Combine Dropship

The Combine Dropship, or simply Dropship is used by Combine forces to quickly send units to areas they are needed by air.

Overview


The front and two rearmost pairs of "legs" on the craft contain engines that give the Dropship lift and movement. The front two legs also hold retractable wings used for maneuvering. The middle four legs end in large, possibly magnetic or suction, gripping pads which are used to carry various forms of cargo.

Dropships by themselves are unarmed and as a result don't attack the player. However, the containers typically carried by Dropships sport a mounted Pulse turret on the front, designed to suppress any opposition in front of the synth, allowing the occupants to deploy safely.

Application
Dropships are very useful aircraft for the Combine, being able to quickly transport Combine Soldiers, APCs, Striders, and Civil Protection officers to where ever they may be needed. Dropships are also seen dropping Rollermines along the coast, making it evident that the Combine also use them as minelayers. The Scout Car was also taken away by a Dropship at the end of the battle lead at Lighthouse Point.

Container
The Combine Dropship Container is a large, streamlined container used to transport Overwatch and Civil Protection soldiers. It is used in conjunction with a Dropship, which picks it up and carries it wherever is is needed. These containers are equipped with a powerful and accurate Pulse turret mounted on the front of the container, designed to provide suppressing fire for the troops as they disembark.

Though the Containers are heavily armored, they can still be destroyed with enough explosives (4 RPG rockets in Normal mode). However, Dropships rarely stay in one place long enough for the container to sustain that much damage, so containers are rarely lost to enemy fire.

The container can hold four to eight Overwatch troops per unit.

Behind the scenes
The early model, based on concept art by Dhabih Eng, depicts it red with bright blue apparent circuits. The bright blue apparent circuits can still be found in the Crab Synth or the Mortar Synth.

List of appearances

 * Half-Life 2
 * Half-Life 2: Raising the Bar
 * Half-Life 2: Episode One
 * Half-Life 2: Episode Two