Communications in relation to command and control

While doing some abstract reading, I came across defense-in-depth principles and hedgehogs. The theory of these tactics being that you force your enemy to go through multiple lines of defense and by building citadels meant to be bypassed, you leave a stronghold capable of interdicting enemy logistics and cc.

While there is no supply in Zero-K, command, and control is present. Whenever you order your units to move, they move. In order for that to happen, you need to send them orders through radio (or whatever advanced sci-fi comm tach we use). However, in Zero-k, there is no radio range or any such limiting factor.

Proposal: Add-in a new c and c mechanic to add a sense of depth and new gameplay options.

1. add command and control range: make it so that units will only take orders if within certain range of the commander
2. add relayers or radio dishes or whatever that serve as energy pylons, extending the range of control
3. add a subcommand structure to serve as a secondary command structure in case your comm is destroyed

this should be very similar to the energy grid system and thus shouldn't be too hard to implement.

If a unit is within the command range, you can give it orders and it will perform normally.
If a unit is outside of the command range, it will follow the orders given to it when it was last in command range. Or if it did not have orders, then it will not receive any orders but still fire and use its unit ai. So if a glaive is out of command range and with no orders, it will just stand there. If an enemy bandit comes into range, it will attack it based on its attack setting (hold, return or at will). If the bandit moves out of range, the glaive will follow it based on its move setting (hold, limited or full).

In order for command range to work, it must be connected to the commander or a subcommand building.

Constructers do not require command range to function (let's assume they have great onboard ai).

Initial comm command range is should be like 2000-5000 Elmo(what is Elmo ???)

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This would add a new layer of depth in game and more realsm as well as new tactics. Is your enemy stronger then you? aim for his radio dishes to knowck out his command range and leave his army isolated.

You can now encircle enemy forces and isolate them from their command range to pocket them.
Air now has really great targets, bomb enemy radio dishes or subcommand units to disrupt the enemy's plans.
Early game comm deaths are now more deadly. If you forgot to build a subcommand early on, then until you get a new one, your unable to do much. Build a strong point and force the enemy to bypass it and thus expose their command and control network.


Feel free to comment, add on or add suggestions-Tarkin.

(development-wise, I hope it isn't too much as it should follow the same principles as the overdrive system and I hope you add this :)


edit 1: Reading this over, I realize how horrible this is formated and written. Please forgive me, I am still learning.

I was hoping for this to be included in the mainstream game.

???

This would literally kill early raiding, giving a massive boost to porc?

Not really, it would make planning the raiding harder. If you want to raid your opponent, then you need to set up the infrastructure first or set up viable intel so that you can give your orders.

Also thinking more about it, giving the Owl, Funnelweb, and Reef (thinking of more viable units) command range.

To flesh things up:
each fac is provided with a mobile radio unit to make raiding possible. The model can be exactly the same with the same stats.
The interface for command range is the same as the overdrive one (the one showing which mexs are connected to power)

I seriously doubt it would ruin the game

edit: Though I do realize this proposal needs more fleshing out as I feel I have made myself horribly unclear.

most people are here because they like the game as it is (roughly). there are discussions about balance, but thats mostly it.

i might cite zenfur:

"Ideas like that (changing dramatically the gameplay) do not belong as suggestions to implement in the game, but rather as a mod to existing game/other gamemode. You can prototype that on single map or as a mod to check out how it works."

I find one of the most satisfying thing to do in a RTS is a multi prong attack. It's one of the universal skills in all RTS that is analogous to, say, getting headhots in FPS or landing difficult combos in fighting games. It's a signature move of the genre.

Putting barriers on those may sound like an original idea, but that would just be putting a barrier on what is difficult to execute and is rewarding if you pull it off.

I'd totally be against having to set up a grid to be able to control my units. It just reinforces the idea that the way to play is to put all units in the same control group and walk around as one big ball instead of trying to make multiple things happen at the same time in different places.

Games like Warcraft 3 have hero auras that sinificantly enhance surrounding units. That's a somewhat better implementation of that idea IMO. You don't have to have that aura active at all time on all your units. You can still have a few units break off from the main force and pick soft targets apart, but there is the idea of a main force that is enhanced by each other or the hero.

I mean, mex and exposed cons are prime raiding targets.

There are just way less targets for raiding in teams because the more teammates there are, the more commanders there are on the field so the less effective raiders are.

But in 1v1 you have only one commander for the whole map and placing LLTs or pickets next to every mex is expensive early on. The player who can afford to get away with exposed mexes takes a significant lead, so a big part of the game is to probe and snipe what you can without losing your raiders so that if nothing else, you keep getting information.

Heck, even if I destroy nothing, if my opponent responds to a couple of glaives probing each side of the base by building extra LLTs, I'm dead laughing because I'm not defending and I'm capturing mexes left and right.

But if we both engage in raiding and defending to the minimum amount we can get away with, we enter this dance where the first of us to lose raiders is put a singnificant disadventage early on even if no mexes are destroyed on either side. Suddently, the one player with the raiders still standing can catch exposed cons.

Maybe something like a unit requiring a certain amount of power to operate would be cool, but to require all my units to be in range of a radio tower seems a bit extreme and I really don't see how that enhances multi prong attacks. I used to be able to do it without said towers, now I need infrastructure to be able to send a scout. How is that not just a hurdle?

EDIT: Compare that with Starcraft. What does a couple of marines, a single zealot or 4 zerglings do outside of picking off a worker? It takes ages to take down even a supply depot with so few units. Buildings in ZK are really brittle. It's not even en exaggeration to think that a single glaive/bandit/lightning tank/scorcher... can reasonably quickly take out a fusion plant.

I mean the command part wouldn't be hard to implement as a map feature to play with - and vision part (I suppose it's not part of Tarkin's suggestion) would have to be an extra work as a gadget of said map.

Simple widget that would trigger on commandGiven and cancel the command if its too far from some unit X (say radar tower or commander) is pretty simple. Add some SFX for event of cancelling order so the player knows that something is happening, extra points if you make command buildings display command range when selected (easiest solution - give weapon with that range that can't shoot). That might be a motivatin to learn how to mod ZK (write widgets) Tarkin or ask someone to do it for you.