Squad Leader Archive
Thread: Women in Combat
Im a real strategy player so I love Squad Leader ... Im just wondering if I should buy a bigger whip ... what do you guys think? Thanks!!!Damn no edit, I mean this
/sys \#00ff33\ Well done %NT, you begin to feel the ways of the force. You have now unlocked your Jedi slot young Padawan. Good luck.
rapacov wrote:
Hi guys! (and gals)
I have a small question for you. My character is a petite human female Squad Leader. Unlike a lot of the female characters on here .. I am actually a woman behind the female toon. Now, everyone in my guild and squad know this fact. Now, I dont know if it is the fact that I am female or my techniques, but they dont listen very well some times and it hurts the missions. Could I get your opinion on this ... is it harder for a female (rl female behind the toon)to be a Squad Leader? And if thats the case ... what do you recommend for me to improve this? I mean, do I really need to be like G.I. Jane running around, grabbing my groin, spitting, telling them all to "suck my ****" ..... that isnt my style!
Teach 'em!
This means, make it obvious, that you are a person of respect. To achieve that, you need to earn respect. Being a female, it is harder for you, but far from impossible. If your group of people PvPs at least on a semi-regular basis, a sure way to earn respect it by beating them in a duel. It may take a bit to get PvP hadled, but once you got the knacks you will be impressed by your own abilities.
A second good way for a mostly PvE oriented group is: Solo big stuff! If you can solo high end MOBs, you will be able to impress them. They will see that you are a capable fighter and a valuable asset to any group and not just a liability.
The main reason men do not like to take orders from women is simply because most cannot imagine that a woman can fight. If you break their illusions by showing them contrary, they are a lot more willing to listen to you, since you come "on equal terms". A small sideeffect might be, that they no longer take you for a "full lady", though.
Be Smart!
Being a good fighter does not make you a good leader. But if you are a good fighter, you at least reached a level where they start to listen to you. They might not yet follow your oders, but they listen at least. This is, where cleverness kicks in.
Show them, that you know very well, how to handle a group in a fight. Do not mistake that with being a good fighter though. Being a good fighter is what removes your status as a liability and makes you an asset, but coordinating a group in an efficient way, is the first step to becoming a leader.
How to do that?
Lead by excemple
If you show them, that your tactics work if you are alone and if you show them, that they are better than theirs, they will have no other choice but to heed your advice. Do never expect anyone to do anything you, yourself, would not be willing to do.
Listen
Listen to your groupmates. Even if your tactics and strategies are superior, there might still be something that you may have missed in your preparation and planning. To listen to the advice of your group members is a vital source of information to eficiently control your group.
Do not mistake that by taking orders from them, though. You make the calls and no one else. Make that point a clear one with your group, but also let them know that younlisten to their input. If they encounter a flaw in your plan, be woman enough to stand up for it and correct your mistakes, before anything happens.
This will earn you their trust and loyalty.
Be selfless
Whatever you do, whatever your plan, the well being of your group is your primary goal. If that means to end up dieing to allow your group to succeed or even to get away once the Sh*t hits the fan, your job is done.
Be careful not to mistake that with being suicidal or careless, though. Make sure you survive everything, but make sure that the rest of your group does even more so.
Know
To know the strengths and weaknesses of your group is essential. Speak with them. make sure you know them in and out. Only if you know about all of their abilities, character quirks and personalities, you will be able to lead them. Make sure your SL abilities do not interfere with their abilities (especially with rally).
Unity
Make your group a Unit. An easy way to achieve this is uniforms, but some people do not like uniforms.
If the latter is the case with your groups, do the following:
Make sure everyone knows what to do and how to do it. Make them work as a team. Make them understand that to succeed, they need each other. Everyone is valuable, but no one is superior. Once you taught them this simple important thing, you group will start to grow to become a unit. This won't happen without training, though. So, make sure you do some training at least in a semi regular manner. To constantly shift the members of your group won't do you much good. Sometimes it is unavoidable in a game, but make sure that new members are integrated as fast as possible.
And the last but most important thing:
Do
Always be the first one to start the action. Make your calls fast and without regret. There is a chance you make a mistake, but being quick to judge in combat is crucial for your success.
If you make a mistake, take it as a leasson and learn. Find out why it was a mistake and avoid the same mistake in the future.
This may lead to several false calls in the start. Apologize to your team and explain to them why you made your call. Then find a beter way to deal with the same situation next time.
This is the final lesson. You willonly become a good Squad Leader by experience. It is a hard and rocky way and very rewarding.
Once you stand on the Battlefield (be it PvE or PvP) and you look over the faces of your victorious brethren and you hear their cries of victory in teamspeak, you will know what you endured all this early harship for. It is this simple moment of emotion that makes your life worth living as a Squad leader.
Dogg
Wow! Thank you for your words of encouragement Sir! I will take your advice to heart and do my best. Again, thank you!
/salute
it would be very hard for a woman to lead a bunch of people in combat
the reason is not really due to you personally or any lack of ability but rather the differences between men and women.
its a psychological thing more than anything else. The way men tend to lead and the way women tend to lead....and not just lead but our thinking processes, the way we communicate, etc is all different. Men (and women vice versa) will react differently to being led different ways....and for the most part women tend to elad differently than men just because of the differences in thinking patterns and attitude.
It's like.... A man will TELL you to do soemthing and mean it. A women will ASK you to do soemthing. This was a principle most of us pick up early in life, and if you ever take any psych courses oyull learn everyhtign and more about it than you ever wanted to lol. A man will say " Go do this and get it done" A woman will Tend to be less direct and assertive and says oemthing like "Would you go do this" or "Can you go do this" it changes the manner in which the message is received.
ABove all remember the following things:
Be DIRECT (get to the point and make known what you want)
Be ASSERTIVE in your authority(make sure you arent requesting things get done when needed....make sure they GET DONE....show your ability to stick your neck out and lead)[as an example studies have shown women are far less willing to order a man to death, orde rhim to do soemthign that will get him killed, than a man is]
BeCONCISE (clear and to th epoint)
you dont need to bite people's heads off, but generally studies have shown women are less direct, assertive, and a lot more complex than men..and this will have impact on the way your directives will be received. I know its onyl a game, but the way we communicate is no different thna real life.
Message Edited by PanzerGR on 05-01-2004 05:04 PM
Telakyte wrote:
Take the advice given, but above all remember...some individuals won't ever respect you. Ignore them and move on. There's some of them in every squad.
PanzerGR wrote:
not in mine
i kick them out lol
Umm, women..men, makes little difference really. Look, we're mostly a bunch of Americans in here...brought up on a culture of individualists, i.e. non-team players. Everyone wants to be chief...not an Indian. Few have learned the lesson of being a good leader often means being a good follower. Most people I've run into take it personally somehow that ifthey're not chief it's a slight on their abilities or worth. In this game, SL is more about job specialization. If folks want to play a team, they'll recognize that. If they want to see it selfishly, they'll still recognize that, as it can only benefit them with your class abilites to aid themselves in their goals in turn. If they can't see it then, it's all about stupid ego.
I submit it's more about the above, not you personally.