Commanding Tips
From Tactical Wiki
-Author: TheAdj'
I thought I'd give my advice to those of you that aspire to be a commander. In case you don't recognize the name, I'm Parasite.wmd <.TheAdj`>. I'm sure most of you have seen me comm, so you know that I have a good understanding of the game. I'll start with the basics and work my way up.
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[edit] Hotkeys
All commanders should familiarize themselves with and/or customize their hotkeys. They're critical to success in games against better aliens. Hotkey usage allows you to move to a location on the screen with the mouse while selecting something on the menu list at the same time. This is important mostly for precision medpacking marines as they take damage. I'm sure you've seen me do this, a marine keeps getting bit once, then a medpack hits him at nearly the same time.
[edit] Micromanagement
Micromanage marines as much as you can, while keeping the overall picture in your mind. It is possible to micro 5 marines while keeping the macro game alive. Watch the minimap, for it is your friend. If you see a white dot moving (a marine), then suddenly a red dot (most likely a skulk) appears near it, move to that location and select a medpack, as the marine is most likely being attacked by a skulk. Despite what others may say, micromanaging individual marines is a major cornerstone of most marine victories. Keep them alive and equipped, and they can pull off amazing feats.
[edit] Communication and Leadership
Use voicecomm sparingly, but let them know the general plan. If you want them to be sneaky, tell them. If you want them to be a distraction, tell them. Just communicate what you want, and do so clearly. Nothing makes marines angrier than a comm that can't explain what s/he wants the marines to do in a timely manner. Try and think of creative ways to perform a task, and it will most likely confuse the aliens quite a bit. Remember that an intelligent Rambo is worth more than an entire team of people that are dumb and follow exactly what you say or do without asking a question. I'm sure you've seen 3 marines sit at a res node with a waypoint on it for over 5 minutes, just because the waypoint appeared when you built the node. Use your brain, and encourage the marines to do the same.
[edit] The Tech Trees
Know the marine tech tree as well as the alien chamber system, and use both to your advantage. If you find out aliens dropped sensory right away, use the counter to it: upgrade armor (No, the counter to sensory is not motion tracking, despite popular belief. Motion does not pick up aliens inside the cloak range of a sensory chamber). If you see movement chambers, get motion tracking (It counters silence and celerity). Remember what works against what, and upgrade accordingly. If aliens drop anything but defense chambers, attempt to prevent them from getting a second hive quickly: most players are not good sensory/movement fades, which is your main concern mid-game. If you prevent the emergence of fades, or limit their effectiveness using marine tech, you gain the supreme advantage.
[edit] The Final Goal
Keep in mind the final goal as a marine commander is to destroy all alien hives. There are several ways you can go about this. You should decide what route to take based on what the aliens do. If you see a substantial number of nodes went up at the beginning of the game, pressure their nodes relentlessly. They most likely have few people saving for higher lifeforms or a hive, and killing the nodes may effectively end the game, since they have little res flow. Shoot the nodes down if you have to, just keep marines supplied with ammo as they shoot. Shotguns are a fairly inexpensive way of quickly destroying nodes, pass a couple out to competent players to help assist in node removal. If several fades appear around the 4-6 minute mark, most likely only a few nodes exist. Pressure them relentlessly, along with the gorges that built them. Killing alien gorges is a very easy way to stifle the alien team, it's hard to replace gorges, while vanilla marines are free. Just remember to keep pressuring their nodes, keep building yours and defending them, and keep the upgrades going. The power of marine upgrade tech is matched by the power of the alien chamber and hive system, so preventing them from going up the chain while climbing the chain yourself is another cornerstone to victory. Make their weaknesses become your strengths.
[edit] Rush Double?
So I've covered some basics of commanding, now I'll point out some common things that commanders do, yet probably shouldn't. First is the "omg go double!!!!1111" rush on most maps. Contrary to popular belief, on no map with possibly the exception of caged is the double resource node area critical to winning the game. If you can easily take the double node, then build it. If the aliens are building it and have few aliens nearby and little to no defense, go kill them. Do not send everyone to double repeatedly, only to get camped into marine spawn by a 3 minute fade because one skulk owned your entire team. Think strategically, and use the appropriate tactics to achieve the strategy. Capping all of the other nodes and securing an alien hive is usually a better choice than rushing double headlong. Wait a few minutes and sneak in to take the nodes down. Killing the gorges in double is a viable option however, just be aware of what the aliens seem to be attempting to accomplish, and react to counter it.
[edit] Electrification
Another very common tactic is to electrify nodes. If you watch me carefully, you'll see I almost never electrify a resource tower. The reasoning is VERY simple to understand. Electrification costs 30 resources, the cost of an upgraded armory, a pair of resource towers, or a lvl2 upgrade. A resource node will pay for itself in 1 minute. With electrification, a resource node takes 3 minutes to pay for itself. Think back to all the games that you've played on TG, and you'll realize a fade appears at 4-7 minutes, and the hive is about the same. Electrifying every node you own is both stupid and wasteful in almost every instance. It is only meant to slow the aliens, not be a deterrent by itself. The best defense you have for your nodes is to send marines to them when they're under attack. It takes a single skulk over a minute to take a node down, more than enough time to direct a marine to the node to defend it. Never recycle a built resource node, it's quite wasteful. you only get 7.5 resources from a built resource node, while you get 1 res every 4 second it's active and alive. The node will pay for itself if it's under attack from a single skulk, same for a fade. Recycle unbuilt nodes that aren't going to be able to be completed, however. You get 12 resources back from an unbuilt RT, which isn't a bad loss.
[edit] Mobility and Firepower
My last suggestion will be to those that like to secure every location on the map before finally going in for the kill. You do not have to do this as long as you use your brain. The advantage aliens have is mobility and individual alien's power. Marines have ranged superiority and power in numbers. If you can acquire an aliens advantage in mobility, then you have a final cornerstone for victory. Being mobile and constantly harassing aliens on all locations on the map makes it difficult for the aliens to counter a threat. Taking down nodes all over the map while a Rambo builds a phase at the hive is difficult for aliens to recognize as a threat or counter. If you take out a hive easily, hit their nodes and push another hive, don't camp out and lock down a hive. A fade or a skulk gang will take static defenses down easily. Remember that marines are the only sure defense; electricity, turrets, and mines augment marine firepower, they aren't a replacement for it. Do not be fooled into relying on any of those three things for holding a position: They most likely won't. Push the aliens relentlessly, never let them stock up on resources or hold too many nodes for too long. If you push them hard enough, they most likely will switch to defensive mode and stop harassing your nodes. The best defense is a ferocious offense which never lets up and causes the aliens to constantly rebuild nodes and re-gorge. This is the way to victory for marines, and it shouldn't be forgotten.
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