78 replies to this topic

[Wintersdark]

TheRAbbi, on 24 January 2016 - 10:04 PM, said:

Just SO fun. This map may just revive the concept of MANEUVER, which this game SORELY needs...

This is what it boils down to. Oh, sure, you could say the NASCAR maps are all about maneuvering, but they aren't. It's just running in a circle, and the same circle you always run in.

The only real impact you have is whether or not you keep with the group and NASCAR sufficiently hard.

On Polar Highlands, you've got a huge arena, there's always space to go around, nearer or further. There's nowhere that you can turtle and set up a firing line safely.

The best turtling spots in fact - the bases, with their hard cover - are potentially deathtraps because ridgehumpers just outside can move around to get clear lines of fire where ever they want.

Polar Highlands requires constant movement, but not just running in a circle or along a predetermined path. You need to be constantly repositioning. Push in or out depending on relative weapon loadouts to benefit your team and punish theirs. Keep probing for that weakness, that route that'll get you enfilading fire, target locks for your allies, and turn their defended ridge into a shooting gallery.

It's not good enough to get a good defensive position and hold it against two or three possible avenues of approach. Because there are always 360 degrees of approach anywhere.

It demands thought, and a break from traditional tactics.

[Steel Raven]

Yeah, this map is going to need some time for a few of us to get use to...

Like the new Forest Colony, you all need to fight as a team or die one by one. You also need total awareness, it's easy loose your baring which means getting separated from your team by going the wrong way and running into the enemy team.

While I've dodge plenty of LRMs by jumping behind a hill/into a trench, a spotter out of sight will get you clobbered working with a LRM boat.

Also: great Sniper Map! While allot of my Warhammers PPCs hit allot of hill tops (wth) I got some good hits in from time to time with a standard PPC. ER PPC and Gauss Rifle should love this map.

[Nightshade24]

Wintersdark, on 24 January 2016 - 03:10 PM, said:

The dashes in there indicate an "aside", interjected into the middle of the sentence. The sentence itself is about Polar Highlands, as such the half on the other side of the interjection is relating to the first half.

When you see that (much like parenthesis!) you can simply remove that section of the sentence entirely and it'll still make sense. See what I did there?

This reminds me of why I hate punctuation ever since my English teacher back in Highschool told me people no longer use the asterism isn't used anymore and the irony punctuation mark is not popular... The internet needs an irony mark back.

[Cyrilis]

PRAISE THE DEVS!!!

Finally a map that requires, no, FORCES tactical movement!

[General Solo]

I like to call Polar Highlands the:

Accelerated Learning Map

[Archie4Strings]

I totally agree with void!
This map is totally different to all the other maps and scouting is the key! Also maneuvering in general!
It is the only map where you cannot just stay behind a huge rock/mountain/house or whatever and wait till the enemy comes around.
It is just great and actually the only map which gives me the feeling i wanted to have and the only map (maybe besides boreal vault and probably tourmaline dessert), where long range weapons like ER LL or ER PPCs really can outplay there long range!
Yes it is also a map which favours lrms, but so, who cares?
There are also tons of maps of favour a boring closerange Laservomit, which is the most boring loadout of all because you find it everywhere on any map. Doesnt matter if cw or public.

Polar highlands is the best map of all!!! Its really fun to play! (Just dont play it in a direwolf )

[jper4]

loopala, on 24 January 2016 - 09:49 PM, said:

let the whiners whine i like it but then i also like Mordor conquest....

hey now mordor is pretty much the best conquest map around IMO. the blob will lose most of the time, lance vs lance combat is pretty common while cap wins are serious possibilities due to the time needed to get to the cap points instead of "run straight and there it is" like many of the other maps so having cap aware lights/fast mediums is a priority. I always pick that combo when it comes up even if i'm in some slow clunker.

[loopala]

Tanar, on 25 January 2016 - 05:36 AM, said:

hey now mordor is pretty much the best conquest map around IMO. the blob will lose most of the time, lance vs lance combat is pretty common while cap wins are serious possibilities due to the time needed to get to the cap points instead of "run straight and there it is" like many of the other maps so having cap aware lights/fast mediums is a priority. I always pick that combo when it comes up even if i'm in some slow clunker.

wait till you play Polar Highlands conquest. capping by fast movers is a must, while the bruisers keep the other bruisers distracted. the blob is too slow win if ether team gets serious about fast capping


BTW i love mordor conquest.

[Void Angel]

Steel Raven, on 24 January 2016 - 11:08 PM, said:

While allot of my Warhammers PPCs hit allot of hill tops (wth)

This is due to convergence between your line of sight and the target point - Your Warhammer's arm mounted weapons are lower than your cockpit, and thus your point of view. So, while you may be able to see a target over the hilltop, the line of sight drawn from your weapons to that target may still be intersected by terrain.

[Void Angel]

Nightshade24, on 24 January 2016 - 11:54 PM, said:

This reminds me of why I hate punctuation ever since my English teacher back in Highschool told me people no longer use the asterism isn't used anymore and the irony punctuation mark is not popular... The internet needs an irony mark back.

Punctuation isn't that hard to parse if used properly - think of them as adding inflection to the sentence. The ... means you trail off; a comma is indicated by a pause; a dash followed by a sentence or clause indicates a pause, then a change in tone and inflection indicating an explanation or conclusion. Another dash, such as I used, returns you to the previous tone and continues the original thought. Think of any punctuation that doesn't directly modify a word as being a pause or change in speaking, and it may help you out.

[Hawk819]

We at PGI, are asking our players to stop investing in Tech stocks and start investing in LRMs

[Nightshade24]

Void Angel, on 25 January 2016 - 12:13 PM, said:

Punctuation isn't that hard to parse if used properly - think of them as adding inflection to the sentence. The ... means you trail off; a comma is indicated by a pause; a dash followed by a sentence or clause indicates a pause, then a change in tone and inflection indicating an explanation or conclusion. Another dash, such as I used, returns you to the previous tone and continues the original thought. Think of any punctuation that doesn't directly modify a word as being a pause or change in speaking, and it may help you out.

Nightshade24, on 24 January 2016 - 11:54 PM, said:

This reminds me of why I hate punctuation -snip-

x2

Thanks for the attempt of helping however it just caused another wave of me throwing punctuation into the bin of "I shall not touch ever again" after the ones I thought I knew are now apparently not and the definitions you stated are not the ones stated officially or in an encyclopedia. I would sooner try to learn advanced algebra or something as their punctuation never changes and often can be explained by one word.
"Sorry boss. I'm just not cut out for it." -a quote you may have heard a lot if you went stiener in mechwarrior 4: mercs.

[Semper Bob]

I'd just like to mention for those who point out the lack of 'cover'. By and large you are correct, the trenches are too shallow to protect you from a brace of LRM's coming down the slope and there are few buildings big enough to protect you either.

What the map does have in abundance is 'concealment', which if properly used can keep you from being target locked most of the time until you're in position to fight back. However, if the enemy has LRM's and you do get locked it hurts because you'll take quite a few hits before you can break lock again especially if you're slow.

[Void Angel]

Nightshade24, on 25 January 2016 - 08:56 PM, said:

x2

Thanks for the attempt of helping however it just caused another wave of me throwing punctuation into the bin of "I shall not touch ever again" after the ones I thought I knew are now apparently not and the definitions you stated are not the ones stated officially or in an encyclopedia. I would sooner try to learn advanced algebra or something as their punctuation never changes and often can be explained by one word.
"Sorry boss. I'm just not cut out for it." -a quote you may have heard a lot if you went stiener in mechwarrior 4: mercs.

That's because my definitions are intended to give you a functional grasp of usage, rather than a dictionary classification. Basically, just punctuate things to indicate how you would be saying them in person - this simplifies things immensely, since you don't have to try to memorize all those cumbersome definitions. =)

[Void Angel]

Semper Bob, on 26 January 2016 - 03:07 PM, said:

I'd just like to mention for those who point out the lack of 'cover'. By and large you are correct, the trenches are too shallow to protect you from a brace of LRM's coming down the slope and there are few buildings big enough to protect you either.

What the map does have in abundance is 'concealment', which if properly used can keep you from being target locked most of the time until you're in position to fight back. However, if the enemy has LRM's and you do get locked it hurts because you'll take quite a few hits before you can break lock again especially if you're slow.

All of which serves to emphasize the use of maneuver warfare - which is glorious. While the lack of tall cover (there is actually no concealment in Polar Highlands) can hurt if there's an LRM boat pounding you, there are still things you can do to break lock and come to grips with the enemy. It's when players stop treating their armor as a resource to be used, and try to camp in place, that things fall apart.

[Wintersdark]

Void Angel, on 26 January 2016 - 04:07 PM, said:

All of which serves to emphasize the use of maneuver warfare - which is glorious. While the lack of tall cover (there is actually no concealment in Polar Highlands) can hurt if there's an LRM boat pounding you, there are still things you can do to break lock and come to grips with the enemy. It's when players stop treating their armor as a resource to be used, and try to camp in place, that things fall apart.

Indeed! Controlling line of sight is extremely important on PH. Make sure that if someone can see you, he is punished severely for that. Ideally, try to be in a place where getting line of sight to you also entails line of sight to other allies... And thus, line of sight FROM multiple allies to one enemy. They tend to vanish in a cloud of ouch that way.

Also...

For the love of God, if someone can see you, TARGET HIM. Then your allies know he's there and can react.

I had one match in my brawling LurmDog where, upon creeping around the OpFor, I was able to jump their rearmost mech at 200m. 20dps from lurms and small lasers... And he never targeted me, despite fighting back. I killed three in a row, all of whom could have fought back at once, they were all close together, but who didn't know I was there. I can only assume they were allergic to their R key... But it worked out well enough.

Targeting people on Polar Highlands is even more important than it normally is.

[Nightshade24]

Void Angel, on 26 January 2016 - 04:03 PM, said:

That's because my definitions are intended to give you a functional grasp of usage, rather than a dictionary classification. Basically, just punctuate things to indicate how you would be saying them in person - this simplifies things immensely, since you don't have to try to memorize all those cumbersome definitions. =)

Well... that kind of helps... until I forget what is what and I start using this again‽ on a regular basis again... right ‽

[Irishtoker]

I certainly like PH, and support the change in Map style. The way I see it, the origins of these games "Arena maps", were great and still serve a purpose but they were used because that was the extent of capability. For decades, this went on. The players and industry are adjusting to what we now have before us.

Refining & expanding is a-okay in my book, as far as MWO goes.

[Zookeeper Dan]

I love the map! However pug play really suffers. For some reason everyone wants to make a beeline for the center of the map. That's the worst place to fight, it's nothing but rolling hills without those great trenches that are so fun to use as cover!

[Void Angel]

Nightshade24, on 27 January 2016 - 06:38 AM, said:

Well... that kind of helps... until I forget what is what and I start using this again‽ on a regular basis again... right ‽

If you really want to become proficient with English, I suggest reading novels - start with The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings. That symbol looks pretty much like a question mark to most English readers, by the way, so they'll likely just assume you're asking a question, like I did (I didn't notice the difference until I saw it in the quote box. =] ) If that's one of the proposed "irony punctuation" marks that you mentioned earlier, you should know that they've never been adopted by, well, anyone.

Danth Reduviid, on 27 January 2016 - 10:36 AM, said:

I love the map! However pug play really suffers. For some reason everyone wants to make a beeline for the center of the map. That's the worst place to fight, it's nothing but rolling hills without those great trenches that are so fun to use as cover!

What I've been seeing more often is that one team will camp one of the building complexes that dot the map, then envelope the other team when they stop and try to huddle in the open like frightened sheep. This only works because people haven't learned how to maneuver - it basically uses their knee-jerk "camp and hide" responses from every other map in a situation where they only benefit the team in the buildings.