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A Harvester is a large, heavily armoured vehicle designed specifically for resource collection. It is typically slow moving with a large storage space and unarmed.
The concept of a Harvester has been introduced with the development of mobile base technology that allowed for quick deployment of armed forces worldwide with the use of MCVs that could quickly deploy an entire base. This method necessitated the development of effective resource gathering methods, as the amount of supplies and raw materials that could be delivered to the combat zone was extremely limited. The harvester was the key.
A harvester is designed to harvest whatever raw materials (ore, crystals and Tiberium) it can find and deliver them to a refinery for processing. In the past, because it couldn't drill or mine materials actively it had to rely on specialized mining teams deployed prior to the arrival of the forces, whose task was to set up mining and excavate materials for Harvesters to collect. This stopped being a case with the arrival of Tiberium.
[edit] Red Alert 1
Ore Trucks could haul large amounts of raw minerals to refineries
The first harvesters, which appeared during the Great World War II were enormous dump trucks that collected raw ore with dozer blades at excavation sites and delivered them to ore refineries, where the resource was melted for use in factories. The design was simple, but efficient, and the dump trucks served well throughout the Great World War II.
Ore trucks were slow and unarmed and required protection from enemy forces.
With the arrival of
Tiberium, ore trucks proved to be dangerous and unreliable as they did not shield the user from the fumes.
[edit] Tiberian Dawn
[edit] Tiberium Harvester Mk. I
A first generation harvester
The Brotherhood of Nod quickly rectified these issues and, revealing itself as a global superpower, instituted new harvesting methods, quickly reaching a staggering 49% stake of the global Tiberium mining market, almost double the size of GDI sponsor countries. The vehicle was quite simple in its construction - a large storage container was mounted to the back of an all terrain truck platform with an isolated driver's cabin. Two large arms below the front ripped crystals out of the pods they grew in and moved them into an opening leading into the container. When full, the container was sealed and delivered to a Tiberium Refinery, where it was unloaded and the harvested Tiberium processed.
During the war some prototypes of a more truck-like harvesters were used by both GDI and Nod. They were, essentially, the precedessors of the Second Tiberium War Harvesters.
[edit] Tiberian Sun
[edit] Tiberium Harvester Mk. II
A second generation harvester
As the need to harvest Tiberium in more remote regions became apparent, the harvester design was overhauled, and in 2030 both sides used multi-wheel truck platform with advanced grabbers to pick Tiberium. The truck was sturdier and more boxy, with an easy detachable container mounted on it. Due to the newly discovered Blue Tiberium being highly volatile, some commanders even ordered their harvesters to take a suicide dive into the opponent's base, turning them into makeshift demolition trucks.
[edit] Tiberium Wars
[edit] Machine-Gun Harvester
GDI's standard harvester are armed with machine guns
| “
| GUYS GET THE GUNS GOING!
- Harvester
| ”
|
After reviewing the performance of the Heavy Harvester testing by Steel Talon's experimental combat division, GDI officials made the decision that having to assign infantry teams to garrison every harvester was too time-consuming. Instead, they opted for a light machine gun on a flexible mount. This could ward off most infantry attacks, but was vulnerable to tanks. This harvester became the mainstream harvester throughout GDI.
[edit] Heavy Harvester
Steel Talon's experimental harvester
| “
| Strength and efficiency!
- Heavy Harvester
| ”
|
With the sudden evolution of
Tiberium and change of its properties,
GDI Steel Talons's division was charged to quickly develop an alternative to avoid an economic crash. The solution was to change the drive system to treads, which contained no organic components for the
Tiberium to assimilate. Also, they were bulkier and outfitted with mechanical arms that picked the evolved crystals and upon amassing an appropriate amount they were moved to Refineries, where they were melted and processed. The compartment feature was removed, now the tiberium harvested is packed into large tubes, which can then be quickly retrieved by a crane at the refinery and dropped into the melter. To safeguard these vehicles in a hostile world, both sides upgraded their properties. In accordance to their combat doctrine, which believe that all units should be flexible, the Talons have replaced their harvester's machine guns with a infantry pod. This pod allows infantry to be garrisoned within the Harvester.
[edit] Rocket Harvester
Rocket Harvester in the field, while under attack
| “
| Check the Armor!
- Harvester
| ”
|
Exclusive to GDI's
Zone Operations Command (or
ZOCOM), this Harvester variant has a rocket turret instead of the standard machine gun. The heavier weaponry is considered obligatory in the inhospitable
Red Zones, where dangers such as attacking
Nod and
mutant vehicles forces are ever-present. The rocket also serves as an anti-air weapon.
[edit] Mammoth Armed Reclamation Vehicle (MARV)
The MARV is the largest known harvester
- Main article: Mammoth Armed Reclamation Vehicle
The GDI Mammoth Armed Reclamation Vehicle, or MARV, is a massive vehicle embodying both a Tiberium harvester and a mounted Tiberium processor. It can harvest Tiberium while driving over a tiberium field at a shocking rate. It is also heavily armed and armored making it a difficult target to tackle. The expense, speed, firepower against most units and production time are the only drawbacks that prevent it from becoming standard equipment. the MARV also coined the term among some commanders 'MARVestor' or 'MARVisting' Tiberium.
[edit] Black Hand Harvester
The Black Hand upgraded to a treaded harvester under Marcion
Under
Marcion, the Black Hand developed a harvester with most of the same features as the GDI's Machine-Gun Harvester. It used treads, and had newer mechanical arms but contains no stealth generators, since the Black Hand loathes
optic camouflage technology.
[edit] Stealth Harvester
Nod's harvesters are cloaked making them difficult to locate
| “
| Yes! More Tiberium!
- A Nod harvester pilot delighted from being ordered to harvest Tiberium
| ”
|
Once Nod regained its stealth technology. The Nod Harvester was upgraded with a portable stealth generator, much like Nod's
Stealth tanks. These made Tiberium fields seemingly vanish before one's eyes and made them much more difficult to "harvester hunt". The only major enemy was
GDI's
CC-6 Pitbulls, fellow Nod Attack Bikes and the
Scrin Seekers which both wielded anti-vehicle weapons and stealth detection. Unlike the design of the GDI harvester which had their harvesting apparatus in front of the vehicle, Nod harvesters had their harvesting apparatus in the rear of their vehicle, it collects tiberium with 2 sickle like objects that digs and plows the ground.
[edit] Scrin Harvester
These Alien harvesters are able to regenerate themselves in Tiberium
When the alien
Scrin arrived on Earth during the
Third Tiberium War, they brought their own harvesting technology with them. Scrin Harvesters, like many of their vehicles, are bio-mechanical constructs that hover and are able to absorb Tiberium through a 'mouth', with the aid of 'claws' to bring the crystal closer. In addition they appear to self-repair where Tiberium is present. There are unconfirmed reports about the harvester creating
Ion storms when destroyed, although it is only a rumor as of now.
[edit] Shielded Harvester
These Alien harvesters are more difficult to destroy than normal ones
While most Scrin are satisfied with merely keeping their harvesters out of harms way,
Reaper-17's aggressive tactics often put its' harvesters in harms way. To minimize losses, Reaper-17 has its' harvesters equipped with a
Tripod's energy field generator. Unlike most shielded units, the Shielded Harvester has it's energy generator installed by default, without any need to upgrade it.
[edit] See also
