Spend Tickets Wisely

[TheRooster1]

Last night I fought with an SL who would let us know WHEN to spawn, not just where. Its a brilliant tactic. (sorry. .forgot your name. . . on Zatar @8pm MST. . .Chinese side. .. DIRT was in our squad)

There is very little use in spawning on an SL who is between objectives in a jeep. It just makes a juicier target. Instead, we waited until he would arrive at our objective. He would jump out and hide. Then all five of us would appear at once and storm the flag.

It occurred to me that the use of this tactic has several benefits:

1) Saves tickets until "needed"
2) Provides for a more cohesive fighting force - squad is able to stay together more easily. Instead of three guys taking off in a jeep, just the SL takes off and the others wait to spawn at arrival.
3) If SL is killed en route, only one ticket is lost instead of more.
4) Efficiency - fighters appear where needed when needed. Also, SL can call for specific kit mix after observing the flag. If there's armor on the flag, SL calls for AT, etc.
5) Upward feedback - dead SMs can inform SL of what is going on around the map as he travels to objective.

This tactic is esp. useful when attacking an enemy flag from a nearby friendly flag. Instead of everyone spawning back at firendly flag and trying to hitch a ride back to the objective, just wait for SL to arrive at the objective and then spawn. (it helps for the SL to not die in the first place, but no one is perfect)

This is a great tactic that I think most TGers have though of, but I haven't seen it in a thread. By waiting until just the right moment to spawn, a squad can effect maximum damage on the enemy while avoiding wasted tickets. This is esp. useful on air maps with long distances between objectives.

In Practice: An SL can call out "Spawn Delay" when this tactic would be useful. All SMs would then know to wait until commanded to spawn. Since this tactic isn't always useful (i.e. when defending a flag, spawn delay would be contraindicated), a command should be required. A skilled SL could then "deliver" his entire squad with great effect to any location.

I hope this thread is useful. I apologize if it is redundant. . .

[Shafik]

Not redudndant at all. Few SL's utilise this tactic. I should try this. Although I'm more partial to the whole squad together on foot, rushing an objective, this is much wiser...

[kornkobcom]

I think it is one of those things that depends. There are times that having just one guy moving toward the flag can be a great benefit.

A CO who sees a single guy moving toward a 'normal' flag (not a main base or rear area objective) will often discount them as a relatively minor element and maybe spot them but probably isn't going to waste a UAV or tell one of his squads to move there. Whereas when you see 6 dots moving in, it's seen as a serious threat to a flag.

Also, I can't tell you how many times I've glimpsed a single guy as I whipped past an alley or over a ridge and followed him to discover that what I saw was the trailing edge of a squad. More people moving together = more chances for the movement to be seen.

Is this something to use all the time? Definately not. But if you think you can get to your objective unseen and unopposed, it could be a valuable way to get a half dozen guys on a flag so fast that the enemy doesn't know what hit them.

[Santa]

We used this in most of our scrims. No squad members spawned at the start, and all the squad leaders would get to their destinations quickly without having to worry to pick anyone up. Then theyd be at their destinations, everyone would spawn, and we had a very quick rollout from the beginning.

You can also use it in the middle of the round. If your whole squad dies, tell them not to spawn while you find a car and drive to where ya want. Its really great if you can drive right onto a flag and have 5 guys spawn on you. The flag turns in about 2 seconds and the defenders cant do much.

[BHack]

I thought of this awhile ago, but thought that it would be considered "cheesy" and I'd take heat for it.

It is a very smart tactic to use though, now that it has been acknowledged on the forums i'll use it on server 1.

[FBmantis]

You shouldn't even wait for your squad leader to suggest this. I do it all the time as there are lots of opportunities where it makes complete sense. Examples would be on the initial USMC assaults on Clean Sweep, Dailan Plant and Wake. Why let a plane take out a full boatload when you only need your squad leader to drive? Then there are the big maps like Zatar where this can be applied when moving from one flag to the other.

[TheRooster1]

The tactical applications of Spawn delay are many.

Imagine the SL Blackhawk. . .2 or 3 SLs in a BH with their squads on hold. They can be anywhere on the map in no time and deliver 12-18 men instantly. The CO could coordinate such a mission. The CO could even fly the chopper and insert the SLs on target.

A CO at a UCB could make quite a difference. If his team is hemmed in somewhere, he orders SL1 and SL2 to spawn back at UCB and to order their squads to Hold Spawn. He then flies them to their target and returns to his UCB. The CO could completely change the face of a battle in a very short time.

[TychoCelchuuu]

I always thought this was sort of frowned upon at TG, sort of like a Squad Leader jumping out of a packed helo and having his whole squad spawn on him; it's a way of getting around the limits on transport vehicles.

[Riki_Rude_BTYC]

hmm i do find this kind of cheesy in a way, but at the sametime, it makes perfect sense, im going to have to try this tactic when i get the chance, although i enjoy assaulting a flag with my men right there already ready seeing things i might not see. i am usually giving out orders on the spot for what kits i need people to be using, also. but this is definatly worth a try, thanks for bringing it up on the forums.

[MrPaladin-TPF-]

I dont see the difference between this tactic and using 'plane insertions' with a pilot squad leader...

I thought pilot insertions was not approved of on this serveer, yet I see little difference between using a jeep in this case and using a jet except the (very little difference in) speed factor...

with that out of the way I will say however that I do hold my spawns when tactically wise... EG. at the start of the game I'll often hold my spawn until the first flag is capped, then I'll spawn at the flag and use the team resources that usually get passed as the cappers head to other flags, often putting me ahead of 80% of the rest of my team....

[icky]

Originally Posted by FBmantis

You shouldn't even wait for your squad leader to suggest this. I do it all the time as there are lots of opportunities where it makes complete sense. Examples would be on the initial USMC assaults on Clean Sweep, Dailan Plant and Wake. Why let a plane take out a full boatload when you only need your squad leader to drive? Then there are the big maps like Zatar where this can be applied when moving from one flag to the other.

Exactly. It should be a given that you don't spawn unless the time is right. And if you aren't sure, ask your SL if it is ok to spawn.

[TheRooster1]

I can understand how some see a cheese factor in this tactic, but I don't agree. I think inserting a SL on target is a legitimate part of the game. As long as its not a bail out of a perfectly good jet/chopper, I think its legit.

The SL is meant to be a mobile spawn point, and he should be used as such.

[KeithMann]

+10 for good thinking, minus several million for style.

[TheRooster1]

Originally Posted by KeithMann

+10 for good thinking, minus several million for style.

So I take it you think the tactic is cheap? I think in some cases, such as this, the line becomes kind of blurry. What is cheap, unrealistic, exploitive? Using the SL as a mobile spawn? Or transporting him for that purpose?

I don't know sometimes.

IMO:

Bunny hopping = cheap.
Noob tube = sort of cheap
Spawn Delay/SL insertion = part of the game.

[KeithMann]

Absolutely the line is blurry; the question I ask myself is, when the designers of the game implemented [insert departure from reality here], why did they do so? In the case of SL-spawning, they did it (IMO) to keep the pace of the game flowing. They didn't do it as a way to overcome vehicle capacity limits or help squads avoid enemy detection. Hence, again IMO, this is a cheap tactic.