Star Wars Droid Idea (Part 3)
Background Info:
Due to the sheer variety of Insecteroids, including modified and "hybridised" variants, some newer models were initially misclassified until later in the Clone Wars.
New Insecteroid Designs:
Hymenopteroids:
A newer model was discovered which may have been in active service long before its discovery by clone troopers:
Velvet-Hymenopteroids, which are based on velvet ants, are wingless but possess extremely tough rounded armour and boast exceptionally long "extendible stingers". They can also generate strong deflector shields for self-defence and are infamous for invading enemy bases without "giving a damn" about stealth. Only heavy weapons and Jedi assistance can consistently harm them. They may act alone, in small groups or together with large swarms of other Insecteroids. Thankfully for the Republic, they are not common due to the materials needed to make their exceptionally tough bodies. Due to their resemblance to standard ant-based Hymenopteroids, it can be hard to tell them apart from their more common counterparts.
The long "extendible stingers" present in Velvet-Hymenopteroids have been known to be used by other Hymenopteroids. The "stingers" are dangerous stabbing weapons which can be electrically charged to act as tasers, be super-heated to act as "hot cutters" or even deliver highly acidic liquid battery fluids.
Later variants of the standard stabbing stingers have been known to be super-heated to act as "hot cutters" or deliver highly acidic liquid battery fluids. There are even "stingers" that spray acidic liquid battery fluids as a ranged attack.
Larger variants of Hymenopteroids have been known to carry "magazines" of barbed stingers which can be detached to cause continuous damage or explode.
Standard Hymenopteroids have been known to carry "magazines" of small barbed stingers which can be detached to act as tracking or targeting beacons.
Coleopteroids:
A new model was discovered which was initially assumed to be a modified Lepidopteroid variant until its true identification was discovered later in the war:
Grub-Coleopteroids which resemble the larvae of certain beetles. Compared to most Lepidopteroids, they are generally more mobile due to their longer legs and shorter bodies. They may possess broad overlapping plates of armour that protect their legs. Some have been known to operate underwater like modified "imago" variants while others bore holes and leave behind "scrap nuggets" like Borer-Lepidopteroids. There are even those with elongated abdomens which act like ambush predators that emerge from holes while armed with powerful bladed mandibles.
Some Imago-Coleopteroids use highly acidic liquid battery fluids instead of blaster weapons as ranged attacks from the tips of their abdomens. There are even Imago-Coleopteroids that generate sonic attacks from modified abdomens.
Dipteroids:
A new model was discovered soon after the creation of the Flea-Dipteroids and the Mosquito-Dipteroids:
Maggot-Dipteroids, which are maggot-shaped, are essentially flexible drills which quickly drill through soil, rock and even hardened steel. They have been known to either continuously dig until they run out of power and fry their own circuits, thereby causing a lot of structural damage as a result, or explode upon reaching a target location. It is not uncommon for them to be attached onto rocket boosters so that they can be launched like guided missiles. In fact, they were initially classified as armaments, not unlike guided missiles, before they were reclassified as droids. Unlike Borer-Lepidopteroids, they do not leave behind stable tunnels for other Insecteroids to use but the tunnels can be quickly converted into permanent tunnels by Borer-Lepidopteroids.
Some Dipteroids have fly-like "mouth parts" designed to spray highly acidic liquid battery fluids which are stored in their abdomens. Another "mouth part" variant that releases corrosive fluids is used as a stabbing weapon.
Some Mosquito-Dipteroids possess "bloated abdomens" filled with highly acidic liquid battery fluids. Although not as quick or agile as their slimmer standard counterparts, the acid-filled Mosquito-Dipteroids are infamous for injecting the corrosive fluids into their targets.
Lepidopteroids:
Additional variants were discovered over the course of the war.
Spiny-Lepidopteroids are covered in "spines" that help to generate and amplify powerful deflector shields. The shields can cover a surprisingly wide area and be redirected to create a "wall" instead of a "bubble". However, they are generally rendered immobile while generating their deflector shields. In terms of size, they are shorter but thicker than Borer-Lepidopteroids. The "spines" can be attached to other Lepidopteroids and even Grub-Coleopteroids and Larval-Neuropteroids.
Communicator-Lepidopteroids are Lepidopteroids designed to act as representatives of the Insecteroid swarms. Since they are not designed for direct combat, they generally lack offensive or defensive weapons. That said, they have the ability to mimic the voices of other people, communicate in various languages like protocol droids and alter their speakers to make themselves sound intimidating or even unnatural. In fact, they have been used for psychological warfare against even elite clone troopers. In terms of design, they resemble caterpillars with six long "arms" which they could used for gesturing and a tendency to stand upright even while walking.
Some Lepidopteroids resemble slugs due to the extensive layered armour plating covering their entire bodies. The armour plating effectively makes them miniature tanks which can easily shrug off small firearms while they either roll or crawl their way towards their enemies to "devour".
Neuropteroids:
Although a recent addition to the Insecteroid swarms, there have been a number of new variants for the Neuropteroids.
Snakefly-Neuropteroids, which resemble snakeflies, usually act as scouts but can be surprisingly effective anti-infantry units. Their elongated and flexible prothoraxes allow them to not only have a greater range of freedom in adjusting their vision but also the ability to strike infantry through surprisingly small gaps.
Owlfly-Neuropteroids, which resemble owlflies, are fast-flying scouts and attack units. They are infamous for harassing enemy fliers and are especially suited for nocturnal missions.
Some Larval-Neuropteroids have hollow mandibles designed to inject highly acidic liquid battery fluids which are stored in their abdomens. There are also those which can function underwater.
Insecteroid Strategy:
Some time after their introduction in the Clone Wars, Insecteroids started to use liquid batteries which contained highly corrosive acidic fluids as possible alternatives to their usual solid batteries. This was because the powerful acids were effective weapons against even reinforced steel and were especially effective against enemy infantry. That said, any damage to the tanks containing the acid was an immediate "death sentence" for the damaged Insecteroid so it was a double-edged sword. There was also the issue of added weight, especially when the tanks were full, and the risk of losing power due to using up the acid to attack enemies. Even so, use of the acid was not uncommon as even heavy vehicles could be effectively disabled by the acid corroding essential hardware.
As the Clone Wars raged on, Insecteroids often worked together with other battle droids but were unusually independent in spite of being controlled by Central Control Computers. This was because their creator designed them to possess adaptable emergent communal behaviour so that they would be more effective in achieving their given objectives. In fact, Insecteroid swarms have been known to win battles by subverting and even ignoring direct commands from Tactical Droids which were over-reliant on precise calculations and were incapable of dealing with unexpected situations. That said, Insecteroids were significantly more willing to cooperate with Super Tactical Droids which were more flexible with their tactics.
Insecteroids were unusually "respectful" or even "friendly" towards certain battle-droids including B1 Battle Droids, Commando Droids, Super Tactical Droids, Magna Guards, Destroyer Droids, Buzz Droids, Crab Droids, Vulture Droids, Dwarf Spider Droids and Homing Spider Droids. In fact, Insecteroids have been known to act like friendly pets towards B1 Battle Droids when not in combat and would even protect them from harm. In return, B1 Battle Droids were willing to follow their lead into battle and would protect them just as readily.
Although the symbiotic bonds between the Insecteroids with other droids were unexpected, the combat results were desirable enough for most organic generals to ignore them in spite of being afraid of a possible droid uprising. Even the original creator of the Insecteroids was surprised by the bonds but saw no reason to put and end to them. After all, Insecteroids worked best when in a large swarm and being connected with other battle droids, including the amusingly quirky B1 Battle Droids, only made them stronger. Besides, the original creator cared for the Insecteroids and wanted them to continue thriving as a "species". What better way for the Insecteroids to continue thriving than to form symbiotic communal bonds with other types of droids?
Conclusion:
Fears of a possible droid uprising grows as the Insecteroids continue to grow in numbers and variety. The fact that the Insecteroids can form symbiotic communal bonds with other droids only makes the fears worse even as the Clone Wars rages on.