Rethinking Vehicle Air Tranport

[Kipper]

Originally Posted by Xyntech

1 Sunderer
2 MBT's
4 Lightnings
10 ATV's (in 2 rows of five)

8 ATVs, and a Galstar can't spawn troops (maybe it can still deploy and use turrets?), and I'm in.

That way, get a Galaxy with troops&spawn and a Galstar with vehicles only and you have a special forces setup right there.

[Talek Krell]

Originally Posted by Zekeen

Now, why didn't you post this in the IDEA section? It's set up for this sort of post for a reason - so it doesn't get lost among the basic discussion.

I wanted to generate some discussion and refine the idea a bit, and the idea forum seems to generate less traffic for that sort of thing. I think a lot of people don't check it. We'll still get this put up in there later though.

Originally Posted by CutterJohn

The problem with hauling multiple tanks would be the thing would have to be pretty dang large.
Unless.. maybe.. I think i have an idea for a cool concept. I shall play around with it a bit.

That did occur to me, but I had no easy fix for it and put it on the back burner. Xyntech's suggestion of having the vehicle telescope out after leaving the pad might work. I'm looking forward to seeing what you come up with.

I'm loving your developments of the mission system idea. It will be awesome if they apply it that way.

Originally Posted by PeteHMB

Looking at pics though, I don't see why Sunderers should take up more slots than an MBT.

It's a balance issue, as you suspected. In addition to what other people have pointed out I'd also add that last I knew the Sundy still has its EMP blast. You could already do some crazy stuff just dropping one of those in PS1. Of course the balance is very subject to discussion, I'm hardly an authority on the vehicle balance of PS2.

[Xyntech]

Originally Posted by Kipper

8 ATVs, and a Galstar can't spawn troops (maybe it can still deploy and use turrets?), and I'm in.

That way, get a Galaxy with troops&spawn and a Galstar with vehicles only and you have a special forces setup right there.

I think 10 would still be balanced, but 8 or 10 would be fine.

I'm just thinking about how ATV's are already rapid transport on their own, and may have difficulty bringing their firepower to bear right after hot dropping in. It would still be 2 less than the 12 of a normal Gal drop and 3 less than a Sunderer (including the driver).

I totally agree about a Lodestar Galaxy not being a spawn point. The more I think about it, normal Galaxies being spawn points would be more than enough to keep them useful, even just for normal Gal drops. I've mentioned in another thread my thoughts about how spawning at a Galaxy that's in a safe place and then loading into it for a hot drop may end up being more valuable than just parking a Galaxy near a fight and using it as an AMS.

[Talek Krell]

I concur with the sentiment of the Galstar not keeping the troop spawn ability.

In my mind the "Galstar" is a completely different vehicle than the Galaxy, and designed for a wholly different purpose. Even visually they may have only a passing similarity.

Building the Galstar off the same chassis and cert tree as the Gal is just a matter of convenience to allow air support pilots more adaptability in their role and give the game's Artists a framework to start from.

[Kipper]

I know ATVs are fast anyway, but my thinking was more shock troops. Galstar would have to land or hover stationary and below a certain height to drop MBTs and Sunderers, but IMO the ATVs should be hot droppable higher and faster.

The idea being they go in to create confusion and mayhem while the main assault happens elsewhere or from a different direction.

[Xyntech]

Does anybody else get a weird boner at the thought of how wrong it would be to drop a tank on top of the roof of one of those new bridges and see whether it manages to land upside down or right side up?

It could be a way to make those hard decisions.

"What should we do? Plan A or B?" "I don't know, flip a tank."

[Kipper]

I'm imagining tanks on top of the bio-domes and those high up tech plant buildings. This is what makes you realise that Galstar isn't going to happen...

[Stew]

I think thats having a transport vehicules that can DROP vehicules and amunition and resuply etc.. could be damned cool as well !

it could make this role a lots of fun and engaging !

[Sabot]

Originally Posted by Stew

I think thats having a transport vehicules that can DROP vehicules and amunition and resuply etc.. could be damned cool as well !

it could make this role a lots of fun and engaging !

I can get behind this... I remember Higby talking about terrain and how it sometimes favor certain playstyles (big vehicle battles, infantry etc). Some hexes in the game might not be an ideal place for a sundy... narrow paths, cliffsides and so on, which makes setting up a rearm station in a good spot hard. If a Gal pilot could spec to be able to drop a crate from the air which rearms and possibly heals infantry it might be a viable option on those hexes, But also if there's a HD on the roof of an installation... extra support for the troops that's otherwise doomed if they attract too much attention.

[Marinealver]

What are you talking about. Loadstars were used for allot of things. Sure they were primary a vehicle transport but mostly a Mobile Vehicle Resupply Station. However the vehicle transport did become handy at times, such as moving say another tank that got destroyed while replacing a damaged loadstar. Also AMS drops could be verry sucessful.

[RSphil]

air transport should be realistic imo. i never played ps1 so not sure on sizes of vehicles ect. but id say 1-2 tank internal and 1 underslung if size allows.

smaller stuff like the quads ya could fit maybe 4-6, ect ect.

if you have a few aircraft to transport and a few drivers for the vehicles then a small wave of aircraft maybe with air support could make a difference to a battle.

but i havent played ps1 and im new so i dont know lol.
just going off military tactics of today and future.

[Galapogos]

Originally Posted by Kipper

I'm imagining tanks on top of the bio-domes and those high up tech plant buildings. This is what makes you realise that Galstar isn't going to happen...

If they force the pilot to land (or have the vehicle a few feet from the ground if its under slung), then they could just disable dropping off vehicles in certain points, like how vehicles deconstruct if you land/ park them in the wrong spot in ps1, except the drop function would simply be disabled at those designated points.

[Xyntech]

Am I the only one who wants tanks on top of biodomes?

[Talek Krell]

Originally Posted by Kipper

I'm imagining tanks on top of the bio-domes and those high up tech plant buildings. This is what makes you realise that Galstar isn't going to happen...

They could just implement the auto deconstruct function again. It generally kept vehicles off of rooftops in the first game, why not the second?

[Neurotoxin]

Transport Galaxy modded with crazy heavy engines and a few gunner seats, and a platform that it tows beneath it. The galaxy hovers at 20-30 meters off the ground, and the platform opens its sides up for vehicles to drive on.

The platform is kept level by a stabilizing system, and vehicles can fire over the lip of the platform. Each vehicle slows the Transport Galaxy by an amount relative to the increased weight, though the platform will fill up before there is enough weight to prevent more than 50% speed reduction.

The other feature is that the sides of the platform can be lowered at any time, allowing the vehicles to drive off onto the ground below. Inertial dampeners are applied when this is done, which prevents falling damage, but also reduces the amount of crushing damage that the vehicle inflicts.