THE DROPSHIP

The dropship is an atmospheric entry vehicle equipped with a smaller and simpler variation of the space drive used by larger interstellar vessels. It is often categorised into a family of 'anti-gravity' vehicles, including its larger Gravtank variant and numerous unmanned fighter aircraft. It is designed around three principles; speed, manoeuvrability and firepower. A single dropship can carry a total of three crew and eight infantry dismounts, or numerous combat loads including heavy support weapon systems and lightweight buggies. Despite it's high speed on entry, a dropship is limited by it's human cargo and the g- forces that they can endure, and so once it reaches the planet surface it becomes vulnerable to faster unmanned aircraft. Because of this the dropship will often remain low to the ground after releasing its cargo, often giving close support to its dismounts using its arsenal of vulcan cannon and missile pods, both of which make an effective deterrent to ground attack aircraft. A dropship's armour is only effective against smaller section weapons, and not against smart missiles or heavy weapons. To counter this the dropship will rarely remain static for long, and will often hang back from the battle, 'jockeying' forward to fire and then withdrawing back to safety.