WHAT?
Advanced Tactics - as the name implies - is a mod to add more strategic gameplay to Supreme Commander. Players will be expected to take and hold strategic locations, gather intel, use terrain effectively and other elements of battlefield management. Base-building will play a greatly reduced role as reinforcements can be dropped into the mission areas at designated landing zones. The short name for this mod is simply AT or SC:AT.
WHY?
Those who have played Supreme Commander or indeed TA will know that SC is basically a base-building game. Although the outcome can be changed by early skirmishing, the game essentially reaches a point where the only viable tactic is to out-produce your opponents. This generally involves reaching T3 (tech-level 3) as fast as possible and building lots of fusion reactors and mass converters. Although taking mass points helps it really has no value after your 4th converter or so. If anything, the effort to take and hold these points detracts from your reactor-building and usually gives an otherwise equal opponent the overall advantage. Once you have a clear economic advantage the rest is trivial; Wether you build t3 bots, t3 gunships, artillery, nukes or t4 monsters your victory is practically assurred as long as you can pump out the most units.
Personally I dont find this style of gameplay particularly enjoyable - at least not long term. I want a game that cannot be won with sheer force of numbers and rote repetition of a finely-managed 'build order' but REQUIRES the winner to:
* Use INTEL and counter-intel effectively, including perimeter patrols and scouting.
* Use the TERRAIN effectively: artillery on hills, hiding in woods, attacking at night, etc...
* CAPTURE the most valuable map locations and effectively hold them against enemy assaults.
* PLAN the best path to victory from many possible actions.
* ANTICIPATE and counter enemy plans.
HOW?
To get the mod up and running in the shortest time possible I have decided it will be split into two versions:
Advanced Tactics Basic
The basic version will concentrate on improving strategic gameplay with minimal engine hacking. The focus will be on:
* Adding more intel and counter-intel units and attributes (such as cloaking) already supported in the engine.
* Increasing the value of mass points and hydrocarbon deposits and reducing the efficiency of the mass conversion process.
* Increasing the value of reclaiming. Patrolling for mass (and protecting those patrols) will be very important.
* New maps with strategic play in mind. There will be more 'strategic locations' such as civilian factories that can be captured.
* More effective amphibious units for sea->land assaults.
* Flak turrets to do splash damage as a counter to clustered gunships.
* Bases will be harder to build but capturing civilian and enemy bases will be possible with commanders and supcoms.
* Teach artillery to 'auto-creep' making large seiges easier.
* Teach units to avoid clustered defense turrets while patrolling (ie, go around them).
* Work out which rarely-used units should be buffed or removed (ie, who uses the amphibous tanks, the UEF T4 sub?).
* Commander able to fight more effectively and lead assaults. He is no longer just a builder.
* Better idle unit behaviour. Units will look for things to do rather than 'stand around' (but will also hold ground if ordered).
* Increase the strictness of air-staging requirements to make aircraft carriers and landing pads more valuable.
* More game types such as 'Gauntlet' where one team has to guide their units safely through enemy-controlled territory.
* Games will run slower than SC to reduce 'twitchiness' and allow more time to plan complex manuevers.
* Guard towers with audible alarms to help the player detect when vital areas are under assault.
* Overall shift away from economy micromanagement to allow more time for microing assaults and planning strategies.
Advanced Tactics Extreme
The extreme version will be a full-blown total-conversion with new AI, a new user interface, new gameplay modes (missions). Some features will require an SDK (access to the C++ functions in MohoEngine) so this version will have a much longer development time. It will contain most of the features of the basic version but also:
* More diplomacy options.
* Subcommanders can lead grouped armies and react to changing battlefield conditions. Can be given goals to complete.
* Ability to mark strategic zones on map and set default behaviour for units in that zone (eg. guard, land here, build here, ambush)
* Games integrated into a 'persistent' universe where the results of battles affect a factions overall resources and situation.
* 'Supreme Commander' mode which allows a team leader to oversee team objectives and allocate resources in allied games.
* More exciting game types that could not be done in the basic version.
* Ability to set fixed patrol and attack routes and assign new units to them (kind of like how ferrying works)
* Massive space battles between faction fleets. Interplanetary nukes.
* Anything else from SC:AT Basic that requires C++ or a long development time.
WHO?
SC:AT is mostly looking for LUA programmers (or programmers interested in learning LUA) to make this vision a reality. As part of the team YOU will help guide the future course of this mod. After going through the code it appears that the engine allows a great deal of customisation though modification of the Lua support files. If a C++ SDK appears down the track that would be a bonus but there is plenty to get started with right away. We also need 1 or 2 3D artists (must have texturing and UV mapping experience) for some custom units and buildings. It would also be nice to have a web designer (I can provide hosting) and a forum moderator.
For those who dont know me I'm also the creator of Epic Legions (aka the Titan Mod) for Dawn Of War. I have experience with modding, managing mod teams and Lua programming for AI and win conditions. I'm easy enough to work with except that I only want to deal with people who are prepared to do a good job and finish what they start. I ask a minimum commitment of 6 hours a week. n00bs welcome but must put in the time to learn Lua or 3D modelling.
Note: 'Ideas people' are NOT welcome. I need people to do *actual work*. We can come up with ideas on our own, thank you.
CONTACT
If you would like more info email: scat(a)warriorhut.org
NOTE: For my sanity you MUST include the word 'mod' or 'tactics' in the subject or body of your email or it will be AUTOMATICALLY DELETED.