Squad Leader Archive
Thread: Just my 2 pennies worth...
Hello there good citizens... I have a few things to say and I hope that everyone will be a little patient with me... If not... I will eat your kids while they sleep. Anyway, I just reciently became a Squad Leader. So far all I can say is... **edit**? Everything I hoped about being an Imperial Squad Leader is actually a pile of poop. I read all these posts about how broken all the skills were in this field and though to myself, "these people just need to try to figure out a way to get the skills to work rather than sit and bitch". When I finally got to SL I realized the err of my ways. On my first run as a Squad Leader I scooped up enough troops to boister an impressive 20. I though, "HA! I hope I lead these pups to victory!". Well... sadly, no. Trying to get this group to move as a team is harder than herding cats. My GAWD! No one listens... I started slow.. "ok, everyone fall in line and move as a team. What was I thinking... I was actually in the military and it was easier to teach them to move than to ask my squad to move at the same time. Cripes. I had a couple of troopers that hung in there... I swear, if people would just trust the Squad Leader we could have finished every mission and walked away with 20k credits. That maynot seem like much but with 20 people that is pretty good. *sigh* Could someone answer me a few questions? First one...What is the significantsof having rank? What about RHIP (or Rank Has Its Privilages) ie. The higher the rank the more credits for a normal mission outing or more faction points for a faction mission. Next Question... Is it possible to call in morter (sp?) fire or air bombing? Calling in support like in Return to Castle Wolfenstein as a Lieutenant. It would be sweet to see a couple of Tie fighters fly over and drop bombs. Is there a beginnners guide on how to be a successful Squad Leader? I seem to not quite have the knack yet. And my final question... What the hell is ranged weapon skill useful for? I mean does it have any useful purpose in Squad Leader? I read the post about the new skills and I agree with everyone else... Bad idea. Even in normal military there are mistakes and deserters (we like to shoot them) but it is a bigger mistake to try and control PC's like they were pets. I wouldn't wanna use those skills on my squad even if I got a lot of bonuses for doing it. It just takes the fun out of the unexpected. Even with my team not listening to me, I would rather they have contol of their own characters than I. I do have a few suggestions on how to possibly improving the skill and making Squad Leader a want in the group like having a combat medic.
- Have a groupbonus for ALL members in a group if a Squad Leader leads the fray.
- /suppressionfirespeedshot : this could help protect the groups position from being overtakenby a faster recovery time for /suppressionfire which also has a chance to cause the advancing enemy to go prone.
- /Lastmanstanding : An ability to raise fallen teammates in death or incapatation (sp?) at the sacrifice of Squad Leaders health.
- /battlecry :Creates a temporary boot in first shot power for all group members. ie a sort of overchrage shot for the group at Squad Leaders mind expense.
- /Fall-on-one : Creates an instant waypoint for all group members to the Squad Leaders position and gives a message to all in the center of their screen to move to come.
- /Paintthetarget : This would illuminate a specific target to all members of the group like a waypoint light but a different color so that all of the group can see the objective clearly set by the Squad Leader. Peoplemight wonder why I suggest this... I discovered a great need for this while leading my herd of cats in a Mokk mission on Datooine, every single person tried to hit a different lair and the mokks easily picked us off because there was mass confusion. Also everyone should realize that a good leader can make swift and instant decisions to reach a single mission goal.
- /towtheline : This would bring up a menu for the Squad Leader to see and compare the accuracy rate of all members in the group. This can help the Squad Leader make an informed decision as to where to place the troops in the line as far as offensive and Defensive positions and to also make cuts easier to make if there are those in the group holding back and letting the team do the work while they reap the rewards of completing the mission. I saw this a few times while running the cats across the prairie. Only reason I caught this was because some dummy in my group let it slip he was back at the starport letting the credits roll in. He promptly was removed along with another one of my squadmates because I screwed up and effectively "missed" the kick.
- /Intelligencereport : This gives the squad the option for all members to volunteer everyones missions and details to the Squad Leader. TAKE NOTE CAPTAINVEMNOX... This would make it so there are less if not any more pets (including driods) as part of the group. Why would you want pets or driods grouped with you when a PC can accept 2 missions... pets can't. This skill could help the squad leader determine priority and help the SL pick a safe route for the squad to maneuver. I know what people are thinking... lets find an exploit... no. If a player is removed from the group either by choice or by force, the mission shall be removed from the SL's datapad, unless the missions objective has been engaged or within a 64m radius. Can anyone see what I am refering to? One, the SL can't kick players from group to collect missions and still group pets and players can't leave the group just before the mission is completed to be the only one to collect the mission rewards. This option can go hand-and-hand with /Paintthetarget to help the squad.
- /enemyawareness : This would give the Squad Leader the ability to see enemy or potential targets at a greater distance. This skill is extremely needed in my opinion. I was trying to maneuver my team around unneeded conflicts but as I marched the members I would have Reds pop up on my radar almost on top of me and thus forcing my team to engage in combat and thus making it longer to reach our objective target.
These were just a few ideas I had running around in my head while I was supposed to be focusing on my job... lucky no one noticed when I left my station and went to a stall in the restroom with a pen and notepad. I guess if someone saw me they probably thought I was taking notes on where I dropped the kids off at the pool... Anywho... like George Carlain (sp?) said... "... and these are the thoughts that kept me out of the really good schools..." Good Night kids and please don't forget to /tip your waitress...
Anyone want to let me know what they think about these ideas please respond unless they are negative comments, for this just go f*** yourselves... LOL