Taking Command

Shanesan · 2012-03-24, 02:36 AM

Commanding in Battlefield 2 was one of my favorite things to do in that game. "Commanding" in PlanetSide was terrible and I never did it. I have not found a thread with the proposed Command architectures, and their gaping holes, written down. Don't worry, I'll take care of that.

This thread is not about Squad Leaders. This is about the battlefield from orbit. This is about coordinating strikes and micromanaging. This is about commanding.

Command "Rank"
First, there is no Command Rank. You don't rank up a command level anymore. As Bags posted in the FAQ, it's part of a certification tree. Add certification points into Commander and you will be a "more effective" Commander. Whatever that means.

Appointing Commanders
Higby's big dream is to have a "follow" system, like Twitter, for Commanders. Essentially, users or outfits "follow" three people: A Commander, their Squad Leader, and Outfit Leader if I understood correctly. The squad leader and outfit leader are easily chosen; you pick them (they're picked for you?) and that's it. But how do you pick a Commander?

People are concerned that Commanders will just become a popularity contest, though choosing a Commander has not really been discussed in any real depth. How to make a successful Commander seen and known has also not been discussed in any real depth. Deciding you want to Command with no success or failure in the past as a Commander, and how to get started, has not been discussed. I hope an SoE Planetside Staff can give us a hand here.

Commanding Basics
Once a Commander starts to receive followers, a Commander can grant his followers "missions". These missions garnish Bonus XP for his followers on completion.

That's all we know about Commanding. For how huge a flub the Command system was in PS1, I would think this would be a primary topic. I asked about commanding in Higby's AMAA, but obviously it's something that we need to wait for.

What do you think Commanders should have, or would need, to be effective at commanding our ground and air forces?