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Cw Ideas For Phase 3


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#1 CyclonerM

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Posted 17 March 2015 - 02:27 PM

Hi everyone! After days of thinking, thinking and thinking, i finally wrote down almost all of the ideas i had for Phase 3 of CW. Russ said they are finalizing their designs, so i figured if i wanted to give some feedback and ideas, it was now or never! No time to discuss with fellow Clanmates and friends as i originally planned..

To be short.. I have not been short. Seriously, i always write too much. If you want, go ahead, grab something to drink, and enjoy a trip in my crazy mind ;)

Note: it will take a while to read.. Sorry.

Spoiler


Now, either applaude or throw rocks! :D

P.S. If you have read trough all of that, that is.

Edited by CyclonerM, 17 March 2015 - 02:28 PM.


#2 50 50

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Posted 17 March 2015 - 04:51 PM

I read it.
:)

If I may summarise:
  • Adding in some cinematic sequences and story to increase the immersion.
  • More distinct career paths between being a regular or a mercenary. (Same deal for Clan just different descriptions)
  • Contracts that differentiate according to career paths with recognisable differences for penalties and rewards.
  • Differences in transportation and salvage depending on career.
  • A more controlled attack path, particularly for the clans, but allowing for variations within a certain jump distance.
  • Greater variety of missions including team sizes, maps and objectives.
I hope I got it all.

I do agree on much of what you have written and would like to add my own thoughts.
  • When we got the dropships for CW I thought that was great. I loved the noise and the immersion that this added. More of this can only be good for the game and I think one option would be to change the loading screen for the maps to cater for it. Having more lore available as historic vids that could be accessed would be nice and I'm sure the dedicated community could easily contribute to this.
  • Completely agree with the better distinction. The guts of it being the merc units get salvage rights and need their own transport compared to regulars.
  • As you detailed, different rewards and penalties based on contract and career. Nice.
  • Agreed. Allowing units to purchase their own dropships is a great idea. There are several features that could be implemented along with this such as adjusting the drop deck or access to certain missions dependant on what the unit has available. For salvage rights, perhaps random equipment drops as part of the reward?
  • Given the limited resources, too much hands on game control by PGI is going to take them away from the development work we all want done. It was also a big point that the shape of the galaxy would be determined by the players and we could tie this in more with the careers and contracts and also through the player units.
    • Use the unit coffers to fund an attack on a planetary target. Regular units either get a bonus to the coffer, or it costs less.
    • The unit that funds the attack opens that planet for conquest allowing other players to join in, but there is substantial reward back to the unit for success.
  • Completely agree. I only see the orbital gun maps as the first stage in the invasion. I would love to see a second stage with the larger Union and Overlord dropships landing on the planet where by we have a more strategic battle along several attack corridors with side missions and territory control. There is a whole raft of ideas I would like to detail but I shall save those for my own post.
Great work CyclonerM.
Lots of thought and ideas to move the game forward.

#3 CyclonerM

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Posted 18 March 2015 - 05:37 AM

Wow, thank you for that! :D

I was too lazy tired to do it myself.

View Post50 50, on 17 March 2015 - 04:51 PM, said:

  • A more controlled attack path, particularly for the clans, but allowing for variations within a certain jump distance.

Very good summary, I just wanted to clarify this point. I would like the Clans to have fixed IS targets in equal numbers, while using the same algorithm we currently have for Clan targets; IS factions would use the same algorithm as now, too.

Quote

I do agree on much of what you have written and would like to add my own thoughts.
  • When we got the dropships for CW I thought that was great. I loved the noise and the immersion that this added. More of this can only be good for the game and I think one option would be to change the loading screen for the maps to cater for it. Having more lore available as historic vids that could be accessed would be nice and I'm sure the dedicated community could easily contribute to this

Absolutely.

On a side note, while i love Dropships and i think they should be present in regular modes as well, the fact that i can bring 4 different 'Mechs kinda breaks the immersion for me, on the other hand.

Quote

  • Agreed. Allowing units to
  • purchase their own dropships is a great idea. There are several features that could be implemented along with this such as adjusting the drop deck or access to certain missions dependant on what the unit has available. For salvage rights, perhaps random equipment drops as part of the reward?

Perhaps. Later, this and the R&R mechanics could be the foundations for a not game-breaking mixtech. In any case, i would go as far as allowing IS players to capture and pilot Clan 'Mechs, without mounting Clan weapons on IS 'Mechs, and R&R should be applied to make their manteinance and rearm pretty expensive.

Quote

  • Completely agree. I only see the orbital gun maps as the first stage in the invasion. I would love to see a second stage with the larger Union and Overlord dropships landing on the planet where by we have a more strategic battle along several attack corridors with side missions and territory control. There is a whole raft of ideas I would like to detail but I shall save those for my own post.
Great work CyclonerM.
Indeed. By all means, make that post.

And thank you :)

P.S. Unfortunately, this thread has been submerged into darkness by the countless polls. I figured this was the correct section to post it in, but probably it would have had more visibility in the CW section, with a more catching title too..

#4 Joseph Mallan

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Posted 18 March 2015 - 06:33 AM

Quote

-Regulars/Loyalists: they are paid soldiers fighting in the regular army; thus, the faction's goverment pays them with
public money from taxes; taxes are paid by the people of the owned planets; this means, more planets = more taxes=more military
budget = higher pays! :D
Damn big read. This struck me. Regular soldiers are not paid well. I got $800 every 2 weeks before getting married(1985). then I got $1200-$1400 so I could "afford" to live off base with my (ex)wife. Not good pay by a long shot. BUT I had the perks of not having to pay for anything. Mind you that does involve you only getting what the government gives you, but they give you everything. A place to stay, food, medical, some recreation (not the E-club though), all your equipment... everything. It makes up for not have a lot of cash in your pocket... sorta.

Edited by Joseph Mallan, 18 March 2015 - 06:38 AM.


#5 Pariah Devalis

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Posted 18 March 2015 - 06:36 AM

Lots of good ideas. Nothing I can really complain about. Variety of mission types, more differentiated "careers." Maybe I missed it, but was there something having to do with periodic map resets?

#6 CyclonerM

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Posted 18 March 2015 - 07:06 AM

View PostJoseph Mallan, on 18 March 2015 - 06:33 AM, said:

Damn big read. This struck me. Regular soldiers are not paid well. I got $800 every 2 weeks before getting married(1985). then I got $1200-$1400 so I could "afford" to live off base with my (ex)wife. Not good pay by a long shot. BUT I had the perks of not having to pay for anything. Mind you that does involve you only getting what the government gives you, but they give you everything. A place to stay, food, medical, some recreation (not the E-club though), all your equipment... everything. It makes up for not have a lot of cash in your pocket... sorta.

Ssh. We need more reasons for players to become regulars/loyalists , so make them believe to the recuitment videos and posters :ph34r:

"You will get everything you want from your life - join the AFFC today!" :P

View PostPariah Devalis, on 18 March 2015 - 06:36 AM, said:

Maybe I missed it, but was there something having to do with periodic map resets?

Hmm, not really. I mean, i am still trying to accept that PGI is going to do at least two or three more resets in the future before the full CW "Launch" on Steam (Kerensky protect us!), so i think a lot of these fetures could ideally be implemented togheter with a reset (you know, tracked position, economy changes, fixed invasion paths..) but to be honest, i am still against any sort of reset -_-

No peridiocal resets, anyway. I would rather keep mercs and "dagger star" players, though they could have better description and differentiation (someone mentioned "Auxiliary Clans" in place of Clan mercs, which i like).

#7 Dirk Le Daring

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Posted 18 March 2015 - 03:31 PM

I have an idea for Lone Wolves and Mercenary Corporations, that does not require a faction (House or Clan) selection.

What I have in mind is to make it so that there can be Lone Wolves and Mercenary corporations in Community Warfare. And they can and should be just that, Lone Wolves and Mercenary Corporations. (No I have not forgotten)

Here is how I see it working, and I think it will draw more people into Community Warfare.

Lone Wolves and members of Mercenary Corporations will go into a bucket to be randomly (sort of) drawn from that pool as is needed by the matchmaker.

Using Lone Wolves as an example, we have a planet th be invaded/defended. The team initiating an attack is short three players, real life popped up and the team needs to fill those places.

At this point the matchmakes selects three Lone Wolves from the bucket to fill the spots, matching the elo as closely as possible, game on.

The same could be said for defenders as well, but the Lone Wolves have no choice as to which planet they are operating on, so they could go anywhere, fighting for anyone. Maybe use the current dropdeck to determine House or Clan side, if the deck is Inner Sphere mechs, then that player will fight for a house, but has no choice as to which one or on what planet they will fight for.

As for rewards, I suggest that the Lone Wolves and Mercenary Corporations get what I would call Reputation Points. Reputation points being in the same spirit as loyalty points. But the reputation points would come at a slower rate to loyalty points.

This would still translate to ranks within the Houses and Clans, but only an honourary title. A lone Wolf would always hold a lower rank than an House or Clan player, for the same amount of reputation points as to loyalty points.

The Lone Wolf, and Mercenary Corporation rank cap could be five levels lower than Houses or Clans. This would reflect the nature of not being a House or Clan member.

The important factor here is not being able to choose who you fight for, thus eliminating the ability to farm sides.

Reputation points would be earned on a per House/Clan basis, and none should ever be lost. (remember the reputation point gain rate is less than it is for house or clan players)

I think this would help to draw more people into Community Warfare, and at the same time reduce the waiting times for the matches.

Any further ideas are greatly welcomed.

#8 50 50

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Posted 18 March 2015 - 06:43 PM

I see what you are after there Dirk Le Daring. A pool of reserves for each faction or side (IS/Clan) where you don't specify which planet you are looking to attack or defend and can be called on to fill the numbers for any given match.
That could work with the current system.
Reputation and standing with the factions should definitely have an impact on it.

The comment about the pay is quite relevant Joseph Mallan and I believe that was a big part of the difference in the career paths. As a regular you may not get paid as much or get any rights to salvage, but neither do you incur the costs of any logistics or maintenance.
An independent mercenary unit needs to be able to fund their own way and therefore can negotiate higher pay and salvage rights.
Being a regular will suit many solo or small groups who are not part of a large player unit. You could also apply Dirk's idea to regulars in that they will end up being sent to the conflict zone their faction deems necessary. Mercenaries get to pick and also need their own drop ships.

Without having to start dealing with unforseen development issues with mixed tech I think it would be very simple to get a reward of items relevant to the two sides that fought in the conflict. I'm thinking of the random items we have been able to receive from different holiday events. Ammo, a weapon or two, some equipment. A little splash screen on completion of the battle saying: "You salvaged the following items following the battle...."
That would do the trick.

Adding dropships to the existing Assault, Conquest and Skirmish mods would be great CyclonerM. I'd also add that it would be good to change the assault mode so only one side has a base and are the defenders. They can pop out of a mechbay area instead, as has been suggested in another thread.

I don't mind having the option to bring the 4 mechs, it's a bit like saying I can commit X to this battle. I would prefer to see it as an allocation for the entire conflict and not just the one battle though but that's where we need a second stage to the invasion and a greater strategic and longer conflict to really get the feel for it.

#9 CyclonerM

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Posted 19 March 2015 - 04:57 AM

More than a few have suggested something along the lines of CW "reserve". However, there are at least two big reasons why i am personally against it.

First, if i were part of a merc unit, i would not be happy of being just a filler for other groups. And how do 12men fit with the system? They just drop randomly on a planet? Does not sound very fair. It fits better for Lone wolves aka pugs, however.

Second, that is not how it works in the BTU and does not really make a lot of sense if you see it from a realistic perspective. The very definition of mercenaries implies that they are hired by an employer to execute a certain job, and i believe that we should work more on that instead of reducing it even more, down to randomness..

View Post50 50, on 18 March 2015 - 06:43 PM, said:

Adding dropships to the existing Assault, Conquest and Skirmish mods would be great CyclonerM. I'd also add that it would be good to change the assault mode so only one side has a base and are the defenders. They can pop out of a mechbay area instead, as has been suggested in another thread.

I would like to have only a base in Assault.

Besides, in this very moment i have been fulminated by an idea. I always thought that from a gameplay perspective the "assault" mode in World of Tanks works much better, and teams win by capturing the base much more often than in MWO.
Probably the slowness of the gameplay, the map sizes and layouts, etc. all impact it, since it is much easier for one or two tanks to capture the base while one or two others engage a much bigger enemy team.

However, it also struck me that there is also a mode with a single base there. So why not having it in MWO? What could it be like?

And i got the idea.. There is an underground cache of Star League technology and the two teams are fighting to get their hands on it! It could be implemented both for public queques and CW (a Clan team would try to prevent the IS team from obtaining Lostech; as if in MWO there was any lostech..). Maybe old turrets could activate and shoot any 'Mech from any team too.

They would not be Castles Brian, as they are huge fortresses with hundreds of turrets, AA guns, hangars, etc. And that would be more like a "boss" mission in Armored Core :P

Nor they would be "Brian Caches" since this term refers to those caches of equipment left by the early Clans in their homeworlds.

It could be interesting :)

P.S. I do not like very much the idea of spawning from hangars, as i said, because why 'Mechs should just "appear" in a mech bay? It is not very good for immersion ;)

#10 50 50

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Posted 19 March 2015 - 02:58 PM

Like a capture and hold or king of the mountain style of match.
That would be a good addition as both a new mode to the regular matches and also as a contestable strategic mission for CW.

Re the mech bays, to keep the immersion there as much as possible it could be an option for the first wave of defenders. After that the drop ships, which then feel more like reinforcements arriving.
Maybe for the attacking team in CW the first wave of mechs drop in from orbit.
Perhaps these starts could just be handled with a short scripted scene to build the atmosphere as the matches commence.

Having mech bays for a defending team in a modified Assault mode works nicely and you have the drop ships swoop in to deploy the attacking team. Both sides can deploy via drop ships in Skirmish and Conquest modes. This will add a bit more immersion to those modes, it's really only a cosmetic touch but it would be nice.

Edited by 50 50, 19 March 2015 - 03:03 PM.


#11 CyclonerM

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Posted 20 March 2015 - 12:08 PM

Another thought that i just had. Instead of having Loyalty Rewards, they could earn "performance bonuses". I think i already mentioned some kind of bonuses, but these would go in a slightly different direction.

First, they could be based on # of victories with your current unit, or perhaps 'Mech kills. Like Loyalty rewards, they would include money, MCs, mech bays. They would be awarded by the merc unit command to the mechwarriors, rather than its employer. To give them different stuff, and better suit their more indipendent style of life, they would not be faction items. Rather, they would be "generic" cockpit items, like many of those already in game. However, since there would be a single reward "list", there should be a lot more items (6x, IS mercs only so only IS-themed rewards). I would add cool items like:

-Solaris ticket: (why? Suppose the mechjock is a big Solaris arena fights fan, and he likes to stick his ticket to the next arena show on the cockpit to remind him that he must not die because he has already paid for a show, and he cannot miss it!).

-Sexy girl poster/photo/hologram: come on, this is a must. Any male merc would have one.

-Handgun: a handgun (laser or standard) attached to the cockpit panel, ready to be grabbed in case of forced exit from the 'Mech.. Or unwelcome visitors. Why not in a holster? Good question.

-Bottle of beer: some mercs are crazy people, and by the way, which commander is going to notice a bottle in the cockpit of a MechWarrior crazy enough to drink in combat? :ph34r:

This kind of things, anyway.

Besides, on the Clan side, i would add more reward items themed after specific Clans: a hanging strip of Strana Mechty wolf skin (related to Alpha Galaxy's unique Wolf Rite tradition), a hanging Ghost Bear claw (related to the rite of the Clawing), something similar for Jade Falcon and Smoke Jaguar (I guess Smoke Jaguar teeth). I would not mind something for the other invading Clans as well (Nova Cat notably ;) ).

#12 Prussian Havoc

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Posted 10 April 2015 - 11:46 AM

GREAT ideas in the OP and spread through the many constructive posts made in reply... all PGI would have to do is take care to maintain rough parity between IS relative to the Clans and then one by one pick up this idea or that mechanism from among the rich offerings to be found in this thread.


Major Kudos to CyclonerM and ALL who responded here!

Edited by Prussian Havoc, 10 April 2015 - 11:48 AM.


#13 Tarogato

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Posted 10 April 2015 - 12:10 PM

This is everything I imagined CW to be based on the presentations and interviews from 2012. It's everything I want CW to be. I hope PGI can even come close to this level of sophistication.

I feel like the words you use, "Loyalists" and "Regulars" are backwards, though. Wouldn't a Loyalist be somebody who is a permanent member of a faction unit and a Regular be a pug the regularly fights for the faction? Maybe there's lore behind the two words that I'm missing.

Edited by Tarogato, 10 April 2015 - 12:10 PM.


#14 CyclonerM

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Posted 17 April 2015 - 11:11 AM

View PostTarogato, on 10 April 2015 - 12:10 PM, said:

I feel like the words you use, "Loyalists" and "Regulars" are backwards, though. Wouldn't a Loyalist be somebody who is a permanent member of a faction unit and a Regular be a pug the regularly fights for the faction? Maybe there's lore behind the two words that I'm missing.

That is interesting. Actually, there is no lore behind those words, and Loyalist is rarely used in the lore, for sure not with this meaning. It is just a word used by PGI and players alike. And probably you are right.

Generally, i would rather use the term "regulars" since they would be MechWarriors in the regular army. On the other hand, i do not often hear of lone soldiers who are part of an army but not assigned to any unit and look for fights on their own :P Not even "militia" would be fitting for pugs, imho. I have been struggling to find a good term for this reason.

Anyway, language discussions aside, i am glad i have received so much positive feedback.. Even though probably those who would not have liked my ideas were just too lazy to read them all and skipped this thread :P

#15 Mystere

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Posted 19 April 2015 - 10:15 AM

(Thanks for pointing me in this direction)

Those are very good ideas, and look like a natural progression and logical next step from my "invasion as a directed graph" suggestions. ;)

PGI can prove us all wrong, but I think they do not have the capacity to implement the level of game play depth and immersion your suggestions require. :(

As I said, PGI can prove us all wrong.

#16 Ragtag soldier

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Posted 19 April 2015 - 10:21 AM

your idea is to basically just redo everything from the ground up, which PGI won't do, and probably doesn't have the staff to do anymore. nothing here is gonna happen.

#17 Idealsuspect

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Posted 19 April 2015 - 11:00 AM

First thing to do: separate Pugs queue and groups queue like in regular mode in fact ...


Yea i know people who play only in large premade will say " there isnt enought population for separate blablabla " like they did with regular queue ... and watch regulars queue have lots of matchs in pugs or group queue whatever.
Be honest :).

Or pugs will play CW only as casual then switch to SC for maybe uninstall MWO event they like mecha games.

Edited by Idealsuspect, 19 April 2015 - 11:02 AM.


#18 CyclonerM

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Posted 20 April 2015 - 03:40 AM

View PostIdealsuspect, on 19 April 2015 - 11:00 AM, said:

First thing to do: separate Pugs queue and groups queue like in regular mode in fact ...


Yea i know people who play only in large premade will say " there isnt enought population for separate blablabla " like they did with regular queue ... and watch regulars queue have lots of matchs in pugs or group queue whatever.
Be honest :).

Or pugs will play CW only as casual then switch to SC for maybe uninstall MWO event they like mecha games.

CW as a whole does not have nearly the number of players the public queque has, so segregation is not viable. I fear this is the honest truth ;)

View PostRagtag soldier, on 19 April 2015 - 10:21 AM, said:

your idea is to basically just redo everything from the ground up, which PGI won't do, and probably doesn't have the staff to do anymore. nothing here is gonna happen.

View PostMystere, on 19 April 2015 - 10:15 AM, said:

(Thanks for pointing me in this direction)

Those are very good ideas, and look like a natural progression and logical next step from my "invasion as a directed graph" suggestions. ;)

PGI can prove us all wrong, but I think they do not have the capacity to implement the level of game play depth and immersion your suggestions require. :(

As I said, PGI can prove us all wrong.

Unfortunately, you are both right i think. I just expected more at the start..

#19 rolly

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Posted 20 April 2015 - 06:27 AM

YES. Anything would be better than the current carnival ride of a shell game. I love the detail and the warning and RP element. Absolutely support this %100.00 with bacon on top.

#20 Mystere

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Posted 20 April 2015 - 07:00 AM

View PostIdealsuspect, on 19 April 2015 - 11:00 AM, said:

First thing to do: separate Pugs queue and groups queue like in regular mode in fact ...

Yea i know people who play only in large premade will say " there isnt enought population for separate blablabla " like they did with regular queue ... and watch regulars queue have lots of matchs in pugs or group queue whatever.
Be honest :).

Or pugs will play CW only as casual then switch to SC for maybe uninstall MWO event they like mecha games.


I only drop solo in MWO and I disagree with you.

What CW could use are asymmetric game modes like this.

Also, I can't comment on the 4x4 mode mentioned due to lack of details.





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