Interplanetary Intelligence

I think we can all agree that invading a fortified planet is hard, if not impossible, if there aren't any moons. I think what would help is some sort of interplanetary probe. A lightweight, extremely weak unit designed solely for being chucked at a planet's surface to give you limited vision/radar, just like:



That way, you'll at least know if there's a hole in enemy defenses even if they have a crap-ton of orbital.

Gameplay-wise I'd say:
Unarmed
Very weak
Passes straight through orbital (like a missile)
Can not be shot down by orbital fighters
Can be shot down by Anchors
Can be shot down by Umbrellas.

I imagine there will be plenty of solutions for sending scout units across the gulf of space. Heck, right now you can use an empty astraeus to do it.

Yes, true but orbital fighters will murder it immediately.

I believe if you give it an immediate queued order to surface then it will not be in the line of fire for long enough. Haven't really tested.

I don't see the connection to be honest, the root problem within the "issue" of the difficulty of invading a planet has to do with the missing 'tools' like the Unit Cannon and KEW Orbiting. The Fortifications might not even be a problem once we have those but we just can't say with ANY certainty yet.

As for Interplanetary Intel, I talked a bit about it in This Thread, the key elements being;

It is a bit awkward to talk about Interplanetary stuff when things like Orbital are still in a fairly high state of flux, thought it's probably still a good idea to get started at least, thought this would probably be better off in the General Discussion Sub forum rather than this one.

Mike

Well the thing is, if you manage to clear out a little hole in orbital above some empty desert (which Mr. Imperial Probe has kindly scouted), you have a chance of plopping down a teleporter and therefore getting a foothold. That was my thinking.

Feel free to move the thread if you are so inclined.

The thing is that you might not need a "safe zone" with the Unit Cannon, because teh units are ready to fight as they land you don't need to figure out where the "safest" area is that gives you the opportunity to get a teleporter up, you can land units in "better" locations and go from there.

that's what I meant by the whole "It's hard to know when we're missing major tools" bit, something that makes sense if the Context of only the limited selection of tools we have right now at this moment might not make sense at all once the missing tools are provided.

Mike

But is is the unit cannon truly interplanetary? Or is it only cislunar like nukes are now?

We don't know for sure, but it seems likely.

But then, Teleporters aren't exactly interplanetary either are they? ;p All in all Unit Cannons are a lot sturdier with the Moon/Asteroid bases compared to trying to "sneak" small numbers of fabbers planetside to build a teleporter.

Mike

But sneaking fabbers is just so much fun

Reminds me of the days when I played a lot of Dawn of War, with Eldar. Webway Gates all over da place.

Seems like a lot of work for something that's downright unreliable and barely functional no?

Mike

Right now it's pretty much all we got. Finding out your enemy hasn't set bomber patrols and then sending orbital fighters to distract their orbital fighters while you drop down a couple of fabbers to build teleporter is a viable strategy, if risky.

Yes, right now, but once we get the full Toolbox the circumstances will be different.

Mike

If we go with a scout probe, it needs a rudimentary cloak.

At least some sort of radar jamming ability.

AT THE LEAST.

A forward base can support an invasion. It's not very good at staging one.

Dropping outside an enemy base means he can throw every single weapon at ya. Nukes, artillery, bombers and tanks, maybe even a KEW or two. Dropping inside an enemy base is completely different. How's he going to stop it, with a nuke? Nuking his own base is a very bitter sweet solution.

That's why invasion tools are so important. Without them it isn't really possible to know how or even IF a planet can be reasonably conquered.

I disagree. All we need is something that can get on the planet and give us some intel on how the hell we can assault it.

The standard flying scout can do the trick. If it doesn't work, send a dozen more. Add in a touch of Faerie Fire and intel is guaranteed.

If that isn't satisfactory, how about a bomb? The idea is simple enough. Create a disturbance, and identify the enemy from the reflections. Basically it's a 1-shot weapon that provides huge intel for a short time. It's more than enough to start planning an invasion, and can even break up a few cloaks at the same time.

I feel like a reliable way to get complete intel on a planet isn't a good idea. If you have it secured you should have an intel advantage.

That already exists. It's called "you have it secured so the intel is FREE".

And possibly a mobile anti-nuke.