squads, squad leaders, commanders and their job

[Six.]

Re: squads, squad leaders, commanders and their job

If you play regularly on the same server(s) and you are a good SL, you will find people remember your name and join your squad anytime they see you in game. These guys know your playstyle and they are usually team oriented which is why they join up with you in the first place. Teamwork really does happen on pubs, you just have to foster it.

Well, it's true, most people feel very uncool when everyone's working as a team, and they're the only one who's still fooling around on their own. BF2 was meant to be a team-based game anyway. Too bad 30 seconds isn't enough to get acquainted with everyone before the battle.

[MrBrown]

Re: squads, squad leaders, commanders and their job

I hate it when people use the squadsystem as a mere tool to spawn where they want and call it "teamplay" afterwards...

But after even the dumbest persons figured out that you can rotate the squadleader position each time the squadleader dies to keep your squad going (and going and going...), more and more people are just using the squad system as a "spawn tool". Then, even if the commander tries to give orders, these orders get deleted each time the squadleader position is changed.

I remember some of my best matches when the squad system was used to accept/give orders between commanders and squads. Unfortunately this doesn't happen very often on public servers. One reason is that the people who COULD be good squadleaders and commanders - clan players - have mostly become specialists in abusing the squadsystem for their spawning needs instead of using it to improve real teamplay.

P.S.: Ideas to solve this problem:

1. Give points to the squadleader if he successfully attacks or defends a flag after he got an order from the commander

2. Give bonus points for staying in the same squad for the whole round in some way (like some "squad bonus" for every member that was in the squad for at least 75% of the roundtime)

3. The infamous "Disable squadscreen while dead option" wich was already discussed over and over here, making it impossible to use the squadsystem as a mere spawn tool

[Bird0fPrey]

Re: squads, squad leaders, commanders and their job

i don't think it's fair to bash those who say they join squads just for a spawn point. it's been my experience that most of the time the SL is goofing off, flying choppers or jets, or not giving orders or sticking to objectives. on occasion i join a squad where the leader has an idea of what needs to be done and does a good job of keeping the squad together. i think what people are trying to say is that they'd prefer to be on a squad with good team work, but if it ain't happening, it ain't happening. can't tell you how many times my SL has been hanging around the jet spawnpoints, waiting and waiting for that next jet to appear, while the opposing side is capping flags left and right.

[Six.]

Re: squads, squad leaders, commanders and their job

i don't think it's fair to bash those who say they join squads just for a spawn point. it's been my experience that most of the time the SL is goofing off, flying choppers or jets, or not giving orders or sticking to objectives. on occasion i join a squad where the leader has an idea of what needs to be done and does a good job of keeping the squad together. i think what people are trying to say is that they'd prefer to be on a squad with good team work, but if it ain't happening, it ain't happening. can't tell you how many times my SL has been hanging around the jet spawnpoints, waiting and waiting for that next jet to appear, while the opposing side is capping flags left and right.

Another simple answer to this certain problem: don't join public servers. OR if you really want to play where there's more of an air of team-play and play for fun- join an unranked server. It is actually QUITE refreshing every once in a while than joining the points and rankings rat-race.

Actually... Peter, do your practice in an unranked server- they'll either be easier on you, or more concentrated on tactics and etc.

[Bird0fPrey]

Re: squads, squad leaders, commanders and their job

sure, we could join unranked servers, but is it unreasonable to want to accumulate stats AND play on a good squad? i mean, let's face it, everyone likes to get points so they can rank up and get more unlocks.

[Six.]

Re: squads, squad leaders, commanders and their job

sure, we could join unranked servers, but is it unreasonable to want to accumulate stats AND play on a good squad? i mean, let's face it, everyone likes to get points so they can rank up and get more unlocks.

That is of course true; but hey- sometimes, for unfettered and un-capitalist-like gameplay, you might opt for the friendly unrankeds.

[MrBrown]

Re: squads, squad leaders, commanders and their job

Well if people say they join squads for spawning this sounds to me as if they have stopped trying to find a good "teamplay" squad.

I think the game needs some countermeasures against using the squadsystem as a spawn tool only.

[Six.]

Re: squads, squad leaders, commanders and their job

Well if people say they join squads for spawning this sounds to me as if they have stopped trying to find a good "teamplay" squad.

I think the game needs some countermeasures against using the squadsystem as a spawn tool only.

Yeah... a 'SquadZone' thing would be good- anyone caught wandering too far from the squad; and the SL will have a prompt/option to execute him- giving the deserter -2 points and the SL +2 points.

How about that?

[MrBrown]

Re: squads, squad leaders, commanders and their job

I would NOT reward the SL for killing the "deserter", but the general idea isn't too bad... perhaps if someone walks away too far from his SL then he starts loosing health, just as if he walks into the "red area" outside of the map's bounds.

My favourite idea is still just to disable the "leave squad" and "join squad" buttons while someone is dead - no more "Oh I am dead, OK let's see which squad do I join to spawn at now?" - then only those people that STICK with a squad would have an advantage of a mobile spawnpoint just where they need it.

[Six.]

Re: squads, squad leaders, commanders and their job

I would NOT reward the SL for killing the "deserter", but the general idea isn't too bad... perhaps if someone walks away too far from his SL then he starts loosing health, just as if he walks into the "red area" outside of the map's bounds.

My favourite idea is still just to disable the "leave squad" and "join squad" buttons while someone is dead - no more "Oh I am dead, OK let's see which squad do I join to spawn at now?" - then only those people that STICK with a squad would have an advantage of a mobile spawnpoint just where they need it.

Aw, I'd rather rule my squad with an iron fist... the losing health bit is probably not a good idea. Goodness knows- a SL has probably sent that man to go far away to scout or destroy assets before they fall in to the objective; thats why I said that a prompt should come up whether or not to execute the bugger :p

Then again, a prompt to sap the SMs life would probably be sufficient to; unfortunately- he'll think he's being shot at instead and run for cover.

[MrBrown]

Re: squads, squad leaders, commanders and their job

Interesting quote from a DICE dev in this context:

http://www.totalbf2.com/forums/showpost.php?p=730903&postcount=26

Fun trivia fact, that ability to join squads while you're dead was a bug that simply stayed as a feature. It was never intended to let people join and leave a squad simply to spawn.

Well if it was never intended, why don't they just fix it... *SIGH*

I develop software myself, so I know that it would take approx. 1 minute to fix this in python code and pehaps 2 minutes if it's C/C++ code *G*

[[Expletive Deleted]]

Re: squads, squad leaders, commanders and their job

If you look at that quote, it says "bug that simply stayed as a feature."
It was something unintended, but they decided to just leave it in the game, thus making it a full-fledged feature, not a bug anymore.

[QWFreak]

Re: squads, squad leaders, commanders and their job

The only cons which I can see about a squad staying in close formation like a few meter spread is that is prone to enemy artillery strike.

BUT I still insist on staying close. Watching each other's six. Frankly, I frequently get killed in Karkand when my squad mates leave me alone. I always get killed on my back which also looks very stupid of me.

[WarGimp]

Re: squads, squad leaders, commanders and their job

I always get killed on my back which also looks very stupid of me.

I know a young lass who has that very same problem.

[MrBrown]

Re: squads, squad leaders, commanders and their job

If you look at that quote, it says "bug that simply stayed as a feature."
It was something unintended, but they decided to just leave it in the game, thus making it a full-fledged feature, not a bug anymore.

Well IMHO the word "stayed" gives some room for interpretation here... I think there just wasn't enough time in the end to make it a really full-fledged, polished feature.

For a "full-fledged" feature I would expect something else. The last surviving member should be the spawnpoint automatically when the SL is dead. That would be "full-fledged". The same gameplay as it is now, only more convenient, without the need to do the leave/join combo when the SL dies.