Commander Mode guide

420 · 06-12-2005, 08:43 PM

I took this from a different forum but its very well done and should clear up any confusion about being commander. Its a very important part of the game IMO. So props to Messadiah at somethingawful.com.

Teamwork is absolutely essential in this game, and it's oh so easy too! This thread is to show everybody how exactly being a Commander or Squad Leader works, feel free to add any comments, tips, or suggestions of your own as this is going to be a very general overview.

First up is the Commander. Press Capslock to access the Command Screen

Important things you need to be aware of to start with:

1. - Squad list

This is the listing of all your squads and what classes each squad has and their health, the Squad Leader is the far right class icon. The green checkmark area is whether the Squad Leader has accepted or denied your orders, because I did this in singleplayer the bots are subservient to me and accept my orders of death without question. You can select the squads using the number keys on the keyboard and you can select multiple squads by holding shift and clicking on them or using the number keys, this aids in getting your orders out as soon as possible.

2. - Tools of the Trade

These are your tools, use them wisely and use them often.

Scan does a radar sweep of the entire map showing red dots wherever there is an enemy unit. This sweep only shows up for the Commander, use it to warn your team where the enemy is, where they are heading, or where to direct your artillery strikes.

Artillery is your favourite tool because you get to blow shit up and that's what this game is all about. Do a scan or use your UAV to find an area with a high concentration of enemy soldiers, click the Artillery button, then click on the mass of enemy.

Notes: After calling the artillery, it takes about 10 seconds to actually come down on your target so take that into account if the mass of enemy soldiers is on the move somewhere, try to guess where they'll be when hell starts raining down on them.

UAV's are Unmanned Aerial Vehicles used for local recon. Use the UAV where you believe there are a bunch of enemies and it will sweep that area and show little red dots on your map just like the Scan. The main difference between the UAV and the Scan is the area covered and the UAV scan can be seen by your entire team.

Supplies is a magical parachuting crate full of love. Drop this in a large concentration of your own team so heal them, repair their vehicles, give them ammo, and make them happy.

Here you see a supply crate parachuting to the ground, I love the parachutes in this game. Also not the bottom left of the HUD shows who you are.

Notes: Supply crates don't care who gets the supplies, so if you drop this on your enemies it won't crush their heads but in fact give them all the happy love bits that your team needs.

Supply crates also repair and heal everything, so if you're the commander and your team is retarded and won't repair your dead artillery, drop a crate in between them and you'll have the power to blow more shit up again in a few moments.

3. - Overhead Map View

This is your main screen, use it to monitor your squads on a global level, or zoom in and watch a specific battle play out from a few hundred feet in the air. Since we're all new at this, the main reason you'll want to zoom all the way in is to watch your artillery strikes on populated areas, the results are always spectacular. In this shot you can see a supply crate dropping below the Scan radar, the UAV trailer at the bottom, and a couple of humvee's and a tank.

Note: The buttons along the bottom are filters, by default they are all on so you can see everything, unclicking the icons removes those players/vehicles from your view. Use the resign button if everybody hates you and all you can manage to do is teamkill with the artillery.

Here is 2nd level of zoom which gives you a good show of the entire battle.

4. - Mini-map

Use this as an overview of the battle, it shows you which points are held by who. If anybody knows what other information is shown here please expand on this.

5. - Chat Area

This is where the chat moves to in Commander mode, just above it is the kill reporting area which also shows other commands. The buttons on the bottom under the chat area are who you are sending chat to when you.

__________________________________________________ _________________________________

Ok we've got the basics of the view down pat let's get to the more interesting stuff, first off the most important... the right click menu.

Your first option is to Zoom, which is a lot easier if you just use your mouse wheel. There are 3 levels of zoom, 2 of which are the 2D overhead map, the 3rd and closest zoom level is the one seen in the first overview screenshot where you see the actual 3D models and terrain from straight up.

Next is Spotted, when you spot an enemy unit of any kind, right click on it and click spotted and this will alert your team to its location and what it is.

Artillery, UAV, and Supplies will target those things where you right clicked.

The important commands here are Move, Defend, Attack, Repair, Destroy, and Mine. These are how you order your Squad Leaders around, right click where you want them to go, and then select what you want them to do when they get there. The majority of the time you will likely be using attack since the Squad Leader should have the smarts to know what to do when they get where you want them, you are just there to guide them.

In this screenshot I have all 3 squads selected and the order I gave them is to attack this point, whichever squad(s) is highlighted, you will see a line from the Squad Leader to the point you ordered them to. I am hidding in the shack in the middle right hoping nobody notices me, this is what you'll do a lot as commander.

__________________________________________________ _________________________________

The Quick/Communications/Orders Menu

Most people have voiced their dislike of the new quick communications menus but I've come to accept and even like them. This one is T by default (Sec. Comm), it allows you to quickly call down Artillery, Supplies, or an UAV to your current position. Hold down T and click or move your mouse up or down and click to use these.

Note: On the mini-map in the upper right of the screen there is an artillery symbol with a couple rings around it, what this icon means is run like hell so I don't get kickbanned for TKing you.

TyphoonSupport · 06-12-2005, 11:35 PM

Great guide, I haven't been able to try out command mode yet but now I know how to use it and actually be a good one

Al_Capwn · 06-13-2005, 12:03 AM

great information! i can finally show my clanmates

NavalLord · 06-13-2005, 12:19 AM

commander mode is great, allthough no one listens to you which makes me cry

Splintercell · 06-13-2005, 12:20 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by NavalLord

commander mode is great, allthough no one listens to you which makes me cry

same here, nice guide. I'll try some of that stuff out!

TitanSound · 06-13-2005, 12:43 AM

Very nice.

Play with mrhahn tonight on a server with a couple of clanmates. We formed a squad and then hahn was commander for 2 rounds and he done a fantasic job. It really is an important tool and will be awesome in the right hands.

Y2JMatrix94 · 06-13-2005, 01:17 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Splintercell

Quote:

Originally Posted by NavalLord

commander mode is great, allthough no one listens to you which makes me cry

same here, nice guide. I'll try some of that stuff out!

I couldn't agree more. It's kind of annoying when you tell your guys to defend a base, and they just run in circles. blowing up any and everything they find.

DanTesla1 · 06-13-2005, 01:19 AM

Thanks 420. This helped me out a lot where I didn't know what to do.

Mad Monk · 06-13-2005, 07:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DanTesla1

Thanks 420. This helped me out a lot where I didn't know what to do.

Yeah, great job finding this and sharing it with us. It helped me out a lot too.

Cøyøte · 06-13-2005, 07:03 AM

420, you da man o' da hour!

Thats amazing,.. explains some thi8ngs I saw on the minimap, and, Now I know that the freak yelling at me actually HAS some good intel

kcp · 02-20-2006, 01:58 AM

Anyone have any suggestions on the best way to encourage people to Squad up when your commanding??

Rambo_Medic · 02-20-2006, 06:46 AM

Nice guide, but the arty actually takes 15 seconds from launch. I timed it for a video shoot lol.

Fishfinger · 02-20-2006, 09:18 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by NavalLord

commander mode is great, allthough no one listens to you which makes me cry

I do
I'm the one asking for orders

Great guide I havent tried commander yet

06-12-2005, 08:43 PM	#1 (permalink)
420 General Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: Alberta, Canada Posts: 2,605	Commander Mode guide I took this from a different forum but its very well done and should clear up any confusion about being commander. Its a very important part of the game IMO. So props to Messadiah at somethingawful.com. Teamwork is absolutely essential in this game, and it's oh so easy too! This thread is to show everybody how exactly being a Commander or Squad Leader works, feel free to add any comments, tips, or suggestions of your own as this is going to be a very general overview. First up is the Commander. Press Capslock to access the Command Screen Important things you need to be aware of to start with: 1. - Squad list This is the listing of all your squads and what classes each squad has and their health, the Squad Leader is the far right class icon. The green checkmark area is whether the Squad Leader has accepted or denied your orders, because I did this in singleplayer the bots are subservient to me and accept my orders of death without question. You can select the squads using the number keys on the keyboard and you can select multiple squads by holding shift and clicking on them or using the number keys, this aids in getting your orders out as soon as possible. 2. - Tools of the Trade These are your tools, use them wisely and use them often. Scan does a radar sweep of the entire map showing red dots wherever there is an enemy unit. This sweep only shows up for the Commander, use it to warn your team where the enemy is, where they are heading, or where to direct your artillery strikes. Artillery is your favourite tool because you get to blow shit up and that's what this game is all about. Do a scan or use your UAV to find an area with a high concentration of enemy soldiers, click the Artillery button, then click on the mass of enemy. Notes: After calling the artillery, it takes about 10 seconds to actually come down on your target so take that into account if the mass of enemy soldiers is on the move somewhere, try to guess where they'll be when hell starts raining down on them. UAV's are Unmanned Aerial Vehicles used for local recon. Use the UAV where you believe there are a bunch of enemies and it will sweep that area and show little red dots on your map just like the Scan. The main difference between the UAV and the Scan is the area covered and the UAV scan can be seen by your entire team. Supplies is a magical parachuting crate full of love. Drop this in a large concentration of your own team so heal them, repair their vehicles, give them ammo, and make them happy. Here you see a supply crate parachuting to the ground, I love the parachutes in this game. Also not the bottom left of the HUD shows who you are. Notes: Supply crates don't care who gets the supplies, so if you drop this on your enemies it won't crush their heads but in fact give them all the happy love bits that your team needs. Supply crates also repair and heal everything, so if you're the commander and your team is retarded and won't repair your dead artillery, drop a crate in between them and you'll have the power to blow more shit up again in a few moments. 3. - Overhead Map View This is your main screen, use it to monitor your squads on a global level, or zoom in and watch a specific battle play out from a few hundred feet in the air. Since we're all new at this, the main reason you'll want to zoom all the way in is to watch your artillery strikes on populated areas, the results are always spectacular. In this shot you can see a supply crate dropping below the Scan radar, the UAV trailer at the bottom, and a couple of humvee's and a tank. Note: The buttons along the bottom are filters, by default they are all on so you can see everything, unclicking the icons removes those players/vehicles from your view. Use the resign button if everybody hates you and all you can manage to do is teamkill with the artillery. Here is 2nd level of zoom which gives you a good show of the entire battle. 4. - Mini-map Use this as an overview of the battle, it shows you which points are held by who. If anybody knows what other information is shown here please expand on this. 5. - Chat Area This is where the chat moves to in Commander mode, just above it is the kill reporting area which also shows other commands. The buttons on the bottom under the chat area are who you are sending chat to when you. __________________________________________________ _________________________________ Ok we've got the basics of the view down pat let's get to the more interesting stuff, first off the most important... the right click menu. Your first option is to Zoom, which is a lot easier if you just use your mouse wheel. There are 3 levels of zoom, 2 of which are the 2D overhead map, the 3rd and closest zoom level is the one seen in the first overview screenshot where you see the actual 3D models and terrain from straight up. Next is Spotted, when you spot an enemy unit of any kind, right click on it and click spotted and this will alert your team to its location and what it is. Artillery, UAV, and Supplies will target those things where you right clicked. The important commands here are Move, Defend, Attack, Repair, Destroy, and Mine. These are how you order your Squad Leaders around, right click where you want them to go, and then select what you want them to do when they get there. The majority of the time you will likely be using attack since the Squad Leader should have the smarts to know what to do when they get where you want them, you are just there to guide them. In this screenshot I have all 3 squads selected and the order I gave them is to attack this point, whichever squad(s) is highlighted, you will see a line from the Squad Leader to the point you ordered them to. I am hidding in the shack in the middle right hoping nobody notices me, this is what you'll do a lot as commander. __________________________________________________ _________________________________ The Quick/Communications/Orders Menu Most people have voiced their dislike of the new quick communications menus but I've come to accept and even like them. This one is T by default (Sec. Comm), it allows you to quickly call down Artillery, Supplies, or an UAV to your current position. Hold down T and click or move your mouse up or down and click to use these. Note: On the mini-map in the upper right of the screen there is an artillery symbol with a couple rings around it, what this icon means is run like hell so I don't get kickbanned for TKing you. __________________ "Computer games don't affect kids; I mean if Pac-Man affected us as kids, we'd all be running around in darkened rooms, munching magic pills and listening to repetitive electronic music." Kristian Wilson, Nintendo Inc, 1989

06-12-2005, 11:35 PM	#2 (permalink)
TyphoonSupport Private 1st Class Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: Everywhere Posts: 145	Great guide, I haven't been able to try out command mode yet but now I know how to use it and actually be a good one __________________ E-Mail: sales@typhoonservers.com Website: www.typhoonservers.com

06-13-2005, 12:19 AM	#4 (permalink)
NavalLord Forum Moderator Brigadier General Join Date: May 2003 Posts: 6,105	commander mode is great, allthough no one listens to you which makes me cry __________________

06-13-2005, 12:43 AM	#6 (permalink)
TitanSound Captain Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: London, England Posts: 2,811	Very nice. Play with mrhahn tonight on a server with a couple of clanmates. We formed a squad and then hahn was commander for 2 rounds and he done a fantasic job. It really is an important tool and will be awesome in the right hands. __________________ "You often find drummers have amazing memories, they have to remember long musical phrases as pure data, its almost binary"

06-13-2005, 12:03 AM	#3 (permalink)
Al_Capwn Private Join Date: Jun 2005 Posts: 55	great information! i can finally show my clanmates

06-13-2005, 07:03 AM	#10 (permalink)
Cøyøte Second Lieutenant Join Date: Jun 2005 Posts: 1,458	420, you da man o' da hour! Thats amazing,.. explains some thi8ngs I saw on the minimap, and, Now I know that the freak yelling at me actually HAS some good intel

02-20-2006, 01:58 AM	#11 (permalink)
kcp Private Join Date: Feb 2006 Posts: 8	Anyone have any suggestions on the best way to encourage people to Squad up when your commanding??