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You destroyed my command center. I'm impressed general. Few could survive this long.
- Kwai

The command center was the hub of operations for each faction. It produced construction units and, in the case of the USA and China, provided radar. Generals Powers were also activated from the command center.

Background[]

Players begin most games with a free, pre-constructed command center from one of the three combatants (USA, China, or the GLA) as well as an appropriate construction unit, eventually occupying the center of the player's base.

The USA Command Center came with a built-in radar and could build Construction Dozers. A Spy Satellite could be accessed periodically via the US Command Center every 1 minute.

China's Command Center can build Construction Dozers and could be upgraded with a radar.

The GLA Command Center trained Workers and like all GLA buildings would leave behind a GLA Hole that could rebuild the Center if destroyed. GLA generals could fortify the building against enemy attacks with Fortified Structures upgrade, while Prince Kassad could also conceal the building with Camo-Netting as he learned to do with all GLA buildings. A Fake Command Center could also be built as a decoy.

Being somewhat useless in the early game after the initial dozers or workers were constructed, the Command Center was sometimes sold for a small cash boost after basic construction had been completed; a second center would be constructed later in the game in order to employ General Powers. While a sensible tactic, selling it came with tradeoffs and risks for China and USA players, who would not have radar access and could not produce more Construction Dozers if the existing ones were destroyed.

A few scripted campaign missions and some fan-customized matches forgo a command center entirely.

Upgrades[]

China[]

Land mine Deploy standard mines around the Command center. Available for all Chinese buildings except Speaker Towers for a cost of $600.
Neutron Mines Upgrades the standard to neutron mines thus allowing them to kill vehicle pilots instead of destroying them. Available for all Chinese buildings except Speaker Towers for a cost of $500. Requires Land mine to be installed.
Radar upgrade Access the radar system Available for building for a cost of $500.

GLA[]

Fortified Structure Fortify Command center against enemy attacks. Purchasable at any Palace for a cost of $1000.
Camo Netting Upgrades Command center with camo netting, rendering it invisible to enemy forces until it fires or is fired upon, or detected by detectors. Purchasable at the building for a cost of $500. Prince Kassad only.

Command Centers of Zero Hour Generals[]

Nicely play, General.You destroyed my Command Center, now I be forced to fight dirty....
- Prince Kassad

The Command Centers for the specialized generals of Zero Hour were visually slightly different, with each having logos painted on the concrete apron in front of their main door representing their unique technology and play style:

USA[]

Logo General Description
Super Weapon Big shield, with a small star in the middle
Laser Triangle, with a small star in the middle ("Optical Radiation" warning sign)
Air Force Fighter jet, seen from the up-side-down (similar to airport road sign)

China[]

Logo General Description
Tank Battlemaster Tank seen from the side
Infantry An AK-47 or AKM pattern assault rifle
Nuke Radiation Warning trefoil, inverse (clear central circle and radiating arcs)

GLA[]

Logo General Description
Toxin Bio-hazard warning trefoil
Demolition A few dynamite sticks with a plunger-style detonator.
Stealth Small circle with a larger circle around it(x 4) and a cross through it (crosshairs with extra rings)

Abilities[]

Icon Name Ability Countdown Timer Levels
Emergency Repair Instantly repair vehicles in an area 4 minutes
  • 1: Light repair
  • 2: Medium repair
  • 3: Serious repair

USA[]

Icon Name Ability Countdown Timer Levels
Spy Drone Reveal targeted area permanently until destroyed. Cloaked and can detect stealth units 1.30 minutes none
Construction Dozer Build and repair American buildings. Clear mines 12 seconds none
Spy Satellite Revealed targeted area for 15–18 seconds. Spot hidden objects 1 minute none
Para Drop Drop Rangers from the C-130 Hercules plane at the targeted area 4 minutes
  • 1: 5 Rangers
  • 2: 10 Rangers
  • 3: 20 Rangers
A10 Missile Strike Strike the targeted area with gattlings and rockets by using A10 Thunderbolts. Reveal the targeted area and the A10 Thunderbolts paths 4 minutes
  • 1: 1 A10 Thunderbolt
  • 2: 2 A10 Thunderbolts
  • 3: 3 A10 Thunderbolts
Fuel Air Bomb Drop a bomb from the C-130 Hercules plane which firstly spread an amount of on-air fuel that takes about several moments later to explode. The explosion destroy everything in its range. Recommended for enemy concentrations. This special weapon does not has any long effect. Reveal the targeted area for a while. The processes are aborted if the plane has been destroyed before the bomb could be dropped. 6 minutes none
Leaflet Drop The Leaflet Drop is dropped by plane, and will spread propaganda leaflets over nearby targets. Any units will cease to fight while they take their time to consider the message delivered. 5 minutes none
Spectre Gunship When deployed, the Spectre Gunship will strafe the area for a given amount of time, bombarding the target with chainguns and its on-board howitzer. 5 minutes
  • 1: 10 seconds
  • 2: 15 seconds+
  • 3: 30 seconds+

+ Only accessible by AF and SW General.

China[]

Icon Unit/Upgrade Cost Descriptions Build Time (s) Levels
Construction Dozer 1000 Builds all Chinese structures and repairs buildings. Clears mines 13 none
Radar Upgrade 500 Online the radar system 20 none
Land Mines 600 Create mines around the building and harm enemy that pass through 20 none
Neutron Mines 500 Replace the mines to the neutron mines around the building and harm infantry that pass through. Kill vehicles and tanks crew when pass through. 25 none
Cluster Mines 1 General's Promotion Point Send a plane at the targeted area which drop a bomb that spread a set of cluster mines which harm enemies when go through it. Recommended to launch at your base entry or enemy production buildings (War Factory, Barracks, Supply Center, etc.). Does not harm Worker and Construction Dozer 4 minutes none
Carpet Bomb 1 General's Promotion Point One bomber drops its payload of high explosive bombs on the target area. 3 minutes none
Nuke Carpet Bomb 1 General's Promotion Point One bomber drops its payload of tactical nuclear bombs on the target area. General Tao only. 2.30 minutes none
Artillery Barage 1 General's Promotion Point Fires several howitzers from the outer map at the targeted area. The shells destroy everything in their way. Recommended to attack enemy concentrations (Level 1) and buildings (Level 2 & 3) 5 minutes
  • 1: 12 shells
  • 2: 24 shells
  • 3: 36 shells
Cash Hack 1 General's Promotion Point Steal money from enemy Supply Center or Supply Stash via internet 4 minutes
  • 1: $1000
  • 2: $2000
  • 3: $4000
Tank Drop 1 General's Promotion Point Requests a reinforcement in the form of Battlemaster Tank to be parachuted on the map by plane. General Kwai only. 4 minutes
  • 1: 1 Battlemaster
  • 2: 2 Battlemaster
  • 3: 4 Battlemaster
Para Drop 1 General's Promotion Point Drop Mini-Gunners from the C-130 Hercules plane at the targeted area. General Fai only. 4 minutes
  • 1: 5 Mini-Gunners
  • 2: 10 Mini-Gunners
  • 3: 15 Mini-Gunners
Frenzy 1 General's Promotion Point Increases the firepower of the affected friendly/allied units 4 minutes none
  • 1: +10% in 10 seconds
  • 2: +20% in 20 seconds
  • 3: +30% in 30 seconds
EMP Bomb 1 General's Promotion Point Drop a bomb at the targeted area with a plane which freeze all mechanical units and buildings. Recommended to attack after launch this ability. 6 minutes none

GLA[]

Icon Unit/Upgrade Cost Descriptions Build Time (s) Levels
Worker 200 Builds all GLA structures and repairs buildings. Clears mines and collect supplies. 5 none
Rebel Ambush 1 General's Promotion Point Creates Rebels anywhere on the map 5 minutes
  • 1: 4 Rebel
  • 2: 8 Rebel
  • 3: 16 Rebel
Anthrax Bomb 1 General's Promotion Point Drop a bomb at the targeted area with a plane which spreading lethal toxins and corrosive agents over a wide area.ability. 6 minutes none
Sneak Attack 1 General's Promotion Point This allows the player to spawn a Tunnel Network anywhere on the map. The tunnel doesn't have a weapon mounted, but is connected to the main network. 4 minutes none
GPS Scrambler 1 General's Promotion Point Cloaks all friendly units within its area of effect. These units retain their cloaking ability indefinitely, and only reveal themselves when firing. 2.30 minutes (3 minutes with Prince Kassad) none

Changelog[]

  • Zero Hour patch 1.03:
    • fixed a crash that would occur when upgrading a fake GLA command center
    • fixed an issue that caused a GLA player's support powers to become un-clickable after he captured an opponent's command center

Trivia[]

  • In the final game, the Command Centers of the individual generals are only differentiated by a symbol printed on the ground. However, every general was supposed to get a totally new Command Center specifically designed for that general. It was probably cut due to time constraints, but the normal models are all in the game files and can be viewed with a model viewer.
    • Tank General's Command Center is the only one that's fully absent. Maybe they never got around to finishing him. Note also that the two other Chinese Command Centers have a green roof, whereas the normal Command Center has a brown roof.
    • Some mods like Shockwave restores this feature, albeit with some changes and animations.
  • The American Command Center has an unused animation which shows the radar dish building up, like when the player purchased the radar upgrade. This is unused because America starts with radar at all times. However, the players may have been required to purchase the radar upgrade at some point in game development. Note also that in the Worldbuilder, the American Command Center appears without the radar dish, even though this is never seen in the game.
  • The music that plays when selecting the Chinese command center is part of the intro for the song Shi Wu De Yue Liang (The Full Moon), a song dedicated to the wives of Chinese soldiers.

Gallery[]

See also[]

United States of America Generals Arsenal
People's Republic of China Generals Arsenal
Global Liberation Army Generals Arsenal
General Leang Arsenal