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Thread: Command Edition; The Flow of Combat

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    Command Edition; The Flow of Combat

    This guide is specifically tailored to people who either play CIC a lot, or have played a few rounds as SL and actually FOCUSED on what is going on AROUND them, and not what the xenos are doing. Having prior experience in other roles such as PFC, Medic, and Engineer aren't needed but will make you understand this crucial part of commanding. Its also a guide for newbies that are interested in Command and what really makes or breaks a Marine major / minor / loss.

    The Flow


    When you play as a Marine (and even as a Xeno) enough, you get a sense of "when you are winning and losing". Sometimes that sense is accurate, other times its merely a trick because morale is high. Experienced players know when this is reality based on whatever information they have at hand. This is called The Flow, or simply the Turning Point.

    Sometimes, when you are pushing a choke point, you can instinctively tell that you will win this push based on what you know.

    Here is an example.

    You are pushing River on LV from Hydro North and are moving towards Tfort. Here is the information available to you:

    1) None of them are injured as they are moving full speed in armor.
    2) You have 2 medics behind you at Hydro.
    3) An RPG spec is to the bottom left of you.
    4) A crusher has just rushed you then retreated after being lit on fire.
    5) There is no sight of a Ravager.
    6) The Boiler has already shot a tube of gas and it is clearing already.
    7) No sightings of the Queen.

    Pay attention to these key details. In this scenario, you know that:

    1) If you lose the push, you have a good fall back position. The SADAR will scare T3's from pushing; if they push without knowing, you will secure critical kills, harming the Hive's ability to push you.
    2) Two medics in the back means if you or your fellow marines get injured, they can get help.
    3) The crusher is injured and must heal, so for this interval, he is unable to show a prescense on the battlefield, and hence you do not have to worry about him for at least a minute.
    4) No heavy damage or delimbing potential is available against you.
    5) Boiler is on cooldown, which will take around 10-20 seconds to fire at you again depending on if he's already setup, zoomed in, etc.
    6) No sightings of a Queen means no Screech, which means your push is a go.

    In this example, the Turning Point or The Flow is on the side of the marines. If you are a SL, this is the time to Issue Order Move and tell all marines to MOVE IN! Experienced marines already know this from a glance, but for a newbie, you might be wondering; why the hell did we win this push? This is why. A push at this point would force the boiler back, the Crusher has to relocate as well as he's still injured, further forcing the battle field back, which allows Marines a foothold into Tfort and a place of operations which they can push out from once more. This allows the RPG spec to move forward safely, as well as medics to move up, which means you have secured space against the xenomorphs.

    Now, here's a more complicated example. You are pushing Lambda Big Red from the West. You are a SL of Alpha Squad. Here is what you know:

    1) OB is on cooldown as it was used to push xenos from Bar back by Charlie Squad.
    2) Your entire squad is with you and has full supplies as you were pulled off of FOB duty to reinforce Charlie Squad.
    3) Charlie Squad is at half capacity; most of their fighting marines are wounded or being medevac'd.
    4) Engineers have one layer of cades setup at the Lambda Podlocks.
    5) There is no defences to your West due to a lack of materials.
    6) Reinforcements are far away as Delta and Bravo are completely separate; Delta is at Engineering and Bravo is at FOB to replace Alpha.
    7) Last bioscan showed there are 20 xenos still left.

    In this situation, who has The Flow? Who has the advantage?

    In this case, the Xenomorphs do. You can ascertain from this information that:

    1) The OB did minimal casualties to the Xenomorphs.
    2) OB is on cooldown so you cannot push nor can you use it to stall.
    3) You are the only fighting squad near the Xenomorphs; at most you'd have 20 marines if its highpop. You are at EQUAL STRENGTH to the Xenomorphs, which is NOT ideal, as xenos are made to be able to fight better in 1 v 1 situations.
    4) You only have barricades on the East; your West flank is completely open to ambushes should xenos choose to (and they will). It is even open to a full blown flank with a queen rush + T3's attacking and wiping both you and Charlie.
    5) Charlie is broken and cannot fully help you; they might even become a hinderance should you have to retreat while in combat as a marine pulling another marine out of combat cannot shoot unless he has a SMG, and that is not a reliable shot either.
    6) Reinforcements cannot help you; by the time they come to you, the Xenos would have wiped or half wiped you, and then Bravo and Delta would be in the same situation as you are now except they'd be down two squads.

    In this scenario, as a SL, you should advise IMMEDIATE retreat with wounded or a Supply Drop of metal and plastisteel to quickly cade West then call for Delta / Bravo to come help you. In this case, you are extremely vulnerable to the fast acting Xenomorphs. Even the last option is dicey as the Chapel that guards your South only has NORMAL walls, which are EASILY crushed by a Crusher with any level of IQ.

    Critical Aspects

    There are a few critical aspects that a good SL or CPT needs to know to understand the battlefield situations.

    Morale


    Morale is when you feel good or bad about your chances against an enemy, both as a individual, and as a squad. Even if the reality is different than what you feel, what you feel is what influences you to do something; whether it be a flank or following an order you feel is absurd.

    This is VERY important, and sometimes influences entire rounds. If marines feel they keep getting stomped by xenomorphs, they are less likely to push despite it being a good option at the time to do so. In order to solve this issue, you must show the marines results or show that you can scare the enemy back.

    This can be done by dropping a huge OB down on the xenomorphs, having a RPG spec at the front, an SL moving to the front and telling marines to push; even the CPT dropping and showing he has a plan and moving to the front at all times. You must show your fellow marines you have a plan and you believe in it enough to risk your ass for it. Or you have to show proven successes behind your plans so that you build the marines confidence; whether that be a good push coordinated by you and the SL's / CPT which scores some kills, a push to rescue wounded that works out, or a fake retreat that leads xenomorphs into a trap.

    Do not underestimate morale; marines will follow even the shittiest orders if their morale is high and believe they have a chance. If their morale is low, even if you have a master mind idea, they might just unga off to their deaths or evacuate early even if there was 90% chance of victory.

    Wounded Management


    Wounded are a burden on an operation. They slow down a otherwise healthy and well supplied squad, and they must be accounted for because every marine will incur wounds when fighting xenomorphs. The logistics behind wounded CANNOT be underestimated; if you have a good coordinated push but have no wounded management, your push may net some kills but you now have a dead army as they die to wounds or ambushers who attack while they are at their weakest.

    On top of this, the transportation of Wounded is extremely important. It requires a minimum of 2 marines; one to carry, and one to guard. This puts a huge strain on the firepower of marines as now a minimum of THREE marines that could be shooting at xenos are now pulling back. You also have to be mindful of medevac, if you even have it; PO's can only bring up TWO marines every 2-3 minutes. This means if your squad / army is deep in enemy territory, you have to be mindful that those who are deeply wounded will have a tough time being evacuated, which further dampens your effective firepower.

    Having medics in good locations with guards around them is how you win rounds. It doesn't even have to be a small FOB made specifically for medics; it just has to be a place where even a Ancient Lurker would think twice of attacking.

    Here is an example.

    LV Containers is an excellent location for marines AND xenos alike depending on how wounded are handled. Pushing up to North Containers and setting up Triage there ensures that Xenomorphs that wish to ambush you have to go through both the tight corridors of the Containers, which favor buckshot shotgunners, and open corridors for coordinated firepower by BC + RDS + Vgrip burstfire volleys that scare even T3's, let alone a Mature or Elder Lurker looking for a free kill. If you are able to get a Combat Engineer to setup a small FOB with wired metal barricades in this location, you have a supreme staging ground into the Caves as Wounded now have a reliable area to retreat to get treatment. They also have Open skies, which means medevac works here, and has a clear route back to Tfort and Hydro; locations that most marines pass through either as reinforcements or as wounded. If this route is flared, it is a good retreat route for wounded to go through if medevac is too occupied as open areas against decent riflemen is hard to defeat by xenomorphs, especially when we know they are coming due to flares.

    Remember; good wounded management means reinforcements later on as those that die and get defibbed then sent up come back down as fully operational marines with full supplies.

    Orbital / CAS

    Orbital and CAS bombardments are key to keeping the Flow of combat on your side. CAS in open areas can be placed down on xenomorph entrance and retreat points to stall entire pushes and to scare xenos into regrouping in other less favorable locations. Orbitals can be used anywhere; even in caves, which allows the clearing of large swathes of resin, destroying a retreat point that xenomorphs could use to run away from a push, or even directly killing trapped or unaware xenomorphs that matter, such as Boilers.

    OB's and CAS can also be used on the defensive and on the retreat. A proper GAUSS CAS drop on a entrance point for xenos can allow you the time to grab wounded and evacuate with a Move order before they can push through. An OB in of itself, even if it doesn't kill, gets xenomorphs to run away simply due to the sound it makes, let alone if you connect a OB with xenomorphs which can land a few kills and make them back off. The difference between victory and defeat can be one well placed CAS or OB run.

    Mortars are the middle ground to these and I personally do not recommend them. The reason is due to the Mortars limited (and very expensive ammunition), the sound it makes is similar to an OB (and doesn't drop that much faster than a OB, so xenomorphs run away from it), and it has to be manned by a skilled Engineer with proper headset. The only time I recommend Mortar usage to change the Flow of combat is on the defensive or on maps that do not allow a lot of CAS (Underground Ice Colony, Prison Station). A well placed incendiary mortar drop on the retreat can stop a xeno push, and a well placed HE drop in Low Sec Prison Station can clear up a lot of the cell walls which block an advance by Marines. I do not have much more experience than this with Mortars, so anyone else that is better with them can comment on this guide.

    Communication


    Communication is extremely important, especially as a CIC role. The more you communicate, the more you know about the real battlefield situation and the flow of combat. The most important thing as a CIC staff or even as a SL is asking the RIGHT questions about what is going on.

    Some of the important things to ask is:

    1) Is OB on cooldown?
    2) Is CAS up?
    3) Mortar crew ready?
    4) Locations of other squads?
    5) Combat heavy locations?
    6) Ambusher areas and possible locations?
    7) Wounded count?
    8) Ammo count? This is especially important for SPECIALISTS.
    9) Metal / plastisteel count? VERY important for whether FOB's can be placed / extended.
    10) Hive location(s)?
    11) General location and movement of marines?

    These will all allow you to determine:

    1) Can a OB be used to attack or retreat? And if not, when is it off cooldown and can be reloaded?
    2) Can a chokepoint be stalled or a Boiler scared? If not, when will CAS be up?
    3) Can mortars shoot? If not, why and when and how much ammo can they spare?
    4) Being knowledgeable of other squad locations, especially as a SL, allows you to determine whether reinforcements will come or whether you have to move off of FOB duty to help a push / cover a retreat. This is IMPERATIVE and can MAKE or BREAK a push / retreat.
    5) Knowing the locations where Xenos + Marines have fought many times allows you to know where to reinforce / revisit to mop up possible ambushers or pinpoint the location of the hive (xenos fight the fiercest when your closest to their Queen, etc).
    6) Knowing where ambush locations are is CRITICAL for knowing if you can safely retreat / evacuate wounded / entire squads. It is also a good idea to know so that you can go and route them out, or block off their entrance (such as a Pyro Spec using Green Gas on Hydro Road to cover all entrance points to road so it can cover the marine retreat).
    7) Knowing how many wounded and how fast they are being treated will know if a retreat must be called or if a push can keep going. You must account for the fact that it takes a MINIMUM of TWO marines to carry ONE wounded out of an ACTIVE combat zone; one to cover and one to drag.
    8) Knowing if the RPG spec can fire, if the Pyro Spec can cover a retreat, if the Scout Spec can move in and burst fire a resting xeno, or if Sniper spec can light up Boiler with incendiary mags can be the difference between victory and defeat. Normal PFC ammo is also important if the round lasts longer than 45 minutes as marines have to start looting the perma dead for ammo at this point.
    9) This is extremely important; if your Engineers on the ground have enough metal and plastisteel, they can create forward outposts that can be used to cover wounded and allow medics to work safely, and can keep the advantage of battlefield control over a crucial area (such as covering a flank xenos need to kill off the marines).
    10) Knowing the general location of the hive is important to knowing where you can properly FOB and where it is a waste of materials / man power to place marines. It is also important to know as even Xenomorphs need to waste time and energy to build a hive, hence most xenos will concentrate near or inside of the Hive to defend it from invaders.
    11) Knowing the general movement and locations of the biggest concentration of marines allows you to know where the xenomorphs might be. T3's and some T2's can reliably survive encounters with huge mobs of marines, which means you will find most of these xenomorphs near the general location of the marines. Ambusher T2's and T1's will be close around this area as well, but they will punish small packs or loner marines instead, so knowing the general location of marines can also allow you to know where ambushers are most likely to strike.

    Some of the key things you can also communicate, ESPECIALLY as CIC staff, is using SQUAD ANNOUNCEMENTS and COMMAND ANNOUNCEMENTS. SQUAD ANNOUNCEMENTS can be used WITHOUT COMMS, make a PING noise, and alert ALL MEMBERS of a squad with whatever you say. This is very important in the midst of combat when most marines have tunnel vision on xeno contacts, and is also a good way to give out important information such as tactical map updates. COMMAND ANNOUNCEMENTS do the same except it broadcasts to ALL marines, makes a loud DING noise, and works WITHOUT COMMS. This is important as a XO / CPT to give large orders such as the movement of xenomorphs, possible numbers, wounded counts, or ordering retreats / advances.

    TAC MAP updates are optional but improve SL's / Marines tactical awareness of the battlefield IMMENSELY. Essentially, you use the Tactical Map, and take a screenshot and IMGUR it, then state: TAC MAP UPDATE: imgurlink. The imgurlink part is where you post the link of the screenshot. There is two ways to TAC MAP update; the Command Console and the SO consoles. The SO consoles only show your own squad and their colored blobs on screen while the rest are green blobs, while the Command Console TAC MAP shows the colors of ALL squads and where they are. This is important for good SL's to know as knowing is half the battle in a command position.

    Battlefield Control

    This is key in winning in CM. Map control is how you corner the xenomorphs with no escape and crush them; that is one of the few reliable ways to win against xenomorphs. Because xenomorphs use attrition based tactics, and have near infinite vitality as they can heal from everything, you must be able to trap them in their home ground with overwhelming firepower and a push that covers all flanks. The first step to this goal is BATTLEFIELD CONTROL.

    You must be able to take important parts of the map and FOB them so that it can serve as both a choke hold AGAINST xenomorphs and an insertion point FOR marines to push from / get healing and supplies. For example; in Big Red, such a point is Lambda West Podlocks. Controlling this point as a Marine gives you a good choke point if barricaded with reinforced barricades. It allows you to move in with good OB placement, and it gives you a wide open area to retreat to for healing, supply drops, and medevacs.

    Every map has locations like this; ETA entrances in Big Red, Yard on Prison Station, Hydroponics on LV. These are CRUCIAL areas to control on the map as they are easily defensible locations with the ability for resupply and healing for marines.

    This is also necessary because what marines require is DELAY. Delay is the concept that xenomorphs can heal without any other assistance except for weeds by DEFAULT. Pheremones help immensely, but are not required. Marines, however, require a safe location, a medic, and possible medevac for IB / lungs / limb loss where a Doctor will restore them to 100 percent. Marines require significantly longer to recover from injuries; doubly so if they incur massive injuries. BATTLEFIELD CONTROL is the ANSWER to this dilemna.

    If Marines can control the map through good FOB placement, CAS runs, OB drops, key HVT kills through teamwork, flanks, RPG, etc. they can secure battlefield control and in doing so, they can afford to delay for their wounded to get healed for the next assault.

    The lose condition, therefore, is a LOSS of BATTLEFIELD CONTROL. If Marines cannot place down good FOB's, secure supply / reinforcement routes, have proper medical triage and medevacs, then they will lose against the attrition based xenomorphs. Keep this in mind; even a SL must understand this concept above all else as failure to do so can lead to an entire squad wipe when you least expect it.

    TO BE CONTINUED
    Last edited by Swagile; 01-10-2019 at 06:55 PM.

  2. #2
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    reserving if I need more space

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    Senior Member SolubleWhenWet's Avatar
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    The idea that there is an active shipside staff providing a meaningful and tangible difference to those deployed makes all the difference. If you have SOs on 2/4 consoles with some to spare, it would be infinitely so much more useful to have them deployed and use their binoculars on the front line to predict enemy advance. In addition, the tone you take to the marines is one thing, sure you can demand respect, but have you earned it in the course of play? It is better to be loved than feared, in a meta sense. Just my thoughts on how one should play Command roles.

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    added Communication and Battlefield Control

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    Swagile, this is some solid advice. A+ to the whole damn thing.

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