There’s more to the upcoming RimWorld Biotech update than just the birds and the bees. Indeed, the 1.4 update is going well beyond colonist reproduction and children. As we noted, the patch also includes the new mechanitor class, which is a new type of colonist who can mind-meld with mechanoids – and now, we’ve seen a few examples of the mechanoids that arrive in the management game as well.
Mechanoids are led by mechanoid commanders, and according to the latest RimWorld update post, these come in three terrifying varieties. These are boss-type encounters, and there’s a good reason to seek them out: they drop chips needed to advance your mechanitors’ level. The developers explain that this class won’t be able to progress simply by conducting research – instead, you’ll need to get some hands-on experience with mechanoids to level them up.
Each of the three mechanioid commanders drops a unique type of chip, and the first time you get one, it’ll unlock a new tier of mechanoid research. You’ll need to continue collecting chips to keep powering up your mechanitor, and ultimately create a Darth Vader-esque ‘mechlord.’
The three types of mechanoid commander are the fireball-spouting Diabolus, the War Queen and its brood of combat urchins, and mysterious psychic Apocriton – all of them have their own unique abilities, and require different tactical approaches to defeat.
They don’t show up alone, either. Each mechanoid commander is accompanied by a squad of escort mechs, and the composition of those gangs changes up each time you encounter the boss. It’ll be critical to carefully evaluate each group as it approaches in order to figure out the best way to take them on.
Once you have a few mechanoids of your own, however, you can give them custom colours and unique names – they’ll become another part of your growing RimWorld family.
The latest update post also reveals that the arrival of the mechanoids brings with it the arrival of pollution, which has its own set of new mechanics. Pollution can build up and produce effects like acid rain and corrosive smog, and while the mechanoids don’t mind this stuff, your colonists definitely will.
Colonists will be able to manually clean up pollution, bundling toxic sludge and the like into ‘wastepacks,’ which can then be exported, frozen, atomised, or given over to a cleansing Polux tree. You can also just leave them alone to see what new kinds of crops the heavily toxic soil winds up growing.
There’s plenty more to check out in the post, so do that before heading over to the Biotech page on Steam. It’ll be out later in October.