Pitbull (Tiberium Wars)

The Pitbull was an armed reconnaissance vehicle used by the Global Defense Initiative during the Second Nod Reunification War and the Third Tiberium War.

Background
The Pitbull was GDI's primary scout vehicle. It was armed with missiles capable of inflicting significant damage against both ground and air vehicles, but was too lightly armored to survive direct combat. It could be upgraded with a mortar for more attack power. Thanks to state of the art G-Tech sensors, Pitbulls could detect Nod stealth units.

Legacy
The Pitbull was succeeded by the Bulldog by the time of the Ascension Conflict.

Game unit
The Pitbull is GDI's Tier 1 recon/anti-armour vehicl, analogous to Nod's attack bike; it comes with an all-purpose dual rocket launcher, can detect stealthed enemy units, and moves very quickly with a wide sight radius.

Pitbulls are GDI's primary means of detecting stealthed enemy units in the field, and are an important part of any group of GDI units out in the field. Unofrtunately, Pitbulls have poor armor and their rocket launchers fire slowly. They are fairly effective at dealing with lighter enemy aircraft but are almost totally cost ineffective against units like Devastator Warships and Planetary Assault Carriers. They are more of a supportive unit for a whole attacking force in the anti-air role, rather than a unit primarily for it. In Kane's Wrath GDI's Slingshot is a much more effective platform for keeping enemy aircraft at bay.

Emphasis must be placed on their role as a support unit for GDI groups. While they can do things such as detect stealth tanks and deal some damage to them, they are in no way adequate for efficiently dealing with them. If they aren't being used for scouting, but for attacking, they usually will need some infantry or heavy armor support to back them up. It is important to try and keep them at the rear of any group of friendly units to maximize their survivability.

For 2000 credits spent at the GDI Tech Center, all Pitbulls in that commander's arsenal will have a mortar installed in addition to their standard armament. The mortar has superior range to the Pitbull's rockets and has a noticeable blast radius, though the round moves slowly and is poor at hitting moving targets. Mortars are very effective against enemy infantry that are caught in the blast, and allow Pitbulls to have superior range to most base defenses as well. This upgrade allows Pitbulls to serve as effective harassment units, and allows them to give more fire support in an attack with other units. GDI commanders should be wary that mortar shells do not distinguish between friends and foes and can very possibly damage advancing allied units instead of assisting them.

Changelog

 * Tiberium Wars patch 1.05:
 * hit points reduced by 20%
 * mortar given a scatter radius of 50.
 * turret turn rate and pitch rate increased, improving the Pitbull's ability to fire on fast-moving aircraft.
 * Tiberium Wars patch 1.07:
 * Kane's Wrath patch 1.01:
 * damage increased 25% against ground units
 * hit points reduced 10% against air scale reduction 200% to 150%.

When created

 * Pitbull, ready for action!

When selected

 * We're ready!
 * Where they hidin'?
 * What's next?
 * Pitbull here.
 * So where's the action?
 * Who we gettin'?
 * Ready to tear it up!

When moving

 * We're on it!
 * Pick it up.
 * Let's go!
 * Hit it!
 * Go, go!
 * Yeah-ah!
 * Right on!
 * On my way!
 * Come on, guys!
 * Come on!

When ordered to attack

 * Let's show 'em what's up!
 * There!
 * Let's get in there!
 * We can take 'em!
 * Let's do it!
 * Let's get after it!
 * There they are!
 * Come on, guys!
 * Quick, hurry up!
 * Not a problem!
 * We'll get it, boss!
 * This guy's mine!

When attacking with missiles

 * Alright!
 * We'll take 'em!
 * Blow 'em up!
 * Open season!
 * Tear 'em up!
 * Let's rock 'em!
 * They're right in front of us!

When attacking with mortar (unused)

 * Blast it!
 * Blow 'em apart!
 * Send 'em around!
 * Launching!

In combat

 * We ain't stopping!
 * How's that?
 * That's right!
 * How do you like it? Haha!
 * I think they want some more!

When retreating

 * Let get out of here!
 * They're on us, let's go!
 * Quick, backup!
 * Retreat!
 * Come on, let's go!
 * Let's clear out!

Development
Originally, the Pitbull was conceived as an anti-infantry open-topped ATV, this version was shown in the E3 2006 trailer announcing the development of Tiberium Wars. The idea being that the exposed crew members conveyed the idea of a light-duty and inexpensive vehicle. This design drew much criticism from the fanbase, since this design offered no protection from Tiberium exposure, so a roof was added at the last minute.