'life is a stare down with death himself'
Posted by: Cmdr DaeFaron
Posted by: Gamer Whale
Posted by: Kyle Knight
I personally prefer the book canon. Makes more sense.
It makes sense that when lots (was it hundreds?) of covie dropships fly towards SMAC generators, skyhawks and wombats aren't scrambled to intercept?
My main issue with the ground battle.
In the books, the ground battle feels like a half-assed rush defense by the UNSC. NO air support launched or fielded(bar a SINGLE flight of longswords which bomb the hell out of friendlies), the generator bunkers are half-dried concrete, the areas that should have the most defenses are overrun REALLY DAMN QUICK.
I mean, all these points on the planet being assaulted at the same time by hundreds of dropships (total that made it to the pole, taking HEAVY loses) within 2-3 hours, and they would have had to regroup to figure out what was remaining, and travel time (and search time, as they wouldn't know where everything was.)
Why didn't the ground forces on Reach get mobilized as soon as the Covenant enter the system? There is no reason for that.
Total Available Military Manpower: 385,421,100
Total Land Assets: 58,430
Total Naval Assets: 1,209 (T); 75 (X)
Total Air Assets: 11,050
Serviceable Airports: 1,246
You are telling me that defensive force fell within 2, maybe three hours, to a few hundred dropships? I mean, come on, UNSC typically won nearly all ground battles. Yet when they have home-field advantage, know where their enemies are, have fortifications AND numbers, they get their asses handed to them instantly? Doesn't make sense at all.
naval assets include every thing that can fly (or float) in space. only a fraction of those (around half of the covenant fleet, not including orbital SMACs) were actual warships. the covenant, on the other hand, had amassed a fleet of around 300.