Magnum50

I'm really enjoying this game, and really enjoying playing it with some of you... usually we do pretty good, but last night we got our butts handed to us like 6 times in a row... I don't know what happened, but thought maybe a MP tactical thread would come in handy...

Fell free to add, agree, disagree, suggust a better way in this thread... it's a open for discussion thread, subject to change and debate... my comments are just my opinion, I may be wrong, or incorrect...hence the thread...

1. Teamwork... as we know teamwork and communications is probally the most important need in this and most MP games. Not just, "hey I need help here", or "I'm going here"... but more along the lines of... "OK, lets take and hold the northern hill top first, capture the points, get the defensive built, and then prepare to move to the next objective"... this is probally why I would like to see like a overall commander role, but maybe we can just use the rank structure, whatever TG member, thats on comms, and has the highest rank calls the shot... just an idea.

2. Scouts... one of the things I've noticed is rarely do we use any scout units or helicopters... I'd say any air unit should pick one scout unit, and try and work him back into the rear of the enemy forces, he has a long range and can hid well... if an enemy artillery unit is spoted the scout could then mark "we need artillery here" to counter the enemy artillery. Friendly artillery would then have a priority mission to take out the enemy artillery.

3. Rear repair stations... I also think we should provide a better rear base for units to "repair" at, we could call this a repair station, it would have a couple of anti air units, maybe near the artillery units, and have a repair truck... if need be move this once in a while to stay safe, exspecially if a enemy unit spots it.

4. Fortifications... we need to capture and hold the damn control points, the more different units we have in the control points the faster the 3 extra defenses build, we need to at least capture and hold the positions long enough for the fortifications to build, because then when we leave, it's still ours, but now takes longer for the enmy to move in and capture it, giving us time to counter assualt. because you DO NOT want to just sit in the command points for fun, they will be bombarded... get in there, let the defenses build, then get out to a nearby safe area.
BTW... every team member that has a unit inside a command point, gets tactical aid points.

5.Tactical aids... they can make and break a successful mission. first we need to keep getting tactical aid points by killing units and capturing control points. we need to save up for the most powerful stuff, but you got to be willing to use up some tactical aid points if a oppurtunity comes in view... if you see a swarm of enemy helicopters just loitering around, not moving call in a air to air strike, one call can take out 6 enemy helicopters, but don't waste them if they are moving, because usually it's too late... missing with a called in tactical aid is just as bad as not using them when needed.
The aerial recon tactical aid is under used IMO, if we could get a read on there artillery and AA units in the rear we could destroy them before they even get in place to fire a shot. but use teamwork, say over the radio (teamspeak/in game VOIP) activating a radar scan in the top left map, then the artillery unit can scan the zone (because we all see the scan) and immediately fire on sitting units.
Air to Air strike is very handy when there are just to many damn enemy choppers. give the choppers a target to sit and shot at while you call in the A2A strike.
Chemical strikes are good against infantry in woods and buildings if you want to save the woods or buildings for your own use, but a napalm works better burning them all out and destroying the area so it can't be used again.
Heavy air support and tank buster strikes work best with armor units.
Air strikes, daisy clusters and fuel air bombs are good for infantry and vehicles but only damage tanks.
carpet bombing is powerful, exspecially if the enemy units are in a nice strait column formations, say, moving to the front line.
there are 3 types of artillery, know which ones to use for max effect.
and finally the Tactical Nuke... ya it's cool, but if your saving up all those points to use a nuke, use it right... first off, have a plan... hit the enemy where there mostly concentrated at, mark where you want to drop it, then all other units should try and push the enemy units into that death circle, work together to get the enemy in one confined area as much as possible, herlicopters fly in the zone to bate the AA units to follow you (you will see a countdown, they won't, so you'll know when to get out), push them all in, then with about 10 seconds before detonation, run like hell out of the blast area. then relize that all command points are neutral again after a nuke strike, so get in there and capture for more points or a win.
Too many times I see multiple countdowns occuring in one area, that is a waste of tactical aid points... communicate, and use them properly. Nothing worst then seeing 2 napalms and a daisy cluster come into one point, and the enemy already left. lol

see you on the virtual battlefield.

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Magnum
www.gettacticaldammit.com

blackmain

3 just won't work because you have to take a lot of time to drive your tanks all the way into your back field and then back to the battle. That waists a lot of time and gives the enemy a lot of time to do whatever they want.

I also most say that the nuke is probable one of the most overrated things in the game. Early today I was shown this to some amazing effect. In the game my team never used a nuke. We mainly used tank busters, Heavy airstrikes( suprising effective since they kill both air and ground units with your units in the radius), Heavy artillery, and ~2 fuel airbombs. The enemy on the other hand used about 5-6 nukes on us. We complete and today dominated them because we would use our TA on things when we needed. This a lot of the time prevented them from getting anything going really. Best example in the game is when they gathered on the left side for a massive push. We had 3 players call in 2 heavy arty strikes and 2 tank busters. The hole attack feel apart in 12 seconds. The tank busters kill half their tanks and the heavy arty killed most of the AA. Our tanks held a solid line with myself and another player repairing them while our coppers cleaned up whatever was left.

But I won't say that nukes don't have a place. I believe they are bested used when you are really down and need something to really break the enemy line so you can have a push for a comeback.

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VegaBond

When playing air I always use scouts to see in front of me but its a micro-manage problem but will use more of it...

And nukes its just for the medals.. I highly prefer carpet bombing or the daisys in other ares that clear out things

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Odyani

I've tried to use your third suggestion numerous times when I play Support but rarely does anyone on my team actually utilize it resulting in 900 Reinforcement points being wasted so now mainly I only do it when I have a friend on the team who is playing Air so that they can come back to repair whenever they need too.

As for the objection Blackmain brought up about the repair stations I don't totally agree. As I said, when used, they work great for copters since they have a better chance of ranking up and not having to run from even light fire out of fear of losing their units. But it is impractical for tanks to return to the rear of the line which is why when I play Support and use the repair station method I make sure to have another repair tank following an armor player around. I also think it works well to, once you have enough tactical aid, to call in three airdropped transports to your repair stations so you can have your repair tanks at the front (giving them as well as the tanks a better chance of survival) while the three troop transports can combined do about as well as a repair tank.

I completely agree about the scouts thing, though I would like to add that scout choppers aren't the only things that can be used as scouts, for instance I've found it very advantageous to position a sniper deep in the enemies deployment zone in cover. Since they have a very large view range they work great as a spotter. Airborne Infantry also works great for this but on both you have to remember to set them to hold fire otherwise they'll give away their position.

Nukes aren't worth the cost in my opinion. When I see people saving up for a double or triple nuke I think about how many Carpet Bombings or FAB/Daisy Cutters you could get for that, and probably have plenty left over to airdrop in stuff to take the points immediatly and not get killed by the radiation.

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ikill4aliving

When I play the air role, I usually save my TA until I get 10 TA, then I drop a transport truck to repair my units somewhere neat the border of a map, usually near my spawn. This way I can come back and repair (and you get more TA for repairing ) Then I wait until I get 10 or 20 more and drop more. This usually gets my air units to be the top rank or whatever they call it and then I can unload on the enemy.
Another tactic I use while the air role is if there is anti air comming to me, I fall back and wait until I have some Hellfire missles (heavy air unit offensive move, not sure what it is really called) then I come in and shoot some missles at them and finish them off.

I will post more tactics later. Im going to go play now.

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Bc2ID

I have noticed that the small mortar strike can be very devastating to infantry units. It does not cost a whole heck of a lot and can destroy many units at a time. It can also be used to funnel the infantry into an area where they are more vulnerable to a larger assault.

We had some good tactics this afternoon once we were all on.

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ikill4aliving

My Support tactic:

Anti Air Support Role: I usually start out with three (3) heavy AA units and get two (2) repair tanks, but I am starting to start out with four (4) AA and just one (1) repair tank because I know they are going to get owned by something. I am also starting to respond to the friendly air units instead of just going out and going "helo hunting". With TG players on my team, I usually go and have my units follow those friendly units (hotkey is I ) so they have a lesser chance of getting killed by the heavy air.

Artillery Support Role: I dont really use this tactic anymore, but If I do use it, It will be with TG players and I will usually use the smoke offensive attack to shield friendly units when they are trying to capture perimeter points.

My Armor Tactic:

My only tactic: I mainly use this on Assault and Tug of War matches. I never spam light/medium tanks. They are terrible. Heavy tanks will destroy the light tanks almost instantly. When the round first starts, I spawn three (3) heavy tanks and go out and cap whatever needs to be capped. By the time the countdown timer for more reinforcements to arrive is around 10 seconds, I put the fourth heavy tank in the reinforcement drop thing and spawn that when the timer reaches zero. Armor should always use TA. I saved up my TA without even noticing it on an assault round the other day, and I had 45 TA. It was the last point to capture and I put two heavy air support TAs over the last points and rushed my tanks in. The tanks didnt get hurt at all due to the heavy air support not hurting friendly units and I took the point on my own...and got first place on the server.



My Infantry Tactics:


Main Tactic: Don't use infantry, just go spectate or something, just do anything except play the infantry role. (I know Odyani owns the infantry role, so I'll leave it up to him to post tactics.)

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Bernout

Just wanted to comment on a couple of things which seem to be overlooked by a lot of people.

First...the game is all about the CPs....not killing units. I've been involved in a few games where my team got more points than the other side but ended up losing the round. Grouping up in an area can be effective but you almost always need someone trying to cap those easy to take CPs; i.e. you need to be putting as much pressure as possible over the entire map and not get tunnel focused on one area.

Second...one advantage of a nuke is it takes ownership away of CPs. See above. For areas of a map which have tightly clustered CPs you can deny the entire area to an enemy and give your team time to get into position to take it over.

Bernout

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|TG-MD6| TG Primer

ikill4aliving

If I could add to the nuke comment, it is (IMO) only effective if you have units that can move into the CP once the nuke is dropped.

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Betterdeadthanred

I see too many people using this anti-infantry TA incorrectly so I figured I would try and clarify the most cost efficient uses of these TAs.

Mortar barrage-cheap and highly effective against infantry in the open or clustered infantry in a forest. (Better to use napalm in the latter, but its cheaper and comes in faster)

Napalm- only useful against infantry in wooded areas, its for the most part a waste on infantry in the open unless you can corral them into an alleyway, then feel free to light em up. The damage done to infantry caught in the forest is devastating, they will be toast in seconds.

Chemical strike- this one is expensive and has a radius similar to the mortar barrage (so use that instead when applicable!). Honestly, this thing is only useful on clustered infantry inside a city, but it does the job very well. To use it any other way is a waste.

Laser guided bomb- this thing has only two uses: destroying bridges and reinforced structures. Bunkers that are giving you a hard time or large buildings such as research facility on the coastal map are just about the only valid targets. Of course the occasional infantry infested structure that needs to come down NOW would be an exception, but for the love of god, stop trying to use LGBs on units. Airstrikes, artillery barrages, tank busters, ect. are much more effective against units.

TA I wish people would use more often:

Fuel air bombs- these things are godly in urban combat when you have a bunch of units bottled up. Most people know that already, but don't forget these things are damn effective at clearing a path through buildings and forest for your tanks.

Heavy air support- granted, these things are expensive and the radius is kind of mediocre, but thats the point. They destroy everything unfriendly (including helos!) within that circle continuously for a good 20-30 seconds. on the bridge map, this TA can win and lose battles. One well placed heavy air support on a choke point and trust me, you will not regret it.

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ikill4aliving

My screenshot shows what two heavy air support can do. It owns now

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Odyani

Well since kill4 seems to have thrown infantry tactics onto me I guess I'll have to ^^; I warn you though, while I do fairly well with the infantry role I would hardly say these are tactics to be followed to the letter. Adaption is key.

Infantry in my opinion is a very effective role if used properly but making mistakes can cost you dearly. Due to the fact that they are both effective and vulnerable against all roles calls for constantly adapting your tactics based on the situation. Infantry is very effective when defending and can be an effective attacker if proper use of cover is utilized.

Pull away from the tree line - More often than not there is no need for you to be right on the edge of a forest since you should still have enough range to cover whatever it is you are trying to cover. Aside from having less of a chance of being pin pointed by the enemy, napalm is frequently dropped along the edge of the forest and by being a bit back you can quickly retreat and take minimal casualties.

Stay on the move - It's not a good idea for infantry to stay in one place while in combat. Whether you are in a forest or a building or engaging out in the field stay on the move because sooner or later artillery or TA will be called down on you. For forests follow the above tip along with moving around when you can. For buildings after you have been in a building for a little while harrasing the enemy (I would say no more than 20 seconds while fighting) get out and move to a building next to the one you just vacated. If there are no other buildings just stay close to the wall for a little while, if it isn't destroyed within 15 seconds or so get back in.

Go through buildings - I don't think many people realize this works. If you enter a building and then give an exit order on the other side they will exit on the other side. This gives you a distinct advantage especially with large buildings. Used well in conjunction with moving between buildings (exit on the side where your enemy is not) and also good for a quick retreat.

Spread out - If you have to march in the open then make sure you are spread out best done by putting your troops in line formation spread out before you start them on their way. Then issue the move order with the same formations and they should keep it unless there are too many obstacles. It's not a bad idea to split up your infantry into a couple of control groups so you can scatter quickly.

Surviving Tactical Aid - Best thing to do when you are hit by tactical aid is run in whatever direction will get you out of the area of effect. Light artillery is one exception. Since the first few strikes are slow in their rapidity it's probably best to run to the sides and back from wherever you were headed since it is usually placed in front of you, and also most likely two or three are being used in a spread in front of you. The best thing you can do though to survive tactical aid is predicting it. Usually if you have been harassing the enemy from a location you can bet that tactical aid will be coming in on you soon. In addition when assaulting or defending a position avoiding getting caught in choke points (i.e. city streets, river crossings, bridges, or anything that funnels you) as you are prime for napalm. Also when fighting enemy infantry try to get close so that they will have less incentive to use something like a chemical strike or even a light arty strike, and keep an eye out for an un usual retreat on their part.

Stay out of the path of vehicles - Tanks, AA, everything with wheels or treads seems to enjoy running over soldiers. Best way to avoid this is simply get out of the way. If you see vehicles approaching move to the sides immediately. Aside from getting out of the way you also expose a Tank's weaker armor to your fire. Of course they will no doubt try to run you over anyway so keep moving out of their way. Best way to do this is to have people on all sides meaning that even when you're moving out of the way someone still has a clean shot at them. The more spread out you are the fewer soldiers can be killed at once. Obviously the best way to avoid getting run over is to be in a building or forest of course but this is the event your in the open. Oh... and this advice is also for friendly vehicles, if you see you're slowing them down, move to the side.

Ambushing - Setting up a proper ambush is a great method of defense. The best thing to do though is to set up forces on both sides of an area you know the enemy will come down (such as a road going through a forest) and issue a hold fire command. Wait until your enemy is actually between your forces and then allow fire. Side and rear armor will be exposed and your enemy will taken by surprise. Also one more thing, if you are about to lose a CP, it's not a bad idea to take a squad that hasn't been spotted or is at least stilled hidden in a forest and set them to hold fire. Assuming they hadn't been pin pointed they will remain hidden as a nice little spy on the now enemy CP and ready to attack from an unexpected direction when you make your counter attack.

Not useful everywhere - Infantry is not of use on all parts of every map. Cities, forests, and any cluster of buildings are the extent of their areas of effectiveness. You won't want to be charging these guys across any fields on their own. That is what transports are for. Oh, and when most of the map is destroyed, don't count infantry out yet, they still can move into the ruins of some destroyed buildings where tanks cant follow. You just don't have any real cover but at least you cant be run over.

Overall I would say that infantry is a great role but difficult to play. Just remember that you have to keep moving, predict enemy attacks, and realize you will probably lose alot of units. Just keep a steady flow of transports going back and forth and you should have little problem reinforcing. One last thing, though it can work alone infantry works much better when in support of another role or being supported by the air. Just remember it's best to attack the threats to your allies roles than your own. (i.e. AA, AT defenses or anything that could hurt them) If your working together they'll take down threats to you.

Phew. Maybe I got carried away?

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blackmain

He speaks the truth.

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Magnum50

what about capturing points? thats been the only thing i've done with inf... and usually lose them to arty.

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Magnum
www.gettacticaldammit.com

Odyani

If you mean taking the command point away from the enemy the same surround, flank, stay in cover while staying on the move thing works well. Once you've taken the command point then if you have any trucks not doing anything move them up to the perimeter points to fortify (might not be a bad idea to have them be the ones to actually take the points in the first place) since most likely tactical aid or artillery will be called in on the points. Your infantry should be setting up to defend against a counter attack while your trucks will be taking the hits. (If tactical aid was called in and not artillery {by which i mean support artillery} then it might be safe to move a infantry unit into the perimeter point to speed up fortification after the strike is over. But that's more of a judgment call based on how well you think your enemy is playing.) If artillery is called in then it's best to find it and try to call in something to destroy it. If you don't have any trucks then risk some infantry (preferably one that has already taken losses) to fortify.

One thing about fortifying CP's, It's good to set up on the very edges of the perimeter point. Where you're still in it so you are fortifying but your barely in it. Since most people target TA and Artilelry on the center you will probably take less radius damage and have a better chance of escaping.

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