I was playing a game the other day in which my ally maintained a losing battle against the enemy while I desperately tried to get some Orbital factories going on an un-Halley-able moon. Just as the last of his units was quashed, I arrived with a pair of Orbital Laser satellites... and killed all three of his Commanders like it was a turkey shoot. For how long and hard the battle had raged before then, it felt terribly...unsporting. I won and it didn't feel fun, for some odd reason. What is the community's opinion on this subject? Do the devs have any particular feelings about it?
Orbital isn't even close to being finished. But in the current gameplay, you can either use Umbrella's or Avengers to deal with Orbital laser platforms. In the mean time, you just send your commander on a long queue to walk around. An orbital laser can not hit a walking commander.
At least with nukes, it cant kill a fully healed commander. The orbital platforms will kill commanders that are not paying attention rather easily. So its best to keep them around the umbrella's or have avengers at least circling your commanders general area. However I do understand your lack of fulfillment when killing off 3 commanders with the orbital platforms. It feels cheap.
Commanders are too weak for a game reliant on there survival. They should be able to destroy/detect all, or at least warn you of the impeding disaster via radar system, (and jump to the threat?)
I've never been fond of commander sniping because it doesn't involve both parties. Generally, it can't involve both parties because its effectiveness, by its very nature, requires that your opponent be unaware of the tactic, or at least become aware of it too late to stop it. Even if you have an orbital radar, orbital units just aren't that easy to see.
This is a game that will be balanced around the pro-scene. Now with that in mind, commander sniping isn't as effective as most people claim it to be. It's the same reason why not doing anything aggressive in FFA in "hope" that the enemy won't focus you is a bad strategy. It's because both strategies are based on hope, the hope that the enemy won't see your snipe incoming or didn't prepare for it in any way. And strategies based on hope are bad strategies. Now if you scout someone and see that there definitely are no defences against your two nukes, then that's a different story. But again, in a pro-match that shouldn't be the case and people usually know how to defend themselves against being sniped there. Sure, there could be a T2-anti air defence to better defend against bomber snipes, but that's a different topic. Over time, people will get better and better, and the metagame will change.
There should be a mobile umbrella implemented to balance that unit. I also suggest some form of mobile anti-nuke. What do other people think?
Uber has changed something in the latest patch and orbital lasers can now hit commanders, even if they are moving (ask Liquius and Greppy). The best defense now is build the T2 radar required to spot the enemy satellites and build lots of avengers or an umbrella. As for the balance itself. I like the current orbital laser as a kind of accurate superweapon. I would make them consume power when they fire and I would increase their cost a bit, but then I would make another unit (see my "orbital ship/weapons platform" suggestion) that is cheaper and can be used for orbital attacks, but is required to enter airspace to do so.
Frankly I'm against mobile superweapon counters. But I'm all for reducing the cost of the stationary anti-nuke, increasing its range and bugfixing the hell out of it. I'd need to test the umbrella before I can say anything about it but I kinda feels ok at the moment.
I understand what you mean but for me at the very least there should (using the word 'should' subjectively) be a short range mobile umbrella. It would be annoying if you couldn't move your commander because of an orbital threat.
I like the orbital laser too but it ends up being a game of who gets orbital first hence the desire for a clever way to balance it out. You just spam avengers then an advanced radar then a laser platform then you win. I have won at least one game this way and it can feel very cheap unless you are already fighting really hard to break a turtle and spamming units just isn't working.
Not really, you forgot that you can build umbrellas to defend yourself against orbital laser platforms. And they actually work now. I'd like them a bit stronger, but they're doing their job. The fact that most people forget to build these is not an argument
I agree with you in part. I actually wasn't aware they were working now (people really do forget to build them!) but my point links with the other point about having mobile umbrellas. There still is the issue of the other team not being able to get to orbit when the enemy (me) has spammed avengers. I know that forms part of my own strategy but is it really a good thing that I can do that?
They could just build umbrellas and then try to lure you into them. I think it's the only way to win the orbital battle against someone who's outnumbering you atm. But like someone already mentioned: orbital warfare is still very much WIP.
Global umbrella for Plantetary Domination / only destroyed by IPBM https://forums.uberent.com/threads/its-time-to-talk-unit-ideas.52165/page-29#post-811095
The game isn't reliant on a commanders survival, your victory is. The game is designed with that in mind. What you are playing now is not a byproduct of some other rules. The commander is supposed to be vulnerable. Commander under attack warnings will be implemented later. Sure, but you don't have to see snipes as a strategy. Given that the commander is designed to be a point of failure like I said above, sniping will ALWAYS be part of this game. Assuming assassination mode is on, of course. I often resorted to sniping in FAF after I knew that I would lose eventually. In those times that it did work, I was ecstatic. In "the pro-scene" no one goes into a game thinking from the start that they are going to win by building a snipe ASAP. Snipes are the alternative to quitting when you realize you've lost. It is a very good mechanic if you ask me. It makes you stay on your toes when you're ahead and gives you hope when you're behind. Just think of the tension in a tournament setting, if two players are playing a best of X, and one of them is behind in game wins and comes back by sniping.
I get frustrated, but after thinking about it more you realise that the enemy took a risk rushing the Nuke/laser and that had you been on your toes you'd likely have been able to stop them before they got the orbital launcher/silo completed let alone the laser/nukes However what really gets me cranky is games like one i played a day or so ago, spamming bots/tanks with superior econ, commander gets lasered. which is cool, IF HE WASNT ASSISTING AN ORBITAL LAUNCHER WHICH HAD NO RALLY POINT AND HAD ALREADY BUILT 15 AVENGERS THAT JUST SAT THERE LETTING HIM DIE!
I love that about this game, its challenging to watch out for anything because at any point in time it could happen
