Iron Gator - The most balanced map!

[JuzzyDee]

Please note the sarcasm,

Just wanted to whinge about this map after being mauled several times as MEC. Each time Ive played this map I've ended up MEC by default, Im not the type to change teams cause I know i'm going to lose, so I struggle through and get slaughtered.

The point of this whinge is, is this map really possible to win as MEC? Sure it should be possible once you take a flag to just spawn on the ship, but you take a point, and the entire usmc forces converge on you. It's horrible, especially on public where it's really difficult getting people to work in a team.


I really really hate that map, and mostly want your opinion on what could be done to fix it. I have no idea what could be done really, I think it's just a horrible design. Maybe instead of taking gadgets away, they could take commander positions, scans and UAV away. That would certainly help in terms of stealth.

I think the main problem with this map is the USMC forces know you're coming. This is the kind of idea that is great for single player type games. Stealth your ass onto the boat, take some guards out, and boom. Done.

However, when you know a whole team is coming to attack you from the beginning, it sorta defeats the purpose of attacking the carrier in the first place. Know what I'm saying? It's like MEC commander calls USMC and says, be ready, we're attacking you're ship today. Maybe USMC should be frozen at spawn, able to only look around, until the MEC forces have actually boarded the carrier, who knows, all I know is i've never seen MEC win on this map, and I really don't like it.

Thanks for reading..

JuzzyDee.

[Flares]

Re: Iron Gator - The most balanced map!

It's hard, and playing MEC on that map can be a bitch, but with a little team work, it is possible to beat the USMC.
On a couple of occasions I've played as MEC and won. Both times, the Hind suppressed the carrier deck, whilst a transport helo piloted by a squad leader, hovered high over the ship dropping paratroops, complimented by an en masse assault on the ship's rear dock.

[I_M_Weasel0r]

Re: Iron Gator - The most balanced map!

I have the opposite problem, I can't win as USMC. each time I play we get our helicopter stolen and then get raped by both helicopters, the deck gets captured and the helis just sit there and repair and theres no coming back.
I dont think the maps actually unbalanced its just that once your losing its allmost impossible to turn the game around. I find the same problem on all the maps that have the carrier as an uncapable flag like Dalian plant. If china get all the ground flags they just use the extra air power to supress the carrier. The US fighters get blown up as soon as someone steps in and the boats and BHs get knocked out by the attack helis that just hover at a safe distance to TVM.
It would be better if an uncapable flag turned capable once the rest had been captured instead of having to sit there getting pounded by Air/Arty/Heli with no hope of fighting back.
I've a cure for Iron Gator, turn it off and play a better map.

[MackTheKnifeAU]

Re: Iron Gator - The most balanced map!

The main problem is :

Once a team gets stuck in the bottom, and the other team has the top, the team on the bottom almost always loses. There are not many ways to get up to the top deck, and they are camped to hell.

There are even less ways to get onto the carrier in the first place, there is no way at the front, which means you get the entire USMC camping the rear of the ship, with AT'ers and Support camping either the deck or the dock, so no boats get near (easy prey), jetskies might get there, but meet 15 guys before you get up the ladder.

The only MEC players to get points are usually whoever gets the chopper and can fly okay (strafe the top deck), and sometimes whoever gets the tunguska.

[imported_Spuddy]

Re: Iron Gator - The most balanced map!

whilst a transport helo piloted by a squad leader, hovered high over the ship dropping paratroops

I'm not really a chopper pilot myself, but if I'm on MEC one of the first things I do is ask can someone fly the transport chopper high above the carrier. But I've yet to see it happen though.

It's such a simple idea, yet very few people seem to grasp it and would rather land the chopper on the deck!

[imported_Rafterman]

Re: Iron Gator - The most balanced map!

An if you do a search, you'll see plenty of guys talking about how much the MEC owns this map and that the USMC doesn't have a chance.

When I see competing thoughts like that, I generally consider a map to be pretty well balanced.

It's been my experience that the better organized team wins IG.

[Novah]

Re: Iron Gator - The most balanced map!

The key to winning this map is being the first to capture the engine room flag.

Out clan prefers playing as MEC on this map. How we play it is that either myself or larzz get into the game first as we run UBER machines that load maps almost instantly. We take the engine room flag just as the rest of our team (and opponents) are finishing loading the round. At this point the rest of the clan can spawn on the ship. From here on we work in small 3 man teams to cap the flags and then as a large team to cap the deck flags. This is one map where you need smoke on the deck to hide yourself whilst you take the viewing deck and flight deck........Simple

[HABO3]

Re: Iron Gator - The most balanced map!

I have the opposite problem, I can't win as USMC. each time I play we get our helicopter stolen and then get raped by both helicopters, the deck gets captured and the helis just sit there and repair and theres no coming back.

out of any balancing issue in this entire expansion this is easily the stupidest mistake by DICE to let the carrier heli respawn when the MEC take the flag it spawns on...were they expecting anything less than total rapeage by the two helicopters? DICE must be smoking some good ****in' crack.

[Hulka]

Re: Iron Gator - The most balanced map!

I don't think I've ever played this map as US, and I usually jump in after the round has started. If that's the case, I look for a squad that's already on the ship and join it. If you have a 4-6 man squad as MEC you can really own the bottom of the ship. And if you have a good Hind pilot and gunner the deck shouldn't be too big of a problem. There are so many twists and turns from the upper decks that there shouldn't be any problem at least capturing the first flag for MEC. If you have a squad leader zip out on a jet ski you get there pretty fast. He can cap a flag, then let the squad spawn on him. Then you just have to hope your team pays attention and starts spawning on the ship instead of land. This is a really fun map if you have a full server and a couple of decent squads. Even if MEC loses the round it usually winds up being a pretty close game.

[LifeCrysis]

Re: Iron Gator - The most balanced map!

The transport chopper is the key, and I aggree with weasel I have lost a lot as US. But the map definetly rips when the game is even, because there is so much rome to knife, pistol, flashbang, and tear gas your opponents. Which is the main reason special forces was created. Only thing I truly dislike, is when a chopper will float outside the open bay and slaughter everyone.

[JuzzyDee]

Re: Iron Gator - The most balanced map!

I think the biggest problem I have with the map is the servers including it.

One thing i've noticed on AU Publics, is there's only ever one full squad. You try to create another, but everyones more interested in lone wolf. In their haste to get to the ship, they leave you standing on the beach cursing.

Once you get off to an awful public server style start, theres no coming back. Heli's getting destroyed, back totally covered, never getting enough people on the beach at the one time to organise an attack cause no one is willing to wait. You're right, it could be winnable by the MEC, however I've never seen it, cause I'm not in a clan, mainly due to time constraints and I'm normally playing plain old public ISP servers.