Perhaps more could be done to make these water-based missions seem more fun and exciting, like so:
- Hovercraft Introduction:
[Spoiler]Same as like in Kalyp: Have the player use hovercrafts, starting with just the basic Quill, Scalpel, and Mace hovercrafts (and maybe Daggers as well), to fight in both land and water, against a mix of land-only and sea-only units. Only this time, let's keep the enemy from building Seawolves. I'd much rather want to save having to deal with submerged units for a different mission altogether.
- Hovercraft vs Amphbots and Subs:
[Spoiler]Here, you'll need to use Daggers, Claymores, and Urchins to fend off enemy Ducks, Buoys, Archers, and Seawolves, while using the land to avoid the numerous Urchins that were placed there to protect the enemy's base from invasions by any Ships and Amphbots you might optionally employ. Consider using the map from Shabun as the basis for this mission.
- Hovercraft vs Defenses, and Gauss vs Amphbots:
[Spoiler]You need to break through lines of Cerberus artillery emplacements and Desolator turrets to reach an artifact. Fortunately, the Halberd is designed to be fast and sturdy enough to break through such defensive lines. Use them to break through the defenses, and destroy the Pylons that provide them with power to give the rest of your forces the opportunity to make a push towards the artifact. Be warned that, at the same time, an enemy force is assaulting you with Amphbots. Use Gauss turrets to protect your base from their assaults. (So yeah, this is basically similar in structure to New Falsell, where Phantoms were needed to shut down enemy defenses that block your Commander's path to an artifact, while enemy forces are attacking you from a different direction.)
- Hovercraft and Lucifers vs Airplanes and Striders:
[Spoiler]The enemy is sending massive Dantes and Reefs to assault your base, accompanied by Ravens, Phoenixes, and the occasional Likho. Fortunately, the fortress that you had recently set up base in possesses layers of moats, dikes, and canals that serve to make the trip for non-amphibious units a painfully long slog. Use Lances and Lucifers to wear down the Dantes and Reefs from a safe distance, and Flails to protect your Lances and Lucifers, and your base, from bombardment. (I'd imagine this mission feeling like playing the "Fire in the Sky" mission from "StarCraft 2: Heart of the Swarm", or "The Great Train Robbery" mission from "StarCraft 2: Wings of Liberty".)
- Amphbot Introduction:
[Spoiler]You and your allies have only a limited amount of time to breach through the enemy's defenses, and take out the enemy superweapon. Unfortunately, the enemy is entrenched behind enough powerful defenses (including Lucifers, Cerberus, Artemis, and Chainsaws) to make a full on assault, even with a Detriment, all but impossible (not that you'd have enough time or resources to build one). Although the Singularity Reactors that power this formidable defensive line are located out of line-of-sight of the Lucifers and Cerberus, the water passage that leads to them is also well-guarded by Desolators and Stingers. Since the waterway has no anti-sub defenses, and since the Singularity Reactors are themselves protected by a small contingent of Glaives, Lotuses, and a couple Stardust turrets, your best bet is to use Archers and Buoys to infiltrate the waterway, bypass the defenses, and take out the Singularity reactors. Once the reactors are offline, your teammates should be able to assault the main base, and destroy the superweapon.
- Amphbots vs Amphbots and Subs:
[Spoiler]The enemy is sending massive Grizzlies, Reefs, and Shoguns to assault your base. Use Ducks and Scallops to safely intercept and take out the enemy Grizzlies, Reefs, and Shoguns (which all lack defenses against submerged units) before they reach your base, all while avoiding the heavy defenses that litter the waterways that separate your base from the enemy's base. (I'd imagine that this mission would feel more-or-less like the "Zero Hour" mission from "StarCraft 2: Wings of Liberty", or the 1st Allied mission called "Brighton Beach - Ride of the Red Menace" from "Command & Conquer: Red Alert 3".)
- Grizzlies and Amphbots (and Hovercraft) vs Lances, Lucifers, and Airplanes:
[Spoiler]Here, you'll be using the Grizzlies to breach the enemy's defensive lines of Cerberus emplacements, Stinger towers, Gauss turrets, and the occasional Desolator, using the Grizzlies' ability to float to the surface to sneak close to the longer-ranged Cerberus emplacements, and their extraordinary toughness to shrug off attacks from most defenses long enough to take down the Cerberus emplacements. Be warned, however, that the enemy has Lances and Lucifer emplacements to deal with your Grizzlies, so you'll need to deploy fast raiders like Daggers to counter them. Also, be on the lookout for enemy airplanes, including Ravens and Phoenixes, which threaten both your Grizzlies and your base. Use Anglers to ambush them from underwater.
- Djinn and Lobster vs Defenses:
[Spoiler]The enemy has surrounded your base, along with his base, with powerful defenses, preventing you from expanding outward, save for the waterway. Unfortunately, even the patches of dry land that connect to this waterway are too well defended for conventional amphibious assaults to bypass. However, you have Djinns and Lobsters that you can use to maneuver your forces around these defenses. Use the Lobsters to propel the Djinns over the cliffs overlooking the waterway, and later, the cliffs that surround the enemy base, and use the Djinns to teleport your forces around the enemy defenses for an opportunity to disable the Pylons and Generators that power them. (This should make the Lobsters far more useful than they were on Asjulohi.)
By the way, since terrain navigation is such an important aspect of Zero-K to master, could the hovercrafts be introduced at about the same time as, say, Rovers. Moreover, since Amphbots might require more skill to both handle and counter than hovercrafts, could they be unlocked at about the same time as ships, and could they likewise be as difficult to unlock as, say, tanks, spiders, and gunships?
