Protocol Droid

The Protocol Droids are programmed to be helpful at all times, and have no armament. However, terrorist factions have been known to tamper with the power supply to turn these Droids into walking proximity grenades. Rumors of their internal power supplies exploding have been strongly denied by TriOptimum.

XERXES has reprogrammed all the Protocol Droids aboard the Von Braun. As soon as they will get close enough to you, they'll self-destruct in a devastating explosion. ProtoDroids first appear on the Engineering Deck, and are found sporadically through the rest of the game.

They appear in very large numbers inside the Cargo Bays, whose confined spaces are conducive to explosive self-destruct attacks. They are also kept inside shipping crates, but can burst out of some of them if triggered or if the crate is damaged enough. As a result, they are deadly in that area, particularly because this early in the game the player should be low on ammo, and not particularly focused on ranged anti-machine weapons. Afterwards, however, they appear only occasionally, in much more open spaces, and there's plenty of ammo to deal with them.

Strategy

 * Avoidance and ranged weapons are your best strategies - once it goes "boom", a Protocol Droid is done for good, so make it blow up far away from you. If, despite your best efforts, the Droid gets close to you, don't waste any ammunition on it. You would simply trigger its explosion a little earlier, which is no benefit if you are already inside its blast radius.
 * EMP attacks and Armor-Piercing Bullets are preferred for mechanicals enemies. Energy weapons are worse, but still effective.
 * If you run completely out of ammo and Psi energy, don’t even bother trying to go toe to toe with a Protocol Droid. It will always win a melee fight. Either get creative or get away.
 * There is a slight delay before a Protocol Droid explodes, which can be exploited to avoid taking damage:
 * If you stand near a corner, you can bait the ProtoDroid into blowing up before quickly ducking around it. While this method is not easy at first, when mastered it results in safe evasions and no damage to the player.
 * If you have higher Agility, you can run away from it when it's close and just about to self-destruct. Make sure you instantly turn around and stafe run (run while looking diagonally and not straight ahead). With enough practice and some luck, you will get away with no harm done.
 * The explosions of these Droids deal distance-independent splash damage. This means getting further from the center of the explosion (but still being within its range) won't reduce the damage in any way. Getting out of blast radius is the only way to receive no damage at all.
 * Their explosions also deal Energy-based damage that can be halved using Energy Reflection Psi Power.
 * Primarily, Psi users should use the Localized Pyrokinesis Power instead. This makes them totally immune to Incendiary damage, rendering Protocol Droids completely harmless!
 * Protocol Droids are also vulnerable to the Stasis Field Generator and the Electron Suppression Psi Power.
 * While Protocol Droids are plentiful in the Cargo Bays, so are cargo elevators which can be used as improvised "crush traps" to get rid of the Droids.
 * If a hostile Turret happens to be nearby, try to get the Droid to walk between the Turret and you. Soon the Droid will be destroyed by the Turret's indiscriminate fire.
 * If you are lucky, you may see a Protocol Droid at a distance, walking by another monster. Shoot the Droid rather than the other monster and you might kill them both with the explosion! Similarly, if you're being chased by a group of monsters (such as Hybrids) and happen to run past a wandering Protocol Droid, you can try shooting it at the right moment to weaken or kill your pursuers.

Trivia

 * In the Orbital Space Station, you can spot a Protocol Droid doing the Macarena, a popular dance move from the 90s, in a nearby window during the third year of tour of duty.

Quotes

 * "I am fully registered TriOptimum service unit."
 * "Hello. May I am at service?"
 * "XERXES won't like this."
 * "You seem to have suffered a minor malfunction."
 * "Your performance seems nonoptimal. May I help?"
 * "Aww. I've driven a client away. I'll likely be downgraded."
 * "If my service was unsatisfactory, please note my ID number."
 * "Can I help you?"