The atmosphere on planets cultivated and made home by the Wafflemen is toxic to the Harvesters' overall biology and causes them to not only mutate, but become infected with a disease that causes them to irrationality seek out waffles to hide on their stacks of flapjacks for consumption.
To combat this disadvantage, they leveled the fields by engineering full body robotic suits that are able to not only contain air from their own atmosphere, but have the built in capability to recycle it through their suits as long as the suit sustains viable energy.