Talk:Leyland Gravity Whip

I read somewhere that the Space Marines were actually trained with the Gravity Whip. I've certainly watched them deliberately head for a planet to use it.--Gaeamil 03:35, 20 April 2007 (CEST)

You are correct. From the SC2 manual: "Opponents would be wise to remember that Space Marines receive special training in using the Leyland Whip maneuver, and are exceptionally adept using a planet’s gravity to speed them toward their target." (pg. 96) --Fyzixfighter 03:59, 20 April 2007 (CEST)

Finally, I was right about something! Score 1 for me being right, score 287 me being wrong. --Gaeamil 06:56, 21 April 2007 (CEST)

Gravity Whop

I have to ask, what exactly is a "Gravity Whop". Is it meant simply as a joke about the sound your ship makes when it hits a planet? Why the capitalization? Is this referencing the game manual or some other source? Although I should not be the one to criticize adding some humor to the Ultronomicon, being partly responsible for this, I found this a bit confusing, expecting a separate page to at least explain the joke, if it is a joke, or what a Gravity Whop is, if it isn't. For a moment, I thought it was a reference to something I've seen a lot in SC2 battles (don't recall if SC1 had it as well). Occasionally, it is possible for your ship to be "thrown" at incredibly fast speed without the use of a gravity whip. Usually it occurs when the two ships get "tangled" in each other, or an asteroid, or rarely from repeatedly striking the planet itself. I'm not sure if this was an intentional part of the program code's game dynamics or a fluke of its collision detection system in processing the action-reaction in transference of energy from one body to another. Has any one else ever experienced this phenomenon? --PsiPhi 15:28, 17 October 2007 (CEST)

It seems that I was the one who put this in. It was a joke. If you get too close to the planet, instead of whipping around a planet you'd whop into it. I've removed it now, as it apparently was a cause for confusion, and it didn't quite fit in an encyclopedic work anyhow.

If I'm not mistaken, the getting thrown at incredible speed is a result of the code that tries to move overlapping objects apart. It may be a bug. — SvdB 02:11, 23 October 2007 (CEST)

About 10 years ago I emailed fred and paul with this question. Fred replied that it's not a bug, but a feature :). The email was on TPNOF but I can't find it anymore.--Angelfish 14:00, 18 July 2009 (UTC)

This is the relevant part of that email: I would call this a "feature" (Did you really expect me to admit to a bug?). The problem is that since the ships have irregular protuberances it can sometimes be problematic to disengage them from each other if they've "locked horns" as it were. When this case occurs I try frantically to shake them loose from each other. This sometimes results in the side-effect you are experiencing. — SvdB 22:53, 18 July 2009 (UTC)

I've definitely experienced this entanglement acceleration phenomenon, many times. I've seen it happen to Chmmr Avatars, in which case the zapsats get left behind. In fact I distinctly remember my flagship and a Kzer-Za Dreadnought warping on top of each other at the beginning of a battle (PC version). I don't think any incredible speed eventuated though. PsiPhi mentions it happening in the vicinity of planets, I seem to remember something like this, and it's always seemed counter-intuitive to me, but because it isn't real, maybe it's bound to.

It's a shame about having to get rid of that joke. --Zeracles 21:17, 23 October 2007 (CEST)

Yes, I agree. It was a decent pun. I almost regret asking now. Oh well, I guess it's for the best. --PsiPhi 12:46, 24 October 2007 (CEST)