watched the films again and when seeing the at-at i just thought what a stupid design. firstly it legs are to long causing the weakness that the snow speeders exploited, and that there are only to guns (granted they can do allot of damage) but with the size of the at-at they could of had lot more, then it would be piratically indestructible.

but what do you think?

All Terrain Armored Transport

It is a troop carrier with incredibly heavy armor and powerful guns. While it can (and is) be used for heavy assault (which the Empire prefers), it's main role is a stable transport for troops.

It was a plot weakness.

That said there are 3 advantage's to the design(Not very great advantage's but still)

1:Range: they towered over the battlefield and where basicly walking towers.

2:All terrian movement.: in universe at war the hyracy(misspelled) walkers can walk true deep rivers and over mountians i asume the at-at can do the same.

3: fear: when you see a group of walking towers heading your way you got to be very brave not to run for the hills.

The entire doctrian of the empire is based on fear.

It was a plot weakness.

 

That said there are 3 advantage's to the design(Not very great advantage's but still)

 

1:Range: they towered over the battlefield and where basicly walking towers.

2:All terrian movement.: in universe at war the hyracy(misspelled) walkers can walk true deep rivers and over mountians i asume the at-at can do the same.

3: fear: when you see a group of walking towers heading your way you got to be very brave not to run for the hills.

The entire doctrian of the empire is based on fear.

maybe the could make the legs small but have them extend if needed

maybe the could make the legs small but have them extend if needed

Could have but they didnt.

As someone here said:

Nobody ever said the Imp brass were smart.

The core design of the AT-AT was perfectly in line with Palpatine's New Order doctrine. It was a large and fear-inducing vehicle with dramatic effects on a battlefield.

Calling it a stupid design is typical of the armchair fan-base that doesn't look past the obvious. In detail, the core canon is actually well thought out. As an armored transport, no conventional armed response was capable of stopping the At-AT from delivering its payload. This was amply demonstrated in episode 5, if you cared to be a true fan.

the easy answer to the slow moving At AT is simple.

Replace legs with repulsers. Gives you speed and the abilty to actually go over all terran.

But yeah you have to remember that they are there for plot and apperence.

the easy answer to the slow moving At AT is simple.

 

Replace legs with repulsers. Gives you speed and the abilty to actually go over all terran.

 

But yeah you have to remember that they are there for plot and apperence.

Not an easy answer, they didn't use repulsar lifts because they wouldn't be able to go through shields, that's why the empire wasn't able to bomb echo base from orbit, and believe me, they have the fire power to do it. the at-at overall might be a silly design but would you be more scared of a tank or a tank that sits like half a kilometer high that can go through what ever terrain you try to go through. its purpose is also to keep the troops inside safe from harm. if you want to counter one, shoot into the neck (not likely to happen) trip it over (an effective way going by ESB) or get behind it, as i'd imagine that it would have slow turning. but the name is assault so your not going to get behind it alive most likely and even then: what would you do?

Not an easy answer, they didn't use repulsar lifts because they wouldn't be able to go through shields, that's why the empire wasn't able to bomb echo base from orbit, and believe me, they have the fire power to do it. the at-at overall might be a silly design but would you be more scared of a tank or a tank that sits like half a kilometer high that can go through what ever terrain you try to go through. its purpose is also to keep the troops inside safe from harm. if you want to counter one, shoot into the neck (not likely to happen) trip it over (an effective way going by ESB) or get behind it, as i'd imagine that it would have slow turning. but the name is assault so your not going to get behind it alive most likely and even then: what would you do?

yes when George wrote it he thought that they would need legs because the repulsors wouldn't go through shields. He was actually inspired by HG Wells War of the Worlds and the Tripods. He wanted imagery that was similar.

pssst Star Wars isn't real. They made the At-Ats with legs because of the limitations of special effects.

I would be more scared if a fast moving Droid Tank was coming towards me then a large slow moving camel with a high center of gravity.

If I can walk faster then it then i'm not afraid of it. You take out even one leg and you stopped it dead in it's tracks.

oh and if you want to get really techinical your "theory" is wrong. Viper Probe droids were present at the battle and they use repulsors

the easy answer to the slow moving At AT is simple.

 

Replace legs with repulsers. Gives you speed and the abilty to actually go over all terran.

 

But yeah you have to remember that they are there for plot and apperence.

That would leave it vulnerable to all kinds of ground assault, as it would lose its aerial advantage. The only thing that could attack an AT-AT was a flying vehicle, it was just too high up for tanks, turrets and soldiers to fire at.

Repulsors would also heavily decrease its range, so the attack on Echo Base would be nowhere near as effective as they wouldn't be able to take out the shield generator etc.

I'd say the AT-AT design is pretty smart, impenetrable, aerial advantage, super firepower and fear factor

The easy answer to the slow moving At AT is simple.

 

Replace legs with repulsers. Gives you speed and the abilty to actually go over all terran.

But if AT-ATs had repulsers they wouldn't be able to do this:

yes when George wrote it he thought that they would need legs because the repulsors wouldn't go through shields. He was actually inspired by HG Wells War of the Worlds and the Tripods. He wanted imagery that was similar.

 

pssst Star Wars isn't real. They made the At-Ats with legs because of the limitations of special effects.

 

I would be more scared if a fast moving Droid Tank was coming towards me then a large slow moving camel with a high center of gravity.

 

If I can walk faster then it then i'm not afraid of it. You take out even one leg and you stopped it dead in it's tracks.

 

oh and if you want to get really techinical your "theory" is wrong. Viper Probe droids were present at the battle and they use repulsors

Exactly how would you take out an AT-AT? You would need some serious firepower to do so.

Exactly how would you take out an AT-AT? You would need some serious firepower to do so.

Rebels managed to do it with wire. I mean come on being able to trip your enemies heavy armored vehicle as if it was a tubby kid on the playground seems like a design flaw.

Remove the legs and put repulsors that can do everything those legs could do and more and you are set. Look at the droid carriers. If they just added some heavy guns on them they would have been perfect.

Rebels managed to do it with wire. I mean come on being able to trip your enemies heavy armored vehicle as if it was a tubby kid on the playground seems like a design flaw.

 

Remove the legs and put repulsors that can do everything those legs could do and more and you are set. Look at the droid carriers. If they just added some heavy guns on them they would have been perfect.

But like I said, repulsorlifts only lift the veichle a few inches of the ground, which removes two of the AT-AT's advantages: height and fear.

Rebels managed to do it with wire. I mean come on being able to trip your enemies heavy armored vehicle as if it was a tubby kid on the playground seems like a design flaw.

 

Remove the legs and put repulsors that can do everything those legs could do and more and you are set. Look at the droid carriers. If they just added some heavy guns on them they would have been perfect.

Yes...they used an unorthodoxed tactic that worked, if they didn't do that they would have been screwed. But again, you wouldn't be able to take out an AT-AT unless

1. You know to trip it up.

Or

2. You have heavy firepower

Even then you have only a chance at tripping the wire, because they could blast your snowspeeder out of the sky if you recall during the battle a snowspeeder got shot and send rolling before crashing straight into the ground blowing up.

Yes...they used an unorthodoxed tactic that worked, if they didn't do that they would have been screwed. But again, you wouldn't be able to take out an AT-AT unless

 

1. You know to trip it up.

 

Or

 

2. You have heavy firepower

 

Even then you have only a chance at tripping the wire, because they could blast your snowspeeder out of the sky if you recall during the battle a snowspeeder got shot and send rolling before crashing straight into the ground blowing up.

Wolfninjajedi is right here, remember - who won the Battle of Hoth? The Empire. What won it for them? The AT-ATs.

Wolfninjajedi is right here, remember - who won the Battle of Hoth? The Empire. What won it for them? The AT-ATs.

More to that, they took down what....1 AT-AT with the wire tactic?

All Terrain Armored Transport

 

It is a troop carrier with incredibly heavy armor and powerful guns. While it can (and is) be used for heavy assault (which the Empire prefers), it's main role is a stable transport for troops.

This and there were areas where Troopers could shoot out of.

But like I said, repulsorlifts only lift the veichle a few inches of the ground, which removes two of the AT-AT's advantages: height and fear.

again look at the troop cariers and the hovertanks of the Droid army those are a LOT more then a few inches.

As a troop transport, the legs serve an extremely vital role, mines. The AT-TEs of the clone wars were good heavy transports just like the AT-ATs but if they stepped on a mine, both the walker and any troops inside the walker were gone. The weakness of the legs seems to have a glaringly easy solution, upward facing barbs. Make them out of cortosis or another stronge metal and you have your (relatively) cheap wire defense while maintaining the fear inspired from the height of the walker.

Or they could make the legs stronger, snap the rope

As a troop transport, the legs serve an extremely vital role, mines. The AT-TEs of the clone wars were good heavy transports just like the AT-ATs but if they stepped on a mine, both the walker and any troops inside the walker were gone. The weakness of the legs seems to have a glaringly easy solution, upward facing barbs. Make them out of cortosis or another stronge metal and you have your (relatively) cheap wire defense while maintaining the fear inspired from the height of the walker.

or just avoid the mines all together by having repulsors like the Droid army transports. Can't step on something if you don't touch the ground?

again look at the troop cariers and the hovertanks of the Droid army those are a LOT more then a few inches.

http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Armored_Assault_Tank?file=AAT.jpg - O_o I count a few inches...

Honestly, only an aerial vehicle could reach the height of an AT-AT and you may say fine, make it an gunship, but this makes in vulnerable to rocket launchers etc that could take out its engines and blast it out of the sky. It would also be too heavy to be effective.

or just avoid the mines all together by having repulsors like the Droid army transports. Can't step on something if you don't touch the ground?

Point, but certain mines can detect repulsorlift fields, so this could be exploited just as easily as the legs.