Melee units poll

Since when would a unit need more animations? I was thinking more flamethrower like units

Then say that instead of/alongside 'Melee', they are very different things.

Mike

Not too different really. Melee units are really just units with a very short range. Btw just so there's no confusion about my previous post, I was answering to 2 different things.

Flame thrower is a short range area of effect weapon, completely different.

Ok, when I say Melee/short range, I mean the idea of units having a very short range of attack, whether it's area of damage or not. I am not talking about specific giant robots that smash things or area of damage attacks. Just the idea of short range/Melee.

Well, as per my post on the previous page, there is a huge difference between close range and melee.

Exactly, they might have a similar effect, but both on the code side and the application side they function very differently.

To be clear I'd love to have it as an option for modding(opens up the potential for more Total Conversion Mods) but I'm not sure how well Melee units fit in with PA, it could end up not fitting in very well just like how the C. Rex doesn't fit in very well with the rest of SupCom2's Aesthetics.

Mike

A Melee unit is pretty much a unit with extremely short range. Imagine some sort of assault bit with long sabres for arms. It has a very short range in which it can use its weapons, but does not have to necessarily be any different than another unit. The only thing I really see changing would be animation.

Sigh, do I need to point you to my post again?

No need, I've read it. one thing I don't understand is why the units must stop before attacking.

That is a reference to the one unit type that does that - artillery.

Ah ok. I still do not see how you other post responds to my question.

Well, lets break it down, relevant parts only.

U know these are good points. I'm mainly sold on the last bit about the easily identifiable units. If there were any short range units than I would now be pointed towards assault bit ranges. Changing my vote now!

elexis, way to post nothing but speculation and wrong. (How do you know how the AI is going to behave or can't be improved?) (You can't tell between two units because they're next to each other? Are you fu©king kidding me? Talk about a non-issue.)

Well for starters I know how flow-field works, and the rest of the pathfinding/control/command stuff was common sense, try thinking (..it through). As for the aesthetics, you were one of the group that were complaining about strat zoom and icon warfare. Now you are telling me that you don't think a bunch of units literally hugging each other will result in anything other than a hard to distinguish mess from all bat the closest of zooms?

What does common sense count for in computing? Not too long ago, flow-field wasn't even a thing(at least, in games it wasn't.).

I don't recall ever complaining about strategic zoom nor the 'icon warfare' effect. Source?

Apologies, it appears that all those threads died out before you joined the forums.

Flow-field allows for units to easily maneuver in large groups, going around objects and through other groups. They cannot do this if there is no gap between the units, which is what will happen if they are all trying to converge on a single point to get in melee range.

Just a simple thought:

don't bring a knife to a gunfight.

A melee unit will be uber-vulnerable. It would have to hug it's opponent. It's much better/easier to just give it a gun....

I'm still not sure what point you're trying to make: Melee units don't belong in a game for the reason that flow-field *might* not help all that much in their particular case? Even though having flow-field would probably still help more than without, and either way, why would this be so important?

You bring up units moving freely as if anything stopping that is a problem. What about large armies being squeezed into a Battle of Thermopylae-type scenario? Or walls? Or what if in a particular situation I *want* to tighten my units together to form a movement blockade? (Spring's custom formations come to mind here.) Is all this bad too?

"If they are all trying to converge on a single point to get in melee range." Either you claim to know fully the A.I.'s capabilities in Planetary Annihilation, which means you would have to have special insight in the development of the game the rest of us don't. Or you're discribing the essence of what melee combat is: "They're bad because they have to move right up to their enemy.", yet you're not explaining why this essence in itself is bad.