Hover Scout
- This article is about the Rock Raiders vehicle. For the LEGO set, see 4910 Hover Scout.
The Hover Scout is a small, inexpensive vehicle used by the Rock Raiders for long-distance reconnaissance. It is a hovercraft that uses "the latest hover propulsion technology" to carry a single pilot at high speeds over terrain that could not safely or quickly be traversed otherwise. Hover Scouts are commonly used in the Rock Raiders books and comics, but find minimal use in the video games.
In the Windows game
In the Windows version of LEGO Rock Raiders, the Hover Scout is classified as a small vehicle, and requires only one Energy Crystal for power. A Rock Raider must be trained as a driver to use a Hover Scout (The manual states that a Rock Raider must be trained as a pilot to use it; however, in-game it can only cross land, and only vehicles that either can cross lava or can cross both land and water require the pilot skill).
The Hover Scout is the fastest vehicle in the game, with a route speed of 3 block per second without upgrades, and 5 blocks/second with the engine upgrade. As such, a Hover Scout can be used to help a Rock Raider maneuver very quickly across caverns, particularly areas covered in rubble. Unfortunately, as it is incapable of drilling or carrying, this is the extent of its usefulness; for the same cost, the player could teleport down a Small Digger, which can drill through walls and, while slower than the Hover Scout, still moves quicker than a Rock Raider on foot.
Appearances
- In Search 'n' Rescue, an abandoned Hover Scout can be found at the end of the second river, on the other side of the rock that the lost Rock Raider is trapped behind.
- In Run The Gauntlet, the player starts off with a single Rock Raider driving a Hover Scout, which the player can use to navigate quickly past the gauntlet of Rock Monsters until a Small Digger is found. A second Hover Scout appears in the tunnels two caverns before the cave with a lake, a Loader Dozer, and a Cargo Carrier.
Upgrades
There are two upgrades available for the Hover Scout:
- Engine: Costs 10 pieces of Ore
Increases the vehicle's route speed from 3 blocks per second to 5 blocks per second. - Scanner: Costs 5 pieces of Ore
Installs a radar aboard the vehicle, with a scanning radius of 4 blocks.
Dependency
The Hover Scout costs 1 Energy Crystal and requires the following for teleportation:
- Rock Raider
- Tool Store [UP1]
- Teleport Pad [UP1]
- Power Station [UP1]
- Support Station
In the PlayStation game
The Hover Scout is used very infrequently in the PlayStation version of LEGO Rock Raiders, appearing in only one level each in both the PAL and NTSC-U/C versions. Its intention in both of these cases is to navigate through narrow land paths filled with hazards, though its sensitive controls could potentially make this frustrating. The PAL manual calls it an "easy-to-handle" vehicle that "first-time pilots might find a little tricky to control."
Appearances
- In Web Space, the player teleports down next to a Hover Scout, which they can use to navigate through a huge Spider nest safely until they reach the Teleport Station.
- In The Last Stand and its two-player version, the player can find a Hover Scout at the end of the level, which can be used to navigate a geyser gauntlet along a narrow stretch of land through lava, to reach the Teleport Pad at the end.
In other media
In High Adventure Deep Underground, Jet, Docs, Axle, and Bandit all first teleport down onto the planet with Hover Scouts to explore the tunnels. Axle landed to get a closer look, only to get stuck in a pile of Slimy Slug secretion. Six Slimy Slugs approached and began feeding on the Hover Scout's fuel, before Jet flew low to scare them away. The four Rock Raiders eventually find what looks like the remnants of an ancient Rock Monster civilization. Several Hover Scouts are later destroyed in a Rock Monster attack.
In Race for Survival, Docs takes a Hover Scout and heads off on his own to look for Quadrant 14, where Axle is trapped. While exploring in Quadrant 15, magma erupted into the cavern. Docs barely managed to outrun the magma and fly his Hover Scout through a high-up opening, before warning the others that the location was an active volcano.
In the comic Planet of the Rock Monsters! from LEGO Adventures! Issue 7, Jet and Docs head across a lava river with Hover Scouts after the Chrome Crusher's engine overheated. While exploring, the two are ambushed by Rock Monsters, who begin throwing boulders at them.
In River of Lava! from LEGO Adventures! Issue 10, Axle and Jet go exploring the tunnels on Hover Scouts, where they find a group of Rock Monsters running away from an underground volcanic eruption. Axle's Hover Scout is damaged by one of the Rock Monsters, and he has to hold on to Jet on her Hover Scout while they outrun the magma.
