Build a Scarab (Vehicle) more or less Immediately
It takes up 3 Slots (Your initial Aerial Transport only carries 6 Slots, so you’ll need to only have 3 Troops to put the Vehicle in)
It builds very fast (compared to previous builds), will be obtainable fairly early in the game, especially with the bonus resources you start with
Armed with Rockets, well armored, does not have a Melee Attack, does not require a Soldier in it to move / use it
Small Arms early game will do very little to nothing to it (enemy Pistols literally don’t even pierce the armor at all to the HP), can act as a Shield against Mindfraggers (keeping troops inside)
Pro Tips for Usage:
Have Soldier Hop out (costs 2 Action Points), Fire Away / Grenade (2 Action Points to spend), climb back into the APC for a 0 Cost Action (you can even use Sprint to move a no-action point unit into it, though you’ll need to reselect it after moving it, as the game deselects units that have 0 AP left, it is a free Action all the same)
You need to move away troops if you want more than 1 out at a time (which cuts into the action economy b/c leaving it costs 2 AP), better imo when using it like this, to simply hop out, open fire, go back in, then next hops out opens fire hops back in, etc.
It is a very fast vehicle, has massive range (blocked in some areas such as Lairs, it’ll hit the ‘ceiling’ depending on where it is)
Pros:
You won’t lose many troops early, unlikely to lose the Vehicle, absorbs a LOT of incoming attacks
Cons:
Somewhat expensive, takes up 3 Slots that could be used by normal troops, albeit with a fraction of the range / speed of it
Takes XP away from Troops (you could have 6 troops getting xp instead of 3)
-Somewhat offset by just building an early Training Grounds
Just some basic tips I thought I’d provide to anyone that was struggling