History VideoGame / ZeroK

* TransformingMecha: Some units are able to permanently morph into larger units after gaining a certain amount of experience. The new unit may or may not resemble the old one - for example, vehicles morph to the larger tanks, which tend to resemble their smaller cousins, but there is at least one humanoid mech that can morph into a SpiderTank.

* [[KillItWithFire]] The mentioned Dante, Firewalker, Inferno, Kodachi, Phonix, Pyro, and Wurm. Pretty much any unit that has a weapon that does Afterburn damage.

* BeamSpam: Archangel, Bantha, and Detriment never stop shooting lasers when a target is near.

* HumongousMecha: Given the scale of the units, anything with legs is at least a {{Mini Mecha}}, but the Strider Hub takes the cake with the [[KillItWithFire Dante]], [[MacrossMissileMassacre Catapult]], [[JackOfAllStats Bantha]], [[GravityMaster Jugglenaut]], [[FlunkyBoss Funnelweb]] and [[LightningBruiser Detriment]].

* HumongousMecha: Given the scale of the units, anything with legs is at least a {{Mini Mecha}}, but the Strider Hub takes the cake with the [[KillItWithFire Dante]], [[MacrossMissileMassacre Catapult]], [[JackOfAllStats Bantha]], [[GravityMaster Jugglenaut]] and [[LightningBruiser Detriment]].

[[http://zero-k.info/ Zero-K]] is a [[FreewareGame free, open-source]] RealTimeStrategy game developed for the {{Spring}} engine, and available for Windows and Linux. Originally called ''Complete Annihilation'', it was a fork of the (at the time) {{Abandonware}} ''Balanced Annihilaton'', which was itself forked from the permanently deceased ''Absolute Annihilation''. The latter was a Spring port of the original GameMod and unit pack of the same name, which was based on ''Uberhack'', [[OverlyLongGag a rebalance of]] ''The Core Contingency'', an official {{Expansion Pack}} of ''TotalAnnihilation''.

* LightningBruiser: The [[HumongousMecha Detriment]] has 4/5 the hitpoints of a [[MightyGlacier Jugglenaut]], does twice the damage, and moves at twice the speed.

* WalkingTank: The Shield Bot Factory churns these out. They're the slower and tougher of the two main Bot groups, with [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin shield generators]] on several of their units.

* WeCannotGoOnWithoutYou: [[AvertedTrope Averted]] by default. Unlike its [[TotalAnnihilation predecessor]], the loss of the commander is often a major blow, due to the various upgrades it may have had before being destroyed, but it doesn't immediately end the game for that player. This was done to prevent all-in rushes against the commander from being the main strategy. Can be played straight with a pre-game setting, though.

Many of the units in this game borrow their features (and names) from similar units in its predecessors, but the designers decided to break from ''Total Annihilation's'' meager storyline altogether, in the hopes of divorcing the game from its copyrighted roots. The replacement story, [[DependingOnTheWriter or what fragments of it have been decided on]], consists of two eras - the PlanetWars, in which five barely-CosmeticallyDifferentSides repeatedly battle across the Milky Way, and the post-PlanetWars, in which humans have been wiped out and only their still-battling machines remain.

* GlassCannon: The Ultimatum has a [[DeathRay disintegration gun]] that can vaporize a heavy tank in one blast, as well as a cloaking device to get it close enough to use it. It isn't much in the defense department, though.

[[caption-width-right:300:This is one of the least badass units.]]

''[[StealthPun Nothing is cooler.]]''

''Zero-K is a FREE, multiplatform, open-source RTS game. It aims to be dynamic, action-packed and hassle-free, full of clever strategies and constantly moving combat with games lasting an average 20-30 minutes.''

[[http://zero-k.info/ Zero-K]] is a [[FreewareGame free, open-source]] RealTimeStrategy game developed for the {{Spring}} engine. Originally called ''Complete Annihilation'', it was a fork of the (at the time) {{Abandonware}} ''Balanced Annihilaton'', which was itself forked from the permanently deceased ''Absolute Annihilation''. The latter was a Spring port of the original GameMod and unit pack of the same name, which was based on ''Uberhack'', [[OverlyLongGag a rebalance of]] ''The Core Contingency'', an official {{Expansion Pack}} of ''TotalAnnihilation''.

Many of the units in this game borrow their features (and names) from similar units in its predecessors, but the designers decided to break from ''Total Annihilation's'' meager storyline altogether, in the hopes of divorcing the game from its roots as a duplicate of an existing copyright.

* Humongous Mecha: Given the scale of the units, anything with legs is at least a {{Mini Mecha}}, but the Strider Hub takes the cake with the [[KillItWithFire Dante]], [[MacrossMissileMassacre Catapult]], [[JackOfAllStats Bantha]], [[GravityMaster Jugglenaut]] and [[LightningBruiser Detriment]].

[[http://zero-k.info/ Zero-K]] is a Game Mod for the {{Spring}} engine. Originally started its life as "Complete Annihilation," which was a fork of the (at the time) abandoned "Balanced Annihilation," which itself was fork of the equally (at the time) abandoned "Absolute Annihilation" project, a {{Spring}} engine port of the original Absolute Annihilation, a {{Game Mod}} and unit pack based on Uberhack, [[OverlyLongGag a rebalance of]] ''the Core Contingency'', an official expansion pack of ''{{Total Annihilation}}''.

* NoRecycling: [[AvertedTrope Averted]], just like all the predecessors.

* YouRequireMoreVespeneGas: Like its predecessors, there are two resources: Metal and Energy

* TransformingMecha: Some units are able to permanently morph into larger units after gaining a certain amount of experience. The new unit may or may not resemble the old one - for example, vehicles morph to the larger tanks, which tend to resemble their smaller cousins, but there is at least one humanoid mech that can morph into a {{SpiderTank}}.

* ZergRush: Massed [[FagileSpeedster Raiders]] are often seen in games with large maps and few players, as they're the only units that are fast enough to respond to enemy raids over a large front.

* HighSpeedMissileDodge: [[FagileSpeedster Raiders]] do this automatically when facing [[PainfullySlowProjectiles skirmishers]].

* HighSpeedMissileDodge: [[FagileSpeedster Raiders]] do this automatically when facing [[PainfullySlowPrijectiles skirmishers]].

''[[IncrediblyLamePun Nothing is cooler.]]''

* DeathFromAbove: The Zenith superweapon drops swarms of meteors on its targets.
* EasyCommunication

* YouRequireMoreVespeneGas: Like its predecessors, there are two resources: Metal and Energy

* GlassCannon: The Ultimatum has a [[{{Bfg}} disintegration gun]] that can vaporize a heavy tank in one blast, as well as a cloaking device to get it close enough to use it. It isn't much in the defense department, though.

** And, for that matter, *where* is it stored? The Commander, being your only starting unit, is the only logical candidate, yet it's around an eight of the storage structure, which has an equal capacity...

[[http://zero-k.info/ Zero K]] is a Game Mod for the {{Spring}} engine. Originally started its life as "Complete Annihilation," which was a fork of the (at the time) abandoned "Balanced Annihilation," which itself was fork of the equally (at the time) abandoned "Absolute Annihilation" project, a {{Spring}} engine port of the original Absolute Annihilation, a {{Game Mod}} and unit pack based on Uberhack, [[OverlyLongGag a rebalance of the Core Contingency, an official expansion pack of]] {{Total Annihilation}}.

Many of the units in this game borrow their features (and names) from similar units in its predecessors, but the designers decided to break from the Total Annihilation's meager storyline altogether, in the hopes of divorcing the game from its roots as a duplicate of an existing copyright.

* CripplingOverspecialization: [[AvertedTrope Averted]]; All players use the same units.

* EasyLogistics: As long as a unit is active, it can use the materials collected anywhere else in the game. Partially [[SubvertedTrope subverted]] by the large weapon structures; they require the economy to be producing a minimum amount of energy, and the weapon has to be within range of an energy pylon... one that is within range of a sufficient energy source or a similarly-connected second pylon. Taking out the nearby pieces of a pylon network can render the heavy base defenses useless, and it's easier than taking out the guns.
* GlassCannon: The Ultimatum has a [[{{Bfg}} disintegration gun]] that can vaporize a heavy tank in one blast. It isn't much in the defense department, though.
* LightningBruiser: The Detriment has 4/5 the hitpoints of a [[MightyGlacier Jugglenaut]], does twice the damage, and moves at twice the speed.
* MightyGlacier: The Jugglenaut (not a typo) Can barely move, but in addition to heavy laser cannons, it has a gravity gun to keep you there.

''Nothing's [[IncrediblyLamePun cooler than Zero K]]''

[[http://zero-k.info/ Zero K]] is a Game Mod for the {{Spring}} engine. Originally started its life as "Complete Annihilation," which was a fork of the (at the time) abandoned "Balanced Annihilation," which itself was fork of the equally (at the time) abandoned "Absolute Annihilation" project, which was an expansion and rebalancing mod of the original TotalAnnihilation game by Cavedog, ported over to the {{Spring}} engine to take advantage of the benefits of the advanced features of the gaming engine.

Many of the units in this game borrow their features from similar units in its predecessors, but the designers decided to break from the past storyline, in the hopes of divorcing the game from its roots as a duplicate of an existing copyright.