Turn () is a combat ability possessed by Red and the Transistor. The ability freezes on enemies on screen and allows the player to queue attacks as a part of a 'plan'. A bar on the top of the screen decreases as players move Red or queue up combat abilities. Red will initialize all combat actions once Turn() is reactivated. In addition, Red can be able to use Turn at low health.

Usage

Using each Turn to its fullest potential is critical for winning fights in Transistor. Although each fight is different, and enemies require various strategies to defeat, a few things remain constant. Here are some overall tips for using Turn effectively:

• The one rule here is do not rush. Do not forget that there is no time limit to planning your Turn. Despite the frantic nature of some fights, staying calm and thinking each Turn through is the best way to avoid excessive damage.
• Using Jaunt() to move around the battlefield covers more distance in less time than simply walking.
• Breach(), when used as a passive power, increases your overall Turn time.
• Ping(), when used as a passive power, increases the distance you can walk in a single Turn.
• The game will usually allow you to perform one last action (within reasonable limits), even if you don't have enough Turn time available.
• Get behind, ambush, and disrupt the enemies whenever possible. To maximize damage, the player needs to use the Backstab, Unmask, and Shifted bonuses. Every attack the player has can benefit from these bonuses, no matter what kind or what range.
• Make sure to end your Turn some distance away from strong enemies whenever you can. Apart from Jaunt (or Jaunted powers), you have no way of fighting back or escaping until your Turn recharges. Fetches and Cluckers can be especially dangerous in this regard.
• Remember, any Turn time you don't use will not count against you, and the Turn will recharge that much earlier as a result. For this reason, you might want to leave some time at the end of your Turn, for a quicker shot at the next Turn.
• Later in the game, enemies become able to cloak and shield themselves. Pay very close attention when you start your Turn - if an enemy is Masked, Protected, or Blocked by some obstacle, landing a hit will become harder, or impossible. Time your Turn correctly so that you begin giving orders when the enemy is vulnerable.
• Cluckers 3.0 have the ability to "disrupt" your Turn. They leave a glowing grid on the floor around the area they last shot. Entering this area will end your Turn automatically, and you cannot start a new Turn while you're in it.
• Snapshots 3.0 have the ability to cloud your Turn screen, keeping you from seeing large regions of the battlefield. However, you can always move close to the Snapshot to reveal the area, memorize it, then move back again.
• The Turn will not always play out exactly as shown on the screen, because the Process can still move while a Turn is being carried out. YoungLadys, for example, will teleport away as soon as they are hit, so you can only hit them once before they change position.

Trivia

• Whenever an attack is planned that deals damage to an "already dead" target, messages show up on the target's HP-bar.
  • The first message is "Overkill", starting once the player deals more damage than required.
  • The second message is "Overkill!", if another move is applied to the same target.
  • The third message is "Do you even read".
  • The fourth message is "Overkill!!!".
  • The fifth and last message is "You are mean", which will remain for all subsequent attacks.
  • An easy way to test this is with a Jaunt() + [Breach() & Void()] combo in the sandbox area. Use the Jaunt() repeatedly against the same enemy (either weakened or with both passives Breach() and Void()), and the message will appear after each stage of Overkill.
• When the Turn() is disrupted by the Process, Red still uses all planned attacks.