[Suggestion] Encourage players to build bases in locations that influence battles

I would like to thank my team for yesterday's base-building to the west of Geological Survey Camp: 2 to 3 Engineers repairing every single Phalanx despite being under constant NC siege, Glaive IPC punishing the rebel scum for almost 2 hours straight on the bridge, the whole team and the counter-zerg halting NC advancement until overwhelmed (read: R3KT by an organized platoon of like 30 Vanguards when the HIVE spun up to 100%).

It was an awesome experience overall, and spiced up the entire battlefield with really uncommon sights.

I was wondering what made this one different from most player-made bases, and I think I have a clear answer to that: this base was built with the sole intention of influencing the fight on the entire right lane of Esamir:

• Bunkers and walls were laid out on the top of the hill to apply a pressure on the road

• Glaive IPC was set-up so that it would have a clear shot at some of the more common choke-points and counter-base locations (which eventually emerged, but got squashed)

• Phalanxes were installed where they could hammer entrenched enemies

This is the clear opposite of a base that is designed to be hidden in some random hole in the terrain just to squeeze in a few additional VPs while hoping to not get noticed. Considering this, I would like to ask if it would be somehow possible to encourage players to build bases that are supposed to stand out and attract enemy attention at frequently populated zones. A few of my ideas:

• New module, the Coolant Dispenser, which increases heat capacity for turrets, with a 50% bonus when the base is placed directly on a lattice link or road, and no bonus when the base is further than e.g. 250m from the nearest base/road/lattice-link, with a linear bonus interpolation in-between

• Allow players to place 2 gates instead of 1 to allow more efficient base layouts on the middle of a road, or make the Sunderer Garage and the gate take up the same place and allow 2 to be placed total (considering people frequently use the Sunderer Garage for a makeshift gate, this would be great for everyone)

• Add a bonus radius to modules (AI, Repair, Shield) proportional to the proximity of the base to a base/road/lattice-link

• Significantly reduce the radius of no-build zones around bases

• Further reduce the radius of the Glaive IPC and Orbital Strike no-target zones so they are essentially only prevented from targeting the absolute insides of bases, but e.g. not the directly adjacent roads (a good example of this currently is Tawrich Recycling, where the east gate is essentially on the edge of the no-target zone)

• Reduce Cortium cost for spawning (spawn tube) and pulling vehicles, with a bonus proportional to the proximity of the base to a base/road/lattice-link, up to a 50% bonus for bases placed on a lattice link or road directly

• Make some of the absolutely blatant off-grid locations no-build zones (those areas that have no reason to be visited ever, except for a HIVE hunting team, but they are still exceptionally well defensible)

• Increase Cortium drain-rate the more distant a base is from bases/roads/lattice-links, up to a 10x faster drain rate for absolutely off-grid bases

Player made bases are pretty hardy as it stands now. Most well built bases are impenetrable to all but the large, well organized assaults. We are veering into a strange territory where people playing the erector set game have more influence into how victory is measured. To further that influence would be a mistake, in my opinion.

I see bases built in battle-influencing positions all the time. It is great fun- unless it stands in your way and is shooting at you.

Sure, but this is besides the question, as we have off-grid bases being built all the time just as often.

i think a problem is that if you try to build a base somewhere useful then you risk getting the base destroyed before you even begin XD

building a base well away from everything is so much safer

that being said, i LOVE building an AV turret high on a cliff and then obliterating any tanks and sunderers within render range
i was doing this on cobalt a little earlier today!
i took out atleast 4 sundies (several which were the deployed spawn point sieging our base)
also killed several MBTs and tickled a lib

i'd love if they removed no construct zones so we could really experiment with construction as a way to fortify lattice bases

Part of the problem, that discourages this, is that the no-deploy zones are so large, and overlapping, that they cover many places that would be awesome to set up a couple of walls and a bunker to provide defensive cover fire from. Coupled with some areas between bases being terrible construction areas - there's only really a few places that this works. Additionally: getting a base in the right place to stop an advance, when an enemy push often just redeploys to the other side of the map or you're too close and get shot up in the middle of building so can't actually make the base - these make it frequently unrewarding to try.

It's also be nice if the pieces fit together better, there's so many gaps even if you put them as snug as it'll allow - even just adding a 'snap to' feature where a piece you're trying to place can snap to the closest other piece so you haven't left an infiltrator sized hole between them.

But yes, its fun when it works, it just doesn't work nearly often enough to be consistently fun, or engaging for many players to build bases for combat. It's much easier to stick a hive in a hole, cover it with a shield or two and let it run.

By off the grid you mean map exploit, or bases built in such a way as to deter or make more difficult enemy attack?

If it's the latter, then one should be embarrassed to think that asking for mercy is better than doing what it takes to destroy it.

Well, look, you don't build a base when the enemy zerg is already next door, you do it well in advance.

While I think construction should be easier in terms of placement...
Imagine if you could make proper sealed bases at present.
In order to break the walls, you need to destroy the repair modules which are inside the base, if not even an infil could get in , only LA's could attempt to enter, whom'd be gunned down by Spitfires, the Base turrets and the singular defenders.


IE make it even easier for a base to be near immortal, without a platoon charging down from a Galaxy into the interior.
Which prays for AA from said base to be lacking, Defenders to be absent, and the modules not be guarded..

Fortify bases to the point where it takes a Platoon to cap a near empty base?
Presently, PMBs are murderous.
Imagine Lattice bases with automated Turrets a-plenty, while nice for the defenders (finally able to defend the lattice)
It means every Lattice base would require PMB pieces around it or not require a near zerg to cap it.

Your kind of base at least has a point beyond win the map, which I can appreciate.

Coolant dispenser, would enable Automated turrets & player-controlled turrets near endless fire, if near a lattice base.
Which could be either brutally effective or near useless.

Bonus radius to repair, Shield & AI modules?
So they cover even more ground & overlap?

Very hard limiter right there, but lovely I guess?

If I recall, they are already working on Cortium Taps, which hold a chunk of the cort supply, with the base drain being severe without these Taps.
But that's an interesting dynamic you got right there - But who'd build far from the lattice with all these perks?
As defense of these bases would be a lot easier considering longer-firing periods, better repair radial area, easier spawning.

It would merely provide a more reliable and flexible defense against a single threat, as the turret will overheat eventually anyways and now with a proportionally longer cooldown time.

Yes, and I'm convinced these are a pretty much required boost against an advancing force if a base isn't to be stomped in 2 minutes.

Not many people, and I guess that's the whole point here, no? To build bases in locations where they actually influence the fight.

So that the guns can unload for longer into targets?
With a little bit of trigger control, you can kinda nuke any target pretty easily with AV.
AI is AI...

You do realize, that presently it takes a good Legion to engage a PMB that is built proper right?
The Repair Modules literally make the walls immortal to everything but deployed Prowlers.
AI modules having a greater range mean it's easier to place them inside buildings, and make it even harder to stop the Turrets from killing everything without even an operator.
Shield Modules block off lots of critical equipment, but are the least dangerous of the three.
I'm just happy you didn't say Sky Shield.

But with these perks, these bases could hold off easier than some of the more remote locations ironically.
Hell, some of the better locations are close to the lattice.

Fair point, though I feel that the repair/shield type modules should drain Cortium faster while actually repairing/shielding - thus allowing for a proper siege of a base. Shoot it till it runs down.

Also, you're forgetting GSD sunderers - I've never tested it, but I would hope that they can slip through the gate shields.

Well if you can manage to get a Sundy to such a gate, without it exploding while having the shield-bypass, do tell us the results.
As a proper sealed base is hellish.

One would think those modules would drain faster when in heavy use.
But it still is a literal watch-paint-dry kind of siege, after the whole towers of death are dealt with.

but sometimes you'll do that and your team starts to perform better and leave your base behind

There is a problem with such kind of basebuilding. There is not enough place between some facilities to build bases on the way, where attackers and defenders clashing. So i suggest to reduce nodeploy zones or expand map, addind deploy spase between some facilities.

If devs would remove construction invulnerability because of repair module, maybe. For now it would require huge tank zerg and infantry assault in order to break through.