The only problem with lattice is that it makes small outfits irrelevant

I'll tell you what's boring. Being the people who have to go back to repair generators 3 bases back from the front lines because of people like you who don't like to shoot people in a First Person SHOOTER. It's like redoing work that you already completed and shouldn't have to do unless your army is pushed back there. Was it a valid and somewhat realistic tactic? Sure. But people guard bases in real life whether enemies are there or not. In a First Person SHOOTER, most people don't want to do that. It isn't fun.

I lead a small outfit. I feel more relevant than ever because I can actually say "okay, the zerg needs to go here. We can set up defenses here and hold them off until reinforcements come or we get stomped. But at least we know they have to come here."

The real problem is the Bio Labs. These areas need to be by-pass-able. They are major choke points on the map and by their placements on the map they are not really fair.
Let me explain before you troll me.
Suarva bio lab has only one route in from the south so whoever has the northern spawn must take it to start a campaign south on the western side of the map.
Allatum bio lab also has only two route in and out but can be by-passed on both sides.
Rashnu bio lab has three route in and can be by-passed on it's western side.

So if say the VS has taken Suarva Bio lab they can effectively hold off a TR advance on the western side of the map indefinitely because the TR can't by-pass it.
I was in a fight for it last night, there were so many TR and VS at the Suarva bio lab that you could not really do anything. If you stepped out anywhere you would get hit either by the VS in front of you or your teammates behind you.
I'm sure there are those that want to see this kind of fight and I say more power to ya, but there are those that don't and should be able to get away from it if they so choose.
This particular problem can be solved by putting in a link between Camp Connery and Alkali shipping. This would make the Suarva bio lab by-passable as are the others.

In general I like the lattice but I think the OP has some valid points.

The refutations to the OP boil down to : "Stick to a part of the zerg and focus on one part of the zerg fight." Which is fine, but limiting.

I hope SOE adds a resource system that allows smaller squads the opportunity to cut or interrupt supply lines.

I also think hard spawn points should be added near bases that are not stops on the lattice network. Before the lattice, a commander had options of where to launch an attack on a major base. Now, there's generally one way (sub base) in only.

Just join up with the larger forces and focus on something specific:

- Sabotage enemy reinforcements by mining up roads leading to the main area of contention. When a tank column rolls through, pounce on them with rockets.
- Set up ambushes for enemy air space
- Hunt enemy AMSs
- Maintain control of one point of a larger base

If a small squad can't figure out how to be useful in this brave new lattice world then they are DOING IT WRONG. Ghost capping was lame, boring, irritating and distracting for too many scrub players. Now we have a system that will encourage better focus and unity. PS2 is designed to be a big battle experience.

Nevertheless, as I pointed out, small group can still be effective. They just can't act like chumps and wonder off into empty bases anymore. This is good.

So much this. Small outfits running one squad or less need to realise there are more objectives out there than the big one of just taking bases.

Last night we had a huge fight at Peris Amp. We set ourselves the task of taking out just one generator and then holding it. It took over an hour but in the end we succeeded and in the process we helped the VS as a whole take the base.

It was a lot of fun and what's more no ghost capping was involved and we got a bundle more certs.

1. if you feel that the big fights just "play themselves" you haven't really tried to shape them, you were just tagging along. these big fights are usually shaped by the guys cutting off reinforcements and clearing out resistance and/or securing your own reinforcements. this means the following things: hunt sunderers, kill every last beacon in the area, get some flash/ESF with scout radar up and use it to your best to locate and clear enemy hotspots, get a sunderer up - keep it near the fight AND alive, dispatch enemy forces that try to flank your positions.

2. you need a "defense matrix" to remind you about the tactical importance of taking an elevated firing position? really?

3. also flanking - the zerg might look like a huge omni-directional blob. but it isn't. it actually only knows one direction - forward. most of the things that happen in its flanks/back are often ignored. sure, individuals & smaller group of players might notice you and divert their attention towards you. oh hi, smallscale engagement!

4. a huge zerg/armored column is attacking one of your major installations? well, you will likely know already which path this zerg will take (conveniently these overlap often with roads). put up some mines, then relocate to the flank/back of the zerg. cut them off from reinforcements by killing vehicles straggling behind. take an overwatch position, harass/decimate the enemy and defend against those that want to clear you out. oh hey - suddenly you diverted some attention away from the main target.

Oh look, the type of forum poster that contributes nothing to this fourm, doesn't actually read the thread at all, and is the cancer of the community.

I bet you must be proud. People like you are why most other planetside 2 communities tend to look down on the official forums. Sadly, it's the only place I know of where the devs occasionally read things.

WoW... Really! And I suppose 30-50 people with half sitting in tanks shooting at a few guys trapped in the spawn room made you feel better.

Some of the best fights in the game get started when you go to defend a ghost cap. Those smaller fights may be all but gone now.

I guess I should re-focus the point of this thread.

Our outfit does not like to play in zerg/major battles all the time, because even when you consider flanking and a variety of other tactical options within that battle, there's not much to really do beyond those inter-battle tactics... especially since a VAST MAJORITY of locations on the map do not have any secondary objectives or tasks in which to do. This makes some of the only things of importance in any given battle are simply killing more efficiently or having the better angle, rather than accomplishing an important goal that is beyond just "kill the doods better". This is why games/mods like Dystopia, Enemy Territory and America's Army 2.8.X were so great - the focus was on doing the job, and doing it right (not necessarily killing), with a variety of interesting objectives. Killing was simply a means to an end to accomplish a higher goal.

On the other hand, more secondary objectives, towers (just like in Planetside 1) that didn't require lattice to capture and provided spawns for your team, etc all allow small outfits to actually have an impact on the strategy of the metagameplay without having to roll with the zerg to do it.

I can't understand why anyone could ever argue that strategic impact (not tactical, there is a big difference) is just as big as before for groups that have specialized, small forces with how the lattice is currently. And I can't understand why anyone would be against having more things that allow you to impact a fight that don't involve being apart of a larger battle.

Spec ops roles and small outfits were tons of fun in Planetside 1 precisely because you had the ability to make a strategic impact on the fight outside of the main march along the lattice, or if you wanted something different you also had the ability to make a tactical impact inside the major battles along with your main force. There was variety and choice.

Right now, PS2 only facilitates the latter, not the former.

Yes, there is still plenty of tactical options for smaller groups to play out still within a battle but covert-ops is less important, and smaller-level strategy on the overall impact your faction has on the map is solely determined by large forces and those major battles.

There are no organised tactics a small outfit can do on a large battle to make a difference? Like a wide flank to a hill to present a firing point there? Perhaps even the "scenic" route to get behind? What about mass LA + C4 sweep? Or everyone in a lib for some bombing runs?

Just because a zerg is attacking the same target as you does not mean you have to attack it in the same way.

If your looking for smaller fights then honestly I don't know what to say. Huge fights is why I got the game in the first place otherwise I'd play something else.

Did you read the post? I've edited it for clairty so it might be worth a re-read.

My point is that there is real gameplay value in allowing strategic depth to happen for a wide variety of outfit sizes and playstyles that don't only follow a zerg force. Big battles are nice but big battles are meaningless if that's all there is all the time. There is value in the small skirmish, or the covert gal-drop, or the feeling of making a real impact on a fight that is two hexes away with the actions you are doing where you currently are at.

If your playstyle only sees you doing constant zerg fights and you don't like doing smaller-scale that's fine. But everyone I play with likes a little more variety with what we do. Huge battles are fun, but constant wars of attrition gets grindy after a while, especially if you've been playing since beta and DOUBLE so if you've played planetside 1 and experienced the higher level of strategic play offered there.

Besides, battles in real life can be and ARE decided by the actions of the few in key locations rather than strictly whoever has the largest army. Sure having a huge army is a huge advantage, but it's the small stuff that can have a big impact as well. If they weren't we wouldn't have special forces, we wouldn't have SEALS/Marines, etc. Those roles are a necessary part of all warfare but planetside doesn't have much of a place for them at all at the moment. They are also the most exciting roles for me to play as, as I love the feeling of having an impact on something larger due to something that our little group did to help push the main forces forward just enough to save the day.

I disagree. I would say more but I was writing a longer post that was starting to rant and be rude. So I'm literally just gonna leave it at I disagree.