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Teams All Welcome players rarely talk about strategy with their teammates. Teamchat is full of intel-related communication like strider callouts and pings on raiders, but in most games the only strategy content you'll see in teamchat is the occasional call for help. Does that mean there is no team strategy going on, only chaos? Hardly.
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Teams All Welcome players rarely talk about strategy with their teammates. Teamchat is full of intel-related communication like strider callouts and pings on raiders, but in most games the only strategy content you'll see in teamchat is the occasional call for help. Does that mean there is no team strategy going on, only chaos? Hardly.
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[u][size=4]Specialization[/size][/u]
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[u][size=4]Specialization[/size][/u]
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In a 1v1, each player must do every job for their team or else it doesn't happen. Big team games allow players to specialize in a single main role, while limiting each individual player's economy to the point where they don't have the resources to fill every role. The main element of team strategy is [b]assigning roles to players[/b], which a team coordinates by having players watch what each other are building and where their units are going.
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In a 1v1, each player must do every job for their team or else it doesn't happen. Big team games allow players to specialize in a single main role, while limiting each individual player's economy to the point where they don't have the resources to fill every role. The main element of team strategy is [b]assigning roles to players[/b], which a team coordinates by having players watch what each other are building and where their units are going.
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The most basic role is a [b]Lane[/b], the responsibility to take and defend a certain part of the map. Holding part of a lane means your team gets to extract metal from it and the other team does not, but it also blocks the other teams' attempts to attack other places by passing through the lane. Almost always, your lane will overlap with that of one or more opposing players who will be your main opponents; if it does not, you should [b]push[/b] the lane by taking responsibility for a larger area until it does. Your lane might also overlap with a teammates, in which case you can take responsibility for specific threats based on your factory's strengths, for example by making all the lane's anti-air units so your lanemate can focus on anti-ground. Usually, half or more of a team will have lanes, because the local resource disadvantage for facing twice as many opponents in a lane will generally cause the lane to fail to the detriment of the whole team.
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The most basic role is a [b]Lane[/b], the responsibility to take and defend a certain part of the map. Holding part of a lane means your team gets to extract metal from it and the other team does not, but it also blocks the other teams' attempts to attack other places by passing through the lane. Almost always, your lane will overlap with that of one or more opposing players who will be your main opponents; if it does not, you should [b]push[/b] the lane by taking responsibility for a larger area until it does. Your lane might also overlap with a teammates, in which case you can take responsibility for specific threats based on your factory's strengths, for example by making all the lane's anti-air units so your lanemate can focus on anti-ground. Usually, half or more of a team will have lanes, because the local resource disadvantage for facing twice as many opponents in a lane will generally cause the lane to fail to the detriment of the whole team.
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Other players are [b]Roamers[/b], mainly responsible for offense. Their job is to destroy enemy value wherever it might be, and they accomplish it by going to wherever the enemy's weak and surprising them. Often they'll have a one-dimensional composition, for example almost all artillery or fast assaults, and strike and retreat before the opponents in that Lane can take advantage of the composition's weaknesses. But they can also play defense in response to enemy movements, in which case they're relying on the team's nearby laners to cover those weaknesses; catching the enemy units damaged and overextended is a good way to destroy them.
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Other players are [b]Roamers[/b], mainly responsible for offense. Their job is to destroy enemy value wherever it might be, and they accomplish it by going to wherever the enemy's weak and surprising them. Often they'll have a one-dimensional composition, for example almost all artillery or fast assaults, and strike and retreat before the opponents in that Lane can take advantage of the composition's weaknesses. But they can also play defense in response to enemy movements, in which case they're relying on the team's nearby laners to cover those weaknesses; catching the enemy units damaged and overextended is a good way to destroy them.
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[b]Backliners[/b] form the other major category of roles, each taking responsibility for a narrow set of tasks across the entire map. Airplanes are the most natural backline role, since their ability to move around the map is their main strength. However, some maps have enough metal spots behind the lanes that it's worth dedicating a player to tending them so that the other players can focus further forward, and likewise with making high efficiency power generation for overdrive - at first. But the eco backline tasks get less valuable as the game progresses, and anti-aircraft units usually proliferate to the point where it's not worth devoting a full player to bombing, so backliners will usually need to find a different role as the game progresses.
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[b]Backliners[/b] form the other major category of roles, each taking responsibility for a narrow set of tasks across the entire map. Airplanes are the most natural backline role, since their ability to move around the map is their main strength. However, some maps have enough metal spots behind the lanes that it's worth dedicating a player to tending them so that the other players can focus further forward, and likewise with making high efficiency power generation for overdrive - at first. But the eco backline tasks get less valuable as the game progresses, and anti-aircraft units usually proliferate to the point where it's not worth devoting a full player to bombing, so backliners will usually need to find a different role as the game progresses.
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The main point of strategy for a particular player is choosing when to change roles. The backliners are a team's main source of strategic flexibility, because they have no defensive responsibility nor commitment to a composition, and because their natural roles tend to expire. It's a source of great frustration for frontline players when the back line wastes this flexibility! Conversely, a team will need to replace lane players on the front from time to time, because their armies get destroyed by enemy action and need to be rebuilt. Usually it's a Roamer acting as a replacement because at least they have a standing army and they can secure enough reclaim with a counterattack to round out their composition, but a backliner can bring a complete army forward instead. Also, if a lane has been secured with mainly static defense and cannot push further, its occupant can leave a small guard force and move their attention and most of their army into an adjacent lane.
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The main point of strategy for a particular player is choosing when to change roles. The backliners are a team's main source of strategic flexibility, because they have no defensive responsibility nor commitment to a composition, and because their natural roles tend to expire. It's a source of great frustration for frontline players when the back line wastes this flexibility! Conversely, a team will need to replace lane players on the front from time to time, because their armies get destroyed by enemy action and need to be rebuilt. Usually it's a Roamer acting as a replacement because at least they have a standing army and they can secure enough reclaim with a counterattack to round out their composition, but a backliner can bring a complete army forward instead. Also, if a lane has been secured with mainly static defense and cannot push further, its occupant can leave a small guard force and move their attention and most of their army into an adjacent lane.
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[u][size=3]Wait, isn't the team's rear area a lane?[/size][/u]
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[u][size=3]Wait, isn't the team's rear area a lane?[/size][/u]
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Technically yes, by these definitions, but it's different from the others in that it's far bigger and it faces a different threat profile.
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Technically yes, by these definitions, but it's different from the others in that it's far bigger and it faces a different threat profile.
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The top threats to the backline are:
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The top threats to the backline are:
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1) Cloaked units
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1) Cloaked units
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2) Odin and other suicidal air threats
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2) Odin and other suicidal air threats
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3) Nukes
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3) Nukes
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4) Small groups of units leaking through frontline gaps
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4) Small groups of units leaking through frontline gaps
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Antinukes are the one essential defense in the rear lane, because there's no other way to stop a nuke. Air defense is best handled by a network of Chainsaws and Artemis, which can guard a wide area behind them and also support the front, but highly mobile anti-air like Raptors can also serve to fight air threats over a large area if their owner is attentive. Either way, the goal is to team up with the front's local air defense to stop deep threats while they're still near the front and thereby protect all the rear targets at once.
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Antinukes are the one essential defense in the rear lane, because there's no other way to stop a nuke. Air defense is best handled by a network of Chainsaws and Artemis, which can guard a wide area behind them and also support the front, but highly mobile anti-air like Raptors can also serve to fight air threats over a large area if their owner is attentive. Either way, the goal is to team up with the front's local air defense to stop deep threats while they're still near the front and thereby protect all the rear targets at once.
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Leakers and cloaked units like Scythes often get handled by units that have become obsolete on the front, like Commanders and light bombers, or by the units coming out of frontliners' factories. If a dedicated defense becomes necessary due to a Newton ramp launching jumpbots or persistent Scythe use, it needs to be mobile enough to cover the whole backline, meaning raiders or gunships. Static defenses other than long-ranged AA should be reserved for high value assets only, and even then their job is to keep Scythe-like threats from destroying it before the highly mobile defenses arrive; Solar walls, defensive terraform, Faradays and Newtons are most efficient here, although one or two Lotuses make a cheap stopgap. The backline can sometimes see a threat coming in time to flash-build static defense to block it, but should reclaim that static defense after it's done its job.
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Leakers and cloaked units like Scythes often get handled by units that have become obsolete on the front, like Commanders and light bombers, or by the units coming out of frontliners' factories. If a dedicated defense becomes necessary due to a Newton ramp launching jumpbots or persistent Scythe use, it needs to be mobile enough to cover the whole backline, meaning raiders or gunships. Static defenses other than long-ranged AA should be reserved for high value assets only, and even then their job is to keep Scythe-like threats from destroying it before the highly mobile defenses arrive; Solar walls, defensive terraform, Faradays and Newtons are most efficient here, although one or two Lotuses make a cheap stopgap. The backline can sometimes see a threat coming in time to flash-build static defense to block it, but should reclaim that static defense after it's done its job.
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And the same dictum applies to the rear lane as the front ones - if you aren't being challenged, push the lane until you are.
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And the same dictum applies to the rear lane as the front ones - if you aren't being challenged, push the lane until you are.
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[u][size=4]Teamwork by Default[/size][/u]
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[u][size=4]Teamwork by Default[/size][/u]
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This is an elaboration on a Cold Take of the same name, which is a good read for the design end of the issue.
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This is an elaboration on a Cold Take of the same name, which is a good read for the design end of the issue.
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Teammates mainly coordinate with each other by their actions within the game. Each team member may have his own local strategy, but the team's overall strategy emerges from the things each player does that benefit the whole team.
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Teammates mainly coordinate with each other by their actions within the game. Each team member may have his own local strategy, but the team's overall strategy emerges from the things each player does that benefit the whole team.
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This mostly happens because players' units naturally and automatically cooperate within the team towards some important goals:
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This mostly happens because players' units naturally and automatically cooperate within the team towards some important goals:
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* Intel collected by one unit shows up on the maps of all players on the team.
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* Intel collected by one unit shows up on the maps of all players on the team.
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* Damaging units helps your teammates kill them, and killing them keeps them from interfering with anyone on the team.
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* Damaging units helps your teammates kill them, and killing them keeps them from interfering with anyone on the team.
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* Local energy surpluses fill teammates' energy storages to fund repairs anywhere, and can increase overdrive on distant metal extractors.
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* Local energy surpluses fill teammates' energy storages to fund repairs anywhere, and can increase overdrive on distant metal extractors.
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* Metal extractors share income with teammates.
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* Metal extractors share income with teammates.
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* Area shields and cloak fields protect teammates within them.
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* Area shields and cloak fields protect teammates within them.
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And the non-economic points add up to another, bigger one:
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And the non-economic points add up to another, bigger one:
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* Space controlled by one player can be freely used for maneuver or protection by that player's teammates.
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* Space controlled by one player can be freely used for maneuver or protection by that player's teammates.
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Therefore, players focusing on a single role assist the players in other roles as a side effect, even if they aren't aware of it. A Laner gathers intel to show his team's Roamers where to strike, and provides a safe staging area to assemble, then the damage being inflicted by those Roamers allows the Laner to push the lane alongside them. Metal extractors made and protected by distant players increase the efficiency of a Backliner's investment in overdrive, and that income helps everyone. The threat of bombing forces the opponents to make anti-air, which is a defenseless target for the Roamers and unable to threaten or resist the Laners. And adjacent Laners protect each other from flanking attacks. And none of this cooperation requires action that the respective players weren't attempting already in service to their individual plans.
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Therefore, players focusing on a single role assist the players in other roles as a side effect, even if they aren't aware of it. A Laner gathers intel to show his team's Roamers where to strike, and provides a safe staging area to assemble, then the damage being inflicted by those Roamers allows the Laner to push the lane alongside them. Metal extractors made and protected by distant players increase the efficiency of a Backliner's investment in overdrive, and that income helps everyone. The threat of bombing forces the opponents to make anti-air, which is a defenseless target for the Roamers and unable to threaten or resist the Laners. And adjacent Laners protect each other from flanking attacks. And none of this cooperation requires action that the respective players weren't attempting already in service to their individual plans.
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Playing for teamwork, therefore, starts from keeping an eye on your allies for when they accidentally enable you. Look at the intel they collect, look for the damage they inflict, follow up on both when you can, and make those Metal Extractors.
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Playing for teamwork, therefore, starts from keeping an eye on your allies for when they accidentally enable you. Look at the intel they collect, look for the damage they inflict, follow up on both when you can, and make those Metal Extractors.
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[u][size=4]Tasks[/size][/u]
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[u][size=4]Tasks[/size][/u]
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If a role is about where you play, tasks are about what you do beyond what's necessary to keep your role alive.
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If a role is about where you play, tasks are about what you do beyond what's necessary to keep your role alive.
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Each player will have a mental list of specific things the team needs done. Examples are building a Metal Extractor on a specific metal spot, making energy generators, clearing the enemy off of key terrain, assassinating individual problematic units, fending off incursions, and scouting the enemy's strategic rear. These are rarely the clear responsibility of one player.
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Each player will have a mental list of specific things the team needs done. Examples are building a Metal Extractor on a specific metal spot, making energy generators, clearing the enemy off of key terrain, assassinating individual problematic units, fending off incursions, and scouting the enemy's strategic rear. These are rarely the clear responsibility of one player.
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However, tasks don't require a permanent major commitment from the players doing them. An assassination or defense can be done by a roaming army, or by the occupants of any nearby lane, with the surviving units returning to their role afterwards; or, a backliner can make and sacrifice a specialized task group to deal with the problem. One Laner's cons can build Metal Extractors in another lane that's been slow to expand. Scouting involves only a few comparatively cheap units. And so on. As a result, players will have a budget to assign themselves to tasks they're aware of that aren't being addressed, even outside their zone.
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However, tasks don't require a permanent major commitment from the players doing them. An assassination or defense can be done by a roaming army, or by the occupants of any nearby lane, with the surviving units returning to their role afterwards; or, a backliner can make and sacrifice a specialized task group to deal with the problem. One Laner's cons can build Metal Extractors in another lane that's been slow to expand. Scouting involves only a few comparatively cheap units. And so on. As a result, players will have a budget to assign themselves to tasks they're aware of that aren't being addressed, even outside their zone.
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As the game continues, a player's ability to solve a problem will increasingly depend on what's already on the field, rather than new production. So a good player will routinely ask himself, "what can I use these idle units for, that won't compromise my role?" and find tasks to match. These small actions may not directly help his own role, they make it slightly harder by diverting resources, but they strengthen the team as a whole.
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As the game continues, a player's ability to solve a problem will increasingly depend on what's already on the field, rather than new production. So a good player will routinely ask himself, "what can I use these idle units for, that won't compromise my role?" and find tasks to match. These small actions may not directly help his own role, they make it slightly harder by diverting resources, but they strengthen the team as a whole.
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So what does one do if one thinks a task is critical but doesn't have the ability to address it? Pings. The purpose of pings is mainly to communicate that one cannot serve a role that one still thinks is important. Basic pings get teammates to look at the problem, at which point the ones with the resources to solve it can decide how to try. "Help" pings, on the other hand, communicate that one is going to keep trying to do the job but it will be inadequate without support, and one's teammates can assess the situation and decide whether to sends support and how much.
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So what does one do if one thinks a task is critical but doesn't have the ability to address it? Pings. The purpose of pings is mainly to communicate that one cannot serve a role that one still thinks is important. Basic pings get teammates to look at the problem, at which point the ones with the resources to solve it can decide how to try. "Help" pings, on the other hand, communicate that one is going to keep trying to do the job but it will be inadequate without support, and one's teammates can assess the situation and decide whether to sends support and how much.
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[u][size=4]Flexing[/size][/u]
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[u][size=4]Flexing[/size][/u]
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Now that the individual pieces are in place, we can talk about moving those pieces.
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Now that the individual pieces are in place, we can talk about moving those pieces.
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First - who should go in which role? Well, some players will claim roles regardless and stick to them. But initial roles are mostly decided by the factory plop - where it is, and which factory. A majority of players will initially take lanes that are more or less in front of their factory, and on terrain favorable to it. Certain factories - Cloakbots and Rovers, for example - have units better suited to roaming than to holding a lane, so they'll switch to that quickly. And players who intend to speedrun the backline metal spots will plop near a cluster of them, as will air players.
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First - who should go in which role? Well, some players will claim roles regardless and stick to them. But initial roles are mostly decided by the factory plop - where it is, and which factory. A majority of players will initially take lanes that are more or less in front of their factory, and on terrain favorable to it. Certain factories - Cloakbots and Rovers, for example - have units better suited to roaming than to holding a lane, so they'll switch to that quickly. And players who intend to speedrun the backline metal spots will plop near a cluster of them, as will air players.
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In other words, your pregame factory preview is a vital act of communication. Your teammates will plan their own early play around what you're indicating that you want to do, and may have those plans upset if you actually do something else. Later in the game, this communication mainly comes from where you put your units.
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In other words, your pregame factory preview is a vital act of communication. Your teammates will plan their own early play around what you're indicating that you want to do, and may have those plans upset if you actually do something else. Later in the game, this communication mainly comes from where you put your units.
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As the game progresses, a player can take on extra roles, temporarily or permanently, based on what assets he has accumulated and how the map has been divided. A Laner whose lane is currently not threatened can roam in adjacent lanes with most of his army, without abandoning his original lane, or a Romer can take over defense of a collapsing lane. As previously mentioned, Backliners eventually need to throw their weight to some part of the front, because they're the team's major source of flexibility. And any spare resources can go to more specific or situational roles. Likewise, different players will accumulate different specialist units throughout the game, which dictates what kinds of tasks they can promptly perform. One's specific skill at large teams is the ability to flex - to put one's limited resources in the most important places, without accidentally communicating a claim to a role one can't fulfill.
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As the game progresses, a player can take on extra roles, temporarily or permanently, based on what assets he has accumulated and how the map has been divided. A Laner whose lane is currently not threatened can roam in adjacent lanes with most of his army, without abandoning his original lane, or a Romer can take over defense of a collapsing lane. As previously mentioned, Backliners eventually need to throw their weight to some part of the front, because they're the team's major source of flexibility. And any spare resources can go to more specific or situational roles. Likewise, different players will accumulate different specialist units throughout the game, which dictates what kinds of tasks they can promptly perform. One's specific skill at large teams is the ability to flex - to put one's limited resources in the most important places, without accidentally communicating a claim to a role one can't fulfill.
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[u][size=3]The Triangle Dance[/size][/u]
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[u][size=3]The Triangle Dance[/size][/u]
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Aggression destroys passive value (eco), defense beats aggression, passive value takes advantage of defense.
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Aggression destroys passive value (eco), defense beats aggression, passive value takes advantage of defense.
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Bombers kill artillery, ground-based anti-air kills bombers, and artillery kills ground-based anti-air.
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Bombers kill artillery, ground-based anti-air kills bombers, and artillery kills ground-based anti-air.
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Antinuke blocks Trinity, Missile Silo shuts down Antinuke, Trinity destroys Missile Silo.
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Antinuke blocks Trinity, Missile Silo shuts down Antinuke, Trinity destroys Missile Silo.
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The game is loaded with counter triangles, even on a team-wide level. A team can lose just because it was too defensive in the face of greed, or because it didn't have enough air to force AA, or because it got nuked for lack of Antinukes. Fortunately, a team's resource allocation isn't set in stone; rather, entire players can switch roles trying to give their team a position on one of the triangles that gives their team an advantage over the opponents' position.
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The game is loaded with counter triangles, even on a team-wide level. A team can lose just because it was too defensive in the face of greed, or because it didn't have enough air to force AA, or because it got nuked for lack of Antinukes. Fortunately, a team's resource allocation isn't set in stone; rather, entire players can switch roles trying to give their team a position on one of the triangles that gives their team an advantage over the opponents' position.
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Laners typically have the least flexibility here - most of their resources are tied to holding their ground. They can plate for a few planes if necessary, or make a modest investment in anti-air, but if they have too few ground units they will get run over; and they need an already secure position to even consider building an Antinuke much less a full Trinity. Nonetheless, a Laner who thinks a strategic triangle move is necessary can chip in a portion of their resources towards the movement.
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Laners typically have the least flexibility here - most of their resources are tied to holding their ground. They can plate for a few planes if necessary, or make a modest investment in anti-air, but if they have too few ground units they will get run over; and they need an already secure position to even consider building an Antinuke much less a full Trinity. Nonetheless, a Laner who thinks a strategic triangle move is necessary can chip in a portion of their resources towards the movement.
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Roamers, in contrast, can put their entire income towards a strategic shift, or even reclaim part of their army to fund them. But they suffer afterwards, because their army has taken losses that have not been made good. If a roamer's contribution to a strategic shift is static, like an Antinuke, he won't want to stick around and defend it afterwards, because it removes his army's flexibility, unless he entirely switches to a Laner role.
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Roamers, in contrast, can put their entire income towards a strategic shift, or even reclaim part of their army to fund them. But they suffer afterwards, because their army has taken losses that have not been made good. If a roamer's contribution to a strategic shift is static, like an Antinuke, he won't want to stick around and defend it afterwards, because it removes his army's flexibility, unless he entirely switches to a Laner role.
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Backliners can cause massive strategic shifts, but that's because they usually start from an extreme position on the triangle to begin with - pure eco or pure air. Should a Backliner want to cause a strategic shift that requires a ground army, he must build up for several minutes before having a useful mass. This at least comes with the advantage of being able to survey the situation and plan the entire composition from scratch, or build the army around a big investment into a strider without creating a corresponding vulnerability.
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Backliners can cause massive strategic shifts, but that's because they usually start from an extreme position on the triangle to begin with - pure eco or pure air. Should a Backliner want to cause a strategic shift that requires a ground army, he must build up for several minutes before having a useful mass. This at least comes with the advantage of being able to survey the situation and plan the entire composition from scratch, or build the army around a big investment into a strider without creating a corresponding vulnerability.
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[u][size=4]Evolving Investments[/size][/u]
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[u][size=4]Evolving Investments[/size][/u]
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The time it takes an economic investment to pay off will generally increase throughout the game. This not only shapes what eco players should be doing, but also what military options are viable.
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The time it takes an economic investment to pay off will generally increase throughout the game. This not only shapes what eco players should be doing, but also what military options are viable.
|
| 93 |
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|
93 |
\n
|
| 94 |
During the [b]opening[/b], the single factor dictating all strategy is that there are unclaimed metal spots that are easy to take. Building a [b]Metal Extractor[/b] on one of them, and sufficient power generation elsewhere to use its metal, pays off all the resources the team put into it in, generally, about 100 seconds depending on the yield of the metal spot. This implies that, if you want to do a project so big that it'd take significantly longer than 100 seconds, your team would be better off if you made some minor eco first and then started it. Even if you personally have no metal spots in easy reach, making a handful of Solar Collectors or Wind/Tidal Generators or a Geothermal Generator relieves your teammates who are expanding forward from the need to slow down to make most of the energy to match that metal. It also implies that investments near the 100 second level of commitment need to pay off promptly and massively to be worth delaying expansion for. Instead, it's better to spend the team's military budget on inexpensive options that delay the opponents' expansion - killing Metal Extractors and workers, forcing defensive spending, and intimidating their Commanders away from the vacant metal spots if not killing them outright - or that safeguard the team's own expansion from those things.
|
94 |
During the [b]opening[/b], the single factor dictating all strategy is that there are unclaimed metal spots that are easy to take. Building a [b]Metal Extractor[/b] on one of them, and sufficient power generation elsewhere to use its metal, pays off all the resources the team put into it in, generally, about 100 seconds depending on the yield of the metal spot. This implies that, if you want to do a project so big that it'd take significantly longer than 100 seconds, your team would be better off if you made some minor eco first and then started it. Even if you personally have no metal spots in easy reach, making a handful of Solar Collectors or Wind/Tidal Generators or a Geothermal Generator relieves your teammates who are expanding forward from the need to slow down to make most of the energy to match that metal. It also implies that investments near the 100 second level of commitment need to pay off promptly and massively to be worth delaying expansion for. Instead, it's better to spend the team's military budget on inexpensive options that delay the opponents' expansion - killing Metal Extractors and workers, forcing defensive spending, and intimidating their Commanders away from the vacant metal spots if not killing them outright - or that safeguard the team's own expansion from those things.
|
| 95 |
\n
|
95 |
\n
|
| 96 |
The opening phase ends roughly when opposing teams' Commanders and/or riots meet in the middle, so that each new Metal Extractor must be fought over.
|
96 |
The opening phase ends roughly when opposing teams' Commanders and/or riots meet in the middle, so that each new Metal Extractor must be fought over.
|
| 97 |
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|
97 |
\n
|
| 98 |
After
the
opening,
overdrive
becomes
the
main
way
to
grow
the
team
economy,
so
eco
play
turns
into
[b]gridding[/b]
during
the
midgame.
The
payoff
time
for
gridding
starts
at
about
150
seconds,
for
going
from
no
overdrive
on
a
Metal
Extractor
to
overdriving
from
a
single
Solar
Collector,
and
increases
from
there
due
to
overdrive's
diminishing
returns
on
new
energy.
Generally,
during
this
phase,
building
lots
of
efficient
energy
generation
and
connecting
new
Metal
Extractors
to
the
grid
are
about
equally
important.
Solar
Collector
lines
are
a
mainstay
here
because
they
do
both
jobs
at
once
-
Energy
Pylons
should
be
used
sparingly
until
the
next
stage.
Geothermal
Generators
should
morph
in
the
middle
of
this
stage,
when
there's
enough
backup
generation
to
keep
up
basic
overdrive
while
they're
offline,
and
generally
one
at
a
time.
|
98 |
After
the
opening,
overdrive
becomes
the
main
way
to
grow
the
team
economy,
so
eco
play
turns
into
[b]gridding[/b]
during
the
midgame.
The
payoff
time
for
gridding
starts
at
about
150
seconds,
for
going
from
no
overdrive
on
a
Metal
Extractor
to
overdriving
from
a
single
Solar
Collector,
and
increases
from
there
due
to
overdrive's
diminishing
returns
on
new
energy.
Overdriving
a
metal
extractor
requires
both
the
energy
for
the
overdrive
itself,
which
must
be
on
the
same
grid,
and
additional
energy
to
use
the
metal
produced
which
can
be
anywhere.
Also,
the
more
efficient
options
for
power
are
limited
in
where
the
team
can
build
them
-
these
are
Geothermal
Generators,
Tidal
Generators
and
high
altitude
Wind
Generators
-
or
put
too
much
generation
in
one
spot
for
optimal
overdrive
as
Fusion
Reactors
or
the
Singularity
Reactors.
|
|
|
99 |
\n
|
|
|
100 |
Therefore, the team should split its effort roughly evenly between building lots of efficient energy generation and connecting new Metal Extractors to the grid. Solar Collector and Wind Generator lines are mainstays for gridding because they do both jobs at once - Energy Pylons should be used sparingly until the next stage, generally only for bridging the grid across inaccessible terrain or for linking terraform-protected Metal Extractors on the front line whose directly linked generators could get sniped. Geothermal Generators should morph in the middle of this stage, when there's enough backup generation to keep up basic overdrive while they're offline, and generally one at a time.
|
| 99 |
\n
|
101 |
\n
|
| 100 |
The increasing payback time from energy investments during the gridding stage, combined with higher income per player, makes new kinds of military investments worthwhile. Increasingly expensive units can hit the front before the alternative economic investments would pay off. Repairs stop being a tempo play (fixing a crippled unit being faster than building a new one) and instead become part of an attrition grind that tries to convert energy to dead enemy metal more efficiently than overdrive. Aggressive play that denies the enemy a Metal Extractor has its value increased by said Metal Extractor's overdrive. And seizing a metal spot outright from the other team becomes an income swing that would otherwise require hundreds of metal in generators to accomplish.
|
102 |
The increasing payback time from energy investments during the gridding stage, combined with higher income per player, makes new kinds of military investments worthwhile. Increasingly expensive units can hit the front before the alternative economic investments would pay off. Repairs stop being a tempo play (fixing a crippled unit being faster than building a new one) and instead become part of an attrition grind that tries to convert energy to dead enemy metal more efficiently than overdrive. Aggressive play that denies the enemy a Metal Extractor has its value increased by said Metal Extractor's overdrive. And seizing a metal spot outright from the other team becomes an income swing that would otherwise require hundreds of metal in generators to accomplish.
|
| 101 |
\n
|
103 |
\n
|
| 102 |
Only after the team already has a healthy amount of overdrive, with at least a local grid touching every non-frontline Metal Extractor, should it enter the [b]Singularity era[/b]. Start a Singularity Reactor too early, and even though it is monstrously efficient compared to the non-geothermal alternatives, making a grid of Solar Collectors first would've paid off before the big reactor makes a single point of energy. But eventually, diminishing returns on the less efficient options meet slowly increasing incomes to make the first Singularity Reactor worthwhile. Since construction time is the major reason to delay a Singularity Reactor start, having several players pooling all their resources on one reactor (NOT building two in parallel) makes it viable comparatively early, and not being able to put a full player's income towards it means it should be delayed. After the first Singularity Reactor, it's important to check whether all safe Metal Extractors have been linked to the same grid as the Singularity Reactor before adding more.
|
104 |
Only after the team already has a healthy amount of overdrive, with at least a local grid touching every non-frontline Metal Extractor, should it enter the [b]Singularity era[/b]. Start a Singularity Reactor too early, and even though it is monstrously efficient compared to the non-geothermal alternatives, making a grid of Solar Collectors first would've paid off before the big reactor makes a single point of energy. But eventually, diminishing returns on the less efficient options meet slowly increasing incomes to make the first Singularity Reactor worthwhile. Since construction time is the major reason to delay a Singularity Reactor start, having several players pooling all their resources on one reactor (NOT building two in parallel) makes it viable comparatively early, and not being able to put a full player's income towards it means it should be delayed. After the first Singularity Reactor, it's important to check whether all safe Metal Extractors have been linked to the same grid as the Singularity Reactor before adding more.
|
| 103 |
\n
|
105 |
\n
|
| 104 |
The massive spike in power generation from the first Singularity Reactor, or the second Advanced Geothermal if the team takes that route instead, also changes the economics at the front. During the gridding era, cloakers and area shields paid a significant penalty in lost overdrive for cloaking and recharging compared to their face value, and in bulk required dedicated generation to compensate for the power draw. Afterwards the energy cost still isn't completely free, but it's skimming power off a much less efficient part of the overdrive curve, and it takes a truly excessive amount of investment into these things to push their user into e-stall despite power transfers from a working Singularity Reactor. Further, the propagating overdrive grid makes it comparatively simple to use a frontline Desolator, Cerberus or Lucifer.
|
106 |
The massive spike in power generation from the first Singularity Reactor, or the second Advanced Geothermal if the team takes that route instead, also changes the economics at the front. During the gridding era, cloakers and area shields paid a significant penalty in lost overdrive for cloaking and recharging compared to their face value, and in bulk required dedicated generation to compensate for the power draw. Afterwards the energy cost still isn't completely free, but it's skimming power off a much less efficient part of the overdrive curve, and it takes a truly excessive amount of investment into these things to push their user into e-stall despite power transfers from a working Singularity Reactor. Further, the propagating overdrive grid makes it comparatively simple to use a frontline Desolator, Cerberus or Lucifer.
|
| 105 |
\n
|
107 |
\n
|
| 106 |
Finally, diminishing returns on overdrive eventually lead to a [b]Post-Singularity era[/b]. At high enough overdrive rates (TODO: calculate a number), even a rapidly built Singularity Reactor will not pay off by the end of the game. Artillery provides a ready alternative that generally increases in value as the opponents present it with more and better targets. Truly passive players can set up Big Berthas or pool their efforts on a superweapon, but players willing to be slightly more active can spam Impalers to farm the enemy's turrets or try to make a Shogun or Paladin, and well-rounded players who have been focusing on eco up to this point should just build a conventional army and try to push for more metal spots to overdrive. This is also the period when Energy Pylons become strong, since they can link up a new Metal Extractor faster than a grid line whose innate generation isn't necessary anymore.
|
108 |
Finally, diminishing returns on overdrive eventually lead to a [b]Post-Singularity era[/b]. At high enough overdrive rates (TODO: calculate a number), even a rapidly built Singularity Reactor will not pay off by the end of the game. Artillery provides a ready alternative that generally increases in value as the opponents present it with more and better targets. Truly passive players can set up Big Berthas or pool their efforts on a superweapon, but players willing to be slightly more active can spam Impalers to farm the enemy's turrets or try to make a Shogun or Paladin, and well-rounded players who have been focusing on eco up to this point should just build a conventional army and try to push for more metal spots to overdrive. This is also the period when Energy Pylons become strong, since they can link up a new Metal Extractor faster than a grid line whose innate generation isn't necessary anymore.
|
| 107 |
\n
|
109 |
\n
|
| 108 |
Of course, TAW players don't necessarily do things in the proper stage of the game. This isn't game-losing (usually), the skipped stages just create tasks with comparatively quick returns for their teammates to fill in.
|
110 |
Of course, TAW players don't necessarily do things in the proper stage of the game. This isn't game-losing (usually), the skipped stages just create tasks with comparatively quick returns for their teammates to fill in.
|
| 109 |
\n
|
111 |
\n
|
| 110 |
(this guide is incomplete but still useful in its current state)
|
112 |
(this guide is incomplete but still useful in its current state)
|
| 111 |
\n
|
113 |
\n
|
Elements of Big TAW Strategy