Space Thunder

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Space Thunder was an April Fool's Day event taking place 1st - 6th April 2020, and then returning for the Cosmonautic Day, being available on 12th and 13th April 2020. The event featured Space Combat Units fighting in a realistic zero-g environment.

The Event Introduction

Space mining has always been far from peaceful, but corporations managed to rub along together. Until now, when they found on the Moon the mysterious Object 279, a powerful weapon of the first space race. There can’t be alliances and codexes when you strive to possess such an artifact, so professionals step forward.

Your employers want to control resource platforms in open space, these are perfect transfer sites. You are weapons free with the whole arsenal of combat space suits available in several variants.

Space Combat Units

Assault CSS
Assault combat space suit.png
7.7BR
0SP
Unit characteristics
AverageAgility
80 / 0 / 80 kJArmor energy absorption
AN/APG-2077Front view AESA Radar
TADS-2020Electro-optical surveillance system
AAQ-0982Electro-optical target system
LSS-2.4LIDAR sensors
AN/AAQ-2019Missile approach warning system
AR-0104Pilot Augmented Reality system
Offensive armament
12.7 mm M5 machine gun x 2 (Ammo: 2000)Weapon 1
560 rounds/minFire rate
3.5 sReloading rate
Multi-purpose grenade x 16Weapon 2
           Space thunder 1280x720 03.jpg
Scout CSS
Scout combat space suit.png
7.7BR
60SP
Unit characteristics
HighAgility
80 / 0 / 0 kJArmor energy absorption
AN/APG-2077Front view AESA Radar
TADS-2020Electro-optical surveillance system
AAQ-0982Electro-optical target system
LSS-2.4LIDAR sensors
AN/AAQ-2019Missile approach warning system
AR-0104Pilot Augmented Reality system
Offensive armament
7.62 mm MG 12 machine gun x 2 (Ammo: 9000)Weapon 1
1200 rounds/minFire rate
5.0 sReloading rate
Multi-purpose grenade x 16Weapon 2
           Space thunder 1280x720 02.jpg
Close Combat CSS
Close combat space suit.png
7.7BR
170SP
Unit characteristics
HighAgility
80 / 80 / 80 kJArmor energy absorption
AN/APG-2077Front view AESA Radar
TADS-2020Electro-optical surveillance system
AAQ-0982Electro-optical target system
LSS-2.4LIDAR sensors
AN/AAQ-2019Missile approach warning system
AR-0104Pilot Augmented Reality system
Offensive armament
50 mm Mk.19 grenade launcher x 2 (Ammo: 1200)Weapon 1
300 rounds/minFire rate
5.0 sReloading rate
Multi-purpose grenade x 16Weapon 2
           Space thunder 1280x720 04.jpg
Support CSS
Fire support combat space suit.png
7.7BR
260SP
Unit characteristics
LowAgility
80 / 0 / 80 kJArmor energy absorption
AN/APG-2077Front view AESA Radar
TADS-2020Electro-optical surveillance system
AAQ-0982Electro-optical target system
LSS-2.4LIDAR sensors
AN/AAQ-2019Missile approach warning system
AR-0104Pilot Augmented Reality system
Offensive armament
30 mm 2A/82 cannon x 2 (Ammo: 800)Weapon 1
15 rounds/minFire rate
5.0 sReloading rate
152 mm 19M220 missile x 4Weapon 2
           Space thunder 1280x720 01.jpg

Space Thunder Controls

Controls in Space Thunder were unique, as the Space Combat Units followed (somewhat simplified) Newtonian Physics. There was no "up" or "down" and unless acted with a force Unit would continue on its path at the constant speed and direction. Simplifications to the physics revolved around collisions. Impact from weapons added no acceleration to the pods, and colliding with other objects would dampen the motion, allowing players to quickly negate their motion. All of this aimed for much more accessible gameplay than with fully realistic physics, where basically the first hit off-center would add significant angular rotation to the pod, making it impossible to return fire.

Dedicated controls settings for the Space Combat Unit

Awards

Main article: Awards

Space Thunder came with an unique set of awards during the matches. Those were the only awards within the battles:

SpaceThunder space streak double kill.png Double kill!
Destroyed two combat units in a row.
SpaceThunder space streak triple kill.png TRIPLE KILL!
Destroyed three combat units in a row.
SpaceThunder space streak godlike.png G O D L I K E ! ! !
Destroyed X combat units in a row.

Award relates to the 1999 Unreal Tournament, it was the highest achievable killing spree (25 consequtive kills), or the 2004 Unreal Tournament, that had another level added above it, WICKED SICK for 30 kills.

SpaceThunder space streak how do you like it.png How do you like it, Elon Musk?
Destroyed at least 10 combat units.

Award relates to the Russian meme (cyrillic: Как тебе такое, Илон Маск?) that makes jokes of impractical, ridiculous "innovations" - it gained popularity when US billionare, Elon Musk, tried to help in a 2018 Thai cave rescue by building impractical "submarines" for children.

The Map

Space Thunder took place on a dedicated map, centred around an extremely large space station, with added three asteroids on the outskirts. The map contained a number of tributes to the ISS:

Gameplay

Gameplay was based on two teams of seven players fighting team deathmatch till the first team got 50 kills. Damaging enemy Units, scoring critical kills, and finally: killing them gave SP, which could then be used to spawn more advanced units. Initially, players had 60 SP and throughout the game, there was no limit in a number of spawned Units nor in a collected amount of SP. As damaging opponents over time rewarded additional points, it was preferable to killing them in a single shot (it was possible with the Support CSS, not so much with other units).

Post-match rewards included fuel, oxidizer and shipping containers for the Space Race event. Also, during the first period the event was active, 1st - 6th April 2020, players would earn Unique Paint that would be used to create special black camouflage for the event vehicles.

View the video below for the full match run-down.

Realism

Event brought several surprisingly realistic details into the game. Notably:

  • There is no sound in space. The player can hear only his own guns, thrusters, when he gets hit, collisions, leaks and internal system warnings.
  • Vacuum is obeyed. Muzzle flashes are spherical, instead of having shape perturbed, as it is typical when fired in the atmosphere. Similarly ejecta from the Reaction Control systems expands in a perfect cone, instead of more bell-like shape, as it would in the atmosphere. And finally: Pierced propellant tanks accelerate spacecraft, as matter escapes into vacuum.
  • Simplified Newtonian physics. Rotation and speed don't matter, everything is relative. Once accelerated, every pod, piece of debris or bullet will continue flying, there is no need to maintain thrust, Star Wars-style, nor gravity will pull them away.
  • There is no atmosphere, therefore there is no haze that typically helps judging distance and scale, and shadowed areas are pitch-black, unless otherwise illuminated. Objects that are on the other edge of the map appear as crisp and evenly colored as those right next to you.
  • Planetshine is accurately represented

External links