@BrentEllison So in the latest livestream you and Katie talked about Agnathio and how badly the lives system works on point B View: https://youtu.be/N3gAquTTKlQ 1:08:50 mark for the Agnathio bit I think you're going about balance models the wrong way, that is to say fixing the wrong part of the issue. The problem with Agnathio isn't that you keep the lives if the gates blow up early in and of itself. That contributes to it, but it's a symptom of the real issue: it's also that point B is really, really, REALLY hard to crack open. Like, it's not a bad design for an actual real-life defensive position*, level of hard to crack open. Simply redesigning Agnathio B to have more points of ingress would alleviate the issue pretty well. We have precedent for this: Harkus. Harkus B has three points of ingress for the attackers and it's mostly balanced *(because let's face it: video game fortifications and real life fortifications are measured in completely opposite ends of the quality spectrum; a good fort in real life is one that the defenders would almost always win with in a video game)*
Yea, Agnathio Point B is a true fortress, lives are not the issue it just the fact the fortress works so well. They need 2 more entrances of some kind there. Harkus get's it right.
The reason Ignatio has been talked about is because several organized groups sit on B all match. Because B is the best place to B . Why defend A and the walls? all those lives will come to B eventualy.Defenders are not punished for losing ground. And that's the main Issue these fortress games have with their current lives system. The introduction of the Elevator and second balcony (has always been there for jump troops) makes it a great kill zone, Even more work for the attackers.
I agree, as a real fortress, this would be a job well done. As a fortress in a game, not so much. Attacking it just not funny at all. In addition to side entrances, there could be some pipes that run from A-point to a spot behind the defenders' lines at B. That would be of a motivation to hold A. Or at least it would create a second entrance that has to be guarded separately, because if it should fall, CONFUSION!
Brent actually mentioned live on the most recent UAT playtest that he thought there were side entrances to Agnathio point B. He seemed legitimately surprised that there were no side entrances.
It seems easier for Eldar to crack it due to their hawks. Jumppacks get obliterated, but the hawks have the speed to get inside and hide somewhere, moving from target to target. The only times I've been part of a winning attacking team on Agnathio since the extra level was added were when playing Eldar, as the others have a too rough a time at it.
Good Lord. How out of touch with your own game can you be before you get fired? IMHO the ticket system is really bad and shouldn't exist.
The ticket system is designed to put pressure and create a certain gameplay style. I've played ticket based games before and they're not intrinsically bad, it's designed to make a fortress that gives the defenders an explicit advantage but tickets that support the offense going into a situation in which they have a momentary stress point in order to gradually bleed out the opposition. The problem is if you can't get in there in the first place to kill anybody. Agnathio point B just takes it to such a ridiculous extreme. That said I was indeed sort of amused to find that the lead game design didn't know Agnathio point B didn't have side entrances - that point is sort of infamous for being a meat grinder because there are only two front entrances and the machine guns just rip the hell out of anything that walks in the door. Anybody who has had that experience for 20 spawn waves on offense could not possibly forget it. That's why I was sort of hyperventilating over the JPA nerfs, because that's the only way anyone gets anywhere on Agnathio. You can't even really use kannon mortar because it hits the doorway, plus you get suppressed, and you can't use the lascannon that effectively because again you get suppressed. Running through a heavy bolter crossfire with a tactical is, well, a suicide rush. That map just takes it a little bit too far considering the suppression system and bracing systems are in place and the really crazy KDRs that devastators get on that map. Agnathio point B is probably singlehandedly responsible for boosting a lot of those Devastator equivalent KDRs.
On one hand, I don't expect the devs to be making tier lists. I doubt Brent works closely with the map designers. On the other hand, this is almost as bad as Steve from DigitalExtremes thinking 500,000 mutagen samples are as common as nano spores (they're about 1,000 times more rare)
