Project Raptor USA: Units, Vehicles and Generals

The Project Raptor USA side is the most realistic part of this Generals Zero Hour mod (version 9.1.27). Its build menu holds 40 units against 19 in Zero Hour, and most of the new ones come straight from the real US military: the M1A2 Abrams tank, the Bradley IFV, the MLRS rocket launcher, the AH-64 Apache helicopter, the V-22 tiltrotor and aircraft from the F/A-18 to the AC-130. Below are the numbers from the mod files, the real prototypes and how the three US generals differ.

What changed compared to Zero Hour

The base US army in Raptor is rebuilt almost entirely. What you notice in the first minutes:

• The Ranger became a Marine for 200. The name Ranger now belongs to a special forces unit for 450 with 280 health and high-explosive grenades.
• The main tank is the M1A2 Abrams: 2800, 900 health, a gun dealing 140 at range 180. The Crusader and Paladin stayed as light tanks.
• The Tomahawk is gone. Its slot holds the British AS-90 howitzer, and in the files the object is still called AmericaVehicleTomahawk.
• The Raptor went up from 1400 to 3200, but its missiles hit for 600 from range 850.
• The USA has a navy: the Naval Yard for 2500 builds a hovercraft and three types of cruisers.
• The Command Center takes 12000 damage instead of 5000, and superweapons cost 10000 each.

USA units in Raptor

Costs, build times and health are taken from the mod's 9.1.27 INI files. Damage is per shot of the main weapon, range is in game units. Units carried over from Zero Hour keep their official names, new ones are listed by their real designations or a translation of the mod name.

Buildings and superweapons

Superweapons in Raptor cost twice as much as the Particle Cannon in Zero Hour (5000 there) and take more than a minute to build. The GPS Center for 15000 is the side's most expensive building.

Real-world prototypes of USA units in Raptor

Units carried over from Zero Hour (Humvee, Crusader, Paladin, Comanche, F-22, F-117, Chinook) are covered on the page about the USA army in the original game. Here we look only at what the mod adds.

• Marine. The weapon in the files is called SIG551, which is the Swiss SIG SG 551 carbine. The US Marines don't use it: they carry the M16A4 and M27.
• M1A2 Abrams. The US Army's main battle tank. The first M1s entered service in 1980, the M1A2 version in the 1990s. It carries a 120 mm gun and fought in Iraq in 1991 and 2003.
• M2 Bradley. An infantry fighting vehicle, in service since 1981. Like in the mod, it has a 25 mm autocannon and TOW anti-tank missiles.
• AS-90. A British 155 mm self-propelled howitzer by Vickers, in service since 1993. The US Army doesn't have it; in the mod it took the Tomahawk's place.
• MLRS. The American M270 multiple rocket launcher, in service since 1983. Besides regular rockets it fires ATACMS tactical ballistic missiles, and the mod names these as its main weapon.
• AH-64 Apache. The US Army's attack helicopter since 1986: a 30 mm gun under the nose and Hellfire anti-tank missiles.
• V-22 Osprey. A tiltrotor that takes off like a helicopter and flies like a plane. It has served with the US Marine Corps since 2007. In the mod's files it took the slot of the Black Hawk helicopter.
• F/A-18 Hornet. A US Navy carrier fighter since 1983. The model in the mod is called F-18E, which is the later Super Hornet.
• F-35. The model in the files is the F-35A, the fighter of the JSF (Joint Strike Fighter) program. It has served in the US Air Force since 2016.
• AC-130 Spectre. A military transport aircraft with a howitzer and guns along its left side. Gunships like this have fought since the late 1960s.
• Hovercraft. By role it is the LCAC air-cushion landing craft, in US Navy service since 1986.
• Cruisers. By role they resemble the Ticonderoga-class guided missile cruisers, the first of which entered service in 1983.
• MOAB Tomahawk Storm. The MOAB is a real bomb, the GBU-43/B, weighing about 9.8 tonnes, first tested in 2003. A salvo of dozens of Tomahawks carrying such a warhead is the modders' invention.
• Made-up hardware. The AFX-6 Predator, Hammerhead, Dronecar and Laser super fighter have no prototypes. The last one's model in the files is called SKYNETEDI, which looks like a nod to the EDI fighter drone from the 2005 film Stealth.

USA generals in Raptor

The three US generals from Zero Hour are still in the mod, but their armies gained new vehicles. For comparison with the original, see the pages on Granger, Townes and Alexander in the main wiki.

Playing the USA in Raptor on a phone

Raptor matches are long, and the US army in them relies on expensive vehicles you don't want to lose. On a touch screen the group bar on the left helps:

1. Box-select your tanks and Bradleys (press and drag) and save them to "1".
2. Keep aircraft in "2". The F-22 and F/A-18 strike from far away, so it's easier to pick a target after zooming the camera out with two fingers.
3. Save artillery (AS-90, MLRS) to "3" and keep it behind the tanks.

The first minutes go to the economy: an Oil Derrick for 4500 pays for itself in a long match, and a Command Center with 12000 health won't fall to a quick raid. All gestures are on the controls page.

FAQ