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I personally really like this idea.

We had a few talks in Discord again over the missing things in APB and i brainstormed some of them for a fitting gameplay experience in APB. Allies = Heli Carrier: I know it's a cut unit from aftermath but i still enjoying it when i use it with my custom rules.ini or mod in C&C RA Remastered. The Heli Carrier is a pure support unit like LSTs and the RJ and need protection from boats and longbows and delivers ammunation for Helis. In RA1 it can carry 5 Longbows/Hinds but in APB it should be just a mobile refill pad on water. It would be a great addition for HostileWaters since Sub Rushes on this map are nearly unblockable imo. One question for implementation is: should the Heli Carrier be stationary (with Q deploying on water) when Aircraft refills ammunation or can it still move to dodge incoming attacks? Camo Pillbox: The Camo Pillbox is another good problematic example (like dogs, tech centres and Advaned Power Plants) "how to implement this into the game) One Problem of the Camo Pillbox is, when player notice the position of the CPB, in all future gamesrounds it's a easy target because the camouflage/hiding aspect is obsolete. Points to implement it into the game: First, it has more armor than the standart Pillbox. Second, it should be not targetable until a enemy unit is really close to it. Third, it should be really flat, really really flat. Maps like Zama and siege would be fitting. What i notice by playing RA Remaster is allies can clearly see the CPB but for Soviets/Eneimes it's not colored in the enemies color and its really hard to spot in the terrain. Fourth and most important idea of my brainstorming. Remember the Coop Map for APB? The allies have terminals where they can invest into defense structures.. Obviously that didn't work for the CPB but here comes my idea. At the start of the Match, players have a timeframe of 60-90 seconds to run out the base and place a beacon or some sort of placeholder on a spot where the CPB should took place and deploying it. Not more than 2 or 3 should be possible, depending on the map. Shouldn't be re-buildable/re-deployable if it gets destroyed and can't shoot up/down to/from hills (thats the job for normal Pillboxes and Turrets) because it's so flat. But also it shouldn't cost anything but you have to deploy it at the start pretty fast. The second deploy idea would be multiple RNG areas on maps around/in the allied base where CPBs could be automatically set at the start of the round. But that would take the "strategic" element away from the defense. In combination with the Gap Generator it would be a pretty strong defense. (Spy Infiltrating) Sonar Pulse & Badger Bomber: We had a discussion how to make the Spy stronger. One of my ideas is the obvious power use. If a Spy got into a Sub Pen, the allies got the Power in their RD/NY/Tech Centre (depending on the map) for single use . Re-infiltrate make the power again usable. It shows subs pretty clear in the water. (It just my opinion or my eyesight isn't the best but it's really hard to see subs in the water) for 5-10 seconds. For Badger Bombers it's the same. If a spy infiltrate the Air Field, Allies can use one single Airstrike. Also used in their RD/NY/Tech Centre, map depending. GPS Satellite: Tbh it's really hard to come up with a use of the GPS Power in the game. First it's basically automatic and second we have no fog of war in APB. My only idea would be to detect the position of all enemy units after a amount of time (i guess it was 12 minutes in RA1?) until the game is over or the Tech Centre is destroyed. Maybe you have some ideas here. Soviets= Dogs, Chitzkoi & Kennel: The Attack Dog is the most important counter against allied spies and infantry in general and we need them in game (because we have some really good spy players in APB). They are faster than all other infantry and kill a soldier in one hit, even Tanya. "But Meta, what if the soviets destroy the allied vehicle production and the enemy comes with a lot of dogs? it's unbalanced" - People driving with Anti Inf Minelayers into the enemy base if allied Vehicle Production is dead, also allies rushing in the same case with APCs and Rangers into the Soviet base so this argument is invalid. Dogs have no Armor and can killed pretty easy by one player with good aim or 2-3 casual rifle soldiers. To give a spy a small counter against dogs, he can carry a "dog spray" (Anti Shark Bat Spray flashbacks) that paralyze or slow down the dog for 1-2 seconds so the spy can counter the dog. Because of Dogs the Kennel would be a new target for allied players to get rid of to make room for their spies and infantry. If Chitzkoi makes also hold in APB he would be a very pimped version of the Dog, also he would need oil to not make weird mechanical rusty sounds when he moves. If a Dog Player sees a Spy, he should see not the soldier facette, instead see a british black suited man that run for his life. Forward Command Post: Just thinking about a counterpart for the Map Seamist. Soviets have to defend their Command Post as important Building until they get reinforcements or nuke the attacking allied base out of existence. Spy Plane: Basically the same function as the GPS Satellite. It shows the position of all allied units for a few seconds but instead it is available after 3-5 Minutes and hold for 30 seconds. Doesn't work against units that below a Gap-generated Field. Badger, Parabombs, Paratroopers & Parachutes: Another Badger related Power. Soviets can call reinforcements in form of Bots, maybe for a decoy, maybe for help, maybe for attacking the enemy base. It works pretty well in the Coop Map tbh. Also Parabombs are basically a airstrike but instead of allied version of spy infiltration, soviets can use it multiple times until the round is over or the tech centre/air field is destroyed. Also WE - NEED - PARACHUTES - IN - THIS -GAME. Its so annoying if you lose your Hind/LB/Mig/Yak and fall into death. Every infantry unit that fall out of a weaponized aircraft should automatically have a parachute. But why not purchase a parachute? Because it would make a full chinhook extremly op. If all player have purchase a parachute, flying as team with a Chinhook and the Chinhook get destroyed over the enemy base, the enemy base is in pure chaos. The whole point of the Chinhook is sneaking into the base with the team and if it gets destroyed the whole heli team is fucked. Both Factions= Sandbags (Allies) and Barbed Wire (Soviets) (and Chain Link Fence): Already in the game but just a pure map asset. I was thinking about (remodeling the sandbags and) animate a destruction for them so it has a purpose in the game as "defense" Blocks Infantry and Light Vehicles with Machine Guns (they can't harm them) but no chance against tank and rocket weapons. Tech Centers: People already discussion the use of TCs in the game here but here are my thoughts. In later C&C Games, Tech Center-like buildings give the player upgrades or powers besides multiple high tier units. Thats why the Tech Centers should be purely based on powers (except for the Super Weapons). Player can use the Spy Planes, Sonar Pulse and Badger-based Powers from here. If the TC is destroyed soviets lose the powers and allied spies can't get the powers again (and the GPS Satellite is deactivated). Chronosphere & Iron Curtain: I know not possible atm because we don't have a iron curtain model. But you all know the mechanics of these both devices. Like in Apocalypse Rising you go to the device, enter the terminal and the map shows up, you choose one unit and make it invincible/teleport that to another location. Since both are secondary super weapons and aren't so strong like their RA2/3 Versions, and they are not that strong as a Nuke both could be used on smaller maps (demolition trucks don't work with them!) Advanced Power Plant: I know, i know but just hear me out. Yes the APP is just a bigger PP with the same use. It just have no real point in the game. But it's really unRAlistic if you have a big base and everything is powered by a small PP. I would use the APP on maps with big bases like siege and it should be at the corner of the base so it doesn't take too much space. Also the APP could be tweaked a bit toe be a bit smaller. So we can bring every major unit and building into the game again. Bonus: Larva & Queen Ant: I just have to do this because we need more ant maps in the game. My idea would be a ant-based map where one team is Allied or Soviet and the other players spawning as Scout/Warrior/Fire Ants and have to defend the larvas and the Queen. The Larvas are destructable objects and the Queen a animated Building (in RA1 it was also classified as building). It can shoot electro attacks like a tesla coil.

I like all three of these ideas. So, I'll throw my hat in with them. Also, how about a bay that spawns a crate every 5 or so minutes that can have a random positive effect? Its unpredictable, so its not inherently OP, but still could represent exploring technologies, kind of like the name suggests.

I don't think becoming a dog is a good idea. It means you're useless for the entire rest of the game if you combine it with the previous idea. Back in the day though, it was proposed that purchased dogs could roam around the base as passive defense. Rather than this, perhaps purchasing a dog means that you become a dog handler. Basically your standard infantry unit (maybe a Starshina or Kapitan could also purchase them, but I see it as a bad idea to give Volkov or Shock Troopers this ability) gets a dog that follows you around, sniffing down spies and hidden infantry units. This also prevents issues with melee weapons that this engine has, since the AI would be handling that and not a human.

So apart from the rather obvious disable high tier units by destroying enemy tech center, maybe something like this Someone mentioned on discord already giving allied a map, like the chronotank uses, but able to see all enemy units (and not use the map to teleport ofc unless you are a chronotank) after 10-15 minutes (GPS satellite launching) in the match for as long as the allied tech center stays up. Liking this idea really The soviet tech center is ofc a lot harder, as it never had a function of it own beside teching up in RA1, but maybe if the allied spy infiltrate it the allied would be able to buy some hightech soviet units either for a limited time (and I mean very limited time, anyone not directly inside, or in the very near vicinity of their base would not have time to get back and buy anything, and there wouldn't be time to buy more than 2-3 tanks at any rate across the entire team due to construction time), or a limited amount across the entire team (using amount would limit the amount of infantry that could be bought as well (or maybe then actually limited amount of inf and limited time to buy tanks, would work best?). Also this would be tied as well to what other soviet structures are still standing, so if soviet War Factory is down, the infiltrating the tech center would only give access to high tech soviet inf, not tanks, and if there is neither a War Factory or barrack anymore, it would simply not be giving any benefit at all. So not only would this require some pretty decent teamwork and communication to take proper use of such an infiltration, it would also give a very interesting choice for allied, what target to go for or if they should try and delay destruction. Maybe also in case you say infiltrate tech center and then kill soviet War Factory right after before you used up the time/amount of mammoth tanks you could you would loose access to building those tanks too. This way it would be near impossible to just get access to high tier soviet stuff that the soviet can't get themselves at the same time (ofc you would still keep what you bought but again it would require very tight teamwork to infiltrate, build and then demolish after things are built for the allied to have stuff the soviet dont have access to), and ofc you would still have to pay full price for the soviet stuff you do buy

I’d like to use this topic to get some general feedback from the community. If these buildings were to appear in the game at some point, what would you want them to do? What would their purpose serve to gameplay? Let’s get those gears turning!

I like these ideas. I’d suggest compacting them however, into the tech centers doing one thing not multiple. So what I would do is simply make Tech Centers a Bonus Building. Losing them just causes you to lose the support powers, not technology. I cannot say a good way to balance the support powers, however. I like the flare idea, but rather than the flares themselves being able to be disarmed, I think they should be inert and instead you can shoot down the bomber/chinook itself like in the game. I would also say it may be better to have the support powers be purchasesble, rather than on a strict timer, assuming it’s possible for them to have a build limit. Stacking nukes is already a thing, imagine stacking paradrop call ins and having 20 aimbotting riflemen swarm the enemy base. I guess the issue I have more than anything else is that a map wide wall hack and a slow bomb drop are two very different things, and really cannot be comparable. And would the GPS show off underground Soviets? That would be a little silly. Lastly I think they could also feature as a critical building. Lose it you lose the match. To this end they should be in a very defensible location without any sneak paths and certainly with their own dedicated defense just for it. Rear of the base, walled in, only one way in. That sort of thing. Pillbox and turret to guard it for allies and coil for Soviets. Something that would require a dedicated push to kill rather than one crouchy boy.

I like this idea quite a bit. Making the Kennel a simple structure where you press a button and receive doge is very appealing. I will say that Volkov should be able to buy a Chitzkoi though, super mut that you can only have one or two of that mulches all infantry and is tanky.

Removing higher tier units when destroyed is, of course, the obvious (I'd suggest c-tanks and Tanya, against TTs and Volkov.) But this just feels like the cheap way out; I like the idea of using the Tech Center as a secondary superweapon building of sorts, granting the Soviets perhaps a parabomb or AI paratrooper flare, and the Allies their GPS as suggested above, and possibly a similar helicopter drop of a few AI rifle soldiers. Yeah yeah the Chinook is Soviet, that doesn't stop Allied helicopter reinforcements every other minute in the Red Alert campaign. The reinforcements might be troublesome to deal with, if they're called in to help cover C4ing a building or a flare; I think the highly visible support flare (like the green smoke from Soviet 1 Lesson in Blood) and the time delay before paratroopers arrive works against this by making it incredibly obvious to the other team where you're attacking.

I would make it so it provides high tech stuff and when your tech center is lost you lose the high tech stuff

Imho, Tech Centres would be better utilised in a PvE setting, where you could, for example, infiltrate one to gather intelligence, etc. I feel this would be more preferable than being an Auxiliary building in PvP where its utility is in a little more doubt.

Copy from my thread for the idea discussion "The Attack Dog is the most important counter against allied spies and infantry in general and we need them in game (because we have some really good spy players in APB). They are faster than all other infantry and kill a soldier in one hit, even Tanya. "But Meta, what if the soviets destroy the allied vehicle production and the enemy comes with a lot of dogs? it's unbalanced" - People driving with Anti Inf Minelayers into the enemy base if allied Vehicle Production is dead, also allies rushing in the same case with APCs and Rangers into the Soviet base so this argument is invalid. Dogs have no Armor and can killed pretty easy by one player with good aim or 2-3 casual rifle soldiers. To give a spy a small counter against dogs, he can carry a "dog spray" (Anti Shark Bat Spray flashbacks) that paralyze or slow down the dog for 1-2 seconds so the spy can counter the dog. Because of Dogs the Kennel would be a new target for allied players to get rid of to make room for their spies and infantry. If Chitzkoi makes also hold in APB he would be a very pimped version of the Dog, also he would need oil to not make weird mechanical rusty sounds when he moves. If a Dog Player sees a Spy, he should see not the soldier facette, instead see a british black suited man that run for his life."

You’d respawn as a human when you died. Or just have a timer.

I'm pretty sure I've mentioned before that I think dogs would work best as a passive base defense, somewhat comparable to the Gap Generator; have a Kennel in the base somewhere that spawns dogs periodically to roam around the base, destroy the Kennel(s) to prevent dogs respawning. Maybe have the dogs put an indicator (like the arrows over cloaked units near an MSA in IA,) over the heads of nearby (15-20m from a dog, maybe?) spies, or even just any nearby Allied infantry unit, to encourage people working *with* the dogs to defend the base. Preferably, the dogs would still be vulnerable to full-sized weapons, but for their anti-infiltrator role, having them be resistant to handguns (and thus, Spy, Thief, Engineer and Tanya) might be a good idea. Though I must also admit, GeneralCamo's purchaseable buddy dog is also a good idea.

As an attack dog spies should get a sausage link that hovers over your head. The attack dog would also be a good counter to tanya in close quarters. I would argue dogs should be unable to access terminals because they don’t have thumbs but also so you can’t just eat a Tanya then disarm her C4. Terminal usage should at least be on a 30 second timer after purchasing. I would also argue that while spies don’t need a direct counter exactly, they’re uncommon enough to be a major thorn in a soviet team that doesn’t expect it. Forgotten is infamous, just yesterday I killed two technicians a sergeant and one engineer and wasted an ore dump on Volcano. Didn’t actually kill Refinery but I sure got close and suppressed repairs to the point someone panic bought an engineer not realizing dead Techs were why it wasn’t being repaired. Also, I don’t think it would throw off balance. Most maps feel allied biased already, giving them a better counter to saboteurs alone would be a nice nerf to PXD.

Tech Centres should disable all powers. (Except Superweapon powers, they bound on their respective builidings) Soviets should lose the parabombs, spyplane and paratroopers - allies the sonar pulse, gps satelite and the parabombs that they get through spy inflitration

I'm appealing my ban from discord due to this quote from a separate discord: Killing_You is biased against me due to some "colourful" and distasteful things I have said to him in the past which I had previously apologized for. In my opinion, it was a personal attack rather than sensible moderation. This screenshot from an acquaintance of mine on the server showcases this in full form. I am under the impression no one has appealed a ban from W3DHub Discord and succeeded which seems rather unjust. If I was moderating, I would have muted me again for however long. But the fact of the matter was I was banned while asleep with no reason given, no final warning, and from the accusations of one person (who was baiting me hard a few days prior) who doesn't even play or really care about the games. All of you know I can be reasonable from our time working together. What has been said by others is not my quarrel, idiots have seemed to rock the boat when I've divulged to them what occurred. I apologize for that too. It could have been reasonably discussed with me what the expectations were after an honest attempt to curb what was considered rule breaking. Frankly, it feels like a targeted action to disclude people like me from the community. Something I have been so adamantly against since I showed up here 4 years ago after nearly a decade as a solid member of the renegade family.