CO Comments re: Lutsk Feb 02

[E-Male]

Lutsk Ukranian CO Feb 02 appox 9:30 pm (server time)

My minimum requirement for taking on the CO position is at least three squads of reasonable size that have SLs known to me (or SLs that carry the TG tag, which I take to be a guarantee of good discipline). That was met, so off I went...

Game was well under way when I joined in, and the Ukranian side was down by around 100 points. I immediatedly appointed squads to defending various flags. My strategy throughout was to simply hold three flags and keep an eye on SL's defensive postures (failed in that area, I should have paid closer attention to how some of our flags were defended...). Also, I should have identified each of my SLs and made a quick list -- best to know who you are commanding, as each SL tends to have certain known strengths. And it is nice simply to know who your men are... Oh well, it was a while since I last commanded, so a few lessons need relearning.

Also, one other aim was to make more use of CO smoke, which I did. PoE DEVELOPER'S NOTE: Unfortunate that the SMOKE feature does not have a timer -- very hard to estimate when the smoke will hit the ground once I hit the SMOKE button -- must time the damn thing and make a note. At present it is very difficult to use it in a coordinated attack as the timing is unknown to me.

No notes were taken, and no CO video was made (still getting my 'grove' back). So details here are sparse.

SL discipline was great, Santa let me know he was around as an admin, and indeed I did ask him to boot one SL that repeatedly refused to follow simple defend requests. Thanks again Santa, and good idea letting the CO know of your in game presense (a good thing for all admins to take note of -- let the CO know you are their for them). That was just a two person squad, so it did not impair our success.

I need to remember to make it clear to all SLs that no attacks should be initiated without prior CO consent -- this just leads to wasted resources. I have no trouble with attacking -- but a single squad marching out on their own is far too risky, particularly IF we already have three flags. Wait for the CO to organize a two-squad assault.

I would like feedback on my communication -- I know I often use the general channel, this is done when I am speaking to two or more squads about a situation that other SLs should also be aware of -- if I am launching a two squad assault, other SLs should know that our defensive posture is thus compromised and extra care needs to be taken to defend flags. I think it is important to keep all SLs appraised of the overall battle plan as it evolves.

In summary, good SLs made for a successful round. We beat the enemy back, held three flags most of the time, avoided unnecessary assaults, and bled the enemy to our 40 (?) point win. No room for error in a game like that.

I often feel that by insisting on defense (necessary to win), I am holding players back from more fun. On the other hand, there seems to be a general consensus that a CO is a desired element, and the lack of defense is the most common complaint among TGers.

Comments?

[Acid]

What ever happened to writing a book and taking a break from gaming . Glad to see you back in action and in the CO seat again.

[E-Male]

I found that all work and no fun is no fun...

As to the book...

Chapter Two
The Terrorist and the Torturer

Perhaps the most recent weapon in the terrorist’s arsenal is the Internet. In 2007 there were an estimated 5000 terrorist web sites and the words ‘terror’ and ‘Internet’ occurred together on over 204,000,000 web pages. Privileged access to mass communication has been a central part of how modern states control their citizenry. Now the state’s enemies also have access to globalized communication via the Internet. Terrorists use the Internet in much the same way that legitimate poltical organizations do – to raise funds, disseminate propaganda, debate among rival factions, and recruite new members. They also use the Internet to coordinate attacks, disseminated coded information and publish training manuals. These uses of the Internet by terrorists has been subject to intense study.

Of course, terrorists are also using the Internet to promote anti-American attitudes. This is fairly obvious and herein I will not endeavor to catalogue all the diverse forms of anti-Americanism discourse among terrorists. What follows is an exploration of some of the more unexpected consequences of a war on terror that is waged in a media environment new to both sides of the war. While the American government continually tries to label the enemy as savage, evil, and inhuman, certain media events facilitated by the Internet have challanged this process of devience labelling. Clearly, we cannot simply accept the government’s definition of the situation, as propaganda is a defining feature of official discourse.

Vietnam has been described as the first major conflict of the television age (World War II was largely a war that was seen on the silver screen and in highly censored broadcasts). It is perhaps not exagerating the case to say that the second Gulf War was the first major conflict to be fought in the age of the Internet. The following chapter will explore how the war on terror’s unique communication environment provides fertile gounds for the production of anti-Americanism.

Many commentators and scholars have argued that the war on terror has resulted in substantial damage to the image and idea of America. While the Internet is not the sole cause of this symbolic collatoral damage I will argue that it has significantly reduced the ability to position a nation as a righteous warrior and an innocent victim. My argument will begin with the premise that America’s war on terror has thus far been a significant foreign policy failure, one that has been as damaging to the ‘homeland’ as it has been to the global community. As David Cole wrote in the The New York Times Review of Books, ‘the administration’s tactics -- a curious amalgam of outmoded thinking and dangerous new ideas -- have created unprecedented levels of distrust toward US law enforcement within the Arab and Muslim communities here as well as intense anti-Americanism abroad. The administration is accurately perceived as unfairly targeting innocent Arabs and Muslims, using coercion against them preemptively and without a solid case, and disregarding fundamental principles of the rule of law and human rights. In the long run the resentment provoked by these measures is the greatest threat to our national security, and the most likely source of the next attack.’

...

[cptCuervo]

E-Male... although I was not a SL in this game. I got great feedback from our SL and was impressed in the outcome of that round... a lot of close games last night.

Well played!

[E-Male]

It has come to my attention that our side (Ukraine) had a rather indefeatable Helo in the air, while the other side had little effective air support. Thus the win was significantly biased by a large imbalance in air power. Unfortunate, as I know this makes it very fustrating for the other side.

I thought it rather extraordinary that we were able to come back from a 100 point deficit merely because of a CO!

EDIT:

THESE comments are NOT meant to distract from what was accomplished -- my SLs did great work and got great teamwork out of their men. More than once we held 4 flags, however briefly...

Well done all.

[Joebar]

Originally Posted by E-Male

I often feel that by insisting on defense (necessary to win), I am holding players back from more fun. On the other hand, there seems to be a general consensus that a CO is a desired element, and the lack of defense is the most common complaint among TGers.
Comments?

Organized defense is as fun as offense for me..

[jmaker]

Originally Posted by Joebar

Organized defense is as fun as offense for me..

What he said.

[Boot]

Originally Posted by Joebar

Organized defense is as fun as offense for me..

Originally Posted by jmaker

What he said.

More fun, since as SL you have more freedom to operate on defense. In a well organized D the SL will know when to switch to spawnpoint mode. On offense, that's the default.