The Cardea is a powerful close-range hovertank designed to punish anything that dares get too close. Its shotgun deals massive burst damage at short range, making it deadly against swarms, light armor, and overextended enemies. Its shots carry significant impulse factor, meaning it can push lighter units around or slow down larger ones' momentum.

With high health but sluggish speed, the Cardea functions best as a brawler in chokepoints, ambush zones, or as a meat shield during frontal pushes. However, its limited range and hover pathing mean it must be carefully positioned to avoid getting kited or focused down before closing the gap.

Cardea fires 14 'pellets' at 40 damage apiece every 2s. The DPS of 280 assumes half of these on average will hit at common ranges, but at point blank, its damage vastly increases.