Squad Leader Archive

SL won't be stuck with crap. But it sure would be nice if some SL would post there. Keep it concise. The less exposition the better.

Personally I'd like to see some of those that see SL in combat roles post there as well. lots of the non-combat side is getting said. Not much from those of us who are more combat oriented SL (I liken it to the SL being a Master Sergeant or a Major.)

What defines theSquad Leaderrole in combat?

Squad Leader is the only profession in the game that should require abilities in real life to be 100% effective. You don't have to know anything about engineering to be an Architect, nor does being a Bounty Hunter require anything but hitting your EyeShot macro over and over. Being an effective Squad Leader, however, should require having leadership skills! There's no way to code around requiring at least basic leadership abilities to be a truly effective Squad Leader, so why not instead run with that requirement and make things interesting? Put skill back into a game of templates and button-mashing!

With that in mind, a Squad Leader is an individual with charisma, intelligence, and respect who motivates and inspires his squad members to perform and achieve to the maximum of their abilities. Merely being in a group with a Squad Leader should cause an increase in individual performance, but the greatest influence from a Squad Leader should come through intelligent use of his active abilities, from placing defensive bunkers and squad weapons to giving temporary defensive and offensive buffs.

What basic combat elements should they possess?

Buffs, both active and passive. Passive buffs should be decent but not fantastic; the active abilities should provide the most significant buffs, and these abilities should be creative, not simply "push button and get +20 to accuracy."

Better organization of groups and group waypoints. We aren't generals who sit at a desk all day, but an interface to plan and manage battles as they occur would be fantastic. Groups should be made heirarchical, with a Master Squad Leader able to indirectly lead a group of over 20 individuals by delegating lower-level command to other Squad Leaders.

What offensive abilities?

I agree with the "none as an individual" crowd -- the Squad Leader line should not include any specials or modifiers to any of the weapon professions. Our weapons are our group members, so our specials should only deal with group members.

Our offensive special abilities shouldinclude buffs to various stats, including accuracy, weapon speed, and damage. A reduction in HAM costs would be welcome, too.

Active abilities to do a Volley Fire on a specific HAM pool -- "Aim for its head!"

Ability to place an immobile group-based heavy weapon akin to the E-web. Should require two or more individuals with Ranged Support IV to fire (giving weight to a skill branch useless in PVP), and can only be deployed by a Squad Leader.

Whatever you do, please don't turn Squad Leader into a Puppeteer. We shouldn't have abilities to completely take over the actions of our group mates.

What defensive abilities?

Simple passive buffs to ranged & melee defense. Active abilities to increase defense at the cost of mobility.

Active abilities to add defense against HAM-specific shots. "Keep your heads DOWN!" could either reduce the accuracy of or damage dealt by Mind, Eye, and Head Shots.

Placement of defensive structures like bunkers

What unique abilities?

Master Squad Leader should be able to function as a partial Faction Recruiter, allowing group members to /declare (if the leader himself is declared) and /undeclare, with the same restrictions as NPC recruiters.

Most (if not all) special abilities should have a wide variety of effects, with both a positive and negative side to them. "Hold Your Positions" could provide increased defense and accuracy, but prevent group members from running. "Charge!" might increase weapon and movement speeds, but significantly drop accuracy and defenses. "Form Up" can stay the way it is, but add a 1-2 second delay to all members who are cured of states as they "shake it off."

If an ability doesn't have a down-side (like HAM-specific targeting), make it cost a non-trivial amount of HAM to use. The other abilities should cost VERY LITTLE to use; their real "cost" comeswith the negative effects.

The overwhelming idea here is that playing a Squad Leader should require intelligence and observation. A SL shouldn't just sit behind his group mates spamming the same "Uber Squad" special over and over. He needs to be paying attention to battle, looking for the right moment to use a specific skill to give his group the edge they need for the given situation.

Should add what advantage or asset in group combat?

As others have said, if two equal groups, one with a SL and one without, fight each other, the one with an SL should win. However, the SL-led group should only win slightly if the SL does nothing but take advantage of passive buffs. A group with an active SL who uses abilities when they are appropriate should decimate the opposing squad.

How could/should they interact with other professions?

Unlocking skills for group members is a cool idea, but I don't think it's necessary. If you give us excellent active abilities and decent passives, we will be wanted.

What interaction / dependencies should exist with other combatants?

This question is redundant to Squad Leader. An SL only functions when in a group. Therefore, other combatants are needed for an SL to do anything.

What should be their unique role in the Galactic Civil War?

Raid leaders, faction base defenders, mobile recruitment, field commanders.

My dream for Squad Leader is a class that rewards intelligent gameplay, real-life leadershipability, and tactical and strategic knowledge with fantastic group bonuses. Not all Squad Leaders are created equal, and those of us who can lead in real life should be given all the tools we need to lead in Galaxies.