grav some more CAN THEY FLY? and more on how they work in the GZGverse, according to St.Jon...

While I was looking up the rules on support weapon firing in the SG book
(another post), I thought I'd take a peek at what it says about Grav vehicles,
how they move, etc.

The grand answer: It doesn't say much.

It includes Grav vehicles in the aerospace rules, so they can "fly" in game
terms, the same as a VTOL troop carrier or VTOL attack craft.

BUT, it also clearly states that Grav vehicles "are somewhat different to
other flight-capable craft, as they are effectively ground-combat
vehicles
with a secondary flight capability..."  They have two movement modes -
flying and skimming (their "grounded" movement, when they move as any other
vehicle, with terrain restrictions, etc).

So, can a grav tank fly up to orbit? I don't believe that is the intent in the
book. In the bit on "Interface Landings From Orbit" (p51.) it talks about this
happening in specific "Interface Craft (Dropships)". As to whether or not
these interface ships are grav powered... who knows?

Certainly it seems to suggest that the common SG/DS Grav vehicles
(skimmer bikes, tanks, apc's) have only a secondary flying ability. It doesn't
say that Grav tanks and apc's *can't* fly to orbit, but like I said, I don't
think that's the intent, from the way Grav is mentioned in the various
sections where it turns up.

ALSO, to add to the general conversation about Grav in the GZGverse, in the
vehicle section it states that "Grav propulsion units are horrifically
expensive, ludicrously power-hungry and require frequent tuning and
attention by highly trained maintenance crews to keep them working
efficiently." (p31.)

So, no "one gallon of water for a month of operations"...   And they're
only used very infrequently by the major powers - for really important
operations, etc.