Marine Tactics

Roobubba · January 2003

I've known for a long time commanders using sound to find out which hive the aliens have, but for the first time today I found a commander setting up a base in the furthest free hive and abandoning the main base.
I've banned this on my server now, which I understand many people may not like, but I want to gauge the reaction of the community to commanders using sound like this. It's one thing to do it and set up a secondary base in the hive, that I can accept, as it takes skill to keep the two from being overrun and a high calibre of team to then ensure the aliens don't get their second hive.
My objections are thus:
a) The aliens are at a disadvantage at the beginning due to very slow respawn rates.
b) It takes a long time for the aliens to be able to take resource points initially.
c) Hives are vastly more important to aliens than resource points. Marines have no equivalent dependence (area specific within a map).

Because of this, it would be better if the marines had to work for this position of having a sole base in an alien hive, from which attack of the next closest is much easier than from a more diffuse base between hive and main base. By not knowing immediately which hive is taken, the commander would have to rely on his troops to locate the empty hives.

I don't konw how much of an issue this is to the people who make this fantastic game, but I write so much about it now because it has been made an issue to me as a server owner.

What are your thoughts on this tactic? should we stop the commander being able to hear hive sounds?

Roo
Roobubba's Glorious NS 1.3 163.1.180.217:27016
athlon 1.4GHz
512Mb PC2100
Gigabyte GA7VTX <img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/sad.gif' border='0' valign='absmiddle' alt='sad.gif'>
(server machine)

[WHO]Them · January 2003

as i understand it, in 1.04 the main hive will start off fully healed, so it should make a lot less sound (if any at all)

Roobubba · January 2003

But do you agree that I should take action about this tactic?
I want to know what the majority of people feel about it fromm a server op perspective...

greydmiyu · January 2003

I don't think the tactic in and of itself is invalid, just the hearing the hive part is invalid.

backburn · January 2003

sorry roob, but youre a moron

if the game wasnt designed for marines to take a second base there wouldnt be aux comm consoles <img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/tounge.gif' border='0' valign='absmiddle' alt='tounge.gif'>

That and the fact that its already hard enough for the marines as it is. the aliens dont require a strong commander just a few good individuals. marines on the other hand require a highly organized team (and tech) to win.

Sound is just another aspect of the game, it tells me where the aliens are...
Plus, how are you going to enforce this "sound cheating"

j0e · January 2003

listening for the hive is an exploit that i don't think flayra planned, and it's somewhat removed in 1.04 i think (try it on my server)

rushing a hive location and setting up a new base (and abandoning your original marine start) is a high risk tactic that requires very fast thinking and a lot of teamwork. by punishing people for doing it, i think you will inevitably hurt the quality of gameplay on your servers.

cracker_jackmac · January 2003

</span><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><b>QUOTE</b> (j0e @ Jan 12 2003, 02:51 AM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'>rushing a hive location and setting up a new base (and abandoning your original marine start) is a high risk tactic that requires very fast thinking and a lot of teamwork. by punishing people for doing it, i think you will inevitably hurt the quality of gameplay on your servers.</td></tr></table><span class='postcolor'>
I LOVE that tactic. always works when my regulars are on. But they key to it is you have to get phase to the 2nd hive before they do. Aliens can defeat it still.

but joe is right. Don't punish ppl for kicking your butt.

HtNickoli · January 2003

LOL, Hardly anything new. And its a strategy, not an exploit. And even if the sound bugs fixxed, anyone with brains wanting to build in an empty hive can. IE: try and drop a nozzel down. If you can't its because the aliens have that nozzel. So you can't build in that hive. If you can, send most of your team there and build your base.

But even easier is just send a few marines out scouting to the different hives. Seeing as you have a 2 out of 3 chance of finding the empty one..........

j0e · January 2003

</span><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><b>QUOTE</b> ([Ht]Nickoli @ Jan 12 2003, 03:41 AM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'>LOL, Hardly anything new. And its a strategy, not an exploit. And even if the sound bugs fixxed, anyone with brains wanting to build in an empty hive can. IE: try and drop a nozzel down. If you can't its because the aliens have that nozzel. So you can't build in that hive. If you can, send most of your team there and build your base.

But even easier is just send a few marines out scouting to the different hives. Seeing as you have a 2 out of 3 chance of finding the empty one..........</td></tr></table><span class='postcolor'>
listening for the hive is an exploit because it wasn't supposed to be that easy

if you want to possibly waste 25-50 resources placing resource towers where they will get destroyed, that's fair. it's also fair to scout on foot, or use radar sweep.

in summary:

listening: exploit

scouting, resource tower dropping, radar sweeping: not an exploit

HtNickoli · January 2003

Of course listening is an exploit, His main beef is moveing the base to an empty hive. And that is a strategy.

Besides 1.04 fixxes the hive health issue, so this is a mute point(no pun intended). Since the "sound" you hear is the hive healling.

Roobubba · January 2003

Nickoli, I've no problem with setting up base in a hive, god knows I've done that enough myself. J0e has summed up what my position is, the sound is an exploit. I'll just hang off until 1.4.

</span><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><b>QUOTE</b> </td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'> Of course listening is an exploit, His main beef is moveing the base to an empty hive. And that is a strategy.</td></tr></table><span class='postcolor'>

I'm sorry if I've not made myself clear in the first post, the main base at the empty hive is nigh on essential if you're playing against any half decent team, however to get it so quickly and easily is my "main Beef".

Thanks for your thoughts,

Roo

(edit typo)

Marine Tactics

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