Inter-Squad Radio Comms via Humvee and Firebase
Posted: 2009-11-11 03:14
Ok, well I did a preliminary search for related stuff, and didn't find anything, although I'm sure an admin is gonna dig something up... 
Anyway...
One of the main problems I've noticed in PR recently has been the difficulty of squads to communicate.
They all have to type to eachother, meaining the screen is full of things like:
'Where do you want the supplies again, squad one?"
"NOOO do Kashan as the next map!!!!111!!one!!"
"Give me back that truck!"
"Ok, hang on squad three, we're gonna come up with the APC and support you in B3"
"Guys, LAZE TARGETS!!!"
"I like hamburgers!"
"Anyone else getting really bad lag?"
And so on.
This makes it very difficult for squads to convey information to eachother when there's like seven seperate conversations going on.
Now, I know many people are going to say, "Just sue Mumble! Then you can communicate without a problem!"
I would agree, and I think Mumble handles the problem nicely, but the fact is very very few people in PR use Mumble.
There was a Mumble fad about two months ago, and now I don't see a single server with it.
Perhaps this will change in the future when the DEVs help integrate Mumble with the next patch, but I kind of doubt it; too many vBF2 noobs will have no idea what Mumble is and not care about using it.
And while a commander can help coordinate squads, most people still find the role too boring, even with the excellent addition of the UAV.
I would like it if everyone had Mumble and every game had a commander, but it's simply not the case.
So, what I suggest, and to add more realism, is to allow the different squad leaders to patch into a Squad Leader Radio Channel by going up to any constructed Firebase, or in insurgency, entering a Humvee as well.
They would press "G" when standing on the Firebase, or "X" when in the Humvee. ("X" is currently mapped to the loop of the radio transmission in the Humvee)
They would see the names of the Squad Leaders and their squad numbers in the lower left hand corner of the screen like they would with their squad members, but they would not be able to move or use a weapon while on the radio.
This way, Firebases gain new importance as communication facilities, meaning more defense and situations where squads would fall back to Firebases to request support from other squads.
BLUFOR players in Insurgency would be more cautious with their Humvees and would be less likely to abandon them, as well as guarding their Firebases from insurgent attacks.
This would solve a pretty annoying problem, add some new realism to the gameplay, and make it easier for the people (and servers) who don't have Mumble to have a new level of tactical capability.
What do you guys think?
Anyway...One of the main problems I've noticed in PR recently has been the difficulty of squads to communicate.
They all have to type to eachother, meaining the screen is full of things like:
'Where do you want the supplies again, squad one?"
"NOOO do Kashan as the next map!!!!111!!one!!"
"Give me back that truck!"
"Ok, hang on squad three, we're gonna come up with the APC and support you in B3"
"Guys, LAZE TARGETS!!!"
"I like hamburgers!"
"Anyone else getting really bad lag?"
And so on.
This makes it very difficult for squads to convey information to eachother when there's like seven seperate conversations going on.
Now, I know many people are going to say, "Just sue Mumble! Then you can communicate without a problem!"
I would agree, and I think Mumble handles the problem nicely, but the fact is very very few people in PR use Mumble.
There was a Mumble fad about two months ago, and now I don't see a single server with it.
Perhaps this will change in the future when the DEVs help integrate Mumble with the next patch, but I kind of doubt it; too many vBF2 noobs will have no idea what Mumble is and not care about using it.
And while a commander can help coordinate squads, most people still find the role too boring, even with the excellent addition of the UAV.
I would like it if everyone had Mumble and every game had a commander, but it's simply not the case.
So, what I suggest, and to add more realism, is to allow the different squad leaders to patch into a Squad Leader Radio Channel by going up to any constructed Firebase, or in insurgency, entering a Humvee as well.
They would press "G" when standing on the Firebase, or "X" when in the Humvee. ("X" is currently mapped to the loop of the radio transmission in the Humvee)
They would see the names of the Squad Leaders and their squad numbers in the lower left hand corner of the screen like they would with their squad members, but they would not be able to move or use a weapon while on the radio.
This way, Firebases gain new importance as communication facilities, meaning more defense and situations where squads would fall back to Firebases to request support from other squads.
BLUFOR players in Insurgency would be more cautious with their Humvees and would be less likely to abandon them, as well as guarding their Firebases from insurgent attacks.
This would solve a pretty annoying problem, add some new realism to the gameplay, and make it easier for the people (and servers) who don't have Mumble to have a new level of tactical capability.
What do you guys think?
