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[Sky Hunter]

OK, first off, I would like to say Thank you for community warfare and though I know there are plans to expand on it, I would like to point you into a slightly more logical direction within those plans.

First I will list the reasons/problems and then a possible and do-able solution.
The way Invasion and Counter Attack works currently will get stale fast enough, and while I realize you have put allot of effort into it, I cannot help but feel it is lacking a certain aspect that will keep it interesting.

Currently there are 3 game modes (not including Invasion)
Skirmish (Team Death Match)
Assault (Capture the Flag)
Conquest (Capture the map/Team Death Match style)

If we add Invasion to the list it would be like search and destroy except you know right where the target is and getting to it is far harder than destroying it.

Now MWO has a few maps which is a good thing, but the MW universe has many many planets, and I am aware you will be trying to use those maps (expanded perhaps) for Invasion as well.

My solution to the stale/disillusion/anger/blaming PGI problem that will develop (and I can already see it forming by the posts on the forum) is a combination that will be harder for me to explain that it is for you to understand and imagine.

Combination Invasion
Part 1: Invasion + Conquest
Part 2: Invasion + Assault

Part 1: Invasion +Conquest
Planet Inventory
Each planet may have a space port. Space Port Map.
Each planet may have a capital. Capital Map.
Each planet may have a power/energy structure.
Each planet may have communications.
Each planet may have military bases, garrisons, cadres, camps, training academies.
Each planet may have repair and industrial facilities (do you see where I am going with this?)
Each planet may have a city/town that may be the Capital and may have a space port because lets face it, you want to control a planet you will need to control travel, communications, power/energy, repair facilities, bases, resources......

My way to increase the logic and decrease the impending staleness (which will take a long time to really get on peoples nerves, who like myself are only doing CW now that it is out), is to spice it up a bit and use the resources we know to do it.

Right now we need 11 wins to win a planet but instead of 11 wins, make it 11 parts (which means 11 invasion maps (we already got base assault/destroy).
What is the logical thing to attack/destroy and/or seize first?
Communications? Space port?
Modify HPG Generator map, combine with a space port map, and a base map.
Defenders of the map spawn the base. Attackers spawn space port, attackers must maintain control of the space port in order to get reinforcements, defenders likewise (Conquest), whoever controls the communications will get reinforcements faster (1 minute vs 30 seconds).

This means the defenders and the attackers both would want to control the communications but at the same time to lose one's access to reinforcements would make it impossible to win unless able to retake it, meanwhile in the 4th corner of the same map there is an energy station, no energy means no gate control and reduced turret rate of fire. Throw in a repair facility in the middle of the map and now you have 5 points of conquest, 48 mechs per team (with that number being able to be cut down by capturing the enemy spawning location).

The map would be larger by some, but the mechanics are still the same except the added repair facility which could say repair 10% of a mech per minute with a 1 minute down time before starting and 30 second release time before powering back up (which would add a new mechanic to the game but would likely take some time coding).

A skirmish style map of a Mech Arena (abandoned due to the invasion), allowing only 2 re-spawns, no bases, some outbuildings but otherwise a huge 3 level structure made for Mech combat.

Seek and Recover on the same maps, one team has a package they must keep from the other team, other team must recover the package (carried by any mech until dropped or mech is destroyed (still dropped)) and deliver it back to their base until a dropship arrives to retrieve it (1 minute wait time, clock restarts even if package is dropped inside the pick-up zone.) This can be done on most maps provided they are expanded a little. Defender wins if able to keep the map from being picked up by dropship for 30 minutes, 3 spawns.

Sabotage Map
Several structures on a map to destroy before time runs out, but only attacker knows which structures as it changes randomly even though all the structures are always there. Defender gets intel as to what general type of structure but not precisely which structures. Large city or base/spaceport type map.

Part 2: Invasion plus Assault.
Destroy enemy gun emplacements, take out the power grid, capture the Capital. Offense spawns outside city, defenders at the landing pads behind the capital building. Attacking enemy gets 1 more spawn than defenders.

Capturing and or disabling/destroying industrial complex (you already made mining collective, slight change to map appearance, sky, etc.)

Almost all (if not all logically) of these can be reversed so as the counter attackers take offensive side. I have more but no sense in typing for 3 hours because if I do I will delete the post and not post it.

I leave it to you to decide if any of it is worth consideration, but one thing that absolutely needs to be implemented.

MECH WARRIOR DISCONNECT REPLACEMENT. Give the player waiting to drop a bonus in reward (win or lose, more for win) for accepting entering into an ongoing battle. Back in Sept of last year in blog 1 about CW (i think) it was stated that this feature would be added, I know it was another ball game last year but this feature is needed regardless of the rest of my post.

If any of this helps you in your creativeness then my time was not wasted typing it, right now I play this more than any other game (and still have like 150 days of premium time left too), but I do not yet consider MWO up to par with some of it's predecessors even though the graphics are stunning and the physics engine has greatly improved, in addition to the error/bug level has radically decreased. I still prefer LOTRO (lifetime account holder) over MWO but it is here that I sign in and play every day because I believe you can provide the number 1 game for me and millions of others. I have faith in you that you will improve this game (but no faith in the PUGS to act tactically or intelligently...lol).