From this point onwards, you are not allowed to play "normal" NS2 until you've won three games as a commander. If anyone catches you NOT in a chair or hive, you must post a video of yourself erotically bathing in a tub of mayonnaise.
From this point onwards, you are not allowed to play "normal" NS2 until you've won three games as a commander. If anyone catches you NOT in a chair or hive, you must post a video of yourself erotically bathing in a tub of mayonnaise.
Easy choice, bro.
...so...I guess the bathtub of mayo is the easier choice...
Your mental state intrigues me.
dePARAJoin Date: 2011-04-29Member: 96321Members, Squad Five Blue
edited November 2014
Another small tip:
"Swim with the gameflow".
What this mean? Dont make a Masterplan everyone has to follow, this wont work.
The best plan in the world didnt work, if your troops die like flies.
NS2 is a shooter with some basic RTS elements, not the opposite way.
In games like Starcraft you know exactly the values of each unit, in NS2 you didnt know most of the players on the server.
And you cant plan the human factor:
Maybe a normally good player has a bad day and didnt hit shit.
Another thing:
Most pub players tend to run around in huge Lemingpacks to one side.
But that is generally not a good idea, cause marines losing all the cool stuff on the other side.
So have an eye on the position of the players.
If one side is far open you could say something like "next spawners please go to XXX"
Good marines spreading out and trying to laneblock by themself. For a new player this could look like "ramboing".
But this isnt the case most of the time.
If you have marines all over the map skulks cant pass and bite RTs.
You losing RTs if your Lemmingpack runs to the next resnode, cause skulks biting the stuff behind them or rushing the uncovered base.
If you see a fade harassing one spot again and again with the same attack pattern and escaperoute and you see a marines trying to trap this fade (sneaking to the escape route), spam meds on this marine when the fade bypass him cause a marine like that can kill a fade relative easy and sometimes only 1 med can be the key to success.
From this point onwards, you are not allowed to play "normal" NS2 until you've won three games as a commander. If anyone catches you NOT in a chair or hive, you must post a video of yourself erotically bathing in a tub of mayonnaise.
Easy choice, bro.
...so...I guess the bathtub of mayo is the easier choice...
Your mental state intrigues me.
I know it sounds silly, but I have always wondered how my commanders reached the point where they are today, and how they overcame themselves to command. If they even had any fear to command.
Any ideas?
I didn't fear the challenge - but during my first times I was afraid that, if my team would lose, it'd be cause of me.
Truth is: You can do everything just right as a commander, and your team can still lose. You're playing a supportive role, and while you can provide support, insight, tactical input and coordination, it's the players on the field that carry the game and decide the outcome.
The learning curve of the commander role, to me, is comparable to the one of playing higher lifeforms, or high-teched marines. Imagine you'd like to practice playing an onos. It's either sandbox mode and bots... or it means that only a small percentage of your actual play-time will consist of 'playing an onos' in a real environment with real players. You'll get a lot of early-game practice. A decent amount of mid-game; and not that much late-game. Many games are over before the 3rd alien hive, or the marine protolab/JPs - and if res nodes are taken down by both teams, early and mid-game can last almost forever. It just takes time to gather experience there - but the same is true for any field players.
Tip #1: Don't take all the responsibility on your shoulders. You do have an impact on the team, but so does every single player on the field.
Tip #2: Stick to the basic support responsibilities first. It's your job to make sure res-nodes in areas you can control have a RT/Harvester on it. It's your job to support your players with relevant information you acquire by all the commander alerts you get (including watching the map). And it's your job to spend your team resources to strengthen your team. Which build order you chose is a different topic, but your team relies on you to spend the team resources wisely, and make them become stronger over time. It's not your job to tell everybody what to do - players have got brains on their own.
Tip #3: Relax. It's a game. If the thought of entering the command chair/hive is stressful to you, look for a different server with more relaxed people who won't give you the feeling of being the biggest idiot in history just because you're 0.2 seconds too late with a medpack, or don't start with the hive they wanted.
Swear a lot like a drunken sailor, actually, it's best to command while drinking rum, it feels more authentic. Micromanage everyone, give lots of detailed instructions like "reload your rifle, blockhead" and "take position by the crate, you imbecile", while ignoring unimportant details like enemy baserush or lost extractors. Motivate your wounded team members by dropping medpacks just out of their reach in the direction you want them to go. If you are unhappy and want to take a time out and mentor the team, use beacon for that to pull them out of combat and to make sure they listen when you speak. Also useful when you notice they are running the wrong way.
When the team is boiling with thoughts of keelhauling and mutiny, skillfully use your inner power to turn their rage against the enemy.
Works every time! ... and if not, swear, shout and accuse everyone that they can't aim.
That applies when commanding marines only.
When commanding aliens, switch to autistic mode and play Sim City with whips, crags and shades. Make sure your cyst chain is never broken - there is an achievement for that. The team will manage by itself - people are used to it.
Ocassionally, when you see a spot where there is a lot of shooting, slam a bonewall there. It makes you look like you care about the team. Play tag with enemy team members using your drifters. Scare them by dropping hives while they are in the room. Ooohhhh, spooky.
Comments
mmm... Baptism by fire in a way. Hmm.
I have not. Im still trying to find the right time to Jump in the chair.
Till then, Ill hold all of your tips with high regards.
Easy choice, bro.
...so...I guess the bathtub of mayo is the easier choice...
Your mental state intrigues me.
"Swim with the gameflow".
What this mean? Dont make a Masterplan everyone has to follow, this wont work.
The best plan in the world didnt work, if your troops die like flies.
NS2 is a shooter with some basic RTS elements, not the opposite way.
In games like Starcraft you know exactly the values of each unit, in NS2 you didnt know most of the players on the server.
And you cant plan the human factor:
Maybe a normally good player has a bad day and didnt hit shit.
Another thing:
Most pub players tend to run around in huge Lemingpacks to one side.
But that is generally not a good idea, cause marines losing all the cool stuff on the other side.
So have an eye on the position of the players.
If one side is far open you could say something like "next spawners please go to XXX"
Good marines spreading out and trying to laneblock by themself. For a new player this could look like "ramboing".
But this isnt the case most of the time.
If you have marines all over the map skulks cant pass and bite RTs.
You losing RTs if your Lemmingpack runs to the next resnode, cause skulks biting the stuff behind them or rushing the uncovered base.
If you see a fade harassing one spot again and again with the same attack pattern and escaperoute and you see a marines trying to trap this fade (sneaking to the escape route), spam meds on this marine when the fade bypass him cause a marine like that can kill a fade relative easy and sometimes only 1 med can be the key to success.
:>
If you have a mic and want to com we can start this evening
I didn't fear the challenge - but during my first times I was afraid that, if my team would lose, it'd be cause of me.
Truth is: You can do everything just right as a commander, and your team can still lose. You're playing a supportive role, and while you can provide support, insight, tactical input and coordination, it's the players on the field that carry the game and decide the outcome.
The learning curve of the commander role, to me, is comparable to the one of playing higher lifeforms, or high-teched marines. Imagine you'd like to practice playing an onos. It's either sandbox mode and bots... or it means that only a small percentage of your actual play-time will consist of 'playing an onos' in a real environment with real players. You'll get a lot of early-game practice. A decent amount of mid-game; and not that much late-game. Many games are over before the 3rd alien hive, or the marine protolab/JPs - and if res nodes are taken down by both teams, early and mid-game can last almost forever. It just takes time to gather experience there - but the same is true for any field players.
Tip #1: Don't take all the responsibility on your shoulders. You do have an impact on the team, but so does every single player on the field.
Tip #2: Stick to the basic support responsibilities first. It's your job to make sure res-nodes in areas you can control have a RT/Harvester on it. It's your job to support your players with relevant information you acquire by all the commander alerts you get (including watching the map). And it's your job to spend your team resources to strengthen your team. Which build order you chose is a different topic, but your team relies on you to spend the team resources wisely, and make them become stronger over time. It's not your job to tell everybody what to do - players have got brains on their own.
Tip #3: Relax. It's a game. If the thought of entering the command chair/hive is stressful to you, look for a different server with more relaxed people who won't give you the feeling of being the biggest idiot in history just because you're 0.2 seconds too late with a medpack, or don't start with the hive they wanted.
~Luchs
When the team is boiling with thoughts of keelhauling and mutiny, skillfully use your inner power to turn their rage against the enemy.
Works every time! ... and if not, swear, shout and accuse everyone that they can't aim.
That applies when commanding marines only.
When commanding aliens, switch to autistic mode and play Sim City with whips, crags and shades. Make sure your cyst chain is never broken - there is an achievement for that. The team will manage by itself - people are used to it.
Ocassionally, when you see a spot where there is a lot of shooting, slam a bonewall there. It makes you look like you care about the team. Play tag with enemy team members using your drifters. Scare them by dropping hives while they are in the room. Ooohhhh, spooky.