Commander idea: provide a way to annotate the map for strategy planning

ChitownFreezeChitownFreeze Join Date: 2008-03-29 Member: 63994Members, Constellation
in Ideas and Suggestions

With the recent addition of phase gate routing to the minimap, I figured I would make this suggestion since it's somewhat related. One thing that I think would be useful for the commander is the ability to make notes on the team's map display indicating areas that you want them to attack/advance, hold/protect, or scout. This would be available to both sides, khaara and marines. The commander hits a button, and a map whiteboard appears. The commander can then press Q and click on the map to highlight certain areas to attack. W to hold/protect, and E to scout.

Perhaps the annotations are specific to the locations defined by the map. So the commander doesn't have the ability to just draw randomly on the map, but instead an icon indicating the desired action appears below the location name on the map. The icons would not be overly obtrusive, and the players can choose to show the annotations or hide them if they prefer.

I think this will be useful not only to provide players some useful strategy information, it will be immensely useful for commanders who don't have a mic (or choose not to use it). They can quickly provide strategy guidelines without having to type out instructions.

Here's an example of what I'm proposing:

i26UA4M.png

The red crosshairs indicate areas to attack, the green squares for hold/defend, and the blue-green binoculars indicate scouting areas.
Off Topic Disagree 4Agree 1Awesome

Comments

  • EmooEmoo Ibasa Join Date: 2002-12-20 Member: 11198Members
    The game changes so quickly that by the time you've doodled on the map the plan's changed. Much better to use a mic and keep talking to your team. The team should also be calling out to each other of where they've found weak spots to attack, or suspect places they think should be scouted.
    Off Topic 1Disagree Agree Awesome
  • ChitownFreezeChitownFreeze Join Date: 2008-03-29 Member: 63994Members, Constellation
    Emoo wrote: »
    The game changes so quickly that by the time you've doodled on the map the plan's changed. Much better to use a mic and keep talking to your team. The team should also be calling out to each other of where they've found weak spots to attack, or suspect places they think should be scouted.

    Yes, of course. But highlighting a few areas in this way should not take much time at all. It'll be useful for players just joining the server, as well, so they get up to speed quickly. Not to mention helping those who don't use their mic.
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  • CLARK_KENTCLARK_KENT Vancouver, Canada Join Date: 2002-11-21 Member: 9508Members, Reinforced - Silver
    Having commed quite a bit, I think this would be very useful. It would also teach players to look at the map more often.

    But I do agree with Emoo that the game changes quite rapidly, so maybe the "waypoints" start to gradually and linearly fade after time, say from full brightness to completely gone, in roughly 20 seconds? Also, the ability to manually clear these "waypoints" at any time may also help?
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  • Spiker101Spiker101 Join Date: 2012-03-16 Member: 148869Members
    Good idea. Stuff like this does not affect balance, easy to implement and is optional...so there is no con to it really.
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  • thefonzthefonz Join Date: 2011-06-22 Member: 105847Members
    This is sort of covered by the rarely used waypoint/pheremone system. Marine commanders can issue attack/defend/move/build waypoints to selected marines that they have selected. The alien comm can mark areas of the map that they want to expand/heal/defend, viewable for all aliens. AFAIK neither of these makes a mark on the map though, just in game.
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  • yehawmcgrawyehawmcgraw Join Date: 2012-09-16 Member: 159694Members
    I really like this idea. This would be a great tool for communication, especially to those who are not especially familiar with the room names (i.e. 75% of people) and with much finder accuracy (to the 1000thx1000th pixel, instead of 9 clunky room names).

    Honesty I would prefer full-scale drawing capabilities. It would be much more communicative and more attention-grabbing than stale, static icons. Sketches in transparent tasteful NS2 colors, of course.
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  • ChitownFreezeChitownFreeze Join Date: 2008-03-29 Member: 63994Members, Constellation
    yehawmcgraw wrote: »
    Honesty I would prefer full-scale drawing capabilities. It would be much more communicative and more attention-grabbing than stale, static icons. Sketches in transparent tasteful NS2 colors, of course.

    I thought about that, too... but then reconsidered when you realize the potential for the comm to troll his team with drawings of dicks and boobs.
    Off Topic Disagree Agree Awesome
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