Hello everyone!
Welcome to this week's weekly update. Tonight, we are exploring some more of the changes to the ever-popular GLA airforce, more specifically, some changes to the Hook Gunship.

Added in 1.86, the Hook Gunship was the product of a rather unusual series of tests and ideas. Originally, it was meant to be a simple visual replacement to the GLA bomber model that would drop off scorpion tanks at the Reinforcement Pad. After all, why should a bomber drop off tanks? That's a little silly, even for the GLA. After feeling the result wasn't quite "GLA enough" so, after adding some rocket pods, machine guns, and missile launchers, the Hook transport became the Gunship unit we know today. Fun fact: this was also what led to the development of the Boxcar plane you may have seen previously, so there's some fun behind-the-scenes info if that's your sort of thing.

After its inclusion in 1.86 and a few subsequent nerfs, the Hook entered a bit of a low spot, being a unit that wildly swung between game-ending or pitiable depending on whether the opponent built anti-air or not. In general, we haven't been too happy with the spot the GLA air force was in during 1.87, as we found that players had mainly been using the GP for its Overwatch ability instead of using the collection of air units it provides to expand the GLA sandbox. As such, we have spent a fair amount of time redesigning the GLA airforce, expanding its capabilities, and trying to make its undesirable additions more desirable. We will be posting more about this in future updates, so stay tuned...

In the meantime, let's focus on what this update is all about: the new Hook. Yes, it's another 'Rise of the Kits' inclusion, but for our more observant readers, you should be thinking "Hang on, I thought most of the kits were being added to replace bike_logic code, but the Hook has no bike_logic. What gives?"

Well-observed hypothetical-smarty-pants-reader, gold star for you.
Yes, that is because of another new 1.9 design decision you may have noticed on some of the internal streams. Now, many powerful specialist units now have a build limit of 4. This was an extremely contentious design direction amongst the internal team - after all, we recognize that part of Command & Conquer's identity is that the series allows you to build huge armies without population mechanics limiting what you can do (beyond hero units, of course). Our team has played a huge amount of other RTS games, and we often take inspiration from non-CNC games and try to incorporate what works and what doesn't into our own work. Many of our team (... I'll be honest, most of them) are very large fans of the Dawn Of War Franchise, and if you know anything about that game, you will know that many of its units have specific limits to how can be fielded at a time.

From a design perspective, unit limits offer themselves as a useful tool that creates a special place within the sandbox for units that operate above the expected performance of normal gameplay to exist and shine. It lets players enjoy powerful specialist units, and it lets designers account for their prevalence and prevent these units from scaling out of control and becoming overpowered through sheer numbers of them. in 1.9 and into the future, we have decided to take inspiration from this type of design to give many of our more specialized heavy-hitting units the chance to be at that higher level of power without needing to reduce their impact to make up for balance concerns.

This brings us back to the Hook. For now, the Hook is one of these units with a limit of 4. We didn't want to buff the Hook and call it a day. We wanted to really make the Hook feel like an impactful unit where its limit of 4 had a purpose. Thus, we added kits to the unit to allow it to fit into different and unique gameplay niches to either be a powerful spearhead, a game-ending harassment tool, or a valuable support tool for players who invest the Generals Points into it.

Once produced in surprisingly high numbers for one of the largest and heaviest helicopters ever conceived, the Hook has become an aviation rarity by the mid-21st century. Most units nowadays are under the control of the Global Liberation Army, acquired through corrupt channels or the outright collapse of several fragile states in Asia and Africa, where the most powerful factions within the organization now operate their own quasi-air forces.

For many a warlord, the Hook is as much a weapon of war as it is a symbol of prestige, carrying armed soldiers and even light vehicles into battle while delivering devastating fire from a variety of cannons and rocket launchers. Some helicopters have even been used to deploy crude radiological weapons, so-called "dirty bombs", assembled from stolen, salvaged, or illegally purchased nuclear materials. As if this most common configuration of the Hook was not terrifying enough, a number of field modifications have made sporadic appearances in recent years.




When equipped with Gun Ports, passengers onboard the Hook can fire their weapons in flight, adding even greater firepower as well as versatility. During anti-GLA operations in Cameroon, French airborne forces suffered an embarrassing series of helicopter losses to Hooks, whose passengers fired Stinger missiles at them while paratroopers on the ground were hunted down by heliborne sharpshooters. Despite European efforts, the country remained a hotbed of GLA activity for years.



Render Description: MARS2588



When equipped with Improvised Bombs instead of their regular dirty bombs, the Hook becomes a terrifying demolition helicopter. Little more than metal barrels filled to the brim with explosives, these bombs can destroy buildings, hardened fortifications, and even heavy tanks. This was brutally demonstrated during an incursion into Egypt, whose Overlord tanks, purchased only in their basic configuration without the secondary Gattling turret, were annihilated in the attack.

Render Description: MARS2588



When equipped with the Junk Claw, the Hook can act as a mobile repair support helicopter for friendly ground and air forces by delivering spare parts and machinery in a most unorthodox fashion. The GLA's mobile raiding forces, which operate autonomously over extended times in vast and remote environments, have been a persistent thorn in the side of South Africa and other neighboring countries for years, thanks to this surprisingly effective form of heliborne logistics and support.

Render Description: MARS2588

The 4-unit limit exists in some form for at least 1 unit for each faction, including some redesigned existing units (like the Claymore and Topol), or some Vanilla classics (like the Scud)

As such, we're excited for you guys to get your hands on these limited units and really let loose with their power. That's all for this week! See you next time.

...Nah, you got me. Here are some teasers. First, one to guess what they are getting a hug (you can pay for my flight, I'm not made of money)







And, of course, the ever-confusing...this... guy!







... okay, now we're signing off for reals. Enjoy your week, and see you next Sunday!