30 replies to this topic

[BellatorMonk]

So it occurred to me that I might be making some wrong calls or interpreting some voice comms incorrectly and wondered what the majority thought and if there are any other examples of such comms that might vex people because of differing views or understanding.

I had noticed that when an enemy mech's left arm or left torso is cored/damaged etc, that I am basing that call and interpretation on the paper doll of said mech even in real life it would be the right arm/torso when actually facing someone.

For me in the quick moment, I see the left arm/torso on the paper doll as red/yellow and call out "Left torso!!" instead of right because of facing.

What or how do others see this and make their calls?

[ScrapIron Prime]

If they're facing you, the right torso is on the left side, yes. Call "right torso" and let the shooter figure out where it is on the doll.

[LordNothing]

the right torso is always the right torso no matter how the mech is oriented. the paper doll is shown in the facing orientation so right is left and vise versa. when mw5 decided to use a reverse order that really confused the hell out of everyone.

orientation being arbitrary i find it clearer to use the target-local torso designations. especially when considering that other players will be in different orientations. so its better to use the local orientation for the target.

it sort of makes me long for the mw2 3d gauge which showed the damage transformed into your space so shoot where there is yellow/red. what you see is what you get. though that's hard to communicate over comms so even then you would want the local orientation.

Edited by LordNothing, 22 July 2022 - 07:31 AM.

[GoodTry]

Some people say "visual left" and "visual right."

[LordNothing]

GoodTry, on 22 July 2022 - 07:46 AM, said:

Some people say "visual left" and "visual right."

yea but thats not really helpful unless the whole team is facing the enemy from the same side. thats fine if you got a firing line going, but if your team is scattered and has multiple angles, you are going to confuse some of them. of course sometimes thats easier and faster to say than doing the linear algebra in your head first.

Edited by LordNothing, 22 July 2022 - 07:56 AM.

[TheCaptainJZ]

The enemy paperdoll is always showing them from the front--left is right, right is left. You'd need to call out locations based on the enemy's RT or LT, not your right or left. The rear armor is showing them from the back--left is left, right is right. This front/back flip can cause confusion. However, your paperdoll is different. The front diagram is reversed. It is oriented as if you're looking at yourself from behind through the eyes--right is right, left is left. The rear armor display is the same--right is right, left is left. It can be confusing, but it's designed to be orientated based on the way you actually see the mechs on the screen so it's accurate at a glance.

Edited by TheCaptainJZ, 22 July 2022 - 08:27 AM.

[La Douche]

I feel like 95% of the pilots who can be bothered to use their mic call out the component by name as opposed to where it appears on the paper doll. It does involve a bit of a mental flip but this should be firmly established for anyone who has been playing for any length of time.

Sometimes if I'm feeling chatty I'll clarify for any less experienced players who might be in the game. So like "Right torso open! Right torso, left facing." Dunno, maybe that makes it worse.

[bilagaana]

While we're on the subject of comms conventions, it would be a special favor to us pedants (google that before you throw up in your mouth) if everyone (talking to you, mechdads...) would please note:

• "Indigo" appears nowhere in the NATO phonetic alphabet. It's "INDIA."
  
• The NATO phonetic alphabet is used for grid coordinates and calling out targets.
  
• The Greek alphabet is used to designate the Control Points in Conquest mode [Gamma, Epsilon, Theta, Kappa, Sigma].

So, that nasty SNPPC whatever with the red "I" over it in your HUD that you're desperate for help with is "INDIA" not "Indigo."

And when you need help "over here" it's "GOLF 6" (map coord) not "Gamma 6."

It's pretend giant robots in space, so you're welcome to use whatever terminology you want. However, comms conventions are used because while the default language in MWO is (for better or worse) English, having a common terminology reduces confusion for everyone regardless of native language.

</rant>

Edited by bilagaana, 22 July 2022 - 08:58 AM.

[John Bronco]

bilagaana, on 22 July 2022 - 08:42 AM, said:

While we're on the subject of comms conventions, it would be a special favor to us pedants (google that before you throw up in your mouth) if everyone (talking to you, mechdads...) would please note:

• "Indigo" appears nowhere in the NATO phonetic alphabet. It's "INDIA."
  
• The NATO phonetic alphabet is used for grid coordinates and calling out targets.
  
• The Greek alphabet is used to designate the Control Points in Conquest mode [Gamma, Epsilon, Theta, Kappa, Sigma].

So, that nasty SNPPC whatever with the red "I" over it in your HUD that you're desperate for help with is "INDIA" not "Indigo."


And when you need help "over here" it's "GOLF 6" (map coord) not "Gamma 6."

It's pretend giant robots in space, so you're welcome to use whatever terminology you want. However, comms conventions are used because while the default language in MWO is (for better or worse) English, having a common terminology reduces confusion for everyone regardless of native language.

</rant>

What is NATO? The BT phonetic alphabet is used in BT.

[Akamia Terizen]

The NATO phonetic alphabet has seen quite regular use in BT novels, though it's probably not called that anymore by the time of the 31st century, what with NATO very likely no longer being a thing by then.

Using it in comms is pretty standard practice in MWO these days, simply because it's useful for the same reason NATO finds it useful, as the game seemingly artificially lowers the quality of microphones in my experience. Though sometimes people get some of the letters wrong, like Golf vs "Gamma", or Bravo vs "Beta".

Edited by Akamia Terizen, 22 July 2022 - 10:43 AM.

[bilagaana]

John Bronco, on 22 July 2022 - 10:03 AM, said:

What is NATO? The BT phonetic alphabet is used in BT.

(Thanks for the chuckle. Not too many of those elsewhere in MWO, these days.)

Meanwhile, back here in what we like to think of as...reality:

Alfa, Bravo, Charlie, Delta, Echo, Foxtrot, Golf, Hotel, India, Juliett, Kilo, Lima, Mike, November, Oscar, Papa, Quebec, Romeo, Sierra, Tango, Uniform, Victor, Whiskey, X-ray, Yankee, Zulu.

From Wikipedia--the font of all contemporary wisdom:

The International Radiotelephony Spelling Alphabet, commonly known as the NATO phonetic alphabet, is the most widely used set of clear code words for communicating the letters of the English alphabet.

To create the code, a series of international agencies assigned 26 code words acrophonically to the letters of the English alphabet, so that the names for letters and numbers would be as distinct as possible so as to be easily understood by those who exchanged voice messages by radio or telephone, regardless of language differences or the quality of the connection.

Edited by bilagaana, 22 July 2022 - 11:39 AM.

[Khalcruth]

That makes me laugh. Go ahead and use India or Indigo if you like. I'll use any and all words stating with the letter I which I can think of at the time. Including, but not limited to, Icarus, Ice Cream, Idaho, Illinois, Iguana, Italy, Irene, Intel, Icky, or Iberia.

The thing that bothers me is the way people use the word "cored". Coring a mech, like an apple, means a hole all the way through the middle of it. Cored = destroyed center torso = dead. If the mech is still standing, it cannot by definition be "cored".

[Knownswift]

I'm going to start calling I's as "incel"

" Target Incel in Gee-6!""

"okay but which one????"

[MyriadDigits]

I always call target-local orientation, not visual orientation. I also tell people who make visual orientation calls to not make visual orientation calls, for reasons covered by others in this thread.

Good comms should be clear and concise. Visual calls aren't.


Edit: and on the topic, shouting "contact!" or saying "enemies here!" "enemies there" doesn't help at all, for similar reasons as visual calling, but also because no actual information is conveyed.

Edited by MyriadDigits, 22 July 2022 - 01:17 PM.

[bilagaana]

Khalcruth, on 22 July 2022 - 12:32 PM, said:

That makes me laugh. Go ahead and use India or Indigo if you like.

Heck, yeah...Use Klingon if it floats your little boat. Nobody with any skills will be listening, anyway.

Edited by bilagaana, 22 July 2022 - 03:01 PM.

[Hunka Junk]

The primary comms convention in this game is this:

Talk **** after you're dead.

Dead people shouldn't be allowed to talk or type.

I'll trade the couple helpful people for no more little boys.

[Knownswift]

On the contrary, dead player text should be bolded so it is easier to screenshot.

[Hunka Junk]

OK, fine.

PGI should just program betty to announce that you're a **** team even if you win.

[YueFei]

MyriadDigits, on 22 July 2022 - 01:15 PM, said:

I always call target-local orientation, not visual orientation. I also tell people who make visual orientation calls to not make visual orientation calls, for reasons covered by others in this thread.

Good comms should be clear and concise. Visual calls aren't.


Edit: and on the topic, shouting "contact!" or saying "enemies here!" "enemies there" doesn't help at all, for similar reasons as visual calling, but also because no actual information is conveyed.

I try not to say useless stuff like "enemies here", but to be honest sometimes I get in trouble and my finger probably slips off of the VOIP push-to-talk a bit too soon. So my mouth says "enemies here at G6, blah blah", but because my finger slipped off mid-sentence as I scramble to try to run away and not die, the only thing my teammates hear is "enemies here".

Most likely followed shortly after by me dying...

[Maddermax]

Honestly, because of the left/right flip thing making it confusing for normal people, on top of my dyslexia, when it comes to side torsos, I don’t even specify, I just say “Anni Foxtrot has red crit shoulder” or “side torso on foxtrot annihilator”.

99% of the time specifying which doesn’t make a difference, because the person will see it on their own hud when targeting and work it out themselves, or they’ll just snap fire anyway, but just by saying it brings focus to a target, which will often do the trick.

I will say though, when specifying which mech, state the mech and it’s designation, saying “foxtrot is red crit!” doesn’t help if you’re in a brawl with 5 enemies and it’s faster to visually identify the mech rather than read designations. “Atlas Juliette red crit CT” or “Juliette Atlas focus legs” is very helpful.