Improving Field X

[kira]

Name and explain your issues with the map Field X, each one you know and familier with and if you have suggestions also write it down. 

 

It's time we face with this unbalanced map and make it better. 

 

Issues: 

  - harvester trip time difference between nod and gdi. 

  - side path allow the initial cap team to hold stance and make very diffcult to break their defense, even at this state, most players just rushing through the   open field and die fast due to not understanding the map dyamics

- side paths too close to base entances , shouldn't have direct line at least into base.

 

 

Edited October 26, 2020 by kira

[MammothMKII]

Was the harvester trip time difference between GDI and Nod fixed? I would say this would be a fantastic start!

[I Sell meme Boy]

Map feels fine, baselock is the problem if there is one, so I don't think the team with free roam needs the radar station. I'd get rid of the tech building at the outer route. Either no more radar station or replace the middle silo with it to shift some focus to middle instead of the nascar around the edges of the map.

Personally I'm also fine with the baselocking as it's basically part of RenX by now but if I'd have to nitpick then I'd say is the bonus, unnecessary advantages for baselocking enemy in the form of 2x tech buildings.

[-orca]

In case of being baselocked and missing out on both tech buildings it's difficult to push out.
I thought a slight advantage to push out from base perspective could help with this issue; lower the terrain of the outer paths towards the communication center 
Also the rocks next to the power plants could hold a sort of bunker or vanatage point to give another angle of defense

[Luhrian]

Not a bad idea @orca.

On 10/26/2020 at 2:24 PM, I Sell meme Boy said:

Map feels fine, baselock is the problem if there is one, so I don't think the team with free roam needs the radar station. I'd get rid of the tech building at the outer route.

I agree, the comm center isn't really benefiting to the map balance atm. Way too easy to shut down desperate Infantry rushes.

[kira]

This whole sideway path is unballancing, maybe consider making it infantry path only? 
i don't say like narrow it but just block vehicle to drive from it up until certain point.

[Luhrian]

Hey,

Let me clarify how I look at the topic Field X

On 10/26/2020 at 1:17 PM, kira said:

- harvester trip time difference between nod and gdi. 

That is not true. You may not believe that I loaded the map and sat down in my chair with a stopwatch and wachted both Harvesters do their thing, but I did and I can tell you, both Harvesters need the same time for a round (about 2 Minutes and 10 seconds, Nod's harv was even a second faster in my measurement). But it is true that the first Harvester from GDI is faster than Nods. The weapons factory is just closer to the tib field than the airstrip dropoff, there is nothing we can do about it, without re-designing the whole base, which is not going to happen, at least no because of a few Harvester seconds. Furthermore this little delay does not result in a major disadvantage for Nod, since we are talking about a few seconds.

Note: I even wanted to record it to prove to everyone that they need the same time, but that would've been to much work for nothing, even for me.

 

On 10/26/2020 at 1:17 PM, kira said:

  - side path allow the initial cap team to hold stance and make very diffcult to break their defense, even at this state, most players just rushing through the   open field and die fast due to not understanding the map dyamics

If the players don't play the map correctly it isn't the fault of the map, is it?. It is a part of RenX to watch your surroundings and to recognize how you should play to get the most out of your unit. If everything is easy, there is no learing experience and the game gets boring very fast.
Furthermore you should never forget, that it is just a remake of another map, so there shouldn't be too many changes to the original field design. I think the current one can work pretty well, especially if we add something like @orca's suggestion.

 

On 10/26/2020 at 1:17 PM, kira said:

- side paths too close to base entances , shouldn't have direct line at least into base.

Wouldn't sending every vehicle, that wants to enter the side path over a field with no cover, result in a even worse situation for the base locked team?

 

2 hours ago, kira said:

This whole sideway path is unballancing, maybe consider making it infantry path only? 

Then we would have Field with a huge Infantry path, that isn't really an upgrade in my opinion.

 

2 hours ago, kira said:

i don't say like narrow it but just block vehicle to drive from it up until certain point.

Same thing as above, would result in a worse situation for the loosing team.

 

What is true:

• base locked teams have a too hard time trying to swing the game (positioning disadvantages, rush shutdowns via comm center)
• Nod Obelisk could use a bit more range, since vehicles can bombard the base in sight of it, but not in range
• Harvesters only benefit the winnig team, since both Harvesters will die in a contested Field, maybe we should move them somewhere else

In my opinion this problems are the ones we need to adress.

 

Don't take my cirticism to hard, just what I think about the topic.

Thank you for your comments and ideas!

Luhrian

[bred]

make gdi ref easier to sneak or make nod ref tougher to sneak. it's fairly easy to just walk into nod ref, even in a full server

[Mystic~]

My main balance gripe is the inability for the Nod obelisk to target multiple infantry, so early rushes often result in either the refinery or airstrip going down to a team suicide rush or late game rockets rampaging through, where as the AGT does an excellent job of mopping most players up unless they use a smoke. Either the ob needs an alt fire mode for detecting multiple infantry or there needs to be a machine gun GT positioned somewhere central to the Nod base, maybe GDI could also have one to cover the bar tunnel better? Both sides basically have to camp at least one tunnel with an artillery tank unit anyway and it's a sad lonely job.

My main map gripe is any map where it becomes necessary to stop the harvester for most of the game, especially if one side gets the field advantage - feel free to discuss or propose ideas. Give the harvester 10x its current armour on these types of maps, give it some sort of energy shield, let players manually mine something, add some more big boulder rocks for vehicle along the way?

Maybe the side vehicle route could be an exit only route to prevent a complete base lock, similar to that extra path on Cliffside, else I might add tank blockers just before the first diverging opening onto the main field and turn it into infantry only as someone else suggested but keep 80% the outer route accessible as it already is.

[Fffreak9999]

1 hour ago, Mystic~ said:

My main balance gripe is the inability for the Nod obelisk to target multiple infantry

The obelisk has splash damage, enabling it to kill enemies in a fair radius of a target.

[Mystic~]

15 hours ago, Fffreak9999 said:

The obelisk has splash damage, enabling it to kill enemies in a fair radius of a target.

I don't think it's anywhere near as effective as the Advanced Guard Tower. Someone would have to record an early game whole team infantry rush on Field or Field-X without player defenders, then repeat it for the opposite faction and allow me to see just how many players on each side survive, usually it's the Nod base that gets rampaged, but I think the AGT is closer to the nearside tunnel. 

[kira]

Then go for it, expend the obleisk range,
Take away the mrls option to swarm rockets as they now do when the climb on a rocket and hit everything even without having direct line.  (rocket bending)

please do something that give more chance to break free from base locks.

[Yeetler]

On 10/28/2020 at 9:42 PM, Luhrian said:

Not a bad idea @orca.

I agree, the comm center isn't really benefiting to the map balance atm. Way too easy to shut down desperate Infantry rushes.

That's the beauty of the COM center. Wanna rush? Then make sure you got COM... Or a good start is to gather somewhere else than REF or AGT/OB. Do PP instead.