*3-2-4* Annihilator

Learn about the Annihilator, a powerful laser weapon in Total Annihilation. It costs 2000 energy per shot and can destroy ground vehicles in one blast.

The Annihilator is an incredibly powerful and accurate laser weapon with the same range as a plasma battery. It can fire at air units, but its barrel tracks too slowly to hit anything except for gunships with any degree of confidence. Its energy requirements are staggering, costing 2000 energy per shot and a constant drain during attacks. It has a reload rate of 5, needing an income of 400 per time unit to keep it running. However, it is able to destroy any ground vehicle with one blast and requires only 3 shots to destroy the mighty Core battleship. In a strategic location, it can turn a huge area into a no-man's land, but it is unable to prevent rushes of fast units and requires extensive air support to maintain its line of vision.

These are the best defensive and offensive weapons around. Good range and very powerful make them very lethal. Build one of these near your enemy's base with a radar (your minimap with nearby blips and threats marked) jammer (a device that interferes with enemy radar), and BOOM, no more enemy base. These do take a lot of power, so make sure you have a couple of fusion power places on hand. Mix a couple of these with Defenders, HLTs and Punishers, and you will be invincible. Stick these behind your main defense line so you can fall back on these. There is only one problem with this great structure: they cannot handle lots of fast units rushing it. So it needs constant air support.