Empire at War: Navy or Army?

MCHuskie · Post by **MCHuskie** » Thu Jan 26, 2006 11:43 pm

OK, so the demo is out and you've played it to death. (If not, you should have).

The question I want to raise is: is EaW more suited as a Navy platform (as currently planned) or an Army one - or maybe both?

In terms of style of gameplay and skill required, it sides closer to the Army and Galactic Battlegrounds. Good though they are, I don't see the space battles as being different enough from land battles (or a big enough part of the game) to form the basis of a Navy platform. It's true the Navy needs a new platform - but is EaW suited to the Navy, whose pilots are used to and trained for just that - piloting?

I don't seem to have the option of creating a poll... so just post opinions.

Reservist Foley · Post by **Reservist Foley** » Fri Jan 27, 2006 2:09 am

Well there's the Galactic part, which is a huge part of the game, the Space action and the ground... Let's see. I can see it going any way, or both. I wonder what will draw more people in terms of recruitment, though. Are people more likely to sign up for the Navy portion or the Army portion of the game?

Munro Burton · Post by **Munro Burton** » Fri Jan 27, 2006 8:52 am

At the last meeting, they said it would go in as a Navy platform, as the Army has had lots of platforms suited to it recently. Let's see the last games added to each Branch and when the game in question was released...

Army: Battlefront 2, 2005
Navy: X-Wing Alliance, 1998

As you can see, the Navy needs something new badly.

As for the Navy's piloting thing, I do have a suggestion - to create fleets of Gunships, Corvettes, Frigates and other types of small capital ships that barely carry starfighters at all. Give them to the EAW players. I can already see a lot of flaws in this idea, however, so it's up to HC on whether or not they want to try something like this.

There's another option, to give EAW to both the Army and Navy. I would prefer this the most, but most people will probably go Navy just for the higher ranks... Ensign is equivalent to the highest rank a Company XO can attain and nine whole grades above the lowest non-Army rank.

Edit: Then again, in the Army, there are plenty of opportunities for promotion. After all, I did work my way up to Staff Sergeant before I went mustang.

Mustang wrote:Navy-speak for an officer who began their naval career as an enlisted member and worked their way upward until earning a commission. Mustang officers are commonly among the hardest of the ship's hard-asses; on the other hand though, having once been enlisted, they tend to be more sympathetic to the plight of enlisted sailors than college officers.

Never mind the Navy bits.

Zwibble · Post by **Zwibble** » Fri Jan 27, 2006 1:07 pm

I agree that as an RTS, it's more like what we usually have for the Army. However, there's no reason that the Navy can't branch out beyond mere flight sims - I think that's one of the best reasons to have this as a Navy platform, actually. Currently there are FPS and RTS options for the Army, but only flight sims for the Navy, which leaves Navy pilots with fewer options when it comes to combat.

As for the "both" option that was mentioned: we considered it, but in the past that sort of thing has gone over horribly. We don't want to implement something that's not going to work.

And as for which portion people are going to sign up for, as Lieutenant Foley speculated: I assume that both parts of the game will be used, regardless of which division it falls unter. I'd have qualms about letting ground-pounders near our beautiful ships, but any Ensign with half a brain should be able to figure out where the enemy is and shoot in that direction - yet another reason why making it a Navy platform is a better choice.

In all seriousness, though, I don't see why sims couldn't be made for both the space- and ground-combat portions of the game, even if it's listed as Navy only.

PS - Army types: Please don't attempt to kick my wussy Navy butt, or I shall be forced to break your arms. Thank you.

Munro Burton · Post by **Munro Burton** » Fri Jan 27, 2006 6:39 pm

Worry not, fellow Army types - she didn't mention the Royal Guard! Hmmm. Who to send.

Ah, yes. He should do for irony... Praetorian Guardsman-2 gets the job!

Onto more serious matters, I'm definitely going to be playing both parts of the game. Since it doesn't have to be your primary platform for you to use it... well, the only thing it would do is fill up the Navy rosters. We have two Star Destroyers flitting around with only two squadrons each. Meanwhile, I Corps has six Companies(Not counting the vacant RC and BFII Companies).

Hmm... I just saw a few of the screenshots. For the first time. And they look awesome.

*downloads the demo*

LC La Forge · Post by **LC La Forge** » Sat Jan 28, 2006 4:59 am

There's another option, to give EAW to both the Army and Navy.

The EH tried something like this. The SV tried something like this. It failed. Both times. Miserably.

So really not an option.

Anyway, I think we'll just up using normal squadrons and implementing it similar to how TIE/XvT/XWA are now. Makes the most sense from a KISS point of view.

Xenophon Ualtar · Post by **Xenophon Ualtar** » Sat Jan 28, 2006 6:18 pm

I think that we should fight it out. The Army can have whatever weapons they want from their arsonal, and the same goes for the Navy and their weapons.

Kenseu · Post by **Kenseu** » Sat Jan 28, 2006 6:56 pm

My suggestion probably won't be wanted but here it goes: restructure the GE. Flight sims should be for the Navy, RTSs should be for the Army, and FPSs should be for the Stormtrooper legion.

Just a thought.

LC La Forge · Post by **LC La Forge** » Sat Jan 28, 2006 7:44 pm

Kenseu: That doesn't solve the original problem of the Navy having NO NEW PLATFORM for 6-ish years.

MCHuskie · Post by **MCHuskie** » Sat Jan 28, 2006 8:31 pm

Xenophon Ualtar wrote:I think that we should fight it out. The Army can have whatever weapons they want from their arsonal, and the same goes for the Navy and their weapons.

Sure, we'll take a few Star Destroyers... throw in some Carrack Cruisers, Nebulon-Bs, see if we can't work out where the Red Claw disappeared to, and you can point all your BlasTech E-11s at them and see what happens.

LC La Forge · Post by **LC La Forge** » Sat Jan 28, 2006 8:38 pm

Oh, I'll tell you what'll happen. La Forge will have to do a major database cleanup to remove all the dead Army bodies from the active listing.

Munro Burton · Post by **Munro Burton** » Sat Jan 28, 2006 10:20 pm

*mutters as he looks in catalogues for surface-to-space turbolasers*

Gah! Too expensive.

*pauses, ponders*

If we Army people are aboard ship already... Hah! Your precious Star Destroyers have no internal defenses! In fact, we Army people are your internal defenses! But I think what La Forge will have to do is a major database cleanup to remove all the dead Navy and Army bodies. Since one of you fool Line Captains will probably open fire on your own ships

LC La Forge · Post by **LC La Forge** » Sat Jan 28, 2006 10:45 pm

Munro Burton wrote:If we Army people are aboard ship already... Hah!

This is why you are no longer called the "Nemesis Brigade".

Post by **Fel** » Sun Jan 29, 2006 2:06 am

Kenseu wrote:My suggestion probably won't be wanted but here it goes: restructure the GE. Flight sims should be for the Navy, RTSs should be for the Army, and FPSs should be for the Stormtrooper legion.

Just a thought.

What Kenseu proposes is in fact the official policy of Grand Admiral Daemon, originally...

CPT Bane · Post by **CPT Bane** » Sun Jan 29, 2006 5:53 pm

I think it could go either way. I do like the idea of reintroducing the legion, separating the fps, rts, and sims, but I also agree that the Navy needs some new material to work with. I say the navy should get it.

However, I am a lowly Army LCP with no real worth or opinions, so feel free to do whatever.