The Shade hides the alien team. It must be on infestation, can be moved (2.5 m/s) and uses 20 supply.
Cloak#
Passive. Everything on the alien team within 17 m (players, structures, eggs, drifters) is cloaked, as long as the shade itself is not burning. Moving fast still makes a player partly visible, and attacking or being hurt reveals them. Marines see cloaked things when very close, or with an Observatory or scan.
Ink#
With a Shade Hive, the commander can release Ink from a shade (3 team res, 15 s cooldown shared by the whole team). For 6.3 s (about 6.5 s in practice) a thick cloud surrounds the shade. Within 16 m of it:
- ARCs can't target anything, and an ARC that was aiming loses its shot. See Ink vs ARCs.
- Scans don't work: a marine scan within 20 m of the cloud reveals nothing until the ink is gone.
- Marines on foot are disoriented: their screen warps, more strongly the closer they are to the shade. Aliens see a lighter version of the cloud and can see through it.
Use it to save a hive from ARCs or to cover a fight or retreat.