Slingshot

The Slingshot is a GDI anti-air vehicle available only in Kane's Wrath.
==Background==
With GDI's shuttering of its costly, failure prone HoverTech initiative in the aftermath of the Second Tiberium War, the GDI Slingshot was something of an anomaly, the last bastion of this once dominant GDI program, finally out of testing after a decade-long development phase. While this exclusively anti-air vehicle is less vulnerable to ion storm interference than its predecessors, the Slingshot remains a relatively fragile unit - trading armour and additional weaponry for high speed, maneuverability and a powerful quad cannon that can quickly bring down even the most powerful aerial opponent crashing to the ground.Electronic Arts Los Angeles, Command & Conquer 3: Kane's Wrath. Intelligence Database: Nod Weaponry, "GDI Slingshot".
==Game Unit==
The Slingshot's main vulnerability is that they are nearly useless for dealing with ground units because they cannot fire at anything on the ground. Their armor is also rather light, which means that a moderate amount of anti-armor firepower can dismantle their relatively fragile frame. Additionally, they lack the stealth-detecting technology of their Pitbull cousins or their Black Hand counterparts. Finally, Slingshots can be destroyed by aircraft who deal enough damage and have strong enough armor; Nod Vertigo bombers in particular are adept at this, and to a lesser extent the Scrin Devastator Warships, though the Slingshot's speed meant it could dodge some of the latter's shots.
Aside from that, they serve quite adequately as AA units, functioning a lot like AA Batteries except being highly mobile. A principal advantage held by the Slingshot is that it is the only mobile AA unit that instantly starts doing damage to whatever it is firing at; there is no actual time before its rounds start damaging its target. The gun that the Slingshot uses also can rotate, meaning it can continue to barrage enemies while on the move. These two traits combined mean that it is better at dealing with hit and run attacks than other mobile AA units, since its more likely to shoot down enemy aircraft before the target can retaliate. It also does damage at a constant rate, not in bursts like most other units, allowing it to continue to damage enemy aircraft as efficiently as possible as long as they stay within its range.
High speed allows the Slingshot to get where it is needed quickly and efficiently, and its armor is also fairly respectable. Slingshots are GDI's best defense against fast units which excel at harassment, like the Nod Venom, and are equally useful for dealing with the powerful and well-armored aircraft deployed by the Scrin. It is important to note, however, that squads of Planetary Assault Carriers can overwhelm groups of Slingshots due to the sheer amount of Invaders they spawn, so care must be taken to either withdraw the Slingshots when necessary or aim for the PACs themselves and tank the damage from the Invaders (as, like aircraft carriers of the Red Alert series, all attached Invaders die when their parent PAC is destroyed).
Though they were only designed only for anti-air purposes, a Slingshot can actually eliminate large amount of enemy infantry by simply running them down, thanks to its speed and maneuverability. Such a tactic is utilized by many GDI commanders, especially when battling Nod opponents who rally hordes of infantry to their cause.
Like their static counterparts, Slingshots can be upgraded with Tungsten Shells, further increasing their lethality. However, unlike the latter, this did not produce any visual difference on the Slingshot.
===Abilities===
===Upgrades===
==Changelog==
* Kane's Wrath patch 1.01: Slingshots no longer force-fire on the ground when group-selected with ground units
* Kane's Wrath patch 1.02: GDI Slingshot and Shatterer icons swapped at the Reclamator hub to mirror the war factory
==Quotes==
===When created===
* Ready to roll!
* Awaiting orders!
* Slingshot ready!
===When selected===
* Hovering!
* Ready to hunt!
* Systems ready!
* Watch the horizon!
* Slingshot!
* Eyes on the sky!
===When moving===
* Already there!
* Hovertech engaged!
* Move it or lose it!
* I'll check it out!
* We'll scout it out!
* Coordinates acquired!
===When ordered to attack===
* Tracking them down!
* Coordinates acquired!
* Moving to ORD position!
* Attack trajectory confirmed!
* I got it!
===When attacking===
* Blow 'em outta the sky!
* Perforating airframes!
* Firing!
* Target locked!
* We'll shoot it down!
* Won't be flying for long!
* Take him out!
* Okay, bye-bye!
* See you next Tuesday!
===In combat===
* Enemies inbound!
* Taking damage!
* Under fire!
* Can't take this much longer!
===When retreating===
* Let's glide out of here fast!
* Pull out!
* They're right on top of us!
* We're outta here!
==Trivia==
* This unit is known as Торнадо (Tornado) in the Russian localization of Kane's Wrath.
==Gallery==
command_and_conquer_3_kanes_wrath_conceptart_E9bnR.jpg|Render
GDI_Slingshot.jpg|Render
Slingshot Render.jpg|Unskinned render
==See also==
* Mantis, Black Hand counterpart
==References==
Category:Kane's Wrath vehicles
de:Schleuder