A potential new feature

[GreyGhostCV6]

As I understand it, there will be the ability to tell a specific unit to hold fire unless fired upon. This makes sense for recon units, but what about when using different types of recon units together?

For example, say you have a squad of recon infantry and a recon vehicle a little bit further back. If both units are set to hold fire and the infantry gets engaged, the vehicle won't fire in support of the infantry. But if the vehicle isn't set to hold its fire, then it could blow its cover, and by extension the infantry's cover, once something wanders in range.

The idea here is for an "overwatch" option where you can tell a unit to hold fire unless another unit that you select is engaged. This could either be an extension of the hold fire option or an entirely new option (which might be more practical).

If memory serves, in the February beta, both the U.S. Armored Brigade and the Guards Tank Battalion had a proper tank as a recon unit. With an "overwatch" option, you could tell the tank (or other preferred unit) to cover a selected unit, or potentially several units, and the tank will stay quiet until one of the selected units is engaged, allowing the engaged unit to more easily break contact. Of course, this option wouldn't have to be limited to recon units.

This, as a bit of a personal aside, could also make the "recon tanks" viable units, because I'm having difficulty seeing another way to use them. If anyone did develop strategies on how to use the recon tanks in the last beta, please let me know what you came up with.

[lil_cyborg]

Idk how this would work programmatically but I’m assuming it may be more difficult for the computer to check if there are units around it being engaged.

Maybe like -> if friendly unit in X range (maybe within Overwatch max firing distance) is engaged -> Fire on any enemy units in range or attack move to engaged friendly position -> after engagement follow selected unit by X distance behind them.

How would you set the distance for Overwatch unit? For example if I have a flame unit or other shock unit supporting recon unit moving through forest I would want them closer to the recon unit vs using a Tank as Overwatch which has different speed/firing range

[GreyGhostCV6]

Originally posted by lil_cyborg:

Idk how this would work programmatically but I’m assuming it may be more difficult for the computer to check if there are units around it being engaged.

Maybe like -> if friendly unit in X range (maybe within Overwatch max firing distance) is engaged -> Fire on any enemy units in range or attack move to engaged friendly position -> after engagement follow selected unit by X distance behind them.

How would you set the distance for Overwatch unit? For example if I have a flame unit or other shock unit supporting recon unit moving through forest I would want them closer to the recon unit vs using a Tank as Overwatch which has different speed/firing range

Truthfully, I always assumed that the overwatching unit would be stationary and wouldn't be able to provide overwatch while it's moving. If you wanted to set up something similar to bounding overwatch, you could have two units, or groups of units, take turns between moving and overwatching (although you might not need a special "overwatch" feature for that, I originally thought up this idea with recon units in mind).

I also assumed that the overwatch "range" would be equal to the unit's maximum firing range. However, now that I think about it, this could run you into the trap of the overwatched unit being so far forward that whatever engages it could be outside of the overwatching unit's weapons range. Maybe the overwatch range could be limited to half of the overwatching unit's maximum weapons range (and limited to requiring line of sight to either the overwatched unit, what is engaging the overwatched unit, or both).