Spring RTS Engine

We don't have so many different terrain types from Old TA.

With spring we can have new ones.

Dense undergrowth, with bushes and small trees should be no problem for a tank, they should drive straight over, but almost impossible for a hover. Bots/infantry might find a way through. The new crush ability will work well here.

Swamp/quicksand, Bad for tanks, ships and bots, no problem for hovers.

Boulder strewn, only bots can find a way, maybe rocks can be reclaimed slowly for little/no metal.

Screed slope, difficult for all.

How fast can a hovercraft go?

Depending upon the terrain and the weather, the average speed of a hovercraft is 35 mph (56 km/h), faster on ice or when going downwind, slower when on dense grass or rough surfaces, or when there is a head wind. Today's light recreational hovercraft can reach speeds in excess of 70 mph (112 km/h).

HOW FAST WILL THE HOVERCRAFT GO?

This depends on the surface conditions you are flying over. Ice is a very efficient surface and the craft will travel 60 miles an hour (96 kph) or more. Long grass is porous and a lot of the lift air is lost so that the hover height is lower, the skirt drag is greater and the vehicle may only travel around 20 mph (32 kph). Generally smooth surfaces are best. It performs very well on water, snow, ice, mud flats, sand bars, etc..

that gives a different approach.

ah, here are good learning info.
also.. hovers depend on the athmosphere pressure to fly... i guess its not possible to use hovers on the moon ie...
also, hot or cold air does influentiate their performance.
ok no more on hovers...

Good stuff mongus, but do TA hovers use an air cushion? For the sake of avoiding endless aguments over futuistic hover technology it might be better if we assume that they do.

Air is pushed downwards in a circle but only at the circumference, hence more lift is generated, this air moving downwards pushes the hover upwards, however the hovercraft becomes unstable in terms of maneouverability. Later on a skirt was added to the side forming a more defined cushion of air to float on, icnreasing maneouverability and in soem cases speed. However because of this and the aircushion, hovercraft dont like steep surfaces or highly irregular ground. Essentially a hovercraft is an aircraft that cant fly very high. Developed byt he americans as a low altitude tank that eventually got scrapped over funding, it looked like a wobbly ufo when first made.

The Avrocar, first hovercraft:



http://www.virtuallystrange.net/ufo/muf ... rocar.html

Forgive em if I rambled on a bit.

Pure ramble...

I spoke to Sir Christopher Cockerell on the phone once.

Alantai Firestar wrote: The Avrocar, first hovercraft:

Good one.

Yes, but does it have Satellite radio? :-D

-Batman

But the skirts on the side where a brittish idea, infact the only reason the invention 'took off'. It's also to be mentioned that hvoercrafts where also ivnented by numerous other inventors in the following years.

Personally, I think the hovercraft in Spring should float a little more off the ground, would be neat. :)

Had the same thought when I saw the pic to.

Maybe you should remodel them so they dont have any of those skirts on them then so we can see underneath them?

Alantai Firestar wrote:But the skirts on the side where a brittish idea, infact the only reason the invention 'took off'. It's also to be mentioned that hvoercrafts where also ivnented by numerous other inventors in the following years.

Actually the hovercraft itself was a british invention..
Guess i am splitting hairs, what I meant was, that is not a hovercraft it is an experimental aircraft that has a hover phase before becomming airborn and going supersonic, the hovercraft was developed as a means of covering land and water at a relatively low speed.

No it wasnt, I've just posted pictures and links of the first hovercraft.

Looks like you missed the rather sarcastic jist of my post, Alantai.

(and at any rate, that isn't even technically a hovercraft)

I've used it on Hoth, it works pretty well

umm links?

Not released yet. Still tweaking it, jeez I'll probably release it with the next version of SWTA, maybe with another map or two...

bah i cant find any maps with the new format!! are you using buggis sharp map maker?

No, mapconv, Buggi hasn't released an updated sharpmap yet.

(and at any rate, that isn't even technically a hovercraft)

That better be more sarcastic jist.