Command Redone

[Warborn]

Command Rank sucked and was badly implemented and I want to write about how it could be redone. First, remove command rank entirely. Second, add in win conditions to the game. Wins result in rewards for winning side characters, and a reset of the game world (but not characters).

With that in mind, player-run Empire Command (EC) can be added in. Players can be voted for, with individual players perhaps being unable to be a part of the EC in consecutive campaigns (campaign being the game world prior to reset). How many players would occupy the EC is subject to balance. Probably between 10 and 20. EC members will function similar to CR5's, but without the stupid Rambo abilities, instead being able to designate specific places as being Empire-wide objectives, broadcast to the entire Empire, and otherwise have tools to direct and control their Empire's campaign.

From here, we can expand it. Bases can be converted from exclusively having combat bonuses to also being related to infrastructure. Research could be made a part of the game, with campaigns starting out with each side limited in its weapons, equipment and vehicle options, and research directed by EC and supplied through specific research bases allowing new things to be unlocked. With the acquisition and holding of more research facilities, unlocks happen more quickly, while sabotaging enemy research bases will hamper their own research.

Furthermore, someone wrote in another thread that vehicles were too expendable. Well, the possibility also exists for production facilities, factories of some sort, which are responsible for producing more advanced equipment and which similarly produce stuff at a ratio determined by EC. If the TR has an outfit like KAAOS running around, they may elevate the production of aircraft at the expense of other vehicles. The net result could be either numerical values for how many of each vehicle the Empire has available to field in the war, or it could affect load times.

Complimenting this feature could be a broader use for ANTs. Factories could rely on a steady stream of energy or other resources collected from out in the environment somewhere, and shipped back to the base to produce tanks and aircraft and whatever other advanced tech stuff for the broader Empire to use. This would create a need for ANTs beyond what exists currently, and would give more varied gameplay in that players would be strong incentives to both defend their ANTs, and prevent enemy ANTs from reaching their factories. Actually, these resource vehicles ought to be called something else, as they'd need to be much more durable and, likely, larger. Perhaps even large, sunderer-style vehicles with limited armed passenger slots, to better characterize it as a sort of armed convoy vehicle.

As well, I think the economy aspect could be expanded upon further. Player currency I'm not sure about, but the Empire having an excess of economic flow could give benefits to vehicles or equipment in some respect. If, for example, an Empire is particularly successful in getting its ANTs or whatever to its factory, then all vehicles on the continent could begin to develop slight bonuses to its offensive/defensive capabilities, reflecting the magnitude of the resource excess.

Naturally there'd have to be limits on how often these convoys could be sent out to harvest resources, and they'd need to be broadcast to enemies to ensure that the greatest possibility for a fight exists, but with some tweaking it'd be doable.

So, there. Infrastructure buildings, a controlled, varied flow of new items and vehicles to give more variety to the game (where each campaign your EC might opt for different priorities and achieve them at different speeds depending on your battlefield success), a command structure which isn't just a bunch of people who ground out CR5, and different sort of sub-games in having mobile defense/attack objectives.

[Firefly]

http://www.planetside-universe.com/f...ad.php?t=35789

... among others I didn't bother to look up.

[basti]

"Second, add in win conditions to the game."

I stopped reading after that. You know that if you can WIN, others have to LOOSE. And with the Reset, you completly destroy the idea of MMOs.

[Canaris]

Can't say I'm to keen on those ideas, it seems to suggest detracting from the combat element of the game just a bit to much.

I'm going to have a few thought chews on the EC concept but it seems to have a few fatal flaws like the only the big outfits having say and dictating just what gets produced.
I wouldn't want to pay to play a game just to be told by someone from another outfit I don't know just what type of vehicle I can have.

As for the WIN condition I'm also not keen on it with the reset as Basti explained, if you take something you better be able to hang onto it through blood and grit.

[TRex]

All you need is the /ignore button , currently in game and I've not found any bugs with it so far.

It's so easy to sort out those that actually try to command and have my respect as a player, and the myriads of useless drongos that use global and no idea what they talking about.

[kaffis]

There are certainly ideas within this that have merit, however I reject the notion of win conditions.

As basti aptly points out, in order for somebody to win, another guy has to lose. Now, you've introduced morale issues over time.

I think Planetside's strength is that you can show a scoreboard with percentage of bases owned, and thus have a side that is winnING as a goal and motivation. But the side that is losING doesn't suffer the same morale defeat as if they had LOST. When you're losing, you're down and out, and the underdog that can come back out swinging. When you've lost, well... Especially if you succumb to the temptation to give the winners a reward for winning that matters. Now, if you've lost, you're actually at a disadvantage, and likely to lose again.

Anyways, the points that have merit are ones that remind me of Allegiance somewhat. Research, economic attrition to give vehicles value, etc. However, I think they can, and should, be incorporated without the win condition. Will it be harder to do so? Yes, but it can be done. Instead of research, make more granular infrastructure requirements (like tech bases grant heavy vehicle spawning) that can be attained and lost.

The economic attrition is tied into the NTU economy already, it's just not weighted heavily enough for vehicles to be seen as valuable. This can be fixed by increasing the NTU cost of vehicles -- however, now you need to put some restraints on so that the zerg won't spawn the base dry; restraints which can be borrowed from whatever you had in mind.

Etc. Also, I don't like the idea of limiting empire command to a small number, unless there's some assurance (like my suggestion of floating command rank) that some of it will be online at a given time. Having somebody get themselves elected supreme commander, then quit the game, take a break, have their shift at work changed so they can only play on Tuesdays and Thursdays, or have their mother die shouldn't cripple an empire; that's no fun for anybody. The same goes for if you've got a small, limited number, only it's slightly less sensitive to these kinds of unpredictable variations in playtime/schedules, as multiple such events need to coincide.

[Firefly]

Can we merge all of the "Command" and "CR5" threads into one big-ass thread? There's at least two.

[Ghryphen]

All two of them!!!???

[DviddLeff]

Good post, I like some of the ideas you have, but I worry that you have totally new game play concept blurring the main purpose of the post.

You make a few interesting points:
1. Remove existing Command Rank
2. Allow people to vote in their commanders.
3. Add more infrastructure and supply weight to the world
4. Allow empires to unlock advanced equipment through research depending on number of bases controlled.
5. Make NTUs run out quicker, requiring more ANTs.

I address a lot of these in the upgrade project, which you can see more details of through these links:

1. Command Rank is a problem, so I have a suite of changes that should fix it.
2. Voting wouldn't work if large outfits could just vote in their own players only, some kind of limiting factor for an outfit may work.
3 and 5; see my NTU Overhaul to see how supply lines can be established, and cut.
4. I have new research style events for when new equipment is developed; the players could compete for who gets it unlocked first.