Troop crawler

Troop Crawler
Unit
Faction	China (excluding Shin Fai)
Role	Troop Transport
Armament	None
Properties
Hit points	240
Armor type	Tank Armor
Transport slots	8 infantry
Production
Cost	$1400
Build time	0:15
Produced by	Chinese war factory
Hot key	T
Combat
Speed	40 (30 when badly damaged)
Sight range	175-400
Function
Abilities	Passive stealth detection

“

China's armored transport. - Troop Crawler

”

Troop crawlers are armored personnel carriers (APCs), patterned after the BTR-80, that China uses to rapidly deploy squads of infantry. Troop Crawlers emerge from the war factory with eight Red Guard already loaded inside. Troop Crawlers are also able to detect stealth units.

Game unit

“

Watch your step! - Troop Crawler driver, noting the passengers to be careful while leaving

”

The Troop Crawler is a fairly fast but unarmed APC, able to keep pace with China's armored vehicles and provide them with infantry support where necessary. Its ability to detect stealth units makes it useful both as a forward scout and within a base as an anti-infiltration measure. Lacking weapons, it is not designed to come into contact with heavy armor, although it can heal any passengers inside it. If destroyed, the occupants will survive with half health.

Troop Crawlers are an essential complement for any Chinese armored column, as their stealth detection capabilities made them especially useful against GLA factions.

Key weaknesses of the Troop Crawler are its relatively light armor and lack of defensive weapons. Another weakness was that the infantry have to dismount to engage opposing forces, exposing them to enemy fire. Interestingly, it is also a target for the Chinook's Combat Drop, which can wipe out all soldiers inside. The vehicle itself is unarmed and the standard complement of 8 Red Guards had no anti-armor defense; ideally a couple should be manually swapped out for Tank Hunters before deploying on its own.

With a total cost of $1400, the system is quite economical; as 8 Red Guards cost $1200, the true cost of the vehicle is only $200.

Variants

“

Let's try the assault tactic. - A Troop Crawler moving in to attack

”

• Assault troop transport - An advanced version used by General Shin Fai, with fire ports and a speaker tower.

• 
  A comparison between the assault transport (left) and the regular crawler (right)

Changelog

• Zero Hour patch 1.01: troop crawler/FOW issue is fixed
• Zero Hour patch 1.03:
  • now contains the proper subfaction Red Guard instead of base China's
  • cost increased from $1200 to $1400 (Kwai only)

Selected Quotes

When created
Let's get these men to the battle!
When selected
Troop Crawler signing in. They can't hide from me. Next stop: The front lines. China's armored transport. We have plenty of seats.
When ordered to move
That's an easy one. Anywhere else? What's next? Everyone okay back there?' Fasten your seat-belts.
When ordered to attack
Looks like a good place to stop. They could use some company. Let's pay them a visit. They're in our path! You want to unload there?
When ordered to crush
They shouldn't be standing there. This may be bumpy. Watch this!
When ordered to perform ability: Evacuate troops
Watch your step. Don't forget your belongings! Use the handrails on your way out!
Unused quotes
We'll unload and surprise them! Let's try the assault tactic.

See also

• Assault troop transport, Shin Fai variant
• Humvee, American ground transport counterpart
• Ambulance, American infantry support counterpart
• Technical, Battle Bus, GLA ground transport counterpart