How to command effectively on a siege map
bp2008
Join Date: 2012-11-28 Member: 173581Members, Reinforced - Shadow, WC 2013 - Gold
Join Date: 2012-11-28 Member: 173581Members, Reinforced - Shadow, WC 2013 - Gold
Siege maps. Some people hate them, and some love them. And some don't understand them, jump in the command chair, and proceed to lead their team to an overwhelming defeat. This happens with disturbing regularity, and I hope this thread will help.
What is a siege map?
Siege maps have several things different from normal maps:
1. An excessive number of resource nodes.
2. All 3 hive locations in one room.
3. A fixed preparation time, during which the teams are isolated from each other by locked doors.
4. A "Siege Room", which opens at a fixed time late in the game, from which Marines can ARC down all 3 hives at once from relative safety.
Oh, and Aliens typically have a huge advantage, like having all their many resource nodes hidden away where they are nearly immune to attack.
In the current NS2 siege maps, the first doors open after 5 minutes, allowing the teams to engage each other. After 25 minutes, Marines are given access to a Siege room. If Aliens haven't won or at least crippled the Marine economy by this point, they are in for a world of hurt.
How to play commander on a siege map.
Most normal tactics, like getting early upgrades or rushing phase tech, simply don't work.
The first minutes of a siege map should be spent dropping extractors (or harvesters) and getting them built up as quickly as possible. Do not drop anything else until all the resource nodes on your side of the map are building or built. Once the resources are built, you will have a very healthy income.
If you are Marine commander, focus on starting slow researches early, like weapon/armor upgrades and an advanced armory. Use a second arms lab, too. Phase gates should also be a high priority, because if you don't have them up before the doors open, you will likely lose ground fast. Research shotguns and welders at your discretion, but remember they won't do you any good until the first set of doors is open. If you are good, you should be able to have several upgrades complete and your prototype lab up with plenty of time to spare before the doors open.
If you are Alien commander, you will want to drop the second hive as soon as possible once all the harvesters are placed. Have your gorges build it quickly so you can start upgrades A.S.A.P.. Even a small team of gorges should be able to get the third hive up before the doors open, especially if you help them out with a shift and enzymes.
What about after the doors open?
That is up to you. If you've followed the recommendations above and the enemy commander hasn't, then the rest of the game is likely to be a walk in the park.
ns2_veilsiege
I kind of broke the mold when I created ns2_veilsiege. Since this map is based on ns2_veil, it is very large and non-linear, and it plays differently from other siege maps for several reasons.
1. There are two completely separate choke points at the hive room.
2. Once aliens get out either side, they typically take over the entire map in a matter of minutes. So for marines, the key is to keep them in there as long as possible.
3. At the 30 minute mark, (5 minutes after the siege room opens), Aliens gain two-way teleporters from their hives to the marine spawn. I love this part, but rarely get to see it!
4. The marine spawn (Cargo) has a backup power node which powers the right side of the room independently of the rest of the room. The implications of this are of course huge. However every commander I've seen play on this map has been 100% oblivious to this fact. This is the only room in any NS2 map where losing the power doesn't necessarily kill all your buildings. For the love of Pete, use it to your advantage! The left side / right side split is clearly marked by a yellow and black stripe on the floor, and if that isn't enough, the NS2 game engine highlights each power zone with an animated blue effect.
What is a siege map?
Siege maps have several things different from normal maps:
1. An excessive number of resource nodes.
2. All 3 hive locations in one room.
3. A fixed preparation time, during which the teams are isolated from each other by locked doors.
4. A "Siege Room", which opens at a fixed time late in the game, from which Marines can ARC down all 3 hives at once from relative safety.
Oh, and Aliens typically have a huge advantage, like having all their many resource nodes hidden away where they are nearly immune to attack.
In the current NS2 siege maps, the first doors open after 5 minutes, allowing the teams to engage each other. After 25 minutes, Marines are given access to a Siege room. If Aliens haven't won or at least crippled the Marine economy by this point, they are in for a world of hurt.
How to play commander on a siege map.
Most normal tactics, like getting early upgrades or rushing phase tech, simply don't work.
The first minutes of a siege map should be spent dropping extractors (or harvesters) and getting them built up as quickly as possible. Do not drop anything else until all the resource nodes on your side of the map are building or built. Once the resources are built, you will have a very healthy income.
If you are Marine commander, focus on starting slow researches early, like weapon/armor upgrades and an advanced armory. Use a second arms lab, too. Phase gates should also be a high priority, because if you don't have them up before the doors open, you will likely lose ground fast. Research shotguns and welders at your discretion, but remember they won't do you any good until the first set of doors is open. If you are good, you should be able to have several upgrades complete and your prototype lab up with plenty of time to spare before the doors open.
If you are Alien commander, you will want to drop the second hive as soon as possible once all the harvesters are placed. Have your gorges build it quickly so you can start upgrades A.S.A.P.. Even a small team of gorges should be able to get the third hive up before the doors open, especially if you help them out with a shift and enzymes.
What about after the doors open?
That is up to you. If you've followed the recommendations above and the enemy commander hasn't, then the rest of the game is likely to be a walk in the park.
ns2_veilsiege
I kind of broke the mold when I created ns2_veilsiege. Since this map is based on ns2_veil, it is very large and non-linear, and it plays differently from other siege maps for several reasons.
1. There are two completely separate choke points at the hive room.
2. Once aliens get out either side, they typically take over the entire map in a matter of minutes. So for marines, the key is to keep them in there as long as possible.
3. At the 30 minute mark, (5 minutes after the siege room opens), Aliens gain two-way teleporters from their hives to the marine spawn. I love this part, but rarely get to see it!
4. The marine spawn (Cargo) has a backup power node which powers the right side of the room independently of the rest of the room. The implications of this are of course huge. However every commander I've seen play on this map has been 100% oblivious to this fact. This is the only room in any NS2 map where losing the power doesn't necessarily kill all your buildings. For the love of Pete, use it to your advantage! The left side / right side split is clearly marked by a yellow and black stripe on the floor, and if that isn't enough, the NS2 game engine highlights each power zone with an animated blue effect.
Comments
Combat Mod has it's place... but siege in it's current form just feels pointless, repetitive and laggy as hell. No offense meant to the authors. I'm sure it's taken a lot of work and is an achievement in it's own right...it's just not for me.
Match Start - Armory, 2 Arms Labs, extractors
Step 2 - AA research W1, A1, 2nd CC
Step 3 - 2nd + 3rd IP at 2nd CC (recycle 1st ip)
Step 4 - W2,A2, Protolab, SG
Step 5 - Exo research, 2 robo labs
Step 6 - W3,A3
Step 7 - Dual Exo research, pump out MAC's
(Optional) Step 8a - Obs & Phase tech
b - ARC Factory upgrade
c - ARC's
d - JP's
Rinse & repeat.
I like how you put that: "aliens rely heavily on the marine comm screwing up". Usually, I think, that is true. On both my siege maps, marines start with a slight disadvantage in terms of resource node count. And of course marine nodes are spread out and capturable while alien nodes are safely tucked away at the far end of the map. So in order to win against a similarly skilled alien team, marines need to turtle up and survive until they can ARC the hives down. The marine comm has to manage resources very well for that turtle to hold long enough. For aliens to win, they either need to be significantly more skilled than the marines or rely on the marine comm screwing up
I also must agree that it can feel pointless and repetitive. After all, most of the game is spent in seemingly endless waves of higher life forms versus fully upgraded marines and exosuits. Kind of like combat mode, except with structures and a lot more Onos and Exo. Some people like it, and some don't.