“`
If it comes to drawing technology cards, currently, Gu Hang’s first choice would certainly still be the 1000-tier.
The 10 and 100 stores are no longer under consideration; both prize pools have been drained, leaving a too low probability of good items emerging to be worth the gamble.
Currently, for the 1000-tier, the probability of getting items is as follows: for basic level: 40%, for intermediate level: 30%, for elite level: 20%.
There’s also a 10% chance that, unluckily, it would come up empty.
And Gu Hang’s first three draws, luck wasn’t great.
Didn’t come up empty, but there was no jackpot either, one intermediate-level and two basic-level items.
The intermediate-level technology was for the “Lion Tank.”
At this reward, Gu Hang couldn’t stop smiling.
This was an armored force that the Star Realm Army had equipped for a long time, a genuine tank, wholly different in concept from the old ‘Challenger’ imported by the Old Alliance Army.
Even though within the Star Realm Army’s arsenal, the Lion Tank is only considered a light tank.
But a light tank is still a tank, possessing both thick armor and powerful firepower.
The ‘Challenger’ Tank’s armor could be penetrated by an interstellar warrior’s explosive rifle, but such rifles would merely tickle the ‘Lion Tank.’
Even heavy explosives or plasma guns of that caliber couldn’t threaten the tank through its frontal armor.
The Alliance’s currently equipped 155mm howitzers are also nothing but an annoyance to the ‘Lion.’
On the offensive side, it boasts a 125mm kinetic main cannon using Magrail Cannon Technology, which can be outfitted with a plasma cannon; it is equipped with two heavy explosive coaxial machine guns; possesses smoke screen active defense, special cermet armor protection…
Such a king of land warfare cannot be compared with the Strider Armored Vehicle.
The Star Realm Army is known as the ‘Hammer of the Empire’ for a good reason, with formidable armored capability at its core. Without these heavy tanks, how could the Star Realm Army contend with the fearful entities of the universe with mere human flesh and blood?
And now, the Alliance Army finally has real tanks!
Moreover, Gu Hang calculated that the Alliance could directly set up production lines for the “Lion Tank.” They were capable of producing basic cermet and Grindstone Engines. With the “Lion Tank’s” technological blueprints, the Alliance could also replicate the main cannon, setting up a separate production line for it.
This could even optimize the Alliance’s own artillery technology.
However, equipping it with plasma cannons was impractical since the Alliance couldn’t produce them yet, unless they chose to use the Black Box to directly manufacture parts for the Lion Tank with a plasma cannon option, but that output would be pitifully low.
But there was no need for that; the Magrail Cannon and heavy explosive rifles were already powerful weapons.
And the two basic-level technologies were both related to production: “Superconducting Power Grid” and “Basic Engineering Machinery.”
Both of these are foundation building technologies.
The former, as the name implies, is a type of technology for constructing power grids. Compared to the current traditional power grid construction technology used by the Alliance, its main features are less energy loss, stronger load capacity, and the ability to conveniently perform wireless charging.
The latter is a type of engineering machinery. By equipping different sets of tools, it could function as an excavator, road paver… among many other types of engineering machinery.
And these could be used for various purposes, but Gu Hang saw that they were mostly used for basic projects such as laying roads, railways, tracks, and the like.
These two foundation building technologies are very important.
As the Alliance’s controlled land area and population grow, some basic infrastructure constructions began to be insufficient.
The most direct example is the Alliance’s current power grid, which barely covers the Twin Cities and Rubbish Town.
Other settlements in the central three provinces are still not electrified, not to mention the more distant Beiqing Valley Province.
It’s not that there isn’t technology to build power grids; it’s just that construction takes time, and a large portion of the Alliance’s efforts is focused on other areas that require development.
The power grid project has been placed on hold.
After all, apart from the Twin Cities, the productivity of those other small and medium-sized settlements, even if preserved as much as possible, is still weak, so rushing to electrify them doesn’t hold high value.
The same is true for the road and rail networks.
But obviously, this isn’t a long-term solution.
Gu Hang wasn’t planning on following the mold of some Nest Capital worlds, where building just one super metropolis would suffice.
Super cities, of course, serve their important purpose. A more dense population and industries lead to stronger cluster effects.
However, regions like the Beiqing Valley agricultural zone and the Eastern Provinces’ industry for recycling pre-war urban ruins are all indispensable.
Now, transport relies on the Iron Bull trucks, chugging along muddy, dirt, and gravel roads.
Though it’s already more reliable than the old beast-drawn carts of past years, it’s still not fast enough, at least not for an industrial system; it’s too insufficient.
Moreover, Gu Hang wasn’t just concerned with the development of the Twin Cities.
Considering the entire Alliance’s productive capacity, not to mention this year’s taxation being problem-free and future tax revenues could be offset by stuffing forces into the troops of the Star Realm Army Corps being established, the Alliance’s annual gross production value was still only 1.2 million Tax Currency.
“`
