des1206

Is there a way to donate without be charged a hefty paypal fee?

I still think my CT anti-armor idea is worth exploring. It encourages more of a combined arms tactic. For example: +30% armor dmg/-30% health dmg let CT keep its DPS the same, but make it really useful in large battles as it helps to strip armor off of Soviet tanks for allies to take advantage of. It could "zip around the battle field stripping armors" XD On the Phase getting health regen, I just think this opens the phase up to infantry combinations that's other than Mech/Phase.

Some Allied-buff balance ideas then to help direct confrontation 1. Make APC/Ranger's machine guns a little better vs Soviet infantry like shock and Volkov 2. Shorten shockie's range a little more so they are easily kited in open field without cover. 3. Make Tanya more useful in open field by increasing her Colt .45 range, but also her C4 throw range and C4 dmg vs vehicle. 4. How about a Chronotank weapons logic that damage tank armors more, but health less? Alternatively, give the CT a small bonus dmg vs Mammoth armor 5. Increase CT dmg vs buildings slightly more so they can join in on a base attack easier. 6. Give the Phase Tank full/limited self-repair abilities. It did that in one of the Aftermath missions. Increase its price if you have to. This will drastically improve its lifespan in the field for skilled operators.

I wonderful if this is because Soviet units are easier to use in direct attacks and require less coordination/teamwork, and in larger games, it's harder for Allies to pull off shenanigans like infiltration and ambush with more Soviets on the map.

I have a small gripe about the Mammoth Tank's self-repair ability. Because the game makes vehicle armor more superior than health (a great mechanic in-of-itself), the tank "repairing to 50%" isn't really at 50%. Another to say it, in Red Alert, a Mammoth Tank self-repaired to 50% health would be as strong as a light tank. However in APB, it's repaired 600 health would be inferior to a 300/300 light tank. I really appreciate this unit's design and the beautiful balance this game currently has. You can tell a lot of hard work has been put into testing and balancing. So i just want to make it clear i say the above out of thankfulness and as a "for your consideration". Slow vehicles are usually at a disadvantage on large maps, since the enemy has plenty of time to respawn and attack you over and over to whittle you down. Can we consider some sort of full-heal upgrade for the mammoth tank? But armor self-repair only starts if the tanks has been out of battle for a while?

Using the pitch and binding the rudder to Z and X really helped, thank you!

Compared to the Hind and Mig, i found the Yak very cumbersome to use and having small practical benefits. Would anyone care to weigh in on how to use it more effectively, or balance suggestions?

I wonder if we can have certain units "spot" for Migs and other aircraft.

Dislike. Half of the fun of this game is the heart pounding thrill of sneaking into an enemy base undetected commando style, wreak as much havoc, then take out the last silver of health in a building before dying. This nerfs seems to cap the skill curve of skilled players, and buff defenders instead of encouraging aggressive and risky but high-pay-off gameplay styles. PS: Thank you Dev team for all the great work that you continue to do on this game. Please don't misunderstand my constructive feedback.

Now you guys can set things up for the Spy Plane. Periodic flyovers that automatically revealed all cloak Allied units and mines with objective markers.

It would be cool to have an ant map where you have to defend for the first 15 minutes, after which the difficulty gets turned up, but you get access to gas trucks to exterminate ant nests before they exterminate you.

Thanks for the explanation. C&C mode is suppose to favor attackers and discourage defending/turtles. If a Tanya is able to sneak into a base past the mines, or with the help of a spy on KotG, good for them! If two Soviet engins are able to slow walk and C4 a MCT, good for them! They should be rewarded with such high-risk team-based plays. Speaking of KotG, i'm against getting rid of that Soviet ore-field entrance for the reason i just mentioned. There is a very rewarding thrill when you try to pull off a covert op. You don't really get this with other FPS games. I sincerely feel taking out crouch-sneaking takes out half of the fun as an attacker. Based on my experience, one dedicated Allies minelayer can shut down almost the entire Soviet armor usage on maps. Allied Minelayers can deploy 5 mines in quick succession on the move, and reload instantly on the SD. It takes a lot of time for Soviets to hop out of tanks to de-mine, giving up one attacking infantry, and Allies can put down another 5 mines for the time it takes a Sovet engin to find and disarm 5 mines. Minelayers are also nimble enough to get away from any danger most of the time. I feel AT mines make the game less fun because it is so one dimensional. If anything, I really suggest we give minelayers a deploy, reload, and refill delay, and maybe a dmg nerf. If anybody feel differently based on their playing experience, i would be interested in hearing your view.

I like most of the changes! But i'm also against the Sneaking and Engineer shovel changes. Crouch sneaking into a base has always been a fun, high-risk/high-reward and heart-pounding strategy to try to pull off. Why the change? Allies lay TONS of AT mines on maps. If anything Soviet engineers should get an even bigger disarm radius along with unlimited ammo.

Why the Phase Tank nerf? It has paper armor to begin with.

If you don't think Age of Empires is one of the best RTS ever made, i have just one word for you.

I see failed rushes and no one taking my nader strategy to heart.

Upgrades should not just be a simple direct armor +2, attack +2, dmg +2, that's too lazy and may make the game really imbalanced if one team's tech center goes down. Instead, upgrades should widen unit abilities and strategies. A couple of ideas: - Mammoth/Volkove Armor regen/full heal - Engineers can get an extra block of C4 - Mobile GAP gets extra range - Tanya speed increase - Chronotank reset time decrease - Hind carries an extra passenger - APC refills weapons

Any discussion on balancing needs to include opportunity costs (for non-AI units). As effective as a specialized unit is, what alternative unit would a Soviet player give up playing to be a dog? Same as spies. Ineffective spies can really cost Allies an valuable extra tank or mech/medic. A good spy game-play video Also, can someone explain how spies work in Barracks/War Factory?

Bonus Tip: Because of the Mammoth Armor's resistance, 1 vs 1 a mechanic could actually out-repair a Volkov or Heavy Tank. So if you found yourself teleported next to the wrong person, as long as it's 1 vs 1, and you still have your armor on, pop out of your CT and start repairing! A CT continues to recharge whether you are in or out of the vehicle. Just try to survive 30 seconds before getting out of there.

Okay, first, here are some stats I collected. - Damage wise, vs armor the CT has the DPS of the Phase Tank (2nd highest in game after the TT), and vs buildings CT has the DPS of the medium tank. It's not effective vs infantry. - Health wise, at 300/300 the CT has same health as the Light Tank. But with Mammoth armor, it is more resistant to bullets, flames, heavy tank shells, and even Volkov's hand cannon. This effectively give the CT medium tank health (or better) vs many units. Vs Tesla weapons and Mammoth Tank shells, there is no resistance bonus and the CT is just like a Light Tank. - Speedwise, at ~8m/s, this tank is one of the slowest vehicles in the game. Teleportation is your only way to get away from an enemy. I'll admit I'm at a loss on how to use the CT effectively. The teleportation ability is nice, but I feel in terms of "battlefield niche", the tank is easily eclipsed by Longbows on air maps. The primary function of the CT is an anti-vehicle ambusher that flanks enemy vehicles with its increased mobility via teleporting, but LBs does this job very well already at 1/2 the cost! Additionally, given its $2,400 price tag, this unit is almost always used with a mechanic. It handles tank duels decently, you just need to try to teleport in from the flanks or the back, but there is always a risk of teleporting next to a group of enemy units and losing $3,350 worth of value. Despite this, there are still three tips/strategies I think currently work: 1. Given the tank's special armor, it is really resistant vs Flame Towers. Try to solo using a CT vs using a medium tank, and you will see the CT only loses half of its health to kill a FT vs >75% of the med's health (numbers based on min FT health). If you have a mechanic, you can try your luck and repair a bit between flames. 2. Of course, you can always teleport past enemy defenses to the back of their base, but vs a well prepared (mined) team, and given the CT's high cost and mediocre DPS vs buildings, it is a risky play. You can try to sneak it with an engineer to C4 mined buildings, but engin C4s do less dmg these days and again CT's DPS vs buildings is mediocre (to finish off the building). 3. Teleportation is your biggest strength but also risk. You have enough health and DPS to play as a MBT, but you are also meant to be an ambush unit, so: - Use your teleportation sparingly, "walk" unless you can see your destination is safe. - Don't teleport from places enemies can see you if you are trying to flank them. Hide behind cover first and then teleport. - Don't teleport to places where enemies can see you. They will either turn around to face you first, or you teleport into a bunch of Volkovs. $2,400 + mechanic is expensive. - Don't always try to maximize your teleport distance. Instead pick a destination with cover, or places on the map that those slow Soviet units often don't visit. - If you need to retreat, generally teleport back towards your base (behind friendly lines) for safety. Here are three ideas on how to improve the unit: 1. Make Chrono initiation time and reset time a function of distance teleported (Less distance teleported, faster reset time). At 300m max range with 30 sec recharge time, maybe the scale can be 1sec/10 meter of distance jumped (i.e 200m jump, 20s recharge time)? By making short jumps faster and therefore less risky, it will encourage drivers to jump from flank to flank and make this unit more fun to use. Imagine how annoying it is for a Soviet tank column to have to deal with a CT that is in front of them, and then hops to their right, and then hops to their left. Phase Tanks can ambush too, but they can't jump from flank to flank. This will also add strategic depth to driving the CT and reward skillful jumping with lower recharge time. 2. Allow CT's map's "radar" feature to show enemy and friendly units in the entire circle (300m radius) instead of the current short range (~100m?). This will help CT drivers make smart decisions on where to teleport. This may be too OP in preventing sneaky Soviet rushes. 3. Lower the CT's price to $2,000

Can we lower the crash speed on the airstrip some more? Lag is a killer when landing planes.

APB is a game that favors specialized units. Need to rush a building's MCT? Buy a Shotgunner/Flamer/Shock. Counter Allied armored? Shocks/RS/Volkov. Speed rush the other team? Use LTs. Counter Soviet Armor? Mech/Med combo or Longbows. Counter mech/med combo? Use Hinds/Shocks/TT. Counter Longbows? Use a TT or Yak. Ambush and infiltration? Use Phase or Chrono Tanks. Overall, almost all units have one or several unique "battlefield niche" that they occupy. The Devs have done a really good job designing fun to play with units that are strategically deep. This brings us to the ever (un)popular grenadier. On first look, this unit seems like a jack of all trades, but master of none. It doesn't hit hard at vehicles like the RS, and generally can't stand 1vs1 in an infantry fight. Its range is short, health is mediocre, and projectile path curved. No wonder I don't see it being play a lot online. Why should I use the grenadier only to lose to tanks, infantries, and base defenses alike? Who cares if it's only $160? However, a deeper look reveals the Grenadier actually has its strength and unique niche. The key here is that the Grenadier is actually the infantry in the entire game with most DPS vs building exteriors! Yes, you heard it correctly. Vs. MCTs, Shocks take the top spot, then Flamers, then Shotgunners, and then Officers (RS/Volk/Grenadiers don't get the MCT bonus), but when it comes to shooting at other parts of buildings, the Grenadier's DPS is King among infantries, and next comes RS, followed by (?) Flamers. In fact, the Nader's DPS is actually the same as the Heavy and Medium Tank. In other words, throwing grenades at the War Factory is as good as using a Heavy/Med to shoot at it. And even vs other infantries that are shooting at the MCT, Grenadiers' DPS still come ahead of the Officer's, and is not too far behind the Shotgunner (53 sec vs Nader's 60 sec to kill Barrack). That 7 seconds of difference are more than made up by the need for Shotgunners to run into a building and reach the MCT first, and possibly being distracted by defenders away from the MCT when attacking. Additionally, vs Vehicles, the Grenadier does ~66% of a Rocket Soldier's DPS. Sure 66% is still not a lot, and it's hard to hit things with grenades, but that's far better than the Flamer, the Shotgunner, or the Officer's DPS vs vehicles. So if you need a budget close-range anti-armor that also can somewhat deal with infantry, the Grenadier isn't a bad choice. Once you understand this, it opens up a whole variety of strategies. I will list some examples below: - With its top DPS, Grenadiers are great at killing MCT-less buildings like the silo, AA gun, SD, base defenses (if you can get close), and helipad. - Like the Flamer, Grenadier is a great choice when attacking inside buildings, since it can hit defenders and the building at the same time. The difference here is that Flamers much better DPS hitting MCTs, but do not do as much DPS hitting the walls vs the Grenadier. The Nader can afford to be "distracted" trying to kill the defenders and not lose valuable seconds away from the MCT. - With its curved throw, creative players can take advantage of terrain and map features to hit buildings from behind cover. After-all, there is no need to go for the MCT (no bonus). Can you imagine a heavy tank (DPS-wise) hiding somewhere behind a bush, shooting at the War Factory? - Lastly, take advantage of the High Ground (It's over Anakin!). You will have a much easier time hitting enemy infantry throwing grenades down than at the same level. As you can see, the Nader is not meant to be an open-field unit that you should run around with. Its strength lies in attacking structures, both from within and without. Additionally, it functions as a budget RS in close-quarter situations vs vehicles. So the next time you go attack the Allied base, use a Nader! I hope to see more of this unit in this game!

The trick to a safe landing is to approach from already a low altitude. You should be descending long before you are near the strip.

I want to add Migs do best on large maps with significant Allied vehicle usage. It would be awesome to see them in action on maps like TotheCore and RidgeWar where Soviets often have trouble keeping up with fast Allied units.

Did you know: - Vs. buildings, Migs do more damage than Longbows. Numbers needed for buildings: Silo: 2 Migs or Yaks Allied buildings other than War Factory/NY/CY: 3 Migs/Yaks War Factory/NY: 4 Migs/Yaks - Vs. vehicles, Migs do 66% of damage of a Longbow. Still, Migs can two-shot (in one run) or less all Allied vehicles except the Medium/Light/Chrono Tank. - Migs have 66% of LB's health. - Migs fly at twice the Longbow's top speed (50m/s vs 25m/s), but because they need to circle around to attack and slow-down to land, realistically they don't always travel at twice the speed. - Migs aren't very good against planes. Use a Yak if you want to hunt air units. - You can get lucky with AA guns sometimes since they have to rotate to target you. You may be able to fly out of their range by then. - You can do barrell rolls with Migs by holding the direction button while flying.