Question Rapelling - Is It Possible in SP MBT?

Miketee10022 · #1 June 14th, 2012, 12:50 AM

Hi - I have a friend who is a combat vet of the 82nd Airborne, and - though he is jump-trained and did many jumps - most of his combat ops involved rapelling from choppers. I have been telling him about SP MBT and he is impressed with the depth of the game. But the one thing he objects to is the fact that - so far as I know - choppers ALWAYS have to fully land before unloading troops or equipment.

Is it possible to unload troops via rapelling in SP MBT? I have not found any way, but I may be missing something.

One other example of unloading 'on the fly' by the way is in the rather cool movie Act of Valor, in which the SEALs are accompanied by patrol boats that are slung under choppers and lowered into the water via cables. They are lifted out the same way.

I would hesitate to ask for rapelling as a wishlist item for fear that the coding would be incredibly difficult. But if a designer/developer wants to comment on this, I would be appreciative. Thanks!

Imp · #2 June 14th, 2012, 02:12 AM

In game terms at this level there is little diffrence between them, the helicopter would have to be coded as a stationary while its happening & hence vulnerable to ground fire as its hovering not moving. The only diffrence is the fact that landing effectivly ends the helos move so you have to plan more.

Miketee10022 · #3 June 15th, 2012, 02:15 AM

Thanks Imp, for the added insight.

I did something interesting with the patrol boats, BTW - I changed their load value, so that they could be carried by the heaviest helos, and I gave them a 1 movement value on land. This allows the helo to land next to a river and unload the boat. The boat then moves into the river and, after a turn, does its normal thing. I know it sounds odd, but it works - the added time the boat takes to move can be interpreted, if one wishes, as the time it takes to get the boat set up and moving after it is dropped by the helicopter. Not a perfect sim, mind you, but it works in the context of the scenario I am playing.

Thanks again!

mkr8683 · #4 June 15th, 2012, 03:54 PM

Air Assault! I never had the opportunity to go, but I had always heard it involved tying a lot of knots. Which is what my stomach was in every time I rode a Blackhawk or a Chinook.

As Imp said, it's already there in the game. A landed helo, unloading troops, is stationary and vulnerable, just like one in real life, hovering above the ground.

gila · #5 June 15th, 2012, 05:57 PM

I know in the VN era a "dust off" procedure where a huey hovered a few feet off ground,then unload mostly med evac and fly away more quickly, very dangerous type of disembarking but was done alot.

Trouble with coding a dust off or rapelling,or just landing, is that it would mean a choice would have to made of what type of landing something i think would be hard to implement in game.

Miketee10022 · #6 June 15th, 2012, 07:41 PM

Thanks guys, for the added insights and explanations. Appreciate the added feedback.

BTW - the scenario I am working with is Operation Barras (161). It is an excellent scenario! Very challenging. I am - of course - taking a few liberties. Working with the scenario editor to add some units, tweak others. It is *very* challenging in its original form, but even 'tweaked' it is a tough nut to crack. The issue here is not simply 'winning' in terms of points, but rather keeping friendly (ie British) casualties to a minimum - the loss of even a few men is painful in the context of the game.

Special thanks to Sgt. Walrus on his fine scenario design work!

All the Best!