all it takes to knock a game from its niche is the next newer game that falls into that niche, the older game is still there but a large chunk of its population move onto the newer game, when I talk about "casual gamers" I'm not referring to players who run around like headless chickens, I'm talking about players who have an hour to play occasionaly on weeknights and maybe a couple of hours on weekends, these players might buy EC and get access to all factions but lack the time to participate in lengthy "team based" activities or lack top-end computers/gaming equipment/set-ups, the more EC is pushed into the "hard core" team-play niche however we make certain things almost required, 1) things like map-awareness (lots of MMO guilds have discriminated against pug players for not knowing the "fights"/maps in raids) 2) headsets and mics (cheap ones cause their own problems like feedback etc) which arnt always in a players equipment 3) the gaming window length to play a team role (in other MMO's I've had the joy of losing half my raid population due to IRL issues and then been stuck for up to an hour trying to find replacements even with LFG systems or been told that unless I was prepared to stay the length of a raid I wasnt welcome to join) 4) individual player connectivity where some players will have higher levels of lag/latency making them appear slow to react 5) individual graphic cards which may cause lower levels of rendering so a player cant see what the other players can due to their system 6) second language barriers where due to a players first language their english may create misunderstanding in tactical situations now those are by no means the only problems such niche play can experience but just a few examples and surely most peoples imaginations can see how these would impact negatively both to the team as a whole as to the player as an individual, so should the teams make allowances for these things or discriminate against players for similiar problems because the more "hard core" we go usually we see a lower tolerance for things, the bottom line is we want people to buy EC, more buyers means more cash for bE and hopefully more content down the road for us the players, and if we make EC's appeal narrower rather then broader then we easily risk losing significant cash flow from the potential players who might otherwise have brought EC
Well i don't realy know to be Honest if my let's say guild is Dedicated and i will follow every order but until you fing a good a dedicated guild it might take some time, and in a game like EC i don't think being a lone wolf is the best Idea since you wount realy Achieve much, but yea if i had a good guild i would follow every order.
after reading your post the one question I have is ... what defines a players sense of achievement? you said to which I have to wonder what you meant by "achieve much"? A) did you mean that a lone wolf wouldnt capture/defend a lot of bases? because thats true, we've been told it will take at least a few players to capture a base and probably at least as many to effectively defend one, B) did you mean that a lone wolf wouldnt win a campaign for their faction? because thats also obviously true, thats why campaigns are based around factions after all instead of players, C) did you mean that a lone wolf wouldnt be able to fully progress their character through XP accumulation? because I think thats a false assumption, all you really need to do to get XP is kill the enemy or preform tasks that earn you XP and as far as we know most activities such as those are not restricted to "team-play"
What i simply ment by that is not if a lone wolf will have fun or not or XP or whatever you are on about, what i ment a lone wolf will not achieve much since EC is a group game between factions a lone wolf will probably be casual Players and etc, ofc there are Hardcore players that prefer to be Lone wolfs but i on my Side think the best way to achieve something in EC is with a guild.
Someone just told me the other day about the war council. I'm ok with it as long as players decide who leads and the devs don't play favorites. But the problem is I'm sure a lot of people will do their own thing and not listen unless there's something in it for them. Nowadays players don't help each other unless they get something but it would be amazing if this community wasn't like that.
Well, if I'm ever given opportunity to command on the field. Unless I know I have specialized squads for a given situation, for example if there's a known Saim-Hann squad in my battle, their orders are: 'Get on your bikes and do your thing.' Otherwise it's my general prerogative to rotate responsibilities. If a squad simply can't get the job done I need them to I have to move others to a different location. For example if I want a diversion to work I gotta get a squad that'll stay somewhat alive. That's not the best sort of work though. I know I'd get pissed if all I did in a fight was draw enemy fire. And I'll not bother micromanaging, I got squad leaders for that. The best I'll offer is an insight I can gleam from what I can tell of the enemy, "Reports state enemy reinforcements are coming in from the west, watch your flank." Or "Predator inbound!" In the end I'll be directing the flow of battle and trying prevent the enemy from making their moves by correctly positioning our forces. It'll be up to the squad leaders to complete the missions they are given even if it sometimes seems impossible. I think it's helpful that I don't insult the intelligence of the players by stating, "Squad Alpha, All of you equip Lascannons." You're limiting your players' options rather then, "Squad Alpha, you're on anti vehicle duty." Which gives them a lot more tools to work with, and if they take several plasma weapons, they aren't totally useless if a surprise infantry ambush occurs. I think the most effective warlords will be ones that let their squads figure out how to fight in their own way and listen to them. That doesn't mean they'll do everything the Squad leaders wish, but even an acknowledgement of information would be helpful, since the best commanders mystify both friend and foe. I hope players won't force their commanders to explain every facet of their plans. At the same time though if there are a chain of inappropriate losses, then I would hope the warlord would step back and study what happened and hopefully try to improve themselves before stepping back into the chair. That's just my 2 cents. I'll be following my squad leader's orders and if I'm a squad leader I will follow the boss' orders. It's pretty fun to make some sweet military maneuvers occur correctly especially with the Mon-keigh masses who already think they're super men.
If anyone is serious about wanting to Get Good at command in preparation to our campaign for Eldar Supremacy - I highly recommend you all dig through: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_military_tactics This will allow us Eldar players to not only maintain a high complexity / low explanation battle language - but improve our understanding of the options that Commanders have on the field. With superior tactics, all Mon'Keigh shall fall - as is their fate.
You know what would be awesome to see? A Highland Charge by the Howling Banshees I don't know if we'll have access to smoke though. A Highland Charge was used to repetitive success by the Scottish Highlanders against the better equipped and larger forces of the English Government for some centuries. Back then everyone used very smokey firearms, and the English were extremely disciplined about firing their first volley at 60-65 yards - the Highlanders (a faster and more mobile melee force, much like the Banshees) would kite their ranged opponents around until they had even ground between them, and were upwind from their opponents. They would then turn and charge head-on into the stronger enemy force, at about 80-70 yards they would draw their shitty pistols and muskets and fire ineffectively downwind toward the English: killing few, but covering their approach with smoke. The English, anticipating that the charge continues through the smoke - would fire at the assumed 60-65 yard range. Instead, the Highlanders would immediately all lie flat in the ground in their smoke, their small targe shields before their faces, and predictably await the volley of English rifles wiffing over their heads - which - being that they were firing upwind - would create a thick wall of smoke that would drift right back over the English forces. The Highlanders would leap to their feet the moment the volley ended, scream like Banshees, and charge head-on into the English ranks. From the English perspective, this appears that a) the Highlanders gave negative fucks about the volley (are they without fear?), b) that their volley had no effect (are they bulletproof?), c) that they can't see their enemies, but know they are coming for you, d) that only now are they are angry (the wailing, which would appear immense and everywhere - not unlike a sports stadium - no identifiable point of origin). So, I don't know if they'll let the Eldar have smoke grenades, or if the Banshee wail will be properly maintained in EC as something to annoy enemy players with during a charge (I really hope so, it's so emblematic), or perhaps if Banshees could have a shimmer of infrared outlines due to their Mask optics when looking through smoke or thin walls, but taken right from the top of that long list - virtually everything in military tactics can be applied to EC / games in general. Edit: On the topic of the Banshee wail, if they give the Banshees some kind of melee charge-attack / leap attack, they could have the wail be some sound effect that plays in the ears of every enemy player nearby - blotting out all other sounds of battle. So if you are a Chaos Space Marine squad defending Objective A, and suddenly are beset upon by a squad of Banshees - you lose the stimulus of hearing where your kin are firing, where they 'Q' to identify their enemies, any calls they make - all you hear is the Banshee wail as your overwatched Havoc marine is taken from behind by a power glaive: and you have to suddenly glance around panicked to see who was hit.
I would suggest looking for those who play Eldar TT. Their insight would be invaluable. And obviously surgical hit and run and tactics will be our bread and butter. We're fast but flimsy in comparison to the other factions. Standard operations would be Reapers and Avengers with suppression fire, Banshees dancing away drawing fire with Warlock support and bike strike the target while everyone's looking the wrong way. Whole host move swiftly on to next objective and the Scorps sit in the shadows waiting to take scalps of anyone trying to recapture. Rinse and repeat. Well when we hit open world anyway. On these little instanced maps it'll be about learning the territory and finding what works. Same with leaders. We can talk it out as much as we like but we'll find our heroes out on the field. Edit: Not leaving out the Hawks BTW, interchangeable with the bikes or mid range support for the Warlock. Take your pick.
