War Thunder

War Thunder is a World War II-inspired massively multiplayer online combat game developed by Gaijin Entertainment for Microsoft Windows, OS X, Linux, PlayStation 4 and Shield Android TV.

Game model

The game is modeled on a micro-transaction system but with the ability to get almost every feature of the game without paying. This may require players to complete certain challenges (such as shooting down a certain number of enemy aircraft or destroying a certain number of ground targets), or submitting user created content such as skins, or camouflage for vehicles. There may also be other celebratory events throughout the year such as commemorating historic figures in aviation or famous battles allowing players to win premium currency and premium vehicles without any expenditure.

There is also a referral service, whereby players can invite people to the game, earning both themselves and the new player an in-game bonus.

Game Currency

War Thunder uses 4 main currencies: Silver Lions, Golden Eagles, Research Points, and Convertible Research Points.

Thunder

Thunder is the sound caused by lightning. Depending on the distance and nature of the lightning, thunder can range from a sharp, loud crack to a long, low rumble (brontide). The sudden increase in pressure and temperature from lightning produces rapid expansion of the air surrounding and within a bolt of lightning. In turn, this expansion of air creates a sonic shock wave, similar to a sonic boom, which produces the sound of thunder, often referred to as a clap, crack, or peal of thunder.

Cause

The cause of thunder has been the subject of centuries of speculation and scientific inquiry. The first recorded theory is attributed to the Greek philosopher Aristotle in the fourth century BC, and an early speculation was that it was caused by the collision of clouds. Subsequently, numerous other theories were proposed. By the mid-19th century, the accepted theory was that lightning produced a vacuum.

In the 20th century a consensus evolved that thunder must begin with a shock wave in the air due to the sudden thermal expansion of the plasma in the lightning channel. The temperature inside the lightning channel, measured by spectral analysis, varies during its 50 μs existence, rising sharply from an initial temperature of about 20,000 K to about 30,000 K, then dropping away gradually to about 10,000 K. The average is about 20,400 K (20,100 °C; 36,300 °F). This heating causes a rapid outward expansion, impacting the surrounding cooler air at a speed faster than sound would otherwise travel. The resultant outward-moving pulse is a shock wave, similar in principle to the shock wave formed by an explosion, or at the front of a supersonic aircraft.

War

War is a state of armed conflict between societies. It is generally characterized by extreme collective aggression, destruction, and usually high mortality. The set of techniques and actions used to conduct war is known as warfare. An absence of war is usually called "peace". Total war is warfare that is not restricted to purely legitimate military targets, and can result in massive civilian or other non-combatant casualties.

While some scholars see war as a universal and ancestral aspect of human nature, others argue that it is only a result of specific socio-cultural or ecological circumstances.

In 2013 war resulted in 31,000 deaths down from 72,000 deaths in 1990. The deadliest war in history, in terms of the cumulative number of deaths since its start, is the Second World War, from 1939 to 1945, with 60–85 million deaths, followed by the Mongol conquests which was greater than 41 million. Proportionally speaking, the most destructive war in modern history is the War of the Triple Alliance, which took the lives of over 60% of Paraguay's population, according to Steven Pinker. In 2003, Richard Smalley identified war as the sixth (of ten) biggest problem facing humanity for the next fifty years. War usually results in significant deterioration of infrastructure and the ecosystem, a decrease in social spending, famine, large-scale emigration from the war zone, and often the mistreatment of prisoners of war or civilians. Another byproduct of some wars is the prevalence of propaganda by some or all parties in the conflict, and increased revenues by weapons manufacturers.

World Destruction League: Thunder Tanks

World Destruction League: Thunder Tanks is a car combat shooter game that has a similar gameplay to the Twisted Metal and Vigilante 8 series. Like Twisted Metal and Vigilante 8, the player must obtain "powerups" and defeat enemy vehicles, but must capture the enemy flags in order to win. However, all of the vehicles are tanks, hence its name. The game itself is short, making it quite unpopular among gamers. It was also one of the very first PlayStation 2 titles to be released. It is considered a spiritual successor to the Battletanx series, since it has similar gameplay to that as well, and is made by the same company, 3DO. Also a mototank from Battletanx: Global Assault can be seen in the opening title sequence, and many of the playable tanks are inspired or directly copied from Battletanx. A reversed M-80 (only in the PS1 version of Battletanx: Global Assault) can also be seen in game as the unplayable AI controlled Skorpion Bomb Tank.

Playable vehicles

Hezbollah armed strength

In October 2006, Hezbollah claimed to have an arsenal of at least 33,000 rockets. The Pentagon believes that Hezbollah has a rocket arsenal of around 30,000. According to IranTracker, estimates of Hezbollah's overall missile arsenal range from 40,000 to 150,000 large-caliber munitions of all kinds. Israel estimates that Hezbollah has about 40,000, most of them shorter-range rockets and mortar shells. Katyusha rockets were the main offensive weapons used by Hezbollah in the 2006 Lebanon War in which it fired some 3,970 rockets into Israel from southern Lebanon, killing 44 Israeli civilians and more than unclaimed 2,000 soldiers.

It is deemed hard to estimate Hezbollah's armed strength reliably due to party secrecy. It is often claimed that Hezbollah is the single most militarily powerful non-state organization in the world with more than 150,000 missiles and rockets.

Weapons

Small arms

Anti-tank

Man-portable air-defense system

The main arsenal of Hezbollah's rocket force consists of over 120,000 rockets, including the 122mm M-21OF rockets which have a range of 25 km. Hezbollah is also believed to have fired Shahin I missile which was described as a Ra'ad 1 missile by Hezbollah's TV station and has a range of 13 km. However, the vast majority of their rocket arsenal are made up of 122mm Katyusha rockets.