Cossack

US$ "Equipped with a jump drive. Perfect for capturing beacons and flanking enemies"

Introduction
The Cossack is a light robot with a single medium hardpoint.

Ability
This robot has the Jump ability and above average speed, which allows it to do a good job of capturing beacons. However, the low health and the lack of built-in shielding makes this robot vulnerable to all weapons. The Jump ability allows the Cossack to travel longer distances in a shorter amount of time and to dodge rocket based weaponry. This allows it to be effective at beacon capturing and skirmishing. The Jump ability allows it to also ambush opponents, to go over or onto obstacles to gain higher ground, and to avoid or retreat from battles that it can't win.

Strategy
While it is true that the Cossack loses some of its appeal as the game progresses, it can still have tactical value if used with skill. As previously stated, it can be ripped apart very easily by any weapon, so pilots should make full use of its speed to avoid direct confrontation as much as possible, and instead using it to swiftly take beacons that are more out of the way.

Engaging in combat is not recommended, as the Cossack's low durability can be quickly depleted if encountering close range setups. Moreover, sniper fire can cripple the Cossack. You should flank enemies with another teammate and try to outmaneuver them. Threat Measure Cossack is known to be the first robot a player can use, and it is equipped with a medium hardpoint, but this tiny robot is very fast and makes a excellent beacon capper, while having the weakest hitpoints of the game, making Cossack the easiet target to everyone. Due to low health, decent speed, a Jump ability, and one medium hardpoint, Cossack is a normal threat to robots its size, but a weak threat to bigger, tougher robots.

Possible Setups
These setups are recommended for the Cossack:

Overview
The use of the Punisher T is common in the beginner leagues, due to being cheap and an effective damage dealer. Another effective setup would be the use of an Ecu, which grants the Cossack extra protection, particularly from sniper fire, at the cost of having no firepower. With this setup, the Cossack is capable of either dodging or blocking incoming enemy fire from almost every weapon, which makes it good at capturing beacons. However, it requires a great deal of map knowledge and situational awareness to be effective.

Tarans and Orkans are good weapon choices for hit-and-run attacks, allowing the pilot to rain down plasma or rockets, and then quickly escape, however there are much better options to mount these weapons on.

Not Recommended

 * The use of long-range weaponry, due to dealing low damage, however more expensive weaponry can deal more, but there are better options to use these on. These types of weapon don't effectively fit its role as an early beacon capturer, as the protection of an Ecu, or the extra damage from a close to mid-range weapon is recommended.
 * The use of more valuable equipment because there are better platforms for mounting premium equipment.

Purchase Information
Note: Level 12 Mark I is required to upgrade (purchase) to Mark II.

Trivia

 * Cossack translates to horseman, or cavalry in Russian.
 * The Cossack's head strongly resembles Russian attack helicopter Mil Mi-24 “Hind” (except Mi-24A).
 * In very early versions, the Cossack only had a light hardpoint due to medium hardpoints not existing at the time.
 * This is the only light robot to have the Jump ability.
 * The Cossack has the lowest health of any robot in the current game.
 * The Cossack is the first bot to be unlocked with an ability.