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General FreeSpace => FreeSpace Discussion => Topic started by: Retsof on August 19, 2008, 10:02:35 pm

Title: Purpose of Hauler 1 & 2
Post by: Retsof on August 19, 2008, 10:02:35 pm
Quote
In the mission Into the Maelstrom, there are 2 Elysium transports named Hauler 1 and Hauler 2. They have no purpose in the mission.

That's from the Wiki.  But if you hang around after the Collosus arrives they will move in and dock with the transports, then If I remember correctly, they will go to the Collosus.  Most of the time one of them gets splattered by asteroids though and this seems to mess up the orders for the second.
Title: Re: Purpose of Hauler 1 & 2
Post by: Flipside on August 19, 2008, 10:06:55 pm
I think it means that they don't serve a purpose from the players' perspective. I'm assuming they are not required to be protected etc and so are little more than decoration for the mission itself?
Title: Re: Purpose of Hauler 1 & 2
Post by: Androgeos Exeunt on August 19, 2008, 10:20:27 pm
I think they share the same purpose as the events that happen after you are ordered to return to base in Surrender, Belisarius!. In that mission, if you linger on for much longer and ignore Command asking you if there is something wrong with your jump drive, you can fly around and watch Iotas 1 and 2 dock with the Psamtik before the destroyer recalls its fighters and depart.

The Haulers, I think, are supposed to simulate the transferring of supplies from the convoy ships to the Colossus. In esscence, they are the ones who are doing the actual re-supply. However, a waypoint glitch in the game means that they take forever to dock with the convoy ships, and I don't think they undock after that.

If you play the mission at the highest difficulty level, both Elysiums stand a high chance of getting destroyed by asteroids. :drevil:
Title: Re: Purpose of Hauler 1 & 2
Post by: Snail on August 20, 2008, 12:42:29 am
I thought they dock with the miners and then dock with the Colossus.
Title: Re: Purpose of Hauler 1 & 2
Post by: Androgeos Exeunt on August 20, 2008, 03:06:00 am
One of the two, definitely. I haven't flown that mission in a while, so I can't remember.
Title: Re: Purpose of Hauler 1 & 2
Post by: Herra Tohtori on August 20, 2008, 03:45:19 am
Transports. They frakking deliver.
Title: Re: Purpose of Hauler 1 & 2
Post by: WMCoolmon on August 20, 2008, 09:29:53 pm
It's not delivery...it's Digiorno.
Title: Re: Purpose of Hauler 1 & 2
Post by: Mars on August 21, 2008, 12:09:29 am
Oh god... now I want a frikkin pizza...

I've never actually seen those transports survive.
Title: Re: Purpose of Hauler 1 & 2
Post by: Androgeos Exeunt on August 21, 2008, 04:16:56 am
They won't survive on Insane difficulty, but they will on Very Easy. Try playing the mission once at the lowest difficulty level.
Title: Re: Purpose of Hauler 1 & 2
Post by: Jeff Vader on August 21, 2008, 04:18:35 am
Nvr dn tht mslf, but has anyone tried issuing the "Protect the damn thing, you wankers!" order to the wingmen?
Title: Re: Purpose of Hauler 1 & 2
Post by: Mars on August 21, 2008, 04:25:41 am
AI is a little spotty when it comes to asteriods
Title: Re: Purpose of Hauler 1 & 2
Post by: MP-Ryan on August 22, 2008, 01:33:59 pm
AI is a little spotty when it comes to asteriods

A LITTLE?

Try useless =)
Title: Re: Purpose of Hauler 1 & 2
Post by: Androgeos Exeunt on August 23, 2008, 03:23:12 am
A LITTLE?

Try useless =)

No wonder I find protecting the Iceni to be a nightmare... ;)
Title: Re: Purpose of Hauler 1 & 2
Post by: Jeff Vader on August 23, 2008, 03:32:07 am
A LITTLE?

Try useless =)

No wonder I find protecting the Iceni to be a nightmare... ;)
It's not the Iceni. It's the Hinton that's a pain in the arse. You take a peek at the escort list and think "Oh, the Hinton is at 98. Coo.", you blink your eyes and "The Vasudans have destroyed the Hinton! Pilots, redouble your efforts.".
Title: Re: Purpose of Hauler 1 & 2
Post by: Androgeos Exeunt on August 23, 2008, 03:39:28 am
It's not the Iceni. It's the Hinton that's a pain in the arse. You take a peek at the escort list and think "Oh, the Hinton is at 98. Coo.", you blink your eyes and "The Vasudans have destroyed the Hinton! Pilots, redouble your efforts.".

:lol:

I know what you mean, sometimes, I see the Hinton at about 80%, then a few moments later, it gets destroyed without any warning.
Title: Re: Purpose of Hauler 1 & 2
Post by: Mars on August 23, 2008, 03:58:18 am
I hate that mission... it's like Russian Roulette, with five chambers loaded. It's not really your skill that's put to the test, but your luck.

There have been times I've done nothing and both the Iceni and Hinton make it through
There have been times I've done everything and the Hinton goes down anyway.

And my favorite:
There have been times the Hinton makes it through the asteroids, but somehow it ends up in front of the Iceni... so when the Iceni jumps out it takes out the Hinton.
Title: Re: Purpose of Hauler 1 & 2
Post by: Mobius on August 23, 2008, 04:12:28 am
Quote
Colossus: This is the GTVA Colossus. We have reached the rendezvous point. Now deploying transports. [...]

...that's more or less the message sent by the Colossus at the end of Into the Maelstrom. IMO the transports were supposed to take off from the Colossus fighterbay upon its arrival and dock with the convoy but since the procedure will take a long while the FREDder simply told the transports to follow a waypoint path...
Title: Re: Purpose of Hauler 1 & 2
Post by: Snail on August 23, 2008, 04:30:24 am
Well, really it makes little difference since the player doesn't need to protect them or even be in-mission at that point.
Title: Re: Purpose of Hauler 1 & 2
Post by: Mobius on August 23, 2008, 05:14:52 am
The player's missions ended with the arrival of the Colossus. It doesn't mean that the series of events surrounding the missions ended as well.

As FREDder I usually add things that go beyond the amount of time the player is supposed to spend on the battlefield. There will be transports ordered to dock with ships many minutes after the "official" end of the mission and such. IMO things shouldn't freeze when the RTB directive appears on the HUD.
Title: Re: Purpose of Hauler 1 & 2
Post by: Androgeos Exeunt on August 23, 2008, 05:50:54 am
The player's missions ended with the arrival of the Colossus. It doesn't mean that the series of events surrounding the missions ended as well.

As FREDder I usually add things that go beyond the amount of time the player is supposed to spend on the battlefield. There will be transports ordered to dock with ships many minutes after the "official" end of the mission and such. IMO things shouldn't freeze when the RTB directive appears on the HUD.

You mean like "Surrender, Belisarius!"?
Title: Re: Purpose of Hauler 1 & 2
Post by: Mobius on August 23, 2008, 06:14:23 am
That and other missions.
Title: Re: Purpose of Hauler 1 & 2
Post by: Mars on August 23, 2008, 06:22:25 am
Okay, everyone stop talking and idle while Alpha 1 jumps out.
Title: Re: Purpose of Hauler 1 & 2
Post by: Petrarch of the VBB on August 23, 2008, 06:39:44 am
And my favorite:
There have been times the Hinton makes it through the asteroids, but somehow it ends up in front of the Iceni... so when the Iceni jumps out it takes out the Hinton.

I seem to get this outcome more often than the others.
Title: Re: Purpose of Hauler 1 & 2
Post by: Androgeos Exeunt on August 23, 2008, 07:13:50 am
Strange...I only got it twice, both times when I was cheating.

When I don't cheat, it either jumps out and survives or dies.
Title: Re: Purpose of Hauler 1 & 2
Post by: Snail on August 23, 2008, 07:36:05 am
I got it once. I was like **** THIS!!! And killed all my wingmen. Funnily enough, they didn't turn on me. They must trust me lots.
Title: Re: Purpose of Hauler 1 & 2
Post by: Jeff Vader on August 23, 2008, 08:21:13 am
I got it once. I was like **** THIS!!! And killed all my wingmen. Funnily enough, they didn't turn on me. They must trust me lots.
I've repeatedly disabled the Iceni. And no one ever seems to give a ****.
Title: Re: Purpose of Hauler 1 & 2
Post by: Mobius on August 23, 2008, 08:37:18 am
May I know why the thread derailed and is continuing to derail? :wtf:
Title: Re: Purpose of Hauler 1 & 2
Post by: NGTM-1R on August 23, 2008, 08:50:30 am
May I know why the thread derailed and is continuing to derail? :wtf:

It's a time-honored HLP tradition.
Title: Re: Purpose of Hauler 1 & 2
Post by: Androgeos Exeunt on August 23, 2008, 09:57:27 pm
:lol:

Let me get back to topic for a little space then.

For some reason, it seems that the Haulers start off in front of you, but by the time you rendezvous with the Colossus, they're a long way behind.

Also, has anyone tried to view the haulers as they get smacked by the asteroids. The first time I did it, I was like "DIVE, YOU IDIOT!" and Hauler 2 kept flying straight and collided with an asteroid.
Title: Re: Purpose of Hauler 1 & 2
Post by: eliex on August 24, 2008, 12:23:01 am
 :lol: Never seen that though, but I'll have a look later.

AI flame me sometimes for no reason just because they take it for granted that Alpha 1 will always be there to save the day.  :mad2:
Title: Re: Purpose of Hauler 1 & 2
Post by: Droid803 on August 24, 2008, 12:31:09 am
Also, has anyone tried to view the haulers as they get smacked by the asteroids. The first time I did it, I was like "DIVE, YOU IDIOT!" and Hauler 2 kept flying straight and collided with an asteroid.

"Transport pilots are not known for the ability to think."
Title: Re: Purpose of Hauler 1 & 2
Post by: eliex on August 24, 2008, 12:33:52 am
Also, has anyone tried to view the haulers as they get smacked by the asteroids. The first time I did it, I was like "DIVE, YOU IDIOT!" and Hauler 2 kept flying straight and collided with an asteroid.

"Transport pilots are not known for the ability to think."

How did they manage to even get a place at the GTVA Flight Academy?  :confused:
Title: Re: Purpose of Hauler 1 & 2
Post by: Androgeos Exeunt on August 24, 2008, 12:47:55 am
How did they manage to even get a place at the GTVA Flight Academy?  :confused:

Simple: they shot down a GTDr Amazon in the Training Simulator Modules. :drevil:
Title: Re: Purpose of Hauler 1 & 2
Post by: eliex on August 24, 2008, 01:06:07 am
NO! Transport pilot are far too smart for that! They would have destroyed the drones by doing a kamikaze into them.  :)
Title: Cargo pilots
Post by: FreeSpaceFreak on August 26, 2008, 01:15:00 am
I always thought they were either punished pilots (that's somewhere in an AWOL debrief) or the FS truckers.
Title: Re: Purpose of Hauler 1 & 2
Post by: Droid803 on August 26, 2008, 12:06:46 pm
I always thought they were either punished pilots (that's somewhere in an AWOL debrief) or the FS truckers.

Demoted pilots for failing missions, I think. (since if you fail a certain mission, you get sent to fly support in some remote system).
Title: Re: Purpose of Hauler 1 & 2
Post by: Snail on August 26, 2008, 01:10:53 pm
Wolf 359.
Title: Re: Purpose of Hauler 1 & 2
Post by: FreeSpaceFreak on August 27, 2008, 01:39:33 am
Exactly, that's what I was thinking of. I can imagine that really punished pilots get to fly near the front lines. :D Or maybe not.
Title: Re: Purpose of Hauler 1 & 2
Post by: Mars on August 27, 2008, 01:41:52 am
I find it interesting that they move Alpha 1 away from the front lines to punish him... I would assume the opposite.... maybe the Terrans have a klingon like mentality
Title: Re: Purpose of Hauler 1 & 2
Post by: Akalabeth Angel on August 27, 2008, 01:53:47 am
I find it interesting that they move Alpha 1 away from the front lines to punish him... I would assume the opposite.... maybe the Terrans have a klingon like mentality

     If a pilot is unreliable do you want him on the front lines? No you send him to some backwater patrol and fill his spot with someone better. Anyone can fly around an empty system doing patrols, but only the best get to fly the priority missions.
Title: Re: Purpose of Hauler 1 & 2
Post by: eliex on August 27, 2008, 04:28:58 am
But, but . . . won't the best get killed?

They must have metal-shields. The best are the ones who deserve to live. Who's going to save them from a slasher-beam? Or the hornets of a dozen Basilisks?

The worst obviously . . . It's a "justified way" of executing somebody.  ;7