Rocket Launcher (UT200X)

If you're looking for other versions of the weapon, you might want to check Rocket Launcher.

The Rocket Launcher has an simpler version appearing in Unreal Championship, Unreal Tournament 2003 and Unreal Tournament 2004.

Overview[]

Unreal Championship[]

"The Trident Tri-barrel Rocket Launcher is extremely popular among competitors who enjoy more bang for their buck. The rotating rear-loading barrel design allows for both single- and multi-warhead launches, letting you place up to three dumbfire rockets on target. The warheads are designed to deliver maximum concussive force to the target and surrounding area upon detonation."

– Weapon description

Primary Fire: Fires one rocket.
Secondary Fire: Fires up to three rockets in a flat spread. It can also fire them in a tight cluster by pressing the primary fire button while they are loading.

The Rocket Launcher of Unreal Championship is supposed to be identical to the one of Unreal Tournament 2003, except for the mesh. The weapon is one of the few UC weapons that also have ammo with a different mesh than in UT2003.

Unreal Tournament 2003/2004[]

"The Trident Tri-barrel Rocket Launcher is extremely popular among competitors who enjoy more bang for their buck. The rotating rear-loading barrel design allows for both single- and multi-warhead launches, letting you place up to three dumbfire rockets on target. The warheads are designed to deliver maximum concussive force to the target and surrounding area upon detonation."

– Weapon description

Primary Fire: Fires a single rocket.
Secondary Fire: Fires three rockets in a horizontal line, and, by pressing primary fire while loading, can shoot up to three rockets in a tight spiral.

In UT2003 and UT2004, the Rocket Launcher can only fire up to 3 rockets, but the ability to fire 3 rockets in a spiral at an enemy more than makes up for the lack of rockets that can be launched.

The Rocket Launcher of Unreal Tournament 2003 uses Rocket Packs as well. They are even more valuable than the other ammo versions, as the Rocket Launcher fires rockets extremely rapidly, and each Rocket Pack only gives 9 rockets, up to 30. That means you need more than 3 Rocket Packs to get the full inventory of rockets. They are common in maps, so they shouldn't cause too many problems.

Just like the Rocket Launcher of Unreal Tournament 2004, Rocket Packs are unchanged from UT2003. Only their size has been modified so they would look more realistic, but the collision radius isn't changed so it is actually just like the Rocket Pack of Unreal Tournament 2003.

Unreal Tournament 4[]

Primary fire: Single fire rocket. Good splash damage and direct hits are extremely lethal.
Alternate fire: Holding will start loading rockets until the button is released. The maximum payload is 3 rockets.
Tips - Firing modes: Pressing primary fire while loading up rockets switches fire modes, allowing you to alternate between normal and rapid release. Rapid release allows you to concentrate heavy damage in one area or cover a large area in one sweep.
Tips - Rocket jumping: Shooting a rocket straight into the ground while closeby will propel you upwards. This comes at a large cost to health, so it should be used wisely.

Tips and tricks[]

"The rocket launcher is a great multipurpose weapon. The rockets are deadly enough to take out a player with a single, well-targeted shot. If you hold your crosshairs on an enemy long enough, the rockets lock on and home in on your target.
Splash damage from rockets can blow back in your face if you hit a nearby floor or wall, and crafty enemies can dodge rockets.

The primary attack fires a single rocket. The crosshairs turn red at lock-on. Aim at your enemy’s feet and use splash damage to do your dirty work — dodging is virtually impossible.

Hold down the secondary fire and your rocket launcher charges up three rockets. Release the trigger to unleash them at your prey. A three-rocket blast knocks out even a shielded foe. In one of the Capture the Flag-style modes, you can start loading before you enter a room and take out a couple of opponents in one shot.

The rocket launchers are good in all but the tightest fighting areas. Its lock-on ability makes the launcher especially deadly in wide-open maps. It’s also good in multilevel environments and high-traffic areas.
It’s least useful in tight corridors. You can easily kill yourself if you hit a wall, a floor, or even an enemy while running through tight areas. For safety’s sake, switch to another weapon in hallways.
A single rocket blast will not necessarily kill a target in a single shot. In fact, characters such as the Juggernauts are able to withstand multiple direct hits from the Rocket Launcher, making them formidable enemies. Make sure to finish the job with a follow-up shot or two when necessary."

– Unreal Championship Prima's Official Strategy Guide

The Rocket Launcher's rockets fly straight, do a lot of damage in a direct hit, and have a fair-sized splash damage radius. (Because of the splash damage, Rocket Launchers are less than ideal for close-range fighting and are notorious for causing suicides in this situation.)
Since Rocket Launchers are the most powerful standard weapon except a sniper and they have a reasonably fast reload rate and a large splash damage radius (hence the RL is called a "spammy" weapon), they are a favorite of new players. Because it's much more rarely used by advanced players, the Rocket Launcher is often found opposite the Flak Cannon in Capture the Flag, Double Domination, and Bombing Run maps, and in either wide-open or very tight places in Deathmatch or Domination. The theory behind the latter locations is that a weapon is most balanced if it is placed in a location where it is least useful; since the RL is usually considered a mid-range weapon, these locations make sense.
Rockets have a lot of momentum, so they will temporarily stop or slow down Scorpions and usually change their direction slightly, disorienting the driver. Three rockets kills a scorpion.
Since Rocket Launchers are the second-most-powerful weapon against vehicles (factoring in their rate of fire) they are the most useful weapon to combat Goliath tanks and other large, slow vehicles (not including the Hellbender unless it's coming straight at you) after AVRiLs. However, Mantas and Raptors are usually too agile to be hit by rockets.
Because rockets fly very straight and cannot be shot down, they are ideal for shooting Power Nodes from a distance. A useful tactic if you're bad at aiming is to line up using the Lightning Gun or Sniper Rifle and then switch to the RL without moving.
Loading up on rockets before bursting in to an area where you know there are enemy players allows you to unleash a powerful attack on multiple enemies before they know what's going on.
Players in the damage radius of a Rocket are lifted off the floor, preventing them from jumping or dodging. Good players can predict the landing spot and send another rocket there to greet the enemy. This ability can also be used to boost players themselves, although the Shield Gun (in UT2003/4) usually take this role. Rocket Jumps don't work in Unreal II because of the heavy armor worn.
Hitting the ground near a player's feet is easier than hitting a player because it's a larger target and doesn't move. Often the splash damage is plenty to hurt the enemy. Jumping in the air gives an easier angle from which to aim at a player's feet.

Trivia[]

The Rocket Packs have a small, usually unnoticeable warning written on them: "WARNING: IF YOU TOUCH THIS THEN YOU HAVE A PROBLEM"
The Rocket Launcher in Unreal Tournament 4 acts similarly to this iteration, but up to before the introduction of the Grenade Launcher it worked in a similar way to the iteration from UT3.

Preview Notes[]

Unreal Tournament 2003[]

"The rocket launcher has been slightly modified as well. It will now fire a maximum of 3 rockets at one time instead of six, and it launches these much closer together than the previous version. A hit from these will result in your flaming demise. "

– Unreal Playground^[1]

"The weapons have been retuned to be less "spammy" in terms of causing lots of area-effect damage. (...) The rocket launcher now loads only up to three rockets at a time, and the alternate fire is a faster, single-shot fire rate."

– GameSpot^[2]

Gallery[]

Unreal Tournament Rocket Launcher guide-0

External links and references[]

↑ StealthDP (May 26, 2002). "E3 Report". Unreal Playground. Archived from the original on October 11, 2002. Retrieved July 10, 2020.
↑ Parker, Sam (May 22, 2002). "E3 2002: Unreal Tournament 2003 impressions". GameSpot. Archived from the original on December 9, 2002. Retrieved July 10, 2020.