready.

September 4, 2012 Patch

• Fixed the looping Tank sound not playing if it was spawned far from the player.
• Fixed Tank destruction effects playing at the map origin.

December 20, 2012 Patch (Mecha Update)

• [Undocumented] Rage from Buff Banner, Concheror, upgraded Minigun, and Mmmph from Phlogistinator can now be generated from Tanks.

November 21, 2013 Patch (Two Cities Update)

• Fixed the Romevision Tank not animating.

November 22, 2013 Patch

• Fixed a server crash related to damaging the Tank with the Medic shield.

Unused content

• In the game files, there is an unused file called mvm_tank_ping that would play a loud ear-piercing beep.
• The Tank has unique destruction animations for the maps Coaltown, Decoy and Mannworks. However, the unique destruction animations for Coaltown and Decoy are not used. The reasons for this is that the tank destruction animations are looked up based on map name, and that the tank destruction animations for these maps still use the map's pre-release names.

Bugs

• If several Tanks are involved in the wave, then the Administrator can say that the Tank is already halfway, although it just appeared.

Notes

• The Tank has its own animation of destruction, but it is not visible because of the smoke.

Gallery

• 

  Lightly damaged Tank.

• 

  Moderately damaged Tank.

• 

  Heavily damaged Tank.

• 

  The Final Wave version of the Tank.

• 

  Lightly damaged Final Wave Tank.

• 

  Moderately damaged Final Wave Tank.

• 

  Heavily damaged Final Wave Tank.

• 

  The Romevision version of the Tank.

• 

  Lightly damaged Romevision Tank.

• 

  Moderately damaged Romevision Tank.

• 

  Heavily damaged Romevision Tank.

• 

  The Romevision Final Wave version of the Tank.

• 

  Lightly damaged Romevision Final Wave Tank.

• 

  Moderately damaged Romevision Final Wave Tank.

• 

  Heavily damaged Romevision Final Wave Tank.

External links

• "Machines" official announcement, with the hint of the Tank Robot.