So this was an idea I had a while ago that could change the way infiltrators are used in competitive outfit play. there is a lot to explain, which I may not have covered so feel free to ask questions The NS Eavesdropper: This hand held tool for the infiltrator allows you to wirelessly hack into and listen to enemy communications. It allows you hear enemy chat and see enemy text.this will allow the infiltrator to see/hear enemy tactics and orders, which than then be relayed back to your squad/outfit/platoon. It will cost 1000 certs or 700 station cash. How will it work?: the Infiltrator will sneak up on an enemy player with the Eavesdropper equipped. when "in range" you hack into the enemy players headset by pointing the tool at the enemy players head and pulling the trigger (whilst uncloaked). it will take about 2 seconds to lock on and hack. So I have hacked their headset, now what?: now for 1 minute you should be able to see all region say, orders, squad chats, platoon chats, leader chats and outfit chats the hacked player receives (note that you will not be able to see their /tell messages as they are personal). In addition you can also hear any squad/platoon chats, and command channel chats that they can hear. you will continue to hear/ see this even if that player dies (but remains within range). you can only see/hear them and cannot communicate with them well that sounds good/awful, are there any drawbacks to this device?: yes, you have to stay within "range" of the hacked player (or else the signal cuts out). this range should be 60m away (but if you think it should be further/closer comment). also the hack only lasts for 1 minute before you are having to hack them/someone else again. If you die the signal cuts out immediately. If you are hit with an EMP grenade, the signal cuts out. you have to communicate any information you discover through your Eavesdropper back to your allies by your own means (because only you can hear/see enemy communications). what about vehicles?: vehicles can have their comms hacked as well. because there is no specific area where comms receivers are kept on PS2 vehicle models, just pointing the Eavesdropper at a vehicle that is in range and achieving lock will hack its comms. you will still have to be within the same range as you would infantry to keep signal, so if the vehicle suddenly drives off, you lose your signal. keeping within range on a flash will counter this. whilst you can hack air vehicles, they will move out of range too fast to bother Will the enemy/I notice if someone hacks them/me?: the tool makes no noise when achieving lock on an enemy, but the enemy will hear loud static for a split second if they have been hacked Uses: this device encourages the infiltrator to become more of an espionage class. hacking into comms, and reporting back enemy tactics/orders to your empire could be invaluable if you are playing as a competitive squad/outfit/platoon. It will have very limited use to the lonewolf sniper or SMG cloaker, so they should keep their current tools. This is primarily aimed at stalker infiltrators who want the thrill of behind lines espionage. also there is the hilarious potential to see what funny random things the enemy speak about. this is all about gathering and reporting back the enemies "secret" tactics, not about killing them in their droves and isnt for the K/D fanatics out there. Issues about this that I cant work out : how to reward infiltrators who use this. with recon darts and motion spotters, you gain xp for detected enemies killed by allies. I currently cant think of a way an infiltrator will be rewarded for using the Eavesdropper other than foiling the plans of a well organised outfit. Well that's an overview of my latest idea folks, let me know what you think and if there should be any improvements to it
As awesome as listening in to players' comms would be, it simply doesn't work out because people can just use third party VOIP to communicate.
This is certainly true and is a factor that could leave this concept broken. That said, generally only outfits use their own 3rd party VOIP for their members only. I find that outfits will use the in-game chat and orders to co-ordinate tactics and strategy with other outfits, so this still may be a viable option, even if is not perfect .
As a member of a large outfit, this thing is damn near useless. If I were to be hit by it, nothing would be impacted because the 666'th uses TS3 for VoiP and renders this thing null.
As an item it's useless, as a general ability, say, to hack a comm tower and then view enemy command chat, it'd be a welcome addition.
If it would get added, the comm towers would be destroyable with two rounds out of an LMG, or a few rockets, and they would disappear from the fight in the first minute. Like everything else infiltrators are "supposed" to hack. Or they will be moved inside the spawn room. Fun aside, most people use TS. So it would only be useful of you want to listen to what crappy music the other faction is broadcasting over the built in VoIP.
How about instead of getting what hacked player can hear, you could get what he can see. There is a lot of ingame information seen only by few players which can be useful to know. Like size of platoon the hacked player is in, position of their members, location of the squad rally points and beacons. These could be also distributed to your other squadmates map and minimap. And if the hacked player plays solo, he could behave like a better, moving motion spotter, with much less duration (from ability itself and also from average lifetime of a player).
It's a good concept to emphasize the infiltrator class, but most of the time people just talk about random things. Very seldom do I see legit tactics used in chat.
The Eavesdropper really wouldn't work, considering that so much of the chat is filled with spam, people yelling about TK's, or just saying "Sorry", "Thanks", and "I NEED A MEDIC/AMMO"
The quick voice chat, aka the "V" button, is audible to anyone if they're close enough, just like spot calls can be heard by the other factions. Just pointing that out.
